The Epistle October, 2013 St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 417 Howertown Rd, Catasauqua, PA 18032 610-264-3221 Fax: 610-264-5732 Email:stpaulschurch@rcn.com Web:www.stpaulscatasauqua.com Child Care: 610-264-0190 Sunday Worship Brothers and Sisters in Jesus, I enjoy reading about men and women who have given their lives to Jesus and followed Him totally. We call them holy people or we call them saints. My favorite saint is St. Francis of Assisi. He was born in 1182 and died on October 3, 1226. He began his life as the son of a rich cloth merchant. His dream was to be a knight. A typical rich young man, Francis spent many hours with his friends drinking and partying. Then Francis was captured in a battle. He spent time in a prison and came home sick. Slowly, his life changed. One day, as he was in the rundown chapel at San Damiano, he heard the voice of Jesus speak to him from the crucifix: “Go, Francis, and repair My house, which you see is falling into ruin.” He thought it was his call to fix this chapel, but God had bigger dreams. Francis lived simply, giving of himself to all God’s creatures. Many of us have St. Francis statues on our lawns or flowerbeds, with birds and animals surrounding him. I could go on for a long time talking about his life, but let me briefly tell you why I love St. Francis. St. Francis once said, “Preach the Gospel at all times….if necessary, use words.” He showed us that we need to live like Jesus daily. We know that is impossible, but we need to try on a daily basis. We need to love like Jesus, and this means everyone. One day Francis, who hated lepers, saw one coming to him. He wanted to run away, but something told him to go to the leper. He ran to the leper, hugged him and even kissed him. At that moment he was changed, and he loved all God’s creatures no matter what or whom. As for the leper, he disappeared. Francis truly believed it was Jesus who showed him the way. Each day we need to live simply, loving God and all His creation. We need to seek to serve God in every possible way. Look around you; do you live according to your wants or needs? God gave Francis a dream and this simple man changed the church. He touched the lives of millions down through the years. He would say to us today – look to Jesus and He will show you the way In His hands, 1 8:00 am Holy Communion 9:00 am Sunday School 10:30 am Worship 1st & 3rd Sunday Holy Communion _______________________ Church Office Hours Monday-Friday 9:00am-3:00pm Sunday School September-May 9:00am Child Care Center Monday-Friday 7:30am-5:30pm _______________________ Church Staff: Pastor: Rev. Gary Walbert, Pastor Emeritus: Rev. Dr. Hartland H. Gifford Dir. Music: Michael Fister Office Admin: Charleen Burik Treasurer: Paul Peters Financial Sec: Debbie Stewart Dir. Child Care: Margaret Bossons Sexton: Norbert Huber Congregation Council Rena Ackerman Robert Bastian Tom Danner Tammie Englert - Secretary Kerry Lewis – Vice President Kay Muehlberger Doug Newhard- President Laurie Perna Albert Renn (3) Open During both services on September 1, you were notified that we had to borrow money from the Endowment Savings to pay bills during the month of August. This was primarily to pay payroll. We borrowed $34,000. We must add to this figure $4,070, the remaining balance we borrowed for roof repair. WE WILL PAY THIS BACK and with 3% interest. Hymn of the Month The Old Rugged Cross Seldom can a song leader suggest a time for favorites from any congregation without receiving at least one request for “The Old Rugged Cross”. This gospel hymn was written by George Bennard in 1913. It is generally considered to be the most popular of all twentieth century hymns. George was an ordained pastor in the Methodist Episcopal Church. One day as he contemplated about the cross, he realized the cross was more than just a religious symbol, but rather the very heart of the Gospel. He truly believed the words of “The Old Rugged Cross” were placed in his heart to help him over his problems. Soon this hymn gathered in popularity. Although it has been stated that we do not worship the cross as such, but rather the Christ of the cross, one