Why do we have to die?

Questions from our Culture:  Week 1 Recap

The Science fiction series Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009) spoke about many of the issues of faith that people in our time are wresting with.  It did this by taking elements of  different faiths and dividing them up between the different characters of the drama.  In no way do the religions of the show completely conform to an actual human belief system, but they do have ideas in common with contemporary and even historical faith communities.  The result is fascinating portrayal of a life in a universe with competing religious ideas. We are using this portrayal at Holy Cross to engage some of life's most important questions.  These are not only found on TV but in the Bible itself-even better-the Bible begins to lead us to some answers.

"To Live Meaningful Lives We Must Die"

In the episode Guess What's Coming to Dinner (Season 4 Episode 9) the quote above is uttered by the character Cylon # 6 as confronts her former human enemies about joining forces to meet their common enemy.   She begins to build trust by appealing to what holds her in common with human beings: death.   This was a new experience for her kind.  In the show these cylons do not normally die.  When their cloned bodies are destroyed their consciousness is uploaded to an awaiting spaceship where it is then downloaded into a new cloned body.   So they can not die.    As viewers of the show soon realize this endless cycle is not blissful at all.  In fact, the show depicts it as draining any joy there can be in life as the harmful experiences of life add up through each successive reincarnation. Because they live in a universe plagued by violence, the hurts begin to pile up on top of each other making life dark, sad, and most of all meaningless.


The change in heart that allows some of the cylons to ally themselves with human beings happens as the spacecraft that provide the reincarnation are being destroyed in battles with humans and other cylons.   What was first an unthinkable tragedy for them, quickly becomes something else: an opportunity.   Once able to die, the cylons begin to see that their life has purpose, each moment has meaning, each choice will matter.  When one can not die choices are irrelevant, when one does, choices become important.


The real world competition of ideas depicted in this part of the story of Battlestar Galactica are those between the Abrahamic faiths (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) and those of  Eastern Religions.  To simplify the contrast, in Christianity you only get one life; in Eastern Religions you cycle through many.   The pregnant question behind this story arc of Battlestar Galactica is, "why do we have to die?"

A Biblical Reason for Death

In the Bible the reason for death is tied up with the reality that because there is sin in the world we must die.   The biggest misconception that people have of this idea is that death is exclusively related to punishment.  When one sees the biblical witness in its fullness one sees that there is definitely more to the story.    Death is explained in the account of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  

(Genesis 3:22) the LORD God said, "See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--  (NRSV)

Most of us have tended to view the reasons behind this as one of maintaining purity.   However there is a more powerful scriptural reason for death, love.   God is not just concerned with abstract ideas of justice and purity, God created people to be in relationship with Him.   As Battlestar Galactica demonstrates an unreconciled eternal life is a meaningless one.   It is also devoid of any real joy or happiness.   God does not create human beings so that they will just be meaninglessly alive.   That kind of life leads only to despair or destruction.  God wants life to be as He intended it, good. If we lived eternally unreconciled to God, others, and our world, the violence, sin, and pain of it would weigh us down to the point where we would no longer even be really alive.  We would just be the undead.   So God gives us the gift of death.  (JRR Tolkein called death "the gift of men")  Without the gift of death we would just destroy our world, others and selves.   This point is also revisited in Genesis 6 and 11.   The truth is that eternal life without forgiveness is not Heaven; it is Hell!

"I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."

Says Jesus in John 10:10 (NRSV). The God behind all of this is loving and good.   God wants us to have a real life of purpose and meaning, therefore paradoxically death must be a part of it.  The death that leads to a truly reconciled and good eternal life must be a real one.   This is shown by the cross and tomb. One week after that first Easter Jesus comes to the disciples huddled in locked room: (John 20:27) Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe."  (NRSV)

Notice that in the genuine abundant life that the wounds are critical.  It is the only way that the disciples can recognize Jesus.  Everything Jesus did in his 33 years of walking among us mattered-just as your decisions matter-the wounds of Jesus show this.  Peter himself would later demonstrate his understanding of this when he wrote "by his wounds you are healed" (1Peter 2:24 NRSV).  It was not just the teachings and miracles who showed us the true Jesus but also his wounds.   The same goes for you - every moment matters- your choices are not your prison- they make you who you are.  Your true self is not just revealed in your redeeming qualities and successes, but also in your wounds and failures.  So Christians do not believe in an endless treadmill of reincarnation hoping to better next time; we believe in a one time resurrection.   God values every aspect of our life and fills it with meaning, then through the forgiveness offered at the cross decides to offer us the promise of a true and abundant life.  You are then reconciled into eternal life.  The gift of the death on the cross is the gift of a preparation for you to be able live eternally.   

