Racism and Reputation

Note: This article was published by my friends at the Abbeville Institute.  You can read it either there, or you can read it here at FH.

Two terms that are tossed about with great liberality today are “racist” and “white supremacist.”  Like other words with specific definitions, such as “fascist” and “Nazi,” these labels are losing their specific social, economic, political, and legal meaning, and have essentially become nondescript slurs thrown at anyone a Progressive disagrees with.

All of these words are routinely used against those who might describe themselves as “conservative,” “traditionalist,” “Christian,” “capitalist,” “patriotic,” or “libertarian.”  This is a clever Orwellian strategy to recast mainstream people as outcasts of society – a carefully crafted linguistic trick to marginalize, dehumanize, and eliminate an opponent by rhetoric and dishonest implication. 

And given the politically correct power of academia, government, and Big Tech, nobody wants to be on the business end of this kind of name-calling.  It has a chilling effect on freedom – and even the ability to hold a job – and thus pushes a totalitarian narrative that is a betrayal of not only our American ethos, but of natural law and Christian anthropology and theology itself.  It is a way to demonize nearly half of the country, and it is almost always based on a lie.

Just to take the first term: “racist.”  What is the concept of “racism”?  Racism is a form of bigotry against a person’s “race.”  The term “race” is not very precise, as the older classifications of humanity into three or four taxonomic groupings is no longer standard.  And so “racism” can mean bigotry against a person based upon his skin tone or other characteristics derived from his ethnicity.  Obviously, a typical seventh generation Norwegian and a typical seventh generation Ethiopian look very different.  Bigotry or hatred against people based on these differences is a clear and reasonable definition of “racism.” 

It is not racism for a Norwegian to cheer on his own Olympic team, or for an Ethiopian to feel at home among people who speak his language and share his culture and history.  Nor is it racism if a Norwegian or an Ethiopian is a Christian or votes for a conservative political candidate.  Nor is it racism if an Ethiopian and a Norwegian disagree with each other in terms of economics or politics.

And as the world has shrunk, and as race-based slavery, segregation, and apartheid (political and social arrangements based on an actual legal arrangement of “white supremacy”) have long since become condemned historical relics, actual racism is likewise drifting into cultural and political insignificance.  Interracial marriages and people of mixed ethnic backgrounds have today become common – even though such marriages were illegal only a few decades ago.  Moreover, there has never been a better time to be black in the West than today.  Thirteen years ago, America elected a black president – even as the black population of the United States is a mere 13% of the population. 

But the term “racism” remains politically and socially powerful and useful.  It is a word of subjective and fluid meaning, and can thus essentially be used by anyone to accuse anyone else of repugnant views – and those views being vilified often have nothing to do with either race or bigotry!

I recently learned that some users of Twitter (I am not on the platform), apparently members of Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod churches – have been throwing the term around to denounce the more conservative members of the synod, accusing our church body of being “institutionally racist.”  And I have also learned that I have been called “racist” by name. 

Again, the term is becoming meaningless.  It has almost been so watered down as to be an adult version of the childhood playground taunt: “poopyhead.”  And yet, the word remains a cudgel that can ruin someone’s life – especially in our “cancel culture” world. 

Applying the actual meaning of the word “racist,” it is as an odd charge to make about me – especially by people whom I have never met.  I was not raised to hate people based on skin tone or ethnicity.  I spent my childhood and some of my teen years talking to people all over the planet via ham radio.  To this day, I have dear friends all around the world, from every continent, of every skin tone, ethnicity, and from diverse religious traditions.  I’m a fan of the international language Esperanto because I enjoy communication and friendships that transcend all such barriers, and believe such contact is godly and edifying to all. 

In my secular, academic, and pastoral careers, I have had colleagues and friends of every ethnicity – many of whom I have been friends with for decades. 

I believe that all people are related to one another, as revealed in the Book of Genesis, and skin tone and differences in appearance of people groups is nothing more than a response to how much sun one receives combined with generational genetic traits. 

If I’m a racist, I’m not a very good one.

As a pastor, I do deal with my parishioners according to their ancestry.  Namely: we are all sinners who inherited our mortal nature from our forebears going back to the Fall.  There is no Jew or Greek, male or female, free or slave, white or black where it comes to sin and grace (Gal 3:28).  We don’t segregate people in our sanctuary by ethnicity, and we all drink the Lord’s blood from the same chalice no matter what color we are.

One of my beloved parishioners is a delightful lady from the Caribbean.  She has been my parishioner now for 16 years.  She knew my son from the time he was born.  And when his body was brought into the church 15 years later, she was the first person there.  She mourned with my wife and me.  Our relationship can only be described as one of deep, abiding Christian love.  I am always happy to see her in the pews, and it is my honor to place the Holy Sacrament upon her tongue with the confession: “The body of Christ,” and to hear her “Amen” spoken with her beautiful island dialect.

Maybe I need to brush up on my racist skills, because I seem to be a failure in that department.

And, of course, in the modern Orwellian context, to deny being a racist is evidence of being a racist.  To be white is to be racist.  To be a Christian, conservative, libertarian, and/or traditionalist is to be a racist.  Having no black friends is evidence of racism.  Having black friends is evidence of racism.  Being race-conscious is evidence of racism.  Being color-blind is evidence of racism. 

Precious few people are willing, like the little boy in the Hans Christian Andersen tale, to point at the naked emperor and state the obvious.

So why is this Twitter-mob calling me racist?  It has nothing to do with race or bigotry.  They don’t even claim as much.  Their beef against me is historiographical.

I’ve been a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans for about thirty years.  It is a genealogical society.  It is fraternal, benevolent, and non-political.  Our members include men of all ethnicities – including black members.  What binds us together is descent from at least one member of the Confederate States armed forces in the War Between the States.  And as such, we are proud of the service of our great-grandfathers, and we defend their reputation against slander.  As such, I oppose the iconoclastic removal – whether by governments or by mobs – of historical statues, whether of Confederate or Union soldiers, whether of Davis or Lincoln, whether of Lee and Jackson, or Washington, Jefferson, Mark Twain, and Christopher Columbus.

The study of history includes many “schools” or historical interpretations – which change over time, as different fashions of interpretation come and go.  Historians – at least until recently – debated with one another about cause and effect, about the reliability of historical sources, about the complex nature of human motivation, etc.  This study of the study of history itself is known as “historiography.”  And today, just as in ancient times, historians are subject to influence based on money and power and who is in the ruling class, who won the war, who has the favor and the ear of the ruler, and who has the power to make or break one’s career.  Ancient emperors assured that their court historians made them look good – whether by omitting embarrassing events, by playing up victories, by exaggerating, or even by lying.  And political enemies were even written out of historical memory.

Totalitarian regimes today continue this tradition. 

In America and the West, there is more freedom to write, to challenge, and to dissent – although pressures from moneyed institutions who fund academic research, and now, stifling political correctness, conspire to narrow the window of acceptable historical interpretation.  A historian or professor may well have to lie and sweep historical evidence under the rug in order to keep his job.

And so, some people call me a “racist” because of my historiographical interpretation of the war of 1861-1865, and because of my opposition to removing historical monuments of all eras of American history.

