Category: News

FELC Members and Friends,

It is with gratitude and joy that the Call Committee shares with you the FELC Ministry Site Profile and Seven Reflections on Ministry and Context (MSP).

FELC Ministry Site Profile and Seven Reflections on Ministry and Context (MSP)

The above linked MSP is a redacted copy with personal contact information for individuals blacked out to preserve privacy. This is a revised and final version of the MSP which was unanimously accepted and adopted by the FELC Council on June 17, 2024. This MSP is the work of the entire congregation and will serve as a starting point for conversation and questions with pastor candidates. It is a spirit-led document intended to inspire and connect us with our right next pastor.

Our MSP has been transmitted into the ELCA system and has been approved for posting by the Southwestern Texas Synod. Our MSP will be available throughout the ELCA with the following intro summary description: 

“First English Lutheran Church in Austin, Texas (FELC) resides in an urban and university setting. We are a community of faith and love gathering for worship, relationship building, personal growth, and service with the world. FELC seeks to prayerfully call a Senior Pastor to our Ministry of Word and Sacrament, to lead with us as we strive to live more fully into our vision of “God loves. We love. Everyone!” 

At this point in the process, the Call Committee will be receiving names from the Synod staff and will begin interviewing pastor candidates. The Call Committee asks for your continued prayers as we enter the next phase of our pastoral transition journey.

With gratitude,
The FELC Call Committee
Erin McCracken (chair)
Tim Atkinson
Randy Baden
Allen Jensen
Nikki Northcutt
Lillian Martinez-Rodriguez
Barbara Schutz

Faith Formation | 9 am

Worship in the Fellowship Hall | 10 am (onsite & online)

Hospitality in the Fellowship Hall | 11 am

Day of Repentance and Renewal/Commemoration of the Emanuel Nine

On June 17, 2015, Clementa C. Pinckney, Cynthia Marie Graham Hurd, Susie Jackson, Ethel Lee Lance, DePayne Middleton-Doctor, Tywanza Sanders, Daniel Lee Simmons, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, and Myra Thompson were murdered by a self-professed white supremacist while they were gathered for Bible study and prayer at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church A resolution to commemorate June 17 as a day of repentance for the martyrdom of the Emanuel Nine was adopted by the Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on August 8, 2019. Congregations of the ELCA are encouraged to reaffirm their commitment to repenting of and eradicating racism, to venerate the martyrdom of the Emanuel Nine, and to mark this day of renewal.

Presider: Pastor Bradley Fuerst serves the campus ministry of LuMin, the worship and service community at UT Austin. He is originally from Nebraska, a St. Olaf College and Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary alum, a Methodist pastor’s spouse to Taylor (lead pastor at First United Methodist, Austin) and a father to Holden, Hadley, and Harper Lee. The Fuerst’s are members at FELC.  Pr. Fuerst has also served as Lutheran campus pastor to Rice University and the University of Houston. Before that, he taught high school English at Omaha North High School. Pr. Fuerst enjoys cycling, running, cooking, reading the New York Times, geeking out over liturgy, and baking bread. For more info on LuMin, an FELC Benevolence Partner, visit: http://lcmaustin.org/

Guest Preacher: Deacon Darcy Mittelstaedt serves in the Office of the Bishop of the Southwestern Texas Synod as the Bishop’s Associate for Leadership and Lifelong Faith Formation, which includes call, mobility, candidacy, and faith formation. She brings 24 years of ministry experience from Children, Youth, & Family Ministry to Leadership from Nebraska to Arizona and now Texas. Deacon Darcy is passionate about engaging others in serving and sharing the love of Christ. Her ministry has always been about equipping others with the Good News to go out to love, serve, and share the Gospel. 

Although much remains to be done, much progress has been made in racial justice in the past 60 years.  As we repent of our historic complicity in racial injustices, you are encouraged to read Martin Luther King, Junior’s “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” of April 16, 1963.  King and 55 others had been jailed for “parading without a permit” during a march against segregation.  They were charged with violating an injunction barring “racial protests” in the city.  His letter was in response to a joint letter several white ministers had published in the local press that decried the march and civil rights activists’ methods. King addresses comments to “white moderates” who are much more devoted to “order” than to justice, and to the “white church” who may be “blemished and scarred …through social neglect and through fear of being nonconformists.”  If there are ways that may still be true today, let us repent and commit to renewal. Click here to view a Racial Equity Fact Sheet.

Submitted by FELC Racial Justice Task Force: Barbara Schutz, Barbara Wiederaenders, Charlotte Gilman, Derek Bridges, Leigh Northcutt-Benson, Mari Ward, and Nancy & Randy Baden

Thank you to all the participants who provided excellent feedback and reflection on Faith Formation sessions that we have had so far this year and for all the suggestions that came from our dynamic and wide-ranging discussion! The enthusiasm for learning was inspiring. Pictures/doodles based on our reflections are posted adjacent to our Lenten caterpillar on the bulletin boards on the Fellowship Hall.

