ELCA NEWS SERVICE

June 6, 2012  

ELCA experiencing growth in the number of long-term mission personnel
12-38-MRC

     CHICAGO (ELCA) - The Rev. Tessa Moon Leiseth, her husband, Jon, and
their two children will soon call Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, home
for the next four years. Tessa is among 15 new missionaries of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) beginning service in July.
     The ELCA is one of the few mainline denominations that fully support
its long-term mission personnel. Every year 225 ELCA mission personnel
serve in more than 40 countries, working hand-in-hand with global
neighbors teaching, preaching, healing, peacemaking, building and growing
communities. Of the 225, some are self-funded volunteers and others are
serving a two-year commitment.
     As the Leiseth family eagerly await their new journey, they
acknowledge that it will be hard to leave family and friends,
particularly their home in Moorhead, Minn.
     "There is a mixture of grief, fear and anxiety," said Tessa
Leiseth. "We are leaving our safety net: what we know, things to which we
are accustomed, and things that make us feel comfortable."
     Even so, a clear and compelling call drives them forward, she
said. "That is the rock and anchor we hold onto as we navigate this. We
don't know what it means, we don't know what it will be like, and we
cannot even imagine the ways in which this experience will transform who
we are. Yet we know this is what we are being called into."
     Financial support for ELCA missionaries is made possible through the
generosity of congregations, individual members and others across this
church.
     "The ELCA Missionary Sponsorship program is an excellent way to make
a direct connection between the hearts of our people and the ministry of
ELCA missionaries around the globe. Together, God's work is truly
happening through our hands," said the Rev. Lanny Westphal, who directs
missionary sponsorship at ELCA churchwide ministries.
     "Support for missionaries is more urgent now than ever before," said
the Rev. Twila Schock, a former missionary and former director for
missionary sponsorship. Schock is senior pastor of Christ Lutheran Church
in Belvidere, Ill.
     "Our church has not waivered in its commitment to supporting our
missionaries," despite some economic setbacks, said Schock, adding
that the ELCA is experiencing resurgence in the number of fundable long-
term missionaries.
     And for 2012, there are also a number of ELCA pastors and lay
members returning as missionaries.
     A former missionary couple who served in Thailand and Seoul are now
being called to work with the Nairobi International Lutheran
Congregation, and another couple who worked with the International Church
of Copenhagen is now being called to a ministry of leadership development
in the Lutheran Church of Senegal, according to the Rev. Stephen Nelson,
who serves as director for global community at ELCA churchwide ministries.
     Included among this year's mission personnel is a librarian from
Wisconsin, earning a Master of Divinity degree, who will teach theology
and English in Papua New Guinea, and a lecturer at an ELCA seminary, who
will teach pastoral care and counseling in Ethiopia.
     Long-term service positions are carefully developed with the
priorities of ELCA global companion churches, according to Nelson. "Our
global companions request ELCA personnel to fill positions identified as
critical needs," he said, adding that these are positions that work to
build the capacity of our companion churches in their theological
education institutions, congregations, leadership development and in
other ways.
     The mission personnel will begin their service with orientation in
Toronto, before moving to their respective areas of service.
     Information about ELCA Missionary Sponsorship is available at
http://www.ELCA.org/Who-We-Are/Our-Three-Expressions/Churchwide-
Organization/Global-Mission/Engage-in-Global-Mission/Support/Global-
Mission-Support.aspx.
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United
States, with 4.2 million members in 10,000 congregations across the 50
states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work.
Our hands," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in
Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's
roots are in the writings of the German church reformer, Martin Luther.

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