The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America today took action, in the words of Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson, to position “the churchwide organization to make a vital and vibrant contribution to the ministries of this [ELCA] church and the work of partners throughout the world . . . .”

Maintaining vitality and vibrancy entails eliminating 65 staff members (called “60 full-time equivalents”) from the present staff roster of 358. No one should mistake the pain entailed in this “downsizing,” occasionally called “right-sizing” by the bishop. This is the second staff reduction the ELCA has been compelled to impose since experiencing a sharp drop-off in offerings since August 2009 when the ELCA approved ordination of active homosexual clergy.