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St. Luke Lutheran Church Inside this issue From Pastor Sarah ........................ 3 Meet Our New Members .............. 4 Altar Guild Volunteers Needed ..... 4 Ash Wednesday ............................ 4 Celebraons.................................. 5 Prayer List ..................................... 6 Thank Yous.................................... 6 KidsPage...................................... 7 Schedules to Serve ........................ 8 Calendar........................................ 9 New London Meal Center Schedule to Serve ....... Back Page February 2020 Volume 16, Issue 2 What Does God Want from Me? From Pastor Danny The Roman calendar only had ten months, because the Romans did not delineate winter. In the 700s BCE, the second king of Rome, Numa Pompilius, changed that, adding January and February to the end of the calendar to demarcate the winter months. The two new months originally were 28 days long. At that me, March 1 became New Years Day, but later, in 153 BCE, the beginning of the year was moved to January 1. History does not record how three days were added to January while February remained at 28 days. Julius Caesar revised the lengths of the months in his calendar reform. He added an extra day between February 23 and 24 every four years, making the month last for 29 days. We (Continued on page 2) We are a Spirit driven Christian community of engaged disciples, called to serve, love and forgive.We are a Reconciling in Christ Congregation.

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Page 1: The Scroll · many differences among us. We enjoy unique foods, celebrate a variety of holidays, wear various types of clothing, and speak a multitude of languages. Researching and

The Scroll

St. Luke Lutheran Church

Inside this issue

From Pastor Sarah ........................ 3

Meet Our New Members .............. 4

Altar Guild Volunteers Needed ..... 4

Ash Wednesday ............................ 4

Celebrations .................................. 5

Prayer List ..................................... 6

Thank Yous .................................... 6

Kids’ Page ...................................... 7

Schedules to Serve ........................ 8

Calendar........................................ 9

New London Meal Center

Schedule to Serve ....... Back Page

February 2020 Volume 16, Issue 2

What Does God Want from Me? From Pastor Danny

The Roman calendar only had ten months, because the

Romans did not delineate winter. In the 700s BCE, the

second king of Rome, Numa Pompilius, changed that,

adding January and February to the end of the calendar to

demarcate the winter months. The two new months

originally were 28 days long. At that time, March 1 became

New Year’s Day, but later, in 153 BCE, the beginning of the

year was moved to January 1. History does not record how three days were

added to January while February remained at 28 days. Julius Caesar revised the

lengths of the months in his calendar reform. He added an extra day between

February 23 and 24 every four years, making the month last for 29 days. We

(Continued on page 2)

“We are a Spirit driven Christian community

of engaged disciples, called to serve,

love and forgive.”

We are a

Reconciling in Christ

Congregation.

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2

What Does God Want from Me? (Cont.)

continue this practice by adding a day at the end of February

every four years. This year, 2020, is one of those ‘leap’ years.

Before we adopted the Latin name, februarius, from

februa, the name meaning to purify, and the day of purification,

the Romans celebrated the Feast of Purification called

Lupercalia, which was held between 13 and 15 February. This

Feast is when people were ritually purified to avert evil spirits

and purify the city. It was also a purification to heal and

enhance fertility. This was done in anticipation of the New Year

on March 1. Valentine’s Day, on February 14, in the middle of

the feast of Lupercalia, is an extension of this Roman Festival.

Lupercalia was observed well into the Christian era. It is

said that Pope Gelasius I (Pope from 1 Mar 492 to his death on

19 Nov 496 CE), introduced the Feast of Purification of the

Virgin Mary, called Candlemas in 494 CE, to counteract the

excesses of the pagan celebrations of Lupercalia. Candlemas is

a celebration of the presentation of Jesus at the Temple when

Mary was purified following His birth (Lk 2:22-29) in accordance

to the Law (Lev 12:1-8). Candlemas is not on February 14, but

on February 2, 40 days after Christmas.

Pope Gelasius I named February 14 St. Valentine’s Day in

honor of St. Valentine who defied the emperor’s orders and

secretly married couples to spare husbands from war. Since this

time, the feast day is associated with love. Still the Roman

influence on this holiday of love is viewed through the Roman

god Cupid, the son of the goddess of love, Venus, and the god

of war, Mars. Cupid signifies desire, erotic love, attraction, and

affection.

