A Learning Lutheran

When Would I Join The Roman Catholic Church?

2014-12-21T18:55:00.002-05:00

I went to a Roman Catholic Church last Sunday during their Latin Mass. It was strange for an old school Lutheran to go there. After spending some time reflecting on where I am in my faith journey, I thought about reasons why I won't be joining the Catholic church any time soon.

Papal infallibility: I do not believe in the infallibility of the Pope. I believe he is a mere mortal, just like the rest of us. I believe he has sinned in his past, is sinning, and will sin again. Although I realize that the idea of papal infallibility was only a recent dogma as the mid 1880s, it still grinds my gears to see other people believe that a human can be considered perfect.
Adding new ideas to the faith pot: By this I mean when the RCC suddenly "discovers" something, and adds it to the list of things that you have to absolutely believe in in order to be saved, even if there is no scriptural evidence. For example, I don't believe Mary was perpetually a virgin.
Mary: was a human being, and a sinner. There needs to be a greater line between the veneration of Mary and the savior Jesus. It's like this. Imagine you are stranded in a desert, and there was a single tree in the desert, let's say, an orange tree. You take the orange, and eat it, saving your life. The tree (Mary) didn't save your life. The orange (Jesus) did save your life. You didn't eat the tree, you ate the orange. (I realize not all metaphors are perfect).
More emphasis on Jesus: as our savior.
Only forgiven when confessing to a priest: If I'm wrong, please point it out for me. I believe that you don't have to receive forgiveness through a priest.
Praying/veneration to the saints: I only pray to God. It also denies me being a saint.
Closed communion: This is why I'll never be a Misery Synod Lutheran or a Wisconsinless Lutheran.
Denying the "priesthood of believers:"
Traditioooooooon! Tradition! When tradition becomes theology, that's a problem. Sola scriptura.
Salvation through good works: It's STILL a problem. Justification is a free gift.
Cover up of sex scandals: It denies a basic human needs, and sexually frustrates men.

This list isn't perfect. There are probably ten arguments against each point I just made ("Well, you celebrate Christmas on December 25th. That's not in the Bible.").

What would I need to become a Catholic? A belief that I may have disagreements with the Church, and still be considered a member of the Church.

On Paul Elhard's Memorial Service

2014-11-17T23:43:00.002-05:00

My spiritual mentor, former pastor, and great friend, passed away last Wednesday night. I received the news the next morning from a phone call from my mother. I remember nonchalantly saying, "Oh that's terrible." Every time I get devastating news like this, it takes a long time for it to hit me.

It didn't really hit me that Paul's death actually happened until I was driving down to Athens, Ohio, today to attend the memorial service. I nearly crashed when I realized that he was gone for good. There will be no more friendly, funny, stubborn Pastor Paul. I got angry. I got very angry. I don't know what I got angry at. But I directed my anger toward God. Pastor Paul had a kidney/pancreas transplant a few years back, and was forced to retire from the pastoral ministry at St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Logan, Ohio. He was still an active member of the Christian community. He was even seeking a doctorate degree at Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, Ohio. He was very sick for a very long time, and it took its toll on his body. His mind was still strong though. I figured that since he survived the transplant, and the heart attack a few years later, he could survive anything. This was why I was angry. Pastor Paul survived two devastating heath setbacks, but dies randomly and out of the blue...

I cursed God, yelling at him...telling him how I hated what was done. Then I remembered the most impactful thing that Pastor Paul ever said. It was August in 2011, at another funeral for Sarah Starner, a young woman in the Logan community that died after battling leukemia for about ten years. Pastor Paul was giving a eulogy for her when he said this, "It's perfectly okay to be angry with God, because God is big enough to take your anger, and still love you."

If there was one thing I learned from Pastor Paul, it's that God is big and so loving, that he will take our anger and deal with it in a loving, kind, way.

Rest in Peace, Pastor Paul.

Mommy, I’m Sad: A Depressed Person’s Spiritual Development

2014-04-30T13:00:00.001-04:00

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 381

Professor Tousley

April 28, 2014

Mommy, I’m Sad: A Depressed Person’s Spiritual Development

When I was a child, about 5 or 6, I remember playing outside one day. At certain times of the year in Hocking County, Ohio, where I grew up, there would be these little black and brown fuzzy caterpillars that come out. When you touch these fuzzy caterpillars, they quickly curl up into a tight ball in self-defense. I decided that I was going to capture one of these fuzzy caterpillars and keep if forever. When I caught one, I put it into a container and took it inside. I brought some sticks, grass, and leaves for the caterpillar to climb on. I put those in the container as well. I played with it for a while, then left to go do something else.

A few hours later, I came back to play with the caterpillar again. When I opened the container, and tried touching the caterpillar, for some reason it didn’t move or curl up into a ball like it was suppose to. I got upset at it because it wasn’t moving. The fuzzy caterpillar was dead, but I didn’t know it then. Only a few years later would I realize what death was, but that fuzzy caterpillar was my earliest encounter with death that I can remember.

Fast forward to 2001 when my grandmother on my dad’s side died. I saw her lying in the casket with her teal skirt, teal jacket, white blouse, and salt-and-pepper wig (she died of lung cancer). I went up anxious to see grandma, but knowing that she wasn’t alive anymore. When I saw her there, I told myself, “This is what peace must look like,” (or something like that). Ever since then, I’ve been looking for that kind of peace, even as I delve into several episodes of severe clinical depression.

Depression happens twice in females than it does in males. The average onset of depression happens around the middle 20s. Although millions suffer from depression, only twelve percent of people seek treatment (Ebmeier 153). Recent developments in depression studies show that depression can be linked to genetics (Ebmeier 153), and I believe it’s not some contagious illness that gets passed around from person to person. In my experience, my bouts of depression were met with positive support from my friends and peers. Although some people say it can be contagious socially (McGrath), I don’t believe this. My experiences with depression have been met with concern, care, and contemplation on other people’s life. My mother suffers from depression, and so do I. When I get depressed, it doesn’t mean she gets depressed. My father doesn’t get depressed, and my sister doesn’t get depressed either.

Depression, to me, comes in waves. I will have a few years of feeling severely depressed, with several years of feeling completely normal. So far, I have had three bouts of depression. The first came right around the time my grandmother died. When she died, I guess I told my mom that I wanted to kill myself (I don’t remember this). I went to see two counselors, and I got better. Parker says that people with depression are more likely to see counselors in times of distress (Parker 113). I had another bout between 2007 and 2008 when I was a sophomore in high school. It was at this time that I tried completing suicide (I use the word “completing” because I think it gives a much more in depth emotion of what suicide actually is. Instead of simply doing suicide, I was hoping to do it and be successful at suicide). There were a lot of unplanned life changes going on in my life at that time, and I wasn’t taking them too easily. The pastor that I had known for several years had just been forced to retire because of illness. My dad was starting to get sicker and sicker with his liver disease, and a transplant was eminent. I was only fifteen years old at that time, and according to Fowler, I was starting to transition between Fowler’s Mythic-Literal stage of faith, and his Synthetic-Conventional stage of faith (Stages two and three respectively).

Because of my change in Fowler’s faith stages, and my pastor being forced to retire from ministry, plus my father’s illness, as well as school issues, I was in great distress. It caused me great grief. Even Parker believes that a change in Fowler’s faith stages, plus unplanned life changes can result in severe grief (Parker 113). Parker says, “When these kinds of crises occur during stable stage periods, the task of the counselor could be envisioned as one of determining the current faith stage,” (Parker 114). This could have been used to help me deal with my depression, had my counselor at the time known what was going on. I don’t remember if she had ever brought faith and spirituality into the context in our sessions. Research says that religion can play an integral part in helping patients seek help when they are having trouble handling unexpected life changes (Bussema 117).

Spiritual support needs to be a very insightful and impactful part of counseling. It needs to be present, unlike my former counseling sessions. I would go to see the counselor and talk about what happened during the week, but I still left feeling a little empty. Bussema says that spiritual support, much like the social support I was receiving, could help with stress-reducing efforts. He says that there are two things to remember: The first is cognitive mediation. Cognitive mediation is the, “…positive interpretation and appraisal of the meaning and implications of life events.” The second is emotional support, which Bussema describes as, “…perception of being valued, loved, and cared for by God,” (Bussema 117).

Pargament’s 1997 model of purpose of religious coping is the following: The first is Spiritual: this is a sense of personal connection with God, who gives, “…meaning, purpose, and hope,” (Bussema 118). The purpose of the spiritual function is, “…to provide a sense of meaning and purpose that affords the individual a sense of hope for the future and a source of comfort in the present,” (Bussema 121). The counselor or pastor who is counseling a patient needs to realize that the patient needs to realize that even though times are tough and the future is looking bleak, there is meaning to life (Jesus Christ) and that there is a purpose to life (spreading Jesus’ gospel). Fowler’s stage three is a good example of where spirituality may end up. People in stage three are more likely to express their faith in ways they couldn’t before (Bussema 121). I guess I wasn’t exactly ready to express my faith to others while seeing my former counselors. That’s why they probably never brought it up, because they knew that I wouldn’t have been able to express it.

Also, there’s hope. Hope is one of the most important things I remember from my counseling sessions. Even when times are tough, hope is one thing that needs to be overemphasized in counseling sessions. There is always hope. There’s hope in friends, family, plants, trees, rocks, water, etc. In everything there is hope. Another thing that is always there is love. 1 Corinthians 13:7 says, “[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” This is completely true.

Pargament’s second point is that of self-development. People who have depression need help in dealing with life’s issues and need to feel good about themselves in order to be in more control of their lives (Bussema 118). This self-development function is used to, “…[aid an] individual in feeling good about [himself] or herself, and thinking about positive contributions,” (Bussema 121). People who’s religion were an important part of their lives were more likely to see their self-development as independent of the faith stage (Bussema 121). There were points where I have been completely out of control. Take 2013 for example. The year started out with a bang. I was happy, healthy, and losing weight (I’m overweight). Then September and my final year at university came along.

For some reason, there were suddenly a lot of unexpected life changes. My baby sister, who was seventeen at the time, became pregnant. I had just come out of the closet to my friends and family. My church was splitting apart over whether to leave the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and join the North American Lutheran Church. My pastor had just left the church as well. My feelings for a certain person weren’t being reciprocated. I realized that I will be graduating from college soon, and needing to live in my own. I decided to seek counseling in alcohol. I was an emotional mess. I started seeing a new counselor who was more specialized in my areas of need. Although he is atheist, he is able to understand my faith and how important it is to me. He is really the first counselor I’ve had that has been able to talk about faith in a non-judgmental way.

Resolving is the third tier in Pargament’s model of purpose of religious coping. There needs to be a sense of resolve within the person; a sense of compromise, peace, and comfort. Without inner peace, there is inner war. Now I’m the kind of person who says that peace is not the absence of something, but the presence of something else. I don’t think I’ve ever felt quite as peaceful as my grandmother looked while she was lying in her casket, but I have felt peaceful at times. I remember holding onto a friend for dear life one time because I was so upset. This person was has been so supportive of me in my past year and I could never thank him enough for the support. Although the resolve function is independent of the faith stage, there is a sense of, “…comfort and trust [that] is often more important than the sophistication of their belief system,” (Bussema 121).

Pargament’s fourth point is sharing. There needs to be a, “…closeness, [and a] connectedness to a community,” that, “…meets intimacy needs,” (Bussema 118). My friends and colleagues have been so supportive of me these past few years that it has almost been overwhelming. Bussema points out that only twenty-nine percent of people that were surveyed for a study stated that, “…religious commitments led to the experience of support from the formal religious community.” People even felt estranged from their religious community, and that they had a very “individual faith,” (Bussema 121).

Restraint is the final point that Pargament makes. Emotions need to be taken control of, and they need to not get out of hand. That was one of the problems I had. I couldn’t keep my emotions under control. I would burst out crying at random times during the day because I felt so bad. I would get angry at absolutely nothing because my emotions were taking over my body. Bussema found that out of seventeen people surveyed, only two of them reported that their religious beliefs restrained them from doing undesirable actions (Bussema 121). There was a lot of anger geared towards God himself because they though God gave the disability, or at least let it happen, to the people. The people surveyed often tried to “pray away” the disability, and with phrases like, “Why Me, Lord?” one can only imagine the doubt and hurt that people with depression must face. People felt embarrassed, guilty, mistrustful, abandoned, and unworthy of God’s eyes because of their disability, (Bussema 121).

So what problem did Bussema find? People were too focused on themselves, and not on others, and especially not on God. People were caught up in themselves. But to their defense, they were trying to make sense of the chaos that depression causes. However, instead of seeking professional help and using the rational mind, people used their emotional minds and irrational thoughts (Bussema 122). There were reports of people trying to hold onto their religious desires and beliefs, which led to confusion. What’s the solution to religious doubting questions like, “How can a loving God allow such a thing to happen to me?” Have a childlike faith (Fowler’s stage 2), and avoid the hard theological questions (Bussema 122).

What can help protect the human mind against depression? Halloway suggests that spirituality might be equal to psychoanalysis in helping ease depression. “Our beliefs and our moods are reflected in our brain and with new imaging techniques we can begin to see this,” Holloway quotes Dr. Myrna Weismann, a study’s author and a psychiatry and epidemiology professor at Columbia University.

The brain is an extraordinary organ. It not only controls, but is controlled by our moods…A thicker cortex associated with a high importance of religion or spirituality may confer resilience to the development of the depression illness in individuals at high familial risk for major depression, possibly by expanding a cortical reserve that counters to some extent the vulnerability that cortical thinning poses for developing familial depressive illness. (Halloway)

Those at a high risk, but said that religion and spirituality were important, generally had a thicker cortex than those at high risk who did not care as much about religion and spirituality. People who had higher risk of depression had thinning cortices than those with a lower risk of depression (Halloway).

But does a thinning cortex really matter when someone is feeling depressed? I don’t think so. Take me for example. I’m a very religious person whose views on God and faith are fairly conservative, and yet, I suffer from depression. Maybe my conservative Christian ideals are fighting against my liberal American ideals. I’ve talked a lot about this with my counselor, who as I said before, is very open and willing to talk about faith. Good says that counselors who ignore the faith factor are missing a very important piece when it comes to counseling. Many counselors have an irrational fear of an “unscientific or invalid branch of psychology,” (Good 6). They either have no training or don’t see the need involve spirituality (Good 30). Others, however, seem to latch onto this new branch of counseling and “continue towards a healthy integration of spirituality into their practice,” (Good 6). Cognitive-behavioral therapy works, and adding this new branch of spirituality to it, the affect of counseling will only increase. Notice how I said spirituality, and not religion. In our context, both have separate, but not unrelated meanings. Spirituality is the core set of beliefs (Becker), while religion is the place, community, or group that has a similar set of beliefs. Religion includes rituals, practices, or other aspects that bring the community together, even if the community is physically apart (joining in with thousands of years of Holy Communion is one aspect of the Christian religion).

In ancient times, spirituality and medicine were one in the same. Only in the fourth century BC did the era of modern medicine begin with the Hippocratic oath, which states that physicians are suppose to utilize every tool necessary to save lives. However, when Descartes came around, medicine and spirituality divorced (Good 7). Now, church and medicine are two separate entities that need to be brought back together. For the last decade, this has been happening. Many people have thought that since we have medicine, we don’t need spirituality intermingled with medicine (Good 8).

However, research has suggested that spirituality can be a strong backbone when it comes to healing the mind because there is a link between spirituality and health (Good 12). And even if it didn’t, there are cases of people feeling good about themselves because they believed God healed them from cancer (Good 13). Religious involvement creates what Good calls a “buffer” to stressors on physical and mental health (Good 13). There have even been research that shows that daily prayer, Bible study, and devotions can help decrease the rate at which Alzheimer’s develops in patients (Good 14).

