MADISON – Messiah Lutheran Church of Madison recently installed Rev. Kristine Schroeder as its permanently called pastor.

Schroeder is the second pastor to lead the congregation during its 33-year history as an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America or ELCA. The church was founded on May 20, 1990.

Pastor Justin Eller, Assistant to the Bishop, ELCA Southeastern Synod presided at a special service to install Schroeder on April 30. “This was a long-awaited day! As an ELCA congregation, the process of replacing a pastor is rather prescribed (and) typically takes about one year,” Meredith Kilby, Communications and Technical Director, said.

Schroeder earned a bachelor’s degree in speech communication with minors in music and psychology. In 1997, she graduated from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and soon was ordained.

During the first half of her ordained ministry, Schroeder served as a Youth & Family, Faith Formation Pastor. She has served in both large and small congregations on pastoral staff, as solo pastor and interim.

In addition, she served as Chaplain and Living Donor Advocate at Mayo Clinic in Arizona for eight years. This work allowed enhancement of her abilities in conflict resolution, pastoral care and teaching adults.

With interviews and discussions, Messiah Lutheran’s Call Committee and Congregation Council quickly recognized Schroeder’s exceptional gifts for ministry, which align well with the congregation’s Ministry Site Profile or MSP. This document, which church members prepare and submit to the ELCA, describes the congregation and its future priorities, Kilby said.

Messiah Lutheran members have defined specific priorities:

* Being “God’s People, Reaching Out” – Messiah Lutheran supports 67 active outreach programs locally, nationally and globally to serve people in need. Locally, the church supports the Weekend Food Program at three schools, Kids to Love, Enable (formerly CASA), Downtown Rescue Mission and House of the Harvest food pantry.

* Being a worshiping congregation – Worship is centered on God’s word and the gospel of Jesus Christ.

* Nurturing young disciples – The congregation will provide opportunities for youth to learn, serve, grow and become confident, fully participating members of their faith community.

* Exceptional music and music ministries – Music is not only for worship but as outreach. The church’s annual music camp and “Music at Messiah – Classical Concert Series” are two examples.

“Pastor Kris has a strong passion for collaborative and relational ministry that integrates all ages,” Kilby said. “She is very excited about opportunities at Messiah Lutheran, especially continued efforts integrating children, youth and families . . . and many outreach projects.”

She and her husband Bill, a retired ELCA pastor, have been married 28 years. The Schroeders relocated from Ohio.

Messiah Lutheran has Sunday worship services are 8:30 and 11 a.m. The address is 7740 U.S. 72 W. in Madison. For more information, visit mlutheran.org, elca.org or Facebook.