Newest Posts

• ELCA Bishop Curry Releases Statement on Iran War
  8 Mar 2026
  

  Bishop Curry Issues Statement on Iran War MARCH 4, 2026 Dear siblings in Christ, They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation; neither shall they learn war any more (Isaiah 2:4). In our Lenten journey, we are reminded of our dependence on God, and we are sustained by hope in the future peace God has promised. As war involving the United States, Israel and Iran intensifies and spreads, we lament how far off that promise seems. We do not know how many people have been killed, but we know the number will continue to grow. Early reports indicate that more than 100 Iranian schoolgirls and several U.S. service members are among them. The church of Jesus Christ is called to proclaim the peace of God’s eternal reign and to work for an earthly peace here and now. The ELCA social message “Living in a Time of Terrorism” states that this earthly peace is a “precious yet fragile good.” Its existence depends on leaders who prioritize diplomacy over military engagement and deterrence over war, and on citizens who hold government accountable whenever military action is considered. With many of you, I am distressed that a robust, public discernment through congressional authorization did not occur prior to the United States’ engagement in this war. As Lutherans, we affirm that government and the order that just laws provide are gifts of God for our safety and well-being. This war does not represent the promotion of this just order but rather its failure. The costs in lives and safety of this failure will be borne by those least able to avoid it — children, families and those without the means to flee.  Its deadly toll has been, and will continue to be, paid with the lives of our neighbors, including our siblings in Christ in the Middle East. This moment underscores the urgent need for robust, well-resourced diplomatic and humanitarian efforts. Our companions in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land have asked our church to pray fervently for peace and safety and to advocate for the dignity and security of all people. ELCA Witness in Society will continue to provide opportunities for this advocacy. As members of the body of Christ, join me in prayerful, hopeful solidarity with our siblings and neighbors who suffer today. Together, we mourn the rush to war and the combatants and noncombatants who have lost their lives. We yearn for creation’s fulfillment in “a new heaven and a new earth” where death and pain “will be no more” (Revelation 21:1, 4). We strive for justice and peace in all the earth, strengthened by faith in the crucified and risen Lord to persist. We trust that, through God who sustains us, our weariness and fear will not overcome us. In Christ, The Rev. Yehiel Curry Presiding Bishop Evangelical Lutheran Church in America  

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• Third Sunday in Lent
  8 Mar 2026
  

  In today’s gospel the Samaritan woman asks Jesus for water, an image of our thirst for God. Jesus offers living water, a sign of God’s grace flowing from the waters of baptism. The early church used this gospel and those of the next two Sundays to deepen baptismal reflection during the final days of preparation before baptism at Easter. As we journey to the resurrection feast, Christ comes among us in word, bath, and meal—offering us the life-giving water of God’s mercy and forgiveness.

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• Second Sunday in Lent
  1 Mar 2026
  

  During Lent we journey with all those around the world who will be baptized at the Easter Vigil. In today’s gospel Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born of water and Spirit. At the font we are a given a new birth as children of God. As God made a covenant with Abraham, in baptism God promises to raise us up with Christ to new life. From worship we are sent forth to proclaim God’s love for all the world.

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• First Sunday in Lent
  22 Feb 2026
  

  oday’s gospel tells of Jesus’ temptation in the desert. His forty-day fast becomes the basis of our Lenten pilgrimage. In the early church, Lent was a time of intense preparation for those to be baptized at the Easter Vigil. This catechetical focus on the meaning of faith is at the heart of our Lenten journey to the baptismal waters of Easter. Hungry for God’s mercy, we receive the bread of life to nourish us for the days ahead.

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• Shepherd’s Table Community Dinner – All Are Welcome (02/25/2026)
  19 Feb 2026
  

  Join us at St. Mark for a free community dinner, no RSVP required. This “all are welcome” meal is offered in honor of a member’s son and in the spirit of Luke 14:12–14: sharing food, community, and grace with anyone in need.

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• Transfiguration of Our Lord
  15 Feb 2026
  

  Today’s festival is a bridge between the Advent-Christmas-Epiphany cycle that comes to a close today and the Lent-Easter cycle that begins in several days. On a high mountain Jesus is revealed as God’s beloved Son, echoing the words at his baptism. This vision of glory sustains us as Jesus faces his impending death in Jerusalem. We turn this week to Ash Wednesday and our yearly baptismal journey from Lent to Easter. Some churches put aside the alleluia at the conclusion of today’s liturgy. This word of joy will be omitted during the penitential season of Lent and will be sung again at Easter.

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• Fifth Sunday after Epiphany
  8 Feb 2026
  

  Isaiah declares that when we loose the bonds of injustice and share our bread with the hungry, the light breaks forth like the dawn. In another passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus, the light of the world, calls his followers to let the light of their good works shine before others. Through baptism we are sent into the world to shine with the light of Christ.

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