Anna Hochstein

The Cottonwood Citizen Online had an excellent Thanksgiving Day, front page article about my Cousin's Jamie's wife, Anna.
Here's an excerpt:

Jamey Hochstein smiles when he recalls the marital advice he and his wife, Anna, received shortly after their marriage just over 4½ years ago.Some of it, he thought at the time, was perhaps a bit trivial.

He knows today, it was all relevant.

"People would say, 'Oh, you should never go to bed mad at each other,' or 'You always finish a fight,'  " Jamey says. "Well, the night everything happened, we had had a great night. But in a matter of a half-hour, things went bad."Then you think, 'What if I had had a bad day with her and we didn't get to talk again.'  "Indeed, the Hochsteins don't take for granted their time together these days. Their lives were turned upside down five months ago when Anna, 25,
suffered an anuerysm at their home during the early-morning hours of June 16.

Thank you to everyone who has prayed so faithfully for them.

You can see pictures and get a further update about her progress here. It is an inspiring and beautiful story of prayer and mutual Christian support.

God's Embroidery

Today in the pastors bible class we studied verses that showed before we were yet in our mothers womb and that while we were in our mothers womb, God knew us. Then I noticed something strange in the Psalms (Psa 139:15 KJV) My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

I wondered what “curiously wrought “ meant in verse 15. To my surprise I found these two English words translated one Hebrew word that meant “embroidered” (Hebrew word # 7551, Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance). I then looked in my wife’s book on different types of embroidery and found that crochet was a needlecraft that I remembered that my grandmother used to do for many hours. She would always start off with two strands that were somehow connected together and then, part by part, after many hours she would complete a beautiful garment. The beginning of the garment is shown below.

As I looked at the crochet beginning I suddenly thought of another beginning that ends up in a beautiful new baby. There is a striking similarity between the crochet beginning and the double-helical DNA molecule. This DNA molecule has a molecular program which organizes part by part the beautiful structure of the whole infant. Yes, about 3000 years ago, God revealed that we were embroider in our mothers womb, and now science has discovered how God has chosen to do this with the DNA molecule. Yes, we too can praise God as the Psalmist did in: (Psa 139:14 KJV) I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

The distubing reality of this satyrical poster

is displayed in a NY Times interview of Episcopalian Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefforts-Schori reviewed by Ichabod, the Glory has Departed.

It includes gems like the notion that the Episcopalian Church is shrinking because its members are too educated to want children.

Simply Sick

If "Happy Holidays" didn't make you sick enough when it is substituted for "Merry Christmas" here is proof that "holiday" does not mean Christmas, or anything Christian at all

HT: Cyberbretheren

Uwe hits another Home Run

What the world needs is more Christians with a strong doctrine of vocation. Uwe Siemon-Netto explains a Lutheran doctrine of vocation very well in this article from Christianity Today.

Luther would say that when Christians in secular journalism serve their readers and viewers altruistically, they prove themselves members of the universal priesthood of believers. A reporter on the police beat does not have the divine assignment to "share the gospel" with cops rushing out to arrest a mugger; indeed, trying to share the gospel with them would seem foolish when officers perform their own priestly function by nabbing criminals.
"Each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him," writes the apostle Paul (1 Cor. 7:17). In our context, this means that a reporter does not have a calling to be a preacher, even though he or she might be a devout Christian. It also means that a journalist's vocation must not be confused with that of a prosecutor or a lobbyist, two self-aggrandizing roles many contemporary journalists slip into (which is one reason the media are so disliked).
Lutherans thrive on contradictions, and the doctrine of vocation is another example of this verity. Non-Lutherans might ask, "What do you mean calling me a Christian priest on the condition that I do not spread God's Word at work? Why call me a priest if all you want me to do is write or bake bread or pilot an airplane or serve a thirsty man a glass of beer in a bar? What's so priestly about that? You want me to be a Christian by not being a Christian?"
It's impossible to understand Lutheran teachings on vocation and their immense significance for our time without knowing the "two kingdoms" doctrine, which even many Lutherans struggle to appreciate, though it is a keystone of their theology. In a nutshell, this doctrine says that every Christian has "dual citizenship."

