Extras

Don’t Call Me Pastor — by R. W. Dahlen — August 27, 2007

While I was growing up in the 1950s and early 1960s, Zion Lutheran Church of International Falls, MN, was served by a man we knew as Reverend Evans. A battlefield call to ministry in the trenches of France in 1918 led him to seminary. From the lumber camps of the 1920s, through the Great Depression, and on into the baby boom following the Second World War, three generations came to call him “Reverend.” Some have even suggested his bride called him Reverend when they got up in the morning...

A Primer on Lutheran Hermeneutics — by Roy A. Harrisville III — August 30, 2007

A Lutheran approach to Scripture has certain necessary components. They are: the priority of Scripture, Christ as the center of Scripture, law and gospel, the plain sense of Scripture, the power of Scripture, and the inspiration of Scripture...

Reforming the Daily Office: Examining Two New Lutheran Books — by Philip H. Pfatteicher — August 31, 2007

The creation of Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, as I understand it, was generated by the convergence of two factors. One was the fervent desire on the part of a relative minority in the church to end the use of masculine pronouns (“he,” “him,” “his”) to refer to God. The other was the increasingly serious financial situation of the church’s publishing house, Augsburg Fortress...

Small Catechism Preaching Series — by Sarah Wilson —

Through the Catechism in 12 weeks! This particular series ran from September through November 2007. Each Sunday specifies which portion of the Catechism to read and OT, Psalm, NT, and Gospel readings for the day.

Bulletin: Commandments 1-3 — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulleting with readings and prayers for Commandments 1-3.

Bulletin: Commandments 4-6 — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for Commandments 4-6.

Bulletin: Commandments 7-10 — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for Commandments 7-10.

Bulletin: 1st Article of the Creed — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for the 1st article of the Creed.

Bulletin: 2nd Article of the Creed — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for the 2nd article of the Creed.

Bulletin: 3rd Article of the Creed — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for the 3rd article of the Creed.

Bulletin: Lord's Prayer Intro, 1st and 2nd Petitions — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for the Introduction and 1st and 2nd Petitions of the Lord's Prayer.

Bulletin: 3rd, 4th, and 5th Petitions of the Lord's Prayer — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Petitions of the Lord's Prayer.

Bulletin: 6th and 7th Petitions and Doxology of the Lord's Prayer — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for the 6th and 7th Petitions and the Doxology of the Lord's Prayer.

Bulletin: Confession and the Office of the Keys — by Sarah Wilson —

A foldable bulletin with readings and prayers for Confession and the Office of the Keys in the Catechism.

Small Catechism Preaching Series — by Sarah Wilson — November 08, 2007

Free and downloadable! A schedule for preaching through the Catechism in 12 weeks, plus bulletins that you can easily alter to suit your own parish's needs.

Bulletin: Communion — by Sarah Wilson —

This bulletin has lessons and prayers revolving around the theme of Holy Communion in the Small Catechism.

Bulletin: Baptism — by Sarah Wilson —

A printable, foldable bulletin with readings to accompany Baptism in the Small Catechism.

When the Gospel Excludes — by Sara Gausmann — February 05, 2008

“There is nothing new under the sun”: Ecclesiastes tells it the way it is. I don’t know how often I have thought of a “new” program to try in my congregation only to learn that it had been done before. Sometimes people tell me flat out; other times either they’ve forgotten, or are trying not to hurt my feelings, so I learn on my own by leafing through bulletins or coming across council minutes of years past...

Commending the Lenten Discipline — by Sarah Wilson — February 01, 2008

For some of us a Lenten discipline is as automatic and essential as presents are at Christmas—with perhaps some of the same pitfalls of familiarity as well. Done rightly, it is a good and honorable practice. Commending it to the folks in the parish, though, is a little trickier, especially when it is new and unfamiliar. This is the letter I hand out to my parishioners the last Sunday before Ash Wednesday to encourage them to give it a try...

Ash Wednesday — by Clint Schnekloth — February 06, 2008

On this Ash Wednesday, let us take these words of Isaiah to heart, trust in Christ as the authentic Word, the Word that should guide all the words we speak to each other and to God. Let us turn from our sin, repent, and seek Christ's forgiveness...

