Noted Review: Fantasy Fiction

Anderson, David Paul. The Book of Talyara: The Chronicle of Windwalker. Mustang, OK: Tate Publishing, 2008. 232 Pages. Paper. $14.99. http://www.tatepublishing.com/  http://davidpaulbooks.tripod.com/index.htm (N)


This is the third book QBR has reviewed by David Paul Anderson. We found his non fiction to be insightful and comforting and his previous fiction to be more faithful and well-written than other Christian spiritual warfare fiction.

At long last, this reviewer finally reached The Book of Talyara: The Chronicle of Windwalker on my review stack. I am a fan of good fantasy fiction, particularly Lewis and Tolkien. I was left unsatisfied in several ways.

This novel lacked the theological precision and clarity of what he has written before. The author refers to evil and good as white and black, with reference to "many religions." (105). Also, the reference to a remnant of the Garden of Eden (spoiler withheld) is theologically dubious and confusing at best (113).

There was too much emphasis on the attractive "form" of  the main character's female companion (143, et al). This reviewer is not alone in that assessment. Even the main human female character had concerns.

I don't mind unusual names for people, places, and imaginary creatures and capabilities. For all the talk about Windwalker, he wasn't enough a part of this tale for this novel to be his chronicle.

I appreciated the metaphor of the Timothy's physical transformation, but what it was a metaphor for was unclear.

Finally, I was a little disappointed by the lack of resolution at the ending. Again, I don't mind setting the stage for a sequel or set of sequels, but I was left unfulfilled at the end.

I urge the author to revisit this work and hopefully continue it in the hopes that it reaches the artistic and theological level of his Plague of Terror.


The Rev. Paul J Cain is Pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming, Headmaster of Martin Luther Grammar School, a member of the Board of Directors of The Consortium for Classical and Lutheran Education, Wyoming District Worship Chairman, and Editor of QBR.

LHP Review

Schulz, Klaus Detlev. Mission from the Cross (Lay Reader's Edition). St. Louis: Concordia, 2010. 125 Pages. Paper. $12.99. (Special Introductory Price: $9.99!) http://www.cph.org/  (LHP)


 

Recently, QBR had the treat to review Klaus Detlev Schulz's CPH book, Mission from the Cross: The Lutheran Theology of Mission. To read that complete review, click on the URL below:

http://lhpqbr.blogspot.com/2010/06/lhp-review-on-mission-and-ministry.html

 

In part, we wrote:

"This is the book I wish I had for my seminary class on missions. This is the book I hope and pray is used for classes on missions at LCMS colleges, universities, seminaries, and pastors' studies around the world. It carries with it all of the good parts of all of the books I read back then, with little of the downside. It is solidly grounded in Lutheran theology and spirituality, plus the passion for the lost that was missing in so many other books."

We were pleased to learn about the availability of an abbreviated Lay Reader's Edition!

I love the concept. Take a well-written scholarly work intended for church workers and students and prepare a shorter, more affordable paperback edition for lay readers. Concordia could expand their catalog of such volumes beyond this one (and the summary of Dr. Brighton's Concordia Commentary on Revelation) to include nearly any major book of Concordia Academic Press, and even volumes of Luther, Chemnitz, or Gerhard. Sales of these Lay Reader's Editions could help subsidize new professional/academic texts and the cycle could repeat itself.

What changes have been made? There are fewer footnotes and direct quotations, larger paragraphs have been broken into smaller ones for clarity, and some entire chapters have been cut. This version retains chapters 1-5 and 16-17. Chapter 5 flows naturally to 16. Inquiring minds can simply consult the full professional edition.

Here we see the skill of the author and CPH editors. We are given clarity, brevity, and depth for the sake of wider understanding of the topic at hand.

Why is this book necessary? Justification itself is under attack (64ff). There is also a misunderstanding of missions. Take, for example, the following resolution proposed for consideration by delegates to the 2007 LCMS Convention:

To Make Outreach the Top Priority in Worker Training

RESOLUTION 1-05

Report 1-01 ([2007] CW, pp. 39–45)

WHEREAS, “Two out of every three" people in the world "do not know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior," and nearly 50 percent of Americans claim no religious affiliation” (Report of LCMS World Mission, CW, p. 39), and the population of the U.S. continues to grow; and

WHEREAS, In the Ablaze! initiative the Synod has committed itself and all its members to grow in intentional mission development efforts; and

WHEREAS, Our Synod is blessed with faithful universities and seminaries who train the next generation of church workers for our rapidly changing cultures and ever-increasing mission field; therefore be it

Resolved, That the Synod in its 2007 convention encourages and directs universities and seminaries to place outreach to the lost as the top priority as they train workers for the harvest, preparing them to equip God’s people for the local and worldwide mission field. 

Can anyone see the intended benefit of this? Sure. Yet, had this resolution passed unamended, justification would have been under attack once again, though not intentionally. We need to be careful of unintended consequences. Lutherans have always considered justification the article upon which the Church stands or falls. This resolution would have given evidence that mission was more important than justification. Both have high importance, but justification is of higher importance. Without the Gospel, what is the content of our mission message?

Thankfully, "a" replaced "the" in the title and the resolution after a brief floor discussion and it was adopted.

This Lay Reader's Edition of Mission from the Cross is needed to give pastors and people alike a theological foundation for faithful Lutheran outreach at home and abroad.

Buy in bulk. Savor the text. Think about the study questions. Use it alongside the professional edition in a Bible Class.

Finally, read and make use of the addition of "A Simple Way of Witness" (103) unique to this edition and reproduced from The Lutheran Study Bible. It has been said that theology is for the sake of proclamation. Mission from the Cross: Lay Reader's Edition and its larger cousin get both the theology and proclamation right.


The Rev. Paul J Cain is Pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming, Headmaster of Martin Luther Grammar School, a member of the Board of Directors of The Consortium for Classical and Lutheran Education, Wyoming District Worship Chairman, and Editor of QBR.

Hymnody Review: Koine Hymns

Koine. Koine. Milwaukee: Judas on Straight Street Records, 2005. Audio CD. $15.00. http://www.koinemusic.com/ (H)

Koine. Gesangbuch. Milwaukee: Judas on Straight Street Records, 2006. Audio CD. $15.00. http://www.koinemusic.com/ (H)

Koine. Church Bells. Milwaukee: Judas on Straight Street Records, 2008. Audio CD. $15.00. http://www.koinemusic.com/ (H)

Koine. Anno Domini. Milwaukee: Judas on Straight Street Records, 2009. Audio CD. $15.00. http://www.koinemusic.com/ (H)

I like the idea. I love the hymn selections. I commend the creativity. I will also pray for this group and for their continued witness and musical growth.

