Our Mission

We believe God has called our congregation to Feed People:  Body, Mind and Spirit.   Drawing strength from shared worship in the Lutheran tradition, opportunities to study and learn, community activities, and supportive relationships, we reach out to serve the community through our wayside library and blessing boxes, our support of Community Services for Children, and our contributions to the Lehigh Valley Conference of Churches. We cook and serve free Community Meals sponsored by the Whitehall Coplay Hunger Initiative and provide donations, leadership, and volunteer service each month at the Whitehall Food Pantry.

Our Identity

We are a Reconciling in Christ Congregation, opening our hearts and doors to welcome people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.   

Our History

St. John’s Lutheran Church has been serving the Fullerton community since it first began as the Lutheran and Reformed Sunday School in 1869 and then as the Lutheran and Reformed Fullerton Chapel Association in 1886. 


Formally organized as a Lutheran Congregation in 1902 and continuing as a Union Church with St. John's Reformed until 1929, St. John's now reaches out to and is engaged not only with the Fullerton neighborhood but with the larger Whitehall Township and the wider Lehigh Valley.



Land Acknowldgement

St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church is

located on the original and ancestral lands

of the Lenni-Lenape people.

 

We confess that our faith ancestors,

misguided by faulty theology and racist beliefs,

broke covenants with and participated in the theft of land

from the Lenni-Lenape people.

They did not raise their voices for justice.

We confess that we still benefit from their actions today.

 

 We give thanks for the Lenni-Lenape nation.

We recognize and honor all Indigenous siblings

who have and continue to call these lands their home.

Our Leadership

Our Congregational Council, made up of nine laypeople and our Pastor, leads our congregation.   Council members are actively involved and collaborate with our committees to ensure that we are financially responsible, care for one another, and reach out beyond our walls to bring God's love and justice to the world around us.   Current Council Executive Committee members are: Sheila Lanshe, President; Carol Sowers, Vice-President and Study and Prayer; Deb Vilbas, Secretary and Property; and Lynnette Delbridge, Pastor.   Other Council members and their areas of responsibility are: Chris Derhammer, Encouragement; Cindy Held, Finance; Sue Lalo, Invitation; Dottie MacLaughlin, Building Cleanliness; and Janice Stavrou, Giving and Serving. You can contact them through our church office, secretary@stjohn-whitehall.org; 610-264-3762.

Our Partners

Nationally, we are a member congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA).  ELCA churches share a living, daring confidence in God's grace. Liberated by our faith, we embrace each other and those we seek to serve as a whole persons--questions, complexities and all.  Regionally, we are part of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod.  We join in the Synod's mission to heal the hurts, love the land, and engage the stranger.  Locally, we partner with and share events with Holy Trinity Memorial Lutheran Church in Catasauqua, PA.

First Time Visit?

Wear clothing that's comfortable for you. You'll see people dressed in "Sunday Clothes" and in casual attire.


We have a parking lot which you can access by turning east off Third Street onto Quarry Street or Cherry Alley.  Turn right into the parking lot off Quarry Street or left into the parking lot off Cherry Alley.


On Sundays, you can enter the building from the front entrance on Chestnut Street or from the entrance into Fritze Hall with a handicap accessible ramp off Cherry Alley.  On Saturdays, come in through the Fritze Hall entrance. 


Fritze Hall, our sanctuary, and unisex bathrooms are all handicap accessible.   A baby changing table is available in one of the bathrooms.


During our Sunday morning services, expect us to sing with enthusiasm music in a variety of musical genres.  Expect our Saturday evening services, to be briefer and without music. 


We celebrate Holy Communion almost every week and have fellowship hour, a time for food and conversation, about twice a month on Sundays after worship.


Expect a warm welcome and lots of encouragement to take God's love out into the world by getting involved in our congregation's acts of service during the week.

Our Staff

Lynnette Delbridge - Pastor

Lynnette Delbridge was born and raised in North Carolina where she soaked in love the earth from her farmer grandfather and love for the church from her parents and the saints of First Baptist Church of Goldsboro. Blessed with many opportunities to learn, she has a B.A. in English and Music from Salem College in Winston-Salem, NC, a Masters in Music Education from Holy Names University in Oakland, CA; a M.Div. from Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, PA and a PhD. in New Testament Studies from Union Theological Seminary in New York City.


Lynnette has had a variety of ecumenical experiences growing up in a Baptist congregation, becoming a Moravian pastor, spending graduate school years worshipping on Sundays with Episcopalians, attending Union Seminary where many traditions were represented and teaching at the seminary level in Moravian, American Baptist, and Lutheran settings. She has served as Assistant Pastor at Clemmons Moravian Church, Clemmons, NC, as Co-Pastor at Castleton Moravian Church on Staten Island, NY, and as Pastor at Central Moravian Church in Bethlehem, PA.


Lynnette has had past opportunities to help organize and participate in Active Mission Projects including community dinners, clothing distributions, and community garden efforts on Staten Island. Her ministries have included for time making music and sharing stories of our faith with children and youth. She is also committed to finding ways to Care for Creation which means having many adventures in her own garden. Lynnette is married to Andrew Meckstroth, Pastor at Ziegels Lutheran Church in Breinigsville, PA. Together, they have two daughters, Helen Meckstroth and Carol Delbridge.


Grateful for the full communion agreement between the Evangelical Lutheran Church of American and the Moravian Church which makes it possible for our denominations to share clergy, worship traditions, and to join together in efforts to make the gospel real in the world around us, Lynnette has been serving as Interim Pastor at St. John’s Lutheran Church since Feb. 27, 2022.

Mike Fister - Director of Music

Mike Fister grew up in nearby Slatington where he attended school and St. John’s U.C.C. It was there that he learned to love music. He went to Moravian College where he majored in music education, and he later got a M.Ed. from Temple University.


Mike has been a church musician since the age of 15. He started at Holy Trinity Union Church (U.C.C.) in Slatedale. From there he taught music and played for Masses at St. Elizabeth R.C. Church in Whitehall, PA.  He then served at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Catasauqua before coming to St. John's. On May 5, 2024, we were happy to celebrate Mike's 10 anniversary with us as Director of Music at St. John's.  Mike has had a long career as an elementary music educator in the Northampton Area School District.  Mike is a member of Holy Trinity Memorial Lutheran Church in Catasauqua with his wife, Barbara. They have two daughters, Sarah and Patricia.
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