About the ELCA
St. Paul's is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The ELCA was born from the union of three North American Lutheran church bodies—the American Lutheran Church (ALC), the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC) and the Lutheran Church in America (LCA)—and actually began operating on January 1, 1988.
There are nearly five million baptized members, with about half of those active communing and contributing members. There are more than 10,500 congregations in 65 synods in nine geographic regions. There are more than 17,500 clergy, more than 3,000 of whom are women and nearly 600 of whom are people of color.
ELCA churches are liturgical churches, following the church year from Advent through Christmas and Epiphany, Lent and Easter, and the long season of Pentecost. In 2007 a new hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship (a.k.a. The Cranberry Book, named after its colorful cover). was introduced into the ELCA providing a diverse selection of hymns and exciting new liturgies, all with the goal of dynamic worship.
The Bible reading is updated daily and provided by a service of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Please bookmark this page and refer back to it each day for another uplifting lesson, or subscribe with the link at right to receive the daily reading via e-mail. The news feed below is a service provided by the ELCA. To learn more about the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, visit www.elca.org.