Lutheran Campus Ministry (ECLA) at Northern Michigan University

I stopped by the other day to talk with a banker, a single mom, and struck up a casual conversation about the economy. She recently returned to Michigan from Washington's Olympic Peninsula. We exchanged thoughts and expressions about university students, credit cards and what appears to be a looming economic disaster.

We both agreed that our country is on the edge of a shift in consciousness. This is the end of a game, the implosion of an overblown, inflated, greed-driven economy in which we now have discovered nobody really knew the rules, nor followed them if they did. Things will tighten up. There will be entitlements for a few, but the rest of us are going to have to look at values and lifestyles. Decisions will be made about things that were never thought twice about. We both agreed on another thing. No presidential election is going to save us. A member of a nearby faith community, she also thought spiritual lives of people will take on heightened importance in the coming months and years.

My friend, a Buddhist priest and university professor, reminds me that he often opens community meditation sessions with two simple sentences: "Everything is changing." he says smiling. "That's the bad news and that's the good news." I like that.

As the dollar falls in the world market, community meals, festivals, walks in the woods, music, poetry, acts of kindness and pondering a better redistribution of wealth will be what its going to be about. That's what we do here at Lothlorien. Look through these pages. Two students will be traveling into the hill country of Nicaragua in coming months to explore the Fair Trade Coffee movement among rural farmers; others will be working to organize community gardens next spring; some will be hiking forested ridges, exploring nearby waterfalls. Others will be meeting around meals in November to explore how to use more wisely and generously what little of their college loans might be left to save and spend.

We meet quietly each mid-week and the University Center to pray and ponder the changes going on around and within us. We share a loaf of bread, drink from a cup and remember a Promise that one day all things shall come together, everything in heaven and everything on earth. One evening I shall invite the banker. Welcome to a new school year.

Weekly Rhythms

Gathering

Wednesdays, 9 p.m.
The Nicolet Room
University Center, 2 floor - Look for the LCM banner

This ongoing circle of connection, prayer and Eucharist is the "heartbeat" of our life together as a campus ministry. Thanks to Pastors Lee Goodwin, from our Synod's Sabbath Project and David Van Kley, Pastor at Messiah and St. Marks for serving as guest speakers and preachers these past weeks. Student leader Jenna Geueke is serving as our liturgical leader this fall semester.

GAUDEAMUS

(Latin for joy-filled!)
Join us every week for our Sunday evening student meal from 6 to 7 p.m. in St. Mark's Lutheran Church Fellowship Hall, 1318 Presque Isle Ave.

A chance to meet new friends, share some reflections on the week and partake in a home-cooked meal prepared by St. Marks and Messiah families and friends.

Special guests these past weeks have included Tom Reed. NMU faculty member Chet DeFonzo will be joining us as special guest on October 26 to share some thoughts on traveling, history and spirituality.

FRIENDS OF LOTHLORIEN

A Fireside Chat with
Imam Qazwini

Wednesday, October 22, 2008
3 to 4:30 p.m.
Lothlorien, 701 W. College Avenue

NMU's Interfaith leader Mohey Mowafy, joins us to host an informal fireside dialog with one of North America's foremost Islamic leaders. Imam Hassan Qazwini is spiritual leader of the largest Mosque in North America (Located in Dearborn, MI). His recent book, American Crescent continues to draw national attention. Lothlorien's community will provide the setting and hospitality. You can look forward to an important and memorable afternoon, building relationships with a prophetic, insightful, religious leader.

NMU STUDENTS

A #550 Waterfall Blitz

Saturday, October 25, 2008
1 to 7 p.m.

NMU students Brian DeJager (outdoor recreation Major) and Walter Hanson (ROTC) lead us along County Road #550 to view five waterfalls. Followed by a cookout on the edge of Lake Superior at the campus pastor's cabin. Rain or shine! Dress for the weather. Meet at 701 W. College Avenue at 1 p.m. We'll return back to Marquette by 7 p.m. Bring swimsuits and towel for a hot sauna. This will be a day you won't forget.

Sunday Evenings in November

The Gold & Silver Series
Practical tips about Money

6 to 7 p.m.
St. Mark's Lutheran Church, 1318 Presque Isle

The crunch is on. Most students have very limited resources. During our Sunday evening suppers (Gaudeamus) for the four weeks of November, Dr. Larry Pagel, Chair of the Faculty of NMU's Business Department will be working with the campus pastor to bring special guests and offer brief twenty minute presentations on credit cards, saving accounts and the ups and downs of being a good steward with what we have been given. Get ready for the inside scoop and on-the-ground advice about keeping this part of your life in balance.