In 2017, I stood with peaceful defenders of the historical monuments in New Orleans.  And when violence broke out, as Antifa activists attacked while the police stood down, I came and conducted a Vespers service and prayed for peace. I gathered men and women of every age and racial/ethnic demographic into a circle and led prayers.  I was, of course, called a “racist” for doing so.  I saw no clergy and nobody leading prayers on the other side of the divide.  Rather, I heard threats and taunts and racial epithets against black allies of the monuments. Instead of crosses, I saw hammers and sickles. In spite of the heavy Roman Catholic presence in New Orleans, not one clergyman was there except me.  The Archbishop could have shown up to call for peace, but he was nowhere to be found – even when a monument to the poet-priest Father Abram Ryan was painted with red paint and smeared with human feces.  The Archbishop said nothing other than advocating the monuments’ removal, and all from the safety of his office.  He did nothing to promote peace, probably because his desire to see the monuments removed was served by the violence that his absence promoted.  And this is why the mayor ordered the police to do nothing as the mob attacked. 

I had ancestors on both sides of the War Between the States, and have studied a lot over the years – primary sources and dissenting views that are seldom read in school.  It is my belief that secession was an entirely constitutional remedy for growing federal power, and that taking up arms against an armed foreign invader was an honorable act.  The evidence is overwhelming that the ordinary solder on both sides fought for his country and not for “social justice” issues.  Obviously, in the 19th century, Americans of both regions were “racist” by today’s standards, and slavery was legal and practiced in both the north and the south.  Leaders of both the USA and the CSA included slaveholders, and advocates of slavery, as well as non-slaveholders and opponents of slavery.  Free blacks and slaves alike wore the gray uniform, and some were even under arms.  The much-maligned Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest had dozens of slaves who voluntarily fought under his command to the end of the war.

Our racial history in Louisiana is even more complex, with wealthy black slaveholders and even black officers in the service of the state militia.  Our slaveholding class generally opposed secession and wanted to maintain the status quo.  They were overwhelmingly outvoted in the secession convention.  During the war, invading Union officers were shocked to find that some of our large sugar plantations with hundreds of slaves were owned by free black women.  History often defies facile deductions and summaries that fit on a bumper sticker.

Obviously, people approach history in different ways – whether it is from the perspective of the Federalists vs. the Antifederalists, various arguments about the economic cause of the Great Depression, and trying to figure out the long term effects of World War I on politics, economics, and western culture.  For actual academic work to occur, there must be academic freedom and free debate.  And for a free society to prosper, there must be freedom of speech.

A few years ago, I had a cyber-stalker accuse me of racism.  He harassed me and some of our lay leadership by means of anonymous emails – which we quickly identified by means of the IP address.  He placed the “racist” label on me, not for any negative words or actions against anyone for any reason, but because I am a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.  After months of harassment – including being sent several emails of footage of Hitler’s Kristallnacht (when houses of worship were blown up) in the hours leading up to our annual Christmas Eve Midnight Mass – he decided to “dox” me.  He accused me of “racism” to my district president (bishop), our synod president (archbishop), and to my colleagues of an ecclesiastical journal that I write for, and others.  Nobody took the bait.

He then wrote to the general headquarters of the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod – using a form on the website.  He claimed to be me, using my name and email address as the signature line, and then proceeded to tell lies, including that I was a member of the Ku Klux Klan.  In order to try to get me accused of racism, he had to actually engage in deliberate and open falsehood.  Why this didn’t make him check his premises is beyond me.  If you have to lie to cast someone as a racist, maybe that person isn’t a racist. 

At any rate, the church website sent me an automated reply that included “my” email.  The IT Department shared the IP address of the sending computer, and it was indeed my cyber-stalker.  Online impersonation is a crime in the State of Louisiana, and so I went to the police.  My accuser was arrested and spent the night in jail until he could raise bail.  He was charged with two crimes.  We went to court.  He was ordered to undergo three years of counseling, pay fines including my legal fees, and has been ordered to comply with a court order under penalty of being re-charged with the original charges.

And all of this was not because of even the accusation of racial bigotry, but because of my opinions about American history.  That is how cancel culture works.

And so, if anyone could send me screenshots and/or identify my recent accusers on Twitter, I would be grateful.  I will defend my reputation in accordance with the Eighth Commandment.  To attack the pastor’s reputation is to attack the congregation’s reputation – including all of the individual members.  This accusation is also an attack on my Caribbean parishioner.  It is the pastor’s job to defend the flock and to go after the wolves with a stick.  If my accuser is a rostered church worker, such as a pastor, I will seek a meeting with that person’s district president.  If he is a layman, I will contact his or her pastor and will consider legal action.  I have no qualms about wielding the shepherd’s crook.  It’s part of my calling.

Although the word “racism” has essentially lost its meaning, the ability to stir up hatred and even violence against our congregation by its use is a serious matter.  I will come after such a person.

Christians must not tolerate “cancel culture” and its underlying philosophy of Critical Theory (including Critical Race Theory) and Cultural Marxism to take root in the church.  This is a manifestation of the weeds sown by Satan to divide our people and to cripple our ability to cast the seeds of the Gospel (Matt 13:24-43).  It is based on lies, and the father of lies is the same Satan who sews the weeds in our Lord’s parable.  We must insist that words have meaning, or else our ability to even read the Word of God and understand it is in peril.  We must defend those who are falsely accused, even if it draws the accusing finger to point at us too.  In every system in which words lose their meaning and people are dehumanized for holding the “wrong” historiography or political or economic beliefs, we see the hand of the devil and the attempt to silence the Word of God.  Historically, we also see bulldozed churches and innocent people being sent to labor camps or shot.

The time to resist this is now.

Pastors especially must be diligent and go on the attack against any such attempts to introduce chaos and suspicion and the destruction of reputations that are clearly aimed at harming the proclamation of the Gospel and destroying the lives of our brothers and sisters.  As followers of the Word (John 1:1), we have an obligation to hold the users of words to the objective meaning of those words, and to disallow a subjective and deceptive use of language for the purpose of harassment and false accusation. 

As we recite in our catechism concerning the commandment “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor,” we Lutherans know by heart: “We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.”

This is most certainly true.

Announcement!

Salem Lutheran Church (418 4th Street, Gretna, LA  70053) is welcoming some special guests on the weekend of January 28 and 29, 2017.

Bishop Vsevolod Lytkin and his wife Daria will be visiting from Novosibirsk, Siberia - where Bishop Lytkin serves as the bishop of our partner church body, the Siberian Evangelical Lutheran Church (SELC), established after the fall of Communism as a missionary outreach of the Estonian Lutheran Church.  The Bishop will give a presentation at Salem's Schmid Hall on Saturday, January 28 at 6:00 pm.

Before Communism, 10% of the population of the Russian Empire was Lutheran.  The first Lutheran congregation in Russia was founded in Moscow in 1576.  Lutheranism enjoyed a respected status in Russia along with the Russian Orthodox Church.  However, as  result of Communism (especially during Stalin's purges in the 1930s), Lutherans were persecuted and scattered, their pastors executed and churches bulldozed.  Many faithful people were sent to Siberia - some into internal exile, and others into Gulag camps.  Some managed to practice their faith secretly for decades, only being able to worship openly with the establishment of the SELC, the re-establishment of destroyed parishes, and the establishment of new ones.

The Lytkins are a delightful couple with a warm sense of humor who grew up in the USSR and converted to Christianity.  Their stories, and those of their fellow Lutherans in Russia, are compelling and inspiring.

They will be accompanied by the Rev. Daniel Johnson and his wife Amy, who live in Iowa.  Pastor Johnson serves the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod as a missionary liaison to Eurasia.  Bishop Lytkin will also preach at Salem's Sunday (Jan 29) Divine Service at 10:00.

