Adult Bible Study – 8:15 a.m.
Worship – 9:30 a.m.
Childcare is available for infants through preschool age, downstairs in Rooms 4 and 5.
Sunday School for Children & Youth – following worship
Sunday Seminar: “Challenges to Sustainability” – 11:00 a.m.
Facing Racism Study – 5:30 p.m.
From the Pastor/Head of Staff
Photo: The photo is of a coin box from the time the Reformation began.
Last Fall, there was a wonderful exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Art which served as a happy prelude to the Reformation. Several items on display came from the time the Reformation began, the early 1500s. Including this coin box. This would have been what the infamous preacher of indulgences, Johan Tetzel, would have had with him as traveled the landscape scaring people to death, and then offer them a way out by saying, “As soon as a coin in the coffer rings, a soul from purgatory springs.” Wow! Imagine. Salvation, for yourself, or someone else, could be had merely by giving up some money. Who would pass up such an easy exchange?
Well, Martin Luther. Standing in solidarity with his people, he saw how they were being exploited, how their fears and ignorance were being taken advantage of. And he said, “No!” Salvation cannot be bought. We cannot earn our way into heaven, or God’s grace or favor. Instead, when we give, we give in gratitude for what God has already done for us, to give thanks for how much God loves us. Join us on Sunday as we commemorate Reformation Sunday, and the ways it clarified so much that had become distorted.
Blessings, David