In This Edition
Featured Blog Post
Mental Health Resources from Portico
OLOGY Webinar (May 7)
White Supremacy & Racism: Facing Reality, Taking Responsibility
Living Connected Workshops on Creation’s Gift of Energy
Upcoming Events
Featured Blog Post
Dear Partners in Mission:
On April 24th we held our annual synod assembly. Once again, as in 2020, we utilized technology to gather, do business of the church, learn, and connect. I was very pleased to see the strong turnout for this second online assembly and for your participation throughout the day. Of particular note were the breakout room sessions after each of Bishop Mike Girlinghouse’s presentations (which are now on our website: https://www.ntnl.org/resources/videos-embracing-gods-future-without-forgetting-the-past/). In feedback from assembly participants it is clear you enjoyed that time together and perhaps even wished it were longer.
Prior to the assembly we sent a survey to each registrant to ask for information and feedback on how their congregation responded to the pandemic. Over 40% of registrants responded to the survey (a good rate of return for a survey) and we received much information that will help with planning for future synod events and continuing education offerings. The responses were honest (sometimes brutally) about the challenges you all have faced. When asked about online worship one respondent stated “I hate it!”
Overall however, the responses indicated that our congregations and leaders have been resilient, responsive, and adaptive in this time. And that you are continuing to realize you are going to need to be so into the future. I was most encouraged by the “word cloud” above created from the responses to the question “What is the most important thing you have learned about your congregation in 2020-2021?” In these open responses the words that appeared most often indicated connection, adaptation, and the strength and resilience congregations have shown in the past year. We will continue to need that strength and resilience as we move forward. Recognizing that we are still in this storm of change and pandemic and that we are, with the rollout of vaccines slowing, even moreso weathering it in different boats.
Thank you to all who attended our assembly and for the planning team and the hard work so that we could meet. With hope we look to 2022 and gathering in Dallas at Paul Quinn College April 29-30th. Bishop Vashti Murphy-McKenzie will be our preacher for that assembly. But before that remember to have September 11, 2021 on your calendar for a synod gathering at Briarwood. In hope we believe by then we will be able to re-gather together in person and be renewed and revived.
In the Risen Christ,
Bishop Erik Gronberg
Mental Health Resources from Portico
The need for mental health support within our communities increased steadily in the years leading up to Covid-19. This demand will likely continue past our return to a post-pandemic ‘normal’. Developing healthy habits in support of our emotional health is critical to our collective well-being. Accordingly, Portico has prioritized the expansion of access to mental health resources, in a variety of mediums, to meet individual learning styles and preferences.
In recognition of May as Mental Health Awareness Month, Portico is pleased to share the following resources with you, courtesy of our health and wellness vendor partnerships:
- Mental Health Support resources from Learn2Live
- Mental Health Matters podcast from Being Academy (top right option on landing page)
- In late May, we’ll introduce Being Here, a Portico-specific podcast series, via email later this month, to all ELCA-Primary health benefit members. Inaugural episodes will include Beating Burnout 2.0, Grief & Compassion Fatigue, and Financial Literacy.
Items to encourage member awareness of and engagement with benefits and live events offered in May:
- Helping You Thrive EAP Overview Flyer – new feature: online scheduling link allow faster access to video support from the comfort of home
- The Science Behind Saying ‘Thanks’
- Why Mindfulness? Register to attend this 30-minute BurnAlong workshop on May 19 at 11:30 Central
- Retrain Your Brain – the Case for Gratitude – live webinar schedule
- Mental Health Month Challenge
OLOGY Webinar (May 7)
Problem and Solution: How to Address Religion and Spirituality in Counseling and Ministry
with Kenneth Pargament, Ph.D.
Join leaders from the faith and mental health communities for a rare opportunity with Dr. Kenneth Pargament, professor emeritus of psychology at Bowling Green State University.
Dr. Kenneth Pargament is one of the most important, and certainly one of the most prolific, voices in the psychological study of faith. He has published several books, several hundred academic articles, and he is cited by thousands more. In fact, Dr. Pargament has been listed as one of the most influential psychologists living today.
For The Center’s OLOGY Spring Continuing Education, he will offer insight into the roles that both religion and spirituality play in mental health, positive and negative, helping attendees recognize these in therapy and in daily life.
From Dr. Pargament’s book The Psychology of Religion and Coping, “When faced with a crisis, why do some people turn to religion to help them cope, while others turn away? Is religious belief merely a defense or a form of denial? Is spirituality a help or a hindrance in times of stress?”
