Parish Newsletters

Our Saviour Parish News, August, 2026

OUR SAVIOUR LUTHERAN CHURCH

3301 The Alameda
Baltimore, MD 21218
410.235.9553
August, 2026

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The appointed readings for Divine Service in September trace what a life already touched by mercy looks like from the inside: gratitude, trust, hope that reaches past the grave, and humility before God. Each Sunday answers the same quiet question a little differently: now that God has shown us mercy we did not earn, what does it look like to live inside that mercy every day? See ‘The Month Ahead’ for September in this newsletter for a preview of the coming month.

Pastor McClean was released from Mt. Sinai Hospital several weeks ago and has moved to Beachwood Assisted Living in Catonsville. Unfortunately, he was hospitalized again this past week at St. Agnes Hospital. At this time we do not have any additional information, but please continue to keep him in your prayers.

The Sunday Bible class is concluding its study of selected readings from ‘Series A’ of the three-year lectionary at the end of August. Next month, we will take up a study of “The Blood of the Lamb: Understanding the Levitical Sacrificial System.” In this study we will learn that words familiar to us in the Divine Service such as “shed for you for the remission of sins” and “Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world” were originally given to Israel as we find in the book of Leviticus, and that the apostles wrote the pages of the New Testament assuming their readers knew that history. Please join us September 13, 20, and 27 at 9:45 AM to learn about this critical history of the church. There will be no Bible Study on September 6.

Mark your calendars now for Family Day and the 96th Anniversary of the Dedication of the Lutheran Church of Our Saviour on October 4. Divine Service is at 11:00 AM. We will have with us as preacher and celebrant the Rev. Lucas Witt, Executive Director of the Lutheran Mission Society Compassion Place. Pastor Witt is a great friend to Our Saviour and we look forward to welcoming him and his family. We will of course have our traditional luncheon following the service. Be on the lookout for more information in the near future.

We are continuing to pursue the Specific Ministry Pastor program for our candidate, Scott Jones. Unfortunately, admission for this fall has proved to be impossible due to the lateness of our application and class size limitations. We have received updated application materials and are proceeding apace to get the application submitted at the earliest opportunity for admission in the fall of 2027. In the meantime, we have been fortunate to have our pulpit filled every Sunday with strong and faithful preachers who have given generously of their time so we may receive God’s precious gifts in His Divine Service and will continue to strive to have that each and every Sunday.

There is one more Free Flea market for 2026, on September 12, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Please see Judy Volkman for details or to volunteer to help.

We continue to remember in prayer Pastor McClean, Bridget Bauman, James Bauman, Albert Bell, Christopher Bell, Bertha Buchanan, Dana Carmichael, Elizabeth Coats, Timothy Doswell, Quilla Downs, Frank Ford, Iris Ford, Sean Fortune, Lynne Funck, Sherry James; Gloria Jones, Byron Masterson, Beth McClean, Julia Silver, Robert Siperek Jr., Lawrence Smallwood, Paul Swank, George Volkman, Gary Watson, Marvalisa, Sierra, Jonathan, and Steven Gibson.

See you in church!

In Christ and on behalf of the Church Council,
Paul Techau, Council President

The Month Ahead: September, 2026

Services and Their Readings

The Season: Trinity XIV–XVII: Living in God’s Mercy

September carries the Church through four Sundays that trace what a life already touched by mercy looks like from the inside: gratitude, trust, hope that reaches past the grave, and humility before God. A healed leper turns back to say thank you, a widow’s jar of flour never runs empty, another widow watches her only son called back from death at the city gate, and dinner guests learn that only God decides who is exalted and who is brought low. Each Sunday answers the same quiet question a little differently: now that God has shown us mercy we did not earn, what does it look like to live inside that mercy every day?

