Federal Way residents aren't short on choices when it comes to expressing their spirituality. According to city business license records, there are 41 churches and religious organizations registered within the city limits.

Buddhists visit the Rissho Kosei-kai of Seattle's Buddhist Learning Center on Pacific Highway South, Russian-Americans gather at the First Ukrainian Baptist Church on 28th Avenue South, and Mormons unite at one of Federal Way's three Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

For over 2,000 of the city's Lutherans, St. Luke's on 312th is their chosen center of worship. This month St. Luke's celebrates its 50th year of services and community involvement with anniversary festivities on September 24 and 25, as well as a new community program named "The Parent School."

In the mid-1950s, an area resident and pastor named H. John Malkow opted to expand the Missouri Synod of the Lutheran Church to the Northwest. In 1956, 21 members joined Malkow at the initial service in the auditorium of the Federal Way High School, and in 1957 the church bought land on the corner of 312th and 5th Avenue South and became known as St. Luke's.

The current pastor, Dr. Victor Hippe, has been with St. Luke's for the past 27 years. When he first came to Federal Way in 1963, he was driving the old highway 99 from Vancouver, British Columbia to Portland, and he remembers stopping at the only red light for miles around, which happened to be on the corner of Pacific Highway South and 312th.

"I remember thinking, why am I waiting at this red light in this godforsaken area, there was no one around," Hippe said in an interview last week. "Little did I know that that was the very street of St. Luke's."

Over the years, St. Luke's has expanded its property line and built three congregation halls, the latest one dedicated in 1997.

Regardless of religious affiliation, locals visit St. Luke's for reasons other than weekend worship services.

Since 1982, the church has been the home to "Operation Blessing," a program that provides food and assistance to needy Federal Way residents through a food bank and vouchers to area business and utility companies. Each year, Operation Blessing offers over 1,000 area residents a helping hand meet basic needs, and is solely funded by the church itself.

St. Luke's is also the home to the Federal Way Symphony and a theater group that stages family-oriented productions such as Annie and The Music Man.

In the educational arena, St. Luke's has offered early childhood education for the past 38 years, opening a preschool in 1968, followed by a day-care center in 1976 and kindergarten classes in 1985.

In an effort to broaden the church's community involvement outside its congregation, this year St. Luke's starts a new program for parents, The Parent School. Open to the general public, a $25 fee will allow parents to attend four-week course sessions. Meeting each Tuesday, the classes are taught by Becky Huntley, MSW, an author and university instructor with nearly 20 years of counseling experience in hospitals, adolescent day treatment and elementary schools.

"With our Parent School, we're developing some of the best curriculum for parenting education out there. It's research based, and offers something for everybody," said Hippe. When asked if non-Lutherans might be scared away from taking such courses at a church, Hippe replied, "If anything, we might be criticized for not focusing enough on religion. It's definitely geared toward the whole child, not exclusively the spiritual angle."

Despite St. Luke's extensive secular offerings, it's the worship services that attract the largest membership. Hippe reports that the congregation has gotten younger every year; the under-30 crowd are well represented.

"We have awesome music, and offer four styles of worship - classical, contemporary, GenX and casual. For the first I'm in traditional robes, but for the others I'm in my Dockers and the tone is relaxed. Our "55 at 5" service - 55 minutes of casual worship at 5 p.m. - on Saturdays attract a lot of young people - at least 100 to 150 each week," said Hippe, and that on any given weekend, over 900 members attend services at St. Luke's.

For Marianne Bell, a member of the congregation for the past 14 years, St. Luke's holds a central place in her life.

"A friend invited me to a service - and afterwards I thought "this is the church for me!" said Bell last week.

"A few years ago I was offered a job transfer and I turned it down because I didn't want to leave the St. Luke's community - it's that great."