The HeartBeat

A Message from Pastor Jeff

Question: What is a Christian?

At the 2012 Academy of the Rockies, Dr. Ann Fritschel began her lecture series on stewardship with this question: “What is a Christian?” Many of us might reply, “Someone who believes in Jesus.” Others might go deeper and suggest that a Christian is someone who believes in Jesus and follows his teachings. Stop reading this article for two minutes, grab pen and paper, and write down your answer to the question, “What is a Christian?”

How did you answer? In her lecture, Dr. Fritschel noted that many young people might answer the question with words like irrelevant, rigid, closed, ignorant, and bigoted. In trying to understand the religious practices of young people, surveys by the Pew and Lilly Foundations found that only 15% of young adults identify themselves in any meaningful way as Christians. Most of those in that category reported having strong Christian families who worshipped regularly and practiced their faith as a way of life. The vast majority of young adults find religion in general—and Christianity in particular—unimportant or irrelevant to their lives.

Dr. Fritschel talked about Christians as “stewards of the gifts of God.” I really love this definition for its broadness and depth. This definition helps us move past a picture of Christianity confined by moralism (Christians are kind, honest, helpful, etc.) or by religiosity (Christians are insular, closed, rigid, and unyielding). As stewards of the gifts of God, Christians are gifted with awesome freedom and awesome responsibility.

We are free to live out our lives unbound from the limitations of moralism and religiosity, and Christianity becomes more than a set of rules or prescribed doctrines. God created life, earth, universe, love, and persons and then set us to live out our vocations as stewards (caretakers) of that creation. Imagine creation—even the whole universe—as the home where you live, love, work, play, and die in the joy of a living, loving, forgiving God. The Christian life is no longer a dreary existence hoping to please God, but an adventurous journey living out the gift of a God who has declared pleasure, love, and grace in both creation and cross.

But being stewards of God’s gifts also comes with awesome responsibility. I am reminded of some children who, after church, raced out to the playground and proceeded to tear apart every toy and dismantle every play structure. As far as they were concerned, it was theirs to destroy. I suppose the lack of supervision by both parent and congregation didn’t help. But in the end, it was their indifference to the destruction that was most bothersome. In the same way, God’s children can take grace and forgiveness to mean that we can do whatever we like. The realities of global warming, drought, overpopulation, starvation, and lack of adequate clean water simply cannot be matters of indifference for Christian people. As stewards of the gifts of God, we are bound to take both notice and action. This earth, this ocean, this neighbor, this country, this world, this stranger, this forest, this trash heap, and this McDonalds wrapper laying at our feet are our responsibility. There is no janitor who will come after us to clean up the toys we have broken.

Perhaps the Holy Spirit is asking how we will live out our Christian life beyond worship, committees, and theological pondering. Can we live in joy in God’s joyful creation? Can we love as God has loved? Can we risk as God has risked? And can we care for each other and creation not out of mere duty, but as a grace-filled response to God’s living gift?

Aloha,
Pastor Jeff Lilley
pr.jeff@lchwelcome.org

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June Council Highlights

Council met Tuesday, June 19. Here are some of the highlights of the meeting:

• Income still strong through end of May. Still at less than 50% of the One in Mission Campaign.
• Approximately $124,000 either donated or pledged so far out of $250,000 Mission Campaign goal
• Transition Team working on finding housing for Pastor Angela. ‘Ohana meetings will be scheduled once housing is secured.
• Council voted to accept Mr. Hagashi’s letter of intent for new preschool. Negotiations to follow.
• Council voted to establish a committee dedicated to exploring options for facility usage possibilities at LCH in the future.
• Council to take action in establishing Hörmann Courtyard Taskforce and begin preliminary work on the project.
• Since the PV installation, system has avoided 67,881.35 kg of CO₂, with a total yield of 96,973.36 kWh.

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Summertime In Stitches

During July and August, In Stitches, the LCH craft group, will meet the first and fourth Sunday of each month after service in the courtyard. Look for our table and join us to work on church projects or your own craft.

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Summer Adult Forum

Adult Forum will meet next on July 22. We will reprise our consideration of Christ’s Passion as portrayed by Broadway and Hollywood. These depictions highlight the uncertainty of Christ, his followers, and virtually everyone else. Hopefully, choir members, teachers, and others who missed the first showing will attend to see how artists and music intersect with Passion Week. Since it is summertime, we’ll even have freshly-popped popcorn.

Please see Fred Benco if you have a faith-related topic you would like to present on any other Sunday this summer.

