Saturday, November 29, 2014

Stay Awake for Jeopardy!



God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My focus is Mark, chapter 13 where we read: “in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light. …What I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”
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.
Game shows for $1,000. “This show has been granted trademark status as ‘America's Favorite Quiz Show’ by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.” Answer, please. “What is Jeopardy!?” Correct.
Each week, 25 million viewers watch Jeopardy! Its unique answer-and-question format is a popular motivational tool for educators.[ii] It also lends itself well to our text.
Based on Jesus’ answer, we ask three questions. First, what was the question? Second, what are we waiting for? Third, what should we do?
First, what was the question? What question did the disciples ask that prompted Jesus to reply, “In those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light”?
Backtrack 20 verses. Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, when Peter and the others queried, “When will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?” These things meant the destruction of the Temple, and sign meant fulfillment.
In essence, the disciples asked two types of questions. The first was historical. The Romans destroyed the Temple in 70 A.D. The second was eschatological or an end-time question. In the 19 verses between their questions and his answer, Jesus instructed his disciples what they should do and not do in the meantime.
Jesus taught using cosmological and apocalyptic images – wars, earthquakes, famines, birth pains. Followers would experience family betrayal, beatings and death. He promised an abomination of desolation and false prophets and christs who would perform signs and lead astray the elect.
Next, the good part. Sun and moon go dark. Stars fall and powers in heaven are shaken. Then the Son of Man would come in clouds with great power and glory to send angels to gather his elect from the four winds and the ends of earth.
Now, what was the question again? The question was, “When will the destruction of the Temple occur, and what is the sign of fulfillment?” Jesus’ answer to his disciples’ question (in 30 A.D.), and Mark’s answer to Roman Christians (in 60 A.D.) prepared them for our next two questions. What are we waiting for? What should we do?
The answer prepared them not for an apocalyptic end of the world, complete with the smell napalm in the morning, back-dropped by Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries, but for a new beginning. The destruction of the Temple meant a new beginning.
The Romans destroyed the Temple in 70 A.D.; however, it was not be restored but replaced by the Son of Man. The very Person of Jesus, the Son of Man, became the place of God’s dwelling.[iii] The dramatic collapse of the world’s power structures meant not the end of world history, but the beginning of a new and better phase in which God would work out his purpose.[iv]
What does all of this mean for us today? I will get to that when I ask my third question. Next, what are we waiting for?
Mark indicated a new beginning, and today, the first Sunday of Advent, marks a new beginning for us as church, the beginning of the church year.
The word ‘advent’ is from the Latin word ad, meaning "to" and venire meaning “come.” Advent focuses on Christ's coming to us in the flesh; however, Christ's coming manifests itself among us in three ways – past, present and future.
In the past, Christ came to us in the flesh, an infant who grew to a man. In the present, he comes to us in Word and Sacrament. In the future, he will come again in glory.
On the first two Sundays of Advent, we focus on Christ’s Second Coming. The third and fourth Sundays have incarnational themes – John’s magnificent prologue and Luke’s annunciation to Mary.[v] Advent ends when we gather for evening service on December 24th. Only then does the Christmas season begin.
Christ’s coming evokes urgent excitement for the believer. We wait on tiptoe of expectation. We sense His presence is here. We sense His presence is near. Each day brings us closer to the reason for our waiting, the reason for our being.
Perhaps this will help. In January, our daughter-in-law, Kendra, gave birth to our first granddaughter, Emma Jade. Cindy and I were so excited that on the day we left to see her, we could not sleep, and left two hours ahead of schedule. Good news stimulates excitement.
More good news!!! On April 17th, we expect our first grandson, Levi Ryan Gregg, expectant son of Brody and Jen Gregg, the most excited couple in Glenview, Illinois. You can bet that like Jen and Brody, we will be so excited that we will not sleep. In Lutheranese, it is meet, salutary and right to be excited about the birth of little Levi, Christmas and Christ’s return.
As Christians, are we excited as we wait for the liturgical celebration of Christ’s coming and the final celebration of His return? Are we excited about His presence here and now as He comforts and challenges us in Word and Sacrament?
God comforts and challenges us in Word and Sacrament. He comforts and challenges us to do what? That moves me from ‘what are we waiting for?’ to ‘what shall we do?’
The Daily Double! Pray and act, otherwise known as the Christian Life. The Christian life is prayer and action, worship of God and love of neighbor, meditation and mercy.