If you want more information about the SELC and its work, the Siberian Lutheran Mission Society is a great resource - especially their newsletter archive dating back to 2003 - fascinating reading!  There is a 22-minute YouTube documentary about the SELC that includes the bishop and features the work of several of the Siberian clergy and their challenges of ministry in this unique setting.

If you'd like more information, please contact the Rev. Larry Beane at: 504-256-3440.  If you plan on attending, we'd appreciate a heads up for planning purposes.  All are welcome!

In Memoriam: John C. Kiletico

John Kiletico was a member of Salem Lutheran Church virtually all of his life of 77 years.  He passed away on Friday, December 9, 2016.

Here is the announcement.

John began his life in Christ on his baptismal birthday on December 10, 1939 at less than a month old.  He was baptized by the Rev. Eugene E. Schmid (served 1919-1967), by whose own hand it was recorded in our congregation's historic Tauf-Register, the very last baptism at Salem of the decade of the 1930s.

John would live to see the restoration of the century-old font in which he was baptized.

Like our historic baptismal font, John was a fixture at Salem.  Over the course of his nearly eight decades of life, he held virtually every position one can hold in a congregation.  He took the Lord's Supper from the hands of nine pastors of Salem in his sojourn on this side of the grave.  He was also proud of his service with the Army during the Vietnam War, and you could always spot John in his Vietnam Veteran's hat, or driving his car with the Big Red One license plates.  He was ever quick to strike up conversation with visitors to church, especially fellow servicemen or veterans.

The greatest thing, however, I believe, that John did for his church and country was to faithfully raise up four children in the Christian faith, passing along the Gospel of Jesus Christ to succeeding generations.  The effects of this faithfulness is immeasurable.  His grandchildren today bear the fruits of John's tireless service as a Christian husband and father, one who always made sure the family under his care confessed the faith, participated in Word and Sacrament, and lived out the Christian life.  There is nothing comparable in the life of a faithful Christian.

In accordance with his wishes, we will hold funeral services at Salem Lutheran Church.  And it is particularly poignant that we will gather this Wednesday, the week of Gaudete.  Today is Gaudete Sunday, named for the Introit in today's liturgy, which begins in Latin: "Gaudete in Domino Semper: iterum dico, gaudete."  That is: "Rejoice in the Lord always.  Again will I say, rejoice!" from Philippians 4:4-5.  We also lit the single rose-colored candle in the Advent wreath today as a reminder that even in the gloom of winter, in the penitential season of Advent, in the at-times tedious and frustrating period of waiting for the Lord's return, in the midst of the world's anguish and bodily suffering - and even in the very face of death itself - we Christians have cause to rejoice.  We rejoice in Christ, in the Gospel, in the promise of the resurrection, in the new life that will have no end.  We rejoice in the hope and promise of a heavenly reunion.  And rather than curse the darkness, we defiantly light a rose-colored candle as a testimony against sin, death, and the devil - over which our Lord has triumphed!

Many years ago, John told me that it was his wish to have this passage of Scripture read at his funeral.  He will receive a double blessing from the Lord's hand, as it will be used both as the Introit of the service, as well as the epistle reading.

The Gaudete Introit as we sang it at Salem today is particularly poignant in light of John's departure from this life and entrance into eternity:

Rejoice in the Lord always.
Again, will I say rejoice!
Let your gentleness be known to all men.
The Lord is at hand. (Phil 4:4-5).

Lord, You have been favorable to Your land;
You have brought back the captivity of Jacob.
You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people;
You have covered all their sin.
Will You not revive us again,
that Your people may rejoice in You?
I will hear what God the Lord will speak,
for He will speak peace to His people. (Ps 85:1-2; 6, 8) 

Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever.  Amen. (Gloria Patri) 

Rejoice in the Lord always.
Again, will I say rejoice!
Let your gentleness be known to all men.
The Lord is at hand. (Phil 4:4-5).

For today's gradual we used the fourth of the Great O Antiphons, which includes this petition to our Lord:

Come and rescue the prisoners who are in darkness and the shadow of death.

As part of our Gospel procession, we sang the fifth verse of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel":

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery. 

Rejoice!  Rejoice!
Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

Today's readings provided the opportunity to proclaim comfort to the Lord's people, especially those of us who have lost loved ones at this time of year.  We can indeed rejoice in the Word and promise of the risen Lord!

The final hymn today was a reminder of the hopeful words of our Old Testament reading, the glorious passage from Isaiah 40, spoken to the children of Israel in the darkest days of their mourning and exile:

"Comfort, comfort ye My people,
Speak ye peace," thus saith our God;
"Comfort those who sit in darkness,
Mourning 'neath their sorrows' load.
Speak ye to Jerusalem
Of the peace that waits for them;
Tell her that her sins I cover
And her warfare now is over."

It was the Lord's merciful and providential will to call John home on this week, honoring his wish to proclaim St. Paul's bold and audacious call to rejoice, even as St. Paul himself was imprisoned at the time when he wrote this joyful epistle to the Philippians.  It is an act of defiance to hold a funeral in the midst of lighted Christmas trees and an Advent Wreath joyfully flickering with flame upon a rose-colored candle of joy.

For in the midst of sorrow, sadness, and suffering, dear Christians, we have a promise, a joyful expectant hope of the return of Christ, the putting off of the fallen flesh, and the resurrection of our flesh in eternal perfection, and joy.  Even the gloom of separation cannot snuff out our rose-colored flame that calls to mind the light of "Jesus Christ, the light of the world, the light no darkness can overcome!"

Our congregation's name, Salem, means "peace," calling to mind the prophet's message that for those redeemed by Christ, our "warfare is ended" (Isa 40:2) in Christ's victory at the cross and the empty tomb.  And in this victory, John is at peace, even as we continue our callings in the church militant until the Lord calls us home as well.

With love and affection, we pray for John's family, his wife Shelly, and his children Danielle, Lynette, Micah, and Leslie, their spouses and their children, as well as his brother Derril and his wife, in the hope of the resurrection and in the merciful providence of our Lord to call us all to rejoice even in the midst of our mourning.

I'm grateful for John's selection of Philippians 4 for his funeral, as well as amazed at the Lord's providential timing in driving home this theme that in Christ, even in the face of death, we have cause to rejoice.  Christ has won the victory.  Our warfare is ended.  The Word of God brings comfort, comfort to us, his people, including John's family and his church family who will miss him in our lives on this side of the grave.

And in spite of our mourning, we are bold to rejoice!

Rejoice in the Lord always.  Again will I say, rejoice!  Amen.

Louis Oscar Fried Ceremony

This past Saturday (April 26) I had the privilege and honor to give the invocation and benediction at an event sponsored by the Gretna Historical Society.  It was a wreath ceremony at the monument of Louis Oscar Fried (pronounced "freed"), who died 100 years ago this month.

Fried was a Navy seaman and was among the first casualties of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Veracruz - part of the little-studied or remembered period of the "banana wars."  Fried was the youngest of the seven children of Matthew and Mary (Meisner) Fried of Gretna, and was only nineteen years old when he died on the first day of the battle.  After a long trip home via New York City, his body lay in state at the Jefferson Parish Courthouse (currently Gretna City Hall) on Copernicus Avenue (since renamed Huey P. Long) and was watched over by a Naval Color Guard.

On May 15, 1914, ten thousand people turned out for his burial at Hook and Ladder Cemetery on Lafayette Street in Gretna.  His tomb and monument had been donated by thousands of people giving small offerings to help the family with expenses.  The beautiful marble obelisk is the tallest structure in the cemetery to this day.  This was, and still is, the largest funeral in the history of Gretna.  The day was declared a city holiday for workers and school children, and ferries busily shuttled thousands of mourners across the river from New Orleans.

