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Faith in Action

Medical marijuana and the church

Shawn Berkebile, at first glance, is exactly what one might expect as a central Pennsylvania Lutheran pastor. He’s a mild-mannered guy with glasses who serves a beautiful small-town congregation, the kind with a cemetery…

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Faith in Action

Axis of stability

Change is constant: seasons come and go; people are born, people die; jobs drift; cars break down. The news changes daily—some new horror to try to explain to kids. Their…

October 2016 news
Faith in Action

October 2016 news

Top-notch preaching most attracts people That’s the conclusion of a Pew Research Center study, released in August, that asked 5,000 people about their search for a new church or other…

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Faith in Action

Alive with history

As the ELCA prepares to spend the next year observing the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, several ELCA congregations can celebrate their individual rich histories. Ten churches, mostly on the…

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Faith in Action

Presiding Bishop calls on members to speak out against domestic violence

October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth A. Eaton urges members to speak out against the sin of domestic violence.    

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Faith in Action

ELCA, Luther on advocacy

Luther and Reformation leaders on advocacy The Forgotten Luther: Reclaiming the Social-Economic Dimension of the Reformation, edited by Carter Lindberg and Paul Wee (Lutheran University Press, 2016) Chapters in this…

Witness as a whole church
Faith in Action

Witness as a whole church

ELCA Advocacy works to connect ELCA members with advocacy initiatives and to provide opportunities for them to give voice to their faith through these initiatives. One such opportunity is the…

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Faith in Action

Advocacy as witness

In Washington, D.C., Patricia Kisare, ELCA program director for international policy advocacy, meets with members of Congress to present the church’s concerns about foreign aid and U.S. food programs in…

Stand up to stigma
Faith in Action

Stand up to stigma

When Grace Evangelical Lutheran in Oak Ridge, Tenn., began looking for new ways to serve its congregation and community, longtime member Cleva Marrow didn’t hesitate to speak up. Marrow, who’s…

The future is here
Faith in Action

The future is here

The ELCA is on pace to experience a major shortfall in full-time clergy. Parish pastors are retiring in record numbers, according to current data and projections from ELCA Research and…