Glenn R. Palmberg Papers

Glenn Palmberg became the eighth president of the Covenant Church in 1998. Born in 1945 and raised on a farm in Aurora, Nebraska, he graduated from North Park College, North Park Theological Seminary, and McCormick Theological Seminary. In addition to serving churches in Ohio and Kansas, he was dean of students at North Park Seminary. He served eight years as superintendent of the North Pacific Conference prior to his election as president. A strong advocate for the Christian mandate to minister to the poor, oppressed, hungry, and victimized, Palmberg also called for the church to address the systemic causes of suffering. His work, along with other ECC leaders, with Bread for the World, Call to Renewal, World Relief, and other ecumenical ministries has given the denomination unprecedented national visibility as a small evangelical denomination making a significant difference. A particular passion has been the expansion of the Paul Carlson Foundation and its work with hospital and schools in Congo, a nation torn by civil war.

His presidency and administration continued the pattern of increased attendance, membership, and giving. During his tenure, the ECC has been among the fastest growing denominations in North America, and by 2008 almost a quarter of its congregations were ethnic or multiethnic. Under Palmberg’s leadership, the revised Constitution and Bylaws were completed and implemented, strengthening the role of the Annual Meeting, regional conferences, and expanding representational lay and clergy leadership. Covenant Affirmations was also revised, a key descriptive document of the church’s rooted identity, addressing the mission of the Covenant Church today and into the future. Committed to biblical understandings of women in the church, racial righteousness, and social justice, a high point of Palmberg’s presidency was the establishment in 2007 of the Department of Compassion, Mercy, and Justice. He retired midway through his third term in 2008.