tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46071582076306094522024-03-14T13:53:57.913-04:00Essentially LutheranThoughts on the radical Luther and his unpopular theologyT. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.comBlogger62125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-73065093945596085562007-08-17T10:51:00.000-04:002007-08-17T11:05:00.103-04:00The Foolishness of GodDoes Christianity make sense? Do all its various teachings add up? Is it logical?<br /><br />For a time, I began to think - yes. It <em>must</em> make sense.<br /><br />Something within me demanded logical explanations to all the haunting questions of the ages. “Why am I saved and not others?” “Why do the innocent suffer?” “What is the point of my life?” “What is the REAL truth and how am I to know it?” etc. etc.<br /><br />I started to think that if Christianity can’t answer these big questions in a logically airtight, satisfying way, what good is it? <br /><br />But this kind of thinking and search for logical answers (thankfully) proved fruitless.<br /><br />Oh, I know there are Christian pat answers to these big questions. The best theological minds down through history (and continuing mercilessly in our time) offer us lots of ways to explain God and try to harmonize human logic with what we find in the Bible. But most of this is just interesting speculation. What I found was - regardless of which logical path I followed - God eventually ended up being either non-existent, impotent or a monster. So much for my logic.<br /><br />Now I am certain that Christianity does NOT make sense. Christian theology is the very opposite of philosophy. It springs from different premises, operates by different rules, and in most cases (perhaps all?) cannot be reconciled with natural reason. <br /><br />And that’s OK. In fact, it’s more than OK. If God is to stay God, it is the way it must be. When God and my reason collide, my reason necessarily yields, whether I like it or not. And I admit I seldom like it.<br /><br />I am currently re-reading a book that has been in my library for many years - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Foolishness-God-Siegbert-W-Becker/dp/0810001551/ref=sr_1_3/105-4692363-5170858?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1187362545&sr=8-3">The Foolishness of God, The Place of Reason in the Theology of Martin Luther</a> by Siegbert Becker. It is a fascinating and comforting book, because Prof. Becker (correctly, I think) uncovers the key to understanding Luther’s seeming anti-rationalism. He explains and defends Luther’s way of fitting Scripture, faith and reason together by relegating reason to its proper place - as a servant of Scripture and faith, not their master or judge. Put in a somewhat more spiritual way, faith inevitably puts natural reason to death, giving birth to a sanctified use of human reason, ruled by faith. (We don’t check our brain at the door. It is exchanged for a new one.)<br /><br />The irony of the book is that it obviously employs human reason (as any book written by humans must) in a way that makes Luther’s unreasonableness totally reasonable. Or, as one commentator put it, “Luther may have been antirationalistic, but he was not irrational.”(David Scaer)<br /><br />While all this sometimes makes my head swim, (using human reason to analyze human reason is a somewhat circular process), I believe that a simple recognition of the limits of natural reason is a gracious ingredient of the gift of faith. And it is immensely freeing.<br /><br />Prof Becker’s book is not just a key to understanding Luther. It provides, I believe, a key to understanding Christianity itself. An escape, if you will, from the bondage of the fallen mind.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-39260663943436567752007-08-02T09:24:00.000-04:002008-12-10T21:56:14.296-05:00The Bad Grammar of Tragedy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSd_XhQBaHtWObT94eIojfK4FRRHMUmO4SBirpUxaaHJzArp4vUvdntanaa3CWq935vu79liIx8IY6GFT-RDfEkU_ADBDIy1s8K3hSqGFEUbIUPPksZWaDeyG0CCQLB9MHskY_3FO5sUo/s1600-h/BridgeCollapse.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5094094525943781810" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" height="190" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSd_XhQBaHtWObT94eIojfK4FRRHMUmO4SBirpUxaaHJzArp4vUvdntanaa3CWq935vu79liIx8IY6GFT-RDfEkU_ADBDIy1s8K3hSqGFEUbIUPPksZWaDeyG0CCQLB9MHskY_3FO5sUo/s320/BridgeCollapse.jpg" width="260" border="0" /></a> <div>One of my pet peeves is politicians and news reporters who consistently torture the language in times of tragedy. The Minneapolis bridge collapse serves as but the latest sad reminder.<br /><br />“My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families.”<br /><br />This cliché contains two errors.<br /><br />First, our thoughts do not really go anywhere. They either stay in our head, or, if they go anywhere, they “go out” to God. They certainly cannot “go out” to the victims and their families.<br /><br />Ah, you say, but this is just an idiom. Well, actually it’s not. Unless we corrupt the language enough to make it one. The proper idiom is “My <em>heart </em>goes out.”<br /><br />I could perhaps tolerate a new idiom where “thoughts go out” to someone, but the second error is not tolerable. Prayers ought never “go out to” the victims, nor to their families. Prayers can only go out to God, “on behalf of” or “for” the victims and their families.<br /><br />Why politicians and news reporters want to continually tell us that they are praying to the victims and their families is beyond me. Don’t they know how silly this sounds? I’m guessing that many of them don’t even believe that God hears their prayers. Why would they believe the victims and their families can hear their prayers?<br /><br />Maybe this is just a petty pet peeve.<br /><br />But for some reason I want to throw a brick at the TV every time I hear the language tortured in this way. The suffering is bad enough at a time like this. People ought not be adding to it.<br /><br />“My heart goes out to the victims and their families and I am praying for them.”<br /><br />There.<br /><br />Is that so hard to say?</div>T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-28921047105950507322007-07-16T15:08:00.000-04:002007-07-16T15:15:27.122-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 8)Now to Luther’s fourth “exit”, which is to stop searching for a logical exit and simply accept and believe both sides of the paradox.<br /><br />Luther believed that theological exit strategies too often lead us astray, in circles, or down blind alleys. We are so desperate to escape our Biblical paradox that we will, at great cost, reason our way out of it.<br /><br />And on the subject of human reason, Luther had much to say. It is precisely here where Luther is most misunderstood and most criticized. This is because Luther believed human reason itself was paradoxical. He called it the devil’s bride and a damned whore. But he also called it God’s greatest gift to man, a glorious light.<br /><br />So although Luther’s theology used reason to discover Biblical truths, his resultant theology sometimes ended up being quite “unreasonable.” That is to say, it embraced logical absurdities. He would simply not allow reason to stand in judgment of Scripture. <br /><br />Luther believed that if something was taught in Scripture it <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">didn</span>’t matter to him if he and others thought it to be absurd. He saw, as did few before or after him, that logical attempts to escape from something clearly taught in Scripture often just ended in another kind of contradiction - contradicting the words of Scripture itself. This, to him, was more absurd than accepting a Biblical paradox on pure faith.