Common language. Common people. Extraordinary message.

That's what Koiné was in the 4th and 5th century in then Macedonia, the common language of the people. It's a Greek term, and was the language the New Testament was written in.


Today, Koiné is again a voice for the common people, and again with extraordinary message. Koiné - the church band, is a Christian band, bringing a new vibrant sound and feel to traditional Lutheran and Christian songs.


Founded on the banks of the Milwaukee River on Milwaukee's near North Side, Koiné brings a new and needed voice to the arena of Christian music.


Thanks for stopping by. Check out the rest of the site, and we welcome you to our upcoming shows, to hear a common message for all people: Jesus Christ is Savior.


God Bless - Koiné
(From the band website)

Yet, I have some concerns.

First, their web shop has some unfortunate typos including misspelled words and unfortunate misnumberings compared to correct listings on their albums.

This is Koiné's first CD, featuring 10 songs. They have sold over 5000 copies of this to date, with favorites like "What a Friend We Have in Jesus," "Jerusalem My Happy Home," and "Crown Him with Many Crowns."


1.From All That Dwell Below the Skies
2.Cchief [Chief] Of Sinners Though I Be
3.What A Friend We Have In Jesus
4.Lord When Your Glory I Shall See
5.Crown Him With Many Crowns
6.My Hope Is Build [Built] On Nothing Less
7.Now the Light has Gone Away
8.I'm But A Stranger Here
9.Jerusalem My Happy Home
10.God's Word is Our Great Heratage [Heritage]
11.I'm Anchored In Jesus

This is Koiné's 2nd CD, featuring 16 new songs! If you enjoyed the first, you will love Volume II.


1.Jesus Priceless Treasure
2.Lord Teach Us How to Pray Alright
3.Jesus [Should be included with next line] 4.Savior Pilot Me
[4.] 5.This is My Will
[5.] 6.Lord Keep Us Steadfast In Your Word
[6.] 7.Abide With Me
[7.] 8.Christ Is Our Cornerstone
[8.] 9.Lord Of Glory You Have Brouught Us
[9.] 10.Be Still My Soul
[10.] 11.Brothers, Sisters, Let Us Gladly
[11.] 12.I Hear the Savior Calling

[12. Though I May Speak with Bravest Fire]

13.Behold a Host Arrayed In White
14.Now Rest Beneath Night's Shadow
15.Build [Built] on the Rock
16.Jerusalem the Golden

   

Koiné releases its third album, Church Bells- a wonderful mix of seasonal favorites and time honored hymns.


1.Oh, that the Lord Would Guide My Ways
2.Fight the Good Fight
3.Comfort, Comfort All My People
4.Once in Royal David's City
5.My Song Is Love Unknown
6.Draw Us to Thee
7.He Stood before the Court
8.Glory Be to Jesus
9.This Joyful Eastertide
10.All Glory, Laud, and Honor
11.What Wondrous Love Is This
12.When God the Spirit Came
13.All Praise to Thee, My God, This Night
14.The King of Love My Shepherd Is

  
 

Koiné releases its fourth album, Anno Domini - a full length album of your favorite Christmas Songs!


1.1. O Savior, Rend The Heavens Wide [duplicate numbering]
2.From Heaven Above to Earth I Come
3.O Little Town of Bethlehem
4.Comfort, Comfort All My People
5.Mary, Did You Know?
6.O Holy Night
7.Hark the Glad Sound! The Savior Comes
8.Of the Father's Love Begotten
9.Once in Royal David's City
10.Behold, a Branch Is Growing
11.Joy to the World
12.Silent Night! Holy Night

I do not wish to be considered overly picky in this regard, but I do want this group to give their site visitors a positive impression on Christians, Lutherans, and musicians.
 
Second, the drum set makes me cringe. The over-use of percussion on these four recordings homogenizes the sound of nearly all the tracks. Sometimes, the drums overwhelm the melody and words. Occasionally, they fight against the melody and hymn texts. Several tracks just don't work due to rhythms imposed on the hymn. Percussion is not always necessary. Let the natural beauty of the melody sung by gifted vocalists shine through! I would encourage the group to experiment with other percussion instruments. I use hand drums with some of our new African hymnody like "Christ Has Arisen, Alleluia" and "Listen, God Is Calling." Timpani is powerfully used with liturgical canticles. Why not try the Biblically-mentioned tambourine?
 
Third, some arrangements may alienate some of the band's intended audience. The wild changes back and forth between traditional church accompaniments and more modern/rock versions was particularly jarring on II:1, "Jesus, Priceless Treasure." Could the electrified instruments back off to confess in practice the "reverence" confessed in the text of the hymns?
 
Now, three encouraging things:
 
First, I love the sound of Koine at its best, with Davidson and Fedke on vocals, minimal percussion, and acoustic instruments. They echo a Lutheran version of the band Caedmon's Call. Please emphasize this side of your sound!
 
Second, Koine is incredibly creative. Keep working, playing, arranging, and recording. Album four shows great development and more maturity than album one.
 
Third, build on the variety of instrumentation you have used before. I loved the flute. Why not add in some brass and woodwind guests? There's nothing like trumpet or trombone for Christmas and Easter.
 
And finally, some quick hymn suggestions for future albums: "Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me," "Thy Strong Word," and "The Tree of Life" (all as found in the LCMS hymnal, Lutheran Service Book). I'd also like to hear a Koine version of "In Christ Alone," "There Is a Higher Throne," "Speak, O Lord," and "May the Peace of God" from the new WELS Christian Worship: Supplement. 
 
I pray that these critiques are heard in the friendly and brotherly spirit in which they are offered. I appreciate that Koine has positioned themselves as a church band, playing the hymnic treasures of the Lutheran Church.
 
 
The Rev. Paul J Cain is Pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming, Headmaster of Martin Luther Grammar School, a member of the Board of Directors of The Consortium for Classical and Lutheran Education, Wyoming District Worship Chairman, and Editor of QBR.

LHP Review: Law & Gospel!

Walther, C. F. W. Law & Gospel: How to Read and Apply the Bible (A Reader's Edition). St. Louis: Concordia, 2010. 514 Pages. Cloth. $29.99. (Purchase 5 or more for $19.99 each.) http://www.cph.org/ (LHP)



This is a big book. It's importance to pastoral care and preaching cannot be underestimated. I am very thankful that this new edition by Concordia has brought it back into prominences as part of The Essential Lutheran Library.

