They are four simple words, “Thy will be done.” It’s a phrase easy to say, but it proves hard to live. On the mountain top, it’s easier to trust God’s love. It seems that you can see forever. Walking in the messy, dark valleys of our days, it proves much harder. Even Elijah almost gave up when his life was at risk. So, is it really a surprise that we who are not great prophets can struggle?
No, God understands our weakness, but more than that, God loves us. As a favorite song of mine says, God can’t love us more than God loves us right now. We are promised God’s will is for our ultimate good. Can we hold on? In our day, can we see signs, no matter how small, to help sustain us? God’s Spirit groans in prayer for us with words we can’t seem to say. Angels might be ministering to us in ways we can’t detect. The laughter of a child or smile of a friend can bring us joy. The songs of birds at the sunrise invite our own hearts to sing in praise.
“Thy will be done” is often rightly said in the acceptance of suffering as Jesus did before he was crucified. Yet, never forget that God’s ultimate will is to love us forever. Pain passes and even death has no power over us. So, maybe…just maybe… “Thy will be done” should be said with hope, although we might still say it through tears.
As we accept our crosses, real or imagined, remember the resurrection that we will be part of someday. As Paul rights, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). We are loved and chosen. We will never be forgotten or cast away by God even when it seems the world might give up on us or want to cast us aside. In fact, Jesus promises he’s here with us always to the end of the world.
Amidst any suffering, accident or betrayal, whatever happens or fails to occur like we wish, Jesus, too, is here with us; calling us to accept our cross, pick it up and walk in faith. All is well even when life’s seemingly unfair.
Image: Charles O’Donnell, Detail from “Ancient city of Jerusalem with Solomon’s Temple,” ca. 1871.Public domain, via Wikimedia commons.
The below sermon was preached on Reformation Sunday, September 28, 2025, following the Narrative Lectionary (Year 4). The preaching text was 1 Kings 5:1-5; 8:1-13.
For those who might not know, the Books of First and Second Kings were originally one book. The stories within cover an expansive narrative of Israel’s kings from the end of David’s reign through the Babylonian Captivity. (That’s about 400 years.) In them, you can discover ancient history with moral and ethical high points, and often people who fall short in their love for God and neighbor.
Today, we join King Solomon, David’s son, blessed with great wisdom by God, as the nation dedicates its long-awaited Temple for their God on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem. With that gift of wisdom, Solomon had led his people well. Israel was experiencing both peace and prosperity. His God given gift has led to this great blessing for the people of Isreal. They are a people whom God has declared Qodesh Olam, “the Holy People of God.” Yet, they aren’t Holy because of anything they do. They are holy because God has chosen them, loves them, and wishes to live among them.
Yet hold on to your hammers and nails, you good Lutherans out there (it is Reformation Sunday after all), because there’s much more to this story. The Temple Mount and the Temple itself have long been a part of salvation history before we ever come to this day of Temple dedication – the Temple being what becomes the center of all priestly activities and place of cultic sacrifice. You might recall the story of Abraham binding Isaac so that Isaac might be sacrificed on a mountaintop in the Land of Moriah. In lieu of this, God provides a ram to be sacrificed. This is believed by many Jewish, Christian, and Muslim persons to be the site of what is now called the Temple Mount. You can find a large bolder there located under the present-day mosque which people suggest is where it all happened.
As the story of the Jewish people unfolds through a time of slavery in Egypt and beyond, we eventually get to King Saul. The people have been tribal and nomadic once in the Holy Land. The were anxious to move from governance by tribal leaders, known as Judges, toward governance by kings. God indicated that the Israelites did not really need a king. God was their ultimate king. Still, God said, “OK.”
Then, when David replaces Saul, he conquers a city, named Jebus, owned by a foreign people. Now firmly Isreal’s, David renames the city, Jerusalem. It will become their capital. He joyfully dances before the Ark of the Covenant as it is carried to be placed within the Tent of Meeting. As the Tent of Meeting and the Ark moved through the desert with Moses’ people, wherever they people camped, it was always placed in the center of the Tribes. Symbolically, this reminded them that God and their Holy Covenant was to remain central to their lives within community. The city itself was also chosen to be the capital because it was in a relatively central, neutral location between the twelve tribes, had strong defenses, and was where the story of Abraham and Isaac occurred. Jerusalem would become where the Tent and Ark would now dwell.
As the nation grew and David and his people looked around at other growing nations or city states, David began to think, “Hmmm, maybe we need a great Temple to honor God as well as our nation.” That’s what all his neighbors had after all, so why not Israel? Well, through the Prophet Nathan, God basically says, “I was perfectly happy traveling with you in the wilderness within the Tent of Meeting. I don’t need a Temple…but if you do, ok.” God relents once again. Yet because of David’s sin and other faith issues, always still beloved by God, God decrees that the Temple will not be built until David’s son becomes the king. This is not too unlike Moses when he was not allowed to see the Promised Land. David never gets to see the Temple.
Finally, we arrive back to the glorious dedication of the Temple with Solomon. Seven years have passed since work began with a great financial cost, the investment of lots of sweat and toil, and like modern construction sites today, perhaps at the cost of some lives as well. That would be likely. Great excitement and joy must have been generated in the city as the Israelites prepared to move the Ark from Mount Zion to the neighboring Mount Moriah.
Again, today this location is known as the Temple Mount. All the religious and political leaders are there (the “insiders”), but all the commoners and less than common people are there too (the average people and the “outsiders”). All the people, no matter how rich or poor, weak or strong, perfect or imperfect, have been decaled the Holy People of God, so they are there. The covenant and promises made with Abraham, Moses, and other patriarchs include each and every one.
God will reside in the inner sanctum of the Temple, an area available only to Priests and hidden behind a large curtain. (This curtain will tear as Jesus dies. Some suggest this symbolizes the Kingdom breaking into our world through Jesus’ death and resurrection.) Golden cherubim located opposite one another over the Ark will sit with wings spread toward one another. This will continue to serve as God’s throne, his “mercy seat,” where God’s presence was said to dwell, and the ultimate God would mercifully deign to speak to and bless his Holy People. They must have thought that the Temple might last forever just like their God…but it didn’t. Babylon will invade Israel and destroy it. Cyrus the Persian will defeat the Babylonians and rebuild it. It will be defiled later by the Greeks and even later conquered by the Romans.
