Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award 2009

It’s time once again to award the annual and highly, highly coveted Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award for Christmas presents.

The prestigious award for the bestest present goes to, wait for it….. my favorite niece Valerie for her schӧn icon of the Last Supper. As she did last year, Valerie once exploited her uncle’s love of fine religious art and added to growing collection in his home office.

As I stated last year when she gave me an icon of St. John the baptizer: “By taking advantage of her uncle’s fondness of art that would give any smiling, purpose driven, evangelical convulsions as it wasn’t produced after 1966 and isn’t saccharine sweet and cute, she was clearly the favorite from the beginning”.

At the end of the day, Valerie is always the favorite for Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award the because she is my favoritest niece. Thank you Valerie for the wonderful icon!

For previous years winners go here and here and here and here.

Homework

I figure that before the year ends that I had better wrap up a few things that have been pushed to the back burner due to either vocation, family, or other drama in the real world apart from my time on the interweb or, simply put; sheer laziness on my part to post what I promised to post.

Earlier this year Dan over at Necessary Roughness assigned me a short list of items to write about that he thought might be interesting; Battlestar Galactica, comic books, living in the Haut south, embroidery, metrology, and image composition.

The only topic I’m gonna pass on is Battlestar Galactica as I’ve written at length a good deal on why this sci-fi show which pays tribute to Mormon myths is a favorite of mine. (This was especially true during the early republican primaries where Mitt Romney, a son of Kobol, was running to be president of the fifty colonies.) Click here for my many, many tongue in cheek BSG/Mormon posts.

So, let’s go down Dan’s list…

Comic books. I started collecting comic books way back in ’75. The overseers of the Cigarville Orphanage (Yes, I’m from a town that used to be called Cigarville and yes I was one of the infamous Cigarville 7 back in ‘82. I’m not certain who even remembers the Cigarville 7 if anyone at all and at the end of the day, I think that’s probably best. Google it if you care, I don’t.) would always give us a quarter to buy a comic book off the old spinner racks at the local drug store back when comics were sold in drug stores and supermarkets. Nowadays comic books are sold through small local distributors or bigger online companies like Mile High Comics (I’ve been a satisfied customer of theirs for over twenty years now) and typically run over three dollars for a single title.

I’ve long said that comic books are something akin to the old Greek myths, which told tales of titan’s struggles with both the gods and evil men. Whether it is demigod delivered to earth in a rocket ship from a doomed planet or a teenager whose inaction causes the death of a beloved uncle and his seeking redemption through wise cracking heroics, it is these epic tales that first attracted me to an art form which married words and panel art. And if you look close enough, there’s always a good bit of theology thrown in as heroes must deal with the struggle with evil. The Daredevil title is particularly good at fleshing out theological themes.

I’ve been collecting comic books since ’75 and currently possess the largest private collection in my state. It’s some kind of disease I’m sure…

Living in the Haut South. I moved to the Haut South over twenty years ago and just fell in love with the culture. My first taste of the south was Texas when I was transferred to Fort Hood from Mainz, Germany. Talk about a culture shock! Growing up in the northeast I wasn’t quite prepared for the more laid back way of doin’things but quickly adjusted. I knew I was gonna be ok when I went to my local Walmart on a lunch break and bought a handgun; something that was nearly impossible up in Cigarville country. As soon as I learned that barbeque was a noun as well as a verb I was officially welcomed by the locals as one of their own, Yep, I found myself a home in Texas.

Wanting to remain in the aviation avionics field I took a job a little bit north of Texas and settled down with my missus. We’ve been living in the Haut South ever since even though I did eventually leave the aviation field (more on that later). The locals are not as welcoming to those from the northeast. The reason for this that Yankees have a nasty habit of leaving their ancestral homes disgusted with their culture, transplanting to my little area, and promptly running for city and town council to show these bunch of hicks how to do things the right way (just like they do in Cigarville). This creates a good bit of animosity with those who think their culture is cultured enough and don’t need no damn Yankee to tell ‘em otherwise. The haut goes both ways ‘round here and is palatable.

Embroidery. I don’t know jack about embroidery. I designed the logo for POTF with the help of my quality manager (this was before I knew how to “photoshop” images) and sent the created image off to be formated into a file that could be read by one of them there fancy embroidery gizmos. The average fee to do this is about a hundred bucks from a reputable embroidery shop and it’s worth every penny if it’s done right.

Metrology. The reason Dan asked me to write about metrology is that he knew that I was a metrologist. I know what you’re thinking and no, I’m not one of those guys on tv that yap about the weather. The weather guys are meteorologists. I’m a metrologist which quite a bit different.

Metrology is defined by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures as "the science of measurement, embracing both experimental and theoretical determinations at any level of uncertainty in any field of science and technology." Sounds simple doesn’t it? My vocation has me dealing mostly with laboratory instruments that measure mass down to the microgram. Tiny little things those micrograms. Some of the instruments that I service and calibrate have the capability to read the mass of air particles or fingerprints left on an object. The work I do is mostly preventative although lately I am finding myself doing more and more repairs as customer’s budgets for capital expenditure necessitate units are fixed rather than replaced.

Metrology, while precise, isn’t as an exact science as one might imagine. There are, especially in the FDA regulated pharmaceutical industry, complex and therefore expensive calculations to determine the various levels of uncertainty of measurement affecting all levels within the manufacturing process to remain compliant with regulatory bodies. Compliance is expensive and a companies have to weigh (no pun intended) the value of uncertainities of measurement of the laboratory instruments, ingrediants, and even packaging with the effect on the quality of their product. It would be nice to have every laboratory balance weigh perfectly but even if that were possible, the cost of maintaining such a standard would drive the price up of medications to the point where we could no longer afford even an asprin much less those expensive medications we all need to remain healthy.

I’ve been in the metrology field for almost fifteen years now and almost every day is a hoot. I’ve got good customers and I work for a great family owned operation in the Haut South, what more could I ask for?

Anybody have questions?

The next post will be on the final item on Dan’s list; image composition. I’m working on something a little different as far as format is concerned for this one…

Is There A Wrong Way To Use A Processional Cross? I Think So…

Before this weekend I didn’t think there was a way to inproperly use a processional cross and upon visiting a new church this past weekend I discovered I was very much mistaken.

What is a processional cross? A processional cross is usually a crucifix (but sometimes a plain cross with no corpus for those groups or individuals who deem a crucifix too Roman Catholic or offensive) which is carried at the head of a procession and which is mounted upon a long staff or handle to be easily seen by members of the congregation.

