A New Kind of Reformation

This sermon was delivered at Messiah Lutheran Church on October 29th, 2017, as we commemorated the 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation on the appointed gospel for the day, Saint John 8: 31 - 36.

Two thousand years ago in the Middle East, things were in pretty rough shape... the people of Israel were oppressed by far off Rome and the religious elite of the day were spreading the Fake News that folks should be happy with their lot in life, all the while serving as puppets of the Emperor. Along though came a poor day laborer from the backwater of Nazareth who healed the sick, cast out demons (or in contemporary understanding deeply cared about mental health issues) and eventually got to point where He was spreading the Good News that God was not just at work in Temple in Jerusalem but rather throughout the world, setting EVERYONE free in liberating love.

Five hundred years ago in what's now Germany, things were in pretty rough shape too in somewhat of a similar way... the plague was still ravaging across Europe while bishops, the masses lived in poverty while bishops and cardinals lived like kings and the religious elite of the day were spreading the Fake News that despite having so much money already, folks had to essentially buy tickets for themselves and their loved ones to get into heaven. Along though came the boorish, likely bipolar son of mining family who while far from perfect, utilized the newly invented printing press to spread the Good News that you didn’t need to buy a golden ticket to get into heaven! That rather, God's love was a freely given gift to set us free! That was Martin Luther by the way.

Nowadays, golly, things seem like they're in pretty rough shape once again... the rich are getting richer while poor and middle class folks are struggling more than ever before in the modern era. The Fake News of hate and division and “the reality tv-ification” of our civic life has pitted well-meaning folks against one another while views and positions we thought we had long grown out of as a people are now dredged back into the public. An epidemic of opiate addiction and mental health problems and violence against women are ravaging our cities and towns and rural areas alike. And so many of the religious elites of our day in America, and especially the ones the media likes to cover the most, spend much of their public time doing one of two things: either transforming Jesus’ message of love into talking about hating gay folks and science and women’s rights, or dumbing down the gospel into a get rich quick scheme that mostly preys on the poor… both types of preaching and being that are pure heresy and need to be called out as such. And far too many other religious leaders, many in our own denomination, while well intended, all too often fail to put forward much of a relevant and engaging message at all to a generation both highly skeptical of organized religion yet absolutely starving for experiences of the sacred and a life lived in community.

Nowadays, golly, things do indeed seem like they're in pretty rough shape, there’s a lot of Fake News out there, but along though, came you. Along though, came you. Along though, came you. Now none of us is certainly as awesome as Jesus and probably none of us will ever rise to Luther's fame, but in our baptism, each and every single one of us has been promised that no matter how worthless or guilty or inadequate or shy or godless or scarred we might consider ourselves, that the Holy Spirit is stirring. In our baptism, we are promised that in each and every single one of us, the Holy Spirit is helping us at least in the smallest of ways to get out there and spread the Good News of Christ, the truth, an eternal truth, that the Divine, the Arc of the Universe or what us Christians call God is at work setting this world and its people free from whatever might ail us. In the crazy world we live in, guided by Christ and despite your imperfections, along came you.

Let’s be honest, so much of the old reformation we commemorate today, on its five-hundredth anniversary, is pretty much over. Unity with our Roman Catholic friends is close at hand... theologically, we’re pretty much in agreement, it’s mostly just on social issues like LGBT and women’s rights and an all-male hierarchy where work is still needed. There was great, Godly genius in the old reformation Luther touched off to be sure… the notion that we’re all both saints and sinners, the notion that God’s love is freely given, the notion that God shows up where we least expect, the notion that the human body is a good gift that shouldn’t be despised. Those are all timeless teachings. Yet it’s also in the Fake News of that old reformation, in Luther’s inability to listen to other opinions and in his catering to government elites and in his rabid anti-Semitism, that indicate where the Holy Spirit is now bearing a new reformation into being, a new reformation that yes, even you, in all your human brokenness, is called to be a part of.

Now gosh, we’ll never get it perfect either, and in Christ we’re not expected to, but in a world with so many problems and in world where so many supposed followers of all the world religions are spewing out hateful Fake News and even sometimes actively killing people of genuine faith, a new type of reformation is needed. A new type of reformation where we live out our lives of faith not grounded in the Fake News of human created, legalistic, nit-picky religion but rather live out our lives in community on the Way of Christ, set free by the universal, everlasting truth of liberating love and spreading the Good News that EVERYONE is already free to do the same. A new type of reformation that pulls us away from the Fake News of human religion towards the Good News, the way Christ showed us, that we can see the Image of God in every human, the Good News, the truth that as he so simply and perfectly put, will make you free. And, as part of that reformation, along came you.

As a species right, we’ve been knocking on heaven’s door for thousands of years, trying to be set free from the Fake News of the day, whether it be that the Roman Emperor was the Son of God as Jesus preached against or whether it be that you needed to pay your way into heaven, the Fake News that Luther preached against, or all the muck and anxiety and fear that is at the heart of our Fake News today.  As we commemorate a previous reformation today, know that a new reformation is brewing, one grounded in the Way of Christ that reminds us and our neighbors and our children and indeed everyone that we can see the Image of God in every person, the Good News, the truth, that as Jesus so simply and perfectly put, will make you free. And, as part of that reformation, along came you. Amen.

Dustin serves as pastor at Messiah Lutheran Church, a Spirit filled church following Jesus Christ in Schenectady, New York. An evangelist, urban gardener, mountain climber, community organizer, saint and sinner, he spends most of his professional time wrestling with God and proclaiming liberation in Christ. Otherwise, Dustin likes hiking, playing frisbee, hanging out with his amazing pup Willy Bear and pretending to know how to sing.

Interfaith Dialogue, the Lutheran "Simuls" and Gender Justice

College Dustin.

Friends,

What follows is a paper I recently wrote for a Scriptures of the World course at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. I'd love to hear what you think!

God's peace,

Dustin

With only three weeks to go before I graduate from seminary, I’ve been reflecting a great deal about the struggles, learnings and growth I’ve experienced here over the last four years. When I first arrived in Philadelphia, I had just experienced two years of immense anger at God following my mother’s death. Furthermore, my journey into early adulthood had left me dumbfounded about, if not at times openly hostile towards Christianity. Although I grew up in a Lutheran congregation, I had only gone under compulsion as a child and then primarily just to hang out with my friends as a teenager. I always figured I was deeply spiritual, but following a specific religion seemed like such an antiquated idea in progressive New England, and certainly not a good enough reason to wake up early on Sunday morning. Upon beginning undergraduate studies at the George Washington University and experiencing what I cannot help but view as the hateful positions of some American evangelicals (I somehow never knew that such beliefs existed before), I quickly came to a vague notion of liking the idea of Jesus while perceiving the Bible as supporting the exact opposite from his message of love and liberation. At the same time, I built on my past readings of the scriptures of other faiths, especially those of Buddhism and Sufi Islam, and thought they painted a portrait of the Divine much more in line with my views.