September 6  Fourteenth Sunday after Trinity

Proverbs 4:10–23  •  Galatians 5:16–24  •  Luke 17:11–19
As Jesus travels along the border between Samaria and Galilee, ten men crippled by leprosy call out to Him from a distance, the only place their disease allows them to stand. Jesus sends them to the priests, and as they go, they are healed, every one of them. Only one turns back, and he is a Samaritan, a foreigner, falling at Jesus’ feet to give thanks. Jesus asks where the other nine have gone, then tells the grateful man that his faith has saved him. Paul’s letter to the Galatians shows what that saved life looks like from the inside: not a chaotic list of sins we manage to avoid, but a single, unified fruit that the Holy Spirit grows in us, love, joy, peace, and the rest, springing up wherever faith clings to Christ alone.

September 13  Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity

1 Kings 17:8–16  •  Galatians 5:25–6:10  •  Matthew 6:24–34
During a famine that has left her gathering the last sticks for a final meal, a widow in pagan territory is asked by the prophet Elijah for bread she does not have to spare. She obeys anyway, and her jar of flour and jug of oil do not run dry until the rains finally return. Jesus points His hearers to that same trustworthy God when He tells them not to be anxious about food or clothing: if the Father feeds the birds and clothes the grass of the field, He will surely care for those made in His own image. Paul closes with a practical push: because we do not know how much time remains, we should never grow weary of doing good to everyone, and especially to the household of faith.

September 20  Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity

1 Kings 17:17–24  •  Ephesians 3:13–21  •  Luke 7:11–17
The same widow of Zarephath who trusted Elijah for her daily bread now watches her only son die, and in her grief she asks the prophet whether he has come only to bring her sin to judgment. Elijah carries the boy to his own room and pleads with the Lord for his life, and the boy breathes again. Years later, outside the village of Nain, Jesus meets another widow burying her only son, and where Elijah could only pray, Jesus simply speaks: “Young man, I say to you, arise.” The boy sits up, and the crowd, trembling, confesses that God has visited His people. Paul’s soaring prayer for the Ephesians asks that very God to root and ground us in a love that reaches farther than we can measure, filling us with nothing less than the fullness of God Himself.

September 27  Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity

Proverbs 25:6–14  •  Ephesians 4:1–6  •  Luke 14:1–11
Long before Jesus ever sat down for a meal, Solomon warned his son never to seize the place of honor at the king’s table, since it is far better to be invited up than to be publicly sent down. Jesus brings that old proverb to life at a Sabbath dinner, watching the guests jockey for the best seats before He tells them plainly: take the lowest place, for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. It is God, not the other guests, who decides where each of us finally belongs. Paul begs the Ephesians to walk out that same humility in ordinary life, bearing patiently with one another in love, eager to guard the unity the Holy Spirit has already given the whole Church: one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of all.

Parish Newsletters

Our Saviour Parish News, July, 2026

OUR SAVIOUR LUTHERAN CHURCH

3301 The Alameda
Baltimore, MD 21218
410.235.9553
July, 2026

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As we move deeper into the Trinity season, we see in the lessons of the church year that God shows mercy to people who cannot save themselves. In one lesson after another, we see this truth unfold. See the ‘Month Ahead’ for August at the end of the newsletter for a preview.

Pastor McClean was hospitalized again at the beginning of this month. He is at Mt. Sinai. We do not have much additional information at this time, but please pray that God would give him strength and healing.

The Sunday Bible class is continuing a study of selected readings from ‘Series A’ of the three-year lectionary each Sunday morning at 9:35 AM and we continue with the 8:30 AM Sunday spoken Matins services throughout the summer.

The need is still great to support our neighbors in need. Boxes for items for both the GEDCO Food Pantry and the Helping Up Mission can be found inside the door near the church office. Please give as you are able.

We are continuing to pursue the Specific Ministry Pastor program for our candidate, Scott Jones. That our request for his admittance to the program came late for the fall term is complicating matters, along with a change in leadership of the program and other revisions that occurred this summer. But we are continuing to pursue his earliest possible admission into the program. Look for additional updates in the coming months.

We have two more Free Flea markets for 2026. They are, according to our custom, each second Saturday of the month through September (August 8, September 12), 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Please see Judy Volkman for details or to volunteer to help.

