The stewardship month is progressing nicely at Messiah Lutheran Church. Representatives from Property, Evangelism, and Hospitality Committees provide summaries of their work. This helps us see that when we give our stewardship dollars to Messiah we are supporting specific ministry projects; it is much more than just making the budget. I’ve detoured from lectionary preaching three Sundays for sermons on Cheerful Giving, Percentage Giving, and next week’s Visionary Giving. Today I told the story of Abraham, rescuing nephew Lot from the marauding army of Chederlaomer, and then offering a tithe to Melchizedek. Offerings are not a good deed we generate as much as they are a response to God’s prior grace. Abraham did well on the Promised Land because God brought him and kept him there. He knew the source of that bounty was God, so in offering that tithe Abraham merely returned to God a portion of that good God had first generated.

November liturgies have begun with ELW “Thanksgiving at the Font III.” Keeping the font out in its central location links these Sundays with All Saints remembrances and with Affirmation of Baptisms on November 1st. Thanksgiving III brings the sentence, “You breathe life into our dry bones.” The biblical image is the Dry Bones prophecy in Ezekiel 37. But we walk through many a day with dry and weary bones, preoccupied with the pain of another, feeling our own hurt, or just tired out from the economy that has not yet fully righted itself. It is good to be together on Sunday mornings and to collectively ask God to breathe life into dry bones. After the liturgy and conviviality our steps out into the world are more light and brisk.

We will need light and brisk steps to ambulate through the next weeks. The holiday calendar keeps getting pushed further and further back. I realized long ago that our culture would never understand the beauty of Advent and the blessed wait before Christmas. But the culture used to hold off on what it called the holiday season until after Thanksgiving. Not any more. Decorations, sales, concerts, social events are filling our calendars the way water filled the font at the aforementioned Thanksgiving III. I never thought I’d say this, but in the light of so much cultural decline and uncertainty, it is good to see people getting out and getting together. Full calendars mean we are alive in good health and we have each other.

The Sunday Forum was in good form today as we were all a twitter about Coach Tressel playing it safe so the Buckeyes would win the Big Ten and advance to the Rose Bowl.
Saturday afternoon brings that national phenomenon of Ohio State playing that “team from up north.” It’s going to be a short week.

Your fellow percentage giver,
Pr. Meranda

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Welcome Lectionary Week 32
November 8, 2009

It was diaper day at Messiah Lutheran Church. For several weeks we had advertised bring packs disposable diapers to church on November 8th. Today members came in with diapers of assorted sizes and styles. We stacked them up on the predella, that floor upon which the altar rests, and at the offertory procession we blessed them along with the offerings and bread and wine. After the liturgy, volunteers loaded up the diapers in my car. This week I shall deliver them to Birth Care, a local agency that helps young families. Diapers are at a premium nowadays. Next to requests for money to help pay utilities, the most frequent assistance request I hear is for disposable diapers. I’m glad there is an agency in town that specializes in infant care and that Messiah could be of help.

The Holy Gospel (Mark 13) brought the story about the poor woman giving her final pennies. Jesus acclaimed her sincerity. It was the perfect story to kick off stewardship season at Messiah. For three Sundays committee members offer summaries of their committees’ work and ministry. This helps us to see the specific ministries our offering dollars make possible. Today I preached on Cheerful Giving, taking the text from St. Paul. Good cheer, I said, is a counter balance. When persons bring cheer into our lives they expand shrunken vision, lighten what had been weighed down, and open up moods turned inward. Similarly, when we cheerfully offer offerings, we counter balance the evil and destruction in the world around us. To give cheerfully is to engage in proclamation. Cheerful giving is a statement of our confidence in God’s light, love, and reign. To give a weekly offering is to say we know Who rules the universe and Who has ultimate say over our lives.

Last Sunday, the Festival of All Saints, we brought the font out to a more central location and adorned it with votive lights to remember Messiah’s faithful departed from last year. We kept the font out so the Sundays during November we can begin the liturgy with the new Remembrance of Baptism rites in ELW. It can be a good thing to let the “flavor” of a festival day linger a bit. All Saints baptismal emphasis continues November with weekly thanksgiving gathering by the font. The Festival of Christ the King will soon close the whole church year; He is the one to whom we have been joined in baptism.

I’m pleased the U.S. Congress has finally been able to address national health care. I know that President Truman had made this proposal and I thought Teddy Roosevelt had done the same in the early 1900’s. The few segments I saw on C-Span revealed a Congress that still doesn’t “get it.” They seemed so pleased the bill made it through the labyrinth of the legislative process. But I never heard how they will pay for it. I find this distressing as Congress continues to authorize billions of dollars in spending for two wars, Iraq and Afghanistan. I would think a responsible legislative branch would say if we are funding health care we can no longer fund two preemptive military actions. Nations cannot have both guns and butter. Nations can have guns or butter. I would think our esteem would grow in the world if we first stopped the wars and then solved the health care dilemma. Two wars will not solve anything. Strong, reasoned national health care will save a lot of lives and households.

