The LCMS
Shedding Some Light

Say What? On a Sunday evening, Jason, age 5, was stalling going to bed. As usual, first it was one thing, then another. Just as Dad’s patience began to fade, Jason asked for a glass of juice. After a pause, the request was granted by a tired Dad, who then successfully guided Jason in the
Word of God, Speak!

Scripture makes it clear that when the communion of saints gathers, Jesus comes in all His fullness among us (Matt. 18:20). He is really present.
Lent: A Message for a Post-Church Culture

by Rev. Timothy C. Cartwright I served a parish in the mountains of Colorado for eight years in the 1990s. While there, I volunteered in the local school district. The school superintendent and a principal, and numerous teachers, were congregation members. Each winter for five years, along with another community volunteer, I cared for a

Matters of the Heart

In the context of Ash Wednesday, we see that God’s treasure and heart…are in the same place.
On Forgiveness

Forgiveness is a treasure God gives to His people to share with one another.
A joy to read and treasure

I truly enjoyed “Christmas Magic,” Rev. Raymond L. Hartwig’s article in the December Lutheran Witness. It brought back memories of my wonderful grade-school days in the 1950s at St. Paul’s Lutheran School. We had a devout Christian man named Edison F. Onken who taught all four of the lower grades. I remember those beautiful days
Christmas greetings

I’d like to respond to a recent Christmastime poll question on your Lutheran Witness Web site [www.lcms.org/witness]. The poll asked the following: “How do you reply when greeted by the words ‘Happy Holidays’? [Do you reply] ‘Merry Christmas’ or ‘Happy Holidays’?” Because there was no option for “Other,” I submit that Neither/Other would be a
No timetable for grief

In your December Family Counselor, Theresa Shaltanis answered a question about grieving. I did not write the following, but I copied it after losing my husband and struggling with the feeling of overwhelming loneliness. I don’t know who the author is. However, it made me feel better knowing I wasn’t strange just because I couldn’t
Come down to earth, please!

I have been reading The Lutheran Witness since I was young (30+ years) and have often found it to be written in language better suited for seminary professors and pastors. The ordinary layperson in our churches may have to struggle through articles written in a pedantic style and language. Where are the articles that pertain
Words of Life

‘The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.’
Did Jesus Really Visit Hell? If Yes, Why?

In the Apostles’ Creed (and also the Athanasian Creed), we confess that after Jesus died He descended into hell. Where in the Bible is this taught? Why did Jesus go there?   From earliest times, Christians have believed that Jesus’ descent into hell is most clearly taught in 1 Peter 3:18–19. In the context of

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