Reformation Events Edition
Chapel Service & Public Lecture with Rev. Bradley Schmeling
Texas Lutheran University
October 4
Rev. Schmeling serves Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in St. Paul, MN — the largest ELCA congregation in St. Paul, as well as the largest in the country to be led by an openly gay pastor. He continues to be concerned that the work of reformation is not finished, particularly in matters of gender, race, and culture.
This is a part of TLU’s year-long series of events recognizing 500 Years of Reformation.
Advent, Arlington
October 7
Worship starts at 4pm, Bishop Gronberg presiding and preaching. Pastor Gus will talk about the 5 solas.
Christ the Servant, Allen
October 13-16
The Enduring Word Museum Exhibit
Calvary, Richland Hills
October 18-22
“Living Echoes: Your Love to Tell, Your Praise to Show” Hymn Festival
Trinity, Fort Worth
October 22
In 2017, we celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation and the 75th anniversary of Trinity, Fort Worth. Join us as we celebrate the heritage of reformation in our music, but also our continued call to reform and respond to the world in which we live, and where the spirit of the music calls us into a new future God is helping us to imagine.
Featuring Guest Organist Dr. Scott Hyslop of St. Lorenz Lutheran Church, Frankenmuth, MI
A Reformation for all the People: How Printed Works Spread the Reformation
SMU | Perkins
October 23
A lecture at Bridwell Library by Dr. Mary Jane Haemig, Professor of Church History, Director of the Reformation Research Program, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota.
RSVP by October 18: bridadmin@smu.edu or 214-768-3483.
What Did Martin Luther Change, and Why?
Truett | Baylor
October 24-25
Dr. Robert Kolb, Mission Professor of Systematic Theology Emeritus at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, will be giving the 2017 Parchman Lectures. The three lectures of the series will be held in Powell Chapel and will be FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
Chapel Service & Public Lecture with Kathleen Norris
Texas Lutheran University
October 25
Kathleen Norris is an award-winning poet and a New York Times-bestselling memoirist on matters of Christian spirituality. Her many books include “The Cloister Walk,” “Acedia & Me: A Marriage Monks, and a Writer’s Life,” “Dakota: A Spiritual Geography,” “Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith,” and “The Virgin of Bennington.” Open to doubt and welcoming beauty, her writing brims with insight about the challenges of the spiritual life today.
This is a part of TLU’s year-long series of events recognizing 500 Years of Reformation.
Gutenberg Printing Press Lecture with Dr. Rusty Maisel
King of Glory, Dallas
October 29
Brite | TCU
October 31
Bishop Erik Gronberg presiding. Please join us in the Robert Carr Chapel. The service will be followed by a community meal and conversation in the Bass Conference Center in the Harrison Building.
Looking Back & Called Forward: ELCA 500
Washington, D.C. | Livestream
October 31
Please plan to join ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton as she co-hosts a commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
The event is open to the public and will be available online via livestream. All are invited to participate and honor the Reformation anniversary as we bear public witness to Christ, who frees us to love and serve our neighbor, and as we look to the future to which God is calling us.
North Texas Reformation Celebration
Broadway Baptist, Fort Worth, and Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas
November 4-5
Following the calling from Psalm 95:1, “Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!” a number of churches in the Dallas – Fort Worth Metroplex have been planning the North Texas Reformation Celebration – a series of local church concerts culminating in two identical gala concerts in November. Those will take place on November 4 at Broadway Baptist Church, home of the Rildia Bee O’Bryan Cliburn Organ, in Fort Worth, and on November 5 at Meyerson Symphony Center, home of the Lay Family Concert Organ, in Dallas.
(RE)FORMATION: a Film by Shannon Ivey
Texas Lutheran University
November 10
Must the Christian church include stained glass windows, a marketing campaign, or a multi-million dollar media setup to spread the word of God? Do pastors need a brand? Jesus was a homeless Jew, a political radical, and a servant to the broken – would his “brand” even survive in 21st Century America? In 1517, Martin Luther challenged the Roman Catholic Church with a similar set of questions and it led to the Protestant Reformation. 500 years later, as a group of artists renovate a transition home for discarded youth, they explore the meaning of church, holy ground, and Jesus’ mission of love. Is the Christian Church in need of a new (re)Formation?
Shannon Ivey is a professor of dramatic media at TLU and the founder of Theatre For Change – a San Antonio-based nonprofit committed to linking the stories inherent within theatre, film, and new media to the needs and messages of nonprofit organizations.
This is a part of TLU’s year-long series of events recognizing 500 Years of Reformation. This event is free and open to the public.
