This past week the seminary where I am doing my doctoral work, United Lutheran Seminary (formally Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia and Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg), hosted the 40th annual Urban Theological Institute. One of their speakers was Rev. Dr. Howard-John Wesley of Alfred Street Baptist Church. During one of his lectures he said: “A lot of movements had a whole lot of Bible and very little gospel. Historically we have seen it’s possible to

Old church bulletins used to be one-half sheet, with service details and a long list of events coming up during the week. Except during the summer. Activities took a summer holiday, and so space in the bulletin was frequently filled with some interesting words of wisdom. A purchased friend never lasts. A photographed smile is never beautiful. A man's pessimistic views are often caused by an intimate acquaintance with himself. Honesty is the one business policy that need never

“…do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 In Second Isaiah, the prophet is addressing the exiles towards the end of their captivity in Babylon. (Remember that Babylon took the Hebrew people into captivity)? There was pure excitement for many of them in the thought of returning to their home after generations (about half a century in the estimate

I continue to enjoy going through old bulletins. At this point, I've been through some from the late 1940s/early 1950s and now I'm going through ones from the late 1920s. The Sanctuary In 1926 St. Stephen's had committed to building the sanctuary at 13th and Broom Street. The price was $75,000, or $1,076,606 in 2020 dollars. That was for the building. Not the windows, not the pews, not the organ, just the building. In March of 1927 it was reported that steel beams were being

Happy Labor Day! I hope that you are able to see some of the wonderful images of the labors of our members and friends in this coming Sunday’s online Service of the Word. We will be joined again by Bishop Gohl as our preacher and I will be offering a special Labor Day prayer for the community. As we officially mark the end of summer, I would like to update you on some of the updates at St. Stephen’s. We had a successful usher training this previous Sunday – however we are in