Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Lutheran Campus Ministry to Host “Skype” Worship

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: The Rev. Susan F. Sprowls
Office 734.668.7622; Cell 734.255.7903
pastorsprowls@comcast.net

Contact: Dr. Perry C. Francis
Office 734.487.7120
pfrancis@emich.edu

February 17, 2009


Lutheran Campus Ministry to Host “Skype” Worship
Simultaneous Liturgy to Take Place in Ann Arbor and Bethlehem


ANN ARBOR, MI –Lord of Light Lutheran Church and Lutheran Campus at the University of Michigan (LOL/LCM) will host its first “Skype” worship service this Sunday, February 22, 2009 at 11AM.

Now that webcams and wireless internet access are widely available, distance is no longer an impediment to the gathering of one faith community in two locations. Using the technology available through “Skype,” members of the LOL/LCM community assembled in Ann Arbor will worship as one congregation with others who will be in the Bethlehem, in the West Bank.

“A few weeks ago, I told Dr. Perry Francis, a member of the Lutheran Campus Ministry Board, that I had a crazy idea,” said Campus Pastor Sue Sprowls.

“What would you think of my delivering a “Skype” sermon from Bethlehem?” I asked.

“I think it’s a great idea,” he replied. “Let’s do it”!

“After further discussion, we realized there was no reason not to share the whole liturgy in both locations,” said Pastor Sprowls. “So, we divided up various parts of the liturgy, much as we would on a typical Sunday morning. The sanctuary in Ann Arbor will be set up with a computer, projector, screen and speakers while in Bethlehem our little group will gather around a laptop with an integrated webcam.”

Lessons will be read, hymns sung, prayers offered and the Eucharist shared in both locations. The sermon for the day, which Lutherans celebrate as the Transfiguration of Our Lord, will be offered in the form of reflections by members of the group in Bethlehem.

In Ann Arbor, worship will take place at LOL/LCM, located at 801 S. Forest Ave. Those in Bethlehem will worship at Dar Annadwa, the International Center adjacent to Christmas Lutheran Church.

LOL/LCM is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s (ELCA) Southeast Michigan Synod (SEMI Synod), which has a companion synod relationship with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL). Numerous delegations from the SEMI Synod have traveled to the Holy Land in recent years with a number of congregations establishing partnerships with parishes of the ELCJHL.

The eight-member delegation from LOL/LCM will be traveling to Jordan, Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories from February 20 – March 2, 2009. They will visit five of the six congregations of the ELCJHL as well as several of its educational and health ministries, including Augusta Victoria Hospital, located on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. In addition, the group will meet with several ecumenical and interfaith organizations that are working for peace in the Holy Land.

A highlight of the trip will be a visit with ELCJHL Bishop Munib Younan, who will be presented with a check to support the Mount of Olives Housing Project. The gift is in memory of SEMI Synod Bishop John Schreiber, who was passionate about the Synod’s partnership with the ELCJHL.

Chelsea Mathis (UM ’08), who is serving a year with the ELCA’s Young Adults in Global Mission Program, has made most of the arrangements for this trip and will serve as its primary guide.
Lutheran Campus Ministry at the University of Michigan began in 1917 as an outreach of f Zion Lutheran Church, Ann Arbor and later supported by Trinity Lutheran Church. Student gatherings were held at local congregations until, in 1951, the campus center at 801 S. Forest Ave. was dedicated. In 1972, young alumni formed Lord of Light Lutheran Church. Known for challenging young people to use scripture, tradition and reason as tools for moral deliberation, LOL/LCM serves the spiritual needs of the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan and Wayne State University communities. This year marks Lutheran Campus Ministry at the University of Michigan’s 92nd continuous year of “expanding minds, deepening faith, inspiring service.”

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1 comment:

anita said...

I am a member of St. John's Lutheran Church in Dundee. Chelsea is such an inspiration. To read her articles she writes for our church on her stay in the Holy Land, is such an eye opener.

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