For this reason I have come into the world.
John 18:37
The King Shall Come
The elections are over (unless they are still counting). Maybe you have a sense of foreboding if the candidates not of your choosing won. It is true as has often been noted: “Elections have consequences!” However, from a Christian perspective, we have reason to remain hopeful regardless of who is in the offices that affect national, statewide, or local policies.
The season of Advent is soon upon us, when we recount the coming of our King of kings, whether it be in His first coming in the womb of the Virgin, entering our world of sorrows to suffer and die on our behalf; or by His ascension promise to be with us now and until the end of the age in His means of grace; or when He returns in all of His glory on the day of Resurrection and Judgment.
In this holy One, come to save us, we find everlasting hope. No earthly politician with his many promises nor triumphant earthly ruler who defeats menacing enemies can bring us the peace we sinners so desperately need. Yes, we need good policies implemented for our welfare and enemies that need to be defeated. But in truth, these are only temporary fixes. Our needs and desires go well beyond this life and into eternity.
As you prepare for this year’s politically “mixed” family gatherings over the holidays, it is good advice to avoid the topics of politics and religion. But as Christians, your conversations will be flavored with the love of Christ. Paul, writing to the Colossians, says this: Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone (4:6). Seeking to win arguments is most unbecoming to those who follow Jesus. Rather, seek to ex-
press genuine care and concern while trusting God the Holy Spirit will use your words and actions for His purposes.
Government officials often break campaign promises and are even known at times to make allies with recognized enemies in order to benefit themselves personally or their own political agendas. But Christ Jesus, the King of kings, has and will continue to keep all His promises to you and will never compromise your safety in the face of your enemies who seek to do you harm. In His kingdom, Jesus forgives you all your sins and grants you life and salvation. Even in the presence of your enemies, He prepares a table before you with rich spiritual nutrition lavishly spread.
Christ, our King of grace, provides a real kingdom, which alone amidst all other transient kingdoms in this world, thrives and survives. Certainly, we need to pray for our country and its leaders and do all we can within the boundaries of God’s holy Law to support them; however, do not place your hope in them. Especially do not be overcome by any of the gloom you may feel because of their temporary and impotent powers. When compared to the merciful, eternal, and omnipotent powers of the King of kings, anything they can give or do is as nothing when compared to the hope we have in Christ Jesus.
Beloved… take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen (2 Peter 3:17-18).
Soccer Camp VBS AND
Any time a group of children get together for summer soccer camp and Vacation Bible School, it means a fun time.
Back in June, Peace Lutheran ran a four-day Soccer Camp for our school and community children. Florida weather in June is already hot (90s), but each morning about 50 campers showed up to sharpen their soccer skills. More importantly, the campers got to hear and learn more about Jesus there and at our VBS in the afternoon. We enjoyed getting to know each other throughout the four days while participating in different activities that connected with Jesus.
For these activities to happen, it took many hours of planning and many volunteers. Thrivent and our congregation members donated food items and supplies. Volunteers consisted of our Peace Lutheran upper grade students, our teachers, Pastor Rich Warnecke, and also six youth group members and three adult chaperones from Holy Cross Lutheran Church and School in Madison. The connection with Holy Cross is that it was my previous call, where I served as the principal for seven years. It was a joy to see the youth leaders from two different schools working together and getting to know each other.
In return for their services, we were able to visit Daytona Beach for a day on the ocean. Through the hospitality of some of our congregation members, we also visited SeaWorld for some animal shows and rides on scary roller coasters . This way we were able to say thank you to those traveling here to serve!
We hope to continue building this relationship with the same type of service project in the future.
A service project between the youth of Holy Cross Lutheran Church & School, Madison, Wisconsin & Peace Lutheran Church and School, Kissimmee, Florida Summer of 2024
by MR. CHRIS POETTER, Principal PEACE LUTHERAN SCHOOL, Kissimmee, Fla.
Question ...
Frankly, since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, we’ve been shocked. Several states have made abortion legal without any restrictions through the ninth month of pregnancy. Instead of viewing it as the taking of a human life, people frame abortion only in terms of healthcare or “reproductive rights.”
How can Christians effectively address the topic of abortion with their neighbors?
Answer:
The response to the Dobbs decision by the U. S. Supreme Court took many Christians by surprise. In the aftermath of the overturn of Roe v. Wade, one cannot help but notice how the American landscape has changed in terms of increased worldliness and hostility to the will of God. Acknowledging this reality does not change our need to address the abortion issue, but it might impact our approach to the world around us.