can not ponder the truths of Christ’s atonement without a keen awareness of the centrality of the cross in God’s plan of redemption for lost mankind. While we are doing this, we will continue to grow as a church. You will be kept up-to-date with a weekly chart on how we are doing. How can you help? Any money we receive in our Special Projects Envelopes or Debt Reduction will go directly into paying this back. Money borrowed: $34,000 8/13 Roof Repair: $ 4,070 60 months at 3%: $ 2,656 TOTAL: $ 40,726 Pastor Gary ~~~ Memo from Congregational Council At St. Paul’s Congregational Meeting held on Sunday, September 22, 2013, a motion was brought forward by Council from the Property Committee to accept the bid from Gehringer Corporation to do the roof repair in the amount of $9,412.00 with funds to be borrowed from the Endowment Fund. Motion was carried. Remembering the Reformation 2 Congregational Council Child Care Center September marked the The month of October has beginning of the new church year arrived and everyone is enjoying for St. Paul's. The highlights of the walks around our town and the August meeting included the observing the changes in the season. Our children will installation of all the council members along with the be busy making crafts that represent the Autumn election of officers for the new year. season. All children will be observing & learning about the changes around us this month. Everyone The newly elected officers for the 2013-2014 term will be singing songs and finger plays about Autumn include: Doug Newhard, President; Kerry Lewis, and Halloween. Vice President; Tammie Englert, Secretary/Treasurer; We will be celebrating Halloween on Friday, Sr. Deacon: Laurie Perna and Deacons: Robert October 25th, with a party and a parade around town. Our fundraiser this year is through Giant food Bastian and Tom Danner stores. Parents shop for groceries and use their bonus A special thank you to the outgoing members Kathy cards weekly. Each time they use their cards for every and Lew Heller for their outstanding leadership and dollar they spend we get points. The fundraiser runs contributions to St. Paul's while serving on council and through March 30, 2014. Anyone can join, just go on various committees. Their experiences gained line at: GiantFoodStores.com/aplus and click on certainly are an asset to everyone and we hope that Register under Designate your School, our school ID # they will continue serve and be mentors to others. is 04376 and follow the instructions. Takes about 5 minutes. I would like to thank you in advance if you A special thanks to Robert Bastian, Tammie Englert choose to help us with our fundraiser this year. & Kay Muehlberger who have agreed to extend their Happy Autumn, terms and thank you to the rest of the council members Margaret Bossons who continue to serve out their terms: Tom Danner, St. Paul’s Child Care is Doug Newhard, Laurie Perna, Rena Ackerman, participating in the Giant A+ Kerry Lewis and Albert Renn. Rewards again this year, if Currently there are three (3) open positions on Council. you would like to help us raise Please contact Council President, Doug Newhard if you are money for equipment & interested in serving. supplies, please go on line and register at GiantFoodStores.com/aplus and click on Register Also presented to council on a motion from the under Designate your School. Our ID # is 04376. Memorial Committee, the following names whose Even if you registered last school year, you will have memorial donations funded the purchasing of the to re-register this year. Thank you in advance for Fellowship Hall stage curtain: Margaret Neubauer, helping us raise money by simply shopping for your Catherine Bernd, Clifford Gint, Catherine Haftel, Joan groceries. Margaret Tallock, Cecelia Briggs, Clarence Kurtz, Sterling Bowen, Gladys Schaller, John Williams, Paul Englert, Catherine Laubach, Violette M. Powell-Dohlenkopf, and June & Robert E. Bastian, Sr. 3 FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE Thank you! Thank you! The Fundraising Committee sends a great, big THANK YOU to everyone who helped in any way with Applefest. We had a wonderful day and