A Place to Belong on 71st Court
Palos Lutheran Church sits in a quiet residential pocket of Palos Heights, Illinois, just south of Chicago. From its building at 12424 S. 71st Court, the congregation has built its identity around a simple promise: church does not have to be intimidating. The welcome on the front of the building reads, Came and see who makes all the difference, and the congregation has worked to live out that line for anyone who walks through the doors.
The congregation is part of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), a fellowship of Lutheran churches that trace their teaching back to the Reformation. Members of Palos describe themselves as ordinary people gathered around Word and Sacrament, and the pastor, Fred Schleg, regularly greets visitors personally at the door before services.
Saturday Evening and Sunday Morning Worship
Palos offers two identical worship services each weekend: a Saturday evening service at 5:00 PM and a Sunday morning service at 9:00 AM. Both services last about an hour, and both follow the historic Lutheran liturgy. After the closing blessing, members typically linger in the sanctuary and the parking lot to talk, so first-time visitors should plan a few extra minutes for conversation.
Visitors parking in the lot are usually met at the entrance by a friendly face (often the pastor himself). Inside the sanctuary, printed worship folders walk newcomers through the order of service. Screens are available for families with young children so children can see what is being said and sung. Children of all ages are welcome in the worship space, and the congregation considers the sound of small children to be a sign that families are doing exactly what they should be doing: bringing their children to Jesus' feet.
A quiet cry and changing room is available off the sanctuary for parents who need a calmer space during the service. The room offers parents a place to sit with or tend to their children while still hearing the service.
A Liturgy Bathed in the Word
Palos describes its worship as liturgical, following a consistent order of service intended to involve the entire congregation in meaningful worship. The pattern is simple and ancient: God speaks to his people through his Word and Sacraments, and the people respond with prayer, praise, and offerings.
The congregation teaches that Lutheran worship is uniquely permeated by the Word of God. The liturgical responses are drawn directly from the Bible. The hymns are described as doctrinally and artistically rigorous explorations of a Biblical text. The creed and the prayers are grounded in Scripture. A Lutheran sermon, the church explains, is never a moralistic pep talk or a meditation on current events, but the proclamation of both Law (what God says about our sin) and Gospel (what God tells us about our Savior), drawn from the appointed text of Scripture. Holy Communion is celebrated as a reenactment of the Lord's Supper as recorded in the New Testament.
Sermons are preached by Pastor Fred Schleg, and many are archived in an online sermon library. Recent sermon titles posted include God's Plans Always Succeed, Jesus Is More Than Just A Nice Guy, Who is the Real Prisoner?, and What Defines A Christian?.
Coming as You Are
The congregation has thought carefully about the worries first-time visitors carry. On any given weekend, members dress in everything from running shoes and jeans to suits and ties. The Bible presents no dress code beyond simple modesty, and the church does not enforce one either. Visitors are free to sit, observe, and learn without being called on or put on the spot.
Palos is blunt about its own imperfection. The church describes itself as a spiritual hospital - not a museum for healthy people. Members understand that everyone who walks through the door is in need of treatment from the Great Physician. Visitors who know little about the Bible, who worry they might say or do something wrong, or who feel they do not fit the mold of an ideal churchgoer are welcomed with that posture.
Trusting Hearts Preschool and Kindergarten
The same campus houses Trusting Hearts Preschool & Kindergarten, a Christ-centered early childhood program for children ages 3 to 5. Trusting Hearts operates inside the church building and grew out of a long-running Lutheran preschool tradition at the congregation. The program was expanded during the 2006-2007 school year with the addition of a full-day option alongside the original half-day program.
Families can choose from half-day or full-day schedules and from two-, three-, four-, or five-day options. Before-school care runs from 7:00 to 8:00 AM and after-school care runs from 3:30 to 5:30 PM, with drop-in hourly rates available for occasional use. The half-day program runs from 8:30 to 11:30 AM and includes Good Morning Circle, Reading Readiness, Math Advantage, Free Play, and Story time. The full-day program continues through 3:30 PM and adds devotion, Quiet Time, Center Time, and a Science/Social Studies Thematic Unit.
Curriculum is centered on Christ and built around Scripture alone. The school explains that, because it is free from government restrictions, the staff can choose curriculum that works and adjust as needed without the threat of standardized testing determining the program's future. Wednesday chapel services for students take place at the church at 9:00 AM each week during the school year.
