About Us
Zion Lutheran Church is a parish of the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod (LCMS).
A few classic slogans of the Reformation quickly summarize our belief.
Grace Alone - God loves the people of the world, even though they are sinful, rebel against Him and do not deserve His love. He sent Jesus, His Son, to love the unlovable and save the ungodly.
Faith Alone - By His suffering and death as the substitute for all people of all time, Jesus purchased and won forgiveness and eternal life for them. Those who hear this Good News and believe it have the eternal life that it offers. God creates faith in Christ and gives people forgiveness through Him.
Scripture Alone - The Bible is God's inerrant and infallible Word, in which He reveals His Law and His Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. It is the sole rule and norm for Christian doctrine.
For a more exhaustive summary of our beliefs, see our public statement of faith, The Book of Concord (1580). Both our congregation and her ministers have made the commitment to measure our interpretation of Scripture within the boundaries of this standard.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8
"Ehre sei Gott in der Hoehe"
"Glory be to God in the highest"
Although our congregation is made of people with many different ethic backgrounds, it is not easy to forget our German roots at Zion. The first line of the Gloria is written in German with wooden letters above our altar. Zion has been informally known as "The German Church" in our community, distinguishing us from the other Lutheran Churches in the area.
In the old German hymnals, the liturgy was printed on the first page. Every Sunday, the congregation would hear those sung or said by the pastor.
Gemeinde Singt: Kyrie (Nr. 7)
Pastor singt am Altar: Ehre sei Gott in der Hoehe!
Gemeinde Singt: Allien Gott in Hoeh' sei Ehr'!
. . .
Congregations sings: Kyrie (No. 7)
Pastor sings from altar: Glory be to God on high!
Congregation sings: All Glory be to God on High (No. 1)
. . .
The Gloria is one of the four classical parts of the liturgy of the Western Rite: Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, and Angus Dei. These four texts make up the classic "mass," and are often referred to as such in classical compositions such as "The Mass in B Minor" by the famous Lutheran composer Johann Sebastian Bach.
Lutherans in The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod (LCMS) tend to prefer to call our liturgy The Divine Service in order to avoid any confusion between our tradition and that of the Roman Catholic Church (the largest church that uses the Western Rite). The objections with the "sacrifice of mass" can be read in one of our confessions of faith, The Augsburg Confession, Article 24.