Lively Stones - The Catechetical Approach of Berthold von Schenk — by Berthold von Schenk — February 11, 2008

What is the relationship between Confirmation, First Communion and Baptism? In the introduction to Lively Stones, his parish Catechetical program, Berthold von Schenk, 20th century pioneer of liturgical renewal, offers a spirited assessment of contemporary Lutheran catechetical practices and proposes a Baptismally based, sacramentally oriented approach…

The Best-Kept Secret in the Christian Church: Senn on Lutheran Identity — by Dave Poedel — April 30, 2008

A number of years ago, while teaching a course in human anatomy and physiology at our local community college, a student in her early 20s approached me and said, “It is so cool that you are a pastor and my professor! What is even cooler is that you are the pastor of a black church.” Somewhat taken aback, I replied, “Thanks, but what makes you think that my congregation is made up of African-Americans?” She said, “Well, you know, Martin Luther King and all that.” This is a true story! And to this day this episode causes me to ponder our identity as Lutheran catholic Christians. There have been numerous attempts to define Lutheranism from a doctrinal, ethnic, or sociological point of view. Too often, Lutheranism ends up being the best kept secret in the Christian church.

Meanings of Music — by Amy Schifrin — May 28, 2008

What sort of meanings can music have or convey? Are there inherent, even fixed meanings in the grammar or structure of a musical composition, the ordering of sounds apart from anything extra-musical? Does music acquire meanings (for those who hear or make it) through the extra-musical associations of its functioning in a given culture? Text, time and place, timbre, velocity, volume, virtuoso performer: can such things determine an understanding of what music means or what music can do? ...

Lutheran and Wesleyan Pilgrims on the Catholic Way — by William P. McDonald — September 01, 2008

Experience isn’t everything, but it matters to Methodists, at least after Scripture, tradition, and reason, so I begin autobiographically. I am perhaps the first United Methodist minister to be formally installed as pastor of an ELCA parish, St. Paul’s, in Vonore, Tennessee. I am Methodist, quite simply, because I was baptized, confirmed, and brought up in the ways of Wesleyan righteousness: warm heart, enlightened mind, and social conscience. For the commitments those terms name, I am grateful. It happened that a family down the street, whose large yard was a neighborhood playground, were Lutheran. They unwittingly managed to pique my interest in their church, and it wasn’t long before I was splitting my time between Trinity United Methodist and Faith Lutheran in my hometown of DeLand, Florida...

A Lutheran Responds to Altar Calls — by David C. Drebes — December 01, 2008

It’s something I can’t quite come to terms with. Is it a source of shame? No, I don’t think so. And yet, I’ve been cautious about sharing this particular tale of a holy experience. You see, I, a life-long Lutheran, encountered the Holy Spirit at an altar call...

Advent Poetry — by Harvey S. Mozolak — December 08, 2008

INTO THE SEASON poetry by Harvey S. Mozolak

Becoming the Church in Tanzania, Part 2 — by Faustin Mahali — March 08, 2009

The formation of Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanganyika in 1963 came as a result of the already existing Federation of the Lutheran Church in Tanganyika. In areas where more than one mission society was active, there existed joint mission boards that oversaw assistance plans for developing the work of each synod. The collaboration of these mission societies, despite diversities in their theologies and administrative systems, paved the way towards a united Lutheran Church in Tanzania. Moreover, the nationalistic ideas of unity for an independent Tanganyika challenged the regional churches to form one united church...

Glenn Stone, 1928-2009 — by Karl-John Stone — June 13, 2009

The Rev. Glenn Charles Stone, of Jackson Heights, NY, died Saturday, June 6, 2009, after living 23 years with cancer. Born June 13, 1928 in Chicago, Illinois, he left high school early to attend the University of Chicago on a full scholarship, graduating with a degree in geology. During college, he felt God's call to ordained ministry, and graduated from Augustana Theological Seminary, Rock Island, IL. Ordained June 15, 1952 as a pastor in the Augustana Lutheran Synod (a predecessor church body of first the Lutheran Church in America, then of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America), he was installed as pastor of Christ Lutheran Church, New Hyde Park, Long Island, NY. He earned the Master of Sacred Theology degree from Union Theological Seminary, New York City, in 1960, with his thesis on “The Use of the Sacrament of the Altar,” and began assisting at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Roosevelt, Long Island, while also serving other specialized ministries, primarily in publications and teaching. In the 1960s he taught at Our Saviour’s Lutheran High School in the Bronx, worked at the National Lutheran Council, and served as editor of The National Lutheran, in New York City. In 1969 he was called as founding editor of the journal, Lutheran Forum, also in Manhattan, and served for many years as executive director of its publisher, the American Lutheran Publicity Bureau; this is the editorial ministry for which he was best known...

