Two Hostages Released

Just read this on michellemalkin.com: two female Christian Korean hostages were released this morning. Let's not forget that two have been murdered, and 19 are still captive. It's been 25 days, folks! Keep praying.

Which Way for American Lutheranism?

The two largest Lutheran church bodies in America held conventions this summer. Some groups try to move the LCMS "left" and others try to move the ELCA "right". Left and right don't work in the Church, not at all. What really counts in the Church is not "left" or "right", "liberal" or "conservative", but Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions. Are we grounded on the sola Scriptura (the word alone)? Are we being faithful to the Confessions which are grounded solidly upon the holy Scriptures? One determines the healthiness of American Lutheranism by how Scriptural and Confessional the individual synod or church is.

The Missouri Synod boldly proclaims that she is grounded upon the Word and the Confessions. By and large, this is true. There are some paths the Synod is taking that might need further Scriptural and Confessional guidance (the alternate paths to pastoral ministry, for one; worship questions are another). We claim to be grounded upon Scripture and the Confessions. Good. Don't forget this. Don't take it forgranted. Keep being grounded on Scripture and the Confessions. I don't want to see the Synod become a copy of the ELCA in another twenty years or so. We have a plethora of ambiguous protestant churches in America. We need to remain a solidily Lutheran synod standing upon Scripture and the Confessions, which is grounded upon the foundation of the apostles and the prophets which has Christ Jesus as its cornerstone.

The ELCA makes the same claim to be Scriptural and Confessional. Yet, looking at her past assemblies (especially 2005 and 2007) and that clearly isn't the case. Hermeneutical ambiguity runs roughshod over hermeneutical clarity. In 2009 the ELCA has a supernova-temperature hot potato on her plate when the task force on human sexuality reports to the assembly its recommendations to decide all those devisive social and sexuality issues facing our brothers and sisters in the faith. The presiding bishop of the ELCA has spent two decades trying to make the ELCA more inclusive. Others have resisited. Most notably, Word Alone and Lutheran Core have undertaken to pull the ELCA back to Scriptural and Confessional Lutheranism.

Which way will the ELCA go? How will the LCMS respond? We've got two years to pray and encourage for Scripture and the Confessions to determine the way for American Lutheranism.

What's in a name?

My father and I were talking about the Lutheran Church this morning. Last month our Missouri Synod had her convention, and this week the ELCA is in assembly. We talked about the two mergers that formed ALC I and II. One occurred in the 1930s and the other in 1960. My father said that when the second ALC merger was being considered that a debate ensued concerning the name: is the "t" in the American Lutheran Church a "t" or "T"? (Seems to me the debate decided upon "T".) I said in our church polity class at the seminary we were told about a debate regarding the LC--MS: is it a short dash or a long dash? And the professor impressed upon us that it was definitely a long dash -- end of debate.

I had never known about that little, intense debate regarding the name of the ALC. My father and I chuckled about the "t" and the "dash" debates. We acknowledged, however, that both the LCMS and the ELCA have some important issues before them -- issues that are truly important and necessary to debate and come to decisions that are Biblical and Confessional. May God keep us faithful to the Scriptures and our Lutheran Confessions now and always.

ELCA in Assembly

I've been watching the ELCA Assembly in Chicago. Tuesday morning they unveiled a Bible reading campaign called "Book of Faith: Lutherans Read the Bible". Encouraging Bible reading is a commendable task, but a lively debate ensued when one delegate proposed an amendment calling for "the distinctive Lutheran focus on God's use of Scripture to bring sinners to repentance and salvation in Christ." The proposed amendment was defeated.

Odd that a Lutheran church body would defeat an amendment exhorting a Lutheran approach to the Scriptures. The ELCA, however, has had for some time a pull in two different directions. One pull wants the church to remain Lutheran; the other pull wants the church to diversify. Back at the ELCA's 2005 Assembly in Orlando, some delegates spoke of their concerns that the Lutheran identity of the church body was eroding. Criticism of the forthcoming "Evangelical Lutheran Worship" was mentioned at that assembly as an example of a watering down of Lutheran theology in the ELCA. Some want the ELCA to become a traditional Lutheran church; it seems that the current leadership is content to make the ELCA into the image of just another American liberal protestant church. The re-election of Presiding Bishop Hanson seems to indicate that the ELCA is committed to becoming just another protestant church in America. My initial skimming of the ELW seems to confirm that move.

