Category: News

The FELC Book Club gathers Sunday, April 14 from 1:00 to 3:00pm. Our book this month is Beyond Magenta: Transgender and Nonbinary Teens Speak Out, Susan Kuklin. It’s a fascinating book. Join the conversation; all are welcome, even if you haven’t read the book. For information and meeting location contact Anne Wiebe at wiebeanne@hotmail.com.

Here’s amazon.com’s summary:

Author and photographer Susan Kuklin met and interviewed six transgender or gender-neutral young adults and used her considerable skills to represent them thoughtfully and respectfully before, during, and after their personal acknowledgment of gender preference. Portraits, family photographs, and candid images grace the pages, augmenting the emotional and physical journey each youth has taken. Each honest discussion and disclosure, whether joyful or heartbreaking, is completely different from the other because of family dynamics, living situations, gender, and the transition these teens make in recognition of their true selves.

Last week we said goodbye and gave our thanks to outgoing Church Office Administrator Randi Ladolcetta.

The Congregation Council offered Randi a gift and she returned her thanks: “I want to thank you for such a thoughtful gift. It was a wonderful surprise and left me speechless.  It’s been a pleasure working with you all, and I’ll be praying for FELC during your time of transition.”

May God bless you, Randi- in your family, your health, and your next adventures!

: Cantor Bryan Rust, Randi Ladolcetta, CDC Director Dr. Paulette Clemons, and Assistant CDC Director Cat Holness.

As we move through this year of ministry transition, we have opportunities to reflect and engage transformation. In our worship each first Sunday of the month, we will receive a witness to the impact of generosity in our lives. This witness could be about a ministry our congregation is currently undertaking, a ministry that people in the congregation engage, or an initiative that is new to many of us.

In April we receive a witness on child abuse prevention from LaRu Woody. We invite you to read LaRu’s witness by clicking here.

The FELC Transition Team has answered all of the questions in the Ministry Site Profile (MSP) and is beginning to wrap up our editing phase. The team is currently finalizing the wording and cohesiveness of the MSP and also focusing on answers to the optional MSP component which is called “Seven Reflections on Ministry and Context.” 

The team will be coordinating with the FELC Council to present the MSP draft for discussion and review. Once accepted by the Council and finalized, the MSP will be submitted to the Southwestern Texas Synod. A copy of the MSP will also be shared with the congregation at that time. Please note that when the MSP is shared with the FELC community, it will be in its final form and accepting no further edits. We will then await pastoral candidate matches from the Synod for discernment and interviews.

The Transition Team continues to be grateful for your support, patience, and prayers. —

FELC Transition Team 

FELCTransitionMinistry@felcaustin.org

On Sunday, April 7th, FELC bid farewell and offered God’s continuing blessings to Pastor Timothy Lincoln, a member of our congregation. Tim and Laura Lincoln are moving to Eau Claire, Wisconsin this month as Tim retires this year. We’re grateful for Tim’s witness among us, thankful for his leadership as a supply preacher and presider over the years, and we give thanks to God for his faithful ministry in the ELCA.

For more photos and information, see the First English Lutheran Church-Austin, Texas Facebook page.

The Rev. Timothy Lincoln, PhD, is an ELCA minister of word and sacrament. After serving as pastor in Detroit Lakes, MN and as librarian at Maryknoll School of Theology in New York, Pastor Lincoln was called as the Director of the Stitt Library (Wright Learning & Information Center) at Austin Presbyterian Seminary in 1994, and then also as an Associate Dean. A graduate of Concordia College (MN), Yale Divinity School, Simmons College, and UT Austin, Dr. Lincoln has published in several journals, including Feminist Theology, Theological Education, and Journal of Men, Masculinities and Spirituality. He’s also published a book on qualitative research methods. Tim served on the Council of the Southwestern Texas Synod. Tim and Laura Lincoln are parents to two adult children and grandparents to three granddaughters. Texas has blessed to be in life and ministry with the Lincoln’s for 30 years.

On Sunday, April 7, FELC will join Upbring in calling awareness to and advocacy for the prevention of child abuse. This is an opportunity to join with churches across Texas to raise awareness of Upbring’s efforts to break the cycle of child abuse and ask God to protect, comfort, and heal the thousands of children who are survivors of child abuse each year. For more than a century, from the service-minded Lutherans who dreamed of building an orphanage in the 1860s to the vital programs in place today throughout Texas, Upbring has grown and adapted to the changing needs of society. Although they have been known by different names, the meaning behind Upbring, honors the past while promising a commitment to the future – one that is long standing, innovative, and designed to “bring up” children and families just as predecessors have done. On Sunday, April 7 we are invited to wear the color blue in solidarity and awareness with children and families responding to child abuse. For more information, visit www.upbring.org

Throughout Holy Week and on Easter Morning, we hosted hundreds of folks onsite and online!  I thank God for each servant at FELC who participated in welcome, leadership, and support to offer 7 worship services, 3 hospitality times, and 1 Easter Egg Hunt. My gratitude to Frank Vasquez, Tim Lincoln, Brad Fuerst, and Bob Karli who broke open the bread of the word and of the table.

And what great joy to celebrate the sacrament of holy baptism with David Francis, William Nix, and Aditi Mitra, and with families and friends on Easter Day. Let your lights so SHINE!

For photos from Holy Week and Easter Day, visit the posts on the First English Lutheran Church – Austin, Texas Facebook page.

For archived worship services and bulletins, visit 2024 Holy Week & Easter Day | First English Lutheran Church | Austin, Texas (felcaustin.org)

May you be blessed in these 50 days of Easter rejoicing. I look forward to seeing you as we worship, witness, learn, serve, and welcome together. Invite someone to join you at FELC.

Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed! ALLELUIA! 

Cantor Bryan

Bryan Rust

cantor@felcaustin.org