End-of-the-year potpourri

I support the recommendations and perspectives of The Lutheran advisory committee (December, page 50). I read a number of denominational general magazines and find The Lutheran to be the strongest of all I've seen and the most worthwhile to me and ELCA members. Especially in a time when there are important sharp divisions of opinion among ELCA members, it's important that a publication such as The Lutheran be at least somewhat independent of the control of the top administrators of the denomination. It's important that this relative independence be visible and credible for ELCA members so they can find it easier to believe that varying views are being given a fair hearing in articles, news reports and published letters to the editor. The perceived independence must not be appearance; it must be a reality. It is obvious to anyone paying attention that there's a trend in the ELCA these days toward greater centralization of decision-making power in the hands of the presiding bishop and the Chicago hierarchy. So it's really important that the magazine not be allowed to become merely "a house organ."

I've been touched, challenged and deeply impressed by the continued excellent content of the printed magazine and, recently, the online newsletter. I lapsed from reading The Lutheran for nearly 20 years, but regular readers at a new parish reconnected me.
Rebecca Knox
Reading, Pa.