<br /><br />So Luther had no difficulty teaching contradictory absurdities. The saved are predestined to salvation, but the lost are not predestined to damnation. The saved cannot lose their salvation and, oh, by the way, yes they can. No one can make a decision to accept Jesus, but we can make a decision to reject Jesus. The saved are saved entirely by God, but the condemned are condemned entirely by themselves. <br /><br />These are, to most theologians and philosophers, logical absurdities. <br /><br />So it would be quite in keeping with Luther’s way to accept and believe in the universal restoration of all, and - at the same time - accept and believe in the eternal punishment of some. Both are taught in Scripture, so both can be believed and taught.<br /><br />Logically absurd?<br /><br />Maybe so. But it seems to me that one could hold to both sides of this paradox and still remain quite Lutheran.<br /><br />Perhaps more Lutheran than Luther.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-11296310374237191252007-07-10T11:12:00.000-04:002007-07-10T11:29:08.465-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 7)The third (and supposedly final) exit from a Biblical paradox is <em>theological</em>.<br /><br />Here at last is where most find their exit from the contradictory teachings of eternal hell and universal restoration. The problem is, there are two exits. The traditionalists find one, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">universalists</span> find the other. Then they each go back to re-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">exegete</span> the critical passages, reinterpreting them in light of their preferred exit - their theological grounding. Suddenly one set of passages becomes much clearer than the other. And, one way or another, the other set is (even if with some difficulty) re-explained in light of some other overriding theological precept.<br /><br />So what theological issues are really in contention here? There are several I think, but the overriding one is the nature of God’s love (or mercy) and God’s righteousness (or justice). How will these two (seemingly conflicting) attributes of God ultimately influence what God will actually do with all us sinners - believers and unbelievers? And then secondarily (or perhaps primarily) what does Christ’s death and resurrection have to do with it all?<br /><br />Now we find ourselves at the very soul of Christianity. And this explains why the question of universal restoration pushes people’s buttons and stirs the emotions to the boiling point. It is why some have to use pseudonyms when they write about it.<br /><br />There are many who believe that Christianity has no meaning without an eternal hell. To them, a temporary hell - regardless of how severe - is no hell at all. Being saved from such a hell depreciates Christ’s atonement, compromises God’s justice and makes being a Christian meaningless. What’s the point, after all, if everyone will be saved in the end? Why not eat, drink and be merry and believe whatever you want? Nothing matters anyway.<br /><br />On the other hand, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">universalist</span> theology believes that Christianity has no meaning <em>with</em> an eternal hell. An eternal hell represents the ultimate failure of God and a permanent victory for sin, death and Satan. It makes man’s will sovereign over God’s will, compromises God’s power, love and mercy, and ultimately turns Christianity into a self-centered, exclusive, highly judgmental religion based on fear. It is, in the end, no different from any other religion - where we are ultimately responsible for saving ourselves and others.<br /><br />To those of us Lutherans who take a high view of Scripture, the question becomes - which of these two theological exits is the most consistent with the overarching message of Scripture?<br /><br />When Law and Gospel collide, what is trump? Does love prevail or does it fail? When God <em>appears</em> to be defeated by man's rebellion, is he really?<br /><br />Does Scripture portray God’s wrath and judgment as disciplinary and redemptive? Or is it portrayed as purely punitive - something God is required to do because of his righteous nature?<br /><br />What are we to make of Jesus’ teachings to forgive seventy times seven and love our enemies? Does God ask this of us without requiring it of himself?<br /><br />Are the chosen of God (Israel and the church) portrayed as the “frozen chosen” or are they the first-fruits, the part that represents the whole, the visible pledge of God’s promise to the whole world?<br /><br />Does the Bible ever portray God’s attributes of mercy and righteousness to be in conflict, so that sometimes one wins out over the other? Or are they essentially the same, always in harmony - so that God’s mercy <em>is</em> righteous, and God’s righteousness <em>is </em>merciful? And if that is so, is it possible to reconcile this nature of God with the concept of an eternal hell?<br /><br />Theologically, it seems to me that a Lutheran can believe in a universal restoration without being in conflict with any other of Dr. Luther’s teachings. In fact, it seems to me that all Lutheran doctrines fall much more neatly into place with universal restoration than without it. So (to me) it is quite remarkable that there is not much more interest, study and discussion of it within Lutheranism.<br /><br />That brings me to my final point - Luther’s mysterious fourth exit from a Biblical paradox.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-74277899927822129872007-07-03T11:52:00.000-04:002007-07-03T13:16:52.605-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 6)<p>The second exit from a Biblical contradiction is <em>hermeneutical </em>- the art of interpretation.<br /><br />Here, if we are good Lutherans, we lean not on our own understanding (or tradition), but we “let Scripture interpret Scripture.” And anyone can do this, since we believe in the perspicuity (or clarity) of Scripture. Thus hermeneutics in not some magic art performed by professionals. It centers on the process of letting the clearer passages of Scripture shed light on those that are less clear.<br /><br />How this plays out in actual practice, of course, is not so simple. Lots of things get in the way, not the least of which is our own preconceived ideas (or the ideas of others whom we respect). So the paradox is this. Although Scripture is clear, there is no guarantee that it will be clear <em>to me</em>.<br /><br />This in itself is an odd doctrine, and one which tends to drive me just a little crazy. It can also stop me from reading the Bible entirely, which is unfortunate. Nevertheless, I have found that - when confronted with a Biblical paradox - examining the Scriptures which create the paradox has always been a profitable exercise.<br /><br />In the case of the universalist and never-ending punishment views of God’s judgment, the critical issue is not the reality or nature of a literal hell, the wrath of God, the seriousness of sin, the role of faith in salvation, salvation through Christ alone, or any such matters. It is a very narrow question. Is God’s judgment on the lost the final word? Yes or No?<br /><br />There are some passages that seem to say yes, others say no. But which are actually the the clearer passages? Which ones are so clear that they are very difficult (impossible?) to “interpret away” or ignore?<br /><br />Because this is a blog and not an essay (although I fear it could turn into one), I’ll just select ten passages at random that seem to speak to this question - five on one side, five on the other. There are obviously many more.<br /><br /><strong>Five “Eternal Punishment” Passages<br /></strong><br />1.) Matthew 25:31-46, (Jesus foretells His return and the Day of Judgment) especially the words “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from me, accursed ones, into the <em>eternal</em> fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels’ “ and also “These will go away into <em>eternal</em> punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”<br /><br />2.) Luke 16:19-31, (Jesus parable of the rich man and poor Lazarus) especially the words “Between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, in order that those who wish to come over here to you may not be able, and that <em>none may cross over</em> from there to us.”<br /><br />3.) II Thessalonians 1:6-10, especially the words “these will pay the penalty of <em>eternal </em>destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.”