Far too often, laypeople haven't known about this work by our synod's first president. Pastors may have thought that it was just for pastors since it has been used as a text for homiletics courses. Why not start teaching these theses in age appropriate ways in Sunday School, VBS, and Confirmation classes? In the past, I have used Walther's masterwork as a Bible Study outline for a Sunday morning series.


Dr. Walther introduces his hearers (and readers) to the difficult theological art of properly distinguishing Law and Gospel with his first of twenty-five Theses:

The doctrinal contents of all Holy Scripture, both of the Old and the New Testaments, consist of two doctrines that differ fundamentally from each other. These two doctrines are Law and Gospel.

Missouri Synod laypeople are generally aware of this truth because of generations of faithful preachers. Now, many more will be able to read and better understand why it is so important.

If Law and Gospel are not properly distinguished, God's Word is not properly understood. This impacts faith in Christ. The clear, pure teaching of the gift of forgiveness, life, and salvation in Christ alone is at stake. Misunderstandings of the Law turn the Law into a do-it-yourself salvation. Misunderstandings of Gospel turn Christ into a new lawgiver, or one way to God among many. In Christianity, focus only on the law leads to hypocrisy, despair, or both. Everyone else has the law (false religions, civil government, etc.). Only the Christian Church has the Gospel!

Thesis XXV is an essential bookend:

You are not rightly distinguishing Law and Gospel in the Word of God if you do not allow the Gospel to predominate in your teaching.

How many Christian preachers would find their sermons and pastoral care improved just by adopting Theses I and XXV?

This edition is different from the abbreviated version called God's No and God's Yes. It contains the whole of Walther's Luther Hour Lectures on Law and Gospel. It differs from the previous brown and blue/black editions used in the homiletics classroom. Walther's German is given a hearty English translation that echos his own personal style, similar in many ways to Luther's own.

Concordia Publishing House has already produced an excellent reader's edition of the Lutheran Confessions. They have duplicated that previous success with this reader's edition including a brief biography of Walther, a helpful timeline connecting Luther's time to that of Walther, a timeline and overview of Law and Gospel from an historical theology perspective, and appendices putting this work into its proper context. Particularly helpful were abundant footnotes showing original Latin or German terms and providing contextual helps. I loved seeing the marginal notes with Bible citations, scholarly identification of Luther quotes, and the dates of the original lectures. Photos introduce most thesis "chapters," complementing the fascinating map section earlier in the book.

Good Christian preachers properly distinguish between Law and Gospel. Some do it by accident, others by intention. It is my intention to share this Lutheran strength with the rest of Christendom. Calvin, Zwingli, and Arminius have had indirect influence on countless Christian congregations and church bodies beyond their own. Why has Lutheran influence been so muted? Yes, pastors should go ahead and encourage their circuit brothers to purchase this volume and engage in a study of it at monthly Winkel meetings. In addition, why not encourage a study at local ministerial associations or with a handful of evangelical pastors who take the Scriptures seriously?

I pray that strong sales of Law & Gospel: How to Read and Apply the Bible will encourage CPH pursue even more of the work encouraged by the 2007 LCMS Convention:

At the 2007 convention, the LCMS adopted two resolutions that called for specific action on the part of Concordia Publishing House.

Res. 2-08, “To Celebrate Significant Synod Anniversaries,” directed Concordia Publishing House “to consider the production of an electronic (e-book) anniversary edition of Walther’s works, to be published with computer CD-ROM technology, using all available English translations as well as German printed texts and manuscripts for materials not available in English.” Upon study and consideration, it was determined that, in light of the materials by Dr. C. F. W. Walther already available in digital format and others available in print editions and what would be required to gather all extant German materials, this would not be feasible without a considerable and ongoing amount of external grant monies, which are not available.

However, in response to this resolution, Concordia Publishing House has announced an annual Reformation Research Theology Award, the first topic to be dealt with to be C. F. W. Walther, in honor of the 200th anniversary of his birth. A juried contest is being held, and the submission of scholarly papers, sermons, and hymns devoted to the topic has been invited. As a result of this contest, a book of essays will be published in 2011 on the significance of Dr. Walther. Additionally, in late 2010, CPH will be releasing a new edition of Dr. Walther’s The Proper Distinction between Law and Gospel in an updated and improved translation, prepared in a manner that will make the book more accessible to laypersons. This reader’s edition will be titled Law & Gospel: How to Read and Apply the Bible (2010 Convention Workbook, 46).

Perhaps a new reader's edition of Walther's Church & Ministry, the official LCMS position on the topic could include a revised title closer to the original German: Church & Office.

CPH, thanks for the discounted price for orders of five or more!


The Rev. Paul J Cain is Pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming, Headmaster of Martin Luther Grammar School, a member of the Board of Directors of The Consortium for Classical and Lutheran Education, Wyoming District Worship Chairman, and Editor of QBR.

Resources Received

Gilmore, Rachel. Church Programs & Celebrations for All Generations. Valley Forge: Judson Press, 2010. 120 Pages. Paper. $18.00. http://www.judsonpress.com/ (L)

Liturgy & Hymnody Review: Happy Birthday, Lutheran Service Book!

The Commission on Worship of The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod. Lutheran Service Book: Pew Edition. St. Louis: Concordia, 2006. 1024 Pages. Cloth. $23.00. http://www.cph.org/ (LH)


 
Four years have come and gone since the August advent of Lutheran Service Book in 2006. The official release date was in September, but I was overjoyed when copies of the pew edition arrived early. I was similarly happy when this review copy recently showed up!
 
Our Wyoming District had seven introductory workshops, one for each circuit. Attendance was high. Adoption was even better. In less than two years, all but two congregations in our district adopted LSB. (One uses TLH and the other had recently purchased new copies of both TLH and LW.) In the LCMS today, at least 70% of synod congregations have LSB in the pews, a larger percentage than LW had in its entire lifetime!
 
 

 
Well before the announcement of The Lutheran Hymnal Project, (whose LHP acronym we borrowed for Liturgy, Hymnody, & Pulpit soon after LSB was officially named,) I encountered a lot of hard feelings about the 1982 Lutheran Worship and fear that the next LCMS hymnal would be more of the same vein. I was happy to share then that four-part harmonies and traditional texts and melodies would return. LW's DSI was the reason so many stayed with TLH. "Page 136" simply wasn't "page 15." Singing the unsingable LW tune for "Fight the Good Fight" wasn't worth the fight with musicians and congregations by about 1983. And "My Faith Looks Trustingly" didn't go over at the nursing home or sanctuary.
 
