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MONK'S MUSING
From Pastor Janell Monk
Oh, my goodness. It has been a full week. Last Sunday, we celebrated Marianne’s retirement. This Sunday, we will celebrate the closing of Letty Owings Center and our involvement in this incredible support to women and children. In between these two celebrations, I have traveled to and from Sunriver for Bishop’s Convocation. I also participated in the annual Oblate Intensive at Our Lady of Grace Monastery in Beech Grove, Indiana. This year, the Intensive was online which allowed me to participate from afar.
Amid busyness, it is easy to lose track of what is really important. When we are pulled in one direction and then another, we may find ourselves spinning. Spinning without a focus can send us in a direction we may not have wanted to go. This is where I found myself as I arrived home on Wednesday night. An important phone call with a friend was on the calendar and I delayed the call because I was on another phone call. I called my friend, while watering my garden, and she asked, “Do you need a few minutes to catch your breath before we talk?”
Thirty minutes later, my garden chores were complete, travelling dust was washed away, and a hot cup of tea was in my hands as I returned the phone call sitting on the back porch. My hunch is the conversation we had would have been much different had I remained in my frenzied phase. We do this to ourselves, we overcommit or perhaps do not recognize how much time is needed for any given activity.
When life gets hectic, we may take shortcuts or move in a direction that seems affirming only to wind up asking ourselves, “How did I get here?” Throughout his life, Jesus knew who he was. His whole ministry was focused on teaching, encouraging, welcoming and seeking justice, healing and building up community. With this precision, he could be clear whenever someone opposed him. In our Gospel reading this week, two opposing opponents’ team up to entrap Jesus. Jesus resisted falling into the trap they so carefully proposed. Instead, he chose to align himself with God’s great commission, where all have what they need, no one has too much, everyone is welcomed, loved, and forgiven.
When we allow the demands of this world to entrap us, we can wind up feeling a bit out of sort. Even though my week was full, the Oblate Intensive, centered me. Using Lectio Divina, we focused on chapter four, the Tools for Good Works. The chapter begins, “First of all, love the Lord God with your whole heart, your whole soul and all your strength and love your neighbor as yourself.1-2” It includes the phases, “Place your hope in God alone34” and “And finally, never lose hope in God’s mercy.74”
These phrases resonate with how Jesus responds to his opponents. They invite us to go and do likewise. May we have similar resistance when we find ourselves in difficult situations. May the love, grace and mercy of God illuminate our pathway. May we have friends who say, “Hey, do you need an extra moment?” And may we give ourselves the grace to receive help.
Blessings of Hope
Pastor Janell
she/her
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Remembering the Letty Owings Center: 1989–2026
Sunday, October 18 | During Worship & at 11:15 a.m.
Join us as we celebrate and remember the Letty Owings Center and its 37 years of service, compassion, and community. During worship, we will welcome Tina Bialas, Director of Residential Services, for a special presentation reflecting on the Center and its lasting impact.
Following worship, at 11:15 a.m., join us for a special photo presentation highlighting the people, memories, and meaningful moments that made this ministry so special.
Come share in the memories, honor the many hands and hearts that contributed over the years, and celebrate the legacy of the Letty Owings Center.
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Join Pastor Janell and others for a monthly silent interfaith peaceful walk near the Macadam Federal Detention Center.
The next walk is Saturday, October 24 at 4:30 p.m.
Please bring flowers to lay at the gate of the detention center.
We gather at 4:30 for this interfaith prayer walk. A short introduction is followed by ten minutes of silence before silently walking down Moody toward Bancroft. Once we arrive at Bancroft, we walk up to Highway 43 and cross Bancroft to walk down the hill beside the building. When we arrive at the grate at the entrance of the buiding, we lay down flowers and continue walking. We walk this circle two more times before walking back to Elizabeth Caruthers Park. Once everyone has returned, there is someone who will speak a closing. Last Saturday, Tom Hoopes spoke about his son Jacob who is serving 900 days at Sheridan Prison Camp for his involvement in protests on June 15, 2025. Tom has created a blog post inviting people to do small acts of kindness illuminating light for each day Jacob is in prison.
Here is an article to learn more: https://www.portlandmercury.com/news/test-of-faith-portlander-begins-federal-prison-sentence-for-assaulting-an-ice-officer/
If you are interested in attending the October Prayer Vigil, please let Pastor Janell know.
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Our Savior's donated 100 pounds of perishable and non-perishable items to Hunger Fighters in the month of September!
Currently requested items:
- Pasta and Pasta Sauce
- Convenience Foods (Mac & Cheese, Top Ramen)
- Toilet paper
- Shampoo
- Can Openers
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Scripture Readings for This Week
Isaiah 45: 1-7
Psalm 96: 1-13
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Matthew 22:15-22
Please keep in prayer:
Charlie S., Regan, Mary M., Connor, Barbara C., Max, Jeff S., Emily, Brenda B., Michelle C., Joyce, Isaiah, Iryna, Inna and all who live in Ukraine, Katheryn P., Scott, Katherine E., Adele, Jeff S., Marianne, Caregivers and their loved ones.
| | A Message from ELCA Presiding Bishop Curry | |
All Together in One Place: Celebrating Our Diversity
September 28, 2026
Dear beloved children of God,
As a church, we collectively continue to celebrate the diversity with which God has created the world. Scripture tells us that, from the very beginning, we were made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). In the book of Acts, many were gathered in one place when the Holy Spirit came upon them. Each was given the power to witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the promise of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:32-33). In 1 Corinthians 12:12-14, the human body serves as a metaphor, demonstrating that a healthy Christian community relies on the many distinct gifts and qualities of each unique member — emphasizing unity through continuing to be a connected church.
I am thankful to serve this church in the office of presiding bishop. I am also grateful for my experience as an activist and leader in communities and congregations that are at the margins. Whatever our role and wherever our place in the church, God calls us to develop trusting relationships with our neighbors. In the service of Affirmation of Baptism, the presiding minister asks, “Do you intend to continue in the covenant God made with you in holy baptism ... to serve all people, following the example of Jesus, and to strive for justice and peace in all the earth?” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, p. 236). Striving for justice involves learning about underlying causes of division and inequity. It is a commitment our church makes because of baptism.
Celebrating diversity and striving for equity, inclusion and accessibility for all reflect this baptismal call. The words “diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility” and the initialism “DEIA” mean different things to different people. For the ELCA, as church together, these terms reflect our “delight in the fact that the people called, gathered, and enlightened” by God represent such a wide array of identities, backgrounds and life stories (ELCA social statement Freed in Christ: Race, Ethnicity, and Culture, 1993, p. 3). The terms remind us of the gospel vision of community, in which all are truly welcome. They are terms this church has chosen to include in its teachings and constitutions as reflections of our faith in God, who creates, redeems and sustains all people.
Everyone matters in this church. I have celebrated with synods and congregations as they build communities that reflect the people and neighborhoods around them. I have worshiped in places where many languages are spoken and people from different backgrounds feel welcome. Together we have expanded our understanding of what it means to be church through relationships with companion churches around the world and through relationships between congregations in rural, urban and suburban settings here in the United States. We are joined together through holy baptism, through which God calls us to strive for justice and peace in all the earth. “Diversity,” “equity,” “inclusion” and “accessibility” are reflections of justice when it is fulfilled. Like many saints before us have said, justice is the form love takes in society.
The road is long, but we go forth in faith, trusting in the risen Christ and inspired by one another for the work ahead. Let us continue in the covenant God has made with us, to serve all people in love.
In Christ,
The Rev. Yehiel Curry
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
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