Why People are Forsaking Church in Droves?

HT: to Anastasia over at "Kyrie, Eleison!" for composing and posting this pithy, and accurate, little poem on why people are forsaking church, that is, "neglecting to meet together" (Heb. 10:25) to receive the Lord Jesus and His life and forgiveness of sins in the Divine Service. All I can say is: "Spot on!" Thanks much, Anastasia! (Reprinted here with her permission.)

Why are People Forsaking Church in Droves?

One reason for people’s churchly severance
Is, they miss good old-fashioned reverence,
Which doesn’t fit well at services
With balloons and whirling dervishes.

To fix your soul you must face what’s wrong,
Which is hard to do to a happy-clappy song.
You won’t even see where you’re not so great
If all you do is celebrate, celebrate.

Celebrations will draw them for the short run,
For people love playing and music and fun.
But you need ever more to keep getting those highs,
Inevitably you crash, and what’s left but sighs?

Entertainment grows wearisome, feelings go flat,
You have to give people much more than that.
Sentiment sours and pleasures aren’t joys,
And church-going folk are not all girls and boys.

Adults want substance and not just feeling,
But wisdom and truth and meaning and healing
In short, they’re searching for things profound
That have little to do with clowning around.

Fun is for picnics, church camps, and youth meets,
Ditto, dancing and movies and magical feats.
In church, theoretically, God is right here;
If so, then with love, awe, and reverence draw near.

If not, there’s your trouble; go back to square one.
You’ve but ethics to offer, and feelings and fun,
And people will seek the deep Mystery elsewhere,
Or give up and pretend they no longer care.

The secret attraction is Himself, Jesus Christ,
By Whom, more than anything, folks are enticed.
Dearer than all else, all our Hope, all our Heart,
With decorum receive Him, before more depart!

What do you get...

...when you cross a bona fide sinner with a pastor who knows his Bible and teaches it with gusto with a president of a church body, namely the LCMS?

Watch and find out! It's only about 30 minutes, but well worth every second. Enjoy and be edified as President Matt Harrison speaks to the LCEF Fall Leadership Conference on the emphasis of "Witness, Mercy, and Life Together."

Homily for Anniversary of the Congregation

Hope Sanctuary - January 6, 2008

Since Lutheran Service Book offers propers for observing the Anniversary of a Congregation, we decided a while back to set aside the first Sunday in October each year to thank God for His blessings given to Hope through her history. And we did just that today. October 8 is the official anniversary date - the date in 1916 when Hope congregation held its first worship service in what was called "The Portable Chapel." As mentioned in the homily we really can thank a mailman - humanly speaking, of course - for the beginning of this congregation when this part of St. Louis City was still farmland transitioning into city outskirts.

Hope Lutheran Church, built 1930

The homily, "Hope in St. Louis," gives a good bit of Hope's history because many who are newer to the congregation have never learned it. To listen, just click this link and then download the audio file.

Wish List for New LCMS Prez - Item #2

The first item on my “wish list” for new LCMS President Matthew Harrison was to keep our focus on sinners (referring to himself and us) and their need for the forgiveness that only Jesus (not synodical bureaucracy, bylaws or resolutions, etc.) can give. Aside from this first item being most important and thus placed first in order and priority, subsequent items really have no priority other than when I happen to think of them and write them up.

I also tried to clarify and qualify the purpose of my “wish list.” No, I do not set Pres. Harrison’s agenda, and no, I really don’t expect my words to be seriously entertained as agenda items. These posts are merely “a view from the pew” from a simple parish pastor – in an office divinely instituted by Christ Himself – spoken to one who now occupies a high and lofty – yet humanly instituted – office. If he reads and hearkens, fine. But these “wish list” items are chiefly intended for consideration and conversation in this forum.

So, on to Item #2. If I could offer our new synodical president my “wish list” for how he can best serve our church body, I would say next: Mr. President, please do not give us missions brow beatings or evangelism guilt trips. Instead of haranguing us to perform some burdensome chore (as though not doing mission work will cause the world to implode and the LCMS to disappear from history's radar screen), inspire us and lead us in the joyous mission task of proclaiming our glorious and gracious Savior and His good gifts.

You see, Mr. President, haranguing us to "get out" and “fulfill” (Can that actually be accomplished this side of heaven?) the Great Commission is not what we need. Yes, our Lord has certainly summoned us, His Church, both clergy and laity, to “make disciples” (Mt. 28), “proclaim the Gospel” (Mk. 16), proclaim “repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Lk. 24), and “forgive the sins of anyone” (Jn. 20). But constantly thumping us on the head and pulling us by the ear with mandates of “Get out and go, go, go!” or “Witness, witness, witness!” because, after all, so many people are going to hell with every passing moment or every snap of the finger? Well, let’s just say chicanery is not really necessary, nor is it becoming of Christ's holy people.

