Voices of Faith

Voices of Faith

Touch

I went to see her with a baby strapped to my chest. She was the oldest member of the congregation at the time, some 98 years old. My son was…

Spiritual Resources

Deeper understandings

Series editor’s note: To gain deeper understandings about Christian vocation, I turned to the deans of our ELCA seminaries for theological and personal reflections on their callings. All were able…

Spiritual Resources

Holy discomfort

A few months ago we started using a blessing at the end of our worship taken from A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, simply called “The Franciscan Blessing.” And in there…

Faith in Action

Here’s one suicide prevention tool we all need

While giving a presentation about suicide prevention to a group of teens at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Naperville, Ill., one of the pastors stepped forward and told this story: I…

Voices of Faith

A lexicon of faith: Salvation

Nonreligious uses of the verb “to save” are easy to comprehend. A relief pitcher saves a baseball game. A medic saves the life of a heart attack victim. When we…

Voices of Faith

Winds of change, fire of passion

At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit showed up with sound and force like the wind. Those present saw what seemed to be tongues like fire. In this powerful way, the Spirit…

Voices of Faith

Beware of the Lutherans: Darrow and the danger of labeling

Clarence Darrow, arguably one of the most famous attorneys in the 20th century, wrote an article for Esquire titled “How to pick a jury.” Here’s my favorite quote: “Beware of…

Faith in Action

Another mama’s baby helped me remember

I asked a mama I hardly know if I could hold her baby. She looked relieved and handed him up to me from the chair where she was helping her…

Faith in Action

Bathroom brouhaha

On a trip overseas, I had a long layover in the Netherlands, so I spent a day in Amsterdam. I was amazed to see what at first glance appeared to…

Voices of Faith

I’m a Lutheran: Kylie Oversen

Christus Rex Lutheran Campus Center, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks Law student, state representative and chair of the North Dakota Democratic-Nonpartisan League Party I found my faith when I…

Voices of Faith

Here between Easter and Pentecost

Here between Easter and Pentecost, our church finds itself in something of an interim time. It is, as poet and philosopher John O’Donohue reminds us, a time when the old…

Voices of Faith

The waters of baptism

Series editor’s note: Most who write for “Deeper understandings” are full-time professors at our seminaries, colleges and universities. The majority of the church’s “resident theologians,” of course, are parish pastors…