Tuhina Rasche, San Carlos, CA

Warm-up Question

In an age filled with distractions and doubts, what does it mean to truly “see” one another?

How Do You “See”?

I’m not going to lie; I probably spend way much more time on my phone than I should. If I want to check the weather, there’s the weather app. If I want to know directions to travel from point A to point B, there’s the map app. I even have my Bible app and Lutheran Confessions app if I need to look up something theological at a moment’s notice. I have instant access to the world through the information that resides in my smart phone.

The instant gratification of having access to people and information has increased drastically since I was younger. It was only 15 years ago that I had to wait a long time for pages on the Internet to load, or for someone to pick up the phone and talk to them, ort to get a ride to the bookstore to pick up a book, or for the day of the week and time when my favorite television show would be aired. How we engage the world has drastically changed over a time. With that comes growing pains and learning how to live in a new way. Sometimes seeing the world in a new way leads to bumps and bruises. For example, I missed a sidewalk curb because I was texting and walking.  This is just one of many dangerous scenarios which occur when people pay to much attention to their phone screens.

That misstep led me to remember an article about multiple (and even dangerous) scenarios that occurred when people paid too much attention to their phone screens and not enough to the immediate physical world around them. We can easily look at information, but fail to “see” the world around us.

There’s tension between our online and fleshy lives. We are embodied people, created in God’s holy image. We are also called to be in Christian community, to be the resurrected body of Christ.  Social media and online spaces are connecting Christian community in new and exciting ways (like interacting with Faith Lens). Part of my life is lived out digitally; this is where I feel the deepest theological connection to a community that represents the resurrected Christ. My church meets every Thursday night on Twitter for #SlateSpeak to engage in deep and meaningful theological conversations. I may not get to see this community face-to-face on a weekly basis, but I get to “see” their passion for Christ.

I value the connections I’ve made over social media, but at the same time, I wonder how to reconnect and engage with the world which lies beyond the screen of my phone. I am experiencing the tension of seeing the world in new and different ways, but at the same time, I wonder if I truly “see” my neighbor in the midst of additional noise and distractions. Do I see the beauty of the image of God in my neighbor in online and in embodied spaces? Do I deeply engage with the communities of faith in which I participate, or do I see things at a surface level, unsure of asking hard questions, and taking the risk to see my interactions within God’s community in new and challenging ways?

Discussion Questions

• If you have a smart phone, how much time do you spend on it? Do you think it helps you stay connected with the communities in which you participate? Does it keep you from participating in communities that meet “in the flesh”?
• With the multitude of information that comes through social media, are you able to see how you engage with your friends and neighbors in online spaces? With your connections in both social media and in the flesh, are these meaningful connections happening in community? How are these interactions meaningful?
• What are some of the ways you can see the world in new ways and stay engaged in life between the embodied existence of being “in the flesh” community and meaningful connections and communities in online spaces?

Fourth Sunday of Lent

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Ephesians 5:8-14

John 9:1-41

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Today’s lengthy Gospel lesson contains multiple binaries. The obvious binaries include light and darkness, and blindness and sight. There are also deeper binaries of belief and unbelief, and sin and redemption. It is also important to recognize that while simple choices are presented to us in today’s Gospel lesson, the world is far more complicated than living in an “either/ or” situation. This is where the gift of our “both/ and” Lutheran theology helps us deal with the complexities presented to us, not just in John’s Gospel, but also in the world around us. Today’s Gospel is also further complicated when talking about the dominant narrative of ableism; Jesus does not use the term “blind man” to describe the person he encounters, but emphasizes his humanity, referring to him as “the man born blind.”

What is fascinating about this particular sign and wonder is that it comes from an unexpected place: a paste made of Jesus’ spit and mud (cue, “Oh, that is so gross”), then followed by washing in the waters of Siloam. Just as our sacramental identity in Christ comes to us in the simple elements of bread, wine, and water, so this healing salve is not made of extraordinary elements we encounter everyday but rarely take the time to  ponder as part of God’s fantastic creation. Our underwhelming sacraments give us a tactile experience of our overwhelming God. An underwhelming peasant man from Galilee is the overwhelming presence of God taking on our flesh.

How do we encounter the extraordinary that is found in ordinary daily elements? This is where John’s Gospel works with the concept of sight. We begin the lesson with a man who could not physically see, yet it ends with the Pharisees who could see neither the healing of the blind man nor the true identity of Jesus. The man born blind had immense faith and saw Jesus as the Son of Man (v. 38), the Pharisees could not “see” the healing that came from an ordinary peasant from ordinary elements. Must a sign use extraordinary elements in order to be believed?

The Gospel message compels us to see the entirety of our siblings in Christ and to see that they are created in the holy image of God. As our extraordinary God meets us in the ordinary, there is a sense of wonder in that meeting. When we are in community and make the effort to be truly present, we not only learn from our community, but  see God’s created world past the duality of binaries. We can “see” and respond in love to the petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in heaven.” May we approach this Gospel and our neighbor with such a sense of wonder that our eyes are fully opened and made fully present to  the gift of diversity found within Christian community.