First of all, we do not forget our primary focus. Christ has called His church to disciple the nations by baptizing and teaching His Word (Matthew 28:18-19). Since God wants all people to be saved and to come to know the truth of His Word (1 Timothy 2:5), we do not want to lose sight of the goal of bringing the saving gospel of Christ to as many people as possible.
All too often, Satan uses the fight against one particular sin (in this case, abortion) to distract God’s people from the need for sinners to be saved. As threats of violence aimed at churches shock our sensibilities and as states pass laws expanding access to abortion, the devil stokes our self-righteous indignation to the point that our own heated words in the debate can wind up alienating those who most need to hear the truth.
This does not mean that Christians can stop speaking the truth. Human life begins at conception (Psalm 51:5) and develops in the womb (Psalm 139:13-16), and despite what anyone says about “reproductive rights,” no one has the right to take the life of another human being (Exodus 20:13). In today’s world, these truths may make people uncomfortable, but they continue to deserve a hearing.
Yet the Savior also warns against going after the splinter in our neighbor’s eye while neglecting the two-by-four in our own (Matthew 7:3-4). Whenever we have a conversation with someone about abortion or any other sin, we speak
from the God-given understanding of our own personal need for God’s grace and forgiveness in Christ every day. This “law and gospel” understanding about ourselves enables us to speak the truth in love, clothed with “heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience” (Colossians 3:12). In this way, we hope to not only persuade others to a pro-life worldview, but also gain a hearing for the gospel so that more sinners would be brought to faith in Christ as their Savior.
As the world slides into increasing ungodliness, we can glory all the more in the saving power of God. We as individuals cannot change the heart of anyone who favors abortion or is considering having an abortion, but God changes people’s hearts every day. In His Word, He transforms our hearts and minds through the powerful declaration that your sins and mine were buried with Christ, and that our lives are now hidden with Him as we await His glorious return. We can trust that God will work through His Word to turn the hearts and minds of many sinners back to Himself.
Do you have a question for Pastor Van Kampen? ? Send them via email: Send them via “snail mail”: pvankampen@holycrossmadison.org
Pastor Piet Van Kampen Holy Cross Lutheran Church 734 Holy Cross Way, Madison, WI 53704
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION SERIES: No. 6
Lifelong Christian Education
by REV. EDWARD BRYANT, ELS CONGREGATIONAL COUNSELOR
If you haven’t yet read the series on Christian Education in these pages, I would heartily recommend it. The articles are thoughtful and serious. They cover the nature of Christian education, the paramount role of the parents in Christian education, the cultivation of Christian faith, life, and view of the world, and the church’s commitment to establishing and maintaining Christian schools.
As important as Christian schools are, the time comes when our school days are over, and we are responsible for our own growth in our vocations while attentive to Biblical truth and applying it to our lives. It might start when our vocation takes us to a college or trade school without roots in the truth of God’s Word. It may be when we take up married life, start a family, or start work in a company or as an entrepreneur. It may be in military service. It extends to the end of our lives.
Whether suddenly or gradually, we find ourselves living out our various vocations outside of some explicitly Christian educational institution. In our day, that requires living counter-culturally. For ours is a culture that at best has some Christian influences but is more likely hostile to what we believe and the way we live. Lifelong Christian education is growth in the Word that sustains our faith and in the wisdom that guides our life as a Christian. And that life can be a long haul. We will face challenges to our faith in all phases of life as we pass from youth to married life, to parenthood, to maturity, as grandparents, and in old age.
Crucial to our “curriculum” in our lifelong Christian education is a mindset, an understanding that we live in the church militant. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12, ESV). And Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8, ESV). If we fail to comprehend the spiritual danger all around us, we will not be prepared for it. A person who is
the most skilled and successful in their profession or trade and most learned in their vocation may finally lose everything. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26, ESV).
However, a Christian understanding of our place in the world isn’t just to be fearful. We also realize that in all our vocations, as husband, wife, parent, tradesman, professional, citizen, leader, follower, or what have you, we are God’s instruments for blessing in this world. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ (Colossians 3:23–24, ESV).
Putting these two principles together, we understand that we grow in both our faith and in our vocations, for while heaven is our home, we are passing through this world as strangers. Remember the catalog of the faithful in Hebrews 11? It summed up this way: These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth (Hebrews 11:13, NKJV).
