To go or not to go...that is the question

About a month ago I was asked if I would travel with other women in the ELCA to South Africa for a 2 week global seminar called "Women Building Global Community." My immediate response was YES! SEND ME! ...And then I found out the dates - 2 weeks in the middle of November (ie. right in the heart of the semester/quarter). While I didn't want to pass up this great opportunity, I also knew it wouldn't be easy to be gone for that amount of time during the school year. Just think of all things I'd be missing:

*I would miss my seminary class. Not only would I get behind on reading (would I really bring all those books with me across the world, and READ them?!), but there is also a paper due immediately upon my return...

*I would miss my social work class at the University of Chicago (I'm a dual degree student). They are on a quarter system still, so missing 2 out of 10 weeks is actually quite a bit!

*I would miss my social work internship. It is 24 hours a week, so making up 48 hours is going to be a lot of hours to make up.

*I would miss my cats. Being gone for 2 weeks is expecting a lot of my roommates isn't it?!

Well, even though I'll miss all of these things, I knew I couldn't pass up this opportunity to represent the ELCA in South Africa. That's the way God works - we don't always (or ever?) know where we'll be called next. I know that I'll have to work very hard to make up hours and classwork, but I also know it's worth it.

There's No Place Like Home!

The famous story of the Wizard of Oz finds our heroine Dorothy carried away from her home in Kansas by a twister and dropped into the Land of Oz. There she meets all kinds of new people, sees some pretty amazing things and yet all she wants to do is go home. She doesn’t consider staying in this incredible place or check out all the new things she's experiencing but instead is determined to find her way home at all cost including taking on the Wicked Witch head to head.

As a commuter student at LSTC, I frequently feel the same way. LSTC is not "home" for me. While on campus I study on the shelf, eat my meals in the refectory and sleep in the Commuter House across the street. When classes are finished on Thursday I hurry down to the garage to get on my way home before rush hour hits. I hop into my Ruby Red (seriously!) Toyota, click my heels three times and utter Dorothy's famous words "There's no place like home...." and instantly....well...considering traffic on the Kennedy…not instantly....but an hour or two later I'm home!

After a weekend at home, Sunday evening too quickly approaches so I pack my suitcase and gear myself up for yet another week away. Although it sometimes feels like it, I am not carried away to the land of LSTC by a twister but I come willingly. I choose to immerse myself in this strange land called seminary and take time to breathe in and experience all that it has to offer. No, there isn’t a wizard, scarecrow or wicked witch but there is knowledge, community and God’s presence in every corner of LSTC. And when my time here is done, I can click my heels and go home.

But for now, the journey down the yellow brick road continues…

Godspeed,

Lu

answering God's call

The summer after my first year of college I drove with my parents out to Lutheran Camp Chrysalis to pick my sister up from the first week of camp. The camp director and I chatted as my parents loaded up her stuff, as he was a counselor when I was a camper, and he mentioned that they were looking for another lifeguard." What are you doing this summer?" he asked on Friday, I faxed in my application on Saturday, and drove out on Sunday for my first of five amazing summers in outdoor ministry!

I have been incredibly blessed to be able to be the Outdoor Ministry Ambassador to Camp Chrysalis this past week. It holds a special place in my heart, and it was great to see all the improvements that have occurred since I was on staff in 2001 and 2002. The new cabins have air conditioning, there's a climbing wall, zip-line, and exciting new programs. Given the glut of superhero and comic-book films this summer, the theme of "Saints and Superheroes" was especially apropos and the youth connected these ideas with their faith lives throughout the week.

Though some things change, there will always be aspects of camp that never change. It's always great to see that the staff is excited and passionate to be working with youth. The middle-schoolers still oscillate between eye-rolling resignation and goofy enthusiasm. Dave the Maintenance Man stills knows absolutely everything about camp, and the Executive Directors Eric and Deanna still love their vocation at Chrysalis. Though this year's staff is still deciding what their major will be in college rather than their vocation later in life, I could see each of them answering God's call by making that week at camp the best possible for each camper.

