No Such Thing as Bad Press?

In an article in the most recent Touchstone that very fairly handles the complaints about the sale of KFUO-FM to Joy FM, SLU professor James Hitchcock notes, "For years, neither AM nor FM KFUO did justice to the unequalled richness of the Lutheran musical tradition, which the AM station largely confines to Sundays."

Sometimes it takes an outsider to remind us of the treasure we have.

Kermit Gosnell: A Man for Our Times

The story about Kermit Gosnell, the late-term abortion provider, arrested and charged with 8 counts of murder, is troubling, to say the least. Seven of those 8 counts of murder are children whom Gosnell delivered before snipping their spinal cords to kill them. The other is a woman who chose to end her unborn child's life, but who herself died under Gosnell's "care."

Gosnell is a man who embodies our Zeitgeist. When choice is the idol, who are we to restrict that choice to the first 6 months of pregnancy, or to the time that a child is living inside the womb? In what scarce media coverage Gosnell's case has received, the focus is usually on the deplorable conditions of his clinic and the fact that he aborted these children ex utero, not on whether (not when) it's okay to end a child's life.

At First Things, Elizabeth Scalia asks

So, allow me to ask the impolitic question I have hinted at elsewhere: in choosing to look away, in choosing to under-report, in choosing to spin, minimize, excuse, and move-along when it comes to Kermit Gosnell—and to this whole subject of under-regulated abortion clinics, the debasement of women and the slaughter of living children—how are the press and those they protect by their silence any better than the Catholic bishops who, in decades past, looked away, under-reported, spun, minimized, excused, moved-along, and protected the repulsive predator-priests who have stolen innocence and roiled the community of faith?

"Choice" is just a name given to the idol "me." It's a refusal to have any authority except one's self. It's little different from the child who protests, "You're not the boss of me." It's my body/life/time/whatever; I can do what I want with it.

That's why a man like Gosnell exists. He's a means to an end, a way to worship your self, a way to buck any authority that might tell you what to do with your body (or the body of the child growing within you). What's the solution?

In his book Republocrat, Carl Trueman reflects on the failure of politicians to solve the problem:

A number of thoughts come to mind when reflecting on the abortion debate. First, given the pro-life rhetoric, what is the actual Republican record on abortion like? Not very impressive. The Roe v. Wade ruling came down in 1973. Since that time, Republicans have enjoyed the lion's share of the presidency, and have also had periods of significant control of Congress. Yet, Roe still stands and rates of abortion are catastrophically high, to the extent that the pro-life movement is currently divided over the real pro-life credentials of a conservative president such as George W. Bust, now that he has left office (the rhetoric being somewhat less equivocal in 2000 and 2004). It seems clear that the democratic legislative path to erducing or even outlawing abortions is proving remarkably unfruitful, a fact that may connect to the complexity of getting legislation passed in the American system of checks and balances. Or, more cynically, this may be due to the fact that a majority of Americans are, sadly, in favor of abortion and politicians need their votes to get elected.

Maybe the solution is in the Church? Yes, but not is more and more opposition to abortion. Like having Republican leaders, having a strongly anti-abortion voice seems to have little effect. Why? Perhaps because most American Christians give license to Gosnell and the radical pro-choice movement by insisting that they must have some freedom to choose. In the mindset of contraception is the insistence that "You're not the boss of me," a stubborn refusal to submit to God's design for creation.

The solution is in repentance. Before she can proclaim "you're not the boss of you," the Church needs to acknowledge that for herself: "I'm not the boss of me. I have a Head; to Him I submit." Before Christians can resoundingly denounce Kermit Gosnell, they must altogether give up the freedom to choose. Anyone can call Gosnell a monster and a murderer, but only the Church can embrace the alternative; only she can extol God's gift of children and rejoice that He--not she--is free to choose when to give children.

