Category: Church Year Seasons/Festivals

Sunday May 26th is Trinity Sunday, when we focus on the nature of the only true God, the Triune God.  As Scripture teaches, we glorify His Holy Name as one God in three persons- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4, Matthew 28:19, 2 Corinthians 13:14).  On this Sunday, our worship includes the Athanasian Creed.  We speak it together in order to make a clear and distinct profession of our faith in the Triune God.  Lord God,  we thank you for your Divine Word in which you teach us to confess You, our Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier.  Let us never cease to confess this faith in the Holy Trinity, giving glory always to the Father, to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.   Amen

On Sunday May 19th we will celebrate Pentecost.  On the day of Pentecost the Apostles were all together.  Suddenly, a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from Heaven and filled the house they were in.  Then tongues of fire came to rest on each of them, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4).  This giving of the Holy Spirit was to equip them for their calling as witnesses for Christ in the world (Acts 1:8).  The Holy Spirit would lead, teach, and speak through them, as they carried the Gospel of Christ to the nations.  For Pentecost Sunday, the color of our altar cloths and paraments is red, a power color.  That is appropriate for a Sunday when we remember the power and fire of the Holy Spirit, “The Lord and Giver of Life.”

On November 1^st we celebrate All Saints Day. It is also sometimes referred to as the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed. “Saints” are all true believers on earth and in heaven, both living and dead. However, in the Lutheran Confessions, the departed ones do not hold a higher “position” in the Church. We do not pray to the departed Saints, as God commanded we are only to worship and pray to the one true God, the Triune God. Some are revered for the role they served in Christ’s Church, but just as all true believers today, each is just another sinner washed in the blood of Christ. A person is given the title of “Saint” when through faith given by the Holy Spirit, they believe Christ is their Lord and Savior, and they are saved solely by His complete atonement for their sins. In our celebration, we remember those who have died in Christ with the hope of salvation and redemption by his grace. We are thankful for the blessings the departed saints we knew brought to our lives. We also remember the Christian faithful from all generations. We are all members of the same family with them, as we confess in the Apostles Creed to our belief in The Holy Christian Church, The Communion of Saints. All Saints Day is a day to glorify Jesus Christ, who by His holy life and death redeemed the lost and made them saints through Holy Baptism and faith in Him.

Scripture Readings for All Saints Day-    Revelation 7:2-17
Epistle- 1 John 3:1-3          Gospel- Matthew 5:1-12