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For the week before Sunday, December 10, 2006 Walking Together is a weekly e-mail newsletter of the Northern Illinois Synod best viewed in html. If you cannot read this e-mail or see the graphics, go to www.nisynod.org/pubs/wt . Additional news and information can be found at the Walking Together Annex	Sign up to join the  Walking Together mailing list
Visit the Walking Together Annex for more news and information from Walking Together.   Pr. Garry L. Briesacher will be installed as pastor of Trinity, Ottawa on the weekend of December 9-10. The installation will take place at the 5pm worship service on Saturday night and at the 8:20 and 10:40am services on Sunday. A reception will be held following the 10:40 service.   An interactive Advent Calendar is now available on the Synod website. Go to www.nisynod.org and click Advent Calendar.   See photos from the special Synod-wide Reformation Ordination service that was held October 29 HERE>>   Read the Northern Illinois Synod Women of the ELCA Northern Highlights newsletter Winter edition HERE>>.   Find more NISynod News & Events in the Annex Back to top
Gail Kuespert, wife of Pr Ralph Kuespert (Bethlehem, Rockford) hospitalized in Indiana.   Pr. Garry Briesacher and the congregation of Trinity, Ottawa as Pr. Briesacher is installed there December 9-10.   Rostered leaders celebrating birthdays this week including: Rev. Troy Hedrick 12/6, Rev. Thomas Heyd 12/7, Rev. Carl Swanson 12/8, Rev. Jay Quinn 12/10, Rev. Henrietta Milner 12/13, Rev. Charles Olson 12/15, Rev. Peter Rasmussen 12/16, Rev. Gene Peisker 12/17, Rev. Linda Jarchow Jones 12/20, and Rev. Daniel Stalker 12/21. (if we missed your birthday, please send it to Karin@nisynod.org)   Luanne Bettisch, Steve Biehler, and the other NIS candidates for rostered ministry. Find the complete list of NIS Candidates at www.nisynod.org/candidates.htm .   Those not named here who need our prayers.   Send prayer requests to karin@nisynod.org.   Find more Prayer Requests in the Annex Back to top
ELCA Good Gifts, The Giving Catalog of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, makes it easy and fun to give meaningful, "make a difference" gifts: donations to ELCA ministries. ELCA Giving Basket Browse the "Giving Basket" to learn about the many opportunities to support ELCA ministries with your online gifts. Gifts of cash, stocks, and bequests The ELCA Foundation is ready to assist individual members, congregations, and institutions and agencies with their commitment to life-long stewardship and support of ELCA ministries. Visit the Foundation's Web site to find information on gifting options and free resources that can help you plan your legacy for ministry. Announce your gift to an ELCA ministry with an e-card.   God comes into us in Holy Communion. "It is wonderful to taste the wine and bread and realize that this is literally God coming into us," says Pastor Craig Satterlee. He and Pastor Kurt Hendel explore the biblical foundations for Holy Communion and review the history that defines modern Christian understandings of the Sacrament in the new issue of Mosaic, the video magazine of the ELCA which spotlights stories of congregations in Milwaukee and Ander, Texas.   Click image to enlarge. 200 scholarships in seven years! The ELCA Fund for Leaders in Mission has awarded another 23 full-tuition and 14 part-tuition scholarships for this academic year, to seminary students who are on track to serve congregations of the ELCA as rostered leaders. The ELCA is grateful to the generous donors who are helping his year's first-year students bring a wide variety of experience and church service to their academic studies.   Read a statement from ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson about World AIDS Day (December 1, 2006).   Read this month's Women of the ELCA Update online HERE>>.   