The Spirit of Love: Remembering and Sharing the Last Letter of One Extraordinary Soldier, PFC Leonard F. Cwynar

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … My theme is God visits us with the Promise of the Spirit. My focus is John 14:16: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.”

Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’”[i] Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

Two days and twenty-seven years ago, I was one of five men ordained at St. Paul Cathedral in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While the ordained laid hands on us and prayed, the congregation sang Veni Creator Spiritus or Come, Creator Spirit. We sing this hymn on Pentecost, marking the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the church, as Jesus promised. Twenty-seven years later, as you heard in my prayer, I still ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten my mind and move my heart to love deeply as Jesus loved.

Today, I examine the Spirit and Scripture, the Spirit and Christ, and the Spirit and the Church. First, the Spirit and Scripture.

The word spirit comes from the Latin spīritus meaning breath. Spirit is the force or principle of life that animates the body of living things. It can also mean temperament, liveliness or mood. We got spirit. Yes we do. We got spirit. How bout you?

In the Old Testament, the Spirit of God is present in at least three ways. First, the Spirit of God is present in creating the world and sustaining life. The Bible’s second verse reads, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. The Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”

The Spirit of God is also present in history, using a rebellious Israel to reveal God’s redemptive purpose. Several weeks ago, we heard how Israel angered God and troubled Moses by the waters of Meribah, for they rebelled against the Spirit of God, and rash words came from Moses’ lips.[ii]

Finally, the Spirit of God is present in individual believers. For example, in Ezekiel we read, “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”[iii]

The Chaldean King, Belshazzar, recognized the spirit in Daniel enabled him to interpret dreams.[iv] Finally, the prophet Jeremiah proclaimed God’s promise. “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”[v]

In short, the Spirit of God has always been active. It is that Spirit Jesus promised to send to the Church. My second point, the Spirit and Christ.

You may be aware that in several weeks, we will celebrate Pentecost and Holy Trinity Sundays. The readings chosen for these last weeks of Easter purposefully point towards the power of the Spirit Christ and His Father promised to send. Since we spend so little time focusing on the Holy Spirit, we should reacquaint ourselves.

Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is God. He is not an "it." He is not a divine influence or a fleecy white cloud, a ghost or concept. He is a Person possessing a will, intellect and emotions. He is God -- with all the deity’s attributes. He is the Third person of the Trinity -- co-equal with God the Father and God the Son.

Why did the Holy Spirit come? Could we not follow the Law and Gospel without a Helper? It seems to me the Holy Spirit meddles too much. After all, the Church of the East and West never agreed on the exact wording of the Nicene Creed because of the Holy Spirit. Some ministers never preach about the Holy Spirit, preferring to talk only about Jesus Christ. So, why do good and proper Christians need the Holy Spirit? Because the Holy Spirit enables me to know Christ.

The Holy Spirit enables me to know Christ and gives me the power to live and share the abundant life that Jesus promised to all who trust and obey Him.

I cannot live this abundant life apart from the help of the Holy Spirit for the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control,[vi] all qualities of the abundant life.

Yet, people deny the Holy Spirit. In fact, not long after the Church penned the Nicene Creed and settled the Arian controversy, another sect declared the Holy Spirit inferior to the Father and Son. Fortunately, theologians like Basil the Great defended the deity of the Holy Spirit. Basil cited not only the words of Jesus, who taught that sin against the Holy Spirit is unpardonable,[vii] but also the Acts of the Apostles where Satan filled the heart of Ananias who lied to the Holy Spirit.[viii]

Sadly, today there are numerous nontrinitarian denominations that reject the Trinity, including Christian Scientists, Mormons, Quakers or Friends, Jehovah's Witnesses and our next-door neighbors, the Unitarian Universalists.[ix] This is not to say that they are bad people, but we must be clear about our beliefs and teachings regarding the Holy Spirit. My third point, the Spirit and the Church.

