Losing my Car and Finding God

I awoke Sunday morning and got ready to go to church, where I teach the Junior High Sunday school class.

We were going to talk about Blind Bartimaeus from Mark 10:46-52. And I was excited. The prayer of Bartimaeus forms the backbone of the central devotion of the eastern hesychastic piety, which seeks to teach the heart to pray not just the mouth or the mind. I was going to talk to my students about what it means to live all of life with a heart of prayer that seeks God at all times, even when things don't go your way and the deck seems stacked against you.

I would soon need to learn that lesson a little bit better first hand.

As I walked out the door I looked for my car. I knew I had parked it right in front of my appartment, I had even peeked on it in the middle of the night to make sure it was safe.

The car was gone. There was an empty space where my 1999 Red Honda Civic hatchback had been parked just hours before. I was confused for a second but then the realization of what happened hit me. I was the victim of Motor vehicle theft.

My heart felt like it instantly dropped out of my chest. If any of you have ever experienced a theft like this you know what I'm talking about. It was a devastating feeling.

I had to call my church and tell them I wouldn't be able to make it, I had to call the police, I had to call my insurance, the tollway, my wife, my mom.... I tried to keep a cheery attitude though it all, but by the end of all the calls I was exhausted: Spiritually, emotionally, even physically.

I decided that I would go Mass.

For the last year I have been exploring the Catholic church's spiritually through it's practices. If I didn't understand why Catholics did something I tried it out for a while, and in the midst of living it I found the richness of the theology behind it. It's been an incredible journey.

For the last month or so I had been going through a 34 day cycle of prayers that were designed to acclimate my heart toward Christ through meditating of the faith and humility of Mary. This series of prayers was culminating of the day of the Annunciation, March 25th.

March 25th also happened to be the day my car was stolen.

The final prayers were supposed to be done after Mass in the presence of the Eucharist. As I thought about what was going on with my car I came to the concussion that I might be dealing with some kind of spiritual conflict.

The Bible teaches that are fight is never with people, who are loved by God and created in His image. Instead we are told we wrestle with the dark powers who seek to bring their darkness into this word and enslave God's beloved creation.

I have never really understood exactly how that metaphysical reality worked, but I did know one thing. On the day I was planning on concerting my heart to Jesus after over a month of intense preparation the way I was going to get to the church to do it was GONE.

When this fact hit me I got up and I started to run.

I knew there was a catholic church that was going to be starting Mass in about a half hour so I decided to get there as fast as I could. I wasn't going to let anything get in the way of this day. I ran through my neighborhood to the bus stop that would take me there. I arrived just in time to catch the bus as it was pulling up. I got off and I ran into the church.

As I entered I was shocked, even though I had arrived early the service was already underway. They had changed their mass times without posting it on their webpage! Thankfully there was still a lot of the service left. The priest was just about to begin the service of the Eucharist. This section of the liturgy is the central wellspring of all catholic piety. I was glad to be there for it, I have always found it to be a great source of grace in my own life.

Since I wasn't allowed to partake in the Eucharist itself I began to look around for votive candles to light. Part of the prayer of consecration recommends that you light one of these candles.

Votive candles are symbols of prayers that are offered to God. You can see them in most Catholic and Orthodox churches. You light the candle, give a small offering to offset the cost of the candle, and say a prayer of intention for the person you are praying for.

I walked around the whole church.... and every candle was lit!

I was shocked. Instead I gave an offering in the box for the poor and prayed a prayer in my heart.

"God I give it all to you. Let my car be an offering, and let my life be taken too. Steal me away oh Lord from all the concerns that distract me from you. I want only you."

When I had finished praying this prayer I made my way to the front of the church. The priest was blessing the people and the congregation was filling out the doors. I pulled out the prayer book that had my prayers of consecration.

I had been worried for so long that when this day would come I would find that the prayers would be too focused on Mary and that I wouldn't understand what I was doing. I was afraid that all of this would be irrelevant to my life. I had worried that I would not be ready to give my life to Jesus.

As I opened up to the prayers for the day of consecration I read:

I, Billy Kangas, a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism; I renounce forever Satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before. In the presence of all the heavenly court I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, my body and soul, my goods, both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me, and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God in time and in eternity.

As I finished I couldn't believe it. This prayer spoke exactly what the prayer of my heart had been just moments before. I had come to the end of my rope in the morning. I was broken. I knew I needed Jesus. As I prayed these words I knew God had taught me the very lesson I had hoped to teach my students that morning about the prayer of the heart.

A wash of peace came over me and a smile crept over my face. I was still upset about my car, but in that moment I knew that it would all be ok. God had met me in my brokenness and showed me his wholeness.

P.S. After making this prayer I discovered that this year the annunciation had been moved to the 26th because it had fallen on a Sunday. I thought this was awesome, it was another opportunity to give my heart to Jesus. I went back to church on Monday. I spent time walking the stations of the cross, lighting a real life votive candle and just sitting in the peace of God. I prayed the prayer again. It still blew me away. I think I may have to start praying that prayer regularly.