We know this is all tangible and real through the gift of baptism.  Paul writes tot the Christians in Rome; we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.  (Romans 6:4 NRSV)  We are reconciled by the cross of Christ and we participate in the journey from death to life-through time and space-through the medium of the water and the Word.   We are given the promise that God will make us ready to live eternal, meaningful, good lives of purpose.   The good intention for life begun in Genesis is fulfilled in the cross and resurrection.    So God not only provides the gift of death, but more importantly the gift of Hope.  

In the episode Guess What's Coming to Dinner (Season 4 Episode 9) Cylon # 6 speaks about all the work we do avoiding death.   When I saw this I thought of my own temptation to go on Rogaine or start dying my hair.  It is not just those harmless aspects that result from this avoidance.   Many of our most hurtful moments for self, others and world happen because we act out of a place where we fear death.  We begin to believe the devil's lie that we can somehow by our own effort avoid death.   Many unbelievers think that Christians believe because they fear death.  Quite the opposite is true; we believe because (we unlike most in our culture)  face death head on knowing that it is part of God's plan.  Now it is OK to fear dying, there might be pain, we have uncertainty etc.   However the hope of the cross of Christ commands- Do not fear death!  The God behind death and life is the God who sent Jesus to transform it.

So the life of faith we proclaim uses every moment so that we do not so much add years to our life, but life to our years.  The life offered by Jesus can be lived out fully through faith and prayer.   Our life of Christian practice reinforces our hope in true life, discerns our purpose for each moment, and reminds us of the Triune God's love for us. 

Stay tuned for Week 2- Why does the Bible matter?

Keep the Faith, 

Pastor Knecht 

Faith or Science Fiction?

Or, how about both?

One of my earliest memories of childhood is sneaking down the stairs and hiding behind the furniture to see what my father was watching on the television.   If I could manage it right I could watch for quite a while before getting caught.  One show got my attention immediately; (probably because it was in color) Star Trek.  Ever since I first saw it in hiding I have been hooked.  As I grew and Star Trek reruns were a staple on Chanel 11 in the early evening,  I watched daily and developed an affection for the series.  Sometimes making fun of the more outrageous speeches by Captain Kirk, laughing at the kitsch of the special effects, and other times thinking deeply about the issues raised.  In my middle school years when the first Star Wars film (now supposedly episode 4) exploded on the scene, much of the same process would happen again.   In my high school years, I began to explore the literary genre as well with Asimov and George Herbert books. 

As boy the action and adrenaline provided by the plots is what peaked my interest,  as a man it is the issues behind the action that drive the story.  I like the genre of Science Fiction (sometimes called Speculative Fiction by literary scholars) so much because it is probably one of the few places in our popular culture where faith is discussed in an open and non-condescending way.   Most other genres either marginalize faith or make fun of it.   In contrast since Science Fiction deals with so many open questions, it can explore issues that our current secularist orthodoxy usually declares off limits.   Faith is one of these.  It is a regular topic in Science Fiction, just think about "the force" if you have seen Star Wars. 

The future or today? 

Savvy viewers and readers understand that Science Fiction is not about the future at all.   Just like Historical Fiction (think PBS's Downton Abbey) it is about the issues that the writers are currently dealing with.   The world the writers set up provides a safe space to reflect on the issues and ideas that might be too sensitive to discuss openly.  In the Bible the Apostle Paul wrote: But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can't see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. (Romans 1:19-20 The Message)  Living a normal human life means encountering signs of God in the world in which we live on a daily basis.   It is a travesty of our current age that there are so few places to discuss these signs, questions, and observations openly and honestly.   