Pastor Wismar of Salem - Gretna in a 1910 picture, front row, first from the right

The funeral was conducted at Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church on 4th Street (where the Fried family were all active members) by my predecessor, the Rev. A Wismar (seen here in 1910, front row, all the way to the right).  Of course, only a fraction of the crowd could be accommodated in the church building.  The procession on foot made its way to the monument at Hook and Ladder, where many of us in turn gathered 100 years later to honor Louis Oscar Fried and to commemorate this unique and extraordinary event in Gretna.  Never before or since has there been such an outpouring of support, compassion, and community solidarity to honor a son of Gretna and to comfort his grieving family.

I would like to thank historian and writer Sevilla Finley for organizing this event and allowing me the privilege to offer the prayers (not to mention for sending me many of these pictures), as well as Paul Coles, president of the Gretna Historical Society for his enthusiastic leadership and tireless devotion to our city and its noble heritage.  Several family members were present to participate in the event, along with Gretna's mayor Belinda Constant and a representative of the president of Jefferson Parish.  Just as was the case a century ago, a Naval color guard was present at the monument (which had also been magnificently cleaned and restored in preparation for the centennial).

Rev. Larry Beane

My invocation follows:

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Lord God, heavenly Father, we give you thanks for the privilege to gather here in Your name, in this sacred place, to remember, to ponder, to meditate, and to pay tribute to Your servant Louis Oscar Fried. 

We do so, O Lord, with both sadness and joy, calling to mind the extraordinary events of a hundred years ago that culminated on this very spot. 

We call to mind the shock and the grief suffered by the Fried family, his mother and father, his immediate family and those whose lives were changed with that somber knock at the door and the dreaded words, "We regret to inform you..."  We are reminded of the grief of his church family, his community, his city, state, and nation, mourning for a 19-year old cut down in his promising youth wearing the uniform of his country. 

And yet there is also joy, O Lord, in knowing how this community rallied to comfort the Fried family, how our forbears came together in respect, love, and in patriotic and religious duty, to help this family bear the cross. 

We pray for all those in our current age who are likewise visited by the shock and grief of death: the wages of sin and the consequence of the Fall in Eden.  We pray that we may meet our obligations to those today who have sworn to defend our country and its people.  We pray that our elected officials would only send our young men, and now our young women as well, into harm's way only as a last resort, only after sober reflection, and only in accordance with the Constitution and the Christian principles of just war.  We pray for peace, O Lord, and we pray that current and future generations would take to heart the example of the people of Gretna in 1914 in showing compassion and tribute to a fallen brother. 

Finally, O Lord, we call to mind an earlier April, an earlier death of a young Man, who was likewise laid into a tomb provided for Him by donation, a tomb He left behind empty, giving the promise of the resurrection of the dead.  We await this resurrection , O Lord, with joy, knowing that by the death and resurrection of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Louis Oscar Fried and all Your saints will rise again bodily, and we will meet him in the flesh, even as our Savior Jesus Christ has conquered death and atoned for the sins of the world. 

And it is in His name that we pray.  Amen.

Navy color guard

Richard Thalheim, Paul Coles, Michael Smith (left to right)

Pastor Beane

The restored monument

Refreshments at the Gretna Historical Society

Gerhardt, the Cross, and the Art of the Hymn

The past two weeks, we have sung glorious hymns written by the Blessed Rev. Paul Gerhardt (1607-1676), whose works are filled with unmuted Christian joy in spite of his horrific experiences and life in this fallen world.

Gerhardt understood the Theology of the Cross, not through theoretical considerations, but in profound and relentless suffering of the effects of the fallen world: war, plague, and persecution.  And yet, his corpus of hymns are always upbeat and confident, bursting at the seams with hope and faith, with trust and delight in Christ.

In his 2004 recapitulation of the Rev. C.F.W. Walther's The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel called Handling the Word of Truth (p.49), the Rev. Prof. John T. Pless quotes the Rev. Dr. Oswald Beyer:

"In his last will and testament Paul Gerhardt reminds his only son, still living after his other children had died: 'Do good to people, even if they cannot pay you back because...'  The reader expects that the sentence will continue with: 'God will repay you.' However, Paul Gerhardt frustrates that expectation by continuing: '...because for what human beings cannot repay, the Creator of heaven and earth has already repaid long ago when he created you, when he gave you his only Son, and when he accepted and received you in holy baptism as his child and heir.'" (Oswald Beyer, "Justification as Basis and Boundary for Theology").

Also, here are some reflections from 2007 by the Rev. Dr. Rick Stuckwisch.

Finally, here is a well-researched biography of Paul Gerhardt presented in 2008 by the Rev. Michael Berg:

What a treasure we have in our tradition of hymnody, centered on the cross and grounded in the real world in which we live and struggle and ultimately overcome by virtue of Christ, His cross, His grace, and the Gospel that is proclaimed in sermon and in song!

Leo sub crucem (The Lion Under the Cross)

Leo selected a cross to wear as a mark of one redeemed by Christ.  He chose for himself the San Damiano cross of St. Francis of Assisi, an appropriate crucifix as Leo is a seasoned animal rescuer - and we all know about St. Francis and his affinity for animals as constituent parts of God's creation.  In fact, we often refer to our home as the St. Francis Rescue Mission (no RSO status as yet...).

It is also a fitting reminder of the large version of the cross hanging in our kitchen that is a treasured gift from Leo's beloved "adopted uncle" Br. Latif Gaba, SSP (who also gave Leo the icon of St. Francis that hangs in his room).

Leo is a great help during and after the Wednesday night Divine Services: collecting the offerings, extinguishing the oil lamps, opening the door, sharing the altar guild duties with Miz Grace, helping me distribute the offerings and communion cards, and assisting with with shutting off the lights and locking up.  He has a true reverence for the holy things, and takes great care in his work.  I explained to him this morning (during our reading from 2 Chronicles) that his work closely mirrors the work of the Levites in the temple.  He goes about his work with great solemnity.

He also sings the hymns and the liturgy with gusto.  And the lad knows his theology and scriptures!  He leads all the family table prayers in either English or Latin (sometimes chanted Gregorian style).  We pray daily morning prayer together, and we are about to start saying the Apostles Creed in Latin.  He participates in our One Year Bible readings as part of morning prayer, and follows along in the ESV.  He will begin Confirmation class with me this fall.

Thank you to Leo for your (largely behind the scenes) help every Wednesday!  Miz Grace and I are blessed indeed!

New Salem Pics Uploaded!

Here is the link to the album of today's Easter pictures.

Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!

On Flags in the Sanctuary

The question recently came up in my congregation about the lack of a U.S. flag in the sanctuary of the church.  I did not remove it; my predecessor actually did it years ago, before I was called to my current congregation.

And I support his decision to do so.

Of course, this was not a popular decision at the time.  But pastors are not called to be popular.  And for people who simply want what they want, and who stop up their ears to any explanation, they will simply choose to be angry.  They may even pass along veiled (or not so veiled) accusations of evil motives.  And yet even though I did not always agree with my predecessor in liturgical matters, I know he had no evil intention in making this decision - a decision that had the unanimous concurrence of the Board of Elders.

