March 2010
From the Desk of Pastor Lassman
MAKING THE SIGN OF THE CROSS
My Fellow Redeemed in Christ,
I haven’t written an article on making the sign of the cross for some time and I thought it would be good to do so for the benefit of our newer members as well as a review for those who have been with us for awhile (aren’t you glad I didn’t say “old timers”?)
It’s sad that making the sign of the cross has become associated almost exclusively with the Roman Catholic Church. That’s too bad because the custom of making the sign of the cross was established long before the Roman Catholic denomination was established with the Council of Trent (1545 to 1563 AD). The first recorded mention of making the sign of the cross is the early church father, Tertullian who, somewhere between 197 and 206 AD refers to Christian custom of making the sign of the cross at various times during the day. In other words, this custom seems to have started first in the daily life of Christians and only later was it brought into the liturgy (5th Century). No doubt the practice started from baptismal practices and customs. It seems clear that the making the sign of the cross was in practice at least by 150 to 180 AD. Jesus died around 30 AD. There are numerous references to making the sign of the cross in the early church fathers. At first, the sign of the cross was made only on the forehead. The thumb and two fingers (pointing and middle), thus making three to symbolize the Trinity (and baptism). By the fifth century AD the practice of making the sign of the cross was expanded to include not just the forehead but also the breast and the shoulders (the form we know today). In Western Christianity the custom is to make the sign up (head), down (center of chest), left (shoulder), right (shoulder); whereas in the Eastern Orthodox Church makes it: up, down, right then left. Of course, it doesn’t really matter which way you do it.
Making the sign of the cross was a universal custom in Christendom up to the time of the Reformation in the 16th Century AD. For 1,500 years Christians made the sign of the cross. But during the Reformation, a time of upheaval in the Church, many of the “Protestants” known as “radical reformers” discontinued almost all of the customs that had developed over the first 1,500 years of the Church. They simply threw everything out and began all over again. Lutherans didn’t do this. Lutherans only threw out those customs/traditions that were contrary to the Gospel and the Scriptures but kept the ones that did not. And this included making the sign of the cross. Indeed, Martin Luther and the first Lutherans highly valued making the sign of the cross. The easiest way to prove this is just go get your copy of Luther’s Small Catechism. Look up the section on “Daily Prayers” and you will see that Luther encourages us to make the sign of the cross when we get up in the morning and when we go to bed at night.
So, what happened? Why are so many Lutherans either ignorant of this or even against it? What happened when Lutherans came to America? Several things: 1) A shortage of Lutheran pastors and deficient teaching; 2) A strong influence on Lutherans from other Protestants who don’t make the sign of the cross; 3) A strong dislike of anything that
appeared to be Roman Catholic (sound familiar?). And yet, many Lutherans in America have made the sign of the cross. Making the sign of the cross is in our new “Lutheran Service Book” (2006). But it was also in “Lutheran Worship” (1982) and “Lutheran Worship Book” (1978) and even in “The Lutheran Hymnal” (1941).
In all of these hymnals there is a sign (+) which indicates the appropriate place to make the sign of the cross. This is also indicated in the service insert in our bulletin.
Today many Lutherans are trying to reclaim their heritage by once again practicing the making of the sign of the cross. For the main reason to do this is to remember our baptism and its promises from God. Of course, making the sign of the cross is a custom and not commanded in the bible. You don’t have to do it. BUT remembering your baptism (its promises) is NOT an option. Our Lord Jesus didn’t command us to be baptized so that we would never think about it. What good is our baptism if we never think about it? Making the sign of the cross then is a devotional aid to help us remember our baptismal promises. Every morning and evening I make the sign of the cross “In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. And then I say, “I am a baptized forgiven child of God, united to the dead and resurrection of Jesus Christ. His victory if my victory.” This is a wonderful way to start and end each day. And when are on our death bed it will come more naturally to us and give us untold comfort.
In Christ,
Pastor Lassman
LENTEN MIDWEEK SERIES …continues into Easter
“THE CHRISTIAN AND CROSS BEARING”
“Anyone who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matt. 10:38)
Midweek Three (Mar. 3): “The Right Attitude For Bearing the Cross”
Midweek Four (Mar. 10): “The Purpose Of Bearing The Cross”
Midweek Five (March 17): “The Cross And Sin”
Midweek Six (March 24): “The Strength To Bear The Cross”
Wednesdays – Order of Vespers, Page 229, Lutheran Service Book
Time: 7 PM Please join us for dinner at 6 PM
Palm Sunday Service – March 28
Maundy Thursday – April 1 – 7:30 pm………………….Communion Service
Good Friday Tenebrae Service – April 2 – 7:30 pm……..Service of Darkness
Easter Vigil – April 3 – 6-9pm
Sonrise Easter Service – April 4, 7 AM
Easter Breakfast………………………………Immediately Following the 7 AM Sonrise Service
Easter Service, 10:45 AM
Youth Corner
We are firmly in the season of Lent which is a time to consider our sinful natures and mortality, while thanking God for sending His dear Son Jesus Christ to provide for the forgiveness of our sins. During this Lenten season our teens and young adults are welcome to join us after each Wednesday night service for dessert at various local pastry and ice cream shops in the immediate area. Transportation will be provided, and if parents are interested in carpooling please join us!
