Lay Lutherans meet in Butler
St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church, 201 W. Jefferson St., will host the Lutheran Lay Renewal Conference of America from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
The Rev. Amy Schifrin, president of the North American Lutheran Seminary, will lead two afternoon sessions. Bill Oehlschlager, executive director of Lutheran Lay Renewal of America, will lead two morning sessions.
Oehlschlager, who has been running Lutheran Lay Renewal of America from his Butler home since 2009, said it was an honor to be able to have Schifrin deliver the two afternoon sessions.
“The North American Lutheran Seminary is in Ambridge,” he said. “It's great having her close by.
“We're having it at St. Mark's because it is one of the largest Lutheran churches in Western Pennsylvania,” said Oehlschlager.
Oehlschlager will lead the two morning sessions, “Seven Lessons for Living the Spiritual Life” and “10 Stops on the Road to Spiritual Transformation.”
Schifrin will lead two afternoon sessions, “Singing Our Faith” and “Praying the Psalter.”
Schifrin said, “I'm looking forward to coming to Butler and speaking.
“'Singing Our Faith' is looking at the hymns we sing, the music and the text and how they work together to lead us to faith,” she said.
“'Praying the Psalter' goes back to Martin Luther who said all 150 Psalms are just a meditation of the First Commandment, 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me,'” said Schifrin.
Oehlschlager added walk-ins will be welcome, space permitting.
“This is open to everyone. You don't even have to be a Christian to attend,” he said.
The Rev. Al Towberman, pastor of St. Mark's, said he plans to attend Saturday's event as a participant.“Lutheran Lay Renewal recognizes that at this time right now there are people in our community, there are people in our family who have no interest in belonging to a church. How do you share the love of God when people are not attracted to seek that?” Towberman asked.Lutheran Lay Renewal of America is a nonprofit Christian ministry that offers several options congregations can utilize to promote spiritual renewal, spiritual growth and evangelism.Oehlschlager said the ministry, through its programs, retreats and workshops, provides opportunities for people in congregations to strengthen their faith, build deeper Christian community and have a closer personal relationship with Jesus Christ.“My opinion is this is something everyone needs to do once a year: focus on our relationship with God and their own spiritual life,” he said.He added his group's programs also make good community outreach events and congregations are encouraged to promote and publicize these events in their communities.The North American Lutheran Church (NALC) partnered with Trinity School for Ministry to create a “Seminary Center” for the training of future NALC pastors. In 2013, the Convocation of the NALC took action to establish a new North American Lutheran Seminary.This seminary is not a degree granting institution, rather, it partners with existing accredited seminaries, such as Trinity, to provide sound theological education for NALC students.In addition to serving on Trinity's faculty as associate professor of liturgy and homiletics, Schifrin also serves as president of the North American Lutheran Seminary.