Everything in the church is about Jesus.  Everything in the sanctuary points us to Jesus.  Art is a powerful communicator of Christ and the Gospel - from the candles (representing the Light of Christ, the Light of the World), to the linen-shrouded altar (representing the empty tomb), to the baptismal font (often eight-sided pointing us to the eight people saved through water in the ark), to the stained glass windows depicting events in the life of our Lord and of the church, to statues and paintings, even to the plants and flowers (reminding us of Eden and of "the Lord and giver of life," everything in the church points us to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and ultimately to the restored communion with the Triune God won for us by the atoning sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The pastor's vestments, the symbols sewn on them and on the paraments, the colors used in the course of the year, the advent candles, the art depicted on banners, all point us to Jesus.  Crosses and chi-rhos, alphas and omegas, images of nails and crowns of thorns, even the dignified precious metals used in the communion vessels communicate the holiness of the sacramental reality of the Lord's presence.

Some might argue that Christmas trees and poinsettias and lilies that adorn our chancels are exceptions to this rule, but not so.  The Christmas tree is a tree - symbolic of both the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, as well as the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil from which comes all death and misery.  The Christmas tree symbolizes both the manger (the rough-hewn cradle of the Christ child) and the cross (the tree upon which the cursed Man is hanged).  Poinsettias and lilies are both plants that are at the height of their beauty during the holy seasons of Christmas and Easter.  There is nothing more natural and Christ-centered than to bring the beauty of life at the fullness of its vitality into the place where eternal life is given by grace!

The lily, in particular, is sometimes manifested (especially in my region) as a fleur-de-lis.  It is a symbol of Louisiana's French heritage because it is a religious symbol of a people steeped in the Christian faith.  The lily is often symbolic of Easter and the resurrection, also the Blessed Virgin Mary, as well as the Holy Trinity.  It is a symbol of the football team called the Saints because it was first a symbol of Christian sainthood, that is, holiness.

Similarly, the pelican appears on the state flag of Louisiana, not only because these creatures are native to our state, but also because the pelican is a venerable symbol of Christ, based on the medieval fable of the mother pelican giving her life to feed her brood with her own blood (see also LSB 640, stanza 3).  The symbol of our region is so because the people of our region have an ancient Christian heritage.

The Fleur-de-lis and pelicans have been used in Christian symbolism and art for centuries.  There is a rich and deep christology and Trinitarian confession made with these symbols.

So where do national flags come into all of this?

In the vast majority of churches around the world, you will not find a national flag.  Visitors to the U.S. are sometimes shocked to visit churches and find flags adorning the sanctuary.  It sends a mixed signal about what Lutherans refer to as "the two kingdoms" - that is, the Church (the right hand) and the State (the left hand).  In some European state churches, there is a mixing of the two to the point where in England, the head of the Church is the Queen, and where until recently, in Sweden, pastors were paid out of compulsory taxes.

Some brutal regimes forced flags into the churches, such as Nazi Germany, which compelled churches to display the desecrated cross of National Socialism - which was essentially a competing religion of state-worship.  Sadly, many clergy fell for this false religion and its symbols.

Modern Roman Catholic churches do display the coat of arms of the pope - which so happens to be the national flag of the Vatican.  This probably explains why Roman Catholic churches in the United States do often display U.S. flags - as it is a breach of U.S. etiquette (according to the flag code) to display a foreign ensign without a U.S. flag.  Here in New Orleans, the St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter - a historic landmark and tourist attraction - actually displays dozens of historic flags that flew over New Orleans - including the official governmental flag of the Confederate States of America.  And even though I enjoy history and have an affection for the Stars and Bars and other symbols of my heritage, I believe none of these flags have a place in a Christian sanctuary.  The Cathedral has an impressive history, but its most important historical connection is to the body and blood of Christ that are physically present on the holy altar - all other history pales in comparison to Him whose incarnation is why we number our years Anno Domini.

The practice of displaying the U.S. flag in Lutheran churches is a recent phenomenon - and it began because during the World War I era (and again during the Second world war) mainstream Americans were harassing ethnic Germans, and the German Lutherans felt compelled to abandon their German language and heritage and to try very hard to show their American patriotism - partially out of fear of being terrorized - as the U.S. was at war against Germany twice in the last century.

The LCMS website addresses this history as well as the overall issue of whether or not having a U.S. flag in the sanctuary is appropriate:

Rev. Prof. William Schmelder, seasoned parish pastor, historian and professor emeritus of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, has responded to a query from the Commission on Worship regarding this matter:

“To the best of my knowledge, the U.S. flag began appearing in our churches in response to two things: the desire to express an unquestioned loyalty as U.S. citizens (a reaction to WWI sentiment) and the growing sacralization of the flag in U.S. culture. In the history of my home congregation (Immanuel, Bristol, CT), the story of the responses to both WWI and WWII is given in some detail. However, the picture of the church after the renovation in 1948 does not show a flag. There was a flag on the grounds between the church and the school, and it was raised and lowered with considerable ceremony when school was in session. I think that is one response evident in many congregations: we could show our loyalty in many ways without placing the flag in the church; other congregations seem to have brought it into the building itself, with great debate about the proper location (nave, chancel, narthex, etc.).

“Non-Americans are often astounded to see a national symbol in the church (perhaps they have memories of the Nazi flag being touched to the altars of German churches).

“The so-called Christian flag is another matter entirely. It has no tradition of the church behind it. In fact, it violates much of what anyone knows of ecclesiastical heraldry. It seems to be the design of one man, who both drew it and profits from it. He or his heirs still get a royalty on every one sold. People seem to think that you need something to balance the U.S. flag on the other side, so you have a Christian flag.”

Obviously, the inclusion of the American and Christian flags is widespread in the LCMS. As Professor Schmelder mentioned, this probably developed out of the desire of congregations of prominently German-American heritage not to appear German during and after the world wars. Likewise, many veterans of those wars returned with great patriotic zeal, which probably manifested itself in the desire to display “Old Glory” in the sanctuary.

Today, however, it may be time to reconsider this short-lived tradition among us (Lutherans never did this prior to WWI, and then only in America). One may observe that many congregations today, when considering a sanctuary renovation or even building a new sanctuary, will opt to display the flag in a location other than the chancel or nave. Many will place a flag outside of the building proper, or perhaps in the narthex. In such ways, as Professor Schmelder noted, we can demonstrate our patriotism, but not blur the distinction between the kingdom of Christ with the kingdom of the world/government. Our Lord’s words, of course, come to bear on this issue ultimately: “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and render unto God the things that are God’s” (Luke 20:22). Both are good and right … in their respective places and times.

Flags are popular in some cultures, and the United States is one of them.  Flags evoke strong feelings and loyalty to hearth and home.  Soccer fans will often wave flags during matches to show affection for their home countries as they are represented on the field.  The same is certainly true in the Olympics.  Flags are displayed on houses and in various community displays out of love of country.

Flags are so common in the United States that they are beloved and comforting symbols.  They appear at sports events, in military or Boy Scout ceremonies, and sometimes even in ways that it could be argued might not be entirely appropriate - such as on decals on cars and on belt buckles.  Some people want the flag in the church because they like it.  But that fact alone is not justification to include it.  I once had a lively debate with a motorcycle-church pastor who argued that it is appropriate to adorn church walls with exhaust pipes and gas tanks.  How these things point us toward Jesus, I don't know.  There is a difference between a Hard Rock Cafe or a Cracker Barrel (both of which have interesting things hanging on the wall) and a Christian church sanctuary - in which the art exists to point us to Christ.

But there is another context and use of flags: a show of jurisdiction.

