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“There Comes a Time When Silence is Betrayal”

Usually, I write something in this space but after being moved by various events Monday speaking of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., I ran across this writing from Bishop Eaton.  I thought it was well worth sharing with you as it spoke to my heart.

We are called to be a church that embraces each person and confronts racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, age, gender, familial, sexual orientation, physical and economic barriers that can manifest themselves in unjust treatment, inequalities, exclusion and violence. Do we always get it right? No, we don't. As a denomination that must do better at being a neighbor — we have work to do.

Dr. King once said, "There comes a time when silence is betrayal." When we hear and witness actions that intimidate, degrade, make fun of or cause harm and choose not to speak up, we are equally complicit in the action. Whether it is on a school playground, a water cooler conversation, in the halls of Congress or in a congregation, we are called to be the Samaritan. We are to show mercy and break our silence of all forms of violence including those that stereotype groups, demean people and discriminate...

In his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Dr. King wrote, "We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly." We have an opportunity to continue the legacy and vision of Dr. Martin Luther KingJr., just on Martin Luther King Day, but every day, at all times and in all places.

- the Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, Presiding Bishop, ELCA

The bishop also included a link to a song we have sung at Zion’s, Lift Every Voice and Sing, known as the Black National Anthem.  Please give it a listen.

Sunday Jan. 22, 2022, 3rd Sunday After Epiphany 

10 a.m. Worship with Holy Communion 

Announcements:

Adult Education:  No Sunday School this Sunday, we will resume our study of Luther’s Small Catechism on Jan. 29.

Church Council:  If anyone would like to serve on the church council, or any other committee, please see Julie or Vicar Lisa. 

Save the Date: Feb. 5 is Zion's Annual Meeting, watch your email, E-formation, bulletins and newsletters, for updates and information.

For Your Reading Pleasure:  Portals of Prayer and the January Newsletter are available in the back of the sanctuary.

Flower Guild: The Flower Chart has been replaced by the Flower Book, located in the back of the sanctuary. Now is the time to sign up for Sundays in 2023, many dates fill quickly so volunteer now. Sign up and use the envelopes in the book for your flower donation, which can be placed in the offering plate.

E-formation - Third Sunday after Epiphany

In the gospel for this coming Sunday, Jesus’ call of his disciples is like light shining into the darkness. Our baptism is one such light. Come to worship, to hear again the call and to rejoice in the light who is Christ.

Matthew 4:12-23

Matthew refers to Jesus as the great light and stresses the immediacy of the fishermen’s obedience to Jesus’ call. Jesus’ call is to repentance. Over the centuries, Christian theologians have variously understood what Matthew means by “the kingdom of heaven.”

Isaiah 9:1-4

As is sometimes the case, the reading provides the Old Testament passage that is cited in the gospel. Along with Matthew, Christians have seen in Jesus Christ the great light that the prophet anticipates and the salvation God promised. Most of this passage is appointed also for Christmas Eve. On this Sunday, the passage stresses the light of Jesus’ ministry.

1 Corinthians 1:10-18

In today’s semicontinuous reading of 1 Corinthians, Paul writes that baptism is about the death of Christ and the power of God, not about identification with quarreling groups of Christian believers. The twenty-first-century church, with its myriad denominations, humbly hears Paul addressing our current fractured situation.

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Zion's Lutheran Church
zionsluth@gmail.com

719-846-7785