Schola Divina: Praying for Our Schools
September Prayer Practice
This month we will practice Schola Divina. Like Lectio Divina (praying God’s Word) or Visio Divina (praying with an image or artwork), this is a prayer practice of taking time to really sit and hold a particular thing in prayer. Schola is Latin for school. So, for Schola Divina, you are invited to pray for schools, educators and places of learning. Though it’s not necessary to be physically in front of an school, this practice is perfect for those of you who see schools in your neighborhood, throughout your day, or are held captive by carpool pickup!
Download a PDF Guide to Schola Divina. You can also pick up a copy of this hand-out at the information desk in the atrium.
As we approach the start of the fall, we’re excited to offer a number of educational opportunities for adults. A brochure has been sent uot to all SPD households withinformation about these offerings, including:
- a course on mourning, led by Pastor Strand Patterson
- conversations about the faith stories of our four pastors in October
- an introduction to C.S. Lewis in November
- ongoing Holy Grounds devotion and study sessions
- a Spiritual Growth Workshop about eliminating hurry from our lives
- two retreat opportunities for women in October and November
In addition to these courses and conversations, we are also excited to be part of a cohort of twelve churches from across the country for a series on Tuesday evenings this fall led by Dr. Allen Hilton. Learn more at spdlc.org/house-united.
We are excited to be part of a cohort of twelve churches from across the country for a series on Tuesday evenings this fall led by Dr. Allen Hilton. Dr. Hilton, a professor and pastor who has taught at Yale, is the founder of a non-profit called House United, committed to helping to bring people together from different perspectives for the common good.
During a contentious and polarizing election cycle, Dr. Hilton will help us to celebrate our unity amid differences with other Christians from around the country, reminding us that these differences should be an asset, not a threat. He will lead and guide us as we move toward our neighbors to help us flourish with our families, our churches and our communities.
Dr. Hilton was a speaker from last year’s Faith & Life Series with his talk on “Faith & Polarization: Surviving and Thriving in a House Divided.” We commend this talk to you if you are interested in getting a sense of Dr. Hilton’s approach and tone, and encourage you to join us for the kick-off event for this series on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m.
With you, we celebrate all of the opportunities we have to learn and grow together this fall, and we look forward to seeing you at these and other events as we begin the program year.
Dear Friends,
I am delighted to announce that Jen Galley will be joining the St. Philip the Deacon team as our first Director of Adult Education. In this role, Jen will be responsible for curating and overseeing in-person and online learning opportunities for adults that build faith and deepen community. She will begin her ministry with us on Sept. 8.
Jen comes to St. Philip the Deacon with rich teaching experience in both church and college settings, and holds degrees and certificates in ministry and spiritual direction from Luther Seminary, Christos Center for Spiritual Formation, Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, and North Central University. Look for more information later this summer about new learning opportunities for the fall.
I am also delighted to announce that JoBeth Ranfranz will join our team as Director of the SPD Ringers. With more than 25 years of experience leading handbell choirs, JoBeth has served as a regular substitute director for us, so is already well-known to our handbell choir. We are glad to have her continue to build on and expand the work of this ensemble.
In addition to these staff additions, I am pleased to announce some changes to roles and responsibilities for existing staff, as follows:
Kathy Hagedorn will now be focusing her energy on programming for our Pre-K children, including oversight of our Childcare Center.
Norah Long, who worked with our Sunday School children approximately once a month last year, will expand her presence in K-4 Sunday School to multiple weekends a month. She and Pastor Makayla Dahleen are already at work to refresh the curriculum for this important ministry.
Charlie Olson, who joined us last year as our Middle School intern, has accepted our offer to lead our Middle School and Confirmation Ministries.
Renee Putnam has moved into a role focused on Service and Engagement, where she will help plan and oversee opportunities for members to give back and build community.
Please join me in celebrating all of these new additions and changes, and keep all of these individuals in your prayers as we prepare for an exciting fall!
Grace and Peace,
Tim Westermeyer
Senior Pastor
UPDATE, Monday, July 15, 2024:
Our congregational vote on July 13-14 to call Pastor Makayla Dahleen as our Pastor of Family Life was unanimously affirmative. Pastor Dahleen has expressed her excitement at joining the St. Philip the Deacon family.
Thank you to all of the people who were involved with this search and call process—Pastor Schmid and Pastor Strand Patterson, our Executive Team, our Council, led by Congregational President Heather Larson, and all of our faithful and talented staff.
Thanks also to the entire membership of St. Philip the Deacon for making St. Philip the Deacon such a healthy, vital and vibrant congregation. We celebrate this health, which allows us to attract high quality candidates when we have openings in our staff, and also allows us to fill these openings quickly and efficiently.
Pastor Dahleen will be finishing up her call to St. Paul Lutheran Church in Sterling, Illinois over the next few weeks, and will be moving up to Plymouth in late August with her husband Jacob and their six-month-old son, Simon. Her first weekend in worship will be Saturday, Sept. 7, and Sunday, Sept. 8, and she will be formally installed as our Pastor of Family Life during all services on the weekend of Sept. 14 and 15.
Please continue to keep Pastor Makayla and her family in your prayers as she makes this transition, and keep our congregation in your prayers as we move into this next and exciting chapter of our life together.