How Wendell Berry Is Saving My Sanity, and My Ministry

Its that time again. The winter is beginning to fade, flowers are blooming, and TV stations everywhere are being pumped with a 24 hour assault of political mud-slinging. Yes, you know what that means; the country is deep in the thralls of another election year. Airwaves have become battlefields. We are being constantly bombarded with sound bites, statistics and political branding. Candidates are closely monitoring where they stand on the political spectrum of “left” vs “right.” Each potential politician attempts to weigh in at just the right amount of liberal or conservative so that the maximum number of procurable voters will be willing to give up on electing someone that might actually represent their concerns for the homogenized “electable” version of their brand.

America has entered their biennial race to the bottom where the the party that has most successfully presented their contagion of corruption will be awarded a seat at the head of the empire.

I hate election years. Everyday I find I loose more and more hope in humanity. The negativity gets to me. I can’t stand how predictable it all is. As a minister this is particularly difficult. I see relationships that have been growing in the community that I serve in severed overnight by political pettiness. I see the initiatives that were started to serve the community shut down by those who fear that helping someone is somehow a political statement. I see pastors stop teaching about the ethical demands of serving a Holy God for fear that they will somehow get grouped in with “those people”. Its in election years that I need Wendell Berry the most.

Something Naturally Different 

Wendell Berry reminds me that there is a life outside of strictly defined political lines. He maintains a commitment to a different set of criteria than what I am fed day in and day out through news outlets and ad campaigns. Wendell Berry preaches a message that is so different that he can’t be claimed by the forces of the political machine. He speaks too much truth to be condemned and yet remains far to dangerous to be claimed by either side. Wendell Berry offers a narrative that isn’t framed by issues of conservative vs liberal. He offers a narrative framed by community and location. In a world that seeks to solve the problems of society in broad strokes Wendell Berry insists on making small jots and tittles that he makes on each of his handwritten manuscripts that have managed to infect my life, my ministry, my convictions, and even my capacity to hope again.

For those who don’t know, Wendell Berry is a farmer who lives in Port Royal, Kentucky. He has dedicated his life to living in and loving in his community and in his land. He is like countless other farmers and other men and women that have dedicated their lives to their communities and their land. Wendell Berry also occasionally takes the time to write a little about what it means for him to be a man who lives in and loves in a community and a land. He tells the story in poetry. He tells the story in essays. He tells the story in fiction. He even tells the story in academic papers. Ever since I was introduced to Berry I have found myself occasionally picking up his poetry and essays and fiction, and I can honestly say that Wendell Berry has begun to change my life.

Wendell Berry doesn’t sit easily on any political spectrum. The way he talks about the Earth, you think he has got to be just about the most liberal person you’ve ever encountered. But then you start to listen to what he’s saying and its clear that he also has many conservative tendencies so intransigent that they might make William F. Buckley blush. Berry calls me to hope in people rather than politics. He teaches me to be devoted to where I am, even if it doesn’t seem to be a very important place. He convicts me of my tendency to look out for grand solutions to life’s problems, and teaches me to care for the little things around me with a grand love. When I feel overwhelmed by the divisiveness I find its nice to take a dip in a one of his short stories. When I start to loose sight of the beauty of humanity, nothing brings it back like one of Wendell Berry’s novels. When a begin to feel the Earth is lost, I pick up a poem and let Wendell use his wordsmithery to bring beauty back to the simple surroundings I have forgotten to notice. When I have lost hope for the future of public discourse, I make a date with one of Berry’s essays.

In everything that he writes Berry sounds different, but its a natural kind of different. Its the kind of different that makes you think that you should have thought of it yourself. Its not a kind of different that seeks to create something new and better, but the kind of different that reminds you that sometimes there is value in what we cast away as dull and old. Its the kind of different I need.

A Pastor to the Pastor 
Far too often I am as guilty as the politicians of seeking to convert people to my team through contrivances of rhetoric. I am often leading the bandwagon that is carrying off the old to make way for the new. I have found myself, too often, un-rooted in my community, knowing that I am only here for a little while. This is not a healthy way for anyone to live, especially not a pastor.
The word pastor comes from the Latin word pastorem, meaning “shepherd.” It came from a time where people needed a guard over their souls. A pastor was called to watch over those people who had been entrusted to them and offer them means of grace in the midst of a turbulent world. We still need people like that, but don’t often get them.

In the United States, the office of the ministry took on a different function. As feuding christian sects made their way across the wild American frontier, the pastor was replaced by the revival leader, the preacher and the evangelists. The church became driven by great preachers, with great words, spoken to great multitudes. They brought many people in but, far to often, they didn’t know how to care for them after they were converted.

As a result of revivalism, too often, churches in this country appear more like battle fields than hospitals. Pastors are trained to operate within the rhetorical realm of antagonism rather than the discernment of a guide. Leaders are in desperate need of men and women who can implant them in places where life can be sustained rather than extracted and burned over. Churches are in desperate need of true pastors and pastors are in desperate need of true pastures.

Wendell Berry leads me to green pastures. He is a shepherd to my soul. When I feel the pressure of the world that seeks to shape my life into something big, loud and ugly, Wendel takes me down to the streams of quiet water. He shepherds me so I can shepherd others. Wendell Berry doesn't offer a system that will solve the problems of the world or the Church. What he offers is a space away from the systems that try to save through systems and invites you to look at the community you are in and open your heart to the salvation that is already at work there.