Nearly one third of all youth get an anxiety disorder by age eighteen, and nearly fifteen percent get depressed. This can be caused by many factors, one being mistreatment during the childhood years (Brynne). I, myself, suffered from bullying in school. My parents never abused me and always loved to me. I attribute my depression partially to the death of my grandmother, as well as to the bullying I experienced in school. Even Martin Luther battled with depression (Veith). “There is a sense in which depression is tied up with psychological and physical factors that ought not be confused with one’s spiritual state (Doing so is often part of the problem),” Veith wrote. We can ask this question, “Is there anything about religion and spirituality that make depression worse?”

I believe that my conservative faith and liberal American ideals are constantly at war, and this war is called depression. My heart believes one thing, but my mind believes the other, and sometimes, I can’t tell the two apart. I start to focus on myself more than anything else, including God. “…the gospel says we’re not saved by ourselves but entirely by Jesus. We translate that into: I’m not saved by my works [external acts]…instead I’m saved by my faith [internal devotion to Christ]…Do you see what’s happened? We turned our faith into a work. And faith is the last work a depressed person can summon up!” (Veith).

St. John of the Cross once stated that what we now call depression is the “dark night of the soul.” Mystic priests, like St. John of the Cross, considered the “dark night” to be a spiritual test, and not necessarily a negative thing. It is a way to grow spiritually and an occasion for transformation (Orlaff). I thought about this before researching this project. In the past I have tried using my depression to strengthen my spirit and faith, and I think I’ve been successful. I’m now feeling better than I have ever felt in the past year, and I’m glad that I’m kicking this depression habit with yoga, breathing techniques, thinking exercises, and staying social with friends and family. Of course, I have relied on God throughout the whole ordeal. Yes, I’ve doubted in the past and I’ve gotten angry with God and blamed him for doing this to me. However, I believe that God was man enough to take my anger and pain, and put his arm around me anyway and help me out.

Works Cited

Brook, Paul. "Faith, Depression and Stigma." Dippyman. Paul Brook, 21 Sept. 2013. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

Brynie, Faith. "How Anxiety and Depression Begin in a Child's Brain." Psychology Today: Health, Help, Happiness + Find a Therapist. Sussex Directories, Inc., 4 Nov. 2013. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

Bussema, Kenneth E., and Evelyn F. Bussema. "Is There a Balm in Gilead? The Implications of Faith in Coping with a Psychiatric Disability." Psychiatric Rehabilitation 24.2 (2000): 117-24. Web.

Cholbi, Michael. "Depression, Listlessness, And Moral Motivation." Ratio 24.1 (2011): 28-45. Print.

Cicchetti, Dante, and Sheree L. Toth. "The Development of Depression in Children and Adolescents." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2014.

Clinebell, Howard John. The Mental Health Ministry of the Local Church. Nashville: Abingdon, 1972. Print.

Ebmeier, Klaus P., Claire Donaghey, and J. Douglas Steele. "Recent Developments and Current Controversies in Depression." The Lancet 367.9505 (2006): 153-67. Print.

Eisenberg, Nancy. "Emotion, Regulation, and Moral Development." Annual Review of Psychology 51.1 (2000): 665-97. Print.

Good, Jennifer J. "Integration of Spirituality and Cognitive-behavioral Therapy for the Treatment of Depression." Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, 2010. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.

Halloway, Billy. "Study Reveals What Religion and Spirituality Might Be Doing for the Human Brain." The Blaze. TheBlaze Inc., 31 Dec. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.

Kézdy, Anikó, Tamás Martos, Vivian Boland, and Katalin Horváth-Szabó. "Religious Doubts and Mental Health in Adolescence and Young Adulthood: The Association with Religious Attitudes." Journal of Adolescence 34.1 (2011): 39-47. Print.

McGrath, Ellen. "Is Depression Contagious?" Psychology Today: Health, Help, Happiness + Find a Therapist. Psychology Today, 15 Nov. 2007. Web. 24 Apr. 2014.

Miller, Lisa, PhD, Ravi Bansal, PhD, Priya Wickramaratne, PhD, Xuejun Hao, PhD, Craig E. Tenke, PhD, Myrna Weissman, PhD, and Bradley S. Peterson, PhD. "Religiosity and Spirituality Correlates." JAMA Network. JAMA Psychiatry, 25 Dec. 2013. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.

Orloff, Judith, MD. "Depression as a Spiritual Transformation." Depression as a Spiritual Transformation by Judith Orloff M.D. Judith Orloff, MD, 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

Parker, Stephen. "Spirituality in Counseling: A Faith Development Perspective." Journal of Counseling & Development 89.1 (2011): 112-19. Print.

Pulcu, Erdem, Roland Zahn, and Rebecca Elliott. "The Role of Self-Blaming Moral Emotions in Major Depression and Their Impact on Social-Economical Decision Making." Frontiers in Psychology 4 (2013): n. pag. Print.

"Spiritual Development." : 3 Main Reasons Why Depression Is Inevitable in Spiritual Development. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

Veith, Gene. "Depression among Christians." Patheos. Patheos, 2 Aug. 2013. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

Euthanasia: An Analysis

2014-04-21T22:04:00.002-04:00

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 430

Dr. Bryant

April 11, 2014

Euthanasia: An Analysis

Dax Cowart. Terry Schaivo. Tony Nicklinson. Dianne Pretty. These are all cases involving something called Euthanasia. Euthanasia today means “mercy killing.”

Dax Cowart, a 25 year old man in 1973, was involved in a serious car incident when his car exploded after coming in contact with a leaking underground gas line. Cowart was burned on nearly two-thirds of his body. A farmer happened upon him. Cowart was in so much pain, he pleaded with the farmer to take a gun and kill him. The farmer refused. Cowart was transported to a hospital in Dallas, where he was questioned for nearly six hours without pain medication being administered to him. After the six-hour ordeal, he asked the hospital physicians to not treat him, as he wanted to die. Although he was considered fully capable of consent to his treatment, or lack thereof, his mother and lawyer decided to go ahead with treatment. For several weeks, he was dunked in a bath of bleach to peel off his dead skin, leaving bare muscle and even bare bone. Cowart passed away a few years, ago, but after his ordeal at the Dallas hospital, he became a lawyer and fought for victims’ rights. Although he lived a happy life, he still wished that he were left to die in the hospital. Our questions are these: Why did the farmer not shoot Cowart dead? Why did the physicians at the hospital refuse to comply with a perfectly mentally capable man with his wishes to not be treated? Our questions, which are specific, can be broadened. Is euthanasia ethical? Is euthanasia moral? What does God think about euthanasia? What does society think about euthanasia? Is euthanasia the murder of someone, or the killing of someone?

What does death mean in the Bible? We must first determine what the difference is between murder and killing. For simplicity’s sake, in this paper, murder will be considered an illegal act of intentional death upon someone else. Killing will be considered a legal act of intentional death upon someone else. Suicide is the act of causing the death of oneself.

Ecclesiastes 7:17 says, “Do not be [excessively wicked], and do not be a fool—why die before your time?” In this poem or song in Ecclesiastes, we see that the author is telling the audience what he has seen in his “meaningless life” (7:15). The author has seen the “righteous perishing in their righteousness,” and the over righteous destroying themselves. He also sees the excessively wicked taking of ones own life. This may seem like it applies to suicide, and it does. Still, asking for a physician to take one’s own life is still suicide. This is called Physician Assisted Death, or PAD. When a patient or a proxy asks a doctor or non-physician to assist in his or her death, the doctor or non-physician, if he or she complies, will administer a way of death (Couthan 8).

In Ecclesiastes 8:8, it says, “As no one has power over the wind to contain it, so no one has power over the time of their death.” This verse seems to state that no one will able to predict their time of death, nor should they have any power over it. This can reflect when Jesus said that even he doesn’t know the time or day the world will end. The death of all of us is in accord with God’s plan. When someone wants to kill him or herself, they are breaking God’s plan.

The New International Version of Genesis 9:6 says, “Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind.” Maybe the New Living Translation is an easier translation, “If anyone takes a human life, that person’s life will also be taken by human hands. For God made human beings in his own image.”

Again, this is referring to the murder of someone else, and not necessarily the killing of someone else. Jesus says in Matthew 26:52 says, “Put your sword back in its place…for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” Again, Jesus may be talking about the murder of someone since he was being arrested at this point in the Garden of Gethsemane.

God will destroy the man who destroys the temple, or the body (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). If anyone does damage to his or her own body willfully, God will destroy that person.

All these Bible verses may be fine and dandy, but none of them specifically address the issue of euthanasia. Nowhere in the Bible does it say, “Thou shall not kill by euthanasia.” But also, nowhere in the Bible does God command a physician to put to death a person who is suffering. We commonly put animals to death because of their old age, sickness, severe injury, or severe pain. Why don’t we do this to humans as well? Let’s perform a thought experiment. Say Fido has bladder cancer. Fido is in suffering tremendously. Fido’s owners don’t have enough money to get surgery for Fido. Fido’s owners decide to put Fido down because it would be cheaper and Fido wouldn’t experience pain anymore. Now, let’s say Grandma has bladder cancer as well. Grandma is suffering tremendously. Grandma’s caretakers don’t have enough money for cancer surgery. Grandma’s caretakers don’t know what to do. Grandma goes through surgery, radiation treatment, and chemotherapy. Grandma is now suffering, but in a different way. She’s cancer free, but still dealing with the effects of the chemotherapy. Should the caretakers have put grandma down like the owners of Fido did? Or should they let grandma suffer even more? Should Fido’s owners put Fido through more suffering, or should they have put Fido down? Should euthanasia even be a possibility?

What are the arguments for and against euthanasia? First, there is the argument of rights. Away from the Christian belief that we mentioned earlier that only God knows when each and every one of us is to die, the civil idea that human beings have the right to die when they want to is another question that needs to be discussed. Should we as a society grant people the right to die whenever they want? Should our society be given the freedom to kill other people whenever they want to die? I will leave that up for debate.

Yes, there is the religious objection that states God will determine when someone is to die, but what about those who don’t believe in God? There are secular objections to euthanasia. The decision to die will affect other people such as the family and friends of the patient who asks to be put to death. It will cause severe consequences such as guilt, hurt, and pain. However, there is a balance issue: Should the pain that others experience overrule the rights and the pain of the patient, or should the patient’s pain be put first and foremost?

The Belgium Parliament recently passed a law that allows children to be euthanized. It has become the first country in the world that would allow the euthanisation of children of all age groups with a passing of 86 to 44, with 12 abstaining. The executive director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, Alex Schadenberg, said that, “Belgium has [previously] abandoned the elderly, and now they are saying they will abandon their children.” Here are some of the comments from the article used in this paper (Baklinksi). One commenter said, “I live in Belgium and I apologize in the name of the civilised (sic) people in my country for this absolutely horrifying law, which only shows how so-called progressive thinking is really just a gradual abandoning of all human dignity.” Another commenter said, “What happened to your people? How did they fall so far into the abyss?” and, “I remember a time when doctors took an oat to preserve human life.”

Not all countries are like Belgium. In Hartford, Connecticut, a bill that would allow physicians to help terminally ill patients end their own lives did get voted on in a recent Public Health Committee meeting. There was simply not enough time to go over the material before the legislative session ends on May 7^th. It was said that “Those kind of things need ironed out.” Although supporters of the bill will reintroduce it next year when there will be time to go over the bill. Discussion has “exploded across the state,” according to Tim Appleton, the director of the Compassion and Choices advocacy group, a supporter of the bill. (“Assisted Suicide Bill Won’t Get Vote This Session”).

Various medical associations around the world have differing views on euthanasia as well. The American Medical Association (the AMA) has taken a stand for life when it comes to euthanasia. It states that physicians need to instead of focusing on euthanizing a patient, doing as much as he or she can to help the patient’s needs (“Opinion 2.21-Euthanasia”). The British Medical Association has reaffirmed its opposition to PAD in 2009 (“BMA Reaffirms Opposition To Assisted Suicide, UK”).

Even physicians themselves have gotten in on the debate. Dr. Kerry Pound recently wrote,

We know that the top reasons for terminally ill patients to request suicide are that they feel life is no longer enjoyable, have lost autonomy, or believe their lives to be burdensome or without dignity (and NOT as a result of pain). And although these reported symptoms may be similar to those expressed by depressed patients without an underlying terminal illness, no counseling nor psychiatric assessment is mandated under the bill. Psychotherapy and psychopharmacology may provide great relief for any patient suffering from depression. As physicians, we routinely hospitalize depressed patients who are contemplating suicide — for the purpose of treating the depression and getting the patient to a healthier mental state to deal with life. Shouldn’t we require that a thorough psychiatric assessment be done for those struggling to come to terms with their own mortality? (Pound).

Nearly all pain can be relieved. Notice I said “nearly.” Some pain can’t be relieved, no matter what www.care.org.uk says. Emotional pain, although mentally “debilitatingly” painful as it can be, is not enough to put someone to death over. That would be assisted suicide. There is also no “right” way to die, and there are dangers to each way to die (Arguments For and Against Euthanasia"). A failed injection could render someone completely incapable of moving. A wrong dose of medicine could cause a heart attack in someone. A gunshot to the wrong part of the head could render someone without speech capabilities.

What about the people who die without permission? In 1990 in Holland, nearly one thousand patients were killed without their permission. In the Netherlands, euthanasia and physician assisted suicides are completely legal, although not all physicians report their actions (Arguments For and Against Euthanasia"). We also can’t truly control death. Even though we may administer a lethal dose of medication, the time it takes to kill someone varies. I’m reminded of an episode of House. The character Dr. Ezra Powell was a physician who studied cancer cells in lab rats. One night while doing research, Dr. Powell collapsed on his lab floor, and the rats he was experimenting on started to eat at his face. When Dr. Powell was found, he was unable to be diagnosed, and thus taken to the care of Dr. House. Dr. House then puts Dr. Powell through his regular medical rigor and antics. However, House is unable to find the cause of Dr. Powell’s collapse. Meanwhile, Dr. Powell continues to deteriorate. Then, for some reason, House’s team starts to discuss euthanasia. Drs. Cameron and Foreman are whole-heartedly against the idea of euthanasia, while Drs. House, Chase, and Wilson are in support of it.

Dr. Powell tells House to cure him in twenty-four hours, or Dr. Powell is going to refuse any further treatment, thus creating a form of physician assisted suicide, where the physician involuntarily and passively euthanizes Dr. Powell. (Involuntary passive physician assisted suicide is when the doctor decides to do nothing, and let nature takes its course in killing the patient [Cauthen]). House then fails to diagnose Dr. Powell within the twenty-four hour mark, and Dr. Powell refuses any more treatment. As House readies a fatal dose of morphine, Dr. Foreman tries to stop House from injecting Dr. Powell. House comically says, “…someone here is going to get a buttload of morphine. I’m not exactly sure who at this point,” referring to Dr. Foreman’s refuse to let House inject Dr. Powell. When Dr. House injects Dr. Powell, we learn that the “fatal” dose wasn’t enough to kill him, but simply put him in a coma so House can diagnose Dr. Powell without interruption. We learn that House may not be in support of euthanasia, but we also learn that House may simply have put Dr. Powell in a coma to finish the puzzle, which keeps House happy. The ethics of putting a patient in a coma without permission is for another time.

When Dr. Powell wakes up, and finds that his abdomen and legs have lost sensation, he gets upset that he wasn’t killed. He then learns that he has terminal amyloidosis. As Dr. Powell struggles for breath, Dr. Cameron gets irate at him for his unethical work on children in the 1960s. “Ethics hinders research,” says Dr. Powell. Then Dr. Cameron slices a piece of skin off of Dr. Powell’s arm, and Dr. Powell congratulates her for doing the right thing. Dr. Powell dies later that night (“Informed Consent [House]”). The questions here are, Should’ve House just let Dr. Powell die without putting him in a coma, or should’ve House put a fatal dose of morphine in him?

