No Country for Old Men - Post Modern Western

I finished reading "No Country for Old Men" by Cormac McCarthy a few weeks ago. It's one of those books you just can't seem to get out of your head. Spoiler Alert: Don't continue reading if you haven't read the book or watched the movie.

It begins with your basic "good guy/bad guy" theme. A drug deal goes bad. A good old boy stumbles onto a briefcase containing millions of dollars. A psychotic hitman is trying to track him down. The good old boy proves to be more wiley than anyone would of thought. The sheriff is trying to bring the whole matter to justice, and he never gets in the game. Throughout the book he provides laments for the deteriorating culture around us. Near the end of the book a reporter asks him about the increasing problem of crime in his county. His response: "Any time you quit hearin Sir and Mam the end is pretty much in sight." (Anyone from Texas knows what he's talking about.) "You finally get into the sort of breakdown in mercantile ethics that leaves people settin around out in the desert dead in their vehicles and by then it's just too late."

By far and away the psychotic hitman is the most interesting character. At one point he kills a "traditional hitman" who gets in his way convincing the reader that he is truly a new breed. Like the movie "Batman: The Dark Knight," this is an exploration into the depths of evil. He represents evil for the sake of evil. As Paul said, "The for the mystery of lawlessness is already at work" (2 Thessalonians 2.7). Toward the end you begin to wonder whether he is psychotic or principled... But the principles he follows are too evil for anyone to comprehend. They make no sense.

You get the sense that this hitman is the tip of the spear when it comes to the evil of this world. But there are many forms of evil that follow in the gradual degradation of our culture. For example at one point the sheriff is at a conference seated next to a woman complaining about the "right wing" in America. She says, "I don't like the way this country is headed. I want my granddaughter to be able to have an abortion." To which the sheriff replied, "Well mam I dont think you got any worries about the way the country is headed. The way I see it goin I dont have much doubt but what she'll be able to have an abortion. I'm going to say that not only will she be able to have an abortion, she'll be able to have you put to sleep. Which pretty much ended the conversation."

Human beings have always been interested in the problem of evil. Many atheists use it as an excuse to resist believing in God. But this book leaves the reader thinking about, perhaps bewildered by, the problem of evil. I hope that those who are concerned about evil, will look to the unique message of the Christian Gospel. God has confronted evil and in fact destroyed it's power through another concept that is infinitely more difficult to comprehend... The sacrifical love of God in Christ.

HIV Baby

This is a letter from my friend Pastor Roman Heidemann. I just wanted to post it in the hope that a few more people might be aware of the good ministry he is doing in Russia.

HIV Baby

This Tuesday I went to visit Babies’ house in Women’s prison in Nignij Tagil with ordinary visit. I planned to have a usual fellowship with mothers and had prepared discussion of the parable “Pharisee and Tax Collector”. On my way to the prison I figured out possible questions and prepared answers that would be most persuasive. This time I went there by electric train, so I had more than four hours for final thorough preparation.

When I came to prison, I was told that mothers had been waiting for me for an hour already. As a tradition I visited babies whom we help with medicines, clothing, toys and other things we manage to collect or buy if we received donations. I was told that a week ago a new baby was brought to this house and she was born from HIV positive mother. I expressed the intent to see her and when I entered the special room where lived babies who were HIV positive and born from HIV positive parents, I saw her, a nice year old girl with big blue eyes.

She saw unfamiliar people and got ready to cry curving her lips in unhappy shape, but I smiled her and she smiled me back. I asked medical captain who accompanied me about her parents and the officer answered me that the name of this girl was Anastasia and her mother was a HIV positive drug addict and was charged for imprisonment for drug trafficking. Then I asked whether this girl was HIV positive and got an answer that analysis were taken and results would be ready in a month time. I asked the permission to take Anastasia on hands and was permitted to do this. She behaved like she knew me for ages and the first thing she did, she hold my white pastor’s collar. I looked at her eyes and I got a sign! This collar was a remembrance that we were all slaves of sin before Jesus Christ took our sins away. She was like an angel, sent by Jesus, she was miserable, born from deadly ill mother, she was alone among strange people, she may have the same deadly disease. She came into this world like Jesus did. He pointed on our sins, he showed how miserable and lonely we were in this world, how fragile and short out life was. But he also showed us The Way, The Truth and The Life! The straight Way in Faith, the Truth of the Word and Sacrament and the Eternal Life in Him. All that He showed us in suffering, in blood and in death, His eyes were like eyes of this little Anastasia, big and blue, He came to us like a child, but He overcame death, He defeated hell, He rose from the dead and went to Heaven and He gave us Hope!
It was a shock for me to see these eyes of Love and Hope here in this sad room of hopelessness. My thoughts were in disorder, I felt presence of Jesus in the room with the tips of my fingers, I did not know what to do or to say. I just stood near the child bed firmly holding a baby. Suddenly the officer touched me and said that I had been waited for the long time already and took Anastasia from my hands. I calmly left the room and went upstairs to the second floor to the hall where mothers gathered to the sermon. I was like a robot going up and I saw Anastasia’s eyes before me. All high and clever phrases about prepared parable disappeared. I could not recall even one. I sat before mothers and did not know with what to begin, Anastasia’s blue eyes were still before me. Mothers waited for me and also kept silence. Then I touched my collar and asked them “Do you know what that mean?” And I told them about how I was slave in sin, I told them what Jesus did in my life, how he saved me from this slavery and He could save them from slavery too by Face and through His Grace. I told them about this little angel Anastasia and we all prayed for her, for the analysis to be HIV negative.