Discussion Questions

• God constantly comes to us and shows up in the most unexpected of places. This is seen in the person of Christ and also how we experience Christ in the sacraments of communion and baptism. There are so many other places to experience God in community. Has God shown up for you in a place and time where you weren’t expecting? Where do you experience interacting with God within your community of faith? Do those places sometimes surprise you? Why?
• The Pharisees approached the man once born blind without actually seeing that he was healed. They had doubts to his identity, and their doubts led them to drive the man out of his community. Have there been times where you’ve had doubts in your faith journey? Have you had the opportunity to honestly talk about those doubts with people you trust? Do you feel encouraged to talk about your doubts in your life of faith? Why or why not?

Activity Suggestions

• We experience God in tactile ways, and sometimes in messy encounters. What does your faith look like if you were to describe it in a picture? What would that faith look like if you were to actually create that picture? In using the ordinary elements from this week’s Scripture lessons (oil, water, and dirt—preferably potting soil), create a portrait of your faith. Because oil and water repel one another, what was it like to create a faith portrait from these elements?
• What would it look like to create a space of blessing and healing for yourself and for others? This is an opportunity to do a simple activity with a profound effect. Stand in a circle, and with a small container of anointing oil or water from the baptismal font, make a sign of a cross on the forehead of the person next to you and state, “[Name], you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever.” Make sure everyone has the opportunity to give and receive this blessing. Once you have anointed one another, talk about the experience within community of what it meant to bless one another.

Closing Prayer

Merciful God who created us in the diversity of your holy image, we pray that we may experience the world through your vision. We pray to see your holy image in every living being we encounter. We pray that if there is something impeding how we encounter your grace and mercy in the world, that it may fall away. Help us to understand that there multiple ways to encounter the fullness of your love in the world, and it is in that fullness we continue to profess your grace and love. Amen.

– Jennifer Schultz

I’m Jennifer Schultz, and I’m thrilled to serve as Team Leader for Volunteers for the 2018 Gathering. I currently serve as an ELCA pastor in Los Alamitos, California.  As a student, I didn’t have the opportunity to participate in a Gathering, but I’ve served as an adult leader at two Gatherings. For the 2015 Gathering, I served as Co-Leader for the Volunteers Team. There are so many volunteers that serve throughout the Gathering. The Volunteers Team includes Gathering Volunteer Corps (GVC), Servant Companions, and local volunteers. 
 
The Gathering is an incredible ministry. It provides a dedicated space, time, and ample opportunities to live out our Christian faith in new and different settings with so many siblings in Christ. The experience of the Gathering is not only life-changing for students and adult leaders, but also for the myriads of people who serve in preparation for, during, and after the Gathering. I had no idea how many people were involved until I served on the leadership side of the 2015 Gathering. There are so many dedicated people who come together from a variety of settings, backgrounds, ages, and experiences. This variety actually unites us for the common goals for the Gathering: to bring the love of God through Jesus to life for all participants, to be of service to neighbor, and to experience faith in unexpected, new, and renewed forms.     
 
As you prepare for the Gathering, please know there are so many dedicated people working towards the common goal of everyone of having a faith-filled experience! 

Issue 51 of Administration Matters

Updated tax guides now available through Portico

Portico Benefit Services provides pastors and congregations participating in the ELCA benefit program with no-cost access to Richard R. Hammar’s annual tax guides. Members can use their Portico login.
For pastors, “Clergy Tax Return Preparation Guide” gives special attention to topics most relevant to ministers. >More
For congregations, “Federal Reporting Requirements for Churches” helps congregations understand their federal tax reporting requirements. >More

Buildings and grounds protection

Forty-five hundred churches are the victims of burglary each year, with the median burglary loss estimated at $2,000. >More

HR series – orientation

Few things in life are as exciting – or as harrowing ­– as starting a new job. It’s important that you make the new employee feel welcome and valued. Remember, first impressions last a long time and this is your opportunity to make it a good one. >More

Records retention information

It is important to know which records and information a congregation or synod should keep and which can be discarded. Some records need to be maintained permanently and others should be discarded periodically. Congregation records retention schedule. Synod records retention schedule.

Webinar for existing nonprofit users of QuickBooks

TechSoup provides donated products, services and educational resources for nonprofits, including webinars. A webinar on using QuickBooks for faith-based organizations is available for on-demand viewing. An upcoming webinar takes a deeper look for nonprofits already using QuickBooks for managing their accounting. The webinar, scheduled for March 22 at 1 p.m. Central time, covers these topics: best practices for list setup; different methods for entering income; using QuickBooks as a donor database; auto-allocating expenses to programs; reports for your board; tracking restricted grants; inputting in-kind gifts. Register online for this free webinar. >More

‘Here We Walk’ Lenten fitness challenge

Trinity Lutheran Church in Mason City, Iowa, is practicing healthy habits and teaching about the ELCA’s heritage this Lent. Parish nurse Becky Elsbernd shared Trinity’s resources with Portico for others to try. Members can use the Portico login. >More

Today’s post is from Luke Tegtmeier, 2017 ALCM Planning Committee Member.

The Association of Lutheran Church Musicians is having its biennial national gathering in Minneapolis this summer, July 10-13. If you lead worship in any way – as an organist, director, guitarist, pastor, or singer – there will be something for you!