Somebody quipped it’s a good week for Ohio football fans. The Buckeyes won in Happy Valley. The Bearcats won on national prime time. And the Browns cannot lose today because they have a bye. When events like that combine with weather like this, it makes a great start for the new week.

Your fellow cheerful giver,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous week's message:
Welcome to Festival of All Saints
November 1, 2009

It was another splendid day at Messiah Lutheran Church. Three of our 8th Graders affirmed their baptism in the Rite of Confirmation. They have been students in our Sunday school, they have been acolytes, they have helped with VBS, they have studied the bible, they have studied the Small Catechism, and today they affirmed baptismal vocation at Messiah. It was especially meaningful as all of them had been baptized at Messiah’s font. When it came time to answer the promises the church asks of them they said, “Yes, with the help of God” dipping their hand in water from the baptismal bowl and making the sign of the cross standing by the font. When they were baptized at that font as infants they were held by parents and sponsors. Now at confirmation they stood on their own by that same font proclaiming the faith in young, strong voices.

The font around which 8th Graders gathered was specially decorated today with votive lights. Four lights were burning in memory of the four saints who died in Christ from Messiah the past year. Karlis Krumins, Jason McClintic, Neva Nelson, and Robert Town all conducted their baptismal vocations at Messiah until God completed the promises God made to them at baptism at their deaths. They are still held by God, they are with Christ. We too are held by God with Christ. That means we are not all that far away from those who have gone before us and are now at rest.

The juxtaposition of images and events was poignant. On the one hand there were the votive lights of the members who have died and there was the sound of their names in the prayers and at the Proper Preface. On the other hand there was the image of the 8th Graders, dressed in white, reading the lection, assisting at Holy Communion, professing the faith, and receiving the laying on of hands at the chancel rail. Some saints are young and some saints are old. Some saints are here with us and some saints have departed. Some saints are strong and some are feeble. Some have the world ahead of them and some have a lifetime behind them. No matter where the baptized fall on that continuum of time, we are still saints. We are always called out by God to live with humility and gratitude, no matter what our station. We are given the gift of hope and community. Those baptismal callings and gifts never cease.

Blessed All Saints Day 2009
Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous week's message.

Welcome to Lectionary Week 30
(Observing the Festival of the Reformation)
October 25, 2009

There were places and times when liturgists would not celebrate a Lesser Festival on Sunday. Reformation is such a Lesser Festival. It is appropriately celebrated on October 31st. In recent decades Lutheran congregations have observed Reformation this near Sunday, the last Sunday in October. So today is properly Lectionary Week 30 but we are observing the Festival of the Reformation today.

Messiah Lutheran Church has letterhead and bulletin covers with the phrase “Grace Alone . . . Faith Alone . . . Scripture Alone.” This reminds us our relationship with God is based entirely upon God’s prior grace. Grace as gift from God is received by the hand of Faith. We hear of God’s grace and we hear of God’s revelation to strengthen faith in Holy Scripture. Grace, Faith, and Scripture form the theological foundation for our life with God and with each other.

One of our extra activities at church today was to send around a greeting card. We gathered short notes and signatures to send along to Chelsea Spencer. She is on seminary internship in Virginia. Chelsea grew up at Messiah, was confirmed here, taught classes and volunteered here, and served on the 2007 Call Committee. We are sending her prayers and best wishes as she completes these final years of seminary prior to ordination.

This is a shorter Pr. Meranda Pages as, for the first time in my life, I am at Cleveland Browns Stadium. The Green Bay Packers come into town today. The way the NFL does its scheduling, I think this will be the last regular season game the Packers are here for another twelve years. Before the NFL merger that was a storied rivalry between two working class towns. It’s not the same as Vince Lombardi / Paul Brown and Jim Taylor / Jim Brown but it is October, the leaves are turning, the wind is chilly, the days are getting shorter, and the vocal chords need a work out in addition to singing Reformation hymns.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous week's message:
Welcome to Lectionary Week 29
October 18, 2009

Early in today’s game the Browns had the momentum and our defense was handling the Steelers. Then on a scoring drive we went into that Wildcat formation and threw an interception. There is nothing new about the so-called Wildcat. In the 30’s and 40’s it was known as the Double Wing. In the 60’s it was known as the Spread formation. Vince Lombardi thought it was over rated and dismissed it. The Browns were doing just fine without it today and then it gave the Steelers an opportunity to take control of the game.

If the only thing we had to worry about was poor execution of the Wildcat formation it would be an easy life. It’s so easy to get distracted with things that just don’t really matter. That was a problem James and John brought to Jesus the day they asked him to award them special seats of honor when he came into glory. Jesus had to halt the discussion and remind them the mission of his incarnation was healing, not winning and serving, not dominating. James and John did finally learn that lesson but not until after Pentecost when the Holy Spirit led them to expand the Kingdom of God in serving ways. Tradition tells us all of those disciples save one were eventually martyred. They did indeed drink the cup of suffering that Jesus first drank. Today’s Holy Gospel brought us that story of the James and John miscalculation. We learned again the great status God has in store for us happen through the self giving ways of serving.

