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Our Staff has answered these questions for you:
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What happens if a person dies before they are baptized? Hopefully the person has come to understand and believe that God loves them dearly. The New Testament clearly indicates that trust and faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and our relationship with Him makes the promise of eternal life a reality for all those who believe. It may be that those who die before baptism somehow encountered God’s love and came to trust God’s promise of eternal life. It’s faith that saves, not the baptismal rite itself. As a pastor, even if it’s not clear to me that such an encounter has occurred, I will continue to trust God’s love and grace, hoping that somehow God made his loving promises available to the deceased. It’s important to remember that the person who die before baptism has a relationship with God because God created that person. Such a relationship is not to be overlooked or discounted. Trusting in the grace and love of God in such situations seems more helpful than allowing worry and anxiety about the un-baptized to unduly trouble our lives. ◙
Our communion table at Peace is open to anyone who is baptized and who believes that Jesus Christ is present bodily in the bread and wine. We make no distinction between Christians and welcome all who are comfortable with our understanding of what happens at the Lord’s Supper. As for children, we welcome all those in our congregation who have had communion instruction (which happens for us in the fifth grade) or those children who come to us from other communities of faith and who commune earlier. We do not believe it sound pastoral practice to exclude from the communion table those children who join our congregation and who have already communed in other congregations. ◙
Why first communion at fifth grade? Offering first communion during the fifth grade is an attempt to correct an earlier practice that sent a confusing message about God’s grace. It used to be that young people were allowed to commune after being confirmed. Unfortunately, such practice tended to send the message that communion (and the grace it conveyed) was offered to those who had been sufficiently educated and had appropriate understanding; or communion was viewed as the reward for two or three years of arduous study, much like a graduation gift. Such understanding was in direct conflict with the Lutheran understanding that God’s love and grace is not earned, but is a free gift to all who believe. And, the truth is, not even adults really understand how Jesus body and blood is contained in bread and wine. In light of this, first communion was removed from the confirmation rite and offered to the young disciple at an earlier age, in this case the fifth grade. I personally am not sure why the Church chose the fifth grade; why not earlier? It probably has something to do with manner and decorum. Fifth graders can understand that communion is something special, and they’re capable of demonstrating spiritual manners that reflect the nature of meal. To cover the problematic nature of a first communion policy for fifth graders, the Church in its wisdom, gives parents the option of having their children commune earlier with guidance and permission from the pastor. ◙
Why do some glasses in the communion plate have clear liquid and the others have wine? The clear liquid is grape juice and is intended for those who cannot have alcohol. White grape juice is used so that it can be easily distinguished from the wine. Those who need the grape juice have requested it from the pastor and know that it is present in the communion tray for their use. We purposely don’t call attention to this practice as a way of caring pastorally for those who take the grape juice, so they are not stigmatized or embarrassed. ◙
We baptize infants for two reasons: death and God’s faithfulness. St. Paul reminds us that “the wages of sin are death”, which is his way of saying that we know we’re sinners because we die. Because infants can die, we know they are sinners, not because of something they’ve done, but because they are human beings. God’s response to our death-filled condition is to love us faithfully, as we see Him do throughout the Scriptures. God is a god of life. He is our Creator and brought us into existence because he loves us. It pains him that we must experience death because of our sinfulness. To overcome the power of death he gives us the promise of eternal life in baptism. In Romans 6, Paul tells us that in baptism, we are joined to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our sinfulness is overcome by being joined spiritually to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Since infants can die, they too need to hear this wonderful promise. And, so, we baptize infants, bringing them into God’s family and it becomes our duty to teach them what such a promise means for daily living.
There is no scriptural basis for infant baptism and clearly there is no mandate against baptizing babies. There is some evidence in the book of Acts that entire households were baptized and we assume that those households included children. Lutherans also point to Matthew 19 where Jesus rebukes the disciples for trying to keep children away from the Master. Clearly the message in Matthew 19 is that children have a place in God’s kingdom.
The roots of baptism are found in the first century Jewish rites of ritual cleansing and bathing, and clearly was a central part of the early Church’s life. By the early Middle Ages, infant baptism had become the norm of church practice and continues today for 95% of the Church. ◙
Why do we make the sign of the cross? The sign of the cross is a baptismal sign. As part of the baptismal rite the following words are spoken to the baptized: “You have been sealed with the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever.” To make the sign of the cross is therefore to remember one’s baptism. Publicly, the sign is made whenever the Trinitarian formula, in Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is spoken. Privately, it is appropriate to make the sign as part of one’s personal devotion life, e.g.. before prayer, Scripture reading, etc. ◙ |
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What is the relationship between the ELCA and the Episcopal Church? The ELCA and the Episcopal Church describe their relationship as Full Communion. This is a relationship where each church recognizes the other as catholic and apostolic. That is, each church recognizes the other as authenticity Christian, and that each believes and practices what is essential to the Christian faith. This relationship was formalized by passage of a document, Called to Common Mission (CCM), by the ELCA churchwide assembly in 1999, and by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2000. This is not a merger. The two churches will retain their separate organizational structures, and distinctive practices. We recognize that we also have many things in common. Both churches have committed to seek to create ways to strengthen fellowship, more clearly display a visible unity of all Christians, and work jointly to witness and serve. To find out more about the history of our relationship and what this relationship is (and is not) you can read about it on this page at ELCA website.◙ Where
