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Third Sunday of Easter

May 4, 2025

8:00 Mass (spoken)

10:30 Mass (choral) live streamed on Facebook

John 21: 1

After [he appeared to his followers in Jerusalem,] Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he showed himself in this way

Prayer of the Day

Eternal and all-merciful God, with all the angels and all the saints we laud your majesty and might. By the resurrection of your Son, show yourself to us and inspire us to follow Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.



Amen.

from the Pastor -

Pope Francis, as you know, died this past week and now rest from his labors.  While the Lutheran church recognizes Francis as the Bishop of Rome, Martin Luther (and subsequent church teachings) did not recognize a pope as God’s representative on earth; Luther argued that the pope was human, and therefore not infallible.

But as divisions and schisms and outright mistrust of each other have faded (although not all gone, sadly), we remember Francis as a humble man who always spoke for those who are marginalized:  the poor, the hungry, the sick, and minority populations all over the world that are being persecuted and discriminated against. He spoke passionately about our willful destruction of creation. 

When he was asked early in his career as pope, what his response was to homosexual priests, his answer was, ‘who am I to judge?’ which sent shock waves felt around the world.

The pope had a heart of a pastor, who believed he was at his best when he was with the people he had been called to serve.  He spoke movingly about God’s heart, which always bends towards healing and justice and mercy.

Pastor Patt +



Scenes of Holy Week and Easter 2025 at St Paul!

“The Sunday of the Resurrection is not only the greatest day of the church year; it is also the only one that is set by the moon…this means that Easter coincides with the greening of the earth.  Christ is risen and the whole world comes to life…The connection is a happy one, guaranteed torenew our faith in the creative power of God. 

But it is also a misleading one, because spring is entirely natural…Resurrection, on the other hand, is entirely unnatural.”  (Barbara Brown Taylor, Home by Another Way pg. 109)

This is a valuable resource to share that was created by the ELCA churchwide. As we consider works of love this Lenten season, take time to read through these devotions as you meditate on how to show love to your neighbor. Please click above.

You can now support the church and it's ministries using Thrivent. Scroll down to "Generosity" to the link.

Translator ear buds are available! If you would like to hear worship in your native language, you need to download the app -

AICOOL Market from the APP Store. Ask a greeter for an earbud.

Weekly Worship opportunities

Mid week Lenten Worship, Noon in Zion Chapel, March 12 - April 9.

In honor of Women's History Month,

we are using hymns composed by women.

Prayer:Tuesday evenings (except the second Tuesday of the month) from 7 to 8 PM, please join us in the sanctuary for prayer. This is an unstructured time; a chance to be present with each other and with God.

Morning prayer Wednesday , 9:00 AM, on ZOOM.

See above for Holy Week schedule.

We Pray...



for Glenn

for the Cooper family

for our local and national elected officials

we pray for our country

Individual Confession and Forgiveness, Saturdays by Appointment.

pastorstpaulteaneck@gmail.com

Submissions for the eBlast/

E Newsletter are due by 3 PM Tuesday.

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Lights out to protect migrating birds!

Spring Migration Dates

Full Spring Migration Period: March 1 – June 15

Turn off non-essential lights from 11 PM until 6 AM during critical migration periods.



Celebrating our 100th Anniversary

St. Paul recalls…

In April 1947, St. Paul authorized the start of a building fund to build a larger facility on the property just east of the parsonage. A campaign of $75,000 was launched to erect a building which would cost $200,000 and seat 500 people. Little did they realize it would be seven long years

before they would acquire title to the present church.

As we prepare for our November celebration, we will also be producing a video that will be shared at the synod assembly and also at our gala. We are especially looking for pictures from the 50 - 70s. If you have any pictures to share, please bring them in or contact Elizabeth Lowe (lowe.elizabeth@gmail.com) Thank you!

The Pray Ground is ready. Come and see!

Love in Action/

Social Ministry

The Pantry, under Patricia’s leadership, is committed to bringing food to people who are leery of coming into the building. While we will no longer publicly post information about our feeding programs, we are still feeding people.

Generosity

We now have two online ways to give to the church!

FLOWER CHART If you would like to contribute flowers for our chancel, please add your name to the list posted across from the kitchen. Thank you!

We thank you for supporting St. Paul with your intentional and loving gifts, which you can make either in person at worship, through Tithley ( link on the church website),

or mail your offering to: St. Paul Lutheran Church 941 Slocum Ave Ridgefield, NJ 07657.

 Thank you for your generosity and being a part of transforming our world!

We are feeding and clothing our neighbors; in the past few months, we have fed over 1,000 people per month.

We can't do this ministry without your generous support!



St Paul Church's only financial source is YOU!

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Bell Ringers!

If you can count to four, you can ring handbells!

For information, stpaulmusicmiki@gmail.com

Rehearsal Saturday! April 5, 11:30 AM.

You might be Lutheran if

…a midlife crisis means switching from the old hymnbook to the new one.

Final Thought

"There is no place that is far from God"



St Monica, Mother of Augustine.

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