Then, Herod the Great, will be installed as a vassal king serving Rome, and he will look at the Temple and think in his pride, “We need better to reflect my glorious reign.” And as we know from scripture and historians of the time, he was not a great believer, but Herod the Great understood politics. His expansion of the Temple would beautify a place for faithful people to gather, but it was also a place to reflect his own glory as it becomes through its size and splendor a Wonder of the Ancient World.
Yes, Herod the Great’s work will become the Temple that Jesus and his Apostles would know and love. It will be the Temple the Apostles will marvel at before Jesus’ death because of the large and ornate stones. Yet Jesus would respond, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down” (Luke 21:5). Later, Jesus will declare that he will become our cornerstone (Luke 20:16-18). The Apostles and world will soon learn that life has never been about just nations or kings, tents or temples, sacrifice or worship. Jesus wanted to build a Church out of you and me and millions of others like us. Over the centuries as had happened with the Jewish People, what will matter most is that God comes again and again, despite our pride or mistakes, success or failures, to form us into one Holy People of God. We will stand together forever through God’s power, promises, and help.
And when the Temple is finally destroyed in 70 AD, and all that fine furnishings, holy vessels, and wealth were carried away by the Roman Legion to Rome, we see that Ecclesiastes was right. “All is vanity.” The earliest Christians finally came to understand promises of old in a new way. From Ezekiel we hear, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws” (Ezekiel 36:26-27).
No temple, church building, or anything else is needed other than faith in Jesus. For through faith, we become a “living temple” where God has longed to reside. Yes, it was God’s plan all along. Just as a cloud filled the Temple, the Glory of the Lord hungers to fill us and overflow. It desires because of love for us to dwell in our hearts and make us one through God’s own Spirit.
As Professor Amy Oden suggests,[i] I think people do like to try to put God in one place…to restrain God and define God for their own advantage or comfort…or to limit or doubt the capacity for God to save (perhaps not always wittingly)…or maybe it is because they don’t yet fully trust God’s love or love God fully with their hearts. Despite human doubts and darkness, or any evil of this world, likely because of it, we are told the Spirit is on the move (Genesis 1:2, Acts 2:1-4). God is doing new things (Isaiah 43:19). And God guides and blesses us on our way as we move through valleys of darkness and the heights of joy (Psalm 23).
Certainly, temples can be destroyed. People and their congregations will die before Jesus returns. Yet, we are to always trust God’s great and steadfast love for us. For even as we stand between hope and despair, God becomes our bulwark defending the weak and helpless (Psalm 9:9, 12:5). “Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; [God] lifts his voice, the earth melts,” and yet, the God of Jacob proves our mighty fortress (Psalm 46:6-7, NIV translation).
Friends, we might not always feel like it, nor live up to it, but God has declared that we are the Holy People of God. We have become Christ’s body by our faith and baptism through grace alone. Whatever comes our way, through fire or pouring rain,[ii] as the Evil One devises any plans,[iii] we need not be shaken. Although our own strength might fail us, God never will.[iv] God’s love and mercy will see to it that the Holy People of God will stand eternally. Amen.
[i] Ogden, A.G. Commentary on 1 Kings 5:1-5; 8:1-13. Working Preacher.
[ii] Bethel Music. “We Will Not Be Shaken (Live).” We Will Not Be Shaken, Bethel Music, 2015.
[iii] The Imperials. “Let the Wind Blow.” Let the Wind Blow, Myrrh/Word Records, 1985
[iv] Martin Luther, “Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott.” 1529.
The Apocrypha including texts like the Book of Sirach is not considered part of the Protestant cannon of scripture, but Martin Luther did suggest the Apocrypha was “profitable and good to read.” The Apocrypha is a collection of works primarily in Greek, and they can help provide historical context for the period between what is identified as Jewish scriptures and the Christian scriptures. They also can help us better understand God and our world.
As they contain teachings that some traditions find unbiblical, they can be challenged. Jewish people of Luther’s time and today have consistently found that they are not the level of scripture. That said, the Roman Catholic and Orthodox world both consider the Apocryphal texts scripture, but they do recognize some different texts as part of those works. So, there’s no fully ecumenical or interfaith consensus. Our Lutheran bibles often include them with explanation (and we do study them in seminary), but I’ve read some Protestant editions began to drop them over time after the Reformation to help make the Bible more affordable. So, they aren’t always well known.
And still, some Evangelicals and others – like Pat Robertson who I saw once denounce them as dangerous – have had no use for them. It’s a minority voice among worldwide Christianity, and I have suggested that if such people don’t want you to risk reading the Apocryphal texts, then perhaps they should offer the same counsel about their own writings available for purchase. For, those aren’t scripture either.
I stand with Luther. There’s no consensus among Jewish traditions nor Christian ones regarding them. That gives me pause to consider them scripture. Yet, they are profitable and good to read, for historical insights or wisdom including this saying by Sirach about friends (Sirach 6:14-17):
14 A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter: he that has found one has found a treasure. 15 There is nothing so precious as a faithful friend, and no scales can measure his excellence. 16 A faithful friend is an elixir of life; and those who fear the Lord will find him. 17 Whoever fears the Lord directs his friendship aright, for as he is, so is his neighbor also.
Through chapter 6, he argues, “True friends are discerned not by prosperity (v. 11), but through the trials of adversity: distress, quarrels (v. 9), sorrow (v. 10) and misfortune (v. 12) (USCCB Daily Readings, 2025).
The Book of Sirach which was written in Hebrew remains the oldest example of such wisdom literature. It is absolutely applicable to modern times as it addresses friendship. Similar to Proverbs or Ecclesiastes, it offers helpful sayings about ethics written by Yeshua ben Eleazar ben Sira (Ben Sira), a Hellenistic Jewish scribe of the Second Temple period, yet it also can inspire or encourage.
