Kia tau ki a koutou te atawhai me te rangimarie o te Atua
願 父 神 所 賜 的 恩 惠 和 平 安 與 你 們 同 在
Grace and peace to you from God
Call News
While I was visiting the Manawatu Lutheran Parish and preaching / leading worship on Sunday, I informed the members of Trinity (Feilding) and St Lukes (Palmerston North) that their Pastor, Lee Kroehn has received a call to St Johns Lutheran Church and Concordia College in Adelaide.
And so I invite you, the LCNZ whanau to pray for Lee, Anna, Owen, Imogen and Jonah as we did on Sunday morning during worship, that God would reveal to them his plans and purposes; his will –
Lord God, we pray for Pastor Lee and Anna, and Owen, Imogen and Jonah as they seek your will with regard to the call you have placed on Lee to consider pastoral ministry at St Johns and at Concordain College. We pray in the words of the psalmist, that you would lead us in your truth and teach us, for you are the God of our salvation; for you we wait all day long.
And so, by your Holy Spirit we pray that you would lead your servant, Lee into your truth as he considers the call to serve your people in Adelaide; reveal to him the way he should choose. Give Lee and Anna especially, your peace and a sense of your closeness to them as they wrestle with this call.
And watch over your people in the Manawatu Parish during this time of consideration and discernment. Keep all of us safe and guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus, in whose name we pray. Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer. Amen.
100th Anniversary of Ordination: Hamuera Te Punga
On Sunday 16th December at 11.00am at Halcombe Lutheran church, Pastor Trevor Jurgens will be leading a service to celebrate the 100th year since Hamuera Te Punga was ordained as a Lutheran pastor in South Chicago, USA. During the service the congregation will be invited to sing the Halcombe Lord’s Prayer (bring your best voices; it goes up real high towards the end!) which was brought to Halcombe by Hamuera's wife, Lydia.
Council of Synod Meets this Weekend
Please pray for your Council of Synod (COS) as it meets this weekend in Wellington. We have important work to do; most importantly, to focus on the mission opportunities that the Lord has given the LCNZ. In that respect it is my hope to engage COS even more intentionally on the matters raised at the LCNZ Summit in July 2010. This Summit offered enthusiasm, energy and vision for a church moving forward and growing; it provided impetus for us as Church to be faithful to God’s call to be salt and light in the world. Pray for us so that we will remain focused on the privileged task at hand.
Mā te Atua koe e tiaki
God be with you …
Pastor Mark Whitfield BTh MSM
President – Lutheran Church of New Zealand / Te Hāhi Rūtana o Aotearoa
Secretary – National Church Leaders of New Zealand
20 November 2012
03 November 2012
LCNZ Update 1 November 2012
Kia tau ki a koutou te atawhai me te rangimarie o te Atua
願 父 神 所 賜 的 恩 惠 和 平 安 與 你 們 同 在
Grace and peace to you from God
Shifting, Packing, Unpacking, Moving On
Two days ago, the father of one of my wife’s teaching colleagues died. Later that same day we heard that Leanne’s uncle’s mother had died in the USA. At the same time we were hearing of the destruction of life and property to the people of the Caribbean, and of the impending destruction that super-storm Sandy would wreak on the USA. Back here in Godzone, the harrowing stories of survival for some – at least for some short hours after the February 2011 Canterbury earthquake – are being retold as the inquest into the collapse of the CTV building in Christchurch unfolds, and the questions are asked as to why those that survived the initial quake could not be rescued in time.
And I’m unpacking boxes again. That’s right … my third shift and unpack in a year! This time I’m unpacking and setting up in the new LCNZ National Office in Thorndon, Wellington.
Why am I writing this?
The prayer in the Funeral Rite of the Church says this – As we are strangers and pilgrims on earth, prepare us all for the world to come.
There’s something quite plain and straight-forward about those words … a reminder of the transitory nature of life here on earth … but at the same time an affirmation in our cry for help (prepare us) that there is one who has already prepared us for eternity (the world to come). There is something quite plainly non-permanent about life here on earth. It is a lot of shifting, packing, un-packing, moving on.