What is a processional cross used for? The Altar Guild Manual (available here at Concordia Publishing House) has this to say about the use of the processional cross:

As the name implies, this cross is used in processions. It may be carried in an entrance procession at the beginning of the service, the Gospel procession (when the minister and attendants carry the lectionary of gospel book into the middle of the nave for reading the Gospel), or, if customary, to the gravesite in the service for the Burial of the Dead. When it is not being carried during the service, the processional cross rests in a stand in the chancel or in a bracket mounted on the chancel wall (p. 44).

As I’ve already stated I visited another congregation this weekend and I was having to pay extra close attention to the liturgy or order of service so I didn’t get even more confused than is my normal state. Everything was the same, but very different.

After the first praise song led by what I would deem a pretty well trained praise band the vicar led a childrens sermon that was based on what the Gospel reading of the day. About mid-way through children’s sermon a nice young lady brought the prosessional cross into the sanctuary (the The Altar Guild Manual is only a guide and there are no synod bylaws stating that a MUST be kept up in front of the church or chapel) and stood behind the raggamuffins as they listened and interacted with the vicar. After the vicar completed his task the young lady turned around, lifted the cross up as is the custom when moving from one location to another, and led the children out of the sanctuary before the adults started the worship service with the confession of sins.

I don’t think that the processional cross in traditional orthodox Christianity was ever used to usher children out of church, into a nursury, or away from the adults as they receive God’s divine gifts through the preached Word and administered Sacraments! I’ve made no secret here at POTF on my thought that children should included in the Divine Service as they need those same gifts of Word and Sacrament as much as you and I do!

A processional cross has always been used to announce or hearld the Gospel coming into midst of the faithful and has been done so for as long as people have gather in such large numbers that it was difficult to see what was going on. All the early christians did is to take a page out the military’s handbook when they used a guidon to direct troops in battle or marching in ceremonies. Granted, the first prosessionals used not crucifixes but banners but it was an easy transition for the first Christians.

The more I think about this past weekend the more it bothers me. There is something wrong with marching kids out of church so the adults can do their thing. There is something especially wrong with marching the ragamuffins out with a processional cross as if it were some ceremony that is good and edifying!

The processional cross can and should be used to announce that the Gospel is in the midst of the faithful and not be used to lead children away from the congregation gathered to receive our Lord’s gifts. But that’s just my thoughts on the matter…

The Word Became Flesh And Dwelt Among Us

From the Gospel according to Saint John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’”

And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son,[f who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

Merry Christmas from both the missus and myself to our families and friends, whether we’ve met or not as we celebrate the Word taking on human flesh and dwelling with and redeeming His creation.

Time Out’s O Great Antiphons

Dan at Necessary Roughness has been posting the O Great Antiphons on his Time Out website daily and leading up to Christmas.

What are the great O Antiphons? Quoting über-blogger Rev. Paul McCain’s website extraordinaire CyberBrethren:

The “O Antiphons” refer to the seven antiphons that are recited (or chanted) preceding the Magnificat during Vespers of the Liturgy of the Hours. They cover the special period of Advent preparation known as the Octave before Christmas, Dec. 17-23, with Dec. 24 being Christmas Eve and Vespers for that evening being for the Christmas Vigil

Here are the O Antiphons:

O Wisdom, proceeding from the mouth of the Most High,
Pervading and permeating all creation, mightily ordering all things:
Come and teach us the way of prudence.

O Adonai and ruler of the house of Israel,
Who appeared to Moses in the burning bush and gave him the Law on Sinai:
Come with an outstretched arm and redeem us.

O Root of Jesse, who stands for an ensign before the people,
Before whom kings are mute and to whom the nations will do homage:
Come quickly to deliver us.

O Key of David and scepter of the house of Israel,
You open and no one can close, You close and no one can open:
Come and rescue the prisoners who are in darkness and in the shadow of death.

O Dayspring, splendor of light everlasting:
Come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

O King of the nations,
The ruler they long for, the cornerstone uniting all people:
Come and save us all, whom You formed out of clay.

O Emmanuel, our King and our Lord,
The anointed for the nations and their Savior:
Come and save us, O Lord our God.

Click on the O Antiphons above and the link will send you to Dan’s corresponding Time Out episode.

Time Out Episode 44

Dan over at Necessary Roughness has the newest Time Out; Time Out, Episode 44 posted.

The Scripture reading for this episode is the second chapter of Philippians and the hymn is “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” found on page 357 in the Lutheran Service Book.

Instead of a collect separating the Bible passage from the hymn, Kantor Beethe sings the first of the “O” Antiphons, O Wisdom. The text is from the LSB, included with Hymn 357, but the psalm tone is from the Brotherhood Prayer Book, published by Emmanuel Press. Psalm tone used with permission.

The other “O” Antiphons will appear here over the next six days

Be sure to stop by, say howdy, and thank Dan for doing such a great job on Time Out, Episode 44 !

Previous Time Out episodes:

Time Our Episode 43
Time Our Episode 42
Time Our Episode 41
Time Our Episode 40
Time Our Episode 39
Time Our Episode 38

Necessary Roughness Scores With Second Blog Of The Week Pick

Congratulations are in order as Dan over at Necessary Roughness scored his second Issues, Etc.’s Blog of the Week with producer Jeff Schwarz selecting Dan’s post Repentance is the Better Miracle for his weekly pick last Friday.

Truth be told, nearly all of Dan’s posts are worthy of blog of the week and Necessary Roughness has long been a favorite here at POTF. Congrats Dan on the well deserved win.

My Thesis’s Concerning The Catechesis Of Youth

1) Youth are able to be and therefore must be taught in-depth studies of Scripture.

2) Youth are able to be and therefore must be taught the historical confessions.

3) Youth do have the capability to understand the complex doctrines articulated in Scripture by the prophets of the Old Testament as well as Christ and the apostles of the New Testament.

4) Youth must be taught apologetics so that they will be prepared, upon leaving their first church home, to deal with world views contrary to those articulated in Scripture.

5) Youth must be taught apologetics so that they will be prepared, upon leaving their first church home, to deal with the cults and sects whose theology is contrary to that which is articulated in Scripture but that makes the claim that they represent Christianity.

6) It is the responsibility of the community of believers gathered together as a congregation to instruct youth in all matters of the catholic faith as articulated in Scripture.

7) It is also the responsibility of the parents of the youth to instruct them in all matters of the catholic faith as articulated in Scripture.

8) To not properly instruct youth in all things concerning Christ is to reject and go against the very words of Christ and that of the apostles in Holy Scripture.

9) To not properly instruct youth in all things concerning Christ so as to attract individuals whom have no interest in Christian education also goes against the very words of Christ and the apostles in Holy Scripture.