Outdoor Ministry Ambassador & Seminarian, Rebecca Smith

Lutherdale Reflections

Lutherdale Reflections, Amanda Kimmet

The first week of August I had the pleasure of being the Outdoor Ministry Ambassador from LSTC to Lutherdale Bible Camp near Elkhorn, Wisconsin. I had visited Lutherdale previously when I led a youth group retreat and was very impressed with the facilities, the environment and the staff. With such a positive first experience at Lutherdale I was eagerly looking forward to another and being there in a different ministerial role.
I began the week open to experiences and growth and received a bountiful of experiences, growth, opportunities and blessings. I cannot possibly begin to describe everything I did or learned or experienced during my week at camp so I will try to share a couple of experiences with you and there impact upon myself and others.
This was the last week of summer camp and the week that the inner city youth from Milwaukee visited intermixing with the "normal" camp crowd of neighboring Wisconsin towns. The environment at Lutherdale this week was different than any other week during the summer program due to those two factors and this environment provided me with many excellent pastoral care opportunities.
I spent the majority of my time with two counselors and their cabin groups assisting the camp counselors when and where I could as they dealt with the stress and joys of the culture and language clash of rural and urban youth, white and black, lower class and middle class and male and female. And there were indeed many clashes ignited by homophobic, racist, sexist and derogatory remarks. At times the language and behavior was overwhelming for the counselors and me. At the beginning of the week the clashes were intense and frequent as the week continued and the youth grew to know one another, befriend one another and become comfortable in their village group and with their counselors these clashes lessoned and lessoned.
One evening was particularly memorable to me. We gathered together as community for a cookout meal around the fire. The usual comments were made when the campers were asked to search for kindling for the fire but a new experience occurred. The normal splitting of the cabin group did not appear. They worked together to gather kindling and prepare a meal. The campers who at the beginning of the week were quite anti-camp or anti-community waited patiently for their turns to cook their fudgie pies over the fire and rather than stray from our group stayed by the fire and shared in the communal environment of the cook out. No derogatory comments. No disrespect of others. We were a community gathered together sharing our meal and sharing laughter and joy together. The counselors relaxed and had the joy of joy with their campers rather than having to stress about behavior and respect issues. The evening was peaceful, communal and joyful and God's presence was with us.
These groups of youth coming together as one community and including the counselors and I into it is a powerful message for all of us as we go out into the world feeling that we are called to serve God's people. This was a community formed out of many. This village group was my microcosm of the church. We all come from different environments, traditions, cultures, families and perspectives but we are all united together through God and we are called to be in a community together even when there are conflicts (and there are!) These kids taught me a powerful lesson about the Christian community and what it truly means to gather together for a meal.
My week included many conversations with the camp counselors about vocation, life, past pains and heartaches and community conflicts that I will not and cannot fully describe here but I can say that I am thankful to God for bringing me to Lutherdale for this week because God was working.
I also had many conversations with visiting youth directors and pastors who accompanied their youth groups to camp and with our camp pastor of the week. These conversations I hope were mutually beneficial as ministry ideas, hopes, joys and frustrations were shared. I did not expect to discover my own community of peers at Lutherdale (and two LSTC graduates!)
I needed this week at Lutherdale as much as I feel God needed me to be present there. I hope that through me many seeds were planted or watered just as new seeds, new thoughts for ministry opportunities were planted within me.

Outdoor Ministry Ambassador, Amanda Kimmet

Forging Ahead

Reflections on my time at camp

I realized many things about call and vocation this summer as I spent time at two of our Lutheran camps.
My first week was at LOMC here in Illinois. I spent much of the week getting to know the confirmation campers. I had the opportunity to talk to them about what it meant to be called to ministry. In this time I realized that in our seminary circle we use a very unique language. I had to define words like call, vocation and discernment, and talk about the difference between being called to ministry and being called to a specific congregation. Being so ensconced in the seminary community I had forgotten how much of this language is taken for granted. It was actually really helpful for me to refresh myself by explaining these things to others who might eventually experience them.
My second week was at NLOM in Nebraska. Here I spent a lot of time talking with staff. On my first day there one of the staff was talking about her college classes in youth ministry and how she loved everything she was doing but was really struggling in the process of discernment. I asked what held her back from trying seminary. She said, “Seminary is scary.” The name, the idea, the process is scary. This is something I had forgotten. That it is just a really daunting process, and though I love the whole thing I can totally understand why it would be daunting. I talked about how much I love it and how I have made great friends who support me and help me through the crazy times. I also reassured her that there are a lot of people who come into seminary who are unsure about how they will serve and how great it is to have others around in the discernment process.
Another day I was sitting with a couple of staff, one of whom is about ready to graduate with a degree in graphic arts and web design. We talked about the pressure she’s under to find a job and have a plan. This staff member talked about how she is at the point where she is willing to forge ahead with getting a job in her field and trusting that the Spirit will guide her into what should come next as the time comes. But her family can’t handle the ambiguity. They want her to have a life plan and get things settled. It’s hard with those conflicting views. I think so much harm comes from the idea that when we’re between 17 and 22 years old we are supposed to discern what God has planned for the rest of our lives. We need to encourage the idea that God calls us to do God’s work each day and what that entails changes with the need in the world around us.
I am so grateful for these reminders about the stresses that can come with discernment and call and to share these concerns with people who are currently in the midst of considering seminary--maybe that's you.