Why look at these historical facts about the month of

February? I listed the history of this month for us to take a look

at who we are. In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul

reminds us that we have been transformed by the renewing of

our minds.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be

transformed by the renewing of our mind, so

that you may discern what is the will of God –

what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 12:2

We no longer depend on who we were but who we are.

We have been baptized, claimed, and named children of God.

Yet sometimes we allow old practices and desires to creep into

our lives even though we have good intentions. This is why we

discern what the will of God is, what is good, acceptable, and

perfect. John in his 1st letter says the worldly way of living are

“the desires of the flesh or the eyes and pride of life” (1 John

2:16). By instinct, all of us chase those things in pursuit of

happiness and meaning.

Paul tells us to abandon the chase for pleasure,

possessions, and status, to stop trying to live like everyone else.

Changing things that were wrong doesn’t work if we just

substitute something new to replace it but still keep portions of

the old ways. Instead, Paul urges us to be transformed from the

inside out. We must be changed in how we think, to have our

minds renewed, so that we can begin to understand God’s will

for our lives.

God continues to provide us with pleasure, possessions,

and status in various forms, but he urges us to learn how to

look at life with a new question: “What does God want for me?

What is truly a good, acceptable, and perfect use of my life for

God’s purposes and not just my own?”

Pastor Danny

(Continued from page 1)

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Diversity is a reason to celebrate. God created all people in God’s image. The more we learn about all of God’s people, the more we learn about God. Especially in a world where there is so much violence and misunderstanding between nations, we need to make an effort to learn about,

understand, and love one another. In learning about one another, we find that there are

many differences among us. We enjoy unique foods, celebrate a variety of holidays, wear various types of clothing, and speak a multitude of languages. Researching and experiencing one another’s cuisine, celebrations, and culture is fascinating and fun. You’ll never run out of new foods to try, places to visit or words to learn.

Also, in learning about one another, we find that we have more in common than we think. We all have foods we love, family traditions, and rituals to accompany life passages. Every child around the world plays; only the game changes.

During the first three weeks of February, we will celebrate diversity during the Learning Hour. We will read stories from scripture that highlight God’s love for all people: Ruth the Moabite woman, the Ethiopian Eunuch, and God’s vision for the world in Revelation. Scripture teaches us that God’s love for humanity is broader than any one culture and more inclusive than any one people. We will also read children’s stories from around the world. We can increase our

understanding and empathy for those around us when we read stories from new perspectives.

A major component of our unit will be connecting our Sunday School students with students from Chikumbuso. On February 2, Jeanne Steinnagel will share how life for kids in Zambia is different than life for kids here, and yet there are still many similarities. From her last trip to Zambia, Jeanne has videos of Chikumbuso kids singing songs. Our students will learn one of their songs, record themselves singing it and send it to the kids there. Our Learning Hour offering will be to collect school supplies to support the Chikumbuso school, and we plan to make “Buso Bead” necklaces, with help from Trudy Flanery, as a fundraiser to increase the impact of our support and involve the congregation.

Another exciting piece of this learning unit, is that the we will be working on an art project that celebrates diversity. Robin Nelson, one of our amazing artists at St. Luke, is our consultant and guide for this project. Each person will work on his or her own part and together the pieces will become something beautiful. We hope to reveal and display this art piece during the Easter season. We still need a woodworker for a little assistance to complete our project but with many skilled hands at St. Luke that should be easy to find!

We are called to love our neighbors, and our neighbors are near and far. As we celebrate diversity, we are getting to know our global neighbors. Come learn with us this February!

Celebrating Diversity From Pastor Sarah

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Meet Our New Members

Altar Guild is currently comprised of seven members who prepare the Lord’s Supper over 100 times each year for Sundays and special services. That is a lot of services for only seven people to cover. We could use some help! Training is available, though it’s not a difficult job. There are tools to make filling those little cups easier! You do not need to provide bread, as we have a sign-up sheet for that. Give it a try! If you enjoy it, make a commitment to join Altar Guild. Contact Cathy Hanson, 860-447-9531, or the Church Office if you are interested.

Altar Guild By Cathy Hanson

Lauren, Michael, and Owen Bynon “We moved here from Chicago and New York for work. We are very excited to find a

friendly community here for our son to grow up in.”