Consequently, as we go through life, we recognize that all our learning, growth, and development is part of our lifelong Christian education. Just as a Christian school teaches every discipline in the light of God’s Word, so we contextualize all of our growth and development in light of His Word. For example, as an HVAC technician, a person might develop skills and certifications; that’s no Bible class. Nevertheless, such a person recognizes that they serve to bless people with such mundane things as heat and cooling, and they are God’s instrument in doing so. At the same time, they provide for their own family and meet their needs. The same is true of so many walks of life.
Take as another example the Christians who work in healthcare and take continuing education classes over the years.
Jesus me.
Both in formal education and in their professional experience, they may constantly be barraged by the materialist presumption that human beings are merely products of time, matter, and chance. They are mere matter-in-motion and devoid of any immortal soul. In that situation, faithful Christians assimilate the technical, scientific, and other information, but reject the materialistic premise. No doubt many of us have experienced the difference between a caregiver who views us as merely physical beings and a caregiver who views us as both physical and spiritual beings with immortal souls.
So our lifelong Christian education embraces both the worldly and the otherworldly, both the profane and the sacred, both the attempts of humanity to discover some truth about this world and the revelation of God bestowing knowledge of transcendent realities. In addition to our earthly learning, then, we grow in the heavenly learning that keeps everything in perspective. So Peter counsels us, You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen (2 Peter 3:17–18, ESV).
First, that means that we feed our faith through the Means of Grace. It is the spiritual life of faith that lives in us, the new nature bestowed on us through Holy Baptism and fed by the Gospel in Word and sacrament, that gives us the strength to carry on and contend for the faith in this faithless world. Be in church. Listen to the sermon. Attend Holy Communion. Be constant in prayer. Include devotions in your life.
Next, it means that we study God’s Word in application to our lives. One of the best ways to do this is through Bible classes in church. You can be an encouragement to your
pastor by sharing with him your desire for lifelong Christian education in general and specific issues that you may face in our vocations. With that encouragement, he will present Bible classes relevant to the lives of those who attend. No pastor I know of passed “Mind-Reading” in seminary. He won’t know your situation if you don’t share it with him.
We also can take advantage of many helpful and instructive books from publishers like Northwestern and Concordia. The best ones aren’t just vaguely religious reflections, but rather focus on more concrete issues. A book on life in Bible times might make our own Bible-reading more rewarding. A book on creation or the flood may help us as we wrestle with the materialist/evolutionary presumptions around us. A book on Christian philosophy of government might help us as we thread the maze of our duties as citizens. Reading about issues of life may help us appreciate the gift of life more and avoid the propaganda of those who see death as some sort of final solution; it might also help us to deal with issues our aged parents deal with in hospice.
Finally, read good literature. Good literature relates truth about life. The best literature isn’t pointedly Christian, necessarily, but it presumes what is true. There is right and wrong, truth and falsehood, and there is the struggle to find the right and the true and to avoid the deceit of the wrong and the false. In good literature, humanity is fallen, not perfectible, and there is the sense of passing through this life toward an eternal destiny. There is sin and guilt and retribution and consequences and all of the things that torture our souls. But there is also grace and forgiveness and hope.
In such a way as this, we carry out our lifelong Christian learning.
What in the world is going on?
social-emotional learning
by the ELS DOCTRINE COMMITTEE
There is no doubt that educators are witnessing an alarming number of students without the ability to control their emotional impulses, motivate themselves, or manage stress. Whatever cause you point to – pandemic, school closures, war, the fractured attention economy, broken families, etc.… – social unrest is creating an “Anxious Generation.”1 In this mess, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) has gained considerable support as the balm to soothe these social ills. All 50 states have now instituted SEL standards for preschool, and more than half have them embedded as learning outcomes through grade 12. Advocates are optimistic they can establish systemic, society-wide integration of their goals through classrooms, schools, families, and communities. We can certainly expect programming to expand now that Federal and State Governments have earmarked billions of dollars specifically to support SEL.2 But what is SEL? What does it aim to accomplish? And how might thinking Christians respond to it as they consider school choices or step into a classroom?
