English District of
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
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Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. |
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Dear members of the 2021 English District Gala Committee: Rev. Jeffrey Miskus, Chairman, Shirley Holle, Rod Lane, Sally Naglich, Jenifer Sibdhannie, Rev. Joshua Ulm, and Kristin Wellik,
To God be the glory for richly blessing the First Annual English District Thy Strong Word Gala. Attendees were introduced to missions and ministries throughout the English District. Viewers heard and saw how monies from the Endowment Fund have made an impact in planting churches, growing schools, helping campus ministries, and spreading God’s Word. This fundraising event was a success in bringing hundreds of people together on a Sunday night in June. The Endowment Fund received over twenty-five thousand dollars in gifts and pledges. People are excited to see how God will bless the work because of these donations. None of this would be possible if not for your dedication, hard work, and planning. It is to you that I must offer my profound thanks, and I now know that future events have a new benchmark to meet. Thank you for going the extra mile.
Sincerely
Rev. Dr. Jamison J. Hardy, Bishop/President, English District LCMS
Watch the replay of the 2021 English District Thy Strong Word Gala.
Online giving to the Endowment Fund will remain open until the end of June.
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On Sunday, June 13, 2021, Bishop Jamison J. Hardy was the guest preacher at Shepherd of the Coast, Palm Coast, FL. Rev. Bill Douthwaite was celebrated for his 25th anniversary as the pastor of the congregation. We give thanks for Pastor Douthwaite and his service to the kingdom of God.
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Ordination and Installation |
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On Tuesday, June 15, 2021, Ministerial Candidate Stanley J. Lacey was ordained into the office of holy ministry at St. John’s, Clarksburg, WV. Immediately following his ordination, Rev. Lacey was installed as the sole pastor of the congregation. Bishop Jamison J. Hardy was the guest preacher and officiated the service. |
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Call Received
The Rev. Eric R. Andrae has received a call to serve as Pastor for College and Young Adult Ministry of First Lutheran Church, Boston, MA (New English District).
Call Received and Accepted
The Rev. Dr. Elwood E. Mather, III (New Jersey District) has received and accepted a call to serve as Sole Pastor of Bethany, Ewing, NJ.
Call Returned
The Rev. Daniel E. Grams has returned the call to serve as Sole Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, Centralia, IL (Southern Illinois District).
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Congratulations to The Rev. Dr. Frank Pies, the English District’s 2021 recipient of “The Roger D. Pittelko Award – He Loved the Church”. The award was formally announced as part of the 2021 English District Virtual Gala which can be viewed here. Dr. Pies expressed that he was both humbled and honored to be selected for this award.
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by Rev. Christopher I. Thoma
Perhaps you heard the news regarding the recent Supreme Court ruling in favor of Catholic Social Services (CSS) of Philadelphia? In short, the City of Philadelphia jettisoned its enduring relationship with CSS because the agency, as an arm of the Catholic Church, would not work with LGBTQ couples when considering placement of foster children. An important case as it meets with religious liberty, the Supreme Court weighed in, and all nine justices sided with CSS’ right to an accommodation so that it might continue “serving the children of Philadelphia in a manner consistent with its religious beliefs” (Chief Justice Roberts, Majority Opinion).
Of course, as Lutherans we ask, “What does this mean?”
For starters, it would appear that even the liberal justices on the Supreme Court couldn’t find a legitimate way in this case around the standard of “strict scrutiny” in relation to the First Amendment’s establishment clause. This is good, and for the most part, is one more rampart precedent that aids in hardening the Church’s defenses in the ongoing war for preserving and protecting religious liberty in America. On the other hand, and as opponents to the ruling have pointed out, the court did not in any way specifically iterate as precedent any particular religious organization’s right to discriminate according to religious beliefs, which is something that would go a long way toward protecting religious groups from organizations intent on forcing them into secular molds that forsake their longstanding systems of belief.
Still another perspective, there are some in Washington—sources close to the bench—who interpret this unanimous decision as just one of several unified rulings intended to communicate a warning by the justices to those on the left working to pack the court. In other words, the justices understand the soul of the court-packing movement as ideological and far from concerned for the rule of law.
Either way, the ruling stands. As such, it would appear the Church’s freedom to openly preach and practice the Gospel apart from the shadows has been further congealed in the midst of what is indeed becoming an unprecedented time of attack.
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June 26th will soon be here! You may be wondering what makes that date so special. Well, it is not National Donut Day, not National Go-to-the-Beach-Day, or even National Campfire Day. However, if you guessed National Director of Christian Education (DCE) Day, you are correct! We celebrate the DCE commissioned ministers of our English District. The date is still a little way off and we hope that every congregation with a DCE would celebrate them in some special way. Then we would really like to hear about that celebration with a short 2-3 sentences and, of course, a picture! We will be sharing these in S2S in the coming weeks. Please send your picture and words to Jill McGarr.