We continue to remember in prayer Pastor McClean, Bridget Bauman, James Bauman, Albert Bell, Christopher Bell, Bertha Buchanan, Dana Carmichael, Elizabeth Coats, Timothy Doswell, Quilla Downs, Frank Ford, Iris Ford, Sean Fortune, Lynne Funck, Sherry James; Gloria Jones, Byron Masterson, Beth McClean, Julia Silver, Robert Siperek Jr., Lawrence Smallwood, Paul Swank, George Volkman, Gary Watson, Marvalisa, Sierra, Jonathan, and Steven Gibson.

We are into the dog days of summer, which means it is not always comfortable in church. But compared to many Christians around the world, we are still extremely blessed in the beautiful church that God has given us. And each week we have the opportunity to receive God’s greatest gifts in His Word and Sacrament. Please do come to receive these gifts if you are at all able.

See you in church!

In Christ and on behalf of the Church Council,
Paul Techau, Council President

The Month Ahead: August, 2026

Services and Their Readings

The Season: Trinity IX–XIII: Mercy for the Helpless

August carries the Church deeper into the green season of Trinitytide, through five Sundays that hold up one truth from many sides: God shows mercy to people who cannot save themselves. We meet a manager about to lose everything, a city that squandered the day of God’s visit, a tax collector who can only beg for mercy, a deaf man who cannot even ask, and a traveler left half dead on a lonely road. In every case the Lord comes to the helpless with a kindness they have not earned. As the month closes with the Good Samaritan, that same mercy turns outward, reshaping how we handle our money, our worship, our prayers, and our neighbor.

August 2     Ninth Sunday after Trinity

2 Samuel 22:26–34  •  1 Corinthians 10:6–13  •  Luke 16:1–13
Jesus tells a story that startles everyone who hears it: a manager, caught wasting his employer’s money and about to be fired, scrambles to secure his future before his last day. Jesus does not praise the man’s dishonesty; He praises his shrewd foresight, and He presses us to be every bit as clever about eternal things, using whatever earthly wealth we have to do good. No servant, He warns, can serve both God and money. Paul adds a steadying word from Israel’s years in the wilderness: God is faithful, and with every temptation He opens a way of escape so that we can stand.

August 9     Tenth Sunday after Trinity

Jeremiah 7:1–11  •  1 Corinthians 12:1–11  •  Luke 19:41–48
As Jesus comes within sight of Jerusalem, the shouts of Palm Sunday give way to tears: the city has missed the day of God’s visit, and its King weeps over the ruin to come. He enters the temple and drives out those who had turned a house of prayer into a den of robbers, echoing Jeremiah, who centuries earlier warned the people against hiding behind the temple walls while their hearts ran after sin. Our security was never in buildings or routines; it rests in repentance and living faith. Paul reminds us, meanwhile, that the one Spirit hands out a rich variety of gifts, each given for the good of the whole church.

August 16   Eleventh Sunday after Trinity

Genesis 4:1–15  •  1 Corinthians 15:1–10  •  Luke 18:9–14
Two men go up to the temple to pray, and they could not be more different. One, a respected and religious man, thanks God that he is nothing like the sinners around him; the other, a tax collector his neighbors despise, will not even lift his eyes, but only beats his chest and prays, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” Jesus startles His hearers by declaring that the tax collector, and not the proud man, went home right with God, for he threw himself on God’s mercy instead of his own record. Paul confesses the very same thing about himself: once a fierce enemy of the church, he is now an apostle entirely by grace, “by the grace of God I am what I am.”

August 23   Twelfth Sunday after Trinity

Isaiah 29:17–24  •  2 Corinthians 3:4–11  •  Mark 7:31–37
In Gentile country a crowd brings Jesus a man who is deaf and can barely speak. Because the man cannot hear a single word, Jesus speaks to him through touch, placing His fingers in the man’s ears and touching his tongue; then He looks to heaven, sighs over a broken world, and says one word: “Be opened.” At once the man hears and speaks clearly, and the astonished crowd can only exclaim, “He has done all things well,” unknowingly confessing Jesus as the Creator come to mend His world. Isaiah had promised this very day, and Paul assures us that the new covenant of the life-giving Spirit shines far brighter than the old covenant of stone.

