A New Way to Share Communion

The weather and the pandemic have forced us to return to online worship, but that doesn’t mean we need to do things exactly like we did during the height of the lockdown. One thing most of us missed dearly was the sacrament of Holy Communion. As we return to worshipping together from a distance, this time we will not stop sharing in the Lord’s Supper together. Allow me to explain how that will work.

The altar guild is preparing home communion kits for every household. Inside these kits are a small chalice and paten, as well as 20 communion wafers and your choice of wine or grape juice. Gluten-free kits will be available upon request. Starting on November 8th, when you tune in to Sunday worship, you can prepare your part of our table together by putting a few wafers on the paten and pouring wine or juice into the chalice. When the time comes, one of us pastors will direct you to join us as we share in communion together.

Starting on Monday, November 2nd, you can come to the church to pick up your kit during office hours, which are Monday - Friday, 9am-1pm. You can also come any time between 9am and 8pm on Wednesdays. If you are unable to pick one up, we have plenty of volunteers who are eager to bring one to you. Simply call the church to request a kit, and one will be delivered to your door. These kits will last you about a month. Refill kits will be available when you are running low on supplies.

This initiative is meant to extend the table we share together. I ask that you only partake in communion with these elements when you are participating in an online worship service officiated by an ordained pastor. If you cannot watch the service live, you can still join us in sharing the body and blood of our savior when you are able. It has always been true that when we come to the Lord’s table, we commune not just with those physically present, but with all the saints around the world and across the span of time. The elements you prepare will be considered consecrated when you hear the words of institution, which begin with, “In the night in which he was betrayed…”

We provide these kits so that you will not have to pull the elements of our common sacrament from your own kitchen cabinets. Christ is present in this sacrament, not because we have the necessary elements at the ready, but because of God’s hospitable love. The stoneware, too, can help elevate this holy food above an ordinary meal in your home. I pray that the kits the church is providing can fill you with God’s mercy and unite us as the Body of Christ.

When this pandemic is behind us and you are able to return to the sanctuary to worship, I ask that you return the chalice and paten to the church at your convenience. I imagine, though, that both online worship and home communion kits will be available to you long after we have returned to the sanctuary, as a service to any who are unable to worship in person for any number of reasons. I should mention, too, that this is not meant to replace a visit with a pastor, but only to supplement participation in an online service. You can still request a visit with a pastor whenever you need.

I would like to thank the Worship & Music Committee, the Altar Guild, the Council, and the Staff for their hard work in making this new form of communion a reality for us all.

An Important Worship Update

 Dear friends,

At last night’s council meeting, we finalized our pandemic guidelines and worship plans for the rest of the year. The guidelines seem to be constantly shifting, and at times we have been getting mixed messages from the state and the county. We have adapted well to these changes, and it is my hope that we can have even more clarity going forward. Our plan is similar to other ELCA churches in the Rockford area.

For the most part, the guidelines that affect us are those that mandate capacity limits in social gatherings. At the moment, that limit has been set by the state at 10 people or fewer. As long as our small groups can stick to that limit, while also following all guidelines for social distancing, you can still gather at St. Mark. Our capacity limit will always be what the State of Illinois has set for social gatherings, and we will do our best to let you know when that number changes. Unless a full lockdown is implemented again, or a major breakout occurs in our congregation, we plan to have the building open for all groups that are able to follow the guidelines we have had since mid-summer.

When it comes to worship, we are a bit more limited. Our drive-in worship has been a huge success, and it has allowed us to gather in larger numbers than if we were indoors. I am so thankful to all who made it possible these last two months. The weather dictates if we can meet, though. Travel advisories, storm warnings, and freezing temperatures all would cause us to cancel outdoor worship, and this Sunday morning is likely to be too cold. Outdoor worship is no longer a reliable first option, and so it is time to say goodbye to that form of worship unless we have a necessary constitutional reason to gather in person.