In response to these factors I identified my religious affiliation as “sort of Buddhist” through much of college and frequently meditated in private, but eventually began missing regular participation in a faith community. As graduation neared and my mother was in the last stages of her battle with lung cancer, I felt immensely supported by my old Lutheran networks back home. Around this time I also discovered that my own Lutheran tradition largely spoke out against the negative scriptural readings of some American evangelicals. Once I heard the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America had voted to allow the ordination of members of the LGBT community, I realized there could be a place for me in the Church and I began to actively participate in congregational life, leading youth groups and assisting in worship. I eventually felt called toward ordained ministry and found myself at seminary, where I learned a powerful set of hermeneutical tools for understanding the Bible. Throughout my seminary career and despite my “interfaith concentration” however, I was never exposed to a Lutheran theological grounding for incorporating those deeply cherished scriptural teachings of other faiths into my own Christian worldview. While I knew such teachings were important, I did not have the means to articulate how they related to my faith in Jesus Christ, and in turn felt that my understanding of the authority of the Christian scriptures was incomplete.

Luckily, in taking a "Scriptures of the World" course with Dr. J. Paul Rajashekar I had the opportunity to not only learn the contents of other scriptures (something I was already partially exposed to), but more importantly, to discern how and why I should read the Christian scriptures inter-scripturally, all the while grounded in my own Lutheran theological tradition. This year I also engaged in faith-based gender justice work as Communications Coordinator for Ecumenical Women at the United Nations. Throughout this work, and especially during my week in New York at the annual UN Commission on the Status of Women, I was reminded how the Christian scriptures are so often misappropriated by various actors (especially some American evangelicals), who wish to reverse the gains of women and girls in recent decades and in doing so export their ideas to believers around the world. Finally, I was blessed with the opportunity to read a Christian response to issues of gender justice that is deeply grounded in the liberating love of Christ, that of the Lutheran World Federation’s new Gender Justice Policy. Throughout the remainder of this paper I will discuss my newfound understanding of the authority of the Christian scriptures, their abuse in regard to the gender justice debate, and briefly cite the Lutheran World Federation’s recently published alternative.

Throughout its two-thousand year history the Church’s relationship with the beliefs and scriptures of other faiths has been marked with difficulty, but also diversity. In the biblical witness itself, especially in Paul’s mission to the Athenians, we first see the concept of a universal Logos working outside of Jewish/ Christian community (Acts 17:22-31). This notion of Divine revelation through human reason is also present in the writings of Justin Martyr, who due to what could be considered an early version of inter-scriptural reading with Greek philosophy, claimed that all who lived with the Logos were in fact Christians without knowing it.  Clement of Alexandria also held similar views, yet Cyprian, Tertullian (who was himself deemed a Montanist heretic near the end of his life) and the vehemently anti-Semitic John Chrysostom were all “Christian patriarchs” who denounced the people and scriptures of other faiths. Augustine of Hippo seemed to differ in opinion throughout his career, yet did specifically argue that the Logos worked through a variety of names and beliefs, at least before Christ’s incarnation:

… from the beginning of the human race, whosoever believed in Him, and in any way knew Him, and lived in a pious and just manner according to His precepts, was undoubtedly saved by Him, in whatever time and place he may have lived.

Furthermore, as indicated in his Confessions, Augustine was an active Manichean (and to a lesser degree a Neoplatonist) before converting to Christianity, and thus it would have been impossible for him not to read the Bible inter-scripturally with what he knew from the writings of his former traditions.

Following the Edict of Milan and the rise of Christendom in the fourth century, inter-scriptural reading largely disappeared throughout the Church, at least officially. For the vast majority of illiterate Christians and those on the periphery of the empire, spoken and visual depictions by missionaries may have allowed a sense of inter-scriptural reading, but this was increasingly absent from the academic realm. By the time of Martin Luther and his fellow reformers, Western Europe had become a homoreligious society where marginalized Jews and the Muslim invaders outside Vienna were sometimes considered heretical Christians rather than people of distinctly separate faiths. It was within this homoreligious context that Martin Luther, out of both a pastoral concern that the scriptures be available to the masses and his need for a polemical tool against the abuses of the Roman Catholic hierarchy, developed the concept of the “solas,” thereby leading to our traditional Lutheran exclusivism:

The Lutheran tendency toward exclusivism, therefore, is derived from a doctrinal interpretation of biblical texts. The absoluteness of the Christian claim is thus articulated in terms of the “Lutheran solas:” solus Deus, solus Christus, sola gratia, sola scriptura, solo verbo, sola fide and so on. The doctrinal language of “God alone,” “Christ alone,” “grace alone,” “Scripture alone,” “Word alone” and “faith alone” are all intertwined, and reinforce claims of Lutheran exclusivism.

Operating within a homoreligious context, the Lutheran solas form a powerful argument, as they free the Christian scriptures to be read solely through the lens of Christ. Indeed, when engaged in public theology one can simply say, “As read through the lens of our shared faith in Christ, the Bible says __________, so we should do __________,” and thereby make a persuasive argument.

While theologically powerful, the Lutheran solas also form a circular argument, and thus in their exclusivism cannot provide a strong basis for public theology in our now multi-scriptural world. In recent decades some have attempted to remedy this problem by employing the traditional Lutheran concepts of ‘law and gospel’ and ‘the doctrine of the two kingdoms’ to their engagement with other faiths and texts. Essentially, this line of thought states that in natural law, God is at work in this world through all individuals, no matter their faith tradition. Working within this theological framework, which is essentially a rehashing of Justin Martyr’s old idea of “anonymous Christians,” those engaged in public theology rarely refer to their scriptures or their faith at all. Throughout my engagement with faith-based gender justice work over the past two years, first as an intern at the Lutheran Office for World Community and now as Communications Coordinator for Ecumenical Women at the United Nations, the typical modus operandi was to first privately study to the Bible as an organization, and then make a public statement in almost exclusively secular language. Although still usually quite persuasive, these statements lacked the full prophetic power of a true confession of faith, as they only appealed to minds rather than the hearts of decision makers.

In a twenty-first century world where homoreligiousity is less and less the norm on even the local level, the Lutheran solas alone can no longer provide us with a persuasive means to employ our scriptures in public theology. Indeed, as feminist, womanist and post-colonial theologians have taught us, the inherent universality of the Lutheran solas were always problematic. As Rosemary Radford Ruether states,

Feminism is a new challenge to Christian claims of universalism that poses different problems from those of interreligious relationships. Interreligious relationships speak of many different ways in which experience of the divine has been localized in human experience and the mutual recognition of these historico-cultural configurations by each other. Feminism speaks of new contexts where the divine needs to be localized. By and large, not only Judaism and Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism, but even ancient tribal religions have not allowed the divine to be experienced in a way defined by women. Feminism looks back at the history of all religions as expressions of male-dominated cultures that have marginalized women to some extent, although some have been more radically and totally marginalized in some religious systems than in others.

The inherent universality of the Lutheran solas also precludes to possibility of a positive dialogue with an increasing number of nonreligious individuals as well. Furthermore, by instead solely employing a law and gospel understanding to our use of scriptures in public theology, we often end up neglecting to refer to our scriptures or faith at all. Although done with the intention of not offending non-Christians, this in the end is simply another way of dismissing the salvific power of Christ and or even simply the humanity of all individuals regardless of their specific faith tradition.

