May Newsletter

St. Paul’s Evangelical-Lutheran Church
109 S. Elm, Kewanee, Illinois 61443
Newsletter
Volume 36                                   May 2024                                            No. 5

Retirement service at 10:00 a.m.; Luncheon and reception following
 

The final Sunday mass of Pastor Eckardt’s ministry as the called pastor of this parish is set for June 9th. Hopefully all members can be here! The time of this service has been moved to 10:00 am instead of the usual time of 9:00 am, to accommodate our many guests and to fit the special schedule for the day. We anticipate a large crowd and a festive atmosphere.

Directly following the Divine Service we will be holding a luncheon and reception in the gym. Write this down!

Reflections on My Tenure here

Twenty-nine ago this July I began to serve as your pastor here at St. Paul’s. Little did anyone know that it was the beginning of a remarkable three decades. So many things have changed since then! There was in the first five years after I arrived a great strife, whose history is in the little sesquicentennial booklet that I prepared for a congregational anniversary in 2012. A confessional and liturgical awakening that had been happening in various places throughout the Missouri Synod was now at the doorstep of St. Paul’s. The rebirth of a strong confessional commitment was not something I or anyone had planned or expected, and when it happened it wasn’t easy for anyone to endure. Explained simply, some welcomed it, others did not. But after those years of strife, when the smoke began to settle, in the years following the congregation emerged as a smaller parish, but one firmly committed to each other, and to the liturgical and Sacramental marks of a strong Lutheran confession and faith. And there was peace. One of the fascinating things one can read in that sesquicentennial booklet is the history of the congregation going back to its birth in the mid nineteenth century, and in particular another very painful period that led to a congregational split in the early part of the twentieth century. The parallels are striking. In particular there grew up in the post-controversy peace that ensued after both periods a renewed resolve and energy rooted in a solidly Lutheran confession and identity. What grew up in both cases, nearly a hundred years apart, was a small but vibrant congregation whose identity was bound up in our confession of Jesus Christ and Him crucified for us, and in the blessed Sacraments that He gave us. Conspicuously absent was any rancor or division. There were no serious debates about anything. And that has been the joyful condition of this congregation in all the years following up to the present date.
 
As a result, we were able by the grace of God to embark on a mammoth remodeling campaign in 2016. The church building was in serious disrepair. Plaster was cracking and falling down in the nave. During one Sunday service a piece of plaster fell on an empty pew (thank heaven it was an empty one!). The walls were dirty, and parts of the chancel floor were sinking. So the dedicated members put their heads together and determined they had to act, and the project was begun.
 
We didn’t have a contractor, but what we did have were people who knew what was needed, and with a lot of prayer and dedication we simply began to do it ourselves. We hired a man to help with the plaster and painting, who was willing to work with us, but we put up the scaffolding ourselves, we planned the new color scheme ourselves, we did what painting we could ourselves, we got others to volunteer to help us rebuild the chancel floor, and bit by bit made progress. We came to worship for weeks on end with scaffolding in the church, until it became time to move the pews to the gym and set up a temporary worship space there. The entire project took three years, and we had a joyous rededication service in 2019. We did it! And yet it was clear to us that the grace of God was with us all the way. In the five years that followed, many of us have expressed a sense of amazement that the project was accomplished in such a small congregation. In the end, it isn’t pride that descended upon us, but humility. For who can deny that God was with us?
 
During the same years something else was happening. The little liturgical journal Gottesdienst, which I had been asked to edit just prior to moving here in 1995, was also growing. A good number of faithful confessional pastors got involved. The purpose of  the journal, which soon blossomed into a web site with an active blog and podcast, and a host of liturgical conferences here and elsewhere, was the advancement and defense of the Lutheran liturgy and its proper use. Right worship was at the heart of it all: an awareness that since Christ Himself is the active one in our worship, we need to be conducting our worship practice accordingly. The bond between Lutheran confessional identity and Lutheran liturgical practice was highlighted by the men of Gottesdienst, and that bond was evident and abundantly clear in the liturgical worship of St. Paul’s. And this, too, has not been an occasion for pride, but thankfulness.
 
In short, what grew and flourished at St. Paul’s was parallel to what grew and flourished in Gottesdienst, and all of this has been because the grace of God descended on us, and God has answered our prayers in spades.
 
And now we have come to the end of one chapter of our history and look toward the beginning of another, because as you know, the time has come for me to retire. In truth, I never envisioned the coming of the day; I never thought there was some retirement age I should adhere to just because that’s the way our society happens to be set up. That’s not why I decided it was time. Rather, it was because age has been creeping up on me. A (thankfully) slow progression of Parkinson’s Disease and other medical issues have teamed up to slow me down to the point where I began to realize that there are after all some legitimate reasons to retire.
 
