A note from the Council

What does Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross mean to you?

As a kid, I dreaded any mention of Jesus’ crucifixion. Those talks at my childhood church were designed to elicit repentance and gratitude, but they did so by wringing out as much anguish as possible. I remember one charismatic leader at summer Bible camp who pounded on a lectern with his fist, hollering, “This is the hammer driving the nail into Jesus’ foot, and every blow is one of your sins! You killed Jesus with your sins!” It was horrible to go home and imagine that every time I lost my temper with my baby sister or snuck a bite of dessert before dinner, I was further pounding a nail into Jesus’ dying flesh.

The meaning of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is difficult to grasp, partly because there are so many metaphors for it—not all of which are helpful for a twelve-year-old at Bible camp. Bible writers do describe Jesus’ death as a sacrifice for sin, comparable to the blood sacrifices of the Hebrew scriptures. This way of describing the crucifixion, which laid such a heavy burden of shame and guilt on me as a child, can make God seem like an angry, vengeful being only satisfied by blood. In other places in the Bible, Jesus’ sacrifice is described as payment of a debt, thus casting God as moneylender. Then there is the description of Jesus’ death as a ransom. Who is the kidnapper in this scenario, I wondered? The devil? Surely Jesus wasn’t paying off the devil with his death!

The writers of the Nicene Creed decided not to wade into these murky waters, stating only that Jesus “was crucified for us.” I appreciate the freedom of that open-ended wording.

Lately, I have come to see Jesus’ death as an event akin to his birth and, in fact, to the creation: it’s a glimpse at the constant, tangible presence of God in this world. We’re told that God is everywhere, that in God “we live and move and have our being,” to quote Acts. Yet somehow, it’s possible to go through our days oblivious. On a spring day, we can see sky, clouds, houses, spouses, highways, deadlines, refrigerators, dandelions, puddles of water, piles of laundry, all of this, yet not see God. We can think that God is far away, that God created the world but then stepped back to watch, or that God doesn’t exist at all. 

Jesus’ death punches through that oblivion. As a human, yet one who was also fully immersed in God, Jesus was able to reveal the spiritual dimension of the universe that we have trouble seeing. When Jesus died, his followers experienced something remarkable: his continued presence. They were so gobsmacked that they described his death in apocalyptic language: The sky went dark, the temple curtain was split top to bottom, the earth shook, the rocks split, the graves opened and God’s saints came tumbling out.

In his birth, Jesus gave us God in a human form that people could understand. With his death, he showed his followers, See? I’m still here, with God. God is always here. Join me, and you can see God, too.

That’s what Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is for me—powerful evidence that deadlines, refrigerators, and even sunrises aren’t all there is, and that through Jesus I can see God at work at every second and in every dusty corner of my world.

Sondra Gates

Greetings from Pastor Anne

Easter at Bethlehem

Easter is, this year, feels like it is coming all in a rush. Lent has been a time of reflection and worship, pondering what it means to be fed by the Bread of Life, Jesus. Our fellowship and spiritual practices help us remember that faith isn’t just something we do in our heads or our hearts, but something we do together and we do with our bodies: making Lutheran World Relief kits, praying by walking the labyrinth, exploring prayer stations. Even as you read this Lent is still around us and we’re still working our way to Easter. Here are some of the highlights of what’s still to come in Lent for us:

Stations of the Cross: on April 2nd we will experience the biblical stations of the cross (also known as the protestant stations of the cross) in the sanctuary following our mid-week worship. The art is stunning and moving, and a powerful way to ponder Jesus’ journey to the cross in a very tangible way.

Dinner Church: our last Lent gathering, on April 9th will be an Agape Feast at 6 pm. We will gather to eat dinner and worship together much as the first Christians did. This is not a Seder meal (if you’ve heard of that or experienced one), we’ll eat comfort food with our community of faith and worship through that community and that meal together. We are asking for RSVP’s for this meal so we have enough for everyone.

As we move into Holy Week, we’ll continue to explore what the Bread of Life means for us. Maybe we’ll be able to slow down a bit too (at least I am hoping too!) we’ll have opportunities to gather with other congregations and a chance for individual prayer during Holy Week in our sanctuary.