It can be quite unsettling … except for one thing: the absolute certainty of the faithfulness of God towards his people.
In these days of celebration/commemoration – Reformation Day / All Saints Day – we are reminded of the all-sufficient grace of God for all people, and in the face of change and uncertainty, we can say with the psalmist –
On Sunday 16th December at 11.00am at Halcombe Lutheran church, Pastor Trevor Jurgens will be leading a service to celebrate the 100th year since Hamuera Te Punga was ordained as a Lutheran pastor in South Chicago, USA. During the service the congregation will be invited to sing the Halcombe Lord’s Prayer (bring your best voices; it goes up real high towards the end!) which was brought to Halcombe by Hamuera's wife, Lydia.
Safe Place Team Leader Training - Whanganui
This week, Anna Kroehn completed Team Leader training in Whanganui, and by all accounts (well, the one I got from her husband Lee) there was great engagement from those participating. Thank you Anna for this blessing that you (and Lee) bring to our church.
LCA/LCNZ Youth Forum
From the 5th to the 7th of November a group of young LCA members from all over Australia and New Zealand gathered together in North Adelaide to speak about current issues facing the church. This was an initiative of the LCA’s Board for Youth and Family Ministry (BYFM). The forum, called 'Have a Voice, covered topics like: the way the LCA works through Synod, the future of the LCA, worship, human sexuality and the opportunity refugees are for our church. The young people showed a true passion for the church and its future. They were energised and enthused to hear how our church is dealing with issues that they face as members of the LCA and LCNZ. While the forum was hard work, the youth also had a fantastic opportunity to relax at The Beach House in Glenelg on Saturday evening on the waterslide, dodgem cars and arcade games. The two New Zealand representatives who attended the forum were Rachel Nelson from Palmerston North and Chelsea Whitfield from Wellington. Both young ladies spoke confidently and competently concerning the LCNZ within the context of the forum. Resulting from the forum, BYFM will discuss recommendations made by the young people and present the to the LCA General Synod in Adelaide next April. (Lee Kroehn)
From the President of the Church, Dr Michael Semmler
Last week 9 of the LCNZ Church Workers gathered in Christchurch for the final Church Workers’ conference of the year. On the middle day of the conference we were guided in a spiritual retreat which saw us do a number of things designed to help us ‘retreat’ into the gracious presence of God … we slowed down … we sat for long moments of silence … we listened to scripture being read to us … we walked the beautiful wetlands near to St Pauls Lutheran Church in Burwood, Christchurch … we worked in groups of three on an interesting exercise to create visual expressions of ‘situations’ in life real to us at the moment and how God might be speaking into those ‘situations’ … we were ministered to by the gentle breath of the Spirit of Jesus.
We welcomed two people to their first LCNZ Church Workers’ Conference – Ben Grulke, who is the new parish worker in the Manawatu. Nau mai, haere mai Ben; it’s great to have you working alongside us in Kingdom work. And we also welcomed Pastor Joe Kummerow (Mountainside) to his first conference. Great to have you on board too Joe … and thanks for going along with the time-honoured tradition we have … viz. the new kid on the block takes the minutes!
We prayed in our closing service –
The theme of the December edition of the Olive Tree is “What does Christmas means us in the LCNZ.” It would be great to get stories from local congregations on how they celebrate the story of the birth of Jesus. The text comes from Mathew 2:1&2 (When Jesus was born in the village of Bethlehem in Judea, Herod was king. During this time some wise men from the east came to Jerusalem and said, “Where is the child born to be king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”). Please submit articles to Dan by the 15th November at dcars1976@gmail.com.
Longest Lutheran Lunch: Story Time
More than 100 congregations across Australia and NZ joined in this year's Longest Lutheran Lunch. Visit www.lca.org.au/longest-lutheran-lunch.html to see an amazing photo from Warracknabeal (Victoria), hear tales of wood-fired pizza and Barossa reds (of course!), and witness a community lunch enjoyed with a local Uniting Church in Australia!
