Northwoods Seelsorger

Are Anglicans high church or low church? Well both. With "broad church" squeezed in between. Their approach to worship and doctrine alike is well summed up in the little Lain phrase via media , the middle way. Which remains, for many, a true attraction to this church. One day in class we were studying the collects of the Church of England's Common Worship. A discussion arose around the propers for "All Soul's Day," a point of contention, as one might expect, for the Evangelicals given its association with the "Romish" doctrine of purgatory. I asked what the Church of England's position was on this issue. In reply my instructor answered with a question: "What shape is a jellyfish?" Point taken. Doctrine becomes what one desires or needs it to be, for Angl0-Catholics it is one thing, for Evangelicals another. And the official books of worship are modified and crafted accordingly to accommodate as large and broad a constituenc...

In my evening class on Liturgical Change in the Church of England, I have had the opportunity to examine first hand the essence of what make Anglicans Anglicans. Of course, I am still working on this, and have come a long way since I arrived a week ago. Being among a decidedly Anglo-Catholic crowd one cannot but be impressed by the reverence for the ancient traditions of the church catholic. However, sitting in class last night with the lone Roman Catholic on one side of the room and me, as the token Lutheran, on the other, I began to realize that our seating might be symbolic of where these folks are. They are in the middle of things, wishing to be Catholic, yet not being able to deny their Reformation roots, and trying hard to reconcile both ends without offending any in the process. What follows is a little paper I wrote this morning in reflection on a couple of questions given by my professor for class tonight for discussion purposes. It's my first attempt at analyzi...

Today represents yet another first. At Evensong this afternoon I will be formally "matriculated" into Nashotah House Theological Semnary. In all my years of education I have never gone through a ceremony, as such, to enter an institution. Apparently in England, at places such as Oxford, this is standard fare. From the instructions given to me this morning I will kneel and formally sign the matriculation book in the presence of the dean of students. There is also some brief rite as well. They tell me that there are two books of matriculation, one going back well into the 1800's. Leave it to the Anglicans to bring a lot of good tradition, pomp, and ceremony to the occasion! Re: the picture - This was entitled "signing the book" and is an example from one of their matriculations. Don't worry, though, I won't be overstepping any fellowship boundaries as a good Missouri Synod pastor. It's not really an act of worship, although Anglicans give...

I recently stumbled into an article I wrote on the New Perspective back in 2007. Now in the thick of a class where I am studying the topic first hand, I suspect that it will need some revision. However, a fuller revision will have to wait. Suffice it to say for now that on the one hand I am a bit more sympathetic to some of the scholarly arguments, yet remain concerned that they have simply replaced one perspective with the other (contrary to the claims of such as Dunn that they are merely supplementing.) The case is still not made for me, especially after yesterday's tour de force of several Second Temple texts which are supposedly the basis for covenantal nomism, which in turn forms the basis of the New Perspective. It remains a both/and, not an either/or, to which I fear many in the NP camp have fallen. Today we will be looking at Krister Stendahl, a precursor to the leading lights of the present NP discussions. While I will grant to him as well some credit for making ...

I began my first day at Nashotah House where all days begin here: chapel. Getting used to Anglican liturgical practices provided me with my first great challenge juggling multiple books and attempting to interpret the unique codes of their hymn board and the varied rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer. Still, their worship is refreshingly solemn with a slow and deliberate flow that refuses to rush being in the presence of God. Sitting in an ancient choir stall surrounded by the richness of beautiful iconography, statuary and stained glass, there was a sense of being transported to another time, a simpler time. Anglicans surround themselves with history in a sense of unbroken tradition sadly lacking in much modern worship today. My classes filled up at least six hours of truly stimulating intellectual study. Dr. Garwood Anderson introduced the field of the New Perspective, giving us helpful background on the principle players in this area: Sanders, Dunn, W.T. Wright, et. al. The ...

I suppose one could call this an "acceptance speech," but the tone was more subdued and tempered than what one might expect with such a speech. Hearing him actually speak these words adds much to the gravity of his presentation. However, if downloading it is not an option, or you have dial up like me, this printed version may serve just as well. Congratulations, Pastor Harrison, as the newly elected president of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. You will be in our prayers. If one member suffers, all suffer together. If one rejoices, all rejoice together. Right now there are many rejoicing and there are many suffering. Luther says when you're walking along and you strike your little toe on a chair or table leg, what happens is the whole body bends over, the face grimaces and grabs that little toe. There's no use saying 'it's just a little toe,' because the whole body suffers. This, I realize, is a tumultuous change in the life of our Synod. I wish...

As initial reports on the LCMS Convention filter in from various sources, I find myself with a variety of reactions. On one level I am confused trying to answer the ultimate Lutheran question, "What does this mean?" What is the impact on the church and its mission? I'll be honest, I'm simply not completely sure. One thing I do see is that the structure of what I once knew as the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod seems to be changing and transforming before my very eyes. The other day, if I understand it correctly, many of the elected boards, such as World Relief and Human Care, may have simply gone out of existence, being replaced by the new creation of two overarching organizations for home and foreign missions. As I suspected, the proposed changes for the Blue Ribbon Committee on structure are being passed. The margins may be slim, but they are being passed. This undoubtedly may go down as the real event of this convention, and not the elections on which we...

If you are confessionally-minded and wish to have regular updates on the LCMS convention now underway, I would recommend going to this site . You can subscribe and have updates sent to you via regular email on a daily basis. It will be much better reading than any that would be provided by Jesus First ! :) For the record I am hoping to see the Rev. Matthew Harrison elected as the new president of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. From what I hear the elections could be as early as tomorrow, although they are supposedly scheduled for Tuesday. It's all in the Lord's hands now. How do I feel about the convention overall? Hard to say. The Blue Ribbon Committee recommendations for synodical overhaul concern me, and I've written elsewhere about those concerns. To some degree the changes seem inevitable, although I certainly don't want to be a fatalist in that regard. I'm content to wait and see what this week brings. Like most changes, good and bad, we'...