Lauren is a teacher in the Manchester Public School system, and Michael is the Volleyball

Coach for the Coast Guard. The Bynons live in Gales Ferry. In June, Lauren and Michael will be

celebrating 4 years of marriage and Owen will be a year old.

The Bynons will be received as new members and Owen will be baptized on March 1.

Baked Potato Supper

at 6:30 PM

Services at

Noon and 7:30 PM

February 26, 2019

Rudy Croteau Rudy has been an Associate Member of St. Luke since 2011 and will affirm his baptismal

covenant on January 26, making him a full member of St. Luke with voting privileges. Rudy has

been heavily involved in the ministries of St. Luke, most notably heading up the Community

Garden for a number of years. Rudy lives in Niantic with his wife, Carol. They will be

celebrating their 33rd anniversary in September. Rudy Croteau

Lauren, Michael, and Owen

Bynon

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Celebrations Celebrations

DEADLINE

The deadline for the March Scroll is Tuesday,

February 18. Articles may be submitted as hard-

copy or via e-mail to [email protected]

Scroll Deadline

2/1 Jennifer Nicki

2/2 Doug Meyer

2/4 Wally Stone (call the church

office for new address)

2/8

Matthias Meyer

2/9 Amy Sindel

2/10 Caitlyn Willingham

2/11 Carter Smith

2/16 Amanda Cox

2/17

Chad Frost 2/26

Tom Reynolds

2/27 Curt Frost

2/28 Kim Haugland

2/??

Jack Stevens

2/8

Jessica Dame

2/9

Owen Lessing

2/10

Dina Ballestrini

2/12

Leigh Sammons

2/13

Charlotte Johnson

2/16

Amanda Cox

2/19

Rose Marie Brasel

2/14

Randy & Karen Tiede

Mike & Karen Wuesthoff

Did we miss your

celebration? Please

call the church office,

860-464-7897, or e-

mail Kathleen@

stlukegf.org, so we

can be sure to honor

your special day!

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Prayer List

Pray for healing: Neb Smith

Sharon Kapner

Erin

Marco

Jorge Verges & family

Nancy Dooley

Alex Hetzel

Sandy Wimmermark

Pat

Linda and her son, Billy

Jeanne Sullivan

Martin

Jim

Charlotte

Ron Podijil

Patty Rennegarbe

Ken Plante

Eric Eitel

Jennifer & Pete Stred

Gloria Breitenbach

Joe Mazur

Christopher Bystrak

Lynn Minichino

Jean Pierce

Melanie Savage

Stephanie Lucas

Sara

Pray for deployed military: Patrick Wimmermark

Abigail Simmons

Pray for homebound: Marnie Reubelt

Ruth Going

Dale Arnold

Pray for those who are

grieving: for Corri Bradley

for Patricia Elliott

for Sandy Brown

Maureen Tembo and her

daughter, Beverly

Pray for those with other

concerns: Ryan, Nicole, & Caleb

thanksgiving for the birth of

Koa to Stephanie and

Mitchell Takenaka

Saditha

Teddy and Aaron

Chikumbuso Project

If you would like to add a prayer request to the Weekly,

please complete the Prayer Request form on the reverse

side of the yellow Connections form. Leave the form in the

pew and the ushers will collect them and turn them in to

the church office. You can also add a prayer request by

calling the office at 860-464-7897.

Thank yous January 3, 2020

Dear Friends,

On behalf of the Town of Groton and this department, we would like to thank you for your generous donation that made our 2019 Christmas Distribution program a success. This Holiday Season we provided food baskets and turkeys to 415 families, feeding over 1000 people and gifts were given to over 450 children!!!!

We are able to make a difference for many Groton families in need each year because of the generous donations we receive from our community. We appreciate your generous support of our community during the Holidays and wish you a Happy and prosperous New Year.

Marge Fondulas Director Groton Human Services January 25, 2020

Dear [St. Luke Lutheran Church]:

Thank you on behalf of Saint David’s Annual Christmas Day Feast Committee for your use of the table for our community event. You help blessed many on Christmas. You help was met with many happy children! I hope you can imagine the joy and smiles on each of their faces that your support made a reality for them.

We are grateful for your support. The assistance from generous people like you is the reason we can continue offering this event. Our success is majorly dependent on the provision that people like you provide us. It is because of you that we can deliver our best to the community.

