Lutheran

Join LEAN’s Mission As It Enters New Era

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As the state of Nevada awaits the November 2024 general election and start of its next biennial legislative session in February 2025, Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN) finds itself in a transition period with plenty of potential for growth in advocacy action ahead.

LEAN’s advocacy work is indeed central to God and the church’s continued presence in the world, and with so much ongoing need among what Jesus called “the least of these” in Matthew 25, the organization will continue speaking up for the voiceless, powerless and marginalized in Nevada, guide by the ELCA’s Social Statements.

A Successful Session

LEAN entered 2024 on the heels of a fruitful 2023 legislative session. A total of 12 bills supported by LEAN on the basis of its main areas of advocacy — Criminal Justice, Health Care, Education, Children and Family, and Housing and Human Dignity — were passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Joe Lombardo thanks to the hard work of Advocate Bill Ledford, blessings of the LEAN Policy Council, and continued support of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America congregations throughout the West, especially those in the Grand Canyon Synod (Southern Nevada) and Sierra Pacific Synod (Northern Nevada). While other supported bills did not make it to the governor’s desk, the session as a whole yielded positive, justice and fairness-driven change at the state level as the world continued to recover from the economic and social shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fond Goodbyes

The year 2023 also brought loss to the LEAN family.

On April 15, Larry Struve, who for more than a decade led the advocacy efforts for LEAN and its previous incarnations including Lutheran Episocopal Advocacy in Nevada, Lutheran Advocacy Ministry in Nevada and the Religious Alliance in Nevada, passed at age 80 after a long illness. Larry spent more than 26 years in public service, including stints in the Nevada Attorney General’s office and Washoe County District Attorney’s office, and as Director of Nevada’s Commerce Department and Director of Business Finance and Planning for the Nevada Department of Business and Industry. He was also a lifelong member of Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Reno.

Larry set the standard for faith-based advocacy in the state, chronicling his efforts in his 2013 book A Humble Walk for Justice: Advocacy for the Least of These in Nevada, 2001-2012. “When the simple act of advocacy directed at the hearts and minds of those entrusted to govern made policy decisions that better served the common good, something was at work that appealed to the better nature of those officials,” he wrote in the book’s introduction. “The words spoken by an advocate, grounded in the wisdom of scripture, helped define what justice required in modern times.”

Larry’s successor, Mike Patterson, passed on November 13. An ordained Episcopal priest and former school teacher, Mike acted as LEAN’s legislative advocate for several years, speaking strongly for state support of the public education system and stronger laws against the scourge of human trafficking. He also led several direct community outreach efforts on LEAN’s behalf, including food drives for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada and what he called “Pencils for Pupils,” which provided school supplies to teachers in at-risk elementary and middle schools.

Larry and Mike were tireless, dedicated, and focused advocates on behalf of thousands of Christian believers in Nevada’s halls of power. Their spirits will live on as LEAN charts its way forward, toward the next legislative session and beyond.

Another Goodbye, New Challenges

In November 2017, LEAN named Bill Ledford as its new legislative advocate on the recommendation of Mike Patterson, who went on to mentor Bill during the 2019 session while continuing on as a policy board member (another experienced Christian advocate and board member, Allan Smith, also served as an interim LEAN advocate and advisor as well as a board member).

Recently relocated to Nevada from Oregon with a young family, Bill brought to LEAN a deep desire to live out his Christian faith as tireless voice for the state’s marginalized residents, including LBGTQI+ communities. He served with distinction through three legislative session even as he attended Lutheran seminary and learned the liturgical and leadership ropes as an intern at Lord of Mercy in Sparks, Nevada. He completed his studies and was recommended for ordination as the new year dawned.

Bill’s commitment to Christian leadership and service was realized with his calling to be pastor at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Logan, Utah, a congregation in the Rocky Mountain Synod of the ELCA. He was ordained as pastor of word and sacrament at Lord of Mercy on March 3 with Rocky Mountain Bishop Jim Gonia presiding, and will begin his pastorate in Utah on March 10.

Bill’s blessed departure positions LEAN at an important crossroads, with much discernment and direction to be undertaken and pursued over the balance of 2024, with input from national and synod leaders, congregations and their pastors, and other interested parties.