Bridwell Library Exhibition: Martin Luther in the Age of Print
SMU | Perkins
Through December 15
Commemorating the five hundredth anniversary of the announcement by Martin Luther (1483-1546) of his Ninety-five Theses against indulgences, and the beginning of the Reformation, this exhibition serves as an introduction to the reformer and his printed works. After attending university in Erfurt, Germany, Luther eventually focused on theological study, entered the Augustinian order in 1505, and was ordained two years later. In October 1512 he received his doctorate in theology and joined the theology faculty at the University of Wittenberg, a position he would retain throughout his career. The dissemination of his critique regarding indulgences began an extraordinary publishing career that reflected his multiple roles as a theologian, preacher, teacher, and translator. The various genres represented in this exhibition include polemics and treatises, sermons and commentaries, Bible translations, and catechisms.
In addition to his immense impact on Western Christianity in the early modern period, Luther also greatly influenced the world of print in sixteenth-century Europe. A remarkably prolific author, he published more than twenty-five hundred editions of his German works, not including the various editions of his German Bible. Often first appearing in Wittenberg, his books were frequently reprinted in Leipzig, Erfurt, Augsburg, Nuremberg, and Strasbourg. These established printing centers provided additional distribution of his works while Latin translations further increased his readership.
Exploring different printed contexts for Luther’s works, this exhibition includes Bibles and indulgences produced prior to Luther’s own publications as well as pre-seventeenth century Catholic responses to Luther and the early Reformation during his lifetime and after his death. This combination of Luther’s publications and those of his adversaries provides insight into the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation and the divisiveness engendered by this quest for religious reform as witnessed in the age of print.
Featured Resources for October
Did you know there are a plethora of resources available to us via the ELCA website?
From Advocacy to Bible Studies, from Caring for Creation to Congregational Communications Tools, from Financial and Grants to Human Resources and Risk Management, from ELCA World Hunger to Lutheran Disaster Response, from Mission Planning and Racial Justice to Stewardship and Worship, and SO MUCH MORE!
You can also hover over the Resources tab toward the top of the website for even more options!
Recent Blog Posts
Bishop Gronberg:
(https://www.ntnl.org/synod-council/ – published Sep. 27)
(https://www.ntnl.org/the-church-is-not-a-building/ – published Sep. 27)
(https://www.ntnl.org/global-leader-learning-in-genevawittenberg/ – published Sep. 29)
Pra. Bañales:
The Louisiana Interchurch Conference, St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Catholic Church, Alexandria LA
(https://www.ntnl.org/the-louisiana-interchurch-conference-st-francis-xavier-cathedral-catholic-church-alexandria-la/ – published Sep. 26)
Where in the world is?
Bishop Gronberg:
- Oct. 7 – Briarwood Fall Festival
- Oct. 7 – Celebración de la Reforma, Advent, Arlington
- Oct. 8 – Bethel, Avoca
- Oct. 8 – Ordination and Installation of Mark Hadley, Shepherd of Life, Arlington
Pr. Totzke:
- Oct. 1-7 – Vacation
- Oct. 8 – Joy, Rockwall
- Oct. 8 – Ordination and Installation of Mark Hadley, Shepherd of Life, Arlington
Pra. Bañales:
- Oct. 2-3 – DEM Orientation, Chicago, IL
- Oct. 3 – ELCA Stewardship Table, Chicago, IL
- Oct. 4-6 – DEM Gathering, Chicago, IL
- Oct. 7 – Celebración de la Reforma, Advent, Arlington
- Oct. 8 – Santa Maria in Exile, Irving
Other Upcoming Events
- Oct. 7: Briarwood Fall Festival and Thrivent Cooking for Christ Cook-off
- Oct. 13-15: NT-NL SWO Fall Retreat
- Oct. 14: Public Witness Team monthly meeting
- Oct. 15-16: Harmony Conference (Center for Congregational Song)
- Oct. 15-17: Bishop’s Convocation
- Oct. 20: Briarwood’s Golf Outing
- Oct. 20-22: LMM presents One Year to Live Men’s Retreat
- Oct. 21: PLMA, Fall 2017, Course 2
- Oct. 21: MEF “Seeds That Change” Dinner / Fundraiser
- Nov. 11: Public Witness Team monthly meeting
- Nov. 13-14: The Power of the Story: Perkins Fall Convocation on Creative Communication
- Nov. 13: Lecture with Anne Lamott (SMU | Perkins)
- Nov. 14-16: Young at Heart Retreat
- Nov. 18: MEF Board meeting
- Nov. 18: PLMA, Fall 2017, Course 3
Access our full online Calendar here. Updates made regularly.
Do you have news or announcements to share? Please submit to the Synod office (office@ntnl.org) for consideration for our next NT-NL News.