tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28179030295648228952024-03-10T18:59:22.426-07:00Larry WohlrabeLarry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.comBlogger367125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-41811770311482026742023-12-04T08:24:00.000-08:002023-12-04T08:24:30.708-08:00The Man for Others<p> </p><h1><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Man for Others</span></h1><h1><span style="font-weight: normal;">Advent 1, Year B<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1><span style="font-weight: normal;">Isaiah 64:1-9<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1><span style="font-weight: normal;">December 3, 2023 at Trinity Lutheran Church, Moorhead MN</span><o:p></o:p></h1>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 124.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">From our First Lesson for today we hear again these
words:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“O that you would tear open the heavens
and come down…!”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">O that you would travel from heaven to earth, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Great God, and pay us a healing, helping visit!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Come down here—why don’t you?—and clean
things up!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Y’know—I bet we could get into
that—couldn’t we?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Please come down to us, Lord,”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I actually sometimes pray, under my breath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Please come down from heaven and take care
of all the things that are awry here on earth.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“O that you would tear open the heavens
and come down…!”</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">…come down to—not just anywhere—but back to that crossroads
of this world where God first uttered ancient promises to his chosen
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Split the heavens above and
descend upon today’s Middle East—where terror, revenge, hatred and discontent
seethe in the streets….especially nowadays in Israel and Gaza.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">If you just came down from heaven, dear God, you could
really straighten out that and other troubled parts of your world!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Tear open the heavens and come down, O God, to the
tens of thousands of victims of natural disasters like earthquakes and floods
plus human-caused disasters like climate change and wars.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Tear open the heavens and descend to us, O God—and
please, please, please, with seemingly no accurate chart or sure compass to
guide our way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tear open the heavens,
O God, and visit us right here, right now, and set all things aright!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Tear open the heavens and come down, O God, to our own
little corner of this world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Come down
to a local hospital ICU where a loved one clings to life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Come among us, O God, and patch up broken
relationships, heal fractured marriages, and restore hope for our
children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Create jobs for our unemployed
or underemployed friends…make a home for our displaced, desperate neighbors.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">O that you would tear open the heavens and come down
here and make yourself plain to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Cause us to see that you, O God, are undeniable and
unavoidable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Get in our faces, Lord
God—and make it impossible for us to ignore you or sidestep your will.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“O that you would tear open the heavens
and come down,”</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> pleads the ancient prophet Isaiah in our
first lesson for today….reminding us that this season of Advent always begins with
songs of plaintive longing---songs sung in a minor key, songs that have been echoing
for 25 centuries…songs like “<i>O come, O come, Emmanuel.”</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Before we go any farther, we must remember that old
Isaiah the prophet addressed a defeated, exiled people…the wandering Jews who
lived five centuries before the birth of Christ---a people in exile who were
not free to come or go as they pleased….a people who could not worship in their
beloved temple in Jerusalem<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Truth be told, they couldn’t see the light at the end
of the tunnel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they struggled to
trust that God was still alive and well and active in their lives.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“O that you would tear open the heavens
and come down”</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> they cried, night and day.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As we ponder this text we can’t help but hear their
aching longing…their gnawing hunger for the tangible, living, life-restoring
presence of God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Descend
to us, God, and do the stuff you used to do,”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Isaiah cries out<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Come
down from heaven, O God, and make a mountain or two quake again—the way you did
when you thundered on Mt. Sinai.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Light
a fire again, O God, the way you did when the prophet Elijah battled the pagan prophets
of Baal on Mt. Carmel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Make
a name for yourself again, O God, the way you did when you brought your people
through the waters of the Red Sea and defeated the army of Egypt’s pharaoh.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“O that you would tear open the heavens and come
down…!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that we would never again
have to wonder if you exist, if you care, if you are here beside us—attuned to all
the ups and downs of our lives.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This morning, my friends, we hear once
again these ancient words of Isaiah….</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">still grabbing us,
still hooking us, still resonating with our longings…still rhyming with our own
hunger<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>for the concrete, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>tangible, presence of God in all of our lives.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Advent begins this year the way Advent always begins--with
a song of longing—an agonizing tune that cries out:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“O that you would tear open the heavens
and come down!”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We hear these ancient words of Isaiah….appropriately
enough, on this first Sunday in Advent…when we are preparing ourselves once
again to ponder and celebrate just how, in fact God <b><u>has</u></b> already
chosen to rend the heavens and come down to live among us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The prophet’s lament, you see, has borne amazing
fruit…all because God has done and God continues to do exactly what Isaiah
longingly called for.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God has done so…and God keeps doing exactly what
Isaiah called for, <b>but in a most eye-opening, unexpected way. <o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">…for you see that, when <u>God </u>rends the heavens,
when <u>God </u>tears open the sky…it’s not to create a ginormous galaxy-wide
gash so that legions of angels can march through it in order to mop up all
evidence of evil on earth.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Rather, when <u>God</u>
rends open the heavens…<u>God</u> does so in the seemingly <b><i>smallest</i></b>
of ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><u>God</u> cracks open just a
tiny little fissure in the sky, small enough for a newborn infant to squeeze
through, so that this very same infant could show up in a feed-bunk inside a frigid
Palestinian stable…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">….and so that this child
might eventually grow into a man, <b><i>the Man for Others</i></b>,
(Bonhoeffer) who <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>stretched out his arms
on a Cross—for you and for me and for everyone else!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-62667780416899906582023-10-30T18:25:00.000-07:002023-10-30T18:25:05.613-07:00One Little Word<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_gtkDvkjItceziZ_9yZaeBdUdZFnKQDSEkaBfOm-4MoUVdFwbl4QG03cnLgdmH9C8kcyFX6st-juDOh95KNOZMQIjOVmuIJasRa0z6ec0NMxIp_e7zhwxkOAp52bi6lLUQUHmluRSv-fBvIucAmigQBNrYU7HaAvjdR090-gEbCYVHb0Z1rm_QKL-vvs/s2048/GranlundSculptureChapeloftheCross.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_gtkDvkjItceziZ_9yZaeBdUdZFnKQDSEkaBfOm-4MoUVdFwbl4QG03cnLgdmH9C8kcyFX6st-juDOh95KNOZMQIjOVmuIJasRa0z6ec0NMxIp_e7zhwxkOAp52bi6lLUQUHmluRSv-fBvIucAmigQBNrYU7HaAvjdR090-gEbCYVHb0Z1rm_QKL-vvs/s320/GranlundSculptureChapeloftheCross.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />Dear friends, I preached this sermon on June 19, 1986 in the Chapel of the Cross in Northwestern Hall on the campus of Luther Seminary in St Paul. I was serving as the seminary's first Director of Admissions at the time. I wrote this sermon using my ancient Olympia manual typewriter; this is the first time I have published this message from 37 years ago. I dedicate this post to the memory of six seminary faculty who also preached during the same summer session of 1986: Paul Knutson, Eugene Kreider, Donald Juel, James Nestingen, Terry Fretheim and Paul Sonnack. <i>God bless their memory! </i><p></p><p>May God also bless our memory of the Chapel of the Cross which was decommissioned in 2021.</p><p><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">CHAPEL SERMON</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Luther Northwestern
Seminary<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">June 19, 1986<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">This may sound strange to
you, but for most of my life I’ve had the habit of daydreaming during Sunday
morning worship.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">When I was a little boy I
recall getting distracted during “church” by questions like…what would happen
if a gigantic bumblebee swooped through that little open window by the organ
some Sunday and stung the preacher on the nose smack dab in the middle of
communion…and why it was that one of the stained glass windows along the pulpit
side of the church featured a hand raised in something that looked like the Boy
Scout salute—when our congregation didn’t even have a scout troop, let alone
“believe” in scouting.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">When I was young my Sunday
morning daydreaming tended to be about very tangible, concrete matters…like
what in the world a “Holy Ghost” might look like…and how in the world a Holy
Ghost could conceive a baby…and what phrases like “temporal and eternal
punishment”…”extol the stem of Jesse’s rod”…and “meet, right and salutary”
meant…and what actually went on in that little football huddle that gathered up
front around the baptismal font every once in a while, what did those people do
to make that poor, helpless baby scream so hard, I wondered?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">I guess I’ve always had
the habit of day-dreaming during Sunday morning worship…and as I’ve grown older,
gone to seminary and gotten ordained my day-dreaming hasn’t really
diminished…though it may have become a bit more theologically sophisticated…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">…so that now I sing hymns
like this one…and wonder after verse 3 what that one little word that subdues
the devil might actually <u>be.</u></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">“Though hordes of devils
fill the land all threatening to devour us, we tremble not, unmoved we stand;
they cannot overpower us.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Let this
world’s tyrant rage; in battle we’ll engage!</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">His might is doomed to fail; God’s judgment must prevail.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">ONE LITTLE WORD SUBDUES HIM!”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">But </span><u style="font-size: 14pt;">what</u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> one little
word…is what I want to know…what I daydream about during those interminable
Reformation rallies we Lutherans subject ourselves to every last Sunday in
October.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The third verse of this
majestic hymn conjured up in my mind an image of Martin Luther, holed up in his
Wartburg Castle study, surrounded by stacks of Greek and Hebrew manuscripts, in
a cold sweat because he’s constipated as usual, his kidney stones are paining
him again, and worst of all those old doubts, questions and anxieties are
crashing in upon him.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Verse three of this hymn
causes me to envision this tormented soul…groping, grasping for a blunt object
to be flung in self-defense at a shadow where the devil seems to be lurking.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">What word did Luther utter
while simultaneously flinging his trusty inkwell at the Tempter?</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">What, for Luther, might have been that “one
little word” that subdues the Evil One?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">There are, I suppose, a
host of obvious possibilities…in-house, Reformation language, code words,
incantations (if you will) that we Lutherans might try out in an exorcism if we
ever got roped into doing an exorcism.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">For instance there’s that
all-time favorite word “grace”…as in the ever-present “Grace Lutheran Church”,
“saved by grace” and that popular whipping-boy of ours, “cheap grace.”</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">It just could be that “grace” is all that
needs to be said to force Satan into beating a hasty retreat…</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…but then again, there are
plenty of other, equally-likely possibilities.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The one little word that makes the devil go gaa-gaa could be
“justification”…or “cross” (as in “theology of the ______”)….or that
all-purpose answer seminarians put down on test papers when they don’t know the
real answer:</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">“JESUS!”</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">“Jesus” could be the one little word that
stops Lucifer dead in his tracks….</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">….but I have my
doubts.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">I don’t think that even “Jesus”
is the word…any more than “grace” or “justification” or “cross” or any other
in-house, Reformation code word is </span><u style="font-size: 14pt;">the </u><span style="font-size: 14pt;">word, the one little word that
drives the </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">diabolos</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> dingy!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">You can repeat all those
good words until you’re blue in the face, after all, and absolutely nothing
will happen…because as good ad as true and as beautiful as those words might
be…none of them have the power actually to “deliver the goods”…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…and Luther knew
that.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">He didn’t discover or concoct or
create any one of those words…any more than he was the first person to read the
Epistle to the Romans!</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">But what Luther did
discover (or, perhaps we should say, what discovered Luther!) was a whole new
way of hearing all those old familiar words, so that a new creation, so that
entirely new people might emerge from the hearing of those words.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">It is to that entirely new
way of hearing the gospel that we must attend if we want to ferret out the one
little word that subdues Satan…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">….and when we do so we’re
going to be surprised to discover that the conjunctions, the prepositions, and
the pronouns are the words that really pack a wallop.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">What is the </span><u style="font-size: 14pt;">one little
word</u><span style="font-size: 14pt;">, anyway?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Maybe it’s a word like
“nevertheless”…a “conjunctive adverb” (according to my dictionary) that signals
fresh possibilities on dead-end streets, hope in despair, a “yes” in the face
of every “no.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">What is the </span><u style="font-size: 14pt;">one little
word?</u></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">It could be a
strategically placed “because” where we’d normally expect to see a great big “if”…a
strategically placed “because” that turns us away from our dour introspection,
toward instead the mighty acts of One who even before we shifted out of neutral
had already acted to save us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">What is the one little
word that spells the end for the devil?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">It just might be that
harmless, taken-for-granted, misused and abused pronoun “YOU”…attached, though,
to a promise spoken by one flesh-and-blood human being to another in the name
of and with the authority of the crucified and risen Lord.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">If I had to settle on just
one word, I’d bet my whole wad on that little pronoun.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The one word, I have a
hunch…the one little word the devil will do anything to stifle because he knows
it’ll cook his goose is that word “you”—attached to a promise of the Gospel:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Zaccheus, come down; I must eat with you,
in your house today.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You did not choose me, but I chose you…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your sins are forgiven…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to
you…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lo, I am with you always even to the close
of the age.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">That one little bugger of
a word “you” cuts through all the mustard, slices through all the verbiage,
bursts through all the ways we attempt to keep God under wraps, at arm’s
length…all the ways we try to maintain a safe distance between ourselves and the
dynamite of the gospel.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">That word, that one
stinking little word attached to a promise spoken for Christ, by Christ,
actually delivers the goods, </span><u style="font-size: 14pt;">does</u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> the good news, opens up the future, creates
a new world and new people…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…all of which is not to
deny for one second that it’s a dangerous little word.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The evil one hates that little word so much
that he’s been known to have certain sayers of it crucified…and every preacher
I know of, myself included, struggles to actually say it in all its risky,
scandalous splendor…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…which is why I’d bet my
bottom dollar that it actually </span><u style="font-size: 14pt;">is</u><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> the one little word that subdues the
devil…knocks him and us out of the driver’s seat…because it’s the one little
word that can make a sermon more than a lecture on our spiritual and moral
possibilities…it’s the one little word that finally hooks us, gets down under
our skin, anchoring us in a love that’ll never let us go</span><b style="font-size: 14pt;"><i>. “I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son
and Spirit….I declare unto you the entire forgiveness of all your sins….This is
the body and blood of Christ, for you….Jesus crucified, dead, buried</i></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><b style="font-size: 14pt;"><i>and
risen…so that you might live the life you were created for—trusting God,
loving, your neighbors, caring for the earth.”</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">“You”…a toothless,
three-letter, nickel and dime pronoun…until, that is, it’s used to single out
and name the recipient, the receiver, the hearer of a promise of Christ.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Then that pitiful little pronoun becomes
more explosive than the combined megatonnage of all this world’s nuclear
arsenals….</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…for it’s that
gospel-promise “YOU” that makes it possible for good-for-nothings to believe
otherwise about themselves….</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…it’s that gospel-promise
“YOU” uttered in a Russian Orthodox baptismal liturgy that frees beleaguered
believers to recognize the true super-power to whom they’ve been consigned
forever….</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…it’s that gospel-promise
“YOU” heard at communion rails in Soweto Township that empowers folks to hope
and struggle and live on in the face of oppression.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…it’s that gospel-promise
“YOU” that frees farmers facing foreclosure to continue in their calling to
till and keep the land.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…it’s -promise “YOU” that lets
hope take root on hospital oncology wards…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…it’s that gospel-promise
“YOU” that stirs me from my apathetic, complacent stupor…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">…it’s that gospel-promise
“YOU” that will see you through your seminary education, that will undergird
you in your ministry, that will sustain you in your life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">And you don’t have just my
word on that, either!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">You have God’s Word on it!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">In the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Amen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-45725677619892249922023-04-17T08:48:00.033-07:002023-04-17T10:16:51.256-07:00<p> </p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">Shining
Together Capital Campaign Celebration Sunday</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">Ap</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">ril
16, 2023/Second Sunday of Easter</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">Trinity
Lutheran Church, Moorhead, MN<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">John
20:19-31<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-i61-ZNxt4gCkfxaX7mk2zX7L74kFX5eJLnuPAhLwa1gfXWDjSQzXj_5_8v5D12qChQ1jSwrXX64ByYolGhZxOfO47cZm00Z_PYqcbgIUfdSWiFPOdx5uTwe0RNxyhbr-5XknqmzXCQ0AluZ08iBRzKN9RHjuvlSNIMtoHsKXZqey5zi9Mwu4641N/s1155/ConcordiaChoir2023April16.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="805" data-original-width="1155" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-i61-ZNxt4gCkfxaX7mk2zX7L74kFX5eJLnuPAhLwa1gfXWDjSQzXj_5_8v5D12qChQ1jSwrXX64ByYolGhZxOfO47cZm00Z_PYqcbgIUfdSWiFPOdx5uTwe0RNxyhbr-5XknqmzXCQ0AluZ08iBRzKN9RHjuvlSNIMtoHsKXZqey5zi9Mwu4641N/w462-h322/ConcordiaChoir2023April16.jpg" width="462" /></a></div></div><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">In
the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Amen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">The
lesson that was just read is one of the Bible stories we’ve all heard at least annually
in our Sunday morning worship services.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Even
in 1978 when we North American Lutherans moved away from our old one-year
lectionary (</span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">a lectionary, which is a list of appointed scripture lessons for all the
Sundays and festivals in the church year</i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">)….even when we started using a new
3-year lectionary that was designed to expose us to three times as many
different Sunday scripture readings over the course of three years—even so
we’ve still been hearing this Thomas story </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><u>every single year</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> on
this Second Sunday of Easter.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Why
is that?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">I think that we share this gripping
story, which is told only here in John’s Gospel…because of the provocative and
timely way it acknowledges that not everyone who hears the story of Jesus’
death and resurrection immediately believes it.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Even
if some folks who catch wind of the story of Easter don’t always believe it at
first, they may well come to believe it later, as in fact happened to Thomas,
one of Jesus’ 12 disciples, Jesus’ closest followers.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Thomas,
you see, started out as someone stuck on the notion that “</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><u>seeing is
believing</u>.</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">” Later, though, Thomas became a proclaimer of Christ who
learned that “</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">believing is seeing</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">” particularly when we’re grappling
with the miracle of our Lord’s Resurrection.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">What
wonderful news that is for all of us who have come to believe in Christ even
though (unlike Thomas) we have not put our fingers right into the nail-holes in
Jesus’ hands, let alone thrust our hands right into the sword-pierced side of
our Savior.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Notice
how the Risen Christ took Thomas by the hand and walked him through everything Thomas
had asked for, everything Thomas needed to know in order to embrace the truth
of Christ’s resurrection.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Amazing!</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Rather than scolding Thomas—the Risen Christ
took as much time as Thomas needed in order to proclaim boldly and clearly those
powerful words:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">“</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><i>My Lord and my
God</i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">!”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">I
believe that the reason the </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Risen Christ
was so patient with skeptical Thomas…was that Jesus knew there was a believer
already living inside of Thomas…..and not just a </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">believer</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">, mind you, but
a </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">proclaimer </b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">of the Good News of Jesus’ saving life, redemptive death
and miraculous resurrection.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">As
some of us preacher-types like to say:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">
</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><i>Thomas the doubter became Thomas the shouter</i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">….Thomas who
spent himself, losing his own life for the sake of sharing Christ wherever his
feet took him.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">But
just where was that?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Where exactly did
Thomas’s feet take him?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Fourteen
years ago, Joy and I made our first trip to our synod’s companion synod in
India, and it was during that pilgrimage that we learned how precious St Thomas
has been and still is to our fellow Christians in India.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">These believers who live way on the opposite
side of the globe, have followed our Lord’s command to </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><i>“Go therefore and
make disciples of all nations.”</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">A
tradition not found in our Bible but cherished by many of India’s Christians is
that St. Thomas traveled over 4,000 miles from Jerusalem in Israel to Chennai
(formerly Madras) in India, in order to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">When
Joy and I visited the city of Chennai, we found ourselves surrounded by
artwork, architecture, stories, and the 21</span><sup style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">st</sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> century presence of
Indian Christians many of whom belong to the Mar Thoma Church, that is:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">the Saint Thomas Church, numbering over 1.6
million believers in India and around the world.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">We
began our first day in Chennai by climbing a small hill called St. Thomas
Mount—the hill on which St Thomas is believed to have been killed by a spear
thrust into him by an opponent of Thomas’s preaching of Christ, in the year 72
A.D.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">At
the bottom of St Thomas Mount, we visited the lovely Basilica Cathedral of St.