Going Postal — by LF editors — June 13, 2009

Those of you who are enjoying your newly-arrived Summer 2009 issue of Lutheran Forum may wonder what on earth happened to the Hebrew words that appear in the current Old Testament article, "Going Postal." Let us be the first to say: responsibility for the garbled Hebrew lies with the editorial staff, not with the author, and for this we apologize both to Dr. Goodine and to our astute readers. And if we may be so bold, please do the author the honor of reading her article from the PDF link below, which now has the correct Hebrew in it...

Going Postal in Judges 19 — by Sarah Wilson —

Elizabeth Goodine's OT article in the Summer 2009 issue.

Crisis in Zimbabwe — by Pastor Herbert Moyo — September 07, 2009

A pastor of the ELCZ tells the story of being "Hungry, Sick, and Dying in Zimbabwe" in the fall issue of LF. But a picture is worth a thousand words, especially in the case of rampant political corruption and horrifying violence. Here are some pictures of what God's children are suffering in Zimbabwe...

Zimbabwe photos — by Sarah Wilson —

to go with crisis in Zimbabwe post

The Empty Crib — by Howard Olson — September 16, 2009

As a young couple of 19 and 23 my wife, Louise, and I went to Tanzania in 1946 to serve as Lutheran missionaries. We were stationed at a remote, but beautiful, area called Kijota. The nearest Americans lived 20 miles away as the crow flies, and 50 miles by road during the rainy season. We did not experience loneliness because of the warm hospitality of our African neighbors. Yet we desired the enrichment our lives would acquire if we were more than just husband and wife alone...

The Lutheran Constellation — by Bp. James F. Mauney — September 22, 2009

There has been a full moon in the sky these past days, which has made it a bit more difficult to notice the vast array of stars in the heavens. I remember as a Boy Scout learning the patterns and stories of the different constellations. Some were constellations with all large, bright stars. Some constellations had several strong, bright stars, and several lesser, faint lights, but the point was that they gathered in a cluster that made them a unique presence in the firmament of God. For instance, the Big Dipper, with its seven large stars, is part of Ursa Major, twenty stars and a Greek myth to go along with it. As I am getting older, I have to tell you that it is getting harder and harder to distinguish Ursa Major in the heavens. It feels like I am losing the stars one by one, even some of the brightest ones...

A Response to the LCMS "Theses on Worship" — by Phil Secker — October 29, 2009

The “Theses on Worship” adopted unanimously by the LCMS Council of Presidents of the LCMS on September 19-22, 2009, after two years of study and discussion, has both strengths and weaknesses.

The Lutheran Churches of India — by Peter Vethanayagamony — December 15, 2009

India is home to the oldest Lutheran body outside Europe and North America. One-third of all Asian Lutherans live in India. Thanks to the commitment, labor, and investment of Europeans and North Americans, Lutheran churches have put down deep roots all over India and thrive today as a vibrant Christian communion. This survey is an attempt to paint a big picture of Lutheranism in India today, building on the story of Lutheran missions to India in the Winter 2009 print edition of Lutheran Forum. Lutheranism is spread out all over India, encompassing several ethnic and linguistic groups, the oldest being the Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church. Today Indian Lutheranism is organized into eleven autonomous church bodies under the banner of the United Evangelical Church in India. We will begin our quick overview of this communion with the southernmost part of India...

The Elusive Lion and the Shepherd — by Howard Olson — November 05, 2009

In this second excerpt from his memoirs, missionary to Tanzania, Howard Olson, provides a picture of life in 1950s Africa.

The Earlier St. Martin — by Bruce Wilmot Adams — November 11, 2009

St. Martin of Tours, as he became known, was born in Sabaria, the capital fortress town in Pannonia (now Hungary) in the year 316. It was a period when the vast straggling Roman Empire stretched from the tip of northern Britain to Spain, from North Africa to the Middle East, to the southern banks of the Danube and Rhine rivers. The blood-letting of Christians under the despotic emperor of Rome, Diocletian, had ceased five years before Martin’s birth. His father had risen through the ranks of the Roman army to become a military tribune. Both of Martin’s parents were committed pagans, even selecting to name their son after Mars the Roman god. But what appeared to be the impregnable strength of the Roman Empire was displaying signs of inward decay. Inflation was starting to undermine the economy; with the impending danger from the horde of Vandals massing on the eastern frontiers of the Rhine. Both intimated ominous threats to Roman power and stability...

