We thank everyone for your prayers and donations that support our ministry. Additional donations are welcome:
Aloha and Blessings,
In response to the covid-19 crisis, Governor Ige has announced a statewide shelter in place order effective through April 30, 2020. Although difficult for all of us, the order is intended to provide the best chance to manage infection rates, especially among the most vulnerable in our population. We thank our government and health authorities for their leadership and example.
Sadly, this means that the LCH community will not be able to hold in-person worship services for Holy Week, Easter, and the Sundays after Easter through April 30. However, we have received communication from Mayor Caldwell’s office that churches may use their sanctuaries for live-streaming worship as long as a very limited number of worship leaders adhere to rules of social distancing and personal hygiene. Our worship team has carefully designed our worship to abide with these guidelines and will continue to stream worship from our sanctuary unless it unsafe to do so. We hope and pray that you will join us online and share this worship opportunity with your extended family far and wide. Many congregations are not able to provide online worship, and we can be a temporary church home for them during this crisis. Our first Lenten service was viewed over 1,200 times and reached over 2,500 people!
Secondly, I will be reaching out to several members to serve on a “calling tree” that will make weekly calls to members and friends of the congregation. If you would like to help with this, please contact Pastor Jeff at pr.jeff@lchwelcome.org. I am also setting up three online fellowship opportunities each week to help keep us connected and encouraged over the next few weeks.
Lastly, several members of our congregation have been laid off or lost their jobs as businesses are forced to close due to the state and federal shutdowns. We do not expect those folks to continue with their usual patterns of giving and encourage them to care for their families. For those of us who are able, an additional stewardship gift would be welcome. If you or your family are in need of emergency financial help, please contact Pastor.
As always, God is walking with us through dark days, and we know that Easter dawns each day. Thank you to staff members Anne Sing, Scott Fikse, Reid Ishikawa, Mark Wong, and Carolyn Koehler for their hard work and dedication. And a HUGE mahalo to our steadfast council and volunteers who keep the faithful work of the church alive and thriving!
Peace,
Pastor Jeff Lilley
Dear friends in Christ,
During these difficult days we are struggling with the disruption caused by the covid-19 epidemic. You are in my prayers every day, as you face the challenges of work and school closures and general disruption of everyday life. As you pray for one another, please include our most vulnerable brothers and sisters—especially those who are poor, homeless, alone, and hungry—in your prayers. Things that are an inconvenience for some may be matters of life and death for others.
On Monday evening, the LCH Congregational Council made the difficult decision to suspend all in-person activities at Lutheran Church of Honolulu, through April 5, 2020 (Palm Sunday). The decision was not made lightly or out fear, but out of an abundance of love for our community. We feel it is important for the LCH ‘ohana to heed the advice of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as well as state and county officials, to minimize personal contact in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. ELCA Bishops Andrew Taylor and Guy Irwin also issued a joint statement to ELCA congregations, in Southern California and Hawai‘i, urging congregations to curtail in-person worship, meetings, bible studies, and small group gatherings through Palm Sunday. Therefore, all in-person activities held on the LCH campus including worship, bible study, meetings, performances, rehearsals, tutoring, and music lessons will be suspended through April 5, 2020 (Palm Sunday). Where possible, LCH worship, meetings, and bible study will be conducted electronically.
It is incredibly important that we attend to one another’s spiritual health during this difficult time. Therefore, we are not canceling church; we will simply connect in worship and study in new ways! Instead of gathering at our church building, we will be the church from our homes. Wednesday Lenten services and Sunday worship will be live-streamed, via the internet. We are finalizing details, so keep an eye on your Robly email (Use this link if you are not already receiving regular emails from LCH though the Robly platform) for more information, including links for you to participate in weekly worship and Thursday morning bible study. We are already working on other spiritual resources for mutual encouragement and enrichment, especially for those who may be self-isolating.