Luckily, some are beginning to discover the possibility of robustly employing another traditional Lutheran theological concept to scriptural engage in public theology, that of “simul:”

The dialectic of the simul, what we understand as “simultaneously,” is a fundamental presupposition of almost all Lutheran doctrinal affirmations. Lutheran theology understands God’s revelation as simultaneously hidden and revealed; God’s activity occurs simultaneously through the work of the left hand and right hand; Christ is simultaneously human and divine; God’s saving activity occurs simultaneously through law and gospel; the Christian is simultaneously saint and sinner; the sacrament of bread and wine is simultaneously the body and blood; the kingdom of God is simultaneously present here and now and not yet. This emphasis on the simuls in Lutheran theology opens up possibilities for a positive engagement with all people in our world. A proper understanding of the simuls, in fact, pushes us away from an exclusive stance in matters of faith and invites us into an inclusive engagement with people.

The Lutheran solas are still essential however, as they provide us with theological grounding. At that same time, when we allow the solas to exist in a dialectic with the theological paradox of the simuls, we can recognize God’s mysterious work through both law AND gospel in Christians and non-Christians alike.

In this way, we can open ourselves to the diverse peoples and scriptures of other faiths, and instead of theorizing about a “Christian theology of religions,” prioritize the praxis of actually engaging in dialogue. James L. Fredericks eloquently speaks to this point:

In the twenty-first century Christians need to find an alternative to the entire project of a theology of religions. Preoccupation with a comprehensive interpretation of the other religious paths is neither necessary nor advisable for Christians committed to developing new forms of social and religious solidarity with those who follow other religious paths. Instead of a theology that attempts to account comprehensively for the religious lives of those who follow the other paths, Christians should set for themselves a considerably more modest goal. This will entail a shift from theory to praxis… The problems attending theologies of religions make clear how dubious this project is. Instead of using theology as a theoretical basis for dialogue, I propose to let dialogue be the basis, or praxis, of doing theology. Doing theology in dialogue with the others is not an attempt to provide a foundation or rationale for dialogue. Rather, what is called for is a theology that arises through dialogue. This is not a theology about interreligious dialogue, or a theology that justifies dialogue, but rather Christian theology itself carried out in dialogue with those who follow other religious paths.

To put it in practical terms, instead of only referencing the Bible or only using secular terminology when engaging in public theology, we can instead from a place of non-anxiety in Christ state something like, “We are called to believe that we should __________ because of how we understand our scriptures through our faith in Christ. As a fellow human being, how does this teaching relate to the scriptures of your own faith or worldview? I know for sure you have something to teach me, so how can we learn from each other?”

Through our faith in Christ, we know in a general sense how God works: Our God is a god of immense love, who shows up in the most unexpected of ways in the most unexpected of places. By relying on the Lutheran solas, or even the dialectic of law and gospel alone, we further constrain our already limited possibility of understanding the immense power and love of God. Instead, we can simultaneous know that our faith in Christ grants our scriptures immense authority while at the same time living out the calling of our scriptures to see the face of God working through both law and gospel in all individuals, no matter their religious system or worldview. The point of faith is not to make us agree to dogma or a theological legalism, but rather to help us to live out the life our Creator intended and provide comfort when we fall short. As we live out such lives to the best of our limited human ability, acting in Christian hospitality towards people of other faiths and worldviews out of our love for God, we in turn embody the authority of our scriptures for all individuals. Through such actions we proclaim, “We’re okay with whatever theological beliefs you might have, and we want to learn from you. In calling us to live in such a way, the Bible definitely has something good to say.”

If we recognize the authority of our scriptures in Christ while simultaneously constructing ambivalent spaces of hybridity (to borrow a postcolonial term) within which we can dialogue with peoples of other religious and worldviews, what then can we say about how our scriptures are abused to perpetuate systems of patriarchy, particularly towards women and girls? At both the national and international levels, we repeatedly see our scriptures proof-texted to support all sorts of “traditional family values,” many which stand starkly against the cause of gender justice. Many Christian organizations lobby against providing comprehensive sex education and free access to contraceptives in communities stricken by HIV/AIDS. Others cite the Bible to refrain from ordaining women or speaking out against rape and other forms of sexual violence in their congregations. While strongly pro-choice myself, I am able to see how the scriptural witness could lead Christians to stand against universal access to abortion services. Yet at the same time, year after year at the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), American evangelical groups along with conservative Muslim countries, the Holy See and others work to block language concerning women's access to a wide variety of life saving sexual and reproductive health services, all in the name of preventing abortions alone. Year after year, these same groups attempt to life up language regarding “traditional family values,” while neglecting to mention a large proportion of violence against women and girls occurs in the home. We must prophetically proclaim the sin of such behavior, yet at the same we must ask how do so many (often well meaning) Christians get such harmful ideas?

The Lutheran solas may provide us with insight on this question. As discussed above, at least in a homoreligious environment, the solas form an extremely powerful argument: “As read through the lens of our shared faith in Christ, the Bible says __________, so we should do __________.” Remember however, that the solas only work as an interconnected circle. Without “grace alone” and “Christ alone,” basing one’s thinking on “Scripture alone,” as those who abuse the scriptures to limit the rights of girls and women frequently do, inevitably leads one to some pretty harmful conclusions. Simply arguing “the Bible says __________, so we should do __________” in a multi-scriptural society while not particularly convincing is often quite harmful.

Especially since the late 1990s, such a message has unfortunately been presented by American evangelicals as the only Christian message concerning the rights of women and girls. Predominately secular individuals at the United Nations, often in a honest attempt to include the “Christian” perspective in international agreements, have in turn limited the progress of gender-justice, but at the same time probably figured Christianity as more a source of harm than good in the world (much as I initially did as college student). By prophetically promoting a more careful reading of the Christian scriptures that keeps in mind God’s liberating love in Christ, organizations like the Lutheran World Federation are now showing the international community there are multiple Christian messages regarding the rights of women and girls:

God desired to share human life fully in the flesh of a human being. God meets human beings in Jesus Christ, who shows who God is: a God who wants to liberate people out of slavery, free them from the bondage of a fallen world, empower the poor and oppressed and invite all to lead lives in freedom as children of God. This is the experience of the God “listening and coming down” to liberate the people who cry for help (Ex 2:24; 3:7). Jesus Christ called his followers into a new paradigm of God’s family, one in which the male-ruled biological family systems were transformed (Mk 3:35). The human body, in all of its realities, sufferings and joy is at the center of Christian revelation because of God’s incarnation through Jesus Christ. Thus, through incarnation God establishes a deeper relationship with human beings. The divine Word assumes a human body and inhabits us (Jn 1:14). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, the body of Christ is a new, just community of sisters and brothers. This community, the church, is the body of Christ today (1 Cor 12:26–27).

Although we must still improve on reading our scriptures in conversation with those of other faiths, the work of groups like the LWF seems to be working! At CSW57 in 2013, strong language was adopted concerning the prevention of violence against women and girls. This past March at CSW58, those on the side of gender-justice succeeded in moving the international community towards including a robust stand-alone goal concerning girls and women in the post-2015 development agenda.

