FACTS

OF FAITH Faith Lutheran Church 8265 Winton Road Cincinnati, Ohio 45231

March 2016

Phone 513.931.6100 Fax 513.931.6101 Email secretary@faithcinci.org Pastor Schultz fasterpastor48@gmail.com www.faithcinci.org

“Faith Lutheran Church is committed to nurturing and protecting our youngest members by providing a safe environment for children.”

The deadline for Facts of Faith is the 3rd Monday of each month. Articles for next month are due to the church office on

Monday, March 21st, 2016.

Dear Brothers and Sisters, May God’s grace and peace be with you in this season of Lent and always! I know we’re right in the middle of Lent, and that Easter won’t come until

the 27th

of March—but to be perfectly honest, I’m ready for some good old Easter proclamation right now! Below are the words to an ancient Easter Sermon. Written by John Chrysostom around the year 400, this sermon has been read in churches (particularly among the Greek Orthodox) for over sixteen hundred years, and is still read today. I present it to you as an authentic gospel proclamation of Easter-tide—timeless because Christ is timeless. I hope you will find it encouraging and comforting on your Lenten journey, as it has been in mine, and that together, we may greatly anticipate the victory of Easter!

Are there any who are devout lovers of God? Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival! Are there any who are grateful servants? Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord! Are there any weary with fasting? Let them now receive their wages! If any have toiled from the first hour, let them receive their due reward; If any have come after the third hour, let him with gratitude join in the Feast! And he that arrived after the sixth hour, let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss. And if any delayed until the ninth hour, let him not hesitate; but let him come too. And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour, let him not be afraid by reason of his de-lay. For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first. He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour, as well as to him that toiled from the first.

To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows. He accepts the works as He greets the en-deavor. The deed He honors and the intention He commends. Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord! First and last alike receive your reward; rich and poor, rejoice together! Sober and slothful, cele-brate the day! You that have kept the fast, and you that have not, rejoice today for the Table is richly laden!

Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one. Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith. Enjoy all the riches of His goodness! Let no one grieve at his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed. Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free. He has destroyed it by enduring it. He destroyed Hell when He descended into it. He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh. Isaiah foretold this when he said, "You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below." Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with. It was in an uproar because it is mocked. It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed. It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated. It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive. Hell took a body, and discovered God. It took earth, and encountered Heaven. It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see. O death, where is thy sting? O Hell, where is thy vic-tory? Christ is Risen, and you, o death, are annihilated! Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down! Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice! Christ is Risen, and life is liberated! Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead; for Christ having risen from the dead, is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep. To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen!

INTERCESSORY PRAYER - You may have noticed a slight change in our practice of Intercessory Prayer during worship, as the congregation is now invited to add to our prayers by mentioning the names and /or needs of others (either aloud or in silence). This is meant to provide an opportunity for everyone to bring concerns to the Lord; a practice that is encouraged by the witness of our Psalm from this morning: "...the Lord hears me when I call to him." While it may not be possible to hear or understand all of the many names being spoken, we can be confident with St. Paul, who writes in the eighth chapter of his letter to the church at Rome, "For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit inter-cedes for the saints according to the will of God." Therefore, with confidence in the Lord's promise, we lift up all who are in need, knowing that our faithful God hears the prayers of his children.

HOLY WEEK and the THREE DAYS Dear Brothers and Sisters of Faith, Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday, as we commemorate the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem. However, in short order, shouts of “Hosanna” die away to shouts of “Crucify!” It is a powerful thing to witness. Holy Week is our time to witness this journey—this Passion—of Jesus. That’s the importance of what is called the Triduum, literally, The Three Days—Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and The Vigil of Easter (Holy Saturday). These worship services allow us to accompany Jesus and his disciples (by way of hearing) on the path from The Last Supper, to The Crucifixion and to a Vigil of prayer over a seemingly sealed and quiet tomb. That journey then stands in stark contrast to the open tomb of Easter and the glorious Resurrection of Our Lord. Therein lies the importance of the Three Days. I hope you plan on joining us for our Holy Week worship as we walk with Christ. To that end, this year, we will have some different practices for our Holy Week worship and I wanted to let you know what we’re doing differently and why: On Maundy Thursday, we will have Holy Communion and the Stripping of the Altar as in years past. We will addition-ally be including the traditional Washing of Feet. I understand that this will be a first at FLC, but is in fact a very old tradition in worship on Maundy Thursday. The name, Maundy, comes from the Latin mandatum, meaning “mandate.” It refers to the new commandment that Jesus gives his disciples in the upper room as we hear the Gospel according to John 13—“I give you a New Commandment, that you love one another.” This command comes as Christ, taking the place of a servant, washes the feet of his disciples. “Just as I have washed your feet, so you must wash the feet of one another.” The washing of feet is for us a reminder of Christ’s calling to servanthood, of loving others as he first loved us. It is with that in mind that the congregation may come forward to the front steps of the chancel, where I will pour warm water over your feet, dry them and anoint them with oil in the sign of the cross. This tradition has been a meaningful time of prayer and reflection for many centuries for the faithful, and I believe will be so for us. Good Friday will be our time to host the Ecumenical Good Friday Service. This year’s worship will be in the form of Tenebrae, or Service of Shadows. The worship will consist of readings from the Scriptures, followed by prayer and musical responses. With each “shadow” of Calvary, we will extinguish a candle, and our sanctuary will get progres-sively darker, until finally we are almost entirely in the dark—except for one small light. The Christ Candle remains lit to remind us that “the light shone in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.” It is a great privilege to join our brothers and sisters from other traditions to worship that which is central to us all—the saving grace of God in Christ Jesus. The Vigil of Easter, on Holy Saturday, will be an entirely new experience at Faith but again is very old practice within Lutheran and Christian worship. It is a service primarily of readings, prayer and responses. It is the first taste of the Resurrection of Jesus. Our Gospel lesson features Mary Magdalene, who has gone in the pre-dawn darkness to the tomb of Jesus. She finds the tomb empty, but does not comprehend what has happened. Yet, here we glimpse the joy of Easter, which we will see all the more clearly in the brightness of Easter Day! Holy Saturday has also been a traditional day for Baptisms. Much to my joy, we will be celebrating the baptism of Lily Scheben, daughter of Brian and Kali (Reiber) Scheben. This will be my first baptism at Faith, and I’m looking forward to many more in the future! All are welcome to join us. It is my hope and prayer that our Holy Week worship will prepare us for a joyful and glorious Easter celebration, and that by it we may glorify our Lord Jesus Christ—the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. If you have any questions about Holy Week, please let me know. I’m excited for our first Holy Week together. I appreciate your prayers in this season as always and you may certainly be assured of mine for you. May God bless our journey of Faith together, and make glad our proclamation. Remembering that God is faithful… all the time, Pr. Paul+