Questions from our Culture 

I was inspired to write this article by my recent viewing of the remake of Battlestar Galactica (2004-10).   I found it that it contained the best discussion of the differing ways that people can engage faith and navigate the competing ideas of religion that we are currently struggling with in our culture.  Its world of spaceships, robots,  and clones provides a sanctuary to ask the questions that we otherwise push below the surface.  Therefore, I would like to use this as an opportunity.   Since God through Jesus Christ provides answers to our deepest questions, I would like to bring these questions out into the open and see what the Gospel of Jesus Christ has to say about them.  So each week this Easter Season at church  I will show a short Science Fiction clip dealing with a particular question raised, and show two things.  The first is that the Bible raises the exact same question,  the second is that is also contains an answer to it in Jesus Christ. 

If you have long since moved out of your parents' basement and do not resonate with Science Fiction, I do hope you can at least be open to the questions we will be discussing as they indeed have much real world application.  So if this is not for you, please know that it will not last forever, and I thank you in advance for extending me some grace to go out on limb to reach some people in a new way.    Indeed, if you know a Sci-Fi fan who may be interested please share this with him or her.  Please be in prayer for us as a church as we try to reach out to our world. 

The questions we will present, and their source will be as follows:

 

Why do we need to die?  From: Battlestar Galactica Season 4 Episode 9, “Guess what’s coming to dinner?” 

Why does the Bible matter? From Firefly Season 1 Episode 7, “Jaynestown” 

Why do we deserve to be saved?  From Battlestar Gallactica Season 1 Miniseries Part 1 

How do we live with guilt?  From Battlestar Galactica Season 3 Epsiode 7 “Hero” 

How much can we forgive? From Battlestar Galactica Season 3 Episode 18, “Crossroads Part 1” 

What happens when we die?  From Battlestar Galactica Season 4 Episode 8  “Faith” 

Finally,  if you do watch movies or television no matter what the genre, I recommend you do so through the eyes of Jesus Christ.  Your viewing need not be a mindless escape but a way to come to grips with the questions that arising in the hearts of people today.   Perhaps the best way to watch is to have a Bible next to your easy chair so that your entertainment can be part of your holy living.   

Keep the Faith, 

Pastor Knecht 

PS.  To prove I am not alone, check out the following link from the Radio Program "On Being" for a discussion of faith on TV that borrows heavily from Battlestar Galactica.   A download of the program is available: http://being.publicradio.org/programs/2009/tv/

A Life Changing Week: A Map of Faith

Naive Confidence

One way to look at this coming Holy Week is to divide the week into parts.  When we do, we can more clearly see how the pattern of  the events of this most special of weeks actually mimics the process of faith in our own hearts and minds. The week starts with Palm Sunday.   On this day we remember Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem where he was hailed by the multitudes as a promised deliverer who would set things right according to a vision put forth by the culture.  Let's call this part "naive confidence".  This is the confidence we have when he hope in a kind of god who merely fulfills wishes.   This god becomes the "candy man"  who just gives us what we want, whether it is helpful for us or not.   This faith is unable to pass any test of living in broken world.   The real events of our lives will crack this fragile faith rather quickly; we are limited beings and simply can not have what we want all the time.  We can not demand that a god create the world of our own fantasies or nostalgia.   This god who showers convenient parking spaces and sports team victories whom people lay their cloaks and palms before will soon disappoint.  The message of Palm Sunday for me is that the people of Jerusalem were not actually worshiping the man on the back of the donkey.  They were worshiping an illusion. 

Disillusion 

As the week progresses Jesus begins to shatter that illusion,  after all didn't he say that he was coming to bring the truth?  He cleanses the temple of its misuse,  he teaches in ways that provoke religious people right, left, and center.    He teaches disciples that following God may actually be a risky and an even dangerous endeavor at times.  Though he reminds them that God will faithfully see them through, the disciples naivety will only allow them to focus on the danger.   By Thursday, Judas is totally disillusioned and Peter not far behind, as one will betray and one will deny.  Today many of us may say that we have become disillusioned with faith and religion,  but is not the reality that we have just had our false gods and illusions shattered?   Perhaps we have hoped too much for the wrong things.  We have hoped for predictability and control, when God wanted to give us His guidance and peace.  We wanted to be masters of the universe but God offered us the opportunity of a blessing to be part of a wider group of His people.  By Thursday we see where our wills butt heads with the will of God.