I know that everything is in God’s hands. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let’s pray for little Anastasia, may our Lord and Savior be merciful to her and give her the most precious gift in the world – His Love and His Healing! Let’s pray…

We appreciate your prayers, we need them most. Support our Babies in Prison ministry, check us out at www.stgertrude.ur.ru

Roman Heidemann
Pastor

Evangelical-Litheran Parish
of St. Gertrude

46, 123-B, Kuibyshev Str.
620026, Yekaterinburg
Russian Federation

Tel/Fax: +7-343-262 3386
Mobile Tel: +7-902-262 0533
E-mail: stgertrudeparish@yahoo.com
Web: www.stgertrude.ur.ru

When Will Evangelicals No Longer Recognize the Differences Between Christians and Mormons?

I thought I had found an interesting movie on Netflix... "The Other Side of Heaven." The description said it was about a missionary in Tonga writing letters to his girlfriend in the USA. I didn't notice that the main character was "Elder" John Groberg.

The movie opened with a scene from Brigham Young University in the 1950s. My suspicions were immediately aroused. Soon I realized this was the perfect motivational movie for all Mormon missionaries. A dedicated young man devotes his life to 2+ years of missionary service. He overcomes one obstacle after another and remains faithful to his girlfriend and to his church superiors. I thought about sending it back, but then I realized it might give me some good insights into the Mormon faith.

Wow, was I right! It's one thing to learn about Mormonism from ex-Mormons and from those who study their official teachings. It's another thing to learn about it through a film that truly presents what they think is the heart of their religion. It reminded me of Paul's words "whose glory is in their shame" (Philippians 3.19)

What was so shocking about this movie? It certainly wasn't the moral character of the Mormons. Christians could take some notes on this. It wasn't their tenacity and perseverance either. The shocking thing about this movie is the Mormon definition of "Gospel." The "preaching of the Gospel" is the main focus of this movie. But what is that definition according to Mormonism? Not once in that movie (to the best of my remembrance) is Christ the crucified for the forgiveness of sins mentioned! At the beginning, the boy's father quotes John 3.16 with a classic Mormon interpretation: I'm giving up my son just like God gave up His Son." He turns the Gospel into a Law. God sent Jesus to be an example for us to follow. That's what saves us... following His example.

John's first sermon was hilarious and sad at the same time. He taught them that God was giving them all the opportunity to be God's servants. However, he had trouble with the language and actually said that they all had the opportunity to be God's "outhouses." What's sad about this is that John presented a Gospel that says, "I (God) love you enough to tell you who I am and let you have the opportunity to try to become like Me. Follow My rules, and you can do it."

Here's another new twist that Mormons are into... The island that John goes to already has a "minister." You can't tell what denomination he represents, but he is definitely opposed to Mormonism. However throughout the movie John is kind to him and eventually wins him over so that you get the idea there really is no difference between Mormonism and Christianity. I don't think that would have ever happened in the 1950s, but that is definitely the new marketing approach that they are using to sell people on their version of the Gospel.

Here's the really sad thing as I think about it: How many Christians today would really see any difference between what they hear on Sunday mornings and what Mormons hear? I don't hear Christ the crucified for the forgiveness of sins being preached very much today even in so-called Christian churches... even in some Lutheran churches! This is exactly what Paul was warning about when he said, "O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?" (Galatians 3.1).

Christians need to get back to God's word in Christ before they slip all the way down the slippery slope of the Mormon Gospel... "It's all about me doing what I'm supposed to do to be good and get rewarded." Or, at the end of that slope they will find themselves on the other side of hell.

The Final Days of Sophie Scholl

Sophie Scholl was a Lutheran who saw through the veneer of Hitler's nationalistic pride to the true evil lurking below. Along with her brother Hans and a friend she was put to death for printing and distributing leaflets calling for the peaceful resistance of the Nazi madness. On February 22, 1943 they were convicted and a few hours later beheaded at Munich's Stadelheim Prison.

