Upper Susquehanna Synod

Radical Inclusion
2018-03-07 - 2018-03-09
Progressive Youth Ministry presents “Radical Inclusion” on March 7-9, 2018. Cost is $199 and will be held at the Montreat Conference Center in North Carolina. Keynote speakers include Andrew Root, Monica Coleman, Ben Connor, and Abbi Long. Preachers include Ashley Birt and Alice Conner. For more information, visit ProgessiveYouthMinisty.org.

Jonathan Rundman Concert
2018-03-03 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
Jonathan Rundman, contemporary rock/folk musician, will perform at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Lancaster on Saturday, March 3, 2018, at 7:00 p.m. This is part of the Musical Arts series at St. Peter’s. Come for what promises to be an uplifting evening of beautiful music. For more information visit https://www.facebook.com/events/343210709443562/. Come back Sunday, March 4th as Jonathan will be helping to lead worship at their New Day service, too.

Church Pot Pie Supper in Western Union County
2018-03-03 15:30 - 17:00
Christ’s United, Millmont, will be holding their spring Pot Pie Supper on Saturday, March 3, 2018, starting at 3:30 p.m. Ham, Chicken and Beef Pot Pie will be available. Meals include applesauce, pickled cabbage, roll, beverage and cake. Dinners and quarts of pot pie are available for take-out. For more information call us at (570) 922-1860, email potpie@4bellschurch.com or visit www.4bellschurch.com.

ALDE IGNITE in Minneapolis
2018-02-28 - 2018-03-03
Learn how to take your mission to the next level at IGNITE: Minneapolis 2018, February 28-March 3. This conference will include top-notch keynote speakers as well as rich curriculum sessions and network building opportunities for those with congregational leadership, fundraising, communications, or marketing roles. If you are looking to grow an already vibrant organization, need to reenergize a once-thriving program or are guiding an organization that’s just in its infancy, ALDE is here for you. View the curriculum. Find out more at ignitespark.org. Register now at www.alde.org/register. Early Bird Rates expire January 10. Please note that it is less expensive to become an ALDE member, and then register as a member, than it is to attend as a nonmember. So, you might as well join and take advantage of all ALDE offers year-round. Why ALDE? Click here and find out! Who attends this conference? People just like you who are ready to learn, connect and experience career and mission changing curriculum. In 2017, attendees held such titles as: Pastor, Principal, Board Member, Chief Development Officer, Major Gifts Officer, CEO, Executive Director Consultant, Annual Fund Director, Special Events Coordinator, Director of Marketing, and many more — so you are certain to make a strong peer connection at this event. The conference offers content for every area of the development profession, and for congregational leaders.
Can’t make it to the full event, or looking to save money? Try the day rate! Attend just one day for a very reduced price. March 1 offers several curriculum sessions designed with pastors and congregational leaders in mind. Topics include: Igniting Donor ATM (Abilities, Time, and Money); Kindling the Spiritual Meaning of Philanthropy; and IGNITING Planned Giving for Churches and Schools. Other days highlight additional focus points. Win a $6,000 Consulting Grant There’s even more you can gain from attending IGNITE. We are offering the chance to win a Pro Bono Consultation from Gronlund Sayther Brunkow to someone who is new to ALDE, or has been a member for less than five years. This could be you, but you must attend IGNITE! Learn about the opportunity and sign up now to win at bit.ly/aldegrant (case sensitive). ALDE inspires, educates and mentors the Christian fundraising community to spark generosity for mission. We are an international community of fundraising and communication professionals rooted in the Lutheran tradition of the Christian faith and dedicated to serving God’s people in the church and the world.

Healthy Congregations Facilitator Training
2018-02-16 - 2018-02-17
Interested in investing in your own leadership and the vitality of your congregation? Our synod will host a two-day training for those interested in becoming facilitators for Healthy Congregations. This training will take place at the synod office – 500 Reitz Blvd, Lewisburg. Healthy Congregations Facilitator Training provides faith communities with the perspective and challenge that contribute toward health and thoughtful mission and ministry in these exciting and transformative times. An introduction to the thinking behind the workshops will be offered as well as an overview of the resources that facilitators will have access to following the training. Discounted registration has ended; if you would like to attend this workshop visit the Healthy Congregations website: https://www.healthycongregations.com/event/healthy-congregations-inc-facilitator-training/. For more information contact Assistant to the Bishop Craig Miller: prcmiller@uss-elca.org or 570-524-9778.