The Roman Catholic Church discussed euthanasia via Pope Pius XII when he condemned the Nazi’s use of euthanasia. He was the first pope to address the subject (Fr. Saunders). In 1980, the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith released a statement called the Declaration of Euthanasia. This statement says A) making an attempt at anyone’s life is evil. B) each person is bound to life according to God’s plan. C) To kill oneself is a rejection of God’s plan. We could go further to say that this means that asking someone else to take one’s life is also a rejection of God’s plan. The document also states that each person is bound to traditional healthcare (whatever that means in the Catholic Church), and to food, water, and ordinary medicine. Ordinary medicines, according to the Declaration of Euthanasia, offers hope of benefit of the medication being taken, and are not a burden on the patient and the family. This means that if the medication taken doesn’t provide the right benefit, and it is seriously detrimental to the family and patient, it isn’t to be considered ordinary medicine (I’m reminded of another episode of House when Dr. House gives a woman suffering from severe headaches by prescribing her Viagra, because it dilates the blood vessels, letting more blood flow through the vessels).

The document also states that euthanasia is an “easy death,” meaning an “easy way out.” The wrongness is attributed to the intention of the will to end one’s life quickly. The document states that God cannot permit in any way the taking of someone’s life, or the life of his or her own, whether it being the killing of an innocent human being, being that of an embryo, fetus, infant, adult, or old person suffering from an terminal disease, or a person who is dying. Otherwise, the person would have to deal with years of intolerable suffering.

The Catholic Church’s Catechism states in number 2276, “…Thus an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator...” It also says in 2278, “Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal of ‘over-zealous’ treatment....” They even say that even if death is imminent, the “ordinary care owed to a sick person cannot be legitimately interrupted,” (“Catechism of the Catholic Church”).

The Lutheran church (on both sides of the political spectrum), offer different values when it comes to euthanasia. The Missouri Synod says that euthanasia is “mercy killing.” Only God knows whether a disease is truly terminal (taking power away from the doctors who God uses to diagnose and treat disease). This church also believes that when it comes to a patient’s terminal disease, let nature takes its course (“Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod – Euthanasia Statement”). The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America believes similarly. It believes that life is a gift from God, and that both birth and death are part of the life process. But it says that both living and dying should take place in a loving and caring community. It also mandates respect for each person. The ELCA believes that euthanasia is wrong, but says, “While this affirmation is clear, we also recognize that responsible heath care professionals struggle to choose the lesser evil in ambiguous borderline situations—for example, when pain becomes so unmanageable that life is indistinguishable from torture…we approve the legalization of physician assisted death,” (“A Message On End-Of-Life Decisions”).

Other denominations and Christian traditions believe several things about euthanasia. The Mennonite church believes that “taking the life of a human being is wrong at any stage of life for any reason,” (“Association of Christian Churches of South Dakota”). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints believes in the sanctity of human life, and is opposed to euthanasia. They do not believe in allowing a person to die from natural causes by “removing a patient from artificial means of life support, as in the case of a long-term illness,” which, “falls within the definition of euthanasia (“Euthanasia and Prolonged Life”). Finally, the Orthodox church believes that, in the words of the 1976 Christmas encyclical of former Archbishop Iakovos, euthanasia, along with abortion and homosexuality, are a “moral alienation.” The church, currently, sees, “The Church distinguishes between euthanasia and the withholding of extraordinary means to prolong life. It affirms the sanctity of human life and man's God-given responsibility to preserve life. But it rejects an attitude which disregards the inevitability of physical death,” (“The Stand of the Orthodox Church on Controversial Issues—Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in America”).

Kenneth Couthen, in his book titled The Ethics of Assisted Death, gives a wonderful list of reasons as to why euthanasia should or should not be legal. What are our arguments against euthanasia? A. Euthanasia breaks the Hippocratic Oath, or the oath that doctors take that forbids them giving drugs to patients that will kill the patient. However, that also means that they are bound to Apollo (not God) and the ancient gods and goddesses. B. Euthanasia breaks the trust between patient and doctor. We expect doctors to heal; not to kill. C. Personal autonomy is not an absolute principle. There are no unlimited choices in life. D. Suicide and killing are wrong. As we have seen here, there is a difference between legal and illegal killing. But both are considered wrong. E. The patient may simply be temporarily depressed, with regrets. The patient may only be thinking in the now-moment, and not thinking rationally. The patient is thinking emotionally.

What are the arguments for euthanasia? A. Individual autonomy takes precedence over the interests of the state in protecting life in some circumstances. Does the patient have a terminal illness or constant suffering? Does the patient have an illness that could seriously affect the general population? These circumstances can range from simple “I want to die,” to “I’ve currently on fire and I can’t stand the pain. It’s torture.” If euthanasia was to be legalized, and this “circumstances” clause put in legislation, to who would determine whether a circumstance is justified? B. The doctor may grant patient’s request to end life early because of constant suffering. What can doctors do to help alleviate pain? These arguments for and against euthanasia will continue to be thorns of the debate on whether euthanasia should be legalized or not.

Works Cited

Aghababaei, Naser, Hojjatollah Farahani, and Javad Hatami. "Euthanasia Attitude; A Comparison of Two Scales." Journal of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine 4.1 (2011): 1-6. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.

"AMA Policy on End-of-Life Care." AMA Policy on End-of-Life Care. American Medical Association, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

"Arguments For and Against Euthanasia." CARE Arguments For and Against Euthanasia Comments. CARE, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

"Assisted Suicide Bill Won't Get Vote This Session." Boston.com. The New York Times, 25 Mar. 2014. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

"Association of Christian Churchesof South Dakota." Mennonite Church USA. World Bible Publishers, Inc., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

Baklinski, Peter. "LifeSiteNews Mobile | Belgium Parliament Passes Law Allowing Children to Be Euthanized."LifeSiteNews. LifeSiteNews.com, 13 Feb. 2014. Web. 11 Apr. 2014.

"BMA Reaffirms Opposition To Assisted Suicide, UK." Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 2 July 2009. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

"Catechism of the Catholic Church." Catechism of the Catholic Church. Euthanasia.com, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

Cauthen, Kenneth. The Ethics of Assisted Death: When Life Becomes a Burden Too Hard to Bear. Lima, OH: CSS Pub., 1999. Print.

"Declaration on Euthanasia - May 5, 1980." Declaration on Euthanasia - May 5, 1980. Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, May 1980. Web. 08 Apr. 2014.

Dowbiggin, Ian. "From Sander to Schiavo: Morality, Partisan Politics, and America’s Culture War over Euthanasia, 1950–2010." Journal of Policy History 25.01 (2013): 12-41. Print.

"Euthanasia and Prolonging Life." Www.mormonnewsroom.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

"Informed Consent (House)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 May 2014. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.

Jackson, Adam. "‘Thou Shalt Not Kill; But Needst Not Strive Officiously to Keep Alive’: Further Clarification of the Law regarding Mercy Killing, Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide." The Journal of Criminal Law 77.6 (2013): 468-75. Print.

"Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod - Euthanasia Statement." Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod - Euthanasia Statement. Euthanasia.com, n.d. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.

"A Message On End-Of-Life Decisions." Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 9 Nov. 1992. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.

"Opinion 2.21 - Euthanasia." Opinion 2.21 - Euthanasia. American Medical Association, June 1996. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

Pound, Kerry, MD. "Column: A Physician's Perspective on Question 2 » Opinion » SalemNews.com, Salem, MA." Opinion ATOM. Salem News, 30 Oct. 2012. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

"Pro-euthanasia Arguments." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2014.

Rachels, James. The Morality of Euthanasia. 4th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2007. Print.

Saunders, Fr. William. "Library : What Is the Church's Teaching on Euthanasia? - Catholic Culture." Library : What Is the Church's Teaching on Euthanasia? - Catholic Culture. Trinity Communications, n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2014.

Sharp, Robert. "The Dangers Of Euthanasia And Dementia: How Kantian Thinking Might Be Used To Support Non-Voluntary Euthanasia In Cases Of Extreme Dementia." Bioethics 26.5 (2012): 231-35. Print.

Slick, Matt. "What Does the Bible Say about Euthanasia?" CARM. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Apr. 2014.

"The Stand of the Orthodox Church on Controversial Issues.” The Stand of the Orthodox Church on Controversial Issues — Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

Van Ittersum, Frans J., and Lambert Hendriks. "Organ Donation after Euthanasia." National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly 12.3 (2012): 431-37. Web.

So much hate from atheists

2014-03-13T23:04:00.000-04:00

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/13/religion-poll-nbc-wsj_n_4957886.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000051

I was reading the comments and some are just downright shocking and very offensive.

Manuela Mcmoura No...Religions were/are responible for blood and tears...for centuries already...

Phoenix Martinez No. Religion has no part in my life, and I'm happier for it. I don't waste my time, money, or effort on fairy tale bullshit anymore. I spend my time learning and reading about science, life, and the cosmos.

Doffing Dardu Christianity, Muslim, Jewish, etc, will be mythology within 400 years (hopefully, as long as we continue to evolve for the better). People put faith in something with such little evidence, yet deny plain facts put right in their face. Ignorance at its finest.

Christian Cochran I do my best to stay as far away from it as I can.

Ben Johnson David, looks like the religion genocide missed one. Stop trying to start shit. We get it you worship your dog. No one judges you or tells you how its wrong to do what ever your doing. Go home, you're an idiot.

Brandon Toner Spirituality is just as unimportant as religion.

Adam Ouannas Yes. Muslim & Proud

Like · Reply · 2 · 4 hrs

Jessica Murray No one cares.

Tara Marshall I gave up on god and religion about the same time I gave up on Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. There's more evidence for either of these childhood myths, quite frankly.

Raheem Johnson That means we're finally becoming smarter!

David Runyan If christ and satan (actually existed) and fell on my street I would fight tooth and nail to protect satan from christ. All we know about satan is that (other than him not existing until the dawn christianity) is that he went to war on the throne, but it doesn't say why he went to war. How do we know that lucifer didn't finally stand up after the flood, after sodom and gomorrah, and all the other acts of genocide committed by god and finally say "ENOUGH" that he would not stand by and listen to the dieing screams of humans? How do we know that it isn't your god who is the tyrannical dictator that we need protection from?

Bob Trieger Hell no. The sooner it's gone for good the better off the world will be.

Nathaniel Patrick Fancypants It's "important" in my life as in, religion and its figureheads are actively a threat to my quality of life in the 21st century and my understanding of what constitutes a free and civil society.

Felix Moshe Bieberology is much more critical to my insentience

Flash Kellish yup, just as much as jock itch.

I'll have some Ham on Nye

2014-02-05T16:04:00.001-05:00

I'm so glad that I haven't seen any of my friends say anything negative about my faith here in Facebook after the "Ham on Nye" debate last night. I feel like I should comment on the debate.

First of all, Nye completely trashed Ham. But neither one was a winner. There were two completely different agendas being pitted against each other. First, Ham's agenda was to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Since I am a Bible-believing, whole-hearted Christian, naturally I was drawn to what he said. However, Nye's agenda was to promote natural sciences. I don't believe that Ham wanted to tear down Nye's science, but I did think that Nye wanted to tear down Ham's Christian views.

I saw the conversation like this.

Ham: GOD.
Nye: Where's your evidence?
Ham: GOD.
Nye: Where's your evidence?
Ham: GOD.
Nye: Where's your evidence?

I have many friends in different faiths, and some in no faiths at all. I have Lutheran friends, Methodist friends, Presbyterian friends, neo-pagan friends, friends who have "Tree" listed as their religion (whatever that is), Catholic friends, Buddhist friends, and many others. Yes, I've heard some hateful things about Christianity from some of them in the past, and they have affected me deeply, knowing full well that I take my faith seriously...but I haven't said a word to them. There was a time a few weeks ago where my inner circle of friends gathered at my apartment, and things were said about the lack of God that upset me for the rest of the night. It hurt me. Of course, I kept my mouth shut because I'm that kind of person.

What I am glad about is this: I haven't seen anything negative about my faith and Christianity from these friends on Facebook.

I believe this: I don't believe in using the Bible to date events like the beginning of creation. I believe God used an evolutionary process to create life on Earth. I don't believe the Earth is only 6,000 years old. I believe in the Big Bang theory. I believe we, as humans, evolved from a primate species that evolved over time. "Adam" was the first homo sapien who God made self aware through an evolutionary process (I don't know if it's the same evolution that Darwin talks about, but I believe that we as humans have evolved intellectually somewhere down the line).

I pray that my friends continue to respect my faith and my beliefs.

Kubler-Ross vs. Harmon Models of Grief

2013-12-19T10:27:00.001-05:00

Kubler-Ross' 1969 model of grief is too strict. Here is my alternative.

I don't see grief as being in stages. I see it as being circular or in a cycle. I can go back and forth between acceptance and depression.

"What The Hell Was That?"

2013-12-13T09:45:00.003-05:00

"What the hell was that?" That was the topic of one of my last papers during the last fall semester of my undergraduate career.

"What the hell was that?" Three and a half years ago, I was a poor country boy from Hocking County, Ohio. I felt like a loser for having a dad in the hospital struggling to stay alive. I was still struggling to make friends with those around me. I was trying to sever my relationship with those from high school. Three and a half years later, I'm a city slicker with a very close and wonderful group of friends that I'm proud to call my own. Michael, Adam, Victoria, Emily, Alex, Tim, Anthony, Dylan, Mike, Caleb, Peter, Jared, Mike, John, Brian, thank you all for being so supportive.

"What the hell was that?" Three and a half years ago, I had no idea if I would be staying in my program. I wasn't taking classes that I was interested in. I was taking a class on composition that involved random noises. Where in the world will this be useful? Three and a half years later, I have a songwriting career that is about to, hopefully, take off.

"What the hell was that?" Three and a half years ago, I was struggling with my faith. How could God cause my father to be so sick? Three and a half years later, my father is happy, healthy, and working.

"What the hell was that?" Three and a half years ago, I was wondering where I would be working when I graduate. Three and a half years later, I am blessed to have several part time jobs with Smoke and Fire Audio, BeckTech Audio, pagetech limited, and Holy Spicoli.

"What the hell was that?" Three and a half years ago, I was just a brother, son, nephew, and grandson. Three and a half years later, I am not only a brother, son, nephew, and grandson, but a future uncle as well.

"What the hell was that?" Three and a half years ago, I was debt free. Three and a half years later, I owe over $40,000 to Wells Fargo and the government.

Thanks to EVERYBODY who has come into my life. I'm down seven semesters, with one to go.

Dear Friend...

2013-12-12T13:58:00.001-05:00

Congratulations, friend. I edited this several times because I keep having things to say that I want to express publicly.

Thank you for being a Conrad, partner in crime, shoulder, crutch, brother, father, uncle, and friend when I needed one. I know I can be the biggest pain the ass known to man, and you have been the brunt of all of my problems lately. For that, I apologize. Please know that I love you, and that God loves you. Read here what Proverbs 12:26 says about finding friends, "One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor." Friend, you have been a guide to me. You have inspired me to not give up on music when I wanted to so badly for a while.

But Friend, friendship doesn't come without playful competitiveness. Paul writes in Romans, "Love one another with brotherly affection. Out do one another in showing honor."

In my recent bouts of negativity, you have shown to me that even though I feel alone, you are with me always, just like Job's friends were with him when Satan did all those nasty things to him. "Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him."

I would sacrifice my life for you, Friend. "Greater Love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)

You keep me strong. "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." (Proverbs 27:17)

You are my brother. "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity" (Proverbs 17:17)

But Friend, remember that there is someone who loves you more than I, and that is God. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16).

Friend, in conclusion, I just want to let you know how much you warm the deepest cockles of my heart. Missing you is going to bring about a great wretched pain deep in the bowels of my gut that will take a long time to heal.

I'm not going to say Goodbye because that implies that our relationship is over and done for. Instead, I want to say this. See ya in a few!!!!

___________________
After I posted this, I just so happen to look at the Bible verse in the lower left hand corner. This is what it was.

I Had A Black Dog, And His Name Was Depression

2013-12-10T15:21:00.001-05:00

I want each and every one of you to watch this. I want you to watch this if you suffer from depression, know someone who has depression, or don't even know what depression is. Thanks to my friend who shared this with me on Facebook.