Gasoline prices continue a strange yo-yo effect. Early last week I paid $2.39 a gallon. By the weekend the price was $2.55. I can’t help but to wonder if the collapse of the world economy last year was not really due to the wild spike in gasoline prices. Remember when we were paying $4.10 a gallon? That’s when things just sort of stopped. We were not traveling because it cost too much to drive, we were not buying things because gasoline was too expensive, we were cutting back on other expenses to save more money for gasoline. That’s when the shut down began, months before Wall Street imploded and the Real Estate bubble burst. I’m still hoping that stimulus dollars will be applied to technologies that will enable energy independence. That could be a significant part of the cure for our long term economic ills.

Messiah had the final class day today for 8th Graders who will affirm Holy Baptism in the Rite of Confirmation. That is scheduled for November 1st. The three students have been admirably loyal and consistent as they were caught in Messiah’s interim time of calling a new pastor. It looks as though confirmation classes will be oriented to younger students in the near future. Their busy schedules that used to begin in 9th Grade are now beginning in 8th Grade. The “good old days” when Wednesday night was Catechism night are past. We are grateful now to gather a class Sundays at 12:15 p.m.

I will be late updating Pr. Meranda Pages next Sunday. I’ll be, for the very first time in my life, in Cleveland Browns Stadium. The Green Bay Packers are coming to town. I’ll preside at 9:00 a.m. Holy Communion here, teach the 9:45 a.m. Sunday Forum here, then at 10:45 a.m. I’ll leave here to go find parking and my seat at the game. The capable deacons will lead us through a Liturgy of the Word next Sunday. If you watch the game on TV, look for me. I’ll be the lonely guy in the bright gold PACKER sweatshirt. They don’t run the Wildcat.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous week's message:
Welcome to Lectionary Week 28
October 11, 2009

In today’s Holy Gospel we heard Jesus tell the young man that entering the Kingdom of God meant sell possessions and give the proceeds to the poor. People of conscience have always struggled with that text and its claim on our pocketbooks. We do know that civilization would not exist without private ownership of property and goods. In the explanation to the 7th Commandment, Luther tells us to care for possessions and help our neighbors care for theirs. The communities that have consistently renounced possessions are monasteries. I recall a retreat at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, MN where the monk across the hallway from the cell where I was staying had received special permission from the abbot to have his own portable TV; he like to watch the evening news before retiring. Even the finest of monks are unable to take literally that dictum from Jesus.

When Jesus tells the interlocutor to sell all he has, Jesus is inviting us to consider what it is we are really relying on to consider our life well lived. The ultimate source of joyful life is the stilling, centering, presence of God. Material things can crowd out the awareness of God’s presence. Frenetic scheduling can certainly inhibit adoration of God. Unhealthy personal habits and attitudes are other distractions. We miss the mark when massive resources are invested to sustain exterior signs of life and our masks. God fills the human heart and life through the avenue of surrender to God’s grace and all the implications attending God’s forgiveness.

I was completely surprised today at Messiah when I found out it was national pastor appreciation day. (That’s because it is not on the Lutheran calendar.) Members greeted me with a plaque, thank you cards, and cake reception. The event was so thoughtful and fun. I especially liked the part that I missed most of the reception because I’m scheduled to teach confirmation classes at 12:15. But good old Messiah members, they carried on in my absence. The community of faith here understands well another encounter Jesus had with his critics when they complained he attended too many dinner parties. His response was the Kingdom of God is present so we above all are people of festivity and gladness. Laughter and receptions are part of the Church’s witness to the world.

Speaking of receptions, I’m pleased to see them filling Messiah’s calendar. Family events are scheduled for the reception hall, a Lakeside High School student fund raising dinner is scheduled, and social events from Samaritan house have been scheduled. Meal time events will climax with the annual Thanksgiving Dinner on November 22nd.

Messiah will confirm three of its 8th Graders on November 1st – All Saints Day. We have been praying these Sundays to fully integrate their gifts into the congregation.

When I came in to update this installment of “Pr. Meranda Pages” the Browns and Bills were tied 3-3 late in the 4th Quarter. At least the Browns punting game looked pretty good.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of Previous Week's Message:
Welcome to Lectionary Week 27 (Proper 22)
October 4, 2009

Today the lectionary brought us a combination of household texts. The first reading from Genesis described God creating Eve from Adam’s rib and telling the couple to tend to the garden. The Holy Gospel described Jesus telling disciples to welcome children for to such belong the Kingdom of God. Together the texts describe the mutuality of relationships possible in the human family. The wife is close to husband, coming from his very rib (just as the man is close to the earth, coming from its very dust). The relationship between the two is complementary, not dominance. So it is with children. They are not commodities (then families could sell children into slavery) but that are avenues through which God can bring blessing into the household. When householders, no matter what the configuration of the house, treat each other with reverence, devotion, gratitude, fidelity, and respect, then homes reflect back into the world the light of God.