Friends prove a treasure as other scriptural texts and my own life suggest. Friends helped me reconnect to the Church and lift me up after traumas in my past. Friends helped identify my call as a pastor, and they have concretely and through prayer supported my work. Friends helped me as I grieved the death of loved ones, faced cancer, or experienced past jobless periods in my life. In many ways, I discover Gospel truth and holy wisdom through them, not of the level of scripture but true nonetheless.
Friends, new and old, I covet your prayers always, and give thanks for you as I pray. Peace+ and love be with you this day and always. Yet if you ever find yourself doubting or afraid, if you ever feel like giving up, remember your trusted friends. For Christ is waiting in their hearts ready to help and embrace you.
Image: VMI Cadets on House Mountain, from House Mountain Reserve and the Virginia Military Institute. They retain all rights.The words below are my own, and do not reflect the views of these or any other entities or persons.
The below sermon was preached on the Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost, September 28, 2025, following the Narrative Lectionary (Year 4). The preaching text isExodus 2:23-25; 3:1-15; 4:10-17:
Thirty-nine years ago, among a crucible of challenges faced as I began to attend the Virginia Military Institute, New Cadets (nicknamed “Rats” for their lowly position at the school) were “invited” to hike up House Mountain. This mountain is a beautiful mountain indeed shaped a bit like a house, and it reaches about 3600 feet in elevation. It stands uniquely alone in the skyline, a bit separate from the other mountains of the Shenandoah Valley, and it is clearly visible from the Institute.
This annual event made the mountain a bit like holy ground for us. The forced march, a very fast one, up a very steep and fatiguing incline, was a tool used to bind us closer together. On the way, New Cadets were not only expected to challenge themselves individually, but they were also to help and encourage one another on the way – carrying their “Brother Rats” if necessary. And once the arduous climb to the top is done, you look around at the beautiful expanse of the valley below you, and you feel pride for your accomplishment, but also a deeper connection to those around you and to those who came before. Dare I say that you get the sense that you find yourself in a kind of sacred space and time. To this day, whenever I drive up and down route 81 and see that mountain, I remember the importance of that cherished experience.
There’s something empowering about mountaintop experiences. Sure, the climb can be challenging and the view spectacular, but I find that I often get the sense that amidst my smallness, I am part of something greater than myself. Throughout history, mountaintops have been used for signal fires, monuments, and just a place to see the scenery, but they also have been used for religious rituals and prayer. They have often proved the site of important spiritual awakenings or experiences for people throughout time and across cultures. This is much as the Lakota and Cheyanne look at Bear Butte in South Dakota as a sacred site…praying on and around the mountain, performing rituals or leaving sacred offerings at the top. We might come to understand why the “high places” so often referred to in the Bible were outdoor religious sites on mountaintops. Where was Abraham to sacrifice Isaac?[i] It was to be on a mountaintop, much as the pagan religions around him sacrificed their children. When we lift our eyes to the hills (to the mountains or high places), from whence does our help come from?[ii] God is the answer, for God has dominion over the high places. El Shaddai is one of the names for God used in Jerusalem meaning “God Almighty.” In the most ancient times, it appears that among what would become the Jewish people (as with other peoples around them), the gods were often associated with peoples and places, especially mountains. And in the Akkadian language, the earliest known Semitic language, the root of Shaddi – shadû – means “mountain.” Some suggest that El Shaddai conceives of our God as holding dominion over their regional high places.
Therefore, I don’t think it should surprise us that Moses’ own call story takes place on such heights. Indeed, it was already thought to be sacred ground, “the Mountain of God.” It was a place said to be where God rested at times, but it was to become a place where Moses’ life and the life of his people would be changed forever. Though, it really isn’t the ground or the elevation that’s key to this story. It is the relationship forged between Moses and his God that truly matters. Within our text, we can see a number of ancient hints for this. For example, Moses takes off his shoes to approach the burning bush. That’s an ancient sign of respect. Through the outward sign of humbling oneself, one is reflecting an inward sign of reverence and worship. For God’s part, God calls Moses forward while reminding Moses of past powerful relationships, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” The three covenants or promises made by God to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – three being itself a symbol of perfection and fullness in Judaism – still hold. God broke into these lives with the intention of changing the course of history, and that remains God’s will. With this mountaintop experience, God intends to break into and claim Moses’ life so that he can be used for a sacred purpose. We are witnessing what is known as a call story.
And in the face of such power (as displayed by a burning bush which really didn’t burn), Moses turned away. Ancient peoples believed that if a mortal was to look upon such immortal power, one would die. Instead of destroying Moses, God chooses to be humble and approachable. God offers Moses a sign of friendship…a name, “I am who I am.” In ancient cultures through the indigenous cultures of today, a person’s name is deemed sacred. It is thought to have a kind of force. Yes, it might identify one’s heritage or family, or represent what they have experienced or hope to accomplish in life, but it commonly was believed (and in some cultures is still believed) to give one person power over another. That is why one usually blesses or curses using a name in most traditional cultures, and the ancient Jews refrained from using the Lord’s specific name for a fearful respect of the power it represents and could unleash. This Jewish traditions is captured in our modern bibles when you see LORD (in all capital letters) in lieu of speaking God’s name. We even baptize in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but also officially give infants a name. We are said to Christen them.
Through this account, we are witnessing something extraordinary. Our perfect Almighty God from on high comes down to meet Moses (and us) as imperfect as humans are. Unlike other gods, our God is not distant and uncaring. God hears the groaning of God’s people and acts when the time was right. This is just as we are told later – Jesus came when the time was right (Galatians 4:4-5). It is still that way as Paul writes, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with groanings too deep for words” (Romans 8:26).