Love Is....

2013-11-19T22:39:00.001-05:00

A friend posted this on Facebook.

"The truth is that the more intimately you know someone, the more clearly you’ll see their flaws. That’s just the way it is. This is why marriages fail, why children are abandoned, why friendships don’t last. You might think you love someone until you see the way they act when they’re out of money or under pressure or hungry, for goodness’ sake."

This is important.

"Love is something different. Love is choosing to serve someone and be with someone in spite of their filthy heart. Love is patient and kind, love is deliberate. Love is hard. Love is pain and sacrifice, it’s seeing the darkness in another person and defying the impulse to jump ship."
– The Great Kamryn

“Are you listening to me? Really listening?”: Reading Log #3

2013-11-11T15:44:00.001-05:00

[This paper was written for the Synoptic Gospels class at Capital University, where I am seeking a minor degree in religion.]
Jesse Harmon

RELIG 330

November 11, 2013

“Are You Listening To Me? Really Listening?” Reading Log #3

As promised in my last reading log, I was going to do this one by starting off by reading the Gospel of Luke. I realized that as I read through the three gospels, I tended to write down more about what caught my eye when I first started reading the gospels, then when I finished reading them. I wrote more about Matthew and Mark than I did about Luke. So this time, I started with Luke. My theory was proven again. I wrote a lot about Luke and Matthew, but the page I reserved for writing notes about Mark is barren.

I was very excited for this reading log because I was going to read the Gospels through the language of The Message, a very contemporary, thought-for-thought translation of the Bible. It was also a regret. I had bought the pocket version, and the print was so small I had trouble reading it at times. I decided to, again, go through each of the Gospels, and write down what I thought the Holy Spirit wanted me to see. As mentioned, I started with Luke. Then I read Matthew, and finally Mark. I must first make mention of one thing. Eugene H. Peterson, the translator, gave the Bible all new chapter numbers and verses. He also sequenced the verse numbers so they are located in the left column, and not in the actual text itself, much like other translations do. In The Message, Luke has a total of twenty-four chapters. Matthew has twenty-eight, and Mark has sixteen. Because of the way the verse numbers are laid out, (mostly in blocks of text), I had to guess what number corresponded with what verse.

One of the most interesting things about The Message is the very contemporary language. For instance, Peterson translates Luke 1:15 like this: “He’ll drink neither wine nor beer.” In Luke 1:46-55, what Peterson calls “Blessed Among Women,” we see halfway through the section, “He knocked tyrants off their high horses.” In 3:7-9, we see that the children of Abraham are, “a dime-a-dozen.” Right after coming down the mountain in the section called “Give Away Your Life,” Jesus speaks about how to behave (6:31-34), “If you only love the lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-of-the-mill sinners do that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal? Garden-variety sinners do that.” Jesus also states that only the “stingiest of pawnbrokers” only give for what they get. He also states before this that if someone takes advantage of you, “Use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff.” In Mark 4:8-9 during Jesus’ temptation, we see the Devil saying, “They’re yours—lock, stock, and barrel.” “Are you listening to me? Really listening?”

The translator also retranslates the famous “plank in the eye” passage. He simply writes Jesus’ words as being “smudges” and “sneers.” Jesus states that the people who sneer have a “better-than-you mentality,” and play a “holier-than-thou part instead of just living [one’s] own part.” (Luke 6-41-42). These words that Jesus speak are not simply “additions to [one’s] life, homeowner improvements to [one’s] standard of living.” These words that Jesus spoke are words that people need to take into account so they don’t become like a “dumb carpenter who built a house but skipped the foundation.” (Luke 6:46-47).

When Peter tells Jesus that Jesus is the Messiah, Jesus says in Luke 9:23, “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat—I am.” I remember once seeing a bumper sticker that said, “God Is My Co-Pilot.” (I think that phrase was based off of an old movie). For a long time I thought this was a good phrase. Then one day, I saw another bumper sticker. It said, “If God Is Your Co-Pilot, Switch Seats!” I realize how much of a mistake it was to think the former bumper sticker was good. It is basically saying, “I’m driving, and God is helping me.” The latter bumper sticker says that God is the one who steers me in whichever direction he needs for me to go. (I also saw a bumper sticker online that said, “God Was My Co-Pilot, But We Crashed In The Mountains And I Had To Eat Him,” but that’s off topic).—Are you listening to me? Really listening?

As we move along in Luke, we see the Pharisees confront what Jesus is saying about them in 11:45. At this point, Jesus has been very harsh to the Pharisees by calling them “hopeless,” and, “frauds.” (“Woe to you” passages). The Pharisees respond with, “Teacher, do you realize that in saying these things you’re insulting us?” I have to images in my head on how they Pharisees said this. First, they either said this very sheepishly, and ashamed at themselves, or they said this sarcastically, in an attempt to catch Jesus in his own words. Jesus responds bluntly with, “Yes, and I can be even more explicit…” Jesus’ words and expressions are really brought forth by the use of the many exclamation points. It seems like every other sentence has an exclamation point at the end of it. “…Every drop of righteous blood ever spilled from the time earth began until now…is on your hands. Yes, it’s on the bill of this generation and this generation will pay!” “Are you listening to me? Really listening?”

This translation hits home with me. The word “bully” is mentioned several times in all three gospels. As someone who was harassed, stalked, and assaulted by bullies, I can now sense how much of a pain the religious leaders were at that time. Jesus said in 12:4-5, “I’m speaking to you as dear friends. Don’t be bluffed into silence or insincerity by the threats of religious bullies. True, they can kill you, but then what can they do? There’s nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in his hands.”

But those who bullied, harassed, and assaulted me were right about one thing. For years and years I was tormented throughout middle school and high school. These monsters knew even before I did that I wasn’t “normal,” (whatever that means.) They found out that something about me wasn’t quite in line with the middle school society at that point in time. Yes, I asked them to stop with it, but they continued on. Yes, I asked the teachers to tell them to stop, but the teachers didn’t listen. The administration didn’t listen. One day in sixth grade, I had had enough with it. I lashed out at one of my classmonsters. Of course, it was me who was sent to the office. I didn’t think the administration had any idea what was going on. I felt like they had their heads so far up their butts that they couldn’t see the light of day. That’s when I flew into a depressed state. I kept wondering to myself, “Are you listening to me? Really listening?” I still hold grudges against my classmates and against the administration at my home school district. They didn’t control the bullying problem. It’s been four years since I’ve attended those schools, but I know the administration hasn’t changed much. I’m sure there are still lots of close-minded bullying going on there. I’m sure the jocks and addicts are still tormenting those students who are reclusive and introverted. I was told by the administration that “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” That’s plain foolishness. Matthew 5:22 says, “The simple moral fact is that words kill.” “It’s your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meanings to your words…Words can be your salvation. Words can also be your damnation.” (Matthew 12:34-37).

But I have to go ahead of what Jesus says in Matthew 5:22. “You’re familiar with the command to the ancients, ‘Do not murder.’ I’m telling you that anyone who is so much as angry with a brother or sister is guilty of murder. Carelessly call a brother ‘idiot!’ and you just might find yourself hauled into court. Thoughtlessly yell ‘stupid!’ at a sister and you are on the brink of hellfire. The simple moral fact is that words kill.” I was stuck dumb after reading that. Yes, I’ve read it in other translations of the Bible, but to see it put so bluntly—I was struck with God’s two-by-four. “Are you listening to me? Really listening?”

This…thing…I mentioned is so contrary to what God’s will is… so contrary to what Christians believe…so contrary to what I believe, that I find it difficult to even cope with it mentally. I have spent hours and hours and days and weeks trying to figure out what is going on. How can a heart to proactive in seeking God be torn down by something like sin? How could sin reign so strongly and persistently in a heart so wholly surrendered to God? “Are you listening to me? Really listening?” I don’t know, God. I don’t know if I’m really listening or not. I think that’s you, but I’m not sure. Living this way is hard. I won’t deny it anymore if anyone asks, but I won’t go around spouting it off. “When you practice some appetite-denying discipline to better concentrate on God, don’t make a production out of it. It might turn you into a small time celebrity, but it won’t make you a saint. If you ‘go into training’ inwardly, act normal outwardly…God doesn’t require attention-getting devices. He won’t overlook what you are doing; he’ll reward you well.” (Matthew 6:16-18). God provides beauty to the wildflowers. Don’t you think he will do the same for you? (paraphrase Matthew 6:25-33). “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” (Matthew 6:34).

“When Jesus concluded his address, the crowd burst into applause. They had never heard teaching like this. It was apparent that he was living everything he was saying—quite a contrast to their religious teachers! This was the best teaching they had ever heard.” (Matthew 7:28-29). This was the best teaching I had ever heard! “Are you listening to me? Really listening?” Reading Jesus’ sermon on the mount in The Message was either the first or second most comforting thing I had felt in a long time. The other most comforting thing was when my friend and I had a long discussion the same night that I read that passage. My aching heart was filled with joy. “Are you tired?” Yes. “Worn out?” Yes! “Burned out on religion? Heavens, yes! “Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28-30). “Are you listening to me? Really listening?” (Matthew 11:15, Matthew 13:9, Matthew 13:34, Mark 4:9, Mark 4:23, Luke 8:8, Luke 14:34).

Close Reading: The Transfiguration

2013-10-31T00:10:00.001-04:00

[This paper was written for the Synoptic Gospels class at Capital University, where I am seeking a minor degree in religion.]

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 330

October 28, 2013

The Transfiguration

All three synoptic gospels have the account of Jesus’ transfiguration in them. The Transfiguration was the point where Jesus literally “transformed” his image in front of Peter, John, and James. For this analysis, I am using The Living Bible translation. Later on in the paper, I will perform what Thomas Jefferson did and clip all three gospels apart, and put them together in the order I think would work the best as telling the story of the Transfiguration.

When I read the Living Bible translation of the Transfiguration in Matthew, I couldn’t help but see how simplified the wording was. As someone who is not a fan of “scholarly jargon,” and as someone who generally isn’t a fan of the King James Version of the Bible, I felt this very simple, easy to understand version was refreshing. The wording was quite clear as to what was being said. For example, in Matthew, Jesus took Peter and John atop a “high and lonely hill.” One could assume that this means a mountain (which Matthew does mention later on in the story). Jesus’ face “shone like the sun,” and became “dazzling white.” These very simple terms are great image-makers. In Mark’s account of the Transfiguration, we see that Jesus’ face began to “shine with glory,” and his clothing became like “dazzling whites, far more glorious than any earthly process could ever make…!” According to Luke, Jesus’ face again shone to the disciples, and his clothes were “dazzling white and blazed with light.” Since the English texts in all three gospels are the same when referring to “dazzling white,” I can only imagine that all three gospel writers used the same Greek words there. Since I don’t know Greek, I’m going to assume this is the case.

The two or three disciples saw Moses and Elijah standing with Jesus. In the gospel of Matthew, Moses, Elijah, and Jesus were all talking together. In Mark, all three were talking together. And in Luke’s account, Moses and Elijah, who were “splendid in appearance” and “glorious to see,” were speaking of the ultimate death of Jesus in Jerusalem.

When Peter had seen the three talking, he couldn’t help but “blurt out” about building three tents for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. It was only in Luke that we learn that the three disciples fell asleep while Jesus, Moses, and Elijah was talking. We learn that when Moses and Elijah started to leave, Peter (who I assume had woken up at some point) “blurted out” that he would build the three tents. Interestingly in Mark, the translators of this version interrupted what Peter was saying by putting four periods in a row to indicate an interruption. “’We will make three shelters here, one for each of you….’ He said this just to be talking, for he didn’t know what else to say and they were all terribly frightened.” I thought the wording on that last sentence was a little awkward.

As Peter was saying these things, God sent in a large cloud rolled in and swallowed up Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. He did this, I think, to show to Peter that it was only Jesus who really mattered, as he was about to die for Peter’s sins. Matthew describes this cloud as a “bright” cloud. Mark said the cloud “blotted out the sun.” (I couldn’t help but laugh at the play on the word “sun” and “son,” as if not only did the cloud blot out the sun, it also blotted out the Son for a moment).

God spoke to the disciples, who according to Luke, were “gripped with terror.” Luke writes these words of God, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him.” Mark writes the exact same thing. Matthew, on the other hand, writes, “This is my beloved Son, and I am wonderfully pleased with him. Obey him.”

The Transfiguration

Six days [after Jesus told Peter to get behind him], he took Peter, James, and James’ brother John up on top of a high and lonely hill. As they watched, his appearance changed so that his face shone like the sun with glory. His clothes became dazzling white, which blazed far more glorious than any earthly process could ever make.

Peter, James, and John grew drowsy and fell asleep. When they woke up, they saw Jesus standing there, talking with Moses and Elijah about Jesus’ imminent death in Jerusalem, which was to be carried out according to God’s plan. As Elijah and Moses were starting to leave, Peter blurted out, “Teacher! Master! This is wonderful that we can be here! We will build three shelters, one for each of you...”

But as he was saying this, a large, bright cloud blotted out the sun, and covered Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. And the three disciples heard God’s voice say, “This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him. Obey him.”

At this the disciples fell face downward to the ground, terribly frightened. Jesus came over and touched them. “Get up,” he said, “don’t be afraid.”

As the voice died away, Jesus was there alone with his disciples. They didn’t tell anyone what they had seen until long afterwards.

From The Book of Psalms: What I Sometimes Feel

2013-10-26T02:25:00.004-04:00

From the book of Psalms:

Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer. (4:1)

Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. (5:2)

Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am faint; O Lord, heal me, for my bones are in agony. (6:2

O Lord, my God, if I have done this and there is guilt on my hands-if I have done evil to him who is at peace with me or without cause have robbed my foe -- then let my enemy pursue me and overtake me; let him trample my life to the ground and make me sleep in the dust. (7:3-5)

Why, O Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? (10:1)

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face form me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? (13:1-2)

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (22:1)

Rescue me from the mouth of th lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen. (22:21)

Look upon my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins. (25:18)

Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorry, my soul and body with grief. My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning. My strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak. (31:9)

For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side; they conspire against me, and plot to take my life. (31:13)

O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger and discipline me in your wrath. For your arrows have pierced me, and your hand has come down upon me. Because of your wrath there is no health in my body; my bones have no soundness because of my sin. My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly. I am bowed down and brought very low; all day long I go about mourning. My back is filled with searing pain; there is no health in my body. I am feeble and utterly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart. (38:1-8)

For troubles without number surround me, my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me. Be please, O Lord, to save me; O Lord, come quickly to help me. (40:12:13)

LIsten to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; hear me and answer my. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught. (55-1-2)

Rescue me from the mire, do not let me sink; deliver me from those who hate me, from the deep waters. (69-14)

I am in pain and distress; may your salvation, O God, protect me. (69-29)

Deliver me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of evil and cruel men. (71-4)

Do not cast me away when I am old; do not forsake me when my strength is gone. For my enemies speak against me; those who wait to kill me conspire together. They say, "God has forsaken him; pursue him and seize him, for no one will rescue him." Be not far from me, O God; come quickly, O my God, to help me. May my accusers perish in shame; may those who want to harm me be covered with scorn and disgrace. (71:9-13)

Hear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy-Guard my life, for I am devoted to you. You are my God; Save your servant who trusts in you. Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I call to you all day long. Bring joy to your servant, for to you, o Lord, I lift up my soul. (86-1-4)

Why, O Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me? From my youth I have been afflicted and close to death; I have suffered your terrors and am in despair. Your wrath has swept over me; your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood, they have completely engulfed me. you have taken my companions and loved ones from me; the darkness is my closest friend. (88:14-18)

Hear my prayer, O Lord; let my cry for help come to you. Do not hide your face from me when I am in distress. Turn your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly. For you days vanish like smoke; my bonds burn like glowing embers. My heart is blighted and withered like grass; I forget to eat my food. Because of my loud groaning I am reduced to skin and bones. I am like desert owl, like an owl among the ruins. I lie awake; I have become like a bird alone on a roof. All day long my enemies taunt me; those who rail against me use my name as a curse. For I eat ashes as my food and mingle my drink with tears because of your great wrath, for you have taken me up and thrown me aside. My days are like the evening shadow; I wither away like grass. (102:1-11)

But you, O sovereign Lord, deal well with me for your name's sake; out of the goodness of your love, deliver me. For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me. I fade away like an evening shadow; I am shaken off like a locust. My knees give way from fasting; my body is thin and gaunt. I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they shake their heads. help me, O Lord, my God; save me in accordance with your love. (109:21-26)

My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word. Keep me from deceitful ways; be gracious to me through your law. (119:28-29)

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. (130:1)

O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to me. Hear my voice when I call to you. (141:1)

Reading Log #2

2013-10-16T12:01:00.001-04:00

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 330

October 14, 2013

Reading Log #2

I decided that since I was reading the synoptic gospels in the King James Version of the Bible, I wasn’t going to focus on reading the gospels as a specific implied reader, or even focus on specific aspects. (I will not refer to this version as the Authorized Version, to avoid confusing who authorized it, since no records exist as to who actually authorized it.) Instead, I was going to focus on what I think the Lord has told me to pay attention to (what I would highlight or underline). I read all through Matthew, Mark, and Luke. For some reason, I caught more out of Matthew than I did for Mark and Luke. I guess since all three gospels have similar arrangements, the things that caught my attention in Matthew probably would have caught my attention in Mark or Luke, had I started with Mark or Luke.

