By Joel A. Hess –
A couple months ago, as we were recording another fun episode of Ringside, the guys were trying to figure out an elf on the shelf for Lent. Immediately, Ross Engel threw out “Judas on the jukebox.” It’s a great name, but who has a jukebox? While many eligible and some profane names were tossed around, my buddy Dave Rufner came up with “gnome in the home.” Get them while they’re hot!
By Joel A Hess –
Want to win a debate? Call your opponent either Hitler or a Nazi. During Obama’s reign, many called his policies fascist as he pushed to restrict free speech and expression, let alone when he promoted programs also popular in the Nazi era such as euthanasia and abortion. Now during Trump’s short stint, many accuse him of Hitler-like tendencies due to his blunt personality, his views on immigration, and his annoying tendency of calling his critics his enemies. Will the real Hitler please come forward? Actually, if you want to know the true heirs of Nazi Germany, take a look at Gene Edward Veith’s wonderful tome, Modern Fascism.
By Cindy Koch –
Piles of whites, baskets full of darks. Towels, socks… Oh look, there’s the muddy jacket we’ve been missing. Hours of sorting, stain removing, washing, drying, hanging, folding, returning everything back to the closet drawers. As I’m putting away the last of the PJs and my laundry basket is finally empty, I glance at the little white hamper in my daughters’ room. It’s half full. And the laundry cycle is never over.
By Bob Hiller –
Before I was writing here for the good ol’ Jagged Word in any official capacity, I was an avid reader of the blog. Every week, I looked forward to reading “The Emperor’s Chair.” I always found Graham’s views on politics and ecumenism (specifically his views on the relationship between Rome and Wittenberg) to be challenging and even refreshing as he had the guts to speak in ways that are different from the standard Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod way of thinking. I disagreed with much of what Graham said but was always impressed with his willingness to dialogue and think outside the norm for what he believed was the good of the Church catholic.
By Graham Glover –
Authority? Nope.
Justification? Not yet.
Ecclesiology? Yeah, right.
Sanctification. Not even close.
After 500 years of fierce division, those Christians separated from the Bishop of Rome remain ever committed to their unique reformations and peculiar revolutions. The issues that separate the many Christian communions are vast, with little hope of unity in sight. While I think the most divisive issue is that of authority, that is, a disagreement about who or what decides what is orthodox Christian doctrine, the fact remains that there are multiple issues on which Roman Catholics and non-Roman Catholics are unable to find common ground.
“Success” is a loaded word. It is such a subjective word that it can be challenging to nail down what a person means when they start talking about “success” and “failure.”
Consider the various vocations and duties that you have. If I consider the various stations of life that God has given me, I can say that I am a husband, father, son, pastor, boss, brother, friend, neighbor, and probably a handful of other things to a variety of people. But how do I determine whether or not I am a success in any of these stations of life? I ask this, because lately I haven’t been feeling terribly “successful” at life.
By Graham Glover –
Which is more important?
When pitted against one another, who wins? The Bishop of Rome in his role as the Vicar of Christ? Or the doctrine of justification by grace through faith as proclaimed in the Holy Scriptures?
By Paul Koch –
On Tuesday morning, the world learned the tragic news of Carrie Fisher’s death. This news had a strange effect on me, as I had just watched her performance the day before when I took my family to go see the new blockbuster Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Although, it wasn’t a performance by the sixty-year-old actress per se but a CGI recreation of the twenty-one-year-old Princess Leia every young boy my age had fallen in love with at one time or another. There she was, full of youthful vigor and elegance, receiving the plans of the Death Star to relay to the Rebel Alliance—at least, it looked like her… almost.
By Caleb Keith –
If you are a Christian, you must be stupid. That’s what I hear from the mainstream media, twitter feeds, public schools, universities and often the federal government, at least. Christians believe in fairytales, hold back science, and have Scriptures that perpetuate sexism and homophobia. The only smart Christians are the ones who know that faith is just a safety blanket; they admit that religion doesn’t belong to the world of rational thought, and they also they keep their traditions, Christmas, and Easter. Maybe they’ll even pray at dinner when grandma is visiting. If only all Christians could be educated.
