I receive many congregational newsletters and, though I don't read them word-for-word, I do flip through them all. Usually I skip the pastor's page as they all tend to be fairly similar. The other day, though, I saw a great one. Rev. Cindy Fisher-Broin, Spring Garden Lutheran Church, Cannon Falls, Minn., had actually taken the time to interview a seminarian their congregation is supporting and that interview was her pastor's article.

At the 2007 Synod Assembly, a resolution was passed to encourage support of seminarians. If your congregation is currently supporting a seminarian, or generically supports seminarian education without a specific individual in mind, talking with a student is a great way to share with the congregation where their money is going. Asking things like what is seminary life like, what do you study, what happens during your time in seminary, what are joys/struggles for you during this time, etc. are all wonderful places to start.

If your congregation is not already supporting a seminarian, there are paths of support available that often begin by speaking with advocates for the seminarians. As a result of the resolution, an advocate from each of the synod's five conferences was identified and they are available to talk about support options and why support is important.

Your advocates or the synod office can help you get in touch with seminarians if needed.

This can also work well for students you may be supporting at ELCA colleges, children sponsored through a support program, missionaries, etc.