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Beliefs, Values, Mission, and Vision.
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In
Memoriam |
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Our
Congregation mourns the passing of our dear Saint,
Agnes E. Mundy,
who died in Faith on April 16, 2008. |
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Please
click here to
view the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer on-line obituary and sign the
on-line Guest Book. |
Relay
For Life®
— May 16th and 17th
Amount
donated via St. Matthew as of April 30th: $1,013.80
 In
2007, with our youth leading the way, Saint Matthew Church surpassed
our Relay For Life goal and raised $2,536.50
to help find a cure for cancer.
Many of
our congregation members are cancer survivors—living proof of
the strides made in the fight against cancer—but too many of our
dear Saints have lost the battle to cancer. We must continue the
fight to find the cure.
With
Penny Tadsen spearheading the Saint
Matthew Lutheran Church Youth Team
this year, we can do better than last year. Yes
we can!
Here is
what Penny recently told our congregation:
"I've
decided to take action against cancer by participating in the
American Cancer Society Relay For Life® event right here in my
community. Relay For Life® is about celebration, remembrance, and
hope. By participating, I am honoring cancer survivors, paying
tribute to the lives we've lost to the disease, and raising money to
help fight it." [Webmaster
note: Alan Tadsen's Mother and Penny Tadsen's Father died of cancer.]
Please
support this important cause by making a donation on behalf of Penny
or the Saint Matthew Lutheran Church
Youth Team. It is faster and easier
than ever to make a secure, tax-deductible donation on-line.
Click
to visit Penny's
Personal Page then click on the My
Team Page
star to go to our Youth Team page. Please make a donation on either
page—or both pages. Whatever you can give will help—it all
adds up! Thanks!
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Pastor's
Message for May
 Dear
Saints:
After
six faithful years of serving as our Tuesday Morning Bible Study
teacher, the Rev. Harry Carlsen has decided he must give more time to
his other responsibilities. Both he and his wife, Dorothy, have
served St. Matthew in various ways during the twelve years they have
been associated with our congregation, and now we wish them Godspeed.
Pastor
Harry has received a call to St. Mary Magdalene Episcopal Church
here in Columbus as a permanent supply pastor, and also will be doing
emergency coverage for the Rev. Doug Hahn, of St. Thomas Episcopal
Church, when he soon leaves on a three month sabbatical. I have
included below the letter from St. Matthew given to them as a framed
gift this past Tuesday at the Bible study. I and Bob Young, our newly
elected Council President, signed it as representatives of our congregation.
Click here to
continue reading the Pastor's Message.
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Confirmation
Class of 2008
Confirmation
Class with Pastor Barksdale after Conformation on Palm Sunday, March
16, 2008.
Confirmands:
Christopher Forestiere, Matthew Mejia, and Kyle Phillips.
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ELCA–Southeastern
Synod News
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A
Message from Bishop Gordy
During
my first official week as bishop, I heard a story on NPR about
extreme jobs. These are jobs that take an enormous amount of time,
commitment and energy to pull off. They are jobs that require
near-constant travel and frequent decisions that affect others in the
organization and, often, beyond. That about describes the last four
weeks of my life. Click here to
continue reading the Bishop's Message.
Click here to
view the ELCA-Southeastern Synod web site.
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New
Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) Book and Hymnal
The
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), has published the new Evangelical
Lutheran Worship (ELW) book and hymnal.
Beginning
in January 2008, the Sunday Worship Bulletin will be printed without
hymns. The hymn numbers will be referenced in the bulletin at the
appropriate place in the service and the congregation will sing the
designated hymn using the new ELW book and hymnal.
The
time has come! Our campaign to purchase the new Evangelical
Lutheran Worship (ELW) book and
hymnal is under way.
And
as we did with the old Lutheran Book
of Worship (LBW), we are asking our
members to help with the purchase of the new ELW book and hymnal for
Saint Matthew. You may do this through donations in honor of or in
memory of persons you designate.
Book
plates will be placed inside the front cover to acknowledge your
donation. The total cost of one book, including shipping and
handling, is $25.00. When you donate, please be sure to annotate that
your donation is for the new ELW book and hymnal.
Sign-up
sheets are in the narthex. Please make your commitment now to donate
one or more copies of the new Evangelical
Lutheran Worship (ELW) book and
hymnal. Thank You!
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Saint
Matthew Church Announcements
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May
20: |
12
Noon: Deadline for News
Network newsletter items. Submit
news items to the Church
Office. |
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July
13-18: |
Vacation
Bible School (VBS). |
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Click here to
view the monthly Calendar of Events. |
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of Page
Camp
Lutherock Photo Album
|
 Could
you climb to the top of this tower?
Could
you slither through a hole in a muddy underground cave?
Could
you steer a raft through the rapids of a white river?
Could
you rappel down the side of a sheer cliff?
Could
you hike over rugged mountain trails?
Well,
our youth met all the many challenges at Camp Lutherock and they had
a great time—and had time for fun, too!
