At the January 25 Sunday service it was announced that The Reverend Jennifer Amy-Dressler has accepted our offer to be Pilgrim Church’s new Interim Minister. Her appointment at Pilgrim begins February 9.

Rev. Amy-Dressler received her Master of Ministry degree from Earlham School of Religion (Richmond, IN), with additional graduate studies at San Francisco Theological Seminary. She has served as associate minister for two congregations and worked for the Indiana-Kentucky Conference UCC with Youth, Youth Adult, and Outdoor Ministries. She has prior experience as interim minister, serving in this role at The Federated Church UCC (Morris, MN), Circles of Faith UCC (Wauburn, MN), as well as at Zion United Church of Christ (Poland, IN.)

For additional details, see the most recent Pilgrim Newsletter.

Our Guest Preacher Sunday is the Rev. Dr. Karen Schuder.  Karen, who led our service two weeks ago,  is ordained in the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., and she has been an active member of the Presbytery of Northern Waters for almost 20 years.  She served as pastor of Hillside United Methodist Church in Duluth for 12 years until 2010, and recently completed her doctorate in leadership at the University of St. Thomas.   The title of her sermon will be “Grace-Full Changes.”

And remember that the Semi-Annual Congregational Meeting will follow worship.  The budget and several other items will be voted on.

Sunday, January 18

5:00pm:  Community Ecumenical Worship Service

Christ Temple Victory Center

330 North 59th Ave. West

Featured Speaker is Christopher Little.  Choir will be led by Dr.Moore.

Monday, January 19

7:00 am: Free Community Breakfast

First United Methodist Church

230 East Skyline Parkway

Featuring speaker Vernon Jordan, streamed to the big screen.

10:45 am: Annual March and Rally

Gather at the Washington Center (4th Street and Lake Ave.)

March begins at 11:00 am

Route is from the Washington Center through downtown to the DECC

Rally begins at approximately 11:45 am.

Rev. Van Antwerp is an ordained UCC minister. He received his M. Div. from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities in New Brighton, MN, and his undergraduate degree in Writing and Natural History from Northland College in Ashland, WI.  He has served at Duluth Congregational Church, Peace UCC, and most recently at Community UCC in Biwabik, MN.  He and his family have lived in Duluth for 9 years.

See you on Sunday!

This Sunday, January 11, we will have a guest preacher, the Rev. Dr. Karen Schuder. Karen is ordained in the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., and she has been an active member of the Presbytery of Northern Waters for almost 20 years. She served as pastor of Hillside United Methodist Church in Duluth for 12 years until 2010. She has completed her doctorate in leadership at the University of St. Thomas. Her sermon will be “Being Kingdom People in a Changing World.” Karen will also be our guest preacher on January 18. We expect to have our interim minister in place by early February.

Please come and experience our extravagant welcome from Pilgrim Congregational Church.

Dear Friends and Web Surfers,

In the last five years, I’ve enjoyed writing for Pilgrim’s blog. I hope this page has served as an “introduction” to Pilgrim Congregational Church here in Duluth. I’ve tried to interpret our life as a congregation–not just announce upcoming events, but explain their meaning as well. If you visited our website and then visited us in person, thanks. We were glad to meet you!

On January 4, 2015 I retired from the position of minister at Pilgrim. I will no longer make entries in this blog. In early February, an interim minister will come to serve the congregation and later this year, the congregation will form a Search Committee to look for a new, long-term pastor.

In our denomination, congregations choose their own leadership. Transitions are both unsettling and exciting because they provide an opportunity for a congregation to clarify their own sense of purpose and set new goals.

Pilgrim Church is committed to excellence in worship, nurturing the interests of families with younger children, social justice in the community and using the building for community groups. Those commitments will continue.

If you’re looking for a church community or are just curious about Pilgrim, visit us on a Sunday morning at 10:00. Like us on FB. Contact the church office with questions: 724-8503 or email pilgrimdlh@msn.com. This interim time is a great time to explore Pilgrim!

I leave with gratitude for the people of this congregation and for the good work I have seen them do,

Charlotte Frantz, Minister

May 15, 2002-January 4, 2015