THE PRAYERS,

Advent 3, Cycle A (December 15, 2019)

As we await the coming of Christ in mercy and majesty, let us pray for the Church, the world, and for all people according to their need.

A brief silence

How sweet the words we hear this day, dear Lord! Thank you for refreshment along our life’s often-dusty road. Thank you for hope that dawns unexpectedly in our heart’s wilderness. Thank you for Jesus, your sweetest Word of forgiveness, compassion, and life.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

Grant that, in Word and Sacrament, in service and in fellowship, your Church may constantly preach the Good News of what Jesus has done: “the blind receive their sight and the lame walk; lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up; and the poor have good news preached to them.”

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

Establish this congregation, O Lord, in words and deeds of patience, mercy, and gentleness. Give us grace to refresh the heavy-hearted, and to bring healing to those wounded by sin and temptation. Help us bring light and wisdom to the innocent and the ignorant. Make this place a haven of safety and joy for all who trust in you.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

Bless your persecuted Church, and keep it patient, faithful and steadfast. Teach us to honor their witness and provide for their needs; and turn their tormentors from their evil ways.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

Deepen the faith and increase the wisdom of your apprentices and journeyman in the art of discipleship. Grant that all they learn from you may be a source of joy and enlightenment to everyone around them.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

Conform the hearts and minds of our earthly rulers to your holy will. Let them give justice to the oppressed, and food to the hungry. Make them set free the unjustly imprisoned, and lift up those who are bowed down.  Teach them to love the righteous; care for the stranger; sustain the orphan and widow, and frustrate the way of the wicked. Use the valor and competence of our military and first responders to accomplish your will in dangerous places; and speed the day when everyone may walk in safety, peace and joy throughout this world.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

We remember before you all for whom this season of light is shadowed by sorrow or suffering, especially: {List}. Help us to bring them your mercy, comfort and kindness; to speak words of forgiveness and encouragement; and to accompany them in their wilderness, in the sure hope that you will bring us all into your everlasting joy.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

Happy are those who, in this life, put their trust in you, dear Lord. Their hope has been fulfilled. Comfort all the bereaved whose grief runs deep. And we pray: Save us from folly and defend us from evil. Strengthen our faltering hands and make firm our feeble knees. Establish our hearts in steadfast patience and the spirit of encouragement. Lead us into Zion, where, with all the redeemed, we shall praise your glory; delight in your love; and see you face to face.

Lord, in your mercy, please hear our prayer.

All these things, and whatever else you see that we need, grant to us, dear Father, for the sake of your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

“And the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the
things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man
may boast before God.”  (1 Corinthians
1:28-29)

There are great mysteries.  No these are not things that we cannot
explain, but things we can only begin to grasp. 
How does the temporal comprehend the immortal?  No one has a right to boast before God who is
immortal, eternal and all wise.  Do not
depend upon your wisdom, but the wisdom of the One who knows all things.  Be comforted by His comfort and live into the
life to which You have been called.

Lord, grant that I would shed this rebellious need to cling to my own
understanding in order to come into the truth You have revealed.  You are the God of all ages.  Lead me in the truth of Your revelation that
I would now and forever abide in You and You in me.  Lead me according to Your goodness that I may
live in the wisdom You give, shedding the temporary ideas of this world.

Lord Jesus, You have come to lead
the way.  Holy Spirit, the breath of
wisdom itself, lead me in the way of truth that I would cling to the salvation
which has been given and learn all the things You will teach.  Guide me now and always in the way of
truth.  Lead me according to the Father’s
purposes that I would forever abide with You, in You and for Your glory.  Guide me in Your wisdom.  Amen.

“For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise
according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the
foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak
things of the world to shame the things which are strong,” (1 Corinthians
1:26-27)

You have been called by God to
come into His presence and dwell with Him. 
The calling is by grace, for no one has earned the right to stand before
the Lord.  The world thinks in terms of
merit, but grace is a gift God gives. 
The Lord knows this world is in rebellion and has answered that
rebellion with an invitation that calls you by grace to come dwell with Him
forever.

