Dear friends,

¿Qué es la vida en Cristo? What is life in Christ?

From April 23-25, members of the Rocky Mountain Synod gathered from throughout our five states at Bethany Lutheran Church in south Denver, Colorado around this question. What does it mean to be grounded in Jesus Christ as our identity and to carry out our God-given, Spirit-led vocations (callings) in our work, our relationships, and our communities?

We pondered this question in prayer, worship, conversation, and decision-making:

• Our keynote speaker, Rev. Dr. Kristina Lizardy-Hajbi, a professor of leadership and vocation at Iliff School of Theology, invited us to consider what it means for individual followers of Jesus to have a vocation, and for congregations to have a vocation—a calling in and into their communities.
• In worship, readings and prayers of the people were shared via videos recorded by synod members in their various places of vocation.
• A resolution sponsored by our RMS creation care team was overwhelmingly passed in recognition of our human vocation to be better stewards of the earth.
• Workshops and interest lunches offered resources for everything from congregational safety teams and communications to lay leadership development and justice organizing ministry, and more!
• The hallways of Bethany were filled with tables from synod-area ministries like New Beginnings, Veteran Servant Corps, and Urban Servant Corps and by local, churchwide and global partners.
• In our business sessions, we elected 27 new synod council and committee members and passed our 2026 (revised) and 2027 budget to support ministries throughout and beyond our Rocky Mountain Synod and the ELCA.
• We welcomed as Churchwide representative and closing preacher Imran Siddiqui, ELCA vice president, who shared a stirring call to be bolder in proclaiming the life-giving Gospel in the face of Christian Nationalism, racism and dehumanization. The fact that Imran shared his wisdom and faith while besting our synod VP Ray Ferry and your bishop in a hot wing eating contest only enhanced our appreciation of his many gifts and his generosity of spirit in joyfully serving in our church!

In the weeks since synod assembly, Professor Kristina’s work has prompted continued reflection in my own heart. If a congregation has a vocation, why not a synod? And what is the vocation of the Rocky Mountain Synod? By this I mean, not only the beautiful weaving together of the diverse individual callings we each bring to the body of Christ, but also a shared and collective calling. What is our vocation, our vida en Christo, together?

Last year, I shared the four words that have guided our staff and synod council in discerning our purpose: to relate, support, connect, and equip the more that 40,000 people and 150 ministries of the Rocky Mountain Synod as the body of Christ in this part of the church and this part of the world. In my bishop’s report this year, I shared two new initiatives that have developed over the past year as ways to goals of relationship, support, connection, and equipping: the Every Congregation Visit Project (ECV), led by our synod minister team in the office of the bishop, and our Second Fruits Fund (2F), envisioned by a team of staff and synod council members. I encourage you to read more about both of these initiatives in my written report, and please stay tuned for more information to come.

As June begins, we celebrate a season of our church year that—while it may be called “ordinary time,” is often filled with extraordinary moments of ministry. I invite your prayers for our Lutheran Outdoor Ministries, Rainbow Trail Lutheran Camp and Sky Ranch Lutheran Camp, as they complete staff training and welcome their first campers of the season alongside their two new directors (Dave Gunnlagson at Rainbow Trail and Deacon Missie Bonser as interim at Sky Ranch), whom we blessed at synod assembly for their work. Vacation Bible School and other camps and events will unfold over the next months in many of our congregations, and we give thanks for the staff, volunteers, and families who will join these ministries that invite children, youth, and adults into life in Christ.

Throughout the Rocky Mountain Synod, many of our members and ministries will also participate in Pride events that celebrate and advocate for justice for LGBTQIA+ people (check out our Synod Pride Guide here for more information about events near you!) While it’s true that Pride is primarily a civic and community celebration (similar to U.S. holidays), the presence of churches and Christians at Pride is also an expression of life in Christ, and our vocation to love and serve our neighbors. The Rocky Mountain Synod is a Reconciling in Christ synod, with LGBTQIA+ pastors and deacons, council leaders and members, families and neighbors. As Lutheran organization Reconciling Works points out, we are living in a time when “divisive political rhetoric targeting trans and queer people,” coupled with laws and policies, are causing increased danger of harm and death. (The recent murder of Juniper Blessing, a trans college student originally from one of our synod communities in New Mexico, is only one heartbreaking example). In response, people of faith can offer “lament for the harm and injustice that persist, foundation in the enduring truth of God’s expansive love, joy that celebrates the beauty and gifts of LGBTQIA+ lives, and courage to continue showing up, speaking out, and building a more just church and world.”

May the lament, foundation, joy, and courage of our life in Christ continue to guide us all!

In Christ, Bishop Meghan