Author: Amanda Nelson

Notes from March ELM Board of Directors Meeting

by Dr. Margaret Moreland, ELM Board Secretary, and the Rev. Amanda Nelson, ELM Executive Director

The ELM Board of Directors had their spring, in-person meeting this past weekend, March 8-11, 2018, at Seafarers International House in New York City. The ELM Board meets twice a year in person, in March and October, and then meets via

This month’s meeting had a full agenda which included reports from ELM’s staff and Treasurer, reflections and discernment regarding the situation at ULS, investing in the future of ELM, anti-oppression training, and the Installation of ELM’s Executive Director, the Rev. Amanda Nelson.

Here is a brief update and synopsis.

Board Members who were present included Matt James (Co-Chair), Emily Ann Garcia (Co-Chair), Margaret Moreland (Secretary), Emily Ewing, Jeff Johnson, and Brad Froslee.  ELM’s Treasurer, Charlie Horn, was present as well as Mike Wilker who is coming off the Board after serving two consecutive terms, most recently as Secretary of the Board.  ELM staff who were present included Amanda Nelson and Asher O’Callaghan.  Board members absent from the meeting included Barbara Lundblad and Elise Brown.

The Board spent significant time in conversation around the situation at United Lutheran Seminary – reflecting on the pain this event has caused the ULS community and the reverberations felt within our church. The Board was also able to spend time in conversation and prayer with our Board Member, Elise Brown. The Board’s response, which summarizes the sentiment and spirit of our conversations, was published on Wednesday, March 14^th.

The Board heard healthy reports from ELM’s Treasurer and Executive Director which highlighted, in particular, the significant increase in the amount of the Joel Workin Memorial Scholarship – from $2,500 to $6,000 – thanks to the regular gifts and generosity of ELM’s supporters! The Joel Workin Committee is now accepting applications from eligible Proclaim members for the 2018 scholarship.

The Board authorized Executive Director, Amanda Nelson, to begin the search process for a part time (18 hour) Program and Administrative Assistant position to replace Christephor Gilbert who left ELM at the end of January to complete his seminary studies; as well as a new, three-quarter time (27 hour) Associate Director of Development and Communications position. The Program and Administrative Assistant is a Chicago-based position whereas the Associated Director of Development and Communications can be done remotely. The job listings are posted on ELM’s website.

The ELM Board devotes 4-8 hours of our spring, in-person meeting to anti-oppression training. This year, River Needham, student at LSTC and candidate for ministry in the MCC, led our Board in eight hours of training on the subjects of gender, ace-spectrum orientations, and polyamory.

Former Board Secretary, Mike Wilker, and current secretary, Margaret Moreland, introduced much needed revisions to ELM’s Bylaws which were unanimously accepted by our Board. The Board would also like to thank former Board Member, Jeremy Posadas, and ELM friend and supporter, Sara Stegemoeller, for their help and guidance in updating our bylaws.

The Board spent time dreaming and brainstorming around three specific areas: ELM’s presence at the 2019 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, ELM’s work and presence in Canada supporting our Proclaimers in the ELCIC, and grants that give ELM permission to dream about the future of our programs. No specific actions were taken, but the Spirit is swirling in our midst.

A highlight of our gathering was the service of installation for Executive Director, the Rev. Amanda Nelson. Hosted at Trinity Lower East Side Lutheran Parish, this service featured joy-filled music, a stirring sermon preached by the Rev. Jeff Johnson, the reminder of God’s presence and blessing experienced in the sacraments, and a festive reception hosted by the Board and local Proclaim members. Thanks to all who made it such a wonderful celebration!

The Board’s next meeting will be by conference call on May 17^th.  The next in-person Board meeting will be held October 4-6 in Chicago.

Questions or concerns you may have for the Board may be directed to Executive Director, Amanda Nelson (amanda@elm.org) who will pass them along to the Board’s Executive Committee.

Response to United Lutheran Seminary from ELM’s Board of Directors

A theology of glory calls evil good and good evil.
A theology of the cross calls the thing what it actually is.
– Martin Luther, Heidelberg Disputation, 1518

Since its inception, Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries (ELM) has been a community rooted in the Gospel’s call to justice. This call birthed a movement of resistance in principled non-compliance with the systems of oppression, marginalization, and injustice which plague our church and society. Although much has changed since our genesis in 1990, oppressive systems continue to be embedded within our institutions and communities and our call to prophetic witness remains vital to the well-being of the body of Christ and the world.

Through God’s abounding grace, our commitment to discipleship in Christ demands that we reject the corrupt practices of a death-dealing empire to be transformed by faith to live according to the Way of Jesus. At the center of this commitment is the mystery of the cross by which we are called to proclaim the Word in Law and Gospel, to call for confession and repentance, and to make way for redemptive and restorative justice within our church.

