I grew up when the marks of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod were the “L’s”. Lutheran Layman’s League, Lutheran Women’s Missionary League, and Aid Association for Lutherans. You saw these “L’s” and you knew you were home where, to steal from Garrison Keillor, “all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.” I was asked recently what I thought about the above named offering from the Lutheran Hour Ministries. In a word: you know how video killed the radio star? It’s going to slaughter theology. Continue reading
GodConnect Videos – Connecting With the Video Generation
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Pete Seeger was right
If you’re going to listen to Pete Seeger’s antiwar anthem, written in 1955 but made popular in the 60’s, listen to the Kingston Trio’s 1962 version. Songfacts.com says, “Pete Seeger wrote this song as a call for peace. Continue reading
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It’s Baack!
It’s baack, and you’d sooner have a poltergeist than this spirit. I’ve predicted for over 20 years that the Charismatic Movement that disrupted Christendom from circa 1965 – 1980 would be back. It was driven to the Side-Show Bob of Televangelism where it self-destructed in their opulent, decadent, and bizarre lifestyles. Then Joel Osteen picks up the mantle and succeeds by only being Pentecostal in private while preaching the health, wealth, success, and happiness that he has can be yours. But as Paul says, he seeks you only so that you will seek him all the more (Galatians 4: 17). Continue reading
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Religion and Politics
Caution, disclaimer, advisory if you think there is nothing to laugh at in regards to Covid and/or politics, stop reading, now. Continue reading
Posted in For Anyone who dares, Missouri Megatrends
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The Trolley Problem, FSD Mode, & ATOO
The trolley problem is a thought experiment in ethics in which in a fictional scenario an onlooker has the choice to save 5 people in danger of being hit by a trolley, by diverting the trolley to kill just 1 person. The term is often used more loosely with regard to any choice that seemingly has a trade-off between what is good and what sacrifices are “acceptable,” if at all. English philosopher Philippa Foot introduced this version of the trolley problem in 1967, but philosopher Judith Thompson of MIT coined the term Trolley Problem (Merriam Webster.com/wordplay). Continue reading
Posted in Big Tech Big Lie or Promise?, Families
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PFocus – Visit to Pflugerville Community Church
I struggle to write concise blogs of my visits to other churches. Pflugerville Community Church is just like the dozen other Contemporary Worship churches I have visited. The leaders all, including the LCMS and WELS churches, address the congregation as ‘church’ not people of God, as it was in the 90’s. For example, “Good morning church.” “Let me tell you church.” And this go around I noticed the prominence of the pastor, worship leader, music minister, introducing themselves like so: “It is my privilege to be a – insert job here – at -insert church here.” They must all be dipping from the same well as they all dress, speak, and act the same. Yet all of them think of themselves as “independent” because they are non-denominational. Continue reading
Posted in Contemporary Worship, Missouri Megatrends
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Let’s Stop Putting a Question Mark over Baptismal Regeneration
For centuries, the practice among Lutherans has been to ask the sponsors on behalf of the infant to be baptized to confess the faith and renounce the devil for him. Once ordained in 1983, I used the liturgy as then TLH had it and later Lutheran Worship. The Lutheran Service Book has it likewise, but like all their other tweaks, they made it longer. I used this order a few times in the Bible Belt surrounded by active and maybe even activist, Baptist. I could not answer how my asking infants if they renounced the devil and believed in the Triune God any different from their believer’s Baptism. I couldn’t explain how that practice meshed with the Lutheran acceptance of Baptismal Regeneration. I still can’t. So for 35 or better years I have left those questions to the sponsors out of the rite. Continue reading
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That Don’t Impress Me Much
Crosspoint Church, Georgetown, Texas is my third outing to a Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod church. At the following link you can view the one I attended on 23 April 2023: https://crosspointgtx.wpengine.com/liveworship/ . But if you want to know where the service and sermon originated. Go to this link: https://national.cc/about. Of if you want the original sermons go here https://national.cc/media/win-the-day . As with the other two, I came away from this ‘experience’ drained, depressed, defeated, and unimpressed. These folks are winning the day because it’s really a preaching of American Civil Religion. But with Shania Twain’s 1997 hit I say, “that don’t impress me much.” Continue reading
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At Least it Isn’t Pot
In the first Episode of HBO’s “White Lotus”, an uber rich family is vacationing at an uber-fancy Hawaiian hotel. The mom comes into where her daughter and friend are smoking pot. As they quickly put their gear away, the mom asks, “Is there something burning?” To this her teenage daughter replies, “We were just doing some witchcraft.” Her mom shrugs and shuts the door saying to herself, “At least it’s not pot.” Continue reading
Posted in LCMS 2007 Convention, Missouri Megatrends
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50 Years Later and We’re Still at War with the Unborn
Don’t you cringe when women, usually in their mid-20s, express such righteous indignation at the Supreme Court could taking away a right they have had for 50, count ‘em, 50 years. I suppose anything twice as old as you seems really old. But using their dates and logic, slave-holding was a right people in the United States had for hundreds and hundreds of years. An entire nation’s peace was shattered to overturn that right. Continue reading
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