Reading the King James Version was a unique experience. I have a copy that I found in the Kerns Religious Life Center at Capital University that someone must have donated, and was forgotten about. It’s a giant edition with “red-lettering,” meaning the words that Jesus spoke were printed in red letters. I first noticed how some of the names have pronunciation markings. For example Rahab has turned into Rā’-chãb. I also noticed how there are no quotation marks in this version of the the Bible. It is also written in bullet point form. Take Matthew 2:2 for example:

¹Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

²Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

(From this point on, all quotation marks are added by me.) I also find it interesting that after certain questions, the next word is not capitalized. I’m not used to that as I was always taught in school to capitalize the first letter after every sentence. I have always believed that question marks are full stops in sentences, much like periods. Commas and semi-colons are not terminal punctuation. So why did the translator decide that a question mark was not a full stop punctuation mark? I’m not finding answers to that question.

I also noticed something that is missing in the KJV. There are no section headings. Instead, the publishers decided to use this symbol ¶, which is the symbol for “start new paragraph” when editing a document. Because there are no section headings, I seemed to be reading each gospel as one smooth, coherent story, instead of several chunks of little stories pasted together, which is what I (unfortunately) tend to do with other translations. However, I would like to see the section headings, as they help me in remembering what part of the gospel I’m in.

There are certain words that are italicized, and after looking up why certain words are italicized, it makes sense: These italicized words were not in the original Greek manuscripts, and were added later by the translators for clarification purposes. Here’s an example from Matthew 5:3: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Now that we’ve gone through some of the “housekeeping” of the King James Version, I want to go through and look at what the Bible is saying. I would like to start with Matthew 5:45, which is during the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus says, “[⁴⁴But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you…]⁴⁵That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” This struck me. This verse is saying that God, who is almighty and powerful, created the sun, and the sun rises and sets on everyone, no matter how “good” that person is or how “bad” that person is. God, who is almighty and powerful, created the rain, and the rain falls on everyone, no matter how good or how bad.

I was shocked by what I read in Matthew 7:27, not because of what it says, but because half of the verse is completely missing! It’s been stylized like this:

I did not mistakenly cut part of that verse out. It is literally missing in my copy of the King James Version. My version is in two columns. Verse 27 is at the very bottom of the left column, and verse 28 is at the very top of the right column. Verse 27 ends after the word “winds” in the bottom left column, and I assume was suppose to continue at the top of the right column. However, there is a blank space at the top of the right column, like the verse was suppose to continue there, but was mistakenly left out by the printers. How something like this could get past the editors, I don’t know.

In my attempt at trying to put emotion into a rather emotionless translation of the Bible, I caught myself reading the words of Jesus as being satirical. Matthew 9:12-13 says,

¹²But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.

¹³But go ye and learn what that meaneth...

I can’t help but laugh at how the italicized “that” was placed. I can see Jesus putting his hand on his hip, and giving some sass when saying, “Go and learn what THAT means!”

Because I’m no expert in Middle English, I find it intriguing that some of the grammar can change the meaning of a sentence. For instance, take Matthew 10:4, “Simon, the Cã’-nã-ãn-īte, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.” I’m interested in the word “also.” The way this is worded says that Judas Iscariot “also” betrayed Jesus, as in someone else betrayed Jesus before Judas. I find no evidence of this in the rest of the gospel of Matthew.

Right now, I’m going through a difficult time with school, work, and relationships. I have recently had to set new boundaries for myself as I have fallen into some situations in life that I’d rather not be in. I have had a hard time finding comfort in the words of the Bible, except one verse. Jesus says in Matthew 11:28 says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

In Matthew 12:39-41, I find that Jesus is comparing his imminent death with Jonah being in the belly of the fish. It says, “⁴⁰For as Jonas [Jonah] was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. ⁴¹The men of Nin’-e-vēh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it; because they repented at the preaching of Jonas…,” This is important, “…and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.” Here, Jesus is saying that if the people of Nineveh repented because of the preaching of Jonah, then the people of Jesus’ time should definitely repent, because Jesus is someone who is greater than Jonah.

The stories of the feeding of the five thousand and four thousand have always intrigued me. I noticed that in the King James Version, the author of Matthew wrote about the number of men, besides women and children. “And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.” (Matthew 14:21). The key word here is “besides.” To me, this means that there were five thousand men, plus any number of women and children that were not included in the count of the five thousand. Let’s simplify things, and say that every one of the five thousand men had one wife. That means there were five thousand women as well. Now, let’s say that each man/woman pair had three children. That means there could have been fifteen thousand children there. Now, let’s add the five thousand men, five thousand women, and fifteen thousand children. We get a total of twenty-five thousand people being fed by five loaves of bread and two fish. Now, add in the twelve disciples and Jesus, and we get twenty-five thousand and thirteen people being feed.

Jesus did this twice! We go to chapter fifteen’s account of the feeding of the four thousand. We do the same math, and we get four thousand men, four thousand women, and twelve thousand kids. That’s a total of twenty thousand and thirteen people. Suppose none of the people from chapter fourteen’s account has been fed in chapter fifteen’s account, except the disciples. That means, if my math is correct, there have been a total of forty-five thousand and thirteen people being fed by a few loaves of fish and bread at two separate instances. Of course there are many variables such as widows, single people, childless couples, et cetera, but I think you get my drift. Matthew was the only gospel to mention that five thousand men, besides women and children were fed. Luke’s gospel doesn’t say that only men were counted. “For they were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, Make them sit down by fifties in a company.” (Luke 9:14).

When I read Matthew 16:1, (“The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven.”) I was instantly reminded about Satan tempting Jesus back in chapter four. (“Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”) There are times in the gospels that I think the word “tempt” is inappropriate. For example, let’s take Luke 4:12. Again, Jesus was being taken into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. It says, “And Jesus answered unto him, saying, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” Again, I’m not an expert in Middle English, so word choices and grammar uses can confuse me. I think the word “tempt” as a negative form of “test.” “To tempt,” seems like trying to get someone to do something negative, and not simply a “test.” I understand that “tempt” means “test,” but I just get a negative connotation from “tempt.” It makes more sense to say, “I’m tempted to eat this whole bucket of ice cream.” That would be doing something negative.

Matthew 28:11-15 is also interesting. Matthew includes in his gospel how the chief priests paid the soldiers to tell the people that Jesus’ body was stolen from the grave, and his disciples simply claimed that he had risen when in fact he did not. Matthew is the only gospel to mention this, and, from what I understand, nothing really came about that. I haven’t heard any preaching on those few verses. This shows me that the chief priests failed to keep the truth from getting out.

As we move into Mark, the shortest of the three synoptic gospels, the numbers of things that jump out at me are dwindling. If Mark were a storyteller, why would he give away the fact that Judas was Jesus’ betrayer at the very beginning of the gospel (Chapter 3)? To me, a good storyteller would keep this a secret until the very end, where, surprisingly, the truth is revealed in a dramatic way. “Oh no! We never expected that person to be the betrayer!”

Mark hits home when he writes these words of Jesus in 3:26: “²⁶And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.” I am currently very divided on some issues in my life, and they have taken a toll on me personally. While I don’t want to divulge in these issues through an essay, I do want to mention that Jesus’ words in Mark 4:39 are very comforting. Jesus simply says to the storm, “Peace, be still.” He asks his disciples as to why they have no faith. I have noticed that all three gospels say that after someone touches Jesus, that person has been healed, not because of their actual touching, but because of their faith. Take Mark 5:34 for example. After Jesus felt his “virtue” had gone out of him, he said to the woman who touched him, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of they plague.” This sentiment is emphasized just a few verses later in Mark 5:36. Jesus again says this in Mark 10:52, Luke 5:50, Luke 8:48, Luke 17:19, and Luke 18:42.

The story of Jesus driving the demon out of the man into the pigs always gives me a chuckle because I find the irony in the story. In Leviticus 11:29-31, Moses writes that pigs are to be considered unclean animals. When Jesus drives the unclean spirit out of the man into the unclean swine, I guess you can call these crazy swine “super-unclean.”

My favorite prayer of all time is a very simple one. “Help!” I was reminded of this when reading Mark 9:22, 24. It says, “²²And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us…²⁴And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” “Help.”

I really love it when I find things in the Bible that I have never seen before. It goes to show much time and effort the writers of the gospels have put into them. I’m sure that you are still discovering things in the Bible. When I come across something like the young man in Mark 14:51-52, I get very interested and go online and search as much as I can about it. People online have said that this young man may be Mark putting his signature into the story. Others have said this young man is the same young man that is seen at Jesus’ empty tomb in chapter 16. It just goes to show that there are many caverns and little details in the Bible that can catch one’s eye. The next time I do a reading log, however, I think I may work backwards from Luke, just to see what I can find in Luke that I haven’t already seen in Matthew and Mark.

Social Networking Pastors

2013-10-12T17:48:00.002-04:00

[This paper was written for the Ministry in Congregations class at Capital University, where I am seeking a minor degree in religion.]

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 180

October 10, 2013

Social Networking Pastors

I’m slightly disturbed that there is a closed group on Facebook called ELCA Clergy: Uncensored. You can see a screenshot (censored, of course) on another page. You can see that it has nearly 700 clergy on it. When you type “ELCA” into the search bar on Facebook, the ELCA Clergy: Uncensored page is the third on the list in numbers. I’m not a disgruntled ELCA clergy, so I’m not allowed on the page. I can’t help but imagine the hate that is on that page.

The description reads, “The idea is that you will not be censored here. Talk about what you want. You're CLERGY, for Pete's sake. Not small children who have to be supervised in a ‘sandbox.’” What does “uncensored” mean in this context? Do the clergy here post vulgar, malicious things about the ELCA, or do they talk civilly and prayerfully discuss what is going on? To me, the description suggests the page is full of the former.

I decided that I was going to look up some of the worst things that pastors have posted on the Internet. On the website, Reddit, this image was posted. This image is so hard to comprehend. Why would there be a child tied up with duct tape and cling wrap with a smiling man behind him? What makes this worse is that this was a youth group meeting. It’s kind of creepy.

In Sweden, a pastor got into some hot water after posting a picture of himself on Facebook with a shirt that referenced a Swedish pornography production company. A complaint was written to the Stockholm Diocese of the Church of Sweden in 2010. To make matters worse for the pastor, he posted this as the picture caption: "Every year I go to Taizé in France with teenagers from my parish." Punishment for such offense could have resulted in banishment from giving sermons, a written warning, or being placed on probation.[1]

Pastor Chad Holtz, a former United Methodist Church pastor, was fired from his position after he posted on Facebook about how he supported Pastor Rob Bell’s view on hell not existing in Bell’s book, Love Wins. Holtz later said he meant the post to be an opportunity for his congregation to discuss the existence of hell, but instead became “the last straw.” [2]

This next story is confusing for me. Recently in New York, a gang of motorcyclists attacked an SUV. The driver of the SUV, Alexian Lien, was being attacked by the gang of bikers, and tried to get away. In the process, Lien ran over several of the bikers, including Jeremiah Mieses, the son of Rev. Edwin E. Mieses. Lien ran over both of Jeremiah’s legs, breaking them. The Rev. Mieses posted this on Facebook. “My son is out of surgery thank God now comes dealing with him not able to walk again. However, I want to thank everyone for their [sic] prayers and support. I know in whom I have put my trust and my God is a God of miracles. His will be done.” This outraged many people. One person wrote on Rev. Mieses’ church’s page, “Your comments implicitly supporting the vicious attack on a family by your biker thug son bring disgrace to God and the whole body of Christ. For shame.” One can see how this situation is very unfortunate, and how people can be torn on whether Rev. Mieses’ posting was suppose to be helpful or hurtful. Rev. Mieses’ posting could be taken as supporting the biker gang, and not having compassion for the other family. I don’t think this was Rev. Mieses’ intent. I think this is someone whose son was horrifically injured as a result of his own actions. However, I do think Rev. Mieses should have asked for prayers for the driver of the SUV as well, if he felt compelled to write something about it. I would have preferred Rev. Mieses to not write anything about it at all.[3]

In one of the readings for today, a commenter on Adam Copeland’s blog post, “Facebook rules for pastors,” wrote this, “I do, I think, use a mental filter when posting to [Facebook], but I think it’s not just for the sake of parishioners who have friended me; I don’t really want to offend personal friends and family either.” I believe all of us must exercise caution when we post things on the Internet. Whether or not we think we have the best privacy settings, there are always ways to see what we have posted. Once it’s on the Internet, there’s no way of taking it off. Pastor John Piper, retired from Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minnesota, offered two highly insensitive tweets after the devastating Oklahoma City tornados this year.

"Your sons and daughters were eating and a great wind struck the house, and it fell upon them, and they are dead." Job 1:19

“Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped." Job 1:20

Pastor Piper has deleted these tweets from his Twitter account, but the legacy still lives on in the form of text on the Internet.[4]

These stories have me thinking: What would happen if all pastors were banned from social media? To be more specific to my own personal life, my pastor posts inspiring things on our church’s Facebook page. What if that page didn’t exist? That page didn’t exist for nearly 158 years. What will another 158 years without the page matter? First of all, many of the weekly devotions are posted on that page. The lay people ask the pastor questions on the page, and offer opportunities for other members of the congregation to answer the questions. There are plenty of pictures on that page of youth group meetings and other ministries.

[1] http://www.thelocal.se/30842/20101214/

[2] http://www.churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-articles/149821-pastor-fired-over-hell-debate.html

[3] http://www.joy105.com/a-pastor-was-attacked-by-social-media-when-he-shared-his-son-was-ran-over-by-the-driver-in-biker-ny-brawl/

[4]http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2013/05/john_piper_former_mpls_megachurch_pastor_deletes_insensitive_tweets_about_okc_tornado.php

Reading Log 1

2013-10-12T17:39:00.000-04:00

[This paper was written for the Synoptic Gospels class at Capital University, where I am currently seeking a minor degree in religion.]

Jesse Harmon

RELIG 330

September 16, 2013

Reading Log #1: Styles

I’ve noticed the writing styles of the three synoptic gospels are very different from each other. I’ve seen Matthew as being a persuasive letter to the Jewish people. Mark always seemed like a news article, while Luke was an informal informational letter. I will be exploring why I think each Gospel has these tendencies by looking at the scripture, not as a bits and pieces, but as a whole. I will be using the New International Version of the Bible for this experiment. It would be interesting to compare word-for-word and thought-for-thought versions of the Bible.

