In this issue:
- First Mondays Concert: Poʻokela Trio
- Church Planter Boxes are Full of Herbs
- Ala Wai Watershed Cleanup
- From Pastor Jeff
- LCH Office Hours
- Stewardship Corner
- Committee/Interest Group Chairs
- Angel Network In-Gathering
- Leadership Roundtable
- Game Day
- Book of Faith Bible Study
- Restorative Yoga
- Mary Magdalene Society Potluck and Game Night
- All Ages Sunday School
- Adult Forum
- Virtual Coffee Talk
- Confirmation Classes
- LCH Women’s Book Club
- Writers’ Workshop
- IHS Sandwich Making
- Compline
- Seeking Volunteers & Donations for One Pot, One Hope
- Food for Thought
- New LGBT+ Caregivers Support Group
- Regular Offerings
- Isenberg Hall Window Replacement
- LCH Workday a Great Success!
- HeartBeat Deadline
- Electronic Funds Transfers for February
- Attendance and Offerings for March
- Prayer Requests
- April Birthdays
- Calendar: April 2024
First Mondays Concerts: Poʻokela Trio
Monday, April 8, at 7:00 pm
Led by Greg Sardinha, Hawaiian steel guitar artist, the Poʻokela Trio will take you back to the music of 1930s and ’40s in Hawai‘i. Joined by Zachary N. Castro, guitar, and CT “Kata” Maduli, electric bass, Greg will whisk you away on a magical journey celebrating this iconic music!
All are invited to gather for pūpū in the Hörmann Courtyard at 6:15 pm. The concert is free, with a suggested donation $20. In addition, we will continue to collect packaged, unopened dry goods (e.g., cereal, flour, sugar, pasta, etc.) and canned food donations for the Angel Network at each concert.
Church Planter Boxes are Full of Herbs
Pastor Bree built two raised planter boxes on the makai side of our church. Going through the Nursery, you’ll see one right in front of you, and the other one is around the corner. She planted vegetables in them, but since she left, the boxes have been somewhat neglected. Some volunteers recently decided to take care of them and planted herbs and flowers for the church goers to enjoy.
What is there? Rosemary, oregano, mint, thyme, and sage, plus two kinds of peppers and a new, young dill which is trying to adjust. The box close to the front of the church has basil, chives, oregano and another young dill plant that needs to grow up. Plus, it has ferns and flowers.
Mary Jo Estes, Carol Langner, Jeanie Castello, Bill Potter, Pastor Jeff, and others have keys to the nursery so that you can get fresh herbs for your cooking. If you enjoy gardening and participate, contact Carol Langner, Marlise Tellander, Mary Jo Estes, or Brenda Barrios. Bon appétite.
Ala Wai Watershed Cleanup
Saturday, April 27, Beginning at 9:00 am
As part of this year’s Creation Care theme of water, on Saturday, April 27, from 9:00 to 11:00 am, LCH will once again be partnering with students at ‘Iolani School to pick up trash along the portion of the Ala Wai Canal that runs behind ‘Iolani School, Ala Wai School, and the community garden.
If you’re wondering how this relates to water, keep in mind that trash tossed or blown near the canal often ends up in the canal. This not only contaminates the water there, but when the canal’s water reaches the ocean, the plastics and other pollutants negatively impact the sea creatures and those who use the ocean recreationally. This cleanup gives you an opportunity to stop this from happening.
Besides helping to protect a local watershed, you’ll have a chance to attend a Sustainability Fair following the cleanup. Our own Pastor Bree will have a booth at the fair presenting the faith and spirituality component of the conversation about creation care and environmental justice. The fair runs from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. Come say “hi” to Pastor Bree and find out what’s happening on our island in the area of sustainability.
Help protect the water on our beautiful island for Earth Month 2024 by signing up for the cleanup with Cindy Scheinert in the courtyard after church or email her at cschein@iolani.org.
From Pastor Jeff
Christ is Risen! Christ is risen indeed, Alleluia!