August 30 Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity

2 Chronicles 28:8–15  •  Galatians 3:15–22  •  Luke 10:23–37
A lawyer asks Jesus how to earn eternal life, and Jesus points him to the Law: love God with all you are, and love your neighbor as yourself. When the man asks just who his neighbor is, Jesus answers with the story of a traveler robbed, beaten, and left for dead, passed by two religious men and rescued at last by a despised Samaritan who bandages his wounds, carries him to an inn, and pays for his care. The Law’s command to do this and live only shows how far we fall short, and it points us to the true Good Samaritan, Christ Himself, who found us dying and bound up our wounds. Paul explains that God’s promise to save by faith came long before the Law and can never be canceled by it: the inheritance is a gift, not a wage we collect.

Parish Newsletters

Our Saviour Parish News, June, 2026

OUR SAVIOUR LUTHERAN CHURCH

3301 The Alameda
Baltimore, MD 21218
410.235.9553
June, 2026

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The beginning of the Trinity season focuses on what scholars call “the call to the kingdom of grace,” that is, God’s invitation to His kingdom, who is invited, and what it costs to refuse. These Sundays take us from the bedrock of salvation by faith alone, through the great feast God spreads for the undeserving, to the relentless mercy of a God who seeks out what is lost. As is our local custom, we will on the last Sunday of this month remember God’s grace to his church in the Presentation of the Augsburg Confession. On June 25, 1530 seven Lutheran princes and two free imperial cities presented this Confession of their faith to Emperor Charles V in the City of Augsburg. We remember and give thanks for this great Confession of the one Faith of Christ’s one holy Church, and we pray that we may through all our days remain steadfast in this Confession. For a look ahead to July, see this months ‘The Month Ahead’ feature at the end of this newsletter.

At the May meeting of the Voters Assembly, a resolution was unanimously adopted asking Scott Jones to enter the SMP program, if at all possible in the Fall of 2026. Unfortunately, we are past the application deadline for the fall semester. This was unavoidable as there was no reasonable way to act on such a resolution prior to the regular Spring voters meeting. However, we are working with the district and Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne, IN to get an exception to the normal deadline for the fall semester. We are arranging for Scott to have a vicarage interview with the Southeastern District and are in contact with the seminary admissions office to make this happens. It is a work in progress and we will endeavor to keep you informed of any new developments.

We recently received an inquiry from St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Meherrin, VA. Our Saviour has a special relationship with St. Matthew as many of the members of St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Baltimore, came from Meherrin. St. Matthew, Baltimore merged with the Lutheran Church of Our Saviour in 1973 to form our present congregation of Our Saviour. Saint Matthew Church, Meherrin is in the process of major renovations to repair termite damage. Our Saviour made a donation to this effort in April. Per a request at the May Voters Assembly, we are including this information in the newsletter in case any members would like to make individual contributions. Checks should be made payable to Saint Matthew Lutheran Church and mailed to PO Box 91, Meherrin, VA 23954. You can note ‘Restoration Project’ on your check.

At this meeting we also elected the members of the church council for the coming year. They will be installed at Divine Service on June 26. A budget for the 2027 fiscal year that starts on July 1 was adopted which has some challenges. Please see Gabe Purviance’s note at the end of this letter for more information and how you can help.

The Sunday Bible class is continuing a study of selected readings from ‘Series A’ of the three-year lectionary (Our Saviour uses the historic one-year lectionary at its Sunday services). The class meets each Sunday morning at 9:45 AM. In addition, we will continue the 8:30 AM Sunday spoken Matins services throughout the summer.

We are continuing to support the GEDCO Food Pantry and for the Helping Up Mission. Boxes for items for both are found inside the door from the parking lot north of the church. Needless to say, the need remains great. And remember that you can provide help for suffering people around the world through our Synod’s LCMS World Relief and Human Care. You can call our Synod’s Contributor Care Line: (888)930-4438 or you can give online through this secure website: lcms.org/givenow/mercy or you can send a check to LCMS World Relief and Human Care, PO Box 66861, Saint Louis, Missouri 63166-6861. Make your check payable to “The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod” and write “LCMS World Relief and Human Care” on the memo line.