Outdoor Ministry Ambassador & Seminarian, Angel Jackson

let justice roll down

Well, I just got back into Chicago from an amazing week at Pine Lake Camp (part of the Crossways Camps in Wisconsin), and am already missing the stars, songs, and sanctified community of camp life! I feel so honored to have been able to jump into a week as a support person for the staff, each of whom brought boundless energy each day and truly embodied Christ for the confirmation campers throughout the week. Though the middle-schoolers kept the staff pretty busy during the week, I was able to have some significant conversations about call, vocation, and discernment with the counselors. Surprisingly, the kitchen provided the best times for these chats as I assisted with food prep or after meals as we rocked KP ("Kitchen Patrol," though I prefer "Kitchen Party!") Pine Lake campers and congregations are blessed to have such a gifted staff serving this summer! And the theme at Pine Lake this summer? "Let justice roll down." Here you can see us singing that prayer.

From Rebecca Smith, Outdoor Ministry Ambassador (OMA)

Serving Christ in the World

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Serving Christ in the World 2008

risk, fail, fall...you are still loved

June 1-6 Michi-Lu-Ca

Stories are important! We are all built on stories and we come with stories and we make stories. We share our stories with others along the way. At Camp Michi-Lu-Ca in Northern eastern Michigan, the staff shares their stories as well. A common theme in each story is the sense of God’s call in their being at camp for the summer. A call from God is sometimes hard to describe. Most camp staff has been encouraged to apply by another friend, a former counselor, a pastor, or sometimes the director himself. I have heard the camp staff talk about the feeling they get when they are at camp and the sense of ministry being done to and for the children.
The model of Christian community that Michi-Lu-Ca strives for is a care for each camper’s physical health, emotional health, and spiritual health. This mission helps create the camp environment that lets you risk, fail, and fall, and still be loved. At camp, people love you for just being you: a person of God!
I was inspired by so many wonderful people at Michi-Lu-Ca and realized that even though it was a different camp it was God’s same creation, they are different people, but the same relationships exists among them, and that there are many manifestations but the same, one God! As we talked about life, I hear the effect that camp has had on these young people as they continue to seek God in their lives and listen for God’s call as they leave high school, college, or sometimes even their career. They come to camp. They share their stories, and they help so many others see God in the midst of these stories calling each of us by name. I pray that we hear God call us in our own stories!

From Adam Berndt, Outdoor Ministry Ambassador (OMA)

God's love changes people

June 1-6 Michi-Lu-Ca

Staff training was always my favorite. Camp for the counselors was a description I would often associate with those two weeks spent preparing for the summer, building a healthy community with the staff, and caring for God’s creation in anticipation of a full summer. My time at Michi-Lu-Ca and Stony Lake, two beautiful camps of Living Waters Ministry in northern and western Michigan respectively, was filled with the familiar, the new, and the love of God.
The familiar at Michi-Lu-Ca, among other things, was love. I found a group of young people full of fear and uncertainty, facing new relationships and transition, and unsure of what the summer, let alone the next year, holds in store for them. I stood in the midst of this tactile emotion, as I had so many times in the past, and saw love overtake the fear and uncertainty. I saw love become the foundation to new relationships and fill the staff with hope for the summer as well as their year and life beyond. Camp remains a place that changes people by God’s love.
"Interdigitize" was a new term and brilliant concept that I was gifted with at Michi-Lu-Ca. Interdigitizing happens when we hold hands. We interlock out fingers to show how other peoples strengths (represented by our fingers) cover our weaknesses (represented by the space between our fingers) and vice versa. This exemplifies the body of Christ in which we all bring something different in order to make up one body.
That is what I experience my first week at Michi-Lu-Ca. In the camping world, each camp is unique in special ways but each camp is also on one mission in one body: To go our and share the word through Christian community, love.