______, Justice, Jazz — by Matthew D. Musteric — November 20, 2009

The theme of the 2009 ELCA National Youth Gathering in New Orleans was “Jesus, Justice, Jazz.” However, early on what began to concern me and several friends who attended was that the first one in the list, Jesus of Nazareth, seemed noticeably absent by name in the mass gatherings, particularly from many (though not all) of the speakers chosen to headline the events...

Christmas Break — by Sarah Wilson — December 23, 2009

Dear readers, we'll be taking a break from the web for Christmas, and we hope you will too. We wish you a peaceful and blessed celebration of the Word made flesh. See you after Epiphany!

Thank You — by Paul Sauer — December 21, 2009

Dear Friends, It is that time of year. As the book closes on a turbulent year for American Lutheranism, we are grateful that you have journeyed through this difficult time with us here on Lutheranforum.org. We hope that you have found the commentary and postings timely and enlightening, but also challenging and thought-provoking as we seek a way forward for our Lutheran churches that is both evangelical and catholic

Pietism According to Bo Giertz — by Eric R. Andrae — January 25, 2010

The influence of Bo Giertz (1905-1998) on the American scene has been such that some have even taken to calling themselves “Giertzians.” What are the marks of a “Giertzian” confession of the faith? American Lutheran scholar Clifford Ansgar Nelson noted already in 1950 that Giertz “has a profound appreciation of the high-church liturgical movement as well as of low-church evangelicalism. If one should characterize the type of piety which is most congenial to his spirit, it would be as a broad evangelical orthodoxy”...

Why I'm a Confessional Lutheran — by Clint Schnekloth — March 19, 2010

I'm probably not a confessional Lutheran in the strong sense of the term. Some folks who are "confessional" are adamant about it, fastidious in their attention to being confessional. It is a mark of pride, a crypto-fundamentalism. I don't consider myself a confessional Lutheran of that stripe. I think I tend towards more a "big-tent" confessionalism. How to define this...

I Am Not Going Anywhere. This Is My Church. — by Pari Bailey — April 21, 2010

I had quite an experience at the Southwestern Minnesota Synod Assembly this past weekend. In addition to my duties as a voting member, I was providing occasional, informal color commentary on my Facebook page for distant friends and others interested in the proceedings. However, things got so bad, I simply quit posting out of shock and grief. I suppose this assembly experience was better for me than last year—at least this year, nobody accosted me in a bathroom and called me “bigot” and “bitch.” So, yay for a little bit more civility in this corner of the church. But boo, hiss to the horrible songs with their barely-Christian, social-gospel-and-good-works-save-us lyrics. Boo, hiss to the pastors who rolled their eyes and smirked at each other as I went to the microphone and called the assembly to repentance. Boo, hiss to the incessant “God’s Work, Our Hands” cheerleading. Boo, hiss to the pretense of business as usual. Boo, hiss to the fiction of bound conscience, which doesn't appear likely to last the year...

+Richard Charles Dickinson (1925—2010), A Memorial Reflection — by John Arthur Nunes — April 26, 2010

Memorials like this can easily slide into trumpeted flourish or flashy cliché about the deceased. Our ordinary temptation to slip into anthropocentric eulogy rather than Christocentric doxology is stemmed when the funeral service itself gives praise to God. Such was the case at resurrection masses I attended for John Tietjen in Fort Worth, Texas (February 2004) and Richard John Neuhaus in New York City (January 2009). Such again was the case when adoration to God flowed for the life of a third man whose ministry reshaped twentieth century Lutheranism, the funeral celebration for the Rev. Dr. Richard Charles Dickinson held on 23 April 2010 at Grace Lutheran Church of Pagedale (St. Louis) Missouri...

Mortality, Thrash Metal, and the Church — by Paul Gregory Alms — August 02, 2010

“The world seems a smaller place and less of it is mine.” I heard that in a song somewhere once. It speaks of growing up and looking back and realizing that as one gets older there are fewer possibilities. This is simply a product of living in a world of time, of the drip, drip, drip of moments come and gone.
 From the moment we are born, the possibilities ahead of us contract...