Missions brow-beatings in general remind me of a small though pesky thing from seminary days. The Daily Announcements used to include a brief feature called "Mission Minute." Those pesky little bulletin blurbs were well intended, I’m sure, in wanting to keep the Lord’s mission foremost in our hearts and minds. However, I also recall the typical guilt-trip tones and unwritten assumption that sent a clear, and perhaps unintended, message: "You just don’t care enough about missions! You don't quite yet have a 'heart for missions.'" I also recall (as clearly as 20 years down the timeline will allow) several seminary buddies and I pondering: "Hmm. What are we doing studying at the seminary and preparing to serve as pastors if not to carry out the Lord’s mission?"

Guilt-trips and harangues really don't further the Church's missionary task; rather, they produce, well, only burdensome guilt. I distinctly remember one dear man from a former parish who was so burdened about that unsaved person on the other side of the globe in India. "What should I do about him?" he would ask in Bible class. Aside from buying a plane ticket and going to track down that unspecified, unnamed person seared in his consciousness, perhaps pray for him and let the Lord take care of him? But the man in my former parish just could not unload the burden.

Please don't misunderstand. I'm not trying to be callous or indifferent toward those who do not trust Jesus Christ for their forgiveness, life, and salvation. Far from it! I most certainly want everyone possible to join in the life of Christ in the life of the Church and for life eternal. But is their potential damnation caused by my/our stumbling, even failing, mission efforts? Will the Lord of the Church hold me, for example, responsible for one or more of those folks who reject Christ and end up separated from His love and life for all eternity? What about those words from Deuteronomy 24:16: "Each one shall be put to death for his own sin"?

No, the mission of the Church cannot and dare not be inspired or motivated by snapping fingers or tabulating how many people have gone to hell since I started writing these words or you started reading them. We need some other motivator, some better, more Gospel-centered and Christ-focused inspiration.

We need love ... and joy.

Yes, love. Not fear of folks going to hell; not guilt for not doing enough to prevent them from entering hell; but love. Love for our neighbor who does not know Christ Jesus. The great love that flows from the Lord who loved us and died on a cross to rescue us from sin and death and eternal separation from Him. Mr. President, please lead and motivate us to reach out to our sin-infected, death-bound neighbors out of love for them, with the same love that Christ has already shown us.

And yes, we need joy in our mission work. Who cares how many souls we may or may not divert from perdition's flames, or how many souls we can tabulate for congregational or synodical rosters? That's not the point! The point is that we want our family, our friends, our neighbors, and even that homeless, unemployed man down the street to join us in the joy of sins forgiven now, the joy of life with God now, the joy of peace in Christ's presence now, as well as the joy of living together with them and with the Holy Trinity for all eternity.

We need to learn and treasure the mission work that our Lord has given us - indeed that He carries on in our midst - week in and week out. Yes, the mission work is being done when a person, young or old, is baptized at the font. Yes, the mission work is being done when sinners are hearing that their sins are forgiven, both corporately from the pulpit and individually in the sacrament of Absolution. Yes, the mission work is being done when Christ's people gather around His Table to feast on His life-giving Body and Blood. And, yes, the mission work is being done when Christians leave the Lord's house, return to their own homes and daily live holy lives and bear witness to the mercy and forgiveness of Jesus in their daily vocations. Mr. President, please keep reminding us that our Lord is actually carrying out His mission in these ways and through us earthen (cracked-pot?) vessels.

At the risk of sounding too simplistic, our mission work needs to look less like the business man meeting his quota of products sold and delivered. Instead, it needs to look more like the young lady who has just received an engagement ring. She doesn't need to be cajoled, harangued, or coerced to show it off and announce to any and all who will listen, "I'm getting married!" No, she does all of that quite naturally and even with a certain improptu and vivacious spirit. She does it out of sheer joy that the one she loves wants to spend the rest of his life with her.

Our mission work, Mr. President, needs to be like that--inspired and motivated by the sheer joy that the One who died and rose for us loves us sinners more than we can either deserve or fathom, and He wants to spend all of eternity - all of His life - with us. With such an engagement to our heavenly Bridegroom, we cannot but show off the jeweled "ring" of His Gospel goodness and mercy.

Oops!

Well, it's only fitting that on this Ash Wednesday I must eat some (more) crow, that is, in addition to the usual reminder of returning to dust as ashes were placed on my head. About what? About a Dietrich Bonhoeffer quote that I posted last August. For some reason I thought that the quote about Christ building His Church came from Life Together - at least that's what I thought at some point when I retrieved the quote from somewhere and saved it in the "Quotes" folder on my hard drive, whenever I happened to do that.

A while back I went skimming through Life Together, searching for the page number - you know, finally to make my quote file complete and accurate. But, alas, I couldn't find the quote. At the time I thought that I just didn't skim carefully enough. So I put it on the "To Do Later/Whenever" list. And wouldn't you know it, Pr. Landskroener emailed and asked for the exact source of the quote, since he had had the same problem with his optical skimming scanners.