From Adam Berndt, Outdoor Ministry Ambassador (OMA)

"do not worry"

These are worrisome times. People have been feeling the crunch of food and gas prices all over the world. The UN recently reported that the world needs to double food production by 2030. As I talk to people here in Argentina, they talk about food items that have doubled in price over the last couple years, as well as costs such as bus fare.

On top of rising food prices, the last 3 months in Argentina there has been a conflict between the government and farmers: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/06/08/business/LA-FIN-Argentina-Farm-Crisis.php). In objection to increased export taxes, farmers have suspended their shipments of grains and have set road blocks which have caused food shortages and prices to rise. In a year when international food prices are high, people are frustrated that Argentina is missing an opportunity. The article points out that because of the conflict, Argentine farmers have missed US$2.3 billion in soy, wheat, corn and sunflower seed sales. The road blocks have caused bus companies to cancel services and milk trucks to pour out their milk on the side of the road. Attempts at dialogue between the government and the farmers so far have failed, which is making for more frustration across the country. Many frustrations and worries are also fueled my memories of the economic crisis of 2001 in Argentina. In the stories of people and the general climate, you can feel the uncertainty, insecurity, anxiety and worry in the air.

In the midst of this deep anxiety heard in everyday encounters and on the pages of newspapers, I prepared my sermon for the week, and the Gospel text was Matthew 6:24-34. The words of Jesus “do not worry,” jumped off the page with glaring audacity. Jesus must have known how hard these words would be to hear, since he repeats them three times. Often the gospel-good news message in the text is the hardest to hear. Jesus goes on to say that God “knows that you need all these things.” This is reinforces by the text in Isaiah which provides the imagery of a mother nursing her child to remind us that God does not forget us. In fact, we are tattooed on the palms of God’s hands. In these uncertain times, we will have our share of worries. What we can count on is that in the midst of these worries and increasingly uncertain times, is that Jesus’ audacious words "do not worry," will confront us with radical grace, and remind us that the God who made us has not forgotten about us. May these words transform our worries into striving, to “strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness,” to strive for a kingdom where there is no worry.

youth in mission

another summer of Youth in Mission programs at and out from LSTC has begun!
stay tuned for reports from our "Serving Christ in the World" immersion program, Beyond Belief testimonies and words from our Outdoor Ministry Ambassadors

Seminary: A Life of Transition

As my first year in seminary is nearing an end I would describe seminary life with one word, TRANSITION. In the past few months I have experienced and observed life in transition. The seniors excitedly and nervously awaited first call assignments. First their region and then a few weeks later their synod assignment. This was an exciting time for the seminary community. We celebrated together God’s call and the journey of seminary life as our peers looked forward to continuing the journey in places throughout the U.S. The process of first call, I learned, is both joyful and nerve-wracking. The wait is hard but sweet. However, there is the occasional…”what could God possibly have for me in THERE! I didn’t want to go THERE!” But at the same time there is joy for the journey traveled and the knowledge of new possibilities ahead.

LSTC Interns have been keeping the seminary community posted about their experiences in the places where they are ministering and learning ministry. Their stories have been a witness to the joys and challenges of ministry life…a life of transition. Perhaps in this case the word BECOMING is fitting. Just last week a student wrote an article for the Door (LSTC student news publication) titled, “We’ve never done it that way before…” It seems that seminarians aren’t the only ones feeling the effects of transitional change but also congregations. Yet, I think openness to transition keeps us aware and discerning of the Holy Spirit...and that includes congregations too!

Recently many of the middlers (2nd yr. students) completed interviews for various possible internship sites. Now they are in the WAITING process…a time of anxiety and thinking about where God is calling…to the east coast, west coast, midwest, southwest, southeast, northwest?? Location, location, location is the big question on the minds and heart of middlers. They are set to find out about their placements in about 9 days. Also, middlers are currently working on carrying out ministry projects in their Ministry in Context sites. Soon they will begin the process of transitioning out of those places of ministry as they begin a new phase of ministry as interns in new places.