We are continuing with our Free Flea markets each second Saturday of the month through September (June 13, July 11, August 8, September 12), 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Please see Judy Volkman for details or to volunteer to help.

We continue to remember in prayer Pastor McClean, Bridget Bauman, James Bauman, Albert Bell, Christopher Bell, Bertha Buchanan, Dana Carmichael, Elizabeth Coats, Timothy Doswell, Quilla Downs, Frank Ford, Iris Ford, Sean Fortune, Lynne Funck, Sherry James; Gloria Jones, Byron Masterson, Beth McClean, Julia Silver, Robert Siperek Jr., Lawrence Smallwood, Paul Swank, George Volkman, Gary Watson, Marvalisa, Sierra, Jonathan, and Steven Gibson.

When you come to the church, you will see that a lot is happening. We have fresh paint and new artwork is several parts of the building. This is thanks to the efforts of Scott Jones and his family. We are grateful for their efforts to help beautify our building. And we also want to thank Merton Masterson for his going above and beyond the call this past week. As some of you know, we had a little issue with the organ last weekend which turned out not to be the organ at all, but rather it was a BGE problem with our electrical supply. Merton gracefully agreed to spend more than twelve hours at the church waiting for a BGE crew to become available to fix the problem, which was accomplished this past Wednesday (June 11).

See you in church!

In Christ and on behalf of the Church Council,
Paul Techau, Council President

Stewardship and the Our Saviour FY2027 Budget

Martin Luther’s “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”  has always been one of my favorite hymns. When we sing the words, “a bulwark never failing,” I think of Our Saviour Lutheran Church standing watch at the corner of 33rd Street and The Alameda — a fortress of faith, hope, and protection for all of God’s people.

At the May Voters Assembly meeting, a budget for FY2027 (which starts July 1) was adopted that shows $106,575 in expenses against an expected income on the order of $95,000. This obviously is a deficit budget. While we have made every effort to minimize costs and hope to find additional savings as the new fiscal year progresses, the costs of maintaining our beautiful church, our fortress, never diminish. Thus as you consider your offerings for the coming year, we would ask that you consider this situation and, if at all possible, increase your weekly or monthly giving. In this way you can help strengthen our bulwark and keep Our Saviour as a beacon of the Gospel here in Baltimore for years to come.

We are truly blessed by God’s abundant grace and by the faithful generosity of this congregation. Thank you for helping keep our fortress strong.

– Gabriel Purviance, Stewardship Director

The Month Ahead: July, 2026

Services and Their Readings

The Season: Trinity V–VIII: Called and Kept by Christ

July’s four Sundays trace the life of the disciple from first calling to final warning. The Fifth Sunday shows Jesus turning a fishing boat into a pulpit and calling ordinary men to leave everything behind. The Sixth stands at Sinai and the Sermon on the Mount, where the Law that demands the whole inner life meets the Baptism that delivers what we cannot achieve. The Seventh and Eighth round out the month with God’s overwhelming provision for all nations and a sober reminder that the only true test of a teacher is the fruit of his doctrine.

July 5  Fifth Sunday after Trinity

1 Kings 19:11–21  •  1 Peter 3:8–15  •  Luke 5:1–11

After his great victory over the prophets of Baal, Elijah has collapsed in terror, convinced he is the only faithful person left. God meets him not in wind, earthquake, or fire but in a quiet whisper, then sends him right back to work with the assurance that seven thousand others still stand firm. In the Gospel, Jesus overwhelms Simon’s boat with a miraculous catch so vast the nets begin to break, and when Peter falls to his knees and confesses his sin, Jesus responds not with condemnation but with a calling: from now on, you will be catching people alive. Peter’s letter brings that same pattern into our own lives—called to bless when cursed, always ready to give a gentle account of the hope we carry.