Well, I was wrong. (What do you expect from a sinner?) I'm man enough to admit it. (No, I won't wander off into that little joke about a man being out in the woods all alone, speaking, and still being wrong. :-) Here's the correct source, or at least what I can glean from "googling" the quote. (I guess one can "google" just about anything these days.)

That great quote from Bonhoeffer is not from Life Together, but from a sermon on Matthew 16:13-18 titled "Peter and the Church Struggle (Church election sermon, Berlin), July 23, 1933." Evidently, it shows up originally in a book titled No Rusty Sword, but I found it here, in a book called A Testament to Freedom: The Essential Writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer (just scroll to pp. 215-216 if the link doesn't take you straight there).

In case you don't want to wade through the scanned pages at Google Book Search, here's the quote again, this time with corrected source info. It's always a good reminder of our true life, purpose, and mission in the Church.

“It is not we who build. [Christ] builds the church. No man builds the church but Christ alone. Whoever is minded to build the church is surely well on the way to destroying it; for he will build a temple to idols without wishing or knowing it. We must confess—He builds. We must proclaim—He builds. We must pray to Him—that He may build.

“We do not know His plan. We cannot see whether His is building or pulling down. It may be that the times which by human standards are times of collapse are for Him the great times of construction. It may be that the times which from a human point of view are great times for the church are times when it is pulled down.

“It is a great comfort which Christ gives to His Church: you confess, preach, bear witness to Me and I alone will build where it pleases Me. Do not meddle in what is My province. Do what is given to you to do well and you have done enough. But do it well. Pay no heed to views and opinions. Don’t ask for judgments. Don’t always be calculating what will happen. Don’t always be on the lookout for another refuge! Church, stay a church! But church, confess, confess, confess! Christ alone is your Lord; from His grace alone can you live as you are. Christ builds” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, "Peter and the Church Struggle (Church election sermon, Berlin), July 23, 1933," quoted in A Testament to Freedom, pp. 215-216).

Tomorrow I'll have to come back and read the whole sermon. Perhaps there are some other gems for citing (yes, with the correct source reference given).

Christ Builds His Church

A little something that will appear in my congregation's September newsletter and just happens to speak quite well to the current and quite predominant (sadly so) views of "growing churches" and "mission work" in the LCMS:

Christ Builds

After Peter confessed Christ to be “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16), our Lord Jesus gave this great promise: “I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Of course, Jesus was referring to “the rock” (petros) of Peter’s confession.

Note what Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer said about Christ building His Church:

“It is not we who build. [Christ] builds the church. No man builds the church but Christ alone. Whoever is minded to build the church is surely well on the way to destroying it; for he will build a temple to idols without wishing or knowing it. We must confess—He builds. We must proclaim—He builds. We must pray to Him—that He may build.

“We do not know His plan. We cannot see whether His is building or pulling down. It may be that the times which by human standards are times of collapse are for Him the great times of construction. It may be that the times which from a human point of view are great times for the church are times when it is pulled down.

“It is a great comfort which Christ gives to His Church: you confess, preach, bear witness to Me and I alone will build where it pleases Me. Do not meddle in what is My province. Do what is given to you to do well and you have done enough. But do it well. Pay no heed to views and opinions. Don’t ask for judgments. Don’t always be calculating what will happen. Don’t always be on the lookout for another refuge! Church, stay a church! But church, confess, confess, confess! Christ alone is your Lord; from His grace alone can you live as you are. Christ builds” (Life Together).

Woman "Pastor" at LCMS District Youth Gathering???

Okay, so I've been ignoring pretty much everything in the "real world" while I enjoy some much needed R & R in the gorgeous "vacationland" called the Pacific Northwest (I'm sure I'll post some pictures sooner or later, especially of Porthos' and Gimli's antics at the beach). However, I simply couldn't ignore this!

HT to Father Hollywood for alerting us to a woman "pastor" (not LCMS) speaking at an upcoming Texas District (certainly LCMS!) youth gathering. Check it out and pray that the Lord will have mercy and bring all the planners, supporters, and participants (and LCMS bureaucrats, both district-level and synodical, who are bound to defend, support, or otherwise explain this away) to repentance!

Not only does *Ms.* Kari Jobe receive the title "Lead Worshiper" (whatever that means), but she also receives lead billing on the Texas District youth gathering website. Nothing subtle here, but rather "in-your-face," methinks!

What really sounds the blaring theological warning sirens, though, is *Ms.* Jobe's apparent views on Baptism and the Lord's Supper - namely, *not* holding to Baptismal regeneration nor to the Real Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in His Holy Supper - as evidenced in Article 7 of Gateway Church's "Statement of Faith."