10) To not properly instruct youth in all things concerning Christ is a failing of the vocations of parent, Sunday school teacher, members of the local congregation, and pastor and such a failing risks losing youth to a culture that rejects Christ and thereby Hell itself.

Are Old Hymns Outdated?

This soundbite is a quite a bit late as my windows based laptop that I had most of my files on had a pretty serious problem (hey, what windows based machine doesn’t haven’t problems…) and had to be carted off to be fixed. Well, the laptop is back and almost all my files are back where they are supposed to be. With that said…

Today’s soundbite is from the same segment that gave us the last soundbite of the day and gives us Rev. Dr. Richard Stuckwisch of Emmaus Lutheran Church-South Bend, IN answering the question “are old hymns outdated and can they still be relevant in today’s church?”

Lunch Delayed

A programming note; my lunch with the Mormons had to be delayed because my workload this week was busier than it had been in months. I promise I’ll let ya’ll know how it goes when I am able to reschedule our meeting.

When I called the local missionary center to let them know that I was going to be out of town the day of scheduled meeting I was told that it is two elders that were to meet with me. Elders? I was under the assumption that they would be sending me younger, less theologically trained missionaries.

Usually the missionaries that knock on my door on Saturday mornings have a ton of scripture verses memorized but have no real working knowledge of their doctrinal systems. How I carry on a conversation with folks depends of their understanding of their own theological system whether it’s my Baptist neighbor or a scientologist looking for Zenu’s mothership.

I’m gonna have to do a bit of research and figure out what exactly the LDS folks mean when they say someone is an elder. With there being a local LDS temple in my area it is entirely within the realm of possibility that that I’ll get to chat with the guys who have temple privileges. If that is the case, our conversation will be a very different one than I had originally envisioned.

What Would You Discuss Over Lunch With The Mormons?

A few weeks ago I ordered the free Finding Happiness dvd produced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I did so because I had seen the commercial for the dvd advertised on an insane number of websites that I visit during the week. I had seen the trailer pop up on every kind of website ranging from comic book news, pop culture and even to some technology sites I frequently visit. The advertising campaign is clearly a broad one and they are really getting big bang for their bucks.

I’d had seen the trailer before last week and even heard a snippit or two on Chris Rosebrough’s program Fighting for the Faith. Seeing the video being advertised over such a broad range of websites definitely piqued my curiosity and I went ahead and ordered it through the online form. That was two weeks ago.

About a week after I placed my order I got a call from two missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or Mormons, asking me if they could drop off my copy of Finding Happiness. Then they asked, like all good missionaries do, “can we talk with you about Jesus?”

Here’s a question for readers of POTF; if you were having lunch with two youthful Mormon missionaries, what would you ask them? How would you handle talking to two kids whose mission it is to deliver a message and record the response? What would you do?

Angry Comment Of The Week

I received a comment on my God's wrath and Noah’s ark post last week that qualifies as one of my top ten favorite comments critical of something I’ve written in a post I. Here’s the comment left almost a week ago followed by my response as I wrote it; spelling and grammer errors included (you folks do know that I don’t type… dontchya?):


There is no proof for Noah's Ark or the Bible. Why do you teach children these horrifying stories as fact? A baby drowning because of God's wrath and judgement. I was a Christan until recently. As an informed adult, I have finally come to question what I was brainwashed into believing. You'll probably delete or not post this, but I'm trying to make you think about what harm you're doing to these kids. They should not accept such wrath as love. Consider the fear you're instilling in them, for no reason than your own blind faith in a book you have no proof is more than a myth.

I replied:

Anonymous, I don’t delete comments that are on topic for the same reason I’m not afraid to use my real name, I’m not afraid of engaging a critic in a debate.

The account of Noah’s ark is not just about God’s wrath but one of his mercy as well. It is God’s love and mercy that we see as Noah and his family climb aboard the ark just as it is God’s love and mercy that we see as a child (or adult) rise out of the waters of holy Baptism and welcomed into the ark of Christ’s Church.

If you reread the post you’ll see that law or wrath is only half the post and I specifically said that I did NOT pile on with the wrath and the death. I did say that I spent the majority of the class talking about the Gospel and how God saves us through Christ.

The remarkable thing is that the kids I teach understand human nature better than most adults do. They understand that they are born sinful and that there needs to be a “fix” for that. There are a goodly number of adults that say we are all just good people trying to get by doing good works and changing the world. If that is the case, they really don’t need a Jesus for anything more than a life coach or cheerleader do they? Why is it that children and young adults have a better understanding of Scripture and the nature of sin than adults do?

I’m curious though, what information do you have (that I don’t) that the Bible is a myth? If you wish to go the science route (I do happen to like the) I would be happy to supply with oodles of information from real live archeologists that can at least substantiate the claims of the writers of Scripture so that you have a better understanding of the historicity of both the Old and New Testaments.

As an atheist for over 15 years one of the things that always bothered me was the science. There is a vast amount of archeological evidence and more and more things are being uncovered every day. Recently King David’s palace was discovered and the neat thing is that the majority of textual and historical critics chalked the story of David up to Jewish tribal myths. The site was found when an archeologist read her bible and noticed that David’s palce sat on top of a hill. Where did she dig? That’s right, on top of a hill in proximity to other sites noted in the Biblical accounts.

There are also historical records that are extra biblical written by folks who are not Christian that actually validate the very thing that they are writing against. I would be happy to discuss that as well… if you wish to have a conversation.
Posted by Frank Gillespie | 9:30 AM

For what it’s worth, the Ohio commenter found my site by searching Google with the words “gods wrath noah flood.” I can’t say I’m really surprised that I haven’t heard back from him or her yet.

The Best Praying The Mass Video Game Ever!

From the trailer for the latest, greatest, and newest video game sensation:

A family shouldn't have to wait until Sunday to worship the Lord. Now you can go to church every day without leaving your home. Participate in more than 24 unique and exhilarating Ceremonies. Be sure to try them all. The more you play, the more Grace points you collect. Then trade in your Grace points to unlock the Holy Mysteries. Only from Prayer Works Interactive. Help bring your family closer, to Heaven...

Mass we pray was developed by Prayer Works Interactive; a new game-development company founded in Boston in 2007. They believe there is a lack of quality games based upon traditional family values.

Let’s all be honest and admit it; at the end of the day you really can’t get more traditional than genuflection! No, no you can’t.

I don’t know about ya’ll, but I will simply have no other choice than to shell out some serious coin for Mass: We Pray if for no other reason than to try out the genuflection module!

What are you waiting for? Visit the Mass: We Pray website and pre-order yours right now!

Update: I just removed the links as some cyberterrorists have hacked into the game website and changed the order links to a video game that is NOT Mass: We Pray... me am sad.

