Katie's Cup

Katie’s Cup is one of my favorite spots in Rockford. It is a full-service coffee shop with everything you would expect: great coffee, coffee drinks, muffins and pastries, a lunch menu and free Wi-Fi. I have escaped from the telephone to work on a sermon or two there. My success rate at getting much work done at Katie’s Cup is not particularly good. I always run into people I know and there is nothing better than a little face-to-face conversation. Katie’s Cup is also part bookstore and part gathering spot.

In the past few weeks, I have taken part in two Katie’s Cup Conversations. These are occasional events to which the public is invited. The Rev. John M. Buchanan, editor of The Christian Century was the guest speaker at the first. A group of 65 of us joined for lunch, Pastor Buchanan’s presentation, followed by questions and answers. This past week, I heard Louis Dorvilier, director for international development and disaster response, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. A native Haitian, he gave an overview of Haiti’s history and the church’s response to the crisis caused by this year’s earthquake.

Katie’s Cup opened in early 2009 with the vision of becoming a place for the community to discuss important issues. I will be going back next week to hear a photographer from a local (non-Lutheran) congregation speak about his recent experiences in Haiti.

Katie’s Cup is a business jointly run by Zion Development and Rockford Area Lutheran Ministries. Its name honors Katharina von Bora. I do not know if she drank coffee. I do know that she helped make the beer and enjoyed deep conversation! If you get to Rockford, stop in Katie’s Cup and enjoy the coffee and atmosphere. Try a Mocha—my personal favorite! It is located at the corner of 7th Street and 4th Avenue. If you do not find someone to talk to, the synod office is only a few blocks away. I can be there in five minutes.

Comments? Go to the blog site (http://niselca.blogspot.com/). Pictured is Mariel Heinke, director of Rockford Area Lutheran Ministries. --JC

http://www.ziondevelopment.com/
http://www.rockfordlutheranministries.com/
http://www.katiescup.com/

It Could Have Been Worse

If you have ever entered Milledgeville, Illinois from the west, one of the first landmarks you recognize is Trinity Lutheran Church. The face of the church, with its massive cross reflecting the afternoon sun, could not be missed. I have always felt that the church stood there as a Lutheran welcome sign to the town.

Perhaps it was this building’s exposed profile that made it vulnerable to the savage storm that blew into town on Monday. The front wall of the church building collapsed and the back windows blew out as the wind surged through the building. It looked to me as if the roof had been lifted off the support beams.

As I surveyed the damage, first with Trinity members and then with Pastor Kathy Burkheimer, they repeatedly said “It could have been so much worse.” Of course, that is true. There was no one in the building at 9:30 Monday evening when the storm hit. Other damage in town appeared to be minimal. No injuries or death were reported. Trinity’s resilience and positive attitude was already evident in their words.

I stood in the narthex looking at the pile of bricks where the altar had been. The lights hanging from the ceiling swayed gently in the breeze. The sanctuary lamp still hung in its place. This nave, which so recently had been filled with the sounds of Easter joy, was now filled with the sounds of workers, inside and out.

For now, please pray for the people of Trinity Lutheran Church. They will gather this evening (Wednesday) for a time of prayer and discussion at the church. They also have a place to worship this week. First Lutheran Church of West Jordan, Trinity’s sister congregation in the “Faith on 40” parish, has opened its doors. A structural engineer will be inspecting today, so the congregation should know more of what they face very soon.

The road ahead for Trinity will be long. Pastor Burkheimer says it will be “inconvenient and an adventure.” We will keep you informed of ways that you, as a part of this synod, can be helpful to Trinity.

To leave a comment, go to the blog site (if you are not already there): http://niselca.blogspot.com/. --JC

Good Friday

One of the headlines on the front page of Monday’s newspaper read, “Holy Week opens with hope”. The article painted a positive picture of Palm Sunday worship at two local congregations, one Roman Catholic and the other Presbyterian. Pastors and parishioners were quoted. The messages preached and heard were those of hope, perseverance and good news.

The odd thing was that the name of Jesus did not appear once in the article. Do not be too quick to blame the pastors. I know from experience that newspapers rarely quote what I think they should and often do not get it quite right. Perhaps the author of the article thought Sunday was more about the palm leaves and unemployment rates than it was about Jesus. She knows we need a message of hope in these troubled times. Does she know that the source of our hope is Jesus?

Two weeks ago I preached a sermon at First Lutheran Church in Lee. In it I said, “I am waiting to sense resurrection in the life of the church.” I went on to say, “As you know, there is a lot of anxiety in the life of our ELCA right now, most of it as a result of last August’s Churchwide Assembly. One thing we must do, “we” meaning every living soul in the ELCA, is to keep focused on the mission our crucified Savior gave us. If we derail our work of bringing people to Christ so that we can spend more time arguing, then I think we will be held accountable. Discuss? Yes. Study? Absolutely. Disagree? That’s fine. Waste time? No, we have none to waste.”

Last evening, in Maundy Thursday worship, as we considered the mandate to love, Pastor Kathy Whitney urged her congregation, when faced with the question, “what do we do now?” to “just love them.” I pray that love and civility will return to congregations that have been torn by strife. Today, Good Friday, I am pondering the death of Christ. Jesus died for the life of the church. His church. Our church. The one holy catholic church.

Let us stay focused on Jesus. Repent and be forgiven. Love your neighbor. Prepare for resurrection.

Comments are welcome. Go to http://niselca.blogspot.com/. Velazquez's "Christ on the Cross" was taken from www.freechristimages.org. --JC