The first year students have not escaped seminary life as life in transition. For most juniors coming to seminary has been the greatest transition and now that the first year is coming to an end seminary feels more like home. Also the junior class has been seeking CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) sites for the summer where they will serve as chaplains in hospitals, hospice care facilities, social service agencies, and a variety of other placements. CPE tends to be an intense experience, emotionally and physically exhausting, working with persons/families facing physical and/or social crisis. Moreover the most recent transitions have occurred around scheduling for next year’s classes because LSTC has experienced several faculty changes due to retirements, resignation (on good terms), and vacancies.

As I reflect upon my first year of seminary and upon the process of becoming a rostered leader in the ELCA, I am convinced that seminary life is a life of transition. But, perhaps, a life in transition is good spiritual formation…creating an openness, awareness, and reliance on the Holy Spirit for guidance amidst transition. Perhaps transition (the process of ever-changing) is exactly what a life in ministry entails. PRAYER: God grant us the patience to embrace transition and the wisdom to discern your Holy Spirit moving in us, through us, and among us. Amen.

Jesus Songs

So today I was looking for a Bruce Springsteen song called “Jesus Was an Only Son.” I had forgotten the words, and wondered if Bruce's acoustic musings would be helpful as I look for ways to reflect on the season of Lent. To speed things up, I typed “Jesus” in the iTunes search box.

To my utter shock, 15 songs filled up the screen in front of me, from a musically and culturally diverse group of artists – everybody from Jars of Clay to Kanye West, from Sam Cooke to Wilco, from Genesis to Mavis Staples. Here, in front of my face for the first time all in one place: my musical Christology.

Let me be clear: I have yet to listen to this playlist all the way through, much less to check all the lyrics for potential heresies. In other words: The views represented by these artists may or may not represent the views of the iMix publisher i.e. me. And this list doesn’t take into account songs where Jesus is not in the title but hides in the lyrics somewhere. Even so, the picture of Jesus created here – the various pieces added gradually, the mosaic itself snapped together in a nanosecond by a computer’s search function – must, on some level, reflect the images of Jesus that have appealed to me over the last couple of years.

So, without further ado, here’s my Jesus Songs playlist. I published it as an iMix on the iTunes music store, so you should be able to search for “Jesus Songs 030108” and obtain any of the songs for yourself there. (No, I don’t get paid to advertise for Apple. If only.)

When Jesus Left Birmingham – John Mellencamp
Jesus, You’ve Been Good to Me – The Gospel Keynotes
Jesus, I’ll Never Forget – Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers
Jesus, I Lift My Eyes – Jars of Clay
Jesus, Etc. – Wilco
Jesus Was A Only Son – Bruce Springsteen
Jesus Was A Crossmaker – The Hollies
Jesus Walks – Kanye West
Jesus Walks (remix) – Kanye West with Common and Mase
Jesus Is On the Main Line – Mavis Staples
Jesus is Love – The Commodores
Jesus He Knows Me – Genesis
Jesus Christ – U2 (Woody Guthrie cover)
Everybody’s Jesus – AM
Come to Jesus – Mindy Smith

So there's mine. What would your playlist look like?

"Will they make you shave your beard?"

(This entry is from the article I wrote for today's issue of "The Door," LSTC's weekly student newspaper)

“So, when you are a pastor, will they make you shave your beard?” the ten year old Jose asked me during a youth camp last month. “No,” I replied smiling. “Good,” Jose replied, “it looks good on you.” This year I’m doing my internship in Argentina. Every day I learn something new, and I’m letting my beard grow out.

Like Kristin, who is in Oslo, my internship is through the Horizon International Internship program, which is a program that works with the ELCA Global Mission to provide seminary internships around the world. My assignment is at two small churches, at Misión Maria Magdalena (MMM) in Resistencia (population 422,400), and San Mateo in nearby Corrientes (pop-ulation 364,500). In Resistencia, 112,000 people live on $2 or $3 per day and almost half of Chaco's 1 million people live below the poverty line. In the interior of the province, neglected indigenous communities are dying of hunger.