Matthew started off his gospel with a genealogy of Jesus. This, to me, gives Matthew credibility. Someone who goes through the time to research, recall, and write down Jesus’ many ancestors should be considered credible in my eyes. What better researcher than someone who knows the most, if not all, of the paternal genealogy of someone?

Matthew stated several times that Jesus came to fulfill the scriptures, with those from Isaiah catching my eye. For this reading experiment, I tried concentrating on when these took place in the gospel. The first time Matthew mentioned Jesus fulfilling the scripture is in 1:22. “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet…” Matthew cited his sources. Although not quite like today’s MLA or APA formats, he still cited them, like he did in 13:14 when Jesus was speaking about the parable of the sower. Jesus is explaining why he uses parables, “This is why I speak in parables: Though seeing, they do not see; through hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be…’”

Jesus addressed this directly in 5:17-7:29. Jesus first mentioned that he came to fulfill the law when he said this in the Murder section in verse 21, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago…” Jesus passively stated that what he is about to say came from Exodus. He then stated it again just a few verses later in verse 27, “You have heard that it was said…” Once again, he said it in verse 31: “It has been said…” Jesus says this again in verse 38: “You have heard that it was said…”

A blind man even addressed Jesus as the Son of David in 9:27: “As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, ‘Have mercy on us, Son of David!’” As if Jesus didn’t have enough credibility already, Matthew left this short clause in the verse.

A man with authority even asked Jesus for help in a sincere way. In 8:5-11, a centurion, a professional officer in the Roman army, came to ask Jesus for help. Jesus states to the centurion that he is the most faithful person he’s seen in Israel. Matthew probably included this to show that even though as a man of civil authority, the centurion in no way had more earthly or heavenly authority than Jesus did.

Matthew’s gospel is very concise and organized, much like a tax collector or someone who works in the financial industry must be. Without being organized, a banker (or tax collector) would possibly lose money. Lots of time and research were put into Matthew’s gospel. I believe every fact that was presented in the gospel was thoroughly researched and presented in a way that would attract and convince a reader. Not once did I question the credibility of Matthew’s gospel, since he consistently backed up what Jesus said with Old Testament law.

I counted about fifty-three references to the Old Testament in Matthew, and I’m sure there are a lot more that I didn’t notice. When looking at the gospel of Mark, however, I saw a pattern unrelated to Old Testament references. I noticed how quickly Mark got to the most important stuff in Jesus’ life. The pace at which Mark transitioned stories at the beginning of his gospel tells me that he wanted to get things done quickly with no horsing around. I noticed several “scene changes” within the first few chapters of Mark. The first scene change I noticed was from 1:8 and 1:9. The next change happened at 1:14. The next was at 1:23. In fact, Mark writes a whole story within four verses (1:23-27). Verses 29-31 include an even shorter story.

Here is a list of scene changes all within three chapters: 2:13, 2:15, 2:18, 2:23, 3:1, 3:7, 3:13, 3:20, 4:1, and so on. By the time we hit chapter 4, the pace has slowed down immensely. It tells me that, although Mark found this previous stuff important, the stuff after chapter 4 is even more important, and worth the slowing down of the storyline. After chapter 4, I didn’t notice the scenes change as quickly. Mark wanted to get the information out, and he wanted to get it out FAST.

Mark’s gospel, to me, is easy to read, but it’s also easy to make a mistake and miss something. One of these things I missed reading Mark were two short verses in chapter 14. Mark wrote in 14:51-52 after Jesus’ arrest, “A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.” I never caught this when reading Mark until I read it for this reading log. I was blindsided by how little information Mark gave us on this young man. If Mark felt compelled to write about this young man fleeing, why didn’t he put more information about him? Why did Mark even include such a seemingly insignificant aspect of Jesus’ story? It could have been just as easy for Mark to write, “Jesus was arrested, and then a young man fled the scene.” Then I realized that this is probably another example of Mark’s simple, quick style of writing. I mentioned earlier about Mark’s speedy pace when it comes to writing, and this was the perfect example. He must have somehow felt compelled to write about this man in just a few short verses, nothing more, and nothing less. This young man must be important to Jesus’ story somehow. I don’t have the answer to it, though.

Luke’s gospel stretches his stories considerably, compared to Mark. This gospel reads like an informational letter, (which he clearly stated in 1:1-4 to his friend Theophilus). For example, Luke’s account of Jesus’ temptation is thirteen verses long, compared to Matthew’s account (eleven verses), and Mark’s (two verses).

I found a humorous line in 4:30. The people were mad at Jesus, and were planning on taking him and throwing him off a cliff. 4:30 simply says that Jesus, “…walked right through the crowd and went on his way,” as if it were absolutely nothing. This tells me that Luke wrote this not as a textbook, but as an informal, yet informational, letter, with a little humor thrown in for good measure.

I did notice something seemingly insignificant in the very first verse of the gospel. Luke writes, “Many have undertaken…” with keyword here being many. How many is “many?” Luke’s use of the word “many” tells me that more than one person has written about Jesus’ life. Of course, we have access to four highly printed and highly regarded works that tell the story of Jesus. There are others out there, but the four that are found in today’s Bible are definitive. I couldn’t seem to get this fact out of my head as I was reading the gospel of Luke, and I kept questioning, “What did the other writers say about this?” “Did a gnostic gospel mention this?” I also found it interesting that Luke wrote about the time before Jesus was born, like when the angel appeared to Mary and Joseph to announce the birth to a virgin, and when the angel appeared to announce the birth of John the Baptist. The other two synoptic gospels don’t have this much detail of an account in their story of Jesus.

After reading each of the synoptic gospels, I have made plans to go through them again and look for different aspects including how each gospel portrayed Jesus (man, divine, servant, friend, brother, etc.) as well as how each gospel portrays other characters, like Judas.

The Feeding of the 45,026

2013-10-12T17:21:00.003-04:00

I love it when things in the Bible suddenly stand out to me that I hadn't noticed before.

Today while reading the KJV of Matthew's account of Jesus feeding the five thousand, something stood out to me. It says, "And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children."

Notice, "besides women and children." This is what got me.

Now let's say each man had one wife and three kids.
1 man
1 wife
3 kids

Take all this, and multiply it by 5000 (the number of men).

We get...

5,000 men
5,000 women
15,000 kids.

Add all these up, and we get...(drumroll please)....25,000 people. Now, add in the 12 disciples and Jesus. 25,013 people fed.

Now, let's do the same for chapter 15's feeding of the 4000 men.

4,000 men
4,000 women
12,000 kids

We get a total of 20,000 people being fed. Now add the 12 disciples and Jesus. 20,013.

Add both chapter 14 and chapter 15's numbers together. Let's say that no person has been fed in both occasions, except the disciples and Jesus. We get, 45,026 people being fed.

So why do we say "the feeding of the 5,000" instead of the "feeding of the 37,000?"

Peace, Peace, There Is No Peace

2013-09-11T11:41:00.002-04:00

I still applaud Mrs. Cook-Porter and Mrs. Ogle for being so calm on this day 12 years ago. We all watched the Today Show on the old Zenith television set in the blue classroom near the door at Enterprise Elementary. I remember drawing a picture of what I was seeing on the back of my homework (that picture is now lost).

I've seen those images many times since then, but they will still be as shocking to me as they were 12 years ago.

Today during Chapel at Capital University, Dr. Hasseler and the Chapel Choir sang an old Shaker Hymn that goes,

"O Holy Father I will be
A child of peace and purity
For well I know Thy hand will bless
The seeker after righteousness."

This was one of today's readings at Chapel. Jeremiah 6:10-14.

To whom can I speak and give warning?
    Who will listen to me?
Their ears are closed^[a]
    so they cannot hear.
The word of the Lord is offensive to them;
    they find no pleasure in it.
But I am full of the wrath of the Lord,
    and I cannot hold it in.

“Pour it out on the children in the street
    and on the young men gathered together;
both husband and wife will be caught in it,
    and the old, those weighed down with years.
Their houses will be turned over to others,
    together with their fields and their wives,
when I stretch out my hand
    against those who live in the land,”
declares the Lord.
“From the least to the greatest,
    all are greedy for gain;
prophets and priests alike,
    all practice deceit.
They dress the wound of my people
    as though it were not serious.
‘Peace, peace,’ they say,
    when there is no peace

Here's the church. Here's the steeple. Open the doors, and....

2013-06-03T01:05:00.000-04:00

....see all the bickering, fighting, name-calling, war-mongering, and general chaos that is St. Matthew Lutheran Church, located in downtown Logan, Ohio, USA.

Can you imagine what it must be like to be part of a church that has members slaying the beliefs of other members? Former members accusing current members of thinking God is more pleased with the members who go to church regularly....God it irritates the hell out of me!!!!

Never in my life would I think St. Matthew Lutheran Church would have to go through so much turmoil to leave our Lutheran denomination, and join another Lutheran denomination. The first vote came around in August of 2010. During that time, only a few members left the church when the congregation decided to remain with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Fast-forward to May 19th, 2013, another vote came around on whether St. Matthew should leave the ELCA, and join the North American Lutheran Church (NALC).

The NALC is a theologically central Lutheran church, with a congregationally focused attitude, compared to the ELCA's top-down approach. Yeah, the NALC sounds like a much better choice to me too! However, some members have come to the conclusion that this is Pastor Mark Daniels' doing, and that this whole debacle is nothing but his jabbing at the ELCA for not funding his former mission congregation in Cincinnati. This is completely not true. For these last two votes, it was members of the congregation who have initiated the process to leave the ELCA, and not Pastor Mark.

The screaming matches that have occurred during the more than ten informational sessions have gotten us nowhere but hurt, anger, and, for me, confusion and bewilderment. How can God-loving, God-fearing, faithful people act in such a way that undermines nearly 160 years of Lutheran heritage in the Logan community? Never in the church's history has something like this happened. Well, several people (even within my own family!) have blamed this mess on Pastor Mark, saying, "He's brought nothing but trouble to this congregation." To that I say, "Pastor Mark has been able to visit more shut-ins than the past two pastors combined. Pastor Mark has increased attendance to the church consistently for six years now. Pastor Mark has people attending our church from Columbus, Lancaster, Nelsonville, Athens, and other areas, where there are plenty of ELCA congregations. They chose St. Matthew Lutheran Church for a reason. They could have simply gone to Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in Athens, Ohio, or Lutheran Church of Our Savior in Lancaster, Ohio, or Redeemer Lutheran Church in Columbus, Ohio, and many more. But they instead to come to St. Matthew Lutheran Church, in the middle of podunk hollow. What does that tell you? To me, it shows that we have a pastor who has a backbone and is willing to share the Gospel with lost souls. I know he's saved my life. Just before he came, I was a tangled mess. I wasn't going to church, and I was in a seriously depressed state. He gave me a challenge: Go to church for six Sundays. I dare you to miss the seventh. Let's just stay that I have been so involved with the congregation, I'm currently the head sound engineer and radio broadcast engineer for the church (we broadcast weekly on 98.3 SAM FM at 10:15 Sunday mornings).

I don't want the oldest running radio program in the state of Ohio to be cancelled. I don't want the second oldest Lutheran congregation in Hocking County to dissolve. But from the looks of things, this is a real possibility.

Bloodstained glass windows deter visitors. I don't know about you, but when I see people talking smack about the pastor during the sharing of the peace, I can't help but wonder what visitors are thinking. I usually shake visitor's hands first during the sharing of the peace, and welcome them to the congregation. But I can't imagine what they are thinking when they hear our own members saying things like "The pastor has created this mess."

A 2/3 super majority is required to leave the ELCA. A large number of people who voted to remain with the ELCA are people who only come to church on Easter and Christmas. This freaking irritates me. The number of people who voted to leave the ELCA and join the NALC is staggering, and these people have been on-going members who attend every single week, and not just twice a year. Yes, I do realize that you are a member, and I do realize that you may be doing things on Sunday mornings that require you to be away from the congregation. But please, try to be there more involved with the church. There are two opportunities of worship on Sunday mornings (8:30 chapel service, and 10:15 sanctuary service). There are two Bible-study opportunities on Wednesdays (11:00am, and 7:00pm). There are summer kindness outreaches, where we hand bottles of water or Coca-Cola to drivers stopped at the red light at the intersection of Hunter Street and Zanesville Avenue. Do these "twice a year attendees" go to any of these amazing opportunities? No. That's all I'm going to say.
Maybe some branches of Christianity do some things right, and some things wrong. But this is absolutely no excuse to recreate the Thirty Years' War. As one member put it on the church Facebook page, "Instead of all of the bashing, I wish that they would be that vocal in spreading God’s word, if they did, our church would be filled to the rafters! Instead, they are confrontational on Facebook. Even saying “shame on you”, no, it is shame on all of us for not trusting a pastor to do his damn job! Let’s not tear our church apart."

I'm reminded of a line from that great Bruce Springsteen song, "Johnny 99" that goes, "Well your honor I do believe I'd be better off dead / if you can take a man's life for the thoughts that's in his head / Then sit back in that chair and think it over one more time / then shave off my head and put me on the killin' line."

St. Matthew To Remain With ELCA....At Least For Another 2 Week

2013-05-26T23:16:00.001-04:00

Last Sunday, the people of St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Logan, Ohio, spoke their voice when they voted down a measure to disaffiliate with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and join the North American Lutheran Church.

This has been the second time in two years that we've done so, with the measure failing both times.

Now, today before the service, the congregation president announced another vote in two weeks. This time, it is a measure to dual-affiliate with the ELCA and the NALC.

I was a pro-ELCA voter in 2010. I was a pro-NALC voter last week. Let's just say I'm NOT happy with this. This will be the third time we've dealt with this issue.

I expressed my concern on Twitter a few moments ago. Pastor Jonathan Conrad of Grace Lutheran Church in Thomasville, North Carolina corresponded with me. He said something that struck me hard. If the church is still fighting this issue, it has turned it into an idol and its ministry has been lost.

We shared some "have a good holiday" talk, and he offered to pray for me. (Thanks, Pastor Conrad).

I Decided To Go Ahead And Vote To Leave The ELCA

2013-05-20T00:55:00.000-04:00

After lots of prayers during church today, I decided to go ahead and vote. I realized that not voting because the church might dissolve is a pretty extreme circumstance that might happen. I don't think the St. Matthew will dissolve.

I was somewhat disappointed when I found the vote to leave the ELCA failed by one vote. I hate to see many of my church family leave. From what I've heard, about 40 families are going to leave St. Matthew Lutheran Church. That's a lot of people.

Where will I go from here? I don't know. I don't know if I'll leave St. Matthew. From what I'm expecting, I will only be around Logan for another year or so before I go out into the workplace (Nashville? New York City?) There are several NALC congregations in Columbus (Zion LC, Upper Arlington LC, St. John's ELC, Genesis Church, Christ Is Lord Ministries, Rehoboth Mekane Yesus, St. John LC, and Abundant Life Mission Fellowship). Maybe the North American Lutheran Church will start a mission congregation around here. If there are not NALC or Lutheran Congregations in Missions for Christ churches where I will be spending the rest of my life, I will go to an ELCA church (that being said, I won't say I will never attend a Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod church).

I still think the Affiliation Task Force (the group of individuals who researched and published the official document) blew the whole thing out of proportion. If we don't want to call a pastor who doesn't believe in the Virgin birth, we don't have to. I think several people on the task force believed that the ELCA would force upon us a pastor like this. This is not true. The CONGREGATION votes on whether to call a pastor.

However, how do we know that the number of pastors who don't follow scriptural authority won't increase? From the looks of things, this is happening at an alarming rate. I worry for the generations ahead of me and what they believe. As we lose older members of the church, the young ones will be taking the reigns of the place. Are they going to remember this whole ordeal? Are they going to recall the issues that were presented to the congregation? I don't want them to fall into the trap of thinking scripture isn't authoritative anymore because contemporary culture says so.