Monday: Ecumenical worship with Vinton churches will kick off on Monday morning at 7:00 am at Bethlehem! Offerings collected at these services are for the vouchers we use for gas and groceries for folks in Vinton. Join us on Monday to start Holy Week on a prayerful note.

Wednesday: imagine coming to sit in our sanctuary on a quiet evening, candles lit, lights low, quiet music playing. You could sit and breathe and pray and find your quiet center before the rush of Easter and all that comes with it. That’s exactly what you are invited to on the Wednesday of Holy Week. From 6 to 8 you are welcome to stop by the church for individual prayer or simply a moment of silence and stillness.

Maundy Thursday and Good Friday worship will be held at 7:00 pm each night. These are the most solemn services in the Christian calendar and mark our deepest pain: grief, sorrow, guilt, anger. Yet, we are never left in those places, we are always drawn to Easter and the empty tomb by the God who loves us. It is my prayer that these worship services are times of reflection and are deeply moving, but always hopeful, always looking to the living Christ for whom death is not the final word.

Which brings us, finally, to Easter, and the joy and celebration of an empty tomb! We will have two opportunities to gather in celebration; at 7 am and 9am. The youth of the congregation will be hosting breakfast between the two services.

The trick for me, each year, is to find the balance between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. So many people emphasize the cross and the death of Jesus, and seem to forget that the victory is won, not on the cross, but at the empty tomb. It is Easter Sunday that brings meaning to Good Friday and the cross. Without Easter Sunday, Good Friday is yet another example of humanity’s ability to cause pain and death. Seen from the empty tomb, Good Friday loses it’s sting and it’s horrible power, and becomes another atrocity that God, who is life itself, overcomes. God brings life out of death. Jesus is life out of death. Jesus is life for you and for me.

May this Easter season be a blessing to you and yours. May the inevitable death and tears that come with living give way to blooming life all around you with all its wonder and beauty.              

Pastor Anne

Chapel Choir Schedule

April: rehearse:  April 2, 9, 23, 30

sing at worship: April 2, 6, 13, 27

May: rehearse: May 7 & 14

sing at worship: May 4 & 18

Youth Corner

Ellen Olson, Coordinator of Youth Ministries

LYO

On Wednesday, March 12, LYO gathered after the Lenten worship service and participated in the prayer stations with Pastor.  On Easter Sunday after the 7 am worship service, they will serve a delicious breakfast.  Plan to attend.

Sunday School

We are excited to continue the new curriculum, The Bread of Life.  The series is an extension of the Sunday and Wednesday worship services. 

On Sunday, March 2, our group activity was spent in the kitchen making and baking prayer pretzels.

On April 6, we will be packing the college care packages.

On Easter Sunday, there will be no classes, and our last class will be Sunday, April 27.

Noisy Offering

Thank you for your generous gifts of coins and dollars for the February Noisy offering.    $103.93 was collected for ELCA Good Gifts.

EWALU Summer Camp

Camp brochures are available on the bulletin board in the fellowship hall.  Scholarships are available for all those wishing to attend.  Contact Ellen Olson and she will take care of the details.

Spring Carnival

Mark your calendars for our annual Family Spring Carnival to be held Wednesday, May 7 at Kiwanis Park from 5:30 – 7:00 pm.   Details to follow in the May Star and upcoming bulletins.

College Care Packages

On April 6, the Sunday school classes will be packing Spring/Easter themed college care packages for our college students.  If you would like to contribute, please bring 10 of the same items for the packages.  We have 7 young women and 3 young men.

Vacation Bible School

Mark your calendars for a week of FUN.  Vacation Bible School will be at the Vinton Presbyterian Church this year (and we are again partnering with Wesley United Methodist Church). We will be going TRUE NORTH as we learn in this wild world today that Jesus is always our true north.

The dates are Sunday, July 20 through Thursday, July 24 from 6-8 pm for those completing 4-year-old preschool through completion of the 4th grade.  Registration will be open April 20. There will be paper registrations on the display table in the fellowship hall as well as a sign up option on the website, vbspro.events/p/vinton2025

If you would like to volunteer to help in ANY way, please contact Ellen Olson.  

