AUGUST 2018

IMMANUEL EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH Connecting people with God and with other people to make a difference! 14100 WORTHINGTON ROAD PHILADELPHIA, PA 19116 Phone: 215-464-1540 www.immanuelphilly.org

Immanuel Newsletter

GOD’S WORK – OUR HANDS

Immanuel’s

Summer Education Event ( I-SEE )

Exploring Central Topics of Christianity Cross: Where God Is

Bible: A Book Like No Other Church: An Imperfect Family

Each session will include a video featuring a leading voice from the Christian Faith,

discussion and time for personal reflection.

Sundays August 12, 19 and 26. 9:30 AM Worship in English 10:00 AM Coffee break 10:30 AM I-SEE, Video and discussion 11:30 AM Worship in German

PLEASE JOIN US.

EVERYONE IS WELCOME!

Table of Contents

CONNECTING WITH GOD From Pastor Hahn Pg. 3 My Actions Show What I Love Pg. 4 I-SEE Pg. 5

CONNECTING WITH OTHER PEOPLE Immanuel German School Pg. 6 Abschlussfeier photos Pg. 7 Bishop Davenport Installation Pg. 8 Game Day Pg. 9

MAKING A DIFFERENCE Seafarers Ditty Bags Pg. 10 The Garden Pg. 10 Consul General Letter Pg. 11 Calendar Pg. 12

IMMANUEL NEWSLETTER Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church

14100 Worthington Road, Philadelphia, PA 19116 Telephone: 215-464-1540 FAX: 215-677-2433

E-mail: office@immanuelphilly.org Websites: www.immanuelphilly.org and www.HillHappenings.org Facebook: Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church, Philadelphia

Ministers: Members and Friends of the Congregation Pastor: Rev. Norbert F. Hahn, Ph.D. 215-464-1540 PastorHahnILC@gmail.com Secretary: Diane Burgess 215-464-1540 office@immanuelphilly.org Council President: Barbara Hannon 215-637-8478

CHURCH ORGANIZATIONS, MEETING TIMES, LEADERS Bible Study Wednesdays 10:00 AM, 7:00 PM Pastor Hahn Choir As needed Dr. James M. Clements Congregation Council 2nd Monday 7:00 PM Barbara Hannon Christian Event Team 1ST Tuesday 7:00 PM Eileen Szentjobi Finance Team 4th Tuesday 7:00 PM David W. Cook Frauenverein 3rd Wednesday 12:00 Noon Marianne Haug German Circle/Deutscher Kreis 1st Sunday 7:00 PM Ruth Muggler Girl Scouts Wednesdays 7:00 PM Nancy Smith Hand Bell Choir As needed Dr. James M. Clements Immanuel German School Saturdays 9:30 AM Dr. Del Hausman Ladies’ Guild 2nd Tuesday 7:00 PM Barbara Hannon Member Care Team 1ST Tuesday 10:00 AM Judy Friedman Mutual Ministry Team TBA John Scholtz Social Ministry Team 3rd Wednesday 12:30 PM Michele Cook Sunday School Sundays 9:30 AM Eileen Szentjobi Women’s Book Club TBA Judy Friedman Worship Planning Team 2nd Tuesday 10:00 AM Pastor Hahn Youth Group TBA Chris Blankenhorn and Eileen Szentjobi

NEWSLETTER EDITORAL STAFF Diane Burgess David W. Cook Pastor Norbert F. Hahn Marianne Haug

Immanuel Church needs your help in ensuring its future ministry. Please include the church in

your will. You may want to at least tithe (give 10%) of your estate to the Lord. Remember to include the church’s name and address along with the amount of your bequest. Should you wish, Pastor Hahn will provide you with the name of a caring and capable lawyer who can assist you.

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From Pastor Hahn

My dear church family,

You have done a lot of good lately to help people in need. The author of the Letter of James would approve. After all, he wrote: The Christian who is

pure and without fault, from God the Father’s point of view, is the one who takes care of orphans and widow [i.e. the needy], and who remains true to the Lord—not soiled and dirtied by his contacts with the world.(V. 27, The Living Bible). Now that is quite a mouthful. I will have to unpack that at another time, perhaps in Bible study. However, it is true that our church family has helped people in need in five great ways in June and July:

(1) Your financial gifts helped a family in our neighborhood to avoid foreclosure and the shut-off of utilities.

(2) Your donation of about 300 personal hygiene and toiletry items made their way to seniors at the Protestant Home who do not have the funds for even such basics.

(3) Four weeks into the grocery drive for the Somerton Food Bank we have exceeded our goal of 250 items, Thank you.

(4) A small but dedicated group of church members (who would love your help) has been working in Immanuel’s “Feed Our Hungry Neighbors Garden”. The veggies are being given to the Somerton Food Bank and to Aid for Friends.

