Monday, March 27, 2023

Sermon Audio 3/26/2023, 5th Sunday of Lent A

Trinity Lutheran Church, Lindstrom MN

Fifth Sunday of Lent, Revised Common Lectionary Year A

John 1:1-45

I haven't been posting audio recordings of my sermons at Trinity because I'm busy and they're already on YouTube somewhere. I wanted to make an exception for this week since I got to talk about a song I really like, Tomorrow, Wendy by Concrete Blonde. I think people want to hear it. 


To hear this podcast: listen here, use this link, or use Amazon, Spotify, Audacy, iHeartRadio,  or other sites by searching "Reverend Killjoy" or “Tengwall.”

Tuesday, December 6, 2022

Sermon Audio 12/4/2022, 2nd Sunday of Advent A

Trinity Lutheran Church, Lindstrom MN

 

Second Sunday in Advent, Revised Common Lectionary Year A

 

Matthew 3:1-12

On my first Sunday in my new gig as Interim Senior Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lindstrom, MN, I got to compare myself favorably to John the Baptist and connect our interim time to the season of Advent. 

 

To hear this podcast: listen here, use this link, or use Amazon, Spotify, Audacy, iHeartRadio,  or other sites by searching "Reverend Killjoy" or “Tengwall.”

Sunday, October 30, 2022

Sermon Audio 10/30/2022, Reformation Sunday & Closing Worship for Hope Lutheran Church in Saint Paul

Hope Lutheran Church, Saint Paul (in person and live on Zoom)

 

Reformation Sunday, Revised Common Lectionary 

 

Psalm 46

On this Reformation Sunday, Hope Lutheran Church held our final worship together. Joined by loved ones and friends old and new, we shared the good news together. Here is the sermon that was part of our celebration.  

 

To hear this podcast: listen here, use this link, or use Amazon, Spotify, Audacy, iHeartRadio,  or other sites by searching "Reverend Killjoy" or “Tengwall.”

Monday, October 24, 2022

Sermon Audio 10/23/2022, 20th Sunday after Pentecost C

Hope Lutheran Church, Saint Paul (in person and live on Zoom)

 

Lectionary 30 / 20th Sunday after Pentecost, Revised Common Lectionary Year C

 

Luke 18:9-14

The prayers of the Pharisee and the tax collector can tell us a lot about ourselves and how we relate to God and one another.  

 

To hear this podcast: listen here, use this link, or use Amazon, Spotify, Audacy, iHeartRadio,  or other sites by searching "Reverend Killjoy" or “Tengwall.”

Sunday, October 16, 2022

Sermon Audio 10/16/2022, 19th Sunday after Pentecost C

Hope Lutheran Church, Saint Paul (in person and live on Zoom)

 

Lectionary 29 / 19th Sunday after Pentecost, Revised Common Lectionary Year C

 

Luke 18:1-8

 Jesus' reassurance to his followers to not lose heart can be as helpful to us today as it was when he first told them this parable about the persistent woman. 

To hear this podcast: listen here, use this link, or use Amazon, Spotify, Audacy, iHeartRadio,  or other sites by searching "Reverend Killjoy" or “Tengwall.”

Tuesday, October 11, 2022

Sermon Audio 10/9/2022, 18th Sunday after Pentecost C

Hope Lutheran Church, Saint Paul (in person and live on Zoom)

Lectionary 28 / 18th Sunday after Pentecost, Revised Common Lectionary Year C

Luke 17:11-19


In this sermon immediately prior to the special congregational meeting in which Hope Lutheran Church voted to close and dissolve our congregation and give away our remaining funds, the story of Jesus healing ten men with skin disease helps us remember how thankfulness stands at the heart of the choices we are making.  


To hear this podcast: listen here, use this link, or use Amazon, Spotify, Audacy, iHeartRadio,  or other sites by searching "Reverend Killjoy" or “Tengwall.”

Sunday, September 18, 2022

A Letter to Hope Lutheran Church, Parts 2 and 3

Last week in this space I published a letter from earlier this month about the current and future state of Hope Church. Here are two more letters from this past week, detailing our next steps. I'll post them together in the same way we sent them to the congregation, even though as you'll see the letter at the end was written first and presented to the elected leaders of Hope Church at our regular Council / Huddle meeting on 9/13/2022. 

For more on this you can listen to my sermon from Sunday Septemer 18th. Thanks. 



September 15th, 2022

 

Dear Hope Church,

 

We have been through so much together. We successfully adapted to online life during a pandemic, and our attendance and membership grew as a result of this new way of being church together. We supported a plan to start a new congregation, in addition to supporting all the churches that have used our former space on Hazel. We made the courageous decision to sell our historic space so a new church would be able to use it to support the neighborhood and share the gospel in ways beyond Hope’s current capacity. We moved to the chapel Gustavus Adolphus Church as renters and have adapted our worship and life together to continue to be the church. We have built strong partnerships with other East Side ELCA congregations, sharing interns, worship, events, and other resources vital to the ongoing mission of the church in our neighborhood. I am immensely proud of all we have done.

The time has come for our next faithful step.

At our Huddle / Council meeting on Tuesday September 13th, 2022, the elected leaders of Hope Church decided by consensus to hold a congregational meeting on Sunday October 9th to vote on a resolution to close Hope Church effective on or around October 31st, 2022, and disburse our remaining funds to ministry partners who will carry on our legacy of love and service to the East Side. While the Huddle leaders can commend this action to the church, only the congregation as a body can vote to make this decision.

