Lord of Love Lutheran Church ELCA – Omaha, NE

Presenting Lord of Love at the church council retreat

This weekend, I had the opportunity to present Lord of Love to Obisovce’s church council and their families at their semi-annual retreat.  In presenting my church, I realized how many differences there are between the church here and the church in America, despite our common bond of Lutheranism.  I have mentioned before that Obisovce’s congregation actually consists of 6 villages which worship in their own separate buildings.  This combined with a history of tradition much longer than our own (the church in Obisovce was built in 1789!) seems to be the cause of many of the differences. 

Here are some main things which may suprise you:
1.  We rarely have a common fellowship time because each church building consists only of the sancuary, a small entry way, and a sacristy.  The parsonage in Obisovce has a small fellowship hall, but can only comfortably fit about 30 people.  Therefore, at the retreat this weekend, lifelong members met people in their own congregation that they had never met before!
2.  The cost of printing plus our current lack of a copy machine means that we don’t have bulletins.  The pastor announces the general order of the service before we begin worship, and the hymn numbers are displayed on a board up front.  Announcements are posted in the quarterly newsletter and announced after the sermon by the pastor.  We rely heavily on word of mouth! 
3.  Each church member owns his or her own “spevnik” -hymnal.  There is one liturgy sung every Sunday, and while the words change depending on the season, the tunes are the same.  The pastor cantors the prayers, gospel reading, and the liturgy.  Without bulletins, having a set liturgy each Sunday helps me understand the service a lot better!
4.  The pastor does not typically preach on the assigned readings.  Instead, he usually has a certain theme for each liturgical season and preaches on these texts.  For example, in our Lenten Vespers service we are studying God’s promises in the book of Genesis, and on Sundays we are learning about the prophets.
5.  A huge difference: pastors’ salaries are paid by the Slovak government.  This means that a) pastors don’t get paid very well, b) the congregation can use its tithes for paying other expenses, and c)corruption exists in the church, especially higher up, because the government ultimately controls the church.  Pastors are elected by the congregation for 10 years and then can choose to be reelected or leave.  The church council members are elected for 6 years.

Ecumenical worship service in Kysak

6.  There are no full-time paid employees besides the pastor.  No secretary, no custodian, no one.  Obisovce’s congregation has a large church council (presbyter) of 28 members.  This includes a curator and treasurer for each village.  The congregation also employs two organists who take turns playing in the four main villages (the other two villages worship in someone’s home and usually have 10-15 members, so it’s not necessary to have an organist).  The church council, especially its president, does most of the work that the pastor cannot manage himself.
7.  Besides an adult choir, the church council, and youth group, there aren’t really any organized groups that meet regularly.  Fellowship is improving – the congregation has established a biannual craft festival for women, several ecumenical worship services, and Christmas caroling, but it was surprising to me at first that church was centralized mainly on the worship service without much extra involvement.

I have seen some great things happening in the Obisovce church congregation that make me think, “we should do that at home!” Like any congregation, Obisovce has its strengths and weaknesses.  This is just a very brief glimpse into the life of the church here.