Bethlehem Summer Book Club  Wednesday, August 12, 7:00 p.m.  

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

When Trevor Noah was born to a white father and a black mother in South Africa under apartheid, his very existence was a crime. His parents could have been sentenced to five years in jail for their inter-racial relationship. In his memoir, Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, Noah, famous for his role on the Daily Show, tells the story of his upbringing under apartheid. He tells the story of coming of age, moving to America, and become one of the country’s most well-known comedians with humor and depth. Join us for a book discussion on Wednesday, August 12, at 7 PM via Zoom. 

The Zoom invitation follows below.  We hope to see you there! 

Bethlehem Church is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Bethlehem Church's Book Club Zoom

Time: Aug 12, 2020 07:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

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Important Worship Service Information:

As we suspend in-person events due to the Covid-19 outbreak, please check for recorded and live streamed worship events on Bethlehem's Facebook page. You do not need to be a member of Facebook to view the services.

We would like to encourage you to join us in gathering virtually for worship this Sunday, August 16, at 9:30 a.m. 

Call in worship: Do you know someone who wants to participate in our worship but does not have access to a computer or other streaming device? We have set up a live streaming phone number: 773-932-5545.

People can call the number and listen to the entire service both in real time (at 9:30 Sunday mornings) or after the service is over. People can opt in to have the service call them when worship is starting! Please share this information with friends who might be feeling particularly isolated without internet access at this time. 

UPDATE FROM THE TRANSITION COMMITTEE

I am writing on behalf of Bethlehem's transition team to update you on the congregation's plans for reopening. As I informed the church during last month's annual meeting, our team is made up of congregants with diverse backgrounds, each of whom brings a unique perspective in guiding us through his challenge. We have been closely monitoring city and state rules for reopening, as well as guidance from ELCA leadership. From our very first meeting in March, we agreed that we would only consider resuming in-person worship when we were confident we could do so safely, and at this point we would like to announce that we are aiming to hold our first in-person service on Sunday, September 20th.

With that being said, we would like to stress three important points. First, this is an aspirational goal, and we will not hesitate to push it back if circumstances warrant. Our target date is premised on the assumptions both that city and state policies allow us to open AND that we are ready to open with all appropriate safeguards. If positive tests continue to rise and the state rolls us back to Phase 3, we will not open. If we are not able to obtain supplies we need in time, we will not open. If we have any other reason to believe that it is not safe to gather in person, we will not open. We know how important in-person worship is to many of you, but we will not risk anybody's health to do so.

Second, when we resume in-person worship, things will be different. We will be limited to no more than 50 attendees, which means we will require advanced registration. We will adhere to all social distancing requirements, including wearing masks. There will be no socializing before or after the service, and no physical contact during. Other parts of the service such as music may be impacted as well.

Third and finally, we will continue to provide our worship services online. We recognize that different members have different risk tolerances, and we do not want anybody to feel that they must physically return to the church in order to participate in worship at Bethlehem.

Given the logistics required to safely invite people into our building, we are only planning a return to in-person worship services at present; all other in-person church activities remain suspended or will be moved online until further notice. We will keep you updated over the next two months as we make preparations for an eventual return to in-person worship, and also let you know of any other developments regarding in-person church activities. In the meantime, we hope you will continue to join us virtually via Facebook. And if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to any member of the team.

In God's service,

Russ Chibe, Transition Committee Chair

Pastor Jennie English-Dumont

Susan Evans

Jay Gyarmathy

Vicar Frantisek Janak

Ralph Klein

Tricia Krohmer

Virginia Landahl

Berry Lewis

Greg Lewis

David Ritter

Lori Smith

Mary Ann Luciano-Smith

Paul Williams

Dear Bethlehem Members and Friends, 

In light of the CDC’s recent recommendations regarding gatherings of people in the wake of the spread of the coronavirus, Bethlehem’s Congregation Council has made the difficult decision to suspend all in-person events in our building. This applies to all worship services and to all other church and community events that use our building. The building will only be open to staff.

I want to emphasize that while our building will be closed, our congregation and our ministry remain very much open and active. During this time, we will be putting content online, as well as providing opportunities to pray together through the internet and phone. On Sundays at 9:30 AM, you will find a message and other opportunities to worship “together” through Facebook. Bethlehem’s staff will be updating our social media with content to guide you spiritually through this difficult time. If you are interested in setting up a prayer circle that meets by phone or have other ideas for how we can spiritually support you, please email or call Pastor Jennie (pastor@bethlehem-chicago.org, 773-445-7558).

In addition to providing opportunities to worship and pray together, we will continue to reach out to our neighbors, as well as those on the margins. We are delivering food to the food pantry, calling members to assure that everyone has the supplies they need and making pastoral phone calls to those who are hospitalized or otherwise in need. You are encouraged to check in with one another, check in with neighbors who might need a hand with grocery shopping or sharing supplies. If you or someone you know is in need of help picking up medications and supplies or have other needs during this time, please do not hesitate to contact Pastor Jennie or Susan Evans in the church office (773-445-7558).

We also can continue our advocacy work, calling on our representatives to approve emergency aid packages that benefit workers, health care providers, the vulnerable, and those already living on the edge (see the ELCA’s advocacy page for an action you can take today.) Let’s look for ways to support local businesses that are impacted by this stoppage. And we will be in touch with local services for those who are homeless for practical ways we can help that already vulnerable population.

Please know that you continue in our prayers as each of us navigates the many challenges that are to come from these “interesting times.” We welcome your prayers as we face unprecedented decisions and challenges. And perhaps we all do well to heed the words of Jesus, “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:34). We turn to God in these times of worry and uncertainty, trusting in God’s abundant love and steadfast mercy.

Be well,

Pastor Jennie and the Congregation Council

Continuing Contributions

Members who normally contribute to our budget are encouraged to please continue to do so either by mailing a check to the church office or by making an on-line contribution.  Detailed instructions on how to do this, follow below. 

At the upper right corner of the home page is the word Donate. Click that and scroll down on the next page to the words MAKE A DONATION and click that. Scroll down again and it leads to a series of blue boxes with a range of amounts from $10 to $500 or a box where you can type in your own amount. Click one of these boxes and you are given a credit card option where you can type in your name, card number, expiration date, and CVV2 ( the security number from the back of your card), and your billing information (the envelope number is optional). Finally click the blue option that reads Make a Donation.

You may also see a tutorial video on on-line giving by clicking this link.

Click here for this month's calendar.