Thank you once again for making our mission a success and for making a difference in many lives on Christmas Day. We look forward to your support in the future.

Sincerely, The Reverend Mark Santucci Interim Rector St. David’s Episcopal Church

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Kids’ Page

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ST. LUK

E—SC

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9

Church Calendar of Events February Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

2

*Healing Ministry*

+Scout Sunday+

2:45 PM

NL Meal Ctr

6:00 PM

Rockin’ Ringers

3

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

7:00 PM

Pastor’s Bible Study

4

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

2:00 PM

Congregant

Interviews with

Bishop Hazelwood

6:30 PM

Worship Team

5

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

Bells of Fire

10:30 AM

Bible Study

5:45 PM

Dinner Church

6

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

7

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

8

9

12:30 PM

Lifelong Learning

10

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

7:00 PM

Pastor’s Bible Study

11

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

5:30 PM

Executive Planning

6:30 PM

Fellowship Team

12

8:00 AM

LICEAF

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

Bells of Fire

10:30 AM

Bible Study

5:45 PM

Dinner Church

13

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

14

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

15

16

6:00 PM

Rockin’ Ringers

17

*Presidents Day*

Church Office Closed

7:00 PM

Pastor’s Bible Study

18

SCROLL

DEADLINE

19

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

Bells of Fire

10:30 AM

Bible Study

5:45 PM

Dinner Church

7:00 PM

Congregational

Council

20

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

21

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

22

23

12:30 PM

Mardi Gras Event

24

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

7:00 PM

Pastor’s Bible Study

25

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

26

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

10:30 AM

Bible Study

12:00

Ash Wed. Service

6:30 PM

Potato Suppoer

7:30 PM

Ash Wed. Service

27

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

28

9:00 AM

Grins & Giggles

29

9:30 AM

Confirmation

Calumet Adult Winter Weekend

Calumet...

Music Rehearsals :

Sun., 12:00 PM — Concert Handbells

Mon., 5:00 PM — Joyful Noise

Tues., 7:00 PM — Senior Choir

Wed., 12:00 PM — Belles & Beaux

4:30 PM — Ring Masters

7:00 PM — JuBELLation

Thurs., 7:00 PM — Celebrate Team

Sunday Schedule (unless

otherwise indicated)

Worship:

8:15 & 11 AM

Learning Hour:

9:30 AM

Celebrate services:

11 AM, 2nd, 3rd, & 5th Sundays.

Church Office Hours:

Monday—Wednesday: 9 AM—2 PM

Thursday — 11 AM—2 PM

Friday—CLOSED

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St. Luke Lutheran Church 1830 Route 12

Gales Ferry, CT 06335

Phone: 860-464-7897

Fax: 860-464-7742

Website: stlukegf.org

A member of the Evangelical Lutheran

Church in America

A Spirit Driven Christian

Community of Engaged

Disciples, Called to Serve,

Love and Forgive.

New London Meal Center Schedule to Serve

February 2

Cooks:

Heller

LaForge

Sindel

Servers:

Etris

Hansen

Hanson

Koerting

Perkins

March 1

Cooks:

Croteau

Lozier

LaForge

Servers:

Chambers

Etris

Koerting

Perkins

Watson

Wimmermark

Address Changes

Please notify the

Church Office of any

address, phone, or

email address changes.

Addresses for College

students are also

encouraged! 860-464-

7897

St. Luke Lutheran Church

1830 Route 12

Gales Ferry, CT 06335

Ph. 860-464-7897

Fax: 860-464-7742

Emergency #: 860-381-0884

www.stlukegf.org

Office Hours:

Monday—Thursday

9 AM —2 PM

Friday

CLOSED

LEADERSHIP TEAM

Pastor Danny R. Hammons

[email protected]

Lead Pastor

Pastor Sarah Barnes

[email protected]

Associate Pastor

Gina Marie Williams

[email protected]

Director of Music

Suzanne Wingrove

[email protected]

Bookkeeper

Kathleen Bartkowski

[email protected]

Parish Administrator

Organist/Celebrate Accompanist

Bill Brentnall

Sexton

Officers of the Congregation

Marty Wood

[email protected]

President

Dyann Baker

[email protected]

Vice-President

Jen Gilletti

[email protected]

Treasurer