Title: February "Virtual Conference" to Explore Faith and Financial Issues
ELCA NEWS SERVICE

December 20, 1999

FEBRUARY "VIRTUAL CONFERENCE" TO EXPLORE FAITH AND FINANCIAL ISSUES
99-316-JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- An Internet "virtual conference" is expected to
bring together people from many faith backgrounds during February 2000
to discuss the question, "How do I live faithfully in the midst of
plenty?"
     The pilot virtual conference, "For the Love of Money: Living
Faithfully in the Midst of Plenty" is sponsored by the Faith and Life
Forum, an organization supported by the Division for Ministry of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).  Aid Association for
Lutherans, a fraternal benefits society based in Appleton, Wis.,
provided a grant to help fund the conference.
     The online conference will feature at least five people from
various backgrounds and occupations who will address participants
online, said Sally A. Simmel, director for Daily Life Ministry, ELCA
Division for Ministry.  The main resource to be used in the conference
is "Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All," a social statement on
economic life adopted at the 1999 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Denver.
The social statement is available on the conference Web site,
www.faithandlifeforum.org.
     "I am very pleased that you are interested in joining the
conversation on 'Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All,'" said the
Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, in his greeting
on the Web site. "It has the potential of becoming one of the most
important foundational statements of this church -- but only if its
assumptions are tested and its implications taken seriously.  Thank you
for your part in literally 'bringing it to life.'"
     Participants are asked to read the economic life statement, and
presenters will post their
ideas on the conference Web site based on issues discussed in the
statement.  Participants will be invited to respond online, and
responses will be posted on the site, Simmel said.
     During the month-long online conference, each presenter will be
available at specific times for live chats with participants, Simmel
said.
     Scheduled presenters include:
     + Danielle Welliever, director, Lutheran Public Policy Office of
Washington State, Tacoma, Wash.
     + Laura McKnight, homemaker, Oswego, Ill., working as a freelance
grant writer and editor to spend time with Jeremy, her two-year-old son.
     + Gary Moore, counsel to Ethical and Religious Investors,
Sarasota, Fla.
     + Dr. Larry L. Rasmussen, Reinhold Niebuhr Professor of Social
Ethics at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He is an ELCA lay
theologian. His current work in Christian ethics includes analysis of
power, methodological issues in Bible, and ethics, technology and
ecology.
     + Steve Slice, farm loan specialist, South Carolina Farm Bureau
Federation, Columbia, S.C.  Slice is a member of St. Andrew Lutheran
Church, Columbia, and is also the son of a retired Lutheran pastor.
     The online conference will begin Feb. 1, and continue throughout
the month.  A conference evaluation will be done online at the
conference's conclusion.
     The conference is open to anyone who wants to participate,
including groups such as adult Sunday School classes, youth groups and
others in local congregations.
     Participants can now register online by visiting the Web site
(www.faithandlifeforum.org). Registration and participation is free.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask]
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html