Thank you for your continued stewardship and giving in support of ministries at LCH. Online giving is available through the LCH website. Look in the lower left-hand corner of the web page. You may also mail check donations directly to Lutheran Church of Honolulu, 1730 Punahou Street, Honolulu HI 96822. This may be the perfect time to sign up for electronic giving through the Simply Giving platform. Please email the church office at lch@lchwelcome.org for more information, or to receive registration forms.
The church office will be staffed as usual for the remainder of this week. If office staffing times change, we will post office hours on our website and on the office voicemail. Please feel free to call the office at 808-941-2566 for spiritual care or other needs. Otherwise, please refer to regular Robly email notifications (Use this link if you are not already receiving regular emails from LCH though the Robly platform) for updates and information about worship and Bible study streaming, rather than calling, if possible. We will provide information as soon as it is available.
Pastor Jeff will continue his usual office hours and activities but will restrict pastoral visits to phone and Facetime interaction. Thank you for your patience and support. Let’s have an adventure together with this new form of worship, and continue to share God’s love in the world!
Blessings,
Pastor Jeff
on behalf of the Congregational Council and staff of
Lutheran Church of Honolulu
The staff and leadership of Lutheran Church of Honolulu have spent a great deal of time working through a prayerful response to the recent covid-19 outbreak. Although the extent of the corona virus outbreak in Hawai‘i is as yet unknown, we want to be cautious and prepared to protect the most vulnerable people in our midst. As such, we are implementing changes in our worship practice to best protect one another, while maintaining a worshipful presence. These are not changes made out of fear but out of love and concern for those who are most vulnerable.
Therefore, effective immediately, in response to CDC recommendations regarding the covid-19 virus, LCH is modifying parts of our worship practice:
For the moment, small group activities are being evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and we ask sponsors of those events to carefully consider the level of risk their event presents to the most vulnerable among us. If in doubt, please feel free to cancel your event to protect our friends and neighbors. Be sure to contact the church office, at 808-941-2566 or lch@lchwelcome.org, if you cancel an event so that we can post the cancellation on our calendar. If you are not sure what to do, feel free to call Pastor Jeff at the office.
These are interim steps pending further recommendations from the CDC and County Health Department. In the event that the health situation in Hawai‘i worsens, we are prepared to take whatever steps are necessary to protect the public, including cancelling worship and other events for a prescribed period of time. We are already working on a plan to provide some sort of digital content that will allow us to connect in worship, should the need arise. In the meantime, the staff will continue to work and plan for whatever eventuality might come to pass. We appreciate your understanding and support.
Aloha,
Pastor Jeff and the Congregational Council
The serving line for Wednesday evening soup and salad suppers.Each Wednesday evening during the season of Lent, members and friends of LCH will gather for table fellowship and worship.
The evenings begin with a light supper of soup, salad, and bread beginning at 6:00 pm in the Hörmann Courtyard. The meal is provided by volunteers, and all are welcome to join in fellowship and conversation around the table. If you feel moved to contribute to the meal, please sign up in the courtyard on Sunday morning.
Worship follows the meal at 7:00 pm using the music and prayerful song from Marty Haugen’s Holden Evening Prayer.
Our Lenten theme for 2020 is “Compassion.” Readings for worship each week will include a psalm and one other selection, with the psalm receiving primary emphasis. Carol Langer will provide art work based on each week’s psalm. Members of the Writers’ Workshop and Pastor Jeff will provide artistic and engaging meditations based on a different verse or verses each Wednesday. Poetry, prose or reflective meditation are all possibilities.
As we all move forward on our Lenten journey and prepare for Easter joy in the resurrection, all are invited to come together at the table, to be fed and nourished in body and soul, and to worship together as a faith community.
The cantors lead worship.
For the next in our First Mondays concert series, we experience musical life at German courts during the eighteenth century.