And I know that this has been an occasion for sorrow, in many ways. We have been together—you parishioners and I—for a long time. We have felt the pains together and we have enjoyed the benefits together. So now we must endure these changes as well.
 
But let us not lose hope. For just as clearly as the Lord has blessed us in our trials and in our successes, so clear ought it to be that it is He, and not we ourselves, whose grace alone is our reliance. He has helped us hitherto; shall He not also help us now?
 
So, dearly beloved flock of His, pray to the Lord of harvest, that He will continue to bless; that He will send a faithful pastor to take the baton I pass to him. Have we not been amazed to behold what He has done among us? Let not your hearts be troubled, then, but eager. Let them not be weighed down, but expectant.
 
Moses once said, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you today; but the Lord replied, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward: but lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.
 
As heirs of the children of Israel, let us also go forward then, confident that it is the Lord alone by whose blessing we must live.
+ Pastor Eckardt
 
The Changing of the Guard
 
The date for my retirement is very near, being scheduled for Sunday, June 9th, and the following things are developing as we prepare for the future of St. Paul’s.
 
As you may recall, we had made an overture to the church in Brimfield to consider joining us as a dual parish. They have decided against this, and called a pastor on their own, who has accepted their call and is to be installed on Memorial Day, at 3:00 in the afternoon. So we are on our own.
 
A list of five names of pastors that various friends and pastors gave me, which I shared with the elders, was sent to the district just before Easter. More recently I spoke with the District President who has expedited the sending it back to us with some names he will be recommending. When we have that list, the elders (who are the call committee) will be going over it and preparing for a call meeting soon thereafter.
 
The call meeting is a special and important congregational assembly for the purpose of voting on the candidate we would like to call and extending him a call.  When a pastor receives a call it generally takes him anywhere from one to four weeks to decide whether to accept the call, which would make him the next pastor at St. Paul’s, to be installed here at the earliest agreeable time. If he declines or returns the call, we go back to the drawing board, so-to-speak, and preparations continue toward calling someone else. Sometimes a congregation can be vacant for years, but hopefully that will not be the case here. Ideally St. Paul’s would have her next pastor by this summer. God knows and directs all things, so continue to pray for His will to be done!
+ Pastor Eckardt
 
Elders and Altar Guild May 14th 
The regular schedule is for elders to meet on the first Tuesday of the month, but this month it is moved to the second week, Tuesday, April 14th, including Vespers at 6:45 pm (all are welcome) and Elders at 7:15. Please note! We are also scheduling a special meeting of the altar guild ladies to go over our various duties. Hopefully many if not all can come, at 6:00 pm on the 14th.  We used to schedule it this way years ago, as it enabled both altar guild members and elders then to meet for Vespers, between meetings. 

May Anniversaries
May 28, 1982   Chris & Garry Erickson
May 28, 1977   John and Charlene Sovanski
 
Shut ins
Jewneel Walker at Kewanee Care in Kewanee; Emmy Wear at Williamsfield retirement home; Pat  Lagerhausen at Royal Oaks in Kewanee; Bea Harris (occasionally) at home; Jim Watson (occasionally) at home.

In Our Prayers
Our current list of prayer intentions at mass includes the names on the lists here following.  Anyone wishing to update the list by addition or subtraction, please inform the pastor.          in our parish:
Sharon Hartz, Bea Harris, Don and Sue Murphy, John Sovanski, Sandra VerPlaetse, John Ricknell, Linda Rowe, Jewneel Walker, Emmy Wear, Pat Lagerhausen, Jim Watson, Judy Thompson, Otis Anderson, and Father Eckardt
            and beyond our parish:
Anna, Katie, and Jodi Rutowicz, Julie Ross, Elizabeth Godke, Oneida Hendrickson, Janice Hart, Kathy Boeger, Allison Leezer, Shannon Watson, Karen Parker, Deloris Bitting, John VerPlaetse, Becca Adler, Glenda Miller, Sue Berg [wife of Pastor Peter Berg], Ray Moreland, Deric Keefauver [Kris Harden’s grandson], Kathy Hopkins [Diana Shreck’s cousin], Gary Gresholdt, Rose Anderman, Judy Johnson [relative of Diana Shreck], Albennit Terrell, Mary Eckardt, Brett Monson [son of the Wagenknechts], Pastor Justin Kane
              in the military:
John Eckardt, Richard Heiden, Traven Wetzel, Eric Verplaetse, Jake Mahaffey, James and Ann Lee Armstrong, Marcus Prentice
               in trouble:
any unborn children in danger of abortion;
Debra Reeves’s children Rae Beth and Drew Wayne, those suffering from unrest, persecution, and imprisonment in Israel, Nigeria, Ukraine, Pakistan, Libya, China, North Korea, and elsewhere.
 