Mount Luther Sunday
2018-02-11
The Upper Susquehanna Synod Council has designated that Transfiguration Sunday each year be recognized as “Mount Luther Sunday” to help promote outdoor ministries in the synod. Members of USS congregations are encouraged to celebrate outdoor ministries on this day, February 11, 2018. Mount Luther is an extension of the ministry that is done in local Lutheran congregations. The camp asks that congregations promote the camp on that Sunday or designate another Sunday this spring to do so. Ways to promote the camp include bulletin inserts to share with congregation members, Temple Talks, camper testimonials, bulletin board displays, special camp music during Sunday school and church services, as well as special offering being collected. Ideas are available here: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/2018-Mount-Luther-Sunday-Flyer.pdf. For a bulletin insert to put in your church bulletin, click here: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/General-Bulletin-Insert.pdf

Disaster Response Meeting
2018-02-10 10:00 - 12:00
NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY! Those interested in participating in Disaster Response Work Teams are encouraged to attend an informational meeting at the synod office (500 Reitz Blvd, Lewisburg) on Saturday, February 10, 2017, from 10:00 a.m.-noon. Plans are underway to arrange for up to four ecumenical work trips this year to places such as Houston, Florida and Puerto Rico. For information, contact Craig Miller, Assistant to the Bishop.

GROW in the Snow
2018-02-09 - 2018-02-10
This year’s synod youth retreat at Camp Mount Luther will be held on February 9-10, 2018. All youth in 6-12th grade and their youth leaders are invited to attend. The theme of this year’s retreat is “Hello God, It’s Me,” dealing with prayer. Experience your Creator, play winter games and find refreshment in the peace of camp in winter. The retreat is from Friday night to Saturday afternoon, but there is an option for youth and leaders to come just for the day on Saturday. Cost is $59 (whole program) or $40 (Saturday only) if registered by January 30, 2017. A late fee of $25 added after that date. No refunds will be given after the January 30 deadline. Each registered group should provide one adult (21 or over) for every seven youth and at least one adult for each gender represented. Cabin assignments will be made based on available adults and number of youth attending. Contact Chad Hershberger at chad@campmountluther.org with questions. Click here for a flyer and registration form: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/2018-GROW-in-the-Snow-Flyer.pdf.

Camp Mount Luther Turkey Benefit Dinner
2018-01-21 16:00 - 18:00
This event will celebrate Benjamin Franklin’s Birthday. Franklin wanted the turkey to be the national bird of our country. Camp Mount Luther thought it would be fitting to have a turkey dinner to honor his January birthday! You are invited to come to his birthday party and support camp at the same time! The dinner will be held on Sunday, January 21, 2018, from 4:00-6:00 p.m. at the Evergreen Center at Mount Luther. The menu will consist of turkey and all the trimmings. Cost for the meal is $14 per person. Reservations are required and can be made by contacting the camp office at (570) 922-1587 or cml@campmountluther.org. Deadline for reservations is Tuesday, January 16, 2018, at 9:00 a.m. To download a bulletin insert/flyer at the dinner, click here: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/2017-Turkey-Dinner-Flyer.pdf

Camp Mount Luther Camperson Meeting
2018-01-21 15:00 - 16:00
The annual meeting for Camp Mount Luther Campersons is Sunday, January 21, 2018, starting at 3:00 p.m. The camp is an extension of local congregational ministry and wants every member of the Upper Susquehanna Synod to know what is happening with this important ministry. To do that, Mount Luther has CAMPERSONS! A camperson is a liaison between CAMP and your CONGREGATION, who is interested in camp and wants to regularly share camp news with others. Parents of campers, past campers or staff, or someone with a genuine interest in outdoor ministry makes a great camperson. Campersons are ambassadors and promote camping ministry in your congregation. Each synod congregation is asked to send a representative to this event to learn more. Campersons will

Share Information
Plan and Coordinate a Camp Sunday
Recognize Campers
Reach Out to promote outdoor ministries
Support camp fundraising efforts

Each congregation who sends a camperson to this event will receive Camel Bucks for the camp store for each camper. For more information, visit http://wp.me/P7aFC9-y2

Here is a bulletin insert/flyer to promote this event in your congregation: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/2018-Camperson-Meeting-Flyer.pdf

Synod Office Closed
2018-01-15
The Upper Susquehanna Synod Office will be closed on Monday, January 15, 2018, in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The office will reopen at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, January 16, 2018. If you have an emergency, please call the synod office (570-524-9778) and the voicemail will give you phone numbers that you can call.
A blessed weekend to all!