Thomas, which was built in 1523 A.D. (during the lifetime of Martin
Luther).</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">In the crypt underneath the cathedral
we paused in a small chapel that housed a statue of the martyred St Thomas,
lying in repose inside a glass-encased casket—next to a wall displaying a relic
that allegedly contained part of one of St Thomas’s fingers.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Now
I realize you may be wondering:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Why all
this attention to St Thomas?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="tab-stops: 4.7in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">It’s
because the Mar Thoma Christians and all other Christians around the globe,
didn’t just come to faith in the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ by
accident.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Far
from it!</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">For, you see, when the Risen
Christ commissioned his disciples to “</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><i>go and make disciples of all nations”</i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">
they did indeed fan out from Jerusalem to eventually blanket the whole earth…including
you and me and all our forebears in faith who’ve been brought into the Body of
Christ, wherein we here at Trinity are now seeking fresh ways to shine
together, bearing the light of Christ.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">But
before we dove into our capital campaign, we took one of wisest, most significant
steps we could have taken:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">the initial
step of creating a missional narrative for our congregation that boldly
declares</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"><i>: “God is calling Trinity
Lutheran Church to shine the light of Christ into Downtown Moorhead and
beyond.”</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Thank
God that this eye-catching, compelling call is now leading us to refocus our
vision, renew our ministries, and refresh our facilities.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">In
closing, I invite you to notice something in the order of worship in your
bulletin…near the sermon…a unique symbol that comes from India.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">It’s the emblem of our our sisters and
brothers in Christ of India’s Mar Thoma Church.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifViolsl3OAf58dMkawGFJg2XR_k3LrMoWESdLv-bDCKyO903iGOzQPsq0AXFUp3ENL3QFmXpCVKa9ndk2FDfwqsRrCv5mKWmkr3upfszJ6TOR4m_Np_QO43baDiRNGOinSxD4DPsRdVSiBYgkt6Y9BRY-A3hR7HS-hTaRtNqZGyNOCjJ1I6H9oRyg/s316/EmblemMarThomaChurchB&W.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="316" data-original-width="316" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifViolsl3OAf58dMkawGFJg2XR_k3LrMoWESdLv-bDCKyO903iGOzQPsq0AXFUp3ENL3QFmXpCVKa9ndk2FDfwqsRrCv5mKWmkr3upfszJ6TOR4m_Np_QO43baDiRNGOinSxD4DPsRdVSiBYgkt6Y9BRY-A3hR7HS-hTaRtNqZGyNOCjJ1I6H9oRyg/s1600/EmblemMarThomaChurchB&W.png" width="316" /></a></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">When
I recently discovered this emblem, I was struck by the slogan "Lighted to Lighten”—a
slogan from the other side of the world that is nearly identical to our congregation’s
missional calling to “Be A Light!” here in downtown Moorhead and beyond.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">My
dear friends:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">on this Second Sunday of
Easter, this “Shining Together” festival, may the Risen Christ take all of us
by the hand and inspire us to shine the light of Christ wherever we
go…especially into downtown Moorhead and beyond!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">In
the name of Jesus, the light of the world.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18pt;">Amen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></b></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-36711179265616190862022-11-11T14:47:00.003-08:002022-11-12T07:15:07.798-08:00My Renewed Appreciation for the Privilege of Voting<p> </p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large; line-height: 107%;">My Renewed Appreciation for the Privilege
of Voting</span></b></p></blockquote><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ0lQ9yFYck7MqWiMmtoFp5pzPGlE4KLe3d2pIbE1B6ezOQP67-PwoOfsaLJAod2naw9LMLGDFIEvNRGkLc3JZtEpC5VJkQQk4mgAPkFB-MCHNZxeT7npntjeyiooQcfoRwrvzT3l9Hhb8qUvUy9za2ekO2Nu_ZHNyP23UTRzNP1b4LulTL-_Zt_NT/s2048/SterlingTownshipHall1892sideview.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ0lQ9yFYck7MqWiMmtoFp5pzPGlE4KLe3d2pIbE1B6ezOQP67-PwoOfsaLJAod2naw9LMLGDFIEvNRGkLc3JZtEpC5VJkQQk4mgAPkFB-MCHNZxeT7npntjeyiooQcfoRwrvzT3l9Hhb8qUvUy9za2ekO2Nu_ZHNyP23UTRzNP1b4LulTL-_Zt_NT/s320/SterlingTownshipHall1892sideview.jpg" width="240" /></a></b></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">My first exposure to the reality of elections in the
U.S.A. was in the early 1960s when, on election day, I accompanied my parents
to the Sterling Township Hall in Blue Earth County, MN. Sterling Township is one of 23 townships in
Blue Earth County, with the county seat located in Mankato, MN.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In those years my father was one of the “supervisors”
of the township—sitting on the township governing board for a number of years. The supervisors along with the township
clerk also staffed the elections that were held periodically in the old town
hall. As I recall, the seriousness of Election
Day was underscored by the presence of the township constable—along with all
members of the township board. The
constable, as I recall, wore a shiny metal badge and carried a pistol--though I
wondered whether, like television’s Deputy Barney Fife on the old <i>Andy
Griffith Show</i> (1960-65), he was allowed to have only one bullet which had
to be kept in his shirt pocket most of the time</span><span style="font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji",sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol-ext; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji";">😊</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Elections in those years were rather simple and basic,
involving only paper ballots, pencils and a lock-box that was used to collect
completed ballots in order to transport them to the County Auditor’s office in
the Blue Earth County Courthouse in Mankato, MN-- about 25 miles north of
Sterling Township. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This past Tuesday I served as an election judge for
the city of Moorhead, MN, and it dawned on me that I was serving in a capacity
similar to what my father did, in Sterling Township, some 60 years ago. This
experience gave me a chance to discover “up close and personal,” the inner workings of the election process in
2022. I volunteered for this service
in order to do my part in assuring our local election was run in accordance
with Minnesota law—with honesty, integrity and trustworthiness.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">For quite a number of reasons, serving as an election
judge only increased my appreciation for and trust in the integrity of our
elections in the great state of Minnesota.
For example:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Election
officials are required to take training, based on the 74-page<b> 2022 State of
Minnesota Election Judge Guide. </b>This
detailed guide is highly informative and clearly reflective of pertinent
Minnesota State law. My training
included reading of the entire Guide, attending a 2-hour education session last
summer, and being instructed on-site
regarding my specific duties. It was
also helpful to have a mix of experienced election judges serving alongside
“newbies” like me. In addition to the
ten election judges responsible for the voters in Ward 1, Precinct 2 of
Moorhead---we had two “head judges” on our team who were readily available to
help out with questions and trouble-shooting during Election Day.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">All judges were required to take the
following oath before the start of Election Day: <b><i>“I, (name) solemnly
swear that I will perform the duties of election judge according to law and the
best of my ability and will diligently endeavor to prevent fraud, deceit and
abuse in conducting this election. I
will perform my duties in a fair and impartial manner and not attempt to create
an advantage for my party or for any candidate.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The
facility where we were located—The Church of Saint Francis de Sales in north
Moorhead—was ideal for our purposes, with ample parking, accessible restrooms,
and sufficient space (all on one level) to accommodate a steady stream of
voters throughout the day.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The
election was conducted in a strictly bi-partisan and non-partisan manner. Bi-partisanship was assured because each
ward/precinct had election judges who were affiliated with each of the major political
parties. Non-partisanship was fostered
by an expectation that all judges agreed to refrain from wearing any political
clothing or buttons, and that they refrain from any political/partisan
conversation during Election Day.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I
was struck by how quickly and competently the head judges assisted election
judges with any questions (from voters) they didn’t know how to answer, as well
as how glitches with voting equipment were handled in a timely manner.<o:p></o:p></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Along
the way I learned two other things about how elections in Minnesota are
conducted. First we don’t “spare the
horses” in terms of staffing of local polling places—I heard on MPR that
Minnesota hired about 30,000 local election staffers like myself. No doubt, this contributes to avoid long
lines on election day. Second, I also
learned that Minnesota has a single, uniform election procedure used in all 87
counties of the state. This stands in
contrast to other states, e.g. Arizona, where every county has its own election
procedures. No wonder that it takes
Arizona and other “don’t fence me in” states take days upon days to finish up
their election processes. Such delays
have, I fear, fostered a climate of impatience and uncertainty that has
contributed to the rise and spread of “election denialism” over the last few
years.<o:p></o:p></span></li></ul><!--[if !supportLists]--><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">My
impression, at the end of the day, was that it would be hard to imagine a
better way to conduct elections than the way we do in Minnesota. No wonder that the final results of the
election were accurate and available in a timely fashion that could be shared
with all Minnesotans via the various news media in our state.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">At the end of election day 2022 I was nearly
exhausted, but also so very grateful that I played a small role in that most
basic activity of citizens in America:
voting in a fair and free election, thus expressing the sovereign will
of “we, the people.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-73281611534680455932022-10-28T05:37:00.006-07:002022-10-28T05:55:44.507-07:00Decoding Congresswoman Fischbach<p> <b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 28.5333px;">Decoding Congresswoman Fischbach</span></b></p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-QZslz9PFgGUTbY68kuhg9uFuLyWalcDLkr0O569EHqZFkFGDmF_F2DvOj4qVbRId7e6vruYh4REHJVnukAQQwiDDVxd_A-rlV_9ptWUpN0-h33T4D-MJEkVn-F-yG1H7GBavHSduTi2AMVWY_3JoqvcCqzIaVb4SxsWmGiiHcfz-hhJihpkWNHnr/s286/Fischbach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="203" data-original-width="286" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-QZslz9PFgGUTbY68kuhg9uFuLyWalcDLkr0O569EHqZFkFGDmF_F2DvOj4qVbRId7e6vruYh4REHJVnukAQQwiDDVxd_A-rlV_9ptWUpN0-h33T4D-MJEkVn-F-yG1H7GBavHSduTi2AMVWY_3JoqvcCqzIaVb4SxsWmGiiHcfz-hhJihpkWNHnr/s1600/Fischbach.jpg" width="286" /></a></b></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /></span></p>Over the course of my lifetime, eight different Minnesotans have represented me in the U.S. House of Representatives.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">These Congresspersons have included five Republicans and three Democrats—all of whom have regularly sent me newsletters I’ve received, read and (usually) appreciated.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">But U.S. Representative Michelle Fischbach is something else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Unlike my earlier Congresspersons, her newsletters are consistently grumpy, hyper-politicized and focused more on national politics than on what’s actually happening back home in western Minnesota.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s more, I find myself confused about just what she’s trying to say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s as if she communicates in code language that leaves folks like me “on the outside looking in.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Take Fischbach’s most recent newsletter, dated October 10, 2022.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s the first paragraph:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">“Under current leadership, the government has become another arm of the Democrat party. They have politicized the FBI, proposed an IRS army to audit the middle-class so they can pay for their reckless spending, and targeted concerned parents as ‘domestic terrorists’.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Say what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The government has become “another arm of the Democrat party”—what exactly is that supposed to mean?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My best guess is that it bugs Fischbach when Democrats make legitimate use of the levers of governmental power to make good things happen for Americans:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>addressing real issues like climate change (which Fischbach denies), firearm safety and health for all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In stark contrast to her own “party of NO,” Democrats are working to build better schools, make it easier for persons to have the “necessities of life,” rebuild our economy post-Covid, and so forth.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">And how have Democrats “politicized the FBI,” pray tell?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My guess is that this has to do with the multiple ways leaders of our nation (including the FBI) are trying to hold Donald Trump and his whole MAGA army responsible for disasters like the January 6<sup>th</sup> insurrection—not to mention the current dust-up over governmental documents that Trump has been holding illegally.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Fischbach also raises hackles about “an IRS army to audit the middle-class so they can pay for their reckless spending.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This wild claim simply is not true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to a CNN report, “<i>Democrats, and [IRS Commissioner Charles] Rettig – who was appointed by former President Donald Trump – have said repeatedly that the intent is not to target the middle class but instead focus on making sure wealthy tax cheats comply with the law. It’s ultimately up to the IRS how the money is used.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Blogpost.Fischbach.13Oct22.docx#_edn1" name="_ednref1" style="mso-endnote-id: edn1;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 15.6933px; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Finally, what in the world is behind Fischbach’s allegation that Democrats have “targeted concerned parents as ‘domestic terrorists’?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This seems to be her way of lifting up various right-wing efforts to give parents—especially fundamentalists and other right-wingers--control over what public schools are teaching about matters such as America's long history with racism, sex education, gender identity and other “hot button” issues.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">If Congresswoman Fischbach continues to express herself in such “coded” ways, I urge her to supply her constituents with a decoder ring or a computer program to “translate” what she’s trying to say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> After all, not all of us in Congressional District 7 watch Fox "News" 24/7.</span></span></p><div style="mso-element: endnote-list;"><hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" /><!--[endif]--><div id="edn1" style="mso-element: endnote;"><p class="MsoEndnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Blogpost.Fischbach.13Oct22.docx#_ednref1" name="_edn1" style="mso-endnote-id: edn1;" title=""><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoEndnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 14.2667px; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[i]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/11/politics/irs-inflation-act-funding-audit-enforcement/index.html">https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/11/politics/irs-inflation-act-funding-audit-enforcement/index.html</a></p></div></div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-53958379465026027032022-06-10T06:51:00.003-07:002022-06-10T08:04:54.464-07:00Fischbach's Misalignment of Words and Actions<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Fischbach’s
Misalignment of Words and Actions<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsFy68u6mAjadzFPlreXSx0BdsWqjlr9UOQ3L_s7GPTDWah7qkFRU-ZDdpfVI85nfDQv5ZyG7OyzWp-dsyrOe_JbImvYYm4udhS6Ard3wv-qH5xfVZRyVzq2OAeCnp1cQevXi6UnXbS9xqZWsVH1xXsl9mhEC-dyqzyz6EOgL9RXbci5mNbY2fVm5z/s1100/UvaldeTXShooting.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="619" data-original-width="1100" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsFy68u6mAjadzFPlreXSx0BdsWqjlr9UOQ3L_s7GPTDWah7qkFRU-ZDdpfVI85nfDQv5ZyG7OyzWp-dsyrOe_JbImvYYm4udhS6Ard3wv-qH5xfVZRyVzq2OAeCnp1cQevXi6UnXbS9xqZWsVH1xXsl9mhEC-dyqzyz6EOgL9RXbci5mNbY2fVm5z/s320/UvaldeTXShooting.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b><br /><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our 7<sup>th</sup> District’s freshman member of Congress, Michele
Fischbach, appears to be suffering from political schizophrenia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too often, her words say one thing—but her
actions (her votes!) say the opposite.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In her May 16,<sup> </sup>2022 letter to constituents in
Minnesota’s 7<sup>th</sup> Congressional District, she berated President Biden
regarding the current shortage of baby formula:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><i>“…Parents across Minnesota are scrambling to find baby formula, and
we still haven't seen a sense of urgency from the liberal elites….I pray for a
swift and decisive end to this catastrophe.”<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s fine for Rep. Fischbach to pray, but why don’t her
prayers inform her actions?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The “Infant
Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act” passed in the House with 219 Democrats
along with 12 of Fischbach’s Republican colleagues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> (Fischbach, however, voted against this Act.) </span>If passed by the Senate, this act will free
up $28 million in emergency funding to increase the number of FDA inspection staff,
provide resources for personnel working on formula issues, help the agency stop
fraudulent baby formula from entering the US marketplace, and improve data
collection on the formula market, according to a release from the House
Appropriations Committee.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Here’s a second example of Fischbach saying one thing but
turning around and voting against the same thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In her May 16<sup>th</sup> letter Rep.
Fischbach proclaims<i>:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Rural
broadband is a top priority of mine.”<b> </b></i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But has she voted in ways that support this
“top priority?” Not when it really
mattered last November with the passage of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure
bill. Fischbach could have joined the
13 Republican members of Congress who voted in favor of this landmark
legislation—which included $65 billion to bolster the country's broadband
infrastructure and help ensure that every American has access to high-speed
internet—including rural areas like the 7<sup>th</sup> Congressional
District. But no! ln voting against the infrastructure bill, Fischbach
voted against her “top priority,” rural broadband.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A third example points to one of the most burning issues in
our country right now:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>mass
shootings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While Fischbach frequently
proclaims her strong “pro-life” stance, apparently that doesn’t translate into
action when addressing our country’s grievous epidemic of gun violence—the most
horrific of which was the recent shooting of 19 children and two teachers in
Uvalde, Texas. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the U.S. House passed its “Protecting
Our Kids Act” this past Wednesday (June 8), by a vote of 223 to 204, Fischbach failed
to join the five Republicans who voted in favor of this wide-ranging package of
common sense gun measures. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So much for
being “pro-life!”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-16115167357130452452022-05-25T07:18:00.004-07:002022-05-25T07:36:34.024-07:00Denominational Polity: Not Just for Church Nerds!<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Denominational Polity:</span></i></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not Just for Church Nerds!<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7ixCQ0hVeld1Vd4aieziJtfiU2M7D0q1rlGjVOELCHGGesRIxCbyYEQr8x5J8LSBbPomV2YS_TVtPe-DF9b1A2YWg9yP8sxFuLhYKk6913fTX_hVi6tGstrX8ajTtix2_8K45c2P0WZuIzhPaRqdjdhQTgsRA4BFW8rkbPM0cvo-lpDQjTi3qHR7/s760/SBCConvention.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="760" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7ixCQ0hVeld1Vd4aieziJtfiU2M7D0q1rlGjVOELCHGGesRIxCbyYEQr8x5J8LSBbPomV2YS_TVtPe-DF9b1A2YWg9yP8sxFuLhYKk6913fTX_hVi6tGstrX8ajTtix2_8K45c2P0WZuIzhPaRqdjdhQTgsRA4BFW8rkbPM0cvo-lpDQjTi3qHR7/s320/SBCConvention.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Denominational polity” is a term that describes how a
church body (a.k.a. denomination) is organized in order to carry out its
mission and ministry.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In the United
States there is a range of options for how churches are put together, how power
flows through the denomination, and how local congregations relate to the wider
denomination.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Some churches are organized <b>hierarchically</b>—with
power flowing through a highly-structured system from the top down. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Roman Catholic Church exemplifies this
model.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Other churches are organized <b>democratically</b>,
with power flowing through a widely-dispersed organization, from the bottom (a.k.a.
