We are a Stephen Ministry congregation Christian Care, Compassion,
Listening — when you need it most.
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Worship Schedule
11:00 AM Bi-Lingual Worship with Holy Communion
12 Noon Congregation Potluck with Bishop Graham
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LutherFacts
Under Martin Luther, the use of a catechism to teach and study became an essential tool for Christian churches. Up until his day, there were no such methods available for the teaching of laity. There were the historic formulations of basic Christian principles by Cyril in 350, followed by Augustine's version in 420. Over the ensuing centuries, however, the catechism had emerged as the chief form of basic instruction for priests and monks. Also, as in church worship, Latin prevailed in Christian instruction, thus greatly limiting its use. One of Luther's first calls for reform was that basic Christian instruction should be available in the vernacular language. After 1517, as the Reformation expanded, he took the lead in that effort by producing in 1529 both the Large and Small Catechism in German. He also introduced the question-and-answer format to reach a wider reading audience. In the coming years, others followed. John Calvin drafted his first catechism in 1541, Heinrich Bullinger created another in 1555, and over the next century, many other Protestant versions appeared. In 1566, the Council of Trent produced a new Catholic catechism, but it remained limited for priestly rather than lay instruction, available only in Latin. Meanwhile, basic Protestant instruction in church doctrine using vernacular languages spread throughout western Europe. Once again, as on so many occasions, Luther took the first step in a process that profoundly changed the practice of Christianity.
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Service of Holy Communion
and the Rite of Ordination of Heidi Eickstadt
Wednesday, May 24 at 7:00 PM at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church
The congregation is invited to share in the celebration of the Ordination of Heidi Eickstadt as a Pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. The Rite of Ordination will be part of a special worship service the evening of Wednesday, May 24 at St. Mark’s. Heidi is a member of St. Mark’s who has been attending the Lutheran Seminary at Philadelphia, from which she will graduate on May 23. Abiding Presence Lutheran Church in Burke, VA has extended a call to Heidi to be their Pastor for Discipleship. Abiding Presence will be hosting a light meal in the St. Mark's fellowship hall at 6:00 PM for both congregations. A dessert reception will follow the service. Join us and celebrate God’s calling of Heidi to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament and God’s calling of all disciples to ministry in the Body of Christ.
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Senior Luncheon
May 31st, 11:00 AM-1:00 PM
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The Life Center is sponsoring a Senior Luncheon on May 31st, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. We'll be having our usual fun and games, along with African Food Tasting, African Music, and some special African Animals. Our very own Bev Clemsen will share a few of her slides from her recent trip. Please bring a friend and your sense of adventure! RSVP on sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the narthex or call Jeannine Van Nostrand, 703-981-1404.
Additional invitations are on the bulletin board in the Narthex if you'd like to invite a Senior from outside St. Mark’s congregation. All are welcome!
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ESOL News
Our Citizenship classes continue to inspire immigrant neighbors to take the Oath of Allegiance to our United States of America. For those of us who assist in their preparation for this honor, it is a humble privilege to be a part of this event in their lives. We congratulate Pastoriza from Ecuador, Ariel from Bolivia, and Asif from Pakistan. Stay tuned! We are not finished yet. With our Lord Jesus Christ in our corner, there are many more success stories to come in 2017.
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Military Packages Update
We're including the lovely email we received from our latest recipient, Jeff Darden, who was suggested by Lisa Ryan—you can see how appreciative they are of your thoughtfulness! We also need names for May and beyond, so please give the name and address (including email address) of any deployed person to Mary or Gerald Eskelund or Gayle Parsons. Thank you!
Jeff’s email reads:
You mentioned that there would be brownies and boy were you right! :) One word regarding the assortment of cookies and brownies ... DELICIOUS!
Thank you so much for all the care packages ... What a great surprise
yesterday! Please thank all the cookie bakers, brownie makers, stitchers
and shoppers that made for such wonderful care packages. They were stuffed with things we needed and things we wanted so we're all happy to take on a few extra calories for a small taste of home. Nothing will go to waste and we are all so very grateful for your support. Several of my team are hitting the half-way point, which is traditionally a natural time for a
small dip in attitude (missing home and family) so not only were the packages awesome, but your timing was impeccable.
Please see attached photo of the Squadron. It was a windy and hot morning and 4 of my people were at other locations ... so only 18 for the photo. So far we have hit 111 degrees F and we will probably hit 115 or higher by the end of the month. The cooling cloths will be used in these coming days ... yet another great addition to the packages.
