The last Sunday in October is honored in many Protestant churches as “Reformation Sunday”, recalling that on October 31, 1517 Martin Luther made public his 95 theses which, according to legend, he nailed to the door of the Castle church in Wittenburg, Germany. The opening hymn selected for today, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”, was written by Luther himself. Also, in honor of another holiday coming up that coincides with that date, I have chosen a special treat for the organ postlude in this virtual service.

1. Opening Acclamation: Psalm 46:1.
2. Hymn: “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” by unknown congregation. Public domain.
3. First Reading: Leviticus 19:1-2, 15-18, King James Bible.
4. Psalm 1, King James Bible.
5. Gloria Patri: Excerpted from chanting of Psalm 96 by Wakefield Cathedral Choir, 2018; Fair Use.
6. Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-8, World English Bible.
7. Organ sequence: Georg Böhm (1661-1733): Excerpt from “Ach wie nichtig, ach wie flüchtig” performed by Thiemo Janssen on the organ in Marienhafe, used in accordance with Creative Commons license.  
8. Gospel: Matthew 22:34-46, World English Bible.
9. The Lord’s Prayer: from Matthew 6.
10. Blessing: 2 Corinthians 13.
11. Organ Postlude: Johan Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): “Toccata and Fugue in D minor.” Played by Fyodor Stroganov (organ). Recorded from a concert on 10/04/2015 at the Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul. The organizer is the Collegium musicum concert agency. Used in accordance with Creative Commons license.

The Bible passages were recorded by Librivox, and are in the public domain. Readings correspond to the Revised Common Lectionary. All audio files are given with attribution where known.