This post contains our Northwest Intermountain Synod’s grant application to Wartburg Seminary’s Castle Project for small town and rural ministry. I did most of the writing after good conversations with Episcopal Bishop Gretchen Rehberg and Presbyter Sheryl Kinder-Pile up in Spokane, but DEM Pastor Liv Larson Andrews added poetic and biblical language to our answer on baptismal ecclesiology.

We are very excited about our upcoming events in the synod and Assistant to the Bishop Pastor Phil Misner and I enjoyed our time at Wartburg this August with other grant recipients.

Baptism, Eucharist, and Ministry in the Rural Intermountain West

Description of Project (500 words or less):

The pillars guiding us are relationship building and equipping our lay leaders. We will host events across our synod bringing together members of at least four denominations (ELCA, PCUSA, Episcopal, and UMC). Our three locations will be Grant County, WA (Moses Lake area), Palouse of WA and ID, and Southeast ID (American Falls to Idaho Falls). These areas were strategically chosen by teams of middle judicatory leaders. For geographic context, the Northwest Intermountain Synod is 80 congregations between Jackson, WY and Leavenworth, WA. This is roughly the same distance as the trip from Chicago to New York City. Grounding our time together at these three in-person events will be a deep dive into the historic 1982 World Council of Churches convergence text, Baptism, Eucharist, and Ministry. We want our lay and rostered leaders to recognize what they share with their siblings from these various denominations when it comes to the sacraments and the life-giving and love filled gospel we proclaim. Further, we want to equip our leaders to share these gifts with their larger communities. Judicatory/synod leaders will do theological framing and teaching. We would bring in a neutral outside facilitator (hopefully someone connected with Gonzaga University’s leadership school. These early fall gatherings will be followed by coaching sessions which help leaders keep the conversation going locally. As I, Bishop Meggan, sat with an Episcopal bishop and Presbyter, dreaming about how this grant could help us equip our leader, we quickly realized that we also need guidance. Though we have many shared ministries, see below, there is so much we still need to learn. We seek guidance as we figure out what skills and knowledge we need to support our local leaders. The final component of our fall project is a retreat for judicatory leaders during which we will take a deep dive collectively into one another’s polities and sacramental theologies, all so we can better guide thoughtful and faithful ecumenical congregational partnerships and mergers. We would also use Baptism, Eucharist, and Ministry and would teach one another, a cooperative learning retreat. We might Zoom in some of our churchwide staff or seminary professors.

How does this project support the furthering of a baptismal ecclesiology? (250 words or less)

Our ecumenical relationships in rural areas equip us to be a special and united voice witnessing to God’s compassion, mercy, and healing in areas dominated by Christian nationalism. We seek to dial up the volume on this voice, not to castigate or shout at our neighbors, but to be a steady presence of peace, calling each other and our neighbors into deeper humanity. As the fragrance of Mary’s oil filled the house, we wish to share the good things we have been given: the abundant presence of Christ in word and sacrament, baptismal dignity and blessing, and works of mercy that transform the world with God’s love. We believe we can share these gifts even more fully alongside our ecumenical partners. To put it bluntly, we are in no hurry to close our small congregations in rural areas because we know the voices that will fill the void if that happens. Our lay leaders often understand this as well and are hungry to step up and learn and lead. The way forward, particularly in the mountain west, is ecumenical consortiums and ecumenical mergers oftentimes led by lay leaders with several pastors and deacons mentoring and supporting. We are deeply committed to partnering for the sake of the Gospel.

How does this project fit with the current priorities of the synod? (500 words or less)

In the case for support for our synod, workshopped and owned by our large synod council, we name five Cs: Cultivating Leaders, Candidacy, Call Process, Companion Synod, and Campus Ministry. Cultivating Leaders is listed first intentionally and prioritizes the cultivation of lay leaders. Our synod staff’s purpose is to serve, accompany, and equip ministry sites and leaders of the NWIM of the ELCA so they can point to and participate in the gracious work of Jesus. Finally, our staff goals for 2024-2025 include: 

• Develop and raise up discerning leaders who proclaim and further the gospel.
• Amplify collective gifts and resources by deepening and broadening relationships and partnerships.
• Equip and empower partners to practice stewardship towards solidarity in Christ.
• Cultivate a team culture that enables our collective work and individual thriving.

The proposed project aligns with our priorities of raising up and equipping leaders and deepening and broadening partnerships within our synod and ecumenically. 

We refer to our ELCA ministry sites as Wellsprings of God’s Love claiming boldly that “as the waters of our synod all flow into streams and creeks that run into the Snake and Columbia Rivers, our ministry sites make up the watershed proclaiming the life-giving gospel of Jesus Christ.” We know that our full-communion partners share this vision and commitment and that they are part of the same watershed.

A final theme this project aligns with, not named explicitly in synod documents, is of returning to basics. Online book studies have included God is Red and the draft of the ELCA’s social statement Faith and Civic Life, but they have also included Bible Studies and Dan Erlander’s Manna and Mercy. It is hard to think of something more basic than looking at baptism, eucharist, and ministry with our full communion partners.

What supports are already in place to further the success of this project? (250 words or less)

A robust and grounded culture of ecumenism already exists across our synod. Our synod includes four federated PCUSA/ELCA congregations, all in rural areas and one is currently served by a UMC pastor. There are additional ministry partnerships with PCUSA ministries (sharing pastors or supply pastors). In two communities, an ELCA pastor or Episcopal priest serves both of those respective congregations. Three more ELCA pastor serve additional full-communion congregations. There are numerous ecumenical endeavors in small towns and our three more urban hubs (Spokane, Boise, Tri-Cities—rural to most of the United States) addressing food insecurity. There are too many ecumenical Martin Luther King Jr., midweek Advent, midweek Lent, and Holy Week worship services and summer Vacation Bible Schools to list here. Several of our congregations have participated in the Spokane Presbytery’s Land Stewardship Project. The Episcopal Diocese’s College of Congregational Development has welcomed one of our ELCA churches, with hopefully more following this year. Middle-judicatory relationships are fostered regularly across the synod, including with two Episcopal dioceses, two UMC districts, two UCC conferences, one Mennonite conference, and five Presbyteries. Leaders are dedicated to these relationships not motivated by survival of institutions but because of our commitment to make sure the Gospel of God’s abundant love continues to be shared through Word and Sacrament.

How will you measure the success of this project? (250 words or less)

We will work with the ELCA Research and Evaluation team to create three surveys: pre-ecumenical gathering, post-gathering and before coaching, and one for after the three coaching sessions. These surveys will help us evaluate the events and, equally as important, capture understanding, learnings, and stories. Each judicatory leader will also commit to doing one-on-one interviews with three lay leaders. Through the surveys and interviews, participants will report on new ecumenical relationships, deeper understandings of baptism, eucharist, and ministry, and opened imaginations for partnered ministries and mergers. Judicatory/synod leaders will be listening deeply and discerning next steps. By the end of the leadership retreat, we will have a clearer path forward for better supporting and equipping our local leaders.