Bishop’s Reflections

Reflections from Bishop Tim Smith

Astounding Giftedness and Blessing

June, 2023

As I write this, the 2023 NC Synod Assembly ended just late yesterday afternoon. It was wonderful really. Lots of visiting between sessions and during meals, joyful worship, and presentations that were not only informative…

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Polity & Process

May, 2023

Maybe it’s because just a few weekends ago I led an intensive, nine hours of instruction on the riveting topic of “ELCA and NC Synod Polity and Governance” for our first cohort of SAMs (Synod…

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What Is a SAM?

April, 2023

So what is a SAM? It stands for “synod authorized minister.” Usually, it’s a layperson who applies to the synod’s program of lay preaching under the larger category of Advanced Lay Ministries and then goes…

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Your Voice Matters

March, 2023

One of the things I hear with disturbing frequency goes something like this: “This is a top-down church. The ELCA churchwide expression, the churchwide assembly, and the synod make decisions that are completely out of…

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A (Very) Personal Word

February, 2023

Sharing can be risky and can evoke undue anxiety in systems. So can not sharing. You’ve played “Gossip” or “Telephone,” haven’t you? The intended message gets altered, embellished, etc. One observation I’ve made through the…

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Holy Light, Holy Darkness

January, 2023

In the strictest sense, white is the absence of color. You can’t mix any colors together to get white. Conversely, black is the sum of all colors—what you obtain by mixing all colors on the…

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Jesus: Baby, King, Refugee

December, 2022

One of the dominant themes in all of what we refer to as the Old Testament is hospitality. And little wonder, since it largely recounts the story of the Hebrew people and their relationship with…

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Our Enacted Prayer for the Future

November, 2022

It’s that time of year again. Yes, the strange conflation of Thanks-oween-mas, but also election time. I’m always bewildered that so few people vote—almost always fewer than half of the eligible voters and often for…

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Theodicy

October, 2022

Isaiah 43:1-2 has long been one of my go-to verses. I do find it a personally comforting reassurance, but it provides a hopeful context in response to the giant “Why” questions when we suffer. Surely,…

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Burnout

September, 2022

There’s a word that has resurfaced with a vengeance during COVIDtide and even more so in our gradual realization that we haven’t—and won’t soon, if ever—really emerged from it. The word describes a paralyzing and…

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Holy Spirit, Guide Us

August, 2022

Here’s a riddle for you. What used to happen every other year and lasted for a whole week or more but now happens every third year and lasts not even four full days? (Some of…

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God Bless America

July, 2022

“There are three kinds of patriots: Two bad and one good,” theorized the Rev. William Sloane Coffin while preaching at Riverside Church in New York. “The bad ones are the uncritical lovers and the loveless…

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Like a Family Reunion!

June, 2022

It was like seeing family for the first time in three years. Synod Gathering, I mean. Worship was glorious, and the required masks couldn’t stifle the songs in our hearts that finally, together, rose from…

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Jesus is Risen! The Church Follows

May, 2022

In 2019, we voted at our Synod Assembly to move to an every-other-year business synod assembly. We determined that since one of our guiding principles is cultivating whole and healthy leaders (lay and clergy), we…

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No, He Wouldn’t!

April, 2022

We were having a discussion—okay, an argument—in the Christian Education Committee of my first parish. I was wanting to commune children, and the chair of the committee was adamantly opposed. The topic was unofficially tabled…

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Hobbits and Ashes

March, 2022

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide….

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Myth Busters II

February, 2022

Six years ago, merely six months into this call to be bishop, I wrote an e-news article titled “Myth Busters.” In it, I chronicled NC Synod misinformation—much of it somewhat pervasive—around issues such as conflict,…

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Epiphany—Pay Attention!

January, 2022

More than 2,000 years ago, a surprising and intriguing new star appeared in our galaxy. Hardly anyone noticed, but some did. This coming Thursday, January 6, 2022, is the Feast of the Epiphany. That which…

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The Re-Gathering Roller Coaster Ride

December, 2021

Just this past week I received seven separate inquiries about the NC Synod Re-Gathering guidelines. They all had a common theme, which I’ll summarize and paraphrase like this: “Hey, we’ve been waiting and watching for…

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Stewardship Season

November, 2021

It’s not recognized as liturgical, but it’s here in most of our congregations nevertheless: Stewardship Season. It usually coincides with another important but less visible season: Budget Time.  For many, neither is among the more…

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Advancing a New Plan

October, 2021

At the beginning of 2021, facing a pandemic and a bishop election, our synod staff shared with Synod Council that there would be a “bishop transition” no matter who was elected. The four-year strategic plan…

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Getting Along

September, 2021

Some of the most amusing moments of my ministry have occurred while interviewing others to work in the various congregations I have served.  “So what interests you in this Administrative Assistant position at our church?”…

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Vaccinations – A Reflection by Bishop Tim

August, 2021

Let each of you look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:4 (NRSV) I learned a tough lesson right after college when I traveled to spend the…

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Free in America, Free in Christ!

July, 2021

“For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” —Galatians 5:1 “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,…

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