Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries - Passing of The Stole

Passing of The Stole

Each ordination since the Rev. Anita Hill has received a traveling stole: The red stole was presented to Pastor Anita Hill by the Rev. Lynne Lorenzen at Anita’s ordination on April 28, 2001. Lynne had received it from the Rev. Rebecca Hostetler, a member of St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran Church and a lesbian who left the ELCA roster at her bishop’s request when he learned she was in a committed relationship. Lynne passed the stole to Anita with the request that she pass it to the next ordained from the Extraordinary Candidacy Project (now, Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries) roster.

Anita passed the stole to the Rev. Sharon Stalkfleet when Sharon was ordained a month later. Sharon held onto the stole, presenting it in 2004 to the Rev. Jay Wiesner. Jay presented it to the Rev. Erik Christensen in 2006. A month later, it was passed to the Rev. Megan Rohrer, then in 2007 to the Rev. Dawn Roginski, then to the Rev. Jen Rude ordained at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Chicago who kept the stole for two months before passing it along to the Rev. Jen Nagel. A few months later, it was passed to the Rev. Lionel Ketola, who then passed it to the Rev. Lura Groen.

At ELM's annual retreat for pastors in 2011, celebrating the reception of ELM pastor's onto the roster of the ELCA and the Proclaim group for publicly recognized GLBTQ rostered leaders and seminarians, a service used the traveling stole to symbolize the changed church policy and to create healing for the pastors ordained extraordinarily.