Last week, I mentioned that in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus repeatedly said, “Learn the meaning of this phrase, ‘It is mercy, I desire, not sacrifice.’” … I learn and live mercy through meditation, a life of prayer. A Christian without an active daily prayer life is like a candy cane without stripes.
Prayer gives meaning to my life as a pastor and husband. Cindy, who also gives meaning to my life, and I spend time daily meditating on Scripture passages. Currently, we are focusing on Advent passages. The other day Cindy told me, her prayer life used to be one where she only threw up petitions to God.
Petitionary prayers are important, but there are other forms of prayer – thanksgiving, repentance, adoration and praise. Bible phrases tell us that praying to God can include “call upon,” “intercede with,” “meditate on,” “consult,” “cry out to,” “draw near to,” “rejoice in” and “seek the face of.”[vi]
For me an active prayer life includes these forms as well as meditation and contemplation; however, the mere mention of meditation and contemplation unnerves some Christians. Some pastors rail against meditation and contemplation, while others promote them. I suggest one never engage in any prayer or practice that leads away from Christ.[vii]
For me meditating on Scripture is simply having a conversation with God. Since God is wise and merciful, I sit silently and wait for God to speak. Meditation is that simple. I wait for God to speak a word.
In his Simple Way to Pray, after prescribing an organized method of meditating, Martin Luther wrote, “If in the midst of such thoughts the Holy Spirit begins to preach in your heart with rich, enlightening thoughts, honor him by letting go of this written scheme; be still and listen to him. Remember what he says. Note it well and you will behold wondrous things in the law of God.”[viii]
In Meditation on Christ’s Passion, Luther wrote, “We say without hesitation that he who contemplates God’s sufferings for a day, an hour, yes, only a quarter of an hour, does better than to fast a whole year, pray a psalm daily, [or] hear a hundred masses. This meditation changes man’s being and, almost like baptism, gives him a new birth.”[ix]
Meditation, almost like baptism, gives us new birth. In short, Luther encouraged meditation as a way to deepen our understanding and appreciation of God’s Word.
Meditation relates well to my first point in that the destruction of the Temple meant a new beginning. Worship at the Temple was replaced by worship through the new place of God’s dwelling, the Christ.[x] Likewise, through baptism, my old sinful life was destroyed so a new grace-filled life could emerge.
As a Christian, I live by faith. I am not promised exemption from suffering, trial or even death for the sake of the gospel.
One of the more compelling stories of martyrdom is that of Jim Elliott, who ministered in South America to the Auca Indians, who eventually killed him. Shortly before his death, Elliott said, “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep [his very life] to gain what he cannot lose [eternal life].” Though they did not articulate it in these words, many early Christians lived by the wisdom of this motto.[xi]
Living by this motto means that one must stay awake. One must imitate the doorkeeper.[xii] As Christians living in between the time of Christ’s coming in the flesh and his glorious coming, we do not know when he will return.
The doorkeeper could surmise that his master would return during the day. It was dangerous to travel through the night. Yet, parables always challenge one to consider the improbable. So, he needed to stay awake. The Christian, like the doorkeeper, is never off duty.[xiii] Christians must live mercifully and pray actively.
I close by checking my calendar. Between now and next Sunday, I have four Christmas parties to attend – Ladies Aid, 20s and 30s group, 40s and 50s group, and Fellowship Club. After that, two schools functions and a Christmas pageant. I have to write three more sermons, and lead two classes for new members. I will make Lord’s Supper visits to Extended Care, Friendship Manor and members’ homes. Then family matters demand Christmas cards and gifts. Of course, you have professional and personal duties as well.
My point is that in the busyness of the season, we are easily distracted. No longer awake, Christ’s coming catches us unaware. We lose the sense of wonder and contemplation, unable to read the signs of the times because of our distractedness.
Staying awake is not about sleep, but about spiritual laziness, which often manifests itself as busyness in the form of distractedness. Distractedness is a way of not paying attention to oneself or the needs of others or the voice of God because we are so busy doing nothing – shopping for bargains and checking our smartphones, catching up on small talk and on social media, attending parties and festivities.
Being awake when Christ arrives depends upon my ability to wait quietly and attentively. My difficulty is not that I reject Christ, but staying awake and attentive to the signs reminding me that He is coming. [xiv]
If you do not know how to stay awake – how to pray – use Portals of Prayer. Each day there is a Scripture passage and a meditation.
As we begin Advent, I ask you to do one thing – pray daily – so that when the Day of the Lord comes, He may find you awake. As you pray, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.[xv]