“grass roots”) up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is an
exemplar of this sort of polity.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Still other churches exhibit <b>elements of both</b>
hierarchical and democratic polities, such as the historic Protestant church
bodies in North America—e.g. Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Reformed
churches.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In the wake of the latest news emerging from the
Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)—reports alleging that the denomination has
failed to respond effectively and compassionately to hundreds of victims who
have accused their religious leaders of engaging in sexual misconduct—it’s vital
to understand the importance of the SBC’s denominational polity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The key unit in the organization of the SBC is the
local congregation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each congregation
basically “calls the shots” for how ministry is organized and carried out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wider denomination is primarily
“advisory” in nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If members of a
congregation cannot agree on potentially church-dividing issues, a faction of
members who are at odds with their fellow-congregants will often withdraw and
form a new congregation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(As our family
experienced many years ago on a vacation trip through the “deep South,” it’s
common to see clusters of Baptist congregations within close geographic
proximity to one another—reflecting a pattern of tiny faith communities that
have splintered off from one another.)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Discussing the recent shocking report by Guidepost
Solutions (an independent firm contracted by the SBC’s Executive Committee to
look into the reports of hundreds of clergy sexual misconduct cases in the
SBC),<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Christa Brown, a member of the SBC
who is a lawyer, writer and victim of clergy abuse declared:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“What is absolutely critical is that the
local church cannot function as the default or presumed starting place for a
survivor to try to obtain an investigation of clergy sex abuse….If the local
church is deemed to be a requisite first stop for survivors to pursue action,
then many survivors’ voices will be choked in their throats before sound is
ever uttered.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I believe that what Ms. Brown identifies here is a
challenge posed by the SBC’s “bottom up" democratic polity which is highly
focused on each congregation being the primary unit of the denomination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite the strengths of such a
denominational polity, it’s also clear that local congregations usually lack the
capacity to step outside their tightknit “family circles” to exercise fair and
effective discipline when an often-beloved local pastor is called to account
for misbehavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will be especially fascinating to see how
the SBC responds to Guidepost Solutions’ recommendation that the denomination
create an “Offender Information System” that would inform local call processes
for pastors across the whole SBC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The creation
of such informational systems has been a primary way of addressing the problem
of an offending pastor leaving one congregation and then being considered for
the pastorate of another congregation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Doing so would involve changing the “culture” of the SBC—moving the
denomination from being strictly a “bottom up” organization to incorporate
elements of a more “top down” organization. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Lest we assume, however, that “top down” denominations
are more adept at stopping clergy sexual misconduct, we need to ponder the
recent history of the Roman Catholic Church’s agonizing attempts to reduce the
number of offending clergy in its own ranks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This has been a challenge for the Roman Catholic Church for a number of
reasons, including<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
revered status of priests whose ordination is understood to convey a permanent,
“indelible image” that sets them apart from the laity of the church;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
fact that the laity of the church are highly dependent upon their priests (and
bishops) who alone can preside at the sacraments that are foundational for
Catholic faith and life;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
solidarity that celibate priests and bishops have with one another, often
leading them to “close ranks” when individual ministers are accused of
wrongdoing;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
challenge of incorporating laity into new pathways that have been designed to
prevent and/or adjudicate clergy sexual misconduct.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I believe that, with the SBC situation right before
us, we’re living in a time when both hierarchical and democratic church
polities are in flux as the faithful members of churches seek to “change their
stripes” in order to draw upon the strengths and opportunities provided by each
of the dominant patterns for their respective polities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholics have slowly but surely become more
open to involving laity in investigating and adjudicating clerical malfeasance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And now it would appear that Southern
Baptists are being challenged to break free from their staunch “congregationalist”
approach to carrying out their mission and ministry.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-53374189223700033582022-04-13T17:28:00.001-07:002022-04-13T17:38:51.743-07:00Funeral Sermon for Pastor Richard Radde<p> </p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Funeral Sermon for
Pastor Richard Radde<o:p></o:p></span></sup></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lutheran Church of
Christ the King, Moorhead, MN<o:p></o:p></span></sup></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">April 13, 2022<o:p></o:p></span></sup></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><i><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Scriptures: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isaiah 43:14, 18-21; II Corinthians 5:16-21; John
12:27-32<o:p></o:p></span></sup></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></sup></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiigMxXQJ08y8OtB5hILfgLuQv1e3p-rLN27dqfZXyUudMSblVW-3mcZOGLu1CgxnJSkjNUNfg-fkFfPnbDFwSIli3erCtc5iYpye_kP290Lqmt0NcBF2yudjvDlWR2BIfpNIp_iF-GshfEEDzRMlRA5329T1x_1gc0U71yEHu0Fo3AbnZSMof7osc/s1775/Radde-Richard-Obituary-Photo-1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1775" data-original-width="1630" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiigMxXQJ08y8OtB5hILfgLuQv1e3p-rLN27dqfZXyUudMSblVW-3mcZOGLu1CgxnJSkjNUNfg-fkFfPnbDFwSIli3erCtc5iYpye_kP290Lqmt0NcBF2yudjvDlWR2BIfpNIp_iF-GshfEEDzRMlRA5329T1x_1gc0U71yEHu0Fo3AbnZSMof7osc/s320/Radde-Richard-Obituary-Photo-1.jpeg" width="294" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Two years ago, when we
were just entering the pandemic, Richard Radde decided to take another crack at
writing his memoirs….something he had TRIED to do a few times earlier in his
life, but never got very far…<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Then in January of 2020—when
Covid19 was starting to confront us with our mortality in ways most of us had
never experienced before-- Dick put pen to paper (or more accurately: “fingers
to keyboard”) and wrote up one memory a day for nearly three months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By March 21 he had filled or partially
filled 127 pages, which (thanks to Rachel!) I was able to read over the last
ten days.<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Dipping into these
first-person recollections--written in a “sort of” stream-of-consciousness
manner by our brother Dick—three themes stood out for me:<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><b><u><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">First of all, I
gained an appreciation for the very real, down-to-earth life Dick had lived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></sup></u></b><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Born
at home in the tiny town of New Germany, MN…he entered the world with his twin
brother on August 6, 1933.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baby Richard
weighed 5 ½ pounds and his twin brother Baby Robert weighed 5 pounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When their maternal
grandmother--Grandma Kubasch--learned the babies’ names, she bluntly observed:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“Robert and Richard-- Ja, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>that’ll become Bob and Dick—horses’ names!”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And most of Dick’s memories
were expressed in a similar vein—offering open, honest, unadorned, “back-door
views” of a fascinating life well lived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Always with an eye toward the humorous side of life, Dick’s memoir wasn’t
focused on making himself look good—but rather:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>noticing the highs and lows in the everyday experiences he had!<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There were bright spots, to
be sure…especially whenever Dick wrote about the sports he loved—whether
football or basketball or his lifelong favorites:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>baseball, golf and fishing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Did you know, for
example, that when he was 12 Dick Radde was the pitcher for his hometown team
in the Minnesota State Little League Championship series?<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But there were sad and
troubling events, as well, that came to Dick along the way…and in his memoirs
he delves into a number of them, starting with his family’s hardscrabble life
in a couple German-immigrant towns in Carver County, just on the western edge
of the Twin Cities.<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The young twins, Dick and
Bob, lived with their parents in modest houses (the first couple of which were
without indoor plumbing), and their father struggled to make a living as a
butcher during the early years of the Great Depression.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Looking back over his
dad’s relatively short time on earth Dick described Howard Carl John Radde as “<i>father,
drunkard, breadwinner, super athlete</i>” whose last 14 years on earth were not
happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“He was a lonely man when he
died,” </i>Dick recalls<i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I think I
was among the few who visited him.”</i> (p. 72)<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><b><u><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">That poignant
observation brings us to a second theme that runs through Dick’s memoir.</span></sup></u></b><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From his earliest years and throughout his
adult life, Dick Radde consistently had a heart for and stood with folks whom
he encountered on the hard edges of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When he was growing up,
Dick cared about other kids who were odd or avoided by their peers….kids like
his friend Donald who was uncoordinated because he was born with webbed
feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dick wrote:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“Donald the kid with the webbed feet, never
learned to swim even with such an inborn advantage, nor was he ever able to
throw or catch a ball, run, or even walk:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>he sort of side-winded and stumbled along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sad to say, [Donald] was picked on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Proud to say, I was on his side and defended
him.”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(p. 34)<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Donald proved to be the
first among a host of marginalized persons whom Dick encountered, befriended
and for whom he advocated….for example:<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 84.0pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><sup><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></sup><!--[endif]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">A Jewish man who lived in
Watertown despite the rampant antisemitism of the community…where in 1945 it
was not unusual to hear comments like:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“It’s
good we licked Hitler, but we should have let him kill off all the Jews first.”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(p. 32)<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 84.0pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><sup><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></sup><!--[endif]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Dick also got to know <o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; tab-stops: 84.0pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></sup><!--[endif]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Native American neighbors
in one of the northern MN towns where Dick pastored in the 1960s…as well as
African Americans in Selma, Alabama alongside whom Dick walked <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>across the Edmund Pettis Bridge in 1965<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; tab-stops: 84.0pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></sup><!--[endif]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Persons dealing with addiction
issues or same-sex attractions who came to Pastor Dick for counseling and
friendship…as well as…<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; tab-stops: 84.0pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></sup><!--[endif]--><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Active-duty soldiers
(when Dick spent a year in Vietnam as a military chaplain stationed about 2
miles from the site of the My Lai Massacre) and retired soldiers to whom Dick
ministered as a VA Chaplain--veterans who struggled with addictions or other
health issues<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Dick opened his arms to
so many persons who were “on the outside looking in”—not just because of his moral
convictions or political leanings….but first and foremost because of Dick’s
understanding of God and the kind of life followers of Jesus are called to live….which
leads me to the third theme in Dick’s memoirs—a theme that speaks directly to
our aching hearts, minds and spirits today….<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><b><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">3.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The third theme I noticed in Pastor Radde’s
memoir, was about treating all his neighbors with grace and unconditional love <u>as
a direct consequence of his Christian faith and his calling as a Lutheran
pastor…<o:p></o:p></u></span></sup></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">For Dick, along with most
pastors, it started young as he attended a rural parochial school near
Watertown, MN.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He and his twin Robert
were blessed with a confirmation pastor—John Spomer—whom they actually liked
despite the fact that Pr. Spomer made them <i>“overlearn Luther’s catechism
with all those extra Missouri Synsod Bible verses, psalms and hymns…and I
excelled as a student.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Dick goes on to say:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“The best thing about [Pastor] Spomer was
that he knew the Gospel, preached Christ, [and] he spoke from the heart when he
told us what that cross on the steeple on the church meant:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b>God loves us and will never stop loving
us.”<o:p></o:p></b></i></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In addition to forming
the bedrock of his faith, young Dick also discovered his calling to pastoral
ministry, through paying attention to Pastor Spomer:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i>Eventually I became a Lutheran pastor,” </i>Dick
writes<i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Spomer got me going.”</i> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(p. 14)<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Of course not all of his
teachers and mentors were as clear about God’s sheer, unadulterated forgiveness
and grace in Christ Jesus our Savior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When Dick attended the funeral of LeRoy, one of us best friends from
seminary, whose severe depression had led him to take his own life…Dick was
greatly troubled by the “terrible sermon” their bishop preached—a sermon in
which the bishop declared <i>“there was an outside chance LeRoy went to
heaven.” </i>(p. 46)<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Later, when he was
Chaplain at the Fargo VA Hospital, Dick attended another funeral for a veteran
known as “Hunce the Barber”—a man who struggled to stay sober and came to Chaplain
Radde often to confess his sins, receive absolution and be fed at the Lord’s
Supper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the preacher at Hunce’s
funeral <i>“told about God’s grace and how the worst of us can still (barely)
make it to heaven, although there were some doubts about Hunce” </i>Chaplain
Radde had had enough, so he stood up and asked if he could share a Word at the
funeral:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“Hunce confessed his sins
often.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He received forgiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He communed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>God grant rest to our brother, my friend.”(</i>p. 63)<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">What Pastor Radde
proclaimed to others, he also claimed for himself, and it is in that confidence
that we commend him to God’s eternal care and keeping today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In closing, I want Dick
himself to have the last word from pp. 71-72 of his memoir:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“Jesus came so that the world through him
might be saved…<b><u>Everyone in; all together at last.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No musical chairs…</u></b>..The army
chaplaincy [in Vietnam] opened my eyes to…<b>the universal grace of God.</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These different-looking, different-acting
people throughout the world all over the place, are brothers and sisters
forever, destined to be together by the love that never ends which is the love
of Jesus Christ.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I have nothing more to
add except:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you, Laurie, Rachel,
and your whole family for graciously sharing Dick with the rest of us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And thanks be to God for
the life and witness of his faithful servant, our dear brother Pastor Richard
Radde.<o:p></o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></sup></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 84.0pt;"><sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></sup></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-32743383769605239842022-03-03T07:16:00.004-08:002022-03-03T10:05:47.317-08:00David's Adultery and Vlad's Treachery: A Lenten Reflection<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiC0haGYbaGFc1iiCZGxmqauYIXD8G4deY_0t4-j_E8ZbkTdXfTavufCUx8nY1zjulWjTh0x0tqBZKMrdTThRZyR1QowLM4o3Mx3osteB5h8B89LWPQKqULfMCbC2BWRoRYtG9d0_pVrNi2_79BQAlw9UNa1rsX-3F8vX2-qVv3HI3idb_4CA16N7IZ=s300" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="300" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiC0haGYbaGFc1iiCZGxmqauYIXD8G4deY_0t4-j_E8ZbkTdXfTavufCUx8nY1zjulWjTh0x0tqBZKMrdTThRZyR1QowLM4o3Mx3osteB5h8B89LWPQKqULfMCbC2BWRoRYtG9d0_pVrNi2_79BQAlw9UNa1rsX-3F8vX2-qVv3HI3idb_4CA16N7IZ" width="300" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Every year, on Ash
Wednesday, we pray with King David the powerful Psalm 51:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Have mercy on me, O God….Against you only
have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To plumb the depths of this beloved psalm,
we must revisit the tawdriest episode in King David’s life when he committed
adultery with his neighbor’s wife, Bathsheba (see II Samuel 11 and 12 for the
whole heart-rending tale).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
infatuated was David with Bathsheba that he went to great lengths to seduce her,
including his willingness to arrange for the murder of her husband.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 305.05pt;">Reflecting on Psalm 51 and its
biblical back-story, I’m struck by the resonances between David’s treachery and
the tragedy playing out these days in Ukraine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not unlike ancient King David, Vlad the Destroyer gazed westward,
lusting for his neighbors in the beautiful country of Ukraine, leading him to
take by force what was not his.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 305.05pt;">The brave, stern prophet of the
LORD, Nathan, confronted King David and forced him to realize the error of his
ways:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“You are the man!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(II Samuel 12:7).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today the freedom-loving democracies of the
world are taking the part of Nathan in proclaiming to Vlad the Destroyer, “You
are the man!”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 305.05pt;">This is, of course, my own
interpretation of how both the biblical story and the tragedy of Ukraine might
be playing out right before our eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some may write off such ruminations as “more politics<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I believe it is incumbent upon us all to
seek to discern the mysterious ways of God as they are interwoven in real-time
events in our own day.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 305.05pt;">In this regard I call upon
Abraham Lincoln—not much of a church-goer, but the most profound lay theologian
ever to occupy the White House—in the stirring conclusion of his magnificent
Second Inaugural Address on March 4, 1865, during the waning days of the Civil
War:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 305.05pt;">“Fondly do we hope, fervently do
we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet if God wills that it continue until all
the wealth piled by the bondsman’s two hundred and fifty years of unrequited
toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be
paid by another draw with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so
still it must be said, ‘The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous
altogether.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 305.05pt;">“With malice toward none, with
charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right,
let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds,
to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his
orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among
ourselves and with all nations.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(Henry Steele Commager, editor of Documents of American History, Volume
I, pages 442-443)<o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-56693617174838648352022-02-19T16:20:00.003-08:002022-02-19T16:20:58.765-08:00A Tribute to Busi Suneel Bhanu on His 70th Birthday<p> </p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></i></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhtehcgxAbdLwWdv6FjMGd5L2Mkd7tyB83YTwzC_dUxJKoPTY8McYmPtyM73jYqdI-ObqtwEUmCnFdiTtxoGdLmedOgpYRr1vhVGA1PfC0zmY48w9sO80qNOYTBPlEqEa_tvL_f7SwZ8TSisa8BlpZC50bLV_rcaq6X_VjnXG4rVx3vEXe7F6ksyuv_" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="891" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhtehcgxAbdLwWdv6FjMGd5L2Mkd7tyB83YTwzC_dUxJKoPTY8McYmPtyM73jYqdI-ObqtwEUmCnFdiTtxoGdLmedOgpYRr1vhVGA1PfC0zmY48w9sO80qNOYTBPlEqEa_tvL_f7SwZ8TSisa8BlpZC50bLV_rcaq6X_VjnXG4rVx3vEXe7F6ksyuv_" width="320" /></a></i></b></div><b><i><br /></i></b><b><i><span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Rev. Dr. Busi Suneel Bhanu—Bridge
Builder</span></i></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 83.65pt center 3.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Arial Narrow",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 2;"> </span><b>A
tribute by Lawrence R. Wohlrabe<o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In June of 2007 I was blessed to meet Suneel for the
first time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had traveled to
Moorhead, MN in the U.S.A along with three other representatives of the Andhra Evangelical
Lutheran Church (AELC) to be present for the annual assembly of the
Northwestern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Why had these four Lutherans from India flown halfway
around the world?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was not simply to
attend a church gathering, but to witness the election of a synod bishop in
their companion synod.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The outcome of that election was that I was
called to be the bishop of the NW MN Synod, succeeding Bishop Rolf Wangberg who
had served since 2001.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And that’s why, the day after the 2007 synod assembly
adjourned, my wife Joy and I met with the AELC delegation for brunch in the
home of the Wangbergs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This gathering
offered me a chance to assure our sisters and brothers from the AELC that I would
continue to nurture the companion synod relationship between the NW MN Synod
and the AELC.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thus began my friendship with Suneel who was, at the
time, a professor at the Gurukul Lutheran Theological College & Research
Institute in Chennai (formerly Madras), Tamil Nadu, India.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In addition to being a veteran pastor and
theological professor in the AELC, his keen facility in the English language
was invaluable in helping us connect with our new Indian friends.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So it was that two years later, when Suneel himself
was elected to a four-year term as Bishop of the AELC, we had already begun to
forge a new bishop-to-bishop partnership that blossomed into a deep friendship
which continues to this day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Inspired by
this partnership and friendship, I am pleased to offer the following tribute on
the occasion of Suneel’s 70<sup>th</sup> birthday.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">ACCOMPANIMENT HALFWAY AROUND THE GLOBE<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When I was elected synod bishop neither my wife Joy
nor I had ever traveled abroad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
didn’t even possess U.S. passports!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All
of that changed in the autumn of 2009 when we flew to India to become
acquainted first-hand with the people, the congregations and the territory of
the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Accompanied by an
experienced India traveler, Professor Henry “Hank” Tkachuk of Concordia College
in Moorhead, we literally flew halfway around planet Earth.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Although the trip was daunting—and our first
experience with pan-global jet lag was exhausting—we were filled with wonder by
actually seeing and walking on the <i>terra firma</i> of India.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We also discovered how easy it was to love
and appreciate the people of the AELC, whose hospitality toward us was
overwhelming.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Joy and I experienced what we in the ELCA call <b><i>accompaniment</i></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ELCA understands accompaniment in the
following manner:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Accompaniment” is a
scriptural and practical way of understanding mission that has been articulated
in the past few decades in dialogue between churches in the “global North”—the
churches who historically sent missionaries—and churches in the “global
South”—churches in Asia, Africa and Latin America who historically received
missionaries. Today, there are more Christians in the “global South” than in
the “global North.” It’s a different world than that of the earliest
missionaries, and our understanding of and living out mission must respond.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As we started to experience “accompaniment”
first-hand, we came to realize what a superb global partner God had given to us
in the person of Bishop Suneel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My experiences with Suneel have led me to think
of him as a <b><u>bridgebuilder</u></b> <i>par excellence</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the image of Suneel that I wish to
describe in greater detail in this tribute.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN THE AELC AND THE
ELCA<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The primary context within which I have engaged with
Bishop Suneel has been the Companion Synod relationship between the AELC and
the NW MN Synod—a relationship that predated our service as colleague bishops
and a connection that continues to blossom and grow.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Central to the experience of being in a companion
synod relationship is the regular, back-and-forth exchanges of global visitors
between the two synods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Such
face-to-face encounters have been supplemented since the early 2000s by the
growth of social media, especially Facebook. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">During my twelve years of service as bishop, there
were six person-to-person exchanges between the AELC and the NW MN Synod:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As
has already been noted, in <b><u>2007</u></b> then-Moderator Bishop V.E.
Christopher and Mrs. Christopher, along with Rev. Subhashini Bondu (leader of
the AELC Bible Women evangelistic ministry) and the Rev. Dr. Busi Suneel Bhanu
as translator, participated in the NW MN Synod Assembly when I was elected to
my first term as bishop.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
<b><u>2009</u></b>, shortly after Suneel was elected Moderator Bishop of the
AELC, Joy and I traveled to India for twelve days (November 5-17) accompanied
by Concordia College Professor Henry “Hank” Tkachuk—an experienced India
traveler.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During this pilgrimage I met
with a number of key Lutheran leaders, including:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dr. Kunchala Rajaratnam (dubbed “The Grand
Old Man of Indian Lutheranism”)<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>, Dr. Monica Melanchthon of
the faculty at Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and Research Institute, Rev.
Dr. A.G. Augustine Jayakumar who was the executive director of the United
Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI),<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> and Pastor Subhashini
Bondu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In addition to traveling
throughout the AELC, we also participated in the annual “Pastors Day” in
Visakapatnam where I preached and took part in a Service of Ordination for over
70 new pastors of the AELC.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
the autumn of <b><u>2011</u></b> five representatives of the AELC paid a visit
to northwestern Minnesota: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bishop Suneel
and his wife, the Rev. Dr. Grace Bhanu (who was also serving as Director of
Women’s Ministries in the AELC); Mrs. Janagam Mary Grace, Secretary of the
AELC; Mr. Budithi C. Rajaratnam, Treasurer of the AELC; and Dr. Patta Devaraju,
longtime member of the AELC Executive Council.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
November of <b><u>2012</u></b>, Hank Tkachuk, Joy and I led a pilgrimage that
brought 19 pastors and lay leaders from the NW MN Synod to the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the largest group of NW MN Synod
folks to visit the AELC, and our delegation included six pastors (four of whom
were women) and thirteen lay persons representing all corners of northwestern
Minnesota.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We experienced a fascinating and challenging
two weeks together that took us from Delhi to Vijayawada to Guntur to
Bhimavaram to Rajahmundry to <a name="_Hlk88902082">Visakhapatnam</a> and back
to Delhi for a day of sight-seeing at the Agra Fort, Taj Mahal and Fatehpur
Sikri, before heading back to Minnesota.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Highlights of the pilgrimage included another mass ordination event in
conjunction with the AELC’s annual “Pastors Day,” and a Service of Consecration
for Bishop Suneel and the synod (territorial) bishops of the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We also paid particular attention to some of
the “ministries of mercy” of the AELC, including a school for blind children, a
leper colony, a shelter for destitute women, a stop at the AELC headquarters in
Guntur, and tours of several AELC educational ministries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The nineteen travelers from NW MN were
subsequently <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>available for speaking
engagements in the congregations and conferences of the synod—and the entire
effort provided a “shot in the arm” for the companion synod program. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">By
<b><u>2015</u></b> Suneel had concluded his service to the AELC, having been
succeeded in 2013 by the current Moderator Bishop</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Fredrick Paradesi Babu
Kollabathula.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A delegation of four AELC
leaders--Pastor Nelson Francis Wesley Junipe, Mrs. Asha Kiran Kollabathula
(wife of Bishop Fredrick, who was unable to participate in this trip),
Professor Anitha Pranuthi Pinapati, and Dr. Deva Raju Patta--came to the United
States for an ELCA Churchwide /NW MN Synod consultation that began on March 18
in Chicago and concluded March 29 in Fargo, ND.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In
September of <b><u>2019</u></b> Dr. Patta Devaraju and his wife Indira attended
and brought greetings from the AELC at the installation of my successor, Bishop
William Tesch, at Trinity Lutheran Church, Moorhead, MN.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I have gone into some depth in providing this
historical timeline of personal encounters between individuals from the NW MN
Synod and the AELC, both to document the story of this companion synod
relationship and to highlight the occasions that fed the growth of this
relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through it all, Suneel has
been integral to our joint efforts to forge a stronger relationship between the
NW MN Synod and the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Without a doubt, Suneel’s firm grasp of the English
language was significant in making this partnership thrive and grow!<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Suneel also was a superb interpreter and
“explainer” who never tired of responding to the many questions we Americans
asked him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Moreover, Suneel’s ready
smile, sense of humor and personal warmth were invaluable in strengthening this
companion synod connection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On a
personal level—as siblings in Christ who shared meals in each other’s homes—Joy
and I came to regard Suneel and Grace as personal friends whom we have grown to
love.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN THE ACADEMY AND
THE CHURCH<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Down through its history global Lutheranism has had
many scholar-bishops, and without doubt Bishop Busi Suneel Bhanu must be
counted among them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His story, in so
many ways, reflects the genesis of Lutheranism itself, which was born in 1517
in the city of Wittenberg, Germany—in which the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther
regularly preached in local churches even as he taught theology in the then-new
University of Wittenberg.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In my many experiences with Suneel I witnessed how he
has integrated his pastoral and professorial identities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having served as a parish pastor in
Visakhapatnam in the late 1980s, Suneel helped grow a new AELC
congregation—Emmanuel Lutheran Church, a mission congregation developed by the
older Trinity Lutheran Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this
critical role Pastor Suneel acquired and honed skills in preaching, teaching,
pastoral care-giving, and church-planting.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But Suneel also had the academic gifts and advanced
studies to teach in institutions of higher education such as the Gurukul
Theological College and Research Institute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His area of academic research has focused on the experience of Dalits
(sometimes called “untouchables”) in the caste system of India.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">For Suneel this was not an esoteric subject.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Truth be told, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the vast majority of Christians in India are
Dalits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In pursuing his doctorate at
the International Christian University in Japan, Suneel focused on exploring
the similarities between India’s Dalits and Japan’s Burakamin people. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Suneel’s facility in building bridges between the
academy and the church is evident when one observes—as I have—his warm rapport
with the young pastors of the AELC (many of whom called him “professor” before
they called him “bishop”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is also
very clear that Suneel’s academic research in Dalit studies has strongly
influenced the emphases he has pursued as moderator bishop of the AELC--most
notably his persistent attention to calling the church to exercise special care
for the downtrodden.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Indian culture, and the culture of the AELC, is quite
“traditional” in terms of how men and women relate to one another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Men dominate positions of leadership in
families, churches and society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Historically
women have been considered subordinate to men.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Suneel has been vocal and forthright in seeking to address
this reality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An interview with him
published by the Lutheran World Federation on March 1, 2016 included the
following comments from Suneel:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“<b>Women’s dignity</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The freedom, choices, aspirations and dignity
of women are eroded in India’s traditional and male chauvinistic ideals of a
woman:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a dutiful housekeeper, submissive
to her husband and bears him children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Many still remember the 22-year old woman in Delhi who was gang raped by
six men in December 2012, and later died from her injuries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The public protests over this case and
widespread violence against women led to the amendment of the criminal code in
2013 to include stiff penalties for rape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Churches are called to speak out
and act more for the dignity of women, who make up 51 percent of our
population.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In my own experiences with Suneel I have witnessed his
deep commitment to according women in the AELC the kind of dignity and
opportunities that they deserve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Three
examples come to mind.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">First, I know from my own experience with a gifted and
highly-trained female theologian in the AELC that Suneel has encouraged and
assisted her (and other women theologians) to secure teaching positions in
institutions of higher theological education.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Suneel’s wife, Grace, is another example of a woman who has been both ordained
as a pastor and called to teach at institutions of theological education such
as the Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and Research Institute and Andhra
Christian Theological College in Hyderabad where Grace currently is a Professor
of the History of Christianity.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Second, I have observed in Suneel a passion for having
more ordained female pastors serving in <u>parishes</u> of the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Women have been ordained in the AELC since
1999,<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> but it has been very
challenging to secure calls for them to serve as <u>parish</u> pastors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When the 19 pilgrims from the NW MN Synod visited the
AELC in 2012, Suneel invited me to participate in a Service of Consecration for
himself and the six synod bishops of the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I believe that a big reason why Suneel insisted that I participate in
the laying on of hands during this worship service was that in 2007 I had been
installed as synod bishop in a version of the “historic episcopate” (including
the presence of ELCA bishops who had been similarly installed along with an
Episcopal bishop).<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Suneel also insisted that all the
visiting pastors from the NW MN Synod be vested and participate in the Service
of Consecration—which means that four female ordained ELCA pastors were invited
to lay hands on Suneel and the synod bishops—all of them males.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only after the fact did I realize how subtle
and intentional Suneel had been, to shine a spotlight on these female pastors from
the United States, as a way (I have assumed) of encouraging members of the AELC
to become more open to receiving their own women clergy as pastors in their
parishes.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Third, during both of my visits to the AELC, Suneel
made sure that I (and those traveling with me) were able to spend significant
time with the “Bible Women” of the AELC. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These Bible Women are among the primary
evangelists in the AELC—and they tend to focus on reaching females who are not
Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The theory, reflecting
Indian traditions for how men and women relate to one another, is that
Christian women can get into a home through the “back door” and thus engage
with non-Christian women who are considering conversion to Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fairly often these new converts then seek to
introduce their non-Christian husbands to the way of Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Suneel has been tireless in supporting the
AELC’s Bible Women, both in seeking financial existence and in paying attention
to the Bible Women’s formation in Christian faith and life.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN LUTHERANS AND
OTHER FAITH TRADITIONS<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">India is a deeply spiritual country, in which people
of different faiths have managed to live together in peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my travels to India I have been struck by
how open Indian people are to learning about and engaging with the
spiritualities of their neighbors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
the AELC, such connections involve both (a) ecumenical relations with other
Christian faith groups and (b) interfaith relationships with people of
non-Christian religious groups.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The AELC has multiple avenues for ecumenical
engagement with other Christians, and Suneel has been a dedicated proponent of
such engagement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, there are
relationships with <u>other Lutherans</u> in India, manifested in the United
Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI) which is an umbrella
organization of 12 Lutheran church bodies in India, representing 4 million
Lutherans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The UELCI also connects
Indian Lutherans with other global ecumenical organizations such as the World
Council of Churches and the Lutheran World Federation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The AELC also participates in the National
Council of Churches in India which is made up of 30 member church bodies
representing <u>the Protestant and Orthodox Churches in India.<o:p></o:p></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Throughout his ministry Suneel has been involved with
these various ecumenical agencies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Since retiring as Moderator Bishop of the AELC, Suneel has been particularly
engaged with the Lutheran World Federation (LWF)—having served recently on a
LWF study group on “Lutheran Engagement in the Public Space.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Suneel has also fostered good relationships between
the people of the AELC and their non-Christian neighbors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He affirms the efforts of congregations like
Transfiguration Lutheran Church in Kakinada, India, which we visited in 2009,
to welcome intentionally “seekers” of other faiths and no faith to explore the
worship life and ministries of AELC congregations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To foster such <u>inter-faith hospitality</u>,
Transfiguration’s building is open from the early morning to late evening, so
that persons of any faith tradition can pray there daily.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On Sundays, roughly 30% of those attending
worship are non-Christians. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN CHURCH AND
SOCIETY<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closely related to the previous section of this paper,
Suneel has emerged during his retirement years as an important voice for
cultivating interfaces in India between church and society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With the rise of Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and his BJP party, various forms of “Hindu nationalism” have challenged
the religious diversity that has characterized India.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although India is an officially secular
country, the current government has shown favoritism to Hindu believers and
Hindu faith practices.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In this context of religious intolerance, Suneel has
drawn upon his work with the Lutheran World Federation’s “Lutheran Engagement
in the Public Space” study group to challenge the AELC and other Christian
groups to understand the church as “a public space for people with diverse
attitudes and orientations to share their ideas and resources for the wellbeing
of all.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As they claim this role in
Indian society, Suneel has drawn particular attention to Christians’ need to
address issues such as “the rights of Dalits, women’s dignity and human
sexuality.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">IN CONCLUSION <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As I conclude this brief tribute I’m keenly aware of
the fact that, with respect to the topic at hand, I have barely scratched the
surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed there are certainly
other ways in which the title of “Bridge Builder” could be ascribed to Busi
Suneel Bhanu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I expect that Suneel
himself will continue to cultivate his gifts and commitments in this
regard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">My ardent wish for my good friend and brother in
Christ is that, in addition to having a happy <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and blessed 70<sup>th</sup> birthday
celebration, God will continue to work through him for many years to come.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Soli deo gloria!<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Lawrence Robert Wohlrabe was born in 1954 in Mankato,
Minnesota, U.S.A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He graduated from
Minnesota State University, Mankato, and Luther Seminary, St. Paul. In 2003
Luther Seminary awarded him a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min) degree with
distinction. Ordained in 1981, he served parishes in Willmar, MN; St. James,
MN; and Moorhead, MN. He was also on the staff of Luther Seminary, St. Paul,
and the SW MN Synod ELCA, Redwood Falls, MN. Larry was elected bishop of the
Northwestern Minnesota Synod on June 10, 2007 and was re-elected to a second
term on June 7, 2013. He retired at the end of his term on September 1, 2019.
