The Lutheran April 2021 Sneak Preview

M A G A Z I N E O F T H E LUT H E R A N C H URC H O F A US T R A LI A & N E W ZE A L AN D

VOL 55 NO3

Print Post Approved PP100003514

APRIL 2021

Death

‘Where, O death, is your victo ry?’

1 C O R IN T H

IA N S 1 5 :5 5

AND

dying

LUTHERAN

CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

60 reasons to celebrate in style

EDITORIAL

Editor Lisa McIntosh p 08 8267 7300 m 0409 281 703 e lisa.mcintosh@lca.org.au

When Nevin Nitschke turned 60, he celebrated the milestone birthday in unique style. Not only did the LCA International Mission Program Officer ensure he had some good reading on hand, he also donned a new work ‘uniform’ crocheted by fellow Barossan and Churchwide Office colleague, Vicki Rochow, of Grow Ministries. Nevin is a member at Bethany Tabor Lutheran Church, while Vicki attends Langmeil Tanunda, also in South Australia’s Barossa Valley.

Executive Editor Linda Macqueen p 08 8267 7300 e linda.macqueen@lca.org.au

CONNECT WITH US We Love The Lutheran! lutheranaunz lutheranchurchaus

SUBSCRIBE www.thelutheran.com.au 08 8360 7270 lutheran.subs@lca.org.au LCA Subscriptions PO Box 731 North Adelaide SA 5006 11 issues per year Print or print & digital Australia $45 | New Zealand $47 Asia/Pacific $56 | Rest of the world $65 Digital only $30 Issued every month except January.

DESIGN & PRINT Design & Layout Elysia McEwen Printer Openbook Howden

ADVERTISING/MANUSCRIPTS Should be directed to the editor.

Manuscripts are published at the discretion of the editor. Those that are published may be edited.

Copy deadline: 1st of preceding month Rates: general notices and small advertisements, $19.00 per cm; for display, contract and inserted advertisements, contact the editor.

People like YOU bring love to life Lorna Burton Redeemer Lutheran Church, Laidley Qld Retired Most treasured Bible text: 1 Peter 1:3 ‘Praise be to the God … In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.’

Andrew Thiele Seaford SA Lutheran school teacher Most treasured Bible text: Romans 8:28 ‘We know that all things work together for good for those who love God.’

Verena Johnson

LUTHERAN

Our Saviour, Aberfoyle Park SA

OF AUSTRALIA

LCANZ Church Worker Support Officer, church drama director, prayer ministry and women’s ministry

CHURCH The Lutheran informs the members of the LCANZ about the church’s teaching, life, mission and people, helping them to grow in faith and commitment to Jesus Christ. The Lutheran also provides a forum for a range of opinions, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editor or the policies of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand.

2

Send us a photograph featuring a recent copy of The Lutheran and it may appear on page 2 of a future issue and on our website at www.thelutheran.com.au

The Lutheran A P R I L 2 0 21

Most treasured Bible text: Zephaniah 3:17 ‘The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will … rejoice over you with singing.’

Let the light of someone you know shine through their photo being featured in The Lutheran and LCA Facebook. With their permission, send us a good quality photo, their name and details (congregation, occupation, what they enjoy doing, most treasured text in these difficult times) and your contact details.

April Special features EDITOR'S

let ter

5

‘In the midst of life we are in death’, we are told in The Book of Common Prayer.

Prayer. It’s a familiar saying often recited at funerals and committals, seemingly ensuring that the mourners present are aware it could be their turn next ...

As we age, we will lose more people close to us. ‘From dust we came, to dust we shall return’, the Bible tells us in Genesis 3:19.

8

So, while death will continue to bring sadness, pain and grief on this earth, for us as Christians it also brings hope. Our death will be the start of our new life, a transition we need not fear. In Revelation 21:4 we read: ‘“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death” or mourning or crying or pain.’

In this issue, we share insights from members of our Lutheran family who have served dying people through various ministries. I pray you will be encouraged in your faith as you read these stories, and that you will find comfort in the hope of your new life beyond death.

8

What is dying well?

11

‘You can’t bury your dead here’

24

4

Heartland

10

11

‘One short sleep past, we wake eternally, And death shall be no more; Death thou shalt die.’

As Donne and the Gospel of John (11:25) remind us, Easter means that even though we die, we will live.

A final expression of faith

Regulars

We can slip into viewing life in that gloomy, fatalistic way, simply waiting for the Grim Reaper to catch up with us, failing to live with the freedom of the gospel and the responsibility of the Great Commission. We can even be trapped into reading Scripture through the same lens, forgetting what Easter means for death.