(5) The Bible study groups assembled 40 breakfast bags for Aid for Friends, an organization that provides meals to home-bound seniors.

Our food bank drive in July received support from people living near our church campus: One Sunday in July, while trying to pull out of my driveway, a neighbor handed me a bag of groceries. “For your food drive,” she said. What a wonderful surprise! It is good to know that our neighbors know that Immanuel is a congregation that cares about people in need. It is good to know that our neighbors care, too. Of course, we care. After all, that is what our Lord and Savior modeled with his life and told us with his words: “Whatever you do unto the least of these, you do unto me.” (Matthew 25:40). Thank you for your partnership in ministry and mission. In Christ,

Pastor Hahn

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Seen on a church sign in Bucks Co.:

“If you are using the Bible to justify separating children from their

parents, you are not doing it right!”

Don’t Miss THURSDAY Bible Study

10 AM and 7 PM Come as you are and when you can!

Zeigen was ich liebe: Muslime und Christen im Gespräch “Muslime leben schon lange in Deutschland. Bisher gab es für Kirchengemeinden aber wenig Berührungspunkte mit ihnen. Das hat sich seit 2015 verändert: Über ihr Engagement in der Flüchtlingsarbeit haben viele Gemeinden und ihre Mitglieder plötzlich intensive Begegnungen mit Menschen muslimischen Glaubens. Und weil darauf niemand so richtig vorbereitet war, stellen sich jetzt eine Menge Fragen: Dürfen wir als Christen eigentlich im Kontext von Flüchtlings-hilfe über unseren Glauben reden? Sollen wir das sogar? Oder wäre das übergriffig? Haben Muslime überhaupt ein Interesse daran, mit uns über Glaubensfragen zu reden? Und kann ich so ein Gespräch überhaupt wagen? Was, wenn man mir Fragen stellt, die ich nicht beantworten kann?

Bei solchen Fragen und Ängsten ist zunächst mal dies wichtig: Es geht nicht um „die Muslime“. Es geht immer um einzelne und einzigartige Menschen in ihrer ganzen Unterschiedlichkeit. Sunniten und Schiiten. Fromme und Säkulare. Fundamentalisten und aufgeklärte Liberale. Man merkt schnell: Viele Menschen aus anderen Kulturkreisen reden gern über ihren Glauben und ihre religiöse Praxis. Das ist nicht privat und eher ungewohnt wie in Deutschland, sondern ganz normal und wird offen diskutiert. Und sie freuen sich, wenn wir uns als Christen nicht unsicher zurückhalten, sondern von unserem Glauben, von unserem Leben in der Gemeinde, von unseren Gebeten und Erfahrungen erzählen….” So beginnt ein Leitfaden der Arbeitsgemeinschaft Missionarische Dienste (AMD) u.a., (Zum Lesen bzw. Herunterladen: http://www.ekd.de/Flucht-und-Integration-10884.htm)

My Actions Show What I Love: Christians and Muslims in Conversation German society has included Muslims for a long time. However, until recently, Christian congregations had little interaction with them. Since 2015 things are different, and many congregations and many of their members have been engaging in deep and serious conversations with persons of the Muslim faith. Nobody was really prepared, and a lot of questions surfaced: Are Christians permitted to speak about their faith when they volunteer to assist refugees?

Or, to the contrary, is it expected that Christians share their faith? Is that going too far? Are Muslims even interested in speaking with Christians about matters of faith? How can one initiate such a conversation? And what should one do when questions came up that are hard or impossible to answer? Anyone who wrestles with such questions and concerns should keep this in mind: You are not dealing

with “the Muslims.” You are encountering individual human beings with different backgrounds: Sunnis and Schiites. Religious and Secular. Fundamentalist and Modern Liberals. One thing will quickly become obvious: Many people with non-German backgrounds enjoy speaking about their faith and their religious practices in an open way. It is considered normal, while in Germany, faith it is considered a private matter. People of the Muslim faith are delighted when Christians stop being reluctant and speak of their faith, of their involvement in congregations, about their prayers and spiritual lives….” The above is from the preface to a pamphlet prepared by the Evangelism Working Group connected with the Lutheran Church in Germany.

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IMMANUEL GERMAN SCHOOL

The last day of school, our annual Abschlussfeier, began a little differently this year. Yes, students sang songs and were awarded prizes and certificate, BUT this year was different! This year’s celebration began with the announcement of the retirement, after forty-three years, dreiundvierzig Jahre! of Frau Margot Purucker. Who knows how many students Margot introduced to the German language in her 43 years at Immanuel? Juliane Scholtz and Matthias Hausman would be two, but also Peter Jaus, President of the Cannstatter

Volksfest Verein and Jim Fischer, Treasurer. Both Peter and Jim managed to break away from their club’s Sommerfest to honor their first-grade teacher, Margot Purucker. Dr. Del Hausman read excerpts from a letter, (See page 11), from David Gill, Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany honoring Margot, and Matthias Hausman presented

her with his own special token of appreciation. At this point in the summer, we still haven’t found a substitute; we’ll never replace you, Margot.