Not convinced? Here are ten reasons that you should come!

1. Connect with other musicians. Pastors have a variety of opportunities to share experiences and ideas, but musicians are often alone in a church. Attending an ALCM conference is a great way to spend time with colleagues who share the same challenges.
2. Experience something new. Whether it’s a new piece of music, a new rehearsal technique, or a new way to think about ministry, you’ll go home with something new.
3. Celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation! There are lots of events happening in this Reformation year. For our conference, the planning committee chose the theme “Rise, Remember Well the Future.” Our hope is to find a balance between highlighting the treasures of the last 500 years and looking carefully at the future.
4. Visit St. Olaf College. Opening worship will be held at St. Olaf’s Boe Memorial Chapel, with organist Jamie Bobb and Rev. Christine Carlson preaching. ALCM got its start at St. Olaf 30 years ago, and we will recognize those charter members.
   
5. Visit St. John’s Abbey. We will also visit Collegeville, MN to explore our relationship with Roman Catholics 500 years after breaking away from them. We will close the day by singing Compline with the monks in their landmark Abbey Church.
6. Relax into worship. We’re all professional worship leaders. Take this opportunity to let someone else lead worship.
7. Attend a workshop to go more in-depth. Whether you want to learn more about the Orff Schulwerk technique for children’s choirs, conducting a choir from the organ console, bulletin design, writing hymns, or hear about church music in modern Germany, you can choose from over 20 workshops.
8. Hear the National Lutheran Choir. This nationally renowned ensemble, directed by ALCM member David Cherwien, will be leading a Hymn Festival for us one evening – sure to be a memorable evening of excellent singing!
9. Explore two great cities. Come early or stay late to explore the Twin Cities! Minneapolis and St. Paul offer a wide range of attractions, whether you want to visit parks, experience history, wander through a world-class art museum, or listen to live music.
10. Have a blast! With this many church musicians in one hotel, who knows what could happen around the piano in the hotel bar in the evenings?

Hope to see you in Minneapolis! Register here.

Andrew Tucker, Radford, VA

Warm-up Question

Have you ever had a sibling rivalry or a family feud? What was that like? If it resolved, how did that happen?

Sibling Rivalry

This isn’t new news, though it may be news to you. Before World War II, Adidas and Puma were the same shoe company, run by brothers Adolf and Rudolf Dassler. Yet, the power of sibling rivalry and the fog of war led to a split between not just the companies, but the brothers. While Rudolph and his wife were hiding in a bomb

shelter during an air raid, he remarked, “The dirty !#$!@%*& are back again,” almost certainly in reference to the Allied squadrons. Yet, he said it just as Adolf and his wife were climbing into the bunker. Stress already existed between the brothers, who shared a home despite a sour relationship between their wives. Hearing this remark, Adolf was convinced that his brother referred to him and his bride and not to the B17s overhead. By 1948, the businesses had split from one another, following the separation that already existed within the Dassler family. It’s fabled that the brothers never spoke again after the division.  While they were buried in the same cemetery, the separation remains visible: they demanded to be buried at opposite ends of the graveyard.

Yet, the feud didn’t end with the brothers’ deaths in the 1970s. Adidas and Puma had antipathy toward one another for nearly forty years, and with headquarters in the same town, that anger bled over into the social loyalties for the townsfolk.  In 2009, workers from both companies played a friendly soccer match, though residents of Herzogenaurach still suspect tension between the two companies. It’s incredibly difficult to bury fifty years of antipathy.

You can read more about the Dassler brothers here and here.

Of course, this isn’t the only story of such rivalry within business. For instance, another German family feud led to the development of Aldi and Trader Joe’s in the U.S., known in Germany as Aldi Süd and Aldi Nord, respectively. What makes the story of Adidas and Puma so powerful is that, even under threat of death from another enemy, the vanity of the Dassler brothers rivalry played such a prominent role to shape the future of their families, businesses, and industries for decades to come.

Discussion Questions

• What about the story surprised you?
• What parts, if any, do you identify with? Why is that?
• Imagine a world where the Dassler brothers reconciled. What would have changed for them? For their companies? For the town of Herzogenaurach?
• What’s the power of a grudge?

Third Sunday in Lent

Exodus 17:1-7

Romans 5:1-11

John 4:5-42

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

There are a number of the potential controversies within this story that relate to our lives today. For instance, much is made of the woman’s questionable marital status and the number of husbands that she’s had in the past. Others devote attention instead to the fact that this is a public encounter between an unrelated man and woman, which may seem normal to us but was a cultural taboo with intimate undertones to people in 1st century Israel. Both details deserve attention.

But the most interesting part for our day is that this conversation happens on the stage of Samaria. This is not just a man, but a Jew, and a rabbi at that. Nor is this just a woman, but a Samaritan woman who, either through terrible luck or infidelity (not necessarily her own infidelity, mind you), has been given such a bad reputation that she’s getting water in the middle of the day. Perhaps this doesn’t seem surprising at first, except most people sought water in the morning or the evening to avoid the heat of the day. It seems likely that she’s avoiding the side-eye of her neighbors, trying to save face by seeing as few faces as possible. And then she runs into not just a man, but a Jewish man, and he’s a rabbi to boot. In this day and age, Samaritans didn’t associate with Jews, and yet here we are.