All Saints Night

Friday, November 14

6 to 10 p.m.
Car pooling from the University Center

Join us for this thirteen-year-old tradition. On Friday, November 14, students and friends of Lothlorien will head out for a fireside conversation at Magnuson's camp on Lake Superior's shoreline. We'll begin with sharing a history of this tradition in the Christian Church, followed by storytelling, hot cocoa and s' mores. This will be an interfaith event with representatives of NMU campus ministries invited as guests. Meet at the Abraham Lincoln statue in NMU's University Center Peter White Lounge at 6 p.m. Facilitator for the evening will be Andrew Foster, former LCM student team leader and veteran from a year on the streets of Baghdad, who recently received his coastal kayak instructor certification.

Into Central America with the Fair Trade Coffee Project

One of the fascinating revolutions going on between countries and on-the-ground faith communities is the Fair Trade Coffee movement. Pastor Tim Bernard has been on the forefront of this effort in our NGLS Synod. Increasing numbers of Lutheran parishes across North America are building networks and connections with small farming villages in Central America, establishing distribution of coffee that honors better working conditions and higher wages for the poor in developing countries.

In January 2009, NMU students, Sarah Swanson and Lisa McCarthy will be packing sleeping bags and traveling south, representing our campus ministry and Synod, into Nicaragua with Lutheran World Relief to explore the connection and dialogue about this unique, new movement with coffee farmers in mountain villages. They'll return to report to our churches how this movement is attempting to make the world a better, more just and sacred place to live.

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EARTHKEEPERS

Student Interfaith Initiative

In 2004, leaders from nine faith traditions in Northern Michigan, representing over 250 parishes, signed an Earthkeeper Covenant that in years following, mobilized congregations in collecting over 370 tons of hazardous waste material, initiated energy audits in congregations, and organized protection of watersheds.

Alongside this effort, an interfaith team of NMU students facilitated workshops, seminars and provided student volunteers who traveled to dozens of congregations to implement the annual clean sweeps.

This year, NMU student Sarah Swanson serves as Director of the Initiative and Ben Scheelk serves as Initiative Coordinator. Our thanks to Leslie Putman, NMU faculty member, who serves as advisor.

One central focus of the coming year will be designing and planting community gardens, exploring the relationship of food to environment and economics to social justice. This promises to be a special frontier in our faith community's witness during these difficult times.

Sharing Ministry Resources

Over the last month the campus pastor preached and assisted with Sunday morning worship at Messiah Lutheran and St. Marks in Marquette. He also led worship services at Eden Lutheran Church in Munising. NMU students Ben Scheelk and Sarah Swanson represented NMU at a peninsula-wide Earthkeeper Interfaith retreat in Gwinn and the campus pastor officiated at the wedding of Kim McMichael and Justin Steinberg (10/4/08).

On September 25, the campus pastor traveled to Wisconsin to give a presentation The Living Fire: Faith Communities and the Environmental Challenge at the Lake Superior Institute in Ashland. He also continues to serve as a clergy representative on the Lake Superior Binational Forum, a government-supported citizen advisory board whose task it is to monitor government policies about water quality in the Great Lakes Basin.

Lothlorien's guest accommodations, the Bonhoeffer room, welcomed Pastor Paul Raappana and Renata Terase during these last weeks. This gesture of hospitality is our ministry's key give-back gift to those who are involved in the work of the church. Since 2003, the Bonhoeffer room has been used 137 nights. Guests have included church workers, Palestinian refugees, seminarians and clergy making pastoral calls to our nearby hospital (MGH). No donation expected or required. For reservations call (906) 228-8033.

Opportunities for Theological Reflection

For NMU students, community members and friends.

A cross-generational, four-week study series, sponsored by St. Marks, Messiah and the Lutheran Campus Ministry (ECLA) at NMU.

Shadowlands

CS Lewis and The Screwtape Letters

Using film clips and small group discussion, a hard-hitting look at the dark side of human experience in the context of one of the best Christian writers of the Twentieth Century.

Books will be available for a small donation.

Facilitated by Jon Magnuson, Campus Pastor and Nikos Geueke, NMU student

Option #1:

October 12, 19, 26 and November 9
Sundays, 7:30 to 8:45 p.m.
Lothlorien, 701 W. College

Option #2:

October 14, 21, 28 and November 11
Tuesdays, 7:30 to 8:45 p.m.
Messiah Lutheran Church, Chapel

The Book of Faith

Making Practical Sense of the Bible in Contemporary Times

For NMU faculty, staff and friends

October 30 and November 6, 13 & 20
Thursdays Noon to 1 p.m.
NMU University Center
Charcoal Room (second floor)

Tired of shallow and rigid references to scripture?