July 12  Sixth Sunday after Trinity

Exodus 20:1–17  •  Romans 6:1–11  •  Matthew 5:17–26

The Ten Commandments open not with a demand but with a declaration: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt.” God delivers first and commands second. Jesus then takes those commandments in the Sermon on the Mount and drives them inward: to harbor anger is already to be guilty of murder, and to treat a brother with contempt is to stand in danger of judgment. Paul’s letter to Rome tells us what God has done about that: in Baptism, He buried our sinful nature with Christ and raised us to new life, so that sin no longer has the final word over who we are.

July 19  Seventh Sunday after Trinity

Genesis 2:7–17  •  Romans 6:19–23  •  Mark 8:1–9

Genesis 2 gives us an intimate portrait of creation: not the God of distant cosmic power but the potter who kneels in the dirt, shapes the man from the dust, and breathes life directly into his nostrils, placing him in a garden whose name means “delight.” In the Gospel, Jesus is in Gentile territory when four thousand people run out of food, and He feeds them all from seven loaves, giving thanks over the bread in language the Church will recognize at every Lord’s Supper. Paul puts the contrast plainly: sin pays a wage, and that wage is death; God gives a free gift, which is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

July 26  Eighth Sunday after Trinity

Jeremiah 23:16–29  •  Romans 8:12–17  •  Matthew 7:15–23

Jeremiah warns that false prophets feed the people comfortable visions from their own imaginations—straw instead of wheat. Jesus closes the Sermon on the Mount with the same warning: false teachers look exactly like sheep from the outside, and the only reliable test is the fruit of their teaching, whether they confess the true Christ or quietly substitute something more agreeable. What protects the Church is not our own vigilance but the Word of God, which Jeremiah describes as fire and as a hammer that breaks rock. Paul adds the great comfort: the Spirit testifies alongside our own spirit that we are children of God and heirs with Christ, and no wolf can take that inheritance from us.

Parish Newsletters

Our Saviour Parish News, May, 2026

OUR SAVIOUR LUTHERAN CHURCH

3301 The Alameda
Baltimore, MD 21218
410.235.9553
May, 2026

Ascension Festival Divine Service
Thursday, May 14, 7:30 PM

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

As we draw to the close of the festival half of this church year, we have three major festivals of the church to celebrate this month. On May 14, we will celebrate the Ascension of our Lord with Divine Service at 7:30 PM. Ten days later, on May 24, we will celebrate Pentecost. The word Pentecost means “fiftieth;” it is the fiftieth day after Christ’s resurrection and marks the outpouring of the Holy Spirit to Christ’s church through his apostles and is generally regarded as the birth of the church. We note that this Spirit was present at the creation of the world as we sing in that ancient hymn:

Creator Spirit by whose aid
The world’s foundations first were laid,
Come, visit every humble mind,
Come pour Your joys on human kind;
From sin and sorrow set us free;
May we Your living temples be.

The following Sunday, May 31, is Trinity Sunday, and the concluding celebration of the festival half of the church year. As we have noted previously, we are planning a farewell for Pastor McClean that day at the 11:00 AM Divine Service with a luncheon to follow. If you are able to attend and plan on staying for lunch, please sign up on the piano at church or call the church office and leave a message so we can plan for the luncheon. If you would like to send a card or note to Pastor McClean, his address is 4 Upland Rd., Apt. 21, Baltimore, MD, 21210.

As we discussed in the April newsletter, Our Saviour is not in a financial position to call a regular full-time pastor. The salary we paid Pastor McClean represents only a fraction of what a full-time pastor would ordinarily be paid. The Specific Ministry Pastor program was introduced by our church body, the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS), to help congregations in our situation. This program is meant to be used by congregations for whom calling a full-time pastor is problematic due to location, finances, or other considerations.

This is a four-year program, administered by the synodical seminaries, that begins with the candidate taking courses (mostly online, but with some on-campus intensives) while beginning his service as vicar in the church. Ordination occurs at the end of those two years, and an additional two-years of study are then completed. It is ‘specific ministry’ since the candidate is authorized to serve only in that specific place. This is all done under the supervision of a local pastor as well as the district president, the Rev. Dr. William Harmon.