A Day for Prayer: August 19 — by Erma Wolf — August 09, 2010

The divisions in the ELCA are not going away. In spite of repeated cries that the current disagreements regarding blessing of same-gender relationships and GLBT persons in same-gender relationships serving in rostered ministry should not be church dividing, the ELCA is in fact divided. The number of congregations that are struggling with reactions among the members to the 2009 churchwide assembly decisions is, in some synods, very large, even if most of those congregations are not taking votes to leave. Pastors, regardless of their own stand on these matters, find that some members are voting with their feet, or with their pocketbooks, or both. And the financial shortfall in both synods and churchwide offices is taking a real toll...

The New Global South Face of Christianity: A Report on the Conference of the International Lutheran Council — by Martin Conkling — August 23, 2010

Philip Jenkins, author of The Next Christendom: the Coming of Global Christianity (2007), among others, argues that when American or European church leaders and scholars meet with their counterparts from Asia, Africa, or Latin America, the agenda is crafted by the participants from the global North. As a result, the “new Christendom” emerging in the global South is marginalized and consequently many of the present realities of Christianity in these locations and the impact of their projected future courses are ignored. The growing religious impulses found in Asia, Africa, and Latin America demand attention now if Northern Christian denominations are to avoid a number of misunderstandings...

Reflections on the CORE Theological Conference — by Paul R. Hinlicky — September 21, 2010

Full disclosure: as one of the lecturers at the event in Columbus, Ohio, in August, I am a partisan. What follows will hardly be dispassionate observation. As a post-modernist, to be sure, I don’t think dispassionate observation is either possible or desirable. Critical charity and fair-mindedness, in full cognizance of one’s own sin and limited vision, is the better aspiration. As I teach these things to students, I regularly instruct them, moreover, that to tolerate everything and anything is to value nothing; that to suspend judgment when critical thinking is demanded is no virtue, but a passive and cowardly form of self-serving...

An Open Letter to the Editor of The Lutheran — by Carl E. Braaten — October 28, 2010

I am writing in response to your editorial in the October 2010 issue of The Lutheran, the magazine of the ELCA. In that editorial you write about the formation of a new Lutheran church body, the North American Lutheran Church. You make a number of statements that are either petty or untrue, creating a false impression...

The ALPB: The First 50 Years — by Paul Sauer — November 17, 2010

You know Lutheran Forum, Forum Letter, and LutheranForum.org. You may have even read some of the books published by the American Lutheran Publicity Bureau (ALPB), or use its For All the Saints prayerbook. But what is the ALPB?...

ALPB History — by Paul Sauer —

Alan Graebner's history of the first 50 years of the ALPB>

Advent 1 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Advent 2 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Advent 4 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Prayers for Advent — by Richard Bansemer — November 22, 2010

Richard Bansemer, former Bishop of the Virginia Synod of the ELCA, and author of the ALPB's devotional books O Lord, Teach Me to Pray based on the Small Catechism, and We Believe based on the Augsburg Confession, has graciously provided prayers of the church for the Sundays of Advent 2010...

Advent 1 PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Advent 2 PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Advent 4 PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christmas Eve — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christmas Eve PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christmas Day PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christmas Day — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christmas 1 — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christmas 1 PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Prayers for Christmas — by Richard Bansemer — December 01, 2010

Richard Bansemer, former Bishop of the Virginia Synod of the ELCA, and author of the ALPB's devotional books O Lord, Teach Me to Pray based on the Small Catechism, and We Believe based on the Augsburg Confession, has graciously provided prayers of the church for the Sundays of Christmas 2010...

The Hope of Eternal Life — by Sarah Wilson —

2010 statement of the Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue in the U.S.

Heaven, Hell, and Everything in Between — by Sarah Wilson — December 15, 2010

The American Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue team has just released its latest statement, entitled "The Hope of Eternal Life." The dialogue was sponsored jointly by the ELCA and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, with members of the Missouri Synod in attendance at the sessions...

Advent 3 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Advent 3 PDF — by Paul Sauer —

 

Prayers for the Epiphany Season — by Richard Bansemer — January 04, 2011

Richard Bansemer, former Bishop of the Virginia Synod of the ELCA, and author of the ALPB's devotional books O Lord, Teach Me to Pray based on the Small Catechism, and We Believe based on the Augsburg Confession, has graciously provided prayers of the church for the Sundays of Epiphany - Series A. All of the prayers reflect the lessons of the day...

