St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church Summit Hill Pa.

Join us on Sunday for worship service via Zoom. Message from Pastor Marjorie Keiter: Worship opportunity for Sunday 9:00 am: We are Zooming worship so please contact Sherri or Pastor for information.

God’s and my beloved, I have had to say no to making a pastoral visit during COVID time, especially now when the virus is running rampant. I’ve seen FB posts in which folks are really angry at those who won’t wear masks or wear them incorrectly. And right now, I’m angry too. Angry because I am not safe doing the work I love and am called to do because both my husband and I are in the high risk category and that virus is rampant. We were told over and over again by respected ...physicians and scientists that wearing a mask, keeping our distance, refraining from being with non-household members, and of course, hand washing would help slow the spread of COVID. And for awhile, many followed these rules until some got tired of doing it while others weren’t at all doing it. And then, despite dire warnings and predictions, folks had lovely Thanksgiving celebrations, some birthday parties, and other gatherings with non-household members, and here we are, not able to celebrate Christmas in our beautifully decorated buildings and here I am, unable to enter a nursing home or other dwelling to be with the dying. And I’m angry and trying hard not to be judgmental and unforgiving; but it’s hard! Please, please, do the right thing! Stop thinking it’s OK to gather, or go unmasked. It is NOT OK. In addition to causing me such anguish, behaving unsafely has cost lives, and jobs, and hampered education, and hurt our country in ways we might never fully know. PLEASE, show love for each other, love for neighbor, and wear that mask correctly, keep safe distancing, wash your hands, and help us all be safe. See more

As we draw closer to Christmas Eve, I’m remembering how sad we were not worshipping together for Easter. None of us ever thought we’d be back in the throes of the pandemic raging in December. Our worship together has changed: we’ve stared at screens, held our phones, smiled under masks even when outdoors. But we’ve still worshipped God as difficult as it might be in COVID time. Christmas this year will not be like other years. Many of us won’t be able to be with familyholy s...uppers will be decidedly different. And church buildings won't, and can’t, be filled with festive families lining the pews. In order for us to gather, yes gather, safely and even be able to singwhat would Christmas worship be without singing?this year we are invited to surround Ludlow Park in Summit Hill in our cars. The service will come through on car radios, able to be received blocks away so there’s no limit to how many can join in worship. (If the weather is conducive, those who wish to sit in the park (masked and well-spaced out, of course) are more than welcome to do so! Remember the days of walking around singing Christmas carolswe didn’t seem to mind the cold! The service will be led from the gazebo and also aired over Zoom as well as the radio. We know it’s not the same, but it may be one of the most special Christmas Eve services ever if we open our hearts to God’s presence in new ways. And I get a catch my breath feeling as I think of us stepping from cars (masked, please) into the night to lift our voices together in Silent Night, Holy Night. Bring a battery candle (or a real one and a way to light it), and fill the air with this lovely carol. Christmas Eve worship is at 7 PM in/around Ludlow Park, Summit Hill, and on Zoom. Contact Pastor Marjorie for Zoom information. Like Comment Share

Here's Kathleen Kerin's sermon for this past Sunday (11/15). I love that she used one of Josh's poems! Good Morning! May the peace of Christ fill your hearts with a good word this morning and may our worship bind us together as the people of God; loved and cherished in the very soul of our Creator and Redeemer. In Jesus’ name. AMEN Today’s gospel places us in an awful space between a rock and a hard place. Using judgement rather than grace, the third servant appears to be c...Continue reading

Look with mercy upon the peoples of the world, so full of both pride and confusion, so sure of their righteousness and so deeply involved in unrighteousness, so confident of their power and so imprisoned by their fears of each other. Have mercy upon our own nation, called to such high responsibilities in the affairs of humankind. Purge us of the vainglory which confuses our counsels, and give our leaders and our people the wisdom of humility and charity. Help us to recognize ...our own affinity with whatever truculence or malice confronting us that we may not add to the world’s woes by the fury of our own resentments. Give your Church the grace in this time to be as a saving remnant among the nations, reminding all people of the divine majesty under whose judgment they stand, and of the divine mercy of which they and we have a common need. (from Reinhold Niebuhr, Justice and Mercy, edited by Ursula M. Niebuhr (New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1974), pp. 97-98.) See more

Pr. Martin Eldred of Holy Cross Lutheran Church Herndon VA offers today's reflection in our synod's post-election 10 Days of Prayer series. To read Pr. Eldred'...s reflection, please use the following link: http://metrodcelca.org/postnov11/ #WeareMetroDCSynod #prayplaybemore

Loved Ones, When I was a child, patience was not one of my virtues. I was the kid who couldn’t wait for the daywhatever day, birthday or Christmas. I often felt faint on Christmas morning in church (yes, we used to do that!) because the eagerness for the day had exhausted me. And one of my clearest memories is of the box (with a doll inside) I found with my parents’ permission the night before my birthday because I was almost ill needing to celebrate. Yes, I’ll admit to ...being weird! As as adult, I have learned to be more patient, most of the time. And though I believe most of us know that, we’re still finding ourselves a bit on edge about the election results. And we have to wait. Waiting is hard. Soon the church year will enter the season of Advent, when we both remember waiting for the coming of the Messiah and we look ahead to seeing Jesus (either in heaven or on earth). The color used in worship changed from the purple paraments of my youth to blue. Blue the color of the skynot a political party. I once heard that the blue should remind us of the coming dawn because once the sun rises the blue becomes lighter. Advent means coming. Isn’t that where we are at this moment, looking for what is coming? Looking at the election map this morning with final results still to come, I am thinking we should remember Advent color used to be purplethe color we use in Lent, the more penitential season. It seems our nation needs to become purple, a combination of blue and red. Blue the color of sadness or hope; red the color of anger or energy. What would we be as a people if we were to combine together? Might we become penitent for the harm we do because of division, prejudice, anger? People of God, this is what we are called to dorepent our sinfulness and then learn to love each other, lift up those who are downtrodden, see each other as bearing the image of God. As we waithopefully more patiently than impatientlymay we spend time in prayer that whatever the final count, we learn to work together in love for the good of all creation, this globe we call home and all its inhabitants! A noteI’m trying to take some much needed vacation, so I’ll probably be posting sporadically. Thank you for being patient with me.