Please mark on your calendars June 29th – July 2nd which are the dates for our Higher Things youth conference to be held in Logan, Utah this year. The theme of this conference is “Given”. More details about this conference will be provided and you can also visit http://higherthings.org/conferences/given2010.html.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Ladies’ Night Out – Beautiful food, beautiful surroundings, beautiful companions. We would love to have dinner with you at Bai Pai Thai restaurant at 6 pm on March 22nd. Bai Pai Thai is located at 2316 NE 65th Street. RSVP to Bev Edmon.
Men’s Night Out – Monday, March 1st at 6 pm. We will be having a fiesta at Sonrisa (Modern Mexican) restaurant at 2614 NE 46th Street in the University Village. Please RSVP to Brian Danforth .
Lutheran Confessions - Come join the Confessions Reading Group as we read the Augsburg Confession and discuss it. While this isn’t a formal class we are learning about out Lutheran confession of faith, our Lutheran heritage, and about our Lutheran fathers as we read and discuss the Book of Concord. We meet in the “Youth room” upstairs at 7:00 PM every Monday starting February 1st. The Reading Group is led by Jim Pierce.
Women’s Monthly Bible Study – Monday, March 1st, at 7 pm. We will continue with The Lutheran Spirituality Series: Community. All women are welcome! Leader: Ann Melvin.
Puget Sound Pastors’ Conference. A Communion Service to open the Puget Sound Pastors’ Conference will be held at Messiah Lutheran Church Tuesday, April 13, at 7:00 PM. The congregation is invited to participate. Mark your calendar.
Join US! We are having a RAMSEY ESTATE SALE. Friday, May 21st, we will have Friends and Family Final House Party/Early Sale at the Ramsey’s. Time TBA. Saturday and Sunday (May 22 & 23), we will be having an Estate Sale. Come to laugh, share memories and maybe find a memory of Arlene you can’t live without! Mom loved to garage/estate sale shop. We think this is a fun and fitting tribute to the junk we have saved at Mom’s! Watch upcoming Sunday bulletins for more details. Michelle Ramsey-Williams
Attention High School & Jr. High Youth
Save the date! On Saturday, April 3rd we need 6-8 youth to help us set up and prepare food for the Annual Sunday Morning Easter Breakfast! We will meet at the church and work from 4-6 pm on Saturday and then go out for free pizza and soft drinks afterwards. We also need 6-8 youth to help serve Easter breakfast from 7-9 am and help bus tables that Sunday morning. Volunteers can sign up in advance on the youth bulletin board. All Easter breakfast proceeds go to supporting Messiah youth programs. PARENTS are welcome to volunteer, as well.
ATTENTION HUSBANDS & WIVES: What is the most important thing you can give your children? A model of your own loving relationship! Lutheran Marriage Encounter is offering one more opportunity this spring for married couples to spend a weekend away from daily pressures and responsibilities to discover a warmer, closer relationship with each other. The upcoming date is
April 23-25 in Tukwila, WA.
To register for a weekend, simply go to the Marriage Encounter website: www.GodLovesMarriage.org. If you have questions or would like a brochure with registration form, please contact:Carl & Dallas Anne Presley, carl.presley@comcast.net, 206-522-6849. Sign up today to ensure that you can attend the April weekend. Additional weekends will not be available until the fall.
Please give each other the best gift of all--yourselves!
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
HELP WANTED – Messiah part time, paid, temporary job opening for Church Secretary. If you are interested in this position, please contact the Church Office at (206) 524-0024. This position is designed to assist the acting Parish Administrator, Kathee McAlpine and has a closing date of Monday, March 15th.
APRIL Messenger deadline is March 21st.
LOST & FOUND: There are a few coats, hats, scarves and other miscellaneous items downstairs in the coat closet outside the Fellowship Hall. Please take a peek and see if you have forgotten something at church! All items that are not spoken for by March 31st will be donated to the Concordia Rummage Sale.
NEW EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY: The Book of Acts – Luke’s account of the beginning of the LORD’S church – the continuation of spreading the Gospel – a bridge between the four Gospels and the Epistles. Class will begin March 11th at 7:00 PM upstairs in the Youth room. Class will be taught by Jim Grant.