Messiah heard those texts in a wonderful setting. At the 11:00 Eucharist we gathered at Camp Luther, snug in the dining area, safely perched above Lake Erie. Many families have warm memories of attending or sending children to summer camp there. One of our couples, Dr. Brian and Robyn Wells, celebrated their wedding there 19 years ago this fall. Lake Erie has taken eons to evolve into her present form. She has seen and formed natural history far beyond our imagination. We are so privileged to live this short lifetime along her shores.

Last Thursday Messiah hosted the Ashtabula Area Ministerial Alliance. We gathered here for the monthly meeting starting with warm lasagna cooked by Marie Blood and served by Messiah volunteers Sue Riley and Barb Lewis. Through the decades local clergy groups have formed in communities all over the United States. They vary in strength of fellowship and programming. Ashtabula has good clergy and strong churches. Food Banks and projects such as Samaritan House are a few of the ministries that have been accomplished through good inter-church cooperation. The next public event on the AAMA horizon is the Thanksgiving Service on November 24th. (Many who attend that day will still be hoarse from the Buckeye – Wolverine game on November 21st.)

Confirmation classes are every Sunday at 12:15 p.m. Our three 8th Graders have been so patient, faithfully participating in classes throughout the interim period and the integration of a new pastor. They are now completing studies in Luther’s Small Catechism and will be presented for Affirmation of Baptism on November 1st, the festival of All Saints Day.

Our nation is waiting. We are waiting for Congress to agree on a health care proposal. We are waiting on the White House to determine the extent of continued involvement in Afghanistan. We are waiting for the stimulus packages to lower unemployment. As we are waiting we can always continue serving, singing, and praying. That is one way we can help the advance of Wisdom in those processes.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

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Welcome to Lectionary Week 26 (Proper 21)
September 27, 2009

Today we finished sermons on the Book of James. The Second Reading this time after Pentecost in lectionary year C brings us readings from James. Chapter 5 finishes with protocol on healing prayer. If there is illness, James says gather the elders (presbyteroi). Right away James takes healing prayer out of the hands of a lone ranger celebrity and puts it into the hands of the community of the church. James continues anoint the ill person with oil. This is another instance of God working through means, ordinary stuff. The primary means through which God works are the Word, bread, wine, and water. In healing prayer the anointing with oil is another means through which works power and grace. James concludes the sins of the person prayed for will be forgiven. Here he links the health of our souls with the health of our bodies. We are holistic beings, body and soul together. Healing starts deep from within. Often a cured body comes by a simple medical technique; whereas the difficult healing is often deep within the soul. James understands the holistic nature of healing; it is beyond mere cure of the body and touches soul life and fundamental relationships.

Messiah will try something innovative again this coming Sunday, October 4th. For the 11:00 Holy Communion liturgy we will gather at Camp Luther. We hope the weather will enable us to remain outdoors and worship overlooking Lake Erie. Whether we are indoors or outdoors, we will remain afterward for Sloppy Joes and such. The 9:00 Holy Communion will be in the church as usual. But the Forum, late service, and confirmation class will move out to Camp Luther. I appreciate the Finn heritage of Camp Luther and understand that for decades Swedish Lutherans in Ashtabula would drive into New York State to attend a Swedish Lutheran camp there. In those days I’m sure that was not a matter of the ethnicities being uncooperative. It probably was a matter of both camp populations being so full the one group had no room in the other. That was a simpler time when churches, church classrooms, and church camps were at peak capacity. I wish we could combine modern conveniences with 1950’s simplicity.

Confirmation classes are every Sunday at 12:15 p.m. Our three 8th Graders have been so patient, faithfully participating in classes throughout the interim period and the integration of a new pastor. They are now completing studies in Luther’s Small Catechism and will be presented for Affirmation of Baptism in early November.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous message:

Welcome to Lectionary Week 24 (Proper 19)
September 13, 2009

It’s half time at Cleveland Browns Stadium. So far the Brown defense has more than held its own against that vaunted Viking running game. Number 4 has not been a factor.
Our Browns have 31 more halves to play before season’s end. If the first half of game one is an indicator, it could be a pretty good year for the Browns.

We rallied the Sunday school at the 11:00 liturgy. We met downstairs and introduced the new lectionary based curriculum. When students meet at 11:00 for Sunday school their lesson will be the same texts the adults hear upstairs in church. After a 35 minute lesson time the students then come upstairs and join the adults for Holy Communion. The students learn the same Word the adults hear except in a different setting. Then we all come together at the communion rail. This has been the historic rhythm of the Lutheran Church – hearing the Word and receiving the Sacrament.

Today’s appointed Second Reading was James 3. Human language and speech engenders so much good and causes so much harm. The harmful effects of our talking are hurtful gossip, untruthful propaganda, and a disintegrated life where action does not follow lofty words. Christ who died on the cross redeemed humanity and that includes our speech. We are brought back to the ways where a whole lifetime can speak the ways of God. The 9:00 homily recalled sainted Messiah member Corrine Loyd who, as its executive director, brought the Ashtabula Arts Center up to its current status. That project came about through careful use of words: gathering volunteers, chairing meetings, soliciting funds, consulting architects, inviting in creative participants. Human speaking at its best creates institutions that bring blessing. In that sense, human speaking imitates God at Genesis 1 who “said” and then brought creation into being.

