ELCA Blogs
Faith Lens is on hiatus until the fall. We hope you find this resource helpful. The next posting is scheduled for August 30.Jen Krausz, Bethlehem, PA
Warm-up Question
Why do you think people are so interested in the supernatural—including ghosts, demons, zombies, and superheroes?
Of Spirits and the Spirit
Some of today’s most popular television shows and movies are built around belief in the supernatural, which reflects what Americans say they believe about otherworldly occurrences. Shows like Supernatural, The Walking Dead, and The Flash, along with movies like the hugely popular Avengers and Star Wars franchises all feature characters with powers normal humans don’t possess.
A LiveScience infographic states that 56% of Americans surveyed believe that ghosts are spirits of the dead, and 55% believe in psychic or spiritual healing. 42% believe that people on Earth are sometimes possessed by the devil, and a whopping 71% believe that they have had a paranormal experience in their lives.
Richard Wiseman, author of the book Paranormality, has studied people’s beliefs about paranormal activity as well as the science behind some of these occurrences. “These beliefs are very comforting,” Wiseman told LifeScience. “If you’re ill, then the idea of the psychic healer is a nice idea.”
Beliefs in ghosts and hauntings may not be nearly as comforting, but arise from fear and hyper-vigilance that sometimes makes us see things that may not be there. Surprisingly, those who are more educated often have more beliefs in the paranormal than others. And being religious doesn’t always mean you don’t believe in ghosts and other paranormal phenomena. A 2009 Pew Research study showed that half of Catholics and black Protestants believed in or felt they had experienced at least two supernatural phenomena listed.
People want to believe in supernatural phenomena because it shows that there are bigger forces at work than just what the eye can see or science can quantify. Although beliefs in ghosts or zombies may be misplaced according to science, the world is a vast place that contains much more than one person could ever experience in a lifetime.
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
The entire Trinity appears in these verses, as Jesus explains to the disciples that the Father and he are one. Jesus then tells them about the Spirit of truth that will come to them when he has gone to the Father. Just as the Father lived in Jesus and did his work through Jesus, the Holy Spirit lives in us and does God’s work through us.
Jesus promises in these verses that the Holy Spirit
–advocates for us (helps us),
–teaches us,
–lives in us,
–helps us remember the things Jesus said.
Jesus tells the disciples that they will do even greater things than the things Jesus did, and it is the Holy Spirit that enables them (and us) to do these things. What great things are you doing through the power of the Holy Spirit? I know, me neither. I think we often forget about the Holy Spirit and instead rely on our own strength to try to accomplish the things of God, but God gives us the Holy Spirit because he knows we aren’t strong enough to accomplish these things on our own strength.
God is supernatural, and the Holy Spirit is how that supernatural power is expressed to humanity. So many people are more than ready to believe in ghosts, zombies, vampires, and psychics, but as Jesus says in verse 17, the world cannot accept the Holy Spirit, who has real power and truth because he is from God.
As Christians, we need to think carefully about where we choose to place our faith. Yes, supernatural things are attractive, but let’s not settle for a counterfeit that is devoid of any real power. It is not a coincidence that these verses end with a promise of peace such as the world cannot give.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
The Holy Spirit is commonly depicted as wind, fire, or a dove. Draw a picture or write a description of the Holy Spirit as you have experienced him or heard about him. Ask for permission to display your art somewhere in your church.
Closing Prayer
Father God, we thank you for giving us the Holy Spirit to help us and guide us. We ask you to fill us with the Spirit’s power to do your work here on earth. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Scott Mims, Virginia Beach, VA
Warm-up Question
Has anyone ever made fun of you for what you believe? How did you feel about this?
“What Unites Us Is Stronger Than What Divides Us”
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the castle church door in Wittenberg. Next year – 2017 – will mark the 500th anniversary of this event, and of the Reformation movement that Luther’s thought and actions helped to spark. In anticipation of this important milestone, it was recently announced that the Lutheran World Federation and the Roman Catholic Church will hold a joint ecumenical commemoration later this year. On October 31, 2016 in Lund, Sweden, our Lutheran and Roman Catholic churches will take another step forward in a long dialogue towards mutual forgiveness and reconciliation. You can read more about this joint commemoration and what it means here:
https://www.lutheranworld.org/lund2016
https://www.lutheranworld.org/news/what-unites-us-stronger-what-divides-us
Discussion Questions
Seventh Sunday of Easter
Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21
(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
The Backstory
For the past several weeks, we have been in flashback mode. Even though we stand on the resurrection side of things in the Easter season, our readings have taken us back before the crucifixion, back to Jesus’ final evening with his disciples. This week is no exception. John 17:20-26 captures the last part of Jesus’ final prayer just before he and the disciples leave the place where they are and walk to the garden and his arrest.
Jesus’ prayer itself comprises the whole of chapter 17. What has come before this moment in chapters 13 – 16 has the form of a farewell discourse – a last will and testament to his friends. Now the time has come. Jesus’ hour for glory is upon him, and so he prays for himself (verses 1-5), for his disciples (verses 6 – 19), and lastly for the Church (verses 20 – 26).
