In early 2007, a small group of peace folk gathered to strategize how to make a positive impact on the Department of Peace initiative. Since we were all members of various North Dakota ELCA (Lutheran) congregations and knew our synod assembly was coming up in April, we decided to bring a resolution in support of the Department of Peace legislation to the assembly (the area convention). We submitted our resolution to the synod council and they supported it and put it on the agenda. We lobbied at the assembly and were surprised that it passed overwhelmingly. The Eastern North Dakota Synod is comprised of 102,614 Lutherans in 234 congregations.

Buoyed by this success we aimed at getting a similar resolution of support passed in our neighboring synod, the Northwestern Minnesota Synod of the ELCA. We were too late for 2007 but began looking ahead to the 2008 Synod Assembly. We hadn't thought of memorializing the END Synod resolution to the National Churchwide Assembly but decided to do this with the NW MN resolution. This, if passed by any synod assembly, directs the national assembly to take action on the resolution.

The resolution was submitted to NW MN held this month (May 2008) and has now passed at their May Synod Assembly so will go to the National Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis next summer (09). The NW MN Synod is comprised of 274 congregations.

I would encourage everyone to study your faith denomination to see what their position is with regard to world peace and the other issues the Department of Peace initiative deals with. I think you will find lots of support there for working as we did to initiate actions that will support the Department of Peace Campaign and also educate your faith body. The ELCA is in full communion with most of the mainline faith groups and they share many of the same values.