Trusting Hearts is staffed by Learning Center Director Kiara Potempa and assistants Monica Rettker, Michelle Sochacki, and Sarah Green. Inquiries and registration can be directed to trustinghearts@live.com or by calling the school office at (708) 448-2260.
Growth Groups and Confirmation
Outside of worship, the church's main rhythm of Bible connection is a network of weekly studies it labels Growth Groups. Two of those groups are scheduled each Wednesday via Zoom: one at noon and one in the evening. A Confirmation Growth Group meets in person at the church each Sunday morning from 10:30 to 11:30 AM. A Gospel Growth Group meets on Tuesday evenings from 9:00 to 10:00 PM. Together these groups form the heart of the congregation's midweek Bible study and discipleship life.
Prospective members and anyone wanting a deeper grounding in Christian doctrine are invited to attend Bible information classes that walk through the basic truths of the Bible - the same truths the congregation confesses as part of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.
GriefShare: A 13-Week Walk Through Loss
For anyone grieving the loss of a spouse, child, family member, or friend, the church hosts GriefShare, a 13-week support program that meets on Tuesday evenings from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. Each session uses a video-based curriculum, small group discussion, and a workbook to walk participants through topics common to grief, including the isolation that often follows a major loss.
The current program runs in a fall cycle, typically from mid-September through early December. Anyone in the broader Palos Heights area is welcome to join, regardless of church background. Sign-ups go through the GriefShare network and the church's Events page.
What the Church Believes
Palos Lutheran teaches, in summary, that:
- The Bible is the inspired, unchanging, and inerrant Word of God.
- There is one God in three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- God created man holy and without sin, but man of his own will fell into sin and brought sin upon the whole human race.
- The wages of sin is death and eternal separation from God in hell.
- God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to redeem the world.
- Jesus redeemed, that is, justified the whole human race with his holy precious blood and with his innocent suffering and death.
- This glorious fact is accepted by faith, which is worked in the heart by the Holy Spirit through the Word, Baptism, and the Lord's Supper.
- By faith alone in the atoning work of Christ, we are heirs of the glories of heaven, and while yet on earth we want to show our love for him who first loved us.
- At our death we shall inherit the full glories of everlasting life with Christ in heaven, where there shall be no pain or sorrow and all tears shall be wiped from our eyes.
The WELS Connection
Palos Lutheran is a member congregation of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), the fourth largest private/parochial school system in the United States. The WELS maintains a network of more than 400 early childhood ministries, more than 300 Lutheran elementary schools, 23 Lutheran high schools (the closest of which, Illinois Lutheran High School, is in Crete, Illinois), two Lutheran colleges, and one Lutheran seminary.
This connection is part of why Trusting Hearts can draw on a nationally recognized family of Christian education institutions for resources and accountability, and why Palos teaches the same doctrines as WELS congregations across the country.
Becoming a Member
Anyone interested in joining Palos Lutheran is invited to begin with the Bible information classes mentioned above. The congregation's membership page outlines three expectations of members: stay connected to God and his Word through regular worship attendance, Bible classes, and personal devotions; get involved in a group or activity such as Youth Group, Easter for Kids, summer picnics, the 4th of July parade, the Halloween Trunk or Treat, or one of the donation drives the church hosts; and invite others to join, treating the church as a place members are proud to send friends and family.
Prospective members can take the next step by emailing the church office at info@paloslutheran.org.
Giving and Staying Connected
There are three ways to give at Palos Lutheran. Visitors and members can place cash or a check in the offering plate during weekend services, mail a check to the church address, or give online through the church's giving portal. The church's guiding text for giving is 2 Corinthians 9:7: Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
A weekly email newsletter keeps members and friends in the loop on upcoming events, sermon series, and ministry news. Sign-up is available at the bottom of any page on the church's main site. The church also keeps an active presence on Facebook, and recent sermons are available on YouTube.
A Family on the South Side
At its heart, Palos Lutheran is a family of believers who exist to share the good news of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus' perfect life, death, and resurrection. That mission statement anchors everything from Saturday evening worship to the Wednesday morning chapel at Trusting Hearts to the Tuesday night GriefShare room. For anyone in Palos Heights or the surrounding southwest suburbs looking for a liturgical Lutheran church with an open door, an active preschool, a working grief support program, and a pastor who greets them at the entrance, Palos Lutheran Church on 71st Court is ready.