Abortion, Budweiser, and Gays….Oh My!

Super Bowl, the one day in the life of American when the country slows down, divides over team loyalty instead of political or social issues opinions and parties down. I had hoped that the Vikings would have gotten into the Super Bowl this year, it would have made our "First Annual Sober Super Bowl Party and Chili Cook-Off" at Recovery Worship a bit more interesting. But hey, most of us are less than enthusiastic observers and really only watch the game for the commercials anyway…..right?

I have been to a lot of Super Bowl parties where the room only became quiet when the commercials came on, especially the beer commercials. The football games themselves, for the most part are normally pretty ho hum, but the commercials have been cutting edge and very funny. Commercials this year, as most years in the past have been, are almost, if not more, anticipated than the game itself.

This year the debate has started early, with CBS agreeing to allow two ads that many say are "activist" spots that have in the past been refused by the network showing the game. The first commercial and the one receiving the most attention is a commercial sponsored by "Focus On The Family." Their own website says that they are "dedicated to nurturing and defending families worldwide" and protecting family values. The commercial they are sponsoring is an ad featuring Tim Tebow, Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Florida. He will appear along side his mother who will tell the story of his birth. She was in the Philippians when she was pregnant and was suffering from a tropical illness and the doctors suggested that she have an abortion. She chose life over the option of aborting her son who would turn out to be a fabulous athlete.

I am sure it will be a powerful commercial, I can also appreciate her difficult decision, and however, the same kind of argument can be made on a lot of other issues concerning the importance of life. As an example: war. How many of our youth have been lost in war? Maybe we can make the point against war by saying that maybe, just maybe, one of the 58,236 American killed in Vietnam might have been gifted by God with the intelligence to cure HIV/Aids or cure Malaria. Maybe one of the young Army nurses would have mothered the person who would have found a pollution free energy source to fuel cars. We will never know, will we?

The other ad is for a match making website for homosexuals. I wasn't aware that homosexuals needed a match making website but I guess I am not that in touch.

This is not a political cause I am on, I am just wishing we could escape the pain of our time for just a couple of hours to watch a football game and laugh at beer commercials. Mrs. Tebow should give thanks to God that she had the choice that she had to make, not all women get that choice. The match making website for gay people, well, visit the I-Beam bar in Moorhead, good hunting!

 

 

Diversity

This week I was invited to First Presbyterian Church of Fargo to share with them the ministry of Recovery Worship and Lost and Found Ministry. It was an interesting experience, much different than Recovery Worship. The people were kind, welcoming and, in good keeping of mainline protestant tradition, subdued. I ran into a few old friends that I have known since my days as a "temporary" member of the Presbytery of the Northern Plains. They are so Scottish, as is their tradition, yet the congregation was pretty diverse. Several people of color where in attendance and, knowing this is a pretty liberal church, also a few same sex couples. When compared to Lutherans the Presbyterians seem to be doing a better job at diversity then we Lutherans, and I wonder why?

While the Presbyterian tradition is from Scotland, you would never know that by looking around their sanctuary. Except for the one picture of a bunch of men in kilts and Scottish Rite fezzes on their heads you would not have known about that tradition. However, walk into many Lutheran churches and you are bombarded with the Scandinavian or German tradition of the church. Names in the stained glass window are in German or Scandinavian; the paraments are often hardanger or quilted. The hymns are German, unless the congregation is trying to be diverse then we will sing a good African American Spiritual number that will be butchered by the pipe organ or key board. If you have ever tried to sing Shall We Gather at the River accompanied on an organ you know what I mean.

I believe we Lutherans, at least us Lutherans in the United States, will struggle with diversity as long as we cling to our Scandinavian and German roots. I am speaking of us Lutherans in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in American. Missouri Synod, Lutheran Brethren and Wisconsin Synod are so stuck into their individual traditions that they will never be diverse. At least we in the ELCA are trying, but it is an uphill battle. I once had a colleague that said that "diversity is evil," if that is the predominant view of the church we don't have much of a chance.

Several years ago I had an intern serving with me from the Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary in Berkley, CA. On her mid-term evaluations there was a question that asked how the intern did when dealing with racial minorities. While the Intern Committee was going over her evaluations one of the women at the table asked why that question was on the evaluation form. I tried to explain to her that some interns were assigned to areas that were racially diverse and that this was an important question. "Well" she said, "I don't know why they have to call themselves 'African American' we are all Americans." As she said this, she sat there with her Norwegian sweater, Norwegian flag pin, and Norwegian earrings on. Most of us Lutherans struggle with being diverse because we our so stuck in our Lutheran identity that we can not imagine a person not like us being a Lutheran.

