September, 2004
Pastor Johnson’s Message: The Church As Family
Dear friends,
Thanks
so much for the great celebration marking my twenty year anniversary here at
Peace. It was indeed a wonderful day. I am blessed to be your pastor.
We
often talk about the church as being a family, and indeed it is. We are, as
Paul puts it, members, one of another. Not just members of an organization, an
institution, a club, but members, one of another.
Often
the family rejoices together. This past Sunday was an example. We celebrate our
life in Christ, and give thanks for all the blessings that it brings.
Sometimes
the family grieves together. We've had our share of that during the past year,
as we've said goodbye to people like Clarence and Beverly Paulsen-and others,
of course-who have been so very important in our life together. We are thankful
that our faith gives us knowledge that "we shall still be joined in heart,
and hope to meet again"-indeed, that we do meet, each Sunday around the
Lord's table, as we join our voices with the church on earth and the hosts of
heaven. But we still grieve our earthly loss.
Sometimes
the family disagrees about things. Maybe it's something relatively trivial,
like what hymns to sing on Sunday morning. Maybe it's something bigger, like
whether to build a new fellowship hall, and what it should look like. Bigger
disagreements, yes, but still just differences of opinion about earthly stuff.
Sometimes
the family disagrees about things that are much more important. Right now our
denomination-like most, actually-is having a disagreement about sexuality, and
particularly homosexuality. That's a more important issue, not so much because
sexuality is so all-fired important, but because it gets into the really basic
issues of faith and life: Who is God and what does he ask of us? What is the
Bible, and how do we understand it? How do we understand sin? How do we
understand grace? How do we connect our faith to the real world? An issue like
this which touches on all those matters is going to be controversial, no
question; maybe it's going to be troubling. Sometimes it can be divisive.
Recently
a person who had attended Peace a few times wrote me a letter saying she
wouldn't be back. She had heard about the ELCA's current study of
homosexuality. "There's nothing to study," she said. "It
shouldn't even be talked about." I understand her opinion, but I don't
agree with it. There really isn't anything that "shouldn't be talked
about" by Christians, because the Christian faith has everything to do
with how we live in this world. The Bible talks about everything-the good, the
bad, the ugly, the sublime, the ordinary and mundane. All these things are part
of life, and we worship a God who created us and all that exists.
We
also are part of a church tradition that encourages us to think deeply, and to
wrestle with issues that are sometimes difficult. Luther challenged the church
of his day at many points. At many other points, he defended the church against
more radical reformers whom he thought were attacking the gospel. But what he
never did was to refuse to talk about matters that were important.
Elsewhere
in this issue of Tidings you will find an announcement of an opportunity we
will have here at Peace to take part in the current ELCA study on
homosexuality. I encourage you to join us for the discussion. We will bring
with us differing opinions, differing experiences, differing perspectives. Most
of us will-let's be honest-bring a bit of ignorance, both about the Bible and
about other matters. The purpose of the study will not be to convert anyone to
some other point of view. The purpose will be to study: to look at what the
Scripture says, to understand where differing perspectives among Christians
come from, and-I hope-to help all of us think more clearly about this issue for
ourselves.
So
come and join us. Bring your Bible, Bring an open mind and heart. Bring a
willingness to listen to the opinions of others. Bring an eagerness and a
resolve to pray together about a difficult matter. Bring your love for Christ,
and for your family in Christ.
Peace
to you,
Pastor
Richard O. Johnson
Classic Prayers
O Lord
and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of laziness, meddling, ambition
and vain talk. But give me a spirit of prudence, humility, patience and love.
Yes Lord and King grant me to see my own sins and faults and not judge my
brother. For you are Blessed Forever and ever.
Ephraem (4th century
Christian theologian)
Liturgy Notes: Lesser Festivals and Commemorations
Perhaps
you've been surprised a time or two this summer to come to church and discover
we were celebrating some "saint's day"-St. James the Elder on July
25, for example, or Mary, Mother of Our Lord on August 15. These are what our liturgical calendar calls
"lesser festivals"? Where do they come from?
"Lesser
Festivals" are special days on the calendar which are not quite as
significant as the "big ones" like Easter, Christmas, or Pentecost!
Some of these festivals are familiar to many Lutherans; others are quite
unfamiliar. With few exceptions, the Lesser Festivals don't get much notice in
our church life except when they happen to fall on Sunday. Then that particular
festival becomes the focus of our lessons and worship for that morning.
At the
time of the Reformation, nearly every day of the year was a "feast
day" of some saint or other. The Reformers cut back the calendar
considerably, but they left intact a few of the more significant observances,
and these form the basis for our Lesser Festival cycle today. They include the
festivals in honor of the apostles and evangelists, as well as some other New
Testament figures such as Mary, John the Baptist, Stephen, Mary Magdalene.
There
are also some Lesser Festivals that are related to events in the life of Jesus,
such as The Annunciation (March 25, Luke 1.26-38), The Visitation (May 31, Luke
1.39-47), The Presentation (February 2, Luke 2.22-40), and The Name of Jesus
(January 1, Luke 2.21).
Others
include St. Michael and All Angels (September 29), and Holy Cross Day
(September 14), both popular in many Lutheran churches; Reformation Day, and
All Saints Day. These last two are so popular that they are usually observed on
the last Sunday of October and the first Sunday of November, even if those
Sundays don't fall on the specific dates (October 31 and November 1).
Our
bulletin also sometimes takes note of a series of "commemorations."
These days help us remember some of the great Christian "saints" of
the post-Biblical church. Often these folks are mentioned in the prayers for
the day, or on the bulletin cover, or in the introductory comments for the day.
Perhaps we sing a hymn written by one of them. By paying attention to these
notes one can, over the course of a year, learn a great deal about significant
persons in church history.
Lesser
Festivals and commemorations are a way to help us remember with thanksgiving
the great men and women whose lives have much to teach us about faith and love.
Of course we do not share the Roman Catholic view that these individuals have
some special influence with God; but we honor and respect their memory, and
strive to learn from their stories.