During 2020 he came out of retirement to serve 9 ½ months as Interim Bishop of
the Eastern North Dakota Synod ELCA. Larry's wife, Joy, is retired after
working many years as a hospital and hospice social worker. They have two young
adult children, Erik and Kristen (married to Aaron) and three grandchildren:
Olivia, Micah and Malachi.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 207.15pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Companion
synod relationships of the ELCA connect Lutheran churches throughout the world
with ELCA synods and congregations. These relationships are concrete
expressions of the communion and fellowship with the more than 140 Lutheran
member churches of The Lutheran World Federation. Each of the 65 synods has at
least one international church companion and many have additional
relationships, resulting in more than 120 companion synod relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="https://www.elca.org/Our-Work/Global-Mission/How-We-Work/Companion-Synod-Relationships?_ga=2.76160341.1179537023.1637610072-800231020.1604504056"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Companion Synod Relationships -
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (elca.org)</span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> Hank colorfully described for us
the fact that if we dug down through the center of the earth, starting in
Moorhead, we would find ourselves in India, not China!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="https://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource%20Repository/Accompaniment_(full).pdf?_ga=2.147012087.1179537023.1637610072-800231020.1604504056"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Accompaniment.indd (elca.org)</span></a><u><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Six years later, in 2013, I was re-elected to a second term.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Dr. Rajaratnam died the next year, 2010.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>See <a href="https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/documents/dr-kunchala-rajaratnam">https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/documents/dr-kunchala-rajaratnam</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn6" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn6;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dr. Jayakumar died in 2019 after suffering
from kidney disease for years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="https://gltc.edu/reformation-day-celebrations-2020/">https://gltc.edu/reformation-day-celebrations-2020/</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn7" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn7;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the last AELC/NWMN Synod interchange
that involved Professor Tkachuk, who died suddenly in September of 2018, less
than a month before we had planned to send a small delegation of NWMN Synod
folks to the AELC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That pilgrimage,
unfortunately, was cancelled because it was still being planned by Prof.
Tkachuk when he died.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn8" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn8;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> We
can not over-state the significance of Suneel’s command of the English
language—a quality possessed by neither his predecessor, Bishop V. E. Christopher,
nor his successor, Bishop Fredrick Paradesi Babu.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn9" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn9;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://www.lutheranworld.org/news/equal-access-safety-and-meaningful-participation">https://www.lutheranworld.org/news/equal-access-safety-and-meaningful-participation</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn10" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn10;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
In the AELC the practice is to have a mass ordination for all candidates who
have completed their seminary education and been approved for
ordination—whether or not they have received calls to serve in
congregations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This stands in contrast
to the practice in the ELCA, in which persons who have met all the requirements
for ordination must have a “Letter of Call in hand” before being ordained.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn11" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn11;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
This practice emerged in the ELCA only after its 1999 Churchwide Assembly in
Denver approved <i>Called to Common Mission</i> (CCM) which allowed the ELCA
and the Episcopal Church to enter into full communion with each other.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn12" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Festschrift%20for%20Suneel/ArticleforSuneelFestschrift.lrw.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn12;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
See footnote 9 above for the source.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-57572055449227492782022-01-06T12:44:00.004-08:002022-01-06T13:02:20.000-08:00Remember Who You Are!<p> </p><div class="WordSection1">
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 20pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">Luke
3:15-17, 21-22<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 20pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">The
Baptism of Our Lord/January 11, 2004<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 20pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 15.0pt;">Our
Savior’s Lutheran Church, Moorhead, MN<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg5MBNMcrPUMf-klKrgY1p1w8N69r-B0O5ZzD4eXVUZV5ED6VpDoda-SMwplzJhaTWC3hxFyd2YvdFlNIOhjqxN73WbaouIq-rPkbH5w6CMNH6VWbyS_r16ajQN4Z04FVyX0YjT0BtSxVXVFaY8FkHJ21Pot4vdMR9kbaoHMGLw7ey5p8f0CoYmMFXg=s1600" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1156" data-original-width="1600" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg5MBNMcrPUMf-klKrgY1p1w8N69r-B0O5ZzD4eXVUZV5ED6VpDoda-SMwplzJhaTWC3hxFyd2YvdFlNIOhjqxN73WbaouIq-rPkbH5w6CMNH6VWbyS_r16ajQN4Z04FVyX0YjT0BtSxVXVFaY8FkHJ21Pot4vdMR9kbaoHMGLw7ey5p8f0CoYmMFXg=s320" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
dare say those four words have spoiled many a good time that some of us had
planned on Friday evenings when we were in our teenage years.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">You
know what I’m talking about: It’s T.G.I.F.—Friday night—“date” night—the night
young folks go out and paint the town red.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You look forward all week to what’s in store on Friday night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You make arrangements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You keep ma and pa in the dark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You and your chums get all the details worked
out.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Then—just
when it’s time to escape your house—just when you’re finally going to enjoy
some hours of precious freedom and fun—one of your parents takes you by the
arm, looks you square in the eyes and utters those fateful words:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Remember who you are!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember what your name is, what people know
about and expect of our family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember
what our values are—remember what we stand for.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
those last-minute words of farewell take all the fun out of the big plans you
had made for the evening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When you hear
those words—“Remember who you are!”—you know you just can’t, with a clear
conscience, go through with the mischief you had lined up for yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m
not going to ask for a show of hands from you adults here this morning.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
I betcha those four words spoiled more than one Friday evening out for a few of
you when you were younger.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Those
words have spoiled many a good time for some of us</span><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">and
those same words have also, probably, saved our necks, kept us safe and sound,
and--in a sense--given us our “marching orders.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those words have contributed to whatever
success we have made of ourselves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Funny
how that works!<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Funny—how
the very <u>same</u> words:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Remember
who you are!”—can be simultaneously both so <u>unwelcome</u> to our young
itching ears, and yet so <u>healthy</u> and life-giving in the long run of our
lives.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Who
among us hasn’t <b><i><u>heard</u></i></b> those words—with reluctance?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
yet what parent among us hasn’t <b><i><u>spoken</u></i></b> those words—with
fervent expectation?!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
this morning’s gospel lesson it is <b><u>Jesus</u></b>—of all persons!--who
hears those words, or at least a version of those words.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Here’s
the scene:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John is baptizing by the
river Jordan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The teeming crowds are in
a frenzy—wondering whether John’s preaching signals that the End of the world
has arrived.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Is
John the One they’ve been waiting for—their Savior, their Messiah?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: auto; mso-break-type: section-break; page-break-before: auto;" />
</span>
<div class="WordSection2">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">John
takes pains to say:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Absolutely
not!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John speaks of a more powerful One
coming after him, Someone John isn’t even good enough to serve as his slave</span><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
then, suddenly, that more powerful One <u>shows up</u>, slips into the crowd,
blends in with all the sinners coming to the Jordan to repent and be washed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">All
at once the One John spoke of is there among him—and before anyone knows it,
before anyone even recognizes him, Jesus is already present--praying, being
baptized like the rest of them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s
almost a little anti-climactic, this Baptism of Our Lord.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
fact, our text says virtually nothing about the baptism itself—it’s almost an
after thought.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
what is clearly not an after-thought is what follows Jesus’ baptism.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“</span></i></b><b><i><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span></i></b><b><i><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the
heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon [Jesus] in bodily form
like a dove.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And a voice came from
heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Luke’s
account of the Baptism of Our Lord says surprisingly little about the baptismal
washing itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Luke focuses, rather, on
what immediately follows Jesus’ baptism—the heaven’s opening, the Holy Spirit
coming down, and that divine voice speaking.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
what the heavenly voice says to Jesus is, in effect:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Remember who you are.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">God
says those words to Jesus:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Remember who
you are.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">God
says those words, not because God’s worried Jesus is going to stay out past
curfew, or that Jesus is going to drink too much or fall in with the wrong
crowd or wind up in trouble</span><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">No.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God says those words to Jesus—“Remember who
you are”—because even Jesus, in his full humanity, could be tempted to forget
who he was, to lose sight of what he was about, and thus to abandon his
mission.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">God
wants it to be crystal clear to Jesus and to anyone else with ears to hear
that<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus (and not John) is the one
everybody’s been waiting for, and that God is pleased to claim Jesus as God’s
child, and that God has a task, a mission for Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are,” God thunders to Jesus, knee-deep in the Jordan River.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“You are my Son, the Beloved; with you
I am well pleased.”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">On
that score at least, Jesus’ baptism is <b><u>like</u></b> the baptism each of
us has received.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
other respects our baptisms may be different. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
didn’t have any guilt to be washed away.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
didn’t need to be rescued from sin, death or the power of the devil.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
didn’t become something in his Baptism that he was not already.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
Jesus <b><u>was</u></b> reminded of his identity, and in that reminding Jesus
was commissioned for the ministry that was now to be his.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
it’s <i><u>that</u></i> part of baptism I want to shine the spotlight on this
morning.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Indeed,
that’s the part of Baptism, the aspect of Baptism that I fear we as Lutheran
Christians have all too often given short shrift.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We
know that Baptism is God’s initiative, God’s rescuing action, God’s
incorporation of us into the Body of Christ for all time and for eternity</span><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We’ve
got all of that down pat—we know it all “in spades.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
there’s a facet of Baptism we have too often ignored.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: auto; mso-break-type: section-break; page-break-before: auto;" />
</span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s
the fact that in our Baptism we aren’t just saved <b><u>from</u></b> all the
awful things that threaten us</span><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">¼</span><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">.but we’re also saved <b><u>for</u></b>
all the good things God intends to do through us!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Baptism
is more than an insurance policy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Baptism
also is our marching orders, our commissioning papers.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Baptism
doesn’t shield us <b><u>from</u></b> this world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baptism sends us out <b><u>into</u></b> this
world, with our heavenly Father’s words ringing in our ears:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
who you are.”</span></b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
that you are my beloved Child in the world.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
that I am well pleased with you—that I trust you to bear my creative and
redeeming word wherever you go.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Remember
that the Holy Spirit has taken up residence within you—and therefore you won’t
be able to keep still about what I have done and am doing to restore all
things, to make the whole creation new, to piece back together everything that
is broken--all for the sake of Jesus Christ.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Baptism
saves us by incorporating us into the Christ who saves us.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We
Lutherans have that part down pat.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But
Baptism doesn’t just save us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Baptism
also <u>sends</u> us.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Since
1978 we North American Lutherans have been visualizing, symbolizing that
sending in a wonderfully memorable way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Since 1978—when our <i>Lutheran Book of Worship</i> first appeared—we’ve
added something to our baptismal service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every “baptizee” receives a lit candle, with these words from Matthew
5:16:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“Let your light so shine
before others, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in
heaven.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
truly hope that that has been for us more than just a nice little liturgical
appendage to the baptismal service.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
truly hope that all of us have been able to see and hear in that act the giving
of “marching orders,” the commissioning, the sending that is also integral to
Baptism.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
Holy Baptism you are saved by God’s grace in Christ, but you are saved so that
you might also be sent.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Saved
and sent!</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Sent
with God’s own voice saying to you, again and again:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Remember who you are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you walk through life, walking wet in
your Baptism, remember that you now bear the light of Christ wherever you
go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember that God intends to speak
of Christ through you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God’s going to
enact Christ’s love in you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God’s
mission for you is to make Christ known because of you.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And
don’t you forget it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Here
are your baptismal marching orders:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE…and<b><i> “Let your light so shine before others
that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: widow-orphan; tab-stops: 0in .5in 1.0in 1.5in 2.0in 2.5in 3.0in 3.5in 4.0in 4.5in 5.0in 5.5in right 6.0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Baskerville Old Face",serif; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In
the name of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-32152806770023410032021-11-14T12:36:00.002-08:002021-11-14T12:36:32.835-08:00Raw Materials For the New Creation<p style="text-align: center;"> <b><i>Raw Materials for the New Creation</i></b></p><p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Gethsemane
Episcopal Cathedral, Fargo, ND<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Pentecost 25/Consecration Sunday/November 14, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Mark 13:1-8, </span></b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">[9-11]</span></i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"></span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQG01M-1Rs9CnxEdyp4qxCk7PG8rLTygv9zx1IHTo_S4yRDsdf67iF6PdB0byvK8B0N07WyNOeucTK8NiZLSSgdHYwOmLT4G0vFpM-dmYrElPQDVloAcgQJdpIw4_Z1iIXuxGVWyyGx1s/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1222" data-original-width="2048" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQG01M-1Rs9CnxEdyp4qxCk7PG8rLTygv9zx1IHTo_S4yRDsdf67iF6PdB0byvK8B0N07WyNOeucTK8NiZLSSgdHYwOmLT4G0vFpM-dmYrElPQDVloAcgQJdpIw4_Z1iIXuxGVWyyGx1s/" width="320" /></a></i></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>In
the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">Amen.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Every
year, right about now, it happens:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">days
grow shorter, nights last longer, temperatures fall, and we find ourselves
contemplating all sorts of “endings.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
the church we reflect, not just about these multiple “endings,” but about </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">the</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
End…both the End that is our death, as well as the End of the world as we know
it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">You
and I and everyone else and this world itself all have expiration dates.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And harsh realities like Covid 19, climate
change, plus world-wide social and political unrest all drive home for us the
sober truth that everything fashioned by human beings and every human being
born into this world has a limited shelf life.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">No
one and nothing that we see with our eyes lasts forever.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">That’s
the unsettling truth Jesus names here in Mark 13.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Oohing and aahhing at the marvelous construction
and lavish decoration of Jerusalem’s temple….an unnamed follower of Jesus was
probably aghast when Jesus responded to his expression of architectural awe, by
declaring:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>“Do you see these great
buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown
down.”</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Not
surprisingly, four of Jesus’ closest disciples took him aside in order to pump
him for more information:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i> <span style="background: white; color: #010000; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Tell us, when will this
be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?</span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">They
were intensely curious and so are we.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And Jesus helps us with these questions in our gospel lesson from Mark
13.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jesus
helps us by recalling some bedrock truths we too often </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">forget:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Namely, that it’s
a fool’s errand to speculate about the timetable for when this world will end…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">….and that as
history moves forward, we’ll be wise to anticipate wars and natural disasters
and cosmic events that shake us to our very core…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">….and that as all
this scary stuff happens we’ll feel less and less “at home” in this troubled
world…and we may well endure the sting of disrespect or persecution, simply
because we stubbornly cling to our God who in Christ alone holds the future in
his hands.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">All
that being said, though, what’s most surprising here in the 13</span><sup style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
chapter of St Mark’s gospel is the way Jesus calls us to </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>a deeper engagement with this passing-away world</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">—an
engagement that seems counter-intuitive.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">When
we contemplate how no one and nothing in this world lasts forever….many of us are
paralyzed by a mixture of fear or depression.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">So we tend to avert our eyes, turn our faces away, and lose ourselves in
cocoons of distraction…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">….but
Jesus, rather, calls us to step out and speak up, in the face of the
falling-apart-of-it-all…Jesus invites and empowers us to testify to others
regarding him and the rescue he brings…because </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>“the good news must first
be proclaimed to all nations.”</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
hope-engendering word from Jesus is consistent with the whole biblical witness
regarding the End-Times.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">As God’s
dearly beloved children, we know that whatever fate brings our way, God will
make sure that </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>“not a hair of [our] head[s] will perish”….</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">We face the future with
boundless hope only because we </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">believe that in Jesus Christ we have seen what God
does with death, decay and destruction.
We’ve witnessed how God is in the “resurrection business”…..that the passing-away
of this old creation is the essential precursor, the necessary pre-requisite
for the New Creation…the very raw materials of the New Heaven and the New Earth
that God is laboring to bring forth, even in this very moment.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
all of that began, decisively, in the oddest of places:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">on a garbage heap outside of Jerusalem where
everything old and sinful and mortal was nailed to the Cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ….where you and I and everyone else have been crucified with Christ and
buried with him through Baptism into death….so that just as Christ was raised
from the dead by the glory of the Father we too might walk in newness of life!</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">(Romans 6)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">That,
</span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>that</i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">,
my dear friends is what allows us to be brutally honest about the End, both the
conclusion of our lives and the culmination of all things.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">For we wait with eager anticipation for a
new heaven and a new earth!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
because our God always finishes all that he has begun, we actually believe so
firmly that God is accomplishing this New Creation, so that we find ourselves “leaning
into” it </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>even now</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here’s
how Anglican bishop and New Testament professor N.T. Wright has put it in his
book, <i>Surprised by Hope</i>:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“Every act of love, gratitude and
kindness; every work of art or music inspired by the love of God and delight in
the beauty of his creation;…every act of care and nurture, of comfort and
support for one’s fellow human beings….and of course every prayer, all
Spirit-led teaching, every deed that spreads the gospel, [and] builds up the
church…will find its way, through the resurrecting power of God, into the new
creation that God will one day make.”</i></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(N.T. Wright, <i>Surprised by Hope:Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection,
and the Mission of the Church, © Harper/One, 2008</i>, p. 208)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Friends,
our world is dying for this amazingly good news, this hopeful, alternative way
of facing the future.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Because,
when Jesus talks about the End of all things he draws our attention </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">not</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
to mysterious timetables or speculations about disasters or obsession with
Armageddon-like battles…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But when Jesus talks about the End of all things he
consistently directs our attention back to what you and I are called to do </span><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">now, today, before the End arrives.</span></u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
best way to get ready for the End of all things is to be about the work God has
already given us to do right now:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">trusting God, loving our neighbors, caring for the earth….</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">…and
yes, my dear friends, it also includes consecrating ourselves, our time and a
generous portion of our treasure—as we shall do in the most tangible of ways,
later in this Consecration Sunday worship service….</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">….for
that too—something as simple, common and down to earth as filling out our
“estimate of giving” cards…that too bears witness in word and deed to the only
One who knows what lies ahead, our crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ who holds
the future in his nail-scarred hands.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="tab-stops: 5.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Once
in colonial New England there was a total eclipse of the sun.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This inexplicable cosmic event took place
while the colonial legislature was in session.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">When the eclipse brought sudden, unexpected darkness over the land (in
the middle of the day!) a number of lawmakers panicked—and some moved that the
session adjourn.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
then one of the legislators arose and addressed his colleagues, saying:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Mr.