As a Christian, I believe that God has already done the great thing that the world needs in order to be saved; I believe in the incarnation. The kingdom that I now seek to serve was not established by negative campaigning, political venues, polling, or even a vote. It was established by a man who loved people with all he had, even his own life, and in that giving God was seen most perfectly. Wendell Berry recognises that we all can show a little bit of God’s love too wherever we are and through his eyes I see examples of what I’d love to be.

“But now, in summer dusk, a man Whose hair and beard curl like spring ferns Sits under the yard trees, at rest, His smallest daughter on his lap. This is because he rose at dawn, Cared for his own, helped his neighbors, Worked much, spent little, kept his peace” -Wendell Berry. A Timbered Choir: the Sabbath poems 1979-1997. (New York: Counterpoint, 1992), 191.

Living Lamentations

Lamentations is one of my favorite books in the Old Testament.

It is a book of highly structured poetry that focuses on the wailing, mourning and, of course, lamentation or Jewish refugees. I love the way that the author is able to express deep, raw, human suffering and still maintain an aesthetic beauty.

It was written as a reflection on the pain of being a displaced people, who are theologically frustrated, socially disrupted and left to drift without a clear path to the God who is their only hope.

It reminds me of the power that having a space and a context to express the darkness and depth of human suffering. It demonstrates to me that suffering is, in it's very nature a way to God.

It has kept me sane for many years.

Even though most of the book demonstrates the crushing weight of human guilt and sin. Verses 22-33 are some of the most hope filled lines of poetry found in the whole of scripture.

When I read Lamentations I am reminded that repentance and confession are things that must be done daily. I am often distracted in today's world by cheery promises and prosperity messages. These come through preachers, politicians and advertisers. We are constantly bombarded with a message that the solution to pain in this world is rooted in having the right faith, political system, or possessions.

None of these things address the reality that we are people who bring our own destruction with us every day. Lamentation keeps me on my knees in a world that seeks to keep me running after my own passions and sins.

Jesus, Don't Let Me Die Before I've Had Sex

 

Have you heard of the documentary in the works "Jesus, Don't Let Me Die Before I've Had Sex"?

I think this is an extremely important topic, and a provocative project.

It seeks to discuss three questions

1. What were your experiences surounding sex in the church
2.  (if you are a minister like me) What do you teach about sex?
3. How did the church get to where it is today regarding sex? (a little history and such)

How would YOU answer these THREE questions??


Jesus, Don't Let Me Die Before I've Had Sex from Matt Barber on Vimeo.

Invisible Children and Kony 2012: Friend or Foe?

A few days ago I posted a video which I called "Possibly the Best Use of Social Media I have Ever Seen." I watched the video, I believed that their use of media was commendable and I thought it was worthwhile to share what they were doing.

Since then there has been some controversy surrounding the organization that produced the video called "Invisible Children". The controversy has revolved around the fact that some people don't believe enough of the IC budget goes to actually solving problems, but instead is used to produce videos like the one that is making it's rounds on the internet.

I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT

IC is primarily a organization dedicated to getting a message out. Therefore it makes sense that their budget goes toward film making. I have watched their videos for years and share them, and will continue to do so.

The Kony 2012 campaign is about AWARENESS, and if there is one thing IC is incredible good at it's AWARENESS.

You can't view them in the same paradigm that you would use to view World Vision or The Red Cross.

They are intentionally setting out to accomplish different things. If you have pulled a link to the video because of this misgiving, I would encourage you to put the video back up, perhaps with a editorial comment, but leave it up.

This is a social media campaign and it's a whole lot better then most of the crap I see floating around Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube these days.

I would rather pay a few dollars to send IC to film a movie about real issues then pay a few dollars to watch some trashy Hollywood bit, and that is the main reason I would support IC.

IC is in the business of media, and their actually producing media that deals with real issues. If you want to attack a media company there are MUCH bigger fish to fry. IC is a better investment of my media budget then going to my local cinema or a netflix account.

If you want to support Kids in need there are plenty of other organizations that you can give too as well.

It's not an either/or it's a both/and.

And heck, IC even does some real work in Uganda too... so BONUS!

IC isn't perfect but their flaws are something that should be corrected as part of the conversation instead of rejected wholesale. Issues like this are never black and white... it's in the tensions of perspectives that we learn.

Things like Kony 2012 are great as long as we stay hungry to be well informed.

Watching a Viral Video won't change the world, but it might remind you to look into usings your resources toward things that can.

This is why I think Invisible Children and Kony 2012 are FRIENDS to be embraced and talked to rather then foes to be rejected.

Athanasius on the Cross

No conversation on the theology of the Early Church on the Cross would be complete without an examination of the writings of Athanasius. This theological giant wrote a generation before Augustine and was, in part, responsible for Augustine’s own conversion. Athanasius’ book On the Incarnation was written as a tome in favor of traditional understandings of the person of Jesus and His work on the cross in the face or a rising tide of Arianism that was on the verge of becoming the dominant theological framework within the church.

Athanasius’ theology of the cross saw it as primarily a place where God injected the world with a new life that could overpower the corruption of sin. Athanasius believed that in order for the world to be redeemed two things had to be accomplished. First, the plan would have to take away the transgressions that man had committed that removed him from the original life with God that was intended for him from the creation of the world. Second, the plan had to be able to actually restore the life that was lost.

