ELCA Task Force Releases Draft of Social Statement on Civic Life and Faith
The ELCA is developing a social statement on civic life and faith, the relationship of church and state, and related matters, as called for by the 2019 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. A draft version of the social statement is now available for study and discussion. Social statements are the ELCA’s
Pastor Erin Jones Completes Executive Leadership Certificate
Distinguished program hosted by Princeton Theological Seminary equips dynamic women with resources for innovative, effective leadership. PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY, JANUARY 2, 2024. Iron Sharpening Iron (ISI), a professional development network for women in ministry, is excited to announce that Rev. Erin Jones, Communications and Advocacy Engagement Manager at Lutheran Advocacy Ministry
LAMPa Names Communications and Advocacy Engagement Manager
LAMPa is pleased to welcome the Rev. Erin Jones as our Communications and Advocacy Engagement Manager. Jones, an ELCA pastor serving in Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod since 2018, brings experience in advocacy, communications and ecumenical community-building justice work to the position. “I’m beyond happy that Pastor Erin said 'Yes’ to this
PA Launches Statewide Food Policy Council
Pennsylvania's first statewide Food Policy Council launched May 25 with its inaugural meeting at the state Department of Agriculture. Advocates, including LAMPa, have been working for years toward the creation of such a council to foster coordination, collaboration and a holistic vision to the commonwealth's food system. "I am thrilled
Lutheran Day 2023 Garners Record Turnout for Study and Practice of Civic Life and Faith
Lutherans turned out in record numbers for LAMPa's annual day of advocacy, gathering in person after four years to wrestle with what it means for us to be disciples in this democracy in this time and to speak as church together for neighbors struggling with hunger or lack of a
Help Inform DEP About Environmental Justice Impacts of Climate Change in Your Community
The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) wants to hear from you about current and future climate change impacts on your community and is holding a series of listening sessions plus an online survey to help prepare a guide to climate action for environmental justice communities. Pennsylvania’s climate is
Lutheran Day Keynote to Focus on Discipleship in a Democracy
Debates about the appropriate relationship between religious organizations and the state (government or political authority) today range from those who object to or are even hostile to religious expression in the public realm to Christian nationalists who idealize and advocate a fusion of certain understandings of Christianity with American civic life. What
In Face of Hunger Cliff, Advocates Invite Lawmakers to Learn, Urge Them to Act
With more than $200 million a month in federal emergency food assistance about to expire in Pennsylvania, advocates invited their lawmakers to learn about the growing rate of food insecurity in the commonwealth and urged them to increase state supports in the face of a looming hunger cliff. In Pennsylvania,
Ashes-to-Go Returns to Capitol
LAMPa and ecumenical partners marked the start of Lent by offering ashes-to-go in the state Capitol for the first time since the start of the pandemic. The practice, which began in 2016, was discontinued in 2021 and 2022. It was missed during that time, according to Capitol staff, who told
Blanket Project Quilt Squares Return to Capitol with Invitations to Visit Ministries
Red-white-and-blue quilt patches were tucked inside cards and hand-delivered to members of Congress the day after Valentine's Day, urging them to act in love for our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness. The patches had been part of the first-ever Homeless Remembrance Blanket Project on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol,