Epiphany Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Baptism of Our Lord Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 2 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 3 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 4 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 5 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 6 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 7 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 8 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Transfiguration Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Transfiguration Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 2 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 3 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 4 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 5 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 6 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 7 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Epiphany 8 Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Baptism of our Lord Prayers pdf — by Paul Sauer —

 

Peace's Progress — by Deborah E. Hauser — January 12, 2011

Peace Lutheran's sixty-nine year history of sharing Jesus with children has indeed been richly blessed. Our school first opened on September 9, 1941, in Saginaw, Michigan, with thirty-one students ranging from first through eighth grade. What is the secret to our success, particularly in 2010-2011, when Lutheran schools are closing worldwide at an alarming rate? Why is our Lutheran school, in economically challenged Saginaw, Michigan, blessedly increasing in number? ...

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity — by Sarah Wilson — January 18, 2011

Traditionally, January 18-25 is observed as the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Please join your sisters and brothers in Christ around the world in pleading with our heavenly Father to put an end to our divisions. The World Council of Churches and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity jointly prepare resources for this Week every year...

Diakonia and Christian Social Practice in Oslo — by Sarah Wilson — January 25, 2011

The European Lutheran churches tend to have far more developed diaconal service and programs than their American counterparts. Though we have certainly done a lot in the area of social service, it has been less explicitly connected to the public minsterial offices of the church. Norway is par for the course in the European model, and in fact has a school called the Diaconal University College in Oslo. This fall it will begin offering a master's degree in Diakonia and Christian Social Science. As you might guess, since the program is offered in English, it's not intended primarily for Norwegians, but for Lutherans and indeed all Christians across the world, so it will be a place to study diakonia in a truly global context...

Diakonia and Christian Social Practice — by Sarah Wilson —

 

Ash Wednesday Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Lent 1 Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Lent 2 Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Lent 3 Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Lent 4 Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Lent 5 Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Palm Sunday Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Prayers for the Lenten Season — by Richard Bansemer — March 07, 2011

Richard Bansemer, former Bishop of the Virginia Synod of the ELCA, and author of the ALPB's devotional books "O Lord, Teach Me to Pray" based on the Small Catechism, and "We Believe" based on the Augsburg Confession, continues his series of prayers forthe church, this time for the season of Lent - Series A. All of the prayers reflect the lessons of the day...

Good Friday Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Maundy Thursday Prayers (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Rip Van Winkle, Brom Bones and the Sleepy Church — by Richard F. Bansemer — March 09, 2011

One of the delightful benefits of retirement is the leisure to read and muse in areas of interest that have been neglected since college days. I regularly purchase various courses from The Teaching Company to fill in the night hours when insomnia blesses me with an alert and inquisitive mind. The following article is based on a course entitled “Classics of American Literature” taught by Dr. Arnold Weinstein. Many of the insights of Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow are his observations, but I have included some of my own, so don't fault him for anything theological that you read below, and beware, for I live by the motto: “Never let the truth interfere with a good story”...

The Death of the Funeral Society (and the Resurrection to Christian Community and Mission)
 — by Paul R. Hinlicky — March 14, 2011

Remember the Beatles’ tune “Eleanor Rigby”? Now allow me a provocative thesis: most of our congregations are funeral societies, their pastors “writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear; no one comes near.” That is not meant as a put-down, but rather as a sober sociological observation about “all the lonely people”—not out there in the world but sitting right in our pews. The funeral society was one of those Hellenistic institutions that early Christianity absorbed and made over. It performed a perennial religious function that in one way or another has to be taken care of. In the ancient world, intergenerational voluntary associations were formed among the urbanized masses so that, upon death, one’s mortal remains would be entombed, honored, and memorialized. Religious rites primarily had to do with the passing through the trauma of death. Beliefs were not nearly as important as ritual processing of that trauma...

Critique of the LCMS's "Creator's Tapestry" — by Sarah Wilson — March 16, 2011

Prof. Elizabeth A. Goodine of Concordia Bronxville presented this paper criticizing "The Creator's Tapestry" at a Theological Convocation in Minnesota this past February. She also wrote "Going Postal in Judges 19" for the summer 2009 print edition of Lutheran Forum. The summer 2011 issue of Lutheran Forum will feature another critique of "The Creator's Tapestry"; look for it in June...