A
big thanks to all the chaperons who helped make the trip a success.
Click here to
view the Camp Lutherock photo album.
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of Page |
Holy
Baptism
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Jimmy
and
Giovanni Valdez pose
after their baptism with their family, Lisa, younger brother Ricardo
(bottom center) and James (holding baby Lucinda). Pastor Barksdale
baptized the two boys during the All Saints Worship Service on
November 4, 2007. |
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The
Lost Tomb of Jesus
Larry
Barksdale, Pastor
While
they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the
chief priests everything that had happened. After the priests had
assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of
money to the soldiers, telling them, “You must say, ‘His
disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’
If this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep
you out of trouble.” So they took the money and did as they were directed. —
Matthew 28:11-15a, NRSV
Here we
go again! First, it was the Jesus Seminar which, back in the '90s,
used colored beads to determine what in the Gospels were Jesus'
ACTUAL words (in their esteemed view, only about 5% of the material).
Then it was Elaine Pagels, who sought to mainstream the heretical
Gnostics, who produced a number of unorthodox post-New Testament
works—the most famous of which is the Gospel of Thomas. Then it
was Dan Brown who, in The Da Vinci Code, speculated wildly that Jesus
was REALLY married to Mary Magdalene, with whom he also had a
daughter. Then, not long before Christmas of 2006, it was back to the
Gnostic writings—this time, the Gospel of Judas—for more
bizarre speculation.
Click here to
continue reading the Pastor Barksdale's Lost Tomb Message.
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of Page
50th
Anniversary Celebration
Saint
Matthew charter members attending the 50th anniversary celebration
Front
row: Rev. Dr. Richard Hollinger, DeLouris Hollinger, and
CSM Frank Plass
Back
row: Alberta Loney, Betty Davidson, Mary French, and
Julianne Plass
We
started the official anniversary functions off with a Fish Fry on
Friday afternoon. On Saturday, after an early morning breakfast, the
Memorial Garden was dedicated and members of the congregation got a
chance to view historical photo albums and pictures from our
archives. Later in the evening we had a tasty diner at The Estate
plus terrific musical entertainment by the Front
Porch Pickers
and a variety of musical talent gathered by Pat Bonaker, our Musical
Director. Craig DuPriest was the Master of Ceremonies. The 50th
Anniversary Celebration concluded with a reception following the
Sunday morning worship service.
A
special note of thanks to all of our former pastors, interim
pastors, and supply pastors who attended and participated in the
anniversary activities.
The
behind the scenes hard work of the 50th Anniversary Committee truly
made this weekend a memorial event for all of those who could
attend. In alphabetical order, the committee members are: Pat
Bonaker, Betty Bouchard, Betty Davidson, Charlotte DuPriest, Joyce Garver-Messenger,
Cecilia Hogencamp, Edie Klein (Chairperson), Karen Knudsen, Alberta
Loney, Connie Sieg, Christine Slusher, and Jean Wing. Thank you ladies!
Click
here
to view photos leading up to the celebration weekend—painting,
planting, and photos of the Memorial Bell, Walkway, and Garden plus
photos of the events noted above. Photos by Ron Klein.
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of Page
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International
Adoption |
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An
article in the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer recounts Pastor Larry and
Liz Barksdale's decision to adopt internationally their two children,
Meaghan and Graceanne. Click here to
read the article. |
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of Page |
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Faith&Spirit |
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From
the Faith&Spirit
page of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer Newspaper, Pastor Barksdale
shares his thoughts in a Faith
Alive
column interview.
Click here to
read the interview. |
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of Page |
Parish
Nurse Program
 In
a joint undertaking with Saint Francis Hospital, our church started
a Parish Nurse Program in September 2002.
As
part of the Parish Nurse Program, informative health notes will be
published in the News Network Newsletter and in the Announcements
Section of the Worship Bulletin. Blood pressure testing will be
available between the Sunday worship services. From time-to-time, we
will to hold guest speaker presentations on various health topics
following our Wonderful Wednesday Celebration Café meal.
Additionally,
the Parish Nurse Program has acquired from the CONTACT
organization a copy of their Service Programs resource data on
computer disk. Click here
for more information.
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of Page
Pardon
Us!
Our
web site is a work in progress.
 Saint
Matthew Evangelical Lutheran Church is continually in the process of
building and updating our web site.
You
will see a number of additions and changes as the work on individual
pages is completed.
The
menu items listed in the left-hand window are not set in concrete
and changes can be made as a result of your suggestions.
For
example, here are a few of the topics that have already been added
or are being considered: a biographical sketch and photo of our
pastor, nursery information, directional map to the church, a council
information page, description of group activities such as the Altar
Guild, Women of St. Matthew, choir, scouts, and Bible study classes.
The
intent is to provide summary information about all St. Matthew
activities and not overlook any one or any group. You can help with
your ideas and suggestions by clicking Feedback or
by contacting the Webmaster.
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