First English Lutheran Church | Austin, Texas
God Loves. We Love. Everyone!
While cleaning the kitchen, we came across this maverick silverware. If it’s yours, please contact CDC director Jenn at director@felcdc.org and drop by the kitchen to claim it before it gets branded in September and placed back in the herd or else sent to auction.
We are excited to return to Austin Pride this year with our RIC congregations on Saturday, August 12 at the Fiesta Gardens, 2101 Jesse E. Segovia St, Austin. The Festival begins at 11AM. Please sign up below for an hour to staff the festival booth or to help set up or tear down. The festival runs from 11 am to 6 pm, and the parade is at 8 pm.
2023 Pride SignUp Genius hosted by Peace Lutheran Church
If you can’t attend in person but would like to offer financial contributions or donate specific needed items, you can sign up there, and we will be in touch about how you can help. Thanks!
If you would like to purchase the Technicolor Ministries Pride shirt please click here.
Looking forward to seeing you there! Please contact Pr. Carolyn Albert-Donovan, of Peace Lutheran, through the SignUp Genius link (above) with questions.
Begin the new school year with prayer and blessing and join in supporting our students and educators. Students of all ages, teachers, administrators, and all support staff are invited during worship on Sunday, August 13 (onsite and online) to receive a blessing for a year of brave and safe learning.
In this post, we’ll be in regular connection with J. Mills, FELC transitional pastor.
27 June 2023
While I am uncertain of the future of my “musings” column, I thought I would broaden the conversation around a question received this week from one of our Siblings regarding the word “Evangelical” and its connection to both an expression of Lutheranism in the world and a movement of conservative Christianity sweeping the nationalist stage (addt’l context: https://statesman-tx.newsmemory.com/?publink=340f3abd2_134ac68). Here was my response to the conflicted-question: I am reminded of one of the Dwelling in the Word passages we use in Holy Fork in the Road Ministry, John 2:13-22. Verse 17 reads:
(First Nations) 17The ones who walked the road with him listened and remembered the ancient prophecy, “My desire to honor your sacred lodge burns like a fire in my belly.”
(NIV) 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
(NRSV-A) 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, ‘Zeal for your house will consume me.’
(New Life) 17 Then His followers remembered that it was written in the Holy Writings, “I am jealous for the honor of Your house.”
I share these multiple translations (versions) because I think that’s what we’re experiencing here around the idea of Evangelical (of or according to the teaching of the gospels of the second testament). A word is always defined by its use; the definition itself has no power in connection to the word but instead to the context of the usage. Context provides the definition, and we have a separation of contexts (etymologies) over time regarding the opportunity to experience zeal for the word ‘evangelical’, or ‘evangelical’ as a synonym for the negative aspects of the experience of zeal as a zealot or being zealous. Many of us would love to think that this current rise of Evangelical as a synonym for ‘zealot’ as new, and yet this manifestation of a ‘Christianity’ in this nation, specifically, is not new and you may be interested to know that the conflicted use of ‘evangelical’, as used today, has not yet crested its height of vogue in the 1840s (I wonder what could possibly have sparked that rise…?).
Now: scripture. In the four translations I’ve offered we have two starkly different understandings. Three translations seem to agree that zeal is a positive quality, a yearning that offers us an invitation to just be in God’s reality of moving heaven into earth with our entirety; every cell and sinew moving together to support and show God to our siblings. Then there’s this fourth translation that invites this sinful manifestation of jealousy into the mix, as though a) Jesus were at odds with God about how one might be honored OR b) experiencing the honoring of the world in PLACE of God in a space that is meant to be sacred (this latter opportunity makes the most sense in the entirety of our experience, but the former can’t be discounted just because we don’t like it; language is funny that way).
So where is it written that our historical friends, the disciples, finally remembered? Psalms, of course: (sticking with New Life because that’s where we get this idea of jealousy) ” 9 For the strong desire for Your house has burned me up. And the bad things said about You have fallen on me.” Now… no ‘jealousy’ here. How did we end up with jealousy in the Second Testament rehash of this psalmody where v.9 clearly does not invite us into a Hebrew understanding of jealousy at all? I blame Greek (as we all should) for having used the word ζῆλος (zelos) which, in English, can be translated as zeal (huh, weird that) or jealousy. We would not use these words interchangeably like this today, but was there a time? Nope, no there was not a time when English interchanged these words. Then it must be that the Greek invites us into the description of an emotion of consumption: either you are consumed in favor of something and desire a whole-self-support of that thing (zeal) or you are fully consumed against something and view it as an utter rival to your being (jealousy).
My question, in light of all of this: does it matter what Evangelical means or is the context more important? If for us the context is “of or pointing to the gospel” how are we living that, and do we describe that as evangelical in the face of continued coopting of a term that Luther (re)claimed in the 1500’s? I refer what we are called to be, in accordance with the gospel: loving. If that’s how people experience me then that’s how I hope they experience God and evangelical is just another word that might point to a thing that people do… by and large “evangelical” doesn’t point to love as the greater populace of the world understands it and, maybe? Never has.
I invite continued discourse around this and everything happening around here (and you 😉 ). I look forward to returning from a northern trip to temperatures my body is better suited for in time for our Pride 2.0 celebration with our Sibling RIC churches; sign up and show up on both the 12th and 13th of August (also blessing the back-to-school crews)! While I am gone (from 31Jul to 11Aug), please reach out to Pastor Sharolyn Browning for your pastoral care needs: (512) 289-2732. Peace+ be with you.