are ELCA headquarters? How many ELCA congregations in the US? World? How many are missions? Why do Lutherans not study the Book of Revelation? Lutherans do study the Book of Revelation. They find it to be a fascinating book, primarily because it was written during a time of persecution and offers great hope to those who suffered for their faith in Jesus Christ. Yet, we also recognize that Revelation is a difficult book to read because of the vivid and sometimes frightening images that characterize its message. Such images are typical of a type of Biblical material known as ‘apocalyptic’. Most scholars believe that such material is really a kind of literary code. It was written to give hope to those being persecuted in such a way as to prevent the meaning of the material from being discovered by those doing the persecuting. The images in apocalyptic writings are often difficult to incorporate into our daily faith experience. They remain mysterious and often don’t speak the message of hope that was originally intended, primarily because we don’t typically find ourselves suffering religious persecution. It is interesting to note that Martin Luther disliked the Book of Revelation because it “didn’t contain enough gospel” and he therefore thought it should be purged from the Scriptures. The hopeful message of Revelation still rings true for all Christians - that God is working his purpose out and we are called to trust and persevere. ◙ What is the Lutheran view on divorce? Lutherans are saddened by divorce and wish it never had to happen. Lutherans believe that marriage should be a lasting, permanent relationship and that couples take seriously the “until death separates us” portion of the marriage vows. Yet, like all of life, marriage isn’t immune to the power of sin. Selfishness, poor decisions, external events, all strain the marriage bond and sometimes divorce is inevitable. Lutherans are encouraged to work diligently to save their wounded marriages. Yet, when divorce occurs, we believe it is forgivable. We encourage those who experience divorce to understand the dynamics that led to the divorce, diligently to address and correct them, and to heal prior to marrying again. Lutheran’s welcome those who are divorced and re-married, both to worship, the communion table, and to an active life in our community of faith. We believe that God’s grace has the power to renew relationships and help us love again when marriages end. ◙ Why does the creed refer to the “holy catholic church”? Since Lutherans separated from the Roman Catholic Church in the sixteenth century, some people are surprised to hear us say the word “catholic” every Sunday when we recite the creed during worship. The word “catholic” simply means “universal”. By saying that we believe in the “holy catholic church”, we proclaim that we believe that all who confess Jesus as Lord, regardless of denomination, to be in the church, the community of faith that bears the name of Jesus Christ. The word “holy” means the church has been set apart for a special task or function, primarily to proclaim the grace and forgiveness of God as shown to us in Jesus Christ. ◙ How and why are hymns selected for Sunday morning worship? With the exception of the hymn of the day (the hymn sung after the sermon), hymns are chosen by the Parish Assistant for Worship. The preacher chooses the hymn of the day. Typically, hymns are chosen to reflect the themes of the Scriptural lessons for each Sunday. Hymns may also be chosen to correspond with seasons of the Church Year, special holidays, or special worship circumstances. Recognizing that people have favorite hymns, our congregation sometimes conducts as hymn-sing during worship to allow our members to sing favorite hymns that may not have been sung for some time. ◙ Peace is governed by a Congregational Council elected by congregation members who attend the annual congregational meeting held in November. Council members include the four executive officers, president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer, and the chairperson and chairperson-elect of five committees: worship, building and grounds, Education, youth & family; congregational life, Missions. The financial secretary and pastors of the congregation are advisory members to the Council and have no vote. The Congregation Council has general oversight of the life and work of the congregation and coordinates the work of the committees. The Council does not have authority to buy, sell, or encumber real property or extend a call to a pastor unless specifically authorized to do so by a meeting of the congregation. ◙ What is the strength or distinction of Lutheran theology? Grace! Lutheran theology begins and ends with grace, the undeserved love of God. Grace is the power of God’s love that enables us to hang life together during good times and bad. Grace is what we respond to as disciples. Our efforts to care and serve others is our way of saying “thank you” to a God who loves us so much that he allowed his Son to die for us. We even the Scriptures with a distinctive approach that is known as “law and gospel”. The law is that part of God’s Word that reminds that we aren’t the kind of people that God wants us to be. Yet even the law is the servant of God because the law drives us to see that we can’t save ourselves. If we can’ save ourselves then we have no where to turn but God grace. Lutherans then are disciples who are comfortable living in the tension between life and death, guilt and innocence, slavery and freedom, good times and bad times. And what makes the tension bearable, what makes the tension even the very power that energizes our lives is the grace of God. To be Lutheran is to wallow in grace! ◙ Is it “OK” to pray to win the game? No. God is not about winning or losing. God’s about mercy, compassion, love, service and grace. We’re all losers in God’s eyes because we’re all sinners and we’re all winners because he claims us in Baptism to be his children. To ask God to “help us win the game” tends to place us on God’s side at the expense of our opponents, who may also bear the confession that Christ is Lord. If we take the Cross of Jesus seriously, we are reminded that God is probably more concerned about being with the losers, something that doesn’t resonate well in our culture and society. ◙ What is the Lutheran viewpoint on the rapture? Lutherans aren’t real keen on the rapture, primarily because it’s a theological view that has little support in the Bible. True, there are references in the New Testament about some people being taken into heaven while others are left behind, but they are few in number. For a specific theological understanding to be considered a doctrine in the Lutheran Church, it must have significant and consistent support in the Bible, usually from both the Old and New Testaments. From an everyday faith perspective, too much concern about the rapture misses the point of being a disciple. While Christians certainly cherish the gift of heaven and eternal life, our call is to live faithful lives in the here and now. Our attempt to be faithful in daily life is our way of saying “thank you” to a God who loves us so much that he allowed his Son to die for us. Hopefully, our discipleship is one of the way others can see and comprehend that love. Our task, then is to be among people sharing that love, not looking skyward, hoping to be taken to heaven while others are left behind. Put another way, we Lutherans are real keen on the popular bumper sticker: “Caution, in case of rapture this car will be driver-less.” We simply can’t see God allowing a bunch of driver-less automobiles being left to careen off on-coming traffic. ◙ Nobody made God. God has always been. God is eternal, meaning that he has always existed and always will. ◙
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