Craniac Haven!

Craniac Haven!


Craniac Haven!

I grew up in Wisconsin but never realized all that was there. I didn’t know that it was home to Aldo Leopold (didn’t know who he was at the time either). I didn’t pay much attention to Horicon Marsh or Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. And I didn’t know that Baraboo Wisconsin was home to the International Crane Foundation

Looking for a summer read? The American Mind Meets the Mind of Christ

Looking for a summer read? The American Mind Meets the Mind of Christ


Looking for a summer read? The American Mind Meets the Mind of Christ

…is the title of the newest book from the Concordia Seminary Press. The American Mind Meets the Mind of Christ is a collection of essays edited by renowned scholar Robert Kolb . Here’s the synopsis from the back cover: Whether it is an altar to an unknown god or the New Atheists, Christians have always faced the challenge of translating the Gospel message within the surrounding culture. This is no less true for the tangled web that is 21st century America

The Bible as literature: the King James, Psalm 46, and Shakespeare

The Bible as literature: the King James, Psalm 46, and Shakespeare


The Bible as literature: the King James, Psalm 46, and Shakespeare

The “Chandos portrait” of Shakespeare Last night I taught our first class in a course entitled “The Bible as Literature” in Wash U’s University College . So don’t be surprised if there’s a few posts here over the next weeks with that title before the colon. One of my basic theses for the course is that perhaps the most foundational event in the history of English-speaking literature was the translation of the Bible into the Authorized Version, otherwise known as the “King James.” Shakespeare is a very close second. To illustrate my point, we played a famous little game with the King James version of Psalm 46

A Changed Confession

A Changed Confession


A Changed Confession

Last February I changed the confession of sins that was to be used in the worship services.  I regularly assist at Grace Lutheran Chapel in Bellefontaine Neighbors (a north suburb of St. Louis), and that weekend the three services were to use Creative Worship from the Synod.  Since the congregation is vacant, I was the ..

Life Abundant

Life Abundant


Life Abundant

One of my favorite quotes comes from Wendell Berry (not surprisingly). In commenting on the nature of the abundant life, he makes the statement that material sufficiency has been met (food, clothing, shelter etc.), “life itself, which is membership in the living world, is already an abundance” ( The Way of Ignorance ). Think about it. It goes to how we think about what constitutes the good life

What Statistics Say — and Don’t

What Statistics Say — and Don’t


What Statistics Say — and Don’t

As the Director of Vicarage and Deaconess Internships, I keep track of how many congregations apply for a vicar and how many students are available for vicarage assignment.  A three ring binder sits on a bookshelf and I can go back to 1990 – the year I began in this position.  The number of congregations ..

Rogationtide

Rogationtide


Rogationtide

Earth Day last month made me wonder why we don’t have a similar day within the church. We wouldn’t have to call it “Earth Sunday” or anything. We could call it “Creation Sunday” or have a “Season of Creation.” Currently, the first half of our church year rightly focuses on the life of Jesus


This is Too Cool!


This is Too Cool!

Maybe it’s a guy thing. Maybe its a childhood memory thing. Maybe its a Robinson Crusoe thing (or was it the Disney version, namely, the Swiss Family Robinson movie). I don’t know