Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary // Heather Feltman (\'99)

Heather Feltman ('99)

“Helping others is hard work,” says Heather Feltman, a diaconal minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) whose calling takes her into the lives of the nation’s neediest—from disaster victims to social services clients.

“In any disaster context you will have anger, frustration, chaos and conflict,” she says. “In the disaster arena we talk often of coordination and communication, but the reality is, some folks just don’t want to be coordinated.”

Feltman, director of Lutheran Disaster Response for three years, led the collaborative ministry of the ELCA and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod as it tackled the task of providing help to thousands of families affected by the 2005 hurricanes. In January, she will become president and chief executive officer of Lutheran Social Services of New England.

Even Feltman marvels at the journey she has traveled from Illinois State University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in social work, to Southern Seminary, where she earned a Master of Arts in Religion degree, to Regis University (Denver), where she earned a master’s degree in nonprofit management.

“My journey has been more like an Emmaus Road experience. God has opened doors and offered experiences in my life to use my gifts and talents, but sometimes in the moment I wonder, ‘God, what is this all about?’”

She believes God has placed her in public settings where she has struggled and grown to overcome fears, judgments, and allegiances “so that I am becoming more nimble to what God may be calling me to do, to witness, and thus to action.”

Faith is the foundation of Feltman’s vocational choices, leading her to discern a role as a rostered leader in the church and to attend Southern Seminary. Faith “continues to inform the ways I have chosen to serve this church and the various calls I have accepted.

“Serving as a diaconal minister in the ELCA, I look closely to see how the call interfaces with the public arena—is there a clear vision to service and action in the world? A place to develop or strengthen a platform to vocalize the injustices of the world?”

She challenges the traditional understanding of the Greek word diakonia—often identified with self-effacing, humble service. Instead, “diakonia is an essential part of discipleship, not an option,” she believes. “When we gather as a community to worship and as we end our time together we say, ‘Go in peace, to love and serve God’—it begins once again! And, we rejoice together by saying, “Thanks be to God!”

To Feltman, the mandate to service is sacred, and service in the public arena is part of the Christian’s baptismal call and interrelated with the church’s understanding of two other Greek words, kerygma and koinonia—proclamation and fellowship.

She lifts up two New Testament passages as important to her understanding of that mandate to service. The first, Ephesians 4:12, describes the reason Christ gave various gifts to believers: “to equip the saints for the work of diakonias (ministry), for building up the body of Christ.” In the second, Galatians 5:1, Paul exhorts the Christians in Galatia to stand firm: “For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”

She says her seminary education has given her the foundation for moral deliberation. “I have confidence in what I believe…As Lutherans, we should challenge ourselves to engage in this type of dialogue.”

As director of the ELCA’s Domestic Disaster Response, Feltman has been called to tackle tough moral dilemmas. She reflects on the challenges facing the church in disaster situations: How does the church address the “take care of me first” syndrome? And, how does the church hold in tension its service work and the Word and Sacrament needs of congregations? One cannot exist without the other. We must remind ourselves often about this tension because it can get out of balance, and the church is diminished by the imbalance.”

Feltman meets the ongoing challenges of her calling by engaging in intentional spiritual practices and intentional self-care.

“To be able to kneel at God’s table weekly re-energizes me. Spending time in prayer and hearing that others are uplifting me in prayer also brings me continued strength.’

One day a week she does nothing except read and perhaps watch a sporting event on television. “Other than that, no work,” she says. Eating and worshiping with her family is enjoyable, cooking helps her unwind, and good jazz music is a plus.

“The thank-you notes and e-mails I receive after this church has responded to a disaster and how it has touched people’s lives are nothing short of miraculous. Many have never heard of the Lutheran church. I had one person ask me if it was part of the occult. When proclamation happens through service, stories are shared—our story, God’s story, and their story, and this is what brings profound joy to me.”

During Heather Feltman’s tenure, Lutheran Disaster Response grew from 15 to 38 affiliate organizations, and its financial oversight grew from $10 million to $33 million in donations and federal dollars.

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Heather Feltman ('99)

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