Ladies’ Luncheon
 
The ladies’ luncheon is scheduled for May 1st, being the first Wednesday in the month. This month’s location is Cerno’s, and the ladies meet at noon. Each month a different restaurant is chosen by one of the ladies. All St. Paul’s’ ladies are welcome! Kris Harden is in charge of scheduling. Her number is 309-883-6596.

Volunteers Needed!

We’re looking for volunteers to cover needed tasks after Pastor’s retirement. These tasks are various things Pastor often did himself, as well as some secretarial things. We are thankful that Michelle Armstrong has graciously stepped up to take care of many of the tasks that were done for years by Judy Thompson, but which Judy can no longer do. Judy volunteered and took care of so many things for many years, and now that she is no longer able, we are seeing just how much we benefitted from her tireless work! For that we are thankful to her and grateful to God. But it would be good if now, as we move forward, we could spread various tasks among several volunteers. Some have begun to step up already, and that’s great. If you think you might be able to help as well, please contact Pastor for how-to details. Here’s the list so far; an X indicates that a volunteer has already been assigned:
    Keeping of attendance records
    Preparation and printing of bulletins
X Purchase of communion supplies
X  Choir director
    Newsletter preparation
    Monitor of St. Paul’s facebook page
    Altar Guild organization and calendar
    Opening and preparing the church on Sunday mornings.

May Ushers
 
Jim Hornback, Steve Kraklow, Tom Wells.
 
May Birthdays
5/2       Sheri Kraklow
5/10     Bill Thompson
5/24    Jeff Wagenknecht
Church Council
The Church Council meets Wednesday, May 22nd, at 5:30.
Altar Guild Notes
Derrick and Felicia Baker have agreed to be responsible for purchasing Altar Guild supplies. Pay attention to the amount of supplies we have when you set up the altar. As you have been doing, always watch for when the regular communion hosts run low, when the celebrant’s hosts run low, and when the wine supply runs low. Instead of advising the Pastor, please call Felicia Baker at 773-614-1887.
The altar guild calendar assignments need to be cleared up. Confusion resulted from a failure to distinguish which Wednesday is which. In the past, the Wednesday assignment went to the team for the previous Sunday. So the counting of which Wednesday is which becomes confusing. The assignments listed in last month’s calendar need a little updating:
First Sunday of the month, Chris Erickson
Second Sunday of the month, Sue Murphy and Sheri Kraklow
Third Sunday of the month, Linda Rowe
Fourth Sunday of the month, Carol Eckardt
Fifth Sunday of the month, Debra Reeves
Wednesdays are counted from the week of the previous Sunday:
Wednesdays after the first, second, and fifth Sundays, Debra Reeves
Wednesday after the third Sunday, Linda Rowe
Wednesday after the fourth Sunday, Carol Eckardt
When color changing is required, other altar guild members, if available, should offer assistance. To make things clear, the calendar itself must be routinely published. This we will be doing from now on in the newsletter calendar. Members, please look for the designation AG (altar guild) and your own initials.
A special altar guild meeting is scheduled for May 14th at 6:00 pm to go over all these things. Vespers follows at 6:45 pm. Please make every effort to attend.
This month, note the following:

• Paraments RED for St. Philip and St. James the Apostles’ Day, Wednesday May 1st
• Paraments WHITE every Sunday in May except for Pentecost
• Paraments RED for Pentecost (May 19th) and for the Wednesday following, May 22nd. (Back to White for Trinity Sunday, May 26th, and the Wednesday following; change back to White following that Wednesday, for the Octave of Trinity, June 2nd).
• No midweek mass on Wednesday, May 9th
• Ascension Day mass is on Thursday, May 10th, at 7 pm. The Paraments are WHITE.

 
The Church’s Sign
Sharon Hartz finished the repainting of the church’s sign, and it looks good! Thanks to Sharon.
Easter Breakfast Kudos
Debra Reeves handled the Easter breakfast for the first time this year, and it was a great success! Thanks to Debra.
The Roof
We had roofers up on the school’s roof making repairs, which they have completed; no more leaks! Thanks to the trustees for that.
 

 
 
 
 
 
St. Paul’s Ev. Lutheran Church
109 S. Elm Street
Kewanee, IL 61443