Both churches are of the IELU (Iglesia Evangélica Luterana Unida - United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Argentina and Uruguay), the Lutheran Church here affiliated with the LWF and ELCA. I have been preaching every other week (in Spanish), teaching the first communion class with a couple of church members, teaching adult bible studies, and doing frequent pastoral visits, where I am always met by a warm welcome and offered mate (the classic Argentine tea). I also help with the various social outreaches of the mission, such as food distribution and various children workshops, like an environmental workshop, and a mural we’ve been painting on the church building. I have participated in IELU district and churchwide events, including three summer camps last month.

I’m now writing my mid-year evaluation, and I can’t believe it’s halfway through. As I look back at the last six months, many words and memories come to mind:

· I watch Cristina Kirchner speak a week before she was elected as president of Argentina and listened to hopes and doubts of political promises.
· In a conference with pastors from Argentina and Brazil (in a mixture of Spanish and Portuguese) we tackled questions like: “how do you do ministry in an increasingly individualistic society?”
· I listen to the joys and challenges of other churches at various assemblies.
· I sweat in my alb as I went outside to greet people at the Nochebuena (Christmas Eve) worship service.
· “What is a Lutheran?” the taxi driver asks me.
· I open the newspaper and read that more indigenous people have died in the interior of the province.
· Industry and employment have dried up, and corporations exploit land for soy production.
· “So, what do you think of that president of yours?” I’m asked.
· On my way to preach at church, I walk past a young girl looking for her next meal in the dumpster.
· Mercy and justice seem so far away.
· How great the urgency is when we pray for “Thy Kingdom come.”
· How great our call to “Prepare the way of the Lord.”
· Church here is both spiritually and literally the “pan de cada día (daily bread).”
· The boy’s face shows his gladness that tonight their will be a full meal, as he eagerly picks up the bag of food from the church, and carries it for his mother.
· I saw Jesus today.
· At the church planning meeting, each member talks about the fear neighborhood crime gives them, and how the police can’t be trusted.
· Vandalism abounds.
· We paint a bright mural on the front of the church.
· Natural Church Development workshops…The image of a horse pulling a cart with square wheels, and the cart is carrying a load of round wheels.
· Growth comes from within.
· We plant trees around the church, some are trampled, some grow.
· “No, you shouldn’t throw firecrackers at horses.” I tell the young boy.
· Church here is a place where hymns of praise are sung amidst the sound of kids throwing rocks on the roof.
· We pass the mate around the circle, laughing, sharing stories.
· My beard keeps growing.
· My pastor tells me stories about the military dictatorship in Argentina (a time when thousands of Argentines suspected in being a part of the political opposition were seized and “disappeared”), when he would receive visitors from the government who listened in on his sermons, because protestants were held under suspicion.
· Preaching the Gospel out of the conviction of it’s truth, and not letting the fear which sits in the back row preach it for you.
· Reading the Bible in Spanish continues to bring new meaning.
· “Why do you believe in God?” “I feel God’s presence when I pray,” replied the camper.
· Being invited to eat, receiving hospitality, being welcomed into a community of faith…ministry.
· At camp we sing: “Es lo más grande el amor nunca dejará de existir: no guarda duda o rencor, sin amor no es posible vivir” (Love is the greatest, it will never cease to exist: it doesn’t keep doubt or grudge, without love it is impossible to live).

A Threefold Rhythm

For my J-term class this year, I chose to take Christian Daily Prayer, which is a class offered through McCormick Theological Seminary, the neighboring Presbyterian school with which LSTC shares classroom space and some community events. The first week of the class was spent on campus in Chicago, learning about Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim daily prayer, and praying in community with our classmates. During the second week of the class, my ten classmates and I traveled with our professor to New Melleray Abbey in Peosta, IA, a small community outside of Dubuque, so that we could experience monastic daily prayer firsthand. For over 150 years, the brothers of this Cistercian monastery have been living their lives according to a threefold rhythm of prayer, study, and manual labor. For a week, I was able to become immersed in this satisfying rhythm as well.

Although my classmates and I didn't get the chance to engage in manual labor like the monks do (they farm and make beautiful handmade wooden caskets to support themselves), we were able to participate in studying Scripture and praying through the book of Psalms during the seven daily offices of prayer. The daily offices happen at fixed times each day, and the monks order their time around these hours. Each morning, we began the day at 3:30 AM with Vigils, in the dark of the monastery's beautiful chapel, lit at times only by a single candle suspended from the ceiling, and on through the offices until we closed at 7:30 PM with Compline, again held in the darkened chapel lit by a single candle. It was different than anything I had ever experienced, and I found the week to be deeply meaningful.

