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| It was March 18, 1945, when a small group of
men and women met in the afternoon at Trinity Episcopal Church of Monroe to
worship God and praise His name. At
that time, approximately 100 members of a Lutheran Church in Monroe chose to
separate from their current church and bravely formed a new congregation, which they felt would best meet their needs for worship,
fellowship, and service to God. The worshippers chose to affiliate
themselves with the United Lutheran Church of America (which would later
become Evangelical Lutheran Church in America), and after a month of
holding worship under the title of simply "United Lutheran
Service," the name Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church of Monroe, Michigan was
chosen. Rev. Vernon Kotter was the first to
accept a calling to preside over services at the church, and he has been
followed by six other pastors, most recently Interim Pastor Dennis Bux. |
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The church, like the rest of the country, has
seen many changes in its nearly 60-year history. For the first
four years of its existence, the parishioners of the newly formed church
met each Sunday in the basement of Trinity Episcopal Church. During
this time the church council worked to obtain a piece of land and
eventually oversee the construction of the structure that now stands at
the corner of Elm and Lincoln in downtown Monroe. A choir was quickly
organized and has been blessing the membership with beautiful music ever
since. Members recall that in those early years, a dress code was
adhered to, where men wore suits, women wore hats, and at Christmas Eve
service, ushers wore tuxedos. Sunday school has always been an
important part of the church, as has benevolence. In the
1960s, Sunday school attendees faithfully collected dimes that were used
to help send a mission plane to those in need around the
world. |
| Around the time of the church's 10-year
anniversary, it became apparent that a larger space for fellowship was
needed. An addition to the church, including a larger fellowship hall and
Sunday school area, was completed in 1958, with the spire and narthex
added in 1966 and 1993, respectively. |
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The church celebrated its 25th anniversary in
1970, with a banquet held at Monroe County Community College. Not long
after, the church acquired an organ and speakers, which has been played
for these last 30 years by Lois Pearch. In the early 1980s, the
parishioners first began the practice of adopting an area family in need
at Christmas. The church now adopts three families at Christmas
time, and members help provide necessities and Christmas gifts for each
family member. Also in the '80s, Christ Lutheran members first
participated in the Crop Walk to help the hungry, which is now an annual
event. |
| In 2006, Pastor Dennis Bux was called to
minister to the members of Christ Lutheran as Pastor. He
will provided Christian leadership and
guidance to the worshippers of Christ Lutheran during the period in which
a new, permanent pastor is sought. In 1997, the church
hired a dedicated Youth Director, who is responsible
for all youth programs and activities within the church. This Youth
Director resigned in 2004 to pursue a graduate education, and our Youth
Director Task Force has been formed to fill the position. We have an
active and exciting youth program at Christ Lutheran, and we look forward
to installing a new Youth Director to carry on this program.
The practice of holding a children's sermon was first
instituted in 1994. During this time, children are invited to come sit on the steps to the altar
during service and hear their own special message before Pastor
delivers his traditional sermon. The saying "out of the mouths
of babes" has never been more true, and this has become an event
anticipated each Sunday by the children and adults alike. |
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For more than 60 years, our church has been
serving Christ in this community. During these years we have grown
as a congregation to take our place as one of the established churches of
Monroe. We have also become a strong link in the chain of fellowship
of the Southeast Michigan Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
How has this strength and growth come about? It is
the result of God's blessing. God has so replenished us with His
Spirit that we have been inspired to move forward, and our members, moved
by God's Spirit, have worked hard to serve and make our church an
effective ministry of Christ. As we approach Christ Lutheran
Church's 60th anniversary in 2005, the members of the church will continue
to give ourselves to God's guidance and do the work He has asked us to do
so that we will be useful to Christ. |
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