Here’s what happened in some of the LCNZ congregations –
The LCNZ’s new administrator, Robert Hagen has been nominated for the New Zealand Television awards to be held in Auckland this weekend, in the following categories –
National Office Shift
The Lord has blessed us with a wonderful new location from which to function as the National Office of the LCNZ. Again, we thank Robert and Gerhard (Hoppe) for overseeing the shift which went very smoothly last Friday. Most of the boxes are unpacked and we’re settling in nicely. Please come and visit if you’re in town. Our address again – Level 1, Molesworth House, 101 Molesworth Street, Thorndon, Wellington.
Bach Cantata Vespers Begin 6th Year of Ministry to Wellington & NZ
The Bach Cantata Vespers on Saturday 10th November will mark the beginning of the 6th year of this unique-in-New Zealand music ministry to the people of New Zealand. Some interesting statistics from the past 5 years to ponder and to praise God for –
Mā te Atua koe e tiaki
God be with you …
Pastor Mark Whitfield BTh MSM
President – Lutheran Church of New Zealand / Te Hāhi Rūtana o Aotearoa
願 父 神 所 賜 的 恩 惠 和 平 安 與 你 們 同 在
Grace and peace to you from God
Shifting, Packing, Unpacking, Moving On
Two days ago, the father of one of my wife’s teaching colleagues died. Later that same day we heard that Leanne’s uncle’s mother had died in the USA. At the same time we were hearing of the destruction of life and property to the people of the Caribbean, and of the impending destruction that super-storm Sandy would wreak on the USA. Back here in Godzone, the harrowing stories of survival for some – at least for some short hours after the February 2011 Canterbury earthquake – are being retold as the inquest into the collapse of the CTV building in Christchurch unfolds, and the questions are asked as to why those that survived the initial quake could not be rescued in time.
And I’m unpacking boxes again. That’s right … my third shift and unpack in a year! This time I’m unpacking and setting up in the new LCNZ National Office in Thorndon, Wellington.
Why am I writing this?
The prayer in the Funeral Rite of the Church says this – As we are strangers and pilgrims on earth, prepare us all for the world to come.
There’s something quite plain and straight-forward about those words … a reminder of the transitory nature of life here on earth … but at the same time an affirmation in our cry for help (prepare us) that there is one who has already prepared us for eternity (the world to come). There is something quite plainly non-permanent about life here on earth. It is a lot of shifting, packing, un-packing, moving on.
It can be quite unsettling … except for one thing: the absolute certainty of the faithfulness of God towards his people.
In these days of celebration/commemoration – Reformation Day / All Saints Day – we are reminded of the all-sufficient grace of God for all people, and in the face of change and uncertainty, we can say with the psalmist –
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns. The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. “Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations; I am exalted in the earth.” The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. (Psalm 46)Or as dear Martin would sing –
A mighty fortress is our God, a trusty shield and weapon,
our faithful helper in all need, no matter what may happen.
Though hordes of devils gather here, all eager to devour us,
we tremble not, we do not fear, they cannot overpower us.
Despite all foes, the Word shall stand against all their endeavour;
God's gifts and Spirit, close at hand, shall be with us forever.
Though they cause distress, take all we possess,
though they hurt and kill, we are victorious still;
the kingdom's ours forever.
Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott Martin Luther 1483-1546Wherever you are my friends … whatever you’re packing or unpacking in life … if things are changing and moving for you, let the prayer conclude –
As we are strangers and pilgrims on earth, prepare us all for the world to come. And when our last hour comes, support us by your power, and take us home to your heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.100th Anniversary Of Ordination: Hamuera Te Punga
On Sunday 16th December at 11.00am at Halcombe Lutheran church, Pastor Trevor Jurgens will be leading a service to celebrate the 100th year since Hamuera Te Punga was ordained as a Lutheran pastor in South Chicago, USA. During the service the congregation will be invited to sing the Halcombe Lord’s Prayer (bring your best voices; it goes up real high towards the end!) which was brought to Halcombe by Hamuera's wife, Lydia.
