Grace Lutheran Church of Evanston

1430 South Blvd. at Wesley

847.475.2211

Grace Is An Open And Affirming RIC

Congregation

Rev. Daniel RuenPastor

pd@graceevanston.org•

Rev. Kaari ReiersonColleague in

Ministry•

Chloe MartinezOffice Manager

•Steve Brunger

Sexton

VisionTo Be God’s

Kingdom Bursting Open in the World.

•

Core ValuesWe Value:

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

Putting Faith into Action Courageously

Diversity

Peace

Faith Development

A Caring Community

Experiencing God

Weekly Worship

www.graceevanston.org • churchoffice@graceevanston.org March 2012

Not only is the Bible a monu-mental story, it has a monu-mental story hidden within it. Like so many stories, some-times the facts and machina-tions behind the tale itself are just as informative for our lives as Christians.

For instance: Paul’s undisputed letters are the oldest documents in the New Testa-ment. They reveal a wild, wild ride of evangelism and conflict during the first decades of our faith. Paul’s ideas and theology shift from letter to letter. He’s warm and cozy one moment and then breath-ing fire and damnation the next. Paul’s church is an emerging church, a dynamic, flexible group of early believers who were hanging on for dear life, trying to sort out how they should worship, what they should believe and who they should listen to. Emergent groups are characterized by experimen-tation, loose affiliations, little regulation, fluid iden-tity and haphazard growth.

By the time you get to the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles you’re reading about a more mature church, a church that knows what it believes and how to go about its business in the world. This is what the book by Alan Roxburgh & Fred Romanuk, “The Missional Leader” calls the performative stage of the church. It’s a stage marked by competence, clarity of identity, defined boundaries, regulatory structures and consistent growth.

Read on, dear sister or brother, and you will soon meet the reactive church in the Pastoral Epistles (the later letters of the New Testament usually at-

tributed to Paul). These letters sound so much different from Paul’s seven undisputed letters (Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thes-salonians and Philemon) or the Gospels because the church has moved into a different stage. Reactive stages are de-

fined by things like anxiety, established practices, decaying partnerships, increased regulation, nos-talgia, declining growth and a defensive identity. While the early church was not shrinking, the later epistles show a church hyper-concerned with right doctrine, re-establishing societal roles between genders and within the church hierarchy, good or-der and exhibiting more conservative civil conduct.

I learned about these stages and their application from my former preaching professor, David Lose, at Luther Seminary’s Mid-Winter Convocation held in early February. He was using the stages of the scrip-tures to explain the story of our denomination. Un-fortunately, he said, we mainline Lutheran churches have been in the reactive stage for some time now. Fortunately, he said, there is always time to reclaim the radical nature of our faith, returning to new life in an emergent stage.

As I sat and listened to Professor Lose paint a picture of the church-at-large (or the ‘church-at-shrinking’, however you want to call it) I couldn’t help thinking about what a different stage we are in at Grace.

I believe Grace is somewhere between an emergent and performative stage right now. What attracts

Emergent to PerformativePastor Daniel

Continued on next page

Holy Week 2012• Maundy Thursday: April 5th at 7:30pm• Good Friday Tenebrae Services: April 6th at 7:30pm• Easter Sunday Eucharist Celebration: April 8th at 7:30pm

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

Emergent, cont.

people to us is that we showcase many of the things an emer-gent group exhibits: we have a ‘let’s try it’ mentality, we lack rigid structures and bend the rules as needed, we show an openness to people of different backgrounds and Christian sensibilities (Grace has been known for some years as ‘The Land of Misfit Toys’), and we roll with a kind of scrappy and joyful spirit from week to week.

However, with all these new people coming in, some performa-tive aspects are nosing their way into the emergent party. The need for greater structures of accountability and documentation, staying in touch with more people and connecting them to their ministry vocations, physically making room for more bodies in the sanctuary, adjusting to a new facility renovation and all that implies, trying to remember everyone’s names—all these things are signs of a church that is straining against an emergent way of being.

Increased competence, clarity of identity, more defined bound-aries, healthy regulatory structures and consistent growth are within our grasp, should we seek to answer the Spirit’s movement in this regard. One might ask why we should answer thusly, and whether the Holy Spirit has anything to do with it anyway. The emergent model has been working well for Grace the past few years. Besides, we don’t want to move into a reactive stage after claiming some sort of performative stage, right?

