Rev. Solveig Nilsen-Goodin and the sacred work of grief

September 1, 2020 Brian Flatgard

The Weekly Online Gathering for ELCA Leaders continues every Wednesday, 1 pm Central, 11am MST. Links to the meeting at elcacoaching.org as well as archives.

Drawing on her experiences of simple and powerful ritual in her own life's apprenticeship with sorrow, Rev. Solveig Nilsen-Goodin will begin a six-month series on the sacred work of grief (the first Wednesday of each month, September through February). This Wednesday, she will invite us to consider the importance of intentionally making space and time to ritualize life's bidden or unbidden transitions, some key elements of rituals in general and grief rituals in particular, and possibilities for transforming grief into beauty and loss into life.

There is a good deal of evidence that supports our need to work with the difficult emotion of grief, which inevitably finds its way into our lives. An apprenticeship with sorrow offers us the chance to build our capacity to stay present when the intense feelings of grief arise. Through meaningful rituals, a community of friends, some time in benevolent solitude, and effective practices that help us stretch into our bigger selves, we are offered the opportunity to develop a living relationship with loss. We can recover a faith in grief that recognizes that grief is not here to take us hostage, but instead to reshape us in some fundamental way, to help us become our mature selves, capable of living in the creative tension between grief and gratitude.

Francis Weller, The Wild Edge of Sorrow

Solveig Nilsen-Goodin offers spiritual direction and coaching, as well as support and accompaniment for leaders, activists, organizers, healers, and anyone longing to "heal-the-whole" on any level. Grounded in a liberative Christian faith, Solveig also brings experience with shamanic healing, wisdom from Buddhist teachings, and a deep appreciation for indigenous worldviews and all life-giving spiritualities and faith practices. She is committed to practices that cultivate courage and joy, deep-feeling and open-heartedness, humility and fierceness, tenacity and imagination in the struggle for healing and wholeness. Solveig received her Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School in 1994, where she studied feminist liberation biblical interpretation. She was ordained in the Lutheran Church (ELCA) in 1996 and received her certificate in the Art of Spiritual Direction from Namasté with Sister Pat McCrann in 1997. Since then, Solveig has been a spiritual director and grief ritual leader; pastor of a Lutheran Church and founding pastor of the Wilderness Way Community; climate justice activist / organizer / teacher and leadership coach through EcoFaith Recovery; as well as an author and musician who LOVES dancing, Zumba, and reading. She is currently interim pastor/spiritual director for Salt and Light Lutheran Church/Leaven Community and is working toward her Professional Coaching Certification (PCC) focusing on accompanying people in the many ways we experience death and grief throughout our lives. With her family, Solveig co-authored the book For Everything A Season: 75 Blessings for Daily Life (also published as For Everything A Season: 75 Blessings for Life's Milestones).

You are invited to join this weekly online gathering designed to provide encouragement and support for ELCA leaders across the church. Participants will hear topical presentations related to how we are called to be Church, as well as have an opportunity to be in small group discussions with an ELCA group coach facilitating the conversation. This is where the magic happens. All of this is designed to help us process our emotions and thus create a space where we can each name our next most faithful step forward in our unique context. You are welcome to share this invitation with any other ELCA leader, rostered or lay. #ELCAChurchTogether

We understand a number of folks are unable to make this day and time each week. We record the main session and wrap-up time. We share each recording with supporting documents here by the following week: https://www.elcacoaching.org/podcasts/media.

You can also find a list of upcoming topics and presenters on the home page of our website: https://www.elcacoaching.org/.

ELCA Coaching is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: BEING CHURCH - Weekly Gathering for ELCA Leaders
Time: September 2, 2020 1:00 PM Central Time

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/180439412?pwd=WlVwUUxyUE5mY2IxMktHQXFJdGNMdz09
Meeting ID: 180 439 412
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