Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries

Two Thrivent representatives organized an event last Saturday night to benefit Lutheran organizations working for justice for LGBTQ people.

The representatives, Gregory Jahnke and Judith Dancer, are opposed to recent Thrivent Financial changes that make the groups Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries and ReconcilingWorks ineligible for Thrivent funding.

Here’s what Greg Jahnke had to say about the event,

“The wonderful Karen Hirst and Tom Shaw entertained our guests at Martuni’s in San Francisco for a ‘fun-draiser’  for Reconciling Works and Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries.  Judith Dancer and I are openly queer Thrivent reps standing in opposition to Thrivent’s new benevolent giving program restrictions. Our guests gave $7,000 for these great organizations! Thanks to everyone who donated. You are making a difference.”

We think Greg and Judith are fabulous! We stand with them in their role as Thrivent representatives who have done much for the LGBTQ community and our organization. We have been remembering in prayer Greg, Judith, and other LGBTQ-identified Thrivent employees who have been hurt by the recent Thrivent decisions.

Thanks to these wonderful supporters, ELM will receive even more than we did through Thrivent Choice Dollars in 2013. These funds will help our efforts to ensure that LGBTQ people called to rostered ministry in the Lutheran church are affirmed and supported in their calls.

Stay tuned for how you can get involved in a continued “on-line event!”

Guest blog by Proclaim member Rachel Anderson.  Rachel is a student at the Lutheran School of Theology at Philadelphia, finishing her internship year at Lord of Mercy Lutheran Church in Sparks, Nevada.

On June 29, 2013 my wife, Carrie, and I committed our lives to each other in the presence of God, our families, and our friends. It was almost a year earlier, and with much trepidation, that I came out to my wonderful candidacy liaison. We were on a weekend long retreat on the Connecticut shoreline and I was about to return to Philadelphia for my second year of seminary in just a few days. I had not kept my sexuality a secret from my candidacy committee, or the seminary, or anyone really. But I knew I had to share this part of my life with these people, out of a responsibility to Carrie, my church, and the many people who still struggle to find acceptance among God’s people. I kind of laugh when I think about the conversation we had. “I’m getting married,” I said, very matter-of-factly. “That’s great!” He said. “But I’m getting married to a woman,” and I was sure his smile was about to fade. “Even better!” he said, and gave me a great big hug.

Experiences like that confirm for me, over and over again, that the church is moving forward. They are also confirmation that ministries like Proclaim and ELM continue to be vitally important for the body of Christ. No one should have to doubt their place at the table. No one should ever be afraid that their gifts for leadership are not welcome in the church for something as inconsequential as how they were born or whom they were born to love.

But in the year 2014, for many, many… many people and organizations, one’s sexual orientation or gender identity is not inconsequential. Coming from a loving and accepting family that never batted an eye when I came out, dealing with the slow-moving church has been heart wrenching at times. During my junior year of seminary I was turned down by three potential internship sites because I am openly gay, and Carrie and I took this rejection pretty hard. Maybe I would never go on internship; maybe I would never get a chance to be a leader within the church. Maybe we were racking up all this debt just to find out that the church would never have a place for us at the table (or in the pulpit). The feeling is akin to, I’m guessing, being the last puppy in the litter to get adopted. I watched all of my seminary friends accept internships at various churches while I waited, and waited.

Looking back on that time, I am so glad for those experiences. Just over a month after we were married, Carrie and I left our friends and family in the northeast and drove across the country to Sparks, Nevada for my internship at Lord of Mercy Lutheran Church. I never could have predicted moving to the west coast for anything, much less internship. We have quickly fallen in love with northern Nevada, but mostly we have fallen in love with this absolutely fantastic congregation. These are people who have taken their calling to be the body of Christ seriously. They love to serve their neighbor, they have a deep faith, and they take their commitment to raise up new leaders in the church very seriously. If only every church were like Lord of Mercy, only so happy to not only accept, but to welcome an LGBTQ leader!

