Join Us This Sunday

9:00 am—Holy Communion with Children's Time—Sanctuary
9:45 am—Sunday School—Sunday School Rooms
10:00 am—Refreshments and Fellowship Hour—Heritage Hall
10:05 am—Adult Forum with Dr. Tim Zerlang—Sanctuary
11:00 am—Choral Eucharist Worship Service—Sanctuary
12-3:00 pm—Oktoberfest—St. Mark's Square

Oktoberfest-Oct. 4!
Please join in a celebration of German heritage and community at the annual St. Mark's Oktoberfest today from 12 noon-3pm on St. Mark's square! There will be German music, food and libation, games, a bouncy house and great fun. Lederhosen and German dress are encouraged.

Adult Forum-TODAY!
Tim Zerlang will share his reflections on the relationship between Bach and Luther. How did Luther influence Bach's music? What are the most significant contributions Bach has made to choral music and our own Sunday worship experience? Tim recently visited the birthplaces of Bach and Luther and will report back on these experiences.
Note: this adult forum will be held in the sanctuary.

Next Sunday Oct. 11:
Luther's Great Theological and Liturgical Reforms by Dr. Kyle Schiefelbein
First and foremost, Luther was a pastor, and the reforms that he encouraged and enacted were always to "soothe the troubled conscience" and provide comfort and consolation. We will investigate some of Luther's primary reforms with regard to theology and worship, including the theology of the cross, vernacular hymnody, and the two nature of Christ. Located in the auditorium.

Confirmation begins Sunday, Oct. 11 at 10:05 am
Inviting all 6th, 7th, and 8th graders and their parents to join Pr. Elizabeth and our new Teaching Parish student, John Barton, for an informal getting to know you meeting and scheduling of Confirmation events. Bring your calendars and your appetites - bagels and cream cheese will be provided! Location: Under the TV in Heritage Hall.

Thrivent Ice Cream Social
The San Francisco Chapter of Thrivent invites our members and their guests to join us for ice cream floats, door prizes, and surprises. Saturday, October 10th 3-5pm at JP Murphy Playground, 1960 9th Avenue b/w Ortega & Pacheco, San Francisco. So that we have enough ice cream on hand, please RSVP by Oct. 7th to Jo Zemke (415)437-7370 x 211 or jo.zemke@thrivent.com. Thanks, we will see you there!

Property Team Ministry House Meeting - October 11
Gardening? Painting? Handy with tools? Or, maybe just looking for a fun opportunity to perform hands-on service projects? If you would like to help maintain and improve our historic building and grounds, please join us on Sunday, October 11, in Heritage Hall between the two services (10:00-10:45 am) to discuss the Property Ministry at St. Mark's. This "House Meeting" at St. Mark's will be a convenient forum to discuss projects, implementation methods and other ideas for making our facilities even more supportive of St. Mark's mission. Please contact Gary Schilling at 415-218-2778 if you'd like to learn more about the Property Team.

Plans for Development of New Affordable Housing Property
Dear Congregation Members:

As you are aware, in the next few years we intend to redevelop our current Urban Life Center as an affordable housing development property. The MLT Trustees and Development Committee are making great progress in pursuit of this exciting vision. In parallel we'd like to form a committee to discuss the question of what Ministries we should pursue with the physical resources we have on St. Marks Square. The current plan for the new building calls for a property like the ULC but with affordable housing. Should we dedicate space to a pre-school? To a coffee shop? Should we add a playground for the Sunday School kids and for the children that may live in the new building? Should we have a rooftop performance space with a fabulous view of San Francisco? What other exciting opportunities and new ministries could we pursue over the next five or fifty years?

Aron Bohlig is forming a committee to explore these questions and to bring ideas forward. We will be forming the committee in the next month, with a hope of having one or more specific ideas in place in time for January or February to meet with the architects of the project.

Please contact Aron Bohlig at abohlig@gmail.com if you'd like to be a member of the committee or have an idea for a new ministry or program. The first meetings of the new committee will be at 10am on Oct. 4 and Oct. 11 in Heritage Hall.

Bakers needed!
nterested in making communion bread? This easy recipe is available on the St. Mark's website at www.stmarks-sf.org/resources/forms-and-downloads/ Contact Pr. Elizabeth if you are interested in this ministry.