Today Messiah was also privileged to witness a rite of investiture for Sunday school teachers. Leader Tina Tallbacka has assembled a great staff of Sandy Olson, Barb Lewis, Beckey Young, Robin Wells, Sue Riley, Tara Moore, and Saundra Castrilla. They will pair up for a lot of team teaching so no one gets burned out and the students always have a fresh teacher. I purposefully use the word “investiture” instead of the usual “installation”. We “install” things: light bulbs, sump pumps, etc. But people receive the investment of our trust. We are glad for them assuming vocational roles as we are confident God has invested them with vocational gifts. “Investiture” is one of those words a little more difficult to say but it brings richer meaning.

Confirmation classes resumed today at Messiah. Our three 8th Graders have been so patient, faithfully participating in classes throughout the interim period and the integration of a new pastor. They are now completing studies in Luther’s Small Catechism and will be presented for Affirmation of Baptism in November.

Back to the Browns,
Pr. Meranda

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Welcome to Lectionary Week 21 (Proper 16)
August 23, 2009

Sorry this update is delayed in getting posted. I was in Wisconsin Saturday through Monday to finish details on the sale of our home. It was on the market for 18 months – for us an unimaginably long time, but for the current market nothing out of the ordinary. Now I only owe money on one house instead of owing money on two houses.

Messiah’s Sunday liturgy was at Saybrook Park. I was not there but hear the weather was perfect and the view of Lake Erie typically astonishing. Messiah’s capable deacons are able at a moment’s notice to step in and lead a Service of the Word.

Messiah members will gather at the Krajec’s this Thursday for a discussion of “The Shack”. The novel covers issues such as the Trinity (it had me scrambling to review Communication of Attributes doctrine), the role of suffering, and ways to forgiveness and healing.

Lay Ministry Committee met Monday night and continued discussion on training Eucharistic Ministers. The LBW began this practice among us and the ELW has refined it. I’m looking forward to exploring that ministry at Messiah.

I’ll return to a more typical Pr. Meranda Pages format Sunday, August 30th.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

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Welcome to Lectionary Week 20 (Proper 15)
August 16, 2009

Four Sundays in a row the lectionary has brought us to John chapter 6. We shall return there for a 5th time next Sunday. It is the Eucharistic chapter in John’s gospel. He does not describe Jesus instituting the Lord’s Supper on Maundy Thursday as the other gospels do. He does describe at length Jesus feeding the crowd with five loaves of bread. Then John’s gospel goes on to portray a lengthy Bread of Life sermon from Jesus.

In that Bread of Life setting, my sermon told the story about a dear colleague and mentor to me who recently died – Pr. L. Paul Bartling. He had retired as assistant to the bishop in the Northwest Washington Synod in 1997. Before that he led a small congregation in NE Portland, Oregon through interim healing. Before that he was pastor at the Lutheran Church in Geneva, Switzerland – the crossroads of European culture. Before that he led a congregation in Portland to growth in numbers and a stellar new facility. Before that he had been Lutheran missionary in South Korea, helping that mission grow into a strong and indigenous church. Paul was one of those persons who always filled you with more life after an encounter with him. I was not in his inner circle of close relationships, but I did keep in regular contact with him through the decades and I deeply miss him.

Missing Paul brings me right to John 6 and Jesus as Bread of Life. In Holy Communion Jesus is really present in bread and wine. The infinite God is hosted in, with, and under those finite elements. In a deep and unseen way, when we participate in the body and blood of Christ in Communion we have fellowship with others who have participated in the Real Presence of Christ in Holy Communion. Some of them are far away. Some of them have gone through the gate of death. They are fellowshipping with God in Christ. We, in the Eucharist, are fellowshipping with God in Christ. So we are much closer together than would at first appear.

“The Didache” is one of the Church’s earliest catechetical documents; there is much evidence that it was in use already in AD 90. That “Didache” document was among the first to see the unity and fellowship we enjoy with others who share in Holy Communion. I quote:
As this broken bread was scattered over the hills and then, when gathered, became one mass, so may Thy Church be gathered from the ends of the earth into Thy Kingdom.
Many grains of wheat form one loaf of bread. Many baptized are gathered into one body of Christ. The Church is still and always One. I’ll have more opportunity for conversation and laughter with L. Paul Bartling as soon as the grand reunion begins on the Last Day. (But I know I will have to get in line.)

That One Church grew today over at Bethany Lutheran Congregation that celebrated a Holy Baptism. I won’t share the name of a minor over the internet, but the newly baptized there is a great grandson of a long time Bethany member. The Finnish heritage of Bethany is so strong and positive. They are a stabilizing influence in the neighborhood. It will be good to see them entering into a relationship with a longer term pastor and continuing God’s mission in The Harbor.

