by Rev. Terence Groth Our Lutheran Confessions urge us to remember exemplary saints for two reasons: (1) “so that we may strengthen our faith when we see how they experienced grace and how they were helped by faith”; and (2) that we may “take the saints’ good works as an example” (AC XXI:1). Jesus testified
Placing a full-time missionary does not just happen. It takes planning, and it takes money. Our missionaries are reaching people with the Gospel thanks to LCMS individuals and congregations who have been part of Fan into Flame, the first Synodwide capital campaign in more than two decades.
The LCMS Foundation is celebrating 50 years of helping Christians find joy in responding to God’s Blessings.
I would like to commend The Lutheran Witness for the cover of the May issue. It is the first time I can remember seeing a pastor prominently displayed wearing the full Eucharistic vestments. Pastor Taylor serves as a wonderful example of pastoral ministry and the ability to reach today’s largely non-Christian, cynical generation without sacrificing
For an Indiana farm couple, a hobby becomes a way to share their faith, and a way to tithe to “Fan into Flame.”
In the May article on Hiruy Gebremichael, Roland Lovstad describes Gebremichael as being on the periphery when he was a teacher in a Lutheran school. This denigrates the teaching ministry of the church by suggesting that the pastoral ministry is a “higher” calling rather than a different calling. In Romans 12, Paul declares that we
Thanks to President Kieschnick for his article in the May issue of The Lutheran Witness regarding the critical need for more pastors to serve our congregations. What is not mentioned, however—and I imagine that it is due to space limitations—is that there are any number of qualified and experienced pastors on candidate status who are
Thank you for Chaplain Schroeder’s “Lifeline” story, “They Will Place Their Hands on Sick People,” in the May Lutheran Witness. Jesus commissioned His followers to preach, teach, and heal. While Luther valued all three Gospel outreaches, the LCMS often seems ambivalent about Jesus’ ministry of healing. If, after reading Chaplain Schroeder’s article, some would like
Thank you for Edie Sodowsky’s article in the May issue of The Lutheran Witness (“When at Last I Near the Shore”). I have seen what she so touchingly describes happen countless times as I have engaged in the ministry of visitation. Sagging heads,vacant stares, unresponsive minds drawn briefly and joyously back into a precious moment
I must express my profound disappointment and sorrow that you chose for your April issue to print such a mean-spirited letter from a reader directed toward Paine Proffitt’s illustrations in the December Lutheran Witness. It was a serious lapse in judgment. We Christians are called to encourage one another, not to tear each other down.
You highlighted 50 lives changed by compassionate Christian action (“50 Faces of Mercy,” March). Captivated, I read each and every story. Well done. Paul KochBowie, Md. Read More Letters to the Editor Send letters to “Letters,” c/o The Lutheran Witness, 1333 S. Kirkwood Road, St. Louis, MO 63122-7295; or send them via e-mail to
Dr. Gerhard Bode, in “The Gift of the Holy Spirit” (May 2008), had the right idea when he wrote, “The Holy Spirit active in the apostles on Pentecost is the same Spirit who works in believers today.” But he really did not say how, when, or why this is true. How can you write an