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Communion, Independence, Discernment
Abstract: ELCA Church Council meets.
The ELCA Church Council met April 11-13, and in addition to the obligatory discussion of the draft social statement on sexuality, the council also moved forward with plans for full communion with the United Methodist Church. The council requested that a formal proposal on full communion be presented at its November, 2008 meeting, and a recommendation on full communion may be presented to the 2009 church wide assembly. The UMC General Conference, meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, April 23-May 2, will act on a proposal for full communion with the ELCA.
The church council also approved (by a vote of 18 - 13) a request to recognize Lutheran CORE as an "independent Lutheran organization" that relates to the ELCA through the Vocation and Education program unit. In discussion, council members expressed concern that Word Alone, which has been critical of the ELCA Churchwide organization and its leaders was a Lutheran Core affiliate.
What it means to be an "Independent Lutheran Organization" seems to be quite variable. Other organizations with this designation include Lutheran Association of Christian Educators (LACE), Global Health Ministries, ELCA Alliance for Faith, Science, and Technology, and Lutherans Concerned (LCNA).
Finally, in response to a recommendation from the Southwestern Minnesota Synod, the church council established a communal discernment task force to explore how the ELCA might better "engage emotional and divisive issues, seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and make difficult decisions as a church body in ways that will increase mutual trust, build respect for each other as the Body of Christ and deepen spiritual discernment." The task force was given a budget of up to $25,000 and was asked to report in November, 2008 on the scope and timeline for its work and on any recommended changes to the process of deliberation that might affect the 2009 churchwide assembly.