The truth is that no organization can withstand living within an emergent stage for too long. Leaders like me and council mem-bers become frustrated trying to do more with the same amount of loosely-defined structure. New people may be welcomed in, but they soon realize there isn’t an easy way to stay in, or to be-come part of the smaller, emergent ‘family.’ More importantly, we human beings always seek homeostasis—stability—and this drive is almost as powerful as a reactive one.

It’s been said that the shift from an emergent to a performative model is one of the most difficult any church can make. I’m glad we’re proactively wrestling with these ideas now and not reacting as many churches are forced to do when various changes or crises surprise them. As most of you know, Connie Wood is chairing our Strategic Planning Initiative, and her committee has already gar-nered important responses. Please email her at ConnieWood44@gmail.com to schedule a one-on-one or join with a smaller group of people for discussion and feedback.

Perhaps we’ll find that these three stages don’t fit what’s going on here at all. Perhaps we’ll find we are already at a kind of performa-tive stage that fits our current size, simply needing to tweak some things to stay ‘emergent in spirit.’

I pray for our spirited body of Christ, and I trust God to lead us in the right direction toward greater mercy, justice and love. If you have any thoughts about my thoughts, or questions about the sessions I attended at Luther in St. Paul, please feel free to contact me at any time: pd@graceevanston.org

The Peace and Joy of Christ, PD

Local Lenten PerformancesLuther Memorial Church, 2500 W. Wilson Ave., Chicago, IL 60625, will present an experiential drama and original film by Joe Jensen called Embers on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, March 30, 31 and April 1, 2012, between 7 and 10 p.m. This presentation combines video, live performance, artistic installations, and music to portray the night Christ died as his disciples try to understand and cope with the death of their prophet and leader, Jesus Christ. Every six to eight minutes, groups of 12 will move through the streets of Jerusalem and observe the performers in five staged areas after viewing a short film.

The film, shown continuously, uses great works of art by Caravag-gio, Michelangelo, Rubens, and other masters to portray the Pas-sion according to John. A donation of $10 would be appreciated. Enjoy coffee, baked goods and discussion following the journey. Timed reservations and more information can be found at www.emberslmc.com, or call Joe Jensen at 773-583-8525. Video is avail-able on request. Street parking is available, or use the Waters School lot on Maplewood, one-half block south of Wilson Avenue.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, 1234 N. Arlington Heights Rd., Arlington Heights, IL 60004, will perform John Rutter’s Requiem on Sunday, March 18, 2012, at 3 p.m. There is no admission fee; a free-will offering will be taken. For more information, call 847-373-7247 or e-mail dmead@oursaviours.org

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, Naperville, will host a perfor-mance of the Jazz Passion on Saturday, March 17, 2012, at 2 p.m. at Wentz Concert Hall, 171 E. Chicago Ave., Naperville, IL 60540. Tickets are $10 at the box office ($12 online). It will be performed by 24 of Chicago’s finest professional jazz instrumentalists and singers, and is one hour in length.

The 2010 world premiere was attended by over 700 people. Author and pastor Peter W. Marty wrote this in response: “Just to confirm what you already know: That Passion performance was truly awesome. As I listened (and watched – and there was a lot to watch), I kept thinking of the many beautiful layers and textures in the piece.”

The libretto was written by Pastor David Abrahamson, Senior Pastor of Saint Luke Ministries (www.stlukechicago.org). Pastor Abrahamson’s text reveals Christ’s final journey in a new and fresh light. While being completely faithful to the scriptures, his inter-pretation is creative and insightful.

For more information call Andy Tecson at 312-855-4321

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

03/01 Brooke Kilyanek

03/02 Bob Shoaf

03/05 Claire Repsold

03/12 Jen Rude

03/26 Bob Lamont

Look for more info on fundraisers, including a Rummage Sale this summer, and more activities as we move into the spring.

If you have any questions please speak to Jarrod Gaither or Pastor Daniel.

Grace Book Group HappeningsOur next book group will meet on March 25th at the home of Ron and Susan Graef. We will dis-cuss Of Mice and Men by Nobel Prize winning author John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it tells the tragic story of two displaced migrant ranch workers during the Great Depression in Califor-nia. The title is taken from Robert Burns’ poem “To a Mouse”, which reads: “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley.” (The best laid

schemes of mice and men / Often go awry.)

