Northwoods Seelsorger

I'm really not a fan of annual reports. Don't get me wrong - I know their value. But as a pastor, reviewing the year's stats can be depressing. As I was amassing the attendance figures and the membership losses and gains, I was faced with that familiar inner tendency to judge the so-called success of the ministry by the cold hard numbers before me. Average attendance down again. Net loss of membership again. My members have been kind about not holding me personally responsible for this. But a pastor struggles not to do it to himself. It's at this point that I'm particularly glad that my daughter gave me Klement Preus' book The Fire and the Staff (CPH, 2004) for Christmas. I have only begun this work, but two items were especially comforting to me as a pastor. The first occurs early in the book as Preus confesses his seeming failure in campus ministry at the University of North Dakota. To his fellow pastors he admitted: "During my whole ministry I have been...

In July of 2006 the LCMS announced that that leaders from the LCMS and the AALC (American Association of Lutheran Churches) were unanimously recommending complete altar and pulpit fellowship between the two denominations. An article from the LCMS website can be found here . While this may seem like a bit of 'old' news, some reasons compel me to write about it now: The convention is only about a half year away. There will be those who will push this hard for passage. Serious concerns will possibly be swept to the side, as often happens. Like many conventions I fear that there will be many who will not be well informed about the past history of the AALC or the numerous concerns by some within the LCMS . For background you can read a short history of the AALC in this wikipedia article . There is also a fine Q & A article on the WELS site that is worthy reading. It summarizes well the questions any Lutheran should be asking about this proposed fellowship agree...

Many fundamentalist and evangelical Christians admittedly have little use for the Fathers of the Church (meaning those, especially of the earlier church). Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christians, of course, would give the Fathers high honor, and would appeal to their writings as authorities for their teachings. But how do the Lutherans view the Fathers? I believe that Chemnitz , who was by and far early Lutheranism's greatest patristic scholar, would be one who would express the Lutheran view best. Carl Beckwith , in his article "Martin Chemnitz's Use of the Chruch Fathers," says: "Given Chemnitz's prefatory comments on the fathers and his restatement of them, it is fair to characterize his attitude toward the Fathers as one of esteem and discernment" [ CTQ , July-Oct, 2004, page 279). Given the fact that the "fathers" of the Lutheran church, including Luther, did not hesitate to appeal to the fathers of the ancient church over an...

One of the recent Concordia Theological Quarterly issues that arrived in my mailbox not long ago (yet dated July/October 2004) contained an article that caught my attention, entitled "Martin Chemnitz ' Use of the Church Fathers." In reading through the article there was a discussion of Chemnitz ' critique of the Fathers and the Doctrine of Justification, which got me to thinking about an article I wrote back in February 2005 on a different blog, by the title listed above. What follows is that article (slightly edited from its original state): Both the Roman Catholic church and the Orthodox church appear to have had limited interest in what is for Lutherans the doctrine upon which the church either stands or falls: Justification by faith. Even when they refer to justification they interpret it in a different way that most Protestants would recognize (intrinsic change vs. forensic declaration.) In the Christian News issue of Monday, February 13, Todd Wilken's in...

The title above almost sounds like a diet ad, doesn't it? Loose 20 pounds in one week! What it does refer to is a neat site my wife forwarded to me knowing my interest in history. It's titled: “History of Religion: The Geography of Faith and Its Wars Across History - See 5,000 years of Religion in 90 Seconds.” A brief explanation reads: "How has the geography of religion evolved over the centuries, and where has it sparked wars? Our map gives us a brief history of the world's most well-known religions: Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. Selected periods of inter-religious bloodshed are also highlighted. Want to see 5,000 years of religion in 90 seconds? Ready, Set, Go!" The site, over a brief period of 90 seconds, colors in a map of the world showing the origin and growth of the world's major religions. You can find the site here . If you are 'dial-up' it'll take a moment to load. I thought that this demonstration was ti...

Ok, this is a bit of shameless advertisement for my favorite seminary and its annual Symposia. Every year I make my pilgrimage to Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, and spend a wonderful week in the company of fellow confessional Lutheran pastors and laity and professors. The papers are intellectually stimulating, the fellowship is invigorating, the bookstore is great diversion (an tempation on my favorite weakness: books!), and the chance to hear top-notch choirs and participate in first-rate worship in the chapel is truly inspiring. Have I convinced you yet? If you are interested, a summary of the Symposia can be found here . The event of the year will be held on the seminary campus from January 16-19 . Registration information can be located here . The theme for the 22nd annual symposium on Exegetical Theology is "Christian Identity in a Pagan World: Lessons from Ancient Israel and Early Christianity." The theme for the 30th annual symposium on The Luth...

Yes, we are still trying to find the answers to questons that have long been settled. In today's synod one of the front-burner issues is the role of women in the life and work of the church. The group, which I referenced in yesterday's post, Voices-Vision , has been an active movement in conjunction with the Day-Star Network , to push for greater involvement of women at all levels of the church. The last convention in 04, in disregard for issues raised even by our own professors, went ahead and opened the involvement of women at all levels on the congregational level. Although, caution was given about elders, especially those who assist at the altar. Nevertheless, I suspect that many congregations have disregarded this and went ahead and opened all offices, seemingly with Synod's blessing. In the latest issue of the Reporter , which is the offical paper for 'professional church workers' in the LCMS, a front-page article entones: "CTCR seeks top issues f...