Speaker, if it is not the end of the world and we adjourn, we shall appear to
be fools. But if it is the end of the
world, I should choose to be found doing my duty. I move, sir, that candles be brought so that
despite the darkness our work may continue.”</i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">If
the end is coming, where should you and I be found?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hunkered down in a fallout shelter,
hiding?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">High on a mountaintop dressed
in white ascension robes—waiting?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Locked
up in a church building—praying?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Here’s
Jesus’ response:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">If the End is coming let
us be engaged in the world—offering testimony, bearing witness to God’s loving
lordship, in word and in deed…and yes, this very day, consecrating to God’s continuing
service our time, our talents and our treasure.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
as we go about those tasks, we’ll find that we travel in God’s promise that this
is not really so much </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>our</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> business…as it is the wondrous business
that </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>God</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> carries out in us and through us.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Amen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><br /><p></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-90978775858064372292021-10-26T07:33:00.002-07:002021-10-26T07:37:33.933-07:00Totally Blind, But With 20/20 Vision<p> </p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Messiah
Lutheran Church, Fargo, ND<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Pentecost
22/October 24, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Mark
10:46-52<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWTGeBWZPlDTOqgNHBoNOwwUbvMbwTUnEbemZx8fFhG2o-2vn-z1jT3xzq7h5DeniIsvHdohnFKdDe5E1mDl5zFIqr8paI20Sj2Zn1PsE1basR1pKD7_cH76wmZot_BxKzpT2G0F1Bd2g/s509/Bartimaeus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="509" data-original-width="450" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWTGeBWZPlDTOqgNHBoNOwwUbvMbwTUnEbemZx8fFhG2o-2vn-z1jT3xzq7h5DeniIsvHdohnFKdDe5E1mDl5zFIqr8paI20Sj2Zn1PsE1basR1pKD7_cH76wmZot_BxKzpT2G0F1Bd2g/s320/Bartimaeus.jpg" width="283" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">46 They came to Jericho. As [Jesus] and
his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of
Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">47When he heard that it was Jesus of
Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on
me!’ <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">48Many sternly ordered him to be quiet,
but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">49Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him
here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is
calling you.’ <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">50 So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up
and came to Jesus. <a name="_Hlk85449237"><o:p></o:p></a></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk85449237;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">51Then
Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to
him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ </span></i></b></span><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">52Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has
made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed [Jesus] on the
way.<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Helen Keller, who was born in Alabama in 1880, became
both blind and deaf as a result of a severe childhood illness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">She was once asked what could be worse than being
blind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">To which she responded:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“having <u>sight</u> but no <u>vision</u>.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Let me say that again:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>asked what could be worse than being blind,
Helen Keller answered:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<b>having <u>sight</u>
but no <u>vision</u></b>.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Because we often equate the two—sight and vision, that
is—Helen Keller’s words may puzzle us…which is why we’ll be wise to pay close
attention to this morning’s gospel lesson where we meet a man named Bartimaeus
who utterly lacked <u>sight </u>but had amazing <u>vision</u>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">This story unfolds along a road leading out of Jericho.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus and his disciples are departing, and as they
walk by a blind beggar sitting alongside the road, the man (whose name is
Bartimaeus) starts shouting at them, yelling specifically at Jesus!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Now this sort of thing, of course, was nothing new for
Jesus and his followers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were
always beggars slowing them down:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>poor
souls, pathetic invalids, destitute panhandlers forever trying to capture
Jesus’ attention.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">But this man, this Bartimaeus used language they had
not heard before:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“Jesus, <u>Son
of David</u>, have mercy on me!”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Although Bartimaeus was “in the dark” in terms of his
eyesight…he had “20/20” <u>insight</u>, he was already possessed by a <u>vision</u>
of who Jesus really was:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the son of
David, a descendant of Israel’s greatest king, God’s anointed one--the Messiah.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">How, pray tell, did Bartimaeus know all that—if he was
totally blind, after all?`<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just because
he had no <u>sight </u>didn’t mean he lacked <u>vision</u>, an amazingly sharp,
clear vision of Jesus’s true identity.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">The crowd (including Jesus’ disciples) tried to
silence him, but to no avail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bartimaeus
wasn’t about to take “no” for an answer, and so he called out again, all the
more loudly:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Jesus, Son of David, have
mercy on me.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">And then—to everyone’s astonishment—the beggar’s piercing
plea stopped Jesus dead in his tracks.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">“Call him here,”</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">
Jesus said to members of the crowd, who quickly changed their tune about
shooing away this blind beggar, conveying instead Jesus’ invitation with
urgency:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“Take heart; get up,
[Jesus] is calling you.”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">And then—just like that!—Bartimaeus got up, threw off
his cloak and made a beeline straight for Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Now there’s a detail here that we dare not miss:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>as he sprang to his feet and headed toward
Jesus, our text tells us that Bartimaeus also <u>threw off his cloak</u>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s intriguing about this detail, was
the high value beggars placed upon their cloaks which were often their only
outer garment, which sometimes doubled as shelter in a storm….and was used by
blind beggars, who spread their cloaks out on the ground to collect the coins
that passersby might toss their way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(Not unlike the open guitar case that might be used by an ambitious
street musician, hoping to attract some spare change from members of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>her audience.)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Throwing off his cloak (which likely enfolded the
latest fruits of his begging) blind <u>Bartimaeus marks this moment as the
turning point in his life.</u><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s as
if even before meeting Jesus, Bartimaeus has already had a vision about how his
life is taking a new and exciting turn!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">….which is exactly what happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Then Jesus said to him, <b><i>“What do you want me to
do for you?”</i></b> Bartimaeus responded, <b><i>“My teacher, let me see again.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Once again, there’s more treasure in this part of the
story than at first meets the eye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>First, Bartimaeus calls Jesus “rabbi” (which meant “teacher”) but not
just any rabbi—he claims, instead, a rather close, intimate connection with
Jesus, calling him “<b><u>my</u></b> rabbi”…..and then when Bartimaeus answers
Jesus’ question, rather than requesting that his blindness be cured…Bartimaeus
pleads that he might see <u>again.</u><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Other blind persons Jesus encountered in the gospels
had been blind <u>from birth</u>….which meant they didn’t really know what they
were missing—but not Bartimaeus:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>he
wants to see <u>again</u>, he remembers what it’s like to see, which only
deepens his determination to have his eyesight restored.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus immediately responds to Bartimaeus’ urgent
request….and rather than spitting on his hand and touching Bartimaeus’s eyes as
Jesus had already done to another blind man earlier in Mark’s gospel
(8:22-26)….here Jesus lets <u>his Word</u> have free course, commanding
Bartimaeus to <b><i>“Go; (because) your <u>faith</u> has made you <u>well.</u>”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">In the original language of the New Testament, the
word Jesus uses here for “made well” could just as soon be translated:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“…your faith has <u>saved</u> you!”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Immediately, Bartimaeus can see again, and then—rather
than turning his back on Jesus and rebuilding his life as one with both vision
and eyesight….Bartimaeus <b><i>“followed Jesus on the way.”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">You may recall other instances in the four gospels
when Jesus heals someone and tells them to return to their home and family….or when
Jesus forbids them to follow along with the rest of the disciples….but not here
in Mark chapter 10.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bartimaeus with his
eyesight restored is dead set on using his vision to <u>follow Jesus</u>—and,
in this instance, Jesus allows him to do so.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Why is that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
don’t know, for sure, why Jesus allowed Bartimaeus to join his other disciples,
but I think it may be because by this point in Mark’s gospel, Jesus has focused
his travel itinerary on the <u>end</u> of his earthly journey….for Jericho, you
see, was only 15 miles from Jerusalem where Jesus would soon be betrayed, put
on trial, condemned and crucified.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is Jesus’ chosen path, this is Jesus’ <u>Way</u>….which refers to
more than a certain path or a well-traveled road….but to <u>the entire Way of
the gospel</u> that Jesus walked for you and for me, by suffering, dying, being
buried and rising again in the power of the Resurrection.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">In the end Bartimaeus <b><i>“followed Jesus on the
way”</i></b>…not just the highway from Jericho to Jerusalem, but the whole future-opening
<u>Way of living</u> a life made new by Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">But, my friends, there’s one last question we need to
ponder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus healed many, many persons
according to the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John…..and yet, of all the
recipients of Jesus’ healing power, only one of them is named for us….and that’s
Bartimaeus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Why do you suppose that was?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What was it about <u>this</u> particular
blind man that we know his name:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><u>Bartimaeus</u>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Along with other Bible scholars, who have
pored over this text for centuries, I’m inclined to guess that Bartimaeus’ name
was remembered because he did in fact follow Jesus to the Cross and the Grave
and three days later to Easter morning.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Bartimaeus’s name is remembered perhaps because he may
still have been around when Mark’s gospel was published, probably between the
years 30 and 50 A.D.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bartimaeus may
have been someone who was known by members of the first generation of
Christians….a living link between the days when Jesus walked the earth and the
days when the Christian movement was spreading out, across the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">So, my friends, what we have here this morning in this
gospel lesson is so much more than Jesus showing his power to work wonders.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">What we have here, rather, is nothing less than a vision
of all that is entailed in becoming a follower of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the vision that was already dawning
on Bartimaeus when he first met Jesus, alongside the road from Jericho to
Jerusalem.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Bartimaeus’s <b>amazing vision</b> was grounded in his
grasping of who Jesus was, even before his eyesight was restored.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Bartimaeus’s <b>saving vision</b> was shown forth by his
determination to let nothing hinder him from seeing Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Bartimaeus’s <b>life-changing vision</b> was propelled
by his expectation that Jesus would transform him and lead him to leave behind
his old way of life (marked here by his casting-aside of his beggar’s cloak).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Bartimaeus’s <b>revolutionary vision</b> came alive
when, having caught Jesus’ attention, he asked for the one thing he lacked—the
eyesight he would need for the next chapter in his life, a life of following
Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Dear beloved ones: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>what we have here in this compelling story is a
sweeping panorama of the whole Christian life “in miniature”…as B<b>lind
In-the-dark</b> Bartimaeus becomes <b>Disciple Bartimaeus</b>…a faithful,
clear-eyed, determined <b>follower</b> of Jesus Christ? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">And how did that happen?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t magic or hocus-pocus—that’s for
sure!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus himself put his finger on exactly what transformed
Bartimaeus when he declared to him:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b>“your
faith has made you well!”</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">Faith, you see, is always, always, always God’s
greatest gift to us….because faith opens our eyes to let us see all the good
gifts—forgiveness, freedom and a future without end—all the good gifts that God
showers down upon us, every day of our life, including this day, here and now!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Amen.</span><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-37343345311124060632021-10-19T13:24:00.007-07:002021-10-19T13:30:37.700-07:00Testimony Before the Minnesota Judicial Panel on Redistricting<p> TESTIMONY BEFORE JUDICIAL PANEL ON REDISTRICTING</p><span data-outline-text="true">Hjemkomst Center, Moorhead, October 18, 2021</span><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGPMlF5ErQJLkQLBDw8REfEYf1EIud6VuZPQT6iCXWMdoXY52KLQPK_Z9CnZ7-B7mIkXkBm2i6V6KX58Isz9vIywaunCAKaCLmL1ECilbwuYxo84Gs0J8Dra4KVlSJhYMkEjsgdYHXgPY/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="520" data-original-width="480" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGPMlF5ErQJLkQLBDw8REfEYf1EIud6VuZPQT6iCXWMdoXY52KLQPK_Z9CnZ7-B7mIkXkBm2i6V6KX58Isz9vIywaunCAKaCLmL1ECilbwuYxo84Gs0J8Dra4KVlSJhYMkEjsgdYHXgPY/" width="222" /></a></div><br />My name is Lawrence Wohlrabe, and I reside in Moorhead. I’m a retired Lutheran pastor, having served almost all of my ministry in western Minnesota. My last position was as a regional bishop for Lutherans residing in 21 counties of northwestern Minnesota.</div><div><div><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">I’m glad for this chance to offer testimony, to assist you on the judicial panel as you tackle the arduous task of redistricting. In my comments I’ll focus on Minnesota’s 4th Senate District as a “community of interest.”</span></div><div><br /><span data-outline-text="true">This district currently encompasses Clay and Norman Counties along with 4 townships plus the city of Detroit Lakes in Becker County. It is one of the few senate districts in outstate Minnesota which is growing in population primarily because of population growth in Moorhead and Detroit Lakes. (Norman County, on the other hand, is declining in population). </span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">Education is highly prized within the 4th district which includes Concordia College, Minnesota State University Moorhead, and the Moorhead and Detroit Lakes campuses of “MState”--the Minnesota State Community and Technical College.</span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">The 4th district is bisected by two U.S. Highways: U.S. 75, a two-lane highway that runs north/south through Clay and Norman Counties; and U.S. 10, a four-lane highway that runs east/west through Moorhead and Detroit Lakes. It’s especially worthy of note that U.S. Highway 10 has become a major economic corridor, connecting Detroit Lakes and Moorhead—a linkage that has only grown more significant since the 2000 census after which Becker County and Clay County were first put together in what is now Senate District 4.</span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">Residents of District 4 have many opportunities for meaningful, rewarding employment, along with a high quality of life, afforded by proximity to major agricultural, medical, manufacturing and shopping centers. </span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">The fabric of community life in District 4 is nurtured by a high level of engagement with civic and service organizations, non-profit groups, collegiate and professional sports teams, and numerous religious organizations—with 90% of religious adherents in the district self-identifying as either Catholic or Lutheran. </span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">District 4 also offers residents and visitors an array of vacation and outdoor recreation opportunities. In the summer months it’s common to see bumper-to-bumper traffic on Highway 10 every Friday evening and Sunday evening as thousands of North Dakotans and Minnesotans travel to northern Minnesota’s lovely “lake country” for fishing, boating and “cabin-ing.”</span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">Finally, I understand that the redistricting process may result in moving Norman County into Senate District #1 (north of us) to address that district’s population decline since the 2010 census. </span><br /><span data-outline-text="true">If that happens, I hope that the redistricting process will add Lake Park and Audubon townships (including the towns of Lake Park and Audubon) in Becker County to the territory of Senate District 4. Doing so would reflect and affirm the crucial role that the U.S. Highway 10 corridor plays in linking Clay and Becker counties as a vibrant community of interest that’s at the heart of Senate District 4.</span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">Thank you for this opportunity to testify.</span><br /><span data-outline-text="true"><br /></span></div><div><span data-outline-text="true">Lawrence R. Wohlrabe</span><br /><span data-outline-text="true">Moorhead MN</span></div></div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-88996437074785784452021-09-03T09:04:00.003-07:002021-09-03T09:08:04.156-07:00The Rooster and the Sunrise<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">The
Rooster and the Sunrise<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The
invalid assumption that correlation implies cause is probably among the two or
three most serious and common errors of human reasoning.</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Stephen
Jay Gould, American biologist and author, 1981<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7AikqZxm2lW42WJ0TWM6qFCJi5L79E9LH7u6rIp5QyDCjZRNX0rkrTxEkEdUoWDlXGSSvCMttKfv7Qm1m6rLqsgM_eNXZt4Eyocq_9qHk0Cl0HUT1hcub_iGNHUHcwa8eMHNnGHM_pSw/s1200/RoosterSunrise.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1200" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7AikqZxm2lW42WJ0TWM6qFCJi5L79E9LH7u6rIp5QyDCjZRNX0rkrTxEkEdUoWDlXGSSvCMttKfv7Qm1m6rLqsgM_eNXZt4Eyocq_9qHk0Cl0HUT1hcub_iGNHUHcwa8eMHNnGHM_pSw/s320/RoosterSunrise.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />During the
Covid19 pandemic all sorts of misinformation and disinformation have been
created and shared.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">How and why has this
happened?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">A news account of remarks
made at an anti-vax, anti-mask rally near the Minnesota State Capitol on August
28th offers an answer to that question.</span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">….Sen.
Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, who had been a supporter of [Jan Malcom] the [Minnesota
commissioner of health], told the crowd that firing Malcolm is now an
option.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I’m not defending her anymore,”
Abeler said. “It seems the only language the governor understands is the
removal of another commissioner.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Abeler,
who chairs a key senate human services reform committee, describes Malcolm as a
friend and said it saddens him to call for her ouster. But Abeler wants
Minnesotans to decide for themselves whether to get the COVID-19 vaccine. He
said he opposes mandates or any heavy-handed efforts to get people to comply
and that he believes Malcolm and the administration have failed to tell people
the whole story. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">“They
had been behind encouraging, cajoling these employer mandates, the college
mandates strongly, saying that the vaccines are safe and effective,” Abeler
said in an interview. <b>“But there are huge safety issues, which no one is
talking about, and people should have the right to know that. That’s my simple
request.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Abeler claimed during his
speech that more than 200 Minnesotans have died from the vaccine</b>, but that
number is hard to confirm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Abeler
got the number from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Vaccine
Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, a database of "information on
unverified reports of adverse events (illnesses, health problems and/or
symptoms) following immunization with U.S.-licensed vaccines." The system
is designed to detect problems with vaccines, but it clearly states that just
because a death or other health problem is listed, it cannot necessarily be
attributed to the vaccine. <o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">In
some of the Minnesota cases, the deaths reported were likely from other causes
but just happened to have occurred within 60 days of the person being
vaccinated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Meanwhile, the Health
Department reports more than 7,800 Minnesotans have died because of COVID-19.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/AbelerOsterholmSquareOff.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a></span></i><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">How does
this vignette help explain the origin of misinformation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, note how Sen. Abeler “frames up” the
issue by raising suspicion in his hearers. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He accuses Commissioner Malcom and Governor
Walz of having failed to tell people the whole story of the pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He goes on to declare:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“But there are huge safety issues, which no
one is talking about, and people should have the right to know that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s my simple request.”<i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>Abeler<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>implies that “somebody” or a nefarious group of individuals is covering
up allegedly disastrous results produced by the Covid19 vaccinations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second, Abeler marshals what he considers to
be alarming evidence to back up his claims:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“…more than 200 Minnesotans have died from the vaccine.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Four days
after Sen. Abeler made these comments, Minnesota Public Radio carried the
following comments from one of the nation’s foremost epidemiologists, Dr.
Michael Osterholm of the University of Minnesota.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Osterholm was unequivocal in refuting
Abeler’s claims: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">“The
senator’s wrong, and he knows it. It’s just not true,” Osterholm said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to Osterholm, Abeler’s claim is an
“abuse” of data from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), a
national effort to detect potential safety problems in vaccines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Any adverse health outcome following
vaccination, even if ultimately unrelated, can be reported to VAERS for further
investigation. Osterholm said Abeler was mischaracterizing deaths in the system
unrelated to vaccines.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">“I
can say safely at this point in Minnesota, no one has died from receiving the
COVID vaccine. No one,” Osterholm said. “These vaccines are safer than aspirin</span></i><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%;">.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/AbelerOsterholmSquareOff.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">This
situation illustrates well how misinformation about the pandemic is created and
spread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the context of divided
government in Minnesota (the Democrats control the House of Representatives and
the Governor’s office, while the Republicans narrowly control the Senate) and,
in anticipation of the 2022 elections in which Republicans intend to capture
both chambers of the Legislature along with the Governor’s office, the pandemic
has emerged as one of the most fought-over “political footballs” in Minnesota.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Senator
Abeler and his Republican colleagues in the state Senate have done their best
to “weaponize” the pandemic and the numerous measures the Walz administration
has taken to keep Minnesotans safe and healthy during a pandemic, the likes of
which have not been seen for more than a century.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this regard, Walz has gone “by the book”
in terms of following CDC and other Federal public health guidelines—and he’s
been willing to endure the slings and arrows of his GOP critics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we approach the 2022 election cycle, Republicans
appear to be highly focused on attacking Walz’s alleged heavy-handedness in
keeping Covid19 under control.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Another
reality that both Democrats and Republicans in Minnesota have to deal with is
that the pandemic is still causing sickness and taking lives—despite the high
(but not high enough!) rate of Covid vaccinations that Minnesota residents<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>have received.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Frustrated by Walz’s relative popularity and
effectiveness, GOP leaders are tempted to go “out of bounds” as Senator Abeler
did last Saturday.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">In this
regard, we dare not miss the logical fallacy woven into Abeler’s contention
that the Covid19 vaccine has killed 200 of the over 3 million Minnesotans who
have been vaccinated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Abeler seems to
have ignored the fact that VAERS data indicates a <u>correlation</u> with, but
not necessarily the <u>causation</u> of, those 200 deaths.<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/AbelerOsterholmSquareOff.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">From
ancient times this has been described in the Latin phrase:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b><i><span style="background: white; color: #202122; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%;">Post hoc ergo propter hoc</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(translated: “<u>after</u> this, therefore <u>because</u>
of this.”) This fallacy is often illustrated by the old parable of the rooster
and the sunrise:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>the rooster
crows and the sun rises</i></b>—so the rooster must have caused the sun to rise,
right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wrong!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">At its
root, our country’s difficulty with misinformation and disinformation about the
pandemic reflects a mindset that has infected too many of our fellow
citizens:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a deep-seated skepticism
about public health experts and their expertise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What if, on the other hand, we all developed
the more healthy habit of <u>becoming more skeptical of the skeptics?</u><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;">Sadly,
this saga demonstrates how easy it is for false information to be shared in
such a way that it develops a life of its own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Senator Abeler planted a seed of misinformation (“Covid vaccinations
killed 200 Minnesotans”) which will likely “grow” every time it is repeated
(and sensationalized?) by those who heard him at that State Capitol rally on
August 28.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
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<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/AbelerOsterholmSquareOff.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%;">Minnesota Public Radio:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Malcolm
next? GOP senators threaten another commissioner’s job,” by Tim Pugmire and Tim
Nelson, on August 30, 2021 3:29 p.m. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/AbelerOsterholmSquareOff.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
<span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%;">Minnesota Public Radio:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Osterholm on the fourth COVID-19 wave,
schools reopening and vaccine safety,” by Cathy Wurzer, Lindsay Guentzel and
Alex Cheng on September 1, 2021 6:04 p.m. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/AbelerOsterholmSquareOff.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
<span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%;">As Sen. Abeler failed to mention,
the VAERS website makes it clear that:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255); color: black; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“While very
important in monitoring vaccine safety, VAERS reports alone cannot be used to
determine if a vaccine caused or contributed to an adverse event or illness.
