+Bishop Dee Pederson The Southwestern Minnesota Synod is pleased to welcome Rev. Heather Culuris as Synod Minister – Engaging Leaders. She will begin this call on January 1, 2022. Rev. Heather Culuris graduated from Loyola University, Baltimore, MD in 1998. She received her Master of Divinity degree from St. John’s School of Theology, Collegeville and […]
Synod Minister Called: Rev. Heather Culuris Read More »
Good news to share! +Bishop Dee Pederson The Rev. Dr. Troy Pflibsen has accepted the call from the ELCA to serve as the new Director for Evangelical Mission in Southwestern Minnesota. We are grateful for the many persons who considered and applied for this call, to the ELCA/Synod Interview Team for their prayerful discernment, and
Rev. Dr. Troy Pflibsen, New Director for Evangelical Mission in Southwestern Minnesota. Read More »
Gifts of Grace is about building a culture of healthy, sustained ministry leadership in southwestern Minnesota congregations. As a partnership with the Lilly Foundation Inc. the long-term goal of Gifts of Grace is that all of us continue to live out our callings well into the future. Across the synod, we are inviting congregations to
Gifts of Grace Sunday! Read More »
The Endowment Fund of the Southwestern Minnesota Synod has awarded a third year of Congregational Mission Grants. The Endowment Committee reviewed 18 applications and funded all of them, at least partially, for a total of $22,100. Over the three years that the Congregational Mission Grants have been offered, $58,000 has been made available to support
Synod Endowment Supports Mission Grants in SW MN Synod Read More »
+Bishop Jon V. Anderson We are moving deeper into our staff transition work. Bishop-elect Pederson has opened conversations with our staff about the “why” of our work together as synod staff. That conversation leads to the “how” we imagine the staff working to serve the mission and priorities of the synod in the future. Finally,
On Tuesday, June 8th, when we were preparing the video recordings of our nominees (made on Monday) we found that there were technical issues with two videos. Discussions were held to explore various options. This issue was discussed with the nominees who supported our idea to redo these two videos. We offered the opportunity for
Bishop Nominees: Video Interviews Read More »
+Bishop Jon V. Anderson I dread the thick fog of Spring on winding roads. It is not as bad as white outs in a blizzard but driving across the synod you run into fog sometimes this time of year that becomes really challenging. As we continue to steer through our experience of the COVID-19 people have been touching base wondering about
Steering Through the Fog Read More »
Part of our ongoing work is to invite people to better understand our synod, its mission field and the role of a synod bishop. Back in February, ELCA Research created a survey “Bishop Election Feedback“ for distribution among our congregations as we prepare for a bishop election and plan for the future. John Hessian, Research
SW MN Synod Mission Assessment Read More »
Two grants of the Ministerial Excellence Fund have now been opened to aid in the financial freedom of our rostered ministers. Read on and apply if you qualify. Online application links are posted below. Grant for Educational Loan Reduction Rostered ministers who are paying on educational loans taken out to pursue your call should apply
MEF Grants for 2021 Have Opened! Read More »
Endowment Fund Congregational Mission Grants for 2021-2022 The Southwestern Minnesota Synod Endowment Fund will once again make grants to support the mission of Congregations in their local communities in 2021-2022. The Committee is looking for projects proposals in the following areas: Community Outreach Youth Activities Special Mission Projects In addition, the Committee invites proposals in response to mission challenges as we move to a post COVID-19 mission
Mission Grant Applications Now Open Read More »