Yesterday was a good day for Ashtabula Area Public Schools. We dedicated the new Junior High School facility. It is a combination of handsome architecture with functionality. Our own Bishop Eaton was there on the dais to offer a dedicatory prayer at the close. I saw a few Messiah members who are students or faculty and wished them a good school year. Today in church at Messiah we prayed specifically for Lakeside Junior High that it will become a place of joyful learning.

The Cleveland Browns began pre-season last night against the Packers. It was nice to see Lambeau Field on TV but from the perspective of different home town announcers. I’m not sure how many quarters it has been since the Browns offense scored a touchdown. The days of Leroy Kelly and Jim Brown seems so far behind us. At least we look really cool with those orange helmets.

Tomorrow night the education committee will meet and look at Sunday school curricula. Tina Tallbacka has gathered and trained a strong staff. The work of the Sunday school is the front lines of the congregation. This is our initial contact with many families as we integrate them into life and service of God through the church. After Monday’s meeting, , the next major event to grace the calendar at Messiah is the church picnic on August 23rd. I’ll be ready for the fall, and for a winning season in Cleveland.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

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Welcome to Lectionary Week 19
August 9, 2009

We told part of the story of Elijah today. He was alone, deep in depression. No wonder he was depressed, his life had been caught up in a milieu of violence. Crazy King Ahab had killed a man to get the man’s property. Elijah had killed 400 advisors of crazy Queen Jezebel. Now Jezebel was out to kill Elijah. Microbiologist Martha Stout describes how living in prolonged terror can alter brain chemistry. It is no wonder that Elijah was caught in depression.

He did not stay there long. An angel appeared to Elijah and touched him. At this point in the story I think of that wonderful German film from the mid 1980’s, “Wings of Desire.” It depicts guardian angels all over Berlin, assigned to assist human subjects through a life stage. The angels do not fix the environment or manipulate history. They are an unseen presence; they inspire a thought of hope over despair or resolution over surrender. We are not sure what Elijah experienced when the angel touched him but we do know he was empowered to get up and go forward. I often refer to people who provide health care, relief, or nurture to other people as angelic. I’ll tell them, “You were God’s angel, sent in just that right moment.”

The point of the Elijah story today, Lectionary Week 19, was to get to the meal of cake and water the angel provided for Elijah. Nourished on that grain baked under the desert sun, Elijah traveled 40 days to Mt. Horeb where he would have a very dramatic encounter with God. The cake sustained him on his journey. The connection today is the bread of Holy Eucharist sustains us on our journeys. God touches us with angelic inspiration. God also feeds us for the journey. Like Elijah, we are fed well enough to go do the next stage of mission God would have us do.

Speaking of journeying, I was recently thinking how much the Call has changed in the Lutheran church. Pastors used to have a sense of being available to serve anywhere in the world where there was ability to serve. Some of the most helpful and interesting pastors I have known were from that generation who left the Midwest to accept Calls way out in the unfamiliar West or Pacific Northwest. They came out to California and Oregon from Maywood, Augustana, and Luther Seminaries. The world was much larger than and those 2,000 miles were really a long, long way from home. Because they were brave enough to take those steps into the unknown and unfamiliar, they were energetic blessings to their congregations and synods. They brought a renewed appreciation for collegiality. That generation knew what it was like to be Elijah, launching out into the unfamiliar but in the process seeing ever more clearly the touch of angels and the sustenance of God.

We’ve been bracing ourselves for the predicted heat wave to descend early this week. I was laughing at the weather forecasters all day Saturday with the windows open so I could hear the rain come down. When I opened the door early Sunday to get the newspaper I was hit by a blast of warm humidity that by noon turned hot. People remarked how spoiled we’ve become in this “summer that never was” where temperatures did not hit the 90’s until today. In church we prayed for those who will be especially hard hit by the stifling weather that they will soon find relief.

While I was preoccupied with how to keep the early morning cool in the church building, Kurt Nordquest reminded me something bigger than the weather is happening today – the Buckeyes open practice for the 2009 Season. College football must be in the air because Jeff Burkholder came in and loaned me a book on the Buckeye 1968 championship season. (I remember that season. I was in 9th Grade traveling on a train when the Buckeyes stopped OJ Simpson and Southern Cal in the Rose Bowl. But that’s another story.) Yes, it unbearably warm today. But we’re that much closer now to November 21st and You-Know-Who.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous message:
Welcome to Lectionary Week 16
July 19, 2009

The Gospel appointed for today (Mark 6:30f) had that great interlude for Jesus and his disciples after they were exhausted from serving. The crowds had pressed against them so incessantly that they had no time to eat. Jesus took them away to a deserted place to rest and to pray. When I read “deserted place” I think desert. There is much to be said for desert spirituality. In an uninterrupted, isolated, quiet topography there are minimal distractions. With few distractions there is more room for awareness of God, the God who is always there anyway but the God we lose sight of because our visual field is so cluttered. We assume they received the rest in God they needed because as soon as they found time away, the crowds found them and there was more ministering to do. I like the word in verse 43 that is a pivotal word for that ministry to happen. Jesus surveyed the crowds and was filled with compassion. His feeling for the plight of the people motivated him to continue his work among the people. The bible says he “taught” them. Then, in verse 53, Jesus crosses the lake and on the eastern shore he cures and heals them. Teaching and healing – they continue today as two major works of the church. We teach the Gospel and pray for healing because we feel the same compassion that Jesus felt for people around him.