<br /><br />4.) Mark 9:43-48, especially the words “<em>unquenchable</em> fire, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.”<br /><br />5.) Revelations 20:10-15, especially the words “and they will be tormented day and night <em>forever and ever</em>.”<br /><br /><strong>Five “Universal Restoration” Passages<br /></strong><br />1.) Lamentations 3:22-23, 31-33, especially the words “His compassions <em>never </em>fail” and “Men are not cast off by the Lord <em>forever</em>.”<br /><br />2.) I Corinthians 15:12-28 especially the words “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ <em>all </em>shall be made alive.” and also, “When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, that God may be <em>all in all</em>.”<br /><br />3.) Matthew 16:15-19 especially the words “upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hell <em>will not prevail</em> against it.”<br /><br />4.) I Peter 3:18-4-6 especially the words “For Christ also died for sins once for <em>all</em>” and “He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient” and “the <em>gospel </em>has for this purpose been <em>preached even to those who are dead</em>, that though they are judged in the flesh as men, <em>they may live</em> in the spirit according to the will of God.”<br /><br />5.) Phillipians 2:8-11 especially the words “at the name of Jesus <em>every</em> knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, <em>and under the earth</em>, and that <em>every </em>tongue should confess that Jesus Christ I Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”<br /><br />So which of these sets of passages is the clearer?<br /><br />Should the universalist passages be used to shed light on the supposed never-endedness of God’s wrath? Or should the eternal punishment passages be used to shed light on the supposed never-endedness of God’s mercy?</p><p>The “orthodox” view has treated the eternal punishment passages so crystal clear that it required all the universalist passages to be interpreted away.<br /><br />The question for the inquiring Lutheran is this, “Are not the universalist passages just as clear?” If they are, then we are still mired in a Biblical contradiction. </p><p>Hermeneutics doesn’t seem to help us. (Or I should say, it doesn't seem to help <em>me</em>.)<br /><br />Where’s the next exit? </p>T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-49887488192255300542007-06-25T12:28:00.000-04:002007-06-25T12:48:50.813-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 5)As I understand it, professional theologians offer us three exits from a Biblical contradiction. (Actually, Luther offers a fourth, but I will deal with that later.)<br /><br />The first exit is <em>exegetical</em>. We study passages of Scripture in their context, word by word in the original language, trying to ascertain the plain meaning as intended by the original writer and his intended readers. Perhaps there is a contradiction only because we have misunderstood the actual meaning of the text.<br /><br />For example, in the apparent contradiction between universal salvation and unending torments, much of the exegetical discussion centers on two words - the word “all” and the word “eternal”.<br /><br />Does the word “all” in the universalist passages (like Romans 5:18) really mean “all without exception?” Or can it mean something else, like “all of a particular kind” or “all without distinction”? On the other hand, in the passages about eternal judgment (like Matthew 25:46), does the Greek word for “eternal” really mean “without end?” Or does it mean “age enduring”, “pertaining to an age” or “from the Eternal One?”, thus opening the door to post-mortem redemption? <br /><br />We dig a little deeper. Studying the immediate context, we find a second usage of the word “all” in the same passage of Romans 5:18. “through one transgression there resulted condemnation to <strong>all</strong> men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to <strong>all</strong>.” Since most agree that the first <strong>all </strong>means “all without exception,” it follows then that the second <strong>all </strong>would have the same meaning. The universalists appear to be on firm ground.<br /><br />However, in the Matthew 25:46 passage, we find a similar parallelism with the use of the word eternal. “These will go away into <strong>eternal</strong> punishment, but the righteous into <strong>eternal </strong>life.” Here it can be said that we know “eternal life” to be unending. And so it follows that eternal punishment would have the same meaning - torment without end. The traditionalists also seem to have exegetical support.<br /><br />On and on it goes, from passage to passage, from word to word, we search for an exit. In this arcane world of exegesis, as fascinating as some of us might find it, we seem to be at the mercy of the scholars’ research and expertise. It seems we are the jury, weighing the evidence, judging which scholars make the most convincing case. But the evidence is technical and sometimes difficult to understand. And both sides seem sincere and credible. So what are we to do?<br /><br />We need more evidence.<br /><br />We look for another exit.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-78784121622209835862007-06-20T11:37:00.000-04:002007-06-20T11:51:38.717-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 4)One of the grand paradoxes of being Lutheran is this - that, as devoted as we may be to the historic, orthodox teachings of the Christian faith, everything we believe and confess still falls subject to correction by the Word of God. A single, small word or phrase of Scripture has more power in it than all the volumes of Christian theology ever written.<br /><br />A lone monk, standing on mere phrases of the biblical text (“the just shall live by faith”, etc), challenged a thousand years of learned thinking, “common knowledge”, official councils, pure reason, and “orthodox” teaching. Following such an example, even the most confessional, conservative among us will still, if we want to remain truly Lutheran, humbly subject ourselves to the power of the Word - through which God speaks - regardless of where it takes us, and what consequences we might suffer along the way. <br /><br />To the Lutheran, tradition is allowed to speak softly, but the words of Scripture will always carry the big stick. And so if a Lutheran is to contemplate the final fate of the damned and reexamine the doctrine of unending torments, he or she must put aside tradition and treat it as nothing compared to the plain words of Scripture.<br /><br />If the words of Scripture teach of punishment without end for the condemned, and no final restoration for all, then the Lutheran must accept that, even if it seems unfair, unmerciful, and contrary to the nature of God as we have come to know Him.<br /><br />And if the words of Scripture teach of a final restoration of all, and do not teach of unending torments, than we must accept that also, even if it overthrows two thousand years of majority Christian thought, turns us into “heretics”, and results in countless new ways for the old man in us to abuse the grace of God.<br /><br />And then there is the final “if.” What if the words of Scripture seem to teach both? What is a Lutheran supposed to do with that?<br /><br />This, I submit, is what appears to be the actual case.<br /><br />And Lutherans, in my opinion, are better equipped than most to deal with such a powerful Biblical contradiction.