With things like this occurring - and seemingly more and more unabashedly - it would appear that the LCMS is well on its way to giving up its reputation as, let alone its claim to being, a solidly confessional Lutheran church body. After all, the bar was set pretty high by one Franz Pieper (and I wonder what he would think and say right now?).

If anyone should prove against us that even one pastor preached false doctrine, or even one periodical stood in the service of false doctrine, and we did not eliminate this false doctrine, we would thereby have ceased to be an orthodox synod and would have become a unionistic fellowship. In short, the mark of an orthodox church body is that throughout that church the true doctrine alone prevails, not only officially and formally but also in actual reality. (Pieper, Franz, “Die Missouri-Synode und das General Council,” Lehre und Wehre, vol. 36, no. 8. (August, 1890), emphasis added)

As Pr. Weedon properly reminds us, here's another "opportunity" (my word) to contact district and synodical leaders to register our grave concerns with this un-Biblical practice ("actual reality," as seen on the gathering's website!) in our midst. Yet I also notice that he refers to us "fellow frogs" for whom the water keeps getting warmer and warmer, lulling us into a most relaxed state at critical times such as this.

Well, okay, for the next couple of weeks, I'll go back to relaxing in "vacationland," and I will trust the Lord of the Church to bring all of us to repentance for our many sins, and to fervent faith in Him who is our true Head, even our true "worship leader" both now and into eternity!

Thanks, Ambrose! We Need This!

Just came across a great quote from Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, from "a letter" cited in For All the Saints (vol. III, p. 1257). Such great and needed words for a time when Christ's one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church seems to be so battered and storm-tossed by forces from outside and from within. Obviously, it was written to someone who had become a bishop, but I'm sure it gives comfort and wisdom to the rest of us as well. (BTW, if anyone knows the original source, please let me know!) Here's Ambrose:

You have undertaken to office of bishop, and now, seated at the helm of the Church, you are steering the ship in the teeth of the waves. Hold fast to the rudder of faith, that you may not be shaken by the heavy storms of this world. The sea, indeed, is vast and deep, but do not fear for "He has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the waves."

Rightly, then, the Church of the Lord amid all the seas of the world stands immovable, built, as it were, upon the apostolic rock. On that solid foundation it endures the force of the raging billows. The waves pour over it, but it is not shaken. Although this world's elements often dash against it only to be thrown back with a mighty roar, still it offers a secure harbor of safety to receive the distressed. It is tossed on the sea, but rides the floods, and perhaps chiefly those floods of which it is said: "The floods have lifted up their voice." For there are rivers which shall flow out of the belly of him who has received to drink from Christ and partakes of the Spirit of God. These rivers, then, when they overflow with spiritual grace, lift up their voice."

Burning Advent Calendars and Reclaiming Confession

Here's an interesting story on the so-called "ancient-future church" phenomenon at "Get Religion." While we can certainly applaud the desire of many in American Evangelical circles to seek the ancient practices of the Christian Church, one must ask, "Whence comes the urge to put a modern twist to such things?" Is not the purpose of learning and reclaiming the ancient practices to regain something that our modern (and especially "post-modern") era has lost? Sounds like a most intriguing case of wanting to eat one's ecclesial/liturgical cake and have it too.

Oh, and by the way, notice how the article highlights and clarifies the quote about last summer's LCMS convention promoting the rejuvenation of Private Confession and Absolution.

Martin Luther no longer a heretic?

Could it be that Martin Luther will no longer be considered a heretic by the Roman Catholic Church? This London Times Online article suggests that just such a conclusion may come from Pope Benedict XVI later this year in September. As the article states: "...the Pope will argue that Luther, who was excommunicated and condemned for heresy, was not a heretic." The article also cites Cardinal Walter Kasper, the head of the pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity: "We have much to learn from Luther, beginning with the importance he attached to the word of God."

Hmm. Quite interesting! My curiosity will be piqued from now until September to see just what Pope Benedict will say. What I wonder now is this: How should Lutherans respond? Notice, I did not say, "How do/will Lutherans respond?" Rather, how *should* Lutherans respond?

Over the years, I've heard stalwart Lutheran pastors and theologians say that Rome would make their efforts at church unity seem more sincere by first removing the label of 'heretic' from Martin Luther. Could this be the gesture of good faith that some have been looking for? What are those voices prepared to say and do, should that olive branch, albeit small, be extended? Only time will tell, of course.

On the other hand, we can anticipate, and even already read, the suspicion from fellow Lutherans. Check out Rev. McCain's blog and some rather fiery comments by at least one reader. Rev. McCain rightly prays for the Church's unity - that's always good, right, and salutary - but the bit about Luther being reluctant to have the label "heretic" lifted? Well, I suppose your guess is as good as mine, or Rev. McCain's. It's always speculation, at best, to say what someone who has been buried for many centuries would say in our current ecclesial climate and circumstances. I'd like to think that Luther might have considered it, well, at least a bit of a good sign and a positive development that the pope just might want to lift that ignominious label.