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Holly O’Connor – Grace’s Vision Keeper in 2012On Sunday, February 19th Holly O’Connor received the 2012 Grace Vision Keeper Award at the Hotel Orrington amidst hun-dreds of Interfaith Action* Members and several Grace members. Congratulations, Holly, and thank you for bearing witness to this ministry in a spirit of faithfulness and commitment.

Here is the text of Holly’s award page from the evening’s booklet:

“There are always volunteers who operate quietly behind the scenes. Quite often they uphold the foundational energy and sta-bility of our organizations, but too often go unrecognized. Holly is a longtime member of Grace. She consistently steps up to answer various calls within our ministry. For the past several years Holly has designed and produced the Grace newsletter. She consis-tently pieces together a fantastic publication, showcasing helpful articles, general information and photos of ministry events. Holly is easy to work with and she generates artistic content and draft copies with efficiency, style and grace. Holly also recently served on our Capital Appeal leadership team. She took gorgeous, stu-dio-quality photos of the facility and our members for the appeal, as well as playing an important role in leadership meetings and the communications component. This work resulted in a beauti-ful, updated Fellowship Hall and kitchen for the Y.O.U. after-school and summer program, Family Promise (an interfaith network that houses families in transition at churches, synagogues and mosques), visiting youth groups, community events and our own ministries. We thank God for Holly and for her profound gifts to the ministry of Grace Lutheran Church. We are proud to present her as our 2012 Vision Keeper.”

*Interfaith Action is a people of many faiths and traditions who not only volunteer together but also pray together, engage in interfaith dialogue, and advocate. We look for ways to strengthen the natural bond between spiritually committed people. We welcome all who want to learn and serve.

Grace’s High-School Youth are going to New Orleans

Summer 2012!

An Invitation To Elca Reconciling In Christ

Congregations

Chicago Coalition of Welcom-ing Churches invites you to a Lenten gathering and business meeting, from 10 am - noon on Saturday, March 17 at Broadway United Methodist Church, 3338 N. Broadway in Chicago. There is a modest-sized parking lot on the west side of the church, and on-street metered parking also is available.

On that day, we will...

• Experience a grounding in the Lenten season

• Have fellowship, connecting and resource-sharing

• Review the 2010-2011 program year

• Provide and reflect upon a fi-nancial and membership report

• Explore a new team model of leadership for CCWC

• Begin plans for 2012 Pride Events

Please join us!

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

March 4th Preaching ................................................... Pastor Daniel Ruen

Assisting Minister ............................................... Connie Wood

Lector ............................................................... Marilyn Mason

Acolyte ................................................................. Cece Galicia

Ushers ..................................... Sydell Reeves and Ann Stevens

Greeters ....................................Anne Laurence and Paul Bailey

Coffee Hour.............................................. Bob and Gail Lamont

Altar Care .....................................Kara Sokol and Janet Wright

March 11th Preaching ................................................... Pastor Daniel Ruen

Assisting Minister ..............................................Carolyn Utech

Lector .................................................................Mark Mathyer

Acolyte .............................................................. Emily Mathyer

Ushers ..................................... Sydell Reeves and Ann Stevens

Greeters ....................................Nancy Schubert and Bob Shoaf

Coffee Hour.......................... Marilyn Mason and Nell Ferguson

Altar Care .....................................Kara Sokol and Janet Wright

March 18th Preaching ................................................... Pastor Daniel Ruen

Assisting Minister ....................................................Ron Graef

Lector ............................................................. Christine Collins

Acolyte ...................................................................Julia Shoaf

Ushers ................ Larry Yarbrough, Rools Jean and Jon Flaherty

Greeters ................................. Marjorie and Dominique Baptiste

Coffee Hour................................................. Ron and Sue Graef

Altar Care .................................. Nell Ferguson and Lisa Kosnik

March 25th Preaching ................................................... Pastor Daniel Ruen

Assisting Minister ........................................ Rachel Stark Inch

Lector .......................................................................Sue Graef

Acolyte ..............................................................................TBA