For example, a Kentucky State court will display the flag of the Commonwealth as a confession of sorts, that this court is convened under Kentucky (not Ohio and not Indiana) law.  A 1988 movie called Judgment in Berlin is an adaptation of the 1984 non-fiction book of the same name written by a U.S. federal judge named  Herbert J. Stern.  Stern presided over an unusual case in 1978, held on German soil, but because of the way post-war Germany had been divided up by the allies, this trial was held under the auspices of U.S. law.  Juries had been abolished by Germany in 1924, and yet this trial, held in Germany, had to have a jury and be conducted under American law and juridical procedure.  The U.S. flag in the courtroom was not a symbol of patriotism or nostalgic feelings of home - it indicated a legal jurisdiction.

Similarly, ships on the high seas are flagged and are under the jurisdictions of the flags they fly.  

Another example of the jurisdictional use of national flags involves embassies.  The Saudi Embassy, for example, is located in Washington, DC.  But it does not fly the U.S. flag.  Embassies are outposts of the countries they serve, and the Saudi Embassy in Washington is actually "Saudi soil" (not sand in Washington!).  U.S. law does not apply there.  The Saudi flag is indicative of sovereignty and jurisdiction.

In a sense, the church (whose space we sometimes call the "nave" - that is, the "ship") is like a ship or an embassy that flies under its own flag.  Churches, though located in the U.S. or Canada or Russia or Ethiopia - are actually missions or consulates or embassies of heaven.  The sovereign of the Church is not the king or the queen or the president - but the King of Kings, the Lord Jesus Christ, He who said, "My kingdom is not of this world," He who rebuffed Satan's temptations to give Him all of the kingdoms of the world.

And in the west, there is a long tradition of ecclesiastical law (canon law) being applied to the church instead of civil law.  The controversy between King Henry II and Archbishop Thomas Becket began as a dispute over who had legal jurisdiction over priests: the king or the bishop.

Even in funerals of soldiers, the draping on the casket inside the sanctuary is not the national flag, but rather the white baptismal pall.  The flag is placed onto the casket only after the body leaves the church and the casket is being prepared to be placed into the grave.  There is a liturgical break between the rites of the church and the rites of the military.  

Finally, it is important to understand that the Church is universal and transcends nation and tribe.  The Lord reveals His Church to be from "every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages."  The Church is not contiguous with any national jurisdiction.  And Lutheran Christians can traverse the planet and can feel right at home in the Divine Service in the presence of their brothers and sisters in Christ (in the very presence of Christ) even if the language of the Mass is unknown to the worshiper.  There is no American Church, German Church, Russian Church, Kenyan Church, or Icelandic Church.  There is only one holy catholic and apostolic Church, a "holy nation" that knows no boundaries, but spans the globe and transcends time itself, even unto eternity.

Nations will rise and fall - and they have.  Kingdoms will come and go - and they have.  Flags will be raised and lowered - and they have.  But God's kingdom "shall stand forever!"

"Better late than never" and a Lesson from the Magnificat

I just got caught up on posting my Advent sermons - from 2011.  As of now, I have 531 sermons posted here on FH.  I am actually only lacking my earliest sermons from vicarage - and I'll get those caught up when I get the proverbial "round tuit."  But I'm really pleased to be caught up to this point.

This is one of those lingering "to dos" that I can now scratch off on the old Moleskine!

Anyway, in last year's Rorate Coeli (Advent 4) sermon, I made an observation about the Blessed Virgin Mary and how Protestants and Catholics squabble over her significance to the Christian faith.  I believe that this matter ought to be put to rest by the Blessed Virgin's own words in the Magnificat - which are God's Words as recorded by the holy evangelist St. Luke (1:46-55).

Here is an except...

There is a belief about Christianity among the unbelievers in Christianity that the first Christian was St. Paul.  What they mean by this is that Paul invented the Christian religion, that the Jesus he preached was not the “historical” Jesus, and that we are really more followers of Paul than of Christ.

This is an interesting theory that awkwardly tries to explain the origin of Christianity.  But if we believe Christianity is true, the question of who is the first Christian becomes interesting.  Some might argue that the first disciple, St. Andrew, was the first Christian.  Others might say that Abraham, as the first man called by God under the old covenant would be the first Christian.  We could even argue that Adam was the first Christian, the first to see God face to face.
It all depends on how you want to define “Christian.” 

The Blessed Virgin Mary was the first human being to be in the physical presence of the fleshly incarnate Jesus, and immediately, she confesses Him as both God and Savior.  In that sense, Mary is the first Christian.  She is not only the beloved mother of Jesus, but also the beloved elder sister of every Christian.  And this young girl, a lay person: not a rabbi or a priest, not an apostle or a pastor, not a deaconess or a professional church worker – blazes a trail for all Christians in confessing the Christ within her very body: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” 

“God my Savior.” 

Dear friends, this confession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of God, is the beating heart of the Christian faith.  For the Christ child within her is not only a savior, a prophet, a deliverer like Moses – but He is also God.  And equally important, she is not merely worshiping a God who is afar off, but a God who has come into space and time, becoming an embryo within the womb of His mother – even as have been every one of billions of human beings ever born (with the exceptions of Adam and Eve). 

And notice also that the Blessed Virgin confesses Jesus as not only “God” and as “Savior” – but also as “My.”  For even the devil has to confess the truth that Jesus is God and that He is a Savior.  But Christians also confess the “my” part.  Mary’s threefold confession is a complete confession of Christ: Almighty God, humble human being, our Savior. 

This “first Christian” is utterly unique in all of human history.  For she is indeed as we confess in our Lutheran confessions and with the Church of every age: “holy” and “pure.”  She is the mother of God.  And yet she too needs a “Savior” – a rescuer from sin.  Mary is pure because Jesus has made her so.  Jesus is born because He came to our world through His mother.  God created Mary, the God the Father called Mary, God the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary with His presence, and Mary conceived God the Son within her womb.  And from this created creature emerges the uncreated Creator.  From one descended from sin comes One who is sinless.  The tiny embryonic Christ child conceived miraculously within the virgin is also the Savior of the Virgin who created for Himself a pure portal into our impure world. 

Christians sometimes squabble over how this can be.  Such arguments happen when fallen man attempts to impose reason on a miracle.  Was Mary conceived without sin?  God did not reveal this to us to be either true or false.  He did something to protect His Son from inherited sin – beyond that, God is silent.  But we know this much: Mary calls her Son her Savior, and Jesus was born of a pure womb.  Rather than argue over dogma, we Christians, like the first Christian herself, would do well to fight less and rejoice more!

"Fight less, rejoice more."  That might be a good New Year's Resolution for each and every member of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church as a witness to this conflicted world.

!שלום   Pax!   !سلام  ειρήνη!  Frieden!  Paix!  ¡Paz!  Мир!  Peace!

Happy 90th Birthday, Uncle Buddy!

My beloved parishioner "Uncle Buddy" turned 90 today. Blessings and many happy returns!

Jesus, Rubrics, Football, and Intellectual Property

IP violations at 3:37 and 4:24?

I just read an intriguing essay on so-called intellectual property by Jeffrey Tucker ("A Book That Changes Everything" - from his collection of essays Bourbon for Breakfast: Living Outside the Statist Quo) in which he recommends a seminal book (Against Intellectual Monopoly) on the topic.

This is a timely issue in this day and age of digital reproduction.  Is copying theft?

And what about patents and trademarks, not only of words, but of gestures?