all who attended had a great time – games were played, raffles were won, and bellies were filled with dumplins. The best part though, as always, is seeing the family and friends of St. Paul’s come together to enjoy the type of fellowship that can only be experienced when we work together to help our beloved church share and spread the word of Christ. As soon as we have them, you'll have the final Applefest profits too - so look for them in your future Sunday Bulletins and the November Epistle. Thank you all again and may you enjoy the bounty of God's blessings during this beautiful Harvest Season. The St. Paul’s Fundraising Committee. On October 6 at 9am in the Fellowship Hall, we will have our annual Blessing of the Animal service. We have this special service because of a special saint – St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis is the patron saint of animals and ecology. We will have a worship service and then pastor will bless each pet you bring individually. Coffee, juice and snacks will be provided. We will have a special guest this Sunday – Lauren Miller. Lauren will be in the Fellowship Hall doing animal caricatures. So bring your pet to the special blessing of animals. Identity Theft: What you need to know Identity theft can happen to anyone, anywhere at any time. Don’t let it happen to you. Join us for a free educational workshop. “Identity Theft: What you need to know” is a free 60 minute workshop designed to help participants learn: * How indentity theft can occur * Tips to help protect themselves. * Steps to take if identity theft happens to them. The workshop will be presented by Thrivent Financial representative Curtis Renner, CIF, CLTC. Coat & Winter Outerwear Drive. The St. Paul’s Stewardship Committee is holding a Coat and Winter Outwear Drive on Saturday, October 26th, 10 am - 1 pm, and Sunday, October 27th, before & after the worship services, in the Chapel Narthex. If you have any coats, hats, scarves, gloves, or other outerwear to donate, please drop it off on the 26th and 27th, and we’ll deliver them to a local non-profit organization to benefit those in need. We could also use some extra hands to run the Coat Drive – packing up the donations and delivering them to the charities. If you would like to help out, please contact Tammie Englert at 610-2643592. …for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7). Thank you and God Bless. The St. Paul’s Stewardship Committee WHEN: Sunday, October 27 - 9:15am – 10:15am WHERE:St.Paul’sLutheranChurch/Fellowship Hall Sign up for this free event today! Contact Church Office at 610-264-3221 or email stpaulschurch@rcn.com by Sunday, October 20 to reserve your spot No products will be offered for sale at this workshop For Important Thrivent Financial for Lutherans disclosure information, please visit Thrivent.com/disclosures 4 St Paul‘s Committees & Volunteer Directory Upcoming Events Acolytes: Pastor Gary Walbert Altar Guild: Jackie Younger Child Care: Rena Ackerman Christian Ed: Shelly Laudenslager Communion Assist: Epistle: Charleen Burik Finance: Betty MacHose Fundraising: Tammie Englert Greeters: Kay Muehlberger Lectors: Judy Donchez Memorials: Betty MacHose Prayer Chain: Bette MacHose Property: Bob Bastian Scouts: Al Renn/Mark Weaver Social Ministry/Evangelism: June Hahn Stewardship: Tammie Englert Worship: Youth: Stephanie Shook October 5, 2013 St. Paul’s Dinner Theater Chicken Dinner: 4:30-6:00pm Quartet of 5: 6:30pm Southern Gospels and Oldies Blessing of the Animals One of the highlights of the church year has become “the Blessing of the Animals” service. This year it will be on October 6 at 9am in the Fellowship Hall. We do this service on the day closest to the day we remember St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. Harvest Home – October 13 The Worship Committee is seeking donations of food for Harvest Home Sunday. Fresh fruits, vegetables, canned goods; boxed goods are needed for the display on our big wagon. All donations shall be brought to the church during regular business hours between 9 am and 3 pm Friday October 11 or no later than 9 am Saturday, October 12th. October 27, 2013 - 9:15am - 