Athanasius believed that repentance could take away the transgressions of people, but there needed to be something more that could restore the life that God had intended for humanity. If Jesus had not died God could choose to declare humanity righteous by a fiat every time man sinned. This is a never ending cycle that gets worse and worse because a person is trained more and more how to rebel against God. This leaves each person in a state worse then Adam, for at least Adam was accustomed to sin when he fell. God sought to restore men to a better place.

This restoration was accomplished through the cross. The cross introduced a new principle of life. This life was seen in Jesus who, “He cleansed lepers, He made the lame to walk, He opened the ears of the deaf and the eyes of the blind, there was no sickness or weakness that He did not drive away.” Athanasius was convinced that these actions were clearly not the actions of a mere man, but those of God. Unlike all other people who were corrupted by sin when they encountered it, Jesus was the “artificer of man” who had caused all things to come into existence and therefore had the life that could restore it. In Jesus, corruption is annihilated but man is restored.

The life of God rescues man from the corruption of sin, because it at that moment that Christ takes on human suffering to the point of death and in doing so establishes mortal flesh as a temple for God. Jesus bore human flesh in order that human flesh would be capable of receiving the Holy Spirit. Through Christ all men were able to become temples of the Holy Spirit and as places where God dwelled they were equiped to live life in unity with God. Not only was sin forgiven, but life was restored. Athanasius puts it like this:

“For naturally, since the Word of God was above all, when He offered His own temple and bodily instrument as a substitute for the life of all, He fulfilled in death all that was required. Naturally also, through this union of the immortal Son of God with our human nature, all men were clothed with incorruption in the promise of the resurrection. For the solidarity of mankind is such that, by virtue of the Word's indwelling in a single human body, the corruption which goes with death has lost its power over all.” 

Athanasius uses a parable to describe the process. He says that Jesus dying on the Cross is like a King entering another mans house. The honor of the king makes the house of the other man more honorable, in fact the whole city is honored. While the King inhabits a house no thief would dare to enter it, and the designs of the enemy of the house are foiled. To be a member of the Church is to be associated with Christ who has entered mortal flesh and foiled the plans of the enemy.
God has given us His honor, and has done it in an all encompassing way. By dying publicly he has shown all the true reality of the resurrection. Jesus also died at the hands of others so that he might declare that it is not a self inflicted death that he has power over, but he has victory over all death, even that which is inflicted by others. He died on a cross to show his victory over the curse. He is crucified with his arms spread out so that he might die in such a posture that he shows the world that all are now welcome in him. In Jesus there is a new Temple where human flesh has been given honor and has been made a dwelling place of the Holy Spirit.

This is Possibly the Best use of Social Media I Have Ever Encountered

KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.

How Augustine Viewed the Cross

If Origen’s central concern was God’s desire to unify man to Himself, Augustine’s central concern was God’s love for humanity. We have already looked at the many and varied images that are employed by Augustine as he sought to show how the cross was used by God in Christ to accomplish the redemptive work of salvation. It is now necessary to turn our attention to the underlying theology that guided all of these images.

Augustine’s theology seemed to have developed around his struggles with Romans 5:9-10. These passages state we have been, “Shown righteous in the blood of [Jesus]” and “reconciled to God through the death of his son.”

Augustine saw this passage as raising two questions.

1.  First, what is the nature of the reconciliation. 
2. And second, what was the power of the blood?

The idea of reconciliation posed an difficult dilemma for Augustine. He did not believe the reconciliation could have been an appeasement in the wrath of God. If Jesus was somehow appeasing God by standing in the stead of man that would mean that somehow the Son had already been appeased, which would create a conflict between The Father and The Son. Augustine viewed the words of Paul in Romans 8:31-32 as evidence that the Father was already appeased, since he offered his son up. In fact God is understood to have a continual attitude of love for humanity and not wrath.
The only way that one can understand the cross, for Augustine, was an act of love for the world by God as a unity of three persons in harmony. Augustine indeed states that the incarnation was a demonstration of, “how great a price God rated us, and how greatly He loved us”

Augustine’s answer to his second question, what was the power of the blood, was rooted in an understanding of God’s own economy and value system. Augustine realized that God could have overcome the Devil with power. God is fully capable of overpowering any creature, sin, vice, or person. God choose to overcome with blood because he wanted to operate within a system of righteousness rather then one of power. God chooses right over might. Augustine believed that the Devil had gained power over mankind when mankind had sinned. Man’s sin justly handed him over to the reign of the devil, and the death that that reign brings. God allowed this in his justice, but it did not affect God’s love for humanity. As a result the love of God compelled him to redeem His creation through an act of Justice.

On the cross the Devil slew Jesus, although there was nothing worthy of death in Jesus. This injustice on the devil’s part broke the power that he had over humanity, and God could now justly set free those bound by death. As Augustine says:

“He [satan] indeed had power to shed His Blood, he did not attain to drink it. And in that he shed the Blood of Him who was no debtor, he was commanded to render up the debtors; he shed the Blood of the Innocent, he was commanded to withdraw from the guilty.”

The blood of Christ was powerful because it was truly human, but also truly innocent.