There’s one more important detail to note about the matrix of this interaction. Jews and Samaritans are ethnic and religions cousins. All of the nastiness that you hear in the Scripture about Samaritans isn’t about just some random tribe, but about people who share a common lineage, who also claim Abraham, Isaac, and even the well’s namesake, Jacob, as their forebears. While we’re at it, let’s also remember Abraham’s wife Sarah, Isaac’s wife Rebekah, and Jacob’s two wives Rachel and Leah were prominent players in the story of these nations. The Samaritan woman’s surprise that this Jewish rabbi offers her a drink is quite genuine, for as the passage says, Jews don’t associate with Samaritans, even though they’re family (4:9).

The antipathy between the two groups has its roots in Assyrian conquest of the Northern Kingdom in 722 BCE.  Many of the elites were taken out of the land. Those who remained in Israel made the best lives they could in a land wasted by war, which meant they intermarried with people other than Jews and developed different social and religious customs, including worshipping on Mt. Gerizim instead of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. They became known as Samaritans.

The Southern Kingdom fell in 587 to Babylon and again the elites were taken into exile.  After the Exile (a period of about 50 years) those who returned to resettle Israel had developed their own set of traditions which focused on the Jerusalem Temple and strong preferences for marrying other Jews.  They did this to keep a strong religious and cultural identity in a foreign land. Yet, Jews and Samaritans worshiped the same God, kept remarkably similar sacrifices, and shared a common family tree. The reasons Samaritans and Jews didn’t associate with one another was because each felt like they carried on the proper traditions of their ancestors. Each identified as God’s truly chosen people.  It’s incredibly difficult to bury fifty years of antipathy between the Dassler brothers, it pales in comparison to the nearly six centuries of division between Jews and Samaritans before Jesus meets this woman at Jacob’s well.

Into this hurricane of social discomfort Jesus brings the message of salvation to the Samaritan woman, and through her, to her entire town. This points to Jesus’ desire to bridge the chasm between Samaria and Israel, bringing fulfillment of God’s promises to all descendants of Jacob and not just one side of the family tree. What’s incredible here isn’t just that Jesus opens salvation to a woman considered a sinner by people’s court, but that Jesus makes her an evangelist for God to Samaria, just as he and his companions preach good news to the Jews. Jesus makes a Samaritan woman a disciple of the God of Israel, who is also the God of Samaria, who is also the God of all creation. Through her, the neighbors who once scorned her past and presence now praise her for her role in bringing them into the joy of Jesus. The power of God isn’t just personal salvation, though it certainly is that, but the mending of ancient hatred for unified and abundant life in God’s kingdom.

Discussion Questions

• Reflection is one of the practices of Lent. How do race and religious practices build walls between us and our human cousins which are similar to those we see between Jews and Samaritans in John 4?
• Repentance is another Lenten practice. What divisions do we need to confess to God?
• Redemption and restoration are the great hopes of Lent. How can you live in ways that, like the Samaritan woman, anticipate God’s restoration?

Activity Suggestions

• “Sardines” highlights the kind of power of Jesus’ movement to overcome the divisions in our lives, even those that work hard to separate us from others. The work of one welcomes us to participate in a family unified in our diversity. For sardines, one person counts while others hide throughout the building (be sure to denote spaces that are out of bounds, like bathrooms). As that person finds the hiders, they in turn join the mission to discover every last person who remains apart from the group. The last person found becomes the new seeker.
• Work together as a group to repair something broken, out of order, or in disrepair. This could be something at the church, for someone in need, or items that each person brings and wants to see restored. Perhaps not everything will get fixed, but that provides for helpful conversation around the difficulty of restoration.

Closing Prayer

Lord God, we often allow the divisions in our world and in our families to make us believe that you love us more than others. Purge that lie from our lives. We repent of the walls that we’ve built. Send your Spirit to help us to build bridges across the artificial divides which prevent us from seeing your divine image in others. As we continue this Lenten journey, keep showing up in the Samarias of our lives, in the places where we least expect you, so that we might find your salvation even beyond the ends of the earth. We pray this all in the name of Jesus. Amen.

By Lia Hansen, Program Associate at the Lutheran Office for World Community

To say that the United States plays a pivotal role in the work of the United Nations is an understatement. Since the formation of the United Nations, the United States has been instrumental in its conception, creation, and funding. The United States’ financial commitment has fluctuated. Many bills have been introduced in the U.S. Congress to decrease U.S. funding commitments since 1945. As an example, a 2005 UN Reform Act[1] passed in Congress called for a switch from UN Charter-based assessed dues plus voluntary contributions to a fully voluntary funding model, withholding dues until certain reforms were met. Although this act was never implemented, a strong desire exists in many sectors of U.S. society for decreased involvement in the United Nations continues to exist.

President Trump’s administration has capitalized upon and furthered an anti-UN stance. The new administration submitted two draft executive orders to the National Security Council that were withheld from approval pending further review by the State Department. The draft orders called for at least 40% overall decrease[2] in U.S. voluntary contributions. This would be difficult to implement immediately, but new administration’s goal to seriously diminish U.S. involvement in UN programs is clear.