The promise of The Lutheran Hymnal Project was made manifest in Lutheran Service Book, thanks be to God!
 
LSB meant a return to the cherished versions of hundreds of hymns (text and harmony), the Common Service, Matins, Vespers, and much more. LSB preserved so much of TLH that it is in many respects a larger print version of our beloved 1941 hymnal.
 
LSB also carried forward new favorite services and song from LBW/LW. The October 2006 ELCA hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship still has two settings of Divine Service and the basic musical form of three prayer offices in common with LSB. LSB preserved them more faithfully than its distant cousin, ELW. Though completely unrelated works, ELW and LSB  have a strange connection in my mind beyond the historical development of Lutheran Book of Worship and Lutheran Worship. Both new hymnals introduce some new common hymn texts and even more new hymn tunes in common. LSB is far more user-friendly due to an unique page-numbering system. And I must confess my amazement at the irony of the names. The LCMS Lutheran Service Book title sounds very familiar to Service Book and Hymnal used by the predecessor bodies of the ELCA. And the ELCA Evangelical Lutheran Worship sounds closer in name to our LCMS Lutheran Worship than the result of the work of the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship, Lutheran Book of Worship.
 
It is probably more accurate to call this the revised LCMS hymnal than a new hymnal.
 
Dedication Sunday for the new book for the pews was a special day at the congregation I served in the fall of 2006. We borrowed an idea from a sister congregation and made an LSB cross display out of LSBs.
 

It was easy to plan services that could have been sung out of TLH for the first few weeks. Congregation members appreciated the larger print, off-white pages, and durable cover. Our altar guild had pre-treated the ribbons so that they would not fray, another idea borrowed from another sister congregation. Our local LWML group had a wonderful idea of their own. They gave scholarships to all the youth of the congregation to the introductory workshop so they could all get their own copy of the hymnal. Wouldn't that be a great tradition to begin and continue?
 
I hear many similar encouraging comments from the congregation I currently serve, one that also quicly adopted LSB after careful and extensive pastoral preparation by my immediate predecessor.We currently pair DS3 with Matins for a season of the Church Year and alternate with DS1 and Service of Prayer and Preaching. Our schoolchildren have helped the congregation learn Evening Prayer as an alternate for Vespers. They will be working on Morning Prayer this school year in preparation of introducing it and DS4 next summer. My plan then is to rotate through three pairs of services that would be used for at least a month at a time: DS1 and Morning Prayer; DS3 and Matins; DS4 and Prayer & Preaching.
 
I love to use LSB  to teach members (new and long-time) about worship. I love the catechetical covers and new stoles to match. (I bought the green stole to mourn the end of the LCMS Commission on Worship due to 2010 Convention 8-08A.)
 

  
With so many new hymns, songs, and canticles, Lutheran Service Book serves a choir well. A choir's first job is to help lead the singing of the congregation, assisting the pastor and parish musicians in that regard. There is also plenty of special music and variety within the settings of Divine Service and Daily Office.
 
We extensively use Lutheran Service Builder to produce hymn booklets and legal CDs for school and VBS. We also love the copyright license built-in so we can make legal CDs of services for our members, especially shut-ins.
 
Is this a perfect book? No, because no human work is, nor could any one hymnal perfectly please a group of sinful human beings. I wanted all 150 psalms and the Augsburg Confession included. I have a short list of hymns I would like to see added or deleted. And I had hoped that "and with your spirit" would replace "and also with you" as was the case in Hymnal Supplement 98, a major source of new material to LSB. That said, my enduring concerns are minimal compared to my critique of most other Lutheran or Christian hymnals in print. LSB provides a common core repertoire of text and song with which we can walk together as Christian pastors and congregations for decades to come. 
 
Prices of the pew edition and other support resources have only modestly increased since the time they were released. Congregations were notified in advance of special introductory sales and when they would expire. That speaks well of Concordia Publishing House. If your congregation has not yet invested in the rest of the LSB library, now is the time to do so. These would make great Christmas gifts to one's congregation or be deserving of memorial funds.

• Guitar Chord Edition for Hymns (also helpful for pianists)
• Liturgy Accompaniment Edition
• Hymn Accompaniment Edition
• Agenda
• Altar Book
• Lectionary Volumes for A, B, C, and the Historic One-Year Series
• Laminated Daily Prayer Cards (reprinting the four devotions from 294-298)
• Pastoral Care Companion
• Concordance
• Hymn Selection Guide
• Propers of the Day (paperback)
• Collects of the Day (booklet)
• Personal Gift Edition (smaller, leather version of the pew edition)
• Deluxe Pew Edition (leather, better ribbons, gilded, great for the chancel)
• Liturgical [3-ring] binder
• The Concordia Organist (CD set)
• Lutheran Service Builder (bulletin software and copyright helper)
• and don't forget the ribbon bookmarks and printable bookplates

And don't forget other volumes of the CPH Essential Lutheran Library with covers that match:

• The Lutheran Study Bible
• Treasury of Daily Prayer
• Lutheran Book of Prayer
• Luther's Small Catechism with Explanation
• Reading the Psalms with Luther
• Law & Gospel (New!)
• Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions

It's a great time to be a Lutheran when so many faithful resources are newly available! Lutheran Service Book is the best hymnal ever produced by The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod. It can be a tool toward greater unity in doctrine and practice in the LCMS because of its harmonious and faithful singing of God's Word and winsome confession of our Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions.
 
 
The Rev. Paul J Cain is Pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming, Headmaster of Martin Luther Grammar School, a member of the Board of Directors of The Consortium for Classical and Lutheran Education, Wyoming District Worship Chairman, and Editor of QBR.
 

FW: Life-Long Lutheran Discovers Really Big Book (and Loves It!)

A neat post from a couple of bloggers on a good book to read…

 

Feed: Cyberbrethren Lutheran Blog Feed
Posted on: Monday, August 09, 2010 7:33 AM
Author: Paul T. McCain
Subject: Life-Long Lutheran Discovers Really Big Book (and Loves It!)

