A Lutheran funeral
March 29, 2004
I went to a funeral today–in a Lutheran church. Liturgy, candles, the whole bit. We listened as the Scripture was read; we responded back with “canned” responses. We recited the Apostles’ Creed together (I skipped saying the “descended into hell” part–I don’t buy it). We recited the Lord’s Prayer together. It was all printed out for us on a bulletin.
The casket was draped in a white shroud, and candles were lit all over the place. Prayers were pre-written and responded to by us (I forget what the regular response was, me not being Lutheran, but it was roughly the Lutheran equivalent of “preach it, brother” or something like that). The whole service was fairly “set in stone” except for the minister’s words about the deceased. This is just the kind of service that I’d have written off only a few short years back. “It’s dead, it’s dry, it’s rote, it’s ritualistic; it’s devoid of meaning.”
Except now, it isn’t necessarily any of those things. It was…refreshing! It was meaningful! They took the time to write out an explanation of some of the rituals, like the fact that they cover every single casket with the same shroud, so that rich people’s caskets look the same (covered in the shroud) as paupers’. That made sense! And who can object to reading of the Bible–and believe me, there was plenty of that, except that instead of the pastor just winging it and us just listening, we could actually read the Word right along with him.
In times past, I’d have, as I said, objected to all the ritualism, and made the assumption that it equalled deadness (as it sometimes does, to be certain). But, ummmm…we can make a ritual out of just about anything, right? “Lord We Lift Your Name on High” and “This is the Air I Breathe” have exactly the same PRQ (“Potential Ritual Quotient”) as “O God our Help in Ages Past”–with the exception being that at least some of those hymns have depth to them, and aren’t “Jesus is my Girlfriend” songs.
For communion yesterday, instead of someone gently strumming Chruzak in the background (figure it out), we sang some hymns, a capella. Then, I had printed out on the overhead some Scripture, which I read, and then, together, we out loud spoke a written prayer before receiving the elements. I got the report back tonite; one Sunday School class was unanimous in its declaration that it was extremely meaningful.
Maybe the ancient church knew what it was doing? And maybe the emerging church is onto something? We shall speak again of these things…
Politics…yicch!
March 29, 2004
Here in PA, we are so privileged to have Arlen Specter representing us as a U.S. Senator. Ugggh; he’s managed to get elected without ever receiving my vote, and he never will get it. So we’ve got a decent conservative guy running against him, a guy named Pat Toomey, who’d make a great Senator and who is the ideological clone of Rick Santorum, our other Senator, with whom I agree 85-90% of the time (pretty good, considering I don’t agree with myself much more often than that). So…who do you suppose Mr. Santorum is on TV running ads for, his soulmate, Pat Toomey, or Mediocrity Personified, Arlen Specter? Give yourself five points if you said “Arlen”, because YOU know how politics works.
Which is why politics stinks…
The Pledge of Allegiance
March 25, 2004
OK, I think that “under God” ought to be in the pledge; fine. But getting wrapped around the axle about this–in my opinion, on either side of the debate, but especially as Christians–strikes me as much ado about little. The chronic complaint of us conservatives is that liberalism is about “symbolism over substance”. The “substance” is that America isn’t in the ballpark of actually acting like we are “one nation under God”, and I’d suggest that putting the energy and effort into accomplishing this is of more value than spending much time sweating this symbol. How about a campaign to urge Americans to turn off their stinking TV’s, or to not throw money away on selfish and wasteful pursuits? Oh…wait a minute…then how would all those TV “ministries” ever survive, and the Christian fiction industry would dry up, and Bill Gaither’s “Homecomings” would end…man, I’d better think about this awhile longer.
Who do you believe?
March 25, 2004
Dick Clarke comes out with a new book about his time as a terrorism expert for Dubya, and is critical of some of the responses made by the Administration. He comes off as pretty credible, from where I sit, although things are surfacing now that do call some of his testimony into question. Predictably, Rush is all over the guy, and liberals accord him with accolades. Move back in time, oh, say, 6 years ago, right in the middle of the Clinton Administration, and you’d find Rush applauding (and believing) anyone who’d blow the whistle, and you’d find liberals poo-poohing it.
Maybe, these days, “truth” is in the eye of the beholder????
Latest Laci Peterson Watch
March 23, 2004
Laci Peterson went missing on Christmas Day, 2002, along with her unborn son. Her husband, Scott, has been charged with her murder, and will stand trial soon for it. Any murder is a horrible thing, and it is a tragedy for the entire family. What does this mean for you? It means that for the 456th consecutive day, it’s none of your business who killed Laci Peterson. Nor mine.
It’s Baseball Season…yawn
March 23, 2004
OK, so I used to be, like, one of the biggest baseball fans ever (well, as much as I could be, living hours away from any major league city, that is). Started rooting for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1968 World Series (they lost it, darn that Mickey Lolich!), and I’ve been a Cardinal fan ever since (da Wizard, baby!). Then they started messing with my game, and then they stuck Bud Selig in charge of it, and then they had the strike of 1994 and cancelled the World Series. You know, if the powers that be in baseball had all gotten together 15 years ago and said, “hey, guys, there’s this guy named Harvey who’s a big fan? Let’s see how many different ways we can tick him off and turn him completely off to baseball!”, well, they just couldn’t have done a much better job than they actually have.
So, baseball season rolls around…and I just don’t care. Except to say that it’ll be a crying shame if Barry Bonds “breaks” Hank Aaron’s record, set when baseball was a real game…
A Predictable Capitulation
March 21, 2004
Well, the news is predictable, I suppose: a United Methodist “jury” has acquitted an acknowledged lesbian pastor of any wrongdoing.
From IWon News,
“A jury of 13 pastors said it decided in favor of the Rev. Karen Dammann “after many hours of painful and prayerful deliberations, and listening for and to the word of God…Church law prohibits the ordination of self-avowed, practicing homosexuals and the church’s Book of Discipline declares homosexuality to be “incompatible to Christian teachings. The Rev. James C. Finkbeiner, who prosecuted the case, said he believed the jury overstepped the bounds of church law. And I don’t feel bad about that. Our process is fair.”
OK…let me see if I get this straight: the United Methodists have a “church law” to govern these things; fair enough. But overstep those bounds? Why not? Bible? So what?
And once again, we hear the dying gasps of any semblance of discernment…
This phrase comes from the 1978 "Jonestown massacre" in which most members of the Peoples Temple cult, blindly following their leader Jim Jones, committed suicide by drinking cyanide-laced Kool-Aid.
Osborne: A Contrarian's Guide to Knowing God
Schlossberg: Idols For Destruction