10:15am - Fellowship Hall October 27, 2013- 9:15- 10:15am Fellowship Hall Identity Theft: “What you need to know” workshop On November 25th our Annual Community Thanksgiving Service will be held here at St. Paul’s at 7:00pm. Following the service, there will be a time of fellowship St. Paul’s 2013 Holly Fair, Saturday, November 30th. St. Paul’s Fundraising Committee invites you to join us at our 2013 HOLLY FAIR featuring BOTH Crafters AND Vendors* This festive event will offer family & friends the opportunity to kick off their Christmas season and get a jump start on their holiday shopping! *If interested in participating in our Holly Fair, please contact church office for Registration Forms We Look Forward to Seeing You . 5 Cradle Roll. "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6). The Splash Cradle Roll is a ministry for families of little ones from birth to three years of age. This program was designed by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is published by Augsburg Fortress Press. It offers valuable resources for families with infants and toddlers and plays a special part during the celebration of Holy Baptism. At St. Paul’s, when a young child is baptized, he/she will be automatically enrolled in the Cradle Roll. At this time parents will receive a welcome letter into the program along with a Splash! Parent Page and a Sleepy Time Tunes CD. Each month the family will receive age appropriate mailings, called Parent Pages. Upon the child’s third birthday, Cradle Roll “graduates” will be invited to join our Three Year Old Sunday School class. Our mission is to help new families fulfill their baptismal promise and support them as they begin their journey of faith together. For more information regarding this program, please contact church office 6 Ways to help St. Paul’s & Our Community Catasauqua Food Bank Needs: Cereal, Tuna, Canned Salmon, Fruit, Vegetable Juice, Canned Beans, Soup, Canned Vegetables, Peanut Butter, Jelly or Jam, Honey, Canned fruit, Pasta & Tomato sauce, Sugar, Mayonnaise, Vegetable oil, Salad dressing, Syrup, Toilet, Facial Tissue, Laundry Detergent, Diapers (baby & adult) Non-perishable items only PLEASE NO GLASS ITEMS 7 Deadline: October 11 Epistle Volunteers: October 18, 9:00am Thank You’s If you would like to put an article or announcement in our newletter, please contact Charleen Burik. Request: If you are able, please E-mail your articles to Charleen Burik, Office Admin at stpaulschurch@rcn.com * To St. Paul’s for supporting Sage’s tournament. Couldn’t have done it without your help, Love Julie * To St. Paul’s for generous donation of $309 to the Catasauqua Community Food Bank, with grateful Thanks, Catasauqua Community partnerships, Inc. Another Way To Get Your Epistle: Would you like to receive your monthly newsletter by e-mail and help us cut down on postage? Just send your request via an email to church office at stpaulschurch@rcn.com For all you Smartphone users: We can easily email your Epistle directly to your smartphone (PDF format) so you can enjoy it anytime, anywhere. Just email us at stpaulschurch@rcn.com or call church office and let us know where you want us to send it. Hospital Visits If you or someone you know is admitted into the hospital, it is very important to notify the church as soon as possible. You can do this by either calling the church office directly or informing the hospital upon admittance that you are a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and they will list you under our Pastoral Code 312. If you are admitted into a Rehabilitation facility, please inform the church office as well. Without either of Don’t forget you can also get our newsletter and up-to-date church information on our website too www.stpaulscatasauqua.com ……and……. check out St. Paul’s Facebook page too! these notifications, Pastor will not know to visit you and you will not be added on to our prayer chain 8 October Celebrations Jesus said, “I am the Light of the World”. May the birthday candles that represent the years of your life be a reflection to others of your love for Christ. 