Lutheran Bloggers

We've not been very committed here lately at Trinity to our blogging, but some other's have. Check out Cyberbrethren and some other Lutheran Blogs on the "Blogging Lutherans" Web Ring.

Pope visits Auschwitz

Pope Benedict XVI, German-born and forced into the Hitler Youth during World War II, visited the infamous Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz today.

There, the Pope uttered these words:

"In a place like this, words fail. In the end, there can only be a dread silence, a silence which is a heartfelt cry to God -- Why, Lord, did you remain silent? How could you tolerate all this?"

"Where was God in those days? Why was he silent? How could he permit this endless slaughter, this triumph of evil?"

Benedict, one of the Church's leading theologians, said humans could not "peer into God's mysterious plan" to understand such evil, but only "cry out humbly yet insistently to God -- 'rouse yourself! Do not forget mankind, your creature!"

The question is not where was God and why did he allow this to happen, but where were all the Christians and why did they not prevent this from happening? Why were those that believed in God seduced by the beliefs of a madman? And, the question remains, could this happen again and, if so, what can we do to prevent it?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was not seduced by Hitler and Goebbel's propaganda, but martyred himself for his faith and nation, unlike so many in Germany. He knew evil when he saw it, but he was so much in the minority and paid for his beliefs with his life.

Are we to have learned about evil from Hitler's example and how to confront it from Bonhoeffer?

If even the pope has to wrestle with the question of "Why, God", then certainly the rest of us would be wise to consider the question too. If we don't consider the question, then are we not as vulnerable to the evil-one as those in Germany in the late 1930's?

What should people of faith do to confront very public evil? And, should people of faith confront God for allowing evil to happen?

Faith, Hollywood and Politics

In a recent article by Christopher Kelly of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, he discusses the two natures of Hollywood: those who have reached a vast Christian audience with such films as "The Passion of the Christ" and "The Chronicles of Narnia" and those who have no desire to reach out to Christian audiences because they feel marginalized by the Christian right.

As I read the article, what I was most struck by was not the "us" v. "them" mentality that, at face value, is the controversy the author seeks to kindle. Rather, I was struck by the fact that the Christian right has marginalized segments of our society so much that all Christians are prevented from sharing the loving Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Follow me here for a second.

What was most sad about the article was the animus from the Hollywood producers and directors that feel threatened by a "moral majority." Their hatred is so strong that they seek to lash out at all Christians by portraying them as deviants and hypocritical.

This hatred is a response to a movie about Christ's crucifixion and resurrection in the Passion? This hatred is towards a classic children's book that depicted on film a metaphor for the golden rule and the greatest form of love, sacrifice for one's friends (Chronicles of Narnia)?

So, the bottom line is the basic tenents of the Gospel depicted in these films is responded to in Hollywood by films full of hatred and sin.

How did it get this way?

To me, the fact that the Gospel is now a metaphor for the Christian right in America is the true failure. The fact that Hollywood sees Christianity as a political battleground is directly caused by the Christian right making it a political battleground.

My fear is that the love that abounds so freely from Jesus will be clouded in modern America by fundamentalism and intolerance. Perhaps those clouds are already too thick to clear?

Sermon for the Fifth Sunday in Lent

Listen and comment on Pastor's sermon for the Fifth Sunday in Lent.

Sermon for the Fourth Sunday in Lent

Listen and comment on Pastor's sermon for the Fourth Sunday in Lent.

Sermon for the Third Sunday in Lent

Better late than never...Pastor's sermon from Mar. 19.

What about those Mega-Churches?

Well, it's been a while since my last post, and I don't have an update for you on Dennett's book (because I've been reading Gravity's Rainbow and just finished, finally).

Here's an interesting article on Joel Osteen and his Lakewood Church. Excerpt:

"You know what, I've never done it for the money," he said in an interview after Sunday's service, which he led with his glamorous wife and co-pastor, Victoria. "I've never asked for money on television." But opening oneself to God's favors was a blessing, he said. "I believe it's God rewarding you."

and:

"He's not in the soul business, he's in the self business," said James B. Twitchell, professor of English and advertising at the University of Florida and author of a forthcoming Simon & Schuster book on megachurches: "Shopping for God: How Christianity Went From in Your Heart to in Your Face."

"There's breadth but not too much depth, but the breadth is quite spangly, exciting to look at — that's his power," said Dr. Twitchell who called Lakewood "the steroid extreme" of megachurches. He said church critics fault Mr. Osteen for "diluting and dumbing down" the Christian message, "but in truth," he said, "what he's producing is a wild and alluring community."

Discuss.

(If the above link doesn't work, try this one.)

Sermon for the Second Sunday in Lent

Listen and comment on Pastor's sermon from the Second Sunday in Lent.