The main problem with the ELCA? The "Trickle Down" structure. Too much power has been given to the suits. The congregations have virtually no say in any matters. The NALC is congregationally focused. If something is going to change in the NALC, all of the congregations must vote on the issue. In the ELCA, the suits make all the decisions. I don't like that. I think it is important for the congregation to have a say in matters at hand.

I'm Hurt and Ashamed To Be A Lutheran

2013-05-12T23:22:00.003-04:00

I'm hurt and ashamed to be a Lutheran Christian today because of what I experienced today at St. Matthew Lutheran "Church." Never in a million years would I think someone at a church would tell another person, "You need to be quiet and learn to listen." I don't care if you've been a member for 55+ years. That is NOT the way to act in church. You do not disrespect other people by yelling at them to shut up and learn to listen. I asked everyone to please be respectful, and that did NOT happen.

This decision to leave the ELCA has been nothing but trouble. I don't care what side you're on. BOTH SIDES SHOULD BE ASHAMED. What I experienced today at "church" makes me want to leave no matter what.

This is why I will NOT be participating in the vote next week on whether St. Matthew Lutheran Church will leave the ELCA. I will NOT contribute to the downfall of a 161 year old institution.

Hymns and Christian Tradition Final Reflection

2013-04-28T22:33:00.002-04:00

[This paper was written for the Hymns and Christian Tradition class at Capital University, where I am seeking a minor degree in religion.]

Final Reflections

Before writing this paper, I was writing another reflection paper for the Music Business and Law class here at Capital University. The assignment was to write a short reflection on the class, and what my future goals were going to be. I wrote about how I used some of the components of the Music Business and Law class, as well as some aspects of this class, to compose two hymns, as well as register both with BMI and the United States Copyright office. One hymn was sung at my church, Saint Matthew Lutheran Church, in Logan, Ohio, while the Collegiate Chorale at Christ Lutheran Church in Bexley, Ohio, performed the other hymn. There’s nothing quite like having something you made be sung by 150 people at the same time.

The rest of the reflection paper for Music Business and Law dealt with what I would do once I graduate. I’ve been very torn lately. I stated that I came to Capital University with the intention of working full time in a recording studio. As I took classes, and gained more insight in the music industry, I realized that I was interested in a lot of things. I had gotten part time employment with two sound companies, I started my own freelance production company, I’ve been composing and writing more songs, and I’ve been writing more in general. I honestly don’t know why I’ve really gotten into writing as of late. Last year, during the Jesus Through The Ages class, I came to dread the writing assignments. I felt like I was able to say what I wanted to say in two paragraphs. Now, a year later, I find myself writing way more than is expected. Take the hymnology paper for example. I believe that paper had a 12-page minimum requirement. I blew way past that, and I didn’t even realize it. The 8-page research paper for the Music Technology Survey class turned into a massive 20-page booklet, single-spaced, with pictures and small margins. After realizing that I liked writing more than I thought, I’ve come to the conclusion that I would like to have writing involved in my job seeking process. In the Music Business and Law reflection paper, I stated that I could probably get several jobs in the music business at one time. I could work in an audiovisual preservation company during the daytime, at a recording studio at night, a live sound gig on the weekends, and compose whenever I get a chance. I’ve always been a hard worker, and I’ve always had a strong work ethic. I believe in giving the employer an honest day’s work for what he’s paying me. I think this is shown through my tendency to go way above and beyond the call of duty.

On January 9, 2013, I wrote the following for the Congregational Song paper for this class.

There were many times that I wonder, “Why am I doing this? What is the point in all this college crap?” I sometimes feel God say, “I understand. I know what you’re going through.” Then I remember the opening verse to this hymn,

“When I survey the wondrous cross

on which the prince of glory died,

my richest gain I count but loss,

and pour contempt on all my pride.”

Why do I stress about sissy stuff like college work, when God put his very own son to death?

I was obviously referring to “When I Survey The Wondrous Cross.” I was writing about how I sometimes felt alone and confused as to what I am suppose to do in life. I still get that feeling, even while writing the Music Business and Law paper. I worry that I won’t have enough connections in the music industry to secure a full-time job. I recently came across a hymn called “Day by Day, and With Each Passing Moment.” A.L. Skoog and Carolina Sandell wrote these lines that really struck me:

“Strength I find to meet my trials here…”

“Everyday the Lord Himself is near me, So to trust Thy promises…”

“Help me then, in every tribulation…”

“That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation…”

“Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting…”

“One by one, the days, the moments fleeting, Till with Christ the Lord I stand.” (“Day by Day”).

The most important thing I’ve learned in this class isn’t just old hymns; it’s about the community that can come as a result of music. There’s nothing like having 150 people stand in your home church and sing the same song that 150 people sang four hundred years ago halfway around the world. I find great joy in that connection with those people. I am reminded of the Garth Brooks concert in Central Park in 1997. When his band left the stage, he grabbed a guitar and sat on the edge of the stage. He sang the verses to “Unanswered Prayers,” while the audience of about 500,000 sang the chorus. “Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers / Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs / That just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care / Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.” There’s nothing quite like that. I get somewhat upset when I see churches install giant projector screens and hire praise bands. When this happens, the participating in community worship turns into a watching of a concert. The audience looks at the praise band and listens to them instead of listening to one another.

As I continue my struggle with depression and anxiety, I think about, “When I Survey The Wondrous Cross.” God put his own son to death to save me from my sin. That should have been you and me on that cross that day, but God loves us so much, he took flesh and was killed by the greatest thing he created –man. There is no greater love than that. I think of the last verse, “Were the whole realm of nature mine, / That were a present far too small; / Love so amazing, so divine, / Demands my soul, my life, my all.” At Sunday’s service at Christ Lutheran Church in Bexley, Ohio, (after the world premier of one of my songs) pastor Tim Iseringhausen’s sermon on Christ’s unending love for us struck me as important to this paper. The lesson was John 13:31-35, and was about Jesus giving his disciples a new commandment: “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” Pastor Iseringhausen then went on to tell how “smoke jumpers” were firefighters who would just out of airplanes with hundreds of pounds of gear on their backs, right in the middle of a burning forest. The smoke jumpers would fight the fire without any water or fire retardant, and instead rely on cutting down burning trees and digging ditches to keep the fire from spreading. These firefighters would go into these situations knowing that they might not ever come back out. They know their days might be limited, just as Jesus knew his days (and moments) were limited just before he was put to death. Pastor Iseringhausen proposed a question to the congregation: “How would you live your life if you knew the exact moment it would end?” (Iseringhausen). Jesus knew the exact moment it would end, and he used every second of the remainder of his life to its fullest extent. How would you love a person if you knew the exact moment of your death? Would you love that person as Jesus healed a leper after the sermon on the mound? Would you love that person as “smelly-feet washer-Jesus” loved his disciples? Would you love that person enough that you would die for them? Just as the woman who died and gave her liver to my dying father two and a half years ago, Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins. I don’t think there is ever a greater gift than that.

I learned so much in this class not only about hymns, but also about myself. I learned to be more confident with my battle with depression, and I’ve learned to be more open and honest about my shortcomings, and myself as people like Charlotte Elliot have. I’ve learned that there were people who have taken their anger and pain and put it down into words (William Cowper). I’ve learned that people have taken their jubilation and joy and spontaneously composed hymns that were never written down (Zinzendorf). I thought this class was challenging, but rewarding. It made me think a whole lot about myself and about my faith. I’m excited about the synoptic gospels class next semester. We’ll see how things go from there.

Works Cited

"Day by Day." Hymnary.Org. Hymn Society of the United States and Canada. Web. 24 Apr 2013.

Iseringhausen, Tim. "Sermon on John 13:31-35." Traditional Worship. Christ Lutheran Church. Ohio, Bexley. 28 Apr

“I Want To Walk As A Child Of The Light”: A Journey of Discouragement and Comfort Within Christian Hymns

2013-04-08T21:19:00.001-04:00

[This paper was written for the Hymns and Christian Tradition class at Capital University, where I am seeking a minor degree in religion.]

“I Want To Walk As A Child Of The Light”: A Journey of Discouragement and Comfort Within Christian Hymns

Many people over the years have used hymns to express pain or grief, as well as comfort that they have received from having faith in Jesus Christ. This paper will focus on discouragement and comfort within Christian hymnology. Several hymns will be analyzed by detailing how these hymns applied to the age they were written in, and how they can apply today. Most of the hymns will be coming from the Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymnal, which is the official hymnal of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Other hymns and songs will be cited accordingly.

In 1835, Charlotte Elliot was visiting with friends in West London. Along with this group of friends, a minister named César Malan was in attendance. Dr. Malan asked Elliot if she was a Christian. Taking offense, Elliot told him that she would rather not talk about the subject. Dr. Malan then stated that he hoped she would someday become a faithful worker in Christ. Three weeks later, Elliot and Dr. Malan met once again. Elliot mentioned that ever since their first encounter, she had been searching for a way to come to Christ. Dr. Malan told her to “come to [Christ] just as you are.” Shortly thereafter, Elliot wrote the text for the hymn, “Just As I Am, Without One Plea.” Elliot had been experiencing some sort of anxiety because she didn’t know how to come to Christ. This is reflected in the second verse, “Just as I am, though tossed about / with many a-conflict, many a-doubt, / fightings and fears within, without…” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 592). After Jesus’ transfiguration, a man came to Jesus with a possessed son. The man asked Jesus if he would heal the possessed son. In the New International Version translation of Mark 9.24, Jesus responded with, “Everything is possible for him who believes.” The man asked Jesus, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” This is exactly what Elliot was asking Dr. Malan. She wanted to believe in Christ. Jesus said in Matthew 17.20, “Because you have so little faith, I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Elliot was able to come to Christ because she had the faith the size of a mustard seed. She wanted to come to Jesus, and she was able to because of God’s generosity and kindness.

“Just As I Am Without One Plea,” has been such an inspiration to people, that many have imitated it. According to John Julian, R.S. Cook wrote a hymn called, “Just As Thou Art, Without One Trace.” Latin versions were also written, like, “Ut ego sum! nec alia ratione utens,” and, “Tibi, quails sum, O Christe!” This goes to show how much power a hymn that involves discouragement and comfort can have on someone. In fact, Elliot’s own brother says, “In the course of a long ministry, I hope I have been permitted to see the fruits of my labours; but I feel far more has been done by a single hymn of my sister’s.” (Julian 609).

William Cowper suffered from depression, most likely because the loss of several family members and friends within a short period of time, and the dread of appearing in public as a lawyer (Julian 265). When Cowper was becoming more and more depressed, his friend, John Newton asked Cowper to help with his new hymn project called, Olney Hymns. This was the same book that introduced the world to “Amazing Grace,” which was written by Newton ("William Cowper, Depressed Hymn Writer"). One night, Cowper had had enough with life, and decided to commit suicide. He took a cab to the Thames River. Because of fog, the driver got lost, and mysteriously ended up back at Cowper’s front doorstep. Cowper went inside and wrote “God Moves In A Mysterious Way,” which details how God does things even when we are in our darkest times ("God Moves in a Mysterious Way”).

However, if we want to delve deep into mind of the real William Cowper, we must look at another hymn of his. “My Soul Is Sad and Much Dismayed” is a hymn written by Cowper in 1779 and published in Newton’s Olney Hymns. Although this hymn is not in Evangelical Lutheran Worship, this hymn expresses great pain and emotion. “My soul is sad and much dismayed / See, Lord, what legion of my foes, / With fierce Apollyon [devil] at their head / my heavenly pilgrimage oppose,” (“My Soul Is Sad And Much Dismayed”). Going back to “God Moves In a Mysterious Way,” we may see that Cowper is telling the singer that God will use the singer to fight the devil: “Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take / The clouds ye so much dread / Are big with mercy and shall break / In blessings on your head.” This brings comfort because God will be there through the storm, “ God moves in a mysterious way / His wonders to perform / He plants His footsteps in the sea / And rides upon the storm,” (Lutheran Book of Worship 483.)

As an example, my very own depression is very fitting for this topic. I was baptized in the Lutheran church when I was still a baby, although I didn’t start attending church until I was about five years old. My father tells me that I was the one who wanted to go to church with him, although I don’t recall this. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve been going to church all my life now, even when I have doubted and went just because I had nothing better to do on Sunday morning. I had serious doubts of faith back in high school. I was spiraling into a deep, dark depression. My former pastor was ousted from the church because of his . My own father’s health was quickly declining. Abuse and bullying at school was having a detrimental affect on my mental health. On September 17, 2008, I had had enough with life. I swallowed a handful of ibuprofen pills in an attempt to end my life. I was so lonely, and didn’t have any friends in the world to turn to. I needed a friend to be there for me in my darkest hour.

Joseph Scriven was in the United States in 1855, while his mother was still in Ireland. Scriven wrote “What A Friend We Have In Jesus” ten years after the start of the Irish potato famine of 1845 ("Irish Potato Famine: The Blight Begins”). Although I won’t speculate, one can only imagine how much Scriven’s mother was starving at that time. The second verse can be seen as comforting to Scriven’s mother, who might have been suffering because of the famine. “Have we trails and temptations? / Is there trouble everywhere...Can we find a friend so faithful / who will all our sorrows share?” Scriven then tells his mother, “Jesus knows our every weakness- / take it to the Lord in prayer.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 742). This verse is also comforting to the world today as modern day threats like threats of nuclear war by North Korea, homelessness, hate crimes, and starvation are running rampant.

Of course, there never was a time in history that didn’t have any problems. There never was a Mayberry, North Carolina, back in the “good-old-days.” In fact, the first line of “O God, Our Help In Ages Past” deals with the past and future. It goes, “O God, our help in ages past, / our hope for years to come.” God has always been there, and he always will be there. He was there when Jesus died. He was there the Black Plague ruled the earth. He was there when the Civil War broke out in America, when the Soviet Union pointed nuclear missiles at the United States, and when jumbo jet airplanes flew into buildings. He’ll be there whenever there is conflict and trouble in this world. He is, “Our shelter from the stormy blast, / and our eternal home.” This hymn, a paraphrase of Psalm 90, speaks to us today, even though Isaac Watts wrote it in 1714 (“O God, Our Help in Ages Past”). The last verse printed in Evangelical Lutheran Worship states, “…still be our guard while troubles last / and our eternal home.” How do we know God will be there until the end? We can look at Revelation 1:8. God said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega…who is, and who was, and who is to come…”

These issues mentioned above are very frightening to many people, (including myself), and bring great anxiety and stress. The first verse of “Healer Of Our Every Ill,” goes like this: “You who know our fears and sadness / grace us with your peace and gladness / spirit of all comfort, fill our hearts.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 612). Written as a prayer to God, this is probably the newest of the hymns listed in this paper. Marty Haugen copyrighted this hymn in 1987, right at the tail end of the Cold War. Mr. Haugen must have had both negative and positive emotions tugging at him when he wrote this hymn, as it changes between “sad sounding” during the verses and “happy sounding” during the chorus.

“God can take my hand when I am tired, weak, and worn.” This sentiment is stated in the hymn, “Precious Lord, Take My Hand,” which goes, “Precious Lord, take my hand / lead me on, let me stand. / I am tired, I am weak, I am worn. / Through the storm, through the night, lead me on to the light…” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 773). Many hymns of discouragement and comfort mention darkness and light, and the relationship between the two. The theme for this year’s Capital University Christmas Festival was Shine! Many of the songs that were sung involved light in some fashion. Many of the songs that the Chordsmen, the all-male ensemble, did are being carried over into the spring concert season. Songs like “Father of Light” and “Let There Be Light” are being sung again. These songs are reminders that Christ is the light in the darkness, much like it is stated in Kathleen Thomerson’s 1970 hymn, “I Want To Walk As A Child Of The Light.” This hymn, which can be sung as a children’s hymn, is very simple and easy to sing. The text goes, “I want to walk as a child of the light / I want to follow Jesus. / God set the stars to give light to the world. / The star of my life is Jesus. / In him there is no darkness at all. / The night and the day are both alike. / The Lamb is the light of the city of God. / Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 815).