The leading advocacy group defines SEL as the process through which people obtain the knowledge, skills, and mindsets to achieve five main goals: 1) self-awareness, 2) self-management, 3) social awareness, 4) relationship skills, and 5) responsible decision-making.3 On the surface, and without giving them much thought, these goals seem like exactly what is lacking. Who wouldn’t want children to be mindful of themselves and their surroundings, build healthy
friendships, and make responsible choices? But herein lies the challenge for Christians. We need to be confident of what is meant by each of these terms. What does it mean to self-manage within the SEL framework? What does a responsible decision actually look like? And towards what and in what manner should people be socially aware? In our “post-truth” context, we must take to heart St. Paul’s admonishment to “test everything” as we “hold fast to what is good” (Romans 12:9). Holy Scripture is the font for sustaining a godly life, emotionally or otherwise. We must be cautious when adopting terms and assumptions that derive from secular culture. One Christian commentator gave good advice, that “education [must] primarily train people to be able to think in Christian categories.”4 Or, put better, education ought to train students to “take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). With this guidance in mind, there are at least three aspects of SEL we do well to consider.
First, SEL takes expressive individualism as its philosophical starting point. Under this way of thinking, our purpose and value derive from the interior life of subjective feelings and intuitions. It assumes that human beings are by nature good or at the very least neutral, and that to be an authentic person, you must give breath to your deepest desires while resisting the pressure of external authorities defining for you what you ought to be, believe, or do. Modern identity politics, and SEL by extension, does not recognize authority
1. Jonathan Haidt, The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness (New York: Penguin Press, 2024).
2. For one example, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 invested $123 billion in SEL programs. See “SEL Policy at the Federal Level,” CASEL, accessed August 18, 2024, https://casel.org/systemic-implementation/sel-policy-at-the-federal-level/
3. See the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL): https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/
4. T.S. Eliot, Christianity and Culture: The Idea of a Christian Society and Noes towards the Definition of Culture (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1940), 22.
outside oneself. One SEL practitioner put it this way: “Our goal is helping people achieve happiness so that they can develop and fulfill their potential. If we’re happy with who we are, and where we are, and where we fit in, there is joy.”5 If this is true, education is merely the process for individuals to find themselves, feel validated, and to develop unencumbered by external pressures that might otherwise quash the flowering of emotional self-actualization. What students need from schools is how to understand and name their feelings, be aware of their strengths and weaknesses, and learn how best to express their emotions in effective ways so that they can set and achieve goals. It is a philosophy that values “me” above all else.
A second problem of SEL is that it assumes moral pluralism. Nowhere in SEL literature will you find discussion of what constitutes good or evil, how we can practice Christian virtue, or that we lead sanctified lives by abiding in Word and Sacrament. Instead, you will find talk of making “respectful choices…based on ethical standards, safety concerns, social norms, and a realistic evaluation of outcomes in a given situation.”6 Responsibility becomes amoral by default where the competency is about how one might navigate divisive issues. In other words, SEL teaches you how to be ethically nimble without being morally informed. These are dangerous waters where morality becomes an emotional preference guided only by “whether it conduces to the feeling of well-being in the individuals concerned.”7 It should come as no surprise that another SEL advocate boldly claims, “There’s No Such Thing as Bad Emotions.”8 In such a morally ambiguous environment, a student would not be encouraged to practice biblical discernment to deny their flesh and actively repent of sinful feeling. No, instead emotions are merely information to gauge in the pursuit of personalized happiness.
Finally, SEL thought leaders display the disconcerting ethos that policy makers and educators ought to assume an ever-increasing responsibility to form student’s identities, thoughts, and attitudes.9 Again, in the wake of current social challenges, we can understand why secular-minded reformers might look to SEL to simultaneously address multiple issues. The problem is it begins to see parents as mere collaborators within the SEL framework. By contrast, a proper understanding of the in locus parentis tradition affirms a person’s core character formation should happen in the home, and that an educator’s vocation is to support and in no way replace it. No doubt schools partner with families in the education of children, but God entrusts parents with vocation of bringing up their children “in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). An education that would train students otherwise is no education at all.
Like fentanyl, it doesn’t take many hits of SEL to make an addict. While some of its goals are laudable (helping students manage stress, practicing time management, and working well with others), it is nonetheless built on a secular concept of what it means to be human. It does not register the reality of sin, grace, and forgiveness. Where SEL advocates should see our problems stemming from the brokenness caused by rebellion against God, they instead see a lack of self-actualization or strong interpersonal relationships as humanity’s fallen state. Ironically, they offer as a cure the very hubris that would set people firmer in their inward-looking sinfulness. We should not be trusting the school district or state policymakers to set the terms for our children’s social and emotional lives. Children need to be taught that their identity is not something they invent and reinvent as part of their personal journey. They need to learn that their selves do not really belong to their selves; they are God’s. He made them and bought them for a dear price. Training our children in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6) means directing them to the Triune God for their identity, who made, redeemed, and sanctifies them through Word and Sacrament.