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-9322927111304067132007-06-18T09:20:00.000-04:002007-06-18T09:33:09.636-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 3)We Lutherans like to believe that “the tradition of the church” holds little sway in our theology. <em>Sola Scriptura</em> precludes it. And our long-running dispute with Rome over the role of tradition and church councils demands that we poo-poo tradition in favor of the Biblical text. <br /><br />However, it seems to me that we huff and puff a bit too much about all this. We are, I think, in denial on the matter. I discovered this in my little controversy with the WELS regarding church fellowship, where I learned just how powerful the “tradition of the church” can be. In that controversy, Scripture itself consistently took second place to the church’s traditional interpretation of Scripture. There was far more emphasis on the actual meaning and interpretation of the wording of the church doctrine (and the books that tried to explain it) than there ever was concerning the words of Scripture. In the end, my own (and others) beliefs and actions were judged against the wording (and supposed meaning) of the church’s written documents - not the words of Scripture. Of course, my adversaries claimed that they were essentially one and the same - which is precisely my point.<br /><br />So as I assess the obstacles to Lutheran universalism, I believe the tradition of the church, the rulings of councils, the thoughts and writings of the most dominant theologians, and ultimately peer pressure - all these will present far more difficulty to the Lutheran universalist than the Biblical text. Although closet universalists may be many, there are few today who are willing to publicly challenge traditional church teaching on the everlasting destiny of the damned.<br /><br />It is not without good reason that Gregory MacDonald (whoever he is) used a pseudonym when he wrote his book <em>The Evangelical Universalist</em>.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-72214896064815510342007-06-16T11:23:00.001-04:002008-12-10T21:56:14.534-05:00Mercy is Falling<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ47-v4knyYoyabqF7N9X1bsfnOp04qFOn2Cea8ICSgDHCJzDUzyiJnU-1ggSNhQfxzd7HzXtnln21Uqtl0gFz8CcfePJJ_jyEjPMN_V1LwqBFeAAEEyAJvxXO1hSBPjyqaJoIA_qHaks/s1600-h/EliMeetsMercy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5076683292853314898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 198px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 139px" height="193" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ47-v4knyYoyabqF7N9X1bsfnOp04qFOn2Cea8ICSgDHCJzDUzyiJnU-1ggSNhQfxzd7HzXtnln21Uqtl0gFz8CcfePJJ_jyEjPMN_V1LwqBFeAAEEyAJvxXO1hSBPjyqaJoIA_qHaks/s320/EliMeetsMercy.jpg" width="250" border="0" /></a> Mercy is falling, is falling, is falling.<br />Mercy it falls like a sweet, spring rain.<br />Mercy is falling, is falling all over me.<br /><br />Hey-oh, I receive Your mercy,<br />Hey-oh, I receive Your grace!<br />Hey-oh, I will dance forevermore.<br /><br />Announcing the birth of <em>Mercy Rain Arn</em> (grandchild #3).T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-39119507450453664422007-06-14T09:16:00.000-04:002007-06-14T10:55:39.786-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part 2)It seems to me that evangelicals attempting the move toward universalism have a longer, harder road to travel than do Lutherans. With a salvation theology that is either Calvinist or Arminian, evangelicals come to the issue facing major theological obstacles.<br /><br />Calvinist theology is committed to a limited atonement, thus ruling out any means of salvation for those God did not choose to love. Arminian theology, on the other hand, is committed to man’s ability to choose to love God, placing salvation (or at least the final, most decisive piece of it) in the hands of unreliable people. Under such a system it is simply not plausible that<em> all</em> people would choose God.<br /><br />Lutherans, on the other hand, have neither of these obstacles to contend with. <br /><br />Lutherans already embrace a universal atonement. Unlike Calvinist theology, Lutherans believe that God loves everyone, Christ died for all, nobody has been elected or predestined to damnation and God wants all to be saved. <br /><br />Lutherans also reject the doctrine that man chooses to love God of his own free will. Unlike Arminian theology, they believe repentance, faith and salvation is a gift of God - entirely a work of God’s grace. There is therefore no theological basis to believe God cannot (or does not want to) give this gift to all people.<br /><br />Without these two theological obstacles, a Lutheran seems well down the road to universalism without even working up a sweat. But there are still two other obstacles in the way. <br /><br />The first is the traditional teaching of the church. The second is the Biblical text.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-73410581551481302912007-06-12T10:44:00.000-04:002007-06-12T11:04:42.859-04:00Can a Lutheran be a Universalist? (Part I)I am currently reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Evangelical-Universalist-Gregory-MacDonald/dp/1597523658/ref=pd_sim_b_4/105-4849224-9190035"><em>The Evangelical Universalist</em> </a>by Gregory MacDonald (pseudonym), 2006.<br /><br />MacDonald has also written a shorter paper entitled <a href="http://www.generousorthodoxy.net/thinktank/2006/11/gregory_macdona.html">“Can an Evangelical be a Universalist?”, </a>which is posted on Brian McLaren’s website. <br /><br />Seeing the title of this article, I ask myself the same question about Lutherans.<br /><br />I’ve read a fair number of books and articles defending Christian universalism (or the doctrine of <em>final restoration</em>, as some prefer to call it.) A lot of them, to my way of thinking, aren’t very good. Universalism comes in a lot of flavors, even including non-Christian universalism, which teaches salvation apart from Christ. Authors come at the issue from a wide variety of perspectives - as very liberal theologians, as legalists (we can all earn our way to heaven eventually), as former Calvinists, Arminians, or even Unitarians. Some are overly argumentative, seemingly just out to condemn the harshness of the traditional church and its teachings. The variety of perspectives and agendas results in a kind of smorgasbord of thought on the matter, most of which I can’t relate to.<br /><br />Some of the better authors, however, approach the issue with great clarity and honesty, evidencing a high regard for Scripture and “Luther-like” principles of letting Scripture interpret Scripture. MacDonald appears to be one of these. Other authors I have appreciated are: <br /><br />- Thomas Talbott, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Inescapable-Love-God-Thomas-Talbott/dp/1581128312/ref=pd_sim_b_3_img/105-4849224-9190035"><em>The Inescapable Love of God</em> </a>(1999)<br />- Jan Bonda, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/One-Purpose-God-Doctrine-Punishment/dp/0802841864/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_1_1/105-4849224-9190035"><em>The One Purpose of God: An Answer to the Doctrine of Eternal Punishment</em> </a>(2003)<br />- Andrew Jukes, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Restitution-All-Things-Andrew-Jukes/dp/0910424659/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/105-4849224-9190035?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1181660168&sr=1-2"><em>Restitution of All Things</em> </a>(1867 - Out of Print)<br /><br />I am on the lookout for a Lutheran theologian who has studied and written extensively on the subject (either pro or con) - so far without success.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-33295363076229120942007-05-31T12:58:00.000-04:002008-12-10T21:56:14.693-05:00The Providence of God<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFhh5x2j3YuX4CgWq9wtB2EHaCIS1rJb6R08WkPd_Ia7WVV5oYUlNHpEt2_fST720QmqzoAdmpgvtYVTXafzSn89TdTK1jNBX1WCOU9WV8EQiH8q3V_j4sdXrG84vB-rr6R6Idnsm9HI8/s1600-h/Crash3.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5070772075544375186" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFhh5x2j3YuX4CgWq9wtB2EHaCIS1rJb6R08WkPd_Ia7WVV5oYUlNHpEt2_fST720QmqzoAdmpgvtYVTXafzSn89TdTK1jNBX1WCOU9WV8EQiH8q3V_j4sdXrG84vB-rr6R6Idnsm9HI8/s320/Crash3.JPG" border="0" /></a>This morning my wife was parked along the road visiting a rummage sale.<br /><br />She was returning to her car (the white Toyota), when it was struck from behind by another car. The driver had been speeding, got distracted, lost control, side-swiped another parked car and then hit our Toyota from behind - pushing it about 30 feet and into the ditch.<br /><br />No one was hurt.