As for Luther giving his list of "non-negotiables" in the Smalcald Articles, sure, he gave a list of doctrinal articles to which he said, "Nothing of this article can by yielded or surrendered" (SA II, I, 5), and so on. However, let's also consider the other side of this coin. Luther did draft this document for the purpose of "dialoging" (our modern term, to be sure) with the Roman party at a Christian council. He explains this in the opening paragraphs of his Preface. Luther even says, "I really would like to see a truly Christian council, so that many people and issues might be helped" (SA Preface, 10). To be sure, by the time Luther published these articles, the plans for a council and the hope of a congenial discussion had evaporated, but that does not negate Luther's good faith effort of outlining his position and being willing to discuss it with the papal party of his day. Luther even introduces Part III of the Smalcald Articles by saying, "We may be able to discuss the following articles with learned and reasonable people, or among ourselves." While Luther certainly had his doctrinal "non-negotiables," he was clearly not afraid to engage the "other party" in discussion for the good of Christendom.

So, how *should* Lutherans respond to Pope Benedict giving a message that Luther was not a heretic? I would think that we Lutherans should at least be interested to hear more. Perhaps we can say that it's at least a promising sign, a step, however incipient and minuscule it might be, in the right direction. Perhaps we can admit that a fractured Christendom is a pretty poor witness to the rest of the darkened, sin-sick world, which really needs the message of healing and light in the forgiveness of Jesus Christ - forgiveness that can actually be lived and practiced among Christian groups and denominations. Perhaps we can also come to the realization that the Roman Catholic Church of the 21st century is not the same one with which Martin Luther dealt, just as the Lutheran Church of our day is not the same as it was in the 16th century. How many of the issues and abuses that Luther faced still remain? To be sure, some do. But let's also honestly admit that others have been addressed by Rome itself through the past centuries and even decades.

Perhaps this pope's intention and willingness to say that Martin Luther was not, after all, a heretic will be an opportunity to engage in some fruitful discussion on precisely what still separates us as well as what we might be able to call common ground. Instead of kicking into "automatic suspicion" mode, we can take a cue from a former U.S. President who dealt with the truly evil empire of the Soviet Union and say, "Trust, but verify." Let's see what exactly Pope Benedict will say come September. Who knows? Just as God used Martin Luther as a staunch defender and restorer of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, He might just use us in our day as menders of the broken bridges within Christendom.

After all, even Luther himself could see what was "holy" in the Roman Church of his day, and in 1535, about the same time as the Smalcald Articles:

Although the city of Rome is worse than Sodom and Gomorrah, nevertheless there remain in it Baptism, the Sacrament, the voice and text of the Gospel, the Sacred Scriptures, the ministries, the name of Christ, and the name of God. Whoever has these, has them; whoever does not have them, has no excuse, for the treasure is still there. Therefore the Church of Rome is holy, because it has the holy name of God, the Gospel, Baptism, etc. If these are present among a people, that people is called holy. Thus this Wittenberg of ours is a holy village, and we are truly holy, because we have been baptized, communed, taught, and called by God; we have the works of God among us, that is, the Word and the sacraments, and these make us holy (Luther, M. 1999, c1963. Luther's works, vol. 26 : Lectures on Galatians, 1535, Chapters 1-4 (J. J. Pelikan, H. C. Oswald & H. T. Lehmann, Ed.). Luther's Works. Vol. 26 (Ga 1:3). Concordia Publishing House: Saint Louis).

A big, hearty "Thank you"...

...to Pr. Rick Stuckwish for his incisive and much-needed comments about the recent language from and direction of the LCMS Commission on Worship and its foray into American Evangelical lingo, practice, and theology! Please read his comments here.

It certainly appears that the current Commission on Worship wants to distance itself from Lutheran Service Book and its growing, salutary concordia (harmony, oneness) in the Church's liturgy as it, the Commission, clamors for the pottage of Methodistic and Revivalistic forms of "soul winning" worship. In fact, I would push the point and say that the current Commission appears to be distancing itself, and the LCMS, from a bona fide Lutheran understanding of the liturgy and God's service to us in His Gospel and Sacraments altogether! Compare the comments given by the Commission (as cited in Pr. Stuckwish's blog post) with what the Apology of the Augsburg Confession says:

“We cheerfully maintain the old traditions made in the Church for the sake of usefulness and peace. We interpret them in a more moderate way and reject the opinion that holds they justify…. Among us many use the Lord’s Supper every Lord’s Day. They do so after they have been first instructed, examined, and absolved. The children sing psalms in order that they may learn. The people also sing so that they may either learn or pray…. Nothing in customary rites should be changed without a reasonable cause. So to nurture unity, old customs that can be kept without sin or great inconvenience should be kept. In this very assembly we have shown well enough that for love’s sake we do not refuse to keep adiaphora with others, even though they may be burdensome. We have judged that such public unity, which could indeed be produced without offending consciences, should be preferred (Apology XV:38-52, emphasis added).