More about Dr. Pargament:
Dr. Pargament was Distinguished Scholar at the Institute for Spirituality and Health at the Texas Medical Center. His awards include the Oskar Pfister Award from the American Psychiatric Association in 2009, the National Samaritan Center Award in 2012, the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Professional Chaplains in 2015, the first Outstanding Contribution to the Applied Psychology of Religion and Spirituality Award from the Division 36 of APA in 2017, and an honorary doctor-of-letters from Pepperdine University in 2013.
What you’ll learn from this Ology webinar:
Building a much-needed bridge between two different worlds of thought and practice – religion and psychology – Dr. Pargament interweaves theory with clinical insight and scientific research. Hear his first-hand accounts for the need for greater sensitivity to religion and spirituality in the context of helping relationships, and suggests a range of ways that faith might be used more fully to help people in crisis.
OLOGY will stream live on Friday, May 7, at 8:30 am Central. Registration is free but required.
White Supremacy & Racism: Facing Reality, Taking Responsibility
To download the video shown at Synod Assembly: https://vimeo.com/user118660328/download/541116664/c2c0dd9dbc
White Supremacy & Racism: Facing Reality, Taking Responsibility
Every other Tuesday, May 11 – October 19
A Study Group Co-Sponsored by Briarwood Leadership Center and the Public Witness Team of NT-NL
American forms of racism shape our life together in ELCA congregations. White supremacy distorts our proclamation of the Gospel, limiting the possibilities of evangelism. Lay and rostered congregational leaders interested in facing these realities are invited to join this study group co-organized by Briarwood Leadership Center and the Public Witness Team of NT-NL.
With an eye toward taking meaningful action, we will work through some of the most incisive analytical studies of racism. We will focus on structural realities rather than individual attitudes or personal experience. Equipped by this intensive study, the group will decide what actions they will take in their own congregations and which actions will be recommended to the NT-NL Synod as a whole.
Led by Emma Rodgers (St. John, Dallas) and Robert Smith (Briarwood Leadership Center), the course will feature several outside guest speakers with expertise in the topics and particular authors. The proposed agenda can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/bwtxracism. All readings will be provided in electronic format, with encouragement toward additional resources.
Sessions are on Tuesday evenings, biweekly, 7-8:30pm. Pre-registration is required in order to receive the Zoom link. All participants are strongly encouraged to complete the assigned reading prior to participating in a session.
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMldeqsrDwqGtFW1il2hIwTrdcxku5B-zn0. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Living Connected Workshops on Creation’s Gift of Energy
Since human beings first captured fire, energy has been a gift we’ve harnessed to work for us. This Living Connected workshop looks past the one-dimensional argument of oil and gas versus wind and solar to discuss our complex relationship with energy. In the workshop, you’ll:
- Reflect on our use of energy and the consequences of our use.
- Consider ways energy connects us to others.
- Receive resources for making energy choices that care for our families and for our neighbors.
NT-NL Public Witness is offering Living Connected: Energy online twice in May 2021. The presenter is Katrina Martich, a Lutheran Deaconess and licensed environmental engineer in Texas.
Saturday, May 22, 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM CST
Tuesday, May 25, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM CST
Register at www.katrinamartich.com for the Zoom link.
Living Connected presents creation care as a spiritual discipline, formed by using the gifts of creation in just and loving ways. Workshops are offered at a reduced cost thanks to a grant from the NT-NL Synod Mission Endowment Fund. For more information, send an email to Katrina at contact@katrinamartich.com
Upcoming Events
With the ever-changing guidelines and recommendations in our world right now, as we maintain physical distance in social solidarity, please keep in mind these events may be moved online, postponed, or cancelled:
- May 6: Weekly NT-NL Leadership Prayer, Check-in, Zoom
- May 6: Transitional (Interim) Pastors monthly meeting, Zoom
- May 8: Public Witness Team meeting, Zoom
- May 11: First Call Pastors Check-in, Zoom
- May 11: White Supremacy & Racism: Facing Reality, Taking Responsibility – Introduction and Concepts, Zoom
- May 13: Weekly NT-NL Leadership Prayer, Check-in, Zoom
- May 15: Parish Lay Ministry Academy, Spring 2021, Course 3, Online
- May 18: First Call Pastors Check-in, Zoom
- May 20: Weekly NT-NL Leadership Prayer, Check-in, Zoom
- May 22: Living Connected Workshop on Creation’s Gift of Energy, Zoom
- May 25: First Call Pastors Check-in, Zoom
- May 25: White Supremacy & Racism: Facing Reality, Taking Responsibility – Selections from Isabel Wilkerson, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, Zoom
- May 25: Living Connected Workshop on Creation’s Gift of Energy, Zoom
- May 27: Weekly NT-NL Leadership Prayer, Check-in, Zoom
- Jun. 1: First Call Pastors Check-in, Zoom
For a complete list of upcoming events, you can access our Calendar of Events online.