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Beliefs, Values, Mission, and Vision.
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In
Memoriam |
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Our
Congregation mourns the passing of our dear Saint,
Dan Danguilan, who
died in Faith on October 1, 2008. |
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A
memorial service will be conducted at Saint Matthew Lutheran Church
at 3:00 p.m., Sunday, October 5, 2008. |
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In
Memoriam |
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Our
Congregation mourns the passing of our beloved former pastor,
the Reverend Charles B. Macmurphy, who
died in Faith on September 26, 2008. |
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Click
here
to view the Ledger-Enquirer Newspaper on-line obituary of Pastor Macmurphy. |
Pastor's
Message for October
Dear
Saints:
It
is with great sadness that I write this message. Many of you have
already heard that on Friday, September the 26th, at 2:45 a.m., our
former beloved Pastor, Charles Macmurphy, passed on from this life to
the next. After a routine surgery to repair a hernia (which had
resulted from a previous surgery a few months earlier) complications
developed the following day. His decline was sudden and rapid;
leading the medical staff to believe it was a blood clot.
Yet,
if it is with sadness in our hearts that we mourn his death, it is
with equally great joy that we remember his life and, especially, his
ministry in our congregation. He was called to St. Matthew in 1970
and served here faithfully for 25 years before his retirement in June
of 1995. The life and ministry of St. Matthew flourished under
"Pr. Mac’s" leadership. Click here to
continue reading the Pastor's Message.
The
Celebration Café is open!
 Just
as we gather around the Altar on Sunday mornings—we also gather
around the Dinner Table on Wednesday evenings at 5:30 p.m.
We
look forward to seeing all of you, as we greet old friends and make
new ones as well. Please join us at the Celebration Café.
Also,
please bring your favorite desserts to share!
Click here to
make your reservations on-line. Additionally, reservation forms can
be found in church pews and in the church newsletter, or make your
reservation by calling the Church Office 706-561-3406.
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Applause
for our Relay
For Life®
team and fund
raisers!
Our
church team surpassed its Relay
For Life
goal of $2,300 and raised $2,910.73
to help find a cure for cancer.
 Also,
our "Ranch" theme display at the Kinnett Stadium Relay
For
Life event was
voted 1st Place out of 141 other sites!
Thank
you Penny Tadsen and the Saint Matthew Youth Team for leading the
way. Thank you Celebration Café for your tasty German
Bratwurst fund raiser meal. Thank you Thrivent Financial For
Lutherans for your matching funds. Thank you Saint Matthew Saints for
your Relay For Life
donations. Again, a big thanks to everyone for your help and support.
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ELCA–Southeastern
Synod News
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A
Message from Bishop Gordy
During
my first official week as bishop, I heard a story on NPR about
extreme jobs. These are jobs that take an enormous amount of time,
commitment and energy to pull off. They are jobs that require
near-constant travel and frequent decisions that affect others in the
organization and, often, beyond. That about describes the last four
weeks of my life. Click here to
continue reading the Bishop's Message.
Click here to
view the ELCA-Southeastern Synod web site.
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Saint
Matthew Church Announcements
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October
20: |
12
Noon: Deadline for
church newsletter items. Submit
news items to the Church
Office. |
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Click here to
view the monthly Calendar of Events. |
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The
Lost Tomb of Jesus
Larry
Barksdale, Pastor
While
they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the
chief priests everything that had happened. After the priests had
assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of
money to the soldiers, telling them, “You must say, ‘His
disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’
If this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep
you out of trouble.” So they took the money and did as they were directed. —
Matthew 28:11-15a, NRSV
Here we
go again! First, it was the Jesus Seminar which, back in the '90s,
used colored beads to determine what in the Gospels were Jesus'
ACTUAL words (in their esteemed view, only about 5% of the material).
Then it was Elaine Pagels, who sought to mainstream the heretical
Gnostics, who produced a number of unorthodox post-New Testament
works—the most famous of which is the Gospel of Thomas. Then it
was Dan Brown who, in The Da Vinci Code, speculated wildly that Jesus
was REALLY married to Mary Magdalene, with whom he also had a
daughter. Then, not long before Christmas of 2006, it was back to the
Gnostic writings—this time, the Gospel of Judas—for more
bizarre speculation.
Click here to
continue reading the Pastor Barksdale's Lost Tomb Message.
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50th
Anniversary Celebration
Saint
Matthew charter members attending the 50th anniversary celebration
Front
row: Rev. Dr. Richard Hollinger, DeLouris Hollinger, and
CSM Frank Plass
Back
row: Alberta Loney, Betty Davidson, Mary French, and
Julianne Plass
We
started the official anniversary functions off with a Fish Fry on
Friday afternoon. On Saturday, after an early morning breakfast, the
Memorial Garden was dedicated and members of the congregation got a
chance to view historical photo albums and pictures from our
archives. Later in the evening we had a tasty diner at The Estate
plus terrific musical entertainment by the Front
Porch Pickers
and a variety of musical talent gathered by Pat Bonaker, our Musical
Director. Craig DuPriest was the Master of Ceremonies. The 50th
Anniversary Celebration concluded with a reception following the
Sunday morning worship service.
A
special note of thanks to all of our former pastors, interim
pastors, and supply pastors who attended and participated in the
anniversary activities.
The
behind the scenes hard work of the 50th Anniversary Committee truly
made this weekend a memorial event for all of those who could
attend. In alphabetical order, the committee members are: Pat
Bonaker, Betty Bouchard, Betty Davidson, Charlotte DuPriest, Joyce
Garver-Messenger, Cecilia Hogencamp, Edie Klein (Chairperson), Karen
Knudsen, Alberta Loney, Connie Sieg, Christine Slusher, and Jean
Wing. Thank you ladies!
Click
here
to view photos leading up to the celebration weekend—painting,
planting, and photos of the Memorial Bell, Walkway, and Garden plus
photos of the events noted above. Photos by Ron Klein.
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International
Adoption |
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An
article in the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer recounts Pastor Larry and
Liz Barksdale's decision to adopt internationally their two children,
Meaghan and Graceanne. Click here to
read the article. |
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Faith&Spirit |
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From
the Faith&Spirit
page of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer Newspaper, Pastor Barksdale
shares his thoughts in a Faith
Alive
column interview.
Click here to
read the interview. |
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Parish
Nurse Program
 In
a joint undertaking with Saint Francis Hospital, our church started
a Parish Nurse Program in September 2002.
As
part of the Parish Nurse Program, informative health notes will be
published in the News Network Newsletter and in the Announcements
Section of the Worship Bulletin. Blood pressure testing will be
available between the Sunday worship services. From time-to-time, we
will to hold guest speaker presentations on various health topics
following our Wonderful Wednesday Celebration Café meal.
Additionally,
the Parish Nurse Program has acquired from the CONTACT
organization a copy of their Service Programs resource data on
computer disk. Click here
for more information.
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Pardon
Us!
Our
web site is a work in progress.
 Saint
Matthew Evangelical Lutheran Church is continually in the process of
building and updating our web site.
You
will see a number of additions and changes as the work on individual
pages is completed.
The
menu items listed in the left-hand window are not set in concrete
and changes can be made as a result of your suggestions.
For
example, here are a few of the topics that have already been added
or are being considered: a biographical sketch and photo of our
pastor, nursery information, directional map to the church, a council
information page, description of group activities such as the Altar
Guild, Women of St. Matthew, choir, scouts, and Bible study classes.
The
intent is to provide summary information about all St. Matthew
activities and not overlook any one or any group. You can help with
your ideas and suggestions by clicking Feedback or
by contacting the Webmaster.
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