This is your chance to take a look under popular distortions and abuses to probe the Bible's deeper meanings and power.

Facilitated by Warren Geier, Pastor
Bethany Lutheran Church

Lunch provided
($5 donation per session suggested to cover food costs)

Financial Notes

We're up and running for the 2008-2009 NMU academic year!

Most of you (our readers) know missions like ours live by the thin threads of communication and critical donations from individuals. We unabashedly hold to the claim that we are one of the leanest, toughest, controversial, but responsible outreaches of the Elsa's Northern Great Lakes Synod. Our program budget holds steady again at $30,500.

Our Covenant parishes, the National ELCA Church and a Synod grant support the campus pastor's '5f time position. We want to express appreciation to the twenty-some parishes and fifty-eight folks from literally all over North America who continue to choose to help us along. All donations are tithed (10%) back to the wider work of the church through our Synod to help support its office, staff and programs.

October is always a time of scarcity for us in terms of cash flow. We have a little under $1000 in the bank as of the date of this mailing. We will continue to forge ahead with the conviction that our churches, who have called us to be here, will continue their commitment and support. This year, once again, we're inviting those of you who may be interested to support us with matching funds from Thrivent Financial. Every gift is a sign of encouragement for us. This year our target goal is 100 donors and 30 supporting parishes. Think about joining us. We'd be delighted to have you help us. We need your prayers!

Community Notes

A God speed and farewell to Erica Teichman who is moving on from her role at Messiah as Education and Volunteer Coordinator. Erica worked on many projects with our campus community these past five years and once served as a featured speaker during our Lenten series, Stories of Faith. During her years as an NMU student she would frequently join us for Gaudeamus with her roommate Ivy Lange. Prayers go with you!

We welcome Danny Stone, member of our Covenant Parish (Messiah and St. Marks) staff who will be assisting us in oversight of Lothlorien's property concerns and rental agreements. Danny is known for his attention to detail and his extraordinary repertoire with youth and young adults. Our special thanks to Helen Koski who has served in this role over the last five years.

Tom Reed joins this year as Lothlorien's first Naturalist. Tom will be overseeing our native plants garden dedicated in October of 2007, and has proposed a plan for an herb garden to be planted in the spring of 2009. Tom brings a rich background of experience as a social worker, teacher and culinary chef. He will be bringing several natural tea's from Michigan's landscape to our next LCM Board of Directors meeting.

Congratulations to Andrew Foster, NMU student who this summer completed requirements for a Great Lakes' pilot license. Andrew also continued his summer work as a fly fishing guide. Former NMU football coach, Herb Grenke tells us that two weeks ago he spent an afternoon on the East Branch of the Kit Carson River fly fishing with Seth Tuuri, former LCM student leader and now a firefighter in Northern California.

Kudos to Rev. Lynn Hubbard (Eden in Munising) who in past weeks provided a key lecture Manifest Destiny: The Doctrine of Discovery and the Liberation of the Human Spirit for the Uniting Neighbors Conference at NMU. Also to Dr. Michael Broadway, member of LCM's Board of Directors who recently accepted the position of Associate Dean for NMU's College of Arts and Sciences.

Peter Claybaker's Marquette Baking Company is up and running. You can find him in his bakery most mornings next to the U.P. Children's Museum or at the Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings through October. Peter serves on our Board of Directors and is a member of Prince of Peace. He took a leap of faith to follow his dream in the baking world following a career as an engineer. We applaud him and and wish him and his business well!

Hats off to Jenna Geueke, NMU/LCM student leader, who was recently re-elected Chair for our Northern Great Lakes Synod Campus Ministry Oversight Committee. Jenna has also been appointed Concert Mistress for the NMU symphony!

Campus Ministry Staff & Volunteers

A Ministry of the Northern Great Lakes Synod & Evangelical Lutheran Church of America

A vision without resources is an hallucination.
-Tom Friedman

Jon Magnuson, Campus Pastor
Carolyn Jean, Ministry Associate

Student Leadership Team

Sarah Swanson
Lacey Heinzelman
Jenna Geueke, Board Vice-Chair

Board of Directors

Rev. Warren Geier, Chair
Peter Claybaker, Treasurer
Jackie Greising, Secretary
Helen Koski
Lesley Putman
Rev. Virginia Eggert
Michael Broadway
Jill Krah, Financial Secretary
Tom Reed, Naturalist

Covenant Congregations: St. Mark's and Messiah