Our library offers varied materials to deepen your Lenten experience. Look for devotionals, fiction, non-fiction, picture books, and videos. Some intriguing titles include:
The Man Who Buried Jesus is a novel narrated by Nicodemus. John Walsh writes this story of historical fiction as a detective tale.
In Judas: Betrayer or Friend of Jesus?, William Klasson traces the ways Judas is portrayed in the four gospels. Could he have meant no harm when handing Jesus over to the religious authorities?
Two books by Max Lucado, And the Angels Were Silent, and The Final Week of Jesus, follow Jesus on his final journey and give us insight on our final journey.
The Tale of the Three Trees and Benjamin’s Box are enchanting children’s tales full of treasures and surprises.
Mike Thaler has just released a fourth book in his popular "Tales from the Back Pew" series. The book is entitled Easter Egg Haunt and humorously tells of a young boy and his Sunday School classmates who learn the true spirit of Easter while decorating eggs for the church Easter egg hunt.
When Carol Rodine drove into Minneapolis recently to make a warehouse drop of 35 quilts, three layettes and nine sewing kits, it marked the final delivery for 2008 of the warm-hearted handiwork of Gethsemane’s needlework crews. Distributed locally through Lutheran Social Services and globally through Lutheran World Relief, the 2008 totals were 313 quilts, 160 layettes, and 140 sewing kits. Louise Swanson has moved away and can no longer attend quilting, but yard is sent to her and she knit 113 hats during the year.
An average of at least a dozen women take part in quilting each Wednesday, and seven regularly take part in the layette project. The sewing kits “happen by chance,” according to Carol. They’re a kind of bonus; whenever there is a donation of fabric three yards or more in length, it becomes the nucleus of a sewing kit sent overseas.
Last year Davey and Phil Hovander funded all the needles and thread used for the projects. Right now there’s an ample supply of thread, but they can still use needles. The layette project is looking for new or gently-used flannel. Flannel sheets work really well.
On January 7 the quilters met off-site, visiting the stunning new LSS Center for Changing Lives in Minneapolis. The complex, which includes Messiah Church and affordable housing apartments as well as space for LSS consultation services was a real eye-opener. The women were able to see firsthand where their work is stored on the way to those in need.
By Betty Skold
Mystery questions of the week: What is Davey Hovander’s given name? Would you believe...Doris? It does sound a tad proper for a woman noted for wry humor and hard-hitting candor.
Doris Davidson grew up in Climax, Minnesota, a little town in the Red River Valley. When her father, Klaes Magne Davidson immigrated from Sweden, he became the only Swede among a town full of Norwegians. Mrs. Davidson was named Ragne, and Davey had two older siblings, a brother and a sister.
Their father was a garage and implement dealer. Davey confesses that she drove cars back and forth at the tender age of 12. She was an “all-around” kid; she played a lot of baseball with the boys. In high school she got “pretty good grades,” was a cheerleader, sang in the choir and played trumpet in the band. Her reward for church attendance was permission to go to Sunday night dances in a neighboring town.
After high school graduation Davey enrolled at the University of Minnesota. Her roommate showed an immediate distaste for the name “Doris.” “Let’s make it Davey,” she advised, and the nickname was permanently adopted. Her choice of a major (social work) sounded gloomy to Davey’s mother, so she added a Physical Education major to her plans.
As a third-year student she met graduate Phil Hovander on a blind date. The setting was Peggy’s restaurant in South Minneapolis. After dating for a time, Davey conceded that marriage was a great idea but elected to finish school while Phil went off to Hawaii to serve as a communications officer for the Marine Corps. During his two year absence, Davey worked for Pillsbury House, running their camp in Waconia.
After Phil’s return the wedding took place at Gethsemane with Pastor Lasse Stohl conducting the service, followed by a six-month stay at a Marine base in North Carolina. Then, back home to Hopkins. Phil has lived his entire life on North 11th Ave. Their handsome, roomy colonial house is just a block away from the house where he was born.
Of course Davey immediately made herself at home at Gethsemane, Phil’s lifelong church connection. Soon after joining the church she was appointed to the Memorial Foundation Board, a position she held for 18 years.
