Worship – Gloria Dei St. Paul

ALL ARE WELCOME TO WORSHIP AT GLORIA DEI

Worship services are in person at 8:15 and 10:45 a.m. with Holy Communion, and nursery available.

We livestream our 10:45 a.m. service on YouTube.

Instructions for Holy Communion at home

More About Worship

All are Welcome

As Lutherans, our year is shaped by the life of Christ around the three great festivals of Easter, Christmas, and Pentecost. Each season brings its own themes and highlights different dimensions of our faith. The church’s seasons are deeply connected to the earth’s cycle of growing, living, and dying; welcoming light and experiencing growing darkness. Our worship connects us to all living things and with the One who is our creator.

At Gloria Dei, we ground our Sunday morning services in an ancient pattern (Gathering, Word, Meal, Sending) that we believe both supports and challenges us to live in a complex and beautiful world.

We gather as a community, often beginning each service with an announcement of forgiveness or a remembrance of our baptism. We hear the Word of God read in the Old and New Testaments, proclaimed in sermons, and sung in traditional hymns, global music, or songs with profound new poetry. We pray for the needs of the world, our neighbors, and ourselves, trusting that God always hears our prayers. We practice generosity by offering our resources for the work of God’s church. After we’ve shared the peace of Christ, we gather at the table to receive bread and wine, Christ’s own body and blood offered to all of us, without condition, for those who have great faith and those who wish they had more. Finally, we are sent into the world to be agents of resurrection, empowered to serve our neighbor with compassion, humility, and justice.

Let the Children Come

Gloria Dei loves to have families with little ones in worship! It is in worship we learn that we are all part of the family of faith and we learn how to participate in worship.

When you arrive for worship, make sure to check out the Worship Bag area at the main entrance of the Sanctuary. Children are able to fill up their worship bag with a number of different items that will help them to engage in worship. They can chose what works best for them such as a children’s bulletin, prayer cross, church pet, fidget, children’s Bible, praise wand, lacing card, etc. If interested, ask an usher for a cup of animal crackers too!

All children are invited to come forward during the Time for Children and also for Communion, so even the youngest receive a blessing. If at any point your child needs a change of scenery or more room to move around, check out the Gathering Space! There is a coloring table, a few toys and you can all continue to worship via the screen projecting worship in the Gathering Space.

As children grow, they develop skills that enable them to more fully participate in worship. Parents can encourage participation by helping children follow along in the program, by helping them find hymns and follow the text, by encouraging them to learn and recite the Lord’s Prayer and the Apostle’s Creed with the rest of the congregation. Talk with your child about Holy Communion and when interest and questions about receiving Communion arise, consider registering your child in Communion Instruction Class.

Encourage children to draw during worship, since children can easily listen and be active at the same time. You might be surprised by how much your child has absorbed, even while seemingly being completely involved in this activity! Ask your child to draw what they see in the sanctuary like the beautiful windows, symbols, banners and colors. Help your child understand the significance of changes in our worship space. And if you aren’t sure yourself, you can learn together! All first graders and their parents are invited to participate in a Worship class, which introduces a child to the richness of Gloria Dei’s Sanctuary.

While you drive home on Sundays, talk about what you experienced in worship. Perhaps music was touching, a message was inspirational, a baptized child was adorable, the children’s message was poignant, or Communion touched your spirit. Talk with your child about these things; what matters to you will also matter to your child! Remember that faith is “caught more than taught!”

Serve in Worship

Everyone is invited to participate in worship. There are opportunities for all ages to share their time and talent.

ADULTS
For more information, please call the office at 651-699-1378.

Altar Service: Prepare the chancel for communion and clean up after worship.

Assisting Minister: Leads the prayers of intercession and serves at the table with the presiding minister.

Tech Team: Assist with audio and video work for in-house and livestream worship.

Communion Assistant: Assist with the distribution of bread and wine.

Crucifer: Carry the cross in processions during worship.

Greeter: Welcome people at the doors of the church and at the coffee hour.

Gift Presenter: Bring bread and wine during the offertory procession.

Lector: Proclaim the Word by reading lessons.

Sacristan: Provide logistical support for the liturgy and assists acolytes in their service.

Usher: Greet people as they arrive, pass out bulletins, collect the offering.

Worship Committee: Meets on the third Thursday every other month at 6 p.m.

Visual Design Team: Plans, creates and installs visual design for the sanctuary.

Acolytes: Youth in grades 7-12, can serve as acolytes, lighting candles and assisting with communion.

CHILDREN
For more information, please contact Children’s Ministry Director Kyrstin Schwartz at 651-699-1378 ext. 3021.