After four years of struggling to find a theological basis for including the wisdom of other faiths in my understanding of the Christian message, I thoroughly believe the traditional Lutheran concept of the simuls, when grounded in dialogue with the solas, provides a powerful way forward. To put it in less academic terms, through our faith in Christ, we know in a general sense how God works: Our God is a god of immense love, who shows up in the most unexpected of ways in the most unexpected of places. Indeed, by beginning to read our scriptures in dialogue with the scriptures of other religions and worldviews, we can learn more about ourselves while living out our call to practice Christian hospitality toward all God’s children. Christian hospitality is not the only reason to read the Bible inter-scripturally however. As others seek to influence decision makers on important issues like the rights of women and girls by abusing our scriptures, we are called to develop alternative Christian messages that will hold authority in an increasingly pluralistic, multi-scriptural world.

Dustin is a recent graduate from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia and approved candidate for ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. An evangelist, urban gardener, mountain climber, community organizer, saint and sinner, Dustin spends most of his professional time wrestling with God and proclaiming liberation in Christ. Otherwise, Dustin likes hiking, playing frisbee, hanging out with an amazing woman named Jessie and pretending to know how to sing.

Martin Luther's Anti-Semitism

What follows is a book summary and review of Martin Luther's Anti-Semitism: Against His Better Judgement by Eric W. Gritsch that I recently wrote for my Church and the Holocaust course at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. The review is meant to assist educators in congregations prepare an adult forum or in-depth study series on the sin of historic Lutheran anti-Semitism. I hope you find this helpful and I'd love to hear what you think!

As I discussed at length in my film review of The Cross and the Star earlier this month, we are at a unique point in the history of Jewish/ Christian relations. While still living under the shadow of the Holocaust, we know the horrific, sinful consequences of following many traditional Christian lines of anti-Judaic if not outright anti-Semitic thinking. Indeed, many church bodies have publicly confessed these sins, and extremely productive relationships between Jews, Christians and their respective organizations continue to thrive on all levels. Yet, as apartheid-like conditions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories worsen and as an increasing number of our Arab Christian sisters and brothers are forced to emigrate, Christians are also called to carefully, responsibly, yet boldly work for a just and lasting peace in the Holy Land. If we are to engage with this important, complex social justice issue in a responsible way, and indeed with many of our likeminded Jewish allies, we as Christians must also continue to learn about, recognize, and confess the anti-Judaic sins of our collective history.

Particularly in Lutheran congregations, Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism: Against His Better Judgement will prove an invaluable resource for pastors and lay members preparing to lead an adult forum or even an extensive course on Christian anti-Semitism. The book is researched and authored by notable Lutheran historian Eric W. Gritsch, who despite his affiliation with the Hitler youth as a young boy grew up to be an active participant in Christian-Jewish dialog, particularly during his tenure at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg (Gritsch xiii). Through three relatively short chapters and a brief conclusion, Gritsch guides the reader through the difficult concept of anti-Semitism, the most notable of Luther’s anti-Semitic texts and finally how those texts were used by subsequent generations of Lutheran scholars. Written in an academic yet easily approachable style, Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism allows Luther to speak on his own terms through robust and frequent quotations, all the while showing how the 16th century reformer was writing “against his better judgement.” Following a summary of its arguments and evidence, this review will briefly highlight particular strengths and weaknesses of Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism, concluding with suggested discussion questions for use in the parish.

In the first chapter of Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism, Gritsch provides a concise background discussion of the concept of anti-Semitism itself. After a brief etymological  history of the word, Gritsch cites a variety of sources in search of a definition. The Roman Catholic historian Edward H. Flannery for instance identifies four historic forms of anti-Semitism: the political and economic anti-Semitism of Cicero and Charles Lindberg, the theological or religious anti-Semitism of “anti-Judaism,” the nationalistic anti-Semitism of Voltaire and the racial anti-Semitism of the Nazi Holocaust (Gritsch 2). The European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia on the other hand defines a variety of actions as anti-Semitic, including an overly critical view of the modern Israeli state and one’s complete rejection of Zionism (Gritsch 4). The chapter then delves into the relationship between anti-Semitism and race, particularly highlighting Ludwig Schemann’s late 19th century adoption of Arthur de Gobineau’s concept of race to justify societal hatred of Jews (Gritsch 6).

In his discussion of scapegoating and the Scriptures, Gritsch identifies three specific Christian teachings of contempt: “1) that the Jews were deprived of a homeland and had to live in dispersion, 2) that the Jews were superseded by Christians in the promise of salvation by a new covenant, and 3) that Jews committed ‘deicide’ by crucifying Jesus who, as the ‘son of God,’ was God” (Gritsch 10). Gritsch disproves each teaching by citing scriptural evidence, most notably Paul’s teaching that there is a “one and only covenant that unites Christians and Jews” in Romans 11:27 (Gritsch 11). In a brief yet detailed history of Christian anti-Semitism/anti-Judaism, Gritsch mentions some less well-known examples of the phenomenon, including Ambrose’s defense of arsonists who burned down a synagogue and John Calvin’s belief that the promise of salvation still belonged to the Jews, but only if they converted (Gritsch 17, 26). The first chapter then concludes with Gritsch’s working definition of anti-Semitism, which he identifies at its core as “hatred of the Jews” or “the projection of stereotypes on the Jewish people as a whole that portray them as essentially evil” (Gritsch 31).

The second chapter of Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism begins with a section on Luther’s hermeneutics. Martin Luther, who by today’s standards would have been considered a “Professor of the Old Testament,” nonetheless preached nearly thirty times more sermons on the New Testament throughout his career than on the Hebrew Scriptures (Gritsch 34). Despite his love for Genesis and especially the Psalms, Luther largely ignored early humanist historical-critical hermeneutics and thereby “intensified the traditional view of the church that Christ was prefigured in the “Old Testament” (Gritsch 35). Reading Christ into the Hebrew Scriptures in turn led Luther to distinguish between the faithful Israel of old and later “Talmudic Judaism,” cursed by God for rejecting Christ (Gritsch 35). Gritsch then delves into Luther’s commentary on Romans in detail, specifically discussing how by ignoring Paul’s teaching that Jews and Christians will be reunited by God on the Last Day , the reformer went against his better scholarly judgement and principles of interpretation (Gritsch 41). The concept of Mosaic law as leading to Christ through terrifying the conscience, the so-called “second use of the law,” is also briefly touched upon in Gritsch’s discussion of Luther’s view of Moses as doing the “alien” work of God (Gritsch 45).

Gritsch then follows the historical arc of Luther’s changing attitude towards Judaism and the Jewish people, primarily by citing textual evidence from the reformer himself. In his earlier work Luther’s anti-Semitism was grounded in the traditional Christian polemics of the day, albeit with uniquely colorful language. In his “Lectures on the Psalms” for instance, Luther employs scatological imagery to describe the Jewish rejection of the Messiah while commenting on Psalm 78:66:

But at this place, what seems to be more expressly denoted is that the recta, their innermost bowels, are sticking out through the rear, because their rear is different from the buttocks on which we sit… Their recta stick out, that is, the innermost feelings of their heart and their desires in opposition to Christ they display to the present. Therefore, the recta sticking out means that their will to harm and do evil appears, since they are not able to vomit the feces of evils against Him (Gritsch 50).