Our Lutheran forebears would certainly strive to win souls, however, they would do so by means of the Gospel and Sacraments of Jesus Christ handed down and practiced via the Church's liturgy through the centuries. In other words, according to our Lutheran forebears, proper worship and true "soul-winning" both occur within the catholicity of the Church and the Church's life in the liturgy, that is, the Gospel proclaimed and the Sacraments given out as they have been through the 20 centuries of the Church's life. After all, these same forebears - our sage fathers in the Faith and in proper "worship" - would also trust and confess that the Holy Spirit "works faith, when and where it pleases God, in those who hear the good news that God justifies those who believe that they are received into grace for Christ's sake" (Augsburg Confession V:2-3).

Pr. Stuckwish is exactly right: the Holy Spirit is the One who "wins souls." Our task is simply and faithfully to hear, learn, and proclaim the love and mercy of God in Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. I for one would much rather trust the gracious work of the Holy Trinity, however unpredictable it may be by my finite standards and understanding, than place my confidence in man-made strategies and "methodisms" for ensuring some statistical quota of "souls."

Longing for the Saints

In his book The Presence, Pr. Berthold von Schenk has some pretty interesting, and insightful, things to say on the communion of saints. If I didn't know better, I'd think that he were writing today, in 2008, not "way back" in 1945! I guess some things just don't change that quickly after all! :-)

Pr. von Schenk begins by saying that "the connecting link between Heaven and earth is the Holy Communion.... It is the ladder by which the risen, ascended Saviour comes down to us" (p. 123). Then he discusses the saints, first by clarifying that they were not some kind of spiritual supermen or wonder women [my phrase], but rather people who were tempted and who struggled and suffered just as we do.

Then von Schenk says, "It was a sad loss to the church, a grave mistake, when a few stupid people pushed the saints out of the picture. It was a sad mistake when they took them out of the life of the church, but it was even a greater mistake to place them into the niche of supernatural people. What has the church substituted for the saints and their glorious triumphant lives? Perhaps respectability, which is not holiness" (p. 124).

After critiquing such "respectability" in the church, von Schenk continues to lobby for the usefulness of the saints in the life of the church: "In place of that smug, cold, soulless respectability we must put the passionate love, first for Jesus, and then for sinners for Jesus' sake. We must have a reckless, supernatural, sacrificial love, supernatural in its vision; supernatural in its power to transform our lives; supernatural in its power to heal the souls of men. Let us get off that pedestal of respectability and fall on our knees and learn to be saints!" (p. 125).

I think von Schenk may be on to something here. Instead of groping for respectability in the eyes of the world and/or people around us (even respectability measured by mere numbers or even mere increasing numbers!), let's learn to be saints - those who live only by the grace and mercy of our God and Savior Jesus Christ, those who learn to love Him and the people around them with a sacrificial love, and, yes, those who even suffer trials, temptations, and even death for the sake of confessing Christ crucified and risen. As von Schenk also says, "The saint has only one motive. This motive is the love of Jesus guiding and dominating everything he does or says. It is not his life, but Christ's life" (p. 126).

And I just cannot resist including this snippet from The Presence. It really puts things in perspective. We don't need more humanly derived notions, plans, and programs to save the church! We need the divine Love, the Calvary Love, the very love that sparked and warmed the saints, the very love that unites us with them. Here's von Schenk's juicy little morsel:

"What men have done men can do again. The world needs saints; men who will free themselves of self, who love with the divine love. Church leaders are looking for [something] to save a declining Church. They start all sorts of campaigns, drives, calls of the Cross. And while the Church is deliberating, men's hearts are aching, are hungering for the supernatural, for saints, for glimpses of heaven, for romance. Conferences, synods, arguments, eloquence, committees, campaigns are merely stopping leaks in a weak dam. The world needs saints; it needs the mad vision of saints, which alone can keep us sane, the supernatural vision which will turn the world, which is upside down, back to where God wants it. The saints are not mere figures in history; they speak today. They are part of the Church, the mystical Body of Christ. Certainly the Body of Christ cannot be divided. Death cannot separate the members of the Body of Christ, the Church. The Church on earth knows of no separation from the Church beyond the grave. What is this bond of union? Why, the Communion. At the Altar we link ourselves with the saints. Here we are caught up with them. The Blessed Sacrament is the link which binds us to our risen and ascended Lord, and the whole company of Heaven. Here at the Altar I get a glimpse of the saints. Here I am united with them, and here heaven is made real to me as my faith is nourished" (pp. 126-127, emphasis original).

True Reformation Battle and Victory

Today we Lutherans celebrate “Reformation Day” (okay, many of you celebrated it this past Sunday, but you still celebrated it). It is customary on such a celebration to sing the so-called “battle hymn of the Reformation,” which is none other than Luther’s great hymn “A Mighty Fortress.”