As far as worshipping inside, It simply isn’t feasible to have in-person worship unless the capacity limit is at 50 or more. Anything smaller, and we will certainly be turning away more people than those we can allow to worship. So, as soon as we are able to have 50 people in one room, we will return to in-person worship, with strict social distancing guidelines in place.

Until then, Sunday worship will look much like it did this past week; streamed live from the sanctuary with only our leaders present. However, there will be one major difference starting November 8th. The Worship & Music Committee, Altar Guild, Council, and staff have all been working hard to give us a way to share in communion while worshipping at a distance. This is one aspect of our worship that I do not want to lose as we return to online services. Beginning next Monday, we will have home communion kits available for which you can pick-up at church, or have delivered to your home. More details about these kits will be in tomorrow’s Memos. I should also mention that your pastors are always available by appointment to give you the sacrament. Pastor Chuck is available for home visits, and Pastor Robert and I can meet you at the church. Simply call the office to make an appointment. And, if you know anyone who has limited access to the internet and our online services, please direct them our way.

One final thing: The holiday season is right around the corner! We plan to prepare online services for Thanksgiving Eve, Christmas Eve, and Epiphany, as well as our annual Christmas Concert. There is more, though. Plans are underway for a Living Nativity event on December 19th, and on Christmas Eve, we will have multiple brief, outdoor worship services throughout the day. It promises to be a unique yet meaningful experience, and we will let you know more as we get closer to that holy day.

Thank you so much for your patience and grace in this difficult year. I pray you are well, and I hope we are able to be together again soon.

Peace,

Pastor Chad

Confirmation Sunday

It’s that time of year again, where a number of our teenagers move into a new chapter in their faith journey. This Sunday, October 25th, nine students will affirm their faith during worship. These nine spent the past two years in our confirmation program, attending retreats, gathering on Wednesday nights, and forming friendships in our congregation. Each of them is unique, and each understands their faith in different ways. As many Christians traditionally do, they have all selected a verse from the Bible that speaks to them at this moment in their lives. Whether you know them or not, I am sure you will get a small sense of who they are based on the scripture they have chosen. Take some time to read these verses, and join me in both celebrating and praying for these young people of faith.

Reagan Egler

Proverbs 3:6

In all your ways acknowledge the Lord, and God will make straight your paths.

 

Darby Fee

1 Timothy 4:12 

Let no one look down on you because of your youth, but set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

 

Ashley Ferry

2 Timothy 3:14-15

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

 

Zachery Hinrichs

Romans 5:3-5

We also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

 

Emma James 

Psalms 139:14

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works that I know very well.

 

Sara Koshi

James 1:2-4

Whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing.

 

Connor Schroeder

Romans 15:13

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

Emily Sluis

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Never rely on what you think you know. Remember the Lord in everything you do, and He will show you the right way.

 The peace of Jesus Christ be with you,

 Pastor Chad McKenna

Remembering Dorothy

Today, Pastor Chuck Olson shares his experience caring for a St. Mark member who sadly died this summer. Pastor Chuck serves as our visitation pastor, and this past week the staff recognized his four years of ministry to our homebound members. If you or a member of your family are unable to leave home and in need of pastoral care, he is more than eager to connect with you either over the phone or in person. He always has his communion kit with him, should you be in need of the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. If you are not homebound but in need of pastoral care, Pastor Robert and I are also available to meet with anyone who asks. We can also provide communion, especially if you have been unable to join us for worship on Sunday mornings. 

You can call the church office at (815) 398-3557 to schedule an appointment with any of us pastors.

-Pastor Chad McKenna

When I became St. Mark’s Pastor for Pastoral Care in October of 2016, one of the first homebound people I met was Dorothy Brommerich. 

As I called on her at her home, the first thing I noticed was her oxygenator, and yards of oxygen tubing throughout her home. My heart went out to her, and at every visit her health, and especially her breathing, were on my mind. 

Along the way I visited her when she was hospitalized. I saw her at East Bank for rehab. And I learned about her life. 