Question

By Friday there is only one question left "Why?"  Jesus calls from the cross the words of Psalm 22: "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?" It is the quintessential question of humanity.   It is the moment of the Bible where we truly understand that God has become on of us.   The world is not the way we want it to be and we wonder if we are just left here to die as Jesus was upon his cross.  It is the question that arises out of our human despair. This is the moment where our sin and separation from God are most apparent.  This question is so disturbing that most will spend their whole lives avoiding it.  Some will run away and live a life in denial, others will protest and say that nothing really matters anyway.  This is the dark night of the soul.   Yet in this darkest of nights that has invaded the day a voice calls out.   "It is accomplished!" 

Answer 

Still in a questioning mode, some women go to the place of the dead to look for Jesus and find the stone rolled away and a messenger of God telling them that He is not here.  God has given the Answer!  The women and other disciples will still grapple with the answer to the question asked on that Friday.  It will take some time for them to be emotionally ready to realize the truth.  The truth is that God has rolled away the stone, torn the veil, and cleansed the evil that separates us from the source of all life!    The Answer will be made plain that God has not forsaken us at all.   He was with us all along, trying to get through to us as we walked around trying to avoid him.   Those who have seen and heard the Answer will soon see that the hand of God was gently carrying them through the darkest times all along.   Now it would be the time to celebrate the life that God will provide abundantly.  Easter is the day when our eyes are opened to the reality of God's love for us and our world.    It is the day when we realize the truth that we have a God that wants to be with us but will not force Himself upon us.  On Easter we learn the truth that John the Evangelist learned Easter day "God is Love".

I hope you can see that the map of Holy Week is an outline of the human heart as is progresses from rebellion into faith,  ignorance into knowledge, despair into hope, loneliness into peace, sadness into joy.  In my own faith life I have felt all of these things at some point or another and not always in the order listed above.  Many times I have regressed or returned into the emotional and spiritual places that I have thought i had left along time ago.  It is for this reason that I need Holy Week and Easter.   I need those words spoken over me "He is Risen!"   They drive home the love of God straight to my heart and I can see once again how God has been with me even in my darkest and loneliest nights.   So out of my thankfulness for the God who has loved me so much I would like to put my best into this Easter and I invite you to do so as well.  We would love to have you with us at Holy Cross as we live the hope we have in the light of Christ this Holy Week and Easter.  

May you have a blessed and joyful Easter.  

Keep the Faith, 

Pastor Knecht

Pastor Knecht's Christmas Letter 2011

I wish everyone a blessed Advent and a very merry Christmas. There is a lot wondering out there about where we are headed these days. The Gospel of Jesus at Christmas has something wonderful to say about where we are going

On the right track?

One of the common questions pollsters ask is “is the country on the right track?” The question is used to help evaluate the chances of our leaders remaining in power and pursuing their intended policies. When we are on the right track, we are joyfully moving toward some supposed bright future. If the answer is no, then we are on the “wrong track” steaming towards some horrible destination. In my lifetime, we have hopped back and forth from the right track to the wrong track multiple times, so much so, that we never really seem to get anywhere. Like hikers lost in the woods we keep circling back to the same spot over and over again. To further the confusion one person’s right track is another’s wrong track.

Who’s driving the train?

The assumption of the right track wrong track question is that we have the power to drive the train and switch the tracks. It presupposes that only human effort matters in life. History and current events are therefore only the actions of men and women. It is a comforting illusion to believe that we have that much power, but it is still only an illusion. The reason our supposed tracks never lead anywhere is that we human beings have much less power to influence events for the good than we think we do. We can indeed act. Our actions have real consequences, but they are limited in scope. Only God can see the whole picture and only God can act in a way that fulfills the course of history. So we ride the train, we don't drive it. The Jewish Scholar Abraham Heschel writes: Human power is not the stuff of which history is made. For history is not what is displayed at the moment, but what is concealed in the mind of (God).

