Modernity and the Church

On the eve of the next Catholic conclave of cardinals, George Will writes:

The challenge confronting the church can be expressed in one word: modernity. The church preaches that freedom is life lived in conformity to God's will as manifested in revelation and interpreted by the church. Modernity teaches that freedom is the sovereignty of the individual's will – personal volition that is spontaneous, unconditioned, inviolable and self-legitimizing.

So what does this mean here in America?

In America, a market-driven society, there is a religion market in which the most successful competitors for congregations are churches with clear doctrinal and strict moral positions. For these churches, the "crisis of Christianity" is congestion in their parking lots.

Interesting. Will's observations about Europe's forthcoming population decline are also worth noting.

[Hat tip: Real Clear Politics]

Sunday Dog Blog

Heaven goes by favour. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in. - Mark Twain

Do you want me to say "cheese"? Originally uploaded by Look at my photos.

Preaching for the First Time

Last Tuesday, I preached my first ever sermon to a small group of classmates in my "Introduction to Preaching" section. The scripture upon which the sermon was based was Matthew 16:13-20:

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

In the sermon, I focus on the primacy and immediacy of the question "Who do you say that I am," and the implications of the question for us.

Preaching, my friends, is a daunting experience. When you approach the pulpit for the first time, time starts to crawl by. Despite all of my preparations and rehearsals, the sense of nervousness I felt was intense. And even though it all went well, I had a stomachache after I had finished. Hopefully the physical impact of preaching will become something I get used to over time.

The presentation was videotaped. Upon review, one thing I've learned is this: If you are trying to emphasize a point with a gesture of some kind, you need to make a BIG gesture. If you don't, it looks as if you hardly moved at all.

A copy of the sermon manuscript can be found here.

Technorati Tags: Presbyterian Church USA, PCUSA, Seminary Life, Sermon, Preaching

Sunday Dog Blog

Guarding the fort. "I would rather see the portrait of a dog that I know, than all the allegorical paintings they can show me in the world." - Samuel Johnson

flick00080 Originally uploaded by Buttercup Meadow.

Karol Jozef Wojtyla Has Died

Vatican officials have just made the announcement that Pope John Paul II has died.

The Heart Aches

From terrisfight.org:

Terri's struggle for life has ended this morning.
December 3, 1963 - March 31, 2005

From National Review Online:

But while the public may have agreed with the removal of Schiavo's feeding and hydration tube, apparently there are limits to the public's willingness to tolerate euthanasia — and apparently its defenders recognized these limits. So we saw euphemism after euphemism deployed to cloud the issues.

From President Bush:

Today millions of Americans are saddened by the death of Terri Schaivo. Laura and I extend our condolences to Terri Schaivo's families. I appreciate the example of grace and dignity they have displayed at a difficult time. I urge all those who honor Terri Schaivo to continue to work to build a culture of life, where all Americans are welcomed and valued and protected, especially those who live at the mercy of others. The essence of civilization is that the strong have a duty to protect the weak. In cases where there are serious doubts and questions, the presumption should be in the favor of life....

From Mark Steyn:

One consequence of abortion is that, in designating new life as a matter of ‘choice’, it created a culture where it’s now routine to make judgments about which lives are worth it and which aren’t. Down’s Syndrome? Abort. Cleft palate? Abort. Chinese girl? Abort. It’s foolish to think you can raise entire populations — not to mention generations of doctors — to make self-interested judgments about who lives and who doesn’t and expect them to remain confined to three trimesters. The ‘right to choose’ is now being extended beyond the womb: the step from convenience euthanasia to compulsory euthanasia is a short one.

It is interesting and sad to see how the so-called "mainline" denominations have painstakingly avoided making any pronouncements about the value of human life in light of what has happened to Terri Schiavo. I visited a few mainline websites and entered the search term "Schiavo." Here's what I discovered:

• Presbyterian Church (USA): Exactly one hit, a link to a newsletter which cites Terri Schaivo's case as a reason to establish a "living will."
• United Methodist Church: Several hits, most citing a statement by Jim Winkler, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, saying the Schiavo case highlights "the difficult issues related to quality of life and our own participation in life with life decisions."
• Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: One hit to a "Bible study/discussion" weekly which asks the question "Do you think it is a sin to let her die? Or to keep her alive? Discuss your response."
• Episcopal Church: One hit, "While the Episcopal Church’s General Convention has not specifically addressed the situation of Terri Schiavo ... several resolutions have been passed regarding end-of-life issues."
• United Church of Christ: Five hits, mostly dealing with the importance of having a "living will."
• Reformed Church in America: No hits.

That's enough for now. Let's pray for Terri's family and for all of those who face the daunting task of preserving human life.

He Is Risen!

The tomb of Christ is but the bed He rested on three days. Easter morn He rose again, The flower of our spring. On Him, arisen from the dead, Must we, though flesh decays, Bestow our faith that when we die Our souls, like His, shall not long lie Forsaken in our tomb. Christ shall, with deep affection, when He sees our soul's affliction, then Redeem us with His pain. In His eternal suffering Shall we find grace enough to bring The seed of faith to bloom. - Nicholas Gordon

He Is Risen! Originally uploaded by eye2eye.