In this same period however, Luther disagreed with the medieval missionary practice of forced conversions and additionally supported a converted Spanish Jewish Hebraist’s call to the Wittenberg faculty (Gritsch 51). By 1519 Luther began preaching against the usury of his day by linking it to Judaism: “Look at those who lend wine, wheat, money, or whatever, to their neighbors, the oppress them with annual interest rates that are high than the sum of money borrowed. These are the Jewish little tricks” (Gritsch 57). Yet, in a sermon given the Saturday before Easter of 1521, Luther also spoke out against using the Passion of Christ as an occasion to be hostile to Jews.

Following his appearance before the Diet of Worms in 1521, Luther’s anti-Semitism moderated as he moved into a period described by Gritsch as “pastoral evangelism.” In “The Magnificat, Translated and Expounded,” Luther wrote, “We ought, therefore, not to treat the Jews in so unkindly a spirit, for there are future Christians among them, and they are turning everyday… If we lived Christian lives, and led them [the Jews] with kindness to Christ, there would be the proper response” (Gritsch 60). Luther’s anti-Semitism moderated in relation to practical concerns as well, as indicated in “The Estate of Marriage” in 1522: “Marriage… is like any other worldly undertaking. Just as I may eat, drink, sleep, walk, ride with, buy from, speak to, and deal with a heathen, Jew, Turk, or heretic, so I amy also marry and continue in wedlock with him. Pay no attention to the precepts of those fools who forbid it (Gritsch 61).” During this period its clear Luther believed his reforms would make Jewish mass conversion more likely, and further that such a conversion would signal the imminent eschaton (Gritsch 63). Luther even mentioned to dinner guests that he discussed messianic prophecy in the Hebrew Scriptures with three learned rabbi, likely in 1526 (Gritsch 68).

However, as the years went by with few Jewish conversions, Luther became extremely frustrated. He increasingly spoke of the Christian Church as “the new Israel,” a term brimming with supersessionism. After hearing rumors of Jewish proselytizing in 1530, he approved of Jewish/ Christian segregation in the city of Prague. By 1536, Luther even agreed with Elector John Frederick’s decision to remove Jews from his territory (Gritsch 69). By the late 1530s, Luther became convinced Jews, along with Muslims, “papists,” unitarians and radicals were part of Satan’s plan to destroy the Christian foundations of the world (Gritsch 70). In response to new reports in 1538 of Jewish proselytizing and a Christian movement committed to following the Jewish sabbath, Luther authored his first radically anti-Semitic work, “Against the Sabbatarians: Letter to a Good Friend.” In this treatise he argues there is a new Christian covenant because Jews the failed to keep their first covenant with God. Most notably, Luther concludes God is actively punishing the Jews with exile because they have rejected God’s new covenant through Christ:

In brief, since these fifteen hundred years of exile, of which there is no end in sight, nor can there be, do not humble the Jews or bring them to awareness, you may with good conscience despair of them. For it is impossible that God would leave his people, if they truly were his people, without comfort and prophecy so long… it is evident that he [God] has forsaken them, that they can no longer be his people, and the true Lord, the Messiah, must have come fifteen hundred years ago (Gritsch 73).

At a key juncture in his argument, Gritsch concludes that when Luther assumed he knew the historical fate of the Jews in “Against the Sabbatarians” and subsequent works, he went against his better judgement, namely that one should speculate about deus absconditus, the “hidden God” which God has not ordained to reveal (Gritsch 73 - 74).

Gritsch then discusses Luther’s most notable anti-Semitic work, “On the Jews and their Lies,” published in 1543. After warning his readers to expect nothing but a “den of devils” in synagogues, Luther affirms a Christ-centered reading of the Hebrew Scriptures before citing the most egregious of medieval anti-Semitic claims, including that Jews contaminate wells and kill Christian children (Gritsch 81 - 83). In a final desperate attempt to convert the Jews through what he termed “sharp mercy,” Luther encouraged Christian action that foreshadowed the horrors of Kristallnacht nearly four centuries later: “… set fire to their synagogues or schools and to bury and cover with dirt whatever will not burn, so that no man will ever again see a stone or cinder of them. This is to be done in honor of our Lord and of Christendom…” (Gritsch 86). This, unfortunately, was only the first of seven similar actions Luther advised. After writing additional anti-Semitic treatises in his remaining years, Luther, although too weak to finish preaching on February 15, 1546, gave an “Exhortation Against the Jews” in which he described Jews as “public enemies,” “poisoners,” and “blood-suckers.” These were his final public words before dying three days later.

Gritsch’s final chapter summarizes how subsequent scholars used Martin Luther’s anti-Semitic writings. Only one reference to the Jews as “the prime example of divine punishment” made it into the normative Lutheran teachings of the second generation reformers, the “Formula of Concord” (Gritsch 98). Although Luther’s anti-Semitic tracks were occasionally re-published until the early seventeenth century, there were no subsequent reprints until Luther became a role model for German nationalism under Hitler (Gritsch 101). Although cited by some anti-Semitic writers, Luther’s earlier, more moderate missionary years tended to be the focus of most scholarly works. Lutheran Pietists such as Philip Jacob Spener and Count Nicholas of Zinzendorf even used Luther’s earlier writings to support their respect for Judaism (Gritsch 103). Although anti-Semitism was frequently critiqued during the Enlightenment, Luther was rarely criticized for his most egregious works until the late nineteenth century (Gritsch 105 - 111). Moving forward to Nazi Germany however, the Lutheran bishop Martin Sasse celebrated the burning of synagogues on Kristallnacht by calling for “the liberation of Germany from Jewish economic oppression” and praising Luther as “the greatest anti-Semite of his time” (Gritsch 117).

Following his third chapter, Gritsch summarizes his conclusions, which in addition to those alluded to above include that Luther moved away from his famous “theology of the cross” into a “theology of glory” in his anti-Semitic works. Indeed, perhaps the greatest strength of Gritsch’s book is that he holds nothing back from properly criticizing the reformer, even stating that “Luther’s anti-Semitism… dimmed the light of the gospel he rediscovered as part and parcel of the ancient covenant between God and Abraham” (Gritsch 141). Gritsch’s emphasis on allowing Luther to speak through his own words is extraordinary, as his discussion of how Luther’s Christo-centric hermeneutics for the Hebrew Bible partially led to his anti-Semitism. The extensive bibliography provided, including multiple film suggestions, is also helpful for those readers wishing to do further research. Finally, Gritsch’s brilliant discussion of anti-Semitism and summary of anti-Semitic Christian history allows Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism to serve as a “one-stop shop” for those clergy and lay leaders preparing to organize an adult forum. The only weakness of the book was that although briefly alluded to on page forty-five, there was little discussion of the inherent anti-Judaism of Luther’s tight law/gospel dichotomy. Overall however, Martin Luther’s Anti-Semitism proves an amazing work Reformation scholarship, one that all Lutheran leaders should read during this unique point in Jewish/ Christian relations. We conclude with three suggested questions for group discussion:

1. How did Luther’s reading of Christ into the Hebrew Scriptures lead to his later more vehement anti-Semitism? Is it possible for Christians to not read Christ in the Hebrew Scriptures?
2. How did Luther’s anti-Semitism veer from “a theology of the cross” to a “theology of glory? How do we in our own churches interpret Scripture with a “theology of glory?”
3. Knowing what you know now about Martin Luther’s anti-Semitism, what responsibilities do we have as contemporary Lutherans to move past this sinful aspect of our past?

