The Rev. Dr. Emlyn A. Ott (she/her)
Emlyn A. Ott is a native of Rochester, New York where her curiosity about life was nurtured in her parents’ truck manufacturing company. She is the older sister of a brother and a sister. A graduate of The College of Wooster, The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, and Phillips Theological Seminary, she was ordained in the former Lutheran Church in America (now ELCA) in 1986 and has served as a parish pastor, pastoral counselor, campus pastor, non-profit CEO, and seminary professor since that time. She is an avid reader, especially of new fiction and first-person short stories and is moving steadily toward a goal of hiking in every national park in the US. She has musical theatre and Schubert lieder on her music stand and a pile of books are her night table. Her response to the pandemic was to begin weekly tap and ballet classes.

Emlyn is the Executive Director of Healthy Congregations, Inc. (www.healthycongregations.com). She regularly commutes either to Chicago or via Zoom to students throughout the country as a faculty member at Bexley Seabury Seminary where she directs the Doctor of Ministry programs and teaches in the areas of pastoral theology, leadership, and spirituality. Emlyn is the spouse of Dr. Robert Ward, Director of Choral Activities at The Ohio State University.

The Rev. Dr. Barbara R. Rossing (she/her)
The Rev. Dr. Barbara R. Rossing is professor of New Testament at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, where she has taught since 1994. She loves to teach and preach about the Bible, including the Bible’s role in public life.

An avid environmentalist, Rossing is involved with environmental initiatives at the seminary. Rossing received the bachelor of arts degree from Carleton College, the master of divinity degree from Yale University Divinity School and the doctor of theology degree from Harvard University.

She served as pastor of a congregation in Minnesota, director for Global Mission Interpretation for the American Lutheran Church, pastor at Holden Village Retreat Center, Chelan, Wash., and chaplain at Harvard University Divinity School.

Rossing has lectured and preached widely, including synod assemblies and global mission events for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), as well as ecumenical theological conferences. She has served on the executive committee and council of the Lutheran World Federation (2003-2010), and chaired the Lutheran World Federation’s theology and studies committee. She currently serves on the advisory committee for The Lutheran Magazine.

As a public theologian her media appearances have included “CBS Sixty Minutes” as well as The History Channel, National Geographic, Living the Questions, and numerous print and radio interviews.

Her publications include The Rapture Exposed: The Message of Hope in the Book of Revelation (Basic Books, 2004); The Choice Between Two Cities: Whore, Bride and Empire in the Apocalypse (Trinity Press, 1999); two volumes of the New Proclamation commentary (Fortress Press, 2000 and 2004); a nine-session Bible study, Journeys Through Revelation: Apocalyptic Hope for Today (Presbyterian Women, 2010); and articles and book chapters on the Apocalypse and ecology.

The Rev. Sunitha Mortha (she/her)
Pr. Mortha serves as Associate to the Bishop and Director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging for the Metropolitan Chicago Synod. She believes that how we engage the “other” is a defining question of our time. Most of her life has been working to respond to this question through preaching, teaching, and walking with partners in God’s vineyard. Family is central in Pr. Mortha’s life. Cooking, dancing, singing, and learning are also some of her loves.

Bishop Yehiel Curry (he/him)
Bishop Yehiel Curry was elected June 8, 2019, as bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Previously, from 2013-2019, Bishop Curry served as pastor of Shekinah Chapel, an ELCA congregation in Riverdale, Illinois, where he also served as mission developer from 2007 to 2012. Bishop Curry received a Bachelor of Arts from Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, in 1995, and a Master of Divinity from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago in 2013. He and his wife LaShonda are the parents of three daughters.

Metropolitan Chicago Synod Allyship Team
The Allyship Team was formed in late 2021 as part of the synod’s unfolding strategy for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging. The team includes Pastors Jennie English-Dumont (Bethlehem, Beverly, Chicago), Anders Nelson (St. Paul, Wheaton), Tom Terrell (Christ, Albany Park, Chicago), Amy Wiegert (Faith, Homewood), Eric Worringer (Holy Family, Near North, Chicago), as well as Jason Schultz who is awaiting first call as a Deacon. Pastor Heidi Torgerson (Grace, LaGrange) serves as chair for the team.