Friends in Christ:
I am writing you all in response to the article published this morning in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel regarding the case of a former ELCA pastor, Alan Buresh, who has been charged with sexual abuse and misconduct and is currently incarcerated in Iowa. Mr. Buresh served congregations in Nebraska, Southwestern Minnesota, and Northwest Wisconsin, and he resigned from the ELCA clergy roster in 2017.
While I am not aware of the details of this particular situation and cannot offer comment on the claims included in the article, I can share that my heart goes out to all the victims of Mr. Buresh’s misconduct, and to all victims of clergy misconduct. Our policy for dealing with such situations is available on our synod website, where it also states: “All forms of sexual misbehavior by clergy and lay leaders are unacceptable within the life of the church. The church should be a safe place where people can worship, learn, work, love and receive care in a manner that is free from sexual misconduct. Because the church is called to be a safe place, this synod intends to take whatever measures it can to help prevent sexual abuse and misconduct within the synod. The synod’s sexual misconduct policy can be found here: “Policy for Dealing with Allegations of Sexual Misconduct Against Rostered Ministers.”
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
In Christ,
Bishop Paul D. Erickson