The orthodox teachings of Martin Luther remind us that the Holy Spirit empowers the church to perform its mission.[x] Without the Spirit, could the first followers of Jesus remember his words and deeds? Could they read the Law and Prophets through the prism of His Paschal Mystery? In other words, the Spirit inspired writers to remember how Christ fulfilled Scripture. Those who followed Jesus, saw Him die and witnessed Him alive passed on the Good News. Today, that good news is announced to you. You are saved through Christ.

The Spirit brings us into a saving relationship with Christ. However, without the Spirit, could the first followers remember Christ? Think how powerful a force the Holy Spirit is – that we know the story of a man born 2,000 years ago.

To put that force into perspective, consider that 100 years after you draw your last breath, 100 years after your spirit is gone, no one will remember you. Your great-great grandchildren will not know your name or know your favorite ice cream flavor. Wanna bet? Name your 16 great-great grandparents. Now, name their favorite ice cream.

I say that because most of the time we do not remember those who have gone before us, but on Memorial Day, we remember those who died fighting for our nation. With that, a personal story.

Most people never heard of Private First Class Leonard F. Cwynar. I never met my Uncle Leonard, eldest son of John and Helen Cwynar. The War Department declared him dead on the Anzio Beachhead during Operation Shingle, the costliest battle of the Second World War. I say ‘declared dead’ because not enough remains were left to identify Leonard. He was one of 67,000 Allied casualties. The enemy suffered 25,000 casualties. Audie Murphy and James Arness survived.

We have no pictures of Leonard, but we have his letters. This is his last – written to my grandparents on March 10, 1944 from the Anzio Beachhead in Italy.

Dear Mom & Dad, … Just dropping you a few lines to let you know that I am in fine health. I feel better today than I have for quite a while. I wasn’t sick, just plain tired. Will you please say hello to all my friends cause I don’t have time to write them. Thank Mrs. Weigel for the card she sent me. Tell Weigels, Ewings, Hollisters, and Red I said hello. I miss all the folks at home and will be glad when it’s over.

I didn’t hear Roosevelt’s Christmas Eve speech … I’m running out of words and paper so until my next letter, So long and God Bless You. … Love, Leonard.…

I can read you Uncle Leonard’s last letter because my grandparents, father and uncles loved and remembered him. I can read you Scripture, God’s letters, because the first followers of Jesus loved and remembered Him. … Love, the power of the Holy Spirit, enables the Church to remember and present Christ as active and alive in every continent and culture for 21 centuries.

The Holy Spirit also empowers us to share how Christ is active in our lives. … You would not have heard of PFC Leonard Cwynar if I had not talked about him. You would not know Christ if His first followers had not talked about Him. Will Christ be remembered if you do not share what He did for you? In a word, no.

So, what prevents you from sharing your faith? Memorial Day reminds us no ordinary soldiers sacrificed supremely. Only extraordinary soldiers. The promise of the Holy Spirit reminds us no ordinary Christians sacrifice supremely for the Gospel, only extraordinary Christians.

For me, the last 27 years and 2 days have been extraordinary. Every chance I get to preach God’s Word is extraordinary. Likewise, your chance to live an extraordinary Christian life is right before your eyes. All you have to do is believe the power of the Holy Spirit is present in the ordinary moments of life. All you have to do is share with your family how the Spirit is active and alive in you. Then, 70 or 150 years after your spirit leaves your body, people will remember you as the most extraordinary Christian whoever lived and loved.

On Memorial Day, honor those who sacrificed their lives by sharing the Gospel. Honor those who shared the Gospel with you by remembering them. Thank them and thank God for them. When you do, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phil 4:7). Amen.

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[i] Psalm 122

[ii] Psalm 106:32-33

[iii] Ezekiel 36:26-27

[iv] Daniel 5:10ff

[v] Jeremiah 31:33

[vi] Galatians 5:22

[vii] Matthew 12:31-32

[viii] Acts 5:3-4 (See also http://cyclopedia.lcms.org/display.asp?t1=s&word=SIN.THEUNPARDONABLE).

[ix] See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity#Holy_Spirit_as_God

[x] Matthew 28:19-20

Mom Taught Pastoral Theology by Growing Tomatoes

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … God visits us as a shepherd is my theme. My focus is John 10, with an emphasis on verse 1: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.”

Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’”[1] Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

"Someone to Watch Over Me" by George and Ira Gershwin has been performed by numerous artists since its 1926 debut. It is a ballad and jazz standard in the Great American Songbook.[2] Its memorable stanza goes:

There's a somebody I'm longing to see

I hope that she turns out to be

Someone to watch over me.

I'm a little lamb who's lost in a wood.

I know I could always be good

To one who'll watch over me.

The sentiments expressed by the Gershwin Brothers stir our longing for someone to watch over us – little lambs lost in a wood – especially when we are tempted to sin or enter the sheepfold by another way. We need a shepherd to protect or correct us. On this Good Shepherd Sunday, I offer an overview of Biblical Shepherds; explain the meaning and model of Christian Shepherds; and finally, reflect on how God calls us to shepherd one another.

First, Biblical Shepherds. Even if we never met one, we know a shepherd is a person who tends, herds, feeds or guards herds of sheep. Like many terms, the word shepherd stems from an amalgam of several words – sheep herder.

The Good Shepherd illustrates God's care for His people as we heard in Psalm 23, our morning psalm - The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. … For millenniums Jews and Christians have taken to heart the words of the psalmist as a way of saying that in our Judeo-Christian tradition, Shepherd is a term used for God.

Those God appointed to watch over His people started out as shepherds. Among God’s great leaders were Biblical shepherds including Abraham, Moses, David and Amos. They protected and corrected God’s people, like good Missouri Synod Lutherans who expertly applied Law and Gospel as needed.

Of course, all Scripture points to Jesus, who fulfilled the Law, Gospel and prophecy. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who watches over us. In His earthly and risen life, Jesus is protector and corrector. Before He ascended into heaven, He appointed others to protect and correct us. My second point, Christian Shepherds.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus called Peter to shepherd His sheep.[3] In his First Letter, we read how Peter called wayward Christians to return to the Shepherd and Overseer of souls.[4] His letter demonstrated care and correct teaching for Christians.

Over time, the Church appointed men like Timothy and Titus to shepherd and oversee multiple congregations. By the end of the first century, the fluid terms of bishop, priest and deacon achieved fixed forms to designate certain functions. The Church recognized Timothy and Titus as bishops because they ordained and disciplined priests and deacons.[5]

Bishop comes from the Greek word, episkopos, meaning overseer. Today, not every Christian denomination recognizes the office of bishop in its structure, however, most recognize those who oversee, protect and correct as pastors. The term Pastor, the Latin word for shepherd, denotes clergy of most Christian denominations.

Pastors perform three basic tasks. Remember this the next time you are standing in line at the airport. Pastors teach, sanctify and administer – TSA – but we will never search your luggage or take away your knitting needles. Pastors teach the Faith in Sunday School, inquiry and confirmation classes, and from the pulpit or over the internet. Pastors form Christians through correct teaching and correct misinformed Christians and catechists when, like in First Peter, false teaching appears under the guise of Christian orthodoxy.

Pastors sanctify – or make holy – when they lead worship and when Christians gather for any type of prayer. Lastly, pastors administer the daily business of the church. However successful, every pastor knows that through the Holy Spirit, Christ continues to oversee and shepherd His Church.

That brings me to my third point: Christians Shepherd One Another. Our reading from Acts is a snapshot of the Church immediately after Pentecost when Peter and the apostles baptized 3,000 people. Today’s passage illustrates their devotion to teaching, fellowship, communion and prayer. Think of Peter and the apostles teaching, sanctifying and administering the church as they tend to the needs of everyone.

Eventually, tending to the needs of everyone overwhelmed the apostles, and the Church chose men like Stephen to tend to duties apart from preaching and sanctifying. These were the original deacons. Today, deacons serve some remote (LCMS) churches, while in most congregations laymen known as elders are appointed to serve the congregation in its temporal affairs and assist the pastor in his administrative tasks.

In his book Pastors and Elders, Reverend Timothy Mech, addresses issues that often arise in congregations.[6] His book answers frequently asked questions: Who is in charge? What are the expected and allowed duties of elders? How should pastors and elders work together? How do members hold elders accountable? How do elders challenge self-absorbed Christians?