ELM acknowledges that the situation at United Lutheran Seminary (ULS) is the product of a larger, systematic, institutional culture that utilizes secrecy and devalues transparency for the purpose of self-preservation and fragile stability. These systems create a pattern of sin that protects the powerful and privileged and harms the vulnerable and marginalized. Although we claim to be evangelical, our church has not been immune to this sin. In fact, the current state of affairs at ULS has clearly exposed how deeply our beloved church is entangled in and complicit with these systems.

In order to protect and prioritize its public perception for the sake of respectability and approval, institutional leadership discourages individual leaders from telling their story, be it by confessing the ways in which they enacted and perpetuated oppression, or the ways by which they were, through the gospel, transformed and restored to right relationship with God in community. The Rev. Dr. Theresa Latini and others have been taught and encouraged to not bring their whole selves and whole journeys into the greater narrative of the church by elders in our community who, in their deceit, mean well but perpetuate shame. When stories are hushed and veils pulled over our eyes, we do not get to see the cross but are expected to believe in the false glory of a manufactured and superficial resurrection.

Our ability to respond to brokenness is also tainted with sin: when lack of transparency and deep corruption (systemic sin) is exposed, individuals are either sacrificed through punitive measures, not as a corrective to abuse of power, but for the purpose of institutional continuity; or, they are defended and protected by the institution – praised for their leadership in handling a hard situation. In these broken systems, individuals are either scapegoated or protected, excommunicated or permitted to remain. This false binary assumes there are only two options: one which works to preserve the systems of oppression deeply at work in our institutions at the cost of the marginalized; the other which further isolates people from one another, their deeper humanity, and reintegration in community

As the ELM Board, we see these systems at play and know that we are no less susceptible to their influence. We acknowledge that this sinful system would have us either wholeheartedly support the Rev. Dr. Elise Brown as a member of our Board and ignore her role in this situation or banish her completely from our community and ignore our kinship.

As a queer organization we reject this false binary.

We understand the Gospel as calling us to name the truth of the situation and events, listen deeply to the pain, confess the harm, and repent—turning to a new way of being that includes, to the extent that it is possible, making amends, creating correctives for the power imbalance, and restoring just relationships.

Having met together this past weekend with times for deep listening and conversation, the ELM Board has received and accepted the resignation of the Rev. Dr. Elise Brown. While Elise’s role on the ELM Board has ended, our relationship with her has not and will not end. Elise will continue to be a member of our community through relationships with our Executive Director, the Rev. Amanda Nelson; Board members who are companions with her on this journey of reconciliation; and, individual Proclaim members with whom Elise has a close relationship. ELM is providing opportunities to Elise for continued engagement and anti-oppression training in the recognition that she will continue to be an ally to gender and sexual minorities and that all allies need to be equipped and encouraged.

The ELM Board also acknowledges that we must continue to educate and train our Board Members to more fully embody ELM’s explicit practices of listening deeply, publicly claiming our identities, working collaboratively, acting transparently, asking “who is not here?”, speaking truthfully even when it is hard, and remembering to laugh together. As a Board, we commit ourselves and our time to continuing to explore ways to live into our practices and receive the training needed to deepen our own understanding of the systems of oppression to which we are susceptible.

Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries will continue our work of lifting up and spotlighting LGBTQIA+ leaders whose experiences, voices, and ministries matter in times like these. We are deeply encouraged by and stand in solidarity with the organizing that has occured on the ULS campuses by LGBTQIA+ students and their colleagues. Systemic change happens when folks within communities erupt with purpose and calling – and that is happening in Philadelphia and Gettysburg as well as at other seminaries as they respond to this situation and their colleagues’ pain.

As the Board of Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries, we would like to affirm that the messy is valuable. We know that there is pain and grief and sorrow in our communities right now; and, we believe that by listening to the cries of those on the margins the church has the opportunity to repent – to turn to a new way of being that includes, to the extent that it is possible, making amends, creating correctives for the power imbalance, and restoring just relationships. We are committed to walking the way of the cross.

In solidarity and hope,

The Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries Board of Directors

Emily Ann Garcia, Co-Chair          Matthew James, Co-Chair
Margaret Moreland, Secretary         Charles Horn, Treasurer
Emily E. Ewing                                     Brad Froslee                                                                                                                                                 Jeff R. Johnson                              Barbara Lundblad 

Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries believes the public witness of gender and sexual minority ministers transforms the church and enriches the world.

by Carolyn Lawrence

Proclaim member and
MDiv student at LSTC

In this time of Lent as we follow the call to journey into the wilderness, we also remember our ancestors in faith who went before us. To help us in doing that, several Proclaim members will be reflecting upon the mystics in their blog posts here during the month of March.

The first time I told someone I was a mystic, it didn’t go over too well.

I mentioned to a coworker, with whom I frequently discussed theology, that I had been reading a fair bit of Meister Eckhart and that I would identify myself as a Christian mystic.

