ELCA NEWS SERVICE May 14, 2004 Murray Finck Re-Elected Bishop of ELCA Pacifica Synod 04-099-TK*/JB CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. Murray D. Finck was elected May 13 to a second six-year term as bishop of the Pacifica Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) at the synod assembly at the Riverside Convention Center, Riverside, Calif. Finck, 55, received 303 of 392 votes on the first ballot for bishop. The Rev. Elwood K. (Woody) Hall, the only other name formally on the ballot, received 36 votes. Hall is pastor of the Lutheran Church of Our Savior, San Bernardino, Calif. The Rev. James R. Hale, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Irvine, Calif., a write-in, was third with 17 votes. There were 27 names on the first ballot. Finck was elected bishop in 1998, succeeding the Rev. Robert L. Miller, who retired. Finck served on Miller's staff as assistant to the bishop from 1993 to 1998. He previously served as pastor for ELCA congregations in Garden Grove, Fresno and Los Banos, all in California. He was also a mission developer for a congregation in Tollhouse, Calif. In 1969 Finck earned an associate of arts degree from St. Paul's College, Concordia, Mo. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in 1971 from Concordia Senior College, Ft. Wayne, Ind. In 1975 Finck earned a master of divinity from Christ Seminary- Seminex, St. Louis. Finck and his wife Rhoda have three grown children: Erin, Anne and Adam. The ELCA Pacifica Synod has 56,990 baptized members in 126 congregations. The synod office is in Yorba Linda, Calif. --- The home page for the ELCA Pacific Synod is at http://www.pacificasynod.org/ on the Web. *Tom Krogstad is supplement editor for The Lutheran for the ELCA Pacifica Synod. For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask] http://www.elca.org/news