Feast of the Confession of St. Peter

Sermon from Winkel today:

The Confession of St. Peter, A + D 2011

Mark 8:27-35

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Ah, Peter. So close, so precise, in fact. And yet, so far from the kingdom. Today is the Feast of the Confession of St. Peter, not the Feast of the Confusion of St. Peter. Why doesn’t the Gospel reading end after Peter’s confession? Why must we press on, from Peter at his best, to Peter at his worst, or, maybe his second-worst? Perhaps Peter learned that it’s easier to make a bold confession with your lips than to get your brain to believe that confession. You are the Christ! And then, when Jesus reveals to them what His plans are as the Christ, Peter thinks it best to give Jesus a private rebuke, a fraternal correction. This seems better than confronting Jesus in front of the crowds, in front of the congregation. A private rebuke, before going to the Circuit Counselor, seems best. But then “Blessed are you Simon Bar-Jonah” becomes “Get behind me, Satan.” “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven” becomes “You are setting your mind not on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Ah, pastor. So close, so precise, in fact. And yet so far from the kingdom. How easy it seems to make a bold confession with your lips, but how difficult to believe your own preaching. Your preaching delivers Christ, but your private devotional life is wont to receive Him. Like Peter, you sing with your parishioners, “To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life,” but your calendar finds you going more to members and meetings and less to Christ and His Word. You catechize about the sufficiency of the Word of God and the work of the Holy Spirit to convert, but when it comes time to evaluate vacancies in the pews or deficiencies in the budget, you wonder what you could add to the Word or the Spirit to close the deal. “Will you adorn the office with a holy life?” becomes “What if your parishioners knew what you’re doing?” And “Were it not for Thy help, I would long since have ruined it all” becomes “were it not for my work, they would long since have ruined it all.”

Yes, Peter. Make the good confession. Today is not the Confusion of St. Peter. Today we don’t recall St. Peter’s sin, because he has none. We only rejoice in Peter’s bold confession. Peter’s Lord is the Christ, who has the Word of eternal life. Alleluia. When the crowds hearing Peter’s preaching “saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.” Peter’s Lord is the Christ, who takes away the sin of the world. Peter might have remembered his shortcomings. The rebuke from Jesus might have haunted his memories. But Jesus has no such memory. The rebuke, Peter’s stupidity and timidity, Peter’s faltering faith, his panic in tumultuous waters, his denial of his Lord, all of these are removed. Gone, Peter, your Lord no longer remembers them.

Yes, pastor. Make the good confession. Your Lord is the Christ, who has the words of eternal life. Your Lord is the Christ, who takes away the sin of the world. Make the bold confession. Let your confession to your father confessor leave no corner of your life unexamined. And then receive his words with joy. Believe that he possesses the same keys entrusted to Peter. What he forgives, your Lord forgets. Every prideful thought, every poorly prepared sermon, every selfish motive, every missed opportunity, every sorry excuse, every false hope, at the word of Absolution, exist only in your own memory, not in your Lord’s. Forgiven is gone. The confessional is sealed because there remains nothing of which to speak. Gone, pastor, your Lord no longer remembers them because they no longer exist.

Yes, pastor. Make the good confession. Confess with St. Peter, with all the apostles, with all the men before you who, like you, were placed into an Office so that others might have the faith that justifies. Confess the Word who gives eternal life. Confess and let your ears believe what you proclaim. To whom shall you go? To Jesus, to His altar. Let Him fill you with Himself. Before His Word is proclaimed from your lips, let His Body be on your tongue. Before you can pour Jesus into your parishioners, let yourself be filled with His Blood. At the Lord’s altar, as Jesus fills you with Himself, with all sin removed, only righteousness remains. Filled with Jesus, even your half-hearted works, your weak efforts to be a better pastor, your half-selfless motives are full and complete in Jesus. Hearing your preaching, knowing you to be an uneducated, common man, they will know that you have been with Jesus. How easy it is to receive a bold confession onto your lips. How delightfully simple and effortless all this turns out to be in hindsight. Yes, pastor. This Christ is for you, too.

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Why Go to Church?

A guest post from one of the elders here at Hope, Mark Kloempken:

"Most reasons for skipping church on Sunday are all pretty hollow. It’s boring. I get nothing out of it. I don’t like. I don’t like the Pastor or the congregation. Someone said something to me. Someone failed me in some way. I, an autonomous individual have decided I have spiritual authority and I don’t need church.