Lord, the world does resist Your offer of grace.  They do call it foolish, but You have shown that
You chose to do this to exhibit Your superior wisdom.  Help me to move beyond such things that I may
now and always look to You for strength and wisdom.  Let me not be hindered by the names the world
gives to Your faithful ones, but trust in Your Word alone which abides
forever.  Lead me ever deeper into Your
wisdom.

Lord Jesus, You have come to lead
the way.  You demonstrated humility,
meekness, and kindness to us all.  Help
me to follow Your example and be bold in this faith You have given me.  Guide me according to the Father’s will that
I may humbly walk with You.  No matter
what those around me say, help me to live into the hope You give in the promise
of grace and mercy.  Amen.

“Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of
God is stronger than men.”  (1
Corinthians 1:25)

This simple principle is one of
the most profound truths that helps us navigate around all of the errors that
are in the world.  The wisdom of this
world cannot compare to the Maker of this world.  The weakness of God is also stronger than any
man.  Why settle for less when the Lord
offers life in Him?  Come to the One who
made all wisdom and has all strength and learn from Him what life is to be
like.

Lord, You offer wisdom through Your Word by the power of the Holy
Spirit.  In the greatest demonstration of
strength in weakness on the cross, You conquered death, the recompense of
sin.  Guide me, O Lord, in the way of
truth that I may now and always abide with You wherever that may lead.  Guide me according to Your goodness to look
at You and live in the truth You have revealed for all ages.

Lord Jesus, You did not resist
those who mistreated You, but died for them as well on the cross.  The world calls this foolish, but You have
used what the world calls foolishness to make our salvation possible.  Guide me now and always to see that in You
alone is the hope for every age, that I may live into the promises You give to
those who are faithful.  Lead me now and
always, O Lord.  Amen.

“For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we
preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness,
but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God
and the wisdom of God.”  (1 Corinthians
1:22-24)

These ideas still circulate
today.  There are those who await
miraculous things, those who think they can figure things out and those who
follow the Lord of all: different times, but the same pursuits.  Be led by the promise of the One who is
forever and see that there is nothing new under the sun.  Christ is the power of God and in Him alone
will you find true wisdom.  Follow the
Lord.

Lord, teach me to open myself to Your Word and all that You give.  Guide me according to Your goodness to see
that in You alone is the hope of every age. 
Lead me according to Your goodness to walk in Your grace and seek the
wisdom You give.  Help me now and always
to turn to You first and neither seek this world’s wisdom or its signs and
wonders.  Lead me according to Your
purpose.

Lord Jesus, You performed many signs and wonders and yet many did not believe.  Guide me, O Lord, in Your goodness that I would be one who believes despite neither signs nor wonders.  Lead me into the eternal truth You have revealed once for all and the salvation You have prepared through the cross.  Let me not be worried what the world calls me otherwise than  Your follower.  Amen.

“Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of
this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?  For since in the wisdom of God the world
through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the
foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”  (1 Corinthians 1:20-21)

Listen to the noise in our age.  “Go here, do this or that, believe what you
want.”  It is noise that may bring
momentary pleasure, but accomplishes nothing. 
Be guided by the truth revealed once for all through Christ, who alone
is the Savior.  Be a fool for Christ, for
what difference will it make what others think when You stand before the One
through whom all things have their being.

Lord, help me unlearn the foolishness of this age to which I cling and
replace it with the eternal truth You have revealed.  Guide me according to Your goodness to see
that in You alone is the hope of every age. 
Lead me in the way of everlasting life that I may now and always abide
in You as You abide in me.  Teach me to be
bold in faith that I may share with others what You have shared with me.

Lord Jesus, You said, “Come,
follow me.”  Help me this day to follow
You wherever You lead.  Guide me in the
Holy Spirit to speak what You give me to speak. 
Help me always to be willing to appear foolish in this age that the
truth of the cross may always be proclaimed by me.  Let me stand with You always that I may stand
in the presence of the Father.  Grant me wisdom
to walk in the narrow way this day. 
Amen.

Whoever said it, said it well:
without the absolution—“I forgive you all your sins for Jesus’
sake”—Lutheranism has no particular reason to exist.  Every issue of the Reformation, from
preaching and the sacraments to papal authority, revolved around the bedrock
confession that sinners receive mercy through Christ alone.  Luther put it clearly in the Large Catechism:
“Everything, therefore, in the Christian Church is ordered to the end that we
shall daily obtain there nothing but the forgiveness of sin” (Large Catechism,
The Creed).  Forgiveness is God’s
mission, and there is no clearer statement of it than the absolution.   If we want to talk renewal, both in the
Church and in society, it must begin with that justifying word.