[i] Psalm 122
[ii] http://www.jeopardy.com/
[iii] LaVerdiere, 207
[iv] France, 533
[v] John A. Melloh, Advent , 18
[vi] Margaret Dorgan, 1037
[vii] http://www.lcms.org/faqs/lcmsviews#yoga
[viii] http://www.se.lcms.org/uploads/simple_way_pray_luther.pdf
[ix] Paragraph 10 -  http://www.lutheranmissiology.org/Luther%20Meditate%20Passion%20of%20Christ.pdf
[x] LaVerdiere, 207
[xi] Witherington, 357
[xii] France, 545
[xiii] France,546
[xiv] http://americamagazine.org/content/the-word/daily-distractions

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

History, Healing and a Happier Thanksgiving



God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My focus is the Gospel of Luke. … 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.
On behalf of Pastor Wietfeldt and the staff of Trinity Lutheran Church, Happy Thanksgiving.
Having worked four years as Director of Development at Berkeley Food and Housing Project in California, one of the state’s largest homeless service providers, I can tell you that not everybody spends the fourth Thursday in November with family. Thousands of Americans eat Thanksgiving dinner at soup kitchens, homeless shelters, church basements and other fine establishments. Pilgrims from every side of the political pendulum serve these down-and-out diners. That said, today, we put aside politics to look at Thanksgiving’s history, a leper’s healing and how we can enjoy a happier Thanksgiving.
First, Thanksgiving’s history. For some, Thanksgiving commemorates a heritage of false memory. Internet myths of Thanksgiving range from fundamentalists’ invention of a fake 1623 Thanksgiving Proclamation – to prove that God was being thanked and not the Indians – to Libertarians, who used the same fake proclamation to claim that “the real reason for Thanksgiving is that Socialism does not work.”[ii]
Puritan Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving after their first harvest in the New World in 1621. The feast lasted 3 days. 90 Native Americans and 53 Pilgrims attended. The Pilgrims were accustomed to regularly celebrating thanksgivings – days of prayer thanking God for blessings such as military victory or the end of a drought.
Thanksgiving became an official Federal holiday in 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November a national day of “Thanksgiving and Praise to our Father … in the Heavens.”
As a faith community, we celebrate thanksgiving when we gather for the Lord’s Supper. Eucharist means we give thanks because the gift is nothing less than forgiveness of sins for which we can never atone. We give thanks because we have nothing else to give but gratitude.[iii]
Where faith has genuinely received such gracious gifts, it cannot help but be eucharistic or thankful to God. Such thanksgiving will show up in worship, but also in daily life – an attitude of gratitude revealed in how we live with those around us.
Now, let’s take that attitude of gratitude and turn to the Gospel where health and salvation go together like turkey and stuffing.
To the 10 lepers requesting that he have mercy on them, Jesus replied, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” Jesus was following the Law, specifically Leviticus, chapter 14. Was the Samaritan, who lived outside the requirement of Judaism, included in the command to go to a priest? Moreover, why did Jesus reproach the other nine for following the Law and his command? Furthermore, why did Jesus say, “Your faith has made you well,” when all were cleansed?[iv]
Questions demand further exploration because the Gospel of Luke is richer than pumpkin pie and Cool Whip – but not that fat free, sugar free kind that my wife buys. Note that Luke opens this story by telling us that on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus was passing between Samaria and Galilee. Mentioning Samaria is significant, since only the Samaritan responded with grateful faith and praise. At first, the Samaritans rejected Jesus’ disciples because he was going to Jerusalem. When the disciples wanted to call fire down from heaven to destroy them, Jesus would not allow it. In fact, a Samaritan showed the Jews how to be a good neighbor according to the law.[v] And now, by contrast with nine others, a Samaritan embodies the conditions of salvation.
For salvation actually to be realized, the healed person must respond in faith, a gift that is open to all. The grateful Samaritan reminds us that salvation is not limited to the Jews, but is universally offered to all people.
Like the nine lepers who did not return to praise God and Jesus, the Pharisees failed to recognize that the kingdom of God was already in their midst. It was manifested in Jesus’ healing, but they looked elsewhere for it. Without faith, miracles are opaque. If the other nine and the Pharisees were not blind, they certainly suffered from glaucoma.
Finally, how to enjoy a happier Thanksgiving. … How do I recognize the kingdom of God is in our midst? Through a recent healing? When I see down-and-out diners served by well-heeled waiters? By confessing my sins and a pastor’s absolution? Perhaps when I showed mercy to another sinner, as Jesus showed mercy to the lepers? Folks, when we recognize God is truly in our midst, and praise Him for that, our thanksgiving feast around the table of our homes and around the table of the Lord will be truly happy.
Notice, Jesus instructs the grateful leper, “Rise and go on your way.” After our final hymn, as you rise and go on your way, journey not only to your homes and dinner destinations, but also with Jesus. Let the Holy Spirit take you where God wants you – Berkeley, California; Edmond, Oklahoma; or Nashville, Illinois. For when you go with God, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.