Grace Matters Titles, Texts, Topics for January 2007: January 7 - Do You Trust God's Abundance? Mark 6:30-34. Anxiety over scarcity is the prevailing creed in American life, even though many Americans have blessing and abundance beyond measure. Gifted teacher and author Walter Brueggemann takes an inside look at why we behave so anxiously, and why it runs counter to everything God desires or offers. You'll hear his ideas for taking a generous God much more seriously than we often do. January 14 - Domination Is Anything But Holy. Ephesians 5:21-32. Sexual and domestic violence are epidemic in American culture. Surprising to many people, however, is the role that Christianity plays in hiding the crisis through silence, or in perpetuating the crisis through a misuse of the Bible. Marie Fortune, founder and senior analyst at the Faith Trust Institute, talks about societal discomfort in addressing this violence. Host Peter Marty looks into one of the more difficult biblical passages involving domination and subjugation. January 21 -When Our Bodies Get Sick. Luke 6:17-19. When our bodies get sick, more than pain, disease, or symptoms are involved. Our whole person gets dragged into the illness. Our hopes, dreams, and character strengths and weaknesses become part of the picture. Professor and author Arthur Frank speaks as eloquently as anyone on the difference between treatment and care, illness and disease, and fighting and struggling. Here's a front line look at illness being part of who we are. January 28 - Inside Chinese Prisons. Luke 4:18-19. There are plenty of fairness gaps in the United States system of justice, but nothing like those in countries that detain and imprison people for merely speaking their mind. John Kamm, executive director of the Dui Hua Foundation, has made a life out of working to free Chinese dissidents who disappear from the public eye. His efforts have been both courageous and successful. They remind us in a pointed way of the biblical mandate to pursue justice for others.   Find more ELCA News & Events in the Annex Back to top
St. Matthew, Galena invites you to The Census and the Star, a serious look at what Matthew and Luke say about the birth of Jesus. Through the eyes of ancient historians and the abilities of modern computer technology we will attempt to determine the events surrounding the nativity...events on earth and in the sky. The key to the search is the death of Herod, a mystery that must be solved with clues found in the night sky over Judea. The Census and the Star will be shown December 7 and 12, with many other showings still to be scheduled. They would be happy to schedule special showings for church groups of all ages. Find out more HERE>> or contact the church at stmattlc@sbcglobal.net .   Find more Continuing Education Opportunities in the Annex Back to top
Find more News from Other Organizations in the Annex Back to top
Send your bulletin board items to NISNews@comcast.net.   Find more Bulletin Board Items in the Annex   Back to top
...are now available online, and are updated on the first week of each month.  Click here to see vacancies   Back to top
...is updated on the second week of each month. Click here to go to the Financial Snapshot - find out more about the Synod's current financial situation. Back to top
Looking for information from a previous Walking Together? Visit the ANNEX for more information OR visit www.nisynod.org/pubs/wt for all the back issues.   Walking Together is a weekly e-mail newsletter that brings you all the news you need to know to stay up to date on happenings in the Northern Illinois Synod. It is sent to rostered leaders, congregations, and others by request. To be added to the listserv, change your e-mail address or otherwise manage your subscription, please click the link on the right or e-mail Karin@NISynod.org Your submissions, comments, and suggestions are welcomed. Contact Karin Graddy, Communication Director for the Northern Illinois Synod at Karin@nisynod.org. -  If you are changing your e-mail address please send your name, old e-mail address, and new e-mail address to NISNews@comcast.net .   You can also change your e-mail address, subscribe, unsubscribe, or control other personal options by going to http://lists.faithgroups.net/mailman/listinfo/walkingtogether . If you have any questions about this service, or ever have any trouble with Walking Together, please don’t hesitate to contact Karin@nisynod.org .   Karin Graddy, Associate in Ministry Communication Director for the Northern Illinois Synod of the ELCA Karin@NISynod.org   www.nisynod.org 103 West State Street Rockford, IL 61101 815-964-9934 - office 815-762-0758 - cell Fax: 815-964-2295 <>< Making Christ Known <>< Back to top

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Northern Illinois Synod, 103 West State Street, Rockford, IL 61101 Phone: 815-964-9934 Fax: 815-964-2295 welcome@nisynod.org Questions or comments about this website may be directed to Karin Graddy, Northern Illinois Synod Communication Director