Pastor Fickenscher on the Holy Spirit

My vicarage supervisor is now interviewing live on the subject of the Holy Spirit. To say that we, as Lutherans, have a weak Pneumatology, is a criticism that can only be leveled by those who have a weak Christology. If our Pneumatology appears to be thin it is only an illusion because, like all good Lutheran theological disciplines, our Pneumatology is Christ centered. The Holy Spirit continually points to Christ and His cross because they are our salvation. He does not point to Himself. With this perspective we see that Pneumatology becomes a theology of Word and Sacrament and, therefore, Christology.

Of particular note is how cleanly, deftly, and gently he destroys a Pentecostal understanding of the Holy Spirit.

Listen to Hour 1 and Hour 2.

The end of the world

and how to understand Luke's Apocolypse.

A mountaintop Gospel reading to preach on for sure.

Sermon

I guess I didn't coin the phrase neo-Amish

But I could have...

Review - Technology - New York Times

My wife mocks me that I claim to be neo-Amish, read an article about it online, and then blog about it, but that is the character of being neo-Amish -- deciding whether or not to participate in a technology based on what impact it will have on you, your family and your community (read: church).

For example, after our family was shown a commercial for DirectTV's porn channels at 6:30 p.m. on a news channel, we called and complained. They assured us that they could legally advertise them after 9:00 p.m. When we told them that we saw it at 6:30, they said that it was 9:00 on the East coast! We promptly canceled, and successfully lobbied to get the penalty for early cancellation waived as well. When we moved into a different house, we could get two television stations by antenna. Unfortunately, they were both Canadian. "Enlightened" Canadian broadcasters do not advertize porn -- they show it. At this point we yanked the antenna and have not turned back ever since. We still watch videos that we check out from the library, or get via Netflix, but they are on our terms. We get to choose the content and have no commercials. (How else can you get a large variety of Roy Rodgers, John Wayne and Bullwinkle?)

For a long time we did not have Internet at home. We are back on for a while, but somewhat unconvinced. I carry a PocketPC, but we do not have a cell phone. We make most of our foods from scratch, but buy whole wheat bread for its convenience. We had two vehicles, but got rid of one.

Is this inconsistent? Eclectic? Strange? I don't think so. Like the Amish, these decisions have been made because what you let in to your life affects the way you live.

Lutheran Journalism and why we all hate news

News is depressing.
That is why I recommend regular news fasts.
It is only more depressing when you watch the news and realise that what you are getting is not news at all, but commentary presenting itself as if it were news, or outright propaganda.
The recognition that the news is spin has resulted in websites that claim to reveal the truth about the news (meta-news) from the left and the right. Both are accused of being propaganda tools.
A few groups watch the news to protect Christianity from media attacks, but what is really needed is better journalists -- LUTHERAN journalists (like Uwe Siemon-Netto).

In a 1996 study of the contemporary press, James Fallows wrote: “Until about the mid-1960s, journalism was essentially a working-class activity. In big cities the typical reporter would make about as much as the typical cop. Many reporters had not gone to college.” Fallows went on to quote Richard Harwood, a longtime Washington Post correspondent: “In early times we were not only describing the life of normal people, we were participating in it -- we were more or less on the same level. We lived in the same neighborhoods.”
This is precisely the point where confessional Lutherans are superbly equipped to help reverse a perilous development that before long will destroy freedom and democracy because both depend on a well-informed public. We have all the tools for such an undertaking at our disposal. We have the right doctrine by which journalism must be seen as a divine vocation for the secular “left-hand” kingdom if exercised unselfishly -- meaning without hubris -- out of love for one's neighbors, in this case readers and viewers.

News that is really news? Wouldn't that be refreshing!

