Welcome to St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church


Welcome

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The family of St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church is called, gathered, and empowered by the Holy Spirit through Word and Sacrament to confess and proclaim the Gospel and love of Jesus Christ to our congregation, community, and world.

St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church is a member of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), a mission-oriented, Bible-based, confessional Christian denomination founded on the teachings of Martin Luther.

We strive to love each other as Christ has loved us (John 13:34) and to reach out to others with the Good News of God's love in Christ (Matthew 28:19).


WHAT WE BELIEVE

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We are a congregation of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, which gladly preaches, teaches, and confesses the doctrine found in the symbolical books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. The congregation gathers in worship to receive God's gifts in a beautiful sanctuary where the Historic Liturgy is observed with reverent joy and where Christ Jesus is present in His Word and Sacraments. We are glad to be the heirs of the rich liturgical and theological heritage of the Lutheran Reformation of the Church and are a member congregation of The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.

What do Lutherans believe, teach, and confess? A three-part interview with a Lutheran pastor.

"Salvation Unto Us Has Come" by Paul Oman"Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" John 1:29

"Salvation Unto Us Has Come" by Paul Oman

"Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" John 1:29

wORSHIP

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Worship at St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church is perhaps better described as Divine Service. Divine Service is a loose translation of the word used by our German forefathers, Gottesdienst (God's Service). Gottesdienst confesses that, in the worship service, it is God who serves us with His gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation in Jesus Christ. Therefore, our worship is always Christ-centered and cross-centered, and never man-centered. In our worship we employ liturgies and rites that stand within the historic western and catholic (universal) tradition. The Holy Eucharist is celebrated at every Sunday morning Divine Service and on Festival Days when they are observed. Confessing that Christ is present in His body and blood for the forgiveness of sins and the strengthening of faith, our worship is sometimes solemn and sometimes jubilant, always reverent, and never stuffy. We are a family of faith, the body of Christ, the Church gathered with angels, and archangels and all the company of heaven around God and the Lamb on His throne. Come and join us in receiving a foretaste of the heavenly feast to come!

Divine Service

Sundays at 9:00am

Wednesdays at 1:00pm

Other Worship Services

Midweek Advent Services
Wednesdays in Advent
Divine Service 1:00 PM
Evening Prayer 7:00 PM
Advent Social 6:15-6:45 PM

Midweek Lent Services
Wednesdays in Lent
Divine Service 1:00 PM
Vespers 7:00 PM
Fellowship Meal 5:00 - 6:30 PM

Holy Week & Easter Worship

Palm Sunday Divine Service
March 24, 9:00 AM

Holy Thursday Divine Service
March 28, 7:00 PM

Good Friday Tenebrae Vespers
March 29, 7:00 PM

Holy Saturday (Easter Vigil) [Joint Circuit Service]
March 30, 7:00 PM
222 S. Washington Ave.
St. Paul Lutheran Church
Fredericksburg, IA 50630

Easter Sunday Divine Service
March 31, 9:00 AM

Easter Breakfast 7:30-8:30 AM

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CHRISTIAN EDUCATION

Adult Bible Study - Sundays at 10:30 am

Sunday school - Sundays at 10:30 am

Adult Bible Study - Fridays at 9:00 am. [No Bible Study August 11]

Wartburg Walther League (Campus Ministry) Bible Study - Thursdays at 8:00pm (during academic year)

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Our Pastor

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Rev. Jon M. Ellingworth was ordained into the Office of the Holy Ministry at The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Christ the King in Pawling, New York on July 7, 2002 following his graduation from Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. He served at Christ the King for fifteen years before accepting the call to serve St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church in Waverly, Iowa. Pastor Ellingworth was installed as St. John’s eleventh pastor on September 10th, 2017.

Pastor Ellingworth's education includes an Associate of Arts in Philosophy from Illinois Central College, a Bachelor of Arts in both Philosophy and in English, and a Minor in Religious Studies from Illinois State University, and a Master of Divinity with a concentration in Historical Theology from Concordia Theological Seminary.

Pastor Ellingworth's professional interests include church history, liturgics, and sacramental theology. He is an avid reader and book collector who enjoys reading fiction and fantasy for fun. Pastor also continues to study philosophy on his own and is particularly interested in the topics of epistemology, metaphysics, and free will. Pastor is also a lover of music with diverse and eclectic tastes ranging from classical to bluegrass and "acid" jazz! He enjoys good red wine and scotch and bourbon whiskey, which he believes are meant to be enjoyed with friends.

Pastor enjoys teaching the timeless truths of God’s Holy Word in new and exciting ways so that stories that are familiar come alive with new meaning for God’s people. He hopes that his excitement for the Word is contagious, and it usually is.

Pastor Ellingworth is married to his bride of 32+ years, Lisa, and has three beautiful daughters, Ada, Cora, and Meredith. Pastor and Lisa both grew up in Central Illinois. After living sixteen wonderful years on the East Coast, it’s a bit like coming home to live and serve in the Midwest once again.

Pastor has served on the board of a non-profit organization providing important social services to neighbors in need in his community. Pastor has also worked with community leaders to develop programs and services for the youth of the community in order to promote healthy values and good choices among youth. Pastor seeks to serve his community and encourages parishioners to live out their Christian vocations in service of their neighbors to the glory of God.

An advocate of education and lifelong learning, Pastor Ellingworth serves on the Board of Regents of Concordia College New York (Bronxville).

It is a rich joy and blessing to serve St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church in Waverly, Iowa and to serve the community in which God has chosen to place us.

To God alone be all glory through Jesus Christ.

+ Pastor Ellingworth