ST LUKE NEWSLETTER: REFORMATION
Dear Family and Friends of St. Luke,
+ Grace and Peace
An annual commemoration on the liturgical calendar of the church is the Festival of Saint Luke. The festival is every year on October 18. This year it falls on a Sunday.
What do we know about St. Luke? Not too much is stated in scripture, but it is clear he was a great physician, a healer, and a companion of St. Paul. The gospel of St. Luke is one that reaches out to the outcasts and is filled with stories about the lowly being lifted up. What a wonderful name then for a caring community, a community of St Luke right now.
On Sunday, October 18th, we will observe this festival by including the laying on of hands and anointing with oil in the context of our morning service. This practice occurs weekly at our Wednesday morning service. Chances are that you and or someone you love and care about is in need of healing and wholeness. Let us gather to be lifted up by the healing mercies of God in Christ Jesus. Take this opportunity to invite a friend or neighbor to join you in worship as we thank and praise God, receiving the gifts of grace that God desires to share with us.
In Christ’s love for you,
Pastor Christopher Frye
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Strengthening Congregational Ministry:
Lower Susquehanna Synod Growing Together Workshop
October 17, 2026
Children, Youth & Family • Stewardship • Governance
Strengthening Congregational Ministry brings together a variety of leaders from across our synod to offer practical workshops in three areas of congregational life: Children, Youth & Family Ministry, Stewardship, and Governance. Choose the workshops that are most helpful for your ministry context and leave with ideas, resources, and tools you can use in your congregation. There is no cost to attend; however, registration is requested. Three (3) workshops will be offered in each ministry track, and attendees can focus on one specific area of ministry or combine workshops in whatever tracks interest them, or are pertinent to their personal area of congregation service. The morning will be hosted at St. John Lutheran Church, 44 West Main St, Shiremanstown, PA. There is NO COST to attend, however we do ask that you register in advance. Visit this link to register: Strengthening Congregational Ministry: LSS Growing Together Workshop
WE ARE REQUESTING PRAYERS FOR…
The 25th anniversary of 9/11 and all who continue to carry the grief and loss of that day. Pray for those mourning loved ones, for first responders and their families, and for peace in our communities, our nation, and our world.
Our rostered ministers Pray for renewal, meaningful conversation, learning, rest, and a renewed sense of God’s presence in their ministries.
Children, youth, families, and the adults who accompany them as a new program year begins in many of our congregations. Pray especially for congregations reviewing and strengthening practices that create safe and welcoming spaces for every child and young person. To pray for friendships to deepen, faith to grow, and young people to discover more fully the rhythms of God at work in their lives.
Those discerning God’s call, including candidates for ministry, congregations in transition, and call committees faithfully seeking new pastoral leadership. May the Holy Spirit give wisdom, patience, courage, and openness to what God is doing.
The Lutheran Camping Corporation and the Rev. William “Bill” Worley as he begins serving as Executive Director. Pray for Bill, the staff, board, volunteers, congregations, and all who share in the ministry of our camps as they enter this new season together.
Our congregations as they begin another fall season of ministry. Pray for pastors, deacons, council members, staff, volunteers, teachers, musicians, faith formation leaders, and all those preparing to welcome people into worship, learning, service, and community.
Our church as we engage important and sometimes difficult conversations. May we listen carefully to one another, speak with grace, remain rooted in Christ, and trust the Holy Spirit to guide the church.
A Call to be Trusted Messengers in this Election Season
Dear church,
In an interview after I was elected, I reflected on my experience as a mission developer, saying, “It is not about what you think you’re bringing into the community. It’s who you are in the community. The minute we showed that we cared is really when the community adopted us. People don’t care about what you know till they know that you care, and that was the biggest learning for me.”
Faithful. Informed. Engaged. This refrain captures a vision for Lutheran Christians living out their baptismal calling in the election season and beyond. Faith grounds us in God’s promises, and Christ sends us forth to love our neighbors and serve the world. Being informed equips us to address complex issues with wisdom, discernment and integrity. Being engaged reminds us that our participation in civic life is a key way we love and serve our neighbors. Our public witness is rooted in faith, guided by honesty and expressed through active citizenship.
ELCA ministries and leaders already play vital roles during election seasons. You register voters, provide rides to the polls, open your buildings as polling places and advocate for voting rights. Thank you! This year, I invite you to embrace an additional role to help strengthen our democracy: serving as trusted messengers in your communities.
Our church can be “all together in one place” as a powerful witness for truth, love of neighbor and honesty. False information remains a persistent challenge during elections. It can spread rapidly, undermining confidence in the electoral process and discouraging participation. Grounded in the commandment not to bear false witness, our churches and faith leaders are uniquely positioned to help address this challenge by seeking out and sharing accurate information and correcting misinformation when it arises. In a time when trust is often in short supply, serving as trusted sources of wisdom and guidance is a meaningful form of Christian witness. By helping our neighbors access accurate information and engage confidently in the democratic process, we live out our faith through responsible civic engagement and service to the common good.
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“Healthy civic engagement depends on clear distinctions between fact and all forms of falsehood, ranging from partial misstatements to intentional disinformation to outright lies. … Our church, then, encourages us all to ask, in every personal interaction and on social media, whether our words or those we repeat represent the best possible understanding of our neighbor.”