For Jesus’ Sake

I see a video of prisoners in
Madagascar crowding around a Lutheran pastor for worship.  What brings them?  I imagine, perhaps wrongly, that they are
like the incarcerated men and women to whom my congregation has
ministered.  Some of them come because
they want a good word, while others are there to look good or because it’s a
break from the cell.  Despite such mixed motives,
they also come knowing something basic about the faith: it’s supposed to be
good for people with problems.  It’s
supposed to welcome people like them.  Why
do they think so?  Where could such a
rumor have started?  “I forgive you all
your sins for Jesus’ sake.”  The Holy
Spirit has fitted those words like a virus to the mixed up ideas and motives of
men.  It seeps through the cracks of all
our walls as a day-long conference on dismantling patriarchy never could.

But now I come to a church near you, the one that promises to welcome everyone.  I spend 65 minutes there trying to be invisible, as I’m on vacation and don’t feel social.  Yet where I usually fail at being invisible, something else succeeds at doing so perfectly well: “I forgive you.”  Where did it go?  Is it still around here somewhere?  Why, yes, it’s buried between two hard covers the color of a Thanksgiving relish, and it stayed there, too.  There was a lot of splashing about at the font — it’s the “Thanksgiving for Baptism,” the bulletin says — but no one ever heard what it’s all about.  Is renewal possible here? 

The absolution is the renewal, for both church and society, for several reasons.  First, it renews the church because it puts the church back where it belongs: in front of the empty tomb, facing the wide-open future that shines in the face of Christ.  Like the empty tomb, forgiveness doesn’t erase the past.  To the contrary, it carries the past forward — He’s still the man who died on the cross, wounds and all — but in such a way that this person with such a past may yet live, love, be worthy, and even rule.   What excitement!  What release! 

Lost in Jesus

So if we want to renew the church’s mind on the matter of sexual ethics, for example, then we need to start talking forgiveness into that subject.   That is, we must show more than how the New-Old Lies, with all their denial of family and creation, drift from the Biblical prescriptions.   We must also carry those prescriptions to their end and show how the New-Old Lies corrupt the proclamation of forgiveness.   Did Jesus die for this or that behavior?  If so, then He died to forgive it, and we must contend for such — Christ’s honor demands it.  “I cannot say it isn’t a sin, for then I would be stealing Christ’s glory from Him.  He died to forgive it, you see.  It’s in His hands, not yours or mine.”  The sin must get lost in Jesus somewhere between Gabbatha and the grave, preached as sunken into His flesh and buried with Him, so that it’s no longer God’s to condemn nor ours to practice.  It’s all on Jesus now—you can’t have it back! 

That kind of absolution-thinking keeps opening a new future to the same old past.  It disarms those who would make our debates a matter of old vs. new, letter vs. spirit, Pharisees vs. Jesus People (the binary couplings that even revisionists can’t kick, apparently), and turns our controverted subjects towards God’s mission, the speaking of the Gospel into every sin and circumstance.  Most importantly, it passes on the rumor that first spread like fire among the apostles: God’s in love with you, and isn’t counting sins against you.  This faith is good for us people with problems. It gives us a future with God and with each other and all of creation—“for wherever forgiveness is, there also are life and salvation” (Small Catechism, The Sacrament of the Altar).

Infectious Rumor of Mercy

Yet this absolution, coming from God, may renew things well beyond the church, because God’s goodness always seems to spill over its borders.  The absolution carries in itself more than a new future and a happy Lord.  It carries also the stamp of that Lord’s virtue and wholesome way.  To trust forgiveness is to trust patience and compassion—who can forgive a sinner without taking the time to sympathize with him?  And for Christians to trust and preach forgiveness is to trust and preach Christ crucified, the very picture of God “counting others better” than Himself (Philippians 2:3).  When that image and rumor of mercy start permeating Christians, and Christians start seeping into society and infecting it, they take that virtue and ethic with them.

