Rostered Leaders

Who is Dr. Powell?
Mark Allan Powell is Professor of New Testment at Trinity Lutheran Seminary and an internationally known biblical scholar, specializing in the Gospel of Matthew. He is editor of the HarperCollins Bible Dictionary and author of more than 25 books on the Bible and religion, including the widely used textbook, Introducing the New Testament (Baker Academic). He has also writen in the areas of spiritual formation (Loving Jesus), Stewardship (Giving to God), and homiletics (What Do They Hear? Bridging the Gap Between Pulpit and Pew). Powell's DVDs How Lutherans Understand the Bible have received widespread use throughout the ELCA and were excerpted for inclusion in the Lutheran Study Bible. His newest DVD resource, released on September 1, 2010, is Stewardship: Duty and Delight (Select Learning).

Conference on Ministry 2010 Schedule

Monday, September 20
3:00pm - Arrival, Registration (lobby of auditorium)
4:00pm - Large gathering, introductions, welcome, announcements (auditorium)
4:30pm - Opening Eucharist, Bishop Benoway preaching
6:00pm - Dinner
7:00pm - Gathering, announcements, giveaways
7:15pm - Keynote, Dr. Mark Allan Powell - Lutheran Buzzwords: Four Things You Often Hear Lutherans Say About the Bible
8:15pm - Group reflecting/responding/applications
8:30pm - Evening Prayer
9:00pm - Fellowship and refreshments (lobby of auditorium)

Tuesday, September 21
7:30am - Breakfast
8:15am - Morning Watch (quiet time for pesonal reflection and prayer)
Free morning for golf, tennis, sleeping in, browsing the bookstore OR
8:45am - Gathering, songs, announcements
9:00am - Let's Talk Together? Small group guided conversations (rooms in back of auditorium 1, 2, 3, 4)
10:15am - Break
10:45am - Let's Talk Together? Small group guided conversations (rooms in back of auditorium 1,2, 3, 4)
12noon - Free time
12:30pm - Lunch
1:30pm - Gathering, announcements (large auditorium)
1:45pm - Keynote, Dr. Mark Allan Powell - Themes in Matthew: The Presence and Absence of God
3:00pm - Group reflecting/response/application
3:15pm - Break
3:45pm - Let's Together? Small group guided conversations (rooms in back of auditorium 1,2,3,4)
5:00pm - Free time
6:00pm - Dinner
6:45pm - Gathering, give aways (large auditorium)
7:00pm - Conversation with Bishop (large auditorium)
8:15pm - Healing Prayer Service
9:00pm - Fellowship/Refreshments (lobby of auditorium)

Wednesday, September 22
7:30am - Breakfast
8:15am - Morning Watch (quiet time for personal reflection/prayer)
8:45am - Gathering, songs, announcements
9:00am - Keynote, Dr. Mark Allan Powell - Themes in Matthew: Scripture and Making Decisions
10:15am - Group reflecting/response/application
10:30am - Closing Eucharist - Dr. Mark Allan Powell, Worship and Doubt Matthew 28:1-9, 16-20

Conference on Ministry 2010

What's planned?

Keynoter Dr. Mark Allan Powell and . . . Time for:

— personal devotions — worship and healing — resting
— renewing friendships and making new friends — a game of golf or tennis
— conversation with Synod staff about what's on your mind
— reflection with the Bishop
— connecting with the ELCA Board of Pensions
— perusing the newest resources — browsing Cokesbury bookstore

Let's Talk Together

A new feature this year: more choices during free time on Tuesday! On Tuesday morning, you are free to choose to play golf, sleep in, read, or take part in small group discussions that will occur twice on Tuesday morning and once on Tuesday afternoon. (9-10:15 AM; 10:45-Noon; 3:45-5 PM)

From Bishop Benoway: There are many important and holy conversations that we need to have among ourselves as rostered leaders in this church. This year, the conference provides three opportunities for you to participate and engage in group conversations with colleagues. Facilitators are identified for each conversation, but the focus is on engaging the whole group in sharing, listening and talking with one another. In addition to what we will personally gain from one another, we also invite notation of input and ideas that might serve to advise the bishop on how to further these conversations throughout our congregations and synod.

