PEOPLE ARE TALKING!!!                 

I have received many comments (all positive!) in response to my Pastor’s columns the past two months.  Since we publish some of my columns on our website, I even had very nice e-mail from a man of Windish heritage who lives out of town now but follows the events of our congregation on line.  This gentleman is about my age, and like me, struggles with the obvious changes in our culture that have made the Church in which we grew up and love so much seemingly irrelevant in today’s world.  So, you see, people do pay attention and they are talking!  In addition to these responses, I have also addressed the subject of the Church’s continuing loss of influence in such arenas as our Thursday evening contemporary worship services.

Interestingly enough, in response to our discussion there, one of our regular Thursday night worshipers brought me a photo copy of an article from a publication called “Circuit Rider”.  It was apparently from the March/April 2010 issue.  The article was entitled “Why I Don’t’ Go to Church.”  Most of the article rehashed all of the old intellectual arguments that educated people often use to justify their absence from any community of faith.  It is obvious – and always has been – that people “outside the faith” simply do not understand the Spirit motivated life that Christians have discovered in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  As Martin Luther wrote in his Small Catechism in his explanation to the Third Article of the Apostles’ Creed:  “I believe that by my own reason or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him.  But the Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in the true faith . . . “  Clearly, Erin Stanley, a pharmaceutical researcher from Kansas City, MO and author of the article cannot comprehend what motivates people who do go to Church.  The Spirit clearly has not touched her life as it has touched yours and mine!

However, that is not to say that Ms. Stanley doesn’t make some very valid points in her assessment of Christianity in present day America.  She writes, “Though they claim the Bible is so important, many Christians have not read the entire Bible, and many would much rather get caught up in the dogma of ‘having a personal relationship with Jesus’ than reading about what he actually did.  Would it be too scary to ask the big questions about Jesus and the theology based on him?  I understand that an unwavering faith is what carries Christians, but this should not be an excuse to deemphasize doctrinal study and awareness.  In this respect, churches often foster lemmings, and create a paradox out of the idea of having an “intellectual faith.’  This presents Christianity as more of a blind community than a active faith, and I do not find that appealing.”

It is VERY difficult to argue with Ms. Stanley at this point.  I would venture to say that a vast majority of Christians (Lutherans especially!) in the United States today who demand that the Ten Commandments be displayed in our nation’s courtrooms and schoolrooms could not name all ten of those Commandments – or, if they could, could explain what they mean.  How many of us could, in fact, give Martin Luther’s explanation to each and every Commandment as we learned them in catechetical classes so long ago?  How many of us have studied the Bible or Church doctrine with any seriousness at all since leaving catechetical class????   Sadly, most Lutherans today, at least, have what I like to call a “Sunday School” theology.  They are mature adults, but they hold onto a somewhat immature view of our faith because they have not toiled at all at nurturing it since leaving the Sunday School or catechetical classes of their youth!

Having said that, I am pleased to say that the new bible study group that began in April (and will meet at 9 AM on the third Sunday of the month in the Hari/Skulteti Conference Room), was EXTREMELY well attended at its first meeting.  About 20 people crammed into the Conference Room and we will gladly move the group into the chapel if it continues to grow and that room cannot comfortably accommodate everyone!  I invite ALL OF YOU to join us for this new educational experience.  Let’s not give people like Ms. Stanley any more ammunition.  Please take seriously her correct observation about American Christians seriously and do something to reverse the situation she rightfully points out in her “Circuit Rider” article. 

I look forward to seeing our Sunday morning bible study experience grow even larger than it is now.  How fantastic it was to see 20 interested people enthusiastically engaged in studying the bible at St. John’s!