As people of faith who do advocacy on behalf of and within the Lutheran church, we believe that justice is what God’s love and our love for our neighbors looks like in public. As such, it is alarming to think that many of the UN programs aimed at helping the world’s most vulnerable could be diminished or eliminated.

While the U.S. pays the maximum rate in dues to the UN by Member States (22% for regular operations and 28% for peacekeeping), this only encompasses about 0.1% of the total federal budget. Moreover, the U.S. derives economic benefits from continual engagement with the U.N.; for every $1 invested in the UN secretariat, the U.S. receives over $1.60 in return in economic activity in New York[3].

The Better World Campaign estimates that United States’ contributions to the U.N. directly provide vaccinations for 40% of children worldwide, assists 65 million refugees, funds 120,000 peacekeepers, fights poverty for 420 million rural poor, and has saved the lives of 30 million women through the promotion of maternal health.  Among all these initiatives, I will outline the contributions made and programs delivered by three critical agencies: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the World Food Program (WFP) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA)

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East was established in 1949, following the Arab-Israeli conflict, to provide relief and works programs to Palestinian refugees. UNRWA’s services range from education, health care, relief and social services, and emergency assistance; it has assisted generations of Palestinian people since its foundation. Lutheran World Federation has worked in partnership with UNRWA since 1949 to provide healthcare for many Palestinians in Jerusalem[4]. In the year of its founding, UNRWA responded to the needs of 750,000 refugees. Its operations have grown exponentially, now serving 5 million eligible refugees.

The United States plays a pivotal role in the provision of these services. In 2015, the U.S. donated $380,593,116, around 30% of the total budget[5]. As the biggest voluntary contributor, a potential reduction of 40% would be disastrous.

Not only would a U.S. funding cut impact the lives of millions of Palestinian refugees, but would also result in threats to livelihoods and create social disruption and insecurity in the societies of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria which host them, fueling major political and economic instability in the region.

World Food Program (WFP)

The World Food Program was founded in 1961 as part of the UN system. It currently assists 80 million people in more than 80 countries each year. It is the leading international organization fighting hunger. In a world where one in nine people worldwide don’t have enough to eat, the WFP food assistance services are essential. The WFP will be instrumental in reaching the Sustainable Development Goal #2 of zero hunger.

The WFP is funded entirely by voluntary donations. Out of its $5.9 billion budget in 2016, the U.S. funded around a third ($2 billion) of its total budget. In addition, the U.S. has funded special programs in emergencies, such as providing an additional $125 million in 2014 for the Syrian crisis[6].

The WFP recently declared famine in several regions of South Sudan, with 100,000 lives threatened in addition to the 5 million South Sudanese facing severe food insecurity. Food insecurity has increased in the region due to many factors that contribute to inadequate access and delivery. Climate change phenomena affecting the Horn of Africa has led to major droughts in Somalia. This combined with other factors has led to a major food crisis in East Africa, potentially affecting around 3 million people, with increased risk for famine. The WFP is instrumental in mitigating these and countless others protracted food insecure situations worldwide. Action must be taken, and a major U.S. withdrawal is likely to result in countless lives lost.

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Since its formation in 1950 the UNHCR has served and protected approximately 50 million refugees. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is the leading international organization aiding and protecting refugees worldwide, providing food, shelter, and medical services in over 126 countries[7]. The Lutheran World Federation is a historic and active partner, the fifth largest, aiding 1.4 million refugees in 2012. In addition to operations in Jordan, Mauritania, Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nepal, the LWF closely collaborates with UNHCR in South Sudan[8]. Around 1.5 million people have fled to camps in Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda, in addition to the 1.5 million internally displaced people within South Sudan[9]. The UNHCR’s work is critical in aiding and protecting these refugees.

The United States plays a critical role in this work, providing 21% (1.5 billion) of the UNHCR’s $7 billion budget. The shift in the U.S. President’s administration towards one that disparages the lives of refugees, in addition to the proposed UN budget cuts, seriously threatens the lives of the millions dependent on UNHCR’s protection and services.

This is not only a fiscal issue; it is a moral issue. Through the strong in our commitment to the values and programs represented by and carried out through the United Nations, and advocate for renewed U.S. financial commitment as vital to ensuring human rights and dignity for all.

Conclusion
At 22% of the general UN budget, and 28% of peacekeeping operation costs, the U.S. provides invaluable support to U.N. programs worldwide. Decreasing funding by the proposed 40% will inevitably forfeit United States’ leadership at the UN, and threaten critical programs worldwide. The ELCA recently signed on to a letter addressed to congressional leadership strongly urging congress to renew its commitment to and leadership in the United Nations.

This is not only a fiscal issue; it is a moral issue. Through the strong in our commitment to the values and programs represented by and carried out through the United Nations, and advocate for renewed U.S. financial commitment as vital to ensuring human rights and dignity for all.