Augustine believed that God had chosen save through a demonstration of His own righteousness rather then through his own power because he wanted to create a life with man where they could participate in God’s saving action with Him. A pure exercise of Divine power would not have given humanity a way of participation. God used the shedding of blood because he wanted to give mankind a path of salvation that they could imitate, and even be united it through the sacramental life of the church.

Although men and women are freed from death and forgiven of their sins, they are not made perfect when they are baptized into Christ. People still fall into temptation and sin. Augustine also viewed The Cross as a sure guide for endurance in Christ. The manor of God’s action is the starting point that demonstrates what true obedience to God looks like.

NOTES

1. Augustine, “On the Trinity, Book XIII,” trans. Arthur West Haddan, New Advent, n.d., http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/130113.htm, (accessed March 4, 2012).
2. Augustine, “Sermon LXXX,” trans. R. G. MacMullen, Eternal Word Television Network, n.d., http://www.ewtn.com/library/PATRISTC/PNI6-12.TXT (accessed March 6, 2012).
3. Augustine. “Exposition on Psalm 95.” Translated by J.E. Tweed. New Advent, n.d. http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1801095.htm.Augustine, Sermons on the Liturgical Season, trans. Mary Sarah Muldowney (New York, NY: Fathers Of The Church, Inc., n.d.), 201-22.

How the First Christians Defined Salvation

As you read through the various perspective on the theology of the Cross in among the Church Fathers there are a number of things that may stick out to the attentive reader. Fist you may notice that there is little to no discussion about salvation that surrounds what has come to be the central understanding of salvation among many Christians today, which sees Jesus as vicarious satisfaction of God’s wrath. Jesus is not seen as taking on a penalty for sins. God’s anger is not directed at Jesus. Rather the focus was on becoming unified with Jesus in obedience and in death. The death of Jesus is related to the life of a believer and the death of a believer is related to the life of Jesus.

The fathers of the church did not view theology as being dangerous if it denied God’s wrath, but rather if it denied God’s suffering. If Jesus was not both fully God almighty and fully a suffering man then they believed the Gospel would be lost. The Gnostics denied that God suffered by spiritualizing Him so much that his physical reality was only illusory. The Arians denied God suffered by declaring that the person of Jesus Christ was somehow less then God. The Nestorians denied God suffered by parsing the human from the divine in Christ into two different persons. All of these views were condemned.

The reality of a God who entered true human sufferings was the basis of hope that true human suffering could be healed. Any attempt to soften this reality was seen as effectively destroying the Gospel. The cross was the place of salvation because it was the place where God took on everything that the sinful world could dish out and instead of being overcome by it, He overcame. In that simple fact lay the hope of the early church that God could overcome sin, death, and the devil in the life of every other human being. This is why Gregory Nazianzen declared in his famous formula:

“Το γαρ απροσληπον αθεραπεντον ο δε ηνωται τω Θεω, τουτο και σωζεται,”
 That which is not assumed can not be healed, but that which is united to God is saved. 

No matter what else someone might say about the work of Jesus on the cross, any understanding of the Cross that the church accepted had to conform to this simple rule.

The Life and Times of Jeremiah "The Weeping Prophet"

Destiny is a strange concept.  In all of this there is a deep sense in the hearts of many people that there is such a thing as destiny, and people have a role to play in it. However most of us find our way into our place naturally. We adapt to the world around us and accept that our sitz im leben is not something we should seek to alter.

There are, however, some people who choose to kick against the pricks. They have a vision for the future, and a hope for the present. They have found a voice that speaks in such a powerful word that they change the world for good. Often times as we look back at the lives of men and women who have done great things we wonder how is it that they managed to find themselves in such a place and a time that they were able to accomplish so much with the simple life that they had been given. We often look ask if lives are formed by nature or nurture. We wonder if lives are formed by the times, or if the times are formed by people's lives; to what degree are all people endowed with destiny?

The prophet Jeremiah is a conflicted character that wrote in conflicted times. When he lived the world was changing in violent and powerful ways that had never been seen before and out of these shifting global forces he found a voice that spoke through to people who seemed to be bound in their time and place and he pointed to a vision of life that kick against the pricks.

He called people to embrace a different destiny, and he can show us all a bit of what it means to be a prophetic voice in the world.

The Times of Jeremiah
 There were a lot of factors that formed Jeremiah's times that were powerful.

• Jeremiah began his ministry in a time of religious reforms where the people were turning back to God
• There was a shift in power in his lifetime and the rise of the Babylonian empire came to a head
• Nebuchadnezzar came to attack Jerusalem and was victorious
• The people of Judea were carried off to captivity
• Never before had empires in the world shifted so powerfully
• Never before had the temple been destroyed
• The faith of the people of Judah was changed from a people in the promised land, to a people away from the promised land

The life of Jeremiah
 In spite of  all the amazing things that were happening in Jeremiah's time the thing that sets him apart was not when he lived, but rather how he lived. Consider the following.

