A Brief History of the 50th Anniversary of Ordaining Women in the Lutheran Church

By Susan Shinn Turner During 2019 and 2020, the Lutheran church is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the ordination of women, the 40th anniversary of women of color being ordained and the 10th year of LGBTQIA+ individuals being able to serve. The ELCA’s website and other sources provide us with information about the women behind…

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Church-Wide Retreat Rescheduled for September 17-19, 2021

By Donna Groce In the spirit of unity, the Congregational Retreat committee has been planning a weekend for this fall where all our members may gather for fellowship and worship surrounded by the beautiful outdoor setting of Lutheridge. Unfortunately, the plans have been interrupted by such uncertain times. In the interest of the ever changing…

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The Journey of Friendship: Through the Mountains and Valleys

By Stacey Shafer When you see and feel Jesus at work it’s a time to rejoice and be thankful. That’s exactly what I am feeling right now as my sweet friend Julie is awaiting Jesus to call her name home. I can picture a Father embracing His beloved child as she carried her cross higher…

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The Oceans of Life and Ministry and Worship

By Rob Durocher Minister of Worship and the Arts, Deacon These last few weeks our worship staff and pastors have been diligently working together sorting through and planning for re-entry to worship. We together (like you) continue to deal with life, ministry and worship in continual transition with COVID-19 and a tense social-political climate, and…

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St. John’s awards $26,256 in scholarships

St. John’s awarded scholarships to 34 students totaling $26,256. The scholarships are the result of generous gifts from members who want to encourage and support students in their post-secondary education. The scholarships are part of the St. John’s Benevolent Foundation, a $9 million foundation started in 1974. Congratulations to the following recipients: The Thomas E.…

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“Be of Good Courage”: Sophie is Reunited with Her Mommy for Her Mommy’s Wedding

By Stacey Shafer After the virus interrupted everyone’s life, Michele Johnson and her parents Richard and Delores Imblum made a decision that it would be best for Sophie to “move” into her grandparents home for a while to help all of them not have direct contact with Michele, a nurse practitioner at Autumn Care retirement…

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“I am Listening… My Fear Doesn’t Stand a Chance”

Sisters and Brothers, Have you ever had a song that won’t get out of your head? I remember when I was young, randomly someone would start singing “The Song that Never Ends.” It only took the first couple of words and my brain would come back to that song for at least the rest of…

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Even When Steeples Are Falling

by Rob Durocher A little over a year ago on April 19, 2019 the world was stunned to hear that the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris was literally burning down. While this tragedy was unfolding there were many people lining the streets singing together. Many of them were singing a beautiful song Je Vous…

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THE HOLY TRINITY

This Sunday, June 7, 2020 the Christian Church celebrates and affirms the HOLY TRINITY. Around 829 AD Pope Gregory IX introduced Trinity Sunday as a Christian Festival that honored the Biblical belief of one God in three distinctive persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit Although the early church was plagued by contrary views of…

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A Time for Everything

Everyone is waiting for this tribulation to end in peace. All eyes are looking towards heaven, seeking help from the Lord the Creator of the universe, the majestic ruler of our world. We have a message from the words of the Bible. In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon wrote clear verses that perfectly apply to…

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