NEWS & EVENTS

October 28, 2026

November 1 - All Saints Sunday

Hymn of the Day: "For All the Saints" - ELW 422

Part of liturgy being our “work” or something we DO on Sunday mornings is how we participate personally and in a lively manner. This is especially evident this Sunday. We invite you to bring photographs of your deceased loved ones to be placed on the windowsills beside us as we worship together. This is your reminder to dig out/find those photos of deceased family members that you’d like to share with church family. We will read the names of our loved ones who have gone before us, especially those who have passed on in the last year since All Saints Day in 2025. Be sure you write the name(s) of your loved ones in the book before worship!

In today’s gospel we have the “Beatitudes” from the gospel of Matthew (5:1-12). This

reading is sort of a blueprint in detail of the characteristics of a holy life; humility ("poor in spirit"), compassion, mercy, purity of heart, and peacemaking. By reading these passages on All Saints' Day, we remind each other that the saints are simply ordinary, struggling people who allowed these graces to guide their lives. Thus, the major theme of this day is honoring our ancestors who endured the world’s opposition in their actions of faith. They are indeed the ones who have devoted their lives to honoring and helping their neighbor to their best ability. In Matthew, Jesus concludes by directly addressing those who are reviled, or persecuted. Jesus tells his followers to "rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven," connecting the trials of everyday saints directly to the prophets who went before them; reassuring those gathered that those prophets are now enjoying eternal peace with God.

Surely to die in peace is to not have pent up thoughts of retaliation against your enemies. To be at peace, is to not have regrets about how you spent the times of your life because you spend them helping to create joy for others by your gifts of time, possessions, and love. This is your legacy. A legacy is the lasting impact and imprint you leave on the world through your actions, values, and relationships. It encompasses the memories you create, the lessons you pass on, the love you invest in your family, and the contributions you make to your community. A legacy isn't just about what you leave behind after you die; it's a reflection of who you are and how you shape the present. Whatever efforts you endure to make this world a better place, surely, gives you greater peace and a reason to rejoice about entering into the next realm of existence! I will be remembering my father-in-law of 35 years, (Lloyd E. Boettcher, whose birthday would be Oct.31, All Souls Day, the vigil of All Saints Day. He was the “best dad I ever had”, as I so often told him. He was exactly all of these things that define a saintly legacy.

How did it come to be called the “Beatitudes”?

1. Matthew wrote his Gospel in Greek. The opening section of the sermon (vs.3–12) repeats the phrase "Blessed are..." nine times. The original Greek word used for "blessed" is makarioi, which means happy, fortunate, or spiritually prosperous.
2. In the late 4th century, Saint Jerome translated the Bible into Latin (known as the Latin Vulgate). He translated the Greek word “makarioi” into the plural Latin adjective beati.
3. The Latin noun for a state of supreme happiness or blessedness is “beatitudo”. Because every statement in this section of the Latin Vulgate began with beati, early publishers and theologians began using beatitudo—which evolved into the English word "Beatitudes".

Our hymn of the day is “For All the Saints” by William How (1823-1897). He was an Anglican priest from the Shropshire area (west side of the English isle, just northeast of Wales). He wrote about sixty hymns. Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote the tune, SINE NOMINE specifically for How’s hymn text in 1864. The original version had eleven stanzas. Most Lutheran hymnals of the last 100 years have only used eight.

Stanza 2: “Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might

Thou, Lord, their captain in the well-fought fight:

Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true light.”

These saints of whom we sing, and who lived amongst us and are now passed on, have left this legacy of “doing to others as you would have them do to you”. For them, “sweet is the calm of paradise the blest”. For us, we do our best to create a similar legacy as we pass through this life following in their footsteps.

Peace!

Deacon Gary Butler

Adult Education Forums

11/1 - Timely Thoughts on End of Life Planning

Join us Sunday, November 1 at 10:30am to learn more about options and plans for the future - Karen Peterson from Better Place Forests will share information about planning for the end of your, or a loved one's, life. We'll talk about health care directives, legal considerations, payment options, and final resting places. This informal presentation will have plenty of time for questions!

11/8 – Statement of Faith and liturgical language, facilitating by Pastor Sarah

11/15 – Supporting victims of abuse, Breanna Heisterkamp

11/22 – Slice of Lefse – no education hour

11/29 – Intro to Mark, Pastor Sarah

Our adult education hour will be held in the Fireside Room. The planning team, including Sarah Borgeson, Linda Hildebrant, Rebecca Sauer and Pastor Sarah, is excited to offer engaging conversation throughout the year. As always, if you have ideas for speakers, topics or are interested in presenting, please contact one of us in person or email Rebecca at rjwestermeyer@gmail.com. 

Connecting Across the Generations with Church Buddies! 

For the grown-ups: You are invited to sign up as a church buddy to be connected with a child or youth of the congregation. You are encouraged to talk with your buddy when you see them at church, pray for your buddy, send a birthday or baptism anniversary greeting. Gifts and time spent together outside of church activities are not encouraged. This is a simple way for us to make more and deeper connections across the generations and help our children grow in knowing that church is a place where they are cared about. Sign up here to be a church buddy:

For the kids and families: Each child and youth of the congregation, under the age of 18, will have a church buddy. This is a grown-up member of the congregation and outside of the child's family who will check in with them when at church activities. They might also send a birthday or baptism anniversary greeting. Church buddies would also pray for each other. This is a simple way for us to make more and deeper connections across the generations and help our children grow in knowing that church is a place where they are cared about.

Looking for Toys

Our playroom needs some updating! The Youth and Learning Committee bought a couple of new things but are looking for a few more items. If you have any toys that your family has outgrown that you would like to donate, we’d be glad to add them to our room. The following are a few ideas of things we could use. 

• Wooden building blocks
• Brio train track, train cars, and engines
• Lincoln logs
• Matchbox cars and track

If you have any of those things or anything else that you think we could use and would like to donate them, you can put them on the table or counter in the toy room. If you leave something, and we can’t use it for some reason, we will donate it so some other child can enjoy it. Questions? Check with Sue Hendrickson. 

LCR Book Club News

Our book for this month is Horse by Geraldine Brooks. We will discuss it on Wednesday, November 4 at 1:00 in the Fireside Room. Horse takes place in three different timelines, 1850’s Kentucky, 1954 New York City, and 2019 Washington DC. It is fiction but based on a true story of a racehorse called Lexington. We learn of the horse’s beginnings and racing career and in later times the people who become interested in the story of the horse, his trainers, and his owners. A painting and the horse’s skeleton trigger the action. 

Future books: 

December - Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

January – Whistler by Ann Patchett

Please Come to a Spaghetti Supper!

Home-made spaghetti sauce, spaghetti,

Garlic bread, salad, and dessert!

Gluten free and vegetarian options will be available.

Wednesday, November 4

5:00 – 6:30 in the Fellowship Hall

Free Will Offering, with the proceeds to support our youth activities here at LCR.

Dine in and enjoy the company of our church community, or

take-out orders will be available, so you can have your spaghetti at home.

Let us do the cooking for you!

Window Washing

We are going to wash church windows, outside and inside, on Saturday, Nov. 7 starting at 10:00 am, weather permitting. We will be finished at least by noon. If you have window washing supplies please bring them with you that morning. The more people who help the faster things will go! Please join us on Saturday, Nov. 7. Thanks!

Thanksgiving Pie Sales

Order your Thanksgiving pies now through Sunday, November 15! Resurrection youth are selling Double Crust Apple, Caramel Apple Pecan, and Pumpkin pies again this year in order to raise money for their activities.

Paper order forms on clipboards in the narthex will be available on Sundays, Oct. 25, Nov. 1, 8, and 15, or you can email Kurt at office@lcr-elca.org with your orders. Suggested donation for each pie is $30. Pies will be available for pick up on Sunday, November 22. Thank you for your support!

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Help Bake Thanksgiving pies!

Calling all youth and families and any other interested folks! We need your help on Saturday, November 21 (time to be determined), to make the Thanksgiving pies. We have the supplies and the recipes, but just need your help to execute the baking and tagging. Please consider coming to help and email Terra Swisher with any questions: terraswisher@gmail.com

Post-Election Community Worship Service

Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, and Lutheran Church of the Resurrection are collaborating on a service of Evening Prayer on Friday, November 6, following the mid-term election. We will gather together regardless of those outcomes to unite our voices in prayer and song. The service will include parts of Magnificat by Antonio Vivaldi with members of each congregation in the ensemble. Offering received will benefit Global Refuge, the immigration and refugee services of the ELCA. 

Where: Pilgrim Lutheran Church, 1935 St. Clair Ave, St. Paul, MN 55105, on the northeast corner of St. Clair Ave & Prior Ave

Parking: Street parking is available. A few off-street parking spots available behind the building for those with accessibility needs.

Date: Friday, November 6, 2026 

Time: 7pm 

Connecting with Our Local Community

Thanks to all who helped feed the staff at Emmet D. Williams School during conferences last Thursday evening. The teachers were very appreciative.

Here are more opportunities to help out at EDW:

• Friday, November 6 is Fall Fest and volunteers are needed. Here’s the link to sign up:

FALL FEST VOLUNTEERS

• Monday, November 9 volunteers are needed to assist students learning games during an Indigenous games presentation. This is an active event, teachers are reaching out to parents to volunteer, but a few more adults may be needed. You can check with the school office for more information.
• On-going helpers are needed with the Every Meal program. Refer to the announcement below for the QR code to sign up to help!

Caminando Juntos | Walking Together

Earlier this year, a delegation from Como Park Lutheran Church and Lutheran Church of the Resurrection visited Cristo Luz del Mundo, their ILAG congregation in Santa Amelia. For four of the seven travelers, it was their first time walking alongside their companions. Among them was Arlin Becker, who experienced the accompaniment model firsthand by learning about the culture, sharing stories, and building relationships.

First Impressions

My time in Guatemala was a great reminder of my youth, when I spent time in the country of Brazil. My folks were missionaries in Brazil and various memories came back to me as we travelled the roads of Guatemala, relished the food, and enjoyed conversations with people. I was prepared for delays while traveling, dealing with bugs, yet looking forward to familiar foods, like papaya (that were properly ripened!).

The values of accompaniment were stressed and followed as we visited with our Santa Amelia brothers and sisters in Christ. This was evident not only in Pastor Karen's style of leadership, but also in the way our more experienced group members presented themselves. Thanks to those in our delegation who have visited before us and guided us.

Observing how our Guatemalan church leaders and members work with their government leaders (albeit, with patience) reminded me that building relationships matters and our continued support of love, prayer, and financial support is essential.

We presented a supply of medical necessities to Cristo Luz del Mundo and learned their immediate need to replace the church’s roof. During times of fierce winds, the church roof had been lifted off the building. In the future, they wish to build a larger church building.

Members of the congregation gave us their time to welcome us, and we trust that our interaction with them strengthens the church and community. We also shared that we are blessed by their work in building a strong community of faith in God, through serving others around them and supporting their own church families.

In addition, we had the opportunity to visit the new Delores Center in Delores, Petén, where 14–17-year-old girls receive support while attending high school, receive job training, and gain life skills. The CLAG students had prepared and presented a fascinating heritage-themed program just for us. 

We had time to visit the Mayan temples at Tikal in the Petén region, as well as check out the church projects we have been supporting.

Arlin Becker

Lutheran Church of the Resurrection, Roseville

Every Meal Schedule

Volunteers are needed to help with the Every Meal Program. LCR is sharing the duty with members of Roseville Covenant Church, so we will be scheduled every-other week instead of each week. The new schedule is now online at the Constant Contact site. Scan the QR code or click the link below to sign up. Thank you for helping with this project! Contact Nancy Nelson for more information. EVERY MEAL VOLUNTEER SIGN-UP