January 29, 2010

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Epiphany is the season during which Christians celebrate the many and various ways that Jesus’ true identity as the Son of God was revealed to his followers. This is a time of revelation and of clarification of Jesus’, and therefore Christian, mission and purpose.

This season also ushers in the New Year. The old year is past, and now, there are new opportunities and challenges ahead. Just as the disciples learned that their lives as fishermen would become lives of “catching people” (Luke 5:10 NRSV), there will be changes for each of us as we live and serve the Lord in 2010.

The New Year has certainly brought changes for our lives as ELCA Regional Representatives. Due to realignments made necessary by staffing changes in ELCA-Global Mission, we are no longer responsible for the relationship with the Lutheran Church in Rwanda (LCR). This relationship will be taken over by our colleague, Andy Hinderlie. Although we know the LCR will continue to have excellent representation through Andy, we will sorely miss the special relationships that we had begun to develop with the pastors and church leaders there. We will remain in Arusha as ELCA representatives to Tanzania alone.

Just before we left for our Christmas vacation, we learned that Gaylord Thomas, the ELCA-GM Head of the Africa Desk and Director for East Africa (in other words, our boss), had agreed to take an early retirement in response to staff reductions at ELCA Churchwide offices. We will sorely miss his wisdom and knowledge of East Africa. In all, five positions in the Global Mission Unit were discontinued--40 total for the ELCA. These staff reductions follow a similar cut in staff and budget earlier in 2009.

Earlier in the fall, we were informed that our dear colleagues, Jean Wahlstrom and Marv Kananan, had been recalled six months before their retirement in July 2010. They have been serving at the Maasae Girls Lutheran Secondary School for more than a decade. Although their new term end is January 31, they will be staying until March 10 to assist with the arrangements for several groups from the U.S. that will be visiting the school during February and March.

The ELCA staff reductions and budget cuts are the results of the economic climate in the U.S. that has caused decreasing offerings in congregations for several years. In addition, the financial status of the ELCA has been impacted by the decisions of some congregations to reduce or discontinue their support of the ministry of the national church. These actions were taken due to disagreement with decisions made at the August 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly regarding the roles of homosexual clergy in parish ministry. The ELCA decisions have, also, impacted its relationships with other more conservative Lutheran global partners, including Tanzania. All of this is severely affecting the future of the global mission and outreach of our church.

We are saddened by the changes—especially by the loss of such wonderful partners in global mission- and we are trying to adjust to them and prepare ourselves for what is to come. The budget for our ministry has been refined and retuned and reworked several times during the past months in response to the calls to reduce, reduce, and reduce again our costs. We have been told that further cuts may follow.

Although we were blessed to have two new ELCA Mission Personnel (Josh and Sue Magyar) start ministry in Morogoro last fall, we know that there will be no further paid personnel from the ELCA who will come to join us anytime in the near future. With other long-term Mission Personnel in Tanzania coming to the end of their service terms and the increase of volunteer activity among the Companion Synod relationships, the face of Global Mission in Tanzania will be changing greatly in the future.

Our position will be transforming somewhat in response these changes. How? Right now, we're not sure. What we do know is God is making the plans.

Keep watching our blog and website for further updates about our ministry. Soon, we will be sharing more about the ways that we'll be accompanying the many relationships that are present among the ELCA, 20 ELCA Synods and their congregations, the ELCT, its 20 Dioceses and their parishes. It's a New Year, and our ministry will be taking an exciting new form. Please keep us, our Mission Personnel and ELCA-Global Mission in prayer during these interesting and challenging times.

As members of an ELCA congregation, please remind your church leadership how important it is to continue support for the ministries of the ELCA in general and ELCA-Global Mission in particular. The ministry and service of the ELCA throughout the world are life-giving in many ways for people who need to know the grace and mercy of our Lord of Love. We are, indeed, doing God’s work using our hands.

Your Brother and Sister in Mission,
Pastors Bob and JMe Lowden