What Makes Good Hymns Good And Bad Hymns Bad?

Today’s Issues, Etc. soundbite of the day comes from Rev. Dr. Richard Stuckwisch of Emmaus Lutheran Church-South Bend, IN talking about what the criteria should be for a core group of congregational hymns back on September 28, 2009's show.

For today’s soundbite Dr. Stuckwisch responds to hosts Todd Wilken’s questions concerning what makes good hymns good and then later what makes bad hymns bad.

One Of The Best Series For Teaching Youth (And Oldsters Too!)

A commenter recently asked me if I was writing my own Bible studies or if I was using purchased material for my Sunday school class for high school students. I have written a goodly number of my own studies over the last ten years but the other person who shares teaching duties with me and I do occasionally use materials purchased from a variety of publishers.

The study on water that we are currently using is from the Fusion series published by the good folks at Concordia Publishing House. The neatest thing about all of the studies in the Fusion books is the manner in which they connect the dots between the Old and New Testament and in doing so spotlight Christ on every page of Scripture. The Fusion study of water is full of sacramental types that point to the antitype, Jesus and His work in the Sacrament of Holy Baptism and is an absolute hoot. From God at work saving eight people in the account of Noah and the flood, saving His people Israel when they’re backs were up against the Red Sea with Pharaoh and his chariots pursuing them, and to the saving and healing of a gentile leper named Naaman in the not so pristine waters of the Jordan River; Fusion makes it clear that all of Scripture points to our baptism into Jesus’ baptism where we are made new creatures and righteous on the account of Christ!

So often folks (youngsters as well as oldsters) know all the stories of the Old Testament but fail to see how all those stories connect with the Gospels and the work of Jesus. Fusion connects the dots in a clear and enlightening manner that is truly a joy to teach. All of the books in the Fusion series have an easy and accessible way about them that encourages dialogue while not dumbing the material down as so many studies geared to youth and young adults seem to do.

Also, with only a few tweaks, the books in the Fusion series could challenge any Sunday morning adult class and I would recommended them for the catechesis of oldsters without hesitation.

Malaysia Seizes Bibles To Avoid Offending Peaceful Mohammadians

I saw a news story downloaded in my iPod touch yesterday that gave me a bit of a chuckle. The BBC is reporting that the Malaysian government has seized 10,000 Bibles (the AP is reporting that the number is actually 15,000!) for using the word "Allah" to refer to God. An excerpt from the BBC report:

The Malaysian government has refused to release 10,000 Bibles which it seized because they contained the word Allah to refer to God. The government, which is dominated by Muslim Malays, claims that the word Allah is Islamic and that its use in Bibles could upset Muslims.

The Roman Catholic Church is challenging the ban in court. Religion has become highly sensitive in Malaysia, where about two-thirds of the population is Muslim.

Now I’ve heard the case made that sometimes make too much of made of the word Allah as it was in use long before there were peaceful Mohammadians colonizing the Middle East and Europe by Arabic speaking Christians. Fair enough, I’ll accept that to a point. However, when the word Allah is used by politicians like Presidents George W. Bush or Barrack Obama or even purpose driven pastor extraordinaire Rick Warren to say we all worship one deity whether he or she is called Allah or God or even the god of our many understandings (goomu) we should be just as offended as the peaceful Mohammadians so often seem to get.

I would actually argue that the Malaysian government is actually a little of the curve in their understanding that the Allah confessed by Arabic speaking Christians is a very different god than the Allah submitted to by the Mohammadians and I applaud them for their insight.

The God Whisperers: Catechetical Goodness Wrapped In Bacon

Because ya’ll already have too many things to do and too little time to get it all done… I’d like to recommend that you good folks squeeze in one more thing onto your to do list and subscribe to The God Whisperers podcast.

Pastors Craig Donofrio and Bill Cwirla are an absolute hoot! Their weekly podcast is only about an hour long and is an in-depth study of what it means to be Christian and how we as Christians have historically read and understood God’s Word.

Right now I’m listening to these good earthy Lutheran pastors teach the Christian faith by walking us through the Augsburg Confession; a sixteenth century defense of the Christian faith against a Roman church that looked to indulgences and papal decrees instead of God’s gracious gift of His only son Jesus and Scripture alone to comfort terrified souls.

If such a study sounds uninteresting or tedious, I beg you to give Pastors Donofrio and Cwirla a try and see for yourself how much fun theology can be! What a blessing it is that we have such talented pastors willing to use new media without compromising one iota. Please do yourself a favor and give ‘em a try, I’m certain that you’ll be glad you did.

Youth And Uneasiness With God’s Wrath And Judgement

As we move through our study on how God uses water to create and destroy and to kill and bring to life in Scripture; one thing has become crystal clear: kids in high school absolutely love the “athletic” parts of the Bible.

Nothing gets my students “animated” like death and destruction by plagues, famine, and of course by means of our current study: water. Given the chance to draw a picture, a couple of the kids stepped up to the plate and sketched out a not so happy rendition of Noah’s ark floating on the water of a condemned earth. Departing from the cute motifs often seen taped up on nurseries and Sunday school classrooms, my students drew an ark floating on a world flooded by God’s righteous and holy wrath which included people drowning and drowned outside and beneath the ark. When the picture was done all were happy and justifiably proud of their work. Yep, they loves them some destruction and mayhem.

But guess what happened when someone added babies, pregnant women, and the elderly to those who had come under God’s righteous judgment on sinful mankind? Can you guess the class’s mood when they saw those who they are told always help and protect are also condemned to drown outside the safety of the ark along with the most vile murders and thieves?

I’ll admit that I was a bit taken aback with just how uncomfortable some in the class became with all of the human race falling under God’s judgment. More than one student explained that it just made them uneasy to see the “innocent” or weak drowned with the dregs of society. Some of the kids even had difficulty making eye contact during this part of the class. I guess cheering for babies drowning just ain’t as cool cheering for murderers getting their comeuppance.

It would’ve been all too easy for me to slam the kids, as so many often do (especially many in youth leadership positions within our own beloved synod who talk of community built on service in soup kitchens and such and coffee shop emoting apart from the community we are when we go to Church to hear His Word preached and receive His gifts in the Sacraments administered rightly), with a lecture on the keeping of the Law so that they can live transformed lives. It would be easy to tell them they just need to do better to live more sanctified lives so that they may have the assurance that they never will suffer the wrath that they deserve as they have inherited Adam’s curse. There was a time when I would’ve piled on with more and more law as so many did with me in my own youth. But, that was in the before times, in the long, long ago.