Yes, this powerful yet merciful god was calling a very ordinary, imperfect human to do great things. Still as many humans do…all humans at times…Moses resisted. He doubts instead of trusts. No wonder God gets angry? I think of Jesus, too, who was so often frustrated by his disciples’ unwillingness to trust him no matter how many miracles were performed. Yet to be fair, Moses by many human standards was a very unlikely prophet. Remember, Moses descended from a lowly people, slaves. He was a murderer, killing an Egyptian slave master. Moses was only a poor shepherd with an adopted family and home. He had no great family name or social status. Significantly, Moses apparently had a speech impediment. As Professor Fretheim of Luther Seminary in St. Paul wrote, “Moses raises sharp objections to God regarding this calling. One could name a total of eight objections on Moses’ part, ranging from issues of competence to knowledge to the nature of the situation and the kind of people (and God!) involved.”[iii]
In this very dynamic back and forth of confrontation met by assurance, God basically reminds Moses by word and deed…as God will do throughout the entire cycle of the Exodus story over and over again…“I am with you…I am your God…I am yours, and you are mine.” Where Moses is so hesitant to give of himself, God offers the divine-self to Moses. As Moses seeks to trust and move forward, than trust and move forward a bit more…trust grows…a heart of faith based on a personal relationship with God begins to flourish. Our God is willing to be present in Moses’ life and work through it…that’s what gave his life and our lives true meaning…that’s what makes an ordinary human extraordinary.
Eventually, Moses will prove to be one of the greatest of God’s prophets. No, he will never be perfect. Just like us, Moses will struggle to trust at times, and with his people, grumble or drag his feet. Yet in the end, Moses will walk on in trust…step by step into the unknown but seeking to trust the god revealed to him. This revealed and now known god, our God, is with him. It is God that gives Moses his vision…a vision that directs Moses’ life through many adversities in order to help his faith grow and bless others.
Yet again, it isn’t the high ground, or Moses, or his staff who has the power and glory…it is God alone. Despite any of Moses’ flaws or hesitation, even his sin, God wants to work through Moses and with Moses to change the world. Much as with Moses, God wishes to interact with us…to enter a powerful, personal relationship with us. Yes, we can confess our weaknesses to God. We can speak of our faults or fears…even our doubts. Yet, we can’t let them shape our lives. It’s God’s presence and promise that matters.
Through our faith and baptism, God is always with us…truly with us. And by Christ’s death and resurrection…through the Holy Spirit (reflecting the power of Pentecost)…we have an ongoing, intimate, most powerful and lifechanging access to God in ways that Moses did not. True, we might never prove to be an Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob, but we are their descendants through our shared faith. We may never be a great prophet like Moses. As recent days remind us, we can surely be a lowly, sinful people. Yet, God still claims us and is with us. At any time, where we walk might become like holy ground for us as we sense God’s presence more clearly, feel the holy communion with Christ’s Church more dearly, or sense the Spirit’s call to love, forgive, and serve others and our world. [This is much as St. Richard of Chichester, (c. 1197–1253), prayed: O most merciful redeemer, friend and brother, may I know thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, and follow thee more nearly, day by day. Amen.]
In response to such an invitation, we should seek to answer our unique call from God. This might in the end be just to do small but hard and necessary things within the sphere of influence where we have been planted – helping as we can, loving and forgiving with God’s help, being patient and gracious toward others, maybe not saving the world but just saving or positively shaping or redirecting even just one life that we come in contact with. God can use us in that way to change the world, too.[iv]
Indeed, we are used by God daily…aware of it or not…when we just try to love as we have been loved by God. For through this messy, stressful, frightening life, God is leading us together toward the highest ground…an eternal life to be shared with the one revealed to Moses as “I am who I am,” and comes to us as Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
[iv] There is an ancient Jewish precept, “Whoever saves one life is considered as if he saved an entire world.” This highlights the infinite value of each life and our interconnectedness.
If you would like to listen to the above sermon or watch our service, the video can be found below. The sermon begins at about the 11:14 minute mark.
A 2023 study found that 40 percent of both Biden and Trump supporters “at least somewhat believed the other side had become so extreme that it is acceptable to use violence to prevent them from achieving their goals.” That’s pretty disturbing. Yesterday, I could sadly look at my feeds on social media and make a list of people that feel that way from the left and right, some who I know personally. According to Stefani McDade in Christianity today, “Most Americans are in shock, grieving, and rightly concerned for the future of our nation [after the assassination of Charlie Kirk]. Yet there are outliers on both ends of the ideological spectrum who seem inclined to assign a deeper meaning to Kirk’s murder—one that instrumentalizes it to galvanize further support for their respective camps and causes.” That’s not healthy or right either. Making violence sacred in one’s preferred image is itself a form of idolatry.
Many have said that there’s no going back even though our future is never set in stone. Some have just suggested that the Rubicon crossed will lead to more violence (which is likely correct knowing human nature). Others, unwittingly or not, want more – the destruction or elimination of the other, and that’s a bad bridge to cross. “The (fill in the blank party) are evil.” (They don’t act with evil, they are evil, they say. That’s a serious and unbiblical accusation.) People angrily resist that violence is an “us” problem, not just “them.” (Martin Luther in his Large Catechism argues quite effectively that we are all murderers.) They can point out the plank in other people’s post easy enough (Matthew 7:3-5), but they often fail to see how their own vitriol potentially facilitates evil actions of others (if not eventually their own down the line). It’s easy to hate those we objectify. They can become to us something less than human, a being made in God’s image who Jesus died to save.
Jesus calls us to be more and do better. Aggression and violence is a choice, to be an exception in a fallen world, always tainted by sin, if one believes what Jesus taught and exemplified. This is why the Orthodox and others encourage soldiers to go to confession with a priest after wartime experiences. Violence is never “pure” as too many wish to frame it. None of our actions are if we ascribe to Lutheran or Reformed theology. Indeed, because of sin, even the concept of free will is a deception. (Read Luther’s The Bondage of the Will if interested in hearing that argument.)
Instead, we are invited, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). Love and forgiveness can always be a choice too…always. If you feel stuck in your anger, unable to forgive, pray about it. Talk to a pastor, rabbi or other spiritual leader. (And if they are preaching about retribution or going to war over cultural or political issues, perhaps go somewhere else. Spiritual leaders can live in error, too.) Read and meditate upon the Jewish scriptures and Jesus’ teachings about love of others, forgiveness, and violence. God’s Spirit will help.