What is Journeys in Faith?
Come down to coffee hour and find out.
Learn about this opportunity to set aside time this Fall and Winter for reflection on our faith and faith community. Journey with others who are considering joining St. Mark's, being baptized, or affirming their baptism. You'll find members of the Journeys in Faith team at a table in Heritage Hall during coffee hours. All questions are welcome. Contact Liv Beck (beckliv@gmail.com) for more information.

Donate Flowers in 2015
St. Mark's members and friends can sign up to donate flowers for the chancel on a Sunday by placing your name on the chart for the Sunday you wish. Your donation can be in memory of a loved one or in honor of a particular occasion. Please go tohttp://www.stmarks-sf.org/flower-donations/ for our online chart to sign up or sign up on the flower donation chart posted in the hallway across from the church kitchen.

The donation is $50 and can be paid via check in the offering plate. Please note "Flowers" in the memo of the check. If you would like to submit your payment online please click on the donate tab on the main page on St. Mark's website and enter your flower donation under the "other" option and write flowers in the box.

Update on Pastor Bekah
Pastor Bekah has been undergoing her second round of radiation for Hodgkins Lymphoma, and is managing the treatment obstacles very well. She recently received great news on a test, and we're all hoping that continues at the end of this month once the evaluation of the current treatment is complete. If you'd like to be part of an online community that is providing help and good wishes, please go to this website to join: https://www.lotsahelpinghands.com/c/729563/ She sends good wishes to the congregation, and we continue to hold her in prayer as she heals.

California Bach Society Concert
A BOHEMIAN MASTERPIECE: Zelenka Missa Votiva
Paul Flight, Artistic Director

Special early bird discount for St. Mark's Parishioners!
Order your tickets by 5 pm, Thursday, October 15 and get $5 off the price of General and Senior tickets. Order by phone: (650) 485-1097 and mention St. Mark's SF, or online:http://www.calbach.org/tickets.pl and enter the code stmarkssf (online orders subject to $3 handling fee)

Friday, October 16, 8 pm -- St. Mark's Lutheran Church.
Doors open 30 minutes prior to performance.
Advance Ticket Prices: General - $28, Senior - $20, Students and Under 30 - $10 At the door: General - $33, Senior - $24, Students and Under 30 - $10

Women's Monthly Study Gatherings
All women are welcome to come and study together at our evening and/or morning Women of the ELCA Gatherings. In October our groups will meet on:

Evening Gathering - October 6 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm in the Fireside Room
All women are invited to come for dessert and fellowship for the first half hour and then discussion until 8:30. This month we will be reading chapters 1 - 8 ofTransformative Lutheran Theologies: Feminist, Womanist & Mujerista Perspectives by Mary Steufert.

Second Tuesday - October 13 from 11:00am to 1:00pm in the Fireside Room
All women are invited to come for study at 11:00 and then at noon to eat their sandwich or salad and share fellowship. Drinks and dessert will be provided. This year our focus will be on Slow Faith by Liv Larson Andrews and our program topic for October is "Make Haste O Lord."

Third Sunday - October 18 from 10:10 to 10:50 in the Fireside Room
All women are invited to come for Bible study from the Women of the ELCA's Gather Magazine. The topic will be "Make Haste O Lord." Some copies of the magazine are available from Suzanne Smith or a WELCA leader.

If you have any questions, please contact Suzanne Smith at 415.285.7438 or suzathome@comcast.net.

Worship Leader This Sunday
Director of Music...Dr. Tim Zerlang
Assisting Ministers...Liv Beck (9); Greg Jahnke, Richard Boyle (11)
Lectors...Robert Rathmell (9); Margaret McLean (11)
Chalice Bearers...Randy Schieber (9); Andrew Sallach , Viknesh Silvalingam (11)
Acolytes...Linda Jackson, Clovis Curl
Ministry of Welcome...Tina Hogan (9); Kimberly and David Lam, Pam Cheng, Tina Niu, Pedro Ospina, Linda R. Jackson (11)
Coffee Hour Chairs...Donna Dindia and Chuck Lewis
Next week Coffee Hour Chair..Marie-Jose Baum and Kate Knickerbocker