Ushers ................ Larry Yarbrough, Rools Jean and Jon Flaherty

Greeters ................................................... Bob and Gail Lamont

Coffee Hour...................................... Martha Fry and Bob Shoaf

Altar Care .................................. Nell Ferguson and Lisa Kosnik

MARCH WORSHIP SCHEDULEWorship Notes: March

Lent has returned! I realize I shouldn’t use an exclamation point when referring to Lent but, What are you going to do? I’m excited for it this year. I love the idea that the journey toward the cross is one to reignite our passion for Christ’s love of the world and for one another. The disciplines of Lent are not for a dreary, soul-drenched people. The disciplines of fasting joyfully, giving generously and praying fervently (Matthew 6) are for a vitally engaged assembly of faith. (FYI: I just fought—and defeated—the urge to end that sen-tence with another exclamation point.) And remember this: Sun-days are still ‘Little Easters’ in Lent. Sundays are celebration days of Jesus’ death and resurrection, as are all Sundays in the church year. Break your fasts, throw off your devotional deliberations, and come party at the Grace sanctuary! (Lost that particular exclamation point battle. Sorry.) We’ll host mid-week Lenten services in the sanctuary every Wednesday at 7:30pm to temper some of this exclamatory fervor. We’ll also dispense with Community Time and some aspects of the last liturgy setting on Sundays to mark the change in seasons. We’ll welcome many of the older Sunday School children back into worship as readers, Assisting Ministers and Ushers as they walk the Lenten Journey with us as young students of the faith.

Holy Week will sneak up on us during the first week of April, so take PD’s Triduum Challenge (more on this later) and attend Maundy Thursday (April 5th), Good Friday, (April 6th) and Easter Sunday (April 7th) at Grace.

See you at the Welcome Table, brothers and sisters. (!) Pastor Daniel

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Will You LENT A Hand? - Forty Dollars For Forty Days

This Lenten Season the Courage Fund has been challenged to raise $1600 by a member who has pledged to do a 50% match if that goal is reached by Easter.

1/3 of the funds raised will be given to Uptown Ministries

1/3 of the funds raised will be given to Lutheran World Relief

1/3 of the funds raised will be used for local needs

Here is how we plan to meet this challenge:

• 40 households giving a dollar a day during Lent would equal $1600

• Individual donations in any amount would add to our total.

Are you willing to help?  If so, please indicate which method works best for you and place this form in the offering plate or speak to any mem-ber of the committee - Paul Bailey, Bob Carroll, Bob Shoaf, or Nancy VanBrundt.

If you know someone or an organization that would benefit from our support, please jot the name down on this form.

Your Name ________________________________________________

Email/phone ______________________________________________

Grace Cookbooks are still for sale and available.  They are a fundraising project for the Courage Fund.

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

Friends,

We are thankful for these moments of compromise. On February 17 Congress passed a 10-month payroll tax cut extension – set to expire at the end of the month – that would prevent a tax hike on 160 million working Americans. Additionally the $143 billion package includes an extension of unemployment insurance, a critically needed measure given that 12.8 million people (accord-ing to the Bureau of Labor Statistics) were still un-employed in January of this year. Finally, the pack-age provides funding to shore up, in the short term, Medicare reimbursements to doctors – the “Doc Fix”.

A Letter from the Hines-Shahs

Those bipartisan legislative efforts, while not perfect, show how leaders of both parties can and should work together toward the common good for American families and the country’s still ailing economy. As a result of these efforts, the typical American family will save an extra $40 out of every paycheck; nearly $1,000 over the course of this year.

The conversation must continue around support for the poor and hungry, as well as creating pathways to opportunities that put people back to work. Friday’s effort is an important first step. As Lutherans, we believe good government is a gift, and we are thankful when our national leaders work together for the nation’s continued recovery.

A Message from the ELCA Washington Office

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

Holy Family SchoolGet to know Holy Family School – located in North Lawndale in Chicago and founded by Holy Family Lutheran Church in Cabrini Green!

Established in 1985, Holy Family is a private faith-based school providing high quality education for kindergarten through eighth grade students at an affordable price. Holy Family’s goal is to edu-cate the “whole” child, addressing academic, social, emotional and spiritual development. We pre-pare our students to compete in college preparatory high schools and for later success in work, fam-ily and community life.

Our programs are open to all who enroll, and are offered on a “first-come, first-served” basis without regard to religion, race, previous academic achievement, or ethnicity.

• Eighty-seven percent of Holy Family students go on to attend selective college prep high schools.

• Of Holy Family graduates, 91% of survey respondents said they were enrolled in college or had graduated from college.