Living sanctified and good lives may be called for in Scripture but such is a result or an effect of the Gospel but not the Gospel proper. The Gospel is that Jesus took all the wrath that we, if we are honest here, so justly deserve upon himself and made satisfaction on the cursed tree at Golgotha. (John 1:29, and also Romans 3:21–26 and 4:5)

In our baptism, our old sinful selves are drowned and we are recreated as new creatures and brought into the ark of God’s one holy and Church catholic by the water and His Word. (Romans 6:4 and Titus 3:4–7)! Those kids shamed with the understanding that they along with all of humanity are under the curse of the law knew that they deserved to be drowned but they didn’t completely understand when they came out of the water of their baptism they were just as safe as Noah in the ark.

The rest of the class was all Gospel in that we were assured, not by Mr. Gillespie’s word but by God’s Holy Word that God saves His people not on account of their own righteousness but the account of His only begotten Son’s work at the cross. I assured them that through Baptism the Lord made them heirs of heaven itself and as heirs they could be assured that were baptized into the ark eternal; Christ’s Church now and forever.

It was good to see that they understood that they were poor sinful creature deserving of God’s wrath. It was even better seeing the little light bulbs go off over their heads when they understood that they did rise out of the water of their baptism a new creation and placed aboard the ark of the Church. It was good to see that they understood sacramental nature of Noah’s story. It was good to see that they were able to join with Saint Peter and say in confidence that “Baptism saves.” Amen!

Reformation Day 2009: Plus Ca Change, Plus C'est Pareil

Tomorrow, in addition to on of my favorite secular holidays: Halloween, is Reformation Day. On Reformation Day we celebrate Martin Luther nailing the Ninety-Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg. What was Dr. Luther’s problem with the selling of indulgences? Plain and simple; indulgences were the forgiveness of sins; not on the account of Christ vicarious atonement on the cross but rather forgiveness based on coins placed in a coffer or through works demanded by church leadership.

Here is a portion of a Reformation Day sermon (Reformation Day was actually celebrated last Sunday) that outlines some… similarities, to what we see going on in many churches across both the country and as well denominational lines and certainly within my own beloved synod the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod:

Back in October of 1517 there was a man who was not on board with the plan. It was the church’s plan and (as usual) it involved a building and fund raising program. The more things change…

Anyway, this man was not on board either with the building or the fund raising plan. In fact, he was not on board much at all with the general plan of the contemporary church. His objection, in a nutshell? Too much work. Too much of our work, that is. Too much about me and not enough about Christ. That was essentially his objection. This man figured the Christian Church should be about Christ and His body the church which Christ Himself bought with His own blood and builds with His own hands, freely, graciously, without needing our hurrying, scurrying around, all our building and fund raising and outreaching efforts. This man figured that since Christ is God, after all, He can be trusted to take care of everything, while we simply ride the wave of Baptism all the way into the Kingdom…

This was not the plan corporate headquarters hatched. Theirs was more… fiery. Headquarters had sent mission execs to all the provinces, even to little Wittenberg in Saxony where this man lived and taught at the local university. It was listening to one of these mission executives (guy named Tetzel) that moved our man to post some theses pointing out what was wrong with the plan and what Scripture had to say about the plan. 95 theses he had, detailed objections to the plan. It’s what we’re recalling today.

As we said, the plan ultimately revolved around a building program, and every building program has at its heart a fund raising strategy. Because church fund raising goes better if it is tied to the essential mission of the church, the plan from church headquarters tied it ultimately to our eternal destiny in heaven or hell. The pitch went something like this:

“People are dying and going to hell every day. This is terrible. A terrible, tragic thing! Surely, you, dear Christian friend, don’t want to see people dying and burning in hell, especially you or your loved ones, do you? Of course you don’t want to see that. So here’s what we can do about it: the church has these little mission pamphlets. We call them “indulgences”. The name isn’t important. The mission is what drives it! You purchase one of these indulgences (they are like five bucks or so—and what’s five bucks compared to eternity in hell? Surely you can spare five bucks to get a soul out of hell, can’t you? Of course you can. Even in this economy!). You purchase an indulgence, use it yourself or share it with someone in danger of hell’s fire, and voila! They’re on the fast track out of hell, toward heaven…

“Because it’s a process, the more you buy, the quicker the trip. The more they see you care. Now it’s not like the paper itself gets a person out of hell. Of course we rely on Christ to do that, ultimately! But Christ has called us to help Him with this very big job. You wouldn’t want Jesus to have to do this all Himself would you? Didn’t He do enough, getting the ball rolling, dying for you on a cross? Don’t you want to help Jesus? Sure you do. So here’s how you can help: Jesus called 12 guys, we call them apostles, to get people out of hell. Our boss at corporate headquarters is the direct successor of Peter, the head guy. He is empowered to announce the way to life to all people and everyone needs to hear this from him. By purchasing these indulgences you create mission moments where lost souls hear how much the church can do for them and find their way to our doors. From there, the chances they get out of hell and into heaven improve exponentially. All for five bucks. Are you in, dear friend? How many do you want to buy today?”

Some of the purchasers of the indulgences had a good question: “what exactly does the five bucks go for anyway?”

“Well, of course, some of it is for overhead, to pay our international center staff’s salaries. Copying costs, advertising, etc. But half of it goes for building a new corporate headquarters. We need a visible, tangible sign of our church’s great power to save, something to inspire the heart and fill the eye. We call it “St. Peter’s Cathedral”. It’s being built right now in the holy city and will be the biggest and best cathedral in the world, as is fitting for Christ’s holy church…

“When pilgrims come to St. Peter’s, they will see how powerful the church is to save! They will want to tell more of their friends and neighbors and this will put them all on the path that leads from hell to heaven.”

“So, what,” the purchaser wondered, “is required of us to get to heaven, after we come into the church that is?”

“Well, Christ did the hard part dying on the cross! But, of course, you have to do something too! Clean up your act a bit. Live a better life. And buy more indulgences to create mission moments to get you and your neighbors out of hell…

Hmm, plus ca change, plus c'est pareil...

Time Out Episode 37

Dan over at Necessary Roughness has the newest Time Out; Time Out, Episode 37 posted.

The Scripture reading for this episode is Psalm 46 and Revelation 19:11-21 and the hymn is “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” found on page 656 in the Lutheran Service Book.

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God by Dr. Luther is considered the battle hymn of the reformation and it is usually sung on Reformation Day which commemorates Martin Luther nailing his ninety-five theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church in which he laid out the abuses of the Roman church’s selling of indulgences.