Communion Assistant: Preteens in 5th grade who would like to participate in Children’s Christmas Worship by serving Communion, receive a special training from one of our pastors.

Gift Presenter: Either with their families or on their own, children can carry forward Communion bread and wine after the Offering is taken.

Lectors: Every second Sunday of the month, child lectors read Scripture in worship – a different reader at each worship time. Children receive the texts in advance to practice at home. Arrive 15 minutes early to worship in order to soundcheck the microphone and test reading from the pulpit.

Share with One Another

The second Sunday of each month we pass a second offering basket. All collections from this offering are donated to one of our Outreach ministries chosen each year by our Outreach Committee. Groups that receive support are:

January
Global Mission Partners

Supports our three global mission partnerships: El Divino Salvador del Mundo congregation and Colegio Luterano Agustino de Guatemala, Guatemala City, and the Kilengapasi Parish, Iringa Diocese, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania.

February
Loaves and Fishes
Gloria Dei’s Loaves and Fishes team provides a meal one Wednesday every other month at the Saint Paul Opportunity Center in downtown Saint Paul, each time serving about 250 people struggling with hunger and homelessness. The Second Offering subsidizes the cost of food.

March
Francis Basket
The only food shelf in Highland Park, Francis Basket serves more than 1,000 people each year, operated by Neighborhood House.

April
Lutheran Social Services Metro Homeless Youth Programs
Offers a continuum of holistic services to runaway, homeless, and street-dependent youth in the Twin Cities Metro Area. These services are committed to helping youth build on assets and strengths, and connecting them with caring, supportive adults.

May
Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative
A network of congregations, including Gloria Dei, which develops supportive affordable housing and advances equitable housing.

June
Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries
Supports lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender clergy and those preparing for ordination in the Lutheran church, and it works with congregations to create more opportunities for LGBT pastors.

Reconciling Works:Lutherans for Full Participation
Advocate for the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the life of Lutheran churches in the United States and Canada.

July
ISAIAH
A community organizing group that works with people of faith across Minnesota to advocate for racial and economic justice.

August
ELCA World Hunger
Working through Lutheran churches around the world, congregations in the United States and other partners, ELCA World Hunger partners with local communities to break the cycle of hunger and poverty.

September
Highland Park Elementary Weekend Backpack Program
We partner with Highland Park Elementary School, where 60% of children are eligible for free or reduced lunch, to provide nutritious food for children so they get enough to eat on weekends.

October
Interfaith Action – Department for Indian Work
The department’s programs are designed to serve the needs of the American Indian community in a way that respects their cultural and spiritual diversity. Along with a food shelf, Interfaith Action is active in diabetes education, clothing assistance, youth health and wellness, and youth programs.

November
Keystone Food Shelf
The Keystone Basic Needs Program helps feed the hungry and assists people in crisis in a large service area in Ramsey County — from downtown St. Paul to Roseville, from Little Canada to the Midway and the North End neighborhoods of St. Paul.

December
Project Home
Project Home provides 40 beds of emergency shelter for children and their parents in Ramsey County each night. Project Home is a program of Interfaith Action of Greater St. Paul.

Worship Times Change with the Seasons

Regular Schedule
Worship services at 8:15 and 10:45 a.m., with online live broadcast of 10:45 a.m. on YouTube.
Education Hour for all ages at 9:30 a.m.

Summer Schedule
Typically, from the start of Memorial Day weekend through the end of Labor Day weekend, in-person worship on Sunday mornings at 8:15 a.m. and 10 a.m., with online live broadcast on YouTube of the 10 a.m. service. Family and adult education hour resumes in the fall.

Advent
Typically includes a mid-week service.

Christmas
Typically includes mid-week worship and services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Lent
Typically includes a mid-week service.

Maundy Thursday, Noon and 6:30 p.m., Children’s Time, 6 p.m.

Good Friday, Noon and 6:30 p.m., Children’s Time, 6 p.m.

Easter Vigil, 6:30 p.m., Children’s Time, 6 p.m.

Easter Sunday, 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m.

The 9:30 a.m. service is also livestreamed.

The Gloria Dei music ministry honors the rich musical heritage of the Lutheran church, with an emphasis on full congregational singing led by strong choirs, instrumentalists and the robust support of the pipe organ and grand piano. Click here for more details.

What we believe about baptism

Baptism initiates us into a lifelong relationship with a God who loves us unconditionally. We are washed in the promise that nothing can ever separate us from God, and sealed with the power of the Spirit.

