Greetings Beloved Luther Seminary Community!

I have been traveling for the past two weeks and have not been able to post anything on this blog. Now I am back and ready to settle into a summer rhythm for July and August. For those of you in summer classes, many blessings on your study. For those who are able to take a summer vacation, may you find the restoration you need for your mind, spirit, body, and relationships.

A Simple Wednesday Service of Holy Communion

Each Wednesday at 11:00am I plan to host a very simple gathering for Holy Communion in the Chapel of the Incarnation. There is no Chapel staff this summer, so the service will not have music, preaching, or livestream services. It will simply be scripture reading, prayer, and Holy Communion. Short and sweet for the summer season.

So, if you are on campus on Wednesdays in July and August, I hope to see you there.

Migrant God Book Read

I strongly encourage you to participate in the ABIDE Summer book read. This is a great way to build community.

This week we transition from RFS 1 to RFS 2 (Residential Focus Session).

It has been wonderful to have students of RFS 1 on campus all weekend. Students gathered on Saturday. We woke up to the horrific news of the shooting of John and Yvette Hoffman and the murder of Melissa and Mark Hortman. It was a tender and sacred moment to be able hold space in community in Chapel that morning. Our prayers flow for the Hortman family as we all grieve their deaths, and for the speedy recovery of John and Yvette Hoffman as we give thanks for their survival.

God of mercy, grant us peace, justice, and healing in our hurting world.

Chapel this Week

All chapel services begin at 11:00am.

Wednesday – Service of Holy Communion

We are very excited and honored to welcome Will Willimon to preach in chapel during our service of Holy Communion. All are welcome. The service will be livestreamed.

Thursday | No Chapel

In honor of Juneteenth, school is closed and there is no chapel service.

Friday – Lunch Church

All are welcome to gather in the Dining Room for a community meal and spiritual practice.

Saturday – Simple Service of Sending

We conclude RFS 2 by gathering in the Chapel of the Incarnation for a time of singing, Word, prayer, and sending.

Two big things are happening this week.

First, we welcome our students to campus for the Summer Residential Focus Session (RFS). Prayers for safe travel on Friday and a fruitful time of learning in community on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. We will have a simple chapel service of prayer and welcome on Saturday. Students are encouraged to attend local congregations for worship on Sunday morning. Then we will conclude with a service of Holy Communion on Monday.

Second, it is Holy Trinity Sunday!

This is one of the most challenging Sundays for preachers. It is further complicated by the fact that it is Father’s Day in the USA.

There are three temptations this week:

1. Offer modalistic metaphors like an apple, a clover leaf, or water. Note: modalism presents God as shifting from one “mode” of being to another, but not actually being one-in-three simultaneously.
2. Reduce God to masculine terms, especially on Father’s Day. Note: God is neither male nor female. The first creation story says that God created humanity in the image of God, male AND female, therefore, both and neither are God’s image.
3. Avoid the topic altogether and focus on the lectionary readings, ignoring the Trinitarian implications.

What is the preacher to do?

I love talking about the Trinity so much that I devoted my PhD Dissertation to it, as it relates to Spiritual Formation. I’ve put together The Art Pastor’s Guide to the Trinity that is chock full of images, animation, PowerPoints, and an extensive bibliography. Perhaps something in there might be helpful to you this week. CLICK HERE to explore the resource. Reach out with questions.

The semester is finished. We have celebrated and dispersed another class of graduates. Special thanks to all the amazing staff and volunteers that made our Baccalaureate and Commencement services a beautiful celebration of calling, hard work, the grace of God, and the ongoing life of God’s love for the world.

This week we settle for a moment. The Faculty will be on a combined retreat with the faculty of Wartburg Seminary in honor of the 500th anniversary of the writing of the Augsburg Confession. Pray that this will be a time of refreshment and renewal for both faculties.

And…for our working preachers and worship leaders…it is PENTECOST!

Some reflections on Pentecost and the disruptive nature of the Spirit

Pentecost is a Jewish holiday that happens 50 days after Passover. It came to represent the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai. Jews would make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem from all parts of the world to celebrate this holy day.

Something amazing happened when the disciples of Jesus gathered in Jerusalem on the first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension.

The Holy Spirit came upon them in a new and fresh way. The Spirit shook the house like a mighty wind and descended upon them like tongues of fire.

The disciples were filled with power, courage, and the ability to speak (or be heard) in languages they did not know.

The story is found in Acts 2:1-13.

That’s what happened 2,000 years ago. But, what does it mean? How does it relate to us today?

Two thousand years later the church finds itself in need of another Spirit disruption. We, like the Jewish people of Jesus’ day, are divided into factions. Much of our Christianity has been reduced to ritualism, church membership, or individualistic piety.

This Pentecost, I encourage you to reflect on one simple thing. The same Spirit that filled Jesus’ disciples with courage and the power to be witnesses of the Good News is the Spirit that fills you.