God’s Christmas train

For people a Christmas train is simply the circular loop that the model train makes around the tree. This train too never really goes anywhere, but this time of year, we Christians remember God starting a journey that really does go somewhere, to the place of peace. This is the journey of faith started in Bethlehem with the birth of our Savior. This train is certainly being driven by God. The real fun of this trip is that you actually do not worry about the destination because you feel so good about who you are with along the way. The God of all things who became as one of us. The ride then becomes the point, and not so much the destination. Perhaps if we feel unsettled these days it is because we are too obsessed with where the tracks are leading rather than who is with us as we ride the train.

No train in vain!

In the song “Train in Vain” by the Clash, lead singer Joe Strummer asks: “Did you stand by me? No, not at all. Did you stand by me? No way!” He laments that his beloved has abandoned him in his darkest days. Perhaps it is our fear of abandonment that leads us to focus so much on our destination rather than whom we are with on the journey. The promise of Christmas and the sending of God’s Son to our world shows us that we indeed are not alone. We read in Matthew:

She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. "All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: "Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel," which means, "God is with us." (Matthew 1:21-23 NRSV)

We have a God who is promises to be with us every mile of our journey. We know this because he came as child in the manger to be with us in our world. This same Jesus promises to be with us until the end of the age. In Christian theology, we call this “incarnation” that God wants to be with us so much that he becomes one of us. This same God also secures the place where we are going through the action of Jesus at the cross and resurrection. So with the destination assured and God with us on the way we can indeed be joyful in all things this Christmas. If you would like to hear more of the Good News of Jesus Christ, we’d love to see you at Holy Cross this Christmas our schedule is as follows:

December 24rd at 3 pm Creatures at the Crèche Featuring a camel, sheep, donkey & more!
December 24th at 4 pm Family Christmas Eve Service
December 24th at 7 pm Candlelight Communion
December 25th at 10 am Christmas Day worship

Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht

The Myth of Atheism

I don't believe in atheists. I do not merely mean that I reject what they espouse; (although that is obvious since I am a Christian pastor) I do not believe they actually exist. Now there are lots of people who confess some sort of atheism. What I am saying would anger them and they would protest that they do exist (not that they would listen to me anyway). I would counter that they are not really people without gods; people who call themselves atheists do have gods. They just do not recognize the fact that is what they are.

The first commandment is “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” (Deuteronomy 6:5) When Martin Luther taught student pastors these words, he also used the words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:21) to explain how hard the first commandment is to keep. So he revealed the truth, “Where your heart is, there you will find your god.” Twentieth century theologian Paul Tillich would further elaborate on these words and say that our personal god is that which is our “ultimate concern.” Therefore, if you start from this preposition, atheism is impossible. They are just people worshiping the wrong god, not people without one. All of us place our hearts somewhere; everybody has an ultimate concern. As Bob Dylan said, “you gotta serve somebody.”

Where is your heart?

In this letter I am actually asking you to examine where (or with whom) your heart is. What (or who) is your “ultimate concern”? Not everyone who confesses that he or she is Christian places their heart in the hands of Jesus Christ. For many of us our ultimate concern may not be God; it might be something else. Therefore, I am asking you to examine your life critically and honestly to look where you are actually giving your time, your resources, and attention. Use the tools of prayer, scripture, reflection, and trusted conversation to find out in what way are you actually living out your life.Where you are putting those things of value in your life will tell you the object of your ultimate trust. So a prayerful look at your planning calendar, checkbook, and the topics of your daily conversation might help you discover where it is you are actually placing your faith.

Some false gods

Common to contemporary American life is to spend time, treasure, and effort in self-improvement. We live in a DIY (do it yourself) culture. Books, classes, video courses, and motivational speakers all teach the American gospel of self-improvement and make billions of dollars doing so. According to the preposition above, the self or ego of the person functions as a person’s god in this case. Likewise, if you spend lots of your time obsessing about the state of the country and hoping for the next political savior to get it back on track again, maybe your god is somewhere in our political system (oh perish the thought!). Indeed, if you let the fact that your favorite sports team has just been eliminated from the playoffs ruin your day so much that you make your family miserable, maybe that sports franchise serves as your god (Think I’m joking, just listen closely to how much religious language sportscasters, athletes, coaches and fans use). These are just some of the places where we place our hearts and concerns; we have not even begun to speak about money, sex or power.

