“How lonely sits the city that once was full of people!” – Lam. 1:1

+Bishop Dee Pederson
As we follow the violence, devastation, and grief the people of Ukraine are experiencing, I’ve found myself turning to the book of Lamentations in prayer. “The thought of [the people’s] affliction and homelessness is wormwood and gall! My soul continually thinks of it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope.” – Lam. 3:19-21. These texts help me consider both the suffering and courage of the people there, as well as ways we can be a part of bringing hope. Our partners – ELCA/Lutheran Disaster Response and Lutheran World Relief – are on the ground there now. They are one of the sources of hope in the midst of such tragedy. As people in our congregations wonder what they can do to help, please continue to pray, share information like this, and lift up the ways our generosity can make a difference for people now.

Resources to share with your congregation:

Below, I am also including a letter I received as part of the Conference of Bishops. It was sent on March 8 from Pastor Zach Courter in Hungary, along with the link to a personal video he and Pastor Rachel Eskesen created, so that our people can hear directly from ELCA folks in Budapest, Hungary. With the technology available in so many of our congregations now, this short (+2 min.) video brings the message of our partners to us directly. Please share it wherever you can and thank your people for joining in sharing God’s mercy.

Learn more about our partners, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, and their continuing work with the crisis in Eastern Europe. www.lirs.org/ukraine-crisis.

Merciful God, you grieve amid the pain, fear, and suffering of your children. Look with compassion on all who endure the miseries of war. Be mindful, too, of those who day and night face peril in defense of our nation. Guide them in their duties as they seek justice for those subjected to tyranny and liberty for those who are oppressed. Eternal Protector of the helpless, hear the cry of the distressed and grant speedy deliverance in a new day of peace and concord. Amen.
Prayer Book for Armed Services
(Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2013), p. 65.

Greetings Friends and Supporters,

The Rev. Rachel and I wanted to reach out to you to share a brief update on the situation in Central and Eastern Europe. We put together a 2-minute video that you can watch here. Please feel free to share this on your social media feeds and/or with your congregation.

Please continue to pray for our partner churches in the region—and the incredible work that they are doing to show God’s love and mercy to people in a great hour of need. Pray for all those in Central and Eastern Europe who are affected by this situation, and most of all, pray for a swift and merciful end to the violence.

For those of you wishing to financially support our partner churches who are doing the work on the ground to respond to the needs of refugees, you can donate here.

Finally, we’ve attached to this email is a bulletin insert created by ELCA Lutheran Disaster Response that might be a helpful resource for you. There are many strong relationships between the ELCA and Lutheran companions in the region who are acutely impacted by this conflict, we’re also attaching a document that summarizes some of the current responses of our partners and ELCA support.

In Christ,

Pastor Zach

Zachary Courter
he / him / his
ELCA Missionary

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