I read a poll recently that said
most people think America stands on the brink of a civil war.  The sexes, too, are increasingly estranged,
as young people avoid dating either because they fear relationships or just
getting arrested and sued.  What we do as
children becomes national news and a cause for mockery or hate.  How can it be otherwise in a land that has
mostly stopped hearing absolution?  Roman
Catholics find they can commune just as well without it, and Protestants are
busy casting new visions for ministry or splashing at the font or running a
stewardship drive.  With the gradual
disappearance of absolution and its attendant preaching, so also fades the best
image we have of patience, compassion, humility, and the thirst for reconciliation—and
if absolution fades, can Lutheranism shine?

Renewal in Absolution

I include this latter reflection about
societal renewal because I know that cultural as well as churchly issues lie
heavy on the hearts of Lutheran CORE folk. 
I commend to you the thought that both society and church will find
their renewal in the absolution that we alone may speak: “I forgive you all
your sins for Jesus’ sake.”   Lose that absolution, and you lose the point
of being Lutheran.    Lutheranism is simply being God’s church, and
God’s church exists to preach and believe forgiveness.  Speaking, preaching, and believing it, for
sure, remain the priority.  Consider also
what the absolution teaches about God’s will for His creation and who you are
and what life really is, or how it delivers both righteousness and holiness of
living.  Any Christian or church could
benefit from such reflection on God’s most important word. 

And a good place to start might be,
you know, actually going to confession and hearing it.

There were several things in the October 10 News Story about the September 26-30 meeting of the ELCA’s Conference of Bishops that I found to be most interesting, significant, and troubling.  A link to that news release can be found here.

First,
I assume that the ELCA Conference of Bishops’ highest value and greatest joy must
be the dynamic that was highlighted in the title for the news story as well as
what is emphasized in the second paragraph. 
The title is “ELCA Conference of Bishops welcomes greater diversity.”  The Rev. William O. Gafkjen, chairperson, described
the conference as “more diverse in more ways than it has ever been.”  He also referred to the ELCA as “a church
unaccustomed to such blessed diversity.”

Evidently
the ELCA Conference of Bishops’ highest value and greatest joy is not the joy
of heaven, which is described in Luke 15 as being like the rejoicing of a
shepherd who finds the lost sheep, the woman who finds the lost coin, and the
father whose son has returned home. 
Instead their highest value and greatest joy is diversity.

ELCA and the Diversity of Opinion

Second, considering the recent ELCA Churchwide Assembly, I wonder how much diversity actually exists in the ELCA.  Sure, the Conference of Bishops might now have more racial and ethnic diversity in their membership than ever before, but is there also a diversity of opinion?  Is a diversity of opinion even welcome in the ELCA?  Because orthodox students at ELCA seminaries tell me about being bullied and even silenced, I would say, “No.”  Two resolutions that were voted on at the Churchwide Assembly – to approve the social statement on “Faith, Sexism, and Justice” and the “Declaration of Inter-Religious Commitment” – received a resounding “Yes” from at least 97% of the voting members.  Reading that, I wonder, is there really any diversity of opinion in the ELCA?  Would a diversity of opinion be welcome?  Would it be tolerated?  I would say, “No.”  An amendment was proposed to the “Declaration of Inter-Religious Commitment,” which would have removed the statement, “We must be careful about claiming to know God’s judgments regarding another religion.”  That proposed amendment was based upon the clear words of Jesus in John 14: 6 – “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me.”  When I read about how discussion of that amendment was almost immediately cut off and the amendment was soundly defeated, I say, “A diversity of opinion is not welcome in the ELCA.”

Diversity Among ELCA Bishops?

The 2009 social statement, “Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust,” described four different views on same sex relationships and stated that all four views would be honored and treated with respect within “this church.”  We now have a bishop – Bishop Leila Ortiz of the Metro Washington D. C. Synod – who accepts polyamory (three or more partners).  A link to a video where she speaks in an accepting way about that kind of a relationship can be found here.  That certainly is a kind of diversity.  But is there also a diversity among the Conference of Bishops so that at least one bishop holds to and advocates for traditional views?  If there is, why do we never hear from that bishop?  Is that kind of diversity either not present, not allowed, or not allowed to be expressed?