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Father's Day: Fathers don't lower the standard, raise the child! |
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Imagine this scene: It’s an extremely hot day in a major desert city. The city bus is crowded - shoulder to shoulder with people (without masks? Too soon?) The people are tired and miserable. Suddenly, a person begins cursing. It’s one cuss word after another. The bus driver looks in the mirror and can tell the other bus riders are ashamed for and angered by this person. When the person gets off the bus, the driver said, "Excuse me! You’ve left something." "What?!," the person asked. "A bad impression," said the driver. Fathers, what are you leaving behind? Your influence never dies. Good or bad, right or wrong, it never dies. Are you a godly influence on your family, your neighborhood, your co-workers, your circle of friends or negative-ungodly? In today’s culture, it’s easy to lower the bar in the face of the world’s pressures. But on this Father’s Day weekend, be strengthened and challenged: Fathers, don’t lower the standard; raise the child.
Happy Father’s Day! This is your weekend!! My very wise grandmother used to say, "Anyone can have a child, but it takes a special man to be a father." Being a father is much more than performing a biological function. It is about loving and caring, guiding and influencing. This article on behalf of the Evangelization Team of your English District isn’t to heap guilt upon you for your failures but rather to encourage you that Jesus lived, died and rose for you to forgive, equip, empower and fortify you in the unique role He has given to you as “father.” Fathers, mothers, families, witnesses for Christ, read more as God’s Word helps us to put faith over fear in our everyday sharing of God’s truth.
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1-1-1 Focus on Campus Ministry |
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Our English District identified recipients of 1-1-1 (A Dollar for Mission) for 2020-2021 are the campus ministries of our District. We want members of our District congregations, those who bring a (1) dollar per (1) person per (1) Sunday, to have a clear picture of how these gifts are being used to directly support the mission of our District. These gifts come together to fund important ministries across the District, like All Saints Lutheran Church and Student Center, $1 at a time.
Read more about the campus ministry of All Saints Lutheran Church and how they connect with students and faculty during this time of COVID-19 pandemic.
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Mental Health Resources from Concordia Plans |
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Located within the Employers-Resources section, under Our Community, is a Mental Health Toolkit (link below). It has been designed to support leaders in caring for their workers, staff and themselves. One such resource that you will find is a recording of a webinar held on May 25th titled: Cultivating a Workplace Culture that Supports Mental Health. The webinar includes strategies for employers to use and provides a guided demo of the ER Mental Health Toolkit. The toolkit will be updated regularly with new resources.
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The Bible's promise is true: "If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us" (1 John 5:14).
District daily prayers for July are located on our website.
Your prayer concerns are important to the English District. If you have a prayer request you would like shared in this newsletter, email the District office.
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For more information, contact the English District Gift Planning Counselor Ron Grimm by phone (412)-584-7039 or email.
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Livestreamed/Recorded Services |
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We encourage everyone to take advantage of alternative opportunities to hear God’s word and to be blessed by the Divine Service. We have compiled a list of opportunities on the English District website that is continually updated.
If your congregation is recording or live streaming and is not included on this list, please email us at info@englishdistrict.org and let us know how people can access it.
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Get ready for Prime Days on June 21 and 22! Sign up for AmazonSmile and select English District of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod as your preferred charity at smile.amazon.com/ch/38-1675740. Remember to shop for deals at smile.amazon.com, or with AmazonSmile ON in the Amazon app, and AmazonSmile will donate to us at no cost to you. This is a great way to support the district while you do your normal shopping! Thank you!
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Grace, Redford, MI
On Sunday, June 13, 2021, Landon received the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. Pictured with Rev. Timothy Halboth are the parents and their first son, Houghton, and the Baptismal Sponsors. All of those gathered were baptized, confirmed, and married at Grace, by Pastor Halboth. The church family grows!
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Grace English, Chicago, IL
Grace English Lutheran School celebrated 8th grade graduation. The students have learned so much and are proud to walk in the ways of the Lord. Congratulations graduates!
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Redeemer, Pittsburgh, PA
It was picnic day for 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders at Redeemer Lutheran School! Pizza, ice cream, rock painting and lots of fun was had by all as a finish to the school year.
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Please share the information from Servant to Servant with members of your congregation.
All are invited to subscribe to this weekly publication. Forward the newsletter to members of your church. They can subscribe by clicking on the "Sign up for our emails" link at the bottom. Thanks for spreading the word!
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Please share your congregation's or school's unique ministries with the rest of the District. Send pictures and stories for consideration to jmcgarr@englishdistrict.org by Wednesday at 12:00 Noon ET. We want to see how YOUR congregation or school is showing the love of God to those in your community and around the world.
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