There is something innately appealing about such a way of life. Rather than trying to fit in time for prayer in their busy lives, the monks instead begin with prayer, and structure everything else around it. Prayer comes first, and study and manual labor fit in the spaces between formal prayer. They do each have certain jobs and tasks to accomplish during the day, but they also realize that if they don't finish everything, there will be time the next day, and the next, to get it all done. They are masters of doing what they are able to do, and then giving the rest back into God's hands. This rhythm of doing what they are able to do and keeping their priorities in order allows them to live out their calling in a way that is holistic and authentic. It is this sense of authenticity and keeping first things first that has stayed with me since returning to Chicago.

As the new semester begins this week, I realize that it would be easy for me to thoughtlessly slip back into the normal busy rhythm of classes, work, study, friends, and so on, where time for prayer and God might get lost in the shuffle. But my time at New Melleray encourages me to think about my daily rhythm in a new way. What if I were to make time for prayer before the rush of the day begins, and to be mindful of God's work in my life throughout the day, rather than trying to tackle my to-do list first and then becoming frustrated when I run out of time for God? There is a lot of wisdom to this practice of praying first, as the monks have demonstrated over the centuries. It is one that I want to hold on to as the routine of the semester begins again.

Urban Ministry: Prophetic Voice for Change

“Speak Truth to the powers and principalities!” Name, unmask and engage God’s people to be a prophetic witness of Christ’s love in the City. J-Term SCUPE (Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education) course, Dimensions and Dynamics of Urban Ministry challenged me to think about the difference between a charity model vs. justice model of action if we are to address issues of injustice. Our focus was on issues of racism, economic injustice and violence.

If we are to truly change the condition of the poor and oppressed charity is not enough. Justice is served only through the changing of the systems (institutional and otherwise) that keep people in poverty and oppressed. The class visited 11 sites throughout Chicago to observe and learn from faith-based organizations; some provide services (charity) others advocacy (justice) and some provided both services and advocacy work.

Chicago Coalition for the Homeless works to organize the homeless to help them advocate for their right to housing. This was my first exposure to the art of community organization as the foundation for social movements. Organizing works to embrace the reality of self-interest, agitate (move into action) and empower. The Interfaith Worker Justice organization is doing amazing work for workers’ rights. IWJ is a purely faith-based organization standing in solidarity for the right for workers to organize and have a living wage. Bethel New Life is a wonderful example of comprehensive community renewal using asset based Community Development techniques. Instead of thinking about all that seems to be missing in the community, imagine rejoicing in the amazing gifts and life that God has provided through those around. This ministry is built of the people and by the people in the community. What a tremendous example of ministry and stewardship. All of these organizations in one way or another speak “truth to the powers and principalities.”

What I have shared may resonate with you or it may not but one thing is for certain, how we see and understand issues of injustice depends on the places in which we have sat. God help us to remove the blinders from our eyes, expose to us the injustices that persist in our world and give us the strength and courage to speak the Gospel Truth to the powers and principalities so that your kingdom may reign on earth as in heaven. Amen.

A Week Off

We had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. 2 Peter 1:16


These times between semesters can be a double-edged sword. Certainly it is wonderful to have a week free of any scheduled events save a few hours of working with second-graders on Tuesday and a few hours of guitar lessons on Wednesday. In my free time this week I finished a novel, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, and cleaned the apartment (mostly) and learned to play some bass runs on my weeks-old guitar and watched half a dozen episodes of Planet Earth on DVD and spent probably too many hours at the local coffee shop, Third World Café, where today they gave me a frequent customer punch card. So yeah, it’s been a nice week.

Oh right, except I also called it a double-edged sword. On a week like this I can’t help feeling like I’ve been awfully unproductive. I keep thinking of all the things I did not do this week – and there were plenty of those, to be sure. I should have emailed some acquaintances I’ve lost touch with – and some new ones I’m supposed to start keeping in touch with. I should have cleaned out the all-purpose storage room in our apartment, which is becoming dangerously full of 2 or 3 important papers mixed randomly in with 3 or 4 hundred unimportant ones. I should have done some work for that Ministry-in-Context project that’s likely to get lost in the shuffle of the busy spring semester. But alas, now the week is over, and all of these things, along with the myriad other guilt-inducing not-done tasks that seem to keep sprouting up in my head, are going to have to wait for another time.