The faith question

The question is not whether or not you have a god, but which god do you have? Moreover, there are lots of false gods out there. Some of us may even be putting our hearts into more than one at a time. These false gods are incapable of leading anywhere but death. The truth is that the God revealed to us in the Bible is the only one who leads to true life. This is why worship is so important, it is a time to remember to put the only true and real God first. It is a time to connect with others who are trying to live out the first commandment and learn that in order to do so we must all care for each other along our journey. As a church, we work with each other to answer the question of how to put God first, so that our lives are in the hands of the one with the power over all eternity and not something that is not even alive. Jesus invites you to come and live. I invite you to come this Sunday and learn how you just might find out where a real and blessed life might lie so you can place your heart there with Him.

Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht

This Fall at Holy Cross

"Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.”  Matthew 5:14-16 (the Message)

New Beginnings 

As you come to church this fall, you will notice that God is doing amazing things with and among us.  The first thing I would like to share with you is that God has richly blessed us financially this summer.  We have been able to catch up with back payments on our debt service ahead of schedule and are now free to concentrate on the ministry and mission of our congregation.  This has happened because of the generosity of our members, the wisdom of our Administration Board in finding ways to use our space to help other ministries, and by continuing to keep expenses low.  While we still have to find ways to pay down the debt and keep expenses in check, the really good news is that any additional gifts you can help us with now will go to help our ministry grow.   So please understand now is a time when your giving can be of a profound impact to this church’s ministry.   It can help us keep the momentum to bring the light of Christ to our wider community.

We have been grateful for the ministry of Ed Nicholson at Holy Cross this summer.   Ed has decided to continue the journey with us at Holy Cross to help us build a worship ministry of excellence that engages our entire congregation.  We are blessed to have him working with us; his skills and passion are readily apparent.  If you have not yet had a chance to introduce yourself to him please do so.   Ed is a member of the band Three Crosses and has done various solo projects.  He is an accomplished and experienced worship leader who has helped other congregations strive to use their gifts to give their all to God in dynamic and powerful worship.  As we move into the fall, Ed will continue to help lead consistently excellent worship and work to expand congregational participation in the worship ministry.  Please be in prayer that the spirit leads us to a deeper life of worship of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

We also would like to welcome Jennifer Rossi as our new office administrator.   Jennifer is a committed Christian who brings a diverse set of skills to help our office run effectively and provide a structure for our ministry to thrive.  Please come and introduce yourself to her over the coming weeks; also please be in prayer for her ministry of administration with us. 

We now have the unique pleasure of welcoming Katharina Köhler-Will to come and work with us for five weeks beginning in September.  She will be serving with us as a pastoral student-intern.  She is studying theology at the University of Munich.  She comes to us through a program from the Lutheran Church of Bavaria designed to give her some practical experience working in an American congregation.   She and her husband Roland were married earlier this summer and she has three younger siblings.  During her time with us, she will be staying at the Frantz home.  Let’s all give her a warm welcome and be in prayer that this experience can lead to more opportunities for our congregation to help students in ministry practice and develop their skills. 

Our Journey Together Continues

 

On September 11^th we will pray for the start of the school year for our Christian Nursery School.  We will have a ceremony of blessing for our teachers and staff.    We will also lift up prayers for our country and world as we commemorate the 10^th anniversary of the tragedy at the World Trade Center and ask God for the healing and renewal of our land.  After church, I will meet with the families in our confirmation ministry to start another fun filled but powerful year together.  The following week, September 18^th we will kick off our Sunday School program year. We will dedicate our volunteers to God’s care and have a congregational celebration after church.   We are also very excited to be starting with a new curriculum, which will focus on the central stories of the Bible to give our young people a firm foundation of scripture knowledge in the coming years.   When you have a chance, speak to our Children’s minister Gail Werner about how you can help make a difference by helping out with our Sunday School ministry.   Our Small Group ministry will also be bringing some exciting things to you in the coming months as we live the hope we have in the light of Christ though fellowship, scripture, prayer and service.   Please take the opportunity to try one out this fall. 

