“Amidst this all, I am grateful, proud, and encouraged by the way neighbors across our Synod have shown up for one another through mutual aid, serving as observers on the street, and adding voices to vigils and calls for justice…” #ELCA #Lutheran #Minneapolis #ICE mpls-synod.org/news/bishops...

Your will be done on earth as in heaven.

Your kingdom come

“Wearing bright orange hats and vests emblazoned with the word “chaplain,” the group, made up of mostly pastors, was led by Shari Seifert, a member of Calvary #Lutheran Church and a self-described “street theologian…” #Minneapolis #ICE religionnews.com/2026/01/11/i...

O Lord God of hosts, who is as mighty as you, O Lord? Your faithfulness surrounds you. ‍The heavens are yours. The earth also is yours. The world and all that is in it—you founded them. —Psalm 89

Yep.

“People aren’t coming to this church for theological certainties or fire-and-brimstone preaching, but for something gentler…” comment.org/not-so-secul...

“Alongside the #Lutherans who have held vigils in #Minneapolis and around the country, our church prays for God’s peace in this community and justice in this case.” #ELCA #ICE www.elca.org/news-and-eve...

Standing in front of a banner reading “Minnesotans were abducted here,” the Rev. Paul Graham, an #ELCA pastor, condemned the detention & deportation of airport workers by #ICE, as well as deportation flights operating out of the facility. #Lutheran #Minneapolis religionnews.com/2026/01/09/p...

Each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. —Ephesians 4

Why, O Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor— let them be caught in the schemes they have devised. —Psalm 10

When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan. By justice a ruler gives stability to the land, but one who makes heavy exactions ruins it. The righteous know the rights of the poor, the wicked have no such understanding. —Proverbs 29

Global Refuge, formerly known as #Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), is a nonprofit serving newcomers seeking safety, support, and a share in the American dream.

“By your Holy Spirit, kindle hope that does not disappoint and peace that surpasses all understanding. We entrust #Venezuela, its people and your church into your loving hands, trusting not in our own strength but in your steadfast love…” #ELCA #Lutheran www.elca.org/news-and-eve...

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it. —John 1

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. —John 1

“In these dangerous and uncertain times, the world needs wise and courageous leaders for peace, rather than the proliferation of conflicts and the normalization of international illegality…” oikoumene.org/news/wcc-con...

Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it. —1 Peter 3

For he delivers the needy when they call, the poor and those who have no helper. ‍From oppression and violence he redeems their life. ‍Blessed be the Lord, who alone does wondrous things. ‍Blessed be his glorious name forever. May his glory fill the whole earth. Amen and Amen. —Psalm 72

And now, my children, listen to me: happy are those who keep my ways. Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. Happy is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. For whoever finds me finds life. —Proverbs 8

"I accept Jesus Christ as my savior" diminishes the Gospel into an introverted and self-centered individualism. —Jürgen Moltmann

He sends out his command to the earth, his word runs swiftly. He gives snow like wool, he scatters frost like ashes. He hurls down hail like crumbs. Who can stand before his cold? He sends out his word and melts them, he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow. Praise the Lord! —Psalm 147

Now is the time to nominate students for Lutheran Summer Music Academy 2026. Enrollment deadline is March 1. At LSM, students connect advanced musical study with worship and the joy of Lutheran church music traditions. www.lsmacademy.org/nominate

No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in it today. Take Heaven. No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present instant. Take Peace. The gloom of the world is but a shadow, behind it, yet, within our reach, is joy. Take Joy.

For a child has been born for us, a son given to us. Authority rests upon his shoulders, and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. —Isaiah 9

José y Maria by Everett Patterson (2014)

O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster, exspectatio gentium, et Salvator earum: Venu ad salvandum nos Domine Deus noster. O Emmanuel, God with us, our King and lawgiver, the expected of the nations and our Savior: Come to save us, O Lord our God.

O Ruler of Nations, and only joy of every human heart, the Cornerstone that makes us one; Come and deliver the creatures whom you fashioned from the dust of the earth.

The Lord makes poor and makes rich;  he brings low; he also exalts. ‍He raises up the poor from the dust;  he lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes  and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,  and on them he has set the world. —1 Samuel 2

O Oriens, splendor lucis aeternae, et sol iustitiae: Veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris et umbra mortis. O Dawn of the east, brightness of light eternal, and sun of justice: Come, and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

O Key of David, you open and no human shuts, you shut and no human opens. Come and bring the prisoners out of prison, and those that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

Note to Self: To worship the One at whose birth angels declared “Peace on Earth,” who was hunted in infancy by Herod’s soldiers... and who was killed as a threat by Rome’s brutal armies commits the followers of Jesus to confessing forever: Ours Is No God of War. The Living God brings peace.

The #ELCA Advocacy and Migration Policy team has released a new conversation guide, Created in the Image of God, equipping faith communities to recognize and respond to dehumanizing language—particularly language directed at #immigrants and forcibly displaced people. blogs.elca.org/ammparo/crea...

O Root of Jesse, standing as a sign among the peoples; before you kings will shut their mouths, to you the nations will make their prayer: Come and deliver us, and delay no longer.

How to Support Refugees and Immigrants this Holiday Season #Lutheran #ELCA www.globalrefuge.org/news/help-re...

These are the things that you shall do: speak the truth to one another, render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace, do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these are things that I hate, says the Lord. —Zechariah 8

The work of the church is not the call to ministry. Spiritual success is never measured by human outcomes. Our true work is that of manifesting likeness to Christ in all things, whether it is in success or failure, criticism or praise.

May God in His mercy lead us through these times, but above all, may He lead us to Himself. —Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“The Lutheran World Federation condemns this violence and stands in solidarity with the Jewish community in Australia and worldwide. We unequivocally reject antisemitism and this violence directed against people gathered for worship and religious celebrations.” lutheranworld.org/news/lwf-con...

Stir up our wills, O Christ, and come. Stir in us a joy that rises even in weary times, a joy that resists despair and welcomes your good news. Let joy take root in our actions — kindness offered, burdens shared, beauty created. Come, Giver of Joy, and let your music lift our hearts. Amen.

Jan 23-25th, 2026 at Lutheridge Camp in Arden, North Carolina lutheransrestoringcreation.org/2026-lrc-gat...

It’s the guns.

The Lord makes poor and makes rich.  He brings low, he also exalts. ‍He raises up the poor from the dust.  He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with princes  and inherit a seat of honor. For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,  and on them he has set the world. — 1 Samuel 2

Now rest beneath night’s shadow the woodland, field and meadow — the world in slumber lies. But you, my heart, awaking and prayer and music making: let praise to your creator rise. (ELW 568)

We need to hear the Gospel every day because we forget it every day. —Martin Luther

“For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us….” – Eph. 2:14

“…Mary and Joseph are wearing gas masks. Jesus is instead nestled in a reflective blanket used by immigrants in detention, with his hands bound with zip ties. And behind the family stand three Roman centurions wearing vests with a very modern label: ICE.” religionnews.com/2025/12/05/i...

‍A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord!  Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. ‍Every valley shall be lifted up,  and every mountain and hill be made low. The uneven ground shall become level,  and the rough places a plain.” —Isaiah 40

So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today. —Matthew 6

“Bothwell pastors Capitol Hill Lutheran Church in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, a part of the Evangelical #Lutheran Church in America.” #ELCA #ICE sojo.net/articles/new...