Now, this doesn’t mean we as Christians disparage our emotions. Not at all! We are not saved by having the right feelings, but the Chrisian life is nonetheless a passionate one. Our bodies are fearfully and wonderfully made. We agree with what one faithful pastor said many years ago, that whatever Jesus “has not assumed He has not healed; but that which is united to His Godhead is saved.”10 To feel is human, and Jesus Christ assumed the full range of human emotion when He became our brother. He sympathized with us in every way. He felt compassion (Mark 1:41), love (John 20:2), anger (Matthew 21:12-13), grief (Isaiah 53:3), sadness (John 11:35), sorrow (Matthew 26:38), joy (Luke 10:21), abandonment (Matthew 27:46), betrayal (Luke 22: 61), and so much more. But Jesus never channeled His God-made emotions toward sinful ends. He felt perfectly in his active obedience, and He carried this out in Love for us whose sin-stained feelings would otherwise send us weeping and gnashing our teeth in hell. The Christian social-emotional life is not something we practice with our own strength and get better at; it is the result of the sanctifying work of the Spirit who comforts us. Our tears of sin, of sadness, of death, of pain, of despair, God the Holy Spirit washes away in a baptismal flood. Through God’s work our emotional lives are healed, and it is through Him that we enjoy the fruits of the Spirit. Education only succeeds when it draws people out of themselves and points them to Christ, who will wipe every tear from our eyes. When we encounter the latest program that promises to heal the emotional wounds of a broken life, look instead to our Lord and Savior Jesus who reconciled the world to Himself, emotions and all.
5. Dan Kranzler, “Social Emotional Learning Helps People Feel a Deep Sense of Satisfaction about the World,” in Committee for Children, How Social-Emotional Learning Helps Children Succeed in School, the Workplace, and Life, accessed August 18, 2024, https://www.cfchildren.org/wp-content/uploads/mission-vision/what-is-sel/docs/sel-e-book.pdf.
6. Roger P Weissberg, “Forward: Social-Emotional Learning is Essential for Our Nation’s Schools,” How Social-Emotional Learning Helps Children Succeed in School, the Workplace, and Life, accessed August 18, 2024, https://www.cfchildren.org/wp-content/uploads/mission-vision/what-is-sel/docs/sel-e-book.pdf.
7. See Carl R. Trueman, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2020), 79.
8. Marc A. Brackett, “‘There’s No Such Thing as Bad Emotions’ and Other Truths Students Need to Know,” Education Week (2023), 12.
9. See Benjamin Bloom, All our Children Learning (New York: McGraw Hill, 1981), 180. Quoted in Karen Effrem and Jane Robbins, “Social-Emotional Learning: K-12 Education as New Age Nanny State,” Pioneer Institute White Paper 192 (March 2019): 9.
10. Gregory of Nazianzus, “To Cledonius the Priest Against Apollinarius,” n.d. New Advent Encyclopedia, accessed August 18, 2024, https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3103a.htm
For this reason I have come into the world.
John 18:37
by REV. JAMES BRAUN, Editor, The Lutheran Sentinel TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH, Brewster, Mass.
Even in the Christian home, Advent and Christmas can raise the stress levels. With all the activities to prepare for a proper celebration of our Lord’s incarnation and birth as well as the celebration itself, conflicts during these days can escalate, nerves be frayed, and budgets busted. It’s difficult at times, isn’t it, to keep a proper perspective on what we colloquially call “the true meaning of Christmas.”
Now, when most people say that phrase, they’re referring to a generic kind of “peace”: peace between people and between nations. It’s a kind of peace that the world strives to give, and I’m certainly not going to speak against it. There’s the desire on the part of every man, woman, and child to have this kind of tranquility in their lives not just at Christmas, but throughout the year.
When I was growing up, while the season was usually mostly…kind of…sort of conflict-free, there was often that epic battle my Dad had with the Christmas tree and other holiday décor. If there was a bare spot on the tree, he would drill a hole in the trunk, insert a fill-in branch, and then wire it up to the branches above it so that it would look just right. There was a platform under the tree he had wired up with lights so that village houses could be put over them and the little town surrounding the creche would glow every night. It was a lot of work and sometimes it was accomplished quietly and peaceably…but not always.
Branches may not have fit. Bulbs may be burned out. There might even be a precipitous lean to the whole thing that threatened to topple the tree onto the console tv to one side or the wall on the other. It was a confluence of little things that eventually made for a river of Advent sorrows. And all that was even before the lights went up, which themselves (and an occasional short) often added to the deluge.