The traditional celebration featured an overview of the students’ successes, (Photos on page 7) the presentation of additional awards such as those given by the Consulate General in New York, the Wiswe Awards, four awards donated by Immanuel’s German Circle and a full year’s tuition donated by the International German American Police Association. Students in Herr Dailey’s level 5 class were awarded the Internationale schulische Vergleicharbeit A1 certificate and students in

Frau Olumy’s level 7/8 class this certificate on the higher A2 level. Honorary Consul Ralf Wiedemann assisted in the presentation of the Deutsches Sprachdiplom, Level II (certification that the student’s knowledge of German is sufficient to study at a German university). Once again, Prof. Dr. Gerhard Kalmus and his wife Karin traveled from their home in North Carolina to present the Gerhard Kalmus Award, this year to Madeline Hoedemaker. All in all, approximately 80 of our outstanding students were presented more than 100 awards. The musical highlights of the celebration were provided by the combined classes of Margot Purucker, Karen Eppinger and Saskia Kelter who sang “Zeigt her eure Füße” and the classes of Frau Steves and Frau Dunn also with musical presentations. We thank all who contributed to the success of this program. Remember: It’s never too late to learn German. Classes resume on Saturday, September 8, 2018. Please visit our website, www.theimmanuelgermanschool.org for more information.

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Immanuel

German School

Abschlussfeier

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Let’s Have Some Fun on

“Game Day”

Tuesday, August 14, 2:00-4:00 PM

Bring your favorite board or card game.

Enjoy an afternoon of fun playing or watching—or both.

Be with other people.

Make new friends.

Refresh old friendships.

Delight in snacks and beverages. (Feel free to bring something to share, but you don’t have to.)

Bring a friend or neighbor!

For more information, please call the church office at 215-464-1540 or send an email to

office@ImmanuelPhilly.org (Or speak with Judy Friedman).

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This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC

HELP THOSE WHO GIVE US SO MUCH!

Every year, Seamen's Church Institute assembles and distributes thousands of “ditty bags” to seafarers in our Delaware River port between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Immanuel will be collecting these items during the month of August.

Seafarers come from all over the world to deliver 90% of our goods and produce. Their job is lonely and sometimes dangerous, and they are away from home for 9 to 12 months at a time.

PLEASE HELP US PROVIDE A SMALL GIFT OF THANKS TO THEM!

WISH LIST FOR DITTY BAGS

Hats and scarves in dark colors Work socks and work gloves

Mini sewing kit Pens and writing paper

Small calendars

Razors and shaving cream Toothbrush and toothpaste

Shampoo and comb Deodorant, nail clippers

Full sizes, please, for toiletries

THE GARDEN GROWS

Our “Feed Our Hungry Neighbor Garden” is growing nicely.

Since the newsletter is issued monthly and our website is updated weekly, you can get better progress updates by going to our website: www.immanuelphilly.org and select: MAKE A DIFFERENCE then THE GARDEN and then THE 2018 GARDEN. We will be keeping you up-to-date on how the plants are growing, what is being harvested and how it is being distributed. Thanks to all who helped. David W. Cook

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IMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH

AUGUST 2018

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Keep your eyes open for our “Linus Day” in October.

1

2

9:00 AM Member Care Team 10:00 AM Bible Study 7:00 PM Bible Study

3 4

5

Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost

9:30 AM English Service with Holy Communion 10:30 AM Fellowship 11:00 AM German Service with Holy Communion

12:30 PM Council Retreat

6

7

12:30 PM Staff Meeting 7:00 PM Christian Event Team

8

9

10:00 AM Bible Study 7:00 PM Bible Study

10

11

12

Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost

9:30 AM English Worship 10:00 AM Coffee Break 10:15 AM I-SEE 11:30 AM German Worship

Newsletter Deadline

13

14

10:00 AM Worship Planning Team

1:30 PM Staff Meeting

2:00 PM Game Day (See pg. 9)

15

12:00 Noon Frauenverein 6:15 PM Neighbor Appreciation Dinner

16

9:30 AM Dean’s Meeting

17

9:30 AM Newsletter Mailing

18

19

Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost

9:30 AM English Worship 10:00 AM Coffee Break 10:15 AM I-SEE 11:30 AM German Worship

20

21

1:30 PM Staff Meeting

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10:00 AM Bible Study 7:00 PM Bible Study

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26

Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost

9:30 AM English Worship 10:00 AM Coffee Break 10:15 AM I-SEE 11:30 AM German Worship

27 28

1:30 PM Staff Meeting

7:00 PM Finance Team

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