By Paul Koch –
For the first six years after I was ordained, I gathered every summer with an incredible group of friends for what we called the Conviviumm Theologicum. It was, for all intents and purposes, the best possible pastors conference ever created. We only invited pastors we liked hanging out with and their wives. Then we brought out a professor from one of the seminaries along with his wife for a few days of teaching, drinking, eating, and great conversation. We did everything from swimming in the freezing waters of the Hood Canal in Washington to taking a tour of the Okefenokee Swamp in Southern Georgia. The tagline for our adventures each year was the same. We gathered to “worry the bureaucrats and annoy the pietists.”
By Jonathan Holmes –
We live in a world where a person who admits their sins and weaknesses is considered cowardly. To actually say one is wrong is often viewed as a sign of frailty and feebleness. Why? Much of it is pride; and for those who are proud they see themselves as strong and ambitious and are willing to trample over anyone in their path for the sake of progressing oneself for any number reasons. Because of this public opinion, popularity, and the so-called “career” are the very things by which we find ourselves being defined. We think we must be strong candidates in these three classifications to show signs that we are winning at the “game of life.” These “successes” are how we show the family, friends, the world, even God that we are worth something. Everything hinges on what people think of us, how well they like us, and how good we are at our jobs – or at least that it appears that we are performing our professions well.
By Graham Glover –
My two favorite things to talk about are politics and religion. I am a Lutheran pastor, who years ago worked as a lobbyist, am currently working on finishing my PhD in Political Science, while serving my country as an Active Duty Chaplain in the US Army, with a wife that used to run state-level campaigns, and a father-in-law whose professional and political career has been devoted to public service. I suppose you could say such topics are part of my DNA, as they encompass so much of who I am and what I do.
By Paul Koch – Do you confess the Unaltered Augsburg Confession to be a true exposition of Holy […]
By Graham Glover – We’re all guilty. You. Me. All of us. We’re guilty of political idolatry. More […]
By Cindy Koch –
Coffee and conversation with a friend can lead to an unknown place. There are things that I don’t even know about myself until that mug warms my hand. Comforting aromas open my mind and release the flow of memories and emotions from the last time we talked. Overstuffed chairs lull me to a safe place, and the intimate dark colors on the celling protect our conversation as it pours out.
By Paul Koch –
The dull drumming of yet another speaker talking about what the church ought to be doing, how it ought to reach out, or how it might better restructure itself bounces off my stubborn ears as I sip my second cup of coffee. I’ve endured morning devotions with songs I don’t know and longed for a Gospel proclamation that seems to be in short supply.
By Graham Glover –
I love to debate. I mean, I love to really debate. I’m not talking about simple, quaint discussions concerning issues without much disagreement. I have in mind those passionate arguments and heated conversations in which tempers just might get a little out of control as each side tries to make their point.
By Scott Keith –
President Ronald Reagan is often credited with coining the so-called eleventh commandment: “Thou shalt not speak ill of another Republican.” Reagan used the term many times to discourage infighting within the GOP. I think that there is something to be learned from Reagan’s insistence on knowing when and with whom to pick a fight. A quick scan of the good ole Interweb––even (perhaps especially) when scrolling through “churchy” sites––will indicate we are all obsessed with eating our own.
By Joel A Hess –
Dear parents, your kids will be catechized whether you like it or not.
For many churches, autumn marks the beginning of confirmation classes for young people. The season also witnesses many a pastor’s struggles to convince families to make instructing their children in the faith a top priority. Understandably, after spending long hours in school and extracurricular activities, even families that make Christian education a priority find little time to do it seriously.
By Bob Hiller –
Well, thank you, Colin Kapernick. Really, I mean it. Thank you. Because of your big, brave stand (or sit), you have given sports talk radio hosts a feeling of self-importance once again. You’ve helped them feel like they are more than just dudes talking about last night’s game. You’ve given them the ability to become social commentators. The penetrating sociological insight one can gain from listening to sport’s talk is truly breathtaking. So thank you, Colin Kapernick, for giving a bunch of self-important voices with a platform an opportunity to demonstrate that they alone know the right answers to all of life’s struggles.