While the policy board update its partnership agreements and job descriptions in preparation to seek and identify at least one new legislative advocate—and perhaps two, representing the northern and southern halves of the state—longtime board member Vic Williams will serve as as connection point for Bill’s ministry partners throughout the west and state, reaching out to stakeholders to maintain a continuous conversation regarding ideas, goals and best practices. Meanwhile, the policy board will continue its work to identify and welcome new members to its ranks, with the goal of establishing proper representation from all corners of the state. The board nominally meets monthly via Zoom with the legislature is in session and at least bimonthly during off years, and strives to meet in person periodically as well.

Broad goals for LEAN in the near term also include:

• Identifying and recruiting contacts at the congregational level to keep members apprised of activities, events and advocacy opportunities, and inviting policy input at the pew level

• Planning and coordinating informative, effective, and useful events on a regional or congregational basis. These could include seminars on various public needs and ministry goals, led by LEAN and its advocacy partners, non-profit organization and public assistance agencies, and other stakeholders

• Work more closely with other organizations and agencies to identify opportunities for fundraising and volunteer involvement

LEAN will post updates on policy objectives, staffing and board progress, and other news in the coming months. In the native, Nevadans who feel called to become a LEAN policy board member or serve in some other capacity can contact Vic Williams at vwilliams@leanforjustice.org.

LEAN POLICY BOARD

Pastor Diane Drach-Meinel, President

Dr. Ed Cotton, Vice-President

Vic Williams, Secretary/Treasurer

Pastor Mari Larson, At-Large Member

LEAN Seeks Southern Nevada Legislative Advocate

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JANUARY 3, 2023 — As the 2023 Nevada Legislature prepares to convene its 82nd session on February 6, Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN) is offering a temporary part-time contracted position for a Southern Nevada Associate Legislative Advocate to help statewide advocate Bill Ledford connect with assembly and senate members, identify and follow legislation that meets LEAN policy board criteria for support or opposition based on Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Social Statements, and keep the board and all LEAN constituents apprised of all legislative developments.

Applicant should be a Southern Nevada resident — specifically Clark and Nye Counties.

Representing member congregations of the Grand Canyon and Sierra Pacific Synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN) advocates for the common good and promotes public policies that reflect the Christian values of peace, justice, dignity, reconciliation, and empowerment for all people, as well as for care of creation. Advocates on these issues, in both public and private sectors of society, provide representation for those who are denied access to the political process due to current conditions or limitations.

The position is by part-time and arms-length independent contractor agreement will be in effect through June 30, 2023. Offered rate of pay is $16, minimum 8 hours per week, maximum 12 hours per week.

Duties include:

• Meet and engage with Nevada assemblypersons and state senators, electronically and in person when possible, during 2023 legislative session from February 1, 2023 through June 30, 2023, preferably as a registered lobbyist on behalf of Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN) and the Grand Canyon Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). 

• Attend monthly Zoom board meetings and provide full report of activities, legislation updates, etc.

• Monitor all potential and fully written assembly and senate legislation, including Bill Draft Requests (BDRs) and joint resolutions, as listed on official Nevada Legislature website, on a regular basis

• Identify bills with language and goals that fit LEAN’s advocacy mission and ELCA Social Statement guidelines. Make recommendations to Board on which bills to target for advocacy engagement. The LEAN board will select targeted legislation based on ELCA Social Statement guidelines and in keeping with LEAN’s mission statement. Areas of interest include hunger, social justice, criminal justice, education, children/family, housing, financial equality, and human dignity.

• Create spreadsheet listing “target” legislation as directed by Board and maintain spreadsheet with updates on each bill’s progress.

• Follow selected legislation through all stages of development and report progress board regularly. 

• Arrange regular in-person interaction with Southern Nevada ELCA congregations to offer updates on LEAN-endorsed legislation, based on ELCA Social Statement parameters

• Advocate for clergy and parishioners to follow LEAN initiatives and activities and become involved in the organization’s mission

• Participate and help organize LEAN events such as hunger simulations or educational seminars

Interested parties are invited to e-mail leanforjustice@gmail.com

For Lutherans It’s ‘Us Too’

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By Sheila Freed

At the end of September, the country was absorbed in a real-life soap opera, broadcast live from a hearing room in the U.S. Senate. The Brett Kavanaugh hearing was just the latest event in a year’s worth of controversy over sexual assault and harassment. The Me Too movement seemingly just happened last year. One might be surprised to know that the ELCA identified and addressed gender-based violence in 2015.

