May 2009

Sesquicentennial Plans Begun


Our organizational meeting 19 April 2009

Committee chairman: Sue Murphy

No secretary has been appointed yet; the following are Pastor’s notes

Possible dates for the celebration in 2012 (use any or all)
Conversion of St. Paul (January 23)
Feast of SS Peter and Paul (June 29)
Oktoberfest
The actual date of the congregation’s founding (?)

Updated list of potential items to target for accomplishment by that year: each item will need a person in charge

1. New church directory
2. Updated church history
3. New choir robes – sew our own?
4. New or repaired altar boy robes
5. Painting of the church
6. New floor in cafeteria: perhaps with mosaic picture?
7. New altar wall
8. New altar linens to replace the violet, red, and green
9. New floor / carpet for church
10. New or repaired baptismal font


Fundraising ideas were discussed

It was suggested that Sue Murphy stay in contact with the Council, and attend from time to time.

We have a bid from a contractor to repair the roof, and the trustees were empowered by the voters (this meeting was just prior to the sesquicentennial meeting) to consider the references the contractor gave, and if satisfied, to proceed with the contract.

Since then we also obtained a bid from a man in the cities who restores statuary. The old statue of Jesus (which had been stored in the basement) had been taken to him, and he is confident it can be restored, and his price seems reasonable, though we are not quite ready to proceed yet, so we’ll have to discuss options.

Updates and brief discussion can be expected at the start of Sunday morning Bible Classes, as these seem to be the time when most people are assembled.


Kraklow 50th Anniversary


The congregation is invited to the 50th wedding anniversary open house for Allan and Barbra Kraklow on Sunday, May 17th, from 2-5 pm, at

Lavender Crest Winery
5401 US Hwy 6
Colona, Illinois

NO gifts, please!

May Anniversaries
5/17/1959 Allan and Barbra Kraklow
(50 years!)
5/19/1979 Chuck and Jean Russell
5/22/1976 Ed and Lynn Woller
5/27/1961 Duane and Carole Sanders
5/28/1982 Christine and Garry Erickson
5/28/1977 John and Charlene Sovanski

May Birthdays:
5/2 Sheri Kraklow
5/6 Emilie Ricknell
5/10 William Thompson
5/16 John Eckardt
5/17 Jeffery Boswell
5/26 Preston Powers
5/27 Donald Clapper
5/31 Justin Van Stechelman

May Ushers
Otis Anderson, Scott Clapper, John Ricknell, Bill Thompson

First Monday Vespers

The schedule for May 4th:
6 pm Altar Guild meets in Conference Room
6:45 Vespers (open to all)
Following Vespers: Elders meet

Important Events

St. Phillip and St. James, Apostles
May 1st
Observed Wednesday, April 29th, at 7 pm.

Day of Theological Reflection
Monday, May 18th, 8:30 am – 3:30 pm
After Matins, an extended class on the Christology of David.

Ascension Day
Thursday, May 21st, 7:00 pm
NOTE: there is no Mass on Wednesday evening this week.

Vigil of Pentecost Saturday, May 30th, at 5:30 p.m.

Pentecost
Sunday, May 31st, 9:00 a.m.

Monday of Whitsun Week
Monday, June 1st, 8:30 a.m.

Tuesday of Whitsun Week
Tuesday, June 2nd, 9:00 a.m.

Pentecost Midweek
Wednesday, June 3rd (The Pentecost Octave is of the First Class)

Trinity
Sunday, June 7th, 9:00 a.m. (and prior Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

Shut ins
Mary Hamilton at home; Ruth Snider at home; Mark Baker at home, and Anna Baker at home. Jack Stewart at Kewanee Care; Mirilda Greiert at Courtyard Estates; Ila Scaife at Courtyard Estates; Lorraine Mohr at Courtyard Estates; Elva Garrison at Avon Nursing Home; Ruth Melchin at Hillcrest Home; Jane Melchin at Lutheran Home, Peoria.

A Letter to St. John’s in Edford

Dear Pastor Bushre,

The members of St. Paul’s are saddened to hear of the fire which damaged your building. Some of your members are relatives and friends of ours, which is all the more reason the news distresses us. We are glad to hear that no one was hurt.

If you have any needs we might be able to supply, we’d be happy to try. We have, for instance, a closet full of Lutheran Worship hymnals which are not being used at all, and you are welcome to them. Perhaps other items could be of use to you as well.

Your parish will certainly be in our prayers, and we trust that our Savior will be gracious to you as you plan to rebuild.

Sincerely in Christ,

+ Burnell Eckardt, pastor
On behalf of the members here

A Letter to the Government

Congress is considering the enactment of new regulations that would require health professionals to participate in abortions against their conscience. I submitted the following comment to the US government on 31 March 2009:

I urge the government in the strongest terms not to rescind the regulation
entitled "Ensuring That Department of Health and Human Services Funds Do Not
Support Coercive or Discriminatory Policies or Practices in Violation of Federal
Law," especially since it contains the conscience clauses with which health
professionals could be required by law to participate in a procedure they
consider morally unacceptable. The US Constitution is supposed to be the
guarantor of basic freedoms, but how can a person be considered free if he would
be required to act contrary to conscience? Please reconsider.

