60 Years
It began in the late 1950s, as a handful of people began to gather, talking about Jesus.
The Warrenton Lutheran Group was not yet a church. After years of canvassing the community, talking to the Virginia Synod, and working with a mission developer, Pastor Kenneth Price, the day came: the Service of Organization.
On Palm Sunday, 1959, in the Hunt Room of the Warren Green Hotel, the newest congregation of the Lutheran Church in America celebrated its first service –the bishop preached, and Janet March was welcomed to Christ in Baptism.
This year, we will celebrate our “diamond jubilee” with a series of special events in the month of September. There are worship services, a play, a picnic and more – you can read about them inside.
But the BEST way to help us celebrate is by reaching out to old friends, and inviting them home. Let us all help friends, members and alumni to reconnect, and share in the sixtieth!
Sixtieth Anniversary Celebration
Christ yesterday and today, the beginning and the end, Alpha and Omega, all time belongs to him, and all ages; to him be glory and power, through every age and forever. Amen.
Kickoff Events
Saturday, September 21
Contemporary Worship – 5:30pm
Our laid-back Saturday service is led by Voices of Praise. It is the Lutheran liturgy – confession, Scripture, and Holy Communion – in a relaxed and easy style. Joining old hymns and new praise songs, this is a warm and welcoming hour of faith.
“Decades” Dinner – 6:30pm
We’ve been here through seven decades – so let’s eat like it! Join us after worship, and bring a dish inspired by the food or culture of a particular decade. It can be spot-on (TV dinners from the 1950s) or a loose interpretation (say, a Sixties Stew, with whatever Gradma used to put in hers).
For extra “pow,” you could wear an outfit that reminds you of an era. Maybe Pastor Michael will even dig out those groovy threads from his hippie youth!
Youth Skit (during dinner)
No spoilers! We’re not going to tell you what it’s about. Heck, we don’t even know. But we’ve seen these kids perform before, and they are (as we used to say back in 1959) real swell.
Maybe you remember If I Were Not a Lutheran, OSLC’s contribution to the ecumenical movement? Well, the same creative team, led by Nancy Bonnaire, will entertain and amuse you as our anniversary kicks off!
Saturday, September 28
Songs of Faith – Hymn Sing Starts at 2:30 pm
In the fellowship hall, members of the OSLC Guitar Club will lead dozens of traditional and contemporary hymns, from “I’ll Fly Away” and “When the Roll is Called Up Yonder” to “Awesome God” and more! Song lyrics will be provided. And if all that singing works up an appetite…
Ice Cream Social at 4:30 pm
Stop by the ice cream social for a frozen treat with all your favorite toppings!
Sunday, September 29
Homecoming Sunday Heritage Service – 10:30 am
Based on the original Service of Organization. We will sing the same songs, and even use the same worship service (slightly altered). Get ready to say “and with thy Spirit,” because we’re going old-school today.
If you have friends or family of OSLC back when, or who simply miss the good old days of Lutheran worship, please invite them for this beautiful and reverent ceremony.
Homecoming Picnic – About Noon
Sit a spell. Tell some tales of ancient days. Enjoy good food and old friends on the Kim Ulrich Memorial Playground.
Want to Help?
Here’s Who to Contact
If you’d like to help with the 60th Anniversary Celebration, here are a few of the organizers. Contact them for the latest information and the best way to make a difference:
- Nancy Griffin Bonnaire (Youth Skit): ngeebee@hotmail.com or 703-407-3984
- Bonnie McQuillan (Homecoming Picnic): bonnie.mcquillan@gmail.com or (540) 270-0653
- Tamar Yager (Decades Dinner): Tamaryager@gmail.com or 540-631-7222
What’s a Diamond Jubilee?
A “Never To Be Forgotten Day”
A diamond jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 60th anniversary of an event – a wedding anniversary or, especially, the accession of a monarch.
Perhaps the most famous was the Diamond Jubilee of Britain’s Queen Victoria, in 1897. It began with a royal parade through the streets of London, which were crowded to bursting in anticipation.
Before the 17-carriage convoy carrying the royal family and leaders of Britain’s dominions departed Buckingham Palace, Queen Victoria, with a touch of a button, sent an electronic message to her vast Empire. Her telegraph message was simple: “From my heart I thank my beloved people. May God bless them. V.R. & I.”
