June 29th, 2009
You won’t have to troll through many LCMS websites to find a “mission statement” saying their mission is to “lead others to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.” You won’t talk very long to a member or a pastor of a contemporary worshipping church (Yes, there is a double entendre there.) without a personal relationship to Jesus coming up. I think what they are really talking about is having faith in faith, and I think it absolutely inimical to the Lutheran Faith and just plain sad for Christians. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Contemporary Worship | No Comments »
June 8th, 2009
“The more genuine and deeper our community becomes, the more will everything else between us recede, the more clearly and purely will Jesus Christ and his work become the one and only thing that is vital between us” Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This quote is at the bottom of The Rev. Lowell Michelson May 2009 newsletter article. I find it incredibly ironic. Why? Because The Rev. Lowell Michelson is the ELCA pastor who will one day give an account for the soul of Dr. George Tiller. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in For Anyone who dares | 1 Comment »
June 1st, 2009
I personally don’t like World magazine and would not read it if a member didn’t give it to me, but some observations I’ve found there are worth noting. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Families | No Comments »
May 25th, 2009
The May 2009 Lutheran Witness has what the author claims to be a fair review of the blockbuster novel The Shack. I claim the review is lame. I can’t claim the novel is lame since I haven’t read it. My only defense for not reading it is that even though I like Bob Dylan’s music I could hardly stand the Bob Dylan bio-pic filled with his music because he is played by a young black boy, an old woman, and a down-and-out youth. So I don’t think I can get through a book where God the Father is portrayed by an African American woman who is a gourmet chef, and the Holy Spirit is portrayed as a female Asian gardener. Jesus is portrayed as a carpenter which seems tame in comparison. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General | 4 Comments »
May 18th, 2009
Surely “someone’ wanted it to happen this way. Defenders of the LCMS polity use the analogy of a pyramid standing on its tip. The congregations are the base; the Synod is the tip. Well, that pyramid has crumbled. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in LCMS 2007 Convention | 1 Comment »
May 11th, 2009
There are hundreds of shampoos on the market; far too many to make any logical, rational, certain choice, so I choose one called “Generic Shampoo.” There are hundreds of beers too. All have competing claims and counter claims so I drink one called Beer. There are dozens of cars on the market each claiming to be the best, so I drive one called “Non-Detroit, Japanese, or European.” I reported for jury duty to a large courthouse with many rooms; I couldn’t decide which one to enter, so I stayed in the hall. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Ablaze, Contemporary Worship | No Comments »
May 4th, 2009
Kakistocracy is “government by the worst men in the state: opposed to aristocracy” (Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, 995). I believe in an earlier blog I made mention of this and how I perceived it to be true of all governments democracies and republics included. My view came from Daniel 4:17
, “The Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, And bestows it on whom He wishes. And sets over it the lowliest of men.” Far from being the best and brightest, it’s the worst and dullest who rule whether they get there by bloodlines or lines at polls. If the cream is rising to the stop, it’s sour cream. Since then, I’ve come upon a Christ-centered view to which I’m drawn. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in For Anyone who dares | No Comments »
April 27th, 2009
I don’t like Veggie Tales; they are a memorable but moralistic retelling of Bible stories that many Christians think are good for children. Vegetables are but Veggie Tales aren’t. The behavior they teach isn’t distinctively Christian. Muslims, Jews, and Mormons will embrace the same morals, but that’s not the real problem. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Families, For Anyone who dares | No Comments »
April 20th, 2009
Bobbie Gentry first recorded the song in 1969; most know the Reba McEntire remake of 1990, but no matter who sings it Fancy says the same schizophrenic thing. A woman can give up her body and still be true to herself. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Families, For Anyone who dares | No Comments »
April 6th, 2009
This probably shouldn’t bother me like it does. Looking through the catalog of a religious supply company, I chanced upon an appreciation gift. It was a was a 7 inch free-standing cross made of glass. Etched in it were these words, “In Appreciation For Your Service in God’s Work.” Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General | 4 Comments »