[1] https://betterworldcampaign.org/us-un-partnership/importance-of-funding-the-un/why-congress-must-oppose-efforts-to-cut-funding-to-the-united-nations/

[2] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/world/americas/trump-un-funding-order.html?_r=0

[3] https://betterworldcampaign.org/us-un-partnership/importance-of-funding-the-un/un-budget-process/

[4] https://jerusalem.lutheranworld.org/content/history-91

[5] https://www.unrwa.org/sites/default/files/2015_donors_ranking_overall.pdf

[6] https://www.wfp.org/funding/year/2016

[7] http://www.unrefugees.org/about-us/

[8] https://www.lutheranworld.org/content/un-agencies

[9] https://www.lutheranworld.org/content/emergency-south-sudan-conflict

Today’s post is from The Rev. Brian Hooper, M.Div., Psy.D., a licensed pastoral psychotherapist serving in private practice and in parish ministry in Nashville, TN. His website is www.drbrianhooper.com

Myths are truth and wisdom

Most people think of myths as stories that are simply not true. Nothing could be further from the case. Myths are truth and wisdom packed inside stories so that they can get inside of us. We take in the stories and they in turn draw out into the world our deep resonance with the truth. We swallow the truth wrapped in the story and become that truth in the world.

Myths are not stories that are false, but stories that are so true that the truth cannot be confined to the details of the story. The truth is larger than the story itself.

A mythic perspective stirs the imagination to image in our own lives the power and often multivalent significance of the story or ritual.

For instance, the Eucharist is the body and blood of Christ for us sinners to eat and drink for the forgiveness of sins. (Luther’s Small Catechism). But if we confine it to simply “forgiveness for me,” then we miss the whole point.

Forgiveness affects relationships – with God, self, parish community, nation, world and all of nature. We become what we receive – bread for a world that hungers for the companionship (com = with; panis = bread) of God and cup for a world that thirsts for spiritual inebriation. Luther says as much as he writes in the Small Catechism, “For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.” We are being renewed, salvaged, and called into the fullness of life today!

We participate in Jesus’ life because he has participated in our lives

We take into ourselves the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus who has first taken into himself all of creation. Our lives are given back to us in Christ through his body and blood conveyed under gifts of bread and wine. And we are strengthened by this transformed and transforming meal to let the false-self die so that we may be our authentic selves, created to live with integrity, reflecting the image of God. And we in turn take into ourselves whatever is hostile to the wholeness of our world, wrestling with it and crucifying it according to our station in life, so that the world can be raised more whole. What is said of Christ is also true of us, “Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.” We participate in his life because he has participated in our lives. God is both wrapped up in and made visible in creation, and that includes us.

When the church practices this expansive and mythic way of thinking we live the TRUTH of the Gospel/Kingdom of God most fully. Where we simply literalize or confine our understanding of truth to the mere details alone, we empty the scripture stories, sacraments, and rituals of their truth.

Often on days like this, I am moved in remembrance of stories. Perhaps this day invokes memories of women whom you have loved and who have loved us. Perhaps you remember the fierce women from the sacred texts — my personal favorite: the Daughters of Zelophehad (Numbers 27). Maybe you reflect on women who have led their communities and world and need no introduction, from girls like Malala Yousafzai to women like Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and ELCA International Leaders scholar Leymah Gbowee to those who names have been hidden like Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Dorothy Vaughan, most recently illuminated in the major film “Hidden Figures.”

The global agenda for women is driven by a seminal meeting of the United Nations “Fourth World Conference on Women” in 1995 in Beijing. It was at this meeting that Former Secretary of State – and then-First Lady – Hillary Clinton brought to prominence the phrase “Women’s rights are human rights; and human rights are women’s rights.”

Each year, the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) convenes the “Commission on the Status of Women” (CSW), the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. This year marks the 61^st year since the United Nations First World Conference on Women (Mexico City), and the theme for CSW this year is “Women’s Economic Empowerment in the Changing World of Work,” a critical theme for those of us dedicated to a just world where all are fed.

Take this quick quiz to see how much you know about women in the global economy!

UN Women

ELCA World Hunger is a founding member of the ELCA Young Adult Cohort, a group of young adults engaging at the intersection between faith + justice. One of the signature leadership experiences of this Cohort is at the UN CSW, and beginning next week, this group will again join hands, stories and voices together to learn, convene and strive toward a just world where are all are fed and all might flourish. You can follow along with the larger movement through Ecumenical Women online and on social media by following @ELCAWorld Hunger (Twitter and Instagram) and on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, with the #ELCAYACohort hashtag.

ELCA Global Church Sponsorship and ELCA Global Mission leaders often also join the Lutheran delegation at UN CSW and have produced some great materials for ELCA congregations and friends to use on this day. This International Women’s Day booklet is a great place to start, full to the brim of excellent ideas to learn, share and support this ministry.

But perhaps my favorite parts are the smiling faces that greet us on the front cover and throughout the materials. These are the women whose stories we know and can journey alongside as they build stronger communities and a more just world.

I could write about many of them by name and you can learn more about the ELCA International Leaders program and meet some of them in this video. But today, I leave you with an example of how our work together as a church is interconnected, or as Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton says, “We are church together!”