I could, of course, get started on one of these tasks. Instead, I’m sitting at the coffee shop (again), gazing out at the snow that has been blanketing our fine city for the last 24 hours or so. Since I’m trying to write a neatly conclusive third paragraph, I’m hoping the snow is trying to tell me something. If it is, it’s probably something like Quit worrying and enjoy the snow, you gloomy existentialist! (Snow has an advanced vocabulary.) And I should, really, enjoy the snow, because even though it’s been falling almost nonstop for the longest time all winter, it’s not likely to last. It’ll melt just like this weeklong vacation. And so, as always, even when I'm not paying attention I have indeed been an eyewitness of the majesty – a majesty that is unscheduled, gone-before-you-know-it, always falling always melting, and sometimes even, yes, gloriously unproductive.

MCK

January courses

In January, seminarians are doing all kinds of things... journeying from Geneva to Cairo, from Nebraska into the heart of the scriptures, here are some of their writings on their work this January:

http://www.lstc.edu/current_stud/features/j_term2008.html

La Noche de los Pobres

Last night we had the children’s Christmas pageant (see picture). Joseph was missing in action, luckily we found a replacement. If you look closely you can see the shepherds sweating in their costumes, since it was in the 80’s here. The kids put a lot of work into it, and it went very well.

I’d like to share the chorus of one of the songs we sang, called “The Night of the Poor,” as a reflection for the Christmas season:

“Es la noche de los pobres; es la noche del amor; Nace pobre y es el Rey; tiene hambre y es el Pan, tiene frío y es el Sol.”

“It’s the night of the poor; it’s the night of love; he is born poor and is the King; he is hungry and is the Bread; he is cold and is the Sun.”

Christmas peace be with you.

Vida y Misión

About a week ago (the weekend of November 10 and 11), we had the Asemblea de Vida y Mision (Life and Mission Assembly) of the IELU (Iglesia Evangelica Luterana Unida – Unted Evangelical Lutheran Church) of Argentina and Uruguay, with guests from the Evangelical Lutheran Churches of Peru and Chile. It was great to meet people from all over these countries and to learn about their churches and ministries.

This gathering was held in Buenos Aires at ISEDET (Instituto Superior Evangélico de Estudios Teológicos - The Evangelical Upper-level Institute of Theological Studies), which is an ecumenical (representing most of the historic protestant churches in Latin America) seminary affiliated with the IELU. Talking with seminarians there made me miss LSTC, and reflect on the similarities between the two seminaries. From what I observed, seminarians at ISEDET were discussing familiar issues such as how to be engaged in ministry in an ever-changing religious dynamic (such as the growth of pentecostal and evangelical churches) and in light of current social and political realities. Students entering seminary with the IELU come straight from secondary school (high school), and have four years of studies, followed by two years of internship.

This was not a church policy assembly, but rather a gathering to come together as a church (everyone – pastors, lay members, etc.) and to discuss “Spirituality in our present context, from a Lutheran perspective.” To symbolize coming together from many different places, we interwove bright pieces of fabric (see picture). We heard from IELU vice president Dr. Guillermo Hansen, former ISEDET professor Dr. John Stumme, and Gettysburg Seminary president Dr. Michael Cooper White.

Dr. Guillermo Hansen’s remarks reflected the focus of the gathering. He opened up the theme of spirituality by focusing on these words from Martin Luther: “A Christian lives not in himself/herself, but in Christ and his/her neighbor.” He discussed various issues in Christian spirituality, such as the privatization of the Holy Spirit and how religion becomes only a portion of one’s life. He explained how the Protestant Reformation signified a questioning of old and new spiritualities. Luther talked about a “living God,” and this creates a tension (with sin). He brought up this key point: The Christian does not live enclosed, but lives in Christ by faith, in their neighbor by love, and the creation by hope. Here’s the synthesis: The Spirit of Christ lives a amazing, free, and unexpected character of grace. That grace comes to be from God that is made weak, that accompanies us, and heals us for a new life.