Thankfully the only thing that the folks at Recovery Worship share in common is their recovery.

See you next Sunday.

Abundant Wine…..Abundant Life

The reading this morning from the Gospel of John is the story of Jesus turning water into wine. A very familiar story, a story full of illusion and metaphors, a story so full of traditional "Bible Story" stuff it has reached for some, "Fairy Tale" status.

It is a fun text to preach on, Jesus, the thirty-something year old Rabbi, being pressured by his Jewish mother to do something about the wine shortage at the wedding. Jesus' terse response to her pestering, "Woman, what concern is this to you and me" makes us wonder about Jesus' less than respectful (though certainly reflective of his culture) attitude toward his mother. Mary (not named by John) telling him to basically do it anyway. What a great story. Jesus' Mom seems to be saying, "Look Jesus, you are thirty years old, time to get a job and move out of the house. Do something about the problem so you and your buddies can make something out of yourselves."

It is interesting that Jesus makes about 120 gallons of wine, what a party this must have been! I am sure the host would have been happy with a couple of boxes of wine from the local drive-thru. But no, Jesus needed to make a point so he made an abundant amount of wine. Why so much, well, I think this is where we get into the metaphor part of the story. Jesus made an abundant amount of wine because he wants us, his followers to live life abundantly. I am constantly impressed by the way many people in recovery live life with such enthusiasm. In their addiction they have been to the gates of Hell, in their recovery they know that they have been given a second chance in life, so the live life abundantly!

I am sure there are many more Theological ways of looking at this story, but to tell you the truth I really don't care. Jesus wants us to live life abundantly, abundantly in love for one another, abundantly in love for God, and abundantly in the life of recovery. Jesus made so much wine because he wanted the people at the party to have a good time, or, maybe he was just showing off. Maybe the woman getting married was an old girlfriend and he wanted to show her what she was missing….that will get you literalists fired up!

See you next week.

Remembering our Baptism

This morning at Recovery Worship we heard St. Luke's narrative of the Baptism of Jesus. One thing I like about the new Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymnal is the "Remembrance of Baptism" liturgy that is used during worship. I am not sure why this has become important to me, but over the past couple of years it has. It also seems more than a coincidence that this text comes a week after the death of my father and last week's blog concerning Baptism.

My last act as pastor at my former parish was to do a funeral for a dear friend. Scott died after a short battle with cancer, leaving a wife and three wonderful kids. I could always count on Scott to be a Confirmation mentor, even if he didn't have a kid in confirmation. Scott loved kids, his church, his community and most of all he loved his family and his Lord. Scott lived out his Baptismal promise he made when he stood in Faith Lutheran Church in Hannaford, ND and, along with Darla his wife, had his children Baptized.

At his funeral a former pastor was invited to give the sermon, it was right after the new hymnals had arrived and I started the funeral with the "Remembrance of Baptism" liturgy. As the pastor started the sermon he said that Scott's last words to his kids were "keep the faith" not "remember your baptism" as if to say remembering our Baptism isn't important in our faith life. My initial reaction was, well…duh, who would say "remember your baptism" to your kids while you were dying. However looking back at it from where I sit today, "remembering your baptism" would have been a perfect thing for Scott to have said, because he remembered their baptism.

Scott was a dedicated Christian man who always ensured his children were in church. Scott, along with Darla, taught his children the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Commandments, and the Apostle's Creed. When it came to church and kids Scott never said no. He lived out his Baptism in the way he served the elderly of the community when he drove the Senior Citizen's bus, visited the elderly in the nursing home, and laughed and joked with people in church. He helped parents who were not as good at keeping their Baptismal promise by helping us with the youth programming at church. When I think of someone living out their Baptismal promise I think of Scott.

While I believe the pastor at Scott's funeral used the opportunity for a little "church bashing," he is no longer in the ELCA. He was wrong in his criticism of remembering our baptism. When we remember our baptism we are keeping the faith; living out our baptism and living out our faith is, in my view, one in the same. I hope, when it comes time for me to mutter my final words to my children (and hopefully grandchildren and great-grandchildren) I will be able to look at them and say, "Remember your Baptism"!

See you next week!

Pastor Ray