Not Equal

Third,
Bishop Gafkjen describes the results of this “blessed diversity” in this way.  “It uncovers assumptions, challenges
disparities and inequities, and calls for repentance and transformation” in the
church.  What in the world does that
mean?  Whatever it means, I am certain it
does not refer to the “disparities and inequities” of the way in which the last
ten years the ELCA has only supported and promoted the most revisionist views
of human sexuality.  It has not shown
equal “profound respect for the conscience-bound belief” (“Human Sexuality: Gift
and Trust,” page 21) of those who hold to traditional views, even though those
who hold to traditional views were led to expect such “profound respect,” based
upon the language of the 2009 social statement. 

No Mention of Report

Fourth, I find it absolutely astounding that there is no mention at all that the Conference of Bishops discussed at all the recent report from the ELCA’s Office of Research and Evaluation, and the article by Dr. Dwight Zscheile of Luther Seminary, that was based upon that report.  Dr. Zscheile’s article is entitled “Will the ELCA Be Gone in 30 Years?”  Those documents reveal some rather shocking numbers based upon current trends in the ELCA.  A link to Dr. Zscheile’s article can be found here.  Is it really possible that membership in the ELCA could drop from just under 3.5 million in 2017 to just over 66,500 in the year 2050?  Is it really possible that average Sunday morning attendance across the entirety of the ELCA could actually drop from 899,000 in 2017 to less than 16,000 in 2041?  Could the ELCA basically cease to exist within one generation?  Dr. Zscheile writes, “For all the energy spent on trying to turn things around over the past 40 years, there is little to show.”  

I understand that this study came out last spring, so I find it absolutely astounding that there is no mention that either the Churchwide Assembly or the Conference of Bishops even brought up the report.  Rather what are they doing?  Celebrating their “blessed diversity.”  Reminds me of the definition of insanity – thinking that you can get different and/or better results just continuing to do the same thing.  It would be like the crew of the Titanic celebrating their “blessed diversity” even after the ship ran into an iceberg.

Fifth, I find the comment from Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton in the third paragraph to be very revealing.  She said, “I am convinced that the decisions we took were . . . not a flash-in-the-pan, reflexive attempt to seem ‘relevant.’”  Why would she make a statement like that unless she was concerned that that is exactly what the decisions were or that is an accusation that she heard? 

Sixth,
I find it astounding what she says next. 
She quotes from Acts 15: 28, which is part of the letter from the
Conference in Jerusalem to the “believers of Gentile origin.”  “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to
us.”  How in the world could she make a
claim like that – that the Holy Spirit agrees with the ELCA? 

Go and Make Disciples

Compare the book of Acts and the letters of Paul, which are full of references to Jesus and to God, with the summary of actions from the ELCA Churchwide Assembly, where there is no mention of Jesus and only one mention of God.  A link to that summary can be found here.  Compare the clear message of the Bible that it does matter whether people know, love, believe in, and put their trust in Jesus with the words of the “Declaration of Inter-Religious Commitment.”  That document says, “We must be careful about claiming to know God’s judgments regarding another religion.”  The final words of Jesus to his followers were, “Go and make disciples of all nations.”  According to the “Declaration of Inter-Religious Commitment,” our main role is not to do that, but only to love and serve our neighbor. 

Cause of the Decline

How
can someone say that the Holy Spirit agrees with the ELCA when the ELCA is saying
that the Christian faith has nothing unique that is important and essential to
offer to the world?  Again I would like
to quote from Dr. Zscheile’s article mentioned above.  Dwight Zscheile and his colleague, Michael
Binder, give as one of the ways of naming the root cause of the ELCA’s precipitous
decline, “We aren’t clear about what’s distinctive about being Christian.”  If the ELCA believes that it has nothing
unique that is important and essential to offer to the world and if the ELCA is
not clear about what is distinctive about being Christian, then how could the
ELCA hope to experience the power of God and how could the ELCA say that the
Holy Spirit agrees? 

No Presentations on Traditional Views

Finally, the news story mentions that the Conference of Bishops received a training session by the executive director of Reconciling Works, that focused on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.  Just as there was no representation of traditional views at the 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering, where a transgender advocate and two members of the “Naked and Unashamed” movement were among the keynote speakers and one of the most prominent voices in the ELCA led 30,000 young people in a chant rejecting traditional views as a lie, so the Conference of Bishops once again receives no presentation from those who hold to traditional views.  If they were to do so, would that be just too much “blessed diversity”? 