Yes, Jesus wishes us his peace, a peace beyond understanding (Philippians 4:7). Jesus offered this to his first disciples and to us when he said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”
People can quibble about the veracity of research studies regarding our divisions, or who did what first, but Jesus is clear. “Love one another, as I have loved you” (see John 13). Let us choose to abide in his love.
A Smithsonian Institution sign is seen on the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on March 28, 2025. KEVIN DIETSCH/GETTY/Newsweek – See the Newsweek article sparking this post.
Recently, the President pondered about slavery in the context of what he suggested was one sided history presentations at the Smithsonian. Certainly, one can point to possible errors, but the President made a big one himself. Plenty of people on social media have regrettably expressed similar things before and since. He said that their portrayal of U.S. history was too negative and focused too much on “how bad Slavery was.”
Well, unfortunately, slavery was worse in the USA than many understand or admit. Don’t take my word for it. Read first hand slave narratives from diaries and interviews: extreme poverty, dismemberments, whipping, rape, murder, and more abominable acts were a norm. Many potential slaves, Native American, African and others, historically feared slavery more than death. In fact, you read of suicidal acts rather than being dragged into slavery or returned to it.
So if anyone is wondering, in the best of circumstances one could imagine, slavery is wrong. It was and always has been steeped in sin, a sign of our fallen world not God’s Kingdom. In Genesis, every human was created in God’s image, male and female alike. Some (I sadly know from experience) will say God allowed it. They will point at a few verses which l agree seem to affirm slavery in that period, but even in speaking of the Ten Commandments, Mosaic law called for better treatment and freedom processes for slaves.
God’s patience with our sin should not be confused with God’s approval of it. (God was not too keen on Israel having a king other than God or the Temple in Jerusalem being built either, for they could lead to idolatry and other sin. Yet, God consented.) By the time the Church comes around, Jesus has extended the understanding of the neighbor whom we should love as oneself to include everyone. Paul emphasizes how slave and master should live within the existing structure while prioritizing Christ, as he did regarding women, but he never argued for slavery. He argued that Christ’s plan is to make all one. In the dangerous context of the Roman Empire where slavery was so embedded, order valued, and social roles defined, he expects Jesus back soon. He didn’t want anything to hinder the spread of the Gospel, so within an unjust fallen world, he counsels humility, patience and love even to one’s enemy. Living faithfully was his primary concern whether a slave or any other lot in a fallen life.
Yet, God did not stop speaking in biblical times. As the Church grows and becomes more diverse, as education spreads (both knowledge and wisdom are said to be gifts of the Spirit), as people pray, meditate on scripture, preach and teach about our Lord, the consensus and understanding grew that slavery and prejudice of any kind is sin. The Spirit works through such holy discernment to try to open our hearts to God’s truth. So again, God called and created everyone. Jesus is to call all peoples to himself. And we are to love one another and see the Christ, the sacred, in one another – in everyone whether friend or foe, believer or not.
Still to this day, prejudice of all kinds, slavery, and ignorance sadly continue to exist. Some people don’t want to see their ancestors as “bad,” but we are all sinnners, so let’s get over it. Going in circles about the multiple causes of the Civil War is a distraction distancing us from the horror. Slavery always takes away a person’s self determination, rights, dignity, health and ultimately life. It’s a kind of theft and murder, as Luther extended those commands similarly to many sins in his Large Catechism. (He suggests we are all murderers at times as we lack care for our neighbors or live selfishly.) As I often quote from Jesus, let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Slavery was evil. It was and remains sin. Let’s leave it at that.
Our ancestors might not have understood this was a sin, but we now do. So, we shouldn’t forget or be shy about their errors. We can learn from them. Sinner-saints all, certainly there could be signs of kindness or generosity back then like now. Yet let God be their ultimate judge, for we have our own sins still to address including modern slavery and human trafficking.
Good thing God is still patient and kind. For, we all need his forgiveness.
“You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.” Galatians 5:13
Left or right or in between in the US, we all are a sinful, stiff necked people in need of grace; called to become more through Christ. As a culture and fallen people, we historically swing dysfunctionally between political poles of excess and denouncing the “other,” hurting ourselves and those entrusted to our care all the while. Platforms tend to become more important than people, for we rest in the assurance that we are “right,” and we want to defeat the “other.” We self righteously think, “They are the evil ones after all.” In doing so, we often forget that true justice requires mercy and the least of these are indeed our responsibility. At the same time, or perhaps because of this plank in our eye, we tend not to like to reflect deeply on our own sins – what we have done and failed to do – with the gift of holy wisdom at our disposal. We prefer passion and group-think over the Holy Spirit’s guidance and light.
It ultimately doesn’t matter what wrong was done in the past. We must let it go instead of letting anger metastasize. We are called to love one another in the present, not ignoring or enabling wrongs, but striving with God’s help to see the Christ in others and treating them with gentleness, patience, and the love we ourselves have received first. As I’ve said before, it is a habit of life which takes practice. We are to forgive and forgive again when wronged. “Seventy times seven” times according to Jesus, we should forgive. This means we should forgive others without limit even when they don’t deserve it. For Jesus died for our sin – that which we have been born into or done, those we struggle with today, and the sins we’ve yet to do – when we still don’t and never will deserve it.
And what about us? Our recalcitrance in regard to all the teachings of Jesus including doing good to those whom hate us? What evil is at work in and through us and our choices as we face the fears and pressures of our day? How might we be making a bad situation worse? Who are we to condemn people to hell in our hearts or cause others to suffer through our actions? Each day in a similar way to our siblings in Twelve Step programs, we who are addicted to sin and selfishness can take a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. Then, we ask for God’s forgiveness, seek to repent of our wrongs (turning back to God), make amends as we can (as we are empowered by God). We do so because Jesus said he wants us to have his abundant life and peace, and this is the Way.
We might feel caught in an impossible situation, but all things remain possible with God. We can make choices to help change our behaviors and attitudes for the better today; repenting of our wrongs and positively influencing others. God’s Spirit has already been sent to help us, residing in our hearts through the gifts of our faith and baptism. Most importantly, Jesus promises that we are never alone. He will carry our cross when we cannot. He already has!
