Archive for the ‘Archive’ Category

Bulletin cover 10.6.24WELCOME TO PEACE!  

While we at Peace Lutheran mark a Season of Creation in June each year, in the ecumenical calendar The Season of Creation begins September 1st and ends on the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecology beloved by many Christians. This year we mark the Feast of St. Francis by uniting with Christians communions around the theme “To hope and act with Creation,” inspired by Romans 8:19-25.

To tune into the Live Stream broadcast of this service at 10:30am, click HERE.  To read Pastor Kindem’s post about this day, click HERE.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 22B 10.6.24 bulletin FINAL St. Francis

Screenshot of a map of the National Solar Tour, with Peace Lutheran Church in Seattle highliighted

Peace Lutheran Church is hosting a stop on the National Solar Tour on Sunday, Oct. 6th from 1-3pm. The tour is the country’s largest grassroots solar, renewable energy, and sustainable living event.

Want to know more about our solar panels, rain gardens and cisterns and native pollinator plantings? We can help with that!
 
Map of the National Solar tour

National Solar Tour Home Page
 


More information about Creation Care at Peace Lutheran Church:

Bulletin cover 9.29.24WELCOME TO PEACE!  

Welcome to Peace!  We pray you experience God’s presence today as you join us in worship. There are times during the service when you’ll be invited to “rise as able in body or spirit.” You have full permission to care for yourself and your physical well-being, so if getting up and down is difficult, we encourage you to do whatever you need to do to care for yourself, including remaining seated. Parents, know that if your young ones need to move around, we’re cool with that!

Today is the Feast Day for the archangel Michael and All Angels; a reminder of the breathtaking size of creation—seen and unseen—and that there are aspects of reality beyond what can be grasped with the senses.  The Greek word for angel — angelos, means messenger.  Throughout scripture these messengers of the Divine reveal God’s will and purpose at times and places that God chooses.  These encounters—or theophanies—change the course of the Divine-human narrative.  The archangel Michael is often pictured as a prince and a general of the heavenly army, defeating the dragon (the devil, Satan).

To tune into the Live Stream broadcast of this service at 10:30am, click HERE.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 21B MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS9.29.24 bulletin FINAL

Bulletin cover 9.22.24WELCOME TO PEACE!  

Welcome to Peace!  We pray you experience God’s presence today as you join us in worship. There are times during the service when you’ll be invited to “rise as able in body or spirit.” You have full permission to care for yourself and your physical well-being, so if getting up and down is difficult, we encourage you to do whatever you need to do to care for yourself, including remaining seated. Parents, know that if your young ones need to move around, we’re cool with that!

Deep caring and loyalty between friends is manifested in our two Scripture stories today. Ruth declares her enduring commitment to her mother in law Naomi; and the friends of a paralyzed man won’t let anything stand in the way of a face to face encounter with Jesus.

Our Pass the Hat Partner this month is Camp Lutherwood, a place where lasting friendships are made! We are joined today by Pastor Kevin Beebe, Exec. Dir, and Ashleigh Ellsworth-Keller, Program Director.  Pastor Kevin is our guest preacher.

To tune into the Live Stream broadcast of this service at 10:30am, click HERE.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 20B Rally Sunday 9.22.24

On Sunday, September 29, 2024, we have the opportunity to learn about the initiatives that will be on our ballots in the Seattle area in November. This event is right after Sunday service in the sanctuary, so grab some treats in the Narthex and head back in for an informative talk with our friend Kristin from FAN.

Kristin Ang, Policy Engagement Director of Faith Action Network, will be with us to provide important information about the justice issues involved in the initiatives. As a member congregation of FAN, we value the research and advocacy they do to ensure that our state is an equitable and sustainable place to live. After the worship service, you are invited to pick up your treats in the narthex and then return to the sanctuary to participate in the discussion that will enable you to make informed decisions when considering the ballot initiatives.

Bulletin cover 9.15.24WELCOME TO PEACE!  