Goodine on "The Creator's Tapestry" — by Sarah Wilson —

 

Resurection of our Lord Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

Second Sunday of Easter - Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

Third Sunday of Easter - Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

Fourth Sunday of Easter - Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

Fifth Sunday of Easter - Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

Sixth Sunday of Easter - Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

Seventh Sunday of Easter - Series A — by Paul Sauer —

 

The Three Lutheranisms — by Paul R. Hinlicky — April 28, 2011

I have some ideas about the peculiar history of Lutheranism which stands behind our knotted reality. Historically, if we begin with period between 1517 and 1580 and call that the Confessional period, there have been three additional Lutheranisms: Orthodoxy, Pietism and Liberalism. Each in its own way can claim the legacy of the first, though the authenticity of each claim is viewed with considerable skepticism by the heirs today of the other two (in my scheme, no one gets to claim the initial “Confessional Period,” for reasons adduced below). All three Lutheranisms evolved in part in reaction to what preceded, and continues in opposition to what follows, but each operates on the common principle that the true-blue Lutheran is obliged to critique theological opponents as veritable deformers of the gospel. This habit of passionate denunciation, what historian James Burkee calls “the Luther syndrome,” is the common thread running through all three. Nothing then so modest as clearing up muddled thinking, defeating ignorance with knowledge, or expanding small-mindedness with generosity of vision can be the work of genuine Lutheran theology! Behind the perceived error of our foes lurks apostasy, for nothing less than the gospel is at stake! Thus the three Lutheranisms de facto, if not de jure, habitually anathematize each other...

Justification and the Messy Boundaries of Church — by Paul R. Hinlicky — May 11, 2011

In recent discussions with Midwestern Lutheran friends who are as troubled as I am about the drift by the ELCA into liberal Protestantism, I heard again the tired argument: the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification between the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church is doomed to failure because Lutherans have only one, I repeat, just one criterion for church unity, namely, “the” article on which the church stands and falls—justification”! But the Joint Declaration is doomed because Catholics do not affirm that Justification is more than one criterion alongside others...

Women and Men in Christ - Furthering the Discussion — by Elizabeth A. Goodine — May 16, 2011

In February of 2011 I was privileged to speak, along with the Rev. Dr. Joel Lehenbauer and the Rev. Dr. Armand Boehme, on the topic of "Women in the Church" at the Theological Convocation held by the Minnesota South district of the LCMS. It was the desire of both the speakers and those who arranged the convocation that the presentations of the day would generate and foster further useful discussion throughout the district and synod. My specific task was to respond to Reverend Lehenbauer's presentation and to share thoughts on a broader view for women in the Church. Since that day I have become aware of numerous responses to my presentation, many of which were insightful and which have been helpful to me in terms of clarifying my own thoughts. I am deeply grateful to those who took the time to attend the conference (and/or to read the papers) and then to offer thoughtful questions, comments and resources for further consideration. These responses generally fell into three areas that I believe merit further attention: 1. Methodological approach 2. The "Order of Creation" 3. Freedom and justice as a paradigm for future work

Theses on Christology in the Tradition of Luther — by Paul R. Hinlicky — May 30, 2011

At the conclusion of the recent semester, I prepared the following theses for students as a summary of what we had learned. The theses are an attempt to restate early Lutheran christology in the context of contemporary concerns. At the request of the students, I am putting them forward for public discussion. Please bear in mind that theses are distillations of large arguments, reduced to their logical and material essentials. Disputation about theses is meant to sharpen understanding, then, of what is logically and materially essential. It is not meant to replace those larger arguments but to provide a roadmap through them...

Prayers for the Pentecost Season — by Richard Bansemer — June 07, 2011

Richard Bansemer, former Bishop of the Virginia Synod of the ELCA, and author of the ALPB's devotional books "O Lord, Teach Me to Pray" based on the Small Catechism, and "We Believe" based on the Augsburg Confession, continues his series of prayers for the church, now for the season of Pentecost - Series A. All of the prayers reflect the lessons of the day...

Day of Pentecost Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Holy Trinity Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 2 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 3 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 4 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 5 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 6 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 7 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 8 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 9 Prayers — by Paul Sauer —

 

Crush on a Calvinist — by Sarah Wilson — June 23, 2011

It’s been a year now since the lauded and laureled Marilynne Robinson came to Strasbourg for the public celebration of the French translation of her latest novel, Home. Her appearance gave me the reason I’d been needing to settle down and read her three novels. Simply as human stories, the novels are wonderful, with a kind of restraint and gentle exploration of pain and delight worlds away from the sensationalistic scandal-mongering that pretends to be deep in most popular fiction. It is a relief, too, to see clergy portrayed as basically kind souls rather than hypocrites and perverts in disguise. But perhaps what was most eye-opening for me was to realize that, on some level, as an American I am a Calvinist. And you, American Lutheran reader, are one too...