One of my favorite moments during Holy Week happens at the Easter Vigil service on Saturday night. The first part of the service is nearly over. A new fire has been struck and burned to embers in the courtyard; the choir has sung the antiphons; we have heard the stories of Israel’s march through the wilderness, the prophets pleading for God’s people, Ezekiel’s vision of dry bones in the wilderness, and the fiery furnace of king Nebuchadnezzer. There is a moment of silence and the doors to the nave are flung open and the first worship of Easter begins. I know I’m a church nerd, but I fall in love with church all over again at this particular moment. God’s people stream into the church out of the darkness, out of the past, and into the dawning light of whatever God has in store for us. We leave the courtyard, but we do not leave behind our doubt or our brokenness or our sin. We bring our whole selves across the threshold by invitation of God’s grace. In that moment the Gospel of Jesus proclaims that those weights that we carry do not define us, our doubts need not deter us, nor will sorrow overcome us. Christ is risen and dwells with us forever! It happens in a moment and lasts forever!
It is helpful, I think, to see those first steps into the nave at Easter Vigil or Easter morning as part of the ongoing journey to which we are called in our ministry of life. To limit the celebration of the resurrection to one day a year would be like saying “today is my breathing day.” For Lutherans at least, daily living of the death and resurrection of Jesus is as much a part of daily life as breathing! But like breathing, we don’t really think all that much about it. Just as breathing leads to life, so our faith brings us to true life—and true life is meant to be shared. So, Jesus in his post resurrection appearances will command his disciples, and all who follow, to leave the upper room and share the good news with the world. He tells them to give love away, proclaim grace, set the captives free, and heal all who need healing. In the end, they turned the world upside down with a foolish Gospel that proclaims sinners righteous through God, claims freedom from tyranny, and invites the outcast to sit at the table as honored guests. Hearts are changed by the Gospel of love, and amazing things happen.
God’s people continue to serve with those same changed hearts. People are fed; courageous souls stand up for justice and work shoulder to shoulder with those whose lives are diminished. We do not always get it right. There are surely times in our Christian history when we have confused our own desires and passions for God’s will and great harm has been the result. We can only ask for forgiveness, make amends to each other and God, and seek the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to guide us to a more faithful way of love. And we must never forget our call to serve others for the sake of Jesus, who called us to love one another and the world with a fierce and courageous love.
Early Christians upset the norm and turned convention on its head for the sake of love. Some died in the coliseum at Rome for their troubles, others were cast out from family and friends, and yet others were beaten and killed. It can be dangerous to live the Gospel. Yet they endured. Something about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection changed not just their minds but also their hearts. Something about Jesus’ word of love led them out of darkness into light and out of the upper room into the world. Perhaps they too found something worth living for as they crossed over the threshold to Easter, and so can we.
May God bless us and send us out into the world. For Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed, Alleluia!
Pastor Jeff
LCH Office Hours
- Monday—Closed
- Tuesday—9:00 am to 1:00 pm
- Wednesday—9:00 am to 1:00 pm
- Thursday—9:00 am to 1:00 pm
- Friday—9:00 am to 1:00 pm
- Saturday–Sunday—Closed
Given the persistence of covid in our community, the LCH office and church campus are generally closed to in-person meetings and gatherings as we continue to practice mutual care. We require masks for in-person interactions and recommend calling the office (808-941-2566) before dropping in to see Pastor Jeff or the administrator, as schedules may vary with appointments, other work commitments, and lunch breaks.
Please visit the LCH website at www.lchwelcome.org for more information about weekly events and ministries, and to access the public LCH Facebook page for online worship services.
