Visitor FAQs

Q: Your church has such an unusual name. Could you tell me what, "Hephatha" means?

A: The word, "Hephatha" is the German version of the Aramaic "Ephphatha," of Mark 7:34 in the story there recounted of Jesus' healing of a certain deaf man. "And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "be opened." And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly."

The history behind our church's receiving this name goes back to the founding pastor of Hephatha, the Rev. William J. Meyer, who asked for naming privileges desiring this new mission start to be named after a church that we understand his grandfather pastored in the Midwest of the same name.

The name, of course, reminds us not only of the divinity of our Savior, Jesus Christ, proved by his healing of those with physical disabilities, etc., but also reminds us that we need to "be opened" to divine direction in our day, "opened" to every credible method to get the gospel out, "open" to all who would come here seeking solace, comfort, inspiration and hope.

Q: I've come to your church a few times and really like the services and the people. How do I become a member?

A: We'd invite you to our Foundations of The Faith class held in the church on Thursday nights from 6:45 - 8:15 p.m. When you complete these classes, you're given an option to join the church. If you are already an active member of another Lutheran Church, you may simply call your former church and ask them to transfer your membership to Hephatha.