Safe Place Team Leader Training - Whanganui
This week, Anna Kroehn completed Team Leader training in Whanganui, and by all accounts (well, the one I got from her husband Lee) there was great engagement from those participating. Thank you Anna for this blessing that you (and Lee) bring to our church.
LCA/LCNZ Youth Forum
From the 5th to the 7th of November a group of young LCA members from all over Australia and New Zealand gathered together in North Adelaide to speak about current issues facing the church. This was an initiative of the LCA’s Board for Youth and Family Ministry (BYFM). The forum, called 'Have a Voice, covered topics like: the way the LCA works through Synod, the future of the LCA, worship, human sexuality and the opportunity refugees are for our church. The young people showed a true passion for the church and its future. They were energised and enthused to hear how our church is dealing with issues that they face as members of the LCA and LCNZ. While the forum was hard work, the youth also had a fantastic opportunity to relax at The Beach House in Glenelg on Saturday evening on the waterslide, dodgem cars and arcade games. The two New Zealand representatives who attended the forum were Rachel Nelson from Palmerston North and Chelsea Whitfield from Wellington. Both young ladies spoke confidently and competently concerning the LCNZ within the context of the forum. Resulting from the forum, BYFM will discuss recommendations made by the young people and present the to the LCA General Synod in Adelaide next April. (Lee Kroehn)
From the President of the Church, Dr Michael Semmler
In 1667 John George II, the Elector of Saxony, ordered the first REFORMATION FESTIVAL. The chosen date for the celebration was 31st October, the anniversary of Luther’s famous posting of the 95 theses. Luther chose the eve of All Saints Day (Nov 1) to post the theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg in 1517 to take advantage of the larger crowds who would be expected to gather for worship at this ancient celebration. With the rediscovery of the ramifications of the doctrine of justification, that is, the good news of salvation by grace through faith for Christ's sake, a reformation took place across the church in many parts of the world. It is our heritage to this day. Celebrate the grace of God in Christ who delights in having mercy on us.Please Pray For
Installation gf the Director of Lutheran Media Ministry
Pastor Richard Fox will be installed as the Director of Lutheran Media Ministry on Sunday 2nd December 2012.
Short Term Research Grants Available
Do you need some basic research into some aspect of your congregation or church ministry? Is there something you need to know which could benefit you and others involved in similar ministries? Australian Lutheran College is providing a limited number of $5,000 grants for short-term research projects as part of the launch of the new Australian Lutheran Institute for Theology and Ethics (ALITE). For more information contact the Director, Rev Dr Stephen Hultgren at alite@alc.edu.au. Information will also appear on the ALITE website. See www.alite.alc.edu.au after 9th November.
Appointment of LEA Research Officer at ALITE
Dr Mark Worthing has been appointed Research Officer for Lutheran Education Australia through the new Australian Lutheran Institute for Theology and Ethics at Australian Lutheran College.
The Lutheran – Sneak Preview Each Month
You are encouraged to use the new ‘sneak preview’ monthly promotional resource for The Lutheran. It can be easily shared with congregation members, family and friends, or embedded into your congregation’s website. This resource, as well as pew-bulletin inserts and a PowerPoint slide for the current edition, is available from the ‘Promote Us’ page on The Lutheran’s website (www.thelutheran.com.au) from the 1st of each month. It’s also very easily ‘shareable’ from the ‘We Love The Lutheran’ Facebook page.
General Synod Agenda, Proposals and Board Reports Due
Agenda and Proposals: the following LCA bodies may submit proposals for inclusion on the agenda: congregations, LCA boards, standing committees and commissions, General Pastors Conference, General Church Council and it’s Executive, District Synods, Districts Church Councils and Pastors Conferences. Board Reports: reports are to be no more than four pages (approximately 2500 words). Financial reports are to be one page only and should be for the three years ending 31st December 2009, 2010 and 2011. Provision will be made for full reports and financial reports to be posted on the Synod website if required. All reports and proposals must be emailed to the Synod Secretary at debbie.venz@lca.org.au by 15th November 2012.
- Sharolyn and Dennis Mollet’s granddaughter, Sophie who was to undergo planned open-heart surgery this week. This has now been postponed and hopefully will happen next week. Pray also for Sophie’s parents – Sheree and Ricky.