The reports may contain information that is incomplete, inaccurate,
coincidental, or unverifiable. Most reports to VAERS are voluntary, which means
they are subject to biases.” </span><span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-79475804414147678422021-08-08T09:58:00.003-07:002021-08-17T17:55:40.889-07:00Drawn to the Bread of Life<p></p><br /> <p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">Messiah
Lutheran Church, Fargo ND</span></i></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh39lOUjCQa1hv-jpzKmx0SzK2ZD1jLzxNS5Q_mDRDGCL5CAvcarZpzEi4FtOM9xcLPEQ1Eo8e3JWILfNPSrPClcnDPRPvCXhERK_446cMkUvPKgBpkX8yfvuJvy-HjxicI-Qpw1fTQg_M/s474/JesusOnCross.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="474" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh39lOUjCQa1hv-jpzKmx0SzK2ZD1jLzxNS5Q_mDRDGCL5CAvcarZpzEi4FtOM9xcLPEQ1Eo8e3JWILfNPSrPClcnDPRPvCXhERK_446cMkUvPKgBpkX8yfvuJvy-HjxicI-Qpw1fTQg_M/s320/JesusOnCross.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">Pentecost
11/August 8, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">John
6:35, 41-51<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;">In
the name of Jesus. Amen<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">“Home, home on the range,<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Where the deer and the antelope play,<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
and<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">The skies are not cloudy all day.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">That old familiar verse pretty much sums up the mood that
prevails in the first half of John chapter 6 which we’ve been exploring these
last few Sundays. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">A crowd numbering 5,000 has been miraculously fed with
a very limited menu: just five barley loaves
and two dried fish. Everyone eats
until they’re filled, after which the clean-up crew collects 12—mind you!--12
big baskets of leftovers. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">In the wake of this amazing meal, the mood is buoyant
and hopeful, the crowd is eager and curious, and there is even talk about
drafting Jesus to become their king.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">As those who were fed engage with Jesus, their
benefactor, they’re captivated by what he has to say about wanting to give
them—not just <i>here today/gone tomorrow</i> bread, but bread that endures for
eternal life, “wonder bread” that reminds them of the miraculous manna their
ancestors ate in the wilderness, “bread
from above…the bread from heaven”…all of it culminating in Jesus’ stirring claim
that he—in his very being—<b><u>is</u></b> the Bread of Life…Bread that will assuage
all hunger forever.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">No wonder the mood here in the first half of John 6 is
filled with hope and promise….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">…<b>until….until</b> we come to today’s portion of this chapter….where all of a sudden some discouraging
words <b><u>are</u></b> heard, and there’s some grumbling like the complaining
Moses put up with while leading the ancient children of Israel for 40 years through
the wilderness….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">When we listen closely to this grousing in John 6, we
recognize another old familiar tune…a melody of grievance, jealousy, and complaint.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">“Who does he think he is—this fellow who fancies
himself the Bread of Life??? We know
his pedigree and it’s nothing special. <b><i>Is
not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can <u>he</u> now say, ‘I have come down
from heaven’?”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">That, my friends, is the unmistakable
sound of familiarity breeding contempt. </span></u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;"> It’s the sound of doubt creeping in and
stealing away the joy and hope Jesus had planted in the hearts of those whom he
had fed so lavishly.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">It’s the kind of noise that’s made by the spiritually
elite—self-appointed guardians of religious purity--whenever someone crosses
the line between human and divine. For
Jewish religious leaders in the first century A.D., you could be one or the
other—either human or divine, but never ever could you be both at the same time….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Even though Jesus had filled their bellies…even though
Jesus had done the kind of thing only God can do….he still looked and sounded like an average ordinary human
being….folks knew where he came from….and they were familiar with his family
tree…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">So how dare Jesus cast himself as somebody who’s
more-than-human? What gives him the
right to say, <b><i>“I have come down from heaven?”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">To talk that way, in that time and place, was to
engage in blasphemy—a crime punishable by death.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Knowing how risky this was, you’d think Jesus might
have toned down his rhetoric and made his claims more easy-to-swallow—lest he wind
up in hot water with these guardians of the Jewish orthodoxy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">But Jesus, instead of backing down, <b><u>rebukes</u></b>
these members of the religious elite, commanding them to stop their
complaining….and then <i>doubling down</i> on them by declaring: <b><i>“No one can come to me unless drawn by
the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Instead of softening some of his claims, rounding off
the rough edges on his rhetoric, Jesus repeats what he has already said and he even
<i>ups the ante</i>: <b><i>“I am the
bread of life…I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live
forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">That last word “flesh” must have stopped those
guardians of Jewish doctrine dead in their tracks…by confronting them with
their own aloof, hyper-spiritualized understanding of God.<b><i><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">If they just took Jesus him at his word, they’d have
no choice but to say that Jesus is God—but God garbed in flesh and blood—God with
skin on! Such a notion was so shocking,
so jarring to Jews in the 1<sup>st</sup> century that they simply could not
believe it (at least, not on their own!)….which is why Jesus insists that <b><i>“No
one can come to me unless <u>drawn</u> by the Father who sent me; and I will
raise that person up on the last day.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Now that word—translated here as “drawn”—piqued my
curiosity this past week as I prepared this sermon. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">In the original Greek language of the New Testament,
this word can have an earthy flavor.
It’s used toward the end of John’s gospel to describe fisherman <u>dragging</u>
or <u>hauling</u> in a net filled-to-overflowing with fresh-caught fish (John
21).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">But this same word can also mean—more metaphorically--to
<u>draw in </u>or to <u>attract</u>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">That’s how Jesus uses it here in our text: “<b><i>No one can come to me unless <u>drawn</u>
by the Father who sent me.”</i></b> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">In other words:
coming to faith in Jesus is never about us choosing Jesus. Rather, it’s about discovering that Jesus is so
appealing, so alluring, so attractive that we’re simply <b><u>drawn</u></b> to
him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">And just what makes Jesus so attractive, so appealing? It’s the depth and daring of Jesus’ love for
us, his fearless determination to suffer and die on a cruel Roman cross for
us—and, in so doing, Jesus draws us toward his love--love that will not let us
go!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus’ journey to the Cross begins with stories like
this one here in John chapter 6, narratives in which the religious leaders of his
day take aim at Jesus and push back against his fierce determination to
sacrifice himself for those he loves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">This rejection of Jesus begins here in John 6 and it
keeps crescendoing over the next thirteen chapters until Jesus’ enemies stir up
another crowd who shout: “crucify him,
crucify him!” (John 19:6)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">On the one hand, what a <b><u>tragedy</u></b> that
those angry voices prevailed!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">But, on the other hand, what a triumph that Jesus won
in his death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave three days later!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">My friends, this is the irony of all ironies: that Jesus’ rejection by the religious
leaders of his day led to his astonishing victory over sin, death and the power
of the devil.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">This is what makes Jesus so profoundly appealing, so
amazingly attractive. It’s what draws
us to Jesus, enabling us to believe in him and depend on him for everything we
need.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">In just a few moments we’re going to experience a dramatic
demonstration of how this happens….as we see sweet baby Mara being drawn to
Jesus by God’s promise through the saving water of Holy Baptism.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">As this happens right before our eyes, may it remind all
of us of how we have been drawn, attracted to Jesus and his love…and how God uses us as his tools for drawing
others to the Bread of Life, as well!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 18pt;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;">In the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-size: 18pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 18pt;">Amen.</span></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-84458162300622821862021-07-31T07:12:00.002-07:002021-07-31T07:13:14.114-07:00Jesus, Our Bread of Life<p> </p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Messiah
Lutheran Church, Fargo<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">Pentecost
10/August 1, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">John
6:24-35<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbuLGG-3iykj_IurCzyxohyphenhyphenMiRadD-EpRssBC1Mqo2JW9ISszd5p7ZFxNyntxFdFHksCujLuWnECK0zzhfLGuAYMv0iRf9tvIuH1Qz-ixRto8qzvzi9rjaUFwkkGqHjraMSca8XYitm8Y/s1024/IAmBreadLife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbuLGG-3iykj_IurCzyxohyphenhyphenMiRadD-EpRssBC1Mqo2JW9ISszd5p7ZFxNyntxFdFHksCujLuWnECK0zzhfLGuAYMv0iRf9tvIuH1Qz-ixRto8qzvzi9rjaUFwkkGqHjraMSca8XYitm8Y/s320/IAmBreadLife.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of Jesus. Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I’ll bet that many of us have been watching at least
some of the summer Olympic Games being played out in Tokyo, Japan.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It’s really quite the deal:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>over
10,000 athletes from more than 200 countries, competing in 339 medal events, all
of them hoping to take home one of over 1000 medals that will be awarded.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">What you might not realize is that the Tokyo Olympics
are taking place at the same time as another sort of Olympics—what I’d like to
dub the John Chapter 6 <i>Bread of Life</i> Olympics.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Whereas the <b>athletic</b> Olympics roll around every
<u>four </u>years, the Bread of Life Olympics take place in late summer every <u>three</u>
years….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">….Because that’s when our Revised Common
Lectionary--the “official” list of scripture texts read during worship services
in many churches—our lectionary hands us not one, not two, not three, not four,
but FIVE straight Sunday gospel readings all from the 71 verses that make up John
chapter 6….a super-long chapter that starts out with the Fourth Gospel’s
version of the Feeding of the 5,000--the only one of Jesus’s miracles that is
recorded in <b>all four</b> gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Now what makes <u>John’s</u> version of the feeding
story unique is the fact that—following the miracle itself (which Pastor John
Jorgenson preached about last Sunday)—this miraculous banquet kicks off a long,
winding conversation between Jesus and folks he fed—five thousand hungry souls
who feasted on just five barley loaves and only two fish, with 12 baskets of
leftovers to boot!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This morning’s gospel reading, begins with Jesus,
having left the location where the feeding took place, Jesus travels to the
other side of the Sea of Galilee—perhaps to have some time alone to rest and
reflect and pray!...<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">…we see, here in our gospel lesson, Jesus being
confronted by the crowd who lead off sort of a dumb “doorknob” of a
question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>“Rabbi, when did you come
here?”<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But Jesus sees right through their curiosity about his
itinerary, probing instead what’s really on their minds:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“Very truly, I tell you, you are
looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the
loaves.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thus begins an awkward conversation in which Jesus and
members of the crowd seem to be talking right past each another, almost as if
they were speaking two different languages--operating on two different
wavelengths.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Here’s what I mean.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First of all, as the crowd wants to know when
Jesus arrived at his current location, Jesus discerns what’s really on their
minds:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the fact that they want another
free lunch—they hanker for a repeat of the previous day’s bread-and-fish
banquet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus filled their bellies once—<b>can</b> he?—<b>will</b>
he do it again?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But Jesus tells the crowd
that he’s not interested in setting up his own Old Country Buffet or 24/7 catering
service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And Jesus says so rather
bluntly--not because the crowd is asking too much of him, but because they’re expecting
too little.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Do not work for the food
that perishes, but for <u>the food that endures for eternal life</u>, which the
Son of Man will give you.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 60.65pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second,
as the members of the restless crowd ponder what they’ve just heard, they become
fixated on one of the words Jesus used:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the word <b><u>“work.”</u></b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“What must <u>we</u> do
to perform the <u>works</u> of God?”</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> members of the crowd
ask.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Jesus, rather quickly and nimbly, pivots away
from their question to reply that “<b><i>this is the work of God, that you believe
in him whom he has sent.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But just what sort of
work is Jesus talking about here---and who exactly is the one who does the
working?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It’s as if members of the
restless crowd are laboring under the delusion that Jesus has come to offer
them a grand D.I.Y. (do-it-yourself!) project, when, in fact, that’s the LAST
thing Jesus wants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The work that matters,
Jesus clarifies, is <b>the work <u>of God</u></b>….which is about what God (not
you or I) are doing—but how <u>God</u> is working in and through us for our
life and for the life of the whole world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The work of God—God’s
work--isn’t what people do for God…but it’s about what God does for them…what
God accomplishes for us, in us and through us—giving us—graciously, abundantly
bestowing on us the gift of faith, hich a trusting faith that lays hold of and
believes and counts on God’s work being done for us and our salvation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 60.65pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span></i></b><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Third, the restless crowd
here in John 6 picks up on yet another word that Jesus had used here—and that’s
the word <b><i>sign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“What <u>sign</u> are you
going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you?”</span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The crowd hankers for a
hint or a clue or some proof that will assure them—that will remove all their
doubts and questions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What dramatic evidence
can Jesus give them to believe and lay hold on what he’s offering them?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But here’s the
kicker:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus declares that <b><u>he
himself</u></b> is the proof they long for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus—in his very real presence, right then and there with them—Jesus offers
himself as the sign par excellence….the only one who can align their their past,
their present and their future…..<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">….in other words Jesus
doesn’t just <b><u>provide</u></b> Bread, he actually <b><u>is</u></b> the
Bread of Life, having come down from heaven for the life of the whole world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Even though the crowd seems
to ask all the wrong questions, Jesus somehow graciously offers them all the
right answers…all the faith-nurturing, life-giving, future-opening answers….answers
for the original crowd here in John 6…..but also answers for everyone who has
come after them, right down through the centuries to you and me,today, as we drink
in Jesus’ words, here in Fargo ND!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In doing so—lo and
behold!—Jesus feeds us once again—just as richly and generously as he had fed
the 5,000 with the loaves and fishes.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus feeds you and me,
my friends, with overflowing good news and death-defying hope this morning.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: 60.65pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus nourishes us with the assurance that
he is always ready to give us <u>more</u> than we realize we need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt;">When I was a little boy
my dear mother often warned me not to get my hopes up too high (especially when
Christmas Day or my next birthday were coming around)…my mom wanted me to be
realistic in what I was hoping for in terms of gifts and presents I might
receive.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But such wise,
down-to-earth realism has no place when it comes to us approaching God in Jesus
Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s because of the sturdy
hope we have in Christ, the hope that (as it says in Ephesians chapter 3) <b><u>God</u></b>
is <b><i>“<span style="background: white; color: #010000;">able to accomplish
abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: 60.65pt; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #010000; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But there’s
more here:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus strengthens us with
astonishing promise that you and I are never, ever left “on our own” trying to
produce even an ounce of faith—but that Jesus is always at work <u>with</u> us,
<u>through</u> us and <u>in</u> us…freely <b>giving</b> us the faith that sustains
us…graciously <b>bestowing</b> on us the faith that saves us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="color: #010000; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">But that’s
not all. Finally, rather than pointing
us toward hints or clues about what he’s up to—“signs” that we might be seeking—Jesus
lavishes upon us what we need the most:
to see and believe and stake our lives on Jesus himself…who doesn’t just
give us bread, but who in his very being <b><u>is</u></b> our Bread, the Staff
of Life that will never let us down, the
Provision that will see us through all the days of our lives!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So it is…every time we hear God’s Word…and every time we taste God’s
goodness in the bread and the wine, the Body and the Blood of our Lord’s
Supper.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When that happens, as it is happening to us this morning!—we simply echo
the fervent request made by the restless crowd here in John chapter 6:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Give us this bread always—give us your very
self, Lord, Jesus, because we know we can count on you.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 60.65pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the name of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-40713111744851852362021-07-21T07:00:00.002-07:002021-07-21T07:43:26.564-07:00A Liturgy of Lament for a Time of Drought<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A Liturgy of Lament for a Time of Drought<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">A resource created for Eagle Lake Lutheran
Church, Willmar, MN, in the early 1980s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Feel free to adapt or edit for local use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pastor Larry Wohlrabe.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTajWFxFEmyLuN57ktLD6Nx4t7X5fz7JO7EWU5zOoLPKnmIHILh2MkEZgykMVqyWNY8YTcunTEUZva_lcv2EpOBm1cnVld4bzzc8yZkgwK3a__3UvcStgg3OqIWifc1J6dAYfdL2ganWM/s1350/Drought.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="894" data-original-width="1350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTajWFxFEmyLuN57ktLD6Nx4t7X5fz7JO7EWU5zOoLPKnmIHILh2MkEZgykMVqyWNY8YTcunTEUZva_lcv2EpOBm1cnVld4bzzc8yZkgwK3a__3UvcStgg3OqIWifc1J6dAYfdL2ganWM/s320/Drought.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></div><i><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></i><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">PRELUDE<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">ADDRESS TO GOD <i>(based on Psalm 63:1)</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>O God, thou art my God,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I seek thee, my soul thirsts for thee;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My flesh faints for thee,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As in a dry and weary land where no water is.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>O God, thou art my God,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I seek they, my soul thirsts for thee.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">HYMN:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“As Pants the Hart”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">COMPLAINT <i>(based on the weekly news reports and Psalm
51:10-12)</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has been hot and dry for weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cry out to you for relief, O God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our governor says we could be in a “season-long,
statewide drought.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cry out to you for mercy, O God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some crops are lost, and many that survive
will suffer irreparable damage.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cry out to you for recovery, O God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Farm families are depressed and town-folks
grow anxious.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cry out to you for hope, O God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This physical drought is beginning to leave
us spiritually dry as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cry out to you for faith, O God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our dryness reflects our powerlessness, our
God-forsakenness, our sinfulness.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cry out to you for forgiveness, O God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let us make confession to God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Have mercy on us O God, according to
your lovingkindness;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In your great compassion blot out
our offenses:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Create
us in us clean hearts O God,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">and
renew right spirits within us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Cast
us not away from your presence,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">And
take not your Holy Spirit from us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Restore
to us the joy of your salvation<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">And
uphold us with your free Spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">CONFESSION
OF TRUST <i>(based on Isaiah 41:17-18 and Martin Luther’s Small Catechism)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the poor and needy seek water, and there
is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Lord will answer them, the God of Israel
will not forsake them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God will open rivers on the bare heights, and
fountains in the midst of the valleys;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may seem that God has abandoned us in this
time of drought.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we know that we are not forsaken!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are bold, therefore, to confess:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We believe that God has created us and all
that exists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God has given us and still
preserves our bodies and souls with all their powers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God provides us with food and clothing, home
and family, daily work, and all that we need from day to day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God also protects us in time of danger and
guards us from every evil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All this God
does out of fatherly and divine goodness and mercy, though we do not deserve
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Therefore we surely ought to thank
and praise, serve and obey God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
most certainly true.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">HYMN:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“He Leadeth Me”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">WORDS
OF ASSURANCE <i>(based on Isaiah 55:10-11)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For as the rain and the snow come down from
heaven, and return not thither but water the earth,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed
to the sower and bread to the eater,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>so shall my word be that goes forth from my
mouth; it shall not return to me empty,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>but it shall accomplish that which I purpose
and prosper in the things for which I sent it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hear the word of the Lord:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">FIRST
LESSON:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Job 38:1-11<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">SECOND
LESSONS:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>II Corinthians 5:14-21<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">SHARING
WITH CHILDREN<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">GOSPEL:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mark 4:35-41<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">SERMON<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">HYMN:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Eternal Father, Strong to Save”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">OFFERING<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">VOW OF
PRAISE<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>(based on Psalm 7:17)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God does not sleep through our trials and
tribulations, our physical drought and our spiritual dryness.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God hears us and provides for our every need.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">P:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let us give to the Lord the thanks due to his
righteousness!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">C:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let us sing praise to the Lord, the Most
High!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">HYMN:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Listen, You Nations!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>(Canticle 14 in With One Voice)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">BENEDICTION<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">POSTLUDE<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-59836151805968869962021-06-13T04:32:00.004-07:002021-06-13T04:49:51.729-07:00No Such Thing as "Too Little"<p> </p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Messiah Lutheran Church, Fargo, ND<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">June 13, 2021 (Pentecost 2, Year B)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Mark 4:26-34<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjABrEYTWmIgs7er85tJYJxt8UYHfy1-bWILhteomOX9owe0J8i8Hc5sacdCQ7lob1Glmq8R4aDiDSktdu9V01njytEB4QT4_RGSJidBKDjZJxzJQuro6EjSFzjHJblvb7ojXbOz2hRGgA/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="256" data-original-width="384" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjABrEYTWmIgs7er85tJYJxt8UYHfy1-bWILhteomOX9owe0J8i8Hc5sacdCQ7lob1Glmq8R4aDiDSktdu9V01njytEB4QT4_RGSJidBKDjZJxzJQuro6EjSFzjHJblvb7ojXbOz2hRGgA/" width="320" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; text-align: justify;">In the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-size: 16pt; mso-spacerun: yes; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt; text-align: justify;">Amen.</span></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Two months ago a photographer captured a
memorable image that in so many ways reflects what life has been like during
the pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a picture of a very
elderly woman, sitting all alone in a church pew, grieving for her late
husband, at his funeral.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">This funeral—like so many others during
the pandemic—had just a handful of mourners in attendance, all of them masked
and observing strict social distancing protocols.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">This particular widow, though, was <b><u>unlike</u></b>
so many other women who lost husbands during 2021.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her full name is Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor
and she is both the longest-<b><i>lived</i></b> and longest-<b><i>reigning</i></b>
British monarch in history.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">When she was born in 1926 Elizabeth’s father,
King George VI, ruled over not just the United Kingdom, but the entire British
Empire—a realm so vast, wealthy and powerful that it was called <i>"the
empire on which the sun never sets.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Since succeeding her father in 1952, Queen
Elizabeth has overseen the gradual transformation of that old British Empire
into a loose confederation of territories now called the British Commonwealth
of Nations—a shadow of its former self, a kingdom in name only.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Because nowadays real kingdoms are hard to
come by—you and I are especially challenged whenever we hear biblical passages
like this morning’s gospel lesson, in which Jesus asks:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i>With what can we compare the <b><u>Kingdom
of</u> <u>God</u>?”<o:p></o:p></b></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">That’s actually a loaded question, because
whenever folks like us hear that word “Kingdom,” it conjures up all sorts of
assumptions and associations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">When
we <u>hear</u> “Kingdom” we probably picture a vast territory, more acres or
square miles than we can count.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">When
we <u>see</u> that word “Kingdom” we envision overflowing wealth and riches
beyond measure.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">When
we <u>read</u> that word “Kingdom” we immediately assume that tremendous power is
afoot—that control is being exercised by an invincible ruler who has “command authority”
over everything.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">All those associations and assumptions are
conjured up whenever we see, hear or read that word “Kingdom.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">My friends, it’s essential that we pay
attention to these preconceptions about what earthly kingdoms are usually
about….because, when we shift gears to consider the Kingdom <b><u>of God</u></b>,
all bets are off!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">For, you see, God’s reign, God’s kingdom is
totally opposite of what we usually think of as a “kingdom.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="tab-stops: 99.55pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">God’s
Kingdom is a topsy, turvy, reality. Some have even called it an “upside down
Kingdom!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">“<i>With
what can we compare the Kingdom of God?”</i> Jesus asks here in St Mark,
chapter 4.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then he answers his own
question by declaring:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i>It is like a
mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all seeds
upon the earth.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">When,
out of the clear blue, we hear the word “Kingdom,” our natural human tendency
is to “think BIG.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">But
Jesus, instead, invites us to “think SMALL.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Think “magnifying-glass-small”….think teeny, tiny “microscopically small!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Because
for God, you see, “small is beautiful!”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">I
think that’s because God knows how size and appearance can easily deceive us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">We
see that wonderfully played out, not just in our gospel lesson but also in
today’s Old Testament lesson, in which the prophet Samuel discovered that God
had chosen none of the older, taller sons of Jesse to become the king of Israel…but