You can connect with Pastor J at: pastor@felcaustin.org | 512-478-1933 | 443-846-9203
Please join with the Council in welcoming Terry Porter and Paul Barlow, both of whom will be filling unexpired terms until our Annual Meeting in January 2024. Terry is a familiar face, having grown up at 1st English. Both Terry and his wife Merrily have served on the council in the past, and Merrily is currently serving as Vice President of the newly constituted CDC Board. Paul and his wife Claudia transferred membership from Palm Valley in the Fall of 2022. Paul served on the council at Palm Valley as well as volunteering at Vacation Bible School and on the Stewardship Committee. Claudia is currently serving on the Admin Team overseeing the hiring of our office administrator. Welcome to both Terry and Paul. We are looking forward to working with you in the coming months as 1st English continues on this exciting journey.
Miss the Council minutes posted to the bulletin board? Did you know that was a thing in ages past? Rather than bring that back, Council is offering you an opportunity to consume the minutes from the comfort of your own email. If you’d like a copy of the approved minutes from the month prior, contact the Office to be placed on a mailing list to have the minutes of every meeting shared with you as soon as they’re approved. We intend to share the June Minutes from the June Council Meeting on July 25th. Don’t delay letting office@felcaustin.org know that you would like a copy.
Council continues to assess available space near the sanctuary for our Music Ministry. Once a decision is finalized the location will be announced. The location remains under discussion due to HVA/C issues. Council will be meeting Thursday evening, 13Jul, to discuss this topic in earnest for a solid solution and plan.
Demo of existing ceiling in the Fellowship Hall is completed. The new grid is in place, and lighting work is complete.
Demo and grid work is continuing in the Education Wing. The CDC Directors Office is complete and ready for Jenn to move in.
Work is complete on the lighting in the hallway of the Education Wing. Plumbing work began in the bathrooms serving the CDC in the Education Wing. Updates include a new water heater, doors on the stalls so that the facilities can be truly inclusive and offer gender-neutral privacy opportunities.
While the Education Wing (aka Parish House) is vacant and while contractors are in the building retrofitting the Parish House with HVA/C ductwork seems advisable. The Council has authorized the spending of roughly $1,000 – $1300 to provide HVA/C to the Parish House offices. This money is coming from the 2022 capital campaign. That work is to be completed on Thursday, 13Jul.
Joining together at Micah 6 Ben Rode, Pastor J, Nancy Neuse, and Andy Maclaren have been discussing prospects for the Council volunteering at Micah 6 in the coming months, the better to engage with the realities of the need that the food pantry serves, and to help improve our understanding of the requirements of this vital ministry. The date would be on a Thursday afternoon/evening, 4 – 8 pm or Saturday morning 8 am – noon, as determined from the Micah 6 volunteer schedule at https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/258298624032/true#/invitation. Right now Thursday August 17 seems like a promising date as per the number of slots available. We will need to poll council members for their availability, and it will also be advisable to consider carpooling arrangements, as construction on San Antonio Street around the pantry limits access.
There are a limited number of slots and they may start filling the closer we get to that date. Right now it looks like there are 23 open for pantry assistance on 9 open for receiving, so that should be enough but it can change quickly.
At its 2023 Retreat, the council identified four points of focus that we are hopeful the congregation will embrace as Transitional Ministry Priorities:
With these points defined we can seek new pastoral leadership that will continue our journey as a congregation, help revitalize the soil, and allow each of us to endeavor to be good sowers, answering Gods call in our neighborhood to our neighbors. We will begin having conversations centered around these areas in September. Come sow good soil with the council and leaders of the congregation. Think about where your time and talents lie and how you may be able to share those with the community. We have a number of groups already active at First English: The Prayer Group, Saturday Game Night, Book Club, Racial Justice Task Force, Care Team, formerly Stephen Ministers, FELC Community Group (Barbara Schutz’ small group), etc . Let’s continue to grow our stewardship and engagement of these, growing good fruit in this space as God has called us.
Church leadership is pursuing both short- and long-term plans for filling the role of Office Administrator. In the short term, we have hired Randi Ladolcetta to support our administrative ministry temporarily, taking over the most critical duties (Sunday bulletins, weekly email newsletter, website updates and managing phone/mail) during July and August.
We are also reviewing the activities that were previously performed by the Office to determine which are best suited to be taken over by the new Office Administrator and which are better performed by others. Once that assessment is completed in early July, we will use that agreed upon scope for the Office Administrator to post a job description, with the goal of having the permanent position filled by September. Please continue to direct any administrative needs to office@felcaustin.org. Information sharing to the greater FELC community should continue to be shared with the office by noon on Tuesdays, for all publications. Reach out to a Council member with any questions. A note from Randi:
“I’m excited to join First English as the temporary Office Administrator. In my previous role I worked as the Office Manager at Lord of Life Lutheran Church. I was also a member there and served as Secretary on the Council. While Lord of Life closed, I am grateful to have been a part of a wonderful community there and look forward to working with everyone at First English. I am excited to work with a church that believes in welcoming everyone with intentionality and stands behind that with action. I grew up in Florida, and have been in Austin for over 14 years. Outside of work, I am married and have two wonderful boys. We love to spend our time swimming in our pool and traveling. I look forward to working with the administrative team and meeting the congregation members.”
For more information, contact LaRu Woody woodylaru@gmail.com
While the FELC Music Director, Bryan Rust, is away this summer we welcome Marti Mortensen Ahern as our guest pianist. Marti will be at FELC almost every Sunday through mid-August. Marti studied at Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey and she serves as artistic director of the Austin Chamber Ensemble. Welcome back, Marti! Do you want to participate in summer music offerings? Contact Shannon Aguirre at shannon@shannonaguirre.com and Shannon will connect you with other music leaders.