[i] Psalm 122
[ii] http://historynewsnetwork.org/article/15002
[iii] Larry Vogel, Toward a Theology of Worship That Is Pastoral and Sacramental. Model Theological Conference on Worship January 11, 2010, 20
[iv] Craddock, 202f.
[v] LaVerdiere, 215

Saturday, November 22, 2014

Final Exam - Last Sunday of the Church Year



God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My focus is Matthew, chapter 25 where we read: “‘As you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me’ and ‘As you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
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.
One of Martin Luther’s gifts to Christianity was his Small Catechism. Luther was not the first to pen a catechism. Matthew the Evangelist penned his 1,500 years earlier. Matthew’s first catechetical lesson – Beatitudes. His final exam – The Great Judgment. Our grade? 3 C’s: Characters from Matthew, Catechism from Luther, Commencement from experience.
First, characters. Matthew employed five characters in his parable: Son of Man, King, Sheep, Goats and Least Ones.
Son of Man existed before Jesus’ earthly ministry. It was used prominently in Daniel and in several other books. Matthew referred to Jesus as Son of Man in his ministry, passion and resurrection, and as one coming at the end of the ages. Because Matthew wrote to demonstrate that Jesus fulfilled Scripture, he portrayed him as Son of Man, a judicial figure that possessed righteousness, vindicated the righteous and judged people according to their deeds. What Jesus said in chapter 25 reflected what he taught throughout his life.
As a Jew, Matthew’s concern with keeping Jewish law held great significance, but of greater significance was following Jesus and his teachings: faith, justice and mercy – as taught in the Beatitudes. Mercy is the weightiest as demonstrated in Jesus’ repeated citation of the phrase, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”[ii] Hence, Son of Man judges people’s deeds of mercy, such as feeding the hungry, welcoming strangers and visiting the imprisoned.
From Son of Man to King. Note that Son of Man appears only at the beginning of the parable, while the King conducts the dialogue.[iii] Matthew made the change because the Son of Man as King exercised his Father’s will. There is change, but also continuity. Let me explain.
In chapter 16, Matthew wrote the Son of Man would come in his father’s glory,[iv] whereas in chapter 25, he wrote the Son of Man would come in his own glory, but the reference to his father in v. 34 is a reminder that like a King, the Son of Man judges people based on their deeds of mercy.
Jesus never referred to himself as a king. Why, then, did Matthew use the title in chapter 25?
Kings are mentioned throughout Matthew. The newborn king threatened King Herod.[v] Jesus, the donkey-riding humble king of triumph acted unlike other kings who persecuted disciples and resisted God.[vi] As king, chapter 25 depicted Jesus exercising God’s rule over all and sharing in his Father’s authority.[vii] This also prepared readers for Jesus as the mocked king throughout his passion.[viii]
Who is the king? God. God, who identifies himself with every wretched, needy and suffering person. Like a king, God judges people according to their attitude towards the least. Jesus compared God to a king and a shepherd. At the last judgment, on the day his dominion is realized and his kingdom established, God will separate people like a shepherd separates sheep from goats.
Before I identify sheep and goats, note that Matthew mentioned separation several times: wheat from chaff, weeds from wheat and types of fish.[ix] In each case, separation is delayed until the proper time, that is, after all nations heard the gospel.[x] Only after the nations have been confronted with the Christian message will the judgment come. …..
Why separate sheep and goats? To deepen our understanding, we look at Palestinian culture during the time of Jesus. First, Jews considered sheep more valuable because their white color, in distinction to the black of goats, made them a symbol of the righteous. Second, shepherds customarily mixed their flocks. Sheep and goats grazed in the same pasture during the day, but every evening, the shepherd separated them because goats need to be kept warm at night, for cold harms them, while sheep prefer the night’s open air. So, this separation symbolized the final judgment.
