by Theresa M. Shaltanis I don’t have a question, but I have an observation that may help others. My 17-year-old son lost his best friend to suicide earlier this year. In the days following that tragedy, well-meaning friends and family questioned (judgmentally, it seems to me) how a teenager could reach such a point of
Heavenly Yoga? Josiah, my 6-year-old grandson—a “preacher’s kid”—prays each night for those who are sick. He has his own system: If they are mildly sick, he asks God to “put Your hand on him.” If they are very sick, he asks God “to put two hands on him.” When a family friend lay gravely ill
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
by Dr. Leslie (Jack) Fyans I turned 18 this year, and I am excited to vote in the upcoming presidential election. I’ve been following the race and talking with friends and family about my views. My parents and I disagree about presidential candidates for a number of reasons. They imply that I’m wrong because I’m
Why Go to Church? A reader wrote a letter to the editor of his local newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. “I’ve gone for 30 years now,” he wrote, “and in that time I’ve heard perhaps 1,500 sermons. But for the life of me, I can’t remember
We are living in a time of anxiety, conflict, and concern. People are anxious today about employment and job stability; about the price of gas, other fuels, and food; and about the future leadership of our country.
Books on Luther and Paul, or on the history of Pauline interpretation, are often quite technical (and often in German). However, here are a few possibilities for further reading that are relatively accessible and provide broader background for the topics touched on in my story that appears in this issue of The Lutheran Witness.