The following is the pastor’s column appearing in the May Grace Notes newsletter of Grace Lutheran Church, Dodgeville, Wisconsin Breaking Our Fast from the Lord’s Supper: Sharing Communion from Home One of the hardest things about our suspension of in-person gatherings since mid-March has been the related hiatus on celebrating Holy Communion together. Numerous bishops […]
About Mark D. Williamson
Customizing Your Catechumenate: Questions to Ask Before Getting Started (and After)
Our catechumenate process at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Wheaton, called BASIC, has been in existence for nearly four years now. I described our approach in detail in an earlier piece for Let’s Talk called “The Adult Catechumenate and the Missional Church.” But in a nutshell, BASIC is distinctive in the following ways: It’s a two-year […]
Earthkeeping and Eschatology: Is There a Relationship?
One of the most oft-repeated Luther quotes, including by the ELCA Social Statement “Caring for Creation,” is this: “If I believed that tomorrow the world were to end, I would plant an apple tree today.” But the proverb raises some questions. First, where did he say it? Attempts to identify the beloved words in Luther’s […]
EarthBound: Created + Called to Care for Creation
EarthBound: Created + Called to Care for Creation, DVD. Directed by Hal and Kevin Dragseth (St. Paul: Seraphim Communications, 2009) 158 min., with Facilitators Guide on CD-ROM. $89.95. Lutheran video resources for lifelong learning have made great strides in terms of production value in recent years. For those content with a lecture caught on tape […]
The Adult Catechumenate and the Missional Church
In the previous issue of Let’s Talk, contributors weighed in on the question “Should we evangelize?” The focus of this issue, centering around our synod’s vision for “turning around” our congregations from inwardness and complacency to Spirited evangelical mission, proceeds very naturally to the question “How do Lutherans do that?” Too often we take cover […]
Book Review: When “Spiritual But Not Religious” Is Not Enough: Seeing God in Surprising Places, Even in the Church
When “Spiritual But Not Religious” Is Not Enough: Seeing God in Surprising Places, Even in the Church by Lillian Daniel. New York: Jericho Books, 2013. Pp. 215. Back in September of 2011, Lillian Daniel published two pieces poking fun at American DIY spirituality, a longer piece in the Christian Century called “You Can’t Make This […]