What is the Spirit wanting to disrupt and recharge in your life this year?

This is the big week! We celebrate our students who have worked hard for many years to earn degrees and to be equipped as leaders who will bear witness to the Good News of God’s salvation through Jesus Christ. We also celebrate their families, friends, congregations, judicatories, staff, and faculty who supported them along the way.

Baccalaureate on Saturday

Graduates and their loved ones will gather in the Chapel of the Incarnation at 2:00pm on Saturday for one final worship service together. We will hear a word from Dr. Lois Malcolm and be fed at the table. There will be a class photo and reception on the Bockman lawn following the service.

Commencement on Sunday

We gather at 3:00pm at Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis to celebrate the awarding of degrees.

Please keep these graduates, their loved ones, and the people they are called to serve in your prayers. We ask God for safety in travel, joy in the celebration, and courage for the next steps.

Note: Our regular rhythm of communal practices is on summer break. We will gather again during the Residential Focus Session from June 14-20. Those services will be livestreamed.

The semester is over. Many of you are taking final exams or finishing up final papers this week. Chapel and communal practices will cease for the summer. Commencement is two weeks away.

Let us take a deep breath together.

This is a transitional time. Many emotions are swirling around. The USA honors the fallen on Memorial Day this weekend. You may be traveling for the weekend or packing up to start the new chapter of your life. The geopolitical climate is continually disturbing. Transitions and memorials can be hard and many things can try to pull us in multiple directions.

Take another deep breath. You got this, because God’s got you.

The text that captured my imagination this week comes from the Narrative Lectionary, Galatians 1:13-17, 2:11-21. I was reminded of how the church is not a bounded set of look-alikes, but is a centered set of vast diversity.

Dwell on this image…

No matter where you find yourself this week, may it always be centered on Christ as we are called to be the manifold embodiment of God’s love in the world. (click here if you would like to explore the centered set image)

peace.

This is our last week of the regular rhythm of Chapel and Community Spiritual practices. Wow! that is hard to believe. The Spring term ends next Monday and then we switch into summer mode.

A Service of Blessing and Sending on Wednesday

Everyone is invited to join together this Wednesday to offer a special blessing for students, staff, and faculty who are about to leave for internships, CPEs, and sabbaticals. We are going to have a beautiful contemplative liturgy with prayer and Holy Communion that culminates in a sending blessing from President Steinke. You can watch the Livestream here.

It All Boils Down to This…

The Gospel text this week is short and sweet. Jesus simplifies the entire Good News to one single commandment: Love One Another. Then he gives the “Why?” of his words. If you love one another, then everyone will know that you are my disciples.

How are we doing?

When we bring these words into conversation with the other readings this week, I think it gives us a beautiful, broad picture of what the world could look like. In Acts 11:1-18 Peter explains to the people of Jerusalem that he saw God pour out the Holy Spirit on the Gentiles in Cornelius’ house. Psalm 148 reminds us that all of creation is God’s beloved tapestry. Then, Revelation 21:1-6 shows a beautiful picture of God’s preferred and promised world where God dwells amongst the people and Shalom reigns.

God’s love is for everyone and everything!

May we take a deep breath this week and seek to find the ways–big and little–that we might be vessels of God’s unconditional love on all creation.

Blessings on this week of study, teaching and preaching.

This Week in chapel

All chapel events are at 11:00am

• Monday text study on Zoom.
• Tuesday Contemplative Practice in OCC Meditation Chapel and on Zoom
• Wednesday Contemplative liturgy with Holy Communion in the Chapel of the Incarnation and on YouTube. Stay for treats at the Chapel Cafe afterwards. We welcome President Steinke to offer a blessing for those launching on new adventures.
• Thursday Lunch Church. Simple communal practice in Dining Room A.
• Friday intercessory prayer on Zoom.

I have two invitations for you this week:

Invitation to Pray

Please pray for Luther Seminary because two big things are happening on our campus this week. The first is that our second on-campus accreditation visit is happening on Monday and Tuesday. Last month we went through the ATS (Association of Theological Schools) 10-year review campus visit. This week we will have the HLC (Higher Learning Commission) campus visit. These are important, but stressful, moments for a school to experience. The second is that our Board of Directors will be on campus for their regular May meeting on Thursday-Saturday. Please pray for wisdom, courage, and peace during all these meetings this week.

Invitation to Reflect

Happy Easter! Happy Spring! Happy Mothers’ Day! As I dwell in the texts from the Revised Common Lectionary this week, I see a theme of new life that comes from pain and death, and how Jesus is the Shepherd who leads us there.

You may not feel like celebrating this season. You may feel caught in darkness. That’s OK. AND, I encourage you to remember that the original hearers of these texts were people who were suffering greatly. The disciples of Jesus were Jewish people who were suffering under the tyrannical oppression of the Roman Empire. They were people experiencing deep division and hatred between ethnic groups. They were people who were faced with death if they proclaimed their devotion to Jesus rather than the Empire.

