A Path Forward
Introducing The ELCA Innovation Lab
The Congregations Lead Initiative is an effort of the ELCA Innovation Lab to equip congregations to unleash and harness their collective genius and discover new and useful ministry innovations. The first cohort of the Congregations Lead Initiative concluded in Fall 2023, with member congregations implementing their grant-funded Capstone Experiments. This video features reflections from Program Director Rebecca Payne and several cohort members regarding their community's experience with the Initiative. The Congregations Lead Initiative was also featured in an October 2023 Living Lutheran article by Jennifer Bringle, "Leading the way forward: Congregations Lead Initiative focuses on ministry innovation."
Featured Collaborations
The Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod and two of its congregations partnered with ELCA Innovation Lab staff to run a metaverse design sprint using an exclusively faith-based virtual reality platform called Solace VR. The group conducted user interviews with young adults outside the ELCA who have prior experience in a religious community but are looking for a new place for spiritual well-being. This project builds upon learning from a previous Innovation-led Metaverse project and moves it toward congregational ministry. The team is in the process of prototyping a virtual reality community space.
Salam Radio Station is a recently formed ministry led by ELCA Pastor and Mission Developer Charbel Zgheib. The goal of the ministry is to provide a deep sense of community with Arabic language and bilingual Christian ecumenical music and content for listeners throughout the U.S. The ELCA Innovation Lab provided support for listener-focused research and interviews during the planning stages of this ministry, to better understand the radio station’s potential audience. The research findings are compiled in this report. Salam Radio Station also received a Grant for Innovation for start-up costs associated with creating a recording studio space in its Sacramento, California location. Salam Radio Station has since launched and offers an app for mobile listening.
Messiah Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana co-hosted an ecumenical Christmas cantata in partnership with several other area churches. The concert was organized by ELCA leader Stephen Styles, who noticed a need for a multicultural event to address the segregation, division, and legacy of pain and distrust even amongst Christian churches in the Fort Wayne area. Styles engaged in intentional conversations with local leaders, and the resulting idea was to design a musical event. Worthy! A Christmas Cantata was produced with support from a Grant for Innovation as a means of unifying the Christian community in an intentional interracial engagement with a focus on the arts.
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