October 2008

Welcome to Salem this October!

Sunday School for all ages is now underway! We are learning about prayer and in the process putting our whole selves into the task by making prayer ribbons to decorate the church and prayer blankets which we gave to our new member and will be giving to the baby being baptized the first Sunday of October.

How's your prayer life? Why not join us at 9am on Sunday mornings to spend some time focusing on how you communicate with God and how God communicates with us!

Confirmation with Zion, Immanuel, and Salem is underway. What a great class! Confirmation meets the 5th and 19th at Zion in Waterbury this month.

October 5th is Bring a Friend to Church Sunday and we're having a baptism!

October 12th there will be a service of healing and anointing then we will head to the green in Naugatuck for the Annual Crop Walk. Don't forget to donate non-perishables to your local Food Bank this month. Many shelves are empty which means empty pantries in peoples' homes.

The last Sunday of the month is Reformation Sunday! (Click here or on the picture to learn about the Luther Rose.)Don't know what to wear for the big festival? Read Pastor's newsletter article about getting dressed in our baptismal clothes, wear red or order some great Luther stuff from Old Lutheran (a site for the young at heart) as we celebrate our Lutheran Tradition and most importantly our faith in Christ Jesus!

September 2008

Welcome to Salem this September!

We've moved back upstairs to our sanctuary this month and restarted our 10:30 service with Holy Communion. Sunday School will begin again on September 21st at 9am! Everyone is welcome!

Several big events are taking place this month.

Sunday the 14th is Bible Sunday which means that all our first graders will be given Bibles from the congregation.

Friday and Saturday the 19th and 20th we will be participating in the Harvest Moon Festival on the Naugatuck Green. This year we will be hosting a Fair Trade Fair at our booth. Proceeds from the sale will be donated to the Naugatuck Food Bank. So visit our booth and do some Christmas Shopping for a good cause.

Sunday the 21st we will celebrate the International Day of Peace and welcome a new member to our congregation! Everyone is invited to a special day of peace at First Lutheran Church in Waterbury.

Confirmation classes will be done with the congregations of Zion in Waterbury and Immanuel Naugatuck. The first class will be an orientation for parents and students at Zion from 2:00-4:00pm.

As we move into the fall in New England we give thanks for the changing season and the beauty that it brings, but most of all we give thanks to God for all our blessings!

Summer Time at Salem

Welcome to Salem this summer!


Worship time and space changes the first Sunday of July when we move from 10:30 worship upstairs in our sanctuary to 9:30 worship downstairs in our fellowship hall with air conditioning.

Vacation Bible School is once again being hosted by the Gardener of Naugatuck: a cooperative of Salem and Immanuel Lutheran Churches.We begin with our kick-off worship at Immanuel Lutheran Church at 170 Coen Street. Worship there is at 10:30 (and also in air conditioning). The Gardener of Naugatuck uses counselors and experienced leaders from Calumet Lutheran Ministries in New Hampshire to run our VBS. Calumet's 48 years in camping makes them experts at knowing how to create the best week of summer fun available for your child(ren).

There is still time to register your child(ren) for VBS. You can get more information about VBS by calling either church office. (Salem 203-723-0246 and Immanuel 203-729-3493)

Don't forget to read Pastor's Page for July and August. In it she gives information about how to find a church while you are traveling for vacation!

Have a wonderful summer and visit with us soon!

June 2008

Welcome to Salem this June!

So much has already happened this month that once again we are behind in updating the site!


June 1st was our last Sunday of Sunday School until next September. Many, many thanks go out to our teachers and Sunday School Superintendant for all the work that they did for our children this past year.


On June 5-7, Pastor and a voting member from Salem travelled to Worcester, MA for the Annual Synod Assembly where we elected people to attend the National Assembly and a new Synod Council. We also heard from representatives from our sister synod in Hondorus and received beautiful tote bags from an AIDs clinic there with the theme in both English and Spanish: God's Work, Our Hands. Pastor also took with her a beautiful display of handprints made by the children of the Salem Community Childcare Center that were used to decorate the assembly space. Here is a link to other information aabout what happened at the Assembly and don't forget to check out the Lutheran Song on YouTube.