Of course, thanks to Jesus, death has lost its sting, as our cover reminds us (1 Corinthians 15:55). I love the victorious tone in one of my favourite poems from high school studies – John Donne’s ‘Death, be not proud’.

5

Life and death 10 matters in aged care

Not exactly cheery.

We hardly need to be reminded that death is never far away though, do we? Not after this past year of watching the global COVID death toll rise day after day. Not when our screens blare out news of peaceful protesters being shot and killed by military forces in Myanmar; bloody tolls from ongoing civil wars in such places as Syria or Somalia; or a woman being murdered while walking home in London. Not when our loved ones die, whether they are frail-aged or have lives cut short by disease or accident.

Navigating end-of-life issues

24

Dwelling in God’s word

12

Go and Grow

13

Church@Home

17

The inside story

21

Directory

25

Sudoku

25

Your voice

26

Going GREYT!

28

Prayer calendar

30

28

Your favourite columns are here, too and also with this edition is a bonus copy of Border Crossings, Crossings, thanks to LCA International Mission. It’s full of wonderful stories about the way your prayerful support and the mission of LCANZ people and overseas partner churches are enabling God’s spirit to change lives with the gospel.

God bless your reading,

Lisa

PS – Remember, The Lutheran is now available as a digital edition.

To subscribe, give a subscription of a gift, or to register for free digital access as an existing print subscriber, go to www.thelutheran.com.au/subscribe

Our cover: iStock.com The Lutheran A P R I L 2 0 21

3

JES U S I S G OD'S LOVE. HE G IVES U S NE W HE ARTS TO L AY AS IDE O UR OL D WAYS, TO B EL IE VE AND FOL LOW HIM, TO L IVE WI T H HIM E VERY DAY.

heartland

RE V JOHN HENDERSON

Bishop Lutheran Church of Australia

LOVING THE WORLD IS OUR ONLY PATH ‘I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one’ (John 17:15 – NRSV).

Just before his death, Jesus prayed to his Father on behalf of those who would believe in him: ‘The glory you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, so that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me’ (John 17:22,23).

Even while Jesus was praying, events were turning against him. Injustice and violence would soon be inflicted upon him, but he would not turn on his accusers. He would not condemn the one who betrayed him or those who abandoned him. He would glorify his heavenly Father and love the world

J ESUS WANTS US TO BE ‘ I N TH E WORLD’ SO THAT WE CAN LOVE IT. 4

The Lutheran A P R I L 2 0 21

and its people to his last breath. For, ‘God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him’ (John 3:17).

Jesus prayed that believers may ‘become completely one’, as he and his Father are one. The love and unity that believers show the world will be a visible sign of God’s own love and unity.

(See also John 13:34,35.)

Therefore, God sends believers into ‘the world’, placing them among the nations, ethnicities, clans and languages. Believing in Jesus as our Saviour not only changes our lives – how we think, how we use our bodies and the choices we make – it also changes our world.

Today, such lived faith seems to be in retreat, particularly in affluent western societies. For centuries Christian churches set the pattern of social, moral and ethical standards. They had respect, wealth, and influence. Today, that is not always so. The world has changed. What are we to do when events turn against us?

Some say we should fight to reclaim the church’s hard-won, historical place in society. Believers can be tempted to try to save the world using earthly power, something Jesus refused to do.

Some say we should separate from the world to keep the purity of the faith.

But doesn’t God send us in the other direction, into the world? If I ever start thinking that I am better or holier than another, the Small Catechism reminds me: ‘ … that by my own understanding or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to him …’

(Explanation to the third article of the Creed). Believers need the continued grace and goodness of God just as much as non-believers do.

Jesus prayed that believers like us, united in him, would bear witness that his death and resurrection, forgiveness of sins and eternal life in him, are freely available to all people throughout the world. He wants us to be ‘in the world’ so that we can love it, but not to be ‘of the world’ through neglecting God’s love and so falling into disunity.

This Easter season we can receive comfort and joy in remembering that, just before he died, Jesus took time out to pray for those who would come to believe in him. We matter to him, as does our unity in faith. ‘The glory you have given me I have given them’, he prayed, ‘so that they may be one, as we are one.’ Let that be our prayer, too, for ourselves, our church, and the world.

One bite isn't enough, is it?

Here's how to get the whoe appe.

Subscribe to The Lutheran.

11 issues per year; each issue 32 pages Print or print & digital Australia $45, New Zealand $47, Asia/Pacific $56, Rest of the World $65 Digital only $30

Subscribe online at thelutheran.com.au

or contact LCA Subscriptions: lutheran.subs@lca.org.au Phone (in Australia) 08 8360 7270 Phone (outside Australia) +618 8360 7270

LDlheran