<br /><br />Ten seconds later, my wife would have been walking behind the car and would have been crushed between the two vehicles.<br /><br />Fifteen seconds later, she would have been in the car - about to buckle her seat belt.<br /><br />The Lord gives and takes away.<br /><br />This morning He gave.<br /><br />Blessed be the name of the Lord.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-20889189197889182882007-05-29T12:20:00.000-04:002007-05-29T12:38:55.282-04:00The Ideal SermonIn response to my last post about “self-improvement” sermons, I was asked the question, “What would an ideal sermon look like in your world?”<br /><br />I don’t think there’s a formula for an ideal sermon. However, I do find that at least some mention of Jesus usually helps it along its way.<br /><br />If the sermon topic relates to my self-improvement (sanctification), then I would hope that the sermon would not play to my old self-righteousness nature, but rather would point me to the righteousness of Christ in me - my new self. When Jesus is mentioned, I would hope it would be the Jesus who does not condemn me, but accepts me as I am, loves me, gives himself up for me, gives me new life, sets me free, empowers me, blesses me, sanctifies me, etc. In other words, the Jesus who is for me, not against me - the Gospel Jesus. This Gospel Jesus is the death of my old self, and the hope of the new.<br /><br />Recently, I heard a sermon in a Presbyterian church. The topic was patience - a subject that could easily have been moralized into a typical “how to” sermon - how to become more patient. The pastor skillfully avoided doing this. A significant portion of the sermon dealt with the patience of God - His long-suffering nature. Then it also dealt with our human failures to be patient. In other words, we are not at all like God in this way. We are by nature impatient.<br /><br />At this point, he could have launched into the “how to” portion of the sermon, which (to me at least) would be telling me how to get my nature to become like God's nature. He began with a few practical tips and tricks that people have found to help (counting to 10, etc.) But then he immediately told us that while such methods may help us in some sense, patience is <em>not</em> something <em>we</em> achieve. It is a fruit of the Spirit, not something we go about “getting” through our own efforts.<br /><br />In fact, he said this quite bluntly. “We can’t try to GET patience. It is a gift of God.” So the first, last and best thing to “do”, is simply ask God for it. Then, if we recognize it in us, we know where it came from, and we have no reason for boasting, except in our Jesus.<br /><br />To my way of thinking, this sermon “told it like it is.” It did not hold out the false hope that I could “self-help” my way to becoming more patient through some 5-step program. And it did not lay any new burdens on me. It left me in the care of the Burden-Carrier - the All-Patient One.<br /><br />It may not have been the “ideal sermon”.<br /><br />But it was pretty close.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-49492017484082946942007-05-25T12:27:00.000-04:002007-05-25T20:02:23.136-04:00Self-Improvement SermonsI’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">ve</span> grown quite intolerant of self-improvement sermons.<br /><br />You know the ones I mean. They are the “How To” sermons. “How to” be a better spouse, “how to” be more loving, “how to” pray, “how to” be this, “how to” do that. The topics are infinite.<br /><br />The sermons usually contain 3-5 bullet points. In the more clever sermons, the bullet points all have key words that begin with the same letter. Or the first letters of the main points form an acrostic. Each point has appropriate Bible passages to back it up.<br /><br />“How to” sermons are most common in the mega-churches. So I’m guessing this is what the majority of Christians are looking for - practical ways to improve themselves and their lives.<br /><br />I guess this can be beneficial, as long as the Gospel <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">doesn</span>’t get lost in the process. But it’s been my experience that the Gospel <em>does</em> get lost. So at the end of the sermon I am left with one more program to carry out. One more set of items to add to my already long “to do” list. One more area of my life to work on fixing in the coming week. One more burden on my back. It’s like the pastor is saying, “Here. Carry this burden. It’ll do you good - make you a better, stronger Christian. There’s more where that came from. I’ll have another one for you next week.”<br /><br />I sometimes look around at all the other faces in the pews and wonder, “What are they thinking?” Do they really think they can do all this stuff? Does that guy up front think that <em>he</em> can do it? Am I missing something? Is the Christian faith just one big complicated self-improvement program - a long “to do” list of ways to make myself a better person?<br /><br />Call me old-fashioned. Or maybe just old. But I can’t buy what the self-improvement folks are selling.<br /><br />It’s not that my self <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">doesn</span>’t need improving. It’s just that I have a radically different view of self-improvement.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-74187783658477850832007-05-24T09:02:00.000-04:002007-05-25T20:03:16.155-04:00Working for GodRecently one of my daughters asked me the question, “What do you think is the purpose of your life?” My first reaction was to say, “I don’t know.”<br /><br />Of course I couldn’t leave it at that. So I jabbered on about love, ever-changing life circumstances and my aunt Tanna, a seemingly selfless person who seemed to find her purpose in the most mundane of life’s chores - cooking, baking, cleaning, washing and ironing (while raising an orphan child without aid of a husband).<br /><br />But I never really answered her question directly.<br /><br />The way the question was worded, it seemed to differ from the more general “meaning of life” question or the “Why are we here?” question. Two words seemed to make the question different. The word “purpose”. And the word “your.” These made it too specific and too personal to answer with fine-sounding cliches. It brought to mind the whole question of vocation, a subject which I have been reading about in Gustaf Wingren’s “Luther on Vocation.”<br /><br />I suppose it is a little late in life for me to be thinking about such things. My so-called career is mostly behind me. But career (defined as job or primary means of support) is, as Luther saw it, not necessarily vocation, but merely a part of it. I am in the early stages of studying this, and I don’t yet have a unified understanding of Luther’s theology - at least not one that will help me answer my daughter’s question directly. But the theological context for Luther’s thought is quite clear.<br /><br />Luther’s views on vocation were born, in the main, as a response to monasticism. At first blush, this may not seem relevant today. However, the fundamental flaws of monastic thinking persist today, perhaps now more among Protestants than among Catholics. It is based in the attraction of “working for God.”<br /><br />As I think about vocation (or “purpose of my life”) , I can appreciate the lure of this kind of thinking. If indeed I am personally called by God to some purpose, I am tempted to elevate that purpose into the heavenly realms. My purpose must be some grand spiritual purpose related to God’s Kingdom - maybe involving some great self-sacrifice. Not on a par with Paul or Mother Theresa, of course, but of the same general stuff. My purpose is to serve God - or “work for God” in some way, be it large or small.<br /><br />If I travel down that road far enough, I run the risk of monastic thinking, which makes God the <em>object</em> of my vocation. When God is the object, then the focus of my attention is on hearing God’s call, obeying God, carrying out God’s wishes and pleasing God.<br /><br />All this sounds good and righteous, and in some sense, it may well be. But Luther’s theology of vocation appears to be about none of this. It leaves God in heaven and keeps us and our vocation on earth. For Luther, the object of vocation is <em>not</em> God. The object of vocation is always my neighbor, who is not in the spiritual realms, but in plain sight - perhaps in the next room.