Doctrine and/or Practice
Pr. Larry Beane joins us by way of his 2015 Brothers of John the Steadfast Conference presentation, “Doctrine And/Or Practice?” What is the relationship between what we confess in our doctrine (checklists, anyone?) and what we do in our practice (anything goes? seriously?)? Pr. Beane gives some helpful points and illustrations for why and how … Continue reading Doctrine and/or Practice →
Suffering as the Key to Evangelism
Recently I was up at the hospital providing pastoral care to one of my members. As usual, I was wearing my clerical attire, and, as often happens, this gave me an opportunity to share the Gospel with someone I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to otherwise (as an aside: for all of those missional-minded pastors out there who hate wearing a collar for fear of being mistaken as a Roman priest, I maintain the collar is one of the best evangelism tools pastors have; I have written more about this here).
I had been taken aside by a woman whose mother had been dying. But she wasn’t seeking help for herself at the moment; it was her brother she . . . Read All
Pro Re Theologica et Salute Fratrum: Luther as Reformer of Pastoral Care
Another Reformation Day has come and gone. Each year the day gives us occasion to reflect on the significance of the upheavals of the Sixteenth Century—upheavals that changed the religious, social, and cultural landscape of the West, especially the western church. What was at stake? What was it all about? Was it worth it? ..
Read the rest in a new post on the Reformation500 website.
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ST: Celebrating in the Face of Death, part 4
In our fourth and final part on “Celebrating in the Face of Death” we take a look – and listen – at some “Bold, IN-YOUR-FACE, DEATH!, Comforting Hymns.” These hymns give “a certain untoward gesture” to death as we rest in the comfort of Jesus’ resurrection and the hope of eternal life in Him. We […]
St. Michael’s Liturgical Conference
Materials from the 2014 St. Michael’s Liturgical Conference at Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church of Detroit are being posted at Zion’s website. A number of our Gottesdienst editors were involved in the conference in a variety of ways: Fr. Mark Braden hosted and presided, Fr. David Petersen preached for the St. Michaelmas, Fr. Burnell Eckardt presented a sectional paper, the undersigned presented a paper on the pastoral care of catechumens and communicants, and all of the above participated in a panel discussion on the topic of Confirmation and First Communion. Other presenters included Fr. Joel Baseley of Dearborn, Michigan, and Fr. Daniel Reuning of Fort Wayne, Indiana.. . . Read All
An Example of Announcement for Communion or Confession (2nd Discussion)
Here’s the second of three discussions from Loehe’s example of announcement for confession. I call it “announcement for communion” because that’s how it was referred to in the Missouri Synod.
It can be found in Der Lutheraner volume 3, p. 44. And you can get an English translation of the book here.
Second Discussion
Margaretta: I would like to come to the confessional.
Parson: That’s good, why do you want to?
M. So that I confess my sins.
Pn: So, even you have sins?
M: We are all sinners and fall short of the glory we should have before God.
Pn: Do you also know your sins?
M: Some we know and some we don’t.
Pn.: But one must . . . Read All
ST: Celebrating in the Face of Death, part 3
In this third part of our series on “Celebrating in the Face of Death,” we discuss specific hymns often used at Christian funerals. According to Pr. Randy Asburry, some hymns are certainly “good ol’ favorites,” but do we really know why? What are some guiding questions you may want to consider when planning your funeral […]
ST: Celebrating in the Face of Death, part 2
We continue discussing Pr. Randy Asburry’s presentation on pastoral care at the time of death. Here we delve into how pastors care for their dying members by means of “The Commendation of the Dying.” Listen to how God’s Word brings soothing comfort to those on death’s door step and to their loved ones around them.
ST: Celebrating in the Face of Death, part 1
Co-host Pr. Randy Asburry plays guest as we discuss pastoral care at the time of death. Since every human being ends up in the grave, just how do we deal with death? Christians have a very unique way of dealing with death. It’s called “Celebrating in the Face of Death.” But how and why? Pr. […]
2. The Liturgy as Pastoral Care – Pr. Larry Peters, 7/31/14
Pastor Larry Peters of Grace Lutheran-Clarksville, TN “Pastoral Meanderings” by Larry Peters
“As Simple As Letting God Speak”
I’ll be writing some posts as web-exclusives for the Lutheran Witness over the next year. The first one is up, and I hope that it’s edifying for you. It’s about the power of Christ’s Word and the confidence we can have as we share it, knowing that it’s truly Christ speaking.
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IE:Catechesis, Pastoral Care and the Lord’s Supper – Pr. Peter Bender, 6/12/14
Pr. Peter Bender of Peace Lutheran-Sussex, WI
The Concordia Catechetical Academy
Pastoral care for the transgendered?
The latest Time Magazine cover story announces that “another social movement is poised to challenge deeply held cultural beliefs”; namely, that of the transgendered (men who feel they are women, and women who feel like men, often undergoing surgery accordingly). A few years ago, seminary professor and now head of the Baptist Ethics & Religious [Read More…]
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The Peanut Gallery
When I first moved to Wisconsin, there was a small group of women whom I lovingly called “the peanut gallery.” In their 70s and early 80s at the time, they were the ones who were at every event. They were the widows. Margaret, Dorothy, Jeannette, Trudy, perhaps a couple others whose names escape me. And Arbulah, or Arby for short. They always sat on the right side of the room for Bible class. They were the peanut gallery.