Let's Talk Together discussions will include:
Raising Up Church Leaders for Tomorrow's Church
     Identifying and recruiting faithful and courageous leaders
Envisioning and Preparing-- as the ELCA-- for the Future
     Renewing and positioning our church for mission
Rightly Handling Genetic Knowledge & Technology
     The intersection of faith, ethics and science
Being an Evangelizing Church Together
     Collaborative efforts to connect faith with the world
Guided by the Word of God
     Faithfully understanding and interpreting the Bible
Proclaiming the love of God in distant lands
     Walking with and learning from our Companion Synods
Finding Ways to be Church Together amidst Deep Differences
     Honoring the integrity of one another's convictions
And Who is My Neighbor?
     Securing and using detailed information about the community
And Who is My Neighbor? Part 2
     Using and applying information about the community
Moving from Fear to Radical Hospitality
     Welcome of the immigrant neighbor is challenging ministry
Helping to bring Out the Very Best of Leadership Gifts
     The important role of coaching and being coached

What about Matthew?

Advent of 2010 begins the lectionary year of Matthew. Dr. Mark Allan Powell has focused on Matthew's Gospel throughout his career and is currently writng a large commentary on Matthew for Eerdmans. To help get us ready for Series A, he will offer presentations on what scholars believe to be two defining themes of this book--themes that just happen to be extremely relevant for the lives and interests of most people in our modern world.

Theme One: The Presence and Absence of God (Tuesday afternoon at 1:45 PM)
How is God present in our world today? Where do we find God? How do we experience God as real or active in our lives? The Gospel of Matthew was probably written to answer these questions - the theme comes up repeatedly in lectionary texts - but what Matthew has to say can be somewhat surprising. For one thing, Matthew is very realistic in recognizing ways in which God is not present. Dr. Powell says, "mature, biblical spirituality involves the recognition of both the presence and the absence of God in our lives today."

Theme Two: Scripture and Making Decisions (Wednesday morning at 9:00 AM)
How can the Bible continue to guide people in making decisions? It was written a long time ago, for people very different than us. There are things that obviously do not apply to us--how do we know what does apply - and who gets to make those decisions? These are precisely the questions that Matthew's church faced as Gentile Christians puzzled over the relevance of scripture texts addressed to ancient Israel. Many passages in this Gospel reflect a struggle to determine how ancient texts can continue to address contemporary moral issues (including ones that they were not originally intended to address); surprisingly, sometimes, the conclusion is that certain texts don't apply and need to be set aside--but how does one do that without being dismissive of scripture? The issues may be different today (congregations don't split over the appropriate length of phylacteries or healing on the sabbath) but the principles Matthew advances provide wise and scriptural counsel.

Lutheran Buzzwords? (What do Lutherans say about the Bible)

Dr. Powell's first keynote (Monday evening at 7:15pm) will focus on Scripture in general and from a Lutheran perspective. Powell's DVDs "How Lutherans Understand the Bible" have received widespread use throughout the ELCA and were excerpted for inclusion in the Lutheran Study Bible.

Lutheran Buzzwords: Four things You Often Hear Lutherans Say About the Bible
All Christians say that the Bible is the Word of God...but what do they mean by that? There are a lot of different Christians in the world, and some of them say things about the Bible that you don't often hear in Lutheran churches. Mark Allan Powell will rehearse four things that Lutheran "typically and traditionally" say about the Bible...though as he points out, "one more thing Lutherans believe is that not everyone should be typical or or traditional!"

Shall We Pray?

Worship at Conference on Ministry will be planned and coordinated by David Ludwig, Director of Music and Arts at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Winter Park. Opening Eucharist will begin immediately after our gathering and announcement time at 4:00pm on Monday with Bishop Benoway preaching. Plans for Tuesday include time in the morning for personal reflection and quiet time, and healing prayer worship in the evening. Dr. Mark Allan Powell will preach at the closing Eucharist on Wednesday morning at 10:30am. He will title his sermon "Worship and Doubt" and will take as his text, Matthew 28:1-9, 16-20 (emphasizing the phrase "they worshiped him but some doubted in 28:17)

How much does it cost?