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Compline Hiatus

LCH’s decades-long tradition of Compline services on Sunday nights has been put on hiatus this summer. With major shifts in staff and key volunteer members, it has become increasingly difficult to create the meaningful, beautiful, and sustainable services we’ve come to expect at LCH. During the coming weeks, the church staff and key leaders of LCH’s Compline and broader worship community will meet to discuss how to reframe this important ministry for both the diverse congregants who visit us Sunday evenings and the musicians who have made a home in the Compline Choir.

If you have questions or suggestions about Compline, you are encouraged to send a note to our director of music and liturgy, Dr. Miguel Felipe, <miguel@lchwelcome.org>.

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Adult Forum: 2012–2013

We have tentatively scheduled several topics and presenters for our 2012–2013 year. Dr. Steve Miller will present a series on C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters, short letters from a senior devil on how to lead people to the dark side. The letters are sarcastic, insightful and full of fun. Fred Benco will present a series on Letters From Prisons, powerful letters written in or about prisons by Martin Luther King and other Christians, which still resonate today. Wayne Gau will present a short series of discussions on the Athanasian Creed, named after the great 4th-century theologian and used in Christian churches since the 6th century. Stay tuned!

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One Pot One Hope

The July One Pot One Hope will be on July 28. Come and join the LCH “caravan” leaving the church at 9:15 AM and returning by 1:00 PM. Please bring your food donations to the church by Sunday, July 21.

• Donations needed:
• Chili
• Peanut Butter
• Jelly
• Granola Bars
• Fruit
• Water
• Re-Cycled Grocery Bags
• Or a check made out to “One Pot One Hope”

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Banner Weaving for World AIDS Day

Would you like to learn to weave? We are ready to begin another “Inkle strip” banner to fit into the niche by the altar. We’ll use all the colors of the rainbow. Come and join us in this fun project which is easy to learn and doesn’t have a big time commitment. Our goal is to have it ready to hang on December 2 to honor World AIDS Day, which is December 1. If you’d like more information, please talk to Juditha Murashige.

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Watch this Space!

Watch this space for a new feature at LCH this Fall. Plans are being made to begin a monthly weekend-evening event of food and fellowship that is focused on discussion and fun.

The evening programs will feature members and friends of the congregation in presentations of ideas and experiences about which they are passionate. For example, Hope Jahren plans on exploring with us some of the fascinating elements of her university research relating to trees. Using the theme of bridges, Fritz Fritschel wants to show connections between art, poetry, philosophy, and theology. Others might share travel experiences from faraway places. The monthly gathering is envisioned as an open forum with food and fellowship—a time to deepen our friendships and expand our horizons. Look for details in the September HeartBeat.

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Selecting Wine for LutherFest

On May 26, the LCH crew met at Oeno Winemaking in Kailua with the purpose of choosing new red wine for LutherFest, partaking in lots of ‘ono food, and enjoying even more lively conversation. Several folks were looking for their own vintage to take home for personal enjoyment and gift giving. The group ended up tasting three different white wines and five different reds, and a couple of regulars twisted the owner’s arm to try out a smattering of other wines not on our official tasting list. In the end, the group decided on the Italian Amarone for the LCH cellar. Pictures from the event are available on the Congregation Life page on the LCH website.

If you want to be part of the process but missed the wine tasting, watch for bottling parties in late July or early August.

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Prayer Requests

Alicia	Gene	Michelle
Barbie	Gus	Sally
Carl	Judy	Stephen
Chris	Karen	Susan
Cindy	Karen & Brad	Sylvia
Debbie	Maggie	Terry

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July Birthdays

Date	Name
07/02	David Del Rocco
07/03	Linda Wong
07/07	Ann C. DeVallee
07/08	Linda Miller
07/14	Ellie Ann Himawari O.
07/16	Whitney Walker
07/17	Don Person
07/17	Bill Potter
07/19	Shane S.
07/22	Christopher Khan
07/23	Karen Fay
07/24	Savannah M.
07/25	Georgine Stark
07/28	Tomi Haehnlen
07/28	Irmgard Hörmann
07/29	Bob Zimmer
07/31	Kendall McCreary

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HeartBeat Deadline

Next HeartBeat Deadline is Tuesday, July 17!

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Heavenly Humor

Bloopers that gnash the teeth

Rev. Matt Ferguson, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Hillsboro, IL, used a picture of Jesus being tempted in the wilderness on the bulletin cover because that was the text he was covering in his sermon that Sunday. The caption underneath the picture read: “A painting depicting Jesus’ dessert temptations.”

When someone pointed out that it should have read “desert,” Rev. Ferguson replied, “I am sure an unrecorded temptation Jesus endured during those 40 days was sweets.”

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