______
June 20, 2024
Dear Friends of St. Philip the Deacon,
I am delighted to report that the St. Philip the Deacon Church Council and Executive Team have unanimously recommended Pastor Makayla Dahleen to join us as our next pastor.
To ratify this recommendation, a rolling special congregational meeting will be held at the conclusion of all worship services on the weekend of July 13 and July 14.
Pastor Dahleen is a native of a small town in Wisconsin, attended Luther College in Iowa, and completed graduate training for ministry at Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. She is married to Jacob, and they have a young son, Simon, who is six months old.
For the past four years, Pastor Dahleen has served as solo pastor of St. Paul Lutheran in Sterling, Illinois. Before that, she served as a pastoral intern at a large Lutheran church outside of Denver—where they are still using curriculum created by her. She also has experience with camping ministries, a prison ministry, and a small black congregation on the south side of Chicago.
“The search process for our next pastor has been thoughtful and thorough and faithful,” said Council President Heather Larson. “After conversations and interviews with a number of outstanding candidates, Makayla quickly rose to the top. She was able to spend a few days with our entire staff and Executive Team in early June, and during that visit we all recognized that there was a wonderful fit between her and St. Philip the Deacon. I am thrilled that she will be joining our already exceptionally gifted team of pastors and staff.”
“After my visit in early June, it became abundantly clear to me that the Holy Spirit was calling me to St. Philip the Deacon,” Pastor Dahleen said. “I am so excited for our family to join the SPD family, and I look forward to where God is leading us as we walk in faith together.”
Like all pastors at St. Philip the Deacon, Pastor Dahleen will preach, teach, lead worship, conduct baptisms and weddings and funerals, and provide pastoral care. As Pastor of Family Life, her particular area of emphasis will be to help us to build on and expand our children and family ministries.
As part of our larger strategy with the call of Pastor Dahleen, we will also be expanding and enriching our adult education offerings through the creation of a new Director of Adult Education role. Look for more news about that addition to our staff in July.
As I have said many times over the last few months, I have never been more excited about our future at St. Philip the Deacon than I am right now. I am delighted that Makayla will be joining our gifted and talented and faithful team of pastors and staff, and I celebrate all of the ways God will continue to use this incredible congregation to reflect his light and love to a world in need.
With Hope and Promise,
Tim Westermeyer
Senior Pastor
UPDATE: Be sure to enjoy Celina’s recital at the final event in our Summer Organ Concert Series, Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 12:15 p.m. in the sanctuary. Celina will play selections from Bach, Duruflé, and her own arrangements and preludes. Enjoy a reception following the program to meet and welcome Celina to SPD!
Dear Friends of St. Philip the Deacon,
I am delighted to announce that, following a nationwide search, Celina Kobetitsch will join the St. Philip the Deacon family as our next organist. She will officially begin her role in mid-July, and will play for her first worship services in August.
A native of the Chicago area, Kobetitsch has been studying piano since she was three years old. She has received multiple prestigious honors, including awards from the U.S. Fulbright program and the DAAD postgraduate music program. In 2022, she was awarded first prize at the Fugato Organ Competition in Bad Homburg, as well as the Ruth and Paul Manz Organ Scholarship from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. A gifted teacher, she received the Carol Nott Prize for Excellence in Piano Pedagogy at age 21.
Kobetitsch is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where she studied piano and organ. She completed an artist diploma at the Conservatoire de Toulouse, and earned her master’s degree at the Hochschule für Musik Leipzig Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, where she studied organ performance and improvisation. In addition to organ and piano performance, Kobetitsch is a talented composer who writes her own hymn reharmonizations, introductions, and chorale preludes. You can hear one example of this on her YouTube channel, where you can also find many other recordings.
Most recently, Kobetitsch has served as the Associate Director of Music at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Little Rock, Arkansas. She has also served as organist for Bethany English Lutheran Church in Cleveland, Ohio and as interim organist at Bay Presbyterian Church.
“I am thrilled to be joining the SPD family,” said Celina. “This congregation has a well-deserved reputation for outstanding music, and I am delighted to be partnering with Sam Grace and all of the other musicians here to ensure that this strong tradition continues.”
In addition to announcing Celina Kobetitsch as our new organist, I am also delighted to announce that Steve Griffiths, our long-time substitute organist, will officially become our Associate Organist. A gifted and talented organist and pianist, Steve’s long and deep ties to St. Philip the Deacon have made him an important strategic thought partner as we continue to envision the future of music here at the church. We are thrilled to have him serve once again as a formal part of our music team.
“Music is an essential part of who we are,” said Sam Grace, our Director of Music. “That is true for us both as Lutherans in general, and more specifically as members of St. Philip the Deacon. We have been blessed with a long and lasting legacy of exceptional music here, and I have every confidence that Celina and Steve will not only continue this tradition, but will help us to expand and build on it. I am delighted to welcome both of them to our team of outstanding musicians.”
I join in Sam’s excitement, and look forward to welcoming Celina to the St. Philip the Deacon family. Stay tuned for more news about when you can hear her for the first time, and please join us in giving her a warm welcome when you do meet her.
Blessings,
Tim Westermeyer
Senior Pastor