Dustin is currently in his final year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, having recently completed a year as Vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in New York City. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.

Bread for the World Sunday at Saint Michael's Lutheran Church

Two Sundays back I had the honor of preaching at Saint Michael's Lutheran Church in Germantown, Philadelphia, PA as part of an ongoing advocacy series related to Bread for the World Sunday. The following sermon was given after two weeks of temple talks on the subject of food insecurity and hunger (thanks so much to John Luttenberger for the audio):



Following the service members of the congregation were invited to either sign petitions for President Obama to create a plan for ending hunger or invited to record their own advocacy videos. We got a huge number of petitions signed and one great video from Tamara Anderson, speaking below:



Thanks so much to everyone who was a part of this important advocacy ministry, the people of Saint Michael's Lutheran Church and the folks at Bread for the World for providing such great resources!

God's peace,
Dustin

Dustin is currently in his final year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, having recently completed a year as Vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in New York City. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.

Reformation Sunday Sermon at Emanuel Lutheran Church

Hi folks! What follows is a rough manuscript of a sermon I delivered at my home congregation of Emanuel Lutheran Church in Manchester, CT this past Sunday. It's primarily on the appointment Gospel story for Reformation Day, John 8: 31 - 36 and also relates to Emanuel's stewardship campaign for the year. I'd love to hear what you think!

If the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed! If the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed! What a timely Gospel message for this morning, for the celebration of Reformation Sunday here at Emanuel. One reason Jesus’s message to us is so timely is because in recent years, and perhaps especially in recent weeks, the concept of freedom has become so confused. The concept of freedom, especially in America, is used rhetorically for all sorts of causes. When they shut the government down Washington many politicians were talking about freedom simply meaning freedom from taxes, government regulations and our new healthcare laws. On the other side of the political spectrum, freedom frequently means predominately freedom from want or freedom from injustice. Going back a few years, at the height of the American occupation of Iraq, if you were someone critical of our country’s foreign policy you may remember hearing the retort “freedom isn’t free.”

While all those concepts of freedom may have some elements of truth, some I think more than others, my sisters and brothers I propose to you this day that the Christian concept of freedom, that the concept of freedom which Jesus’s shares with us in today’s Gospel message is something much deeper than all that. Freedom in Christ means being able to remember, both to confess and rejoice about our past and present, and through God’s act of liberating love in Christ thereby be freed to move boldly forward into life in community with Christ and one another. Let me repeat that... freedom in Christ means being able to remember, both to confess and rejoice about our past and present, and through God’s act of liberating love in Christ thereby be freed to move boldly forward into life in community with Christ and one another.

Jesus’s Gospel message about freedom is also important today because that’s exactly what we do on Reformation Day, we look back in order to move forward. Ya know, to be honest, I wasn’t much into Reformation Day until recently... as a kid, perhaps because I was never very good about paying attention in Sunday School, I remember vaguely knowing that the day had something to do with church history, and that either my mom would make me wear my one red dress sweater, which was really hot and scratchy, or when I got older I’d outright forget to wear a red shirt and be teased about it. As I got older, and eventually went to seminary, all the singing a Mighty Fortress is Our God and Lutheran pep rally sort of stuff just didn’t seem to recognize our entire past, it seemed a little too triumphant and therefore just didn’t seem genuine. It was only in fact when thinking about today’s Gospel message while preparing for this sermon, when I realized that God’s act of liberating love in Christ frees us to both confess and celebrate the past, that my feelings about Reformation Day changed.

Confession is important, not because we want to feel guilty about everything, but rather because in naming those negative aspects of our collective and individual pasts, we’re reminded that God lovingly and freely liberates us from such things. As a Church in general, and as Lutherans specifically, we do have sins to recognize as part of imperfect history. The violent anti-semitic writings of Luther, even the very last sermon he gave before his death that argued all Jewish folks should be removed from the country, were used extensively to gin up Christian support for the sinful and horrific policies under Hitler in Nazi Germany. Speaking about the Church as a whole, the immense violence of the crusades, the apathy or outright hostility of many white Christians during the time of slavery, the support of western imperialism and colonialism through “missionary activities” that formed the beginnings of the ecumenical movement, the apathy or outright hostility of many churches during the American civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, and the lack of bold action from many churches in the early days of the AIDs crisis are only a few of our collective historic sins.

In our own time, we have some parts of the Church’s continued attack on the rights of women and girls and a glaring heteronormativity that prevents many from boldly embracing the rich diversity of folks across the human gender spectrum. I’ll never forget wearing my collar on the subway in New York last year while on internship, when a young man came up to me and immediately said “don’t worry father, I’m not a sodomite.” The very first thing he and many folks, especially young people, think today when they see a Christian isn’t about worshipping or praying or God’s love, but rather that wow... there’s someone that simply doesn’t like gay people. In our own faith community of Emanuel, let us recognize that while we’ve done great work on many of the issues I’ve just listed, including our embrace of the Reconciling in Christ program and our longtime support of the Manchester Area Network on AIDS, its certainly not the same thing at the same level but we do have our own baggage... like most churches, at least in the Western world, we face a decline in budget and attendance numbers. We’ve also faced years of difficult staff turnovers, and currently a period of careful discernment our beloved music program, just to name a few I know. My sisters and brothers, let’s boldly put that out there, name it, confess it, and just simply recognize that we have some healing to do. And doing that, my sisters and brothers, is okay.

For on this day of looking back and moving forward, we also have a heck of a lot of good things to celebrate as a Church and as a congregation... While I could name a bunch of these things on a macro-level, I figured I could zoom down a bit here, and just tell a couple stories of how the amazing ministry that takes place at Emanuel Lutheran has helped me over years. I’ll tell two quick stories, one kind of serious and then one a little bit funny just to lighten up the mood…

Back during high school, during my freshman year shortly after I was confirmed just like you four folks are today, I was battling a fairly serious case of depression and social anxiety disorder, although I didn’t know what to call it at the time. Eventually after seeing a show on MTV about depression, I realized that probably what I had and I asked my mom for help. Unfortunately, partially because of the poor healthcare system in this country, I wasn’t able to get into a therapist or psychiatrist for months, and thus things only got worse. By the time Christmas break came around, I left school that day and told my parents I could never go back… my social anxiety had gotten so extreme in that place. I didn’t return to school that year until mid-February… I had my classwork brought home, eventually began seeing a therapist and psychiatrist, but it was really was the support of the community at Emanuel that turned me around.

The first time I left my house during that period for a place besides the doctors office was to come see the pastor at Emanuel. In conversation with him we decided it would be a good idea to call a couple of my buddies from confirmation and schedule a time to hang out in order to help me begin socializing again. I was nervous as heck going over my friends’ house that night, but it was the major turning point in my recover… it was the first time I was able to talk about what I was experiencing with my peers, and it was the first time I had a chance to have fun in a really long time. We went to the church league basketball game together the next night and I never really looked back and I was shortly thereafter return to school. That’s just one story of amazing ministry, of amazing community here at Emanuel Lutheran.