Because they are separated, our challenge is to discover something negative about goats that would make their condemnation seem proper.
In the eyes of a Palestinian Jew, sheep and goats are different. Does that make the goat worth less than the sheep? … Yes! … What answer were you expecting? … Now, because a ten-dollar bill is worth less than a twenty, it does not mean that we throw them away. Similarly, Matthew expected his audience to have a positive attitude toward goats that would make their condemnation shocking. Shocking to complacent Christians who regarded themselves righteous despite their acknowledged occasional failures. … We do this all the time – I sin, but I am not a murderer. … Seemingly minor and forgivable delinquencies like failure to be ready with oil, failure to increase the master’s property, or failure to recognize and serve the Son of Man in his least brethren will not be minor or forgivable in the eyes of the divine judge. In short, Matthew took great pains to urge readers to recognize the rigors of God’s demands.
Matthew listed 37 episodes that linked behavior and consequence, which tells me that following Jesus can be arduous. Yet, if I believe I am saved by faith alone, the demands of following a Savior who loves me should be easy to keep. … In short, sheep and goats represented the acting and non-acting members of Matthew’s church. The sheep are blessed because they tended to the needs of the King/the least. The goats did not. As to whom the least were is now what we discover.
If we look at the least elsewhere in Matthew, we hear Jesus saying, “Whoever gives a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple will surely not lose his reward!”[xi] We read that the requirement for entering the kingdom of heaven is to become like a little child. Jesus also used the phrase “little ones” to mean disciples who believed in him.[xii] By the time Matthew wrote his gospel, “the least” were poor, wandering missionaries who depended upon the hospitality of Christians to provide for their needs as they made the gospel known to all nations. In short, “the least” represented Jesus. Whether people recognized Him in “the least” is our next matter.
The members of Matthew’s church were aware of Jesus’ demands. They also remembered that in their own congregation, love grew cold, lawlessness gained the upper hand, and hatred and power grabbing thrived, which is why Jesus sharpened his message regarding humility and service.[xiii]
Christians realized that though they were the light of the world, their claims could turn into triumphalism. To combat that, the true disciple reminded himself that his relationship with God could not be disconnected from his relationship to real persons in the congregation who represented Jesus. To honor Jesus meant nothing more than to do what he commanded, and above all to take seriously his command regarding faith, love and mercy.
In light of His passion, this parable provided insight into what could happen to followers of Christ. Jesus, who was a homeless stranger and suffered hunger, would have worse things happen to him than being thrown into prison.[xiv] The Great Judgment reminded Christians that God is truly with us in the least.
For Christians living as a minority population, the parable offered hope to the Christians themselves, and to the people they loved and served. Despite unsanitary and overcrowded living conditions and the general misery of poverty, Matthew’s Christians used limited resources to meet the basic human needs of the poor. They saw themselves not only in the righteous sheep who took care of the needy but also in the needy least ones. The comparison between sheep and goats urged Christians to be righteous by caring for the neediest, and encouraged them to become ‘the least’ as they brought God’s kingdom to the world.
Matthew’s catechism challenged Christians to bring God’s kingdom to the world, and that brings me to Luther’s catechism, which also challenges Christians.