that God had singled out the smallest and youngest of eight brothers, the runt
of the litter, little no-account David, chosen by God to be anointed King of
Israel.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">For
God, “small is beautiful”…and I think that’s because large realities in this
world almost always start out small.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">My
wife Joy and I grew up on farms in southern Minnesota.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We mainly raised corn and soybeans which
meant that every summer we prayed for timely rains, fought off the bugs, and
pulled up weeds relentlessly…especially that, if given a chance, could multiply
and over-run a soybean field—almost overnight!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">That’s
why, if our fathers spotted a lone thistle, or a single buttonweed or just one
yellow mustard plant our dads would wade through growing crops, sometimes for
up to half a mile, just to uproot that one super-spreader weed before it could
go to seed and take over the whole field.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">With
what can we compare the Kingdom of God ? It is like a mustard seed, which when
sown upon the ground is the smallest of seed…yet when it is sown upon the
ground it grows and becomes the greatest of all shrubs…<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">…and
all of that—that entire process of germination and growth—seems to happen on
its own, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>automatically, without any
human assistance--God’s creative hand, God’s miraculous green thumb hidden
under what appears to be a purely natural process….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">But
this miracle of the mustard seed is so much more than a <b><u>spectacle</u></b>
that wows us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This wild, out of
control mustard seed growth serves a larger purpose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It nurtures life and extends God’s wondrous
creation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The teeniest seed—Jesus tells
us--produces a mega-shrub with branches big enough and spread out wide enough
to provide shelter for the birds of the air.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">In
saying this we describe not only the surprising miraculous growth and vastness
of God’s Kingdom, but also the wealth and the power of God’s Reign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">For
you see, the wealth of God’s Kingdom has nothing to do with what God creates
and keeps stored up <b><u>for himself</u></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Rather,
God’s wealth is what God lovingly chooses to give away, in order to nurture the
world God has created, represented here by birds finding new homes among the
branches of this amazing mustard plant…which is why, in our prayer of the day, earlier
in our worship, we prayed:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“O God,
<u>you are</u> the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world….”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Neither
God’s wealth nor God’s power serve any selfish purposes God might have in
mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Rather,
God’s <b><u>wealth</u></b> is everything that serves the life of the universe which
God has created and handed over to us…and God’s <b><u>power</u></b> is to give
himself away for the care and nurture of all that He has made.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">We
see that in this parable of the <i>mustard</i> <i>seed</i> that Jesus <b>told</b>….and
we behold it even more vividly in the drama of the mustard seed that Jesus <b>enacted</b>
in his own life, death and resurrection.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Our
Lord Jesus spoke of the mustard seed, but he also <b>lived out</b> this story
when he gave away his life on the Cross for us and when like a tiny seed he was
buried in the earth for us, so that three days later he could “germinate” in
the power of the resurrection for us and our salvation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">This
story of the mustard seed isn’t just a great story Jesus <b><u>told</u></b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was also the “script” for the life he
lived <b><i>with</i></b> us, <b><i>among</i></b> us and most of all <b><u>for</u></b>
us….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">…And
even that isn’t the “end of the story!” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Jesus
<b><i>told</i></b> this story, spun out this parable for all who had ears to
hear it….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">And
then Jesus <b><i>lived</i></b> this story in his own life, death and
resurrection…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">And
then Jesus <b><i>got <u>us</u> into the act</i></b>, when through the water and
Word of baptism we were joined to, incorporated into Jesus Christ…so that we
might live out this story--small though each of us may seem to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Thank
God, God loves small things like mustard seeds, and like the little baby Jesus,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and like little old you and little old me!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Thank
God—God fashions a life for us in which our greatest delight is to follow
Jesus, dying to sin in order to rise again with Christ, giving ourselves away
through our faith, hope and love…and<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>continually sacrificing all that we have and all that we are, to nurture
God’s gift of life that fills the whole creation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">And
here’s what’s <b><u>best</u></b> about our “mustard seed” faith, hope and
love:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God takes what we offer and God
“super-sizes” it for the sake of our neighbors and the whole creation….so that
nothing we might offer up (in gratitude for all that God has given to
us!)…nothing will ever be too little for God the Holy Spirit to work with and
accomplish wonderful things--all in the surprising, surpassing power of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;">Let
us pray:</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b>"O God, you are the tree of life,
offering shelter to all the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Graft
us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love
to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amen."<o:p></o:p></b></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-23244653420323654642021-02-10T09:45:00.002-08:002021-02-10T09:46:40.362-08:00Preparing for Our Next Pandemic<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 107%;">Things
We’ll Do Better….During Our NEXT Pandemic<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2nGwst0QuZ8cXNTdOdE_dSQruUwBbeqvaku9mZxVcd9xR4Gc24RXdz0DBhLWyDCFk0Wn95yHiJZoCXzqgi1ey5hiwVAb5H8885hDbvQhqp9iBa5QPJrSjyzbIFnsHcajj-9UMpsH12QY/s768/SantayanaHistory.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="768" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2nGwst0QuZ8cXNTdOdE_dSQruUwBbeqvaku9mZxVcd9xR4Gc24RXdz0DBhLWyDCFk0Wn95yHiJZoCXzqgi1ey5hiwVAb5H8885hDbvQhqp9iBa5QPJrSjyzbIFnsHcajj-9UMpsH12QY/s320/SantayanaHistory.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Although we’re
still in the midst of the Covid19 pandemic, it’s not too early to start
reflecting on what we’ve learned for the sake of being more prepared for the
next pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this blog-post I’m
sharing eight thoughts that have come to my mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please chime in with your own thoughts, hopes
and dreams for how we might handle the next pandemic better than we dealt with the
current pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number 1:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll be grateful that—after our LAST
pandemic (i.e. the pandemic of 2020-2021)--we invested time, imagination, and
resources in preparing for our next pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Examples:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>strengthening our
public health infrastructure, maintaining adequate inventories of vital tools
(e.g. PPE, facemasks, sanitation supplies), “capturing” our learnings, etc.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number
2:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll recognize the critical
differences between <b><i>public </i></b>health and <b><i>individual </i></b>health
and thus share a consensus about the necessity of sacrificing individual
freedoms for the sake of society-wide, global <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>responsibilities.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number 3:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We and our elected leaders will trust science
and expertise, and we’ll <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>all resist any attempts
to politicize scientific findings and public health guidelines and recommendations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number
4:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll willingly embrace short-term
sacrifices for the sake of long-term gains.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number
5:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll support one another in
cultivating patience and managing our anxieties.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number
6:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll understand that a pandemic is,
by definition, a <b><i>global epidemic</i></b> that requires <b><i>global
solidarity and cooperation</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number
7:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll be mindful of and address the
critical needs of our neighbors whose circumstances make them more vulnerable and
“at risk” during pandemics.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Number<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll
pray for and generously support local faith communities and agencies that
address human needs, in partnership with governments and pertinent
non-governmental organizations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-2344384653339947412021-02-09T07:06:00.001-08:002021-02-09T07:17:42.146-08:00Healing the Wound Lightly<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Healing the Wound Lightly<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZmLLau4QhUezG899BWleA8Ha0WngMH0eTY8jMIQSjfsDyA_KPQhg-lijXH8jOUmTY2PBHPzJqEtx0-XPyi5NEGQeMmtDqfwx9UrcZMvtEvbyUB-OHShOWUNsCDuXSHAUEcvR2ryJQCM/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZmLLau4QhUezG899BWleA8Ha0WngMH0eTY8jMIQSjfsDyA_KPQhg-lijXH8jOUmTY2PBHPzJqEtx0-XPyi5NEGQeMmtDqfwx9UrcZMvtEvbyUB-OHShOWUNsCDuXSHAUEcvR2ryJQCM/" width="320" /></a></span></b></div><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In 1991 I transitioned from parish ministry to
wider-church ministry on the staff of the Southwestern Minnesota Synod
ELCA.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">One of my chief duties on the
synod staff was to assist the bishop in dealing with the problem of clergy
sexual misconduct. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In preparation for
this task I spent a week in Pennsylvania being trained by the Rev. Dr. Marie
Fortune, whose ground-breaking book “Is Nothing Sacred:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">When Sex Invades the Pastoral Relationship”
(1989) was leading church leaders to rethink their whole approach to handling this
grievous problem.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Previously too many churches dealt with ministerial
misconduct by NOT dealing with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
focus, all too often, had been on salvaging the minister’s career in order to
keep peace in the parish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the late
1980s, however, there was a sea change (thanks to persons like Dr. Fortune) that
placed a premium on believing and pursuing justice for victims, even if that
meant ending ministerial careers and shining the light of truth on
congregations and other organizations where sexual misconduct by members of
“helping professions” was happening.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Looking back on this era, it seems obvious that
churches and other institutions started doing what they should have been doing
all along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it wasn’t obvious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Indeed some parish lay leaders resisted the
new approach—finagling ways to retain the services of beloved pastors who had
abused parishioners, while refusing to allow full disclosure of the misconduct
in the congregation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In her book, Dr.
Fortune described this as “healing the wound lightly,” based on a striking
passage in the Old Testament prophecy of Jeremiah: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">“For
from the least to the greatest of them, every one is greedy for unjust gain; <o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">and from prophet to priest, every one
deals falsely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">They
have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying,<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no
peace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Were
they ashamed when they committed abomination?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">No, they were not at all ashamed; they did
not know how to blush.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Therefore
they shall fall among those who fall; <o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">at the time that I punish them, they shall
be overthrown,’ says the LORD.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jeremiah .6:13-15 (RSV)</span></i><i style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
phrase “healing the wound lightly” has kept coming back to me since January 6,
2021, as leaders of our two major political parties have haggled over the
second impeachment of the former president—with many but not all Republicans declaring
that it’s time to “move on” from the dreadful event on January 6.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This week our nation has an opportunity to look at itself in the mirror and pursue
the only kind of just peace that will bring long-term healing:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">a peace that begins with fearless, full accountability
for </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">the former president’s role in
inciting the unprecedented violent assault on our nation’s Capitol.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">On
January 23, 2016 the former president, while campaigning in Sioux Center, Iowa,
declared: <i><span style="background: white; letter-spacing: 0.4pt;">“They say I have
the most loyal people — did you ever see that? Where I could stand in the
middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters …It’s
like incredible.”</span></i></span><i><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/HealingWoundLightly14Jan2021.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></b></span></span></a></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 0.4pt;">This
week I will join many Americans in praying that members of the U.S. Senate
recognize and declare that no one—not even the President of the United States—is
above the law.</span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/HealingWoundLightly14Jan2021.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://time.com/4191598/donald-trump-says-he-could-shoot-somebody-and-not-lose-voters/">https://time.com/4191598/donald-trump-says-he-could-shoot-somebody-and-not-lose-voters/</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-39566899894448100272021-02-01T07:00:00.005-08:002021-02-01T07:02:36.590-08:00Breaking the Silence<p> </p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">Christ
Lutheran Church on Capitol Hill, St Paul, MN<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">February 7, 2021 (recorded on January 30, 2021)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Malachi
3:1-4 and Luke 2:22-40 </span></u></b><i><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">(texts for the Presentation of Our Lord)<o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">Baptism
of Malachi Lawrence Haddorff<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJ6zKZGXyc-YhKCCPRy_asAx_Nwc2wyqfh0WZQ9NYImPVQuYjHlO7TszErf-dz_8YnGyaMBYU6g9feHz2g5eTxCEx1TWmZ_OapR46XqGi2w8-zbSYVBaLrdkavh_QlWdqcptEGufwiJc/s640/MalachiBaptism.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJ6zKZGXyc-YhKCCPRy_asAx_Nwc2wyqfh0WZQ9NYImPVQuYjHlO7TszErf-dz_8YnGyaMBYU6g9feHz2g5eTxCEx1TWmZ_OapR46XqGi2w8-zbSYVBaLrdkavh_QlWdqcptEGufwiJc/s320/MalachiBaptism.jpeg" width="320" /></span></a></b></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /></span></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">In
the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Amen.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">At
11:56 a.m. on Monday, December 21</span><sup style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">st</sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> when the earth’s atmosphere hit
his brand-spanking-new lungs, a tiny little baby uttered his own unique OMG”—oh my goodness, I’m alive, I’m here, watch out world—I’ve arrived!</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">What
the adults in the birthing room actually heard were none of those </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">words.</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">What they heard was actually a </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">cry</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">, a
</span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">wail</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> they’d been anticipating, an exclamation that brought relief and a
few tears to the eyes of the medical team and a mom and a dad.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">No
articulate </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">words</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">—but </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><u>communication</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">, nonetheless.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">And since December 21</span><sup style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">st</sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> this wee
one has continued communicating in clear, unmistakable fashion….conveying
messages like:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">“I’m hungry!”</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">“I need to sleep” or “I need my diaper
changed!”</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">He
has yet to utter his first </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">word</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">, but he’s been </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">communicating</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">
every day….and that’s a good sign that he’s already living up to his name:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Malachi</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">, which is Hebrew for “my
messenger.”</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">The
shadowy </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">biblical</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> figure Malachi was indeed a messenger, God’s
messenger….in fact, the last voice to speak in our Old Testament…and when this
little-known messenger was done prophesying, there began a 400+ year period of
prophetic </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><u>silence</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">….</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">….a
</span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">desert</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> of wordlessness that lasted until John the Baptist, the herald of
God’s New Covenant, God’s New Testament came upon the scene to break that four-centuries-long
silence…to proclaim the arrival of</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Jesus
of Nazareth, God’s anointed one, the Messiah…the Savior of the world.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">Our
gospel lesson for today narrates an even earlier episode in the breaking of
that four-century-long silence, as a mother and father brought their infant son
to the Temple in Jerusalem, to purify the mother after childbirth and to
present their first-born son to God.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">But
they were interrupted, more than once, by other worshipers in the
temple….strangers who spotted them and immediately broke the silence of that
Holy Place to give voice to what God was now up to in this baby boy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">Like
those old Busby Berkley Hollywood movies of the 1930s, in which actors and actresses
suddenly burst forth into song and dance….here in Jerusalem’s Temple,
bystanders step out of the shadows and break the silence of that Holy Place.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">First
there was a man by the name of Simeon, who had hung on for years, living on the
edge of his seat, eyes peeled every moment—watching every day for the long-anticipated
arrival of the Messiah.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Simeon
makes a Spirit-led beeline to the Holy Family in the Holy Place….and—amazingly--the
parents just hand over their infant son, entrust him to Simeon’s old arms so
that he can break the silence and sing his swan song…a song that—millennia
later, we Christ-followers still sing, most often after meeting and receiving
our Lord in His Supper:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">“</span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Lord, now
let your servant go in peace, because I’ve seen all there is to see—I’ve beheld
the Light that will never be quenched, a Beacon to the outsiders and the glory
of the insiders, Israel’s stubbornly persevering faithful ones.”</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">No
sooner does Simeon finish his song, than ancient Anna gets into the act.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Having
attained an incredibly old age, having lived twice as long as women lived back in
the 1</span><sup style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">st</sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> century A.D.….old, wrinkled Anna—the original “Church Lady”!--who
basically lived in the Temple…. Anna chimes in and prophesies—foretells and
“forth-tells” to anyone who’ll listen as she trots around the Holy Place,
breaking the silence with her exuberant, overflowing praise for baby Jesus who
would redeem, liberate God’s people.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">Imagine
all that….four hundred years of silence….broken by a man finally ready for his
own funeral, and by a frail old lady, who had doggedly held God to God’s
promises…..now uttering her ”gloria hallelujah” all around the temple
precincts.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">It
is not lost on us this morning, that most folks who are worshiping together via
Zoom aren’t present here physically in this house of worship.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">This
beloved, historic holy place—like thousands of church buildings across our
world—has been silenced by the coronavirus pandemic….a plague—ironically!—that
is spread by the movement of air—especially whenever folks are speaking,
shouting, singing….or even prophesying!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">We
ardently wish for </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">this</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> seemingly endless, enforced silence to be broken…and
we’re longing to be healed from all the other plagues this viral pandemic has either
caused or exposed:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">plagues of racial strife,
economic injustice, civil unrest, and the despoiling of the atmosphere that
surrounds planet earth—which, Pope Francis reminds us, is our </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><u>common</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">
home!</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">All of which is to say:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">we long for a breaking of the silence about
everything that’s threatening us…especially that ancient unholy trinity:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">sin,
death and the power of the devil.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">We pine
for God in Jesus Christ to</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">disrupt</span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">our wretched condition of being
curved-in-upon-ourselves, we long for God in Jesus Christ to uncurl us and to
open us up again to trust God completely, love our neighbors gracefully and
care for this good earth unreservedly.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Taking our cues from Simeon’s </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">sober
warnings</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> to mother Mary, we also acknowledge that our Lord Jesus will not make
all this happen with the wave of a magic wand, but with his self-emptying life…his
passionate self-sacrifice on a Roman cross…his bold assault on the gloomy house
of death…his relentless defanging of the Devil,…and his rising from the grave
to open up—for all his precious people--a bright, new future without end.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;">This
whole drama of rescue that Simeon sang about and that old Anna foretold….this
story of salvation will be played out again this morning… right before our eyes,
in just a few moments, as we break the silence of this pandemic to baptize a
little squirt named Malachi, God’s messenger.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">My
dear friends:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">today as we utter the
promises of God and pour out the water in the Triune Name and light a candle,
let us all remember our own baptisms into</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Christ….and let us remind our little ones and everyone else that they,
too, are signs </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><u>and instruments</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> of God’s in-breaking strong but
gentle rule over all things….and that even if we aren’t all named Malachi, we
are nonetheless </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><u>messengers of Christ</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">, heralds of peace, and workers
in the kingdom of God.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">In
the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Amen.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: medium;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: medium; mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><u style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></u></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-71318175446900298422020-11-29T15:28:00.003-08:002020-11-29T15:32:19.505-08:00Reflections on Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo: Implications for Faith Communities<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJkH5FBfcqb88EAkZQFll33o4Kj64iiqCXd7BEOTyOjwz7pE_vEXTEbgtyCDdAftmVtHYpoHdkdldb1NJRGsG0fcB7S6WXyyCvIjfXsvdm2yFZjcqRpAIPhy_xwy9vL5qjSv0_CWGvYCk/s1920/SupremeCourtBuilding.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1920" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJkH5FBfcqb88EAkZQFll33o4Kj64iiqCXd7BEOTyOjwz7pE_vEXTEbgtyCDdAftmVtHYpoHdkdldb1NJRGsG0fcB7S6WXyyCvIjfXsvdm2yFZjcqRpAIPhy_xwy9vL5qjSv0_CWGvYCk/s320/SupremeCourtBuilding.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Last Wednesday evening, just before midnight, the Supreme
Court of the United State (SCOTUS) released its decision in the matter of the </span><i style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Roman
Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York v. Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of New York</i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In this case the Court sided with the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and the Agaduth Israel of America
organization by enjoining New York Governor Andrew Cuomo from restricting the
rights of these two religious groups to hold congregate, in-person worship
services, as a matter of public health during the pandemic.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Two things were notable about this injunction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, the Court reversed itself in terms
of how it ruled in two similar cases brought by other religious groups earlier
in 2020.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second, this was the first
case in which Justice Amy Coney Barrett (who had replaced the late Justice Ruth
Bader Ginzburg) changed the outcome of this case before the nation’s highest
court.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Not surprisingly, this SCOTUS ruling was greeted with
praise by conservative pastor Franklin Graham who tweeted:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i>This Thanksgiving I’m thankful for President
Trump’s appointment of 3 conservative #SCOTUS justices who ruled last night in
favor of churches & against gov't overreach in the state of New York</i>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Graham’s sentiments were echoed by the
editors of <i>National Review</i> magazine who opined that, in its November 25<sup>th</sup>
decision, “<i>the Supreme Court got church restrictions right</i>.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Predictably, <i>Americans United for the Separation of
Church and State</i>, offered an alternative viewpoint:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The
Supreme Court’s order misuses religious freedom and endangers the public health
of everyone in New York. With coronavirus cases spiking across the country, we
should be heeding the advice of public health experts who recommend limiting
large gatherings. COVID-19 doesn’t discriminate between religious and secular
gatherings; on numerous occasions, infections at houses of worship have led to
major outbreaks in surrounding communities….”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The attention given to this SCOTUS decision led me to
look at the actual decision,<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> along with the comments of
the justices who concurred with or dissented from it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Doing so has left me puzzled and troubled
about the implications this decision is likely to have across the United
States.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">First, Justice Neal Gorsuch (in a concurring opinion) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>proposed the notion that anti-religious bias,
not concern for public safety, was Governor Cuomo’s primary motive in this
matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Who knew public health would
so perfectly align with secular convenience?” Gorsuch asked, before concluding
that <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“the only explanation for treating
religious places differently [from secular places] <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>seems to be a judgment that what happens there
[in religious gatherings] just isn’t as ‘essential’ as what happens in secular
spaces.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Gorsuch also seems to propose that Governor Cuomo
personally (and capriciously?) decided to alter the pandemic “threat level”
affecting congregations of the Brooklyn Diocese:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The State has effectively sought to ban all
traditional forms of worship in affected ‘zones’ whenever the Governor <u>decrees
and for as long as he chooses</u>…..[And] just the other day, the Governor <u>changed
his color code</u> for Brooklyn and Queens where the plaintiffs are<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>located….” (<i>emphasis added</i>).<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Surely, one would hope, Justice Gorsuch realizes that
public health conditions during the pandemic are often changing as the
coronavirus ebbs and flows! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or does he?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It seems to me that the virus itself—not Gov. Cuomo or any other elected
official—is the “culprit” here, in terms of determining when a geographical
area is deemed to be a “hot spot.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Justice Gorsuch also muddies the water when comparing
religious organizations to non-religious organizations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So he criticizes Gov. Cuomo for alleging
that “it may be unsafe to go to church, but it is always fine to pick up
another bottle of wine, shop for a new bike, or spend the afternoon exploring
your distal points and meridians.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, Gorsuch contends that liquor
stores, bike shops and acupuncturist clinics are comparable to congregations of
religious believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Nothing could be farther from the truth!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As Justice Sonia Sotomayor (in her clear and
thoughtful dissent from the decision) helpfully points out, “[state officials]
may restrict attendance at houses of worship so long as comparable secular
institutions face restrictions that are at least equally as strict.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sotomayor identifies such organizations as
those that offer “lectures, concerts, movie showings, spectator sports, and
theatrical performances, where large groups of people gather in close proximity
for extended periods of time.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Now, gentle reader, you may be wondering why a retired
Lutheran pastor living half-a-continent away from New York City would even care
about these issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In short:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m passionately concerned that this decision
by SCOTUS may increase the likelihood that the Coronavirus will cause more
illness and take more lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
because all across the nation—including rural areas that make up so much of the
Upper Midwest—we have local faith communities that are struggling to live by
the public health measures (face-masking, social distancing, avoiding congregate
in-person worship) designed to stem the tide of the pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sadly, too many folks in these scattered rural
religious communities struggle to take the coronavirus as seriously as is
necessary, to safeguard the health and wellness of them and their neighbors.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I fear that reports about the Diocese of Brooklyn v.