Committee/Interest Group Chairs
| Committee/Group | Leader |
|---|---|
| Archive: | Jim Cartwright |
| Concert: | Barry Wenger |
| Communications: | Carol Langner |
| Community Life: | Larry Anderson |
| Council: | Dan Dennison |
| Fellowship: | Jeanne Castello |
| Finance: | Steve Miller |
| Financial Review: | Dori Palcovich |
| Food for Thought: | Marlise Tellander |
| Lay Ministers: | Carolyn Koehler |
| Learning Ministry: | Fred Benco |
| Mary Magdalene Society: | Bill Potter Roy Helms |
| Process Theology: | Carol Langner |
| Property: | Richard Mundell Pastor Jeff Lilley |
| Scholarship: | Fred Benco |
| Social Ministry: | Jean Lilley Miles Sato |
| Stewardship: | Phyllis Hörmann Willow Chang |
| Sunday School: | Linda Miller |
| Website: | Bill Potter |
| Worship & Music: | Roy Helms Randy Castello |
| Writers’ Workshop: | Peter Flachsbart |
| Youth: | Pastor Jeff Lilley |
Creation Care
As the deer runs to the river, parched and weary from the chase,
We have come from hurt and hurry, thirsting for your healing grace.
Jesus, source of living water, may we drink of you and live! (ELW 331)
“Water is life.” We’ve heard that proclamation in both a worldly and a spiritual sense. Our bodies are close to 60% water, and we can only survive 3 days without this life-giving liquid. We need it, in the same way that we need air. Being deprived of either brings certain death.
It is, therefore, not surprising that water is used throughout the Bible as a powerful symbol of God’s ever-flowing grace and new life. In the Old Testament, baby Moses escapes the wrath of Pharoah when he is put in a basket in the Nile River; in the New Testament, the woman at the well asks Jesus for the “living water” that He describes as “a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Throughout the Bible, we see God offering us this life-giving spiritual liquid that quenches our thirst for love and acceptance. We are the deer, “parched and weary from the chase,” and we return again and again to find God, the never-ending “source of living water.”
Although God’s life-giving water is pure and abundant, our planet’s supply of fresh water is not. In fact, the amount of water we have on Earth has not changed since the planet’s beginnings and will not change in the future. What has changed is where the freshwater sources are located and whether the water there is clean enough to drink. Although we might wish it weren’t so, our daily choices as citizens of the world have much to do with both. Many corporations pollute, but so do we when we flush poisons down the toilet or pour other toxic substances down our drains. Manufacturing wastes an incredible amount of water, but so do we when we let the faucet run while we brush our teeth, shampoo our hair, shave our faces or legs, and wash our dishes. We are all guilty of not honoring this gift of water, and we all can do something to change that.
That is why the Stewardship Team has chosen “water” as this year’s Creation Care theme. At our Earth Day service, you will notice water imagery in the Bible passages, the dramatic readings, and the visual images shared as we give God thanks for this amazing planet and prayerfully ask for help to become better caretakers of it. You will continue to see the water theme throughout April and May as it appears in mailings, messages, and activities—all designed to help us appreciate this life-giving resource, and to inspire us to modify at least one behavior that will increase our stewardship of this gift.
In addition to our Earth Day service on April 21, where we’ll reprise the sharing of nature’s bounty on our sharing tables, there are three other events you’ll want to put on your calendar. It would be wonderful if you could come to at least one! Please see me (Cindy) in the courtyard after church or email me at cschein@iolani.org to sign up or to get more information.
- 4/27—Ala Wai watershed cleanup, 9:00–11:00 am
- 5/25—Planting of native trees and ferns along Hale‘iwa Stream at Legacy Trees’ new plot of land, 9:00 am—noon
- 6/14—Board of Water Supply tour of Waihe‘e Tunnel (a rare opportunity to see where our drinking water comes from!), 9:00–11:00 am
Water is life, in both the spiritual and physical sense. At our baptism, we are bathed in God’s waters of forgiveness, acceptance, and renewal. This frees us to acknowledge the ways that we have fallen short in caring for our planet and inspires us to try to do better. Together, we can make a difference!
Cindy Scheinert for the Stewardship Team
Pam Buckley, Willow Chang, Phyllis Hörmann, Barbara Poole-Street, Bill Potter, and Cindy Scheinert
Angel Network In-Gathering
LCH is not collecting donations for Angel Network Charities until further notice. However, Angel Network is accepting donations at the Calvary-by-the-Sea Lutheran Church location in east O‘ahu: 5339 Kalaniana‘ole Highway, Honolulu 96821.