This concert shows us a glimpse of Weißenfels—one of the most famous German courts of the time. George Frederic Handel began his musical training there, Johann Sebastian Bach received prestigious appointments there during his Liepzig years, and Johann Phillip Krieger served the court as Kapellmeister for nearly 45 years. Others passed through or lived in close proximity, including Schütz and Telemann.
This concert features Naomi Barrett, soprano; Melissa Walker, mezzo-soprano; Karol Nowicki, tenor; Scott Fikse, bass-baritone; and members of the Bach Chamber Orchestra
Selections to be performed include:
Pupus and non-alcoholic drinks will be served before the concert beginning at 6:30.
Free-will donations are welcome.
The 2019–20 series of First Monday Chamber Concerts is free, and all are welcome. Visit our First Mondays Chamber Concerts page for a listing of the concerts in the series and to learn how you can support these concerts.
Pastor Jeff Lilley marks the foreheads of members of the congregation with ashes during the Ash Wednesday Liturgy.LCH begins the observance of Lent on February 26 with the traditional Ash Wednesday Liturgy with imposition of ashes.
Throughout the Lent, members and friends will gather on Wednesday evenings for table fellowship and worship. Beginning on March 4 and continuing through April 1, members and friends will gather at 6:00 pm for a light supper of soup and salad, followed by worship at 7:00. This year’s worship will focus on the theme “Compassion.” The liturgy used during worship will incorporate the music and prayerful song from Marty Haugen’s Holden Evening Prayer.
As our congregations prepares for our Easter joy in the resurrection, all are invited to come together at the table, to be fed and nourished in body and soul, and to feast together as a faith community.
LCH celebrated its annual Faith and Arts Sunday on February 16. Held each spring, this is a time when members of the congregations recognize the many ways the arts enrich our lives and honor the artist of all ages who call LCH home.
Works displayed this year represent a wide variety of media: needle craft, paintings, digital media, poetry, prose, photography, woodworking, and more. Participating artists included young children, working adults, and retirees. Some, like members of the Writers’ Workshop, meet regularly as a group, but many work at home and share as part of this annual event.
At right, members look at examples of the art work of children and adults submitted for Faith and Arts Sunday 2020.
The slideshow below shows the items displayed this year. Click on any of the photos to see a larger version. (Because the files are rather large, it may take several seconds for the larger image to appear. Use the back arrow on your browser to return to the slideshow.)
Read Poetry and prose written by members of the Writers’ Workshop displayed during Faith and Arts Sunday.
Each year, the LCH youth (with help of others from the congregation) hold Punahou Carnival parking fundraiser. The carnival takes place this Friday and Saturday, February 7 and 8.
The youth and their leaders need adult and youth volunteers for three-hour shifts during the carnival on both days. Event coordinators provide snacks and drinks, flashlights and safety vests, and you provide the fellowship!
Funds raised will support youth activities throughout the year, including attendance at the Western Youth Gathering at California Lutheran University this coming summer.
If you’re going to the carnival, please park at LCH. We have the closest lots, and your donation support our youth throughout the year. Parking in $15 (no in-out privileges), and the lots are open from 10:45 am to 11:30 pm both days.
For the next in our First Mondays concert series, we welcome good friend of LCH music, the Stark Duo.
Known to audiences around O‘ahu, The Stark Duo represents the finest in artistry, virtuosity, and creativity. Since 1991, the duo has performed a widely varied and unjustly-neglected repertoire, including an emphasis on American music. Darel Stark, violin and viola, and Georgine Stark, soprano, will perform songs without words, vocalizes, as well as a few surprises, including works by David Diamond, György Kurtág, Wallingford Riegger, D. Stark, R. Vaughan Williams, Eugène Ysaÿe, and more.
Pupus and non-alcoholic drinks will be served before the concert beginning at 6:30.
Free-will donations are welcome.
The 2019–20 series of First Monday Chamber Concerts is free, and all are welcome. Visit our First Mondays Chamber Concerts page for a listing of the concerts in the series and to learn how you can support these concerts.