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Adults’ Sunday School: Studying Luther’s Large Catechism

Greetings!

This year, our Adult Sunday School will be walking through Luther’s Large Catechism, exploring the Scriptures and the chief teachings of the Christian faith. Each week we’ll read about 20 paragraphs together—about one commandment per session for the Fall Quarter.

If you don’t already own a copy of the Large Catechism, let Pastor Laws know and we’ll get you a paperback copy. If you have a Book of Concord, you already have it inside. Pastor will be using Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions (Reader’s Edition of the Book of Concord). If you use another translation, you’ll still be able to follow along, provided your edition has paragraph numbers.

Recommended editions (available from CPH or Amazon):
1. Luther’s Large Catechism (with Study Questions) – Paperback
2. Martin Luther’s Small and Large Catechisms – Leather Cover Edition
3. The Book of Concord: Reader’s Edition

Fall Reading Plan
We’ll begin September 7 with Luther’s Prefaces and then move through the Ten Commandments this Fall. You can download the full Fall reading plan here:

> Fall 2025 Large Catechism Study (PDF)

I look forward to learning, praying, and growing together as we sit at the feet of Christ’s Word and hear how Dr. Luther taught the Word of Truth in a simple and clear way!

Peace in Christ,

Pastor Laws

Summer Voter’s Assembly

Dear Family of Faith,

The documents below were placed in the mailboxes of every member this past Saturday. Please read these and give your consideration to them before our upcoming Voter’s Assembly on August 3rd, following the Divine Service.

The first is an update on KRRC, and the second is a motion to host a Continuing Education class at Faith next summer. They will both be revised based on any feedback I receive from now until August 2nd, and then presented to the Voter’s Assembly for consideration.

For the KRRC update, we are looking for member(s) of the congregation to come alongside myself to seek underwriting for KRRC. KRRC is not paid for by the Church budget, and requires outside funding to stay open. In order to keep our radio station operating, we will need volunteers as we had in the past. If you are interested, please speak to me.

Peace in Christ from Grass Valley, CA!

– Pastor Laws

A Ministry Decision Before Us

Continuing Education Motion

Rev. Harste’s Retirement

Hello Family of Faith,

Faith’s first pastor, Rev. Ken Harste, will be having a retirement celebration this Sunday at his parish in MN. In recognition of that, I have written the following letter and shared it with Rev. Harste on behalf of the saints at Faith Rogue River.

Peace in Christ,

Pastor Laws

Rev. Harste Letter

Holy Week

Greetings, dear Family of Faith.

Please find below our schedule of Holy Week services:

4/13 (Sun): 8:45 am – Bible Study, 10:00 am – Divine Service for Palm/Passion Sunday

4/14 (Mon): 10:00 am – Spoken Service of Matins for Holy Monday with the Passion Reading from St. Matthew. Individual Confession & Absolution available following service.

4/15 (Tues): 10:00 am – Spoken Service of Matins for Holy Tuesday with the Passion Reading from St. Mark. Individual Confession & Absolution available following service.

4/16 (Wed): 10:00 am – Spoken Service of Matins for Holy Wednesday with the Passion Reading from St. Luke. Individual Confession & Absolution available following service.

4/17 (Thur): 6:00 pm – Maundy Thursday service with Holy Communion.

4/18 (Fri): 6:00 pm – Good Friday Tenebrae service.

4/19 (Sat): 6:30 pm – Vigil of Easter service of readings & prayer at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church (865 NW 5th St) in Grants Pass.

4/20 (Sun): 10:00 am – Divine Service for the Resurrection of Our Lord.

You are invited this week, as you are able, to gather together around Christ’s Word & Sacraments preached and administered for you to know not only that Christ has died & is risen, but that He has done these things to redeem you from your sins!

– Pastor Laws

2024 Oregon March for Life

Hello Family of Faith!

On Saturday, May 18th, LCMS Life Ministries (our synod’s pro-life organization) will be joining the Oregon March for Life in our state capitol, Salem, from 2:30-4:30 pm. I hope you are able to join us in time of prayer for the unborn of Oregon and of protest against unjust laws in our state which sanction  the murder of children in our state.

Here’s how to register and get a bright green beanie & t-shirt, courtesy of Vicar Zachary Kreitler of Redeemer Lutheran Church, Gresham, OR:

Services for Lent 2024

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

This Lent we will be diving into the Psalms for our midweek services. Specifically, the 7 Penitential Psalms. This season we will reflect on various themes in these Psalms, including sin, repentance, confession, the Law, faith, the Gospel, and especially Christ’s redemptive work to forgive your sins.