As I ponder the hymn “A Mighty Fortress,” I notice two things about it. One, it is so ecumenical and catholic, in the best senses of those terms. It does not beat some specifically “Lutheran drum” as if to cheer, “Luther, Luther, he’s our man, if he can’t do it no-one can!” It so happens to be written by the Reformer, but its not about him. We might also want to take note of how many other Christian communions, even our brothers and sisters in the Roman Catholic Church (at least so I’m told), also sing this hymn with great gusto and for great comfort.

The second thing I notice is that “A Mighty Fortress” places the focus of the battle right where it belongs – on the battle against sin, death, and Satan, and not on Christians taking aim on each other. “Reformation Day” is not about taking aim at fellow Christians in other communions; it is about celebrating God’s victory over sin, death, and the devil.

I don’t want to minimize the genuine theological differences between communions such as Lutherans and Roman Catholics, or Lutherans and American Evangelicals; however, at the same time I don’t want to overstate, exaggerate, misrepresent, or caricature the differences either. In fact, instead of taking aim at each other and launching our “Reformation salvos” at brothers and sisters in Christ, perhaps we need to consider sitting down at the table and trying to sort through the differences – figure out where we very well may misunderstand each other, where we genuinely differ, and, yes, where we actually share some common ground.

But back to “A Mighty Fortress,” for it reminds us where the true battle lies. On this “Reformation Day” we do well to remember who our true enemies are: sin, death, and Satan. Then we also do even better to remember whence the true victory comes: from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh. Here’s how Luther penned it, and here’s how every Christian can sing it:

A mighty fortress is our God,
A trusty shield and weapon;
He helps us free from ev’ry need
That hath us now o’ertaken.
The old evil foe
Now means deadly woe;
Deep guile and great might
Are his dread arms in fight;
On earth is not his equal.

With might of ours can naught be done,
Soon were our loss effected;
But for us fights the valiant One,
Whom God Himself elected.
Ask ye, who is this?
Jesus Christ it is,
Of Sabaoth Lord,
And there’s none other God;
He holds the field forever.

Though devils all the world should fill,
All eager to devour us,
We tremble not, we fear no ill;
They shall not overpow’r us.
This world’s prince may still
Scowl fierce as he will,
He can harm us none.
He’s judged; the deed is done;
One little word can fell him.

The Word they still shall let remain
Nor any thanks have for it;
He’s by our side upon the plain
With His good gifts and Spirit.
And take they our life,
Goods, fame, child, and wife,
Though these all be gone,
Our vict’ry has been won;
The Kingdom ours remaineth. (LSB 656)

The Communion of Saints - a la von Schenk

I continue to be amazed by how Pr. Berthold von Schenk directs all of Christ's saving work and all of the Church's life to the Communion at the Altar! Here's a little section on the Communion of Saints, part of which I just typed up for my congregation's November newsletter. What a great preparation it is for celebrating All Saints' Day (November 1), which my congregation will do this Sunday in the Divine Services!

To countless Christians the reality of the Communion of Saints has been an unfailing source of love and joy in the face of otherwise heartbreaking bereavement. We must find our way into this reality. The Risen Saviour, the new found Resurrection Presence, was more to the disciples than their old companionship in Galilee. We must discover with the disciples this life-transforming secret. Then we will begin to realize the joy of the Communion of Saints.

The living Christ creates and guarantees this joyful fact. It is Christ, and not just our wistful hoping, Who assures us that nothing can pluck out of His hand those who loved Him and trusted Him. Our faith here rests not in any idea of the mere prolonging of existence. It is found in these words, “Because I live, ye shall live also.” We cannot declare exactly what details of our life here below our beloved departed share with us; whether they see, as we see, every item of daily life, our little cares and successes, our problems and tears, our laughter and joys. They may be like elders working upstairs at some greater task, simply confident that for the time we are working at ours in the world below, serene in the same keeping. The great thing is that we are one and not separated, that the one great Love [Jesus Christ] is the center of all our lives.

When we are bereft of dear ones, it is a tremendous shock. For a time we are stunned. Not everyone can feel at once their continuing companionship. We should not for that reason despair. An adjustment must take place in our lives, reaching deep into our habits, emotions and thoughts. Some souls may make this adjustment quickly. For most of us it comes slowly and hard; many an hour is filled with loneliness and agonizing doubt.

