October 26th, 2008 – Reformation Sunday

October 31, 1517, an important date in Protestant Christianity’s history. That was the day when Martin Luther posted on the doors of the Cathedral of Wittenberg, Germany, his 95 Theses against the teachings and practices of the medieval Roman Church, which ignited the 16th-century Protestant Reformation.

Last year Pastor Dayle taped the 95 Theses on our church door in remembrance of the 490th anniversary of the event and the service was memorable. The service this year was also memorable.

Today we sang responsively for our Psalmody A Mighty Fortress Is Our God. This felt appropriate as it draws from Psalm 46. Luther found solace in Psalm 46 from his interior struggles with God. He described these struggles with the German word Anfechtungen, a word that's hard to translate.

Anfechtungen precipitated what Martin Marty, in his biography of Luther, calls a “delicious despair” or crisis of certainty for which the believer could only cast himself upon the mercy of God. It encapsulates for Marty, Martin Luther’s meditations on what was irreconcilable:

God present and God absent, God too near and God too far, the God of wrath and the God of love, God weak and God almighty, God real and God as illusion, God hidden and God revealed.

Anfechtungen, says Marty, are “the spiritual assaults that Luther said kept people from finding certainty in a loving God.”

Many attended worship this morning. Seeing both Denise and Chris today was particularly meaningful for me.

Choir sang twice; during the Processional Praise, Praise, Praise the Lord and during Offertory When In Our Music God is Glorified. It reminded me what Luther wrote about the use and power of sacred music:

I would allow no man to preach or teach God’s people without a proper knowledge of the use and power of sacred song.

And there was something ineffable about the music of the service. The setting was Now The Feast by Haugen and with that and the hymns that were sung there was a strong sense of a faith briefly lifting us from daily concerns and understanding.

The Affirmation of Baptism for Mary and Marlowe was a special moment, particularly during the Laying on of Hands. Everyone in the congregation laid their hands on those sitting next to them. The closeness was palpable.

After the service the timing was tight because of Reformation Sunday and the Affirmation of Baptism celebration for our RIC event Other Explicit Welcome.

There were emotional stories about moments of pain, anger, and times of not feeling a part of the community. Toni told her story about the bible verse against divorce being read in church right after she and Rick came back from her honeymoon and how weird that made her feel.

There were stories about people not feeling comfortable with others in church and outside church. There were incidents related where people thought they could do better to making people welcome. Personal stories were also shared about racial prejudice (some stories about current incidents at Jesuit).

For the most part it was about hospitality and welcome. Pastor Mary did a great job in a short period of time. Mary asked us to introduce ourselves and to talk about the most recent act of hospitality we had engaged in.

There were lessons I took to heart about hospitality. Once again an event in Creator's RIC discernment process caused me to examine how I am reflecting Christian welcome personally.