Now for a sillier one. I mentioned earlier that I wasn’t particularly good at paying attention in Sunday school, but as might of the folks here today know from first hand experience, that was an understatement. Some of my friends and I probably even made a few of our Sunday School teachers cry over the years. Let me first mention, boy I’m very sorry about all that! Things got so bad at one point, probably when we were around ten, that we actually needed to have a meeting with the pastor and our parents about whether we could even continue in Sunday School at Emanuel. The only thing I remember from that day is yelling out that I didn’t believe anything in the Bible obviously because no one in the Bible had last names! I was even a quick thinker back then… But here’s the really funny part… out of that Sunday School class came three seminarians, five counselors at Camp Calumet, and a bunch of other great folks doing all sorts of ministries according to their callings. Wow, that’s absolutely amazing! If you need any indication about how the ministries called to participate in and the investments you’re making today might impact others in the long term, then this is probably a really great example.

... And those stories are just three of the things from my own life folks, and I haven’t even physically been around here for most of the past decade! I can only imagine all the amazing stories y’all have as well about how our congregation has supported you and our neighbors over the years, and how its ministered to our surrounding communities, and even our larger world.

We may not be perfect, but when remember, when we confess and celebrate on day like Reformation Sunday, we can also look forward in a bold, vibrant future together. And furthermore, we can look to such a future knowing the profoundly good news that whats important is not really about what we’re doing at all, but rather its about the amazing works of liberating love God is doing, and will continue to do in Christ. Let’s just think about some of those amazing things in the short-term... we have a new pope who has gone out of his way to wash the feet of Muslim girl, has said who is he to judge people no matter who they love and has refocused the church on economic justice. We have a great new presiding Bishop, Elizabeth Eaton, a great new synod Bishop, Jim Hazelwood and in our own local congregation, we have a great new associate pastor, Kathy Reed, who I’ve heard from a bunch of folks is doing some truly amazing work.

And the opportunities we have for ministry are immense... we live in a part of the country where 75% of folks don’t belong to any particular faith community. Well I say what an amazing opportunity we have to go out there to share that Good News that we know through Christ with them! We as wider Church I believe are really starting to finally get it... we are reforming once again as we did 500 years ago to reach new generations of folks who are asking new sorts of questions but who are seeking the same answers... the good news of God’s liberating act in Christ. Amidst chaotic times and great change, my sisters and brothers, we have a God of Change, who is and always will be at work, supporting us, guiding us and bearing us peace. In Christ, God promises to be a God not just of the past, but of the future, a God of freedom, a God of liberating love that is always at work. And, God is a God who keeps Her promises. Amen.

God's peace,

Dustin

Dustin is currently in his final year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, having recently completed a year as Vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in New York City. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.

Immigration Advocacy Workshop and Additional Resource

As you may have a seen in a recent post, this past Saturday at Saint Peter's Church where I currently serve as Vicar we were supposed to hold an Immigration Advocacy Workshop.  Unfortunately, a whole lot of snow happened and we thus had to reschedule.  Luckily it wasn't too difficult to find an alternative date.  Here's the updated information in both English and Spanish in case you'd like to join us:

Immigration Advocacy Workshop (rescheduled)
Saturday, March 16, from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
In the Sanctuary and Living Room, Saint Peter's Church
Late last November, members of Saint Peter's and Iglesia Luterana Sión gathered together over brunch to discuss how we could begin organizing around important social justice issues, with an initial emphasis on immigration advocacy. We decided to plan an Immigration Advocacy Workshop, and those efforts have now come to fruition. Ravi Ragbir, Director of the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York, will discuss how current issues relate to past immigration and Amy Gottlieb, Program Director of the Friends Service Committee's Immigrant Rights Program, will discuss why immigration issues should matter to people of faith. After worshiping together we'll proceed to the main discussion and conclude with time for light refreshment and informal conversation.  Please join us!

Taller sobre defensa migratoria (reprogramada)
Sábado, 16 de marzo, de 14:00 - 16:00
En el Santuario y living room, Iglesia San Pedro
A finales del pasado mes de noviembre, los miembros de San Pedro y la Iglesia Luterana Sión se reunieron durante brunch para discutir cómo podríamos empezar a organizarnos en torno a importantes cuestiones de justicia social, con énfasis inicial cuestiones de inmigración. Nos decidimos a planear un taller de defensa migratoria, y esos esfuerzos han llegado a buen término. Ravi Ragbir, director de la Coalición del Nuevo Santuario de Nueva York, hablará sobre problemas actuales relacionados con el pasado sistema migratorio y Amy Gottlieb, directora del programa de Servicio de los Amigos del Comité del Programa de Derechos de los Inmigrantes, hablará sobre por qué los temas de inmigración debe importar a la gente de fe. Después de orar juntos vamos a proceder a la discusión principal y concluir con un ligero refrigerio y conversación informal. Por favor, únete a nosotros!

In the midst of the planning process for the workshop I discovered a number of additional immigration resources.  The infographic to the left does a great job of explaining the many weaknesses of immigration reform as it's currently proposed.  Here's a list of some of the other great resources out there:

- A recent statement on immigration reform from Christian Churches Together in the USA, a group representing the full breadth of Christianity (including evangelicals) in the US, can be found here.

- A list of prayers from Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service can be found here (check out their site for additional great resources as well).

- A great worship resource from the World Council of Churches, including a comprehensive list of Bible verses, can be found here.

- A Roman Catholic parish resource kit can be found here.

- An amazing resource for non-denominational/ evangelical churches entitled "I Was a Stranger" can be found here.

This by no means is an exhaustive list of resources out there.  It is amazing (and very encouraging) though that the full-breadth of American Christians have been able to rally around immigration reform, given their history of agreeing on very few public policy concerns.

God's peace,
Dustin

Dustin is currently a vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in Manhattan, having recently completed his second year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice building in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.

The Church Hasn't Had It This Good in 1700 Years

Over the last few weeks I've been having a lot of conversations with folks about the long-trending decline in church attendance, partially due to a recent cover article of The Lutheran entitled "The Shrinking Church."  Perhaps it's just because I'm a naive seminarian, but in all of those conversations I've replied that on the whole, declining church attendance is a good thing, although I've never been all that successful in succinctly saying why I feel that way.  Luckily, I've been spending much of the day snowed in and reading the fortieth anniversary edition of A Black Theology of Liberation by James Cone.  While I don't agree with everything in the book, I do fully agree with the following quote, which does a great job summarizing why the decline in church attendance we're experiencing is going to have some really positive effects:

The "conversion" of Constantine to Christianity and the subsequent acceptance of it as the official religion of the Roman empire raise some serious questions about Christendom, especially the possibility of its remaining true to its origin and mandate.  It can be argued that this was the beginning of the decline of Christianity so evident in contemporary American society.  Is it possible for the church to be the church (committed unreservedly to the oppressed in society) and at the same time be an integral part of the structure of a society?  I think not.  If the gospel of Jesus is the gospel of and for the oppressed in society, the church of Christ cannot be the religion of society.  But the official church, which has been most responsible for the transmission of the gospel tradition, has also played a role as the political enforcer of "law and order" against the oppressed by lending divine sanction to the laws of the state and thus serving as the "redemptive" center of an established order (35).