OK. I’m exaggerating just a little bit. But there is always that undercurrent, isn’t there, of sorrow and sadness to the days before and during Christmas. The anticipation builds so much that the actual event just can’t reach our lofty expectations. And while the children may
not be aware of it, you adults know what I’m saying. There’s always the shadow of sin lurking in the corners that infects our preparation. It’s so prevalent that we sometimes feel we even have to bribe our little ones with the promise of presents in exchange for good behavior instead of telling them of Jesus, the Joy of our salvation.
When it came time to put on the ornaments, though, the battles of “tree night” were forgotten for a moment, at least. Dad would put the first ornaments up and what he did was rather interesting. He put up ten red satin ornaments and did so in the shape of a cross. And, even though all the other shiny orbs and tinsel were then put up all around it, that cross in the middle of the tree still stood out plainly for all to see.
Now, I don’t know if my Dad had these words in mind when he came up with this, but here’s what the “proper preface” for Lent says:
It is truly meet, right, and salutary, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks unto Thee, O Lord, holy Father, almighty, everlasting God: Who on the tree of the cross didst give salvation unto mankind that, whence death arose, thence Life also might rise again; and that he who by a tree once overcame might likewise by a tree be overcome, through Christ, our Lord…
Yes, the serpent in the tree overcame mankind as Satan tempted both Eve and Adam to eat the tree’s fruit. But by another tree, even though it was in a shameful way (ELH #302, “The Tree of Life”), the devil was overcome. His power was broken by the crucified Christ, the Lamb of God who there bore the sins of the whole world. This was the destiny of the Babe born in Bethlehem.
In this way, as symbolized on the Christmas trees of my youth, your peace was earned by He Himself who is the Prince of Peace. The wrath of God has been satisfied in His suffering and death, and no more do you need to be afraid – or stressed out – by the ways and means of this life. For you are forgiven all your guilt of looking to this world for your joy, and you rest as merry gentlemen and gentlewomen, for Jesus Christ, your crucified Savior, was born on Christmas Day.
The First
Lutheran Hymnals Martin Luther - 1524
by REV. PETER FAUGSTAD, ELS Committee on Worship SAUDE, JERICO & REDEEMER LUTHERAN CHURCHES, Saude, Iowa.
Toward the end of summer 1523, Martin Luther wrote “A New Song Here Shall Be Begun” to commemorate the first two Lutheran martyrs. It was written in a “news ballad” style, a popular method of conveying news through song. This was the first time Luther published something like this in poetic verse. Little did he know that two-thirds of the hymns he would produce would be written in the following months through the spring of 1524.
In December 1523, Martin Luther published instructions for a Latin order of service, the Formula Missae. Toward the end of that writing, he expressed the desire that hymns in the vernacular be written. These could be sung at various points in the service in the common language (German) of the people. “But,” he said, “poets are wanting among us, or not yet known, who could compose evangelical and spiritual songs, as Paul calls them [Colossians. 3:16], worthy to be used in the church of God.”
He enlisted his friends to help in this hymn-writing effort and asked them to focus on turning certain Latin-language Psalms into German hymns. Ten of these were completed in winter 1523-1524 with six done by Luther. As broadsheet copies of these hymns began to be circulated and as demand for them increased, several German printers saw an opportunity to increase their earnings.
The first of these was Jobst Gutnecht in Nuremburg. He compiled some of these broadsheets and printed them early in 1524 in a small booklet commonly known as the Achtliederbuch (Eight Song Book). The title page contained this information: “Some Christian Hymns, Songs of Praise, and Psalms, According to the Pure Word of God from the Holy Scriptures, by Several Learned Authors, to be Sung in the Churches as Prepared and Practiced in Wittenberg.”1
The eight hymns were printed in this order:
“Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice” (M. Luther)
“Salvation unto Us Is Come” (P. Speratus)
“In One True God I Trust Alone, Who Wrought” (P. Speratus)
“Oh, God, Man’s Ruin Is So Broad and Grim” (P. Speratus)
“O Lord, Look Down from Heaven, Behold” (M. Luther)
“The Mouth of Fools May Well Confess” (M. Luther)
“Out of the Depths I Cry to Thee” (M. Luther)
“In Jesus’ Name Begin We Now” (J. Jonas?)
1. The previous paragraphs are summarized from Robin A. Leaver, “Hymnals 1524,” A New Song We Now Begin: Celebrating the Half Millennium of Lutheran Hymnals, 1524-2024 (Fortress Press, 2024), 33-46.