10/1 10/1 10/2 10/3 10/4 10/5 10/5 10/6 10/6 10/7 10/8 10/8 10/8 10/10 10/11 10/12 10/13 David Laudenslager Stacie Raven Audrey Heil Vincenzo Limandri Bryce Stothoff Tiffany Crogan David Hudson Jessica Gillette Linda Peters Emma Dungan Megan Layton Willet Thomas Rebecca Urban Hope Eisenhard Samantha Adams Michael Corello Lauren Delong 10/13 10/13 10/13 10/14 10/14 10/15 10/15 10/15 10/17 10/17 10/17 10/17 10/17 10/18 10/18 10/18 10/20 Janet Searfass Robert Shipe III Ryan Stewart Justin Bass Douglas Corcoran Trajano Bastidas Terri Dumbach Michael Roth Emily Falko Judith Luckenbill Brian Miller Jr. Patricia Muehlberger Jane Sechney Olivia Falko Carolyn Schleicher Jade Streitman Olivia Dixon 10/22 10/22 10/22 10/22 10/23 10/25 10/26 10/26 10/26 10/28 10/28 10/29 10/29 10/30 10/31 Brian Bartholomew Jennifer Frantz Kimberly Kolb Eli Pawlowski Bryan Hersh Alicia Walbert Thomas Lawlor Beth Pizzuto Helene Sterner Kylie Ryan Debra Stewart Erin Fetherman Xavier Rosario Douglas Sheriff Jackie Kalynych Special Birthdays A few of our seniors will be celebrating birthdays this month. Please take the time to remember them with a card or note 10/5 Shirley Buss 84 900 Race Street Catasauqua, PA 18032 10/15 Elsie Strausser 91 32 Bayberry Road Jim Thorpe, PA 18229 10/8 Dorothy Rehrig 88 701 Palomino Drive Catasauqua, PA 18032 10/18 Howard Hahn 82 1222 Second Street N.Catasauqua, PA 18032 10/11 Mildred Parker 78 2415 5th St Whitehall, PA 18052 10/21 Shirley Moyer 75 26 N. 12th Street Catasauqua, PA 18032 9 10/22 Lucille Desrosiers 85 Cedarbrook Nurs.Home 350 S.Cedarbrook Rd-#308 Allentown, PA 18104 10/26 Earl Mooney 82 4161 Bridge Street Whitehall, PA 18052 Wedding Anniversaries Membership files 10/3 William & Angela Kulp 10/4 Robert & Barbara Shipe Jr. 10/4 Dwight & Sandra Steidel 10/5 Laurie & Lou Perna 10/9 Stewart & Donna Sheckler 10/12 Thomas & Shari Derhammer 10/13 Jason & Ann Lambert 10/14 Debra & Jon Kleckner 10/15 Ryan & Jennifer Frantz 10/16 Stephen & Sally Chromiak 10/18 Eric & Tracy DeLong 10/18 Michael & Deborah Price 10/19 James & Shelly Alexander 10/23 Brock & Kathleen Hartranft 10/28 Eric & Kelly Nichols If you move, changed phone or cell numbers, email addresses, or add members to your household, it is very important that you let the church office know so we can update all our information! Please take a moment to fill out the Member Information Sheet below and return to church office or place in offering plate on Sundays 26 38 27 17 48 28 1 18 2 59 10 27 17 3 24 Name______________________________________ Address_____________________________________ ___________________________________________ Home #___________________________________ Cell #: ____________________________________ Email_____________________________________ Marital Status: ___ Single ___Married ___ Divorced ___Widow/er Spouse’s Name_____________________________ Date of Birth_______________________________ Date of Marriage____________________________ Children (Living with parents) Name______________________________________ Date of Birth_________________________ Name______________________________________ Date of Birth_________________________ Name______________________________________ Date of Birth_________________________ 10 October 2013 Sunday Monday Tuesday 1 7pm Property 6:30 Daisy Wednesday 2 6:30 Choir Thursday 3 7pm Cub Pack Friday 4 Winch Baptism Saturday 5 Winkler Wedding Chicken Dinner 4:30pm 6 8:00 Comm 9:00 Blessing of the Animals 10:30 Comm 7 7pm Worship 7pm Scouts 8 6:30 Daisy 9 6:30 Choir 10 7pm Cub Pack 7pm Finance 11 Epistle Deadline 6:30pm Fundraising 13 8:00 Comm 9:00 Sunday School 10:30 Worship Harvest Home 14 7pm Scouts 15 6:30 Daisy 7pm CCC 16 6:30 Choir 17 7pm Cub Pack 18 19 Epistle Volunteers Court of Honor 20 8:00 Comm 9:00 Sunday School 10:30 Comm Commitment Sunday 21 7pm Scouts 7pm CYSA 22 6:30 Daisy 23 6:30 Choir 24 7pm Cub Pack 25 2-10pm Cub Pack 94 Halloween Party 29 6:30 Daisy 30 6:30 Choir 28 27 7pm Council 8:00 Comm 7pm Scouts 9:00 Sunday School 9:15 Identity Theft Workshop 10:30 Worship 12 26 Reformation Day All who call on God in true faith, earnestly from the heart, will certainly be heard, and will receive what they have asked and desired, although not in the hour or in the measure, or the very thing which they ask. Yet they will obtain something greater and more glorious than they had dared to ask. Martin Luther, German Reformer 11 Serving at St. Paul's in October, 2013 ACOLYTES LECTOR COMM. ASSTS. 