ELCA Social Messages are second in rank below the Social Statements, and are typically used when the church wants to speak out on an issue that needs immediate attention. Social Messages are adopted by the Church Council, and do not require the lengthy deliberation of a Social Statement. So the [churchwide] Church Council adopted a message on gender-based violence in late 2015.

The introductory paragraph says, “Gender-based violence is an ancient sin that for thousands of years has harmed countless women, children, and men. It is a sin that Christians need to recognize, understand, and confront, for our religious history also bears its stain.” The message then recounts a shocking story from Second Samuel, in which Amnon, King David’s firstborn son, rapes his half-sister Tamar. King David learns of it, but does nothing to punish Amnon, whom David loved and intended to succeed him as king. How many versions of this story have we all heard?

The message goes on to explore the ways we are all involved in gender based violence, which is defined as “physical, sexual, psychological, emotional, or other personal harm inflicted on someone for gender-based reasons.” Included are hurts some don’t think of as gender based violence, such as harassment, coercion, elder and child abuse, and pornography. The message notes that the factors contributing to gender based violence are deeply woven into society and our individual lives. It says we all share in the brokenness and judgment brought on by this sin. It points out that we are all survivors, perpetrators, and bystanders.

The message bluntly states, [Gender-based violence] “occurs in the church, in workplaces, the educational system, city streets, war, the military, and the health care system. It occurs, for example, by acquaintances, friends, strangers, caregivers, teachers, clergy, coaches, and work supervisors. Through this violence, someone creates or maintains power and control over someone else. God calls us to love. Gender-based violence is not love.”

The message goes on, “Acts of gender-based violence always involve sinful individual choices to exercise power and control. The choice to inflict violence is a personal responsibility.” . . . . “While individuals are culpable, social systems influence individuals’ actions. This church has proclaimed that God’s grace calls us not only to confront individual sin, but also to confront sin in social systems.” The message talks about how patriarchy and racism in our society and the church contribute to gender-based violence.

Advocacy is our response to God’s call to confront the sins in our social system. LEAN is already working to learn about the bills that will come up in the 2019 Nevada Legislative Session. We know of at least one Bill Draft Request (14-87) by Assemblyman Steve Yeager, about protecting rights of sexual assault victims. We will be watching this and other bills as more is known. However the Social Message makes clear that gender-based violence is more that criminal acts. The power relationships we all engage in and tacitly allow are sin, and we need God’s forgiveness and love to deal with it. It is Us Too.

The Sierra Pacific Synod, of which Northern Nevada’s ELCA congregations are a part, recently published a link in its newsletter to a call to action regarding the August 2019 nationwide Churchwide Assembly and the opportunities to add much-needed language to the church’s Social Statements. You can read it here, and please take a moment to watch this eye-opening video regarding the persistent obstacles and offensive language current and potential female ELCA pastors encounter in some congregations.

LEAN Advocates Become ‘Legislators’

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By Sheila Freed

On August 7, Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada met at the Nevada State Senate for a role-play called ULegislate.  It was great fun, and in typical Lutheran fashion, the group questioned authority.

ULegislate is a learning experience in which participants play the roles of Senators and have floor debate on actual bills that passed in the 2017 Session.  On two of the three bills that were up for debate, LEAN voted the same way that the Legislature did.  However LEAN voted down the third, and the reason was quite Lutheran.  The bill, Senate Bill 322, requires every pupil in Nevada to pass a civics test before graduating high school.  This is a concept we can all support, and LEAN did.  However the bill has several exceptions, and the group did not like that.  We Lutherans embrace the “priesthood of all believers,” and take seriously the notion that all believers are equal before God.   So the majority voted no, in hopes that the bill would return in a more acceptable form.

Participants learned the rigid protocol of Senate business, and that much of the legislative process happens not on the chamber floors, but in committee meetings and legislators’ offices.  Here is where advocacy comes in.  Our paid Advocate meets with legislators individually to present the moral arguments on selected bills, with particular reference to the ELCA Social Statements.  Individual parishioners can do the same, either in person or by email, phone call, or letter.  The LEAN Advocate also testifies at committee hearings on selected bills.

The Senate staff was helpful and accommodating. They even made a video for us!

It’s great fun to watch, for several reasons.  First, you will learn some facts you may not know, and hear some arguments for and against the bills that you might not have thought of.  You will hear a bit of Bob Marley quoted! You will see people you know and those you don’t, so a roster of participants is included here.  LEAN is excited that people came from Las Vegas to participate, and that new people from both north and south were there.

