ELCA Blogs
Chris Heavner, Clemson, SC
Warm-up Question
Old and New
My high school adopted a mascot many of us attending that school found to be insensitive, if not downright offensive. In 1962, when the school was established, we had not yet learned to listen to the voices of those whose experiences did not match those of the loud and boisterous. It was difficult to speak of what we wanted to be and become, when we were continually reminded of the comfort the status quo brought most of our classmates.
While we all like the idea of something new and different, it is never easy to let go of what we know so well. “If it ain’t broke; don’t fix it!” expresses our reluctance to make way for what is yet to come.
It doesn’t take long for us to fall into a comfortable routine. The 12th graders at our annual Synod Youth Retreat are celebrated in rituals which they strengthen by their participation as 10th and 11th graders. How dare we make changes when it is THEIR year to be in a unique small group of their own!
But nothing new can come when we hold the old too firmly.
It is easy to recognize the things which others (you can read “old people”) need to release. It is not so easy to see what we have so firmly grasped that we do not have an open hand to receive what is about to pass us by.
Discussion Questions
Day of Pentecost
(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
This reading is part of Jesus’ farewell message to his disciples. He is telling them both good-bye and what he expects of them. We read this passage on Pentecost Sunday because it is such a clear message from Jesus about the role and purpose of the Holy Spirit. (Here called “the Advocate,” but also referred to as the “Spirit of Truth, “Holy Spirit,’ or “Holy Ghost.”)
On Pentecost Sunday, there is a great commotion in Jerusalem as the presence of this Spirit becomes obvious in the lives of the disciples. They begin to speak in strange tongues and they overwhelm folks with their announcement of God’s salvation.
Jesus says that this day can’t come until the Advocate comes. And the Advocate can’t come until Jesus is gone. Jesus knew the disciples were not going to lean on the Advocate so long as they had Jesus to lean on. So long as Jesus was with them, they did not need the Spirit to drive them out into the crowd to tell the Good News. Jesus was better at it than they, right? But when Jesus isn’t there, the Advocate is able to nudge them into action. And they become the witnesses to the truth of what Jesus taught and shared.
On Pentecost Sunday, we are each reminded of how powerfully the Advocate moves among us. We become those who turn loose of whatever it is that we were holding so tightly that we are unable to embrace the new thing God is doing in our midst.
It is a difficult thing to let loose of that which we come to prefer and to trust. But letting loose is essential to becoming the people God knows we have the capacity to be.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
Seek out one of the older members of your congregation. Ask them to tell you about a practice or way of doing things which is no longer a part of the congregation’s life. Allow them to remember the happiness this event brought them; then ask if something was able to take its place.
Start by realizing that the Advocate is active in your life. Now – sit in stillness long enough to discover the thing you are being nudged to do. Maybe it is being kind to the classmate others ignore. Maybe it is speaking out against racism. The Spirit may be looking to you to be the one who shouts a reminder of how much God loves all the little children of the world.
Closing Prayer
O Lord, allow the Wind of Pentecost to blow though my life and into my world. Make it possible for me to follow where you lead and to do the things which you desire. Help me to avoid the comfortable niche; make me ever ready to take on the challenge of speaking your name and your promise. Amen.
Brian Hiortdahl, Woodland Hills, CA
Warm-up Question
How do you stay in healthy relationship with someone with whom you strongly disagree?
E Pluribus Unum?
As the United States transitioned from one presidential administration to another, many families struggled with strained or broken relationships overheated by strong political disagreement. An article by Belinda Luscomb in TIME reports that, “a postelection Pew Research Center survey found that fewer than 2% of voters felt those who voted for the other party understood them very well, and only 13% of Joe Biden’s voters and 5% of Donald Trump’s voters expressed any desire for future unity. Luscomb’s article chronicles several studies and personal stories to illustrate a larger social trend.
“An October study from the University of Missouri found that since 2016, family interactions have been more likely to drive highly partisan relatives apart than bring them together.” Family members are blocking each other on social media over political opinions. Holiday meals have become difficult. Parents and children view each other with mutual incomprehension. One explanation, suggests Luscomb, is that “in the Trump era, many Americans don’t see voting as a decision about a set of policies, they see it as a moral imperative, an act that will make or break the country.”
Discussion Questions
Seventh Sunday of Easter
(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
Every year, on the seventh Sunday of Easter, we “overhear” Jesus praying to his Father on the night before he died. After a very long section of final words to his overwhelmed disciples (see John 16:12, which is how I always felt in calculus), Jesus speaks a lengthy, powerful prayer for them (chapter 17). Today’s gospel is from the middle of that prayer, in which Jesus repeats his request “that they may be one, as we are one” (vs. 11, 22).
As Martin Luther would ask, “What does this mean?” Does it mean being of one mind, with one singular focus? Does it mean being united together with each other in loyalty that is stronger than disagreement? Could it perhaps mean both and more?
