Pastoral Message Week of the Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost November 3, 2022
Dear People of God at Faith/La Fe!
Let me proclaim it in no uncertain terms: church is fun again! After Veronica’s
ordination last Sunday, I found myself exclaiming this to Bishop Hutterer and one of
her staff members. What do I mean by church being fun again? In short, we’re back
together in person for most of the events and occasions which are the lifeblood of so
much Christian togetherness. During the acute phases of the pandemic when we were
in lock down mode and could not meet in person, the church continued to engage in
activities, often on Zoom, in truncated, abbreviated ways. When I was doing ministry
in Virginia during that period with its burdensome social isolation, I recall sharing
with colleagues my observation that ministry during pandemic lock down consisted of
all the drudgery of the mostly administrative features of church life, but few of the fun
things – like baptisms, and weddings, and other celebrations of our life together when
the Eucharistic table extends to the parish hall tables for good food and conversation
in community.
Just think of this one month of October at Faith/La Fe and everything fun,
celebratory, that has happened in these few short weeks. A single month included my
installation as pastor when we also commemorated Francis of Assisi under the
leadership of our synodical bishop with representatives of other congregations and
ministries in attendance – a fun and festive occasion to be sure. Then on a lovely
October Saturday, our Congregation Council had its annual retreat, which by the way,
was a genuine retreat consisting of worship and bible study, fellowship, and
conversation over a great lunch, with quiet time also to really engage the wonderful
features of our church campus and buildings as if for the first time. This day led to
some playful holy daydreaming and visioning for our life in mission together. Then
there was Reformation Sunday with very festive experiences of worship at 9:00 and
11:00, the morning of which also featured the inauguration of a new adult education
series on worship, why we do what we do on Sundays and how we experience God
during worship. When I thought that maybe half a dozen folk would show up in the
library end of the room, I marveled that the whole parish hall was well-peopled,
revealing a hunger for learning together among our members. Then on that same day,
many more returned for Veronica’s magnificent ordination service with dinner
reception following. Not only was this a milestone event in the life of now Pastor
Veronica, her ordination, opening the door fully to her ministry among us, represents
a significant achievement in our congregation’s long-standing commitment to Spanish
2
language ministry and outreach – made possible by the generosity of our wider
church, synodically and nationally. Here’s to the promise of a revitalized sense of
mission in our whole congregation. And to me, it’s all so much fun!
But there’s more! The day before Reformation Sunday, Faith/La Fe folk gathered to
get their hands dirty in social ministry outdoors. Here’s a report on that happening
from Gail Turner in her own words: “The Faith Community Garden workday project,
funded by a Thrivent Grant and donations by FELC members was a stupendous day
of playing (?) in the dirt! A beautiful team of 17 members from both worshiping parts
of our congregation accomplished an incredible amount of work, including the
unexpected discovery & solving underlying irrigation leaks, ate sumptuously on
homemade breakfast burritos, prayed over the work in God’s Creation, and got better
acquainted through it all. The count is 17 members dug in to transform the
community garden space in a total of 55 hours that day, plus another 16 hours by 4
people in prior days of preparation. The results are astounding! If any member wants
to claim some garden space to grow your own fresh vegetables, please contact Gail
Turner or Jan Hulin for details…the gardens are ready!”
All this churchly conviviality in the space of one brief month! Indeed, church is fun
again. Not only that, and more importantly, church is church again. Which is to say
that according to Lutheran understandings, church is defined as an event. Church is a
verb, a happening, namely when the Holy Spirit assembles God’s people for
proclaiming the gospel and celebrating the sacraments according to the gospel. I
would add that this holy assembling is at its best, fullest, and truest when it is in
person, in the flesh. When we are gathered for gospel proclamation and sacramental
celebration in person which then extends to other activities like gardening and
socializing over dinner and drinks, church is church, and church is fun, celebratory,
lively, life-giving, encouraging, hopeful, joyful. It all makes for a good vibe, conveying
a compelling spirit, the Holy Spirit – and members of Faith/La Fe report to me that
they feel the difference these days. Thanks be to God!
And there’s more fun church to come soon and in coming weeks as we anticipate
Advent and Christmas – see the announcements and schedule included below and
further word in future editions of my weekly pastoral messages!
Happily leading and serving in Jesus’ name,
Pastor Jonathan Linman
Pastor’s Office Phone Number: 602-265-5860
Email: pastor@faithalive.com
3
Announcements
Faith Community Garden – Gardeners Invited!
If any member wants to claim some garden space to grow your own fresh vegetables,
please contact Gail Turner (gmturner0123@aol.com) or Jan Hulin (janhulin@cox.net)
for details…the gardens are ready!”
Parish Ministries Restarting
All are invited to join in a brainstorming session in Parish Hall this Sunday morning,
Nov. 6 at 10:50, immediately following Pastor Linman’s Adult Forum. Our mission is
to enhance the lives of the members of our Faith community through
Education/Formation, Hospitality, Property and Faith Watchers. Please come ready
to share and discuss ideas of how we will carry out our mission.
Arizona Charitable Giving Tax Credit
A member of Faith/La Fe reminds us that the state of Arizona offers tax credits
($400 for single filers and $800 for joint filers) for charitable contributions to 501
(c)(3) organizations. Here’s a link for further information: lss-sw.org/donate
Schedule for the Coming Week
Sunday, November 6
9:00 am – Worship in English
10:15 am – Worship Matters Adult Forum
10:50 am – Parish Ministries Meeting
11:00 am – Worship in Spanish
Tuesday, November 7
6:30 pm – Congregation Council Meeting
Wednesday, November 8
4
10:30 am – Bible Study/Lectio Divina (in person and via Zoom)
6:00 pm – Bible Study/Lectio Divina (in person and via Zoom)
Sunday, November 13
9:00 am – Worship in English
10:15 am – Worship Matters Adult Forum
11:00 am – Worship in Spanish