• Jeremiah was called to prophesy at as little more then a child (1:6)
• He didn't even want to take up the word, but he managed to submit to the message in spite of his own desires (20:9)
•  The people in his hometown, Anathoth,condemned his message, and even threatened to kill him. (11:18-23)
• He preached a sermon in the temple condemning it (7-9), even though this was the center of hope for most of the people in his culture. This resulted in most of the prophets and priests calling for his death. (26:8-11)
• He condemned the Kings who were ruling (22:11-17; 22:18-19; 22:24)and even told one of them to submit to the foreign empire (27:12-22)
• his message was so infuriating that the scroll that it was written on was cut and burned (36:20-25)
• He was accused of being a defector and was imprisoned (37:11-15)
• His words were seen as so discouraging that he was thrown in a cistern and left to die (38)

 Although Jeremiah's message was given at a time that was unlike any other, it was not the times that defined his actions but his convictions. Jeremiah was great because in spite of all the forces that sought to shut him up he insisted that his message should go forth.

It was the life rather then the times that made Jeremiah a faithful prophet that we remember today.
 This is encouraging to me.

Sometimes I can think that being a Man of God means that I need to be involved in great things, but this is not true. I simply need to be faithful to my vocation and the truth.

Greatness comes from what God works in me much more then what he works through me.

My Tattoos

Alright so there is a conversation going on at r/christianity about Tattoos...

A number of years ago I got a few tattoos to express my faith. I thought I would post a few pictures and explain why I got each one.

 The CHI RHO - I love this symbol it is composed of the first two letters in Greek of the word for Chris. Χριστός

It's a translation of the hebrew word מָשִׁיחַ which means "anointed one"

 It's on the center of my Chest to remind me of my center and my all, Jesus the Christ!

THE CELTIC CROSS

I got this cross during my second trip to Belfast. Inside the cross there are the four Hebrew Symbols that make up the name for Jesus in Hebrew.

The circle in the center is a reminder to me that God's love is eternal

This Cross is a representation of my passion for uniting people from different Christian backgrounds together in peace.

On all my trips to Belfast I worked with Christians that were both Catholic and Protestant. We went on the streets together and asked people about what they believed. People hardly talk about their faith there, but it was good to be an example of Ecumenical cooperation.


YESHUA

This was my first Tattoo. It is the name Jesus in Aramaic, which is the Aramaic version of יְהוֹשֻׁעַ which means "Joshua" in Hebrew.

Joshua means "God Saves" this is exactly what happened in Jesus.

THE TRINITY / Holy Spirit

This Tattoo is my trinity tattoo, with a focus on the holy Spirit. The dove (a symbol of the Holy Spirit) is holding a Trinity Knot that has been merged with a heart. This shows God's love that the Holy Spirit helps us know. The cross is in the background because Jesus sends the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit unites us to the Cross. The fire is a symbol of God's presence, which is with us in the person of the Holy Spirit.

THE LION WITH THE CROWN OF THORNS

This is a fierce Lion roaring (a symbol of Christ as judge of evil). Around his head is a crown of thorns. This is a symbol of the utter humility that He endured in order to prevail against Evil.

It demonstrates the divine economy of love, rather then the human economy of acquisition.

 CONSIDER THE RAVENS

Jesus tells his followers to consider the ravens. God provides for them so we can be sure he will provide for us.

I need this reminder every day.

There is also a Native American legend that states that the Raven turned black when it stole the Sun from the god's through the chimney of the gods house. The Raven the placed the sun in the sky for all to see.

My raven is diving for the Chi-Rho. Jesus is the true light that I want to set before the whole world.

 WRIST CROSSES

These remind me daily of the suffering of Christ and the martyrs.

Each one has 8 points to remind me to the Eternal love of Christ demonstrated on the cross and the eight beatitudes.

 Each cross has four sides. This reminds me of the four gospels that i am sharing to the four corners of the world.

They remind me that each suffering I face can be offered to God in love by the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ

They are the tattoo I see most often.

THE TETRAGRAMMATON

This is the Proper Name of God in Hebrew.

It is so holy it is not pronounced. The Decalogue tells us to honor it.

Since it is on my arm I see to honor God with all  I set my hands to do, for if my arm does something dishonorable I also dishonor the name affixed to it.

Some have even argued that this word is pronounced by the sound of breathing. Therfore to live is to say the name of God, and to die is to cease to say the name of God and to Honnor the name of God is to live every breath for his glory.

I like that Idea.

Origen on The Cross

One of the most influential thinkers in the early church was Origen. Although later condemned for some of his more platonic theology, Origen was immensely popular in his own time. Origen was the first Christian writer to try to wrestle through the theology of the sacrifice on the cross in a philosophically coherent way. He asked how can the Christ as Logos of God be correctly and convincingly understood understood as possessing saving power?^[1] 

As a man deeply influenced by Plato the idea that God somehow needed something from people did not sit well with Origen. A god that needs us is not an all powerful God and cannot be a true god. Therefore he did not like the idea that the cross was in place to satisfy something in God. Instead Origin looked toward humanity as the problem. He did not focus on the physicality of the cross, believing that this could distract people from the deeper understanding of the sacrifice of Jesus.^[2] Instead he wanted people to see that the cross was simply the most tangible expression of the heart of Jesus. 