For those who are able and interested in donating, they accept donations on Thursdays and Fridays, from 8:30 am to noon. They will only accept packaged, unopened dry goods (e.g. cereal, flour, sugar, pasta, etc.) and canned goods.
Angel Network requires that donating drivers identify themselves and remain in their vehicle. Volunteers will offload donation items from your vehicle with protective gloves. Over 2,500 individuals are served monthly through this program. Mahalo for your generosity and support.
Leadership Roundtable
Tuesday, April 2, 6:30 pm • Via Zoom Meeting
Committee chairs and team leaders, please plan to gather for a short (45 minute) meeting. This month’s meeting will be conducted via the Zoom online meeting platform. Please refer to your email for the Zoom Meeting details. This is an opportunity for us to sit down together and share information on what is happening with all the ministries at LCH. If you are a committee or team leader, you will receive an email with login information. Please be prepared to share a little information on your activities with the group. Mahalo!
Painting the new windows installed in Isenberg Hall. You can see outside so clearly now!Game Day
Wednesday, April 3, at 1:00 pm in the Boardroom
New! Please join me for GameDay on Wednesday, April 3, from 1:00 to 3:00 in the Boardroom. We will meet for lively conversation and some fun games. If you have any questions or suggestions call me, Paula Wheeler, at 808-542-2843.
Book of Faith Bible Study
Thursdays, 10:00 am • In-person and Via Zoom Meeting
The Book of Faith Bible Study meets on Thursday mornings in-person or via Zoom meeting. All are welcome to join this lively discussion of the Biblical texts, relevant current events, and historical foundations. Please contact Cathy Baptista at cathynt@gmail.com to receive an invitation to the next Zoom Bible study discussion.
Restorative Yoga
Thursdays, April 4, 11, 18, and 25, at 6:00 pm • Via Zoom Meeting
Explore the restorative and ancient practice of yoga, led by LCH member Willow Chang. As a yoga practitioner for over 30 years, Willow shares the joy, wonder, and enthusiasm of a beginner. She emphasizes the origins, cultural context, and safe practice of yoga for all by sharing aspects of yoga, from pranayama (breathing exercises) and yogic philosophy (ahimsa), to poses, referred to as asanas.
Join for one, two, or all sessions from the safety of your own shelter-in-place. These unique classes also provide an opportunity to answer your questions about yoga practice and form. You don’t need yoga pants, previous experience, youth, flexibility, or any real-life experience in India to learn about yoga. Bring your amazing self to be in wonder of your abilities! Please contact Willow Chang (willowchang@hotmail.com) to be included in the weekly Zoom meeting invitation. Let’s learn and find a new center, together!
Mary Magdalene Society Potluck and Game Night
Saturday, April 6, at 6:00 pm • Hörmann Courtyard
Mary Magdalene Society will meet in-person for our potluck and game night in the Hörmann Courtyard. We invite LGBTQI members and friends of LCH to prepare their favorite potluck dish and join in the festivities. As part of our commitment to mutual care, participants should RSVP in advance and be fully-vaccinated.
An email will be sent on March 31 to those who are already on the Mary Magdalene mailing list, detailing the RSVP procedure. If you don’t receive your invitation, have questions, or want to be added to the mailing list, please contact Bill Potter, group facilitator, at bill.potter808@gmail.com.
All Ages Sunday School
Come explore with each other the highlights of our Judeo-Christian tradition. We will meet each Sunday in Isenberg Hall at 9:00 am for a story, discussion, and creative response. We will use the form and techniques of Godly Play. This approach will help us understand how our history and practice weave together to create today’s church. Everyone is welcome from the youngest child to the oldest adult.
All Ages Sunday School topics for March:
- 4/7—Knowing Jesus in a New Way 1 & 2
- 4/14—Knowing Jesus in a New Way 4 & 5
- 4/21—The Good Shepherd and World Communion
- 4/28—The Synagogue and the Upper Room
Working together to get the overflow of water from the another Hawaiian downpour in the Hörmann Courtyard.Adult Forum
Sundays at 9:00 am • In-person in the Boardroom
During the first two weeks of April, and as a follow up to Wayne Gau’s presentation on Slavery in the Bible, Adult Forum will view (over two sessions) the film “Amazing Grace,” which utilizes star actors who depict the end of the British Slave Trade, a full 35 years before the end of the American Civil War.
