ELCA Youth Gathering

Every three years, high school youth and their adult leaders from across the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America gather for a week of faith formation known as the ELCA Youth Gathering. Through days spent in interactive learning, worship, Bible study, service and fellowship, young people grow in faith and are challenged and inspired to live their faith in their daily lives. In 2024 our synod had 400 high school youth and adult leaders who traveled to New Orleans, LA under the theme of “Created to Be”. Our synod is now planning for our trip to the next ELCA Youth Gathering to be held in 2027 in Minneapolis, MN.

For more information, questions, or to learn more, contact:

Pastor Jason Poole-Xiong
2024 ELCA Youth Gathering Synod Champion
jasonx@scsw-elca.org

Telling the Story of the 2024 ELCA Youth Gathering

The 2024 ELCA Youth Gathering is now behind us, but what took place in the lives of our young people during those five days will have a lasting impact. Below are some of the ways those youth and congregations have shared their story. We invite you to watch, read, listen, and learn from these youth as we look to the future of our church.

Written Reflection from Blake Borman, United in Christ – Morrisonville

The first thing I heard when we got to New Orleans and the 2024 ELCA Youth Gathering was the theme: you are created to be. The first night of mass gathering was about being created to be brave. The first speaker talked about hardships and even when you are going through a rough time you are never alone and you may have to be brave and sometimes you can’t. The other speaker we had talked about his experience leaving Mexico to get to the US, his brother was getting pressured by the gangs to join and if he said no he might be killed. His mother had to be brave and told his family they needed to leave. They made it close to the border but they started to get chased by Mexican police, his sister fell down as they were running he stopped to pick her up and they kept going they eventually made it across the border. He had to be brave in that moment and sometimes someone else was the person who had to be brave. There are moments in our life where we have to be brave even when you don’t realize it. For example me going to work in a factory even though I’m still in high school or becoming a firefighter and running into danger. But no matter what, when you are in a spot where you think life is hard, remember that you are never alone.

The biggest takeaway from the second night is that you are seen, you are not perfect, you are not simple, Jesus said no to excluding and yes to sharing. You are perfect the way you are.

The third night was you are created to be free to be you as you are not like others. The speaker who really inspired me was Austin Brown. She is a black female who has written a book or two. She talked about how you are free to be who you are and what you want to do. She also talked about how it’s not the education system, it’s the funding, it’s not the minorities it’s the people who treat them like a minority and the way the entire stadium was united the entire time she spoke was amazing.

Our fourth night the theme was you are created to be disruptive. Our first speaker was the first Palestinian pastor. She told us that there is a good way of being disruptive and a bad way, there are good rules and bad rules. Being disruptive isn’t always about disrupting a conversation or people, it is about disrupting people and their ideas and their bad rules. We are not less than others because God created us to be disruptive. No one is a mistake. The second speaker is the first deaf Lutheran pastor. Being disruptive in a community by creating something different then what the normal way of going to church or going anywhere.

I think my favorite part was seeing everyone come together and agreeing on almost everything together. My biggest takeaway is that you are not alone and you were created to be who you are how you are.

Written Reflections from ELC – Mt. Horeb

• The Beignets were really good, a lot of powdered sugar over my face and over the sidewalk. You could tell where we ate them on the sidewalk.
• Met people from Alaska on the Steamboat ride. We were able to talk a while and get to know each other.
• The food was very good. We were able to try a lot of new food. I tried crawfish, alligator, jambalaya, frog legs, beignets, and gumbo.
• Interactive Day had a bunch of activities to do, bouncy houses, Pickleball, Four Square, crafts, and colleges to see. It was important for us to see those, since we are going to college soon. There were hammocks to lay in if you were tired, which was very nice. There were a lot of people that we met. I met a lot of friends that I am still in contact with. We gave bracelets to many, we would run to them and ask where they were from. Saved the bracelets over our arms during the week, which we had some from Hawaii and Alaska. A lot were from WI and MN. It was very cool to meet so many.
• Since we sat very high in the Arena, one night we got there earlier. We ran around the entire arena searching for lower seats for our group. Everyone told us no. We didn’t want to be cold, like the other nights, when we sat very high up in the stands. We got to the last spot, they told us it was reserved. One of our leaders was the bull dog and kept asking if we could sit there. All of us held hands and prayed for these better seats. We were able to get seats in the 3rd and 4th row. It was very cool. Since we were close, we were able to see some of the speakers. We traded bracelets, and when Keats Miles-Wallace was on stage, we could see our bracelet on their arm when they spoke. Very cool.
• I was able to meet Rebekah, one of the emcee’s for the Gathering. I told her that she did a great job with her talk the night before. I remember my family talking about how amazing she was when she spoke at the Gathering in Houston. It was cool to meet her.