At our May Voters Assembly meeting (May 17, immediately following Divine Service) we will consider the question of asking Scott Jones, a member of Our Saviour and life-long Lutheran, to enter this program so that he can serve Our Saviour as pastor upon completion of the program and thus we may continue to have Word and Sacrament ministry. He has the time and the theological formation to pursue the SMP program. He has been clear in stating that he wants no compensation for this service and that he would bear all the educational expenses himself. Scott has lived in the Baltimore area his entire life, growing up in Towson, Maryland and joined Our Saviour in 2016. He holds without reservation the confession this church was built on, the Unaltered Augsburg Confession, and he desires only to be a faithful steward of the rich liturgical tradition Pastor McClean has instilled in all of us. For additional information about Scott and the SMP program, please see the April newsletter. Pastor Eric Bednash, our circuit visitor, will be with us that day to preach and celebrate the sacrament and also to guide us in our discussions regarding the SMP program during the Voters Assembly meeting.

At this meeting we will also elect the members of the church council and adopt a budget for the 2027 fiscal year that starts on July 1. Please mark your calendars and plan on attending that day so you can be a part of this path forward. If you would be interested in serving on the church council or would like to nominate someone, please contact Gabe Purviance (gpurviance@comcast.net).

The Sunday Bible class is concluding a study of the risen Christ from the empty tomb to His throne in heaven on May 17. After taking a week’s break for the Memorial Day holiday weekend, the class will resume on May 31 with a study of selected readings from ‘Series A’ of the three-year lectionary (Our Saviour uses the historic one-year lectionary at its Sunday services). The class meets each Sunday morning at 9:45 AM.

Also, starting May 3, we are providing the opportunity to pray Matins at 8:30 AM. This is a spoken service, led by Scott Jones. While this is not a substitute for Divine Service  and there is no sermon, it is still an excellent way to prepare for the Divine Service as we pray the Psalms and Canticles of Matins, hear a reading, and pray for the church and the world. Please join us if you are able.

We are continuing to support the GEDCO Food Pantry and for the Helping Up Mission. Boxes for items for both are found inside the door from the parking lot north of the church. Needless to say, the need remains great. And remember that you can provide help for suffering people around the world through our Synod’s LCMS World Relief and Human Care. You can call our Synod’s Contributor Care Line: (888)930-4438 or you can give online through this secure website: lcms.org/givenow/mercy or you can send a check to LCMS World Relief and Human Care, PO Box 66861, Saint Louis, Missouri 63166-6861. Make your check payable to “The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod” and write “LCMS World Relief and Human Care” on the memo line.

With Frank Ford, we mourn the recent death of his daughter, Yolanda. There will be a memorial service for Yolanda on June 6 at 11:00 AM, with a repast to follow. Pastor Elliot Robertson has agreed to conduct the service.

We are continuing with our Free Flea markets each second Saturday of the month through September (May 9, June 13, July 11, August 8, September 12), 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Please see Judy Volkman for details or to volunteer to help.

We continue to remember in prayer Pastor McClean, Bridget Bauman, James Bauman, Christopher Bell, Bertha Buchanan, Dana Carmichael, Tim Doswell, Quilla Downs, Bunny Duckett, Joyce Eaves, Frank Ford, Iris Ford, Sean Fortune, Lynne Funck, Katherine Gray, Sherry James, Gloria Jones, Byron Masterson, Mary Mokris, Julia Silver, Robert Siperek Jr., Lawrence Smallwood, Paul Swank, George Volkman, Gary Watson, Marvalisa, Sierra, Jonathan and Steven Gibson.

Finally, we begin a new feature this month we are calling “The Month Ahead.” It is appended to this newsletter. In it, Scott Jones provides a summary of the major themes of each Sunday of the month. You can use this to prepare for service each week and develop a better understanding as to how the liturgical calendar unfolds.