Again, thank you so much for all the goodies. Thank you for taking the time to spend some money and package everything together and then mail. Thank you for the prayers. Thank you for the continued support and thoughts. We all have our reasons for doing what we do in serving our nation ... but we all share the common belief that our country is worth fighting for and that it is the greatest country on the planet. May the Lord bless you and St. Mark's Lutheran! Sincerely, Jeff Darden
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Landscaping Improvement Initiative
At its last meeting the Property Committee discussed the appearance of St. Mark’s grounds. Some areas are beautiful – the court yard reflects the efforts of a few faithful individuals. And, Rankin Landscaping has consistently cared well for the grass on all our properties. However, other areas, such as some around the Friendship House are overgrown and need attention.
The Property Committee recognized the needed landscape work is extensive and beyond the capability of those currently caring for St. Mark’s gardens. As a result the Property Committee is asking for immediate help from members and groups to:
1. Clear an overgrown area of St. Mark’s property and/or,
2. To maintain a cleared area of St. Mark’s property.
Work sites and times are your choice. Tools and supplies are available if needed. For site, scheduling and other information, please contact Alan Eck or call 703-569-0814 .
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Boy Scout Pack 881 and Crew 881
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Mark Your Calendars
Summer Schedule begins
Memorial Day
Worship in English 9:00 AM
Worship in Spanish 11:00 AM
(Saturday Evening Worship 5:00 PM starting in June)
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St. Mark’s Church Council met Monday, May 8 and addressed the 2017 summer worship schedule. The Council has taken considerable time considering various options for schedules that would help us meet our goals:
- to increase integration of our Spanish and English speaking communities
- to increase the participation of youth and families
- and to increase opportunities for fellowship.
The council feels that the previously proposed worship schedule (9:00 AM, English and 11:00 AM, Spanish) is still the best option to try for the summer. The Council heard the comments offered by members at the Congregational Meeting and would like to clarify one piece and add another.
Clarification: The time between the services will be used for intentional fellowship. A "Fellowship Hour" will be added, and members will be encouraged to stay late and come early to be a church family together. We are trying to see how this can work. If it does, we may eventually consider a similar worship schedule with a 10:00 AM integrated Sunday school hour. If not, we either return to the previous schedule or try something new. We are a church family, figuring out together what will best help our family and the mission God has for us.
Addition: We heard that 9:00 AM may be too early for some; therefore, the Council approved the addition of a 5:00 PM Saturday evening service for the months of June, July, and August. What that service will look like has yet to be determined. It may follow a format recommended by a member of Council at its April meeting: a liturgical yet multicultural expression of Lutheran worship. For example, we may see a blend of traditional, contemporary, English, and Spanish music. This service, in itself, might satisfy the three congregational goals expressed above. If successful, we may decide to keep it or continue it in some modified version.
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Special Needs Ministry at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church invites you to
All God’s Children Worship Together
Saturday, May 20 at 5:00 PM
in the St. Mark’s Sanctuary.
Our pilot ministry is a special worship time for the whole family to worship together. The worship experience is designed for your special needs family member, but all children and adults are welcome! The service will adapt parts of our liturgy with special music, hands-on experiences, communion, and storytime in a fun and enriching way for the whole family to experience together. For information, please contact AllGodsChildren@StMarks-ELCA.org
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Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action).
Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"
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Come and be entertained by the Celebration Singers at their All Aboard spring show. Celebration Singers is a women’s show choir, and the show includes music, dancing, costumes, jokes, props, and more! St. Mark’s has two connections to the group: Chris Wiggins, one of the singers, is Ruth Hellwig’s niece; Gayle Parsons is the accompanist.
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Attention Amazon Shoppers!
There is a new way to support the ministry of St. Mark’s as you shop on-line. Simply make your purchases at AmazonSmile, a website that offers the same products, prices, and shopping features as Amazon.com, with one notable difference: the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to St. Mark’s. Most of funds generated through AmazonSmile will support the ongoing work of the church; 10% will be directed to Boy Scout Troop 881 in return for bringing this opportunity to our attention. It couldn’t be easier to get started. Just use this link to declare St. Mark’s as your charity of choice: https://smile.amazon.com/ch/54-0625293. Then be sure to go to smile.amazon.com for your future shopping needs. Happy shopping!
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Article Deadline
We need YOUR help! In order that ALL OF US receive the necessary documents for This Week, The Messenger, and the website, please send all articles you wish to have published no later than 5:00 PM on the Tuesday before the Sunday you wish for the articles to appear. Send those articles to communications@stmarks-elca.org.
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