This season of Lent, we will be field-testing two midweeks, a 10 am and a 6 pm one for Ash Wednesday through Lent 5, for those who let me know they cannot drive at night. They will both be the same service/sermon. If these are well attended, I will consider doing this in future years.

Please join us at the following times:

February 14^th: Ash Wednesday (Psalm 51), Services @ 10AM & 6PM, NO Soup Supper

February 21^st: Lent 1 Midweek (Psalm 6), Services @ 10AM & 6PM, Soup Supper @ 5PM

February 28^th: Lent 2 Midweek (Psalm 38), Services @ 10AM & 6PM, Soup Supper @ 5PM

March 6^th: Lent 3 Midweek (Psalm 32), Services @ 10AM & 6PM, Soup Supper @ 5PM

March 13^th: Lent 4 Midweek (Psalm 130), Services @ 10AM & 6PM, Soup Supper @ 5PM

Marth 20^th: Lent 5 Midweek (Psalm 143), Services @ 10AM & 6PM, Soup Supper @ 5PM

March 28^th @ 6PM: Holy Thursday Service

March 29^th @ 6PM: Good Friday Service (Psalm 102)

March 30^th: Easter Vigil Service of Readings @ St. Paul’s in Grants Pass *CHECK BACK LATER FOR THE TIME*

March 31^st @ 10AM: Easter Sunday

The Lord bless and keep you all this Lenten season as we reflect upon our need for His redemptive work.

– Pastor Laws

Services for the Christmas Season and Epiphany

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, greetings!

As we prepare for the Twelve Days of Christmas (Dec 25th-Jan 5th), I wanted to share with you all our special services which will take place beyond our normal Sunday morning Divine Service:

– Christmas Eve service: 6 pm on Sunday, 12/24.
– Christmas Day Divine Service: 10 am on Monday, 12/25.
– Matins service for the Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs: 10 am on Thursday, 12/28.

and to start the season of Epiphany, which runs from Jan 6th to Ash Wednesday:

– Vespers service for Epiphany: 6 pm on Saturday, 1/6/24.

I pray you will be able to attend some or all of these services and hear of the gifts which Christ brings to us in His Incarnation and Nativity!

Peace in Christ Jesus our Lord,

Pastor Laws

CTSFW Presidential Search

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

As a member congregation of the LCMS, we have certain responsibilities toward our wider Church body. One of those is to nominate presidential candidates for the seminaries when a president retires or is removed from office. The current president at Concordia Theological Seminary, the Rev. Dr. Lawrence Rast Jr., announced this fall that he would be retiring from the presidency at the end of this academic year. He began his service as CTSFW’s president in May 2011.

We here at Faith, as a congregation of the LCMS, are entitled to put forward the name of qualified pastor for the office of seminary president. The candidate must be an LCMS pastor with an earned doctorate in theology who is an exemplary pastor and churchman (see the “Call for Nominations” for a full list of the qualifications). The nominations must be in by December 31^st, 2023. The nominations all come from congregations, the CTSFW regents, and CTSFW faculty members. The list of nominations is then the pool of candidates from which the leadership of the seminary and our Synod then choose to call a new president.

After speaking with the Council, I think it would be prudent for the following process to take place for our nomination. I invite any members to email or text suggestions to me, Dave (Council President), or Bryan (Council Secretary) before the next Council meeting on Dec 10^th. The council will then make a decision on the candidate, which will then be affirmed at the Voter’s Assembly on Dec 17^th. Our nomination will be sent off with the full approval of the congregation.

Click the link here for the Call for Nominations and for the Professor Biographies for my two suggestions for nominees. This list will be added to when and if we receive additional suggestions from our membership.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to send me an email or give me a call to clarify anything in this letter.

Peace in Christ,

Pastor Laws

For more information, check out the CTSFW webpage for the nomination process.

The Temple: Its Ministry and Services

The Temple: Its Ministry and Services

by Alfred Edersheim (1825-1889)

Edersheim was born in Vienna of Jewish parents of culture and wealth. English was spoken in their home, and he became fluent at an early age. He was educated at a local gymnasium and also in the Talmud and the Torah at a Hebrew school. He emigrated to Hungary and taught languages, before converting to Christianity.

Putting this book into an audio recording has been difficult book I’ve done. There were numerous errors when the physical book was put into an electronic digital format. Likewise I readily confess my own difficulty in the pronunciation of many names and places. The hearer will please pardon such errors. In addition, Edersheim’s writing style is unique.

