Good Shepherd Church ... Worship
(507) 289-1748
559 20 St SW, Rochester, MN 55902
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
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Good Shepherd Church ... Worship
(507) 289-1748
559 20 St SW, Rochester, MN 55902
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
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Most often the order of worship follows one of the settings in the green Lutheran Book of Worship, the With One Voice blue book, and the Haugen maroon book. Occasionally, we develop our own service or have special formats, e.g. hymn-sing or a musical.
Summer (Memorial Day through Labor Day): The 8:00 a.m. service is held outside, weather permitting, in our amphitheater, designed and built under the direction of Brian Geer. A second service is at 9:30 a.m.
During the school year Sunday morning worship services are scheduled at 8:15 a.m. and at 10:45 a.m. with Sunday School between.
The Saturday evening worship service at 5:30 p.m. is less formal. Jane Belau plays the piano.
Holy Communion is celebrated each service. All baptized believers are invited to commune with us. Children not yet instructed for the sacrament are included with a blessing.
Lenten mid-week services are held on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. following a Soup Supper.
We experience God’s steadfast presence in our community in many ways. God is present with us as we volunteer at Dorothy Day House, work with Habitat for Humanity, as we learn from one another in our many and varied small group ministries and in so many more ways. Scripture reminds us that where two or more are gathered in the name of Christ, he is there among us, and we feel his presence throughout our worship and our proclaiming and celebration of the Word. We as Lutherans also believe in the “real presence” of Christ in, with and under the bread and the wine at communion. How Christ is present is a mystery to everyone. We believe and dwell in that mystery each time the bread and wine is received. When the bread is broken we are united in its brokenness, when the cup is shared we are lifted up by the sweetness of God’s grace. As we share the sacrament of Holy Communion each and every week, this is perhaps one of the most tangible and profound ways our Lord Jesus comes to us.
For many years it has been the practice at Good Shepherd to allow parents to decide when they would like their children to receive their first communion, and a special instructional class geared toward second grade students was provided. In the ELCA the precedent has been set to administer the sacrament of Holy Communion to people of any age as soon as they are ready and able to receive the elements of the bread and wine. This includes all people regardless of age. This practice was underscored theologically in The Use of the Means of Grace: a Statement on the Practice of Word and Sacrament, which approved by the 1997 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. You can find this statement at the following web site: http://www.elca.org/worship/worship/Sacraments/print/umg.html
With this statement in mind, the Worship committee recommended to the church council that all the baptized, regardless of age, be welcomed to receive the sacrament of Holy Communion. The council unanimously voted in favor of this understanding. (September, 2006)
The new approach is as follows: All are welcome to receive the bread and wine at the table, however, if individual families would prefer that the child wait until another time, such as second grade, parents are invited and empowered to make that decision. If a family wishes for their young children to receive the bread and wine, they are to be intentional about sharing what happens in communion, teaching about the presence of Christ in the meal, and the love and grace we receive through it all. Educational materials will be available online or at the church office to help parents talk with their children about Holy Communion.
We will continue to have educational classes about the Lord’s Supper geared toward second graders in the spring of each year. All second grade students will be strongly encouraged to attend this event as they have in year’s past. Ongoing instruction in the faith is important, regardless of age. There will also continue to be a special communion celebration for those second grade students who have completed this instruction at the Maundy Thursday service each year. For some it may be their first communion, for others it will not. However, all will have received this training and have been reminded once again (as we all need to be reminded), that the mystery of Christ’s presence in, with and under the bread is real and is to be celebrated.
We give thanks for God’s presence with us in our community, in our worship, our education and in every facet of our lives together. May our understanding of the profound ways Christ comes to us in his holy supper be strengthened by the gathering of our faith family as all of us are nourished for the journey through his body and blood.
In Christ,
Pastor Dave
Talk with Vicky Mulvihill, our volunteer coordinator, or any current volunteer to assist with a worship service. Your help is appreciated!
Help out on the Worship Committee. The Worship Committee provides for meaningful worship experiences, encouraging regular participation of the congregation. We have a variety of worship styles, and lots of items to discuss - music, hymnals, seasonal decorations, adult forums, chairs, communion ware and procedures, baptism, outdoor services in the summer, gluten-free wafers, sound, Lent, Easter, lilies, Christmas, poinsettias.
To learn more, talk to any one of these committee members: Kristi Hansen, Mary Jones, Lori Bates, Bruce Larson, Dave Herder.
Last modified: March 3, 2008. Email GSCwebmaster with corrections or suggestions.