On June 15th from 12-2pm we will have Vacation Bible School Registration Day. If you or someone you know wants their children to attend VBS this is the time to come and sign them up! (You can still register later if you wish, but space is limited this year.) VBS will be at Salem July 21st - 25th.


June 22nd is our annual picnic with the other Lutheran Churches in Naugatuck and Waterbury. The picnic will be at Hop Brook Lake at 10:30am. Bring your lawn chairs and $4.00 for entrance into the park. (You can also bring a covered dish to share.) There will be no worship service at Salem on that day.


Confirmation Camp at Calumet will be June 24-28. Please remember to keep Pastor and all the youth of our church, who are going to camp, in your prayers.


The worship time change will begin July 6, 2008. Worship will be at 9:30am and held downstairs in our air-conditioned hall.


Thanks again for visiting with us here at our web-site. Please join us for worship too!

May 2008

Welcome to Salem this May. We are already into the month and so many wonderful spirit-filled things have happened.

We gathered together on the Feast of the Ascension for Dinner and Devotions. The next Dinner and Devotions will take place on Thursday June 5th. Dinner is held at 6:30 and devotions at 7:15. Please feel free to join us for good food and prayer.

On May 4th we gave thanks for the Childcare Center and helped raise funds for the playground upgrade with a Sunday School Bakesale. Many thanks to the Sunday School for their support of the childcare.

We gathered together on May 11th to celebrate the new members who have joined our church and the two boys who took their first communion. This took place on Pentecost, the day that we remember the gift of God's Holy Spirit to the world.

Next Sunday, May 18th we will celebrate the Festival of the Holy Trinity and the confirmation of 3 of our youth.

This month we also had a family who lost their home in a fire. They are in need of all sorts of things including blankets, sheets, pots and pans and furniture. If you have items that you would be willing to donate please contact Pastor Christine at the church office.

April 2008

Welcome to Salem!

Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

Christ is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!

Just like Christmas, Easter isn't just one day, but a whole season. Of course we celebrate the resurrection every day because Jesus offers us new life each day.

This month we begin Dinner and Devotions on the first Thursday of the month. Everyone is welcome to share a simple meal at 6:30PM and then join us for devotions in our sanctuary at 7:15PM.

Some of the other things we are doing are:

We continue to collect a noisy offering on Sunday mornings to support God's Global Barnyard.

There will be a Spring Clean-Up on April 19th so bring your work gear.

On April 23rd at 6PM Salem Community Childcare is hosting its annual Ziti Dinner to raise funds for the playground renovation. Please plan on attending or sending in a donation for these much needed renovations.

And on April 27th we will be joined by Wes Bard from the Lutheran Home in Southbury who will talk about Lutheran Social Services and how we can help make a difference in the lives of others.
May you be blessed this day and every day with the love and grace of God.

March 2008

Welcome to Salem Lutheran Church!

This month we move from Lent to Easter; from repentance to renewal; and from death to resurrection!

Our Lenten Soup Suppers and Devotions continue to focus on baptism and the gift of grace given to us by God. We have two more this month on March 6th and 13th. After soup on March 13th there will be a service of healing and anointing at 7:15. All are welcome.

Palm Sunday is March 16th and will begin with a pancake breakfast at 9am. A free will offering will be collected for the Campership and Vacation Bible School funds. Our Palm Sunday worship will be lead by our confirmation class and will focus on the passion narrative of Christ.



Maundy Thursday is March 20th. Worship is at 7:00pm and we will wash feet to remember Jesus' commandment to love one another. The Community Good Friday Service will be held at noon at Immanuel Lutheran Church and a service of Light and Darkness will be held at Salem at 7:00pm.


Our Easter celebration begins with the Community Sunrise Service on the Naugatuck Green at 6:30am and then with Worship and Holy Communion at Salem at 10:30am (Note: there is no Sunday School on Easter Sunday.)

Don't forget to read Pastor's March Message and to check out God's Global Barnyard in the link on the right. We will continue to collect change in our noisy offering to support God's Global Barnyard this month. Our goal is $500 or the cost of a cow.

May you be blessed with the assurance of God's Grace for you!