Living God’s Time!

I hope you are able to see the hand of God in all of this, I certainly do.  The sacrifices and struggles that we have been through as a congregation have been preparing us for a time like now when we can bring the hope that is the light of Christ to a community and world in need of the Good News.  This fall we will examine in our sermons what it means to live in God’s time rather than the illusion of the world’s view of the times.  We will be working through the later chapters of the Gospel of Matthew where he presents the teachings of Jesus on the way the cross.   The urgency they demonstrate and the teachings of what Christians should value in critical times can help people know that Jesus is with us in the midst of our times today.   Please pray that the light of Christ will shine brightly in the hearts of all who come to Holy Cross this fall and that His light spread out in to the darkness where people need God’s hope. 

Keep the Faith,

Pastor Knecht  

Summer Reading

Have you made out your summer reading list yet? Are looking for a good thriller, an engrossing biography, a gripping account of a unique time in history? Perhaps you are looking for some inspirational reading to provide you with some hope to empower you, or perhaps you are looking for a book to give you some practical advice, which will make your life healthier and richer if you follow it. If you want one book that has all of these things and more, I would recommend you put one more book on your summer reading list, the Bible. Perhaps you just might have something new happen in your life as God speaks to you through the words of its authors.

Mix it up!

If your Bible reading has fallen by the wayside, or your devotional life has gotten stale perhaps you should try a new translation. When you go to bookstore or search on Amazon, you will usually see a translation identified by its initials, which are usually printed on the spine. If you are looking for a basic translation of the Scriptures the New Revised Standard (NRSV) and New International Version (NIV) are reliable translations written about at an eighth grade reading level. The New Living Translation (NLT) is a less wooden and more accessible translation (I read this one with my 3rd Grade daughter); the New Century Version (NCV) and the Contemporary English Version (CEV) are also in this class. If you want to experience the English language in
all its poetic glory then the King James Bible (AV or KJV) is the way to go, but be careful,  English grammar and many of the meanings of the words we still use have changed dramatically since it was translated in 1611. Finally if you want the most readable version of the Bible out  there today try The Message by Eugene Peterson. His translation reads like a novel and one can meet the Bible in a new and unique way.

Essential Reading: the letter to the Romans

I ask you this summer to pay attention to one particular book of the Bible: Paul’s letter to the Romans. Paul wrote this letter to introduce himself to the Christians gathered in the various  house churches of Rome. Much like a minister today would write a statement of faith or testimony to introduce her or his ministry to a congregation, Paul wrote out a comprehensive statement of his teaching and how he would apply it to the situation of the time that the Roman Christians lived in. In the letter Paul outlines the core principles of his faith in the crucified and risen Christ, how one can be a part of the hope that Jesus provided, and what implications and  applications this faith has for the daily life of ordinary people of faith. It is the only letter or book of its kind in the Bible. It has been the most influential book of the Bible for the development of the basic teaching of the Faith. Nearly every great Christian leader has used this resource to help lead and teach others in the faith.

Often summer reading lists contain some classic literature that one never got around to reading, I would like you to consider this an opportunity to do the same for your faith. This letter will help you re-examine the hope of your calling in Jesus Christ, know God in a new way, and find concrete ways to live out your life a as a Christian disciple. I will be reading through the book with you this summer and in the sermons each week I will be highlighting the themes of the major sections of the letter. It is my hope that through the power of the Holy Spirit we can use the gift of the summer to mature and grow in our faith and discipleship of Jesus Christ.

The Core Mission

Paul introduces the letter and his theme by reminding the Christians of Rome of their common mission to their Savior. Through (Jesus) we received both the generous gift of his life and the urgent task of passing it on to others who receive it by entering into obedient trust in (him). You are who you are through this gift and call of Jesus Christ! (Romans 1:5-6 the Message).

These words are as true today as when Paul of Tarsus planned his trip and thought about what it would be like to board the boat and start his journey to what awaited him in Rome. May God inspire and lead you in the hope of your calling as you prepare for the next stage of your journey following your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Keep the Faith,
Pastor Knecht