"Basically, none of us have got past Genesis 3, “you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Since the days of Adam and Eve, we have lived in the age of the autonomous individual. Some newspaper editors sent G.K Chesterton a question, what is wrong with this world. He replied, “I am.” G.K. Chesterton got it. He was the problem. God was the answer. But how does God get that answer to us?

"And why go to church. The biggest misunderstanding we have is that we go to church so that we are doing something for God when it is precisely the opposite. We go so that God may do for us through the word and sacrament. It is not that we may do but that God may do for us. What is the obedience of the Church? It is the reception of God’s gifts. It is all counterintuitive and foreign to our way of thinking, in other words bassackwards. God created you without you and will save you without you. And the way in which He does this is through Word and Sacrament. You may not think it. You may not feel it, but when you hear the Word proclaimed and preached God is at work. You may not feel edified. You may not feel an emotional high, but it is true none the less. God’s grace is communicated through the Word and the Sacraments. When a child is baptized, the child is present, the parents are present, the sponsors are present, the congregation is present, the Pastor is present and God is present and He is at work. Through the waters of baptism and the proclamation of the word, God gives the child the gift of faith. But God does not just tip his hat and wish the child well with the fond wish that the child will make it to heaven. He continues to work through the Word and the Lord’s Supper to strengthen and preserve that child’s faith unto eternal life.

"By rejecting Church, we are making ourselves our own saviors and rejecting God’s salvation in Christ. When this country was settled, some men were known as pathfinders. The explored the wilderness and then showed settlers the way through the wilderness. Fathers are pathfinders for their children. They lead the way through life’s wilderness. There have been studies that have shown that children are most likely to continue in the faith when their fathers by their behavior show that they value their faith. This includes study of the Word, behavior toward the neighbor and attending church. We live in an age where everyone would like to see God do something and we refuse to met Him in the one place He has promised to work – Church. And that is the reason why we go to church – it is where God is at work."

Look. at. that.

You don't post in a month, and then you post your monthly newsletter article and the good folks at Issues Etc. take notice.

Dependent Spirituality

“I’m just not able to do anything anymore. I feel like a burden to my congregation because I can’t help out the way I could before.”

Such was the lament of an aging member of a sister parish. The older she got, the less she could contribute. Most of the time we look forward to old age and the frailties it brings with anxiety. “I don’t ever want to be a burden on my family,” people wish. “I don’t ever want to be that dependent on others.”

More often than not, God leads us out of this life the same way he brought us into it: completely dependent on others. As infants, we relied on others to give us food, change our messy diapers, bathe us, clothe us, keep us safe from harm every minute of the day. We were completely dependent.

Then, as we grow into adults, we treasure our burgeoning independence. We can dress ourselves, bathe ourselves, feed ourselves. The more independent we get, we can cook for ourselves or even grow and gather our own food. We can transport ourselves wherever we need to go. A significant part of the American Dream is independence. So, naturally, growing older and more dependent upon others is looked on with shame by the world.

But not the church.

In fact, that God brings us down from our illusions of independence to reveal how truly dependent on others we are is a healthy lesson in humility. To learn to be dependent it to learn to be a Christian. When people were bringing infants to Jesus—yes, infants, the helpless, completely dependent, constantly-needing-to-be-fed-and-changed kind of people—He extolled them as model Christians: “To such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” (Luke 18:15-17)

So whether at the beginning of your life, at the end, or numerous times in the middle, God is teaching you through dependence on others to be a Christian, a child of God, to inherit the kingdom of God. You did not make yourself a Christian; God made you one. You did not produce faith; God gave it to you. You do nothing to earn God’s favor; He gives it to you completely as gift. You are completely dependent on Him for every spiritual need.

So as your faculties decrease, as your strength wanes, as your ability to contribute to your congregation diminishes, rejoice. God is teaching you away from independence to complete dependence on Him.

When speaking of God, the old adage is false: it is not better to give than to receive. Faith receives what God gives. It is always better to be receiving from God than to be giving to Him. That’s what happens in the Divine Service: God comes to lavish His gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation on us. We respond, giving Him our thanks and praise, of course. But the most important thing is that we receive what God gives.