COOKIES THAT ARE MORE THAN JUST DELICIOUS!
On most Sundays at Messiah, the Narthex is filled with the delightful smell of baking cookies. However, our cookie production does more than just make the mouth water, and make the kids bug their parents for $1.
Our sale of cookies started as part of our fundraising for the building of the education wing in 1994-95. However, after that project was done, the cookies were so popular we continued to bake them and put the proceeds into the cookie fund. Spending of money from this fund is be approved by the Council. And believe it or not, we have done amazing things with this fund. Look around the next time you are in the church kitchen. The freezer, refrigerator, and two stoves were all purchased with cookie money! This year the cookie money went outside of our walls. Mekane Jesus Lutheran Church, our sister congregation that serves the Seattle Ethiopian community, needed a way to produce music to accompany the congregation when an organist was not available. The cookie fund was used to buy them a license for the Lutheran Service Builder software that can produce text and organ music for the liturgy and hymns from our Lutheran Service Book onto a CD. We also bought them a laptop and projector, which they can hook into their existing sound system. Now they are able to project the words on a screen and have the recorded organ music played for their services.
So, the next time you buy cookies please remember that not only are you feeding the physical "needs" (or wants) of your body, but your are also helping the physical needs of our ministry.
SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWS
from Bob Guthrie
Look out your window and you can see spring is here, and that means it is time for the children’s Easter service. This year “RESURRECTION EGGS” is the title of the service. The children will earn their songs during the regular Sunday morning opening. We will practice on Saturday morning April 3rd, beginning at 10 am and finishing by 12 pm.
Please have your children in their classroom on Easter Sunday morning by 9 am.
CONCORDIA NEWS
from Dave Meyer
L.E.S.T. Update:
Concordia would like to send their appreciation for all the support of their students at L.E.S.T. To put this into perspective, our school sent our entire middle school of under 20 students to compete, where other schools have 20 students in one grade! Our smaller school does a fantastic job of representing their wonderful talents from Concordia Seattle.
2010 WINNERS!
Champion of Character: Nate Hartman
Boys A Basketball – 2nd Place
Spelling – Niko Purcell, 2nd Place, 5th grade
Authentic Writing – Kyla Gray, 1st Place, 8th grade
Chess- Ryan Okabyashi, 6th (out of 20), 6th grade
Knowledge Bowl – Gemma Wilson, Ryan Okabayanshi, Yissak Yoseph, Nate Hartman, Alex Miller & Cody Jones, raised our points by 100 over 2009.
Upcoming Concordia Events
March 1-5 National Lutheran Schools Week
11 3rd Trimester of school begins
12 No school – Teachers In-Service Day
16 Community Night – 6:30 pm
26 PSLS Knowledge Bowl
29- April 2 Spring Break
May 1 – Concordia PTL Rummage Sale
Concordia Lutheran School’s Annual Auction
Calling all church members!
Save the date of Saturday, April 24, 2010
For Concordia Lutheran School’s Annual Auction.
The Auction’s theme this year is “RELEASE”
Please plan to join us for this community event.
Look on the table downstairs in the Fellowship Hall for more details.
Deaconess Diary
My apologies that you didn't hear from me last month, I missed the deadline because I was sick with whatever was going around here at the seminary.
Since I last wrote, the decision was made to postpone the trip to Haiti. Instead, some professors will accompany a medical mission in June, delivering supplies and much needed care to Port au Prince and Les Cayes. God willing, there will be another opportunity to serve in Haiti in the future.
Lent has always been one of my favorite seasons in the church year. Hearing about my Savior's work as the Suffering Servant brings a special closeness to Him. What wonderful blessings we have through our Lutheran church liturgy--I have been thinking about something I learned in Lutheran Confessions I. The fourth article of the Augsburg Confession says: "Faith is that worship which receives God’s offered blessing; the righteousness of the law is that worship which offers God our own merits." Isn't it truly wonderful that we don't have to try to offer anything to God for His great love toward us? Lent reminds us of how great Jesus' sacrifice actually was and what He has given to us.
As you may know, my studies include visiting shut-in members of my field work church. The dear 86-year-old lady I had been visiting in a rest home here in Fort Wayne died on December 28. I attended her funeral and committal on December 30. Though I will miss her, I look forward to seeing her again in heaven.
There's only one more week in winter quarter. Spring quarter starts on March 15, and I'm considering attending summer school, too. I hope that sometime during the next few months I can see you all again.
May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ bless your worship during this Lenten season.
Your sister in Christ,
Gail Ludvigson
CURRENT AND UPCOMING BIBLE STUDIES
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FELLOWSHIP HALL BIBLE CLASS
WHAT: “Revelation”
WHEN: Sunday Mornings 9:20 a.m.