One of the most popular children’s hymns has to be, “This Little Light of Mine,” which has been resurrected for the first time in a long time in Evangelical Lutheran Worship. Many of Evangelical Lutheran Worship’s predecessors, Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), Service Book and Hymnal (1958), and American Lutheran Hymnal (1930), do not include this hymn. Evangelical Lutheran Worship erroneously credits this song as being an African American spiritual, but both DailyKos member hairylarry states that Harry Dixon Loes wrote it in 1920. Whoever wrote it; the hymn is still a great example of staying positive. It’s saying, “I’m going to keep this little flame, (my faith), going no matter what. It’s going to stay here, even when others try to hide it.” The editors of Evangelical Lutheran Worship seem to try to make this song sound more like a hymn by removing some of the more popular verses, (“Hide it under a bushel. NO!...” “Don’t let Satan blow it out…”), and add, “Ev’rywhere I go…” and, “Jesus gave it to me…” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 677). On September 17, 2001, the late Odetta and the Boys Choir of Harlem sang “This Little Light Of Mine” on the Late Show with David Letterman. This show was the first show broadcast after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. This version is very uplifting, (which came after a teary Letterman described what he was thinking about the terrorist attacks by using an expletive word). The fun that Odetta and the choir clearly had was such a pleasant surprise to a week full of grief. In a video on YouTube, Odette is clearly seen dancing around, while the choir sways to the beat of the music.

In 2000, John Michael Montgomery released a song titled, “The Little Girl.” Although the song is based on an urban legend (Mikkelson), the story is still heartbreaking and will bring tears to the eyes of the listener. This girl mentioned in the song is the victim of a drug-addicted mother and alcoholic, abusive father. One night, after witnessing the murder-suicide of her parents, the girl is found hiding behind her couch by the local townspeople. She then goes to live with a foster family, or a “new mom and a new dad…” Her new foster family takes her to church. During Sunday School, she looks up at a picture of a man on a cross and says, “I know that man up there on that cross / I don't know His name / But I know He got off / He was there in my old house /  and held me close to His side / As I hid there behind our couch / The night that my parents died,” ("John Michael Montgomery - The Little Girl”).

Some hymns that deal with comfort offer support through the use of children. “I Want To Walk As A Child Of The Light” is one of these hymns. Jesus says in Mark 10.15, “…whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” Adults today have to deal with the stresses of finances, bills, cooking food, and raising families. Children don’t have to do that. In fact, they do the opposite. Their parents hopefully provide them with things they need. With all these books, classes, blogs, and videos, it’s no wonder that only 43% of Americans attend church weekly or almost weekly (Newport). I won’t speculate, but I do believe that some of the remaining 57% of those Americans who don’t regularly attend church don’t attend church because they feel they already know all the answers. The apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 5.6, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.” Dan Edelen posted this on his blog on June 28, 2012, “One of the things that bothers me most about believers in today’s churches, especially Western churches, is our assumption of superiority…What is worse than a puffed-up Christian who thinks he knows everything—unless it is one who discounts the wisdom of those who went before him? And isn’t that what most blowhards do?” We must be humble to Christ, because..

Children serve a special purpose for God’s work because Christ tells us to have a child-like faith. Some of the best hymns are directed toward children. The favorite, “Jesus Loves Me,” is probably the best answer to why Jesus loves us. “The Bible tells me so.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 595). Jesus had many encounters with children in the gospels. He told his disciples to let the children come to him, and to have a child-like faith. Jesus loved us enough to be hung on a cross for our sins.

We should also love Jesus back, as he loved us. “My Faith Looks Up To Thee” is a hymn written by Ray Palmer in 1830. The third verse goes, “While life’s dark maze I tread / and griefs around me spread, / be thou my guide; / bid darkness turn to day, wipe sorrow’s tears away / nor let me ever stray from thee aside.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 759). Palmer wrote about his hymn, “I gave form to what I felt by writing, with little effort, the stanzas. I recollect I wrote them with tender emotion and ended the last line with tears." He kept his lyric in a notebook in his pocket for some time, before meeting Lowell Mason, who wrote the tune OLIVET to the text ("My Faith Looks up to Thee.” The Stories behind Famous Hymns.). Dr. Palmer also told of a story involving his hymn during the Civil War. Palmer describes that “six or eight Christian young men…met together in one of their tents for prayer…” decided that since they may not be living past the next battle, they were to write a testimony to future generations about what they were feeling at that moment, prior to being put “face-to-face with death.” This group of young men decided to write out Palmer’s “My Faith Looks Up To Thee,” and sign all their names at the bottom. Palmer says, “Of course, they did not all meet again,” (“My Faith Looks Up To Thee” Stories behind Famous Hymns).

Why is it necessary to look up to God and have faith in Jesus? I believe the answer is found in the hymn, “This Is My Father’s World.” This world doesn’t belong to man, although we have used and abused it to no end. It belongs to God, the creator. The last verse in Evangelical Lutheran Worship is, “This is my father’s world; / oh, let me not forget / that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet…why should my heart be sad? / the Lord is king, let heaven ring / God reigns, let earth be glad!” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 824). The author, Maltbie D. Babcock, wrote this poem after stating he was going to see his father’s world while hiking to the “escarpment,” an area near Lake Ontario (“This Is My Father’s World”). God created all of this that we see around us everyday. He created the trees, rocks, and rivers that we see as we drive around. I find hiking to be a good way to help alleviate my anger and sadness. I like hiking, climbing over downed trees, and avoiding puddles and streams. Psalm 50.12 says, “For the world is mine, and all that is it.”

God created the entire me. I can’t answer if he created my depression or not, but I can say it makes him sad when I suffer. David Limbaugh, while writing a response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting of last December, wrote, “God [who] was willing to suffer and sacrifice for us shows that He is a God who loves us and can relate to us (and to whom we can relate) through His own sufferings.” I have never experienced the type of suffering the parents of dead children have to suffer. The thought of having a child die in a school shooting is such a horrific thought. I’ve never experienced a family member, let alone a child, murdered. I have been on a jury for a murder trial, and I’ve seen the heartbreak and sadness in the eyes of the family members who were directly affected. I believe we can be comforted in knowing that Jesus died for our sins. Dr. Matthias Loy, one of the three “…anchors holding fast the ship of Lutheran Confessionalism during the ferocious storms of the Modernist-Fundamentalist Controversy,” (Fry 322), composed a hymn titled, “The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace.” (“Matthias Loy: 1828-1915”). The fifth verse brings some comfort to those who mourn. “It bears to all the tidings glad / And bids their hearts no more be sad; / The heavy laden souls it cheers / And banishes their guilty fears.” (Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal 183).

Dr. Loy was president of Capital University and Evangelical Lutheran Theological Seminary, (now Trinity Seminary), between 1880 and 1902. C. George Fry writes that during this time, Loy, along with colleagues Charles Porterfield Krauth and C.F.W. Walther, were constantly battling a changing culture within the three Lutheran churches, (Loy being an ordained minister in the Ohio Synod, Krauth in the General Council, and Walther in the Missouri Synod). Darwinism had taking root in the American mainstream culture. Loy was stuck in the middle, between the liberal churchgoers, (or modernists), and fundamentalist churchgoers. He considered himself orthodox. He believed in teaching the things that are not subject to time instead of teaching today’s headlines. He states about liberalism,

“Liberalism is…the religion of doubt and despair… Thousands are thus led to reject the doctrine of the Trinity…Incarnation…Vicarious Atonement…Real presence in the Holy Supper…Baptism…Resurrection of the body…It is not that these doctrines are not found in the words of Holy Scripture that leads to their rejection, but that human reason rejects the doctrines…(Fry 325).

Of course, Loy wasn’t too fond of fundamentalism either. To him, fundamentalists hypocritically “taught redemption through behavior” instead of “salvation by grace,” (Fry 327). In “The Gospel Shows The Father’s Grace,” Loy writes in the fourth verse, “It is the power of God to save / From sin and Satan and the grave; / It works the faith which firmly clings / To all the treasures which it brings.” (Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal 183). As a Lutheran, he doesn’t believe in being saved by good works; he believes in being saved by God grace alone. Dr. Loy must have been under a lot of pressure from the Ohio synod, which he was president of between 1860-1878, and 1880-1894 (Fry 319).

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, or ELCA, has been facing similar problems. In recent years, the ELCA started losing many members and congregations. Many are confused with what exactly went on during the 2007 and 2009 churchwide assemblies involving the homosexuality in the church. During the 2007 churchwide assembly, the original vote to allow non-celibate homosexual pastors failed, but a vote was approved that allowed the church to not discipline pastors who violate the celibacy policy ("Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Punish”). In short, the ELCA officially can’t ordain homosexual pastors, but they will respect each individual church’s wishes to recognize same-sex relationships.

I can’t help but wonder what Dr. Loy might have thought about issues like this one. This has been a dark time over the ELCA. Websites like ExposingTheELCA.com and some of the more vile bloggers on SteadfastLutherans.org attempt to discredit the ELCA and encourage people to leave the church. Jesus said in Matthew 19:14, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Charlotte Elliot, in, “Just As I Am, Without One Plea,” states in the third verse, “Just as I am, thou wilt receive, / wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve; because thy promise I believe, / O Lamb of God, I come, I come.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 592). Elliot is telling us that Jesus is welcoming to all who come to him in repentance of sins, and believe and trust in him.

Conflicts like these can have detrimental effects on someone’s health. Verse three of hymn number 610 in Evangelical Lutheran Worship deals with the health. In “O Christ, The Healer, We Have Come,” the writer, Frederick P. Green, writes, “In conflicts that destroy our health, / we diagnose the world's disease; / our common life declares our ills: / is there no cure, O Christ, for these?” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 610). These conflicts within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America have destroyed the health of the church. Between 2008 and 2009, the church lost 90,850 members. Between 2009 and 2010, the church lost 270,349 members (“ELCA Membership by Year”).

As mentioned before, the recent threats by North Korea are pretty alarming. Being in conflict with a nation that potentially has nuclear weapons can be detrimental. The world’s nations were thrown into another great war in 1941. The United States decided to use two nuclear devices on its enemy, the Japanese. Nearly 140,000 people were killed instantly. The devastation was so immense, the co-pilot of the Enola Gay, the bomber that delivered the bomb, even said, “My God. What have we done?” While Hiroshima is 1.12 million people strong today, the hibakusha, or the survivors of the bomb, are elderly and still scared of what might happen next. They still tell their stories to younger generations in order to promote peace between nations (“Hiroshima and Nagasaki Remembered”). It’s unfortunate that the only way to settle a dispute just might be war. Martin Luther once wrote, “…when victory has been achieved, one should offer mercy and peace to those who surrender and humble themselves,” (Luther 124-125). After the bombings, General MacArthur lead recovery and reform efforts within Japan (“Occupation and Reconstruction of Japan, 1945-52”). If nations ever do get into conflict with each other, they need to promote peace and talk non-violently. War should only be used as a last resort. In Green’s hymn, the last verse reads, “Grant that we all, made one in faith, / in your community may find / the wholeness that, enriching us, / shall reach the whole of humankind.” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 610). Green is writing a prayer to God to help bring peace to a turbulent and violent world, and bring unity to all.

After writing this essay, I believe “Just As I Am, Without One Plea,” may be the greatest hymn ever written. It details the story and mind of a woman who, doubtful at first of Christ’s love, came to him just as she was. Elliot states in the fourth verse, “Just as I am; thy love unknown / has broken ev’ry barrier down; / now to be thine, yea, thine alone…” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 592). No matter what conflict, doubts, depression, fighting, fears, or troubles there are in the world, the love of Jesus is still the strongest light in the world. When Paul and Silas were imprisoned, as mentioned in Acts 16, a prison guard, who was about to commit suicide because several prisoners escaped under his watch, asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They both replied with, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.

Works Cited

Asiado, Tel. "This Is My Father's World." Suite101.com. N.p., 6 June 2008. Web. 29 Mar. 2013. <http://suite101.com/article/this-is-my-fathers-world-a56196>.

Bible Across America New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009. Print.

"Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Punish." GetReligion. Patheos, 14 Aug. 2007. Web. 03 Apr. 2013.

Edelens, Dan. "Humility in Light of the History of Christian Thought." Cerulean Sanctum. N.p., 28 June 2012. Web. 03 Apr. 2013.

"ELCA Membership by Year - Evangelical Lutheran Church in America." ELCA Membership by Year - Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, n.d. Web. 07 Apr. 2013.

Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal. 3rd ed. Columbus: Lutheran Book Concern, 1908. Print.

Evangelical Lutheran Worship. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2006. Print.

Fry, C. George. "Matthais Loy: Theologian of American Lutheran Orthodoxy." The Springfielder 38.4 (1974): 320-33. Web. 3 Apr. 2013.

"God Moves in a Mysterious Way." God Moves in a Mysterious Way. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

Hairylarry. "Daily Kos." : The New Sounds for Christ in Zimbabwe. Kos Media, LLC, 26 Oct. 2008. Web. 02 Apr. 2013. <http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/26/642563/-The-New-Sounds-for-Christ-in-Zimbabwe-This-Little-Light-Of-Mine>.

"Hiroshima & Nagasaki Remembered." Hiroshima and Nagasaki Remembered: The Story of Hiroshima. AJ SOFTWARE & MULTIMEDIA, n.d. Web. 07 Apr. 2013.

"Irish Potato Famine: The Blight Begins." The History Place - Irish Potato Famine: The Blight Begins. The History Place, 2000. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

"John Michael Montgomery - The Little Girl." YouTube. YouTube, LLC., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

Julian, John. Dictionary of Hymnology: Origin and History of Christian Hymns and Hymnwriters of All Ages and Nations. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1985. Print.

Julian, John. A Dictionary of Hymnology, Setting Forth the Origin and History of Christian Hymns of All Ages and Nations. New York: Dover Publications, 1957. Print.

"Just as I Am, Without One Plea." Just as I Am, Without One Plea. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

Limbaugh, David. "God Suffers With Us." God Suffers With Us. The Free Republic, 18 Dec. 2012. Web. 29 Mar. 2013. <http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2969833/posts>.

Luther, Martin, Helmut T. Lehmann, and Walther Immanuel Brandt. Luther's Works. Philadelphia: Muhlenberg, 1962. Print.

Lutheran Book of Worship. Minneapolis: Augsburg Pub. House, 1978. Print.

"Matthias Loy 1828-1915." BLB Hymns. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2013.

Mikkelson, Barbara, and David P. Mikkelson. "Snopes.com: The Little Girl." Snopes.com: The Little Girl. N.p., 21 Feb. 2007. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

"My Faith Looks Up to Thee." My Faith Looks Up to Thee. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

"My Faith Looks up to Thee." The Stories behind Famous Hymns. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2013. <http://breadsite.org/hymnstories/myfaithlooksuptothee.htm>.

"My Soul Is Sad and Much Dismayed." My Soul Is Sad and Much Dismayed. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

Newport, Frank. "Americans' Church Attendance Inches Up in 2010." Americans' Church Attendance Inches Up in 2010. Gallop, Inc., 25 June 2010. Web. 02 Apr. 2013.

"O God, Our Help in Ages Past." Hymnary.org. Hymn Society of the United States and Canada, n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

"Occupation and Reconstruction of Japan, 1945-52." U.S. Department Of State: Office Of The Historian. Office of the Historian, Bureau of Public Affairs, United States Department of State, n.d. Web. 7 Apr. 2013.

"Odetta and Boys Choir of Harlem on First Letterman Show after 9/11 "This Little Light of Mine"" YouTube. YouTube, 09 Sept. 2011. Web. 02 Apr. 2013.

"This Is My Father’s World." This Is My Father’s World. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

"What a Friend We Have in Jesus." What a Friend We Have in Jesus. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2013.

"William Cowper, Depressed Hymn Writer." Christianity.com. Salem Web Network, July 2007. Web. 29 Mar. 2013. <http://www.christianity.com/church/church- history/timeline/1701- 1800/william-cowper-depressed-hymn-writer- 11630214.html>.