Dear Friends in Christ:
You are welcome here!
St. Paul’s is a lively gathering of God’s people around the Gospel-centered promise of grace, a “Reconciling in Christ” congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in NW Washington, DC.
Join us in these weeks of Epiphany time for our celebration of God’s becoming manifest in the world, our worship and service in the name of Christ.
John R. Spangler, Interim Pastor
Simply Giving: Click Below
Contact Information
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202-966-5489 |
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Address
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4900 Connecticut Ave. N.W.
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A Note from Pastor John
Taste and See
Taste and See that the Lord is good. Several years ago, a local arts organization in partnership with the Gettysburg Seminary held a craft beer festival as a fund raiser. The event drew a sellout gathering of 1500 craft beer enthusiasts, which sold out in a short time. Then the mail came: "how dare you hold a beer event on a sacred campus!" and "how dare the church serve beer!" and "since when did the church have anything to do with fermented drink!" I had fun responding to these questions and condemnations, because Lutherans have their history with beer (Martin Luther's Katie brewed a lot of beer in the Luther home), not to mention the last supper, and then there is that thing about Jesus turning water into wine. These created gifts of God played their part in the biblical faith.
This coming Sunday, we will hear the story of Jesus at the wedding at Cana, one of those stories that made the world notice Jesus' special role and powers. Our Christian faith has its tactile features, spirit and body are connected in many ways. Special characteristics of the creation remind us of how God has blessed us with abilities to make and enjoy fine things, such as wine, beer, bread and other foods. It is a continued signal of the abundance of God's blessing and the expectation that we will not only recognize God's rich blessings, but grasp God's mandate to share the bounty. As stewards of God's best, God only asks that we share proportionately to how we have been blessed. Taste and see that the Lord is good!
John R. Spangler, Interim Pastor
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January 27th
Annual Congregational Meeting & Youth Sunday!
Youth Sunday and the annual congregational meeting will take place on January 27th.
Please mark your calendars and join us at the one worship service at 11 am led by St. Pauls' Youth. Following the service, we will hold our Annual Congregational Meeting.There will be pizza available and the congregation will have the opportunity to elect Council members and vote on St. Paul's budget for 2019.
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A Note About Youth Sunday....
Dear Sunday School Families:
Happy New Year! I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas, and a good start to the New Year.
One of our favorite St. Paul's traditions is our annual Youth Sunday service, which is Sunday, January 27th. This is the day that we give the kids the reins for the service, in the true spirit of the "Priesthood of All Believers." The kids take on almost every aspect of the service (with a little help from Pastor Spangler!). It is truly something to behold, and-who knows?-there may be an undiscovered pastor or deaconess in our midst!
While our Senior High and Confirmation Youth will handle some of the larger tasks such as lay reading, preaching, and communion serving, we still need kids from the Sunday School (pre-k - 6th grades) to serve as Greeters, Ushers, helping with Altar Guild, and Coffee Hour! So please let me know if you'd like to participate!
Please let me know if you have any questions-we are looking forward to celebrating this special day with you!
Lisa Wackler
Director of Congregational Life
(P.S.--There is only one service on the 27th, because it is also the day of our annual Congregational Meeting, which we hope you'll attend!)
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Please Welcome Pastor John Spangler, St. Paul's new Interim Pastor!
The Rev. John R. Spangler, Jr. currently serves as an Interim Pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Earlier chapters of his rostered service included Senior VP for Administration for the United Lutheran Seminary in 2017 and from 2000 to 2016 as Executive Assistant to the President for Communication and Planning for the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg. In that role, he oversaw all areas of communication and campus development, planning and operations as well as the Seminary's affiliated Washington, D.C.-based Luther Institute. From 2006 to 2013, he also served as President of the Seminary Ridge Historic Preservation Foundation, a seminary subsidiary that created the award-winning Seminary Ridge Museum on the seminary campus.
Ordained by the Lutheran Church in America in 1983, he served as pastor to Christ Lutheran Church, West Boylston, MA in the 1980's and Christ the King Lutheran Church, Nashua, NH in the 1990's. He also served the New England Synod staff and two bishops as chief communications officer for 15 years. His educational history includes Carthage College, (B.A.) Kenosha Wisconsin and Yale University Divinity School (M.Div.), New Haven, CT.
Pastor Spangler serves as a board member of the Seminary Ridge Historic Preservation Foundation. In the past, he has served terms on the Advisory Board of the Lutheran Magazine, the Board of Governors for the Religion Communicators Council (a national interfaith organization for religious communicators), and on the board of the Lutheran Home Care and Hospice program of Spiritrust Lutheran. He also served on the Board of Main Street Gettysburg. Pastor Spangler lives in Gettysburg with his wife, the Rev. Dr. Maria E. Erling, Professor of Modern Church History at the United Lutheran Seminary.
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Request from Transition Committee
The transition committee has met twice and will be sharing their plans with the congregation in the coming weeks. In the meantime, they have asked that the congregation pray for our future Pastor wherever he or she may be right now.