Double room is $195 per person for two nights and Single room is $250 per person for two nights.
After August 27 -- Double is $220 and Single is $275
Meals -- $49.00 for all conference meals or separately $8 each breakfast; $9 each lunch and $12 each dinner
Deadline for registration for room at Life Enrichment Center is September 3, 2010
After September 3, you may register for the event (event fee is $125) and stay at a local hotel and eat at local restaurants.

Where?
Life Enrichment Center (near Leesburg, FL) http://lecretreats.org/
Directions can be found at http://lecretreats.org/page.asp?PKValue=128

How do I register?
Easy! Click on http://bit.ly/daxB5N.

Questions?
Contact Jan Bernard at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Irene Flynn at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

2010 Conference On Ministry ♦ Sept. 20—22, 2010

The Life Enrichment Center ♦ near Leesburg, Fl

Mark Allen Powell

Robert and Phyllis Leatherman
Professor of New Testament
Trinity Lutheran Seminary

“What is true of the testimonies we find in the Bible is true also of our own experiences. As we share our faith stories and listen to the faith stories of others… we come to understand our own experience of God better, and we come to recognize new possibilities for the life of faith.” MAPowell

Dr Powell will speak Monday evening, Tuesday afternoon, and Wednesday morning.

Mark Allen Powell is an ordained minister of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, but he has also held lectureships internationally at schools in Estonia, Tanzania, and Russia, as well as at such American universities as Berkeley and the University of Chicago. Currently, Dr. Powell is Professor of New Testament at Trinity Lutheran Seminary.

Called to Service

Being a Rostered Leader

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) affirms the universal priesthood into which all of its members are baptized. For the sake of mission and ministry, this church calls some of its baptized members for specific rostered ministries in this church, namely the ordained ministry and three lay ministries (associates in ministry, deaconesses, and diaconal ministers). On behalf of the ELCA, synods have responsibilities related to the oversight and maintaining of the rosters of this church.

Rostered leadership in this church is a privilege granted through each synod in keeping with the ministry standards, policies, procedures and governing documents of the ELCA. Rostered leaders serve in response to the needs of this church, and such service requires that an individual adhere to the Confessions of Faith of this church, be diligent in the exercise of ministry, and comply with the constitution of the ELCA, including living within the standards established by this church in its policies, procedures and governing documents. This is expected of all those who are maintained upon the roster of ministers of the ELCA, regardless of status as active, retired or inactive (on leave or disability).

Synodical candidacy committees have the exceedingly important and highly sensitive task of making initial decisions about the public ministry of those identified as potential candidates for rostered ministry. The candidacy committee must discern through an intentional process of examination and review whether or not a candidate is qualified and suitable to serve under call in a designated rostered ministry of this church.

Once approved for rostering, ordination of clergy, commissioning of associates in ministry, and consecration of deaconesses and diaconal ministers of this church follow the receiving of a valid, regularly issued letter of call. Normally this call is from a congregation or the synod. Those in churchwide ministry serve under call from the ELCA’s Church Council.

When a rostered leader retires from active ministry, the rostered leader may be placed upon the “retired” roster of this church by action of the Synod Council upon the endorsement by the synodical bishop. If a retired rostered leader accepts a call, then he or she is moved to the active list. For the granting and maintaining of the privilege of retired status on the roster of ministers of the ELCA, a retired rostered leader must give evidence of meeting the standards and expectations for ministry in this church.

When a call to ministry ends by resignation or termination of the rostered leader without the acceptance of another call, the rostered leader may be granted the privilege of “on-leave” status and placed upon the “on-leave” roster of this church upon endorsement by the synodical bishop and by action of the Synod Council. Such status, if granted by the Synod Council, is for one year, and renewals of this status must be requested annually by the rostered leader. The privilege of “on-leave” status may be renewed annually up to a maximum of three years, except in certain circumstances as defined in the ELCA constitution in which the status may be extended for a longer time.

The ELCA constitution makes clear that rostered leaders of the ELCA serve in response to the needs of this church, and therefore there is no requirement that “on-leave” status be initially grant or renewed. The initial granting and any renewal of the privilege of “on-leave” status requires a clear likelihood that the individual may be apt and available for possible future call to a congregation or another setting of ministry in this church. If this does not exist, “on-leave” status is not granted or renewed.

An individual who has been removed from a ministry roster of this church may apply for reinstatement at a future date through the ELCA’s candidacy-for-ministry process.

Compensation Guidelines