The movie is all in German with English subtitles. There is a lengthy and somewhat tedious interrogation... but I suppose that is realistic. The most interesting aspects of the film for me were Sophie's tenacious grip on the truth regarding the evil of the Third Reich and her firm faith in God. The prison pastor's blessing just before her execution was powerful and very Christ centered.

The movie made me think about the evils of my culture. Am I truly aware of them, and am I doing anything about them?

Fish Symbol

The Belleville News Democrat ran a nice article today about our church. Every year about this time we start seeing a beautiful light show in our church. Two beautiful arcs of light form the symbol of the fish.

In the early church the symbol of the fish represented an early creed. The first letters of the Greek word "ixthus" or "fish" are the first letters of the Greek words "Jesus, Christ, God's Son, Savior."

In the article Harold Ulkus said that Lutherans really aren't into "signs and wonders." But isn't it interesting that we get a "creed" and the Catholics always get images of Mary?

Pick a Church Any Church?

Here in Collinsville we just finished an interesting program started by the Collinsville Area Ministerial Alliance. It was called "Pick a Church, Any Church." It was a big marketing campaign designed to get people to church for Easter. Seventeen congregations (GLSC included) kicked in $$$ to buy signs, print fliers, pay for ads, billboards, an automated call from Mayor John Miller, and an automated call from Congressman John Shimkus. Some of our members wondered about this program. "Pick a Church, Any Church?" That didn't sound like GSLC. They thought it should be "Pick a Church, My Church!"

I told them that the way I looked at it these churches weren't unified, but at least anyone who attended one of them for Easter could discover something good about Jesus. This might be a first step toward salvation, and it was better than sitting at home and doing nothing for Easter. I was trying to put on the best construction. Sometimes non-participation in something like this can send a wrong signal. It drew a lot of interest... Articles in the Post Dispatch, national ministry magazines, etc. I'm usually attend most CAMA meetings. I like my brother pastors and feel liked by them. But I am always the "fly in the ointment" when it comes to unity. I won't participate in the unity services on Thanksgiving and Good Friday. Most think as long as you believe Jesus is Lord, then everything is okay. Well, as it turns out the brothers aren't so unified as we might think. When each church made phone calls (we tried to call every home in Collinsville with volunteers), one church decided to add something at the end of the generic script... If you don't have church home, come to our church (with specific info). The script said they were to visit the website and take a look at the 17 churches and choose. So let's all just be honest here... Deep down we all want people to come to our church!

What about disunity in the church? What should we do about it?

First, we have to remember that since faith itself is a gift of God (Ephesians 2.8-10), then unity in the faith must also be a gift of God!

Second, if Jesus was concerned about unity, that means He saw the problems of disunity among the disciples, and He foresaw the problems of unity in the church... Almost every letter the Apostle Paul wrote dealt with disunity in the faith. (Galatians - Huge disunity over Judaizing; Corinthians - Total disunity!; Ephesians-Colossians - Incipient Gnosticism (philosophy of the world); Thessalonians - End Times; Romans - Jew/Gentile Issues; Timothy-Titus-Philemon - Need for faithful workers to carry on with a church that will always default toward disunity! Philippians might be the only exception, but it does deal with individuals who needed unifying!)

Third, there are two types of disunity... The first is doctrinal. Usually the first half of Paul's letter is a big effort to maintain doctrinal unity. The second half is a focus on living out that doctrine. Look at Ephesians... It is almost exactly half doctrine (chapters 1-3) and half practical application (chapters 4-6). So the second half has to do with our personal disunity of not living the faith consistently.

Disunity is a fact as sure as sin is a fact. It's going to happen. The only question will be whether we will recognize and deal with it!

The question isn't "Is there disunity?" The question is always "What should we be doing about the disunity?" The answer is the same as in the New Testament. Meet, study the Scriptures, discuss/debate, and pray... See Acts 15 and the Council at Jerusalem! That is the great effort that the Lutheran church began with the publishing of the Augsburg Confession and later the Book of Concord. Here's what we believe. Let's work together for the truth of God's word... Look at the introductions to both, and you'll see it's all about continuing the age-old work of maintaining the "unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Eph 4.3).

How Can the Resurrection Make a Difference in My Life When I Start Going Crazy?

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The text for my Easter message is from Mark 16.6… probably the most important words ever recorded for us… “He is risen.”

There is probably nothing more important to know and believe in this life other than that God keeps His promises. Everything else in this life will fail us. But God’s promises never fail. Recently we have seen banks and large financial institutions that are in the business of being trustworthy and reliable, fail and collapse. Our country’s defense system, one of the most sophisticated and reliable in the world, was breached just a few years about by extremists who turned airplanes into lethal weapons and killed thousands of people. There are important lessons to be learned here. God’s word reminds us that “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man” (Psalm 118.8). We will never stop trying to make this world a better place. But we have to realize the limitations of those efforts. Our Easter celebration gives us another good opportunity to remember that trust in God’s promises is the only thing that will get us through this life.