Welcome to Peace!  We pray you experience God’s presence today as you join us in worship. There are times during the service when you’ll be invited to “rise as able in body or spirit.” You have full permission to care for yourself and your physical well-being, so if getting up and down is difficult, we encourage you to do whatever you need to do to care for yourself, including remaining seated. Parents, know that if your young ones need to move around, we’re cool with that!

Scripture themes: Three weeks ago we heard Peter’s confession of faith as told in John’s gospel. This week we hear Mark’s version, when Peter says, “You are the Messiah.” But Peter stumbles over Jesus’ words about a suffering Messiah. Jesus is anointed on his way to the cross.

To tune into the Live Stream broadcast of this service at 10:30am, click HERE.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 19B 9.15.24 bulletin

Bulletin cover 9.8.24WELCOME TO PEACE!  

Welcome to Peace!  We pray you experience God’s presence today as you join us in worship. There are times during the service when you’ll be invited to “rise as able in body or spirit.” You have full permission to care for yourself and your physical well-being, so if getting up and down is difficult, we encourage you to do whatever you need to do to care for yourself, including remaining seated. Parents, know that if your young ones need to move around, we’re cool with that!

Scripture Themes: James tell us to stop showing favoritism in the assembly, treating the rich visitor with more honor than the poor one. Jesus himself seems to show partiality in his first response to the Syrophoenician woman in today’s gospel. Was he testing her faith in saying Gentiles don’t deserve the goods meant for God’s children? Or was he speaking out of his human worldview, but transcended those limits when she took him by surprise with her reply? Either way, the story tells us that God shows no partiality. Everyone who brings a need to Jesus is received with equal honor as a child and heir.

To tune into the Live Stream broadcast of this service at 10:30am, click HERE.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 18B 9.8.24 bulletin

One of the scribes…asked Jesus, “Which commandment is the first of all?” Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’  There is no other commandment greater than these.”

– Mark 12:28-31

Beloved of God,

After a week in August that saw some of the lowest temperatures in decades and the wettest August days of record, we’ve rebounded for a warm and beautiful weekend of summer—and I for one am relishing it!  Wherever this weekend finds you, I hope you can revel in God’s good creation while enjoying things you love!

As usual, our life in community at Peace is ramping up this month, with special events and opportunities awaiting your presence and participation.  Among them are the HABITAT INTERFAITH BUILD September 6/7 and 13/14 and our RALLY SUNDAY CELEBRATION on September 22nd with special guests Pastor Kevin Beebe and Ashleigh Ellsworth-Keller of Camp Lutherwood.  Please mark your calendars!  You can read more about these and other congregational events in the pages that follow.

In addition to our fall programming and the start of the school year, this autumn is being indelibly stamped by another occasion which will dominate our lives over the next two months—the most consequential election season of our lifetimes.  In recent years I’ve become alarmed by the rhetoric of the so-called Christian right as they wrap themselves in the flag, assume the title “patriot,” and claim divine sanction for their candidate of choice.  The language being used, and the actions they support, are downright idolatrous.  Blueprints are being formulated (such as Project 2025) that openly promote the end of democracy as we’ve known it—and do so in the name of God.  This cannot stand.

“Christian nationalism in the United States is a political ideology and cultural framework that seeks to fuse American and Christian identities. It suggests that “real” Americans are Christians, and that “true” Christians hold a particular set of political beliefs.  It seeks to create a society in which only this narrow subset of Amer­i­cans is privileged by law and in societal practice…Christian nationalism employs the language, symbols and imagery of Christianity…to advance its own aims.  It points not to Jesus of Nazareth but to the nation, as conceived of by a dangerous political ideology, as the object of allegiance.”

 – Amanda Tyler of Christians Against Christian Nationalism, writing in the Sept/Oct 2024 issue of Sojourners Magazine

While you and I may not always agree on the best course of action when it comes to candidates for office and propositions that come before us, as Lutherans we recognize our duty to participate in the democratic process as informed citizens, and to encourage others to do the same.  Our baptismal covenant includes: “serving all people and creation, following the example of Jesus,” and “striving for justice and peace in all the earth.”  Love for God and neighbor compels us to engage in conversations about public policy and other topics where the good of the community is at stake, with an eye toward maintaining justice and caring for the needs of the most vulnerable.