 

I really enjoyed this blog post I bumped into the other day. I think you will too. I was raised Lutheran. Baptized into the faith through water and the Word when I was 20 days old. Brought to Sunday School as a youth and after attending Confirmation class, I was confirmed in the Evangelical Lutheran Church when I was 4,866 days old. During High School, I decided that I didn't believe in Jesus or God His Father. I left the faith for a while, but by the grace of God, I was called back to saving faith by the Word in college. After again attending an LC–MS church for several years, I decided that I would attend seminary with the intention of serving God's church as an under-shepherd (pastor). Imagine my surprise when I discovered the Really Big Book (otherwise known as the Book of Concord of 1580). My surprise, by the way, was not that there was a really big book published 400+ years ago; no, my surprise was that there was a book which contains the official confession of the Lutheran Church. My surprise was that, in order to become a pastor in the Missouri Synod, I would have to read and agree with (subscribe unconditionally to ) everything in that book "because" it faithfully teaches what the Bible reveals. Hmmm… interesting. How come I've never even heard of this? And, wait a minute. Everything? I have to agree with everything in that Really Big Book? You're going to ask me at my ordination if I believe that the entirety of the Book of Concord of 1580 (that self-same Really Big Book) is a "true exposition of Holy Scripture and a correct exhibition of the doctrine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church?" (LC-MS Agenda). Not only that, but the answer I will be required to give is: "Yes, I make these Confessions my own because they are in accord with the Word of God"? Wow. Here I don't even know this book exists and now unconditional subscription to the content of that book is going to be a prerequisite to ordination? Not only that, but I need to be able to say openly, freely, and without reservation that what that book says is in fact my own confession— not the confession of those long-dead reforming saints, but MY OWN! Truth be known, once I started to get over my shock, then I started to get angry. I was mad. "Don't we just need the bible?!?" Thanks be to God that I didn't despair. I figured "it couldn't hurt to read the stupid thing" and see what it says. After all, if this Book of Concord is the official confession of the Evangelical Lutheran Church… if it is norm by which the Lutheran Church believes, teaches, and confesses what we believe the Bible says… I might as well give it a shot. Right? So I started to read. And boy was I shocked! This Really Big Book was a treasure trove! It wasn't a bunch of debatable opinions by a bunch of really dead guys… it was a faithful teaching of what God reveals in Scripture. I began to realize just how silly my question of "Don't we just need the Bible?" was. The Book of Concord wasn't a replacement for the Bible. By no means! Rather, it was a faithful speaking of God's Word back again. And it was awesome! With the Book of Concord by my side, my Bible reading became the exciting adventure I never knew it could be. Before the Book of Concord, I was an intermittent Bible reader, after… I was a voracious reader, for the Bible had become for me that most delightful of feasts. I still had some hard work to overcome a few things —like understanding the Bible's teaching on the doctrine of Election (which is HUGE!) and learning to value Baptism (which is also HUGE!)— but it's no exaggeration to say that my study of the Book of Concord transformed me. It opened my eyes to so much of what the Bible teaches. I went from being a life-long Lutheran who would have been comfortable joining your friendly Community Church down the street… to being a convicted Christian who would give his right hand before he'd let go of the theology confessed in the Lutheran confessions. In the end, it's not about "being Lutheran." It's about "Christ and Him crucified" for you (1 Cor. 2:2). It's about God working through real Words and tangible Sacraments FOR YOU! It's about a radical grace that flies in the face of everything that world teaches. And I learned it all through the Book of Concord. The Lord Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but only one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:41–42). God bless you as you continue to sit at Jesus' feet! SDG. n.b. this post was partly inspired by a blog comment of Rev. Jonathan Fisk, whose journey in part mirrors my own. I even shamelessly stole some of his phrases! Thanks, Jonathan!

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FW: [LetUsPray] Lectionary Summaries for August and September Available

FYI…

 

From: LetUsPray@yahoogroups.com [mailto:LetUsPray@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Worship
Sent: Friday, August 06, 2010 9:09 AM
To: letuspray@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [LetUsPray] Lectionary Summaries for August and September Available

 

 

Weekly summaries of the LSB lectionaries (both Three-Year and One-Year) are available to view and download from:

http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=16073

The pages now include Lectionary summaries for the month of September.

 

Rachel Asburry
Commission on Worship
Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod
800-248-1930 x 1265

 

FW: Why non-Liturgical Worship Cannot be Lutheran

Points for your consideration from Dr. Kilcrease…

Feed: theologia crucis
Posted on: Tuesday, August 03, 2010 1:45 PM
Author: Dr. Jack Kilcrease
Subject: Why non-Liturgical Worship Cannot be Lutheran.