That They May All Be One
So, who is the Church, and what does Jesus ask on its behalf? The answer to the first part of this question is that the Church is everyone who will come to believe in Jesus as a result of the disciples’ message. This means that it is not just the disciples for whom Jesus prays, he is also praying for us. John 17 is a prayer for you, for me, and for ALL who believe in Jesus the Messiah. Together, we are the Church, and Jesus’ prayer for us is that we “may all be one.”
Unity is the key theme in this part of Jesus’ prayer. We can see this because the idea of believers being “one” gets repeated (verses 20, 22, 23). Yet it is important to notice that the foundation for this unity is first and foremost Jesus’ own relationship with God the Father, and not the result of our efforts. That is to say, we don’t create this unity by our hard work towards love and cooperation. Rather, our efforts towards a more complete and true unity with other believers are the necessary byproducts of the relationship we share with God the Father through his Son, Jesus. Because God the Father loves us, and invites us into the mutual relationship he shares with Jesus, Jesus prays that we will know a similar unity of love with one another.
What’s more, this unity is to be a witness to the world that what we say about Jesus – about his love, about his death and resurrection, about his identity as Lord and Savior – is true (verse 21). Jesus “new commandment” given in chapter 13 at the beginning of this farewell discourse is that we love one another as he has first loved us. Love is the mark and sign that we are truly his. Here, at the conclusion of his prayer, one effect of such love is made clear. As the saying goes, “the proof is in the pudding.” As love breaks down the barriers that divide us, as love heals divisions, overcomes fears, and joins different peoples into communities of faith, joy, and praise, the wider world sees the truth and the power of the God we proclaim.
The Gospel of John in Miniature
The final verses for this week not only complete the prayer, but serve as a summary for the gospel itself. You can hear echoes of John 1 and John 3:16 here. The world does not know God the Father, but Jesus, God’s Son does. There is a unique and eternal relationship between them (see verse 5). What’s more, Jesus has made the truth of God known to those who have believed in him. Having communicated the Father’s “name” to them, he promises to continue to make God known to the Church through the Holy Spirit. (Jn. 16:12-15) The goal of this is so that the love God has for Jesus may also be in all who belong to Jesus. In this way, they – that is, we – also enjoy a living relationship with God, through Christ.
Though the language that John uses in chapter 17 can seem repetitive and hard to understand, it is important to hear the whole of this passage as a prayer in which we are also included. Perhaps part of the reason that our lectionary (the three-year schedule of readings we follow) draws us back this Easter season to Jesus’ final evening with his disciples is to remind us that, because Jesus is alive, his words remain for us, and for the world, a living and life-giving message.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
Option 1: Have participants line up according to their personal beliefs. For example, “How do you view the Bible – inerrant, inspired word of God, totally the work of human beings, or somewhere in between?” You might then talk about where the “official” ELCA position is on the questions you choose. How much agreement is necessary? Where is there freedom?
Option 2: Create a summary sheet for each of the denominations that you would like to include – ideally each participant gets one. Use the categories at the top (View of God, Saved, Sacrament, etc.) to have participants stand on the continuum based on what their assigned denomination believes. Use this to talk about the great diversity of beliefs. Again, how much agreement is necessary, and on what things, for the unity of the Church?
Credit: Special thanks to Pastor Leslie Scanlon for compiling and creating this chart, and for her permission to include it here.
Disclaimer: The information in this activity is a general summary only. All attempts were made to be as accurate as possible. However, there is often a diversity of positions within any given faith tradition or denomination.
Closing Prayer
Holy God, gracious and merciful, we thank you for the joy of Easter. Through the work of your Holy Spirit help us to love one another, and, in that love, to work against the walls and barriers which divide us. May we be one in you, and may our unity bear witness to the power of your love for all the world. We pray this through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dennis Sepper, South Hill, WA
Warm-up Questions
What do you think of when you hear the word “home”? What do you see in your mind’s eye? What feelings do you associate with the word home?
Being Home
April 16, 2016—Greece. Pope Francis made a five-hour visit to the Greek island of Lesbos. He was joined by the head of the Church of Greece and Orthodox Christian leader Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. On this humanitarian visit the religious leaders visited Camp Moria, a camp where refugees are awaiting deportation to Turkey. Camp Moria was home to migrants free to come and go at will, notes NBC’s Bill Neely. Now it’s a detention center where some 3,000 people are held.
It is hard for most of us reading this week’s Faith Lens to imagine what it would be like to leave our homes and possessions behind to go somewhere else in the country or world. Yet as noted above thousands are now refugees in our world due to war, famine or oppression in their countries. Even here in the United States people are without a place to call home due to poverty or illness.
“Home” is very powerful image. While we often think of home as a building, it is really much more than a structure. Home is where we feel safe and nurtured by those around us no matter where we are. Home is where we find love and are empowered to go out from home to follow Jesus and to serve our neighbor and the world.
Now we know in a sinful world home is not a comfortable place for some. Broadening our definition of home allows us to see that there are places and people who create “home’ for those who do not find it in their place of residence.