Gethsemane’s leadership in the middle years of the 20th century was centered in an organization known as Yo-Ma-Co. the name was short for Young Married Couples, even after its members had matured into grandparenthood. The Hovanders were deeply involved in this lively peer group and especially enjoyed working on the legendary St. Lucia Day Smőrgåsbord. One of the last surviving expressions of Gethsemane’s Swedish heritage, by the early ‘50s it had evolved into the Cadillac of church suppers; a wondrous feast of home-cooked Scandinavian delicacies, served in a candlelit setting by costumed waiters and waitresses. Of course Davey worked tirelessly in the church kitchen for Smőrgåsbord, baking krumkake, frying hundreds of rosettes and rolling mountains of meatballs.
It was in the 1920s that Phil’s father Waldo and his brother Herman bought out Johnson’s Meats that later became Hovander’s grocery store. Phil can’t remember a time when he didn’t work in the store. For many years Hovander’s supermarket was “Gethsemane’s store,” a place where most of the employees were members of the church. The store almost automatically supplied the groceries for every parish dinner, wedding and funeral. Even now, many years after he sold the business, Phil’s grocery connection is reflected in the donation of all the turkeys for the annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner.
Davey and Phil’s daughters, Debbie and Brenda, were a part of the Baby Boomer teens who flocked to Gethsemane in the post-war years. There were 98 Confirmands in Debbie’s class. Both daughters retained the Hovander name after marriage. Debbie became a psychologist and Brenda an architect. A few months ago the family was saddened by Debbie’s cancer-related death. She is survived by her husband, David Horstmann and the two daughter they adopted from China. Brenda and her husband, Michael Neets, live just five miles away. An enterprising businesswoman, Brenda buys up properties and rents them out. Their grown children are Jake Blake Hovander, who is studying on scholarship in Romania, and Gail Lindsay Hovander, a French interpreter.
In her spare time Davey enjoys reading and playing bridge. For several years back problems have kept her out of the church kitchen, but the Hovanders can be seen at every 9 o’clock worship, toward the back on the pulpit side. Phil, in his 90th years, is the Gethsemane member with the longest continuous membership.
Doris Davidson, who once changed her name to Davey, later added the “Hovander,” a name she can wear with great pride. In any account of Gethsemane’s history, the name Hovander has come to mean solid commitment and service.
The Gethsemane church council and staff have been reviewing our Sunday morning schedule of worship and education offerings to see if there might be options that would better meet our ministry focus. We want your participation in a five-month discussion process to help guide our decision.
We want to know; how are you currently being fed intellectually and spiritually at church, what would enhance your ability to engage in Adult Education, and how might we encourage (your) children’s participation in worship?
We plan to hold community discussions from December through May to hear your thoughts. Our next events are:
Fireside Chat, Wednesday, Jan 7, 6:30 pm, Fireside Gallery
Annual Meeting, Sunday, Feb 1, noon, Fellowship Hall
Adult Forum, Sunday, March 1, 10:10 am, Fellowship Hall
In May the council and staff will gather all of the feedback from these discussions and make a decision as to what, if any, changes we might make for our worship and education times beginning in the fall of 2009. Come be part of the conversation and share your hopes and dreams for our community of faith.
The library seeks your input and support in two special ways.
We are inviting members of the congregation to participate in an all-congregational read that will take place this summer. The topic is “Spiritual Friendships,” one of the Elements of a Living Faith. Please recommend titles, fiction or non-fiction, that can be enjoyed by anyone, male or female, young or old, and convey “spiritual friendship” as one of its main themes. Place your suggestions in the basket on the library desk.
Recycle your 2008 Christmas cards. The library committee will transform them into boxes to be used for a particular project. Intrigued? Watch future newsletters for opportunities to help us out! Drop off your cards in the basket labeled “Place cards here.” Thank you!
Savor and then check-out the new books on display in the library. We keep adding additional titles to entice you. These are just two of the many new books which will "whet your appetite!"
City of My Dreams by Per Anders Fogelstrom, translated by Jennifer Brown Baverstam
This remarkable novel tells the story of Henning Nilsson and his family in nineteenth century Sweden. Fifteen-year-old Henning, barefoot and penniless, leaves the country in search of a better life. His story mirrors the growth of Stockholm as both struggle with the Industrial Revolution and the opportunities and mishaps toward the acquisition of dreams. City of My Dreams, the first book in his five-volume Stockholm series, broke the record for bestsellers.