The following three Sundays (April 21 and 28 and May 5) Marsha Schweitzer will lead an exploration of the film Jesus Christ Superstar, based on the rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. This is a real opera, with the same cathartic emotion, artistic power, and spiritual symbolism as classic operas like Xerxes or La Bohême. There are some surprising and even humorous twists in this 20th-century retelling of the passion of Christ; you’ll never see or hear it the same way again!
Please join us in the Boardroom every Sunday morning at 9:00 a.m. for these inspiring films and lively discussions. All are welcome. If you are coming for worship, just get your coffee and head to the Boardroom at 9:00 to join the others who are there.
Virtual Coffee Talk
Sunday, April 7, 11:30 am • Via Zoom Meeting
Virtual Coffee Hour will be held at 11:30 am on the first Sunday of each month. Hope you can join us! You are invited to join with your LCH ‘ohana on the first Sunday for a virtual coffee talk following online worship. This discussion time will be via Zoom Meeting, and will run for approximately 20 to 30 minutes.
In order to avoid “Zoom bombing” (surprise visits from unsavory folks), you will need to contact Cathy Baptista via email at cathynt@gmail.com for a meeting number and password to log into the meeting. While these are not ideal gathering circumstances, we can at least enjoy a chance to commune together briefly.
Confirmation Classes
Sundays, April 14 and 28, at 11:45 am • Rainbow Room
Confirmation is voluntary for youth, grades 6 and up, who would like to confirm their faith. At baptism we promise to “place in [your child’s] hands the Holy Scripture and provide for their education in the Christian Faith.” In confirmation class we study scripture, the Reformation, and Christian history, but we are more interested in helping young people develop as persons of faith.
Please contact Pastor Jeff at pr.jeff@lchwelcome.org for more information.
LCH Women’s Book Club
Monday, April 15, at 12:30 pm • In-Person at the Murashige’s Home and Via Zoom Meeting
LCH Women’s Book Club will meet on Monday, April 15, at the Murashige’s home. We will conclude our Odyssey study by watching Oh Brother, Where Art Thou. Please come between 12:30 and 1:00 pm. We’d like to start the movie at 1:00 pm.
If you are not already on the Book Club list, please contact Juditha Murashige at jcmurashige@earthlink.net to receive an invitation to join them. All are welcome.
The streets come alive with a procession of palm, dance and our LCH members. Hossana, Hossana blessed is he come comes in the name of the Lord!Writers’ Workshop
Monday, April 15, at 4:30 pm • Via Zoom Meeting
Writers’ Workshop will continue to meet via Zoom meeting. All are welcome! If you would like to participate, please contact Peter Flachsbart at pflachsbart@gmail.com for information on how to connect remotely. Mahalo!
IHS Sandwich Making
Thursday, March 15, 12:00–2:00 pm • Isenberg Hall
LCHers will again convene to prepare sandwiches and pack sack lunches for distribution at Institution for Human Services (IHS). This continues a tradition stretching back decades. We meet monthly and could use a few new, dependable volunteers to join our dedicated group. Please join us. Mahalo!
If you would like to participate in this action-packed, fun activity, please let Brenda know at lch@LCHwelcome.org. She will pass your contact info on to event organizers.
Compline
Sunday, April 21 , at 7:30 pm • In-person and Via Livestream Broadcast
We warmly invite all people in all places of faith and life to Compline. This beautiful candle-lit service is a meditative experience of a cappella singing and chanting to commemorate the day’s end. Led by members of the LCH Men’s Schola, musical selections include Gregorian chant, Taizé chant, Renaissance polyphony, and more.
Compline is sung only on the third Sunday of the month from September through May. For those not attending in person, Compline will be livestreamed on our Worship Services page and the LCH Facebook page.