Dan treats us to a bit of commentary on the end of the third verse when he writes:

At the end of the third verse, the lyric is, “one little word can fell him (Satan).” We dropped the volume on the phrase, and I almost sing-song-taunted the line. What little word fells Satan? There’s no official answer. Some have said, “Jesus”; others have said, “Liar!” “Jesus” works, but “Liar” is great because it goes to the core of the problem of the devil. He is the deceiver. He doesn’t care if we believe in him, just that we don’t believe that Christ died to save us. The Pharisees of the New Testament time didn’t worship Satan outright, and yet they were of their father, the devil (John 8:39-47).

He’s judged. The deed is done. Amen.

Be sure to stop by, say howdy, and thank Dan for doing such a great job on Time Out, Episode 37!

Previous Time Out episodes:

Time Out Episode 32
Time Out Episode 33
Time Out Episode 34
Time Out Episode 35
Time Out Episode 36

Something’s Rotten In…. Sweden?

The Lutheran Church of Sweden last week joined a growing number of denominational bodies that have chosen to reject their heritage as reformation heirs and bless homosexual unions. With a margin of 70-30% in favor of the change, the church body now falls in line with its governments recent passing of a new law in May allowing homosexuals the same marriage rights as heterosexuals in spite of homosexuality being declared as sinful.

From the BBC story the Archbishop of Sweden, Anders Wejryd is reported as saying:

"For my part, the right decision was taken, but I can empathise with the many who believe this has gone too fast."

No surprise I guess that Archbishop Wejryd is following the culture as so many have done recently as opposed to remaining faithful to God’s Holy Word and calling a sin what it is; sin. Apparently the only thing Archbishop Wejryd is sorry for is the moving too quickly to reject God's Word.

It is also not surprising that the same story reports that church attendance is rather low in a church body where right and wrong or truth and falsehood are not absolute but change from culture to culture and situation to situation.

I’m starting to believe that there is something really, really wrong with the water in Sweden. Just last week I found out that Sweden was burning bunnies to warm their homes. Yep, something is very rotten in Sweden.

POTF Blog Of The Week: Germs and The Common Cup

This week’s blog of the week is a post titled “Germs and The Common Cup” over at Elephant’s Child’s self titled blog. Elephant’s Child, a frequent commenter here at the firehouse, has a few observations of sanitary practices that add to the reasons for her wanting one chalice and not individual cups, even during flu season, at the Lord’s Supper.

A few of her observations:

The edges of your plastic individual cups were touched by an altar guild member, when she inserted them into the trays. Then, your cup was touched by you, when you removed it from the tray.

Did you wash your hands after you shook hands with the greeter before church?
Does your congregation "share the peace" during the service? How clean are YOUR hands?

I've seen our communion assistants grabbing the cups by the edges and rearranging them in the tray, too.

What’s brilliant in it’s simplicity concerning Elephant’s Child’s observations is that germs are indeed everywhere and the more individual cups are handled the greater the chances that a virus is spread.

The debate for and against aside the common cup at the Eucharist aside, the recent H1N1 swine flu pandemic has certainly produced some rather interesting debates on a host of blogs across the blogosphere. Sadly, there are actually people who advocate individual cups with the argument that our Lord and the authors of Scripture had no way of knowing about diseases and such.

It frustrates me to no end to hear folks say that the same Jesus who both created and redeemed the human race was ignorant of the flu and therefore couldn’t have had enough insight to mandate individual cups so that the sheep wouldn’t get sick. Sorry, but if you want to make an argument for individual cups, you’ll need to better than that.

Great post Elephant’s Child!

A Daughter of Kobol Gets A Record Deal At Word Distribution

All too often a goodly number of my evangelical friends get frustrated that I really don’t want anything to do with contemporary Christian music. Generally speaking I just can’t stomach what passes itself off as Christian songs as the standard seems to be only an inclusion of the word God or worse yet an illusion to some spirit that is guaranteed make us feel better about the place we have earned by our accepting his (it’s) knock at the door of Americanized Christianity.

If Jesus does happen to make an appearance in CCM, He is regularly cleaned up and polished so we aren’t reminded of all our innumerable sins which our Lord bears as He does his salvific work on the cross. Often in CCM the Lord of heaven and earth who makes footstools of his enemies is turned into some poor shlub we want to have a beer with while watching a football game after brunch at Applebees or worse yet; an eroticized significant other that we want to curl up on the couch with so we can feel him breath on our happy selves. Eeeeww!

But what happens when the music and songs that claim to be Christian offer up a new, improved, and made here in America Jesus? What happens when the Jesus of God’s Word is substituted with a plan B Jesus who is neither eternal nor begotten but rather a creature like you or I whose brother is Satan himself? Is it possible to divide the Jesus of Scripture and His work so that we can have songs that sing of a Jesus that inflicts some kind of bosom burning (sorta like last night’s kielbasa casserole surprise?) and automatically get a pass as something a Christian can or even should sing?

Answers; we run as fast as we can away from a Jesus of our own creation, ditto, and hell no.

Recently on Chris Rosebrough’s radio program, Fighting for the Faith, Chris reported that Marie Osmond is getting a record deal at Word Distribution; a company that focuses on the contemporary Christian music market. What’s the problem with Marie Osmond getting a record deal at a company dedicated to providing CCM to the masses? She is Mormon and therefore not Christian! Marie Osmond’s Jesus is not the Jesus of the Old and New Testament but a creature like us who becomes a god (like we all can be according to Mormon theology; “as god is so can we become” see Doctrine and Covenants 132:19-20).

A few “frank facts” on what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the Mormons, believe about Jesus:

• Jesus is our elder brother who progressed to godhood was first born to heavenly parents: Doctrine and Covenants 93:21
  


• Jesus became a god and reach a great state of understanding through obedience of all universal laws: The Gospel Through the Ages, Milton Hunter pg 51.
  


• The blood of Jesus does not atone for all sins. Murder for instance is not covered as this sin is too grievous to be forgiven: Doctrine of Salvation J.F. Smith Vol. 1, also Mormon Doctrine, Apostle B.R. McConkie 1979, pg 93 (although later on page 669 McConkie says that Jesus only died for Adam’s sin…. Hmm, confusing ain’t it?)

Is this Mormon Jesus the Jesus revealed in Scripture? Is this Mormon Jesus the kind of Jesus that Word Records wishes to promote by signing Marie Osmond? Does Word Distribution really want to hold up a neutered creature who can’t atone for all the sins of the world and that managed to work his way to godhood as something to sing joyfully about?

Answers; No. Apparently yes they do. Ditto.

The only song appropriate for the Mormon’s Jesus is Highway to Hell (and yes, I have heard that song played in during a seeker sensitive church service)

I cringe nearly every time I hear contemporary Christian music as most of what I hear too often sings of so generic a God, Jesus, or Spirit that even a Mormon, even Marie Osmond, could join in and say “see, we believe in that Jesus too!” I just don’t want to sing or listen to songs being sung of a God that can’t be differentiated when placed next to a made in America god of Joseph Smith’s imagination. I’ll be passing on that Jesus thank you very much.