Governor Cuomo case could provide “ammunition” to religious congregants who are
already pushing back on their pastors, church councils, and local governmental
leaders as they seek to “be church” in the midst of this pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What everyone needs to be clear about is
that a <b>large group of people gathering, speaking, and singing in close
proximity indoors for extended periods of time</b>—an apt description of a “normal”
congregational worship gathering--is one of the most dangerous settings for
spreading the coronavirus. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I am deeply grateful for our nation’s constitutional
commitment to the free exercise of religion—and I long for the day when we can
again bask in this freedom, without needing to follow the difficult public
health remedies that have been prescribed for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We must be clear, however, that the U.S.
Constitution is not—in the immortal words of former Justice Robert Jackson—a suicide
pact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, restrictions that
may temporarily need to be made with respect to rights like freedom of religion
must be balanced against the need for <b>survival </b>of the state and its
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Lawrence R. Wohlrabe<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">November 29, 2020<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://www.au.org/media/press-releases/Supreme-Court-Decision-COVID-New-York">Supreme
Court Undermines Religious Freedom And Public Health By Ruling Against New York
Health Order | Americans United for Separation of Church and State
(au.org)</a>. Quotes in this blogpost not otherwise credited are taken from this document.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Available at <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20a87_4g15.pdf">https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20a87_4g15.pdf</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> In
the SCOTUS decision itself, the New York state regulation is said to “<i>single
out houses of worship for especially <u>harsh treatment</u>.”</i> (emphasis
added)<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> “Distal
points and meridians” have to do with acupuncture.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/BlogPosts/SCOTUSReligiousFreedom25Nov2020.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Ironically,
by the time the SCOTUS issued its decision in this matter, the course of the
coronavirus had already made it possible for the pandemic threat level in the
neighborhoods comprising the Diocese of Brooklyn and Agudath Israel of America
to no longer be classified as orange or red “hot zones.”<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-3867842461874830962020-11-13T13:04:00.001-08:002020-11-13T13:08:37.817-08:00Pivoting to Our Next Hybridized "Normal"<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 107%;">Pivoting
to Our Next Hybridized “Normal”<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeA8fX2Jy8ANuRdReIaAkKFsH_8nrz1iqwKcFjNEiWTs-RH4ulZyw3c8OPdaZsWlP7F7NPwHnjSFsG7NDTcnR7Y4zTNrdjYATwspWcmox3ahm00N-CWukpjZzfpiBCzYm__AQNNGFIR-c/s960/EaNDSynodStaffAugust2020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeA8fX2Jy8ANuRdReIaAkKFsH_8nrz1iqwKcFjNEiWTs-RH4ulZyw3c8OPdaZsWlP7F7NPwHnjSFsG7NDTcnR7Y4zTNrdjYATwspWcmox3ahm00N-CWukpjZzfpiBCzYm__AQNNGFIR-c/s320/EaNDSynodStaffAugust2020.JPG" width="320" /></a></b></div><b><br /><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Thanks to the pandemic, we’ve been forced to reimagine
just about everything in our world—and without the chance to do so at the kind
of measured, thoughtful, cautious pace we’d normally prefer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No wonder we’re exhausted as we feel the
pinch of what renowned epidemiologist Dr. Michael Osterholm has labeled
“pandemic fatigue” <i>plus</i> “pandemic anger.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Such fatigue+anger is emerging because the pandemic
doesn’t “stay in its lane” (whatever that might mean)—but relentlessly spills
over into every facet of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No wonder
it’s so hard to pause and catch our breath.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I’ve been pondering how the pandemic has been
affecting churches in my part of North America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do so from the vantage point of having
served on the staff of three “middle judicatories” of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America (ELCA)—most recently as interim bishop of the Eastern North
Dakota Synod, ELCA (from January 15 to October 31 of 2020).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I had served in this temporary role for less than two
months when the pandemic hit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
shortly thereafter, in rapid succession, three other “pandemics” piled on:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>civil unrest</i> in the wake of George
Floyd’s murder, <i>environmental chaos</i> reflected in a staggering succession
of “extreme weather events,” and an <i>economic recession </i>triggered by all
four “pandemics.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">How have faith communities responded to this
unprecedented cascade of crises?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Three
phrases—questions, really--capture what I’ve been observing from my unique
perch:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><b><i>Are
we…<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Pining for our old “normal” or pursuing
our next “normal?”<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Creating new tools or pivoting with
existing tools?<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Focusing on a singular mode of
response or envisioning a “hybridization” of responses?<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Old Normal…New Normal…or Next Normal?<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Quite soon after congregations closed the doors of
their buildings and made provisions for fulfilling their primary functions via “virtual”
means I was struck by how quickly church members started articulating a desire
to “return to normal.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Such expressions
of impatience with the conditions forced upon us by the coronavirus struck me
as strikingly premature.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">What surprised me even more was my own kneejerk
response to such grousing:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We won’t be
returning to normal anytime soon—and even when that happens we’ll notice that
the old ‘normal’ we hanker for no longer exists.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As someone who usually avoids brash pronouncements, I
asked myself why—in this instance, at least--was I going out on such a limb?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>glib talk about “returning to normal” seemed to be seriously
dishonest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those who started
complaining—so soon!--about the emergency closure of our church buildings appeared
oblivious to the deadliness of the pandemic itself.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In short, many of us quickly came to regard March 11,
2020<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Pivoting%20to%20Our%20Next%20(Hybridized)%20Normal.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> as a date that would
henceforth mark one of the great “continental divides” in world history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Others weren’t so sure the pandemic was that
big a thing, and some (as we learned during the election of 2020) even harbored
the conviction that it was nothing more than a clever hoax.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">So instead of pining for a speedy “return to normal,” some
of us talked about anticipating a “new normal.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We did so, convinced that the “normal” we
once knew—the “old normal” in which the possibility of a viral pandemic never even
crossed our minds--was gone for good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Henceforth, whatever awaits us, we will live into a world that realizes
viruses like Covid19 can appear out of the blue, at any time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">So when I heard persons wishing out loud for a “return
to normal,” I started speaking in terms of a “new normal.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">And that lasted for about one day!....<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">….because if the vaunted “new normal” we longed for
allowed us—even for a nanosecond—to lower our guard and settle into a fresh
experience of stasis, such a “new normal” could prove to be as dangerous as our
old normal.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It was at this point that I decided to speak, instead,
about the “<u>next</u> normal”….a chance to catch our breath and recuperate
until the next big global challenge comes along and calls forth the sorts of
concerted, focused, imaginative responses that we’re witnessing day by day, all
around us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">And such talk about a “next normal” applies not only
to the public health issue of the coronavirus pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about those other “pandemics” that have
come after us this year?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If “returning
to normal” means making peace with systemic racism, snoozing while global
climate change takes its toll on our precious environment or looking the other
way while economic injustice gets by with murder—then I want nothing to do with
such an “old normal.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">And I trust that I’m not the only one who sees things that
way!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">So please, let us set aside all the silly talk about
“returning to normal.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let us, instead,
pray and plead and work for the next normal that will surely prove to be a
gracious gift from God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Creating from Scratch—or “Pivoting” With What’s
at Hand?<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--></span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">When the news media began paying attention to the
pandemic, reporters often stressed that we were facing a <i>novel</i>
coronavirus, i.e. a <u>new</u> virus for which no treatment or cure existed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The resulting terror that gripped us was
compounded by the fact that this virus was airborne, making Covid19
astonishingly easy to contract.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Christian congregations were especially vulnerable,
given the fact that, as Bishop N.T. Wright has noted, <i>“Christianity is a
team sport. It’s something we do together. Think of the fruits of the Spirit:
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, graciousness, gentleness, faithfulness,
and self-control (Gal. 5:22–23). All of those are things we do together. You
can’t be practicing them apart from one another.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Pivoting%20to%20Our%20Next%20(Hybridized)%20Normal.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As scientists were racing to create a new vaccine to
combat a new virus, churches also hastened to create—seemingly “from
scratch”--new ways of “doing church” under the difficult conditions created by
the pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How could we still
worship, extend care for one another, teach the faith, organize ourselves to
serve God’s mission in a new environment in which simply being in close
quarters could kill us?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As sobering as that challenge seemed to be, church
folk responded with amazing speed and imagination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we
did so we discovered that instead of “creating from scratch” the <i>novel</i>
tools we’d need, we already had many promising resources in our “toolkit.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t need so much to create, as we were
being called to “pivot” with approaches that were already in use.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Case-in-point:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>the rapid, widespread embrace of corporate worship using digital/electronic
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>means like Zoom, Facebook Live, YouTube,
etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fortunately we had many
congregations that were already live-streaming their worship services, and
these early adopters quickly became teachers and examples to the rest of
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Better yet--some of our finest resource
persons turned out to be younger believers—those in the first third of life!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In a similar vein, “virtual” meetings soon replaced
in-person gatherings such as church council discussions, congregational
meetings, and in eleven of the ELCA’s 65 synods, all-digital synod assemblies
complete with elections of new bishops.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Hybridizing Ways of “Being Church Together”<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As I write this blogpost Americans are basking in
early, positive reports about potential vaccines for the coronavirus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Such promising news not only cheers us up,
but also points us ahead to a time when the coronavirus will no longer be first
and foremost on our minds—when the pandemic will cease to cause sickness and
premature death.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">When that much-anticipated time comes, what will we do
with the new tools for ministry that helped us weather the pandemic?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tuck them away in mothballs, in case we ever
need them again?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I don’t think so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I foresee churches moving ahead with various “hybridizing” arrangements
that wed familiar ways of ministering in-person with one another with the
emerging remote or virtual tools that have helped us survive the pandemic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Live-streaming
public worship services will become more common, making it possible for those
who can’t attend worship “in-person” on a regular basis—whether because of
health concerns, inclement weather, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>living in remote areas, tending sick family
members—to still worship via digital means.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Deliberative
bodies within the church will continue to “meet” in-person and/or via virtual
means—reducing travel time and expense, drawing in members who maintain dual
residences (e.g. “snow-birds” from the Upper Midwest who spend their winters in
warmer climes), and not allowing inclement weather to postpone vital
opportunities for corporate decision-making.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening up church-based classes, forums,
discussion groups, or gatherings <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>for inquirers/seekers/religiously
curious folks to be offered via both in-person formats and digital formats
could actually attract persons to explore the Christian faith and consider
joining a congregation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><u><o:p></o:p></u></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Above all, whenever this current pandemic is history, I
pray that churches across the world will set aside time for prayerful
reflection and earnest conversation about what we learned about “being church
together” in the year 2020.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lawrence
R. Wohlrabe<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">November
13, 2020<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;">Moorhead,
Minnesota<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Pivoting%20to%20Our%20Next%20(Hybridized)%20Normal.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
The date the World Health Organization declared the existence of the Covid19
pandemic.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bpwoh/Documents/Writing%20Projects/Pivoting%20to%20Our%20Next%20(Hybridized)%20Normal.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/july-web-only/god-pandemic-nt-wright-coronavirus-aftermath.html?fbclid=IwAR382Yt8VLW_gazRAzdjjUyhULXe90U-vQiGvv55x_4o9S29RCEz8ReAMaE">https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/july-web-only/god-pandemic-nt-wright-coronavirus-aftermath.html?fbclid=IwAR382Yt8VLW_gazRAzdjjUyhULXe90U-vQiGvv55x_4o9S29RCEz8ReAMaE</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2817903029564822895.post-38333451936537106922020-10-25T12:09:00.001-07:002020-10-25T12:09:31.333-07:00"But now..."<p> </p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">St
Matthew’s Lutheran Church, Thompson, ND/</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Reformation
Sunday/October 25, 2020 (online)</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Affirmation
of Baptism & Installation of Pastor Tawanda Murinda<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Romans
3:19-28<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq1yjm6M3AfFYlAe3tsd2FcS_Z21gB5qQiW4yY7xPOe3e8_B_1atESrUBoWG4wX2Tzq7lqPlv4FbdyynxlP8BOy3LVnEV3m_YJ77BSe_13ZpzWUKudGvMqv7gtE24J0oQhwFcDBa_7IBE/s500/StMattsThompsonND.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="293" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq1yjm6M3AfFYlAe3tsd2FcS_Z21gB5qQiW4yY7xPOe3e8_B_1atESrUBoWG4wX2Tzq7lqPlv4FbdyynxlP8BOy3LVnEV3m_YJ77BSe_13ZpzWUKudGvMqv7gtE24J0oQhwFcDBa_7IBE/s320/StMattsThompsonND.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In
the name of Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Amen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
morning I have three different kinds of news for you.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">First,
the </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">bad news</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">…but then the </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">good news</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">….and finally—wait for
it!—I’ll share the </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">best news</b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> of all!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> <span> </span></o:p></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">1.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></b><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">First the bad news:
we’re stuck and we can’t get ourselves unstuck.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">We’re
stuck—oh boy are we stuck!</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
morning, as if we need to be reminded, most of us are stuck at home or wherever
else we’re catching this online worship service.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
the reason we’re stuck somewhere else than in our </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">beloved church home in Thompson, ND, is that
we and everyone else in this world are stuck in a viral pandemic, the likes of
which </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">we haven’t seen in a century!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This
coronavirus that has snaked its way across the whole globe is the freshest
proof </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">that we live in a world that’s
simply not what its Creator intended it to be….proof that the creation itself
is groaning in pain and anticipation of the new creation God is preparing for
us all.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
for now, we’re stuck,</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">and we can’t get
ourselves unstuck….and as if the pandemic itself wasn’t awful enough—our
inability to come together, agree with one another, and take </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">some fairly easy steps that could defeat this
virus—the fact that we human beings haven’t gotten our act together </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><u>globally</u></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
places the responsibility for our “stuckness” squarely on our own shoulders…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">…while
also exposing all sorts of </span><u style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">other</u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> ways we’re stuck and cannot get
ourselves unstuck, like:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Being stuck in
age-old <b>prejudices</b> over race, ethnicity, language and culture;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Or being stuck in <b>economic
systems</b> that don’t give everyone a fair shake; <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Or being stuck on <b>a
planet experiencing climate change</b> at a frightening pace, marked by “extreme
weather events”—wild fires and hurricanes, for example, that keep hitting us with
astonishing frequency and force.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
why are we stuck in all these ways?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s because we and the whole human race are stuck in </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>sin</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">sin, understood not just in terms of</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">unlawful or hurtful things we say or do, but in
terms of a condition, a force with a life of its own, causing us to be “curved
in on ourselves” </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">(as Martin Luther liked
to say).</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Today’s
bad news is that we’re stuck in sin and all the disastrous effects of sin—and
we can’t get ourselves unstuck…which is why we hope for and cry out for a path out
of this wretched situation.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s why
we’re starving to hear even a </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>shred</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> of good news.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">2.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><b style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">And--thanks be to God!--there is <u>good</u>
news: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">God has already
opened up for us a path, a solution, a way forward to get unstuck!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
you already know, I’m guessing, where this is leading:</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">which is </span><b style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><u>to Jesus</u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">, of course!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This
good news </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">has nothing to do with what you and I think or say or
do. It is, rather, simply bestowed on us—out
of the clear blue. It descends like
gentle rain on parched earth. It
“happens” to us when we least expect it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That certainly is how it happened for our Lutheran
church’s namesake, Martin Luther, who was born in 1483.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Growing up in Germany during the Middle Ages, Martin
Luther wrestled with his own brand of stuckness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was stuck in a feverish, desperate
attempt to make himself acceptable to a God whom he feared more than he loved—a
God whose church in that time offered 101 ways to “get right” with the
Almighty.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If anyone <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">could </i>have
pulled that off—it was Martin Luther.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Day
after day he labored—performing good works, confessing all his sins, making
amends for those sins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Luther became so
obsessed with “going to confession,” that one day his frustrated priest-confessor
turned him away at the door into the confessional—commanding Luther not to come
back until he had some real, serious sins to confess!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So instead, at the end of his rope, Luther dove deeply
into the Word of God…searching, seeking, trying to find a way out of his
stuckness in sin…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">….until one fine day <b><u>“that way out” found
Luther!</u></b>--right here in the words of today’s Second Lesson from Romans
chapter three.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God’s good news burst into Luther’s life through just
two words:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">but now!”</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Those might be the two sweetest words in the whole
Bible:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>But now”</u></b>—something new bursts forth, a turning point arrives…something
other than “trying just a bit harder” to live our lives well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But now</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">—a
path opened up that Martin Luther wasn’t even looking for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just appeared—taking Luther completely by
surprise.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“But
now,” </span></i></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">sings
St. Paul here in Romans chapter 3</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">, “but now, apart from law, the righteousness
of God has been disclosed…the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus
Christ for all who believe.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here Luther thought that being right with God, being
aligned with God’s Kingdom, was something he had to pursue with every fiber of his
being….<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">…”<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">but now”</i></b>—lo and behold!—it dawned on
Luther that God’s righteousness had been pursuing <u>him</u>, all along.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Following in Luther’s footsteps, we 21<sup>st</sup>
century Lutherans, have come to know and trust that God’s righteousness—<b>that
is, God’s way of making the world right again</b>--is never our do-it-yourself
project.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is God’s good work, from
start to finish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is God rescuing us—completely
“free of charge.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And here’s the best thing:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God delights in simply forking it over,
letting it wash over us, covering all our sinfulness and waywardness with the saving
water of our baptism into Christ Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This gracious water of Baptism into Christ sweeps away
all obstacles in our path, pulls us out of our stuckness, and catches us up in
the gracious current, the glorious under-tow of God’s Good News.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Which brings us to the
best news of all! </span></u></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God’s way of making us and the whole world
right again in Jesus Christ, isn’t just a bright idea or a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“live option”—an alternative God cooked up
for us in the spur of the moment—a rescue plan that just might do the trick, if
we’re smart enough to choose it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">No, the best news of all is that this way, Jesus’ way
is what God has had in mind all along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As Paul puts it in our text, Jesus <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“<u>disclosed”</u></i></b><u>
</u>what God has always been about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus discloses that God’s righteousness isn’t God’s possession—but
rather, it is God’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">modus operandi—</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">God’s way of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>being God for us, played out in real time in
this world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God is, always has been, and always will be in the business
of setting things to right—making you and me and the whole creation NEW once
again!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God doesn’t come to us, hat in hand, to make us an
offer he hopes we’ll accept.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">No, but rather:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>God rolls up his sleeves and goes to work in us, in order to open us up
to this goodness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God chooses to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">accomplish </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>this way in our lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is our destiny!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Before the first star began to twinkle, God was
thinking of you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before God created
anything, God was already envisioning a Cross and an Empty Grave at the very
center of human history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before the first sunrise ever took place, God
had designs on you--to name you and claim you and never let you go.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That, my dear young friends—Ava, Reese, Kate, Zakary,
Drew and Zane—it’s what the six of you are affirming today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re saying your own Yes to the Yes God
said to you when you were baptized.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And because all of this is God’s gift to you—you are
free from everything that makes you stuck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In Jesus Christ, we’re simply <u>set free</u>:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>free to float in God’s mercy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Years ago I got to know Raymond Lucker the bishop of
the Roman Catholic Diocese of New Ulm MN until cancer stole him away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In his last days Ray often visited a little
farm place he owned near Renville, MN.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One day a friend found Ray, sitting in a lawn chair in
the bright sunshine of a Minnesota summer morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“What are you doing?” a friend asked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Nothing,” Bishop Lucker replied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><i>“I’m just sitting here, letting God
hold me.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Reformation Day is about floating on the sheer grace
of God, living in the confidence that before you and I ever lifted a finger to
do one good thing for God, God had already done all good things for us, in
Christ Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And where does that leave us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It leaves us free from all our “stuckness”…free to say
thank you….and free to<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>live the life we
were created for:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>trusting God, loving
our neighbors, and caring for this good earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It doesn’t get any better than that.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In the name of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Amen<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Larry Wohlrabehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12243315899500603052noreply@blogger.com0