Saturday, the day after Jesus died, must have been the worst day this world has ever seen. Imagine walking out to “The Place of the Skull” where Jesus was crucified and looking around at the blood spattered rocks, the footprints of the soldiers, and feeling the emptiness of a world without a Messiah. Perhaps you might have seen a few splinters of wood or a broken nail. But you wouldn’t have seen Jesus. Gone were those beautiful teachings, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted…” Gone were the miracles “Lazarus, come forth” (John 11.43). Gone was the compassion and the hope. Finally the sun would set on that sad day. For the disciples of Jesus it must have been a day of unimaginable pain and despair.

Have you had days like that? Days of unimaginable pain and despair? If you haven’t you will. The phone will ring. Someone you dearly love will have come to the end of their life. You have relied so heavily on this person for so long, how will you be able to go on in life without them? Your boss will call you in to tell you that your job is being cut. What will you do? How will you provide for your family? You thought the cough you had was just a lingering cold. But x-rays confirm that you have cancer growing in your lungs. You cry for hours. You can’t sleep or eat. You are just numb. Then you begin to ask God why? Why all this pain? Why all this disappointment? Can you imagine the questions the disciples must have been asking on that very sad Saturday after the crucifixion? Two of them did say, “We were hoping it was He who would redeem Israel?” (Luke 24.21). All their hopes and joys were dashed… Dashed by an unfair trial and a gruesome death on a cross. Surely they must have also asked, “Why?” and “What’s next?” and “How can I go on?”

But a few of the disciples did push on… the women in particular… who returned to the tomb the next day to complete the burial. I’m sure they were still numb with grief as they carried their spices. But God in His mercy and being true to His very nature did not allow them to finish that burial. He kept His promises. He brought life up out of death and raised His Son. He fulfilled Jesus’ words to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Suddenly the word began to spread. “He is risen!” And tears of sorrow turned to tears of joy. The disciples remembered that Jesus has said this would happen. God kept all of His promises.

Sometimes when life really has me on my knees I pray like this… Dear God, I know You are there. I know that You can hear me. I know that You will help me… I know that Jesus rose from the dead! That last part doesn’t really seem to fit, but it does. The resurrection is God’s way of showing us that He keeps His promises to us. If there was ever a promise that seemed to fail, it must have been the promise of the Messiah… It must have been the promise that by giving it all up in death, Jesus would save the whole world. You see this is what Satan must have been telling Jesus in Gethsemane… “It’s not going to work. It’s not going to make a difference. Give up on God’s promises.” But of course He didn’t give up. So when Satan comes to us with the same lies… that trusting God in His word doesn’t work… We just need to remember that Jesus showed us that it does. Christ is risen, He is risen indeed. When you start to go crazy, just say that to yourself.

St. Paul says that when we die we are like seeds that are sown into the ground. These seeds have to die, that is our lives have to come to an end. But because they are God’s seeds and contain God’s promises in their hearts, they do not stay buried. They rise again to eternal life. This is God’s promise of the resurrection. As Christ has been raised so will we be raised. The same can be said for our “little deaths” that we have to experience in this life… the loss of a loved one, the loss of a job, the broken relationship. When these sad experiences are mixed with faith, they too are buried in the ground only to sprout anew into something even better than before. This is what Paul meant when he said that “all things work together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8.28). The psalmist wrote long ago, “Those who sow in tears will reap in joy” (Psalm 126.5). That is, those who sow with repentance and faith will bury their problems and reap the joy that God promises as life goes on.

In the jungles of East Asia a missionary showed a movie about Jesus. This was the first movie these people had ever seen, and so they didn’t realize that this was something that had actually happened in the past. As the movie began they were very impressed with Jesus who could heal the sick and who showed so much compassion to everyone. But when the soldiers began to beat him, they began to jump up and shout and demand that they stop. The missionary had to interrupt the movie to explain that there was more to come. Again when Jesus was being crucified, they screamed for the outrage to stop, and again the missionary had to stop the film to explain there was more to come. Finally, when they came to the end of the movie and Jesus rose from the dead, they broke into pandemonium and celebration as Jesus kept His promises.

So this Easter I urge you to cling to all the promises of God and to remember that as the promise of salvation in Christ goes… so go all of God’s promises. They will be fulfilled, and we can live on in that hope. No matter what happens in this life, the resurrection will always mean, “Don’t despair. There’s more to come.” Amen.

Pastor Michael P. Walther
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Collinsville, Illinois
Resurrection Sunday, April 12, 2009