Collectively and as individuals, we have borne the weight – emotional, spiritual, and sometimes physical – of the decisions, changes, and moves we have made in recent years. We are tired. I think especially of those leaders who worked so hard to facilitate our sale and move, and of those who see our historic building almost every day. I am so grateful to each of you for the faithful work you have done through this time, for the good of the church and for the sake of the gospel.

We are still a community of people following Jesus together who love each other, whether we continue as an official congregation of the ELCA. It is my hope and belief that this action will free us from ongoing meetings and decisions and worry, and also free us to love one another, follow Jesus together, and direct our spiritual gifts to the good of the church and our neighbors in new and exciting ways. I have always believed the church moves forward most faithfully by death and resurrection, and I am certain that the end of Hope Church will bring new life and allow us to continue in the faithful work we have always done together.

Of course, there are many questions and details yet to work out. We will write the actual resolution of closure and publicize that prior to our vote on October 9th. I hope to talk with many of you individually to hear how you’re feeling and talk through these changes. Also, at our congregational meeting we will vote on disbursement of our remaining funds, and a detailed plan for that disbursement will also be available prior to the vote.

A brief sketch of our financial plan includes paying our outstanding bills, using our Memorial Funds to honor the memories of recently departed members through donations chosen by their loved ones, and making larger similar donations to what we’re calling the “Three E’s”: the amount remaining in our former Education Fund will to go Luther Seminary to support education, a donation to our East Side Collaborative partners to seed their programming for the coming years, and a gift to Eternal Flame Lutheran Church, formerly known as Good Samaritan, to honor the relationship we shared for seven years in our previous location. The bulk of our remaining funds will establish an “East Side Hope Fund” through the Saint Paul Area Synod and the ELCA Foundation as part of Hope’s legacy to support the people of the East Side and ministry on the East Side into the future.

We plan to hold a final celebratory worship service on Sunday October 30th, a fitting celebration of Reformation for a church committed to faithfully following Jesus even to death and resurrection. The following Sunday, November 6th, is All Saints, when members of Hope are invited to Sunday worship at Gustavus Adolphus Church where part of their remembrance of those who have gone before will include Hope Church and our members.

A few logistical details to answer questions that have already arisen:

·        As an ongoing part of the ongoing hospitality, we have received form Gustavus Adolphus Church, upon closure we will transfer our memberships to Gustavus so they can administrate our further moves to other congregations. I understand that many Hope people are interested in remaining at Gustavus together at least for a while after October so our community and relationships can remain strong even through this change. If you don’t want your membership transferred to GA, please contact Pastor Andrew.

·        After October 30th, Hope would no longer be able to accept financial donations. There will be a way to donate to the new East Side Hope Fund by that time, and we encourage you to continue the spiritual practice of financial giving in your new congregation.

·        We are receiving very helpful guidance from Bishop Lull and her office as to the legalities and logistics of proceeding down this path.

 

I want to thank Bishop Lull, Rev. Justin Grimm, and the pastors and people of our East Side Collaborative churches – including Gustavus Adolphus, even though they’re new to that group – for supporting us through these changes. Knowing that the future of the church on the East Side is strong through these partners makes it easier to let go of Hope as an institution, while clinging to the hope we share in Christ for our neighborhood.

Finally, I want to thank each of you for your faithfulness and dedication to Hope Church through these years. You are the church, and you will continue to be the church even when Hope is no longer an official congregation. I hope the people of Hope choose to gather regularly to eat and celebrate and remember and move forward together as a community of beloved, faithful people. It has been my great honor to serve you these past four years.

 

Thanks,

 

Rev. Andrew Tengwall


 

 

September 13th, 2022

 

Dear Hope Church,

 

It is with joy and sorrow that I announce my intention to resign as Pastor of Hope Church effective October 31st, 2022. My last Sunday will be Reformation Sunday, October 30th. My previous letter from September 1st began to explain the reasons for this move, so please refer there for more information.

It has been a tremendous honor and privilege for me to serve Hope these past four years, to lead through so much change and to serve the gospel alongside each of you. From weekly Bible study and Sunday worship to supporting new mission starts and collaborating across the East Side to selling a building and potentially closing a congregation, your faithfulness has inspired me and many, many other people besides. Hope’s legacy of generosity, selflessness, and devotion to the East Side and to the gospel of Jesus Christ will be a story I will tell for the rest of my life. More importantly, that legacy will continue to impact your lives and the lives of East Siders long beyond our time together.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve and lead you through this time. We have many details to work out, and I am excited for this last phase with you. In particular I would like to thank Nancy Cowan, as supportive a colleague as I could hope for, and Don Young and Larry Cowan, who have born such a burden of leadership during these years. Honestly each of us who remain at Hope have born some of the weight of our choices and changes, and I am grateful to all of you.

Our old building is already home to new ministry. Each of us will move on to faithfully following Jesus among a new community, and together with our lifelong friends from Hope. God is still at work in and through Hope Church and will be so long after I leave and long after Hope ceases to be an official congregation of the ELCA. I pray that my leaving, and the congregation closing, will be still more opportunities for the gospel to grow and the church to move forward by death and resurrection, following the model of our Lord.

 

Thank you,

Rev. Andrew Tengwall