Synod Office Closed
2017-12-25 - 2018-01-01
The Upper Susquehanna Synod Office will be closed from Monday, December 25, 2017, to Monday, January 1, 2018, in observance of the Christmas and New Years holidays. The office will reopen at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, January 2, 2018. If you have an emergency, please call the synod office (570-524-9778) and the voicemail will give you phone numbers that you can call. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Upper Susquehanna Synod Staff.

Active Shooter Response Training
2017-12-18 10:00 - 11:30
In light of recent mass shooting events, church leaders have asked to have training in how to respond if an active shooter comes into the building. United Lutheran Seminary will offer this training at the Gettysburg campus December 18th led by the Safety & Security team of Gettysburg College. This event is open to all interested persons who wish to receive such training. Questions can be directed to Chelle Huth, Director of Lifelong Learning, United Lutheran Seminary at chuth@uls.edu. It is a busy time of year, but ULS wanted to offer this in a timely manner. Another training will be scheduled in the new year. The Active Shooter Response Training will be held on Monday, December 18, 2017, from 10:00 a.m. -11:30 a.m. at the Church of the Abiding Presence on the United Lutheran Seminary Gettysburg Campus. Cost is $10 per person, payable at the door (reservations/registration not necessary).

Multi-Point Pastors Gathering
2017-12-13 11:00 - 13:00
Multi-Point Pastors Gathering
Multi-point pastors gathering from 11:00 a.m.- 1:00 p.m. at the synod office.

Holiday Breakfast
2017-12-09 09:00 - 11:00
Diakon’s Buffalo Valley Lutheran Village and Camp Mount Luther are teaming up to provide a fun morning of food, fellowship, and Christmas crafts and games on Saturday, December 9, 2017. The breakfast will feature an appearance and photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, chocolate chip pancakes, craft stations, and cut-out cookies. Space is limited. Call Gretchen at 570-523-4285 to RSVP. The event will be from 9:00-11:00 a.m. at the Buffalo Valley Lutheran Village Common Building. For more information and a flyer to help publicize this event to your friends, visit https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/SLS-BV-Breakfast-With-Santa-4Q-B-2017-4.pdf.

Ecumenical Stewardship Center’s Generosity NEXT
2017-11-29 - 2017-12-01
Generosity Next takes place November 29 – December 1 in Nashville, Tennessee. It explores how current culture informs faithful stewardship and generous giving. This year’s topic is Stewardship & Generosity: Are We Doing All We Can? Engage with keynote speakers Steve Manskar and Anne Burkholder as we explore John Wesley’s well-known sermons about money and their relevance for generous stewards of the 21st century. Connect with Christian sisters and brothers who share a passion for faithful stewardship and generous giving. Be inspired through meaningful worship, insightful presentations, and thoughtful conversation. Become better equipped to lead others in their discipleship journeys of becoming faithful stewards and generous givers. Contact Pastor Craig Miller in the Synod Office for information on ELCA sponsored registration. Information about Generosity NEXT and registration can be found at https://stewardshipresources.org/generosity-next

Lecture at Bucknell University
2017-11-09 19:00 - 20:00
“Genuine Love in the Reformation” is the title of a lecture on November 9, 2017, at 7:00 p.m. at Bucknell University. It will be held in the LC Forum and feature Peter Iver Kaufman, George Matthews & Virginia Brinkley Modin Chair in Leadership Studies, Jepson School of Leadership Studies, University of Richmond.

Healthy Congregations Workshop
2017-11-04 09:00 - 14:30
On Saturday, November 4, 2017, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., there will be a workshop held titled, “Healthy Congregations 2.” The workshop will focus on dealing with anxiety in your congregation. The event will be held at St. John Lutheran Church, 229 South Broad Street, Jersey Shore. It’s designed for any member of a congregation and is free of charge. Lunch will be provided. Please register by calling Molly Mitchell at 570-398-1676.