“Oh wow,” he scoffed with incredulity, “that’s a bit of a big claim, isn’t it?”

“Is it?” I responded.

His reaction surprised me. I wondered why I was receiving pushback by identifying myself within a long and venerable tradition of Christian mystics. I am a mystic through and through. Searching for union with God is my singular desire in my faith, and I didn’t find my identify to be scandalous.

Perhaps it’s because I have an encompassing view of Christian mysticism. I would argue that we are all mystics when we go to the altar to receive Christ’s presence in bread and wine. For me, that’s the pinnacle mystical moment in our worship. If one defines a mystic as a person seeking union with God, then the taste of Jesus’ body and blood surely qualifies as a mystical encounter!

And, as a Lutheran, I believe there is another space where union with God is possible: Martin Luther’s ethics were dominated by the call to love and serve our neighbor. Both he and I take the second great commandment—“Love your neighbor as yourself”—to be paramount to Christian engagement in this world. And, it is in loving our neighbor that we encounter the Divine.

Against this Lutheran backdrop and with my deepening mystical identity, I recenlty came to a stunning realization reflecting on Matthew 25:31-46. In this well-known passage, Jesus speaks of himself as a king welcoming in those who served him when he was hungry, thirsty, estranged, and imprisoned. Jesus identifies completely with those on the margins; “I was hungry…I was thirsty…I was naked…” The righteous are confused — when did they see him this way? Jesus replies in verse 40: “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”

Taking these words at the mystic level, the result is profound: to see the face of God, one must look to the outcast of this world. To have union with God one must welcome and embrace those on the margins of society. I am a mystic because I search for God’s union and love. I am a Lutheran mystic because I believe that God’s presence is found among those who the world casts down.

As we continue this Lenten mystical journey, I invite you to seek, serve, and love the Christs in your communities to find a glimpse of the Divine.

 Carolyn Lawrence (she/her/hers) serves as Operations Coordinator of Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries. She attends the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. In her free time, Carolyn enjoys baking bread, debating theology, and cuddling her cat Percy.

Photo at top: Cary Bass-Deschenes

Bio Photo: Provided by author.

by John Weit

Proclaim member and Deacon serving as the Program Director for Music in the Office of the Presiding Bishop of the ELCA

I have long sensed my calling to be a leader of the church’s song. Growing up in church I was amazed at how a single person could sit behind an organ console and use the various buttons and keys to make a multitude of different sounds. What was even more incredible to me was how that one person behind that instrument could help a large group of people sing together.

Music can unite a gathered assembly, form memory, and serves as a vehicle to conveying theology. It is sometimes daunting knowing that the words that I choose to be sung and through my leadership I am essentially putting theology in people’s mouths. Through song, sung together in worship, our prayer, proclamation, praise, and lament are shaped and given communal voice. It is not about what I as a leader like to sing and what styles are comfortable to me. In whatever leadership role we have, we need to move beyond ourselves and consider what best proclaims the gospel and shapes the prayer of the church.

With communal song at the core, there is often other music that enriches the worship life of the church. Choirs, soloists, and instrumentalists offer music to glorify God, as well. Silence can also surround our music. All of this works together to shape and support the song of the people. 

The vocation of the church musician is something I have cared deeply about these last few years. I’m happy to currently serve in a call with the ELCA that, in part, offers tools and resources to help church musicians think about their vocation and craft. In my role I work very closely with the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM). In 2016 as part of their 30th anniversary as an organization, a statement titled Called to Be a Living Voice was crafted to reflect on the varied role of Lutheran church musicians, often called cantors. I encourage you to read and reflect on this statement and share it with the musicians in your context.

It is true that not all musicians come to this work as a career. Many church musicians I know are bi-vocational. Some musicians may see working for a church as a way to some make extra money or to build their resume. Musicians will take on different levels of responsibility depending on the context. I pray that musicians who serve our assemblies continue to feel strengthened in their sense of call to their vocation and feel supported by their ministry colleagues.

In 2018, ALCM is helping to support the vocation of the Lutheran church musicians by organizing several one-day workshops around the U.S. and Canada under the theme Hearts Hands Voices. The ELCA is pleased to be partnering with ALCM to offer an extended skill-building session in Valparaiso Ind., July 23-26. These events will cover a multitude of styles, instruments, and topics. Visit alcm.org for more information and please share this with the church musicians in your lives.

May the church continue to be blessed with musicians who faithfully lead our assemblies, surrounding word and sacrament with song.

Deacon John Weit serves as Program Director for Music in the Office of the Presiding Bishop of the ELCA. He lives in Chicago with his husband, the Rev. Matt James, and their cat, Buddy. John also serves as Assistant Organist at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago.

Photo at top: Emily Ann Garcia

Bio Photo: Provided by John Weit