Bookended each day by worship, the 2025 Assembly of the SW California Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was inspirational, informative and inclusive.

On Easter Monday, we of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America joined with people around the world in heartfelt grief at the death of Pope Francis. We celebrate his life eternal in Jesus Christ.

Pope Francis served Christ’s church with wisdom, courage and humility. Throughout his pastoral ministry, he served as an instrument of God’s justice and peace for all people and the whole of creation.

From a young age, I questioned the world around me, and a lot! I would sit in silence and apply secular reasoning as my tool to ponder possibilities, scenarios, and even spirituality. I may have been raised Christian in a loving Christian home, but I was far more concerned with the why and how of things rather than “this is just what I know and what I’ve been taught” and leave it at that. As I grew older, I chalked it up to what I call logistical thinking where I exclusively relied on my own reasoning and understanding of things. 

Women, Wine, and the Word will read Anne Lamott’s bestseller Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith and meet on June 17. Contact Diane Schmidt or the Church Office for further information.

First published in 1999, and still in print, California author Anne Lamott's collection of nonfiction essays about her spiritual evolution is an irreverent, often humorous exploration of faith and what it means for the author.

Traveling Mercies is divided into thematic sections, beginning with "Overture: Lily Pads,"

Recently, Hope has been busy behind the scenes introducing a streamlined visual "brand" for the church. Branding is important because it helps to create a reliable visual representation of our church, and ensures a consistent feeling of trust among our community.

On March 11, 2025, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America Bishops in Wisconsin joined several ecumenical Christian colleagues in signing on to a statement, "For Religious Liberty and Against Christian Nationalism."

They say “it takes a village to raise a child.” Likewise, it takes a whole church family to “train up [children] in the way [they] should go, and when [they are] old [they] will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6)

The Magi came from the east, brought gifts to baby Jesus , departed for home. Having asked for help from Herod the Great to find the child, they agreed to tell him when they did so but were warned not to.

Everybody loves St Francis. What’s not to love? He loved animals, the beauty of nature, he was kind, he was a Hallmark movie come to life. October 4th is the day we remember him —even we ELCA Lutherans.