CHICAGO — The Rev. Lee M. Miller II, Buffalo, N.Y., was elected June 5 to serve a six-year term as bishop of the Upstate New York Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The election took place during an online synod assembly.
Miller was elected on the fifth ballot, with 157 votes. The Rev. Aileen Robbins, pastor of Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church in Rochester, N.Y., received 134 votes.
The bishop-elect has served as senior pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Buffalo since 2012. Prior to that he served as pastor of St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Philadelphia, Pa., from 2004 to 2012 and as pastor of Christus Lutheran Church in Camden, N.J., from 1998 to 2004.
Miller earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from State University of New York at Albany in 1991 and a Master of Divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (now United Lutheran Seminary) in 1998. Miller is currently working on a Doctor of Ministry degree at United, one of seven ELCA seminaries.
Miller will take office Sept. 1, and his installation is scheduled for Sept. 18.
The Rev. John S. Macholz has served as bishop of the Upstate New York Synod since 2014.
Information about the Upstate New York Synod is available at upstatenysynod.org/.
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 3 million members in more than 8,700 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