My time at Lord of Mercy will always be one of the most profound blessings in my life, and it would not be possible without the generous assistance of ELM. Were it not for ELM, Carrie and I would likely still be wondering if there is a place for us in the church. Were it not for ELM, I wouldn’t be able to preach the Good News to people who not only love to hear it, but need to hear it, especially from a person who knows just how good the news really is. In many ways serving Lord of Mercy has been a spiritual resurrection for me, and it has certainly resurrected my faith in the progress the ELCA is making to be sure that all people can claim their place at the table without fear. All leaders can preach the Good News and know it is for them too, and they are in a place of safety and love.

If it were not for ELM, I never would have met a sixteen year old girl in Reno, Nevada a few months back. We got connected one way or another through the church, though she had never been to Lord of Mercy. In our first conversation she was convinced that being gay was the ultimate sin, and that God could not possibly love her the way she is. If not for ELM, and my internship in Sparks, she might still be convinced that there is something wrong with her. But because she came to a church leader who has been where she was, and who could show her a God and a community that accepts her unconditionally, she can smile again, and she can be herself, proudly. ELM and Proclaim touch more lives than probably any of us are aware. I thank God for this truly extraordinary ministry, and live in hope that the day is soon coming when no person will live in fear and all will truly be welcome in this place.

 You support leaders like Rachel with your gift to ELM. Rachel and other seminarians receive pastoral care and support through Proclaim and Accompaniment. Lord of Mercy Lutheran Church received a small grant from ELM to support Rachel’s internship. Learn more or give to support leaders like Rachel at www.elm.org.

Pentecost is Sunday.  Divided tongues as of fire, the sound like a rush of violent wind, people speaking all kinds of different languages, but all speaking about God’s deeds of power.  And Peter recalling the prophet Joel, “In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young [ones] shall see visions, and your old [ones] shall dream dreams.” (Acts 2:17)

This weekend we join in celebrations of God’s Spirit pouring out upon two members of the Proclaim community:

 

Laura Kuntz will be ordained to the ministry of Word and Sacrament and installed Saturday June 7th at Calvary Lutheran Church in Lansing, Michigan.  Laura has been called to serve as Associate Pastor for Children, Youth, and Young Adults at Calvary Lutheran Church and St. Stephen Lutheran Church in Lansing, MI.  She will also serve as Assistant Pastor for Youth Ministries at All Saints Episcopal Church in East Lansing, MI.

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Rev. Dr. Dawn Roginski will be installed as the pastor of Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity in Vallejo, CA on Pentecost, Sunday June 8^th.

“When they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness.” Acts 4:31

We join in the bold witness and celebration of Laura, Dawn, and the communities of Calvary Lutheran, St. Stephen Lutheran, All Saints Episcopal and Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity!

As we celebrate, we continue lift up the 21 Proclaim members who are awaiting first call and pray the Spirit’s work in bringing together gifted and called LGBTQ leaders and bold communities of faith to prophesy, vision and dream together.

Your generous gifts keep pastors like Dawn and Laura surrounded by a supportive community of peers, congregations and allies.

A guest blog by Proclaim member Rev. Cindy Crane

Rev. Cindy Crane was a member of the historic Extraordinary Roster and was reinstated to the ELCA clergy roster following the 2009 changes in ministry policy.

“You are not only responsible for what you say but for what you don’t say.”   Martin Luther

I am inspired by our tradition’s many quotes and writings that direct us to love our neighbor. And it makes a difference to be doing advocacy work from a faith perspective with my ordination fully recognized. I realized just how much I valued doing advocacy work as a pastor within my first few weeks working as the director of the Lutheran Office for Public Policy in Wisconsin (LOPPW) beginning in January 2014.

I was very attracted to the LOPPW position and thought I could draw on my background both in parish ministry and the work I’ve had in secular nonprofits. However, I didn’t expect to feel this – a sense of wholeness and of having returned from a sort of exile, an experience I only associated with going back into parish ministry if that would ever happen. But being part of the ELCA with a team of people around the country praying and grappling with scripture, social statements and current public policies when looking at injustice feels just right at this time in my life. I am thankful.