On the top left corner of this booklet cover is a woman named Julinda. Julinda is the executive director of the Women’s Crisis Center, a ministry of the GKPS church in North Sumatra, Indonesia. I have written more about her ELCA World Hunger supported work and ministry here. Julinda has advocated at the UN CSW (pictured below), is also an international women leader and has participated in one of the signature leadership events, a series of seminars hosted in Wittenberg Germany, birthplace of the Reformation, for women from the Global South to come together for conversation and ongoing reformation.

In this 500th anniversary year of the Reformation, let us:

• Remember those who have walked before – and especially today, the women who continue the journey.
• Give to support this ministry into the future – “Always Being Made New: The Campaign for the ELCA” is making this possible for ministries like ELCA World Hunger and ELCA International Women Leaders.

From stories of Leymah and Julinda to those who will advocate and educate at next week’s UN CSW, we are church together. Join us. (Have a “her-story” to share? Check out Lutheran World Federation’s “Women on the Move” her-stories project.)

2016 UN CSW Delegation, Julinda pictured second row, second from the right.

Mikka McCracken is the Director of Planning and Engagement for ELCA World Hunger.

– Jake Putala

As a rural Michigander, the Detroit ELCA Youth Gathering was an eye-opener. Yes, I live in Michigan, but I didn’t understand what the people of Motor City were going through. I never saw how we can do God’s work with our very own hands until I went on this trip—and I am forever grateful that I did.

What started with a eight hour bus ride (without air conditioning, I might add) turned out to be one of the best times of my life. Our synod took two busses, transporting about 120 Lutheran youth and chaperones. I only knew a few of them, so meeting many other youth who all share a passion for Christ was so inspiring.

However, it wasn’t meeting people that was the best part. It was seeing God’s work in action that gave me a feeling of awe and spiritual revival. When we were helping the less fortunate get a meal or building a house for a low income family, it wasn’t us who were doing this work. It was God. God brought all of us together for fellowship, service, and worship. Being in a sports stadium with 30,000 other Lutherans was quite possibly the most incredible experience of my life. Singing hymns, listening to inspiring speakers, and seeing how energetic the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America could be created a whole new appreciation for my faith, and, more importantly, for Jesus Christ.

I would recommend to any young Lutheran to attend the Gathering. What seems to be a short week turns into a lifetime of love, passion, and enthusiasm for Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Always remember: Jesus is GOOD news!

Kris Litman-Koon, Columbia, SC

Warm-up Question

Have you ever been a part of or witnessed a conversation where people “talked past” each other? Describe the experience and your emotions during the conversation.

Skewing the Discourse

There is a website called Facebook. Ever heard of it? Of course, and you are likely aware of how discourse takes place on the site: a news story is shared (perhaps with

one’s personal commentary) and other users leave their comments. Whenever the story stirs up emotions and political viewpoints, there is often a trail of comments left under the story. This usually continues, not until all sides are in agreement, but until all sides are sick of arguing.

These trails of comments are fertile ground for analysis. Recently, a study was performed by Yale Climate Connections, which is a non-partisan resource offered through Yale University that seeks to provide daily commentary, analysis, and reporting on issues surrounding climate change. Writer and researcher Karin Kirk wanted to scientifically study whether comments made on Facebook are representative of the views held by the general public, using climate change as the topic of focus.

Karin Kirk analyzed 600 Facebook comments that were left under the stories published from six sources on Facebook; four of these were news media (Fox News, New York Times, CNN, and Washington Post) and two were government agencies (NASA, NOAA). Users’ comments were judged by their stance (agree with the science pointing toward climate change, disagree with that science, and neutral) as well as by the stated rationale for that stance (science, policy, humanity/ethics, emotion). The stances of the Facebook comments were then compared to polling that has been conducted on the general public.

Researcher Karin Kirk states, “The takeaway is that compared to the general population in the U.S., Facebook comments on climate change appear more polarized and more dismissive of climate science than the population as a whole. An observer relying on the Facebook comments would get an inaccurate representation of how the public generally feels about climate change.” In other words, the conversation on Facebook can easily skew how we see the real conversation. Kirk also comments that people seem to talk past each other on Facebook.

When determining the rationale for the stances taken in the Facebook comments, those who agree with the scientific community and those who disagree with it both overwhelmingly base their arguments on science. An example of a dismissive stance toward the science that points to climate change yet is based on a rationale of science is “the climate has changed before.” So, if the opposing viewpoints overwhelmingly both use science as the rationale for their polar opposite stances, why is the conversation not going anywhere? Kirk says it is because people are talking past each other, and the amplification on Facebook of the extreme viewpoints is not helping the conversation move forward.

If the goal is to actually have a fruitful conversation that addresses this critical issue, Karin Kirk says, “Straightforward [scientific] explanations can help address misunderstandings about natural vs. human-caused climate forces. But it’s much harder to convince some people that science is trustworthy.” She continues, “[Instead,] shift the conversation to what’s actually relevant and far from settled: climate policy and mitigation and adaptation strategies. There is need for vigorous debate around energy policy, subsidies, taxation, and the social cost of carbon. An open exchange of policy ideas will be no less vehement, but much more pertinent.”