<br /><br />The needs of my neighbor rule the province of vocation. And although God surely puts these neighbors in my life (spouse, children, friends, work colleagues, strangers, etc.), my calling is to love, befriend and serve them, not concern myself with pleasing God. If there is an element of sacrifice in this service, it is sacrifice for neighbor, not for God.<br /><br />One could say that this is not an either/or situation. For as we serve our neighbor, we are surely also serving and pleasing God. But <em>working for God</em> and <em>pleasing God</em> is not my purpose, since God is already well-pleased with me in Christ. And so my works are not for God, but for my neighbor. To the extent that I forget that, and spiritualize my efforts into the heavenlies, I can actually do harm to my neighbor. Now my neighbor becomes a project - a rung in my ladder to reach God - a means to my personal end. I set out to please God, searching for neighbors to help, meddling where I am neither wanted or needed, ignoring the needs of the neighbors God has already placed in my life.<br /><br />Luther believed that love discovers for itself what is the greatest benefit to neighbor. And so vocation is always plural (vocations), not just because we simultaneously hold more than one station in life (spouse, parent, child, employee, friend, etc), but because the needs of our neighbors are ever-changing. Thus vocation can never fit into any prescribed program. Each person finds and follows his vocations, his purposes, in true freedom - freedom from any requirement to please God - motivated by the power of mere faith and love.<br /><br />What this means to me personally and practically is still unclear. Except for this. I cannot answer my daughter’s question about my purpose with a generalized cliché, such as “to glorify God” or “to discern God’s will and do it.”<br /><br />I would rather answer as I did - rambling on about love, changing life circumstances, and my Aunt Tanna. At least in that convoluted answer, “working for God” was not mentioned.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-4038515122050139862007-05-08T11:20:00.000-04:002008-12-10T21:56:14.827-05:00What the Bleep Do We Know!?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLP0Pbseqs7Sy9JRiif97zAWly_vUGoTre-ZPzh5XyiPH1Lq18M_JRAQdnC0W6hr2nnSxkqGyLi7BWMZliU-vh0AG3bxGV9kOfE1u8w5FrpO02CbqKFZBETKx8OxECg17pC62PpFIeuw/s1600-h/whatthe+bleep.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5062211449564034386" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 184px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 223px" height="208" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLP0Pbseqs7Sy9JRiif97zAWly_vUGoTre-ZPzh5XyiPH1Lq18M_JRAQdnC0W6hr2nnSxkqGyLi7BWMZliU-vh0AG3bxGV9kOfE1u8w5FrpO02CbqKFZBETKx8OxECg17pC62PpFIeuw/s200/whatthe+bleep.jpg" width="190" border="0" /></a> As a Christian, there are two ways to react to a book like this.<br /><br />One can be put off by the often obvious “We can be as gods” new age/eastern religion philosophy that seems to run as a subtheme throughout the book, often masquerading as “a new way of thinking.” Or one can be surprised and encouraged by some of the many possible hidden truths which the authors suggest, recognizing that their discoveries are entirely consistent with what Christians have long believed about the relationship between the physical and spiritual dimensions of reality.<br /><br />It is an intriguing book from both vantage points.<br /><br />The authors argue that scientific dogmatism and religious dogmatism have taken turns stifling each other’s work - giving rise to an unnecessary and harmful hostility between the two. It is now time to recognize that the physical world and the spiritual world intersect to such an extent that the paranormal is just as real as the normal. Examples of this are found throughout the book, making for some fascinating reading.<br /><br />Unfortunately, the book sometimes seems to devolve into just another “power of positive thinking” self-help, “change your paradigm” sermon, dressed up in a blend of spiritual and scientific garb. This, however, is not without value. I think there are some important truths in their particular version of positive thinking, as they explore the actual power of faith, the subconscious connections between people (even in different times and places), and the ultimate importance of a reality that we do not see.<br /><br />All these are basic ideas consistent with a Christian worldview, though the centrality of Christ as a unifying figure is obviously missing.<br /><br />I learned some new things reading this book. Not necessarily a new philosophy of “doing life”, but a new appreciation for the way science is apparently expanding its investigation into the non-physiscal universe. It is interesting to note that not all scientists fall into the traditional categories of evolutionist or creationist thinking - presupposing the non-existence or existence of God. Some remain open to either possibility. And this apparently opens up whole new dimensions of experimentation and investigation.<br /><br />I doubt that science will necessarily discover God or prove His existence to anyone’s satisfaction. God seems to want to reserve this task to himself. But the persistent yearning of the human spirit to know more and more (whether good, bad or sometimes ugly), comes through loud and clear in this book. And there is a certain intellectual humility evident in the title that carries throughout the book.<br /><br />It is most certainly true that we know less than we think we know.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-48952357321448751772007-05-07T10:15:00.000-04:002007-05-07T10:53:51.339-04:00Barren Rocks and Smiling CornfieldsThere seems no question that, if God exists, then Nature itself is certainly one of the revelations of God. To be sure, man has instinctively sought God in Nature more than anywhere else. Whether through pantheistic worship, Thoreau-like contemplation, or even agnostic science - we look for God (or to be god) through understanding the majesty and mystery of the natural world.<br /><br />But, as Andrew Jukes points out, the revelation of God in Nature is veiled and hidden - just as he is veiled in Jesus and Scripture. Nature contains the same kind of inherent inconsistencies, such that one can be led to question whether, in fact, the Natural world was indeed the work of a single God. Or was it, after all, a result of mere chance - or, worse, the handiwork of competing gods?<br /><br />Andrew Jukes goes so far as to suggest that Nature seems to misrepresent God, saying,<br /><br />“<em>Does it not seem also to contradict itself, with force against force, heat against cold, darkness against light, death against life, its very elements in ceaseless strife everywhere? On one side showing a preserver, on the other a destroyer; here boundless provision for the support of life; there death reigning. Are there not here exactly the same contradictions and the same difficulties which we find in Scripture? Either therefore we must say, Nature is an inconsistent and lying book, and therefore we will not believe the testimony either of its barren rocks or smiling cornfields; or else we must confess some veil or riddle here.” </em> (Restitution of All Things, p 10)<br /><br />The history of science demonstrates that the reality of nature is indeed veiled, containing hidden contradictions that conceal the truth of it. The classic example of this is the rising and setting sun, whose movement was obvious to all for thousands of years. And yet it took a higher faculty to reveal that the sun does not move. Or does it? We still speak of the rising and setting sun. This is what most of us non-scientists can actually see and know, though we also know (by faith?) a contradictory truth - that it neither rises nor sets.