Evening at Shade Mountain to Benefit Mount Luther
2017-11-03 18:00 - 20:00
Come to Shade Mountain Winery to share fellowship, entertainment, and enjoy locally produced wine, all to benefit Camp Mount Luther. The event runs from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Entertainment will be provided by Bernie Rich, a local musician who sings contemporary folk music and Christian anthems. The menu will include heavy appetizers, dessert, and one glass of wine per person. SPACE IS LIMITED. Please make your reservations with the camp office at 570-922-1587 or cml@campmountluther.org. If you choose to purchase any bottles of wine that evening, a portion of the proceeds will be given to Mount Luther. We ask all participants to make a donation to the camp that evening, equal or greater to the food and entertainment provided. Download a flyer/bulletin insert here: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2017-Shade-Mountain-Winery-Flyer.pdf

Looking Back and Called Forward—ELCA 500
2017-10-31
This event, commemorating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, will feature ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton as co-host. It will also include speakers and a service at the Lutheran Church of the Reformation on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Bishop Eaton will be joined by co-hosts Indiana-Kentucky Synod Bishop Bill Gafkjen, ELCA Vice President Bill Horne and Metropolitan Washington, D.C., Synod Bishop Dick Graham. The event is open to the public and will be available online via livestream. All are invited to participate and honor the Reformation anniversary as we bear public witness to Christ, who frees us to love and serve our neighbor, and as we look to the future to which God is calling us. More details will be available soon at https://elca500.org/events/looking-back-called-forward-elca-500-washington-d-c/

Community Reformation Service
2017-10-29 10:00 - 12:00
All are invited to celebrate the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation at the Liberty Community Reformation Service. The service is being held by several churches including the Liberty Lutheran Parish and other denominations in the Liberty area. It will take place on Sunday, October 29, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. in the Liberty High School Auditorium in Liberty. Following worship, there will be food and fellowship.

LARC Vespers and Day of Dialogue
2017-10-22 - 2017-10-23
Bishop Barbara J. Collins invites you to celebrate our Ecumenical relationships with the Lutheran-Anglican-Roman Catholic (LARC) dialog with the LARC Vespers on Sunday, October 22, 2017, at the United Lutheran Seminary (Gettysburg Campus) Chapel. The liturgy for the evening will follow the order used at Lund, Sweden, to celebrate the ecumenical strides made between Roman Catholics and Lutherans. Worship begins at 4:00 p.m. and will be followed by refreshments in the seminary refectory. Click here to download a flyer. The LARC Day of Dialogue will be Monday, October 23, 2017 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Cardinal Keeler Center. The events will take special note of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation as well as our progress on the path to Christian Unity. Southwestern Pennsylvania Synod Bishop Emeritus Donald J. McCoid, who as Executive for Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) had a key role in developing the document Declaration on the Way, will be the speaker for the Day of Dialogue. A registration form is available here: http://www.uss-elca.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/2017-LARC-Registration-form.pdf

WELCA Action Day
2017-10-21 11:00 - 12:00
The Mission Action Committee of the Women of the ELCA, Upper Susquehanna Synod, announces its Action Day at the Synod Office. Action Day will be Saturday, October 21st, at 11:00 a.m. The topic is “Caring for Your Congregation and Your Neighbors. Speaker will be Ryan Versulisu, discussing Stephen Minstry. He was involved in the Stephen Ministry program at St. John’s Ev. Lutheran Church, Hamlin, N.Y. where he trained two classes of new ministers and supervised active Stephen Ministers. He moved to Danville, PA, in 2013 to help his wife care for her parents and joined Pine Street Lutheran Church. There he restarted a Stephen Ministry program and trained new Stephen Ministers and is recruiting new members. He, with his wife, had served in a hospice home and Ryan serves two days a week as a hospital volunteer chaplain at Geisinger Medical Center.

The Day of Advocacy program is free. They will be collecting a free-will offering. The day promises to be exciting! Bring a packed lunch, dessert and beverages will be provided.

Building Youth Group Event at Camp Mount Luther
2017-10-21 10:00 - 16:00
Keep your youth group strong and growing by laying a foundation for its future members! Bring your youth to Camp Mount Luther for BYG, a fun community building time. We’ll work with you and your campers to facilitate relationship-building experiences. Youth leaders, pastors, and parents should bring as many as you can in this age bracket to help build comfort and trust within your future youth group. Come along- bring the youth leader, pastor, or parents with your kids. Camp Mount Luther invites you to bring one adult free for every seven kids you bring to camp. Additional adults come for half of the participant’s fee. We’ll have team building, reflection time on God’s Word, Frisbee golf, ropes course, and fellowship. Our theme this year is “Pray!” Cost for the program is $22.00, which runs from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Each participant is asked to bring a bag lunch. To register, call the Camp Mount Luther office at 570-922-1587 or e-mail cml@campmountluther.org. Click here to download a flyer/bulletin insert: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/2017-BYG-Day-Long-Flyer.pdf. Deadline to register is October 16, 2017 at 3:00 p.m.

