Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church

Our congregational mission is to be a Gateway of Faith with our city, neighborhood and each other.

For 128 years, Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church has been a gateway of faith on the East Side of St. Paul. Our commitment to be a Gateway of Faith with our city, neighborhood and each other is at the heart of our mission identity and life together as Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Church.

We are committed to leadership in fighting childhood hunger. Our partnership with Farnsworth Elementary makes an incredible difference to dozens of families every week. We hope that you will want to help!

We live out our vocational identity and calling as followers of Christ, as Gateway of Faith people, through our four core congregational values: 

Grow in Spiritual Vitality

We believe that the journey of faith is a holistic, life-long walk. It is about being nurtured in our understanding of God's unconditional love and grace, as well as being encouraged to live our faith in every aspect of our life. Our commitment is to provide diverse and meaningful opportunities to grow in our spiritual vitality through study, service and multi-generational experiences. 

Worship Creatively and Faithfully Together

We celebrate the powerful witness of our Lutheran heritage, the strong values of liturgical worship and preaching the Biblical story in creative and relevant ways. We are committed to providing worship that honors our traditions, welcomes new and adapted experiences and encourages participation of all people no matter who they are or from where they come. 

Embrace Our Wonder

Life is not a simple black and white experience. It is filled with wonder, profound questions, and living with the unknown. Taking risks, making mistakes, and feeling safe to ask questions are essential in our community of faith. We live this out by meeting people where they are, valuing a variety of perspectives of faith and life, letting "no" be as important as saying "yes" and reflecting, in everything we do, the unconditional love and acceptance of a gracious God. 

Build Authentic Christian Relationships 

Knowing our neighbor is as much an act of authentic engagement as it is a desire to welcome all who come into our lives. Our commitment to build authentic Christian relationships is to be "in" the community, to faithfully accept people that are different from us, genuinely get to know our neighbors, even when it may call us to enter the trenches of their lives. We want to be the face of Jesus to others. 

We are living out our GAteway of Faith mission in many ways, here are snippets of the ways we embody our mission: 

• Our partnership with The Sheridan Story and First Covenant Church to feed 100 Farnsworth Elementary children who are food insecure over the weekend with backpack food kits 
• The formation of a community garden on our church property in partnership with Hmong-American Partnership 
• Our partnership with Shobi's Table, a mobile food truck ministry to those who are food insecure on Payne Avenue
• Wednesday Family Faith Nights with community meal, faith formation and worship for all ages
• Our relationship with LSS LifeHaven,