Eight cream horses pulled the queen in an open carriage. The procession swept by Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery, London Bridge and Big Ben. The queen’s subjects, many of whom had never known another monarch, cheered her along the entire route . Deeply touched by the outpouring of affection, Victoria occasionally wiped tears from her eyes before arriving at St. Paul’s Cathedral for a Thanksgiving service.
In her journal, Queen Victoria called it “a never to be forgotten day.”
Service
How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses to help?
(1 John 3:17)
Quilt Ministry
Another Great Year of Quilting
September marks the last month of our 2019 Quilting year and what a great year it has been! We have welcomed several new members to our Ministry and completed more Quilts than ever before.
At the conclusion of our work sessions on Saturday, September 14th (9am-noon) and Tuesday, September 17th (12:30-3pm) we joyfully anticipate the completion of more than 250+ Quilts for Lutheran World Relief! The culminating event, the Blessing of the Quilts, will be during the Church services on September 28th/29th at which time all the Quilts will be on display for the congregation to behold!
Adopt-A-Quilt shipping/handling fundraiser underway throughout September.
In collaboration with LWR, special envelopes will be available in the Narthex to support the Adopt-A-Quilt campaign seeking donations to help offset the shipping/handling costs ($2.25) of each Quilt. All donations to help further our mission are greatly appreciated! Blessings!
Contacts: Phyllis Herrington phyllis.herrington@gmail.com and Andrea Mutterer amutterer@gmail.com
Service is Our Heritage
As much as fellowship and education, even as much as worship, service to those in need is part of Our Saviour’s DNA.
We’re not a large congregation. But between People Helping People, the Food Coalition, ECHO and other ministries, we have a big impact on Warrenton and the world beyond.
So it is a sign of who we are that, during the climax of our 60th Anniversary celebration, the nave will be filled to bursting with beautiful LWR Quilts.
Social Ministry Activities
July 2019
These are some of the ways that our congregation has served the poor this past month.
Food baskets filled:
- 2 (July & August)
Food Distribution:
- 92 households
- 172 individuals
- 38 under 18, 66 over 60
- 11 boxes were delivered to local motels (July)
People Helping People:
- $4,693 for rent and utilities
- $962 total income
Assisted:
- 23 families
- 37 individuals
- 42 children
- OSLC volunteer hours, 63 (July)
July activity: Delivered 20 food bags from OSLC for FCFDC summer food program. A total of 45 bags plus 10 “Family Bags” were distributed July 20.
Many thanks for your continued support of this summer food program! Feedback from the recipients has always been very positive.
September Activity: Provide a meal at the nursing home on September 10. Please contact Elfie Schmid, 540-937-5315 if you can help.
Crop Walk News!
October 20, 2019
The 2019 Warrenton CROP Walk will be held October 20, 2019 at the Greenway, in Warrenton. We will meet at the Warrenton United Presbyterian Church on main street at 12:30 PM for registration, and the walk will start at 1:30 PM.
CROP Hunger Walks are community-wide events sponsored by Church World Service and organized by local congregations or groups to raise funds to end hunger at home and around the world.
If you want to make a contribution, please make your check payable to CWS/CROP (Church World Service/ Crop Walk. Please place your check in the women’s circle box in the church office. Please do not put it in the offering tray.
Remember, a portion of the proceeds stay in the community to help those in need. This year we will be donating a portion to FISH (For Immediate Sympathetic Help) in Warrenton. You may choose to designate the rest of your gift to an international agency other than Church World Service such as Lutheran World Relief.
Contact Jan Fowler, 540-272-3351 or Janjanellen1@gmail.com.
Do not sow in the furrows of injustice, and you will not reap a sevenfold crop.
—The Wisdom of Ben Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), one of the Apocryphal Books
Growing Faith
In Our Children and Youth
Sunday School
Children from preschool through 5th grades are invited to learn and have fun with Sunday School. Come before 9:15am each Sunday to have a small snack at Fellowship, and then listen for the bell to go sing, pray, and get your name in the drawing to take home “Stuffed Jesus”! Sally Ducharme is preparing the children to sing in worship on Reformation Sunday, October 27, at 10:30. (Date subject to change–be sure Yvonne Rodgers has your email address for updates.) Nursery care is provided for younger children all Sunday morning, and coffee and tasty treats are on hand for everyone each week from 9:05-10:15am.