How is it that a young professional athlete can drop to a knee on the football field to pray can now "copyright" an ancient gesture of submission to God?  What kind of a crazy world do we live in?  The athlete has now registered his name with the United States government as a synonym with the gesture that theoretically means he can demand royalties for it.  Now, I understand that the trademarked rubric is not mere genuflection (as done above in this clip from my first Mass (when You Know Who - are we allowed to say his name? - was barely old enough to drive) at 3:37 and again at 4:24 at the high altar of the magnificent Historic Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana), but also involves touching the forehead.  Fair enough, but I routinely do that when I kneel at my own ad orientem altar at Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church in Gretna - as the height of the altar makes it happen sometimes without my even thinking about it.  Should I be thinking about a football player instead of Jesus when I genuflect?

I hope this young millionaire athlete doesn't come after me, my Church, or the Lord Jesus Christ for royalties, or sue us for breaking some kind of federal writ of IP.  Of course, this young man could become the world's richest man if he gets a few shekels every time someone reads Phil 2:10.  And how many other Christian liturgical gestures can be copyrighted by sportsmen?  Doesn't judo involve bowing?  Don't hockey players sometime cross themselves when they hit the ice?  And what about a water polo Ave Maria?

For the record (and may I say "after further review"?), I don't plan on changing the rubric of the Western Mass for the sake of anyone - not even someone as remarkable as a Really Important Football Player with the full weight of the federal law (here all may genuflect) of the USA and the bureaucracy of the NFL behind him.  

Girl Scouts Plant 100 Trees in Gretna

Here is an article about the October 13 event, and here are a few pictures.

The increasingly ineffectual Times-Picayune was on hand, but who knows 1) if and when there will be an article in the paper, and 2) if anyone will be able to find it on their webpage? [Note: it actually did make the paper here].

My parishioner Nina Poche was the coordinator for the event (several of my parishioners are members of the Girl Scouts as well).  Several representatives of the city of Gretna (namely mayor Ronnie Harris and councilmen Belinda Constant and Vincent Fox) were on hand and gave short speeches as a magnolia tree was planted in front of the soon-to-come Gretna Visitor's Center at Huey P. Long and 11th.

I was given the honor to open the event with a prayer, which went as follows:

The Lord be with you!

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Hear the Word of the Lord from Genesis 1:11-13:

And God said,“Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.”

Hear the Word of the Lord from Genesis 1:28-29, regarding mankind:

God blessed them.  And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”  And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.”

Let us pray:

Lord God, Heavenly Father,

We give You thanks for the gift of creation, especially on this day for the blessing of trees given to us for food and for shelter.  We give You thanks and praise that these Your creatures reproduce according to their kinds.

We confess that we brought sin into the world through misuse of a tree.  We confess that we sometimes turn the creatures of nature into a false god.  We also confess that we sometimes abuse or take for granted the created order You have provided - treating ourselves as gods instead of stewards.

We acknowledge that Your Son came into our world and died for our sins upon the wood of a slain tree.  And in His name and by His authority, we appeal to You to bless these + trees and the + girls who plant them - in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.

We implore You to bless our community, that we may be good stewards of Your creation even as we seek to be humble servants of our Creator.  We offer these prayers, dear Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, for You live and reign with Him and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Burgers and Beanes at Christian Pastor Retreat

My family and I owe a big debt of gratitude to Tom and Joyce Pickard.  They run a non-profit organization, Christian Pastor Retreat, that provides for pastors to take retreats with other pastors and their families.  They own several cabins in rural Tennessee and make it extremely affordable for pastors to go off and get pastoral care of their own.

We had the privilege to enjoy a few days of rest, respite, and pastoral care with my classmate, Rev. Christopher Burger and his family.  We have known the Burgers since almost day one of seminary.  We had numerous classes together, and sang in the Seminary Kantorei.  Christopher serves Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Columbia, South Carolina - his first and only call.  I had also served as deacon and vicar from 2003-4.

This is the second time that we have taken this retreat with the Burgers (the first was three years ago).

Pastor Burger is not only a faithful servant of the Lord, an outstanding theologian and good friend, but he is quite the cook!  It is unbelievable what he is able to do with ordinary stuff from ordinary grocery stores: extraordinary cuisine!  Thank you Christopher and Evelyn for inviting us again, for sharing your cabin with us, for your friendship and mutual service of Christ and His Church!  And thank you to the lay leadership of Salem Lutheran Church for recognizing the blessings of providing their pastor and his family with time to receive pastoral care.

If you are a pastor in need of time to think, pray, and get pastoral care, or if you think your pastor might benefit from a few days in the country - check out Christian Pastor Retreat.

More pics here.

Русские идут! The Russians Are Coming!

And I think it will be even more fun than the movie!

On Friday, January 27, Salem Lutheran Church, Gretna, Louisiana will host three guests from our sister church body in Siberia: the Rev. Vsevolod Lytkin (bishop of the Siberian Evangelical Lutheran Church), the Rev. Dmitri Dotsenko (pastor of St. James Lutheran Church, Novokuznetsk),  Miss Natasha Sheludiakova (church musician of St. Andrew Lutheran Church, Novosibirsk), accompanied by the Rev. Daniel S. Johnson (pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church, Marshalltown, Iowa and president of the Siberian Lutheran Mission Society).

They will arrive around 5:00 pm for a potluck and will make a presentation at 7:00 pm. 

For more information, please contact me by e-mail: pastorbeane at gmail dot com.

My Siberian Adventure - Day 22 - July 18, 2011

Begin: Yekaterinburg
Travel to: Chelyabinsk

Father Daniel wakes me up at 8:00 am.  I'm tired.  I get some tea and some Coke.  I take a quick shower in the church flat's super high-tech shower stall.  It looks like it was made in Japan and includes many sophisticated knobs and settings - not to mention a radio.

Dan offers some cheese and bread - which I am happy to accept.  I get on the computer, and have a slow internet connection through Father Sergey's cellphone USB gadget.

I am able to finally IM with Grace.  It is still her birthday there.  It's kind of like when the day was lengthened for Joshua.  Grace's birthday will be about 36 hours this year - not counting our family tradition of extending birthday celebrations over several days.

We are both very happy to "talk" to each other, as our separation is getting very long.  We have been married 17 years and have spent only a few nights apart - when I toured with the Concordia Theological Seminary Kantorei as a student about ten years ago.  Needless to say, I am greatly homesick.

Fathers Alexey and Sergey arrive about 10:30.  Sergey is waiting for technicians to install a wireless router - which has to go through the heating duct of the building.  Father Daniel and I join the two of them in the kitchen for tea.  We have a long extended discussion about the movie Catholics: A Fable - which Alexey enjoyed very much.  There are great parallels to today's liturgical conflicts and pressures for the church to change with the times.  It is an intriguing film on many levels.

Sergey announces that we now have wifi.  We take it for a spin.  I download three free books by Dostoevsky - including Crime and Punishment (the detective character in which is the inspiration for the character Columbo) - which Dan is reading.

Father Alexey shares with us that he has just received an e-mail from a young man who attended one of our summer seminars and now desires to enroll at the seminary in Novosibirsk.  He remarked that at the summer seminars, the Gospel was clearly taught, articulated, and proclaimed.  Alexey notes that his trip has been fruitful, yielding at least two likely prospects for the seminary.

We hit the road.

At least in my admittedly limited experience, Russians drive far more aggressively than we do - but without the road rage.  They do more passing on the highway.  It's best not to look.  I begin reading Crime and Punishment on my Nook.  In the opening paragraphs I run across this poignant quote: "It would be interesting to know what it is that men are most afraid of.  Taking a new step, uttering a new word is what they fear most."

Father Sergey, our driver, plays an eclectic mix of music in his car.  He and Alexey speak animated Russian in the front seat.  We are now 41 km from Chelyabinsk.  We begin to see the smokestacks that epitomize this industrial city .