First, we know works do not save us, but to quote the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, the “justified necessarily produce good works or good fruits.”[xv]
I am a good person because I worship God, respect seniors, do not steal or murder. Yet, as Luther explained, the Fifth Commandment extends far beyond killing. “We should not use our tongue to advocate or advise harming anyone.”[xvi]
Luther then turned to Matthew 25. … If you send away one who is naked when you could clothe him, you caused him to freeze to death. If you see one hunger and do not give him food, you caused him to starve. If you see one innocently sentenced to death, and do not save him … you killed him. You - killed - him.
Finally, commencement. Commencement is a ceremony when schools confer degrees or grant diplomas at the end of the academic year. Its Latin roots mean to initiate or consecrate.[xvii] Today is a new beginning, the first day I realize how much the Lord Jesus loves me that he lived and died not only to set me free from Satan, sin and self, but also to call me to love the least in our world as he loved them.
Jesus said, “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”[xviii] … I suggest you let the disadvantaged take advantage of you. Why? Because in our sinful state, you and I took advantage of Jesus for the sake of salvation. We took advantage of God’s mercy when He offered it. We take advantage of God’s mercy daily. When will I learn the meaning of the phrase, I desire mercy, and not sacrifice? When will I realize that I am a sinner redeemed by His Blood? When will I realize that I am like Christ when the disadvantaged of this world take advantage of my Christ-like mercy?
Do not misunderstand me. I am not saying allow every greedy or gossipy person to swindle or slander you. Do not be the doormat of society’s bullies.
I am saying our world is over-populated with people who suffered at the hands of others. The institutionalized and incarcerated, true victims of physical, mental or verbal violence, men, women and children deprived of wealth, health and love. We are overwhelmed with people looking for Christians who live the meaning of the phrase; I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.
I leave you with one example. For over a year, I ran a program at the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh that served incarcerated mothers. We named the program “I to I” or Incarceration to Independence. Our goal was to create a seamless transition from incarceration to independent living so that these young mothers could raise their children.
The women – arrested for nonviolent crimes – solicitation, theft, possession and so on – were abused by adults since they were young girls. … Over the course of a year, I met with 50 women at the jail. … I will save the details for another day, but I remember walking to the jail one afternoon and into my head pops, “I was in prison and you visited me.”
Branded into my brain – the Scripture passage. Seared onto my soul – visits to incarcerated mothers. Blessed are we when, in light of God’s mercy, we, poor miserable sinners, allow ourselves to serve God and neighbor by letting the least turn to us. Friends, show mercy to the least in your world, and when you do, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.[xix]


[i] Psalm 122
[ii] 9:13; 12:7-8; 18:33
[iii] 25:34-36
[iv] 16:27
[v] Matthew 2:2
[vi] 21:5; 10:18; 14:9; 17:25
[vii] 28:18
[viii] 27:11, 29, 37, 42
[ix] 3:12;13:24-30; 13:47-50
[x] 24:14; 28:19-20
[xi] 10:42
[xii] see 18:1-4; 12:49-50; 18:15-35; 23:8; 28:10
[xiii] 24:10; 18:1-5; 20:20-28; 23:8-11
[xiv] 8:20; 21:18
[xv] Book of Concord, Page 171
[xvi] Ibid, Page 412
[xvii] http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=commence&searchmode=none
[xviii] 9:13
[xix] Some books to read include:
·         Charles A. Kroloff, 54 Ways You Can Help the Homeless. West Orange, NJ: Behrman House (1993).
·         Robert E. Goodin, Protecting the Vulnerable: A Reanalysis of Our Social Responsibilities. Chicago: University of Chicago Press (1985).
·         Gene Outka and John P. Reeder, Jr., editors, Prospects for a Common Morality. Princeton: Princeton University Press (1992).
·         Kim Hopper, Reckoning with Homelessness. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press (2003).