A group of Peace folk met recently to ask how we, as a community of faith, might respond to the rise of Christian nationalism and the claims that are being made in the name of “Christians.”  Let me know if you’d like to be involved in future meetings.  More bombastic voices is not the answer.  We need to do something more than add more fuel to the fire.  One option under consideration is partnering with the organization Paths of Understanding to host a Potluck for Democracy—which would bring together neighbors and members of other faith communities—Christian and non-Christion—for the purpose of genuine human encounter and bridge building.  One tenant of Christian nationalism is that people who are “different” from us (i.e. us white people) cannot be trusted.  Face to face engagement over a shared meal is one simple way of challenging that falsehood.  Jesus made that kind of meal fellowship a core part of his ministry and his teaching.  And he left his disciples the template for a Meal that they (that is, WE) have been carrying out in his name ever since.

The rhetoric of those who want to subvert our democracy and replace it with a system that privileges certain individuals who meet their criteria as “deserving Chrisitan Americans” must be challenged.  Those of us of voting age will have our chance at the ballot box on November 5th, but before we reach November we have the opportunity to offer an alternative narrative to the fearful and hateful ones that are being promulgated in the name of Christ.

With you on the Way,

Pastor Erik

 

Bulletin cover 9.1.24WELCOME TO PEACE!  

Jesus protests against human customs being given the weight of divine law while the essence of God’s law is ignored. True uncleanliness comes not from external things but from the intentions of the human heart. “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”– James 1:27

To tune into the Live Stream broadcast of this service at 9:30am, click HERE.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 17B 9-1-2024 FINAL

Photo from outdoor service in Lincoln Park, August, 2023. Peace Lutheran Church in Seattle, WA

Join Us For Worship And Potluck Picnic At Lincoln Park

Sunday, August 25, 2024  9:30am – 2:00pm 

Last year’s worship service at Lincoln Park, followed by a potluck picnic, was so enjoyable that we decided to do it again!

There will NOT be a service at the church building at 39th and Thistle that day.  However, the tech team will provide the live stream, so please tune in via this LINK if you are unable to join us at the park.

The Worship Guide can be downloaded here: Pentecost 16B 8.25.24 bulletin.docx worship in park FINAL

Here are the details for Sunday:

When:

  Sunday, August 25, 2024. Worship at 9:30, with potluck picnic to follow.

Photo of Lincoln Park Shelter #1

Lincoln Park Shelter #1

Where:

    Lincoln Park, Shelter # 1, at the south end of the park on the upper level under the trees; from the south parking lot, follow the path that veers slightly to the right, which will take you to the shelter.

FYI: The long-awaited playground is next to the shelter, so kids will have the opportunity to try all the new equipment after the service.

What To Bring:

     Food to share and a utensil for dishing; lawn chairs or blankets (we will have extra chairs for those who don’t have access to them).

What We Will Provide:

      Compostable plates, cups, tableware, and beverages.

Parking:

     Space is limited in the parking lots. If there are no spaces in either the south or north lots, you may park on the east side of Fauntleroy or in the neighborhood. (Maps and navigation details at the end of this page.)

Transportation:

     Due to the limited parking, we encourage you to carpool or ride the bus. (Directions for bus, bike, rideshare and other commute options are below.)

Accessibility:

     People will be in the parking lot to assist you with the short walk to the shelter when you arrive.

How Can You Help? 

    Please see our recent request for volunteers:

             Helpers Needed: Lincoln Park Service and Potluck Picnic 2024

Questions or Volunteer Help:  

         Contact Alan Jarvimaki or Marian Christjaener for more information and to volunteer for the event. 

To Join Us: 

 

————————————————————————————–