Pastoral Letter: For the Good of All ...

To the people of St. Luke’s Lutheran Church of Logan Square,As we prepare to gather this Sunday following worship to review the offers we’ve received for our building, I want to share with you how proud I am to belong to the community we are becoming together.Throughout this process you have spoken honestly and with great vulnerability about what our building means and has meant to you. You have shared what makes St. Luke’s distinctive as a community, and what you hope we do not lose in the middle of so many transitions. You have listened with open minds and open hearts to members whose thoughts and feelings do not match your own. You have made space to hear the fears and anxieties of people inside and outside our congregation who do not know how our decisions will affect their futures. You have done all this so patiently, so gracefully, so lovingly, showing a depth of respect and care for one another.  You have modeled what it means to bear one another’s burdens in a spirit of gentleness (Gal. 6:1).Now we will gather again, to review different offers and weigh the impact of each possible decision on our congregation and the surrounding neighborhood. We will assess how different choices might reflect our core values as Christians and witness to the self-giving love of Jesus.I want to encourage all of you to make every effort to be present for this Sunday’s meeting. Even if you feel you’ve already heard all that will be said. Even if you feel you’ve already said all you need to say. The value of this gathering is found not only in the content of our opinions, but in our presence with and for one another. To the person for whom this meeting is painful and scary, your presence may be a sign that they do not suffer alone. To the person who has spent countless hours planning, meeting, strategizing, and preparing, your presence may be a show of support and an expression of gratitude. We are not simply making one more decision, we are making all of these decisions together.So, I look forward to seeing you this Sunday for worship, the work of the people and our witness to the world.In Christ,Pastor Erik“So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.” (Gal. 6:9-10)