Our hope is found in the resurrection life of the Good News of the kin-dom of God that Jesus proclaimed and embodied. The murderer Saul became a grace-filled giver of new life. Sister Tabitha was raised from the dead. Those who were slaughtered for their faith gather around the lamb who was slain and proclaim, “Salvation belongs to the LORD!”

Mothers who have passed through the pain of giving birth know the joy that comes on the other side. God, the universe, our generation is in the pains of childbirth, awaiting the already-but-not-yet life that our Shepherd Jesus leads us to each day.

Blessings on this week as we pray for our body and trust in our Good Shepherd.

This image comes from my 300 daily devo doodle collection

This Week in chapel

All chapel events are at 11:00am

• Monday text study on Zoom.
• Tuesday Circle Practice in OCC Meditation Chapel and on Zoom
• Wednesday Traditional ELW liturgy with Holy Communion in the Chapel of the Incarnation and on YouTube. Stay for treats at the Chapel Cafe afterwards. We welcome Dr. Matt Skinner as our preacher this week.
• Thursday Lunch Church. Simple communal practice in Dining Room A.
• Friday intercessory prayer on Zoom. AND, a special Lunch Church with the Board of Directors in Dining Room A.

The Easter season is the time of year when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, new life, and new beginnings. Many preachers will walk through the stories of Acts and how the Holy Spirit led Jesus’ disciples to cross cultural boundaries that helped them realize that the body of Christ is much bigger and more inclusive than they had ever imagined. This week we have a special opportunity to be reminded that we still struggle with the scope of who is part of the body of Christ. Who is at the table? Who is often forgotten, or denied access to the table?

We welcome a special guest preacher this Wednesday to guide us through these important questions. Pastor Laura Cannata, (see bio at Robinsdale Parkway UCC) will preach on ideas around accessibility in Luke 5. Then, lunch will be provided after the service. During lunch, Pastor Laura will make a brief participatory presentation to the audience on “Disability Theology Contrasted with Ableist Theology.”

Pastor Cannata is a Justice Minister ordained in the United Church of Christ. She graduated from United Theological Seminary in 2016 and specializes in disability and mental health justice. Laura herself lives with multiple physical and mental health disabilities. She serves on the board of director’s for Disability Ministries and, in her professional practice, is involved in preaching, speaking, and educational engagements.

This Week in chapel

All chapel events are at 11:00am

• Monday text study on Zoom.
• Tuesday Contemplative Practice in OCC Meditation Chapel and on Zoom
• Wednesday Contemporary worship with Holy Communion in the Chapel of the Incarnation and on YouTube. Stay for treats at the Chapel Cafe afterwards. We welcome Pastor Emily Rova-Hegener to lead us in worship and Pastor Laura Cannata as our guest preacher(see above).
• Thursday 11:00am – Lunch Church. Kristina Cossa, M.A. student, and Joellen Barak, M.Div. student will lead us in contemplative practice in Dining Room A.
• Friday intercessory prayer on Zoom.

I woke this morning to experience mixed emotions. My intent was to rejoice in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the returning of students to the regular flow of Seminary life. I will do that in a moment. However, while going about my morning routine I saw the news that Pope Francis died early this morning.

We pause to grieve and give thanks for the life and work of Pope Francis…

…

And…

This is a good reminder that death is not the end of our journey.

This is the season when we begin each worship service proclaiming, “Christ is risen, indeed! Alleluia!”

Easter is the day that makes all the pain and suffering of the past week make sense. Creator God, through the incarnation of Jesus, entered into the violence and suffering that we created. Jesus stood in solidarity with the outcast and oppressed. He absorbed the injustice and did not retaliate with violence. As he died, he forgave those who killed him.

That would be a tragic story if it ended there.

But it didn’t.

Jesus’ death on the cross was God’s resounding “NO!” to the corruption and violence of the systems that humans have created that distort the original vision of God.

Jesus came out of the grave.

Jesus’ resurrection is God’s resounding “YES!” to LIFE and new beginnings.

It is not too late. It is never too late. God’s CHESED–steadfast, unfailing love–will call us to new life again, and again, and again.

I think Pope Francis tried to model that hope in his life and ministry. Rest in peace.

This Week in chapel

All chapel events are at 11:00am

• Tuesday Contemplative Practice in OCC Meditation Chapel and on Zoom
• Wednesday The International Students Association leads worship with Holy Communion in the Chapel of the Incarnation and on YouTube. Stay for treats at the Chapel Cafe afterwards. We welcome Pastor Venicious Reeves to preach and Pastor Sumo Kokor to lead worship.
• Thursday 11:00am – Lunch Church. M.Div. Student Ann Emilie Tjorhom gives her “Why Jesus?” presentation in Dining Room A and on Zoom.
• Friday intercessory prayer on Zoom.