“Build Yourselves Up in Your Most Holy Faith” Jude 20

“…Mantenganse en el amor de Dios, edificandose sobre la base de su santisima fe…”   Judas 20

On Holy Cross Day, Saturday September 14th over seventy lay leaders, pastors and neighbors gathered at St. Timothy Lutheran Church in Chicago’s Hermosa neighborhood for the inter-Lutheran “Encuentro” for Hispanic Latino Ministries, sponsored annually by Lutheran CORE.

Encuentro — “encounter”– is an apt name for this event. In coming together, participants convene in the name of the Triune God — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — and encounter one another through a full day of fellowship, prayer, learning, reflection and conversation. Some who attend have little or no experience in Spanish language or bilingual Parish Ministry but they come to encounter… to listen to and dialogue with those who have served in such contexts. All who participate meet one another in a hospitable atmosphere which provides for joyful exchange of culturally contextual, Christ-centered ministries and resources. Consider for example the spirited celebration of the Misa Panamericana, led by Mariachi Tamazula Juvenil, in a sanctuary built by Lutheran’s of Norwegian heritage.

Lutherans of various denominational bodies ELCA, LCMS, NALC and LCMC have taken part in the Encuentro over the years, defying a prevailing pattern of denominational separation. Lutheran cousins come together around the power of Christ’s Great Commission (Matthew 28). In Chicago, this pattern of inter-relational ministry in Hispanic Latino neighborhoods actually reflects the tone of cooperation shown by earlier Lutheran generations in the 1960s and 70s when the first Lutheran Latino Ministries were being planted in the city.

Dr. Maxwell Johnson

Dr. Maxwell Johnson, an ELCA pastor and professor at the University of Notre Dame, presented “Baptism: Walking Wet in the Via Crucis.” That topic coupled wonderfully with the rededication of a long out-of-use baptismal font, now placed in St Timothy’s sanctuary for sacramental use. 

 
Participating in that rededication was the Rev. Yehiel Curry, Bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod ELCA, who expressed delight at being able to attend a portion of the gathering –even if it was at the end of a very busy day. “I represent the entire Synod,” he noted, adding that congregations should anticipate visitation by him and his staff on the Lord’s Day. “I will tell my staff that Sunday is a work day for us.”

“The Virgin of Guadalupe: Not Just for Roman Catholics Anymore” was Dr. Johnson’s afternoon address. At the heart of this Mexican apparition’s legacy is the story of “the God who cares for the lowly.” The Biblical touchstone for this tradition is the Magnificat: Mary’s song which exalts the Lord God and highlights His “casting down the mighty from their thrones and raising up those of low degree.”

This Encuentro, hosted by an ELCA / Lutheran CORE member parish in a neighborhood called “beautiful” (“Hermosa“) welcomes Lutheran believers by the power of the Holy Spirit to envision and experience church with an expanded embrace of racial diversity. This is a humbling privilege for those who are involved as it plays out against the trend of mainline churches like the ELCA which has shifted in membership from 92% white to 94% white in just three years from 2015 to 2018 according to the Rev. Chris Boerger, outgoing ELCA Secretary (see his 2019 Churchwide Assembly Report reference in “Living Lutheran,” September / October ’19).

Encuentros…. meetings… in culturally diverse neighborhood parishes can fortify the Church’s passion for her Lord’s Great Commission. Secretary Boerger has noted: “If there is to be a future for this denomination, we must pay attention to who is living in our neighborhood and our community.”

Just so, when encuentros with neighbors multiply and relationships within and beyond church walls grow, breakthrough moments can occur. 

At the conclusion of Dr. Johnson’s presentation, one such neighbor, Genoveva, stood up and, in her native Spanish and surrounded by her family, invited all at the Encuentro to come to her home (just around the corner from St. Timothy) on December 11th for Advent songs, prayers, traditional tamales and champurado (a hot beverage) on the eve of the commemoration day for the Virgin of Guadalupe.

That’s an encuentro that is eagerly anticipated!