Jesus once said, “People do not light a lamp and put it under the bushel basket; rather, they put it on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” In times of trouble and discord, this is even more true. We need our yes to mean yes and to seek to love God and others as ourselves no matter the cost. It is Jesus who has called us to this time and place to be his body. Don’t be afraid.
Whatever happens around us or to us, our first allegiance as a Christian is always to Jesus. As we American Christians look upon fireworks tonight celebrating Independence Day, never forget that Jesus always wants us to reflect his light…always. Sinning in our anger is never his way. Political waffling is not his style. We can be better as a person and a nation. We can be healed. We live in hope thanks be to God.
I wish you a happy and safe Independence Day, while remembering and seeking to serve the only One who truly makes us free.
I pray with my friends in France for world peace (see link in comments as it wouldn’t post), and I’m praying for those impacted by today’s political violence in the US. Sad is an understatement. We might feel impotent in the face of such senseless violence, but we aren’t. Loving our neighbor including our enemies can be lived out through our lives. If enough people do, just as bad or hate filled sentiment can spread like a disease, so can faith, hope and love from person to person. As hard as it is, try to pray for your political opponents and try to treat them with respect as human beings even as we might think they live in grave error. Ask the Spirit to use you as an agent of reconciliation and peace in your context. Pray for the person or persons who did this for they do not know what they do even as we pray for justice. And seek to defeat evil with good. Sounds easy enough, but it’s a biblical intentional practice often in tension against our baser instincts. Yet if we seek to practice over and over, with God’s help, it will become a habit – a new instinct or gift from the Holy Spirit dwelling within you. Jesus said to his anxious friends, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27). He’s still saying that to us today.
Stained glass window in L’Eglise de la Réconciliation
The post began simply, “Meet Jennifer Thurston – the latest activist on the bench.” Those responsible went on from there saying this judge was stopping Border Patrol from arresting “illegal aliens without a warrant.” They continue with self righteous indignation, “You read that right: The people tasked with protecting our borders are now being told to stand down unless they have paperwork—while illegal entry is happening in real time. This isn’t about justice. It’s about tying the hands of law enforcement and opening the gates even wider. Border security should be law. Not optional.”
The post was unsolicited; promoted on Facebook and likely coming to me through my feed thanks to AI and my interest in law enforcement. It spoke of a desire for justice. Yet, I think it reflects the deep darkness impacting our public discourse; infecting us through social media’s memes and posts as well as uninformed podcasts and sites pretending to be news. Fake news and incendiary commentary is sadly a problem among all political persuasions. It just happened to be leaning conservative this time.
I’m not naming the page because I don’t want them to be promoted. I also don’t need anyone hunting me down on line or in real life. Yet as a pastor, former law enforcement officer, and current chaplain, I want to warn anyone who will listen to be careful trusting nondescript Facebook groups, other social media posts, and podcasts claiming a law enforcement connection. Just because someone claims to love and support law enforcement, it doesn’t mean the poster knows what they are talking about. Indeed, watch out for the veracity of posts from such sources and in general. Verify claims. This one just popped up in my Facebook feed, and I immediately found it distressing. I saw major red flags in its tone but also broad brush of accusations.
In this case, they insinuated Judge Jennifer Thurston was an activist judge, thus an enemy to justice. I don’t claim to know all her cases, yet with a quick Google search, one finds her statement at the ruling was actually, “You just can’t walk up to people with brown skin and say, ‘Give me your papers.” Is that so evil? Do we really want our Native, Hispanic and other neighbors to have papers checked because they look foreign in some official’s eyes or because they have an accent? We aren’t supposed to be judged by the color of our skin, accent, etc.
In the 1990s when the Clinton administration floated national identification cards, I clearly remember conservatives were concerned about illegal stops and tracking of citizens especially (the Cato Institute, for one, argued) during times of emergency. They feared abuse of our civil liberties. What’s changed? At some level, law enforcement agents always needed to have a warrant or reasonable suspicion for a stop – much like police are expected to do. If we have an immigration emergency as is claimed, this doesn’t mean all judicial precaution is to be thrown in the trash.
Yes, border security should be and is the law. Laws should be enforced, including immigration enforcement, but we also have laws on the books about when a legal stop can be made to help prevent abuse of our civil liberties. Case law has also historically shaped law enforcement policy. This is all for our protection. Imagine repeatedly being stopped because of your appearance or accent. How might you feel? It would likely anger or annoy most people. Imagine being falsely detained for days (as has happened) because you look Hispanic and was found to be walking without identification. Then, your rights have been abridged. You don’t need a law degree to understand that.
During this time of discord, journalists, judges, and others are having threats made against them and their families. The post invites condemnation which can indirectly call people, especially unhealthy people, to action. They claim the judge is not doing her job, abusing our rights. They point an accusatory finger with words; words not supported by fact.
It was wrong when extremists threatened police families during the last decade’s protests over alleged law enforcement wrongs, and this kind of propaganda which can incite violence is wrong too. Unhealthy people could follow through on the misrepresentations and seriously injure or kill somebody. The page in question, at least through this post, appears to be about inciting people to anger rather than making legal claims. Yet, it ultimately doesn’t rely on “just the facts” as Detective Friday might want on Dragnet. It omits them. In the end, lies of omission can be as harmful as lies of commission, and this kind of post is ultimately sinful.
Martin Luther writes in detail about the Eighth Commandment (as Lutheran’s count them), “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” He addresses the social and spiritual and practical values of this commandment in courts, in the family, and amidst the greater community. “In the third place, what concerns us all, this commandment forbids all sins of the tongue whereby we may injure or approach too closely to our neighbor. For to bear false witness is nothing else than a work of the tongue.” He suggests this sin includes speaking behind a person’s back and slandering. We often love to hear people speak of us like we are gold, “yet we cannot bear that the best is spoken about others.”
Indeed, he goes on, we too often behave like base beasts when we “know a slight offense of another, carry it into every corner, and are delighted and tickled that they can stir up another’s displeasure [baseness], as swine roll themselves in the dirt and root in it with the snout.” We pass sentence, taking God’s place as judge. In doing so, we might not wield a sword like worldly powers, but we use or “poisonous tongue to the shame and hurt of your neighbor.” In a sense, we murder them – killing their honor and the respect due to another.
