4/26/2016 9:30:00 AM

CHICAGO (ELCA) – In anticipation of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has introduced “Called Forward Together in Christ,” an initiative that invites its 3.7 million members to consider what kind of church God is calling the ELCA to become.

Led by ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton and endorsed by the ELCA Church Council and in collaboration with the ELCA Conference of Bishops, the initiative asks members to join in a conversation about the future priorities of the ELCA.

“We’re asking all of us to think together and to talk together about what our priorities are going to be so we can be as effective as possible in bringing people the good news of Jesus Christ,” said Eaton in a video message.

The initiative has three main phases:

•Conversations across the church about the future
•Consultations on the directions and priorities that emerge
•Decisions as a church about where the ELCA is headed

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