LOPPW is one of about 14 state public policy offices that receive funding from the ELCA. Four of those offices, including Wisconsin’s, have directors that are churchwide employees. ELCA World Hunger supports us to focus on hunger issues, which create a large umbrella. Some of the offices advocate for just policies related to the environment and taxes as well as for safety net programs and laws that can move in the direction of eradicating hunger. Right now LOPPW’s priorities are youth experiencing homelessness, human sex trafficking and Wisconsin’s plan for how to use its tax excess. In the case of youth who experience homelessness with their families we also support a higher minimum wage. Kudos to Bishop Eaton for writing a letter asking for a higher minimum wage to all of the U.S. senators.

LOPPW’s advocacy is on the level of public policy. We build relationships with political leaders and expand an advocacy network of ELCA members across the state. We also join with other faith-based groups and secular organizations to deepen our impact and support the efforts of others who act as instruments of God’s peace.

Needing to be open about who I am as a lesbian and having my ordination fully recognized before taking another position in the church were both a part of my activism. I don’t judge others who take different paths; I was completely to partially closeted for 10 years in the parish. I didn’t leave the ministry and not look back at the church but I didn’t look back at contradictions that wore at my spirit. I appreciate engaging with paradox, but not confusion.

Thanks to a grant from Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries a couple of years ago, I was able to start a part-time ministry 14 years after leaving the ministry. That ministry helped to crack the church door back open for me.    Now I feel graced to have returned this way to a full-time call with my activism in tact and in wonder of how God moves us to be advocates for others.

Check us out at www.loppw.org and like us on Facebook (look for LOPPW)!

by Amalia Vagts, Executive Director

I offered this reflection on opening night of the 2014 Proclaim Retreat. I’m sharing it here as a way of inviting you into a bit of “retreat” time in your day.

I want to welcome you to the 2014 Proclaim Retreat and to say a few words about three things  – community, change, and Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries.

This is the 4^th Proclaim retreat. And it’s the 20^th or so gathering of openly LGBTQ rostered leaders and seminarians. I think three of the folks who attended that first one in the 1990’s are here. Many of them are still active in the Proclaim community.

Community
What do we mean when we say “community?” Proclaim community, LGBTQ community. It often conjures up the idea of a fixed group with clear edges – someone is in it; someone is out of it.

I think it is more helpful to think of this word as dynamic… think of the Holden Village community. I often talk about being “part of the Holden community” in the fall of 2005. The beauty of the Holden community is that it turns over nearly every day during high season. A bus comes in, and a bus goes out. Yet the community finds values and truths that remain constant.

If you are new to this community, I urge you to not imagine that you need to do something specific to become “part” of it. You are it. If it is your first time here, I encourage you to know that you come with some of the answers to questions we’ve been asking. And if you have been coming for 25 years, I encourage you to see that you come with some of the questions we still need to ask. This community, the Proclaim community, extends back long before the word “Proclaim” was associated with it and it will continue, I hope, long into the future reflecting new shared values and truths.

Change
The Proclaim community has experienced tremendous change in the last 5 years.  When a group grows or changes, we always lose things as we gain other things. This gathering is not what it was for those who gathered in the early 1990’s. There can be sadness in that and it’s important to name that. We need to remember always why we change and to celebrate what has come from that.

Each of you is here. Look around this room. Take a quick mental selfie. YOU are here.

And that is what we are celebrating. We are a dynamic community that continues to experience enormous change. It will be through naming this, honoring it, talking about it and moving through it together that we remain flexible and grow into new ways of being church. When you speak out about what is working or not working, you help the whole community evolve.

Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries
Why does this organization even exist? Well, all justice and social movements exist in response to some form of injustice. If sexual orientation and gender identity and expression were non-issues in our church, there would be no need for Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries. We  name the injustice. Our church suffers from the sins of homophobia, heterosexism, and sexism.