Martin Luther makes many other great points about how our lies and assumptions hurt others and our unity. It can tear communities apart and lead to injustice rather than justice. This easily applies to our social media posts in a way that would horrify Luther. (I suspect it certainly saddens Christ.) Luther argues we should assume the best of people rather than the worst. Although he doesn’t use this specific word, he suggests that we be empathetic. How would we like to be treated?
Luther concludes, “Thus we have now the sum and general understanding of this commandment, to wit, that no one do any injury with the tongue to his neighbor, whether friend or foe, nor speak evil of him, no matter whether it be true or false, unless it be done by commandment or for his reformation, but that every one employ his tongue and make it serve for the best of every one else, to cover up his neighbor’s sins and infirmities, excuse them, palliate and garnish them with his own reputation. The chief reason for this should be the one which Christ alleges in the Gospel, in which He comprehends all commandments respecting our neighbor, Matt. 7, 12: Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.”
Today, we have arguments over many laws and court cases. These spill from the courtroom into online discussions. Yet to irresponsibly mischaracterize a legal argument may not just end a person’s career. It could conceivably end a life. The post in question makes no threat, but it doesn’t need to. Someone reading it could act on the anger stirred by its inferences.
Yet, this just isn’t just a problem for others. James writes, “If any think they are religious and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless” (James 1:26). Along with our mouths, we need to bridle our fingers today. If we share such posts, take them at face value, or act on them, we are likely guilty of sin too.
While serving at Christ Lutheran, I have not had many opportunities to participate in any concrete, personal ministry serving those with intellectual disabilities or those on the autism spectrum. Yet, such experiences remain a deep part of who I am. They have shaped my vocation, my relationships and theology, even my personal relationship with God. People experiencing these issues have always been part of my life, and they have taught me a lot…even helped me experience Jesus…if not see him.
Long before I was born, my grandmother chose to keep my Aunt Therese at home after she was born with intellectual disabilities in the 1930s. Many relatives pressured my Nana to give her daughter up…to institutionalize her and move on with her own life. That was the way things were back then. Instead, my grandmother (with my grandfather’s support) ensured that my aunt learned how to read and write, manage household tasks, and was educated about Jesus and the importance of loving others. As a result, Aunt Therese was eventually able to find a job in a factory, serve on her congregation’s altar guild, and even drive. Later in life, she could live alone with the proper support in place. When I came along and still a child, I only saw my aunt as my aunt. There were no labels yet in my mind. She was just another person to love and care for me. And I loved her. I still love her although she died many years ago.
In high school, I was one of several students chosen to assist physical education teachers during the school day. One day, a coach came over to ask me if I would be willing to help a teen new to the school with intellectual disabilities. He was having a hard time adjusting, had loads of energy, and was prone to act out as a result. My job, if I accepted it, was to help accompany him…to model and teach sportsmanship and relationship…and try to get some of his energy out in a healthier way. I was maybe 15 years old, and I must confess I was intimidated. This was not my aunt. It was a new experience.
Yet, I said yes, and my relationship with that young man led me to a new kind of joy. I was eventually asked to help the Special Education Teacher at our high school on a regular basis, and I made more friends who just happened to have disabilities as a result. I also discovered that these students who were sometimes made fun of by others, discounted, ignored, or cast aside, could teach me more things than I ever taught them – especially about kindness and the acceptance of others. Those who were often called the least of these proved to have an inestimable value.
Once in college, I was on a vocational retreat exploring service in the Church. We were in the Appalachian region of Kentucky, and as part of the ten days, we stopped by to visit and help residents at an underserved nursing care facility. Brother Cal, the group leader, invited me to help feed a young woman who was restricted to a life reclining in a special wheelchair. She was physically, and intellectually, severely disabled. She was also almost blind, only able to see shadowy figures. I believe I’ve shared with some of you this experience, for my fear and reluctance turned to a profound joy with new understandings as she responded to my male voice, felt the contours of my face and stubble of my unshaven chin (in order to “see” me in some way), and giggled like a small child as she felt words and noises come from my mouth. I came to sense a kind of holy relationship form between us. Although brief, I still sense our connection as I speak of her or when I think of her. It created a kind of mystical and life-changing communion like that which we speak of in our prayers.
Later remembering these experiences and many others, I would come to support Special Olympics as a police officer after college. You likely know that police officers love to support Special Olympics. (It’s a thing.) Still later as a pastor, I therefore quickly volunteered to Go Over the Edge for Special Olympics Virginia, rappelling down the 26-story Sun Trust building in Richmond for donations. “Push your pastor over the edge” was my tagline, and apparently many people wanted to do just that! I raised over $6,000 that first year. And in following years, other pastors and Lutheran lay people (including Pastor Anne) were crazy enough to join me on that rooftop. In three outings, Lutherans in Virginia raised nearly $20,000 for Special Olympics. This went not only to high quality training and sporting events for those with intellectual disabilities but also to school programs, health and dental programs, along with family support. These are all the activities of Special Olympics.
This became one factor leading to my being invited to serve on the Board with Lutheran Family Services of Virginia, now called enCircle. The nonprofit began with adoption related care in the 1800s, but it now helps with foster children and adoption, geriatric issues, schools for at-risk youth, counseling services for individuals or family, some migrant and refugee assistance, and many other things. Their efforts, of course, include services helping those with intellectual disabilities and autism. They offer day centers, in home care and support, and options to live in community.
I served for nine years on that board, and eventually came to also serve with a L’Arche community in Richmond. L’Arche is an international Christian program that supports and promotes people with different levels of ability living together in community. At one worship service at Messiah Lutheran, my former congregation, a severely autistic young woman, a member of L’Arche, could not wait for the Lord’s Supper and ran up to the altar with great abandon and joy to stand next to me. In her hunger and excitement for Jesus, she taught me something holy that day. And as with everything else I mentioned, I learned a lot about myself, life, and Jesus.