No doubt Word Distribution made a business decision hoping to cash in on Marie Osmond’s recent career revival. Signing Mormons to a Christian record label is well within Word Distribution rights as a business. However, they really should break out the seer stones and try to figure out how well they’ll be doing when even those prefer CCM can only look at their offerings and call it vapid drivel at best or if they are honest; heretical. The writing is already on the wall (or the golden plates of Kobol) where this is all headed.

One BIG And Very Cool Study Bible!

My copy of The Lutheran Study Bible LARGER Print Sangria Genuine Leather edition arrived on Friday! Wow, this is one big honking study bible! What a tremendous resource that I look forward to using in my daily devotional readings and in the preparation of my weekly Sunday school class! Hmm, more exclamation points than a district, uh, newsletter… need to work on that I guess.

Now I know what some of you good folks are asking; “Frank, exactly how big is the The Lutheran Study Bible LARGER Print Sangria Genuine Leather edition?” Well, I’m glad you asked because as a metrologist I simply love to measure things. A few “frank” facts on my new favorite study Bible:

· There are 2,372 pages of theological goodness to the TLSB
· For those of us who like pictures with our reading material there are over 800 maps and 120 charts and diagrams in the TLSB
· There are over 200 articles covering a variety of Scriptural themes

But how BIG is the LARGER Print Sangria Genuine Leather edition you ask as the number of pages and all the study notes and cross references and introductions and outlines and reference guides and concordance guides and application notes might be just a tad bit deceiving or a clever marketing ploy. So I, being a metrologist and all, decided to measure the mass of my Bibleand to figure out how the good folks over at Concordia Publishing House were able to fit so much in The Lutheran Study Bible. Here is what I found:

· When the Holland Freight truck pulled up and the The Lutheran Study Bible LARGER Print Sangria Genuine Leather edition was unloaded the box minus the pallet weighed 2887.1 grams or 6.3650 pounds.
· When unpacked from the box the The Lutheran Study Bible LARGER Print Sangria Genuine Leather edition weighs 2408.0 grams or 5.3085 lb.

Both readings were obtained from a balance (scale) that has been calibrated by standards traceable to NIST with a measurement uncertainty of .0027g (3sigma) with known measurable variables.

In other words, if you want to get the very best study Bible available and insure that you get the BIGGEST bang for your buck, do what I did and give CPH a call and order your own copy of The Lutheran Study Bible LARGER Print Sangria (or black)Genuine Leather edition today!

Thoughts On A Thesis Of Worship(?)

The following is what I sent to a friend of mine after he emailed me the Theses on Worship issued by the Council of Presidents and asked for my ever so humble opinion (I actually hadn’t seen them myself until Monday as I’ve been pretty busy with matters outside and off of the interweb):

While I have a love for theology I’m certainly not a trained theologian. I’m also by no means a wordsmith or anything approaching a good communicator. That being said; this document is a convoluted mess that a council of trained theologians should be embarrassed to issue! My thoughts on the thesis are as follows:

· We’ve surrendered the word worship to the evangelical view that worship is something that we do instead a Divine Service where it is God who gives His gifts.
· The liturgy is adiaphoria so we can each do what is right in our own eyes and anyone who says otherwise is only doing so to burden the souls who seek to experience God through their worship. In other words, AC XV 1 should be ignored and we amend AC XV to simply say all liturgy is a human tradition and therefore contrary to the Gospel. AC XXIV should also be amended to reflect the same.
· Our view of the Old testament is now equal to that of the Mormons where the liturgical rites that prefigure temple and synagogue worship were plan A and B and where overturned By Jesus and the apostles and are rightfully ignored and condemned. Our understanding of these rites as essential to understanding the vicarious atonement of Christ at Golgotha is as old fashioned as those dusty sixteenth century confessions and need to condemned.
· Worship is about you and community (read into this the emergent influence and undertones). Your calling is to expand your community so that more folks can understand that worship is about you and community.
· There can be true forms of worship just don’t tell me that there are wrong forms of worship because that will make me sad and I’ll accuse you of burdening my conscience.
· We should talk about the above until everyone agrees with us and can then claim unity.

Well, that’s my thoughts on this nonsensical drivel.

Pastor Klemet Preus also has some things to say about the thesis over at a post on Steadfast Lutherans.

POTF Blog Of The Week: Pastoral Meanderings ”Who Is On The Defensive”

This week’s blog of the week (or month… or year even) comes from Pastor Peter’s blog PASTORAL MEANDERINGS in a post entitled “Who Is On The Defensive?” Pastor Peter writes:

When the objection is an exception to the established practice or teaching of the Church, then the innovators have to prove the point… not those who continue that established practice or teaching… Imagine if (reference the discussions below) we did not have to prove in every generation baptismal regeneration, the Eucharistic mystery, the efficacy of the Word, the wisdom of penance, the importance of faithfulness, the maintenance of the Truth (and not its adjustment) in times of question… whether Lutheran or Orthodox or Roman… ah… if that were the day… when those raising objections to or departing from historic and accepted teaching and practice had to prove not only the rightness of their point but the wrongness of the accepted tradition…

From my perspective, this is the genius of the Lutheran Confessions… they do not innovate but reach back to what was and claim it as what is… from Scripture and the fathers… No, not perfect at all, but a vast improvement upon the corruption that was average parish life in Luther’s day… and if only we Lutherans kept to it… what a dynamo it might mean for today…

Absolutely brilliant!

HT: Christopher Gillespie (no relation that I’m aware of) over at Outer Rim Territories

Hymn Review On Issues, Etc.: Praise The One Who Breaks the Darkness

I’m a few days behind on listening to my podcasts so it took me a few days to get to…

The Rev. Dr. Arthur A. Just Jr. of Concordia Theological Seminary was a guest last Friday on Issues, Etc. and had the opportunity to look at a relativity new hymn that offers both catechesis and proper praise of the crucified and risen Lord Jesus.

Too often folks like myself are accused, yes accused, of not appreciating or even tolerating any hymnody that isn’t from the sixteenth or prior centuries. This simply isn’t the case at all. What people like myself require of our hymnody is that the hymn be a sung confession that speaks both what Jesus did for us and continues to do for us today.

Praise The One Who Breaks the Darkness is one of those hymns that speaks beautifully of the salvific work of Jesus who breaks into our world of sin and darkness and rescues his fallen creatures by offering up Himself as a sacrifice. This simple yet sublime hymn was written by Rusty Edwards only a few years ago and I’m sure will stand the same test of time that the church catholic has put to many of the Greek, Latin, and reformation era hymns that we joyfully sing today.