- Rev. Burnell Eckardt, Pastor
St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Kewanee, Illinois

The Lighter Side

WALKING THE DOG

A WOMAN was flying from Seattle to San Francisco. Unexpectedly, the plane was diverted to Sacramento along the way. The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the passengers wanted to get off the aircraft the plane would re-board in 50 minutes.

Everybody got off the plane except one lady who was blind. The man had noticed her as he walked by and could tell the lady was blind because her Seeing Eye dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of her throughout the entire flight.

He could also tell she had flown this very flight before because the pilot approached her, and calling her by name, said, 'Kathy, we are in Sacramento for almost an hour. Would you like to get off and stretch your legs?'

The blind lady replied, 'No thanks, but maybe Buddy would like to stretch his legs.'

Picture this: All the people in the gate area came to a complete stand still when they looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane with a Seeing Eye dog! The pilot was even wearing sunglasses. People scattered. They not only tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines!

They say this is a true story. Whether it is or not, it’s a good one.


A Day of Theological Reflection
11th in the series


“A Man after the Lord’s Own Heart”
The Christology of David

Tuesday, 2 June 2009 (date changed again!)

This day of reflection will consider the themes of I Samuel, particularly as it relates to the rise of David until his coronation as King (in II Samuel). How do these things proclaim Christ?


Schedule:
8:30 - 9:00 registration
9:00 Mass: Monday of Whitsun Week
9:30 Session 1: David replaces Saul, I Sam. 9 and 16; and I Sam. 13:14
10:50 Break
11:00 Session 2: David and Goliath, I Sam. 17
11:50 Break
12:00 Noonday prayers (Office at Sext)
12:15 Lunch
1:30 Session 3: David and Saul, I Sam. 18-26
2:20 Break
2:30 Session 4: Saul dies, David coronated, I Sam. 31- II Sam. 1-2
3:15 Midafternoon prayers (Office at Vespers)


Keeping the Feast: A Study of the Holy Liturgy (continued)
Communion (distribution)

The distribution of the Blessed Sacrament is the primary reason clergymen are sometimes called ministers. They administer the Holy Gifts of God.

It is uniformly traditional and preferable that the celebrant administer the Blessed Sacrament to himself, before he communes the congregation. This has been the consistent practice of the Church from her earliest days. The reason for this is twofold: first, the celebrant is here receiving the Gifts for himself; and second, he is here serving to signify Christ, who partook with His disciples in the other room. There is no valid reason for the historically novel practice of having someone else commune the celebrant, and it is positively improper that a lay assistant commune him.

The rise of the historically recent practice of the use of lay assistants at all for the physical distribution of the Sacrament, is a most unfortunate development, and is to be discouraged in the strongest terms. Besides being virtually unnecessary in that it scarcely saves time, it is more importantly a practice which belies a failure to understand the very nature and primary function of the pastoral office.

The physical act of giving the Holy Sacrament to the people of God is the central feature of the pastoral office. For although it is also rightly said that preaching is central to the Office, yet the very Christ whose Gospel is preached is Himself given to the people here.

The reality of the Gospel is that it is about a Savior who truly came in the flesh and dwelt among us; and this Christ also just as truly gives His Body and Blood to His people in the Supper. In the same way, the Office of the Ministry is a real flesh-and-blood office: real duly-ordained men carry its duties out. Therefore although one may also rightly list many other duties that a pastor does, this is the one which most clearly defines his office, by the very doing of the act. The sheep of Christ’s pasture are fed from the hand of His under-shepherds here.

For this reason, Article XIV of the Augsburg Confession declares that “no one should publicly teach in the Church or administer the Sacraments unless he be regularly called.” There are those who would say that a pastor who has a lay assistant physically assisting him in the handing out of the Holy Elements is not thereby relinquishing his own duty to oversee the administration of them, but this point of view is problematic, since clearly “administration” here has to do with a physical act, which would entail the physical handing out of the Elements.

If there should be a second ordained clergyman present to assist in the distribution, it is always proper that the celebrant distribute the Hosts, and that his assistant distribute the Cup. This is because it is the celebrant’s duty, on the one hand, to be the chief and therefore first person to bless each communicant by the administration, and on the other hand, to see that no unworthy communicant receive the Sacrament.

Although the practice of receiving the Host in the hand may be traced to early church usage, it is nevertheless better that the Host be received directly on the tongue, as it emphasizes the purely receptive character of faith, as well as eliminating any possibility of tiny fragments of the Host remaining on the hand of the communicant after he communes.

The celebrant, by contrast, is careful to see that no crumbs are lost in the distribution of the Host, as he holds his thumb and forefinger together except when holding a Host, and, after the distribution, to take the ablutions, that no fragments are lost.




St. Paul’s Ev. Lutheran Church
109 S. Elm Street
Kewanee, IL 61443