In the last post, Boaz says that he can't see how contemporary worship contradicts Scripture and the Confessions. He also wonders if my insistence that it does isn't just a way of baptizing my own musical preferences. First, I'll concede a point of Boaz's. I'm very biased against contemporary worship simply because it's in bad taste. It's irritating, loud, and the music sounds bad to me. When I was a teenager I never listened to rock. My first CD was Wagner. I actually watch the entire Ring cycle on public television with my father when I was in the 4th grade. I did get into rock music when I was in college, but less popular stuff. So you've got me. Part of the reason I don't like contemporary worship is that aesthetically it's kind of a turn off. After conceding that point, I want to expand on some things I said earlier and make a larger case. Just because I admit that I'm naturally biased against it doesn't make it by default theologically correct. This is a logical fallacy known as "poisoning the well" (actually this fallacy is basis of most modern biblical scholarship, but that's another post- so I digress.) I would put forth the following reasons why contemporary worship is inconsistent with Scripture and Confessions: 1. It promotes a false view of evangelism: Let's start by asking the question, why does anyone adopt contemporary worship? I would bet you 9 times out of 10 it's not because the 80 year German grandmas in your congregation can't bear to go to church one more Sunday without hearing an Boston or Eagles concert instead of the liturgy. It's always for the sake of evangelism (at least in the LCMS). The argument goes that the young folks (and I remember this argument, because I was one of them not very long ago) can't relate to the liturgy and in order to keep them we've got to relate to them through rock music. Usually this is accompanied with some sort of threat by the part of someone in the congregation that if we don't adopt this, then people will end up in Hell. The first problem is that it actually never works. Often times congregations will literally lose people when they do this or their decline will persist. My parents' old church in Des Moines was an example. They made the 11:00 service the rock concert service in order to draw in the young families from the school or to keep them. When they started they had 120 kids going to the school. After 5 years of contemporary worship, they had 80. In a sense, just on the basis of marketing, Lutheran shouldn't try to adopt these practices because they don't work for us. The Baptists will always do them better than us and if we send the message that we're no different than the Baptists, then why choose us over them? Secondly, you basically end up alienating people who are already loyal Lutherans- like my parents. Although faith is not a choice, where I go to church is a decision "below me" as Luther would put it. The second point is that all this ultimately assumes an anthropology that we don't possess. Namely, that people are rational and autonomous beings who can "make their decision for Jesus." This was the whole premise of Revivalism, which comes out of Pietism. Since the Spirit doesn't effectively work faith through the mere proclamation of Word and sacrament, then you've got to somehow supplement it with a dog-and-pony show. Ultimately, it's about marketing. How can we influence people to make this decision? That's one of the reasons why all the televangelists end up getting in trouble. If the premise is that you have to manipulate people to get them to do the right thing (believe in Jesus), then you'll be tempted to manipulate them to do other things as well once you have that power over them. Ultimately then, the move to contemporary worship is based on a desire for evangelism that contradicts the Confessional Lutheran concept of grace and free will. God predestines the elect and causes them to have faith through the Word and the sacraments. There is a set number of the elect. If we adopt contemporary worship, there will be the same number of people in heaven as there would be if we didn't. Hence, we should simply proclaim the Word and not worry about manipulating people into "making their decision for Jesus" 2. It promotes a false anthropology: Let's expand on the point I made earlier about the false concept of human powers after the Fall. Contemporary worship also promotes an idea that is common in the Mainline right now as well. The idea that practice makes perfect. In other words, by doing exciting, emotional worship, it will form us into a Christian community and make us better Christians. This is one of the reasons why Pastors in these congregations are thought of as "leaders" and not as "Ministers of the Word," that is, pastoral healers. "Leaders" direct us somewhere and therefore get us to do something. "Minister of the Word" gives us the goods of Christ's benefits which we receive passively. In this contemporary scheme, the Pastor brings in the new worship program. It forms peoples emotions to be "on fire for God." Then he gives a kind of moralizing message so that they'll "effect real change in their community" or something. In other words, specific practices create faith and promote morals. By doing them, we become something. Part of this is a bad doctrine of creation. The idea here is that we create ourselves by our actions. This makes us God and is in fact what the serpent promised in the garden of Eden- "eat this and become God." Also, bear in mind, this is precisely the idea that Luther rejected in Aristotle and the via moderna when he started the Reformation. We are God's objects through proclamation. He speaks us into existence as justified sinners via Word and Sacrament. We do not create ourselves by our actions. 3. It moves in the wrong direction!: Contemporary worship is praise worship. Praise worship moves the wrong direction. It moves from us to God. We read the silly and repetitive verses off the projector. We ascend by our praises to God. We move to God, God does not move to us. The structure of liturgical worship is to opposite. It moves from God to us and back again. In Genesis 1, God speaks forth creation and therefore creation glorifies God in return. God's initiative prompts the return of praise. In liturgical worship, the Pastor speaks the words of grace and therefore frees the congregation to praise God. This back and forth is part of the structure of creation and new creation, as Revelation 4-5 suggest. 4. Non-liturgical worship is a break with the biblical and ecumenical heritage of the Lutheran Church: The Old Testament Church had liturgical worship. All churches had liturgical worship until the 17th century the "Holy Fairs" began to emerge in Northern Ireland and Scotland. These evolved into the American camp meetings and the modern church-growth style worship settings of modern Evangelicals. The Formula of Concord states that we should not abandon any of the traditions of the Church unless they contradict the Scriptures. This is partially because they help maintain continuity with the Church-catholic (which is important if we don't want to be a sect), but also because they teach the faith even when we have faithless teachers. A good example of this is during the Arian controversy. In spite of the fact that Arius and some other Bishops were teaching the faith incorrectly, a great many of the laity were still saved by the fact that the liturgy contained true expositions of the faith. Liturgy saves us from unskilled or heretical pastors and teachers. It promotes and preserves the faith. Free-form worship can't do this because it is subject to the whim of any given church-leader that comes along. Instead of teaching the faith, it seeks to promote a sub-cognitive faith based on meaningless formulas that are repeated over and over again. It seeks to promote emotions that will manipulate people into doing things, not create real faith, which always integrates the total person, intellect and emotions. This is one of the reasons why when they do surveys in churches that have non-liturgical worship and church-growth techniques they without fail can't even correctly explain the Apostles Creed. Boaz, I hope this answers your question. I invite comments of concern and clarification. UPDATE: Boaz, I forgot about your question regarding why if contemporary worship has evangelical and Arminian implications, why liturgical worship wouldn't have Roman Catholic ones. Historically, Lutherans have purified the liturgy from Roman aspects. Namely, Luther got rid of the Eucharistic prayer and Flacius fought the Augsburg Interim which attempted to impose it again. The Eucharistic prayer assumes that humans take the initiative in coming to God in holy Communion and not the other way around. Hence the present ELCA adoption of it again is not acceptable, as historians like Oliver K. Olson have pointed out.

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FW: The Beautiful Burden of the Church’s History

The editor (Rev. Paul J Cain of Sheridan, Wyoming) would like to remind our readers that the Cyberbrethren blog and great materials from CPH come from the similarly-named Rev. Paul Timothy McCain of St. Louis…

 

Feed: Cyberbrethren Lutheran Blog Feed
Posted on: Wednesday, August 04, 2010 4:02 AM
Author: Paul T. McCain
Subject: The Beautiful Burden of the Church's History

 