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
This novel, written by the author of the bestseller, The Kite Runner, returns to Afghanistan during the reign of the Taliban, the aftermath of the Taliban’s rule and the country’s rebuilding. It traces two generations as they struggle to survive, raise families and find happiness. Unlikely relationships among characters are formed and sustained through common trials and shared joys. This book offers a deeper understanding of Afghanistan as it weaves a gripping tale.
Temple Talk on Studying Scripture as an Element of a Living Faith
By Bev Paterson
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Today marks the beginning of our focus on Studying Scripture, one of the Elements of a Living Faith. The Bible is God’s story—the story of God’s interaction and relationship with people, as Creator, as Savior, as Counselor and Guide. Who among us, who call ourselves Christian, would disagree with the need to know that story, for as God’s people, it is also our story.
“Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” These words from Psalm 119 make perfect sense. In the course of my life I’ve been in and even led some wonderful Bible studies, some of which I’ve shared with several of you. Lest others of you be tempted to say, “Well, good for her, but that’s not my thing,” I ask you to stay with me.
While I suppose I must give the Holy Spirit credit for steering me into Bible studies, I think I often did it because, basically, I’m a rule follower and I thought it was expected. I wanted information; I wanted to have verses on the tip of my tongue for just the right moment; I wanted black and white answers to life’s questions and dilemmas.
Maybe your experience is totally different. Perhaps you are one who “took leave” from issues of faith after confirmation and when you resumed participation in a faith community, Bible study felt awkward. Maybe you think you don’t “know” enough and would be embarrassed if you let that show. Maybe, when trying Bible study on your own, a passage seems too harsh to be “Christian” or the words simply stay on the page, empty. You give up and pretty soon you don’t open the Bible at all.
Whatever the reasons, chances are that at some point, Bible study has been difficult for many of us. I never have been able to have the “right” verse at hand for a given situation and there’s too much grey in my life’s color scheme for me to always find clear, black and white answers in Scripture.
That being said, the wonderful thing about participating in Bible study over time is that I no longer focus on simply knowing the Bible, but rather on knowing God--God who consistently pursues us, God who abounds with grace and mercy, God who mourns and is even angry over the misplaced priorities of people then and now, God who desires justice and care for the oppressed, God who, above all, wants to be in relationship with people and cares about how people are in relationship with one another-then and now.
Bible study is no longer simply about accumulating Bible knowledge, rather it is food for the soul, bread for the journey. In Behold Bible study on Thursdays, the texts for the coming Sunday are read and the question is asked, “What do you see here?” or “What strikes you or stirs you?” And then the conversation begins as the Spirit prompts us to share with and listen to another.
Through the words of Mary and Myles, the pastors, and all of the others, my sense of community deepens and scripture becomes the light for my path. It gives enough light for that day, at least for that moment or for the next step. That’s why Bible study can’t be a now and again thing for me.
Would any of us eat a big meal at Christmas and then wait for the next holiday or celebration to eat again? Would a nice Sunday dinner last us all week? Of course not. I encourage you not to be content with listening to scripture only during worship on Sunday. Find an additional way to take it in, chew on it and let it nourish your soul and be the lamp for your feet.
Ginger Wood…Gingie Wood…Actually the name on her birth certificate was Virginia, but that name never caught on.
Historically, Hopkins has a background of two dominant ethnic groups, the Swedes and the Czechs. The marriage of Gingie’s parents reflects the trend. Albert Larson, the Swede, and Melvina Ciskovsky, the Czech, married and made their home on Church Lane in West Hopkins. Czechs are legendary raspberry growers, and Melvina’s raspberry patch was in the area that is now the parking lot for Cross of Glory Baptist Church.
As a 17-year old, Melvina had worked as a maid for the Hovander family and she decided, “I’m going to join Gethsemane.” Al’s membership came later.
Al Larson worked for Minneapolis Moline and later for Justus Lumber. Melvina was employed by a Minneapolis laundry, and then, for a time, worked at the Glen Lake Sanatorium.
Gingie’s older brothers were Ron, now deceased, and Dick. If you ask Gingie, “What kind of kid were you?” her answer is emphatic…”Fat!” As an over-weight high schooler, she loved her Phy. Ed. teacher, who convinced her that she could “do things” anyway. But her real favorite classes were in Home Economics. Bringing strong cooking and sewing skills from home, she remembers, “I wished I could have had Home Ec. five hours a day.”
