The Metro D.C. Synod hosted the 2021 Synod Assembly on Zoom from June 4 – 5, 2021 along with a closing worship service on Sunday, June 6 at 10:00 AM for the entire synod.
By clicking below, you will be taken to a Google Table of Contents document, in which you click to view all documents, nominations, and reports available for the Assembly.
Sunday Worship Service
Friday Night Opening Worship Parts 1 & 2
Bishop Yehiel Curry | Bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod
Bishop Curry will be bringing the Good News during June 6 Worship
Ms. Mikka McCracken | Executive Director for Innovation Home Area of the ELCA
Ms. McCracken is the ELCA Representative for the Assembly and will be hosting a breakout session during lunch.
Stefan Brodd | Cantor for First Trinity and St. Matthew Lutheran Churches in D.C.
Mr. Brood will be leading Compline during Friday Worship.
Ecumenical Greetings from the Rev. Nick Forti | Episcopal Diocese of Virginia
Rozella Haydée White | Cultural Competency Session Presenter
Rozella Haydée White is the #LoveBigCoach, a public theologian, spiritual life coach, leadership consultant, inspirational speaker and writer focused on nurturing love that is life-giving, justiceseeking, and sustaining.
Rozella is the owner of RHW Consulting LLC, an agency focused on accompanying clients as they align their being, beliefs and behaviors in order to deconstruct and dismantle systems, structures, and social constructs that inhibit justice and liberation.
Dr. Ryan Bonfiglio | Sabbath Session Presenter
Ryan Bonfiglio is an Assistant Professor in the Practice of Old Testament at Emory’s Candler School of Theology. He also is the Director of The Candler Foundry, a new initiative designed to make theological education accessible and engaging for the broader public. Prior to joining Candler’s faculty in 2018, he taught at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, GA and served as the John H. Stembler Scholar in Residence at the First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta. His teaching and research interests include the Pentateuch, biblical metaphors, Old Testament theology, and the role of the Bible in public life. He is currently working on a book on the biblical theology of Sabbath (Westminster John Knox). His wife, Jamie, is an ordained pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and together they have an energetic 6-year old son named Leo. Ryan suffers from a life-long love of Philadelphia sports.
Rev. Kevin Vandiver | Transformational Leadership Session Presenter
Kevin Vandiver received his Bachelor’s Degree in 2011 from Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC. He then attended Duke University Divinity School in Durham, NC and graduated with an M. Div. in 2014. He is currently a Practical Theology PhD Candidate at Princeton Theological Seminary with a concentration in Homiletics.
A called and ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Kevin has served as Director of Family Ministry at Christ Lutheran Churches-Charlotte; was the Associate Minister of Youth and Young Adults at The Riverside Church in the City of New York; served as the founding Pastor and Mission Developer of the Christ Center at Transfiguration in Harlem; and now serves as the Assistant to the Bishop of The Metropolitan New York Synod, where he is responsible for supporting the life and care of 52 churches in the Metropolitan New York area.
Kevin is married to Dr. Marcia Janelle Vandiver, a prolific author, speaker, and professor, and they have one child, Ethan.
During the Synod Assembly, we vote to elect rostered and lay leaders to Synod Council, Synod Committees and as Church-Wide Assembly voting members.
Due to the cancellation of the 2020 Synod Assembly, most Synod Council positions are open for election in 2021. We have staggered elections for 1 year and 2 year terms to be back on schedule for 2022.
You can view those who have been nominated for each role by clicking the link below. Scroll to Section 7 in the document.
Positions For Election and Terms
Synod Council Officers*:
Vice President (4 years)
Treasurer (4 years)
*must also complete a background check form available here.
Synod Council:
DC Conference Clergy Member (1 Year)
DC Conference Lay Member (2 Years)
Fairfax Conference Clergy Member (2 Years)
Fairfax Conference Lay Member (1 Year)
Maryland Conference Clergy Member (2 years)
Maryland Conference Lay Member (1 Year)
Montgomery Conference Clergy Member (2 years)
Montgomery Conference Lay Member (1 Year)
Potomac Conference Clergy Member (2 Years)
Potomac Conference Lay Member (1 year)
Virginia Conference Clergy Member (1 Year)
Virginia Conference Lay Member (2 Years)
At-Large Member – Minister of Word and Service (1 Year)
At-Large Member (1 Year)
Two At-Large Members (2 years)
Synod Women’s Organization (1 Year)
Youth Representative (1 Year)
Committee on Discipline:
Two Clergy Members (6 years)
Two Lay Members (6 years)
Consultation Committee:
Two Clergy Members (5 years)
Two Lay Members (5 years)
2022 Churchwide Assembly Voting Members (5 positions open)
ELCA Church Council:
Two Lay Woman (6 years)
The synod assembly provides an opportunity for voting members and various units of the synod to present Resolutions or Memorials for consideration.
Resolutions adopted by the synod assembly will be acted upon locally or passed to the appropriate units of the ELCA for action.
Memorials adopted for consideration by the 2022 ELCA Churchwide Assembly will be forwarded to the Churchwide Assembly Memorials Committee for consideration and inclusion in the advance materials along with memorials from other synods of the ELCA.
Click the button below and scroll to Section 6 to view the proposed resolutions and memorials.
All are invited to a “Synod-wide Celebration of God’s Word Service” that will premiere at 10:00 am on Sunday, June 6 on YouTube and Facebook.
The Rev. Yehiel Curry, Bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod, will be preaching.
We invite everyone to join us in worship as we celebrate being “Alive: Inspired by the Holy Spirit”. The texts for the day are Genesis 3:8-15, Psalm 130, Mark 3:20-35. A bulletin for the service will be available on the synod website.
