News from Atlantic District Congregations

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Resurrection - Cairo
The was a large crowd outside Resurrection Lutheran Church in Cairo
Saturday morning. Over the course of three hours, church members and a
handful volunteers from Cairo High School handed out four bags of groceries
to 175 Greene County residents.

"The food pantry has been much busier this year. But the drive had the same
amount of people showing up as last year," said Joyce Motarnicla, who runs
the food bank for the Resurrection Lutheran Church.

For more of this story, click here.
VLC, Bronxville -- Deacon Commissioned
Bronxville, NY - Village Lutheran Church commissioned Morris Mayer of Scarsdale as a Deacon on Saturday, November 13 at the church’s 5:30 PM Service of Holy Communion. Click here for full article.
The Life, Old Westbury -- Saturdays at The Life: The ESL Story
The ESL (English as a Second Language) classes began this past September as an outreach program of the Hispanic Ministry at THE LIFE Church, in Old Westbury, NY, thanks to a grant received from the Wheat Ridge Foundation. Click here for full article.
Pastors' Wives Retreats in Westchester and Suffolk Counties
Click here for photos and summary
St. Johns, College Point -- The Rev. Eric Moeller is New Pastor

On Sunday October 24, Bishop David Benke officiated at the installation of Rev. Eric Moeller as Pastor of St. John's, College Point. Pictured are, left to right, Pastor E. Johnson Rethinasamy, Immanuel Whitestone, Pastor Rajesh Dass, Hindi language ministry at Immanuel Whitestone, Deacon Peter Wenzel, St. John's, Pastor David Demera, Immanuel Whitestone, Bishop David H. Benke, Ernest Haseney, an elder at St. John's, Pastor Eric Moeller, his wife Miracelia and daughter Jennifer, Pastor James Gajadhar, Ascension Flushing, Pastor Joshua Hollmann, Christ Woodside and Rev. Dr. Ronald Lehenbauer.
Immanuel, Whitestone -- On October 31st, Reformation Sunday celebrations at Immanuel, Whitestone included the dedication of a building by Bishop David H. Benke. The following week, on November 7th, the McLaughlins, a new member family, were baptized. Photos and videos courtesy of Pastor E. Johnson Rethinasamy. Click here to view album.
Christ, Woodside -- On September 19, 2010, Mr. A. R. Sajad was baptized at Christ Lutheran Church in Woodside. Mr. Sajad is a Pakistani. Rev. Joshua Hollmann and Rev. Javed Yousef presided
St. John, Sayville -- New Novel by Sayville Member Ray Keating
Could a current LCMS pastor be a former CIA assassin? Well, that’s the main character in my new novel titled Warrior Monk: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel.

As a newspaper columnist for more than 15 years, I’ve had a novel knocking around my brain for some time. And as a Lutheran who has written on a wide array of issues relating to Christianity, politics, public policy, morality and the culture, I wanted to integrate my faith in a fun and exciting story.

Warrior Monk revolves around a former CIA assassin, Stephen Grant, who has lived a far different, relatively quiet life as a Lutheran pastor in recent years. However, a shooting at his church, an historic papal proposal, and threats to the Pope’s life mean that Grant’s former and current lives collide. Grant must tap the varied skills learned as a government agent, a theologian and a pastor not only to protect the Pope, but also to feel his way through a minefield of personal challenges.

My hope is that this is an entertaining, compelling story of murder, action, humor and romance, while touching on various religious, moral and political topics important to the twenty-first century, including conservatives versus liberals in Christianity, terrorism, torture, extreme environmentalism, and the challenges of relativism, militant secularism, and radical Islam.

If you have a chance, check out a fun review on the First Things blog here. Warrior Monk: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel can be purchased from Amazon.com’s CreateSpace at https://www.createspace.com/3481414

Or, the book can be purchased from Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/Warrior-Monk-Pastor-Stephen-Grant/dp/1453801030/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1284850170&sr=1-1
Trinity, Locust Manor -- Book of poems published by Samuel Singh
“Spiritual Meanderings” is the second book of poems published by Samuel Singh, son of Pastor Sam Sundar Singh of Trinity, Locust Manor. To be put in touch with the poet, go to “spiritualmeanderings.com.” and pick up a copy.
St. Johns, Staten Island -- Featured in New York Times Article
Teacher and students at St. John's Lutheran School in Staten Island are using cutting edge technology in the classroom. Click to read article, The Pen That Never Forgets, by Clive Thompson, that appeared in the New York Times on September 16, 2010
All Saints, Lagrangeville -- Bringing the Gospel to People’s Attention at the 45th Rhinebeck Jamboree

The Rev. R. Glenn Stubbs Jr., All Saints, Lagrangeville, was a fixture at this year’s Rhinebeck Jamboree, the annual air show sponsored by the Mid Hudson Radio Control Society and the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome that combines full-scale aircraft as well as radio control models. It is the single largest event each year at the Aerodrome; in addition to the pilots and staff from the Aerodrome, this year there were 156 pilots and assistants from 15 states and 10 from Canada, as well as a large crowd of paying spectators. Over the course of the three-day event in September, Pastor Stubbs reported that he conducted two prayer meetings a day with over one hundred twenty people attending each meeting.

An ex air show pilot, Pastor Stubbs is a member of the club that puts on the Jamboree and is an avid Radio Control flier. This year, his club responsibilities were Aircraft Safety and Flight Line Operations. “I make sure that all aircraft meet AMA (Academy of Model Aeronautics) safety requirements and that they are operated in a safe manner while flying. I'm also the unofficial chaplain of the event,” said Stubbs, who added …

“Events like this are an outstanding opportunity to bring the Gospel to people's attention just by being there. Even though there were no "scheduled" ministry events, I was asked by the pilots to lead them in prayer before the morning and afternoon flying. I also had an opportunity to meet and greet all the families of the pilots, and many of the people in the crowd. Being the only person "in uniform," (my collar and flight cap with Cross) I was easy to spot in the crowd. One comment that I'd like to share: Padre, I'm not even a believer, but it really means a lot to me that you would come out here and work so hard for us."

Located in the beautiful Hudson Valley town of Lagrangeville, All Saints Lutheran Church is located one half mile north of the intersection of Route 55 and Route 82, at North Cross Road. Visit their website at http://www.allsaints-lcms.org/ or call (845) 223-5288.

“The Saturday morning pilots’ briefings session is where we go over the rules, discuss safety issues, and announce changes to the schedules. At the time the picture was taken I had just finished praying, thanking God for the weather, the crowd and to please look with favor on the planes, the pilots who fly them, and the spectators who were there to watch us, so we could have a safe and memorable day.”

“Many of the model planes are 1/2 the size of the real airplanes; most are 1/2 to 1/3 scale. Some of the models cost more than $50,000.00 to build. They are perfect copies of the real aircraft, right down to the last nut, bolt and rivet. We can do things the real pilots of the antique aircraft wouldn't dream of doing,” says Pastor R. Glenn Stubbs, Jr., who is shown in photo 2 with his wife, Christine, under the “Safety Tent.”