Youth Sunday School
Youth Sunday School is split between middle school “PALMS” (Pretty Awesome Lutheran Middle Schoolers) with Rick Ducharme and high school with Cathy Cogdill. All youth in 6th-12th grades bring your snack to the Youth Room (#7) at 9:15 and hear the theme and pray before splitting up to “go deep.”
Senior High Youth Group meets September 8 from 6-8pm and September 22 from 3-5pm this month. Normally they meet two times a month on Sunday evenings or afternoons (check the youth calendar) for food, games, and growing closer to God and each other. Extra trips like a movie, concert, bowling, and more are in the works as well. Contact Abigail Compton to get your 9th-12th grader on her contact list.
Youth Drama Ministry
Our Youth Drama Ministry is growing under the care of Nancy Griffin-Bonnaire. Come see their Anniversary Skit on Saturday, September 21, and contact Nancy if you’d like to be involved in the three Christmas performances this year.
Confirmation Education
Classes begin on Wednesday, September 18. Don’t miss out!
Community
Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. (Acts 2:46-47)
Calling All Crafters!
REBEKAH CIRCLE is currently preparing for the November 23, 2019 Church Bazaar. Anyone interested in donating items to the bazaar may bring them to the fellowship hall November 22, 2019, after 8:00 AM during set up.
We welcome anyone interested in helping with the set up, bazaar or clean up to join us for fun and fellowship. Anyone interested in joining the Rebekah, please call the number below for details.
As always, we appeal to all the wonderful cookie makers to work their magic and help us have a successful event.
Remember, all proceeds are donated to local charities.
Please come, shop and support this important ministry. Thanks for your continued support. Call Jan Fowler, 540-272-3351 or email Janjanellen1@gmail.com.
Christmas is Coming! (Really!)
Seeking Young Actors and a Donkey
An original Christmas play, First Noel Live, is coming to OSLC for three performances on December 20, 21, and 22 for its world premiere!
If you have a child age five years or older who would like to participate, there is availability for a variety of speaking, non-speaking, and technical roles.
We are also seeking someone to play the role of a donkey—braying is needed! Auditions will be held sometime in late September. Questions? Contact Nancy Bonnaire at ngeebee@hotmail.com or 703-407-3984.
Beyond 1517: The Reformation Continues
Luther an Eck at Leipzig
In 2017, Lutherans all over the world celebrated the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. But Luther’s famous 95 Theses were only the beginning of a long and complex movement.
Another landmark is the Leipzig Debate which took place in the summer of 1519, just five centuries ago.
John Eck, a theologian teaching at Ingolstadt, had engaged Luther in private correspondence on the issue of indulgences, but that correspondence was published against Luther’s own wishes. Soon, the two men, (with Luther’s academic “frenemy,” Andreas Karlstadt) were meeting in a public disputation over grace, free will and – especially – the authority of the Pope.
While Eck defended papal authority from traditional proof texts, such as Matthew 16, Luther rejected them on the grounds of exegesis. He accepted the papacy as a divine institution, but he did not accept Eck’s interpretation of those texts as attributing authority over matters of salvation to the papacy.
In the course of the debate, Eck accused Luther of supporting the condemned heretic Jan Hus. Luther eventually declared that the Council of Constance, which sentenced Hus to death, could have been in error. This led him to state that councils could and had erred, as had popes and canon law.
What remained infallible for Luther was Scripture and thus it was finally authoritative for the church.
For the first time, Luther had articulated clearly his position that popes, councils, and theologians were all subject to error, leaving Scripture as the supreme authority in all theological matters.
AVERAGE MONTHLY OFFERING NEEDED: $ 35,500
July was a month to catch our breath (at least financially) before the start up of Sunday School and the resumption of regular programs. Autumn promises to be a little more hectic than usual with Pr. Michael’s trip to Papua New Guinea and the 60th Anniversary Celebration.
Our Finance Committee begins meeting after Labor Day to formulate the 2020 Ministry Plan and so let the Council Liaison for your Team know of any budget needs you may anticipate for next year.