Decreased church attendance in and of itself isn't a good thing of course, but the subsequent removal of the Church from the privileged place its had in society for 1700 years since Constantine and Licinius issued the Edict of Milan will definitely be a good thing; such a change in position has the potential to both strengthen the mission of the Church and thus hone its work in supporting the most oppressed members of our society.  I know my position isn't brand new, nor is it fully thought out, so I'd love to hear your response... thanks so much.

God's peace,
Dustin

Dustin is currently a vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in Manhattan, having recently completed his second year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice building in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.

Immigration Advocacy Workshop @ Saint Peter's Church

As part of my yearlong vicarage project at Saint Peter's Church, I've been blessed to greatly grow in my understanding of congregation-based advocacy, specifically around the important issue of immigration reform.

Long before I began my vicarage, there had been interest at Saint Peter's in strengthening the parish's social justice ministries, but once we began exploring how to do so this past fall, it quickly became apparent that organizing around a specific issue, rather than advocacy in a general sense, was the way to go. Given both the current legislative environment and Saint Peter's new covenant relationship with Iglesia Luterana Sión, a predominately Spanish-speaking congregation, it also seemed obvious that immigration reform should be the first social justice issue to organize around.

Thus, the people of both Sión and Saint Peter's gathered in between our respective worship services this past November to gauge interest in the topic and begin discussing how we could mobilize.  While our group had a great deal of experience and interest in social justice issues in general, we decided a good first step would be organizing an informational workshop to provide us and the community with information on how the history of immigration in the United States relates to our current situation and why the issue should matter to people of faith.  After a bit of planning over the holidays, we organized a workshop for this Saturday, February 9th from 2 - 4p.  What follows is our bulletin announcement of the event in both English and Spanish:

Immigration Advocacy Workshop
Saturday, February 9, from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
In the Sanctuary and Living Room, Saint Peter's Church
Late last November, members of Saint Peter's and Iglesia Luterana Sión gathered together over brunch to discuss how we could begin organizing around important social justice issues, with an initial emphasis on immigration advocacy. We decided to plan an Immigration Advocacy Workshop, and those efforts have now come to fruition. Ravi Ragbir, Director of the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York, will discuss how current issues relate to past immigration and Amy Gottlieb, Program Director of the Friends Service Committee's Immigrant Rights Program, will discuss why immigration issues should matter to people of faith. After worshiping together we'll proceed to the main discussion and conclude with time for light refreshment and informal conversation. Please join us! For more information, contact Vicar Dustin.

Taller sobre defensa migratoria
Sábado, 09 de febrero, de 14:00 - 16:00
En el Santuario y living room, Iglesia San Pedro
A finales del pasado mes de noviembre, los miembros de San Pedro y la Iglesia Luterana Sión se reunieron durante brunch para discutir cómo podríamos empezar a organizarnos en torno a importantes cuestiones de justicia social, con énfasis inicial cuestiones de inmigración. Nos decidimos a planear un taller de defensa migratoria, y esos esfuerzos han llegado a buen término. Ravi Ragbir, director de la Coalición del Nuevo Santuario de Nueva York, hablará sobre problemas actuales relacionados con el pasado sistema migratorio y Amy Gottlieb, directora del programa de Servicio de los Amigos del Comité del Programa de Derechos de los Inmigrantes, hablará sobre por qué los temas de inmigración debe importar a la gente de fe. Después de orar juntos vamos a proceder a la discusión principal y concluir con un ligero refrigerio y conversación informal. Por favor, únete a nosotros! Para obtener más información, consulta al Vicario Dustin.

If you're in the New York area, please feel free to come as well... just contact me ahead of time if possible at dwright@saintpeters.org.  If not, please check back on It's Only a Northern Blog for information about how the event went, as well as a .pdf of the liturgy we used for our opening bilingual prayer service.

While planning the workshop over the last couple months, some members of Saint Peter's and Sión have also partnered with the New Sanctuary Movement of NY to participate in their weekly Jericho Walk around the Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices at 26 Federal Plaza.  Reflecting the Israelites march around the walls of Jericho in the book of Joshua, participants walk seven times around Federal Plaza in silent prayer and then conclude with praying out loud.  Having attended twice myself, I can certainly say it's a powerful advocacy action and also serves to comfort those who are facing deportation hearings inside.  To get a better idea of what the Jericho Walk is like, check out the video below:



Immigration reform, I'd argue, is perhaps one of the most obvious policy issues the Judeo-Christian faith speaks to, so we'll certainly be engaged in advocacy until justice for immigrants is attained.  Has your congregation or faith community worked on immigration reform?  If so, please comment and let me know what you've learned.  Thanks so much!

God's peace,
Dustin

Dustin is currently a vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in Manhattan, having recently completed his second year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice building in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.

The World We Want

What follows is cross-post of a piece I recently wrote for Voices for Change, a blog run by the advocacy ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The blog is an absolutely amazing resource that lifts up the voices of Lutheran advocates around the country, so I highly encourage you to check out additional posts here.

Nearly halfway into my yearlong internship with the Lutheran Office for World Community at the United Nations, I have certainly been blessed with a wide variety of powerful experiences. I’ve sat in on meetings with ambassadors, planned for the upcoming Fifty-Seventh Commission on the Status of Women with an ecumenical group of colleagues from other advocacy offices and even met two Nobel Peace Prize laureates. Through such experiences however, I’ve been burdened with one central question, “How can ELCA members throughout the country participate in the global conversation I experience everyday in New York?”

On the local, state and federal levels of democratic government, grassroots advocacy is an often difficult but fairly straightforward process. Organizers identify a legislative issue that lines up with the stated values of their organization and then urge others to contact government officials about either voting for or against related pieces of legislation. This process is straightforward because we, of course, elect government officials to represent us in decision-making; we are their constituents and we can hold them accountable by voting them out of office.

On the global level at the United Nations, things work a bit differently. Our Permanent Representative to the United Nations is not elected but appointed by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Because of this indirect system of representative democracy, our grassroots impact on global decision-making can often seem minimal.

Luckily, there is an exciting new way for Lutherans around the world to directly participate in global-decision making: The World We Want platform. In the year 2000, world leaders gathered to set specific global development goals to be reached by 2015, the Millennium Development Goals. Today the deadline is less than three years away, and we’ve made progress: access to clean drinking water has increased, fewer people live in unhealthy urban slums, and most importantly, the number of people living in extreme poverty worldwide has been cut in half. This success shows us that change is possible, but more must be done: inequality is growing, 950 million people still go hungry each night and climate change threatens the livelihoods of millions more.

When world leaders first met to create the Millennium Development Goals, they left something out, something important: your voice. Without your voice gathered together with others from around the world, without people-power, shaping the world we want is not possible.

This time, you have a seat at the table. Through the World We Want platform, you can participate in a survey on your priorities for the world and your community called MyWorld. Maybe you want to contribute on a deeper level? After creating a profile you can submit directly to consultations sponsored by a United Nations panel of experts. Perhaps you want to share your own story? You can post pictures or even a YouTube video, and then be sure to share your posts with the Lutheran Office for World Community (lowc@elca.org).

A new world is being created. Whether it’s the world we want is up to us. Participate, contribute and share on the website — the World We Want.

God's peace,
Dustin

Dustin is currently a vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in Manhattan, having recently completed his second year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice building in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.