In reflection, I recognize that I could feel my heart burning inside me. There was something…is something…sacred about all these relationships and experiences. In summary, I agree with the words of Father Henri Nouwen, famous for what he learned through his involvement with L’Arche communities:
Giving yourself to others is only possible when you have been fully received…only when you know yourself as unconditionally loved – that is fully received by God – can you give gratuitously. Giving without wanting anything in return is trusting that all of your needs will be provided by the one who loves you unconditionally. It is trusting that you do not need to protect your own security but can give yourself completely to the service of others…When you know yourself as fully loved, you will be grateful for what is given to you without clinging to it, and joyful for what you can give without bragging about it. You will be a free person….Free to love! (As quoted at Apprenticeship to Jesus.)
I do not share these experiences to brag, but hopefully to help point you a way down your own road…a way available to all of us…to help us encounter the Risen Christ. In life, too often, the stressors of our day, the fears over our tomorrows or potential want, and the sin that is at work in us and around us can blind us. We forget God’s promises, and we fail to see Christ’s presence…even though he is right before us!
Today, we heard of Cleopas and another unnamed disciple (possibly his wife, Mary, according to some early authorities) traveling to Emmaus after stories of Jesus’ resurrection had begun to spread. Think about what they had just experienced… profound grief and fear. They were likely still in shock over the death of their beloved Jesus…Now, they were to believe in his physical resurrection? It would be unthinkable for many of us. We would likely be overcome with perplexity and confusion just as they were. Again, fear remained like a specter before them as well.
Then unexpectedly, Jesus appears. He’s in a form where they do not recognize him at first. He’s just another traveler on the road as far as they are concerned…an uninformed one at that. So, they begin to share their dilemma. They speak of Jesus and all that was seen and heard. Jesus finally has had enough. How foolish they are! They seem not to remember all that Jesus and the scriptures before them have taught. “Then,” scripture says, “beginning with Moses and all the prophets, [Jesus] interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.” He unpacked the scriptures for them…held them up…so they might see how the scriptures touched their lives.
As they near the day’s end, they must have found some comfort or inspiration from their time with this supposed stranger. “Please do not go. Stay.” They perhaps hoped to help him, as he had helped them. This is the context in which their food is shared…a mutual, caring relationship. As Jesus blessed and broke the bread, only then do they see Jesus for whom he is. They ask in wonder, “Were not our hearts burning inside us?”
It is highly unlikely that Jesus will appear to us in a dream or a vision. (It is not impossible, but it is unlikely.) It is even more unlikely that we will see him in the flesh until our own resurrection. Yet, we are promised Jesus is here. Sure, scripture can help us catch a glimpse of Jesus. The sacraments rightly practiced and received in faith might give us a glimpse of Jesus sparking a fire in our hearts. These are both true, but they are not the totality of where we might see Jesus.
Let us recall Jesus’ parable about the judgement of the nations at the end of time for help. To those at the King’s right hand, he will say: “‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’” (See the complete parable at Matthew 25:31-46).
Indeed, in our faith and baptism, we become the vary body of Jesus as we serve. Yet, Jesus is reminding us that he is all around us in the world. He’s in all those who are suffering need. Jesus is even in the hearts of our enemies and those who don’t know him yet…trying to set a spark of recognition…wanting to warm their hearts. He can be spotted at the oddest times…when ordinary kindnesses are seen as the sacred things that they are meant to be…binding us together as one…helping us learn more about Jesus and the life he himself exemplified.
Today’s story tells us of a great miracle, but, oh, how foolish we remain and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!…We are slow to believe what Jesus himself has taught us. Our life is meant to be sacred…a life where Jesus is not only made known but fully made present. We might only catch a glimpse, but he says he is there. Can you not perceive him? Have you ever slowed down enough to try. We can so often be like those travelers – seeing people for what they do or don’t do, or maybe as the world labels them, blinded by our own shortsightedness or our concerns for self. It is too easy to prove blind to Jesus who is always with us!
Yet, Jesus wills to not leave us in our blindness. He comes to us again and again in the need we find around us. In our ordinary life, we are called to a holy purpose that we might not ever fully recognize…or maybe we might never know and understand in this world…Still, there is something Jesus would have us do. If we want to glimpse…just glimpse…even a shadow of the Risen Christ in our lives, we have to look up and around us. We must walk the roads and byways aware and alert for those in need but also those marginalized and easily overlooked. For Jesus will be there.
Yet, we live in a world that often sees things otherwise. The autistic and intellectually disabled are sometimes said to not provide value. For too many, they are not seen as fully human. The homeless deserve what they get, some say, and those suffering mental weakness might be labeled as weak. The old are an inconvenience, a drag on finances. To have empathy and compassion is said to be against Christian values. (Some Christians say that!) These are all things I have seen, heard and read over the years…not just these last months. The day is over, and things are getting dark.
Who might Jesus be calling us to break bread with, so that he might be seen? It might be through serving others or in the sacraments. We might catch a glimpse of him in the forgiveness and kindness we offer others. It could be just non-anxiously accompanying someone through a life’s challenge, not having answers but being willing to listen and care as we walk with them.
These kinds of opportunities to see Jesus can happen when we least expect it…when we are so tired or stressed that we think that we cannot take anything else on…or present themselves at the most inconvenient of times. Yet Christ’s love is a fire, and his love burns in our hearts. When we feel it, we must pay attention to it…no matter how small a spark or even if it might lead toward our own sacrifices or death. For it is at just those times, we and others can be profoundly gripped by the wonder of Christ’s love. We will come to know that we are loved, and we will be better able to find a road forward loving others; leading us to a deeper communion with God; taking us to places where we will come to see Jesus face to face…together. Amen.
If you would like to listen to the above sermon or watch our service, the video can be found below. The Gospel text and sermon begins at about the 18:45 minute mark.The preaching text isLuke 24:13-35.
Husband, Pastor, Law Enforcement Chaplain, and member of the Clerical Errors (aka "The Three Priests"), I'm sharing my two cents with anyone who cares...
You can also find me on social media as Loudluthrn (Lou-d-Luthrn or Lou the Lutheran). It is a moniker given me while attending a Presbyterian Seminary, but I'm a loud and proud Lutheran too (just not too loud and proud, mind you).
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