Holy Trinity In the Loop – Elca Lutheran Church

I’ve visited Holy Trinity in the Loop several times now — and am very glad I have. Pastor Mueller is an excellent preacher — thoughtful, engaging, and insightful.
The worship service is traditional, yet casual, with a calm meditative atmosphere.
Members of the congregation are very friendly and welcoming — and the 5:00 pm Saturday worship time is really convenient!

I’ve never loved going to church like I love going to Holy Trinity. I’ve attended the Wrigleyville location, and now I’m so pleased to have a Saturday evening option in HTLoop. Plus the Loop location has parking :)
Much of what I love about the Wrigleyville location is also in the Loop location — a beautiful setting, traditional service & music (piano and usually some other accompanying instruments like strings), and relevant, thoughtful sermons that help me reflect on faith and life.
I am happy that at every service, the minister affirms that ALL are welcome, no matter where you’re from, what you think about religion/​church, who you love, etc.
I appreciate that I don’t ever feel like people are applying pressure to «become a member» or do anything otherwise. If you’d like, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved, both within the church & with external volunteer and other programs. There are friendly people at the wine & refreshments receptions afterwards that will be happy to tell you more! Attendees seem to be a mix of new and familiar faces, so if you’re looking for community or just visiting, there’s likely to be others in your same category.
I always leave services feeling grateful & re-​centered.

This gathering was thoughtful, friendly but not overwhelming, in an open but intimate space, a variety of people [I didn’t feel awkward walking in as a young adult], the music was great, and there was wine and spinach dip afterwards instead of coffee [awesome]. I’d go again!

If you are looking for a church that is for everyone, no matter who you are, this church is for you. At HT Loop, you will find a very open and progressive environment. There are folks from different backgrounds, culturally and racially, who are a caring and supportive community for one another. The congregation is small but very friendly. You’re guaranteed to get a smile and a handshake from the person sitting next to you.
Pastor Craig Mueller delivers excellent sermons that are scripture-​based and easy to relate to TODAY — often with a touch of humor. No worries if you’re concerned about «fire and brimstone» talk about people you love and/​or hearing God «hates this» or «hates that».
Thanks to the outstanding musician, you will find uplifting music that blends contemporary (minus electric guitars and drums) with traditional hymns (a few that your grandma would love). Many members of the congregation have strong music backgrounds, so they can pull off a cappella pieces — which can be very moving.
Last of all, the social hour is great — not surprisingly for a Lutheran church. You can usually find someone who is up for grabbing dinner at one of the cozy restaurants down the street.

Let me start by saying I’m a lifelong Lutheran who was looking for a church with traditional liturgy and progressive theology. That’s how I found Holy Trinity at their location in Lakeview shortly before Easter 2013, a wonderful place all-​around (beautiful music and liturgy, caring and involved leadership, a Reconciling/​LGBTQ-​welcoming congregation, and an active social ministry) – except as a south-​sider, it’s a bit far for this CTA-​goer. (Which doesn’t stop me, so that should say something!)
So wouldn’t it be perfect to bring everything HT has to offer a few miles south to a central location downtown? Enter «HTLoop.»
It takes me 20 minutes to get to Grace Place (the venue for this service) on the orange line, plus it’s on Saturday nights – perfect for someone (like me) who wakes up super early for work every other day of the week. Plus, I’ve always found something so much more attractive about evening worship – the calm, reflective, contemplative nature of it really helps me slow down and center myself from a hectic week.
Pr. Craig, the senior pastor up north who also primarily officiates the Loop service, is incredibly welcoming and a wonderful preacher. Between him, Dan (the music director), and countless lay leaders, the seamless liturgy is just as beautiful (if not more – see my preference for evening services above :)) as the Sunday morning services in Lakeview. I’ve only been to the two «preview services» so far, but I’m so excited for the weekly services to start tomorrow (as I write this).
One other thing, and perhaps the most important: As Pr. Craig says at *every* service, whoever you are, wherever you’re from, whomever you love or marry, what you believe or don’t, and whatever your feelings about church/​organized religion/​spirituality, you are welcome at Holy Trinity! No exceptions, no qualifiers. That is good news for today’s world, indeed.

My daughter had been a member in Wrigleyville but moved out of state. She was in town visiting us and wanted to visit the church, so I went with her.
I like the services in Wrigleyville, but this has a stronger appeal to me. Hard to put my finger on it, but a very nice feel to this congregation, to the liturgy, to the music. A great worship experience.

As a denizen of the loop, it is hard to find a church community that uses a traditional liturgy, but doesn’t have an average age of 80 plus. Holy Trinity in the Loop solves this problem wonderfully, and it has a convenient Saturday service time — no more waking up early on the weekends! Their tag line even says exactly what I was looking for: «Traditional Liturgy. Progressive Thinking.»
My husband and I started out going to the original Holy Trinity in Wrigleyville, but once we heard they had another congregation in the loop, the decision was easy. It’s walkable from our place, or easy to get to on public transportation since its just south of Harrison on Dearborn. I think they even have some parking spots reserved and someone from the congregation to direct you to them. The space is beautiful — its in a loft, but it feels like a church. When you see it, you know you’re there to worship! Its actually an Episcopal church on Sundays, but they share with us Lutherans on Saturday!
The services are every Saturday at 5 pm, and it’s ELCA, so EVERYONE is welcome! The services are, as mentioned earlier, traditional. No happy/​clappy rock-​and-​roll church here. They use beautiful hymns and the acoustics of the space are just awesome. I find the number of attendees to be about right: about 50 – 70. Its a little different every week!
Overall, I highly recommend Holy Trinity in the Loop — it’s easy, convenient, and still feels like church!