A few years ago, we asked ourselves, “What is Faith Lutheran’s unique call in Chico and Butte County?” For a year we wrestled with that question, and our answer culminated with a plan to live our our shared mission as a congregation: to be a community reflecting God's love, with a place at the table for everyone.
Welcomed in Worship
Worship is where many people first experience divine welcome, and welcome into a loving and affirming community through the people we encounter. We welcome you -as you are- to worship with us, making a point to ensure that Faith Lutheran Church is a place of connection.
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Gathered with Community
The Christian life means living out intentional relationships with God, our siblings in Christ, our neighbors in need, and ourselves. We foster real relationships by having small interest, age, and hobby based groups that go on throughout the week. Staying engaged with each other in and out of worship helps us see God in the midst of our journeys, and we're able to support each other through prayer and fellowship.
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Equipped for Purpose
We all yearn for purpose greater than ourselves. In Christ we are called to serve our neighbor. The Holy Spirit gives us unique gifts with which to answer Christ’s call. What are your gifts? You may be aware of some and unaware of others. We encourage one another by celbrating and fostering those gifts, building each other up to strengthen the community of Christ’s living body.
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Sent to Serve
The greatest joy is not to receive but to give. Having received so much from God, we overflow with blessings and seek others upon whom to bestow them. Whether we serve as individuals, pairs, small groups, or as the whole congregation, our ultimate purpose is to share the love of Christ in whatever we do. Through our service, others are invited to know Christ's love, too.
Whether you come to a church service, one of our classes, or a small group, the glue that holds together our foundation consists of three things:
1. Nobody is perfect. We all have our strengths, and we all have our flaws.
2. God loves us anyway.
3. We try, in our imperfect way, to love each other, too.
The rest is "audiophora" -- an old, Greek word meaning practices that don't hinge on these beliefs, but tools that help us live a life that is good for us, for others, and for God. We have various music groups who play on Sundays, and while we want you to consider joining a music group, and while we love the musical offerings we receive, partipating in music isn't a key component of our faith. Love and understanding are. We're happy to talk more about our beliefs, or big, Greek words!
Folks with Catholic backgrounds who come to a Lutheran church for the first time tend to notice similarities between Catholic mass and a Lutheran worship service, especially when it comes to imagery, Communion, and worship itself. An astute observation, considering Martin Luther -for whom our faith is named- was a Roman Catholic monk who prompted the Protestant Reformation 500 years ago! Luther was loud, opinionated, and deeply faithful. He wrote his 95 Theses: oppositions and propositions pertaining to indulgences and other practices of the Catholic church, nailed them to the door of the All Saints Church in Wittenburg, Germany, and the rest is history.
Our movement as Lutherans encourages individuals to engage with these sacred writings and to experience the freedom and love from “the source of the universe:" God. We join this movement by attempting, in our imperfect, human way, to seek justice, to show mercy, and to share this love with all living things from our own place and time.
The cornerstone of our physical church on E. 1st Avenue was organized in 1950 by Pr. E.A. Haye and built by the hands of hard working parishioners. In the late 1980s, the sanctuary was rebuilt, and the education wing was added to the campus. In 1990, our pipe organ was installed. And finally, in 2016, our current pastor, Ben Colahan, was installed. The installation of an organ and a pastor are quite different and we're grateful for both!
Faith Lutheran Church is a part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s story is both ancient and timely. It’s a story of a powerful and patient God who has boundless love for all people of the world. It’s a story that brings deep meaning, comfort and strength to a growing community of people who live in modern, often unsettling times.
We are a church that is deeply rooted and always being made new. Our roots are in Scripture and a collection of writings called the Book of Concord, as well as in the rich histories of our congregations. We’re a church that strives to be faithful to the gospel and work toward more justice and wholeness in the world.
We are equipped to live and serve in the world with all its complexities, tensions and ambiguities. All are welcome here.
The broader body of the church is known casually as "Churchwide," and is overseen by Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry. Churchwide offers support to its Synods, regions with their own, unique congregations.
The ELCA is broken up into "Synods," or regions.
We are a part of the Sierra Pacific Synod, whose headquarters are located in Berkeley, California. The Sierra Pacific Synod consists of Northern California and parts of Western Nevada, and is staffed by Bishop Jeff Johnson and several teams.
Synods are broken up into "Conferences," or smaller areas.
For example, there are 9 Conferences (areas) in our Conference, Redwood Mountain Conference 1. Other Conferences in the Sierra Pacific Synod are located further south, in the Bay Area, and parts of Nevada. A "Conference Dean" (a rostered pastor) is in charge of each Conference and oversees the function of its independent churches. Redwood Mountain's Dean is Pr. Janet Blair.
Faith Lutheran Church in Chico, along with many other churches across America, is a Reconciling in Christ congregation.
"Reconciling in Christ" congregations are congregations who openly welcome people of all gender identities, gender expressions, and sexual orientations, and are committed to racial equity. That means that people of any race, gender, and orientation may attend church, take Communion, and serve as clergy from pastors to bishops.
You! Your family! Your friends!
Our church services, Communion, community service events, music, arts and crafts, small groups, resources, and fellowship are for everyone on God's earth regardless of politics, race, gender, orientation, or anything in between. We are who we are, and we choose to use our differences to strengthen our community and educate each other.