Pentecost 10 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 11 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 12 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 13 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 14 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 15 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 16 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 17 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 18 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 19 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 20 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 21 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Pentecost 22 (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

All Saints (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Christ the King (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Reformation (A) — by Paul Sauer —

 

Prayers for the Pentecost Season Through Christ the King — by Richard Bansemer — July 10, 2011

Richard Bansemer, former Bishop of the Virginia Synod of the ELCA, and author of the ALPB's devotional books "O Lord, Teach Me to Pray" based on the Small Catechism, and "We Believe" based on the Augsburg Confession, continues his series of prayers for the church, now for the remainder of the season of Pentecost - Series A. All of the prayers reflect the lessons of the day...

What's Up with Lutherans? — by Sarah Wilson —

Recently a Reformed blogger named Kevin DeYoung called the Evangelical world’s attention to the absence of Lutherans from the wider American Christian conversation. Well, at least someone noticed we’re here! Kevin, here’s my response...

What's Up with Lutherans Indeed? — by Geoff Sinibaldo — July 13, 2011

Recently a Reformed blogger named Kevin DeYoung called the Evangelical world’s attention to the absence of Lutherans from the wider American Christian conversation. Well, at least someone noticed we’re here! Kevin, here’s my response...

Three A’s for Advent: 1. Athanasius — by Gordon Beck — October 08, 2011

My name is Athanasius. Athanasius? I sense that that is an unusual name for you who live in the twenty-first century. It was, however, a common name during the century before the fall of the great city of Rome in A. D. 410. Of the other two church fathers who will come to visit you during this Advent Season, I am the oldest. In fact, some historians believe I was born in the third century, maybe about the year A.D. 298, so I can speak about events and personalities in the Roman Empire that the other church fathers will not be able to. For example, in my lifetime, from A.D. 298 to 373, members of the orthodox Catholic Church experienced torture, persecution, and often martyrdom under the Emperors Diocletian and Galerius, who reigned from A.D. 284 to 311. Later in my lifetime, Christians suffered political intimidation and persecution during the brief reign of the reactionary Emperor Julian the Apostate, who attempted during his brief three-year reign of the Empire to return the people to the worship of the pagan Roman gods...

Three A’s for Advent: 2. Ambrose — by Gordon Beck — October 12, 2011

I am Ambrose, bishop of Milan, Italy. It was in this northern Italian city that I once served as a Roman consular. A consular is something like a governor, much like Pontius Pilate in Judea centuries ago. Sixteen out of the over one hundred provinces in the Roman Empire at my time were governed by a consular. My father held a similar position in the conquered territories of Gaul, and at an early age I was introduced to leading Roman officials who came to our home to visit. It was not surprising that my father, who had the same name as I, Ambrosius, made sure that I was schooled in the subjects that led to becoming a lawyer. I loved the reading of the Greek classics, Homer and the Greek dramatists, and I loved the training I received in the art of rhetoric: the ability to deliver words to educate, to delight, and to persuade. This was of foremost importance for lawyers and statesmen...

Three A’s for Advent: 3. Aurelius Augustine — by Gordon Beck — October 16, 2011

I am Aurelius Augustine, the Bishop of Hippo, North Africa. I was born and grew up in the small town Tagaste, fifty miles inland from the coastal town of Hippo, but I went to the university in Carthage—the big city that the Romans centuries before had completely destroyed as only the Romans could. I was of a dark complexion because my parents were Berber Africans, but because of my father Patricius’s influence and my classic education, I was culturally Roman through and through. Nothing would destroy my identity with Rome, even though I spent most of my life in North Africa...

Women in Theology: One Man’s Memoir — by Roy A. Harrisville Jr. — October 20, 2011

Time was when theology, theologizing, doing theology, studying theology, arguing theology was considered a man’s job, something like waging war, throwing down empires, toppling thrones, and establishing republics. The few women engaged in theological pursuits appeared Amazonian, mannish. The women at Port Royal, Blaise Pascal’s sisters among them, drew the hatred of pope and king, not just for their Jansenism. Anne Louise Germaine de Staël, whose salon was the center of the eighteenth-century literary world, flooded Paris’s bookstalls with pamphlets on republicanism and Protestant faith and was exiled by Napoleon, who believed the female’s principal function was to produce babies. Mary Ann Evans, translator of Strauss’s Life of Jesus, traveled under the name of “George,” and anyone who has seen a photograph of Dorothy Sayers will scarcely denominate her a sex symbol. Theology was a man’s job...