— ELCA social statement Faith and Civic Life: Seeking the Well-being of All (p. 62)
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The ELCA offers a variety of resources to help congregations and individuals be trusted messengers.
The new “ELCA Election Engagement Toolkit” provides guidance on topics that include serving as trusted messengers, engaging in election protection and modeling love of neighbor in polarized communities. (A tool kit launch webinar on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 12:30 p.m. Central time will provide an introduction to action steps and themes grounded in our Lutheran tradition.)
Through the “ELCA Civic Engagement Guide,” you can access materials on voter education, voter registration, candidate forums, legal guidelines for congregations, voting rights and ways to encourage participation in local communities.
I invite you to take faithful steps this election year:
• Register to vote if you have not already done so and check your registration to make sure it is up-to-date. Use the “Prepared to Vote Checklist” to think through local voting requirements.
• Learn about the issues, ballot measures and candidates that will shape your community. Participate in respectful conversations.
• Check sources of information before sharing it in conversations or online.
• Pray for those who serve in public office, for election workers and for all who will exercise the privilege of voting. Create spaces for faithful, open conversation with voters, candidates or neighbors in your community.
• Encourage your family members, friends and neighbors to take part in the democratic process.
Be faithful, informed and engaged as disciples of Jesus seeking the well-being of our neighbors and the common good of the communities God has entrusted to our care. Every act of informed participation, every conversation marked by grace and every vote cast with prayerful discernment is an opportunity to bear witness to God’s love in the world.
In Christ,
The Rev. Yehiel Curry
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Breathing in Creation: Family Friendly Hike
As the leaves begin to change and the beauty of autumn surrounds us, join us for a relaxed morning of walking, conversation, and reflection in God’s creation. Together, we’ll enjoy the trails and natural beauty of Pine Grove Furnace State Park while taking time to slow down, connect with one another, and notice God’s presence in the world around us. Along the way, we’ll offer a few simple reflections and opportunities to pause, wonder, and appreciate the gift of creation.
This family-friendly event is open to all ages. Whether you come on your own, with colleagues, friends, or with family, you’re welcome to join us. Please dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes. Participants are encouraged to bring water and a packed lunch as we conclude our time together. Please sign up
Meet at the Laurel Lake parking lot at Pine Grove Furnace State Park. Please note that there are several parking areas within the park, so be sure to meet at the Laurel Lake parking lot by 9:30 a.m.
Where: Pine Grove Furnace State Park: 1100 Pine Grove Road, Gardners, PA, 17324
Worship
The St. Luke Choir recently resumed rehearsals on Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:00.
Anyone is welcome to join in for a season, a year, or in some cases, forever.
Pictured on the left is the choir gathering for cupcakes and fellowship in honor of the #@th birthday of Sherry Fahnestock.
Support
August 2026 Council Highlights
- Income YTD $232,382.10
- Regular giving down 9.49% compard with last year
- Time to submit budget requests
- Project Bundle Task Force identified 3 projects – new roof, kitchen updates, repair and paint
walls and new carpet in Fellowship Hall with the cost of approximately $95,000*. Curtain
room dividers were donated to a German Baptist Church in exchange for 4 solid wood
cabinets. (*this is an updated estimate, 9/24)
Outreach
Adopt-a-Highway:
Our last Adopt-A-Highway pick up for 2026 is Saturday, October 3rd.
The trash pick-up crew meets in St. Luke parking lot to begin cleanup at 8 AM. We pick up roadside litter covering a two and a half mile section of PA Route 997 between Smoketown Rd and Ridge Rd. It typically takes about 60 minutes for the crews to complete their sections of the road. We provide safety instructions, gloves, and trash bags. Anyone over the age of 12 may participate.
If you have any questions, please contact Ellen Kroepil ([email protected]; cell: 717-658-2981)
Pentecost Projects 2026 Update:
By “God’s Work. Our Hands.” Sunday, 101 Personal Care Kits for Lutheran World Relief (LWR) were assembled and over $700 was donated to LWR, which will be used for shipping kits. Personal Care Kits will be accepted through the remainder of the season after Pentecost, which ends on November 28, 2026. Additionally, 100 School Kits were assembled with 61 going to our local schools and 39 going to LWR.
Prior to the start of the ’26-’27 school year a trunkful (5 large bags and a box) of hygiene items were delivered to CASHS for the Nurse’s Closet at the high schools and middle schools. Since the need for supplying the Nurse’s Closet is great, the Faith in Action committee is extending this project beyond Pentecost until the end of the school year.
Items needed for the Nurse’s Closet
Deodorant for both men and women Hair brushes, picks, combs, etc.
Soap or Body Wash* Toothpaste*
Shampoo* Toothbrushes
*Regular size, not big economy sizes or trial sizes
Thank you for your response for these two projects. You are supporting the health and dignity of our global and local neighbors who are lacking access to basic hygiene items in a practical way.
Education
Bible Study: On the first and third Tuesdays of the month beginning on October
6 at 11:00 am; there will be a Bible Study on the Ephesians led by Pastor Frye. Members
and friends of both St. Luke and St. Paul are welcome to join this class. We will meet in
the library at St. Luke. If you have any questions, please contact Pastor Frye.
Calendar
Visit our online calendar for the most current updates to meetings, events, and services.
Connect
2695 Luther Drive, Chambersburg, PA 17202
717-261-1213
[email protected]