Reasons to sell Wal-mart Stock and Buy Nintendo

Wal-mart's stock surged today, but it can't be because of quality toys. Looking over the "Wish Book"ads for this year I cannot find a single thing that looks worth buying. Much of what is there is rehashed and worse than previous years. I can't bring myself to buy GI Joe since he fell under UN control. Barbie has gone from a fashion doll to something to stand on corners. Only the Wii looks like any fun -- if only I were not opposed to video games for sending so many boys adrift.

Update: I guess they just don't make them like they used to (must see).

Persecution by Opulence

Is the Church in America persecuted by opulence? It is a thought that hit me last night as I hear a presentation by Carl and Melodie Knight, missionaries for Lutheran Bible Translators. Christianity continues to grow in Africa and other places that have real persecution, but despite all our scientific church growth schemes of the last two decades, there is no county in America that is proportionately growing more Christian.
Looking at the joyful African Christians with so little stuff made me realize that part of what prevents Americans from embracing the Gospel is our barrier of stuff.

The Third Last Sunday in the Church Year

Sermon: When Jesus is confronted by the "skeptics" of His day he declares boldly that God is the God of the Living. Not only is He the God of the living, that distinction comes at a great cost -- the death of His eternal Son. But His resurrection gives us Hope of new and eternal life.

Bible Class: Despite Jeremiah's warnings, these remnants of Judea choose to believe in a dream world of their own construction where Egypt is a safe refuge from God's wrath. We are likewise tempted to filter God's word to our own pet world-views. The only cure is to take our reason captive to God's word. (Jeremiah 44)

God is the giver of life

And that life is not easily taken away when God has determined to preserve it. A couple in Britain was advised by doctors and consented to abort a baby who was the undersized of twins when the doctors told them he was likely to die and cause the death of his twin if he did. Their efforts failed, and in fact may have saved the baby's life!

The baby is now a now a healthy 12lb 6oz at seven months.

This underscores how important it is to have pro-life doctors and should drive us to pray for those who are facing these decisions. Many parents are advised to get abortions because a blood test or amniocentesis indicates the possibility of a birth defect, but God is the giver of life and we must not put our fears or selfish desires ahead of His will.

On Philosophy: Pre-modern, Modern and Post Modern

A discussion about philosophy begs the question, If you are dividing philosophy by eras, is it valid, and what is the characteristic that separates philosophers into pre-, modern or post-?

If you look at a list of Medieval philosophers and a list of Modern philosophers you will see a striking difference on the way that they view reason vs. revelation.

It seems to me that a good dividing line between these two classes is that pre-modern philosophers saw reason and revelation as being partners in defining truth, whereas modern philosophers saw reason as the chief or sole definer of truth.

This elevation of reason above and apart from revelation made many Utopian promises, but ultimately simply became immoral, inhuman and an utter failure. The result of trusting in promises that are not trustworthy is shame. Post-modernism is the shame and disillusionment that followed modernism's failed promises.

Wildcats win, Advance

At Oak Harbor 20, Bellarmine 10: Leading the defending state champs at the half, 10-7, the Lions couldn’t hold on after a questionable call on a fumble early in the third quarter.

Bellarmine had stopped the Wildcats on an early second-half possession and were driving when the ball came loose as Tim Ramos made contact with the ground. It was ruled a fumble, and changed the momentum.

On the ensuing drive, Rodrick Rumble gathered in a 26-yard touchdown pass from Johnny Encitas as Oak Harbor took a lead it would not relinquish.

The Wildcats advance to a first-round game at Olympia.

All Saints' Sunday Sermon

A sermon about why the Church is for Saints who are sinners and where such saints come from. Can we bear the name Saint? Not by our works, but by Christ's righteousness.

The end of the old ways?

Will an Amish midwife be fined and prevented from delivering babies by state regulation? At least the fine is waved for now.

http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/state/pennsylvania/20071101_ap_pacourtrejectsbigfineforunlicensedmidwifeservingamish.html

Introduction

Palm Sundays is a new blog for the purpose of posting interesting items and research for upcoming Bible Classes or follow up items to current or past studies.

Enjoy!