WEEKLY MESSAGE

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December 14 featured a painting of 

Our Lady of Guadalupe. Pastor A explained how the Roman Catholic faith allows worshipers to pray through Mary as an intercessor. Similarly, although Lutheran doctrine may not agree with the Catholic doctrine, our Lutheran theology does have an All Saints Sunday every year.

December 7 started with a look at Isaiah 61, which describes

Jesus in his hometown where he states what we might call a purpose statement for his ministry. There is an emphasis on peace, hope and love, which means so much to those who mourn and think of what life is offering them. Jesus brings light to the world, especially when people face difficult moments such as a lack of food or shelter. Pastor A described a church which has a statue of Christ with no hands. Rather than fashioning new hands for the statue, the church recognized that we are the hands of Christ, doing his work in the present time.