Concert at Bucknell University
2017-10-20 18:30 - 21:00
“Reformation 2017: Reform/Revolt,” featuring J.S. Bach’s Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott, BWV 80; and songs of revolution and reform from across the globe, will be in October at Bucknell University. The concert is October 20 at the Weis Center starting at 6:30 p.m. with a pre-concert lecture and the actual concert starting at 7:30 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

Cries from the Wilderness: A Down to Earth Conversation about Racism and Our Role in Ending It
2017-10-18 09:00 - 15:00
Bishop Barbara J. Collins invites you to a day of conversation with colleagues and friends on October 18, 2017, at Follmer Lutheran Church. Anyone who watches the news must be wondering what is happening to our nation. Sometimes it appears we are being torn apart. What, if anything, is God up to in the midst of it all? Author and former ELCA pastor and professor, Kelly Fryer, has literally been in the desert for the past five years serving as CEO of YWCA Southern Arizona, whose mission is eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Kelly will be with us to share what she has learned in the wilderness and lead us in a tough but necessary conversation about racism, the ways in which it harms all of us and what church leaders can do to end it.
Come with an open mind and a soft heart. This is a time and place to ask questions, untangle misperceptions, grow in understanding and conspire together to join God’s mission of love and justice. The day will feature the presentation from Kelly Fryer, as well as time for sharing with one another. Pastors are invited to bring leaders from their congregations to this event. Cost for the day will be $15 per person with discounts for multiple registrations from one congregation.
Registration is available at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cries-from-the-wilderness-a-down-to-earth-conversation-tickets-38124362996

Children, Youth & Family Ministry Certification School.
2017-10-15 - 2017-10-20
Vibrant Faith (www.vibrantfaith.org) is a great ministry that has been at work for many years building up the church through leadership development and research. Bear Creek Camp (BCC) near Wilkes-Barre is hosting Vibrant Faith’s 75th certification school in October. The CYF Training School changes lives, equips leaders and helps transform ministries in effective and creative faith formation. It’s a 9-month program for the participants that begins with five days of group training at BCC and continues with one-on-one training via phone, blogs, videos, and webinars. Youth leaders, pastors, volunteers, other interested adults are the perfect folks who could benefit from a program like this. It’s typically a $2,000 fee, but, the camp is offering the program for $1,600. To sign up or get more information visit www.bearcreekcamp.org/vibrant-faith-training-school/

Lecture at Bucknell University
2017-10-12 19:00 - 20:00
“The Reformation as Disruption: How Cheap Print Destroyed Latin Christendom and Made the Modern World” is the title of a lecture that will be held on October 12, 2017, at 7:00 p.m. It will be held in the LC Forum on the campus of Bucknell University. The speaker is Philip Gorski, Professor of Sociology, Yale University.

Fall Women's Retreat
2017-10-07 09:45 - 15:00
All local women are invited to be participants at the Fall Women’s Retreat, sponsored by Camp Mount Luther and the Upper Susquehanna Synodical Women’s Organization. The day-long retreat is in place of the fall cluster gatherings and will feature a presentation led by Christine Mabon titled, “Renew, Restore, Revitalize: The Five Essential Friendships That Enrich Our Lives and 101 Ways to Nurture Yourself. The day will be spent looking at how to embrace the unique gifts friendships bring to our lives and how to sustain these friendships. And, we’ll look at how we might love ourselves more by nurturing our body, mind, and spirit. The retreat will take place at the camp on Saturday, October 7, 2017. It will run from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The day will begin with refreshments and end with singing and prayer.
The cost of $22.00 per person includes coffee and tea, snacks, lunch, and the program. You are encouraged to bring a friend! Registration deadline is September 26. To register, contact Mount Luther, 355 Mt. Luther Lane, Mifflinburg, PA 17844. Checks should be made payable to Camp Mount Luther. If you have questions, call the camp at (570) 922-1587 or e-mail cml@campmountluther.org. To view a flyer/registration form, click here: https://www.campmountluther.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/2017-Womens-Retreat-Flyer.pdf
Copies of the presenter’s book, 101 Ways to Nurture Yourself, along with “friendship” aprons, pot holder/oven mitt sets and note cards will also be available for sale.

United Lutheran Seminary Offers The Weekend
2017-10-06 - 2017-10-08
Thinking about your calling in life? Wondering about seminary? Wanting a brief retreat to explore it? Know someone who is thinking about these questions? Check out three upcoming times set aside for “The Weekend” at United Lutheran Seminary. Recommend “The Weekend” to someone you know. The next one begins October 6th in Gettysburg. (We would love for you to spend a little time with us.) https://www.unitedlutheranseminary.edu/weekend.