“Senators” participating in ULegislate were:  Chad Adamik, Pastor of St. Paul’s Lutheran Family, Carson City; John Biggs, Pastor of Saved by Grace, Pahrump; Veralyn Combs, member of Holy Cross, Reno; Ed Cotton, member of Community Lutheran, Las Vegas; Diane Drach-Meinel, Pastor of Christ the Servant, Las Vegas; Sonja Dresbach, member of Faith, Reno; Sheila Freed, member of Good Shepherd, Reno; Timothy Johnson, member of Lord of Mercy, Sparks; Bill Ledford, LEAN Advocate; Diane Ludlow, member of Holy Cross, Reno; Shaun O’Reilly, pastoral intern at Lord of Mercy, Sparks, Mike Patterson, retired pastor, Gift of Grace, Fernley; Barbara Peterson, member of Holy Cross, Sparks; Thomas Rasmussen, member of Saved by Grace, Pahrump; Pennie Sheaffer, member of Lord of Mercy, Sparks; Scott Trevithick, Pastor, Holy Cross, Reno; Ashlynne Valdez, member of Lord of Mercy, Sparks; Vic Williams, member of Good Shepherd, Reno.  “Secretary” of the Senate was Allan Smith, former LEAN Advocate.  If you want to learn more about LEAN, please connect with one of these folks.

ULegislate was just the first in a line-up of events designed to engage parishioners as LEAN moves into the 120-day 2019 Legislative Session.  Watch for “Pencils for Pupils” in January, followed by the LEAN kickoff lunch on February 4, the session’s first day.

How Christians Can Help Save Democracy

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By Sheila Freed

The research branch of The Economist magazine has for the past several years published an annual report about the health of democracies around the world.  In 2017 they downgraded the United States from “full democracy” to “flawed democracy.”   We knew that, one might say, and it’s certainly true that most Americans report dissatisfaction with the way our government functions.  The Economist uses statistics for its analysis, and has documented declining faith in the functioning of government and a significant drop in political participation.  In vernacular terms, we can say we think government is beyond fixing, so we’re dropping out.  Unfortunately, that is exactly the wrong approach because it allows the worst abuses of government to grow.

I was stunned recently to hear Professor Fred Lokken, chair of the Political Science Department at Truckee Meadows Community College, say that he tells his young students, “You will live under facism in your lifetime.”  That is a really grim prediction, and it derives in part from what he described as the lack of an engaged electorate.  This is true at all age levels, but especially students.  Under-30 people are often very good at protesting and Tweeting, but the majority do not vote or register to vote.

The ELCA Social Statement “The Church in Society:  A Lutheran Perspective” speaks directly to the danger of losing our freedom due to apathy.  The Statement says, “The witness of this church in society flows from its identity as a community that lives from and for the Gospel.  . . . The Gospel does not take the church out of the world but instead calls it to affirm and enter more deeply into the world.  . . . This church must participate in social structures critically, for sin is also at work in the world.  . . . This church, therefore, must unite realism and vision, wisdom and courage in its social responsibility.  It needs constantly to discern when to support and when to confront society’s cultural patterns, values, and powers.”

The statement names many ways we Christians carry out our baptismal vocation in daily life, and then says, “Christians also exercise their calling by being wise and active citizens.”  The statement closes with several Commitments on behalf of the entire church, including:  “Promote sound, critical and creative citizenship and public service among its members,” and “Expect its pastors, bishops and lay leaders to pray for and to exhort those in positions of authority on the basis of God’s prophetic Word.”

The ELCA’s position clearly is that staying on the sidelines is not an option.  Democracy doesn’t just happen, and we Christians, who believe all are equal, must work through public institutions to make equality the hallmark of our democracy.  Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada exists to carry out both the commitments.  We work to keep people informed on issues Nevada Lutherans care about, and we have an Advocate at the Legislature to do the prophetic exhortation.  Our name says it all.

The next Nevada legislative session will begin in February 2019, and we expect the topics most in need of attention will be shortage of affordable health care, shortage of affordable housing, and education.  We will share information on these and other issues as we learn it.  However in the meantime, LEAN will be offering an exciting learning experience.  This will be a role-playing time at the Nevada Legislature, in which people can experience firsthand the give-and-take required to pass legislation.  More details will be published soon.