Keane and family following the March First Mondays Concert.Seeking Volunteers & Donations for One Pot, One Hope
Saturday, April 27, at 9:00 am • Maluhia Lutheran Church in Wai‘anae
The One Pot, One Hope ministry, a Hukilau project, continues each month at Maluhia Lutheran Church in Wai‘anae. Please consider participating by joining the volunteers, at the next meet-up.
You can also contribute by donating 5-lb. cans of chili, cartons of granola bars, or large jars of peanut butter or jelly; or you can support this outreach with funds either by check or via the LCH Donate page. (Be sure to designate donation for One Pot, One Hope.) Food items may be dropped off during coffee hour on Sundays or left at the office during open hours. Contact Billie Jean Reis or Linda Muller with any questions. Mahalo for assisting with this mission to provide meals to our neighbors.
Food for Thought
Saturday, April 27, at 5:30 pm • Hörmann’s Home
Food for Thought meets at the home of David Hörmann, who will provide the main dish, while others are asked to bring side dishes or dessert to complete the potluck. If you would like to participate virtually, please contact Peter Flachsbart at pflachsbart@gmail.com to receive an invitation for the next Zoom meeting. If you wish to come in person, contact Marlise Tellander at marlisetellander@hotmail.com. Those who plan to come in person should be vaccinated.
New LGBT+ Caregivers Support Group
Tuesdays at 8:30 am • Island Brew Coffee House
A new support group for LGBT+ caregivers has begun to meet every Tuesday morning at Island Brew Coffee House, t1108 Auahi Street in Ward Village, across from Whole Foods. Free parking. For more information, contact Pam Vessels at pamvessels@icloud.com.
Regular Offerings
If you are not attending church in person, you are encouraged to mail your offering check directly to the church: Lutheran Church of Honolulu, 1730 Punahou Street, Honolulu HI 96822. If you would like to set up regular electronic funds transfer from your checking or savings account, forms are available at www.lchwelcome.org/support or can be requested by email to LCH@LCHwelcome.org. If you prefer to make a one time contribution or ongoing pledge by credit card, there is a link in the bottom right corner of each page of the church website or you can go directly to www.lchwelcome.org/donate. Thank you!
Isenberg Hall Window Replacement
The LCH council authorized the replacement of the windows in Isenberg Hall. The old tilt-out windows were in dire shape and suffering from rot, and two windows had been removed to accommodate window air conditioners that were no longer needed. Rich Mundell and Pastor Jeff removed all eight old window assemblies and reframed the openings with lumber recycled from the packing crates of the new windows. They also made custom trim from the same lumber.
The new windows provide a great deal more natural light into the hall and open top and bottom for additional ventilation. As a safety feature, the glass in the bottom windows is tempered for shatter resistance. Window coverings and blackout shades will be added in the future as funds are available. We hope you enjoy the new windows!
LCH Workday a Great Success!
Mahalo nui loa to all who participated in the LCH workday March 15th. Many much-needed projects were completed, including painting the trim around the newly installed windows in Isenberg Hall, trimming of trees in the lower parking lot, brickwork to seal up a closet, cleaning out storage areas, window cleaning, wall repair and painting in the Boardroom, power washing walkways, and sorting of files. We also transplanted keiki trees that had grown from our mature plantings from 2010. These transplants are available for you to plant at your home!
These projects could not have been done without the wonderful volunteers at LCH. Thank you to Rich Mundell and Pastor Jeff for coordinating this effort.
HeartBeat Deadline
Tuesday, April 16, 9:00 am
Betty H., Chuck H. and Nan W., Chuck P. and Josie B., Colleen K., Don J., Dutton S., Elaine, George T., Greg G., Harold W., Irene M., James T., Jane H., Mabel D., Michael, Miriam S., the family of Ruth S., Salina R., Star W., Yvonne and Andy M.
Please help us to keep the Prayer Requests list relevant. If you have a friend or loved one who should remain on the list, we are glad to keep them in prayer. Please email the office to let us know when a name may be removed from the list.