When Pope Francis left Camp Moria he took three families with him so that they could create a new home in Italy. Francis also told the thousands of refugees that they were not alone. Even though they were hundreds of miles away from their homeland people would be praying for them and God and Jesus would be with them.
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
Our Gospel text takes us back before the resurrection of Jesus. In this section of John’s Gospel Jesus is preparing the disciples and other followers for his upcoming departure, arrest, and death. Here Jesus promises that God will send the Holy Spirit who will remind them of everything Jesus told them. Jesus also says that those who love him and keep his words will be loved by God and that the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit will make their “home” with them (verse 23). In light of that the followers of Jesus should not let their hearts be troubled or be afraid because the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit will be with them to nurture them and assist them in their life of discipleship.
The Church places this text on the Sixth Sunday of Easter because on Thursday we celebrate the festival day of the Ascension of our Lord remembering how Jesus again left the disciples and ascended to heaven after his resurrection. In that way the words of Jesus then are spoken to us now. Within us and within our faith communities, the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit reside. They make their “home” with us.
With Jesus and the Spirit’s presence we are nurtured and empowered to love and follow Jesus is lives of service and faithfulness. When God is in our lives we need not be afraid of what the future holds and we can experience the “peace” Jesus bestows on us through the Holy Spirit. Now that’s a home no matter where we are in the world.
We should also note how this home image plays out in our other readings this week. In the first reading Paul heads to Macedonia where he seeks out a group of women praying by a river. The women seem to gather here regularly for prayer (could it be home for this group of faithful women?) One of the women, a wealthy person named Lydia, listened eagerly to Paul’s teaching and is moved to be baptized along with her whole household. Out of appreciation Lydia invites Paul to come and stay at her home which Paul did.
In the second reading John of Patmos sees a vision of a new home, the holy city Jerusalem at the end of time. A home where there is no need of moon or sun because God and Jesus (the lamb) are its light. A home that has the river of life flowing through it and a tree of life growing nearby bearing fruit for the people and whose leaves are for healing. This is a beautiful image of our heavenly home where there will be peace and safety.
Finally in our alternate Gospel reading, John 5:1-9, Jesus heals a person who had been ill for thirty-eight years. For all that time this person’s home was a place on the ground by the pool of Beth-zatha. After the healing the man begins to walk away toward a new home. It should also be noted that Jesus did this healing on the Sabbath which was against the religious rules of the day. Jesus breaks the rule because the healing of the ill man was more important. Jesus is showing how service to neighbor is important to the followers of Jesus.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
As a group or as an individual think of a home or a homecoming story in the Bible (or Google it). Read that story thinking about it says about God and Jesus and our relationship to them. Also, think about which character in the story do you identify and why. Share you insights with the group.
Just to get you started, here are a few example: the Prodigal Child (Luke 15:-32); the reunion of Jacob and Esau (Genesis 33); the story of Ruth and Naomi (Ruth chapter 1); the story of Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42 or Luke 11:1-42)
Closing Prayer
Almighty and loving God, we thank you for the gift of your presence in our lives. We thank you for the gift of Jesus and for sending your Holy Spirit upon us. In the waters of baptism you came into our lives and created a home within us. Strengthen us through the Spirit to be committed and dedicated disciples of Jesus. Calm our troubled hearts and our fears as we boldly proclaim the Good News and serve you and our neighbors throughout the world. In your holy and precious name we pray. Amen.
Brian Hiortdahl, Overland Park, KS
Warm-up Question
If you knew you had only a short time to live and were granted one last wish, what would it be?
Last Wishes
Five year old Chen Xiaotian was diagnosed with brain cancer within months of his mother learning that she had uremia. After two years, both conditions worsened. Chen, 7, knowing he would die, was aware that his kidney might save his mother. He pleaded with her to let him save her life. Two hours after Chen’s death, his mother received his kidney. Two other persons benefited from Chen’s gift of life. His other kidney was transplanted to a 21-year old woman and a 26-year old man received Chen’s liver.
For further information: video news story
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
Jesus, knowing he will die, shares one final evening with his disciples. He begins by washing their feet (despite initial resistance from Peter) and sharing bread with his betrayer. After doing this, he states his dying wish as a new commandment: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you should also love one another.
Later that same evening, after repeating this commandment (15:12), Jesus elaborates: No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for his friends (15:13). Like Chen, Jesus sees life for others coming from his death. On this night in the other gospels, Jesus institutes his supper of Holy Communion—his life continuing to live inside his disciples’ bodies, giving them new strength.
This is how Jesus is “glorified.” For him, glory does not come from fame or riches or popularity or success or adulation. It comes through death. He does not receive glory in, but radiates it out through the love his disciples show and share, following his lead. His final wish is not anything for himself, but for the ongoing blessing of others.
Discussion Questions
Activity Suggestions
Closing Prayer
God of glory, graciously continue to fill our hearts, our bloodstreams, and our lives with the love of Jesus. Strengthen us to love one another and teach us how to give life to others. Comfort the dying and give them, like Chen, an opportunity to help others live. Transform all our troubles into glory through Jesus Christ, our crucified and risen Lord. Amen