Speaking of teaching, that is exactly what Messiah Lutheran Church was doing all last week. It was Vacation Bible School week featuring a “Son Rock Kids Camp” theme. I played the role of Camp Counselor Meranda. I must confess that I found it difficult to find inspiration for my wardrobe, unlike last year when my role was Farmer Meranda. Casting me as an athletic, dynamic camp counselor really is casting against type. But staff and students were very patient with me as I blew the whistle, led camp ground discussions, and tried to keep up with the songs. Tina Tallbacka assembled and led another wonderful staff that guided students through daily bible stories, crafts, recreation, snacks, and songs. I knew they taught very effectively because I heard “next day” stories of how the students had brought their lessons home and integrated them the night before. Today students and teachers led the Liturgy of the Word half of the church service by recalling and singing the daily lessons of VBS.

Speaking of VBS, Ashtabula is blessed with a wide spread commitment to gathering students for summer Vacation Bible Schools. All of the uptown churches have a week of VBS. Faith Lutheran in the Harbor has had a VBS week and Bethany Lutheran in the Harbor will soon have a VBS week. If we were to total the number of teachers and students from all the churches, Ashtabula VBS would number up in the hundreds. That is another sign of how our churches are stabilizing forces in a shaky culture.

Next week Messiah will give a send off to Rebecca Selnick as she departs for a year in Great Britain as a participant in the ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission program. Today we said the Rite of Farewell and Godspeed to Chelsea Spencer as she prepares to begin her seminary internship at a Lutheran Church in Virginia. Messiah is proud of Rebecca and Chelsea, how their spiritual journeys that began in this congregation continue now in service at other intersections of latitude and longitude on God’s good earth.

I criticize myself for criticizing our culture’s preoccupation with celebrities when what I end up doing is talking about the celebrity with whom culture is infatuated. This week we did not have a celebrity death. We did observe the death of an American icon, Walter Cronkite. I can still see him removing those thick, black glasses to wipe his eyes after announcing the death of President Kennedy. I can still see him moving aside the papers after a newscast and lighting up his pipe on the set, the soundtrack and credits scrolling. I still remember his personal visit to Vietnam in 1968 and reporting to the nation that with its current conduct the war, “in the opinion of this reporter” is not winnable.

Pr. Meranda Pages will take a vacation for a few Sundays. The next edition will be August 2 or August 9. In the meantime, as Walter said, “. . . and that’s the way it is, Sunday, July 19th, 2009 . . .”

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Welcome to Lectionary Week 15
July 12, 2009

I miss simpler days when this Sunday was designated the 9th Sunday after Pentecost. Then, for a brief while, today was called Proper 10. Now it is called Lectionary Week 15. The 9th Sunday after Pentecost was the designation in early LBW days. Then, for a time, we mimicked the Episcopalians and referred to the day by the Propers, starting with Christ the King Sunday and counting backwards. Now we mimic the Roman Catholics. We still count backwards from Christ the King Sunday but we start with a higher number because the Sundays after Epiphany are factored in. But, unlike Rome, we do not refer to Sundays after Epiphany by Lectionary Week number but we just call them Sundays after the Epiphany. No matter what we call them, the purpose of the Sundays of the Church’s year is the same – to burrow us ever more deeply year by year into the mystery of God revealed in Christ. I wish naming the Sundays were the most difficult thing to worry over. Sadly there are far more critical issues challenging us.

Today’s Gospel (Lectionary Week 15 / Proper 10 / 9th Sunday after Pentecost) brought that pathetic story of Herod the King beheading John the Baptist. Herod was a human train wreck. He married his brother’s wife, he built a city no self respecting Jew would inhabit, when faced with the possibility of doing the right thing at the trial of Jesus he punted. The point of the sermon was Herod immortalized himself as one of history’s idiots but the Church was still present to do the right thing. Disciples of John gathered, retrieved the body, and gave it decent burial. That is the core of discipleship, discerning from God and from the circumstance what the simple right thing is to do and then in community doing it. Christ died for all the Herod moments of this world. By His death he put the power behind those deeds to death. By His resurrection he signaled their assault on creation will not stand.

I frequently assail our culture’s infatuation with celebrities yet at the same time I am often referencing events in celebrity lives. I was particularly chagrined this week at media bites from the Steve McNair funeral which seemed yet another example of idolizing the creature without reference to responsiveness to the Creator. One sound bite from McNair’s coach was, “Steve is now up high, in the control booth, with a headset on his ears, calling plays next to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” I hope that instead of football conviviality, Jesus is teaching Steven McNair about why cheating on his wife was a sin. Had McNair not been committing adultery, he would still be here in a control booth with a headset on his ears, reminiscing about the Superbowl that ended one yard too short.