Origin taught that Jesus entire life was an act of taking up the cross. He wanted people to see that Christianity was not simply something that was accomplished by Christ, but that it extended a call into people’s lives at all times.^[3] The cross showed not a God weakened by his need for us, but one who was willing to be shamed by us to show how great he was. Origen calls the cross the “death which is accounted the most shameful among men” and Jesus willingness to suffer it demonstrates an act of God so beyond human understanding that it surpasses the mystery of creation.^[4] 

According to Origen, the Cross demonstrates ultimate virtue and functions as a sort of educative therapy. Only God could show the world true virtue because only God has ultimate goodness. This goodness is demonstrated so powerfully that it not only shows humans how to live lives of virtue before God, it actually subdues the forces of evil and temptation themselves. In effect, it’s function was to change Humans rather then changing God.^[5] Those transformed by Christ can partake in the subjugation of evil and achieve a form of theosis where they are made like God. This understanding, although very influential on many Christian thinkers, was eventually condemned. The church still had a good deal of thinking about what the Death of Jesus did for humanity.

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[1] Dreyer, The Cross in Christian Tradition, 94.

[2] Dryer, 97.

[3] Origen, Homilies on Jeremiah: Homily on 1 Kings 28, trans. John Clark Smith (Washington, DC: CUA Press, 1998), 186-187

[4] Origen, “De Principiis: On the Incarnation of Christ,” Christian Classics Ethereal Library, n.d., http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf04.vi.v.iii.vi.html, (Accessed March 2, 2012).

[5] Young, The Use of Sacrificial Ideas, 213-220.

The Ancient Understanding of Eucharist

The Christian church followed many of the Greeks in an shift away from the need to offer sacrifices as a way of pleasing God, although they did it for very different reasons. The early church believed that in light of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross sacrifice was no longer necessary.

Jesus had made a sacrifice once and for all and stood in the place of a priest for all the church through all of time. When Christians talked about sacrifice in their worship they did not refer to burnt offerings and slaughtered animals. Instead the language of sacrifice shifted to talking about Communal meals, hymnody and prayer.[1]

Cultic sacrifice was abandoned, but the church still gathered to make another offering. This offering was a thank offering meal, or Eucharist. The early Christians believed this meal was a new kind of זֶ֫בַח or θυσία, a sacrifice where God himself was present in the feast.

•  The Jews saw sacrificial communions of this nature as a meal where God in an honored guest. 
• The Greeks viewed communion-sacrifices as a way to share in the substance of God himself.
• The Christian Church seemed to believe that both of these things were happening. [2] They would break bread together and that act had a deep spiritual significance.

These believers saw the breaking of the bread as joining in a sacrifice that was at the same time:

1. a thanksgiving, 
2. communal, 
3. expiatory, 
4. avertive 
5. and propitiatory [3].

The church believed these meals were central to their worship and the practice of Eucharistic meals in the early church was found in every place that had communities of Christians.[4]

Although the consensus on sacrificial the practice no longer being needed was broadly understood the theological and philosophical understanding of the new sacrificial understanding was not clearly defined. For there to be any serious consensus on what the Cross of Christ actually did there would have to be a great deal of thinking within the Early Church.

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[1] Moss, The Other Christs: Imitating Jesus in Ancient Christian Ideologies of Martyrdom, 81.

[2] Frances M. Young, The Use of Sacrificial Ideas in Greek Christian Writers From the New Testament to John Chrysostom (Cambridge, MA: Philidelphia Patristic Foundation, Ltd, 1979), 72-73.

[3] Moss, 81.

[4] There were some gnostic sects that opposed the meals out of an abhorence toward matter, but they were rejecting an established practice.

My (incomplete) History of Mentors

I was born into a family that had a strong faith, a particular faith, an exacting faith, a fastidious faith, but not an exclusive faith. Although we were securely Lutherans in where we worshiped and what we believed and even where my siblings and I went to school (I attended a Lutheran School in grades 2-8), the faith life of our family was open to people of different backgrounds.

My Godparents were both faithful Catholics, as was my mothers best friend who lived with us. Our bookshelf was filled with literature written by  evangelicals. Our weekly prayer service was developed by a messianic Jew in our community. In short my I grew up saturated by an environment of ecumenism.

The reason for this had a great deal to do with the fact that my family was a member of an intentionally ecumenical group called The Word of God Community.

The Word of God Community was made up of people from just about every Christian background imaginable. The lived life together in a committed way and because of that the commitments of all the members somehow became your own commitments.

As a Lutheran this environment was both a blessings and a curse.

I felt blessed to be surrounded by so many faithful Christians, all of which had living faith lives that fed into my own. On the other hand some of their convictions about who God was and how he operated in the world were in direct conflict with the convictions of other members of the community. I learned from an early age that faith is a deeply dynamic thing and that even when someone is wrong about something you can learn something from them.

This process of learning brought me into contact with a LOT of guides in my life, and through those guides a LOT of different ways to see God.

What follows is something of a thank you list. The list is VERY incomplete but I wanted to highlight some of the guides I have had and what they have done to help me see God in new ways.

