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Gather, the magazine of Women of the ELCA, offers a mix of articles, theological reflections, devotions and stories of comfort and challenge that help readers grow in faith and engage in ministry and action.
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Summer 2026: “I am worthy,” by the Rev. Sara Olson-Smith
Download all three sessions of the study. This summer, Women of the ELCA participants will gather in Des Moines, Iowa, under the theme “I am worthy.” When Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee spoke in 2017, she invited WELCA participants to reclaim space for women...
Summer 2026: “I am worthy,” video supplement 1
Watch the video. (June 2026) “I am created in God’s image. No matter what anyone else says.” We’ll begin with the story of God’s creation and the “very goodness” that is spoken over every human being. The study will then turn to various scripture texts that have been...
Women of the ELCA staff received a total of 26 awards from two religion communicator organizations
Women of the ELCA staff received a total of 26 awards from two religion communicator organizations, including four Best in Class, three Category Winner and 10 Award of Excellence awards. The Religion Communicators Council and Associated Church Press honored Women of...
Planting seeds in their lives
By Venice Williams I hadn’t yet checked the ride-sharing app on my cellphone to see who had accepted my request for transportation. That is normally my practice. But that evening, I was tired, irritable and hungry. I simply wanted to leave a community culinary event...
Patterns of war: Tracing the ways women and children are most affected
By Laura Gifford Chin trudged wearily along the wilderness trail. She was hungry, cold and terribly alone. Chin thought she had experienced the worst when the white settlers came and took her family’s home. Chin, her husband, and her three young children had set off...
When the music stopped
By Zarah van Dyk That Monday afternoon in my junior year felt like any other. I was majoring in music, and halfway through the second semester, still clinging to the dream I’d carried since childhood. Music had always been the plan—the only plan I’d ever really...