We arrive at the Malachite Hotel, a large Soviet era establishment downtown.  There is a lot of English in the lobby as well as the feel of the older Soviet hotels.

We check in, filling out forms and leaving our passports.  There are clocks on the wall showing the time in Moscow, Paris, New York, and Chelyabinsk - all in Latin (as opposed to Cyrillic) letters.  The lobby has a dated (or perhaps more flatteringly, "retro") feel to it with wood paneling and steel lettering.  Customer service is very good, though the staff speaks only Russian.  We rely on Father Alexey as translator.

The elevator is a dinosaur, complete with clunky manual push-buttons for the floor numbers (reminiscent of the old-fashioned car radios with the push-buttons) and a button to make the thing go.  It lurches and clunks loudly upon reaching the desired floor.

I will be sharing a room with Father Alexey tonight, and Father Daniel will have his own quarters.  Our room is small but comfortable.

After checking in, we walk around the corner to the pedestrian mall.  The weather is pleasant and a lot of people are out walking.  We buy a few souvenirs and take pictures as we head off to eat lunch.  Chelyabinsk is often symbolized by camels - though they no longer live here - as a nod to the history of the nomads that used to travel on camelback.  Hence the camel on Chelyabinsk's city coat of arms and the frequent statuary depicting camels.  The Ural region is also famous for its pelmini - which are like little raviolis stuffed with meat.  They are boiled and served hot.  It was originally peasant food that sustained the people of the region all winter.  They were made after the harvest time and kept outside frozen, to be eaten throughout the winter.  We pop in to a popular pelmini restaurant.

I have the now-familiar salad of tomatoes and cucumbers, bread, and a boar pelmini - along with a cup of tea.  This place is well-known and offers many exotic types of pelmini.  It's very good and filling!

After lunch, we drive to the place where Holy Spirit Lutheran Church meets - a community center where many groups rent space.  The usual room in which the church meets was rented to the church today for a special service of Vespers and Holy Communion because of our visit.  However, the room was double-booked for a party of some sort.  So the church was given a beauty salon room for the evening.

We pull in front of the building and Father Vlad (Vladislav Inanov) emerges with a big smile, gives me a large embrace, and says in English: "Hello, my friend!"

We make our way inside past a receptionist at a desk.  We wind our way to the beauty salon in which a small desk was placed in the middle of the room and transformed into an altar.  A crucifix was hung on the wall between two salon posters advertising beauty products.  The room is surrounded in mirrors.  Father Vlad quips that the mirrors make it seem like more people are in church.  Father Sergey discreetly removes the towels that have been hung over the ledge to dry.  A small padded kneeler, just big enough for three, is reverently placed in front of the altar for communion.

Father Vlad leads the service, and Deacon Victor assists.  We sing hymns and Psalms a capella.  The small congregation sings with gusto.  The Mass is dignified in spite of the surroundings.  Father Vlad is a capable and devout celebrant.  We all take the Holy Supper together.

Video excepts of the liturgy follow: the opening hymn, the opening prayer, the Kyrie, Confession and Absolution, the Psalm, the Reading, the Creed and Lord's Prayer, the Consecration, the Agnus Dei, the Post Communion Canticle, and the Benediction.

This is for me one of the many high points of our trip.  Only a few weeks before, I had confessed to Vlad that it was a dream of mine to come to Chelyabinsk and take the holy sacrament from his hand.  Not only did I make it to Siberia and to Chelyabinsk, we were able to partake of the Lord's Supper together.  A short description of this glorious event appeared on page two of the September 2011 newsletter of the Siberian Lutheran Mission Society: "With God, All Things are Possible."

Afterwards, father Daniel and I were invited to make a few remarks.  I took the opportunity to present a plaque hand-made by a member of my congregation, Ron Cantrelle, which reads in Russian: "Holy Spirit Congregation" carved into a piece of Mississippi cedar.



The parishioners are very appreciative, and take turns sniffing the cedar.  They are a small but faithful parish.

Father Vlad is very personable and friendly.  He and Victor are both Ukrainians and I am told that Ukrainians generally smile more than Russians.  Vlad's wife Svetlana came to the service a little late with her 6-month old Melissa and her well-behaved 3-year old Sophia.

Victor's wife Natasha (who is well along in pregnancy) is there with their teen-age son Nikita.  It was a real joy to partake of the Divine Service with our sister congregation and to take the body and blood of Christ from the hands of Vlad and Victor.

Afterwards, we move the furniture down the hall to the original room - which has since been vacated.  We head off to a park near Vlad and Svetlana's apartment building for a picnic.  And was it ever a picnic!

We walk a ways to the woods by way of a path.  Finding a suitable spot, Vlad and Victor assemble a small metal portable barbecue pit.  They make a charcoal fire and lay out huge chicken shish-kabobs on the flame.  It is my understanding that Deacon Victor used to be a chef, and he presides with aplomb over the burnt offering, fanning the flame with a plate and wielding a butcher knife.  He smiles, laughs, and cracks jokes - none of which I can understand.  The assembled congregation is relaxed and also laughs a great deal.  We sit on blankets around the fire in a small clearing.  Vlad and Victor are a good team and are obviously comfortable working together.  They were actually laymen together in a congregation in Ukraine in the more liberal ELKRAS church - but sought a more faithful expression of the faith among the Siberians.

We sit in a circle around the fire.  The weather is beautiful and provides a marvelous view of the birch forest.

The ladies prepare salads and drinks.  Sophia plays in the dirt with a stick.  Most of the conversation is, of course, in Russian.  Sophia is shy around me.  She has large precocious brown eyes and an expressive face.  I win her over with a gift - a little green, yellow, and purple cat from Mardi Gras.  She is also wearing a little Hello Kitty bracelet.  The gift is a hit, and she excitedly shows her mother who smiles warmly while thanking me.

We dine and converse, sitting on blankets until nearly sundown.

I distribute a few gifts: tee shirts, flashlights, some pocket knives inscribed with scripture from a member of my congregation who is a retired Navy Seal.  I present a little stuffed dog to Melissa - which Sofia also claims unto herself.  Afterwards, we say our goodbyes, and Vlad joins Dan, Sergey, Alexey, and myself for a brief tour of the city of Chelyabinsk as the sun begins to set.  Father Sergey is our driver.  We visit a massive cold-war era monument at the end of Lenin Street in honor of Igor Kurchatov, the father of the Soviet atomic bomb.  Serge quips that the monument's purpose is to get foreigners to take pictures.  We all have a laugh, and sure enough, Dan and I hustle out to take pictures.

A bunch of young people are hanging out nearby.  It's 11:00 pm on a Monday night, and a lot of people are still out and about.  The young people are amusing, as the guys are hanging out with each other, looking at one another's cars, while the girls likewise are clustered together, looking bored, dressed as if they are going to a wedding.

In honor of my desire to make a pilgrimage to the Molnija watch factory (I am carrying the watch I puchased on the internet in 2004 that was made by hand in Chelyabinsk at the factory founded by Stalin), father Vlad brings me to a large building aptly named куб (The Cube) - a shopping mall that used to be the Molnija watch factory until it closed in 2007.

We return to the hotel and say goodbye to Father Vlad.  He gives me a hat and a t-shirt of Chelyabinsk bearing the camel symbol of the city.  He presents Dan with a hand-towel also depicting Chelyabinsk.

Back at the hotel, I use Father Sergey's CD drive to rip my language instruction CDs into MP3s for my mini-computer.

Here is a link to all of my pictures of Day Twenty-Two.