During the 2019 Churchwide Assembly in Milwaukee, the ELCA declared itself a sanctuary denomination. There has been a lot of debate about what this means for the ELCA and its congregations. We invite you to review these resources to gain a better understanding of what was discussed at Churchwide Assembly.

Below you will find the pre-assembly memorial on sanctuary from the Metro New York Synod, the minutes from the floor discussion of this memorial during Churchwide Assembly, a summary of events, amendments, discussion, and analysis from Bishop Riegel of the West Virginia-Western Maryland Synod, and a response from Bishop Satterlee.

We also invite you to review resources from the ELCA, which include talking points, articles, and videos to help foster conversations about what sanctuary means in different contexts and discern future action and direction.

Being a sanctuary denomination means that we, as church together, want to be public and vocal about this work. It will look different for everyone, but welcoming people is not a political issue for us – it is a matter of faith.