Thursday, March 14, 2024

Did Jacob Ever Find Out?

We've been reading through the narrative of Joseph in Egypt in Morning Prayer and today we heard when Jacob finds out Joseph is still alive. He and all his family will now go to Egypt and live there under Joseph's care.

So I was thinking today, and wondering . . . did Jacob ever find out exactly what happened to Joseph? Did Joseph's brothers finally confess what they had done to their father? Did Joseph throw his brothers under the bus? Jacob must have asked Joseph what happened! How did he get to Egypt? How had he escaped from the beast that bloodied his coat of many colors? What did Joseph say? Throwing his brothers under the bus doesn't seem in character with Joseph, and covering their sin would be in keeping with his Christ-likeness. We're not told if Jacob ever found out. But I'd sure like to know how that conversation went . . .


Wednesday, March 13, 2024

My Prediction . . .

So the president of my seminary alma mater resigned and they are in the process of selecting a new president. Their website says that 42 people were nominated and 19 let their names stand. Those names are listed there. That list will now be whittled down to 5 or so, and from them the new president will be elected. Frankly, not all are qualified to be president of a seminary, which should eliminate them. Some are good at playing political games, which might include them, but shouldn't. (I'm not going to list those names here!) There are then some who are qualified, but would they do a good job as president? Time will tell. Anyway, here's my prediction for the short list (in alphabetical order), or at least, what I think it should be - we'll see how close I get. :-)

Charles Gieschen, Jamison Hardy, Jeffrey Pulse.
(Name I'd like to include, but am not: Gregory Todd)

Saturday, March 2, 2024

Nadab and Abihu

Who? Abi-who?

Glad you asked! Nadab and Abihu were two of the four sons of Aaron, the brother of Moses, in the Old Testament. After the people of Israel came out of Egypt and came to Mount Sinai, God gave them the instructions for the building of the Tabernacle, and the priesthood, and the sacrifices. Aaron and his four sons - along with Eleazar and Ithamar (and their sons after them), were to be the priests.

I was reading about their ordination this morning (all five of them). It took seven full days (Leviticus 10). Then, on the eighth day (that's significant!), when they were to begin their service, Nadab and Abihu decided not to do what God told them to do, not to listen to the Word of God, but do what they wanted. The took their censers and offered "unauthorized fire" before the Lord. And they were consumed by fire. Big deal? It was to God. Don't mess with God's holiness. Their priestly career didn't even last one day! I knew that story; what I did not remember was that it happened so suddenly - on their first full day of priesthood!

It reminded me of Genesis. God created all things in six days, and on the seventh day, He rested. Then, right away (on the eighth day?), we read that Adam and Eve decided to do things their own way, not listen to the Word of God, and ate the forbidden fruit. And God had said, On the day you eat of it, you shall surely die. They did. Not physically (like Nadab and Abihu), but spiritually (a greater death than physical death). Their relationship with God was broken. 

Both happened right away. Sin (and satan!) wastes no time. It reminded me of something GK Chesterton (I think) said: Heterodoxy cannot wait and is always in a hurry; Orthodoxy is patient and waits for the Lord. And, I would add, listens to the Word of God. A good reminder for us, this Lenten season.


Friday, February 23, 2024

Book

I just finished reading this book, Forerunners of the Reformation: The Shape of Late Medieval Thought Illustrated by Key Documents by Heiko Oberman. The thesis of the book is that many of the issues spoken and written during the Reformation had their roots in discussions and disagreements already in the Middle Ages. These were not issues that just popped up out of nowhere. I guess there was a time when that was the prevailing thought among some. In my doctoral studies I realized pretty quickly that was not the case. So this book wasn't surprising to me. However, it was interesting to read what various theologians wrote in the 13-15th centuries in their own words. I especially appreciated the discussion regarding Scripture and Tradition and whether there are two sources of truth or only one; and if only one, the relation of Scripture and Tradition, and the multiplicity of views on that. Johann von Staupitz's chapter was also very interesting. Being Luther's superior in the Augustinian Order, you can clearly see Luther's thoughts in his writing. Not an easy book, but worthwhile for learning more about the background of the Reformation and the undercurrents that influenced events and how folks regarded Luther. 


Thursday, February 22, 2024

Virginia State March for Life

According to the Virginia Capitol Police, approximately 3,000 - 3,500 people gathered on the State Capitol grounds in Richmond yesterday for the 6th Virginia State March for Life. The weather was perfect, the crowd energized and friendly, and the planners did a great job! Everything went well and without a hitch. 

Our LCMS contingent met at Grace Lutheran Church in Chester for a pre-march Matins service.

Pastor Douthwaite preaching at Matins.

From there we took a bus up to the Capitol for the rally . . .




. . . and marched through downtown Richmond.


We also met some fellow LCMS-ers who had come with other groups, but saw our signs and came over to meet us!



This year was our first year trying to really organize and encourage Lutherans across the state to come to this march. Hopefully, now we can build on this year and have an even bigger presence next year! Hope you'll be one of them and join us!

Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Ash Wednesday

Happy Lent! 

Our new 2024 Lenten Life Calendar kicks-off today - check it out! 

And . . 


Only one week until we march again!
Join us!

Monday, February 12, 2024

A Very Interesting Day!


Well, Sunday was quite the interesting day!

The day started with a gas leak! When we arrived at church, there was the smell of gas, so we called the gas company to get it checked out. They found two places where there was some amount of leaking. So they shut the gas down. Fortunately for us it was a mild day, so we could open the windows to air out the sanctuary and not be too cold. Hopefully our landlord will get this fixed quickly!

We also decided to celebrate my wife's birthday on Sunday. My daughter and I came up with a plan for a homemade dinner, but bit off a little more than we thought! Our menu: homemade ravioli (vegetable and cheese) with a cream sauce topping, green beans, fresh bread, and apple pie cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and apple compote on top. First we made the cupcakes so they would have enough time to cool - that went fine. Then we set at preparing the vegetables for the ravioli - an eggplant, zucchini, pepper, tomato, and onion combination. All that prep took us a bit longer than we anticipated. Once we got that simmering, we started on the pasta . . . and this is where it really started to bog down! Kneading the dough, letting it rest, getting it through the pasta machine, cutting the pieces for the ravioli, and then putting it all together . . . wow! That was a lot of work! But we got it done and it did taste good! We served it all with a Rose of Pinot Noir wine. 

After dinner, dessert, presents, and clean-up (yeah, we made quite a mess!), we were wiped! So I actually didn't see much of the Super Bowl, just a little as I went to bed and before I quickly fell asleep. :-)