CHICAGO, IL (October 11, 2013) — “Hello Twitterverse. This is my first tweet. Looking forward to the conversation.” With that expectant introduction, Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) president Gary Walter officially signed on as a Twitter user.

In an era where 140-character status reports are more widely read than newspapers or magazines, an increasing number of church leaders have found an eager audience among users of social media. With some gentle nudges from other Covenant leaders, Walter felt it was time for him to take the plunge.

“Christian voices need to be part of the public conversation,” he said. “I can’t tell you how many people deeply committed to our movement, especially younger leaders, have urged me to jump into the Twitterverse. So, here we go.”

Walter’s first tweet posted this morning at 9:35 Central Daylight Time. He hopes to share occasional updates during this weekend’s ECC Executive Board meetings at Covenant Offices.

“I may not be on Twitter as frequently as some,” he said, “but I look forward to engaging others and providing updates on what’s happening around the Covenant universe.”

You can find President Walter on Twitter at twitter.com/ECCprez.