Two members at Messiah are preparing for major transition this summer. Rebecca Selnick will live in England for a year as part of the ELCA Young Adults in Global Mission program. Rebecca’s farewell event will be the Madhatter Tea Party coming up on July 26th. Chelsea Spencer will soon depart for her year of seminary internship in Virginia. Internship is an exciting year because so much is learned and the intern discovers they have been given so many blessings from God that will be deeply appreciated by others. Chelsea was on the Call Committee when I first interviewed at Messiah back in August 2007. She has gone through two years of seminary with distinction. Messiah is proud to send both Rebecca and Chelsea away as two more bright and mission minded daughters from this congregation.

It’s been a busy summer at Messiah Lutheran Church. Summer solstice liturgy, Day Timer July Event, and Captain’s Baseball night have run their course. This week begins the focused ministry of Vacation Bible School. Tina Tallbacka has her staff and curriculum very well organized as we take the kids through a week of summer camp themes. I get to play the role of Camp Counselor Meranda as we learn bible passages, lessons, and songs about the gospel. Messiah is not the only congregation busy with VBS. Our neighbors at Faith Lutheran just finished their week and our friends at Bethany Lutheran Church are preparing for their VBS later on.

I learned today that the perch are biting in Lake Erie but they are six miles out. Another source amended that and said they are seven miles out. Be it six or be it seven, we will find them . . . as surely as God has found us to bring us together here and now and to bring us home on the Last Day.

Faithfully,
Pr. Meranda

Archive of previous week's message:
Welcome to the Week of Lectionary 14
July 5, 2009

It is, in my opinion, one of the saddest stories in the lectionary. Today’s gospel brought Jesus back home to Nazareth. The townsfolk do not welcome his healing and teaching. They seem critical of his family of origin. Jesus marvels at their unbelief. Usually, crowds marvel at Jesus’ wisdom and dynamism; but in Nazareth Jesus marvels at their unbelief. St. Mark ends the episode with that summary I find so sad. “Jesus could do no deed of power there.”

Prior to going home Jesus had completed massive exorcisms on the West and East sides of Lake Galilee. He had just healed a woman of a 12 year hemorrhage en route to healing a 12 year old daughter of a synagogue leader. The life of Jesus was replete with healing, except for his home town.

The reading I’ve done on healing indicates that joyful confidence in God, joyful expectation of God, simple surrender to the grace of God are conduits through which healing flows. What was with the folk at Nazareth? Were they grouchy? Were they curmudgeons? Had they themselves been abused and were too bruised to trust? We really do not know. We are saddened that they missed out on the healing ways of the reign of God that had come home to enliven them and make them well.

We also know that it is to such sadness and for such sadness that Jesus came to die. He became their dis-ease for them on the cross. Those sad ways died on the cross, no longer able to stand between them and God. The healing that Nazareth missed out on in the first century will still come their way, they will just have to wait for the resurrection.

The Church has always trusted in God to bring us healing. Prayerful laying on of hands designates us for specific blessing from God in special times. The anointing with oil marks us as witnesses to Christ the Healer to whom we have been united in baptism. Sometimes a cure of specific symptoms follows, sometimes not. But the deeper healing of the soul is always available, that reorientation of a life time to see itself in the spectrum of a gracious eternity guided by a good and loving God.

Speaking of anointing with oil, we did just that today at Messiah when we brought Trenton Noah Tallbacka for Holy Baptism. There, in the water and the Word poured into the font, our little local Noah was joined to the epic story of The Patriarch Noah. The original Noah was the man who walked with God whom God commanded to build the ark and survive the Great Flood. The waters of the Flood cleansed the earth. Noah emerged as a second Adam, called to tend a garden. Whenever there is Holy Baptism God washes away what would keep us from God. God drowns guilt and death. God raises us up as new creatures, called to implement God’s healing and caring ways intended for creation. We saw Creation and the Noah story today at Messiah, right outside under the trees with traffic speeding by on West Prospect and under the robins singing overhead.

Messiah’s intercessions this Sunday thanked God for the gift of reason that is capable of producing great ideas such as a constitutional democracy. We thanked God for the likes of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. We also prayed for those in our government who care keeping watch over missile tests from North Korea. And we prayed for success and quick home coming for our personnel in the Middle East. The 4th of July celebrations seem more sobering as the years pass as our national challenges become more critical.

Messiah also began a new, short term ministry this Sunday. I am on loan to Bethany Lutheran Church in The Harbor these remaining Sundays of summer for their 11:00 liturgy. They are in transition in the call process and we are pleased to help out on Sunday mornings. Bethany has a stellar facility, a grand heritage, and much hope and promise for mission in The Harbor and beyond.

The rainfall at the end of last week came just in time. Our lawns are greener and our shrubs got a good draft of Lake Erie formed rain water. We are so blessed.

Faithfully
Pr. Meranda