The first two hymns clearly outline the biblical teaching of salvation by grace alone, and they are still counted among the greatest hymns in the Lutheran Church. Luther wrote “Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice” in a very personal way, so that we can picture his life in the stanzas and our life of faith as well: “Fast bound in Satan’s chains I lay…. My good works so imperfect were…. But God beheld my wretched state.”2
“Salvation unto Us Is Come” was composed by Paul Speratus while in prison in Moravia. He was jailed for preaching against unbiblical teachings and practices in the Roman Church. His intention with the hymn was to teach the evangelical faith. This is evident from the pages of notes that follow his hymn in the Achtliederbuch providing references to the Bible passages on which the hymn stanzas were based.
The success of this short hymnbook and the production of more hymns by Luther and his associates led others quickly to prepare more hymnbooks. Two rival printers in Erfurt produced the next Lutheran hymnbook, An Enchiridion or Handbook, using almost the same proofs. This volume contained twenty-four hymns from the reformers in Wittenberg.
Later in 1524, Joseph Klug printed a collection of thirty-seven hymns in Wittenberg, Spiritual Hymn Booklet, commonly known as the Chorgesangbuch (Choral Hymn Book). Luther’s friend Johann Walter prepared the musical settings for the hymns. Luther himself wrote a preface for the book, which makes it the first hymnbook to receive Luther’s endorsement (the last one was the “Babst Hymnal” of 1545).
The first Lutheran hymns were born from a desire that the people be taught solid, Christ-centered hymns. The reformers recognized the unparalleled power of God’s saving Word paired with God’s gift of music. Dr. Carl Schalk described the effect of these hymn texts and tunes:
“The Lutheran chorale (the word chorale reflects its origin in the German word Choral meaning the Gregorian chant), as the congregational song of this period came to be known, reflected a variety of roots and origins. Its texts spoke directly of sin and salvation, of man’s fall and his redemption through Christ’s victory over death and the devil. Its melodies were popular, vigorous, and filled with rhythmic life. They were sung in unison without accompaniment, the people frequently alternating with choir and instruments in their presentation, especially in the de tempore or Gradual hymn (Hymn of the Day). These songs were essentially liturgical songs, songs not simply to involve the people but to involve them in singing the liturgy.”
The Lutheran Church is known as “the singing church” because of this historic and continuous emphasis on congregational participation. Luther’s expressed intention for having hymns in the common language was so that music in the Divine Service would be sung not just by the pastor or a choir but by every member of the congregation.
The Lutheran hymns of 1523 and 1524 have stood the test of time. Twenty-two of those hymns are included in our Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary 4 They provide a model for what still sets Lutheran hymnody apart. The hymns were based on biblical texts seen through the lens of the Gospel. They emphasized our inability to save ourselves and God’s grace toward us in Christ. They taught that the Holy Spirit works in our lives not by awakening and strengthening certain feelings or emotions in us, but by awakening and strengthening our faith through the Word of Jesus. They were paired with melodies drawn from sacred music dating from the early Christian church to the time of the Reformation.
What we still have in the Lutheran Church is what Luther hoped for with the publication of those first hymnbooks. In the preface to the Joseph Klug hymnbook of 1524, Luther wrote:
“And these songs were arranged in four parts to give the young—who should at any rate be trained in music and other fine arts—something to wean them away from love ballads and carnal songs and to teach them something of value in their place, thus combining the good with the pleasing, as is proper for youth. Nor am I of the opinion that the gospel should destroy and blight all the arts, as some of the pseudo-religious claim. But I would like to see all the arts, especially music, used in the service of Him who gave and made them. I therefore pray that every pious Christian would be pleased with this [the use of music in the service of the gospel] and lend his help if God has given him like or greater gifts. As it is, the world is too lax and indifferent about teaching and training the young for us to abet this trend. God grant us his grace. Amen.”5
God grant this still in our day and for generations to come!
2. Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary (St. Louis: MorningStar Music Publishers, 1996), #378.