- Buster Kells who has recently spent some time in hospital. He’s home now.
Jesus, what a friend we have in you, and what a privilege it is to carry our cares and concerns to you. We lift to you your friends, Sophie and Buster, and their families, and all who are unwell at the moment, and we ask you to take and shield them in your loving arms. Grant them fullness of health in your good time and according to your gracious will. Amen.Church Workers Meet in Christchurch
Last week 9 of the LCNZ Church Workers gathered in Christchurch for the final Church Workers’ conference of the year. On the middle day of the conference we were guided in a spiritual retreat which saw us do a number of things designed to help us ‘retreat’ into the gracious presence of God … we slowed down … we sat for long moments of silence … we listened to scripture being read to us … we walked the beautiful wetlands near to St Pauls Lutheran Church in Burwood, Christchurch … we worked in groups of three on an interesting exercise to create visual expressions of ‘situations’ in life real to us at the moment and how God might be speaking into those ‘situations’ … we were ministered to by the gentle breath of the Spirit of Jesus.
We welcomed two people to their first LCNZ Church Workers’ Conference – Ben Grulke, who is the new parish worker in the Manawatu. Nau mai, haere mai Ben; it’s great to have you working alongside us in Kingdom work. And we also welcomed Pastor Joe Kummerow (Mountainside) to his first conference. Great to have you on board too Joe … and thanks for going along with the time-honoured tradition we have … viz. the new kid on the block takes the minutes!
We prayed in our closing service –
Bless our church as it ministers the gospel of our suffering Saviour. Uphold our President Michael and District President Mark. Guide our College of Presidents as they assign graduates into the ministry, and give patience to those parishes who are in the call process. Watch over our Council of Synod so that it may administer the affairs of your Church in such a way that pastors, church workers and members are inspired, equipped and encouraged in the ministry of the Gospel. Open our hearts to hear your call to serve here in your church in Aotearoa-New Zealand. Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer. Amen.Next Edition of the Olive Tree
The theme of the December edition of the Olive Tree is “What does Christmas means us in the LCNZ.” It would be great to get stories from local congregations on how they celebrate the story of the birth of Jesus. The text comes from Mathew 2:1&2 (When Jesus was born in the village of Bethlehem in Judea, Herod was king. During this time some wise men from the east came to Jerusalem and said, “Where is the child born to be king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”). Please submit articles to Dan by the 15th November at dcars1976@gmail.com.
Longest Lutheran Lunch: Story Time
More than 100 congregations across Australia and NZ joined in this year's Longest Lutheran Lunch. Visit www.lca.org.au/longest-lutheran-lunch.html to see an amazing photo from Warracknabeal (Victoria), hear tales of wood-fired pizza and Barossa reds (of course!), and witness a community lunch enjoyed with a local Uniting Church in Australia!
Here’s what happened in some of the LCNZ congregations –
- Upper Moutere
- Was an outreach event with over a dozen visitors
- Had food from 10 different countries of heritage
- Held a ‘Mighty Fortress’ building contest for children
- Was visited by Martin Luther during the worship service
- Christchurch
- Coincided with Christchurch’s annual Neighbourhood Week, thus qualifying for some City Council funding ($150)
- We hand-delivered 1,000 invitations to letter boxes of homes around our church centre in the EQ-damaged suburb of Burwood
- From noon to 3pm, a steady stream of neighbours and church members enjoyed the free sausage sizzle, fizzy drinks and ice-cream cones, plus the HUGE bouncy castle for kids
- We sponsored the Covenant Players drama group to provide all-ages friendly, gospel-centred street theatre periodically throughout the afternoon
- Mountainside, Auckland
- God blessed us with a beautiful spring day, as the members and friends of Mountainside Lutheran Church in Auckland, NZ, gathered to share fellowship and hospitality with our community and with each other.
- Within half an hour of our Reformation Day worship service ending, we had set up long rows of tables lined by chairs. Many hands helped to cover the tables with paper, set out carafes of juice and water, and organise the food.