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Our Transition Committee members are eager to hear from everyone in the Congregation about your thoughts and ideas about the ministries of St. Paul's and what we should be looking for in a new pastor. Contact information for the committee members is below:
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PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE!
"Empty Soup Bowl Event"
February 10 and February 24
The Empty Soup Bowl event to benefit St. Paul's Food Pantry has been re-rescheduled to take place on February 10, 2019 (painting) and February 24, 2019 (luncheon) in the lower auditorium following the 11:00 am worship. Following the painting, completed bowls will be taken to All-Fired-Up to complete the sealing process. The bowls will be returned to church and used at the luncheon on the 24th. Participation donation will be as follows: Adults - $20.00; Children - $10.00; members joining the group for the luncheon but not participating in the painting, suggested donation - $10.00. A new sign-up sheet is located in the portico. For those of you who had previously signed up would you please do so again, as I need to have a correct count for All-Fired-Up. I thank you for your patient understanding. If you are unable to sign up prior to the event, please feel free to come and participate. "All Fired Up" will have extra bowls available.
If you have questions please contact
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Calling all youth of St. Paul's! Looking for a service project? Think about joining the Empty Bowl Soup Project's luncheon on February 24th to help serve the soup and beverages. The project will benefit St. Paul's Food Pantry in feeding the hungry. The sign-up sheet is located in the portico. Be a part of this event and at the same time "serve the Lord with gladness." Contact Deaconess Cassie with questions at cbrown@stpaulslutherandc.com or the church office.
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Empty Soup Bowl Project
Luncheon - Soups Needed
We are in need of soups to be served at the "Souper Bowl Sunday" luncheon on February 24th If you are unable to participate and would like to contribute in some way a kettle of soup would be appreciated. The sign-up sheet also has places to contribute bread and a basic green salad. Contact Deaconess Cassie with questions.
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February 17, 2019
The Prayer Shawl Ministry will gather on February 17th at 10:00 am in the dining room adjacent to the lower auditorium. This will be the first meeting since the holidays and it will be a wonderful opportunity to catch up and begin a new year of service. If anyone is interested in joining the group please take a few minutes to sit in and see the various areas that the ministry serves. Contact Deaconess Cassie with questions.
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News from Lutheran World Relief
The mission quilts made by Carol Wake and blessed last year at Christ the King Sunday went to Armenia! LWR's partner there is International Orthodox Christian Charities and they distributed the blankets to Syrian refugees as well as vulnerable Armenians struggling in the grip of chronic poverty. Thanks to everyone for your generous donations of fabric and thread for the project. Please know that Carol is still quilting and welcomes any extra fabric and thread for her next batch of quilts.
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Homeless Shelter
Volunteers Needed
We are looking to the future with excitement for continuing our ministry caring for the homeless in D.C. We hope to work with our partners from Friendship Place, a leading provider of housing services for the homeless, to implement a new peer model for St. Paul's Shelter. The peer model focuses on personal empowerment to facilitate connecting people to permanent housing effectively and efficiently, and is a best practice model in transitional housing. We are looking for members of the congregation to serve on an advisory board to help lead this important ministry. No experience is needed, just a strong desire to ensure our shelter is a welcoming and supportive transitional space for our residents. If you are interested, please contact Beth Van Hanswyk or Kate Belinski .
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Welcome to our new Evangelism Chairs,
Blake and Holly!
Read a note from them HERE!
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Parents of College Students:
Please make sure that the church office has your son's or daughter's college address so we can reach out to them periodically.
If you have any questions, please contact Lisa Wackler.
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Prime Time
Click Here for more information about the Prime Time Senior Center.
Our Prime Time Members participating in a meditative activity using Tibetan Singing Bowls.
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TELLERS NEEDED!
We are looking for people interested in volunteering for this very important church function. It consists of a two member team that works on Sundays after church or Monday for about 1 or 2 hours collecting, counting and recording the offering. The teams are assigned a month at a time, usually 3 or 4 months a year (depending on how many teams we have). Sundays can be switched with other teams. Training and written instructions are provided. Please contact Paula Stewart 410-956-7117 or the church office to volunteer.
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FROM Mar-Lu-Ridge
Are you or someone you know looking for an enriching, life-giving summer job experience? Our 2019 summer staff application is now live! Spend the summer with us building your leadership skills, connecting with children and youth, and developing your faith. Full-time and part-time positions available. Click HERE for more info.
Are you ready for summer camp 2019?! Our brochure is now available online. Take a look at the programs offered for 2019, including a brand-new "Extended Stay" program for senior high youth! Online registration for all programs begins January 1st. Click HERE for more info.
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Worship Schedule
8:30 am--Early Service
9:45--10:45 am--Sunday School
11:00 am--Late Service
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And don't forget! The church nursery is available every Sunday 10:30 am--12:30 pm (or until the last child gets picked up). Let us give you a break when you need it!