The disciples did not agree politically: zealots like Simon would never associate with tax collectors like Matthew. Yet both were disciples of Jesus … who also once spoke about how he had come to divide families! (See Matthew 10:34-39.) It’s complicated; maybe calculus is easier.
The one family connection that always remains strong, John’s gospel reminds us, is the union between God (Father) and Jesus (his only Son). It is that truth-filled, joyful relationship of unbreakable love which Jesus wants to share with his disciples. Jesus knows that the world is full of conflict, cruelty, division, distraction, deception, and danger; he will feel all of it the next day on the cross. This troubled world is the same one God loves so much that God sent Jesus in the first place (John 3:16-17). Now Jesus has also sent his disciples into the world (17:18), and he won’t be there with them in the same way he has been. “Holy Father, protect them”…he prays…”so that they may be one, as we are one.”
This mind-bending prayer reveals to us something even more impossible to comprehend: God’s wildly generous love. God shares Jesus with an unappreciative world, and Jesus shares everything—including giving his intimate relationship with the Father to his disciples, just before giving his very life to the world.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
Closing Prayer
Gracious Father, we pray for your holy catholic church. Fill it with all truth and peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it; where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in need, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen. (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, p.73)
David Delaney, Salem, VA
Warm-up Questions
Love in the Time of Pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has turned our lives upside down, affecting everything from the way we work to family relationships and friendships, for better and for worse. The pandemic might be keeping people apart, but it’s also brought people closer together. Before the coronavirus pandemic broke out, 17-year-old Anna (who lives in Germany) regularly met up with her friends — a group of seven girls who’ve known each other for years. But nowadays it’s impossible to get together for a chat, a bit of shopping, or a night out. Instead, the teenagers connect online. With schools shut across Germany, Anna has lost touch with all but her closest friends. She occasionally goes for walks with a girl who lives nearby. “I haven’t met up with any other friends,” she said. “My parents don’t want me to, because of the high number of infections.”
Young people aren’t the only ones struggling. Parents who are juggling work and homeschooling have little time to socialize. And with sports clubs and bars shut, many are finding it hard to stay in touch with friends.
So is the pandemic ruining our friendships? Yes and no, says Wolfgang Krüger, a Berlin-based psychotherapist who has written a book about friendship. He differentiates between close and casual friendships, describing the latter as “based on shared activities, like singing in a choir, practicing sports, or playing cards in the pub.” Without that context, these friendships fade away, Krüger said. That’s one reason why loneliness has become especially acute among elderly single men, he added.
Silbernetz, an organization tackling loneliness in old age, confirms this development. A growing number of elderly citizens are seeking out its services. But Krüger argues that the pandemic had also deepened many close friendships. “We tend to have three of these at most,” he said. “We can tell these friends anything, we trust them completely, and there’s a high degree of intimacy.” These friendships are likely to have blossomed in the past year, he said, because in times of crisis we need to talk more than ever.
That has been Anna’s experience. She said she and one of her friends had been exchanging letters and sharing their innermost thoughts. “We’ve grown closer than we were before the pandemic,” she said, “when we mainly talked in group settings.” However, other friendships have cooled off. “Some of my girlfriends don’t get in touch much anymore, and it feels like we’re growing apart,” she said.
A survey on wellbeing and mental health during the pandemic conducted last summer by University College London found that half of the respondents reported no changes in their relationships with others. 15% reported improvements and 22% said their friendships had deteriorated. The social media company Snap Inc. has also been investigating the effects of the pandemic on interactions, with a recent study giving weight to Krüger’s theory that close relationships have deepened.
On the other hand, said Janosch Schobin, a sociologist who specializes in friendships at the University of Kassel, complex social constellations are one of the reasons why other friends are drifting apart. During the pandemic, Schopin said, people are reducing their social interactions and focusing on fewer, closer friendships. “This shift in attention means some friends receive sufficient attention,” he said, “while others don’t.” As a result, we find ourselves growing apart from people with whom we once felt close. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to tackle loneliness. Some people, Schobin says, adapt and nurture friendships with people they’ve known for a while, even if they haven’t always been close.
Elke Schilling, who works for Silbernetz, said pensioners might consider reaching out to old contacts. She said the organization Silberdraht provided a telephone service for older people, offering entertainment such as radio plays, news and music.
For younger people, such as Anna, social media, apps and online games provide some comfort. But they’re no replacement for real life friendships.
Discussion Questions
Sixth Sunday of Easter
(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 half-dozen or so centerpiece words in this gospel reading – “love,” “abide,” “command,” “joy,” “friend,” “fruit.” Long-time readers of John’s gospel have noticed that instead of proceeding in a straight-line argument, the Evangelist John tends to show Jesus circling around an idea, tying concepts together with various words until his hearers gain more of an image rather than an explanation of what Jesus is saying.