WHERE: Fellowship Hall
INSTRUCTOR: Pastor Lassman
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HIGH SCHOOL BIBLE CLASS SUNDAY MORNINGS
WHAT: “Growing in Christ”
WHEN: Sunday Mornings 9:20 a.m.
WHERE: Youth Room-Room 202
INSTRUCTOR: Vicar Mankin
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YOUNG ADULTS
WHAT: Devotion and Fellowship
WHEN: 1st and 3rd Sundays, 5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Lounge
INSTRUCTOR: Vicar Mankin
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HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH NIGHT
WHAT: Devotion and Fellowship
WHEN: 2nd and 4th Sundays, 5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Youth Room
INSTRUCTOR: Vicar Mankin
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MONDAY EVENING MARY/MARTHA BIBLE STUDY
WHAT: Women’s Bible Study “The Lutheran Spirituality Series: Community”
WHEN: First Monday of February: Feb 1 at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Lounge
INSTRUCTOR: Ann Melvin
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MONDAY EVENING STUDY
WHAT: “Lutheran Confessions”
WHEN: Every Monday Evening, 7 p.m.
WHERE: Youth Room-Room 202
LEADER: Jim Pierce
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THURSDAY BIBLE STUDY
WHAT: “2 Corinthians”
WHEN: Thursday Mornings, 10:30 a.m. Exception: No Class 3rd Thursday
WHERE: Fellowship Hall
INSTRUCTOR: Pastor Lassman
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THURSDAY EVENING BIBLE STUDY
WHAT: “Acts”
WHEN: Begins MARCH 11, Thursday Evenings, 7:00 p.m.
WHERE: Youth Room-Room 202
LEADER: Jim Grant
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ADULT INFORMATION CLASS
WHAT: A 15-week course on basic Christian teachings
WHEN: Thursday Evenings, 7:00 p.m. New Class began January 28th
WHERE: Fellowship Hall
INSTRUCTOR: Pastor Lassman
Social Ministry News
WE SHARE BECAUSE WE CARE ABOUT OTHERS
Margaret Sywester
Our Congregation, Messiah Lutheran, as well as Compass Cascade and Immanuel Lutheran help some of Seattle’s homeless. Although it may be very tiring for us to buy something now and then for the homeless, the items we buy are very much necessities. This month we are gathering Women’s Hygiene supplies. If you can, please put these items in our lounge basket. If you are not able to do this, perhaps you will be able to in the future. Please take a slip of paper from the lounge basket, which lists each monthly item. Thank you for helping some of Seattle, homeless.
Please place used eye glasses in the box in the lounge. The Lion’s club will distribute them to people in need; nationally
and internationally.
Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML) News
Ladies Guild Luncheon – “Anything Goes”
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
12:00 Noon
Bring a Casserole, Salad or ? to share
Don’t forget your MITE box for Missions
Project Day
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
9:30 am - 1:30 pm
Bring a sack lunch
Olympic Zone LWML “JOYSHOP”
Mary Martha Ministries (Evening LWML) and Ladies Guild (Afternoon LWML) are hosting the Olympic Zone LWML JOYSHOP
DATE: Saturday, April 17, 2010
TIME: 9:30 AM –1:00 PM
PLACE: Messiah Lutheran Church
SPEAKER: Kristin Smith. Kristin will share her dedication and enthusiasm for Mission Work as a long-term volunteer in Poland.
Mission Opportunity Collection of heath kits for DSHS. (More Details in the April Messenger)
College Scholarships Available
Women preparing for full-time church work in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, and are registered with an LCMS University or expecting to be accepted in such a program for the fall of 2010 may apply. See last months Messenger for details or call Pastor Lassman or Margie Longan, Application deadline - must be postmarked by March 15, 2010.
Mite Boxes
Don’t forget the last Sunday of the month is the day to bring in your mite boxes. Drop your box in the basket at the back of the Sanctuary and pick up another one. Your change goes a long way in supporting Lutheran mission activities around the world.
Washington/Alaska District LWML Convention
Plan to attend! More information will be in the March Messenger
June 18-20, 2010
Spokane, WA
Mark your calendars NOW! Plan to Attend!
Mary-Martha Ministries
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. Luke 10:38-39.
Monthly Women's Bible Study
We will continue the "The Lutheran Spirituality Series: Community" study. This month's study will be led by Vicar Mankin. All women of Messiah are welcome.
Monday, February 1st, 7:00pm. Leader: Ann Melvin.
Annual Prayer Tree Luncheon and Meeting
Annual luncheon and meeting will be on March 21st at 12:00 Noon in the Fellowship Hall. Please bring your Prayer Tree Notebooks. Those interested in learning more about the Prayer Tree Ministry are cordially invited to attend with no obligation to join.
Please R.S.V.P. to Stephanie Colbert.