On Sunday, June 23, Michele Hockett Cooper will be opening her 2-session Adult Faith Formation series on Faith and Food with “Your Body is a Temple” at 9 am in the Parlor. Charlie Boas will be leading Children’s Faith Formation with the story of Joseph from Genesis at 9 am in the Fellowship Hall. On Sunday, June 30, Anne Wiebe will lead Children’s Faith Formation, continuing the story of Joseph.

We have openings through the summer for Faith Formation leaders. If you would like to be a Faith Formation leader or  know of someone who might be interested, check out Leading Children’s and Intergenerational Faith Formation FAQ and contact Betsy Appleton, betsy.appleton@gmail.com. 

Plan to join us Monday, June 24, 7-8:30 pm, if you are another adult’s caregiver—you may help from afar, in your own home, or in theirs.  You deserve support and a listening ear.  THANK YOU for offering this service which is an example of the love and grace that our faith encourages.  Contact Barbara Wiederanders, bwiederaenders@att.net, to receive the Zoom link or for more information.

The Call Committee and Council worked together to finalize revisions, and we are grateful that the Council has unanimously accepted and adopted the FELC Ministry Site Profile and Seven Reflections on Ministry and Context! This adopted, finalized MSP is being formally submitted to the Synod. A copy of the finalized MSP package will be shared very soon with the congregation. With gratitude and joy, we prepare for the next phase of our pastoral transition journey!

On Monday, June 17, the Church Council unanimously approved the amended Ministry Site Profile (MSP) and the Seven Reflections document submitted to them by the Call Committee.  The Chair of the Call Committee was notified of the vote so that they can proceed with next steps.

Reports were received from the Treasurer, Child Development Center, Worship Ministry, Learning Ministry, Witness Ministry and Support Ministry.  Special thanks to Terry Porter for navigating the challenges with the Sanctuary HVAC system. Margaret Bruesch responded to Heidi Goebel’s concerns in the property report related to budget details.  President Woody suggested that Heidi Goebel and Allen Jensen, Treasurer, would benefit from a conversation about that.  President Woody informed the Council that insurance costs will likely go up since that is a current trend.  

A check-in review for Dawn Wetzel, newly hired church office administrator, will happen Tuesday 6-18-24, per a condition of her employment. 

A ‘God’s Work/Our Hands’ activity is being considered for Sunday, September 8, 2024. This is an ELCA service project initiative in which congregations take efforts to support their local communities.  Many ELCA congregations across the country will be engaged in the ‘God’s Work/Our Hands’ event on this, the 10th anniversary of the event.

Next Council Meeting will be July 15.

Respectfully submitted,

Nancy Baden

The church season after the 50 days of Eastertide and Pentecost Day celebrations is half of the year, yet it has no “official” name. It is called “Time after Pentecost” or “Ordinary Time” because of the numbering (ordinals) of the Sundays. It includes the distinct natural seasons of summer and fall, which have different themes emphasized. The primary color is green. This highlights the first part of Ordinary Time with themes of  growth and celebration in community, and the renewal of faith and discipleship in the ministry and teaching of Jesus.

All are welcome to worship in the Fellowship Hall, Sunday, June 16, 10 am.

A big thank-you to Fritz Woody for leading the Adult Faith Formation sessions on the
United States Relations with Indigenous Peoples.

Join us Sunday, June 16, for an Intergenerational Faith Formation session, 9 am in the Parlor. Betsy Appleton will be facilitating a feedback session for Faith Formation participants of all ages. Be ready to share your reflections on Faith Formation the past few months and also your ideas for the future.

On Sunday, June 23, Michele Hockett Cooper will be leading the first of two Adult Faith
Formation sessions, Faith and Food: Your Body is a Temple, 9 am in the Parlor. Charlie
Boas will be leading Children’s Faith Formation, starting a rotation on the story of
Joseph from Genesis, 9 am in the Fellowship Hall.

Thank you for your ongoing support of the Micah 6 ministries! Summer brings the
following needs:

Plastic bags for shopping, preferably with handles
Refillable water bottles
Backpacks for carrying food, used or new
New or used clothing, especially small women’s and large men’s (identified by size if
possible)
Canned meat and veggies

Food and clothing may be left in the Micah 6 identified containers in the narthex,
sanctuary, or fellowship hall. Backpack container is marked as such. For questions
about donations, contact Andy MacLaren, 512-947-4186, Andymaclaren@cs.com

With the reduced student enrollment during the summer, Micah 6 also needs volunteers
on Thursdays, 5-7pm and Saturdays, 8am-12 noon, at 2203 San Antonio St, Austin. To volunteer, contact Anthony, Pantry Director, at 346-717-2736.