Sing to the Lord a New Song

May 2026

Dear Friends & Members of Lake of the Isles Lutheran Church,

Sixty years ago, when I was growing up at St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Austin, Minnesota, children were far more likely to hear Latin spoken in the church than Norwegian. We were known as the Scandinavian Lutheran church in town, but that was primarily only for one week of the year when the congregation celebrated it’s Scandinavian Day. The women of the church were busy for weeks rolling out lefse and making meatballs. Paper plates were labeled with the Norwegian names for various cookies and breads, and then set out in a special room for the first-come/first-served bake sale. Within days, however, the Norwegian phrases disappeared, and we were back to Latin. In our Sunday bulletin, we read simply the Introit, the Gloria Patri and Gloria in Excelsis, the Verba, the Sanctus and the Agnus Dei. Even the Sundays of the church year were commonly referred to by their Latin names. Septuagesima and Quinquagesima. Of course, the Sunday School children were never taught Latin in formal classes, but like our Roman Catholic neighbors, we were expected to know the meaning of basic Latin words and phrases and to pronounce them properly.

My favorite church season was Easter with its playful Sunday titles of Quasi Modo, Misericordia, Jubilate, Cantate and Rogate. The dates often coincided with the last day of Sunday School, which also meant the end of the choir season. Traditionally, this meant the choir would sing its favorite anthems of the year in a single service called Cantate Sunday. The name Canata derived from the Introit Cantate Domino canticum novum for the day, Sing to the Lord a new song. The tradition of referring to the Sundays by their Latin names disappeared in the 1970’s when American Lutheran congregations adopted the Green Hymnal, but that didn’t quite eliminate the practice of saving the music of the year for the spring of the year.

This May, Lake of the Isles will resound with special music. Our morning worship services will feature our own church musicians performing their favorite solos, as well as guest musicians. You are also invited to hear the music of The Isles Ensemble on Sunday, May 3rd in an afternoon concert celebrating three centuries of female composers, as well a special concert of choral music and organ on Friday evening, May 8th at the Cathedral in St. Paul with our own organist Kristina Rizzotto. There will even be a performance of Norwegian music sung in Latin performed by our church choir together with the unveiling of a commissioned painting in the sanctuary on Mother’s Day.

There are many ways to Sing to the Lord a new song. Join us at Lake of the Isles and experience the marvelous things our God has done. Cantata Domino.

Peace, Pastor Arden D. Haug

A Great Big Thank You!

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Christ is Risen! He is Risen, Indeed!
Easter Sunday, April 5^th

All four of the gospels tell the story of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. They all follow the journey of the women who went to the tomb early on Easter morning to anoint Jesus’ body with precious spices and myrrh. St. John, however, suggests that only Mary Magadalene journeyed to the tomb. She is hardly mentioned in John’s gospel, but even while it was still dark, “she came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed.” So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, John, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Immediately, the two of them ran to the tomb, John stood outside, while Peter went in. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then John went in also, and he saw and believed. Then the disciples returned to their homes.

Oddly, neither disciple seemed to mention to Mary what they saw. They simply disappeared, and Mary stood confused and saddened wondering where Jesus’ body had been taken.
St. John’s gospel poignantly captures the wonder and mystery of Easter. At times we find ourselves on Easter morning excited and racing to the tomb to see if the good news of the resurrection is true. At other times we have to search a bit deeper into the tomb to discover the remnants of abandoned linen cloths that help us to believe. Still, there are moments when death and sorrow are so great that we remain alone and saddened outside. We confuse Jesus for the gardener, just as Mary Magdalene did. It is precisely at that moment that Jesus comes to us and calls us by name, and we turn to him and believe.
My friends, I do not know where you are on your spiritual journey this Easter. I simply pray that you will be renewed again with the good news of Jesus’ resurrection and that like Mary Magdalene you will be inspired to proclaim the good news, “I have seen the Lord.”

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed!

Happy Easter! Pastor Arden D. Haug

A Great Big Thank You!

Many thanks to Pierre LaMere, Zachary Ross, Dale Thomas & Joseph LaMere for our wonderful Pancake Breakfast on Palm Sunday! Thank you to Jim Bausell, Anita Duder, Ellie Holmquist, Eivor Lund, Linda Nelson & Lorraine Spies who helped serve the breakfast and clean up afterwards.
pancakes.jpg

We raised $700 towards Luther Park Camp Scholarships! Thank you for your generosity!

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Easter Flowers

Easter flowers will be displayed in the sanctuary on Easter Sunday and can be taken home after the 11:00 AM service or anytime the church is open during the week.

The list of donations will be posted on the Christy Room door.

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Music for Holy Week at LOTI

We are thankful for the financial gifts directed to Lake of the Isles in memory of Rob Bergford. He was a dedicated church organ tuner and passionate about good music performed in worship. In honor of his musical passion, Rob’s father, John Bergford, a long time member of Lake of the Isles, has chosen to dedicate these memorial gifts to support our musical programming for Holy Week. We are grateful for the Bergford family’s gift in memory of Rob.

On Palm Sunday, March 29th, Dr. Kristina Rizzotto, guest musicians and the LOTI Church Choir will perform Dietrich Buxtehude’s Jesu. Meine Freude. Although this setting is less known than J. S. Bach’s version, Buxtehude carefully weaves the familiar melody and text through variations alternating between the choir and soloist. The choir will also perform Faure’s The Palms.

On Good Friday, April 3rd, at 3:00 in the afternoon, the traditional hour commemorated as Jesus’ death on the cross, the women’s voices of Hymnus Angelicus, under the direction of Paul Mckenzie, will offer a choral remembrance of Jesus’ crucifixion. Music often conveys the emotion, pain and mystery of the events that words alone cannot describe. This musical service following the Seven Last Words of Christ will surely inspire you with wonder of God’s love.

Join us on Holy Week for these two special musical worship services. Then join us again on Easter Sunday, April 5th at 9:30 and 11:00 for the celebration of Christ’s resurrection. The music of the organ, choir, trumpet and timpani will fill the church with triumphant sound.

Peace, Pastor Arden Haug

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Fastelavn 2026

Our annual Fastelavn celebration was on February 8th in the Fellowship Hall. It was a full house! Delicious Scandinavian fare was enjoyed along with singing, (dancing), and breaking of the barrel, of course!

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Children’s Ministry March 2026

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2026 Luther Park Bible Camp, Danbury, WI

Luther Park Bible Camp, Danbury WI, visited LOTI on March 8th, sharing information regarding the fun summer opportunities they have to offer for children, youth and families.
They offer Half-Week Cabin, Full-Week Cabin, All Skills Horse, & Full Week Treehouse camp

In addition to kid’s programming, Luther Park Bible Camp also offers opportunities for families.
Camp Getaway for Families

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Foodshelf Donations Needed

The most needed items include small art supplies for kids (crayons, markers, playdoh, etc), children’s books and activity books, laundry detergent (pods only), cooking oils (16-24 oz containers), rice (1-2 lb bags), pasta, ramen (not in cups), canned fruit, canned vegetables, canned chicken, menstrual pads, toiletries (especially hotel/travel size), and paper grocery bags with handles. They accept all non-expired shelf stable foods. 

All donations make a huge difference. Donations are collected on the wooden cart in Fellowship Hall. Volunteers deliver them to the food shelf on Friday mornings.
joyceuptownfoodshelf.org

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