Somehow they respected me as their pastor, even though I was 45–60 years younger than them. When I came to them, I was a young pastor of 29 years old. Despite my youthful enthusiasm (and failures), somehow they listened to me. . . . Read All
On Visits and My Mother
The last few weeks have been rather intense at my congregation. We have had a lot of people in the hospital, at least for our small-medium sized congregation. Surgeries, treatments for various types of cancer and other long-term diseases, really all kinds of things. I would say this is all typical, but there is nothing “typical” for anyone who is suffering or ill. When you are in the midst of suffering, you are at the center. It is as if Satan (or God?) is pointing a great big spotlight on you and saying, “I wonder how they will react to this”.
In my congregation we are very blessed to have a deaconess. What this means in real . . . Read All
Doxology: 2nd Day
Dean Vilakazi started off the 2nd day of our Doxology conference with a morning devotion in St. Pauls Lutheran Church in Arcadia. The church bell was ringing out loud and clear as the city was getting to work. At the … Continue reading →. . . Read All
Doxology in Pretoria
O Spirit, who didst once restore Thy Church that it might be again The bringer of good news to men, Breathe on Thy cloven Church once more, That in these gray and latter days There may be those whose life … Continue reading →. . . Read All
Your Pastor Is Not A CEO, A Shopkeeper Catering To Ill-defined Spiritual Needs, Or A Rancher
Under the impact of modernity there are significant pressures brought to bear on the pastoral office that would make the office something other than the teaching office of the church.
Alistar MacIntyre has argued that modernity has produced a world view that is managerial and therapeutic.
Os Guiness in his excellent book Dining With the Devil: The Megachurch Movement Flirts With Modernity maintains that the managerial and therapeutic approaches spawned by modernity have subjected the gospel to the pragmatism of “whatever works” and to the subjectivity of whatever therapy brings relief. Thus the pastor is seen as a CEO, a shopkeeper catering to ill-defined spiritual needs, or a rancher.
In The Parish Paper Lyle Schaller writes, “The most difficult and . . . Read All
Before You Leave Seminary
This is a passage to read, read, and read again. I am grateful for the education I got at seminary. But some of the pastoral wisdom Walther displays here would have been very helpful. And the assertions he makes about hermeneutics at the end…some of my professors would have argued with them. But I think Walther is right. Ambiguity and failure to distinguish law and gospel clearly is responsible for so many failures in caring for souls.
Twentieth Evening Lecture
(February 27, 1885.)
My Friends:–
When a place has been assigned to a Lutheran candidate of theology where he is to discharge the office of a Lutheran minister, that place ought to be to him the dearest, most beautiful, . . . Read All
Sheep and Shepherds Walking Together
The first principle of synod, that is, walking together, is the chief article of justification in Christ’s shed blood alone. “Men cannot be justified before God by their own strength, merits, or works, but are freely justified for Christ’s sake, through faith, when they believe that they are received into favor, and that their sins are forgiven for Christ’s sake, who, by His death, has made satisfaction for our sins. This faith God imputes for righteousness in His sight” (AC IV.)
We receive this forgiveness of sins by the Word and Sacrament through the church (AC V). He appoints under-shepherds to preach, teach, and deliver Christ’s external Word and gifts. These men have been charged with the sacred duty of . . . Read All
DOXOLOGY: the One Program Satan Doesn’t Want Your Pastor to Attend
In “Dying to Live: The Power of Forgiveness”,[1] Harold Senkbeil makes the observation that when a Christian is baptized, Satan puts a target on their back. Since we cannot see the flaming darts Satan is constantly hurling at us (Ephesians 6:16), we can easily let our guard down and become spiritually apathetic. It seems that Satan has a few special arrows in his quiver designated especially for those responsible for caring for Christ’s flock, His pastors (John 21:17).
Burnout is a widespread problem among pastors. It can impair their ability to preach the Gospel and administer His Sacraments and often leads to resignation. One of the benefits of DOXOLOGY is that it helps pastors and congregations to become more . . . Read All
Pastoral Care – something to talk about.
Recently I had the chance to observe the pastoral care provided by a non-denominational church in my area. The situation was brutal and filled with grief, so certainly pastoral care was warranted. In came the preacher’s wife (one of their “ministers”) because the main pastor was in a meeting. She met with the folks who were affected and talked to them for about two minutes. They did not pray. She did not read from a Bible. She ended the conversation by telling them to “text her with how things are going”.
This is a far cry from Christian care for the soul. No means of grace. Not even a prayer. Not even time spent to show concern. I have often . . . Read All
On our Motivations for Good Works
On of my dear cyber-friends, Katie Schuermann, just posted a provocative and wonderful article about the question of adoption and her own motivations for desiring to adopt a child. I would encourage you to read it.
I will leave the fertility/inferti…