Discussion Questions

• Do you feel that Facebook and other forms of social media are good ways to obtain information about what is taking place in the world? Do you feel that people should purposefully consume news from a variety of media sources?  Where do you primarily get your news?
• Some news sites have removed the comment sections under their articles because they were deemed too vitriolic. Some people make the argument that all of us should avoid reading comments on Facebook, YouTube, news sites, and anywhere else on the internet. Would this practice of avoiding internet comments be beneficial for you or anyone else you know?  Why?
• What insights do you have for keeping a conversation (on the internet or otherwise) to the pertinent discourse?

Second Sunday in Lent

Genesis 12:1-4a

Romans 4:1-5, 13-17

John 3:1-17

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Our gospel lesson for this Sunday contains those most beloved verses: John 3:16-17. Should we only focus on those verses and the warm-fuzzies that they give us? No. I don’t want to discount the power of those verses, but we should take a step back from them. Perhaps seeing what else is going on in this conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus will shed more light on those beloved verses.

Start with verses 1 and 2. Nicodemus begins the conversation with a compliment to Jesus; “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” If Jesus wanted to keep the conversation moving in the direction that Nicodemus had left it, Jesus should have replied, “Thank you. I do come from God, and these signs that I do are for the purpose of showing others that God sent me.”

But Jesus doesn’t reply with anything like that. He jumps to a statement about the Kingdom of God and that people need to be born from above. Perhaps sensing that Jesus (rudely?) took the conversation in a completely different direction, Nicodemus somewhat taunts Jesus’ reply by joking about someone entering a mother a second time only to be born again (Nicodemus absolutely knows this isn’t possible).

Jesus offers a reply, ultimately making a reference to the wind (v.8). Perhaps Nicodemus thinks the conversation has completely derailed (remember: all this started by paying Jesus a compliment), so he responds incredulously, “How can these things be?”

Jesus’ response mentions that Nicodemus is a teacher, yet he doesn’t understand the point Jesus is trying to make (vv.10-11). If Nicodemus questions what Jesus has to say about the wind, then how can Nicodemus understand the spiritual point Jesus is trying to make (v.12)?

Anyone listening to this conversation must ask, “So what is that point you are trying to make, Jesus?” I sympathize with Nicodemus because – although Jesus’ words here are some of the most revered in all of scripture – the conversation has gone well off the tracks. To find the point Jesus is trying to make, let’s do a word count of the word “believe” in verses 12-17. Go ahead.

How many times did Jesus use the word “believe” in those verses? If you look ahead at verse 18, you will notice that Jesus uses “believe” three more times in that one verse. With all these mentions of “believe,” do you think Jesus is hammering home a message to Nicodemus?

Yes. Jesus purposefully does not follow the conventional means of having a conversation because he wants to get a point across to Nicodemus. What he is trying to do is move beyond the normal banter and instead focus on what is pertinent: belief. Jesus doesn’t want Nicodemus and other people (including us) to offer mere compliments for the signs and teachings of Jesus. Rather, Jesus wants them to deeply believe that the Son was sent to save them. Why? Because God loves the world that much (vv.16-17).

Discussion Questions

• It is commonly understood that the night-time setting of this story is symbolic of Nicodemus’ faith toward Jesus. At this point, he is inquiring about Jesus’ origin and mission. Nicodemus returns in John 7:50-51 and he appears again in John 19:39-42, which scholars understand to be a progression in his belief that Jesus is indeed sent from God. Do you think that belief in Jesus can happen quickly for some people and more slowly for others? Why? What is your own experience?
• The epistle reading (Romans 4:1-5, 13-17) talks about how faith – not our works nor our adherence to God’s Law – is the basis for the divine promise that has been made to Abraham and his descendants. What do you think about this? Can or should God make promises to us if we haven’t done something to earn those promises? How do you connect this reading’s discussion of faith with Jesus’ point about belief in the gospel reading?

Activity Suggestions

Today’s lesson is on belief, so we need an activity that involves some belief. I call this “The Family Name Game.” To keep the game moving quickly (and perhaps doing multiple rounds of it), it’s best to play in groups of between six and twelve people. Everyone in the group receives a small scrap of paper to write on. Without telling anyone else, each person writes a real or fictitious “name” on the piece of paper that most others should know. Examples are Harry Potter, The New England Patriots, and Michelle Obama. These pieces of paper are collected by one person and read aloud only twice, so everyone needs to listen and try to remember all the names.

Then one person begins by saying to another, “_______, I believe you are Harry Potter.” If the person answers “no,” then he or she makes the next guess of whether someone else is any one of the names that was read aloud. If the person answers “yes,” then they must join the family of the person who guessed correctly (who is now the “head” of their family). The head (with consultation of other family members) then gets to guess again. A family can consist of two or more people, and those outside the family attempt to guess who the head of the family is. The game is played until everyone is a part of one family.

Closing Prayer

God of all who call upon you, there are times in our lives that seem to be the night-time of our belief, and there are times in our lives that seem to be the day-time of our belief. Stir your Spirit within us to trust that you indeed sent Jesus to us, and that through him we can witness and experience the fullness of your love. Help us to understand that whether we think our beliefs are in the night or in the day, it is you who comes to us with your light to reveal to us your grace, love, and forgiveness. Amen.