The ultimate responsibility of shepherding the Church, however, falls not to the pastor or the elders, but to the parents. Parents bear responsibility for teaching their children God's Word so that the Faith may remain alive and grow.

Godparents, pastors, elders and catechists assist parents in their duty to shepherd their children. Together, we ensure that everyone enters the sheepfold by the door and does not climb in some other way.

This being Mother’s Day and Good Shepherd Sunday, let me tell you how my mother taught me pastoral theology. Mom taught me how to pastor by showing me how to grow tomatoes.

Every spring our family planted more than 100 tomato plants, which sufficiently fed our family of five. When the weather broke, we tilled the garden for tomatoes and many other vegetables.

We dug holes, planted, fertilized and watered our plants. Through the summer, we weeded and watered; checked for bugs and blight and discarded rotten tomatoes.

We harvested tomatoes for salad, sauce and juice. We buried the discarded skin and seeds which produced a later crop. Since we were 4-H members, we entered our prize tomatoes in exhibits at local fairs.

Growing tomatoes taught me three practical necessities about pastoral ministry: nourish, reserve and share. Parents, pastors, elders and all members need to nourish, reserve and share their faith.

First, nourish. By exercising our faith – by attending worship, reading God’s Word, taking Communion, seeking forgiveness and attending religious education classes – we nourish ourselves.

Second, reserve. 25 years of ministry taught me there are times when we cannot nourish ourselves adequately. There will be times when troubles and temptations attack us. … We need a reserve. There will be times when caring for sick children or frail parents exhaust us. There will be times when completing projects, cramming for exams or meeting deadlines consume us. There will be times when we do not have the luxury to bathe ourselves in God’s Word or enjoy the feast of His banquet. We can only birdbath and eat on the run. During difficult times, we need that reserved Mason jar of tomatoes in the pantry. That is why my mother taught us how to can tomatoes. That is why she taught us to memorize Scripture passages and prayers because she knew we would someday need a reserve – of spiritual food that God provides to nourish our bodies and our souls.

Third, share. When God blessed us with plentiful tomatoes, we shared them with others. We shared tomatoes with friends, neighbors, pastors and the less fortunate. Mom taught me to practice charity by sharing God’s abundant blessing with others. How do we share God’s abundant blessings with others?

Take a moment, look around and notice something that you have never noticed. Notice who is missing. Who is not here today that you normally see? Who was here on Easter but has not returned? Who has not been here for a month, a year? Make a list of names of people you have not seen in church, and when you go home, call those individuals.

You may be thinking that I am kidding. I am not. … Do not protest by thinking, “That’s not my job. That’s my elder’s duty.” … True, it is not your job. True, it is your elder’s duty. … Sharing with a little lamb who's lost in a wood how God abundantly blessed you today during this time of worship is not a duty or a job, it is a privilege, your privilege, my privilege. … Sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ risen from the dead for the forgiveness of sins is not a job to be completed, but a privilege shared by all.

In this liturgy, God nourishes us so abundantly that we have enough reserved in our spiritual pantry not only for those times when life tests us and Satan tempts us, but also enough to share with others.

Lest thieves and robbers enter the sheepfold and steal souls for Satan, we – pastors, elders, parents and members – must nourish, reserve and share our faith. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, God the Father and Christ His Son charge you to watch over one another as good sheperds, to protect and correct one another.

By teaching me how to grow tomatoes, mom taught me how to be a good shepherd. She taught me to nourish, reserve and share. I am sure your mother taught you the same. On Mother’s Day, honor your mother by sharing the Gospel with others. Share with others how God has blessed you today and ask them the same. And when you listen to their blessed answer, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phil 4:7). Amen.

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[1] Psalm 122

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Someone_to_Watch_Over_Me_%28song%29

[3] John 21:15-29

[4] 1 Peter 2:25

[5] See 1 Tim. 5:19–22; 2 Tim. 4:5; Titus 1:5

[6] Timothy J. Mech, Pastors and Elders: Caring for the Church and One Another. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 2011.