In this season where giving is so highly exalted, don’t neglect the most important things: to be receiving from God. It’s a season chocked full of services, times when God and His Church interrupt your regular routine to bless you with more of His gifts. Don’t get so caught up in all the giving that you neglect the receiving.

All Saints' Day Reflection

To the cemetery or to the Altar? I found this from Lutheran pastor Berthold von Schenk while preparing for tonight's service. I'm reposting it from Pr. Petersen's and Pr. Cwirla's blogs.

It's from The Presence: An Approach to the Holy Communion, 1945, p. 130-132, reprinted in For All The Saints, v. 4, 1996.

When we are bereft of dear ones, it is a tremendous shock. For a time we are stunned. Not everyone, can feel at once their continuing companionship. We should not for that reason despair. An adjustment must take place in our lives, reaching deep into our habits, emotions and thoughts. Some souls may make this adjustment quickly. For most of us it comes slowly and hard; many an hour is filled with loneliness and agonizing doubt.

By ourselves we can never make this adjustment. We must come to a sense of the continuing presence of our loved ones, and we can do this if we realize the presence of our living Lord. As we seek and find our Risen Lord, we shall find our dear departed. They are with Him, and we find the reality of their continued life through Him. The saints are a part of the Church. We worship with them. They worship the Risen Christ face to face, while we worship the same Risen Christ under the veil of bread and wine at the Altar. At the Communion we are linked with heaven, with the Communion of Saints, with our loved ones. Here at the Altar, focused to a point, we find our communion with the dead; for the Altar is the closest meeting place between us and our Lord. That place must be the place of closest meeting with our dead who are in His keeping; The Altar is the trysting place where we meet our beloved Lord. It must, therefore, also be the trysting place where we meet our loved ones, for they are with the Lord.

How pathetic it is to see men and women going out to the cemetery, kneeling at the mound, placing little sprays' of flowers and wiping their tears from their eyes, and knowing nothing else. How hopeless they look! Oh, that we could take them by the hand, away from the grave, out through the cemetery gate, in through the door of the church, and up the nave to the very Altar itself; and there put them in touch, not with the dead body of their loved one, but with the living soul who is with Christ at the Altar!

Our human nature needs more than the assurance that some day and in some way we shall again meet our loved ones "in heaven." That is all gloriously true. But how does that help, us now? When we, then, view death in the light of the Communion of Saints and Holy Communion, there is no helpless bereavement. My loved one has just left me and has gone on a long journey. But I am in touch with her. I know that there is a place where we can meet. It is at the Altar. How it thrills me when I hear the words of the liturgy, "Therefore with angels and archangels and all the company of Heaven," for I know that she is there with that company of heaven, the Communion of Saints, with the Lord. The nearer I come to my Lord in Holy Communion, the nearer I come to the saints. to my own loved ones. I am a member of the Body of Christ, I am a living cell in that spiritual organism, partaking of the life of the other cells, and sharing in the Body of Christ Himself.

There is nothing fanciful or unreal about this: Indeed, it is the most real thing in my life. Of course, I miss my loved one. I should miss her if she took a long holiday trip. But now. since she-is what some people call “dead,” she is closer to me than ever. Of course, I miss her physical presence bitterly. I miss her voice and the sound of approaching footsteps. But I have not lost her. And when my sense of loss becomes too great, I can always go to our meeting place at the Altar where I receive the Body and Blood of my Lord that preserves my body and soul just as it has preserved her unto everlasting life.

Do learn to love the Altar as the meeting place with your beloved who have passed within the veil. Here again the Sacrament is the heart of our religion. The Blessed Sacrament links us not merely to Bethlehem and Calvary, but to the whole world beyond the grave as well. For at the Altar the infinite is enshrined in the finite, heaven stoops down to earth, and the seen and the unseen meet.

Oh, God the King of Saints, we praise and magnify Thy holy Name for all Thy servants, who have finished their course in Thy faith and fear, for the Blessed Virgin Mary, for the Holy Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, and Martyrs, for all Thy other righteous servants; and we beseech Thee that, encouraged by their example and strengthened by their fellowship, we may attain to everlasting life, through the merits of Thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Rev. Berthold Von Schenk (1895 - 1974)