“Doing for the
community, not simply for the church and the church’s survival; rather,
witnessing for the community itself.”
Attendees: Pastor Lee Brumback, Esther Johnson, Ike Johnson, Hank Jud, Melinda
Jud, Pastor Lucille Mills, Bill Smith, and Pastor Tim Waltonen.
Opening
Tim Waltonen
opened with prayer for God’s guidance and grace for the churches of our Synod,
our Church-wide body, and the people of Haiti.
Melinda Jud highlighted
an article entitled “The Color of Faith,” in Time magazine’s January 11, 2010 edition: Some mega-churches are bridging the color
divide. There are things we can learn
from their example. However, we also
need to take note of the failure of some of these churches to pass over
nonwhites for pulpit pastorship or senior staff positions.
Old/Continuing Business
Rejoice Report
·
Condition of Use permit – Rejoice has received approval for its Condition
of Use permit at a Planning Commission public hearing. Final approval from the City Council should
be granted at a public meeting of the council on February 16, 2010.
·
Occupancy Permit – This is dependent on the landlord’s finishing the building
(primarily a matter of installing a deep sink and a “high and low” drinking
fountain. Pastor Mills and Ralph Barrett
will meet with the landlord this coming week.
To date, the landlord has attempted to hold the caterer next door
responsible for the finishing. However,
Pastor Mills has made the landlord aware of the schedule for decreasing Synod
funds. In addition, leverage should come
from the landlord’s need to begin charging rent, which cannot happen until the
building is completed.
·
New Partners – Trinity Lutheran in Roanoke, and St. John’s in Edinburg (Jerome) are
new partners of Rejoice.
New Business
·
February 11-12
Meeting, Atlanta – Dr. Flanigan has
invited members of our team to attend a meeting “to hear about the [Region IX]
workplan and how it can be rolled out to synods and congregations, with considerable
input from strategy teams, DEMs and interested congregations. The agenda will include naming the plan, two
to three workshops on outreach, and cross-cultural conversations training.
Melinda
and Hank Jud, and possibly Bill Smith and Pastor Mills will attend.
·
Revival Task
Force Meeting - Pastor Mills will
meet with area pastors this coming Tuesday, January 19th, to set a
date for this first planning meeting, to be held in Chesapeake. Target date for the “Seven Cities Revival” is
October 2-3, 2010, with a rain date of October 9-10.
·
Team Luncheon,
Synod Assembly 2010 - We should
receive word within another week or so as to whether Dr. Gemechis Buba is
willing to attend our team luncheon and take questions at this year’s Synod
Assembly.
Team
members will draft approximately five questions to be provided to Dr. Buba in
advance, along with information about our team.
Melinda Jud will check with Pastor Gunsten about a room for the
luncheon, and a place in the lunchtime schedule.
·
Outreach
Dialogue and Resources – The team
discussed how best to respond to the request of 2009 luncheon attendees for
resources and answers to questions about multicultural outreach. The team’s page on the Synod web site is
updated regularly by Hank Jud, and provides team information and minutes. However, a more interactive forum, such as a
blog, might work better for a dialogue/discussion. Hank will check with Dave Delaney at the
Synod office for information about blogging.
The
team also discussed an outreach program documented on the ELCA web site
entitled “One Body, Many Members.” While
the program is impressive, members found the documentation’s ponderous size somewhat
intimidating and off-putting. The
consensus was that the program should be summarized in approximately two pages
(including its valuable list of dialogue resources). The summary can then be made available as
part of our planned Outreach Dialogue on our web page.
·
Top-Level
Synod Support Needed for Our Team – Members
discussed a frustration: Our Strategy Plan,
passed at Synod Assembly in 2003, has never been highlighted at a pastors’
gathering. Comments included “We are not
to first base yet,” and “The plan needs to be kick-started to the people in the
conferences.” After considerable
discussion, the consensus reached was that Melinda Jud will draft a letter to
Bishop Mauney, to be reviewed and finalized at our next meeting, in Chesapeake,
on April 25, 2010. The letter may tie in
our input to the 2020 Vision. Our goal
is to have the Strategy Plan highlighted, and the pastors encouraged to support
it, at this year’s Ministerium, October 11-13.
Future Meeting Dates:
·
April 25, 2010 in
Chesapeake
·
July 18, 2010 in
Fredericksburg
·
October 17, 2010
in Fredericksburg
( Rejoice’s Ministry Review
will be October 9-10, 2010.)
Closing - Pastor Brumback closed with prayer, prior to the
team’s joining in the Lord’s Prayer.