When I was in confirmation class our pastor lectured us on the anti-Christian action of joining fraternal organizations such as Eagles, Elks, Moose, and Shriners, and especially the Masons. An elder in our church is a Mason, and every Sunday when he serves Communion, I notice the huge Masonic ring on his finger. Have the
The answer given to the farmer troubled about missing Sunday services wisely avoids giving a general answer to a question that must be considered individually with each Christian struggling with the question of balancing work and worship. But the answer also fails to re-explain critical truths about how God works in the world, truths which
What Teachers MakeThe dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life. One guest, the CEO of a local company, decided to explain the problem with education. “What’s a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?” he argued, reminding the others of the old
I have only recently read the article “Is God Green?” and believe it is on target on all accounts. May I, however, share two concerns with you? 1. I wonder how many of your readers are willing and able to dig through and digest the dense theological underpinnings of the article? 2. Should this have
Lord, reform the church. Begin with me. As we prepare to celebrate the festival of the Reformation, our thoughts naturally turn back to the circumstances that led to the event nearly 500 years ago.
Thank you for your article on the ministry work of chaplains (“In the Shadow of Death . . . Chaplains Speak of Life Eternal,” August). As one who lives and works for and with the military, I know that the work of chaplains can be distant or close to home. One chaplain, Ch Richard Townes,
Opportunities for telling the Good News abound—even when we’re busy with our hobbies.
How grateful I am to The Lutheran Witness and to Jonathan Watt for raising the issue of funeral planning for Lutherans (September 2007 issue). I would simply suggest adding Sacrament to Word. The new Lutheran Service Book puts the two together in a remarkable way in the new Funeral Service. What a way to
Gene Edward Veith, is most certainly to be commended for so much in his Sept. 07 LW article, “Only One Road to Heaven?” But he most certainly contradicts himself when he states, “The very concept of “heaven”. . ., is a distinctly Christian belief. Supplemented with the belief in the resurrection of the body, the
In human terms, 500 years is a long time. The world in which Luther lived half a millennium ago seems distant and hazy when we compare it to the life we lead today.
magazine, is for laypeople, while Reporter, our monthly newspaper, is for professional church workers and congregational lay leaders. This principle has served us well
by Rodney Rathmann Regularly we interact with friends, neighbors, and relatives who are living unfulfilling and rebellious lives outside of God’s grace, with little or no understanding of God’s love and forgiveness in Christ Jesus. Such was the condition of the woman Jesus met one day at a Samaritan well (John 4:1–40). As with that