Dorothy joined St. Mark in 1972 when she married Ernie. She was a pioneer and remembered much about those days. She went to work at Noble’s Grocery, there on Jefferson St, for more than thirty years. She remembered how her co-worker would lock the doors if someone were accused of shoplifting, locking them in. Dorothy would shake her head – Why would you want to be locked up with a shoplifter? And at every visit Dorothy would ask for – and cherish – the sacrament of communion. Sharing in it together was so beautifully sacred. 

At the end, her health declined quickly. Her Florida daughter Diane stayed with her. Her sons Brian, Tom and Mike united in caring for her. In her final moments, we gathered around her bed, one in prayer, one in love for Dorothy. 

Now she is no longer locked in by her health. She is freed to praise God and the Lamb for eternity. I thank God for the privilege of knowing and loving Dorothy Brommerich. 

In Peace,

Pastor Chuck Olson  

Music During COVID Season

Hello fellow members of St. Mark. Bob Rub here. I wanted to write something about how we are doing music during this pandemic time. I can tell that some are confused about it. Folks show up on Sunday and hear the organ, but there I am standing on the stage outside…. what is going on?

Truly the pandemic has changed everything and music is no exception. When we were having only online services, I did a lot of work recording and editing music. For hymns, I would record myself playing St. Mark’s pipe organ with a Zoom mp3 recorder. Then, I would email the mp3 recording to different members of the choir each week, asking if they would be willing to record their voice singing the hymns to the organ and send the recording of their voice back to me (this can be done on most cell phones). Typically, I had 3 or 4 singers each week sending me separate voice tracks. I then included vocals of my own and lined them all up on my computer using Audacity, a freeware recording program. It took some time, but I was pretty happy with the congregational sound that resulted. The special music was done the same way, with soloists, instrumentalists and accompaniment. Often, I created an arrangement myself just for the Sunday.

The Praise Band did much of the same to contribute a song each week, when services were online only. Both Chris Semmelroth and Dennis Clark put in many hours to record instrumental accompaniments, email them to singers, and then line up the vocals. It is a lot of work.

Now that we are having live services in the parking lot, editing responsibilities are less demanding, but I still record a hymn, a prelude or postlude (so it is me on the organ), arrange special music and play instrumentally with the Praise Band. As for choir and handbells, I am holding limited, socially distanced, and masked rehearsals. About 7 ringers from the bell choir have been meeting each week for rehearsal. The intention is to deliver a bell music recording at least one Sunday a month. There are more ringers in our group, but no one is pressured to meet if they feel uncomfortable about meeting. In fact, if people have compromised immunity for any reason, they are encouraged not to come. The same goes for choir.

Voices of St. Mark just began meeting on September 23. The men meet for 45 minutes (7-7:45 p.m.) each Wednesday in the Sanctuary, masked and distanced. Then the women meet similarly for 45 minutes (7:45-8:30 p.m.). When we have an anthem ready, I record the men, then women (separately) during their rehearsal time. Those who would rather record their part from home are sent the accompaniment recording and they send their vocal track to me by email. Then, I line them up using the computer. The plan is to rehearse and record about 2 anthems a month.

Finally, because we cannot have a Christmas Concert this year, I am working with Pastor Chad on planning a podcast recording to be available for viewing sometime in mid-December. The plan is to include choir, handbells, soloists, piano/organ duets, instrumentalists, and more. My (probable) theme will be “With God All Things Are Possible.” It is fitting in these times when Covid limits us. It is also a good Christmas theme, because the phrase “with God all things are possible” was spoken by Gabriel when he visited Mary to tell her she would have a son. The phrase is also applicable to each of us every day, especially now. Sometimes we don’t know what to do, but we can trust that with God all things are possible. Thank you for indulging my explanations. I always look forward to working with the wonderful volunteers and musicians at St. Mark. May God continue to bless all of our ministries.

Robert Rub