jwertz

About John Wertz

John serves as Director of Evangelical Mission (DEM) and Assistant to The Bishop for the Virginia Synod. You can get in touch with John via email or by phone at (540) 389-1000

June 17th – Day of Remembrance and Repentance for the Emanuel 9

By |2021-05-28T14:26:44-04:00May 28th, 2021|News|

On June 17th, 2015, Dylann Roof, a member on the rolls of St. Paul Lutheran Church – ELCA - in Charleston, SC entered Mother Emanuel AME church for a prayer meeting. He proceeded to shoot [...]

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COVID-19 Guidance for Virginia Synod Congregations: April 6, 2021

By |2021-04-02T12:45:06-04:00April 6th, 2021|News|

April 6, 2021   As vaccination rates begin to rise and infection rates decline in some areas, the urge to return to public spaces and remove limitations is understandably strong. While there is certainly light [...]

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Reviewing New Executive Order from Governor Northam

By |2021-03-25T15:39:46-04:00March 25th, 2021|News|

On Tuesday, March 22, Governor Northam issued Executive Order 72 Amendment 4 on COVID-19 related restrictions. The new guidelines take effect on April 1. Links to documents from the Governor’s Office are available at: https://vasynod.org/covid-19/state-federal-guidance/.  [...]

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Created, Clothed, Called: Virginia Synod’s First Woman Pastor

By |2021-03-22T13:32:54-04:00March 23rd, 2021|News|

As a part of our recognition of Women's History Month, Assistant to the Bishop Kelly Bayer Derrick interviewed the former Assistant to the Bishop Jean Bozeman. Pastor Bozeman, who was the first woman ordained by [...]

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Asian and Pacific Islander Association of the ELCA Statement on anti-Asian Racism

By |2021-03-20T09:42:03-04:00March 15th, 2021|News|

The Asian and Pacific Islander Association of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), has issued a statement addressing the increase in violence directed toward Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. The ELCA Conference of [...]

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COVID-19 Guidance for Virginia Synod Congregations: March 1, 2021

By |2021-03-01T16:37:03-05:00March 1st, 2021|News|

As we approach one year of living with the impact of COVID-19, the effectiveness of the vaccines and the recent decline in the number of COVID-19 cases in Virginia are promising.  We encourage everyone to [...]

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ELCA World Hunger Big Dream Grant Awarded to ForKids in Norfolk

By |2021-02-26T10:15:10-05:00February 26th, 2021|News|

The Virginia Synod is excited to announce that one of the four recipients of ELCA World Hunger Big Dream Grants for 2021 was awarded to ForKids in Norfolk. ELCA World Hunger’s Big Dream grants, one-time [...]

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Micah Street Church Ashes in the Park: Neighbor Serving Neighbor

By |2021-02-22T13:56:08-05:00February 22nd, 2021|News|

Micah Street Church is an new ecumenical congregation co-sponsored by the Virginia Synod, the ELCA Churchwide organization, and Micah Ecumenical Ministries in Fredericksburg. This new congregation focused on those experiencing homelessness launch in early 2020 [...]

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