In Christ and on behalf of the Church Council,
Paul Techau, Council President

The Month Ahead: June, 2026

Services and Their Readings

The Season: Trinity I–V: The Call to the Kingdom of Grace

With Holy Trinity Sunday and Festival Half of the church year behind us, the Church enters the long green season of Trinitytide, sometimes called the ‘Teaching Half’ of the church year. For the first five Sundays, the readings focus on what scholars call “the call to the kingdom of grace,” that is, God’s invitation to His kingdom, who is invited, and what it costs to refuse. The color green reminds us that faith grows steadily through the weekly hearing of God’s Word and the receiving of His Sacraments. June’s Sundays take us from the bedrock of salvation by faith alone, through the great feast God spreads for the undeserving, to the relentless mercy of a God who seeks out what is lost. We conclude the month with a special celebration of the day Lutherans put their faith on the line before the most powerful ruler in Europe.

June 7 First Sunday after Trinity

Genesis 15:1–6  •  1 John 4:16–21  •  Luke 16:19–31
The Old Testament reading gives us the single most important verse about how God saves people: Abraham simply believed God’s promise, and God counted that faith as righteousness. No works, no earning. Just trust. The Epistle unpacks what that does to us: when we truly know that God loves us, fear of judgment disappears, and that same love spills out toward the people around us. The Gospel drives the point home with the Rich Man and Lazarus. The rich man had everything and ignored the beggar at his gate. When both die, everything reverses. The parable ends with a sobering truth: even a miracle won’t change a heart that refuses to hear what God has already said in Scripture.

June 14 Second Sunday after Trinity

Proverbs 9:1–10  •  1 John 3:13–18  •  Luke 14:15–24
Proverbs pictures God’s Wisdom as a generous host who has set a magnificent banquet and is calling everyone to come, especially those who know they have nothing to offer. Jesus tells a parable with exactly the same shape: a man throws a great feast, his invited guests make excuses and don’t come, so he fills the hall with the poor, the blind, and the crippled instead, and then sends out to the highways to bring in strangers. The kingdom of God works like that: the people who think they are too busy or too important miss out, while those who know they need the invitation accept it. The Epistle reminds us that real love (the kind Christ showed on the cross) is not just words. It shows up in concrete acts of care for the people right in front of us.

June 21 Third Sunday after Trinity

Micah 7:18–20  •  1 Peter 5:6–11  •  Luke 15:1–10
Micah ends his book with a question: “Who is a God like you?” His answer is that God is unlike any other god precisely because He delights in showing mercy. He doesn’t just overlook sin. He buries it in the depths of the sea. Jesus fills this out with two of His most beloved parables: the shepherd who leaves ninety-nine sheep to search for the one that is lost, and the woman who sweeps her whole house to find one lost coin. In both stories, the finding ends in a party, because that is how heaven responds every time one sinner comes home. Peter’s letter brings it down to earth: we live under the care of this merciful God, so we can hand all our worries over to Him. But we stay alert, because the devil is real and prowls like a lion looking for someone to destroy.

June 28 Presentation of the Augsburg Confession

Isaiah 55:6–11  •  1 Timothy 6:11–16  •  Matthew 10:26–33
On June 25, 1530, Lutheran princes stood before the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at Augsburg and read aloud a confession of what they believed. It could have cost them everything. Martin Luther himself could not be there. He was under an imperial ban, so his colleague Philip Melanchthon wrote the document and led the presentation. At its heart, the Augsburg Confession declares that we are saved by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, for the sake of Christ alone, not by anything we do or deserve. The readings appointed for this day speak directly to that moment: Isaiah promises that God’s Word never fails to accomplish what He sends it to do. Paul tells Timothy to fight for the faith publicly, just as Jesus confessed the truth before Pontius Pilate. And Jesus Himself tells His disciples not to be afraid of what powerful people can do to them, because God is with them in their witness. The Augsburg Confession was adopted into the Book of Concord in 1580 and remains the foundational statement of Lutheran teaching today. Our Saviour celebrates this occasion by local tradition on the last Sunday of June each year.