• Holy Family is accredited by the North Central Association of the Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement, a testimony to Holy Family’s high academic standards. Learn more about our K-8 school, preschool, and related youth pro-grams at http://www.holyfamilyministries.org/

Holy Family cordially invites all friends and partners to join us for a student-led tour and chapel service any Wednesday at 11:30. Cha-pel is a lively and participatory affair, a fun and inspiring outing for a group from within your congregation. Our brand new state-of-the-art school is located just south of the Eisenhower expressway near the Independence exit at 3415 W. Arthington, Chicago, IL 60624. To make arrangements for your visit, please contact Ken Erickson - 773-273-6013 or email kerickson@holyfamilyministries.org.

A Message from the Interfaith Sustainability Circle of Evanston

March 20, election day, will have several Evanston-focused refer-enda on the ballot. One of them, the Community Choice Electrici-ty Aggregation (CCA) referendum, addresses our source of energy in the community. It would give our local government the option to bundle together residential and small commercial retail electric accounts and seek proposals for a cheaper, and possibly cleaner, source of power. It is expected that, based upon the experience of early adopting communities, the cost of electrical service (not its distribution costs which will still belong to Com Ed) would de-cline significantly because of this bundling of accounts, perhaps offering savings of up to 20%. This is a complicated issue that will be addressed in an information session to be held on Thursday, March 8, 7 p.m., at Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center, 1655 Foster St., as well as at ward meetings and on Evanston’s web-site: http://www.cityofevanston.org/sustainability/community-choice-aggregation/

But we might rightfully ask, why is this a religious issue? If we start by acknowledging that our lives are totally dependent upon the gifts provided by God’s Creation, such recognition might give us an idea why this decision is of concern to us Christians. Initially, we have to affirm that our use of electricity often comes at a cost to God’s planet and people. Whether it be air pollution, carbon emissions or resource extraction, all negatively impact Creation. Some feel that we, as God’s people, must seek to reduce our use of electricity, but we also have a responsibility to use our citizenship to reduce our impact. Should this referendum pass, Evanston will have the opportunity, and officials have expressed an inclination, to specify “green power” in their Request for Proposals to electrical power generating businesses. Including a significant proportion of green energy in these specifications has the potential of lower-ing the environmental impact of electrical usage in our commu-nity, supporting the creation of additional green energy resources and making it less financially viable for the owners of “dirty” plants to continue to maintain them.

Please be an informed voter and, should the referendum pass, ad-vocate for “green power” to supply the electricity to your home.

Metro-Chicago Synodical Women of the ELCA (SWO)and Chicago Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women (ACCW)

Sisters in the Same Spirit, “Sharing our Voices”

23rd Annual Morning of Dialogue and Prayer

Saturday, March 10, 2012

8:45 a.m. through lunch - $20

Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church

1234 Arlington Heights Road

Arlington Heights, IL 60004

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As is all of the ELCA, the Metropolitan Chicago Synod is committed to fostering unity among all children of God for the sake of the world. We encourage the activity of ecumenical life in our congregations and com-munities, and work to enhance the public commitments of this church in Lutheran, ecumenical, and interfaith discussions. This annual gather-ing of women aims to foster that unity. All are welcome.

For more information and to register contact Kathleen West – 773-380-2657

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

A Letter from Natalie, Pastor Stefan, Markus and Tobias Rickman

Services from Bethel New Life

A partner in mission in our ELCA Metro Chicago Synod

Bethel’s award -winning In-Home Care serves elders in our com-munity by providing assistance in the comfort of their homes: housekeeping and laundry; meal preparation; medication remind-ers; personal care; shopping; planning and managing personal affairs; accompaniment to doctor’s appointments. In a survey con-ducted this fall, 99% of participating seniors reported that they are “very satisfied” with their In-Home Care from Bethel. Bethel’s In-Home Care is free for qualifying seniors. If you or a loved one could benefit from In-Home Care from Bethel, please contact Hazel Price at (773) 473-7870 x 172 or hprice@bethelnewlife.org.

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH HARBINGER

March CalendarEvery Sunday 10:45 Worship followed by the coffee hour

Sunday School During Worship

March 11 Daylight Savings

March 17 Supper Club / St. Paddy’s day

March 18 Family Promise Week

March 20 Election Day

Grace Lutheran Church of Evanston1430 South Blvd. Evanston, IL 60202Voice: 847.475.2211Fax: 847.869.9442

Grace Church CouncilSue Graef, Chair,

Les Inch, Danielle Keifert, Nancy Mathyer, Tim Schannep, Marvin Scroggins, Laura Wally

Find us at GraceEvanston.org