Please read the note at the bottom of this page. It is most important. MLM

00 Title, Author and Preface
01 Chapter 1 – A View of Jerusalem and the Temple
02 Chapter 2 – Within the Holy Place
03 Chapter 3 – Temple Order, Revenues, Music
04 Chapter 4 – The Officiating Priesthood
05 Chapter 5 – Sacrifices – Their Order and Meaning
06 Chapter 6 – Burnt-Sin-Trespass, Peace Offerings
07 Chapter 7 – At Night in the Temple
08 Chapter 8 – The Morning and the Evening Sacrifice
09 Chapter 9 – Sabbath in the Temple
10 Chapter 10 – Festive Cycles and Arrangement of the Calendar
11 Chapter 11 – The Passover
12 Chapter 12 – The Paschal Feast and the Lord’s Supper
13 Chapter 13 – The Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Day of Pentecost
14 Chapter 14 – The Feast of Tabernacles
15 Chapter 15 – New Moons – Feast of 7th New Moon, Trumpets, New Years Day
16 Chapter 16 – The Day of Atonement
17 Chapter 17 – Post-Mosaic Festivals – Fasting
18 Chapter 18 – On Purifications
19 Chapter 19 – On Vows

Caution to the listener regarding what Edersheim wrote on page 134:

“And then it was, after the regular Paschal meal, that the Lord instituted His own Supper, for the first time using the Aphikomen ‘when He had given thanks’ (after meat), to symbolise His body, and the third cup, or ‘cup of blessing which we bless’ (1 Cor 10:16) — being ‘the cup after supper’ (Luke 22:20) — to symbolise His blood.”
————
This seems so inconsistent for him. In both of his works (Temple and Jesus the Messiah) he has emphasized over and over how the Old Testament services, ministry and sacrifices were prophetic and typological, and always pointing ahead to the Messiah’s person and work. They were but a foreshadow of things to come, which is Christ, the substance of what and who was promised. I mean, ponder the Lamb at the Lord’s Passover. The faithful were commanded to eat of it. They ate the actual lamb. And now in the days of the New Testament, Edersheim imagines a symbolical partaking of the Lord’s Body and Blood in the Supper. Behold the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Matthew 26:26-28 26And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My Body. And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink ye all of it; for this is My Blood of the new Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins (Matthew 26:26-28).

Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

by Alfred Edersheim (1825-1889)

Edersheim was born in Vienna of Jewish parents of culture and wealth. English was spoken in their home, and he became fluent at an early age. He was educated at a local gymnasium and also in the Talmud and the Torah at a Hebrew school. He emigrated to Hungary and taught languages, before converting to Christianity.

Putting this book into an audio recording has been the most difficult book I’ve done. There were numerous errors when the physical book was put into an electronic digital format. Likewise I readily confess my own difficulty in the pronunciation of many names and places. The hearer will please pardon such errors. In addition, Edersheim’s writing style is characterized by, but not limited to (though former usages are more prevalent), language that is of older English type (not as in “font” or “type-setting” but in style) and language forms, which, not withstanding, yet must needs be recognized, though doing so always without criticism whatsoever by the present reader, as often having compound sentences (with or without parenthetical supplements) for … well, you get the idea. MLM

Thanks be to God for the life and times of Alfred Edersheim!
The audio files are provided:

Title and Author
Introductory Quotes on Messiah
Introduction to Introductory

Book 1 – The Introductory Chapters.

Chapter 1 – The Jewish World in Days of Christ
Chapter 2 – Hellenists, Greek Literature and the LXX
Chapter 3 – The Old Faith Preparing for New
Chapter 4 – Philo, Rabbis, the Word, the Gospels
Chapter 5 – Alexandria, Rome and Jewish Communities
Chapter 6 – Jewish Life and the Hope of the Messiah
Chapter 7 – The Land, the Jew, the Gentile
Chapter 8 – Traditionalism

Book 2 – From the Manger in Bethlehem to the Baptism in the Jordan.

Chapter 1 – In Jerusalem When Herod Reigned
Chapter 2 – The Personal History of Herod
Chapter 3 – The Annunciation of John the Baptist
Chapter 4 – Annunciation of the Messiah and Naming of John
Chapter 5 – What Messiah Did Jews Expect
Chapter 6 – The Nativity of the Messiah
Chapter 7 – The Purification and the Presentation
Chapter 8 – The Magi and the Flight to Egypt
Chapter 9 – Child Life in Nazareth
Chapter 10 – In House of Heavenly and Earthly Fathers
Chapter 11 – The Voice in the Wilderness
Chapter 12 – The Baptism of Jesus

Book 3 – The Ascent: From the River Jordan to the Mount of Transfiguration.