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Don't Miss It....RÓMEZ3arts To Perform at St. Paul's on Friday, February 8th at 8 pm!
RÓMEZ3arts (www.romez3arts.com) presents: Sweethearts and Scoundrels
(A look at many sides of love before Valentines Day)
When: Friday Feb 8, 2019 at 8pm.
Location:
St. Paul's Lutheran Church
4900 Connecticut Ave. N.W. Washington, DC 20008.
Ticket Price: Tickets are $25.00 each.
Please note: 20% of ticket sales will be donated to St. Paul's Prime Time Center .
RÓMEZ3arts is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions for the charitable purposes of ROMEZ3arts must be made payable to "Fractured Atlas" only and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
To donate go to: https://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/fiscal/profile?id=18116
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DID YOU KNOW ....?
DID YOU KNOW is a weekly feature in observance of St. Paul's 175th Anniversary.
DID YOU KNOW that there were plans beginning in 1902 to build a 23.5 mile scenic parkway around Washington, DC which would have transversed what is now the southeast lawn of St. Paul's Lutheran Church?
During the Civil War, 68 forts and 93 batteries formed a defensive ring around Washington. One of these batteries, Battery Roselle, occupied an important position on the right of Fort Reno and was located at what would become the intersection of Connecticut Avenue and Fessenden Street, just north of St. Paul's Lutheran Church.
In 1902, it was proposed to connect the principal remaining forts into a scenic, wooded parkway, Fort Drive. It would have been similar in concept to the George Washington Memorial Parkway. Congress approved funding in 1930 and by 1937 the National Capital Park and Planning Commission had acquired all but one of the 23.5 miles planned for the parkway. Before the plan was abandoned for various reasons in 1965, some segments of Fort Drive were built including the street in front of Alice Deal Middle School in the Fort Reno area.
It is interesting to consider what would have been the impact on St. Paul's if the construction of Fort Drive had proceeded. One of the parkway segments would have gone from 36th Street, across the front lawn of the Forest Hills of DC (formerly the Methodist Home), across Connecticut Avenue, through Muhlenberg Park, across the southeast lawn of St. Paul's, across Murch School playground and up Davenport Street.
If you would like to know more about Fort Drive and to discuss what-ifs as they pertain to St. Paul's, you will want to talk with Frank Buchholz who suggested, researched and contributed this week's Did You Know? featured story.
Sources:
HistoryQuest DC
PropertyQuest DC
"Fort Drive: Reestablishing Its Significance within Washington, D.C.'s Park System" by Kathryn Kelly Finnigan
"Mr. Lincoln's Forts" by Benjamin Franklin Cooling III and Walton H. Owen II
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StLuthRef Youth Group News
Our next StLuthRef meeting is our Lock-In at Lutheran Church of the Reformation on Capitol Hill. Saturday, January 19th--Sunday, January 20th. This event is open to all 7th--12th Graders. Come join in on the fun!
Contact Lisa Wackler for more info.
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Happy 175th Anniversary, St. Paul's!
175th Anniversary of St. Paul's!
Sunday, April 15th, 2018, marked the actual 175th Anniversary of St. Paul's English Lutheran Church. While St. Paul's first service was actually on January 8, 1843, the complete organization of the church was not until April 15th 1843 when the first church council was elected. We had a wonderful celebration to commemorate the special day!
The day began with a festival worship service at which Bishop Graham brought greetings and presided. A brass quartet joined us and all of the choirs (the Bell Choir, Youth Choir and Adult Choir) contributed lovely music to mark the day. The congregation read Psalm 46 in unison, just as was done at St. Paul's Semi-Centennial in 1893.
Following worship, St. Paul's hosted a celebratory luncheon and program. Thomas L. Bowen of DC Mayor's Office of Religious Affairs presented a congratulatory letter from Mayor Muriel Bowser to Pastor Omholt and then led us in Grace.
There was a delicious buffet luncheon and while people were eating there was a video of the construction of the present day church accompanied by music of David Hearn playing the first organ. 
During dessert, we had a good old fashioned hymn sing! 
Following the meal we heard comments from 2 of our Trustees (June Ericsson and David Cox) and then there was a surprise visit from Pastor J.G. Butler who served at ST. Paul's from 1849-1873! He was portrayed by Dwayne Starlin, a professional impersonator and delivered parts of Rev. Butler's famous sermon from the day following President Lincoln's Assassination and answered questions from the audience.
There was also a display highlighting St. Paul's through its 175 years in the baptistry and a new brief history of St. Paul's was available. This display will be evolving throughout the year. If anyone would like to help out with the display, please contact Joy Belew in the church office.
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Our Mission Team in Houston, Texas, last November!
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Maryland Parsonage Going on the Market - Open Houses this Weekend!
Please click here to see the listing for 5602 Kirkwood Drive...
One note, to see floor plan, click on floor plan and you will see first floor. To view the other floors, click on the light box above with the address in it.