<br /><br />Such a paradox (now apparently resolved) is but one of many in Nature. The discovery of such a grand contradiction does not cause scientists to give up on science, declare Truth unattainable, and reject the natural world as some kind of fantasy. Dare I say, in their persistence to continually seek the truth about the physical world, they are an example to all of us who seek the truth about God<br /><br />We are all dealing with revelations of a God hidden by the same veil. And yet this is a God who makes Himself known, in His good time and manner. The difference between the scientist and the theologian is that the scientist has limited himself to a single revelation. The theologian has more than one. But all the revelations are under the same veil.<br /><br />The veil often frustrates me. But it teaches me that God himself decides when, where and how He will be found. That is part of what makes him God (and me not so much).<br /><br />Maybe that's the point of the veil.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-10667829532315816522007-05-04T10:23:00.000-04:002007-05-04T10:38:13.813-04:00The Humanity of ScriptureAndrew Jukes begins his little book “The Restitution of All Things” (1867) with a refreshingly honest look at the nature of Biblical contradiction. Obviously, the Biblical text which tells of the many who are eternally lost seem to contradict those texts which speak of the reconciliation of all. So prior to embarking on his own explanation of this riddle, he offers his view of the nature of Scripture.<br /><br />He begins with Christ, who is the primary revelation of God. The nature of Christ, he argues, is not (in principle) any different from all other revelations of God, in that “the divine is revealed under a veil, and that veil a creature-form.” God is both hidden and revealed at the same time - in Jesus first, but similarly also in Scripture, Nature and Providence. These four revelations of God, he asserts, all contain apparent contradictions because they are both natural and super-natural, human and divine - God hidden in the humble.<br /><br />Jukes maintains a high view of Scripture, ridiculing those who would pick apart Scripture to prove its human origin. Of course it’s human! He compares all such efforts to picking away at the flesh of Jesus (even to the point of killing him) just to prove He was human. <br /><br />He writes about Scripture <em>“…it has humbled itself so to come for us, out of the heart of prophets and apostles; in its human form, like Christ’s flesh, subject to all those infirmities and limitations which Christ’s flesh was subject to - thoroughly human as He was; yet in spirit, like Him, thoroughly divine, and full of the unfathomed depths of God’s almighty love and wisdom.”</em><br /><br />When I am confronted with Biblical contradiction, the human side of Scripture, my first instinct is to run away, to deny, to reject or to attack. These riddles make me angry, doubtful, anxious, and fearful. Why couldn't God have been more clear and logical? What is the point of presenting us with such difficulty? <br /><br />Jukes reminds me that the human and contradictory Jesus, the perfect (yet veiled) revelation of God, had a similar effect on people. And people asked the same kinds of questions. <br /><br />Jesus was not what we expected of a Messiah.<br /><br />And Scripture is not what we expect of a divine message.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-6662714598859743472007-05-02T11:14:00.000-04:002007-05-02T11:49:40.634-04:00Dark ConversationsTwice during the last week I found myself involved in conversations that ”went dark.” To me, a dark conversation has three characteristics.<br /><br />First, the subject matter is some specific evil in society. Like sexually transmitted diseases, dishonest politicians, bias in the news media, random gun violence, war, poverty, high taxes, bad schools, welfare abuse, etc. The possibilities are infinite.<br /><br />Second, the focus is on judging the people involved - their irresponsibility, stupidity, inconsideration, selfishness, incompetence, hypocrisy, ignorance, bad behavior or just plain evilness. This sometimes takes the form of anecdotal one-upmanship. Like, “You think <em>that’s</em> bad. Just the other day I was in a grocery store line and you’ll never guess what this lady was buying with her food stamps!” <br /><br />Finally, the conversation has a turning point. Either it degenerates into extended whining about more and more injustice in the world, with lots of shaking of heads and “Tsk, Tsk’s.” Or, it turns toward talk of one or more of the pat solutions - all of which are political. That is to say, government must do something - change a law, create a new one, or enforce an old one. In other words, "<em>There oughta be a law!</em>"<br /><br />At this point, the conversation runs the risk of going even darker, as disagreement arises regarding the proper legalistic solution. Or, if all parties are in political agreement, it can darken into now judging the political opposition - those who are too stupid or evil to see the solution as clearly as <em>we</em> do. <br /><br />Eventually, someone puts the conversation out of its misery by changing the subject. (“So how ‘bout them Brewers?”) Often, that person is me. I like a good, dark conversation as much as the next guy. But there comes a point...<br /><br />I’ve been trying to figure out ways to end these conversations without involving a sports team. Like I could say “There but for the grace of God go I. I could see myself buying Twinkies with food stamps.” That might stop the conversation. Or at least refocus it. <br /><br />Or, I could say, “You know what Ghandi said -‘<em>Be the change you want to see in the world’."</em> That might redirect the conversation.<br /><br />On the other hand, I could just end up sounding trite and sanctimonious. <br /><br />Better stick with the Brewers. At least until they start to lose. If that happens, don’t know what I’ll do.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-18348053611990841992007-04-18T23:38:00.000-04:002007-04-19T00:20:18.749-04:00For Whom Does the Bell Toll?As many churches and schools plan memorials for the the Virginia Tech slaughter, some want to include the tolling of a bell, once for each victim killed.<br /><br />They are faced with the question, how many times should they toll the bell - 32 or 33?<br /><br />It’s a tough question - one that is generating a lot of discussion (and emotion.)<br /><br />For me, there are two right answers.<br /><br />One is technically and theologically correct. The other is the right thing to do.<br /><div\><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-55756883809487113002007-04-17T08:40:00.000-04:002007-04-17T08:45:32.254-04:00The Children's SermonI’ve never been a big fan of the so-called “children’s sermon” in public worship. I trust the motives are good, whatever they may be. But these little vignettes make me uncomfortable. I feel like I am a party to an intrusion into a sacred space - the gentle faith of a child. And I’m always fearful that the sermonizer will moralize (which they often do). <br /><br />The low point for me (maybe the high point for everyone else) is that moment in the message where the sermonizer poses a question and invariably some four-year old answers in a way that causes the entire congregation to burst out laughing.<br /><br />Now, God knows I’m all in favor of laughter and joy in church. The Gospel is a party. But more often than not, I don’t think the four-year old is trying to be either funny or joyful. He is dead serious. And normally his answer is more honest than funny. We adults just happen to find such honesty hilarious, especially in church. <br /><br />Kids will say the darndest things (like the truth, for instance.)<br /><br />And I can’t help myself. I laugh too.<br /><br />But it makes me uncomfortable.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-39831669791832454652007-04-16T07:58:00.000-04:002007-04-16T10:01:02.633-04:00Misproclaimed AbsolutionIn two different Lutheran churches I attended last Sunday and this Sunday, the pastor “misproclaimed” the absolution (the announcement of the the forgiveness of sins) by using his own creative wording. I’m beginning to wonder how widespread this practice might be, and whether it is intentional or accidental.