The Indiana-Kentucky Synod will expand leadership education, strengthen communication across its congregations, and establish long-term financial support for ministry through an $800,000 grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
The grant will fund Called Together, a multi-year initiative focused on leadership formation, synod-wide connection, conference renewal, and endowment development.
The program includes four primary areas of work:
· Education and Formation of Pastors, Synod Authorized Ministers, and Lay Leaders
· Communication and Connection between the Synod Office, our 168 congregations, and rostered ministers
· Reimagining our Ten Conferences and seeing new ways to be church together
· Establishing the Called Together Endowment to enable this work to continue into the future.
“This grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc. is transformational to our ministry in the Indiana-Kentucky Synod,” says Bishop Timothy Graham. He continues: “Through these four callings, we can work together to imagine a future where our congregations, lay leaders, rostered ministers, and synod as a whole comes together to share the love of Jesus in our communities.”
Called Together is supported through Lilly Endowment’s Hoosier Churches Initiative, which is designed to strengthen the capacity of denominational organizations and church networks in Indiana so they can help congregations thrive and contribute to community well-being. The Indiana-Kentucky Synod is one of 37 organizations receiving funding through the initiative.
About Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is a private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana. A principal aim of the Endowment’s religion grantmaking is to deepen and enrich the lives of Christians in the United States, primarily by seeking out and supporting efforts that enhance the vitality of congregations and strengthen the pastoral and lay leadership of Christian communities. The Endowment also seeks to improve public understanding of about religion and lift up in fair, accurate and balanced ways the roles that people of all faiths and various religious communities play in the United State and around the globe.