1. My  Parents introduced me to so much I can't even begin to express it all. More then anything they showed me that God is Love They modeled a love for the Bible which I have inherited and taken with me every day of my life. They also taught me how to pray with your heart through prayers written thousands of years ago, three weeks ago, as you are praying, or even with no words at all. Thank you Dad and Mom!
2. Rev. Theodore Jungkuntz was my first pastor. He was a theologian and and activist. He modeled for me that the Christian life is full of conflict but the Gospel is worth standing up for. He also introduced me to Martin Luther, who has been a guide of sorts in my own spiritual life. Luther taught me how beautiful and freeing God's grace is and has taught me to be a minister of that freedom. Pastor Jungkuntz also baptized me, a gift for which I am eternally blessed by.
3. Rev. Ronald Zehnder - Was another pastor I had growing up. He was the first pastor that I encountered that taught me how to pastor people. There were lessons I learned as a boy through him that I have kept with me ever since in my own ministry. In a very real way Pastor Zehnder taught me that ministry is a vocation.
4. The Faculty at St. Paul Lutheran School, Ann Arbor - Saint Paul taught delivered a treasury to christian resources to me. They sent me home each week with scripture to memorize, as well as the creeds. They had me learn the Luther's Catechism by heart, and made sure I knew my way around both the scriptures and a hymnal. There is not a day that goes by where I don't draw from the reservoir they gave me.
5. Phil Bell - I met Phil Bell in 1995 when he came over from England as an Intern. Phil introduced me to Youth Ministry by helping me as a young student learn how to navigate a changing world with eyes open to God.
6. Marianne H Trombly - Marianne was my youth leader for a number of years. She taught me that God had given me gifts and that I might want to ask Him what He wanted me to do with them.
7. Young Life Staff - I was involved with Young Life for a number of years and in that time I learned that being a christian sometimes means you have to be willing to make a fool of yourself so that others might be willing to take a risk for God. Thank you!
8. Mike Hasey - Mike ran a bible study that to this day I look to as the turning point in my life where I decided to start seeking God like he was the most important thing in my life. He led mostly by listening and paying for pizza every week.
9. Byron Porisch - Byron gave me hope that the Church is worth fighting for, warts and all, and that if you want to see it change you have to be a part of it! He introduced me to the world of Youth Workers and to the Messy Spirituality of Mike Yaconelli which has changed me forever.
10. Bill Brannan - Bill was the first person to ever call me out to lead. Through him I started my first men's group and helped start a Christian Club in my High School. He opened my eyes to a world where God is at work all around, and taught me to hunger for being a part of it. He also introduced me to Charles Finny who rocked my expectations of what God could do and inspired me to pray like it mattered, as well as introducing me to street preaching which forced me to find my voice.
11. Jen and John Luton - Jen and John taught me that ministry is about life together. John preached pretty much the same message every week at Mission Christ and I hardly remember what it is. What I will never forget about doing ministry with John is the drive through the night to Florida through the rain with no A/C in the middle of summer, listening to one CD on repeat from a boombox skipping in the back seat. I will remember building a trebuchet, shooting guns, driving trucks through the woods, getting attacked at pro-life demonstrations, getting egged while street preaching in Europe, praying every day together and reading the bible verse by verse by verse. John introduced me to Charles Wesley, Watchman Nee, A.W. Tozer, Leonard Ravenhill, Charles Spurgeon and the Moravians. Jen introduced me to the pentecostal movement where I first prayed in tongues and found some pretty amazing expressions of worship.
12. Phil Tiews - Phil helped me learn what it means to love a community with your whole life. I have never met a man more devoted to the people he cares for and the place that he lives it. Phil introduced me to what it meant to work with churches for transformation. He gave me his ears every week. I can't express to you how valuable that was.
13. Fr. Ed Fride - Fr. Ed believes that the Catholic Church is the world's greatest hope for the world, but was still willing to write a letter of recommendation for me to attend a protestant seminary. He loves his congregation in a way that drips off of him at every moment. He inspired me to read the Catechism of the Catholic Church for the first time, after doing so I have never been the same.
14. The North Park Staff - My time at North Park has been amazing. To list off all the great things I have learned while I have studied here would take multiple volumes. At NPTS I found my stride in ministry and my confidence. I would like to thank Mary Miller and John Weborg in particular. They have both been great sources of hope for me here.
15. Dr. Peter Williamson - Dr. Williamson has showed me that the quest for Christ can take you through some very uncomfortable situations, but that Christ must be followed no matter how hard the road is. He was the first person to introduce me to the Church Fathers many years ago, and I have found them to be my most constant and helpful guides outside of the Bible. Peter continues to be a help in my life as I struggle to find my vocation in ministry. Thank You!
16. Steve Robinson and Silouan Phillip Thompson - These two guys have been my guides as I have gotten to know the eastern church. Although I have never met either one face to face they are daily companions through e-mail, blogs and facebook. Thank you for helping me to breathe with both lungs
17. Curtis Leighton - As my spiritual director Curtis has helped me talk through one of the most challenging years of my life. He may not know it all the time but he has taken on many heavy burdens that were on my shoulders. He has also helped me get to know St. Ignatius of  Lyons who has defined my spiritual life more and more this past year.

I know there are dozens of people I have left off so I feel as if I should keep writing, but this entry is fairly long already.

Forgive me if I did not remember to thank you.

Video: Bible Lesson on Mark 8:27-38

This week I taught this lesson on Mark 8:27-38. I'd love to hear comments!

Want a Free Bible?

Want a Free Bible? The Amazon Kindle has you covered If you want to read the Bible and have a kindle it's really easy. There are quite a few editions of the Bible that are made available (as of this writing) for free online. Click the image of the one you want below and start reading!

Enjoy!