March 27 - Easter Sunday

7 am: Sunrise Contemporary Worship Service

8 am: Easter Breakfast

9 am: Sunday School

10:15 am: Traditional Worship Service

Celebrate Holy Week March 24 - Maundy Thursday Worship Service @ 7:30 pm

Washing of feet & communion

March 25 - Good Friday Ecumenical Service @ 7:30 pm

Including special choir music

March 26 - Community Easter Egg Hunt @ 1 pm;

Ages toddler - 6th grade. Please bring a basket for treats

March 26 – The Vigil of Easter Service @ 7:30 pm

Prepare yourself for Easter

Lenten Potluck Dinners & Message

Wednesdays 6:15 – 7:30 pm

Fellowship Hall on the following dates;

3/2, 3/9 & 3/16

Please take a moment to congratulate the following members who are celebrating wedding anniversaries in March: 3-15-69 Chris & Sharon Lindner

To the following members who are celebrating birthdays in March:

1 Gene Bunger 17 Dale Bahr 2 Elaine Henjum Paul Thyberg 9 Tim Hubbard 22 Tommy Schultz 10 Kelsey Bickel 23 Nick Miller 11 JayLynn Horsley 24 Nathanael Bonnell Kayla Fluegeman 28 Matthew Heitman 13 Erik Heitman 29 Chuck Broge Evelyn Nelsen 31 Holly Rataizczak

CONGREGATION GAME NIGHT- Do You have some favorite games

you like to play? Bring them on Sunday, March 13th, at 6:30 PM

to Faith’s Congregational Game Night! Invite your family, friends &

neighbors to join us for an evening of game playing. If you don’t

have a game to share, just bring yourself, a snack to share and a

willingness to have a good time.

MARCH FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT… is Friday, March 4th. Join us for the presentation of "Book of Life", brought to you by our friends at Thrivent. The doors open at 5:50 PM and the food ready at 6:00 PM. As always bring your family, blankets and friends for a free dinner (pizza, hotdogs, and fruit) and then the movie. Dinner

and the short feature starts at 6 PM. Our main feature starts at 6:30 PM. Concessions of popcorn & candy sold to benefit Faith Lutheran Church Youth Programs.

The next FLCW Book Club is Saturday, March 19th, 10:30 AM in the church lounge. This month's book is "Brooklyn” by Colm Toibin.

THE ALTAR FLOWER CHART for 2016 is posted on the bulletin board in the narthex. Sign up for the Sunday or Sundays of your choice. Please indicate whether you want to keep the flowers or have them delivered to one of our members who are sick or shut-in.

Please help the FLCW make personal care item kits by donating items during Lent for the "Baskets of Promise." "The Baskets of Promise" collection is given to Lu-theran World Relief. Our donations to LWR have been used around the world and in disaster areas here in the USA. The collection baskets can be found in the Narthex. You can drop your donations off anytime. March 6th: Toothbrushes March 13th: Metal nail clippers March 20th: Bars of soap

FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH WOMEN MARCH MEETINGS

March 8 - 7:00 PM UNITY PRAYER & STUDY GROUP

March 10 - 10:00 AM GRACE CIRCLE Hostess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rose Schroeder Bible Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Martha Lindner

March 15 - 7:30 PM JOY CIRCLE Hostess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tina Wuorinen Bible Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Linda Roeder

March 16 - 12:00 PM FRIENDSHIP CIRCLE Hostess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Roz Walter

March 17 - 9:00 AM SEW & SUCH

March 17 - 7:00 PM PEACE CIRCLE Hostess/Study Leader . . . . Judy Middendorf

March 19 - 10:30 AM BOOK CLUB

The Endowment Committee would like to share the following thank you letters Faith Lutheran Church has received for donations made to the following organizations; Freestore Foodbank, Valley Interfaith Food & Clothing Center, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church Food Pantry and Mt. Healthy Alliance.