3. Carl F. Schalk, “German Hymnody,” Hymnal Companion to the Lutheran Book of Worship (Fortress Press, 1981), 23.
4. Some were newly-written hymns or stanzas added to old hymns; others were German adaptations of Latin originals: 2, 10, 18, 33, 38, 48, 90, 136, 224, 227, 267, 327, 343, 378, 396, 430, 440, 4
5. Martin Luther, Luther’s Works: Liturgy and Hymns, American Edition, Vol. 53, (Fortress Press, 1965), 316.
CELEBRATING 150 YEARS
First Lutheran Church
Suttons Bay, Michigan
On Saturday, August 24, 2024, the congregation of First Lutheran Church, Suttons Bay, MI celebrated their 150-year Anniversary
A Festival Service was held at 3pm with four former pastors participating. ELS Synod President Glenn Obenberger preached on Luke 19:37-44 with the theme, “Celebrate the Time of Jesus’ Gracious Visitation of Eternal Peace.” A catered reception was held outside at a local park pavilion at 5pm with former pastors and vacancy pastors speaking. 100 people attended the Festival Service.
Bethany Seminary Begins a New Academic Year 2024–2025
PICTURED FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:
(back) Arthur Langhorst, Graham Parsons, Scott Fassett (front) Noah Schleusener, Adam Hoeft, Peter Estrem
Vicars not pictured: Skyler Hepler, Caleb Strutz, Caleb VonDeylen
Bethany Lutheran Theological Seminary began the new academic year on August 19, 2024, with an opening service at Good Shepherd Chapel. For the opening service, President Hartwig preached on 1 Timothy 3:1–7, encouraging the men present to set their hearts on the noble task of being a pastor. It is a task that requires faith in Christ so that improper motivations are eliminated. Men seeking the pastoral office are to be humble, recognizing their own failings and weaknesses and clinging to Christ for salvation and the strength to serve Him. The high standards laid out by Paul are a reflection of the importance of the work. In fact, because the work is spiritual and the consequences eternal, the vocation of pastors can be spoken of as the highest and most important work.
The teaching staff for the seminary this semester is as follows: Peter Bloedel, Craig Ferkenstad, Timothy Hartwig, Brian Klebig, Nicholas Proksch, Gaylin Schmeling, Timothy Schmeling, and Michael Smith. Peter Bloedel is helping with
Correction from Previous Issue
the senior homiletics students. Craig Ferkenstad is teaching ELS history; Timothy Hartwig is teaching courses in homiletics and dogmatics; Brian Klebig is teaching communication; Nicholas Proksch is teaching in the areas of New Testament, homiletics, and hermeneutics; Gaylin Schmeling is teaching church history; Timothy Schmeling is teaching Old Testament and homiletics; and Michael Smith is teaching an isagogics course.
The seminary enrollment this year numbers nine. There are three vicars, two seniors, three middlers, and one junior. The vicars are Skyler Hepler at Our Savior and Resurrection Lutheran Churches, Lakeland/Winter Haven, Florida; Caleb Strutz at Peace Lutheran Church, North Mankato/Eagle Lake, Minnesota; and Caleb VonDeylen at Divine Mercy Lutheran Church, Weatherford, Texas.
In the “President’s Message” from the September-October issue of the Lutheran Sentinel, a footnote was inadvertently omitted. The quote describing “a proper Christian funeral” should have been noted as coming from The Baptismal Life by Michael Berg, NPH, 2022, pp. 66-67.
Circuit 12 Mission Rally
by MARGARET ZICKRICK, Contributing Writer CHRIST LUTHERAN CHURCH, Sutherlin, Ore.
Mission Theme: “I am the Lord, I change not.” (Malachi 3:6)
This year’s 2024 Circuit 12 Mission Rally was a remarkable success, praise God! Christ Lutheran Church in Sutherlin, Oregon, graciously hosted this year’s rally. Rev. Nicholas Lilienthal serves at Christ Church in Sutherlin.
Christ Church member Barbara Coggswell gave an insightful presentation on the history of Circuit 12’s Mission Society.
Rev. Thomas Heyn presented an overview of various mission leaders in several different countries. Rev. Robert Lawson spoke on Martin Luther’s view of the importance of hymns for the people. Rev. Roger Emmons discussed the progress of our Home Missions. Rev. Edward Bryant introduced the subject of counseling congregations in crisis. Rev. Michael Lilienthal highlighted how God used Luther to preserve the unchanging gospel.
We are thankful to the many pastors and church members who attended this year’s rally. Thank you all for your presence and prayers.
Pastors in attendance (some are not pictured): Thomas Heyn, Roger Emmons, Andrew Burmeister, Nicolas Lilienthal, Michael Lilienthal, Robert Lawson, Tim Bartels, Joseph Burkhardt, Edward Bryant, Cody Anderson, Matthew Lehne
SYNOD NEWS