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Gather’s “Advent words” coloring book devotional available
Gather’s “Advent words” devotional coloring booklet makes a great gift for a friend—or for yourself! Featuring 25 daily devotionals—one for each day of Advent—each page contains an image for coloring, a passage from Scripture, a brief reflection and a prayer. This...
Just Prayers booklet available
If you are looking for a new resource to enhance your prayer life, or are looking for a special gift for your loved ones this holiday season, consider ordering Just Prayers! This pocket-sized book of prayers, written by women from around the church, is available when...
Advent 2026 devotional: Spanish version
Download and share "Cómo elijo anclarme: Practicando la Valentía de la Esperanza" Advent devotional
Advent 2026 playlist
(1) ADVENT - Hope 2026 - YouTube Advent Playlist - Hope - playlist by Kristina Diaz | Spotify Eleanor Rigby - song and lyrics by Cody Fry | Spotify Hasta la Raíz - song and lyrics by Natalia Lafourcade | Spotify Big Love, Small Moments - song and lyrics by JJ Heller |...
A new school offers hope for girls.
By Contance Mudore Waving leafy branches and whooping in excitement, a large group of women dressed in kangas (colorful traditional clothes from East Africa) greeted us. We had finally arrived at the village of Merya, in the Singida region of central Tanzania. Is this...
A place to belong: Creating spaces for youth mental health
By Cassidy Klein While at an ELCA gathering of young adults in New Orleans, John Christensen, the project officer for disabilities advocacy and mental health with the World Council of Churches, recalled a moment during a Bible study he once helped lead. That Bible...
I wanted to sit comfortably and safely.
By Carolyn Bolz Has anyone in your congregation ever done something for you that was so kind it brought tears to your eyes? That recently happened to me at the Lutheran congregation in Riverside, California, where I’m a member. I live with a physical disability, where...
Summer 2026: “I am worthy” video supplement 3
Watch video. (August 2026) “I am because you are: We need one another.” Our individual identities are always bound up in community. Jesus describes this vision using a vine and branches. Paul talks about a body with many parts. The prophets describe communities of...
Getting to know Mary Magdalene
By Cara Strickland Years ago, I spoke to a pastor friend as Easter approached. She hadn’t decided on the theme of her sermon, but at least one point was clear. “I’m going to make sure people know that Mary Magdalene wasn’t a prostitute,” she said. Did these words...
Summer 2026: “I am worthy” video supplement 2
Watch the video. (July 2026) “I am more than one thing: Honoring our many identities.” In her TED talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie names this truth: We are much more than one thing. All of us have intersecting identities, roles and...
I am worthy
By Elyssa Salinas-Lazarski When I heard the phrase “I am worthy,” I thought about how I use the concept of worth in my daily life. I go to the store, pick out a shirt and consider whether the price makes it worth buying. Looking at the clock, I consider whether an...
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...
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...
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...
Mary and Martha and the right to rest: Sources
Giles Constable. Three Studies in Medieval Religious and Social Thought: The Interpretation of Mary and Martha. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. Bernadette Escaffre. “Martha,” in Gospels: Narrative and History, ed. Mercedes Navarro Puerto and Marinella...
Christian spirituality and artificial intelligence: Sources
Works Cited Finding God in the App Store - The New York Times Artificial Intelligence Issue Paper - ELCA Resources AI & the Church Summit Journals Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026) deepai.org - Chat with Martin Luther AI...
Women of the ELCA parenting curriculum resources
Session one It Starts with You, Nicole Schwartz (Broadleaf: Minneapolis, 2022). The Search Institute’s Developmental Assets (https://searchinstitute.org/resources-hub/developmental-assets-framework). Parenting from the Inside Out, Daniel J. Siegel and Mary Hartzell...
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...