Chapter 1 – The Temptation of Jesus
Chapter 2 – The Deputation from Jerusalem and the 3 Sects of Pharisees
Chapter 3 – Testimony of John, Jesus, First Sunday, First Disciples
Chapter 4 – Wedding at Cana and First Sign
Chapter 5 – The Cleansing of the Temple
Chapter 6 – Jesus and Nicodemus
Chapter 7 – The Jews and the Samaritans
Chapter 8 – The Woman at the Well
Chapter 9 – The Cure of the Nobleman’s Son
Chapter 10 – The Synagog: Setting and Practice
Chapter 11 – 1st Galilean Ministry
Chapter 12 – The Unknown Feast and the Pool at Bethesda
Chapter 13 – The Call of the Fishermen
Chapter 14 – A Sabbath in Capernaum
Chapter 15 – 2nd Journey Galilee and Healing of the Leper
Chapter 16 – Capernaum, Forgiveness and the Paralytic
Chapter 17 – The Call of Matthew and Welcoming Sinners
Chapter 18 – The Sermon on the Mount
Chapter 19 – Capernaum and the Centurion’s Servant
Chapter 20 – The Raising at Nain as Life meets Death
Chapter 21 – The Woman Who was a Sinner
Chapter 22 – The Ministry of Love
Chapter 23 – The New Teaching of Parables to the People
Chapter 24 – Christ Calms the Storm
Chapter 25 – The Geresene and Healing of the Demonized Man
Chapter 26 – The Unclean Woman and Jairus’ Daughter
Chapter 27 – The Sending of the Twelve
Chapter 28 – John the Baptizer
Chapter 29 – The Feeding of the 5000
Chapter 30 – Jesus Walking on Water
Chapter 31 – Purifying and Washing the Hands
Chapter 32 – The Bread from Heaven
Chapter 33 – The Syro-Phoenician Woman
Chapter 34 – A Group of Miracles
Chapter 35 – Eating of Wheat and a Healed Hand
Chapter 36 – Feeding of the 4000 and Two Leavens
Chapter 37 – The Great Confession, Instruction and Temptation

Book 4 – The Descent: From Mount of Transfiguration into Valley of Humiliation and Death.

Chapter 1 – The Transfiguration of our Lord
Chapter 2 – On the Morrow of the Transfiguration
Chapter 3 – Dispute on Who is the Greatest
Chapter 4 – The Journey to Jerusalem
Chapter 5 – Martha and Mary
Chapter 6 – The Feast of Tabernacles
Chapter 7 – Great Day of the Feast
Chapter 8 – Jesus Declares: “I AM”
Chapter 9 – The Man Born Blind
Chapter 10 – Jesus is the Good Shepherd
Chapter 11 – The First Perean Discourses
Chapter 12 – The Woes of Traditions
Chapter 13 – To the Disciples
Chapter 14 – The Feast of Dedication and the Temple
Chapter 15 – Who is a Neighbor?
Chapter 16 – The Invitation to a Feast
Chapter 17 – Parables of the Lost Sheep, Coin and Sons
Chapter 18 – The Unjust Steward and Dives
Chapter 19 – The Publican and the Pharisee
Chapter 20 – The Perean Ministry Ends
Chapter 21 – The Raising of Lazarus
Chapter 22 – Divorce and Children
Chapter 23 – The Rich, Young Ruler
Chapter 24 – Zaccheas, Mary and Judas

Book 5 – The Cross and the Crown.

Chapter 1 – Palm Sunday
Chapter 2 – Cleansing the Temple and the Praise of the Children
Chapter 3 – Tuesday in Passion Week
Chapter 4 – Jesus Proclaims the Woes
Chapter 5 – The Parables of the Vineyard
Chapter 6 – The Second Advent of our Lord
Chapter 7 – The Last Parables
Chapter 8 – Judas
Chapter 9 – Make Ready the Passover!
Chapter 10 – The Last Supper
Chapter 11 – Our Lord’s High Priestly Prayer
Chapter 12 – Gethsemane
Chapter 13 – Jesus’ Trials and Peter’s Denials
Chapter 14 – Good Friday Morning
Chapter 15 – Crucified, Dead and Buried
Chapter 16 – On the Resurrection of our Lord!
Chapter 17 – The Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord!