ELCA NEWS SERVICE May 25, 2005 David Miller, Editor, The Lutheran, Resigns, Accepts New Role 05-097-JB*/JB CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Rev. David L. Miller resigned effective June 30 as editor of The Lutheran, the magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), to accept a five- year term as Dean of the Chapel and the first Floy L. and Paul F. Cornelsen Director of Spiritual Formation at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC). Miller, 52, will leave The Lutheran in the middle of his second term as editor. The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, announced that Sonia C. Solomonson, managing editor, will serve as interim editor of The Lutheran. Miller will offer courses and retreats in spiritual formation, coordinate the worship life of the seminary and develop a center for spiritual formation at LSTC, according to an LSTC news release. LSTC is one of eight ELCA seminaries. "The LSTC community and I are delighted to have David Miller as the first Cornelsen Director of Spiritual Formation," said the Rev. James Kenneth Echols, president of LSTC. "He brings to the task a rich background of study and practice in spiritual direction and spiritual formation. It is critical that leaders in the church have a well-developed spiritual life as a basis for their ministry. Pastor Miller has the gifts not only to help LSTC's students in their formation, but to be a resource to the wider church as LSTC develops a center for spiritual formation." "I am grateful for the ways in which Pastor David Miller has opened our eyes and ears to the words of God's love in this church and throughout the world," Hanson said. "For the past 18 years he has gone into the midst of war, famine and devastation, and used his poetic imagination so that through his words and pictures we might see the presence of the One who is God's love for the whole world," Hanson said. "The gifts he brings as pastor and leader will serve him well in his new call to the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, where he will equip this church's future leaders to give faithful witness in the world." LSTC initiated the position of director of spiritual formation to help ministry students grow in their faith and spiritual lives during their academic and professional preparation, the news release said. In 2000 the Floy L. and Paul F. Cornelsen Foundation announced that it would make a gift of $1.5 million over five years to endow the position as part of LSTC's Campaign for Worship and Spiritual Formation. The Cornelsen Foundation completed the gift in 2004, earlier than planned, and LSTC began its search to fill the position. "We are very pleased with the selection of David Miller as director of spiritual formation," said Paul Cornelsen. "We believe that his work will round out some important aspects of the overall theological experience." Miller holds a certificate in spiritual formation from the Academy for Spiritual Formation, Nashville, Tenn. He has studied spiritual direction and Christian spirituality at the Claret Center, Loyola University's Institute of Pastoral Studies and Catholic Theological Union, all located here. During the past decade he has led numerous retreats and workshops on prayer, spirituality and spiritual direction throughout the United States. "I've been moving for at least 10 years toward a ministry of spiritual formation," Miller said. "I decided that if an opportunity to work in the area of spiritual formation came along, I would present myself as a candidate. I look forward to changing focus. This is something I've done as an avocation -- not for my daily bread -- but I've done a lot of it. At LSTC the intellectual life and the spiritual life are valued and their interaction is rich and deep." As for his role as editor of The Lutheran, Miller said in his May 23 resignation letter to Hanson that he has been "privileged to encounter the face of Christ in thousands of places and faces around the globe, all of them connected with the ministries of our church." "I have enjoyed a privileged position to . do my favorite thing: to tell stories, rich, full stories, filled with the life of the One who is pleased to fill me, even now, with gratitude for what has been and with expectation for what will be." Since 1987 Miller has served on the editorial staff of The Lutheran. He was first elected editor of the magazine at the 1999 ELCA Churchwide Assembly and re-elected at the 2003 Churchwide Assembly. During his tenure The Lutheran received several awards for outstanding writing, photography and design. Miller earned an undergraduate degree in psychology and philosophy from Knox College, Galesburg, Ill. He earned a master of divinity degree from Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa, an ELCA seminary. In 2000 Wartburg Seminary awarded Miller an honorary doctorate. Before joining The Lutheran staff, Miller was pastor at Salem Lutheran Church, Superior, Neb., and St. Mark Lutheran Church, Olathe, Kan. He is married to Dixie Miller, and they are members of Our Saviour's Lutheran Church, Naperville. The Millers are parents of two adult children, Aaron and Rachel. Solomonson to Serve as Interim Editor Solomonson, 63, will serve as interim editor through the end of the calendar year. She is eligible to be considered for the role permanently or on an acting basis until the 2007 Churchwide Assembly, said the Rev. Charles S. Miller, executive for administration, ELCA Office of the Presiding Bishop. She was appointed jointly by the advisory committee for The Lutheran and the ELCA presiding bishop. "These days are critical for The Lutheran," Solomonson said. "The magazine has experienced circulation decline in the past few years. However, such a crisis offers opportunities for building relationships and collaborative efforts. We have begun work on several fronts to keep this magazine vital and strong, and I look forward to developing that." "I am grateful for this new opportunity to serve, and I remain excited and hopeful as the magazine continues to tell the stories of God's activity in this church through its congregations, institutions, global partners, and in the lives of its members." "Sonia's work as managing editor will enable her to provide continuity at this important time in the life of The Lutheran and of the ELCA," said the Rev. Karen G. Bockelman, chair of the advisory committee for The Lutheran and assistant to the bishop, ELCA Northeastern Minnesota Synod, Duluth. "Even more, her passion for the church and for the mission of The Lutheran will serve us all well," she added. Solomonson has served on the staff of The Lutheran since 1987 in various capacities including news editor, features editor, senior news editor, senior editor and managing editor. She was assistant director of interpretation, Office of Communication and Support, for the former American Lutheran Church, Minneapolis. Solomonson has work experience in advertising, marketing and graphic design, and she and her family served five years as missionaries in Papua New Guinea. She earned an associate in commerce degree from Waldorf College, an ELCA higher education institution in Forest City, Iowa, and a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Solomonson is a member of All Saints Lutheran Church, Palatine, Ill. She has three grown sons. ---- The Lutheran is at http://www.thelutheran.org on the Web. *Jan Boden is director of communications and marketing for the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. 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