6-Oct 8:00 AM 10:30 AM Libby Buss 8:00 AM Len Witt/Paula Kesack 10:30 AM Judy Buss/Al Renn 13-Oct 8:00 AM 10:30 AM Mark Weaver 8:00 AM 10:30 AM Doug Newhard 8:00 AM 10:30 AM Joanne Spengler 8:00 AM Pat Gerber/Mark Weaver 10:30 AM 8:00 AM Bob Bastian/ Len Witt 10:30 AM Doug Newhard/Kay Muehlberger 8:00 AM Paula Kesack/Al Renn 10:30 AM - DATE 20-Oct 27-Oct CRUCIFERS 8:00 AM Joey & Millie Sparacello 10:30 AM Eli Sutter/Linda Houck Brian Panasik (crucifier) 8:00 AM Hope Eisenhard/Allison Mengel 10:30 AM Carol Williams/Alli Dixon 8:00 AM Bree Sheldon /Hannah Matchette 10:30 AM Brian Panasik/Gavyn MacHose 8:00 AM Brittain Shander/ 10:30 AM Linda Houck/Carol Williams ALTAR GUILD 8:00 AM J. Falko/K. Heller 10:30 AM T. Bastidas/L. Miller 8:00 AM 10:30 AM 8:00 AM P. Gerber/D. Stewart 10:30 AM B. Rabenold/D. Williams 8:00 AM Calla Shander 10:30 AM - ____________________________________________________________ DEDICATIONS FOR October FLOWERS ($40) 10/6 n/a 10/20 n/a 10/27 n/a BULLETINS ($15) 10/6 open 10/20 open 10/27 open If you would like to be a sponsor for any of these opens dates, request forms are in the Narthex or contact the church office. Payment must be submitted with request. “So when the devil throws your sins in your face and declares that you deserve death and hell, tell him this: “I admit that I deserve death and hell, what of it? For I know One who suffered and made satisfaction on my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, Son of God, and where He is there I shall be also!” Martin Luther, German Reformer 12 October Worship Services Oct 6st 20th Sunday after Pentecost 8:00 a.m. – Spoken Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. – Sunday School 10:30 p.m. – Holy Communion Reformation—Then and Now In four years, Lutheran churches throughout the world will mark the five hundredth anniversary of the Reformation. The anniversary remembers 1517, when Martin Luther posted his Ninety-five Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg. That action sparked a series of reforms in theological understanding of grace, liturgical practice, accessibility of scripture in the common language, and much more. But the sixteenth-century Reformation was not a one-time event. Reformation is ongoing. Oct 13th 21st Sunday after Pentecost 8:00 a.m. – Spoken Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. – Sunday School 10:30 p.m. – Worship Oct 20th 22nd Sunday after Pentecost 8:00 a.m. – Spoken Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. – Sunday School 10:30 a.m. – Holy Communion The church of Christ always stands in need of reform. As in Luther's age, so in ours: God's word is alive, speaks truth, and surprises with grace. Ancient texts speak to contemporary contexts to enliven our faith. Jeremiah's vision of God's new covenant is seen this day at the table when the cup is raised. Paul's declaration of justification by faith is shared this day at the font. Christ's truth sets us free for mission and ministry in Jesus' name Oct 27th 23rd Sunday after Pentecost 8:00 a.m. – Spoken Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. – Sunday School 10:30 p.m. – Worship 13 The Epistle October, 2013 A monthly publication of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church 417 Howertown Road Catasauqua, PA 18032 610-264-3221 Church Office Hours Monday-Friday 9:00am-3:00pm Sunday School September-June 9:00am Child Care Center Monday-Friday 7:30am-5:30pm HAS ANY OF YOUR INFORMATION CHANGED RECENTLY? If you move, changed phone or cell numbers, email addresses, or add members to your household, it is very important that you let the church office know so we can update all our information! It’s costly to have mail returned to the church due to incorrect or insufficient addresses. Even if the mail is forwarded, the church will be billed for the forwarding process. If you need to update any of your information, please stop by church office or call 610-2643221 14