Spring Cleaning – Garage Sale

It is time to think about spring cleaning. Are you wondering where you go with your stuff?  Well, we have the answer.  Bring it to our church garage sale!

Bring your quality items for our garage sale to be held on Friday, June 6 and Saturday, June 7 (which also happens to be Vinton city wide garage sales).  We will have the Bethlehem garage sale on both days; 8 am – 2 pm.  It will be a free will donation with proceeds this year going to Vacation Bible School and children’s program expenses.

Please bring your items to church Monday, June 2 – Thursday, June 5 between 8 am and noon or Wednesday evening, June 4 between 5 – 7 pm or call the church office to make other arrangements.

There will be tables set up and marked so you will be able to place your items on the appropriate tables.

On sale days, there will be coffee and sweet treats for donations as well.      Happy cleaning!!!

Dinner Church April 9th

Wednesday evening worship on April 9th will be Dinner Church in Augustana Hall starting at 6:00 p.m.  Please sign up or call the church office to make a reservation for you and your family.  Meatloaf or Chicken Nuggets, Mashed Potato, Vegetables, and Dessert will be served family style while we worship and fellowship together.  Holy Communion will be served during this service.

Easter Lilies & Spring Flower Donations

Easter Lilies, Yellow & Pink Tulips, Blue Hyacinths, and Yellow & Pink Begonias help proclaim the joy of Easter. If you would like to give a gift of Spring Flowers, fill out a form, write the check to Bethlehem for $15 each, and return to the church by Sunday, April 13th.  You can also mail it to 1206 C Avenue, Vinton, IA  52349.

Thank you for your generous donation.

Holy Week Schedule

Monday @ 7 am: Bethlehem Lutheran

Tuesday @ 7 am: First Christian

Wednesday @ 7am: St. Mary's RC

Thursday @ 7am: Vinton Presbyterian

Friday @ noon: Wesley UMC

Wesley United Methodist Church will be hosting the Ecumenical Good Friday service on Friday, April 18 at Noon. Your congregation is invited to participate in the Ecumenical choir that will be singing for the service. Those who would like to sing should come to Wesley Church (516 2nd Avenue) that morning at 11 a.m. for rehearsal in the choir room on the 2nd floor. (We have an elevator to all floors and also ramp accessibility to the choir loft.) Music will be handed out at rehearsal, but if anyone would like music ahead of time, please call Lori Ferguson at Wesley Church, 319-472-2581. We look forward to you joining us! 

Food for Thought Book Club

Meets on the third Thursday of the month at the Brickside

Brew N Chew at 12:00 noon in Vinton.

April book will be “An Invisible Thread” By Laura Schroff

May book will be “Hello Beautiful” by Ann Napolitano

June book will be “Lesson in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus

July book will be “Sold on a Monday” by Kristan McMorris

August book will be “Apples Never Fall” by Liane Moriarity

September book will be “Peace Like a River” by Lief Enger

October book will be “Trial of Innocents” by Michael Swiger

November book will be “Sisters of the Great War” by Suzanne Feldman

December book will be “Tales of a Paperboy” by Andrew J. Mair

Kernels Baseball Game

The Christian Life team is hosting an afternoon at the ballpark. Please see the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board in the fellowship hall or call the church office and indicate your preference between Sunday, June 15th or Sunday, August 17th by April 13th.

Thank You

Dear Bethlehem family,

Thank you for the generous donation of $250 to the Guatemala Project nonprofit organization. In January, I traveled to Guatemala with students to build a small, one-room house for a family of five who had been living with relatives. The health expenses of their son, who has special needs, prevented them from being able to afford a home of their own.

The $250 from Bethlehem paid to provide the family with a water purifier so they could drink and cook with the water at their house. It also provided them with groceries and cleaning supplies to stock their new home.

When we handed over the keys to the house, the mother of the family called us "un milagro de Dios"--a miracle from God. Thank you again for sharing God's love with this deserving family. 

With appreciation,

Sondra Gates

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