In the embedded clip, Dr. Just walks us through this wonderful hymn and discusses the Biblical themes of salvation that our Lord so graciously offers. Here is the text of this great hymn:

Praise the one who breaks the darkness
with a liberating light.
Praise the one who frees the prisoners,
turning blindness into sight.
Praise the one who preached the Gospel,
healing every dread disease,
calming storms and feeding thousands
with the very bread of peace.

Praise the one who blessed the children
with a strong yet gentle word.
Praise the one who drove out demons
with a piercing two-edged sword.
Praise the one who brings cool water
to the desert's burning sand.
From this well comes living water,
quenching thirst in every land.

Praise the one true love incarnate:
Christ who suffered in our place.
Jesus died and rose for many
that we may know God by grace.
Let us sing for joy and gladness,
seeing what our God has done.
Praise the one redeeming glory,
praise the One who makes us one.

Ion TV Now Running Advertisements For The Sons Of Kobol

I was watching Ion TV last night and was floored when a commercial for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints aired. Taking a play from Rick Warren’s purpose driven playbook, the sons of Kolob are running an advertisement to help folks realize God’s plan for their lives. The Mormon.org website, which features the commercial I saw last night, follows the statement “We all have questions” and seeks to address their visitor’s queries this way:

Why am I? Why am I here? What happens when I die? Explore the purpose of life and discover God’s plan for you through the restored teachings of Jesus Christ. Life’s great questions don't have to go unanswered. You, too, can find answers to your questions

The sad, even if amusing, side of this commercial is that Ion TV started out as a PAX TV. PAX TV was the creation of Lowell W. "Bud" Paxson, who is an outspoken evangelical Christian, as a more wholesome alternative to the “adult” programming of the major TV networks. So what’s the problem with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints running commercials on the former PAX TV, now Ion TV? The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Mormons, are not Christian!

How can anyone say that Mormons aren’t Christians? It’s easy really once it’s understood that Mormons deny the Triune God as revealed by Scripture, deny that Jesus is God in human flesh, believe that humans can become gods just as their god did, believe that Jesus and Lucifer are spirit brothers, amongst other things that conflict directly with what the historic and catholic church has confessed and taught since Christ ascended to sit at the right hand of God the Father nearly two thousand years ago.

It’s almost depressing that any station founded by an evangelical Christian would run advertising created and paid for a group whose teaching and doctrines are so antithetical to Christ’s church. Seeing the new Mormon commercial makes it clear that Ion TV is definitely not PAX TV. Business is business I guess. It almost makes me wish I tune into the old station with their endless reruns of Who's the Boss?, Designing Women, Mama's Family, and Growing Pains… almost.

No More Pancakes! Or… A Hymn Of Hope

There are few things better than a hymn that confesses our hope in the last day when all things of this world will pass away and our Lord will create a new heaven and a new earth for our resurrected bodies. I loves me my hymns of the eschaton.

Now, some may view the embedded video and think that I’m just gonna have a field day and only make fun of this “Breakfast Son”; that is not the case. Nope, mocking such a video is for angry bloggers and as we all know, I’m about the most cheerful chap you’d ever want to meet.

I actually like the darned thing because of the hope it confesses. Sure, some may lament that there may or may not be bacon and oatmeal in heaven but I think there is something deeper going on here. First, the bacon in the song is clearly a metaphor for the curse of the Law that will pass away. Second, all things must pass away and we should sing joyfully of this great truth!

And most importantly, even if there is no eggs benedict or French toast in heaven, then at least we have the comfort that the scourge of both the Advent and Lenten dinners hosted by men’s fellowship’ groups all across the country wont be there either, that’s right folks; pancakes.

I love both the penitential seasons of the Advent and Lent and the dinners that precede the midweek services almost as much. But, why somebody hasn’t just come right out and said that inflicting pancakes filled with M&Ms and raisins on the congregations of our beloved synod year after year after year is just plain wrong and simply beyond me.

So if we can sing of the joy to come; a heaven without pancakes thrust upon us for dinner because nobody want to upset the oldsters, then this Breakfast Song is a song of joy that I will gladly sing during the seasons of Advent and Lent. Whether there is bacon in heaven matters not as long as our songs sing of an eternity without pancakes.

Now, who do I call to get this song put in the LSB supplement?

Back From Vacation And Into The Sunday School Classroom

Ah, back from vacation and finishing up the teaching on a class about the sacramental nature of water in the creation story to our high school to the high school class… Life is good.

The only time we deviated from the lesson was a brief excursus into Biblical inerrancy and textual criticism issues. One of the students is sure that the Bible we have today is does not contain Paul’s, Peter’s or John’s original letters much less the Gospel accounts because “there has to be mistakes because it’s all a copy of a copy of a copy.”

Yeah, I’ll be happy to take up the inerrancy issues as soon as we are done with our study of God using water for salvation in both the New and Old Testaments. The student that made the statement above didn’t know quite what to say when I said that we would be happy to address the issue but that we would have “play CSI and follow the evidence.” I think that there are a great many people that are simply afraid to conduct such a study because they believe that the extra-Biblical authors and sources as well as sciences such as archeology will contradict Scripture when that is not the case at all and no reason to not hold such apologetics classes for youth as well as adults.

One thing our class has never shied away from is dealing history and science. Both these fields of study are the Christian’s friend and can certainly be brought in to teach especially when it comes to both textual criticisms. Yeah, we’ll get to that…

Time Out Episode 31

Dan over at Necessary Roughness has the newest Time Out; Time Out Episode 31 posted.

The Scripture reading for this episode is Mark 10:1-45 and the hymn is “Lord Help Us Ever to Retain” found on page 865 in the Lutheran Service Book.

This edition of Time Out sports a fresh introduction and wrap-up.

Be sure to stop by, say howdy, and thank Dan for doing such a great job on Time Out Episode 31!

Previous Time Out episodes:

Time Out Episode 30

On Vacation

I’ll be taking a short vacation from my vocation of blogging (and metrology) this week as the missus and I are out island hopping. I’m thinking that I might possibly share some pictures of our numerous kayaking excursions and beach excursions so if ya’ll want to stop by for a visit there’ll be something new here to see.

While I’m on vacation this week I’m gonna try to put together a couple of posts (hinted at over the last few months) for posting when I get back concerning my dalliance with a cult after coming back to the church following fifteen years of atheism. I need to figure out where all the puzzle pieces go so it all makes sense, that’s the tricky part…

Anyhoo. the photo above is from our first day on the beach.