January 2, 2007

CHICAGO (ELCA) – The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will offer two winter global mission programs in 2007, and one significant Global Mission Event in July. All three events feature worship, music and learning, with emphasis on how the ELCA can "accompany" Lutherans in mission throughout the globe.

An "ELCA Global Mission Festival" will be held Jan. 26-28 at St. John Lutheran Church, Winter Park, Fla. The following weekend, Feb. 2-3, an "ELCA Global Mission Fiesta" is planned at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Phoenix.

This summer an ELCA Global Mission Event is to be held July 19-22 at The Ohio State University, Columbus.

The winter events are new, said Sunitha Mortha, associate director for Global Mission Events and mission interpretation, ELCA Global Mission. Both are designed to be smaller and shorter in length than the traditional Global Mission Event, and focus on regional versus national participation, she said.

"Global Mission is looking to support congregations engaged in global mission at the grassroots level," Mortha said. Feedback from all of the 2007 global mission opportunities is expected to help shape future events, she added.

The Florida Global Mission Festival will feature two plenary speakers: the Rev. Munib A. Younan, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, Jerusalem, and the Rev. Ruben F. Duran, director for development of new congregations, ELCA Evangelical Outreach and Congregational Mission.

The festival will feature a series of learning opportunities, known as Global University sessions, for people aged 14 and older. Confirmed workshop leaders include the Rev. Paul Moonu, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Guyana; Stephen Deal, ELCA regional representative in Central America; and the Rev. Judith VanOsdol-Hansen, ELCA missionary, Argentina.

The festival will conclude Jan. 28, when participants will worship in area congregations, where they will use global music and worship resources.

Registration deadline for the festival is Jan. 24.

In Arizona the Global Mission Fiesta will focus on leadership development for congregations engaged in or considering global ministry through the ELCA or a Lutheran- related organization. The featured plenary speaker is the Rev. Pierre Sene, president, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Senegal. Registration deadline is Jan. 28.

The fiesta precedes the popular "Lutheran Seniors Assembly," Feb. 5-6 at La Casa De Cristo Lutheran Church, Scottsdale, Ariz.

Registration for the Global Mission Event opens Feb. 1. That program includes a variety of worship, music and learning opportunities for people of all ages. The featured speaker is Immaculee Ilibagiza, a young woman from Rwanda who survived the 1994 genocide by hiding for three months in a bathroom in a pastor's home.

Music at all three global mission opportunities in 2007 will be led by "Bread for the Journey," featuring the Rev. Jose Antonio Machado, Mary Preus and Tom Witt. The group is familiar to global mission audiences.

Information about the 2007 global mission programs, including registration information, is at http://www.ELCA.org/gme/gme07.html on the ELCA Web site.

ELCA News Service