As I walked out of the St. Louis History Museum a few years ago, I did a double take as I noticed two intriguing words carved in a large stone set in the pavement: beauty and burden. I stopped to look more closely and read this interesting quote from noted St. Louis author Eddy L. Harris: The past is beauty. It is also burden. It is where we go, many of us, to remind ourselves who we are and even sometimes to find out. The Church's history is a beautiful burden. To regard it as such is to embrace simultaneously a realistic and grateful regard for it. To respect the past as a teacher is to recognize the blessings God has given to so many faithful men and women down through the ages. To idolize the past is to do a disservice both to ourselves and to those who have gone before. To ignore the past is to place ourselves, and our future, at great risk. Moving forward into the future while regarding the past to be irrelevant is the greatest danger. To do so is like driving down a dark road on a moonless, cloudy night with no headlights. There is something about our culture that takes perverse pride in neglecting the past. It is often the case that our culture regards anything "modern" or "contemporary" as automatically worthy of more attention and more trustworthy than long-held truths. This is certainly not a biblical attitude. Scripture makes it clear that we are to remain rooted and anchored in the historic revelation of God in Christ Jesus and in the Word of the Lord, which endures forever. "Continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it" (2 Timothy 3:14 ESV). Continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, St. Paul said to St. Timothy. Elsewhere he wrote, "Teach what accords with sound doctrine" (Titus 2:1 ESV). We are to "contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 1:3 ESV). As I reflected on the museum inscription, I was reminded of something G. K. Chesterton once said: Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who merely happen to be walking about. . . . Tradition asks us not to neglect a good man's opinion, even if he is our father. (Orthodoxy [Westport, CT: Greenwod Press, 1974], p. 85) What about us Lutherans who, by God's grace alone, remain committed to the truths of Holy Scripture and to the confession of this truth that is contained in the Book of Concord? How do we regard the past? We do well to embrace the beautiful burden of our past, to let it remind us who we are and help us to find out when we forget or are tempted to run after the latest fad or trend. We do not embrace the past in an unthinking and uncritical manner. Neither do we scurry about as some churches do these days, throwing overboard virtually every discernible doctrine or practice anchored in the historic confession of the Church through the ages. Among many people in our culture is a deep hunger and longing and searching for truth. This hunger for authentic spiritual truth is to them like a distant melody that they can barely make out, but for us who have been brought into the truth of Christ, it is a glorious symphony. The search for peace and genuine certainty in an age of chaos is to many like peering far out at the deep, dark expanse of the horizon and seeing small, flickering pinpoints of light. For those who are in Christ, the light of His truth fills our lives with a warm and eternally satisfying radiance from His eternal Word and life-giving Sacraments. May God stir up in us renewed zeal for spreading the light of Christ and bringing many, many more to hear the wonderful symphony of the Gospel of Christ, truly, the splendor of truth. Perhaps in many ways the burden of the past is a result of its great beauty, a beauty that when contemplated and meditated on reduces us once again to repentance as we recognize our many sins and failings. But then we are moved to thankful praise to the One who has called us out of sin and death's darkness into the life and light of His salvation. For so many people today, the past is a burden that presses down on them, forcing them to ask those questions that come to all people in the moments of quiet and stillness, in the moments when they are unable to stuff their ears and cover their eyes with the transient sounds and images of a culture rushing always headlong toward new pleasures, new sensations, new emptiness. In their quiet moments, so many find themselves all alone with the haunting voice of grief or guilt that pierces their dreams at night and their thoughts during the day. Pilate's question echoes to this day: "What is truth?" It is precisely for the sake of Christ's mission that we joyfully take up the beautiful burden of the past and reflect together on those who have labored and gone before us. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1-3 ESV). As the Church rejoices and celebrates our Lord's resurrection victory, we are embraced by, and in turn we embrace, the beauty and burden of the One who has gone before us. He bids you to take your cross and follow Him. He lays the yoke of discipleship on you because of the burden of your sin that He bore. He has gifted you with the light and easy burden of grace, mercy, and salvation, purchased by His body and blood sacrificed for you on the cross, the very body and blood He gives to you in His Holy Supper. Forgiveness, life, and salvation are yours. May you have great joy in your Lord's Easter triumph. When the burdens, stresses, and strains of your duties and responsibilities weigh heavily, when the shadow of a sin remembered and guilt felt appears as a dark shadow on your heart and in your mind, then hold even more closely to the forgiving love of Him who loves you more than His life itself. He gives you, again and again, the peace that truly passes all human understanding. May the Lord bless your ministry! Cordially in Christ, Rev. Paul T. McCain Concordia Publishing House

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Resources Received: New and Notable!

Concordia Art Library: Lutheran Service Book Icons (103 photos on DVD). St. Louis: Concordia, 2010. Data DVD. Mac and PC Compatible. $49.99. http://www.cph.org/ (L)

Concordia Art Library: Art Resources (Over 100 clip art icons on DVD). St. Louis: Concordia, 2010. Data DVD. Mac and PC compatible. $49.99 http://www.cph.org/ (L)

The Commission on Worship of The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod. Lutheran Service Book: Pew Edition. St. Louis: Concordia, 2006. 1024 Pages. Cloth. $23.00. http://www.cph.org/ (LH)

Walther, C. F. W. Law & Gospel: How to Read and Apply the Bible (A Reader's Edition). St. Louis: Concordia, 2010. 514 Pages. Cloth. $29.99. (Purchase 5 or more for $19.99 each.) http://www.cph.org/ (LHP)

Steinmann, Andrew E. Ezra and Nehemiah (Concordia Commentary). St. Louis: Concordia, 2010. 675 Pages. Cloth. $42.99. http://www.cph.org/ (P)

Piper, John. Gravity and Gladness: The Pursuit of God in Corporate Worship. Wheaton: Crossway, 2010. Video 2-DVD set. $19.99. http://www.desiringgod.org/  http://www.crossway.org/ (LHP)

Piper, John. Gravity and Gladness: The Pursuit of God in Corporate Worship. Wheaton: Crossway, 2010. Paper. 170 Pages. $9.99. http://www.desiringgod.org/  http://www.crossway.org/ (LHP)

Resources Received

McLean, Max and Warren Bird. Foreword by Ravi Zacharias. Unleashing the Word: Rediscovering the Public Reading of Scripture. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009. 176 Pages. Paper with video DVD. $24.99. http://www.zondervan.com/ http://www.maxmclean.com/  http://www.listenersbible.com/  (P)

Resources Received

Smith, Michael W. Wonder. Franklin, TN: Provident/Reunion, 2010. Audio CD. (Pre-release copy) http://www.michaelwsmith.com/  http://www.providentpress.com/  (H)

FW: Firearms Training, by Phillip Magness

A lesson in contrasts and supporting congregational song…

 

Feed: Steadfast Lutherans
Posted on: Saturday, July 31, 2010 9:02 PM
Author: Phillip
Subject: Firearms Training, by Phillip Magness

 

