G-S is for Gifts of the Spirit,

You want to celebrate my birthday?

which abound in the Crossings Community.

On June 2-3, 2005, the Crossings Board of Directors was gathered in St. Louis, not unlike the disciples of Jesus were gathered on that first (or actually second ) Pentecost, and we were amazed at the diversity of gifts the Spirit has given us. The Board itself is illustrative of that diversity. We have people from St. Louis (Cathy Lessmann, Sherman Lee, Ed Schroeder, Michael Hoy), Seattle (Lori Cornell), Milwaukee (Steven Kuhl), Baltimore (Paige Evers), Tampa (Kris Wright), Marian, Iowa Tom Law), Indianapolis (Steven Albertin), and Cleveland (Jerry Burce), male and female, youthful and mature, clergy and lay, bringing computer, organizational, financial, theological, speaking, listening, and writing gifts--along with great imagination--all to do the work of Crossings.

But even more, we are so filled with gratitude and encouragement by reports of the gifts that you, the Crossings Community, possess and have shared with us, both monetarily and talent-wise, that we decided to take bold and ambitious steps to expand and enhance the work of Crossings, confident that you will continue to share your gifts with us. Let me explain.

First, our web site (www.crossings.org), which received nearly 500,000 hits last year, has accumulated a wealth of excellent materials, from Law-Gospel text studies (Sabbatheology), to Ed's (and others') analyses of current societal and church-related events (Thursday Theology), to a library containing Ed Schroeder and Robert Bertram articles. To make the themes of all these written materials more accessible to "googling" and internal site searches, we decided to establish a "data-base back end" system, to redesign the web page, and to index, categorize, and codify key terms. For this we need professional, technical help (which costs money) and volunteer help to read and identify key terms in the articles.

Second, we want to start what we call "the next step": explorations into "crossing" real people's slice-of-life stories ("trackings") with a biblical "grounding," such as the Sabbatheologies. This could entail the creation of a "blog," which (again) will need monetary and volunteer help. Might you be interested in trying your hand at this "next step" writing?

Third, we plan to host a conference on Law-Gospel theology and crossing faith in Christ to daily life. I've mentioned this before and will keep you updated, as plans are made.

Fourth, as noted on page 4, plans are underway for a 75th birthday celebration for Ed Schroeder this coming November 6. For this we ask simply for your presence. If you need help with accommodations, please let me know. If you'd like to contribute to a festschrift, or make any other contribution (such as music), email me, Steve Kuhl, or Robin Morgan at info@crossings.org.

cathy lessmann