Last month, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s six Bishops in Region 1—Bishop Shelley Bryan Wee of Northwest Washington Synod, Bishop Rick Jaech of Southwestern Washington Synod, Bishop Meggan Manlove of Northwest Intermountain Synod, Bishop Laurie Larson Caesar of Oregon Synod, Bishop Laurie Jungling of Montana Synod, and Bishop Shelley Wickstrom of Region 1 of Alaska Synod—sent letters to the House and Senate Agriculture Committees leadership, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington’s 3rd district, Rep. Lori Chavez Demer of Oregon’s 5th district, and Rep. Andrea Salinas of Oregon’s 6th district, addressing concerns and hope for the passing of a good Farm Bill.

Bishops urged Congressional leaders to pass a Farm Bill that reflects critical needs outlined in the letter. With over 560 congregations and tens of thousands of Lutherans represented in their jurisdiction, Bishops noted in the letter, “many of them are farmers, ranchers, food bank and food pantry volunteers, feeding program organizers, nutrition program recipients, climate justice advocates, concerned consumers, and more, who are affected by the Farm Bill.”

The letter was hand-delivered to each office by the ELCA Witness in Society staff in Washington D.C. Read the full letter from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s six Bishops in Region 1.