St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), a global faith community that shares a passion for making positive changes by participating in God’s work throughout the world. Our faith is built around a strong belief in God as made known to us in Jesus Christ. Through worship, service to the community and the world, and education, we practice our faith, grow our relationship with God, and experience God’s grace in our lives.

As a congregation of the ELCA, we are partnered with more than 8,600 congregations across the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, with more than 3 million members. The ELCA’s primary purposes are expressed in the constitutions of the congregations, synods, and church-wide organizations that comprise its membership. Its core values are:

1. To proclaim God’s saving Gospel;
2. To carry out Christ’s Great Commission – to make disciples of all nations;
3. To serve in response to God’s love to meet human needs;
4. To worship God;
5. To nurture members in the Word of God; and
6. To manifest the unity given to the people of God.

• Key programs across the ELCA include fighting hunger and disease, responding to local and global disasters, sending missionaries to provide biblical education, training new pastors and deacons, and providing social services through counseling services, nursing homes, school, and colleges.
• The Rev. Elizabeth Eaton is the Presiding Bishop of the ELCA, elected in 2019. This is Rev. Eaton’s second six-year term as the Presiding Bishop.
• The ELCA church body is broken down into sixty-five synods; St. Paul’s is a member of the Northeast Pennsylvania Synod (NEPA), which includes about 275 congregations, social ministries, and Muhlenberg College. It is currently led by Bishop Christopher deForest who was elected in 2020.
• St. Paul’s has approximately 550 baptized members. Active membership requires frequent participation in worship and communion at the Lord’s Table, as well as the ongoing contributions of our time, talents, and treasures for the sake of Christ and the world we are called to serve.

We welcome you to gather with us to celebrate the good news of saving grace in Jesus Christ. We invite you on a faith journey that will enable you to respond to the challenges of today’s society.