The Rev. Scott Alan Johnson (he/him)

Mark your calendars for the Rostered Ministers Gathering on July 6-9, 2026 in Indianapolis! All ELCA deacons, pastors and bishops are invited. More information will be available in the coming months!

It was in some ways a very good week. Not in all ways - we still manage to trip over the simplest things sometimes - but I’m excited about these two elections.

Home - Reconciling Works Since 1974, ReconcilingWorks: Lutherans for Full Participation has advocated for the full welcome, inclusion, and equity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual/aromantic ...

Not sure what part of the country you call home, but if you’re looking for an openly affirming ELCA congregation, Reconciling Works could be helpful.

www.reconcilingworks.org

Fourth group of religious organizations sues US over ICE raids at churches (RNS) — “As people of faith, we cannot abide losing the basic right to provide care and compassion,” Bishop Brenda Bos of the ELCA’s Southwest California Synod, a plaintiff in the case, said in a…

“As people of faith, we cannot abide losing the basic right to provide care and compassion,” Bishop Brenda Bos of the ELCA’s Southwest California Synod, a plaintiff in the case, said in a statement.
religionnews.com/2025/07/28/f...

So true.

Well, @thelepper.bsky.social I can tell you nothing has changed!

Hope is a sewer rat, but no one wants to use that for liturgical decoration.

Just gonna take a moment to celebrate the sartorial excellence that Deacon John Weit brings to his work. Those bow ties are killer! #elcacwa25

ELCA elects first Black presiding bishop, calls Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide (RNS) — The Rev. Yehiel Curry, bishop of the ELCA’s Metropolitan Chicago Synod since 2019, will serve a six-year term as presiding bishop of the 2.7 million-member denomination.

Via @yonat.bsky.social: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America elects first Black presiding bishop, calls Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide —> religionnews.com/2025/07/31/e...

LWF congratulates Rev. Yehiel Curry who has been elected as the new presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Curry is the first Black presiding bishop of the ELCA.

#LutheranWorld

📷: MCS/ELCA Gaby Valladolid

Presiding Bishop Installation

Information for #ELCACWA25 for Rev Yehiel Curry’s installation service as ELCA Presiding Bishop in Minneapolis in October:

www.elca.org/about/church...

"We need ELCA chaplans because ELCA chaplains are unrestricted in whom they can serve."

Every time the Army does something annoying or a fundy chaplain pisses me off, I remember that I'm here for the Soldiers, not the bureaucracy or the other chaplains.

Bishop Curry has some big shoes to fill, but ain’t nobody gonna ever have the stage presence of our beloved ELCA Secretary, Deacon Sue Rothmeyer. #ELCACWA25

So very excited by the election of the Rev. Yehiel Curry as the next presiding bishop of the ELCA. Church, let’s pray for our new bishop and be ready to dig in and work together as we follow Christ into God’s future. #elcacwa25

(I was writing this response before the third question got asked!) 😉

It can seem that way, yes. It’s really about building teams that can work together to do that work with you. It’s absolutely impossible for one person. It’s absolutely possible for a team - not perfectly, of course, but that’s the work.

As we hear from the final candidates on the question of encouraging leadership among both lay and ordained leaders, I’m reminded of the time one of my campus ministry students said, “Every time you pastors say the word ‘layperson’ I hear the word ‘muggle.’” #elcacwa25

All of them. All at once. That’s the reality.

Bishop Scott's February Reflection: Cultivating Love through Epiphanies epiphany i-PI-fǝ-nē (1): a usually sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something (2): an intuitive grasp of reality through something (such as an event) usually si...

This election, while important, will not change the reality of the age in which we live, nor will that person “save” the ELCA. All of us who love this church have work to do as we journey into God’s future together.
#elcacwa25

nebraskasynod.org/news/bishop-...

Earlier this year, I and others in the Conference of Bishops did some public reflecting on a new presiding bishop of the ELCA. There’s a lot of chatter this week about leadership, the state of the church, and who will lead us. I’m worried we’re forgetting that we follow Jesus, not the bishop.

Thanks.

Is the livestream working? A pastor in my synod says it’s not.

And we’re off. Plenary Session One has begun. Introductions, learning how to use our voting decides, and, soon, the nominating ballot for Presiding Bishop.
#CWA2025

The ELCA Church Council, Synod Vice Presidents, and the Conference of Bishops are convening for the first official meetings of the 2025 Churchwide Assembly. Most voting members will arrive tomorrow. Gonna be a big week for our church! #CWA2025

Ainsley and I flew from Buenos Aires to Chicago, arriving here yesterday around noon. I’m staying in Chicago for a few days as part of the New Bishop Formation retreat at our Churchwide office. Please pray for these leaders as they learn more about the office into which they’ll soon be installed.

LWF Council will meet next week in Ethiopia Council members gather in Addis Ababa from 11-16 June to decide venue for next Assembly and discuss work of global communion (LWI) - ‘Be my witnesses’ is the theme of the Lutheran World Federation (LW...

The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus welcomes Council members from around the world to Addis Ababa from 11 to 16 June. The Council will decide on the venue for the LWF Fourteenth Assembly and discuss the work of the global communion.

#LutheranWorld

This also explains why we are often exhausted. It’s becoming more and more difficult to step away from everything. We are not meant to be on emergency status 24/7/365.

If you can, friends, unplug. Go for a walk. Cook something while listening to music. Garden. Clean. Be good to yourself.

For a historic example that goes against what Speaker Johnson is saying, see TEAM OF RIVALS by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Lincoln was a better president because he put his ego aside and assembled a cabinet that pushed him as needed.

As a leader in the church, I can’t tell you how incredibly toxic this belief is. Yes, there are times when a direction must be chosen and decisions made, but truly good leaders welcome input and even challenges when needed. Wise leaders incorporate wide perspectives and practice active listening.