(Editor's Note: Cantor Phillip Magness writes the column "Not your Grandfather's Church" for BJS. This edition is not about a local parish but about the church more broadly speaking as it met for its convention in Houston a few weeks ago.) This article is not about the primary things among us, but about something secondary: the art of music.  So, being a musical article, it is the kind of thing that is usually discussed over at the Liturgy Solutions blog, Fine Tuning. However, Pastor Rossow prevailed upon me to write this here, as he is convinced that non-musicians in the church need more education on matters musical.  Given the scope of musical decisions that are made by the whole church these days, I am persuaded that such is the case.  So here follows an example on how it is not the tools in the contemporary musical toolbox that are a problem in our churches, but how they are used.   At the recent synodical convention, the assembly sang two hymns within the same afternoon that illustrate how technology and contemporary rhythms can be used effectively to lead 1200 people in singing and how those same tools can easily get in the way.  First, before the assembly cast their ballots for synodical president, a praise team from one of the area churches led us in singing "Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus."  They did an excellent job.   The singers' microphones were set at a level which enabled their breath to be picked up, allowing the initiation of their phrases to guide the assembly.  However, the level was not so high that it overwhelmed the assembly.  They blended in with us as we sang, just as a choir would have.  The volume approximated the volume of what a good church choir would have presented in the room.  Also essential to their success is that the quartet sang homophonically–i.e., the same notes & the same rhythms, without embellishment.  Their unified sound projected the melody they were assigned to lead.  In no way did they draw attention to themselves.  The assembly sang beautifully under their leadership, an important component of which was the piano part.  Given that organ was not used, the pianist needed to cover the elements of bass, harmony, and rhythm in order to complete the singers' leadership of the assembly.  By using a harmonic rhythm that had a harmony changing every two or four beats rather than one or two (such as the organ would), the pianist was able to use a combination of arpeggiation and block chording to keep a vital rhythmic pulse going throughout the hymn–just as a good organist does by releasing pitches rhythmically.  In the process, the pianist used a harmonization which brought in richness to the texture and gave it a fresh sound.  Yet because the harmonization submitted itself to the harmonic logic of the progressions and remained subservient to the melody, the harmony did not draw attention to itself, but served the text.  So we had three tools often used in contemporary worship: microphones, piano (or electric keyboard), and the use of a "groove" or rhythmic accompaniment all done in a churchly and skillful way.  And the result was a beautiful rendition of the hymn that was fully embraced by the assembly. Later, these same tools were misused along with some other tools from today's kit thrown in for good measure.  The hymn was "Holy God, We Praise Thy Name."  Instead of live musicians, the convention was supposed to sing along with tracks.  They were so alien to corporate singing that I thought we had borrowed these from Maranatha!  (Turns out they actually came from one of our Concordias and are being promoted by CPH for use in corporate worship.) Sure, there was some singing along with these tracks, as the hymn is very familiar to us. And some of the delegates really loved them.  But they did not support corporate singing.  Their effect was to cause some to sing along, some to move around, more people to talk, and many to leave the room. Whereas "Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus" united us, these tracks, used several times during the convention, failed to bring us together. Why was that?  Well, certainly the sound of "Nashville meets TechnoPop" caused a visceral reaction in many. But even those who would put that aside for the sake of occasion and the text were frustrated. This is because the tools were not used according to the principles of liturgical church music performance. Everything that the first group did right, these tracks did wrong. First, the volume was way too high. People could not hear themselves or their neighbors sing, so they treated the tracks as radio/concert music. Second, the singers on the recording did not sing homophonically, but heterophonically: they freely embellished the melody with all sorts of improvisatory notes. This drew attention to their voices, rather than unifying the people's voices. Third, putting aside the excessive numbers of sounds used (another topic), the sounds that were used did not establish a clear harmonic rhythm.  Instead there was a wash of colors that drew attention away from the melody, rather than served the melody. Finally, percussion was used in a way that "drove" the music. In other words, the drum tracks were the unifying force in the music, not the melody.  (I want to add here as an aside that confessional Lutherans often react viscerally against percussion, much to our discredit. There is nothing unscriptural about playing drums. At Bethany-Naperville we have timpani, congas, hand drums, a djimbé, and lots of miscelleneous percussion. Psalm 150 supports this. The question is, how are they used? Are they used to support "singing skillfully" (Ps. 33) or as a means to create an atmosphere? Is the music Word-driven or beat-driven?) Now I realize that the musicians on this recording are well-intentioned, and that many people have a taste for the style of music they play. I'm fine with someone enjoying these CDs in their car. I'm not trying to diminish anyone involved with the actual project: I simply want people to understand why such tracks are not supportive of congregational song, so that they understand that it is not the tools being used per se, but how they are used.  We need to do better.  Given the size of our church body, we have no excuses.  We should be able to find "techies" that can use amplification appropriately for liturgical worship. We can bring in different tone colors and use new instruments while still serving the melody and leading the assembly in the text. We can use rhythms that support singing and have singers who lead us with skill rather than affect. We have great musicians in our church body. Let them do what they do best: lead corporate singing. And, while we are at it, let's stick with the tools they know how to use. Let's face it: electronic instruments are powerful tools. Sort of like guns. And, as the old NRA slogan used to say:  "Guns don't kill people.  People kill people."

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FW: What's At Stake?

Another reason to listen to Issues, Etc…

 

Feed: Stand Firm
Posted on: Wednesday, July 28, 2010 7:00 AM
Author: Scott Diekmann
Subject: What's At Stake?

 

Quoting from the July 13 segment of Issues, Etc. with Dr. David Scaer discussing the Lord's Supper: Host Todd Wilken: "What's at stake in these differences over the Lord's Supper among Christians?" Guest Dr. David Scaer: "What's at stake is that, what is at stake is Christianity itself, because if the position that the bread cannot be the body of Christ is allowed to stand, then the next step is that the body of Jesus cannot embrace the Son of God completely, and taking that to its logical conclusion you end up with Unitarianism or deism. This is exactly what happened to Puritan theology in New England which began in the 1600s, the 1700s. That morphed into Unitarianism very easily, and the emphasis then goes on, as soon as the emphasis goes on the sovereignty of God, the person of Jesus takes a second place, and basic, you change the whole nature of Christianity so it really isn't Christianity any more."

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Resources Received

Littlejohn, Robert and Charles T. Evans. Wisdom and Eloquence: A Christian Paradigm for Classical Learning. Wheaton: Crossway, 2006. 224 Pages. Paper. $14.99. http://www.crossway.com/ (LHP)

FW: New Poll: The Common Service

A proposal and poll to consider…

 

Feed: Gottesdienst Online
Posted on: Monday, July 26, 2010 2:58 PM
Author: Pr. H. R.
Subject: New Poll: The Common Service

 

Gottesdienst has long been supportive of the use of the Common Service in English speaking Lutheranism. Our reasoning can be read in this modest proposal for the use of the Common Service today. This venerable English-speaking descendant of Luther's Latin Mass was once a rallying point of liturgical unity across American Lutheranism - and is the only serious contender for the role if such unity should ever be viewed as desirable yet again.   So what is the state of the Common Service in your congregation? Please answer the poll at right and put in the comments any notes you think worthwhile for others to read - for example, did you reintroduce the service where you are now serving? Did some pastor come in and take it away from you? Did you leave it for a while but then come back to it?   The congregations I'm serving now began holding Divine Service in English in 1915-16. The Common Service has been the only order of Communion ever used here in these 95 years. Any others with that kind of history? Anybody out there serving or attending a congregation where it's never been used? If so, when was that parish founded?   +HRC

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