Lutheran Christians practice infant baptism. We remember that God does not require a mature or intelligent faith before claiming us. God opens wide the door and pours out faith upon us regardless of how qualified or prepared we are. Just as newborn children are always loved and included in the family, God welcomes us from the start.

Baptism promises us forgiveness and life. In the Bible, God uses water to create, to heal, to rescue those who are in trouble, to cleanse, to satisfy those who are thirsty for compassion and community. No matter how broken or disappointing our life may be, baptism assures us that God will never abandon us. Even when we die, God does not let go. We are God’s children forever.

Scheduling a baptism at Gloria Dei

We ask all parents (members and non-members) to first attend a Baptism Orientation Workshop before their child is baptized. We hold workshops about every two months, now on Zoom, and parents are welcome to attend before or after the birth of their child. If you have any questions, please contact Children’s Ministry Director Kyrstin Schwartz.

Register for an online workshop. Contact the church office to schedule the baptism.

What we Believe About Communion

“This is Christ’s table. It is a table of love and welcome. It is a table of fellowship with the poor; it is a table of communion with the earth. So, come those of you have great faith and those of you who wish you had more. Come those of you who have tried to follow Jesus and those of you who have failed. Come those of you who depend on this meal for your life and those of you for whom it is a strange thing. These are the gifts of God for the people of God.“ This invitation to the table, often spoken as we prepare to receive communion, reveals much about who we are, what we believe, and how we celebrate Holy Communion.

At Gloria Dei, we celebrate Holy Communion weekly and invite everyone, without exception, to receive the bread and wine. It is one of the few places in our world where nobody is turned away, and where everyone who comes with hands outstretched receives the same amount. Our celebration of Holy Communion is shaped by our conviction that God’s abundant love is an unconditional gift and extends to all.

In keeping with our Lutheran tradition, we believe Christ is truly present “in, with, and under” the bread and wine. God sees our hunger for more than bread and fills us with abundant life. When we receive Holy Communion—when we eat the bread and drink the wine—we are nourished with Christ’s presence, which strengthens us in love and service to our neighbor.

Prepare for Your Child’s First Communion

Gloria Dei welcomes children to the table of Holy Communion. We believe there is no predetermined age when children understand what it means to participate in Holy Communion. When young children ask to participate, the Holy Spirit is at work drawing them into the body of Christ. We encourage families to make the decision about taking first communion.

To help you and your child be ready for this important step in their faith journey, we offer an engaging, interactive, and age-appropriate instruction for children and their families twice a year. Register online for an upcoming communion class.

Marriage is a gift of God, intended for the joy and strength of those who enter it for the wellbeing of the whole human family. Gloria Dei is pleased to offer the blessing of Jesus Christ to couples of all sexual orientations and gender identities. We welcome both members and non-members to be married in our beautiful sanctuary or chapel. Because each wedding ceremony is unique, we invite you to email our Director of Administration and Finance Beverly Sargent or call her at 651-699-1378, for further information about scheduling and costs. We can also provide you with our wedding booklet that will help with your planning and describe the church’s policies.

When you have a date scheduled and we have received your deposit, one of our pastors will be assigned to work with you in your wedding planning. All our pastors will require three to five sessions of pre-marital counseling and liturgy planning. As part of this required preparation, we ask couples to take an assessment with Prepare-Enrich and attend a financial planning Money For Two Workshop with Pastor Don Fulton, a financial coach and Gloria Dei member.

We also provide a wedding coordinator and music director to assist you in your planning. We pray that this time of preparation can help strengthen marriage and prepare of a life of joy and happiness.

“Now you let your servant go in peace….”

People of God know we are created in the image of God and born in physical bodies that will one day die. While we mourn the loss of those whom we love, we also trust that death is a normal part of creation, and that no matter when it comes, our death ushers us into eternal union with God.

Whenever possible, it is beneficial for each person to plan his or her own funeral service. The church has materials available to help you indicate your plans or consider ways you’d like to be remembered. This can be done at any age, whether or not you are sick or expecting to die soon. The church office can keep your plans on file, and you can edit or update them at any time. You can email our pastors or the church office.

If a loved one is dying, we encourage you to let the church know so we can provide pastoral care for both the one who is dying and for their loved ones. Call the church office, 651-699-1378, at the time of death, too, especially if you hope to plan a funeral or memorial service at Gloria Dei. A pastor will contact you to begin to make arrangements.

Whether or not you require our help in planning a funeral service, we encourage you to let us know so that we can support and pray for you when you are grieving.

“Here on earth we have no abiding city but we seek one that is to come.”