Later on this weekend we are going to learn from the brilliant Alexia Salvatierra. Two years ago, I did an exercise in one of her workshops that clarified my vision for this work. Alexia talks about meeting the world’s lie with God’s dream. For far too long, the world and the church have told the lie that LGBTQ people are lesser and inherently sinful.  You were faithful to God’s call through that lie. And now, some are telling a new lie – that we’re “all the same.” God’s dream is that we are wonderfully made. We are each, wonderfully made in God’s divine image and God’s dream is that we are not lesser than or inherently sinful.  God’s dream is that we are unique. And you understand that. Your are fabulous. Jesus teaches that the Body of Christ is comprised of many parts. We are not all the same – our diversity is the very thing that brings beauty and strength.  I love a simple vase of yellow tulips. It’s so pretty. But it is the dazzling bouquet that captivates and inspires me.

Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries is here to share God’s dream about LGBTQ people called to rostered ministry. We exist to affirm and support you and your ministries. We celebrate you. Proclaim is one important part of that work – as rostered leaders, you have been set apart for distinct ministry in this church. And we proclaim God’s love and seek justice in order to affirm and support you in that calling in the face of the world’s lies about you.

The 2^nd  part of ELM’s work is candidacy accompaniment. Through this program, we provide particular accompaniment – which can at times include advocacy – as you negotiate the candidacy process. In this way ELM affirms and supports those pursuing rostered leadership in this church and we proclaim God’s love and seek justice in this process.

The 3^rd major part of work is Ministry Engagement – affirming and supporting those ministries who are allies in this work – those calling and those seeking to call LGBTQ rostered leaders.

This is what we’re trying to say with these shirts that say “Faithful. Fabulous.” You have been astonishingly faithful to a call that has not been easy for many of you. We celebrate that. And you ARE fabulous and we celebrate and encourage your fabulousness!

I invite you to be faithful – and fabulous.

(Edited from a previous version for clarity).

In their own words, hear what some of the 80 Proclaim members and families who gathered last week for the 2014 Proclaim Retreat had to say after 4 days of Faith Rooted Organizing Training, worship at the lake, dynamic workshops, conversations with new and old friends and colleagues, laughter, and community with faithful and fabulous people of God.

“The 2014 Proclaim retreat was among the finest professional conferences I have attended as a pastor.” – Rev. Anita Hill

“More than any other group of clergy with whom I gather, this is the one that most reflects and shines with the new life of the Risen Christ.” – Rev. Mark Erson

“This was my first Proclaim Retreat and it was amazing!” – Becky Goche, Wartburg Seminary

“Our speakers reminded us that the spirit is calling us to work against remaining injustice both against us and others throughout out church.” Gretchen Rode, First Call Candidate

“The retreat affords me the the opportunity to uplift and be uplifted by others in this ministry that can be so isolating at times.” Paul Johnson, Wartburg Seminary

The retreat and connections “have had an invigorating effect on me.” Jay Berry, Lutheran School of Theology at Philadelphia

“Proclaim fills me with the patience, the vision, and the love to continue working for my place and for the places for all those who are still on an exile’s journey.” Tim Feiertag, First Call Candidate

“I have a new awareness of the gifts we have to offer the church to help heal that which is broken.” Diana Linden-Johnson

“I really feel named and proclaimed.” Gus Barnes, Jr. Wartburg Seminary

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Next Year’s Proclaim Gathering:  April 17-20, 2015, Stony Point, NY

Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries (ELM) invites Lutheran seminarians who publicly identify as LGBTQ to apply to be the 2014 Joel R. Workin Scholar.

Applications are due Friday, June 20.

ELM affirms and supports LGBTQ rostered leaders and those pursuing a call to rostered leadership while engaging allied congregations and ministries. ELM is the custodian of an endowment fund established in 1995 to honor the memory of Joel Raydon Workin.  Joel was one of the three gay seminarians who came out to their Lutheran candidacy committees in 1989 (and were subsequently refused ordination). This act of faithfulness was the spark that ignited our movement of resistance within the ELCA and part of what led to the August 2009 change in ELCA ministry policies.

Each year, Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries names a Joel R. Workin Memorial Scholar. This award comes with a financial scholarship to a LGBTQ seminarian who embodies Joel’s passion for justice and faith in his or her life and ministry. In addition, the Scholar will be invited throughout the year to be involved with various ELM activities.

2014 marks the 19th anniversary of Joel’s passing from AIDS.  This year, ELM will award a $2,500 grant to a seminary student who meets the eligibility criteria and submits a qualifying application. The increased award is the result of increased contributions to the fund. Thank you to all Workin Fund donors! Previous recipients include the Rev. Jen Rude, the Rev. Matt James, the Rev. Julie Boleyn, Laura Kuntz, Emily Ewing, Rebecca Seely, Asher O’Callahan, and Gretchen Colby Rode.

Eligibility – The eligible student must be a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer seminary or divinity school student who has demonstrated gifts for ordained or rostered lay ministry and seeks to fulfill their vocation as a publicly identified LGBTQ Lutheran rostered leader. The student must be a member of Proclaim, the professional community of publicly-identified LGBTQ Lutheran pastors, seminary students and rostered lay leaders. Proclaim is a program of Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries.

Learn more and download the application here.

Are you just learning about Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries? Or Proclaim? Or perhaps you haven’t been keeping up lately with all that’s been happening. Either way, you can easily catch up on the latest news by taking a look at our monthly eNewsletter, the interMISSION.

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by Jen Rude, ELM Program Director

Last Friday I had the privilege of attending a workshop on Creative Activism, hosted by Table to Action – a project of Auburn Seminary. Proclaim member Emily Ewing was also present.

It was a day filled with inspiration and affirmation about the important work we all do together.  When I saw my partner Deb at the end of the day she looked at my hand with a worried look before she realized it wasn’t blood – it was magic marker!  (You can see our group’s artistic imagination in the photo – moving from the world as it is to the world as it can be – a messy, colorful, faithful, creative, communal path).

One of the activities we did as part of our introductions was to each say what we were working on and what a “win” would look like for us – the passage of a bill, a more inclusive church, funding for a community center, etc.  Participants included pastors, community organizers, youth project leaders, professors and more.  After we all shared, our facilitators used one participant as an example.  “We’re from the future,” they said.  “Congratulations! You’ve won. Now, what’s next?” and the participant named another victory, to which they replied, “Now you’ve won that!  What does the world look like?  What’s next?” and back and forth they went until the participant finally (with more than a little exasperation) said, “Then the kingdom of God would be here in Chicago!”

Now each of us were invited individually to go through the same process for our own work – imagine we’ve won (gifted and called LGBTQ rostered leaders are actively serving churches and ministries throughout our church), what does it look like (dynamic ministry, witness to the Good News), what’s next (others feel inspired to follow their callings, to re-think what church is and could be, bold proclamation to the gospel in creative new ways), and on and on.

We start to notice along the way our separate particular issues started to look and sound similar (communities are inspired, different kinds of people are working together), and as we went further along, we began to see that we were all ending up in the same place – the kingdom of God.  You could feel the energy and joy in the room.  What we are working for is not just the passage of this bill, or the end to this particular form of discrimination, or a commitment from this funder. What we are working toward is nothing less than the kingdom of God.

It’s important to keep the big picture in mind.  And sometimes we need magic markers and laughter and each other to envision what it could look like – and to believe it is possible.

In our work at ELM, we work hard to support and affirm LGBTQ pastors, candidates and seminarians, and to engage allied congregations and ministries not just because we love LGBTQ people (which, we do) and not just because LGBTQ people need jobs (which, they do).  We work hard to engage people in this bold witness to our church because ultimately our work is not just to create a better church for LGBTQ children of God; it’s to help usher in the beautiful, diverse, creative, whole, joyful, fabulous, colorful kingdom of God.

Our vision together is that big.  And we’re going to need a lot of creative coloring to get there.

Thanks for being a part of this colorful work!