about us

St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Cherry Hill, NJ was founded in 1958 and celebrates its organization as a congregation on All Saints Sunday (the first Sunday in November) St. Michael's is a congregation of New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

St. Michael ’s is a community rooted in the unconditional love and acceptance of God made known to the world in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus the Christ. God ’s grace is a gift. The call of Jesus to follow the way of the cross is an invitation to respond to God ’s love and participate in God ’s mission to bring life to the world. Discipleship is a way of living and growing in relationship to God and others.

Gathered to Worship

We believe that God calls us into community by the power of the Holy Spirit. All are welcome!

Together we gather around God ’s Word, revealed in scripture, shared in offerings of music, and proclaimed in the pastoral message. In community we listen for the Living Word that touches our lives, strengthens our hope and supports us in the work of God ’s mission.

Together we gather around signs of God ’s grace. We remember and celebrate the gift of Holy Baptism that joins us to the death and resurrection of Jesus. We share in Holy Communion weekly understanding that in the gifts of bread and wine we encounter the resurrected Christ, we are renewed in the forgiveness of sins and we are nourished to serve others working for justice and peace.

Together we pray. We raise our voices in adoration. We humble ourselves in corporate confession. We offer thanksgivings. We make supplication understanding that God already knows everything that we need but acknowledging that holy conversation with God strengthens our relationship. In intercession we pray for the needs of others and the gift of creation.

Together we worship using a form and following a structure we call liturgy. The language of liturgy is rooted in scripture. Our liturgy follows a basic pattern — gathering, word, meal, sending. This structure allows for freedom and flexibility. We use different musical styles and seek opportunities to make liturgy meaningful and engaging.

Sent to Serve

We believe that God equips everyone with the gifts needed to participate in God ’s mission in the world. “God ’s work. Our hands.” - is our tag line and our mantra. Called to follow Jesus, we look for opportunities to share the good news of God ’s love and to respond to the needs of our neighbors.

Most of this work happens in the context of our daily routine and activity. The biggest impact we make is often in the little things that we do for others. However, in community we look to build capacity to serve others beyond the limits of our individual reach. We organize efforts to address the needs of the most vulnerable and work with partners to make a difference.

We have a strong commitment to the work of the ELCA World Hunger program and the Interfaith Homeless Outreach Council ’s Hospitality Program. We confidently believe that together we are the body of Christ at work in the world.

Faith Formation and Fellowship

We believe that the gift of faith is a relationship that is strengthened as we share with each other our questions and insights. We offer Christian Education opportunities for people of all ages. We engage the story of God and God’s people as we explore the Bible together. We join the conversation and enter the story as we bring our lives into the context of the faith journey. Along the way we take time to listen to one another, share with one another and support each other. We build up what God has entrusted to us and we remember to have fun together.