By ourselves we can never make this adjustment. We must come to a sense of the continuing presence of our loved ones, and we can do this if we realize the presence of our Living Lord. As we seek and find our Risen Lord we shall find our dear departed. They are with Him, and we find the reality of their continued life through Him. The saints are part of the Church. We worship with them. They worship the Risen Christ face to face, while we worship the same Risen Christ under the veil of bread and wine at the Altar. At the Communion of Saints we are linked with Heaven, with the Communion of Saints, with our loved ones. Here at the Altar, focused to a point, we find our communion with the dead; for the Altar is the closest meeting place between us and our Lord. That place must be the place of closest meeting with our dead who are in His keeping. The Altar is the trysting place where we meet our beloved Lord. It must, therefore, also be the trysting place where we meet our loved ones, for they are with the Lord. How pathetic it is to see men and women going out to the cemetery, kneeling at the mound, placing little sprays of flowers and wiping their tears from their eyes, and knowing nothing else. How hopeless they look. Oh, that we could take them by the hand, away from the grave, out through the cemetery gate, in through the door of the church, and up to the nave to the very Altar itself, and there put them in touch, not with the dead body of their loved one, but with the living soul who is with Christ at the Altar. Our human nature needs more than the assurance that some day and in some way we shall again meet our loved ones "in heaven". that is all gloriously true. But how does that help us now?

When we, then, view death in the light of the Communion of Saints and Holy Communion, there is no helpless bereavement. My loved one has just left me and has gone on a long journey. But I am in touch with her. I know that there is a place where we can meet. It is at the Altar. How it thrills me when I hear the words of the Liturgy, "Therefore with angels and archangels and all the company of Heaven," for I know that she is there with that company of Heaven, the Communion of Saints, with the Lord. The nearer I come to my Lord in Holy Communion, the nearer I come to the saints, to my own loved ones. I am a member of the Body of Christ, I am a living cell in that spiritual organism, partaking of the life of the other cells, and sharing in the Body of Christ Himself.

There is nothing fanciful or unreal about this. Indeed, it is the most real thing in my life. Of course, I miss my loved one. I should miss her if she took a long holiday trip. But now, since she is what some people call dead, she is closer to me than ever. Of course, I miss her physical presence bitterly. I miss her voice and the sound of approaching footsteps. But I have not lost her. And when my sense of loss becomes too great, I can always go to our meeting place at the Altar where I receive the Body and Blood of my Lord that preserves my body and soul just as it has preserved her unto everlasting life. Do learn to love the Altar as the meeting place with your beloved who have passed within the veil. Here again the Sacrament is the heart of our religion. The Blessed Sacrament links us not merely to Bethlehem and Calvary, but to the whole world beyond the grave as well, for at the Altar the infinite is shrined in the finite; Heaven stoops down to earth; and the seen and the unseen meet (The Presence, pp. 129-132).

The Church: Fellowship in Holy Things

This brief reading comes from George Florovsky (from his book Bible, Church, Tradition: An Eastern Orthodox View) and is paired up with 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 (today's "Reading II") in the prayerbook For All the Saints (pp. 1011-1012). One wonders how familiar Florovsky was with the Augsburg Confession and what it says on both the Church and the Sacraments.

Moreover, Christ Himself belongs to this community, as its Head, not only as its Lord or Master. Christ is not above or outside the Church. The Church is in Him. The Church is not merely a community of those who believe in Christ and walk in His steps or in His commandments. She is a community of those who abide and dwell in Him, and in whom He Himself is abiding and dwelling by the Spirit. Christians are set apart, “born anew” and re-created, they are given not only a new pattern of life, but rather a new principle: the new Life in the Lord by the Spirit. They are a “peculiar People,” “the People of God’s own possession.” The point is that the Christian community, the ekklesia, is a sacramental community: communio in sacris, a “fellowship in holy things,” i.e. in the Holy Spirit, or even communio sanctorum (sanctorum being taken as neuter rather than masculine – perhaps that was the original meaning of the phrase). The unity of the Church is effected through the sacraments: Baptism and the Eucharist are the two “social sacraments” of the Church, and in them the true meaning of Christian “togetherness” is continually revealed and sealed. Or even more emphatically, the sacraments constitute the Church. Only in the sacraments does the Christian Community pass beyond the purely human measure and become the Church. Therefore “the right administration of the sacraments” belongs to the essence of the Church (to her esse). Sacraments must be “worthily” received indeed, therefore they cannot be separated or divorced from the inner effort and spiritual attitude of believers. Baptism is to be preceded by repentance and faith. A personal relation between an aspirant and his Lord must be first established by the hearing and the receiving of the Word, of the message of salvation. And again an oath of allegiance to God and His Christ is a pre-requisite and indispensable condition of the administration of the sacrament (the first meaning of the word sacramentum was precisely “the (military) oath.” [sic] A catechumen is already “enrolled” among the brethren on the basis of his faith. Again, the baptismal gift is appropriated, received, and kept, by faith and faithfulness, by the steadfast standing in the faith and the promises. And yet sacraments are not merely signs of a professed faith, but rather effective signs of the saving Grace—not only symbols of human aspiration and loyalty, but the outward symbols of the divine action. In them our human existence is linked to, or rather raised up to, the Divine Life, by the Spirit, the giver of life.