- Lunch was ready, and we formed a long line to be served with long bread rolls filled with lettuce and carrot, ham, egg salad, cheese and tomato, with potato salad and rice salad on the side. It took some time to serve around 90 people, but it was worth waiting for. Dessert of cup cakes, fruit salad and ice cream followed.
- Mountainside members had invited friends to come along, and we invited residents in the neighbouring streets by offering them a voucher for a free lunch. We felt happy and blest to be able to share our hospitality in this way. Praise God for his generosity to us all.
- Hamilton/Bay of Plenty
- About 30 people from Tauranga, St Matthew – Hamilton and Kawerau attended the Divine Service with Holy Communion followed by the Longest Lutheran Lunch in Tauranga
- The Sermon Text was the Gospel lesson for Reformation Day, John 8:31-36, and the thought to take away from the sermon, “None of us like to be exposed. … The only exposure we need is to faith, grace and the Word of God. With these we need fear no other kind of exposure
- Between the savoury and desert we treated to a visual and oral presentation “Wandering to Wittenberg” by Jill Hobden. Jill had recently been in Wittenberg when Pr Norm Bergen preached there as part of the English ministry provided in Wittenberg for tourists.
- Summerset Retirement Village, Palmerston North
- 25 people attended more than half the guests have lived a LONG time 80+
- 2 guests attend International Pacific College (IPC) having come from Japan and one of them – Tuk – entertained between main and dessert with the violin
- We worshipped after our lunch of sausage rolls, savouries, sandwiches, fresh fruit salad, meringues and whipped cream
- It was a very interdenominational group that enjoyed food, fellowship, faith
- We had a truly blessed time – one lady who has always said ”no” to joining us for a meal – enjoys coming to worship – this time came for the meal and that was a special of this day for me.
- Whanganui
- Pastor Phil writes – we had a great evening for our Longest Lutheran afternoon / evening tea. It was a great evening in Whanganui, where we were able to share an evening meal with our friends from Marton. We had the team out delivering some flyers around the neighbourhood and also had another 8 people come in and join us for the meal. We were a little low on food so rang for pizza’s and you should have seen the look on the delivery guys face when I told him I was trialling a new form of communion wafer and could he leave them up the front. Priceless. All in all we had 45 people to our dinner. Catering for this many was a good warm-up for when we celebrate our congregation’s 50th anniversary on the second Sunday in December. More info to follow.
The LCNZ’s new administrator, Robert Hagen has been nominated for the New Zealand Television awards to be held in Auckland this weekend, in the following categories –
- Best multi-camera direction for “A Gala Concert” featuring Dame Kiri Te Kanawa with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, and
- Best popular documentary for “Rhodes, Actor Singer”
National Office Shift
The Lord has blessed us with a wonderful new location from which to function as the National Office of the LCNZ. Again, we thank Robert and Gerhard (Hoppe) for overseeing the shift which went very smoothly last Friday. Most of the boxes are unpacked and we’re settling in nicely. Please come and visit if you’re in town. Our address again – Level 1, Molesworth House, 101 Molesworth Street, Thorndon, Wellington.
Bach Cantata Vespers Begin 6th Year of Ministry to Wellington & NZ
The Bach Cantata Vespers on Saturday 10th November will mark the beginning of the 6th year of this unique-in-New Zealand music ministry to the people of New Zealand. Some interesting statistics from the past 5 years to ponder and to praise God for –
- 24 Bach Cantata Vespers since the first one on Reformation Day, 2007
- 65 people (singers, instrumentalists and preachers/speakers) have been involved in the ministry, plus countless others from St Pauls who assist
- The average attendance at each service is 70, with a highest attendance of 150 for this year’s Good Friday Vespers
- A variety of people attend – from other churches and some with no church or faith connection
- One of New Zealand’s leading choral ensembles, The Tudor Consort has sung for a Vespers
Mā te Atua koe e tiaki
God be with you …
Pastor Mark Whitfield BTh MSM
President – Lutheran Church of New Zealand / Te Hāhi Rūtana o Aotearoa
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