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                                                         December 21, 2017
The people who walked in darkness
    have seen a great light;
those who lived in a land of deep darkness-
    on them light has shined. (Isa. 9:2)  
 
Since Christmas falls at the end of the calendar year, it occurs at the same time that every news outlet recounts for us the tragedies and distress of the previous twelve months. 2017 is no exception. It has been a hard year for many. Disasters of human and natural origin have been the daily news fare all year - hurricanes, fires, wars, mass shootings, continued and growing economic disparity, and on and on. You know the litany.
 
Yet into this world the Good News is proclaimed again. The light that shined in Bethlehem was light shining in the darkness, light in the form of a baby born in the midst of political oppression and poverty, forced with his parents to flee his homeland and look for safety in another country. The light of Christ still shines even in our darkness, where refugees fleeing for their lives are turned away, the poor are forgotten by the powerful, and the wealth of nations is spent on more efficient and horrible weapons.
 
The prophet proclaims the hope promised in the birth of Mary's child:
 
For the yoke of their burden,
    and the bar across their shoulders,
    the rod of their oppressor,
    you have broken as on the day of Midian.
For all the boots of the tramping warriors
    and all the garments rolled in blood
    shall be burned as fuel for the fire....
His authority shall grow continually,
    and there shall be endless peace....
He will establish and uphold it
    with justice and with righteousness
    from this time onward and forevermore. (Isa. 9:4-5,7)
 
And so in the darkness of the end of the year, we remember the hope that is given to us in the birth of Mary's baby. "For a child has been born for us, a son given to us...." (Isa. 9:6) God is with us. Light still shines even in the deepest darkness.
 
Merry Christmas and blessing in the New Year,
Bishop Gordy and the Staff of the Southeastern Synod



                                    Synod Calendar                 

                2018    
January 14, 2018: 2018 Southeastern Synod Service of Commemoration for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, Atlanta, GA     
January 15, 2017: Lutheran MLK Day of Service 2018, Rock of Ages, Stone Mountain, GA                  J anuary 18 - 25, 2018:   Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
January 19 - 20, 2018:  Synod Council Meeting, St. John's, Atlanta, GA 
May 30 - 31, 2018:  Synod Council Meeting, Chattanooga, TN
June 1 - 3, 2018:  2018 Synod Assembly, Chattanooga, TN
June 27 - July 1, 2018:   ELCA Youth Gathering, Houston, TX
September 14, 2018:  Southeastern Synod Women of the ELCA Convention, Lakepoint State Park, Eufaula, AL
September 20 - 22, 2018: Synod Council Meeting, TBD

                                                          2019
January 17 - 19, 2019:  Synod Council Meeting, TBD
January 18 - 25, 2019:  Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
May 29 - 30, 2019:  Synod Council Meeting, Chattanooga, TN
May 31 - June 2, 2019:   2019 Synod Assembly, Chattanooga, TN
August 5 - 10, 2019:  Churchwide Assembly, Milwaukee, WS
September 19 - 21, 2019:  Synod Council Meeting, TBD

                                                          2020
January 18 - 25, 2020:  Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
June 3 - 4, 2020:  Synod Council Meeting, Chattanooga, TN 
June 5 - 7, 2020:  2020 Synod Assembly, Chattanooga, TN
July 16 - 19, 2020: Eleventh  Triennial Gathering for the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America , Phoenix, AZ

                                                          2021
January 18 - 25, 2021:   Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
June 2 - 3, 2021:  Synod Council Meeting, Chattanooga, TN
June 4 - 6, 2021:  2021 Synod Assembly, Chattanooga, TN
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ELCA Southeastern Synod
100 Edgewood Ave. NE, Suite 1600
Atlanta, GA 30303
404-589-1977