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From The Presiding Bishop
The blurring of law and gospel
Martin Luther once said, “I felt that I had been born anew and that the gates of heaven had been opened. The whole of Scripture gained a new meaning. And…
From The Presiding Bishop
God is with us
Sometimes the world just seems so solid. Reality is uncompromising and immutable. Literally, what you see is what you get, and our sight, our perception, is limited. So we forge…
From The Presiding Bishop
Healthful words of life
In September I had the beautiful privilege of preaching at a combined meeting of the Conference of Bishops and the inaugural gathering of the 2022-23 Fund for Leaders class. It…
From The Presiding Bishop
A common witness
One of the distinct privileges of this call as presiding bishop is seeing the church at work at home and around the world. The Lutheran movement is alive and well,…
From The Presiding Bishop
We are woven together
He was a young man. In his early 20s. He had cancer. His mother and stepfather cared for him to the point of weariness. The family was unchurched, but a…
From The Presiding Bishop
Can we answer the question ‘why’?
Once for continuing education I signed up for an introduction to philosophy course at the community college. I was a music education major in college and never had any philosophy…
From The Presiding Bishop
The good Samaritan
I have been thinking a lot about the parable of the good Samaritan lately (Luke 10:25-37). Parts of it are so familiar—the unfortunate victim, the robbers, the priest, the Levite,…
From The Presiding Bishop
We have a choice
Browsing through my work journal recently, I noticed the date when my entries stopped: March 19, 2020. The next week the Chicago-based churchwide staff began sheltering in place. I remember…
From The Presiding Bishop
The way back to our center
587 B.C.E. was not a good year. The siege of Jerusalem ended with the destruction of the city, its walls and Solomon’s temple. Many died of starvation during the siege….
From The Presiding Bishop
A time for a reset
In the first seven chapters of Genesis, we move quickly from the glory of creation to disobedience, expulsion from the garden and fratricide to the wickedness of humankind. We read,…
From The Presiding Bishop
What masks do we all wear?
Getting ready to leave the house—for work or errands—takes a couple extra steps during a pandemic. Do I know how crowded my destination will be? Did I remember to take…
From The Presiding Bishop
The cross is the true gift of Christmas
I remember this jarring image: It was the Christmas Eve candlelight service at my home congregation. A banner depicting Mary and Jesus in the manger had been hung from the…