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Update on the Website

Hello Family of Faith,

I have shared some of this at our last Council and Voter’s Assembly, but I wanted to give you all an update on our new website.

A New Website???

• Why a new website? Our current setup has been having a lot of problems, particularly as we have been experimenting with self/digital hosting to save on hosting costs.
• Bryan is working on the server, purchasing equipment and getting the technical/hardware side set up, as mentioned in our January Voter’s Assembly.
• I am working on building the website and writing the pages for it.

Status

• In the early weeks of January (when we had Bible class on break), I began writing and designing a new website for Faith.
• It will be launched in the next month or two in a simple state, and in the coming months it will be expanded.
• Content from our old site will be moved over, with special attention to Pastor McCoy’s Scholia audio and e-books.

A Few Final Notes

• Our sermon feed or website may have times when it is down in the meantime. This is due to our initial move to self/digital hosting not playing well with WordPress.
• Moving to a static-site generator (Hugo) will reduce/eliminate those problems. In the last decade, static sites have grown in usage due to how fast they can run compared to bulkier sites.
• Since this is not my (Pastor Laws’) primary field, things are taking a while, but I am excited to learn this new skill and about the potential for this new website for communication and catechesis.

Peace in Christ,

Pastor Laws

Fall 2025 Voter’s Assembly

Dear Family of Faith,

Our Fall Voter’s Assembly will take place on November 2nd, 2025.

Please find attached my report, along with a resolution I will be bringing to our Voter’s Assembly. There is also a paper copy in your mailbox at Church.

Peace in Christ,

Pastor Laws

Fall 2025 Voter’s Report

To Establish Evening Divine Services on Certain Church Festivals (2025)

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.