The ALC Messenger Volume 59 Issue 1
January 2015
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:11) The mission of the American Lutheran Congregation is to bring people of different nations and denominations together, and in the English language, empower them into becoming fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. 1
The ALC Messenger Monthly Newsletter for the American Lutheran Congregation
INDEX ALC Information index Pastor’s Corner,
Page 2
AICEME Youth Conference Pictures Where Diversity Flourishes (Article from
Pages 3
Page 7
Pages 8-10
the Lutheran Magazine)
Birthdays, Prayers
Page 4-5
ALC Women’s Fellowship
Page 11
Calendar
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Annual Congregational Meeting - January 25, 2015
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American Lutheran Congregation Interim Pastor - Peter Rogness Office Secretary: Rie Melhoos Council President: Robert Sebro Messenger Editors and Helpers : Mel Engebretsen, Eric Mandeville, Bob Sebro, Rie Melhoos, Visiting address: Fritzners gate 15, 0264 Oslo, Norway Mailing Address: PO Box 3012 Elisenberg, 0207 Oslo, Phone: + 47 22 44 35 84 Fax: +47 22 44 30 15 Email: office@alcoslo.org Webpage: www.alcoslo.org
Bank account number for offerings :5081.07.47827
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Pastor’s Corner “And the One sitting on the throne said ‘Behold, I make all things new.’” (Rev. 21:5) I don’t know if other cultures join in a frenzy of using the coming of a new year to be the time when people make “new year’s resolutions.” – They’re going to lose weight, be nicer, exercise every day, learn a new language, stop drinking/ smoking, etc. Most don’t get kept, because habits are hard to break. As I write this there is an AA group (Alcoholics Anonymous) meeting two doors down from where I’m sitting in my church office, one of several such groups who are here each week. Though AA reaches far wider than any specific church or religion, it recognizes one basic truth: when it comes to real change, there’s more involved than simply one’s own will power. AA reaches across faiths but still uses as an essential step in making life new the recognition of our need for a “higher power.” And they need one another for strength and support. Our Christian faith embraces these truths, and names them. Martin Luther explained our belief in the work of the Holy Spirit (in the third part of the creed) by saying “I believe I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in my Lord Jesus Christ or come to him, but the Holy Spirit calls me through the gospel…” It’s the same activity of the God the writer of Revelation saw in his vision sitting on the throne, announcing that God is always about the business of clean slates, fresh starts, new beginnings. This congregation is a few months away from a major “new beginning” as we prepare for the arrival of a new pastoral leader. We (especially the call committee) work hard to make this change well… but it is our trust in God’s presence in the process and in what unfolds in the coming years that will give life to this change. Life is full of change. Some of it delights us, and some causes grief and anguish. The God whose coming among us we have celebrated in Christmas is a God who is to be found in the midst of all of it. Our own lives, our congregation’s life, and the life of this world that is God’s handiwork – all of it is not far from God’s presence… and it’s in the promise of that presence that peace and justice and reconciliation and new growth all have life. Peter Rogness
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God Bless You on Your Special Day! January Birthdays 1 – Peter Majeed 2 - Abraham Ghebre Christos 2 - Marian S. Håbesland 4 – Madison Perry Lorgen 5 - Ynghild Solholm 6 - Yolanda Solholm 7 - Asha Lal, 7 - Anna Maria Aune Moore 8 – Maria Morland 9 - Naomi Gichimu 10 - Wenche Foss 12 - Judy Hansteen 12 - Don Loendorf 12 - Rima Annie Seth 14 - Helen Borchgrevink 18 - Janette Fjeldstad 18 - Andreas Lokken
18 – Zo Rakotoarison 19 - Caroline Cooper Sjøstedt 19 - Judy Staff 19 - Yonathan Yohannes Mekonnen 20 – Martin Alexander Thorsen 22 - Victoria Glyn 22 - Leonardo George Granrud 25 – Karen Riding 26 - Martha Kjølseth 26 - Ajay Kumar 28 – Chiek Jwee Er 28 - Brian E. W. Wabende 29 - Robert Marsalis 29 - Matteo Mellilo 30 – Donna Marstrander 31 – Caja Amalia Madsen-Goonetilleke
Call Committee Update After interviewing over 10 Pastoral Candidates online, the Call Committee has invited 3 candidates and their spouses to come to Oslo in January to meet with Call Committee members and attend worship services. The pastoral candidates will have the opportunity to share a bit during the fellowship hour following the service.
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New Members On December 28th, the following people were received as members during the worship service:
Maija Ozolina; Sharmila Rao, Sanumaiya Bhandory; Jeevan Chaulagain; Ilunga Ndayi Leonard; Josef Adam; Pamela Echeverria; Oliver E. Evju, Shahriar Benjamin Shams; Frank Akogyeram
2014 Annual Reports The ALC 2014 Annual Report is expected to be ready for you to take home on January 11th. Please take the time to read it before our Annual Meeting being held on Sunday January 25 after the worship service. Both full members and associate members are encouraged to attend this important meeting. A potluck lunch will be held. Please remember to bring a dish or two to share with others If you have any questions please see Rie Melhoos or Pastor Rogness. We hope to see you there!
Prayers The ALC is fortunate to have many individuals who lift up other members, friends, and relatives to the Lord in prayer. If you are in need of prayers or know of others who who would like to be prayed for or with. You may want to contact: Our Prayer Chain administrator, Gillian Holby, at jillholby@gmail.com Our Prayer Group which meets Wednesdays, at 7 PM in the Fireside Room. The prayer group is lead by Richard Blucher. Please contact Richard Blucher at rblucher@online.no. In addition please contact the church office directly with any requests for prayers. 5
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16:30 t NET 17:15 Al-Anon
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12:00 Staff meeting 16:30 t NET 17:15 Al-Anon
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Martin Luther King Day Church Office Closed
10:30 Choir Rehearsal 11:00 Worship Svc Holy Communion 12:00 Fellowship 16:00 Oslo Kirken
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10:30 Choir Rehearsal 11:00 Worship 12:00 Fellowship 16:00 Oslo Kirken
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10:30 Choir Rehearsal 11:00 Worship Service Holy Communion 12:00 Fellowship 16:00 Oslo Kirken
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16:30 tNET 17:15 Al-Anon
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10:30 Choir Rehearsal 11:00 Worship Svc 12:00 Potluck - Annual Meeting 16:00 Oslo Kirken
19:00 Council Mtg.
Bible Study 10:30
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19:00 Prayer Group, AA
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19:00 Prayer Group, AA
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19:00 Prayer Group, AA
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19:00 AWC Board Mtg
19:00 Prayer Group, AA
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Wed
18:30 AWC meeting
Tue
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January 2015
Mon
29
22
15
8
New Year’s Day
1
Thu
30
23
16
18:30 ALC Women’s gathering at Gerry Rogness
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2
Fri
31
14:30 AA
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14:30 AA
17
14:30 AA
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14:30 AA
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AICEME Youth Conference Last month Wandile Zondi wrote a fine article about the AICEME Youth Conference held in Bonn in November. This month we would like to include some pictures for you to get an idea of the event. Wandile and Michael would like to give thanks to the ALC for your prayers, your donations at the movie night and to an anonymous donator on behalf of the youth group. Last, but not least they would like to thank God who allowed them to participate at the 2014 AICEME Youth Conference . Here are some pictures from Bonn. We look forward to sending you pictures from the 2015 conference :)
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Reprint information was granted by The Lutheran magazine for this article as it first appeared in the January 2015 issue of The Lutheran.
Where diversity flourishes In Europe, international congregations offer a ‘large welcome’ By Anne Basye James and Jana Shepperd and their daughters look forward to Sunday mornings. That’s when the biracial, binational, bicultural family of four attends Bratislava [Slovakia] International Church. Instead of drawing attention — an everyday experience in this largely homogenous country — in church they’re just part of the wallpaper. An intricate, colorful wallpaper of folks from Europe, North America and Mexico, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. “Everybody who comes to Bratislava International Congregation has some element of outsiderness” to Slovak society, said Miriam Schmidt, the ELCA pastor and missionary who serves the church. James Shepperd calls them misfits. “Finding a place where any given Sunday you can be in a high concentration of misfits — it’s kind of calming,” he said.
Building community For the Bratislava International Congregation and other members of the Association of International Churches in Europe and the Middle East, welcoming outsiders and misfits is a primary emphasis. “Our congregation offers a place for people to see others who look like them, who come from the same mixed background,” said Stephan Kienberger, an ELCA pastor who serves American Church in Berlin. Most members come from North America, Europe and Africa, and many are or have been married to Germans. The story is the same at American Lutheran Church in Oslo, where the nearly 30 nationalities include many worshipers from the Indian subcontinent. “Everybody except for the Norwegians is on somebody else’s turf,” said Timothy J. Stewart, an ELCA pastor who served the congregation until fall 2014. “In a way, we are all a little off balance.” That feeling extends to worship — while the liturgy is Lutheran, many worshipers are not. Stewart said the congregation is united because they “are in Oslo” and “believe in the Triune God and want to worship in English” — often a second, third or fourth language. To live out what Schmidt calls “a very large welcome” for people who can be isolated by language, culture, race, immigration status or transiency, the congregations are intentional about building community. They also pay careful attention to cross-cultural dynamics. 8
In Berlin all visitors are greeted and their presence acknowledged during the service. Staff and lay leadership are intentionally diverse, and worship life includes “the full face of the community,” Kienberger said. The traditional choir is led by an American, the contemporary choir by a German, the gospel choir by a Ghanaian, and the organist is Indonesian. Coffee hour is an extended affair at all three churches, offering expatriates a safe space to swap stories about the challenges of international living, make friendships and feel the support of the church community. Ministries are as fluid as the members who come and go. Kienberger said American Church in Berlin has “an open door policy — if we can try to fit you we will!” Its on-premises food pantry attracts people of all ages who volunteer even though they aren’t fluent in German. And in Oslo, new moms organized a prayer circle. Ministry to other migrants is natural. In Norway, Stewart attended immigration hearings with members seeking religious asylum to help confirm the authenticity of their faith. In Berlin the congregation offers English or German classes for neighbors, primarily Muslim migrants. All three congregations offer prayer and social support for members struggling with visa difficulties. High turnover means fewer “sacred cows in terms of programming,” Stewart said. Schmidt agrees, adding that in the Bratislavan church, too, barriers to innovation by newcomers are lower than in less mobile congregations. (Continued on page 10) 9
Intentional inclusion (continued from page 9) Why do these diverse congregations in Europe flourish while multicultural congregations are few and far between in a diverse U.S.? Outsider status is one reason. When everyone is an outsider in some way, a sense of unity prevails. When conflicts arise, people are more tolerant, in part because there’s no place else to go. The ability to apologize — which Stewart calls Oslo’s “greatest strength” — complements a careful attention to the dynamics of language, culture and power. Cultural transgressions happen all the time. “It isn’t easy,” he said. “We all work.” In Bratislava, Schmidt watches as new people are welcomed and settle in. Will someone from Japan or Indonesia find their place in the congregation as easily as a native English speaker or an American? If not, what response is needed? Money, status and class can separate, as former refugees and high-level diplomats work side by side in ministry. Roots in a variety of church traditions mean that worshipers have different understandings of stewardship, service, even relating to the pastor. Challenges do arise. “Working together in a small group has been a work in cross-cultural pollination and understanding,” Kienberger said. “We talk about false perceptions we have of one another and find some heartening things as we unpack.” For Kienberger, the bottom line for these worshiping communities is to “try to stay Christ-centered and reflect the diversity of the world church and the vision of the New Jerusalem in Revelations 21.” And, yes, it’s the future of the church. “We are multicultural and multiethnic and on a daily basis dealing with the reality of people who are not Lutheran and did not grow up that way,” said Stewart, who now serves the International Church of Copenhagen. “It’s messy, it’s chaotic, and it’s intensely beautiful.”
The ALC Website, Weekly Email News and Messenger Please take a look at our ALC website at www.alcoslo.org. In addition the ALC sends out a weekly email news, as well as the monthly newsletter, The Messenger. If you would like to receive our news by email, please send an email to office@alcoslo.org
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ALC Women’s Fellowship Gerry Rogness, has kindly offered to host the next gathering on January 9th. As usual, we'll have a bring and share, but if you don't have the chance to bring anything, don't worry, we'd love you to come! Place: Vestheimgata 6 B, time: 18:30. Please RSVP Gerry on geraldine.rogness@gmail.com
Women’s Gatherings for 2015 In addition, we are looking for ladies to host some of our evenings in 2015. The dates needing to be covered are: April 10 May 8
If you can offer your home and host a group of ladies, that would be very helpful. All it requires is that you make some tea/coffee and have some snacks available. We all pitch in and bring food, so there should not be long preparation time or much work for you. It always works out well. If you want to introduce the evening with a devotional, that is very welcome, but if not, someone else will step in, so you don't need to feel pressured in any way. Some of you, I know, have wonderful musical gifts, and if you would like to contribute with those in any way, you are most welcome! I trust the list will fill up soon and we can look forward to some meaningful and encouraging fellowship evenings together. With best wishes Ulrike Krallmann and Naja Boone Solend
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Annual Congregational Meeting January 25th 2015 The Annual Congregational Meeting for Voting Members is called for 25 January 2015. The meeting will take place: Date: Sunday, 25 January 2015 Time: Potluck Lunch immediately after the 11:00 Worship Service, with the meeting to start as soon as possible Place: ALC, Fritzners gate 15 Agenda
Greeting Opening Devotions Approval of Agenda Review and Approval of the minutes of the 2014 Annual Congregational Meeting held on January 26, 2014 Pastor’s Report President’s Report Ministry Area Reports\ Treasurer Report Audit Committee Report Presentation and Approval of the 2015 Budget Nomination Committee Report Election of officers and Committee Chairs for 2015 Election of Audit Committee member for 2015 Election of Nominating Committee members for 2015 Closing Comments and Prayer
Robert Sebro President, ALC Council
Melisande Engebretsen Secretary, ALC Council
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