On the bright side, there are some committed Lutheran pastors and lay people in the ELCA who continue to pull the church body in the direction of traditional Lutheranism. This wouldn't make the ELCA into a larger version of the LCMS. I suspect such a move back to traditional Lutheranism would center the ELCA into a more moderate position. That would be a big improvement from the path the ELCA seems committed to go down at the present.

Theology and Science-Fiction

Normally, theology and science-fiction don't go together. Most science-fiction shows ignore theology all-together, and others make a token mention once in a blue moon (aka Star Trek). Almost never do the two realms intersect.

Except with Babylon 5. I still think this television show/movies/novels is the best science-fiction ever produced. The show did not focus on theology, but theology and morality often came up in the episodes. Case in point, this is the only science-fiction show I have seen that actually mentions Christianity and the Church, and when they are mentioned it is not in a sarcastically critical mode.

Another case in point: the newly released for DVD movie "Babylon 5: The Lost Tales" has two short stories set ten years after the final episode. The first short story deals with Church, theology, and evil. The topics were wonderfully explored as the issue was delved into: What would be the result for Christianity if humans went travelling to the stars and did not find God, but numerous alien races each with their own concepts of God? And what is really going on when a Roman Catholic priest is brought to the space station "Babylon 5" to exorcise a demon-possessed man?

Babylon 5 again shows why it is the pinnacle of science-fiction. When theology and God are brought up, they are treated reverently and thoughtfully. While certainly not a primer for catechesis, "Babylon 5" nonetheless helps the viewer engage in serious theological, philosophical, and moral questions, questions which 99% of science-fiction pass right over in favor of action. Babylon 5 has plenty of action, and plenty of meditation on issues relevant for us in the 21st century.

Lutheran Hymnals

Early this morning, I finished a project I had undertaken nine months ago: compiling the hymns from a number of American Lutheran hymnals. Praise the Lord! I cross-referenced all the hymns from the LCMS, ALC/ELCA, and ELS. The document ended at 49 pages.

I haven't done a detailed analysis of the hymn traditions between American Lutherans, but I did note that some hymns appear in every (or nearly every) hymnal. Obviously, "A Mighty Fortress" would be one of those hymns. I found also that you can visually see a hymn's genealogy among the LCMS and ELCA. Each of these synods has a very definite core of hymns unique to their history. It is also interesting to see what hymns were in early hymnals, but were dropped from later ones.

Now I can pick up in earnest my other hymnal project: translating untranslated hymns from Synod's German hymnal (i.e. those German hymns that never made it into our English hymnals).

Martyrs in Afghanistan

It is a sad commentary on the American media, when one has to actively search for information regarding the 23 South Korean Christians being held hostage in Afghanistan. As of today, two have been murdered. People are on the airwaves screaming bloody murder about Michael Vick and the dog fighting ring he is accused of running (and lets not forget the maxim of the American judicial system: Vick is innocent until proven guilty). The silence is deafening regarding the killing of two human beings. This is the world in which Christians live.

The South Korean government is pleading with the international community to bend the rules and bargin for the lives of their citizens. I haven't heard anything from the United Nations, whose Secretary-General is a South Korean. Maybe the media is silent about this, too.

I understand the rationale for the South Korean government's pleading. However, they miss the point. These 23 South Koreans went to Afghanistan to provide medical help to poor villagers. These Koreans consider themselves Christians first, and Koreans second. This should be the way every Christian sees him or herself: Christian first, nationality second. Faith leads to doing good works for our neighbors, even if they live in a different country and have a different religious belief.

The lives of these Christian men and women are precious to God Almighty. We should pray for their safe release, and we should also pray for those keeping them captive. Truly, the Lord's Prayer is grander than we may have first thought.