Gethsemane is the church where Gingie was baptized, confirmed, and married…all by Pastor Lasse Stohl.
In childhood, every Saturday it was her job to polish the family’s shoes for Sunday church. Saturday was also the day for Junior Missions at church.
She has fond memories of Sunday School. “Miss Larson” (later Ruth Lindquist) taught them to sing about sunbeams and “all the little children” (with hand gestures, of course). For one Christmas program the children marched from the basement into the chancel, carrying lighted candles. “The hot wax was burning my hand, but I didn’t dare holler.”
Crowded into the old building on Ninth, her confirmation class was taught by Pastor Stohl and Pastor Clifton Trued. Theirs was the first to be confirmed in the present building in 1962. Of that class of 89, only three are still at Gethsemane: Gingie, Jeanne Paulson Pavelka, and Jeff Skold. Hi League and Youth Choir were both a part of her teen experience.
The Viet Nam war was on, and Gingie’s work after high school had a bellicose tinge. She was employed by Honeywell in Hopkins making torpedoes, and then transferred to the New Brighton plant to make bullets. Moving to Fridley for the second job, she lived in an apartment next door to three guys. Her roommate introduced her to one of them, Don Wood from North Dakota, the man she married in 1967.
Gingie is a genuine poster child for Weight Watchers. It was in 1988 that she lost a little over 100 pounds, and has had the self-discipline to keep it off.
A real struggle for her has been with arthritis. Two knee replacements have solved some problems, but her shoulders still need doing. She can’t manage heavy-duty lifting in the church kitchen but likes to help out with funerals, setting tables and serving.
A member of Rebekah Circle, she also lends a hand printing bulletins and newsletters for the church office. She enjoys sewing and counted cross stitch. Baking Czech kolaches, those sweet buns filled with apricots or prunes, she distributes them liberally to friends in nursing homes.
In recent years, Gingie and Don have lived in a town house in Plymouth. She hires out her housewifely skills, doing cleaning in homes; and Don has assisted with this business since retiring from the post office. As a couple, they enjoy playing 500 with friends.
Their son Tim and his wife Jennifer live in Farmington. They are parents of Kiersten, 5; and another baby is on the
way. Tim works on computers for the Navy. Daughter Holly and her husband, Greg Lindahl, live in Crystal with their children, Kari, 8 and Brian, age 6. Greg works as a Tech Support Engineer for a medical firm called Vital Images. Gingie admits to being a “professional grandma.”
Her hopes are high for the church of which she’s a lifetime member. Gingie Wood expects continuing effectiveness for the women’s work as well as a growing influx of vibrant young families into membership.
Over the years, the marriage of Mark and Sofia Johnson has been a blessing for Mark’s church (Gethsemane Lutheran) and Sofia’s church (Greek Orthodox). With mutual respect they have supported both ministries.
Sofia has become involved with the Gethsemane project of supplying layettes to overseas missions. She is also one of about 100 members of the Daughters of Penelope, a Greek heritage philanthropic group. Not church-related, the organization donates funds to various causes, such as food shelves and battered women’s shelters. Sofia approached them about making a modest gift to Gethsemane’s layette ministry, suggesting a $30 donation. Generously the Daughters responded with a gift of $100!
Money and the People You Love, by Bruce Helmer
Financial advisor, Bruce Helmer, popular host of the WCCO radio show, “Your Money,” has learned that relationships are the single greatest influence on how people use their money. Imagining their financial futures, people focus on family, friends, faith communities, and charities. In Money and the People You Love, Helmer offers a new approach to financial planning based on this universal principle.
American Gospel: God, The Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation by Jon Meacham
Read the following reviews written by two of today’s eminent authors, and note that this book was chosen as a text for one of the Lay School’s courses offered this fall at Luther Seminary.
"In his American Gospel, Jon Meacham provides a refreshingly clear, balanced, and wise historical portrait of religion and American politics at exactly the moment when such fairness and understanding are much needed. Anyone who doubts the relevance of history to our own time has only to read this exceptional book.” - David McCullough, author of 1776
“Jon Meacham has given us an insightful and eloquent account of the spiritual foundation of the early days of the American republic. It is especially instructive reading at a time when the nation is at once engaged and deeply divided."