<br /><br />After the public confession, rather than personally announcing the forgiveness of sins to the congregation (in the first and second person, i.e. “I forgive you your sins” or even the second person passive "your sins are forgiven"), the pastor used third-person grammar in a more generic statement about God (i.e. God is merciful to man, blah, blah, blah).<br /><br />I <em>know</em> God is merciful. But is he merciful <em>to me</em>?<br /><br />Unless God forgives <em>my</em> sins, he is a God no different from the god of Islam - who also is said to be merciful, is he not?<br /><br />I realize this may sound nitpicky. And I don’t consider myself liturgically legalistic, by any means. But I can appreciate why some churches insist on precise liturgical language - at least in the case of the absolution, because it is the one event in the public service where, if the pastor doesn't mess it up, you cannot avoid hearing the Gospel. Even if the entire rest of the service is filled with legalism (i.e. the praise songs, the sermon, the prayers, the announcements - yes, especially the announcements!) the forgiveness of my sins is (or ought to be) pure Gospel.<br /><br />“I announce the grace of God to all of you and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-12334905442171842122007-04-14T16:35:00.000-04:002007-04-14T16:58:20.264-04:00The Opiate of the MassesOne of Luther’s most startling claims was that what seemed to us to be so good and holy was actually sin and evil in the sight of God. <br /><br />How are we to understand such a claim?<br /><br />He was speaking of our religious and spiritual efforts - all of which is as filthy rags to God.<br /><br />But if this is true, what is the point of obedience, morality, Bible study, prayer, meditation, worship, church attendance, sacrifice, the doing of good deeds, the refraining from evil? Are all such things just ways we delude ourselves into thinking we are satisfying God or getting closer to him? Is religion itself void of any true meaning and purpose? Is it just the “opiate of the masses”, as Karl Marx suggested?<br /><br />In a word, yes.<br /><br />Religion is an addiction that temporarily makes us feel good, but is ultimately self-destructive - harmful to ourselves and to others. It is, as the atheists claim, the primary cause of the greatest of evil in the history of man.<br /><br />Thank God we can be free from religion!<br /><br />The Christ of Christmas, Good Friday and Easter has destroyed the need for religion, thus setting us free from its control. We now know that God is already satisfied with us and closer than we can imagine - all without any of our religion. So religion (and all that is practiced in its name) really has no point - at least not insofar as God is concerned. Religion is the waging of a war that is already won.<br /><br />Freed from this burden, we can live in peace - not judging ourselves or others. We can approach life as it comes, love ourselves, our family, our friends and even our enemies, meditate if we wish, converse with God at will, worship under no obligation, listen to the preaching of the Gospel and read the Holy Bible as often or as little as we find necessary, pursue a happy, productive and satisfying life in our vocation, recognize what is good and do it, recognize what is evil and shun it, love, learn, sing, dance, play and work - never alone or afraid, for God is always with us.<br /><br />Life without religion is life worth living.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-91298485878682391202007-04-07T13:08:00.000-04:002008-12-10T21:56:15.185-05:00Were You There?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGqZKvk-uXsLjM4fLl-xdvBxEE4TNTqf8mdXABZl93TGY_ad-8bqBp53V79Q_pYh01NH5XXkq8gU_xawnqnSJ5CKBqzFgGUBX3qC9mIlkGErwY0qxmkfdEtpvEOhQndclmtlkA5HfyQmY/s1600-h/cross.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5050739206158878130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" height="124" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGqZKvk-uXsLjM4fLl-xdvBxEE4TNTqf8mdXABZl93TGY_ad-8bqBp53V79Q_pYh01NH5XXkq8gU_xawnqnSJ5CKBqzFgGUBX3qC9mIlkGErwY0qxmkfdEtpvEOhQndclmtlkA5HfyQmY/s200/cross.jpg" width="201" border="0" /></a><br /><div><em>"Were you there when they crucified my Lord?"</em></div><div><em></em>African American Spiritual</div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>Since reading Gerhard Forde (...and Paul) (...and a little bit of quantum physics), the question in this song has new meaning for me.<br /><br />Paul writes in Galatians “I have been crucified with Christ” The same thought is expressed in Romans (“We were therefore buried with him”) and Colossians (“having been buried with him”). Metaphorical expressions? Or were we <em>really</em> there -physically, metaphysically, spiritually, mystically, or some other way our adverbs can’t fully explain?<br /><br />If we do not take Paul’s wording as mere metaphor, the answer to the song’s question is a resounding “Yes, we were there!” All mankind was there. Somehow, mysteriously (to us), the incarnation of Jesus put God in communion with humanity in such a way that he made it possible for us to be with him in his death. This is how our sin-filled nature was vanquished, and also how we received a righteous new life in the resurrection.<br /><br />Forde calls this “getting caught in the act.” We <em>participated</em> in the crucifixion. On the one hand, <em>we were there</em> to crucify Jesus. On the other hand, <em>we were also there</em> being crucified with him. Impossible? Makes no sense?<br /><br />While Einstein scratched the surface on the relativity of time, quantum physics is just now beginning to understand how matter can be in two different places at once. Beyond that, the scientific study of consciousness (including consciousness that transcends time and space) opens up possibilities that heretofore seemed far-fetched. Perhaps science itself will eventually be capable of substantiating our presence with Jesus at the cross. One day every knee will bow - even the knee of science.<br /><br />In the meantime, faith is all we have.<br /><br />And faith tells me, "We were there."</div>T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4607158207630609452.post-83305041491214136652007-04-02T15:08:00.000-04:002007-04-02T15:28:05.286-04:00Giving Back to God?Every now and then I hear the phrase “giving back to God.” Normally it is in the context of the passing of the plate, or some other church-related offering. In that context (or any other for that matter), it strikes me as an odd phrase.<br /><br />First, I don’t believe I have anything that God doesn’t already own. So “giving to God” seems like a weird idea in itself. But the notion of “giving back” makes it even weirder. Did God give me something and now wants it back? That doesn’t sound like God.<br /><br />Ok, maybe what is actually meant is this: God has given me so much, not just my money and other material blessings but also life and salvation, including his one and only Son who died on the cross for me. In return, the very least I can do is drop a few dollars in the collection plate. This, it seems to me, is the most ludicrous and grotesque idea imaginable.<br /><br />The way I figure it, when Jesus died on the cross, he removed all my debts and obligations. I now owe him nothing! I'm sorry if that sounds radical, but I think that’s the way he wants it. There’s nothing I am <em>obligated </em>to give him, and there is nothing I <em>can</em> give him. We both have everything. I have everything in Jesus. And Jesus got everything he wanted when he reconciled me (and the whole world) to himself. Anything further we might do for each other is just for fun.<br /><br />In the meantime, there are people and organizations who need my gifts.<br /><br />So I give to my local church, some para-church groups, some charities and (on occasion) to individuals in need. <br /><br />But I <em>never</em> give to God.<br /><br />And I certainly never <em>give back</em> to God.T. Hahmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322084345464570459noreply@blogger.com0