Those who read the three letters of John near the end of the New Testament notice the same pattern. In the end, the image they develop is that Jesus is making his love available for them to share with one another and, in turn, the world. He is not asking them to do anything that would require them to be on their own or draw on their own strength. Rather, he is building them into a community where each individual can be strengthened and the hard things he is asking can be accomplished.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
Closing Prayer
Loving God, we pray that you would hold us close to yourself, that we may know the love that you have shared with Jesus your Son, and that through him we may have love for one another and for the world you have made. Make us bearers of much fruit, to your praise and glory. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Danny Stone, Springville, IA
Warm-up Questions
Our “Pandemic Year” has forced us to adapt to new challenges and change our ways. What adaptations and changes will you keep? What will you prune?
More Than Just Surviving
Imagine being born into a pandemic and having the same pestilence return when you are 18, 28, 39, 42, and 44. These outbreaks are particularly. nasty and can easily kill 1 out of 5 in a community. As you would expect, each episode comes with quarantines and restrictions. Markets, gatherings, restaurants and theaters are closed for extended periods. Sound familiar? How would you react if you were a locally famous, London playwright forced into isolation? Would you sulk? Or would you write Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, The Winter’s Tale and The Tempest? William Shakespeare’s career and life were marked by six eruptions of the bubonic plague. He survived, adapted, and incorporated battling the disease into his plays.
“A plague on both your houses.” – Romeo and Juliet: Act 3, Scene 1, Line 1594
“Thou art a boil” – King Lear: Act 2, Scene 4, Line 219
Maybe a new Shakespeare is right now writing a brilliant tragedy. Some of us have made incredible leaps as we cope with Covid 19. Some of us face daily struggles, loneliness, isolation, and financial ruin. 567,000 of our neighbors have lost their lives. A very unscientific Facebook poll asked 1300 Americans to answer, “How has the pandemic changed your life, and will you make any of these changes permanent?”
Matt – Georgia
Matt moved from a community in Michigan that refused to mask or social distance. “So we left. In the beginning it was socially distant RV trips to other parts of the country to see natural splendor. In the end it was full-on relocation to a place with a better climate (weather) and a better climate (diverse and progressive).”
Kellie – Iowa and Germany
“I learned a lot about myself. I’ve explored new interests and had some time to explore who I am outside of “teacher.” My husband and I also grew closer as we had to get more creative with our conversations since we spent every day at home with each other. It also helped, I suppose, that we moved across the world with just each other for company. I have learned how selfish many Americans are, and I hope that some of these practices (like wearing a mask when you are sick) become the norm. I also hope that this slower pace of life becomes the norm. We as a society are so over scheduled, and I think it’s been nice to have a chance to stop and just be.”
Jenna – Texas
“The pandemic gave me time to *be* and heal and slow down, which I appreciate immensely. It also severely slowed/cut my business, which was rough. But, I qualify & am working through a PPP loan application. I will carry a few changes into post-pandemic life. Prioritizing some time to myself and remembering that I can get by on less than I think I can. And focusing more on recording and not just live performances in the next few years.”
Paula – Iowa
“This past year gave me great pause. It made me look at facets of life through different lenses- everything from family, work, faith, community, society, etc. The good, the bad and the ugly became really transparent. I found myself very disappointed in others’ behaviors and at the same time I gained a true appreciation for the kindness of neighbors. Things that I will carry forward… remote connection through zoom, intentional calls and convos with family/friends. Ordering online groceries. Support small local businesses more intentionally. Focus on living in the moment. Not take the basics for granted.”
Heather – Texas
“I think it definitely showed me how important slowing down is and I want to make that as permanent as possible.”
Mike – California
“I’m in my late 50s. I lost 2 sources of employment and stayed home most of the time. I have a lot to own up to. No human should waste time the way I did. I watched way too much news, as I felt like a sentry at the gates of sanity & integrity. Anxiety! I got really good at internet card games rather than reading or learning a new hobby. I also found out how few of my friends couldn’t be bothered to call me and talk (I initiated almost all my phone conversations). It was a horribly unproductive period, but hopefully my awareness is now raised. When 2/3 of your life is behind you, there’s no time to waste. I feel like I just wasted a precious year.”
Discussion Questions
Fifth Sunday of Easter
(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
Hooray for spring and new life. Yes, it is time to roll in the grass and celebrate! The poet, E.E. Cummings called spring “mud-luscious” and “puddle-wonderful.” Soak it all up and take a deep breath. Let’s get outside and enjoy the gifts of the season. Watch the clouds. Jump in a puddle! Prepare the world for her fertile days. We all need a break and a glorious spring to wash off the dust of this past year.
Central to this passage from John is the word “abide.” It is translated from the Greek word “meno” meaning, “to survive or live.” Simply put, Jesus calls us to live in him. Living in Jesus changes our perspective of the world. Instead of living in a moment, we live in Christ and he lives in us. It is like living in an eternal spring, lovingly held in the gardener’s hands. In return, God asks us to bear fruit and share the Good News. Your fruits may be your service to others, the music you create, the plays you write or the love you share.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
Closing Prayer
Dear Blessed Creator! Thank you for the miracles of spring and the promise of life in you. Help us to be fruitful disciples of your love. May we live in the warmth of sun in your eternal garden. You are the vine, and we are the branches! Amen.