Redeemer Lutheran and St. Theodore
On Sunday, June 29, the congregations of Redeemer Lutheran Church and St. Theodore of Canterbury Episcopal Church will celebrate Peter and Paul on Apostles Sunday with the Rev. Murray D. Finck, presiding. The Communion and worship service gathers at 13564 St. Andrews Drive at 10:30 a.m. every Sunday.
Fellowship continues after the service in the Fellowship Hall where the congregation’s June birthdays will be celebrated. There will also be coffee, tea, cookies and snacks.
The congregations continue to collect donations of canned and boxed foods for the hungry. All residents are invited to participate in this outreach. The collected food stays in Orange County and is distributed by Lutheran Social Services.
Bible study continues with “Women of the Bible” on Wednesday, July 2, from noon-1:15 p.m. located downstairs in the Fellowship Hall. The study centers on strong and influential woman in the Hebrew Scriptures, with Rev. Finck leading the discussion. People are invited to bring their own lunch, but drinks and baked goods are available. This is a great way to meet members and friends and to share an understanding of faith and the Holy Scriptures.
On Sunday, June 29, the congregations will remember the apostleship of Peter and Paul. They were very different men and arrived at their following Jesus in different ways. Peter was with Jesus from the beginning; Paul not until after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. Both found the Gospel calling them. These two strong-willed apostles are the pillars of the church in the first generation after Christ. Peter was one of the 12 apostles, one who both offered a glorious confession of faith and later denied knowing Jesus. Paul once led the persecution of Christians, then was converted and helped bring the faith to non-Jewish people.
In all this, Jesus is more patient people know. He waited until breakfast was finished before he began his questioning of Peter. “Do you love me?” Jesus waited. With Paul, it wasn’t until he was on the road to Damascus that Jesus knocked him down, struck him blind, and questioned him. “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” Jesus waited. Jesus begins his call with questioning; and waits for an answer, before giving him a new name. This patience must be part of the wisdom of the Good Shepherd. As Jesus’ charge to Peter makes clear, the call of the Christian is to have the heart of a shepherd for God’s people, to seek, to call, to wait.
