The Winter Malaise

First of all, I want to apologize for not posting for almost three weeks. Winter came, and by winter I mean the time you get in Wisconsin when it's cold day and night with snow permanently on the ground.

The photo here is from the morning that we had church cancelled because of a snow storm. Doesn't the sepia filter give that great old-timely look? Thanks Katie.

My typical pattern has been getting out of whack lately with the extra driving time because of snow and ice on the roads, shoveling the driveway, bundling up, warming up the car, etc. then the fun but time consuming Christmas present buying (sometimes fun...), special Advent services, Christmas services and invites, travel plans, etc.

What's surprising is that beyond the obvious benefits of my Bible reading plan (Immersio), it's given much needed structure and consistency to my days. It's something to look forward to and challenge me every day.

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas on the Eve of Christmas Eve, as Katie reminded me this morning. At Resurrection, the church I'm serving at this school year, we've had a well-received Advent series I had the opportunity to think up and design on the "Songs of Advent." We had 3 special services on 3 of the 4 songs Luke gives us in the beginning of his Gospel (a book about the good news of Jesus) concerning the events surrounding Jesus' birth. They are the the following:

The Song of Zechariah (Benedictus), where Zechariah, a Levite priest, who had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to perform the temple ritual for the Day of Atonement (יום כפור), was told his son would be the promised Elijah, the forerunner who'd prepare God's people for the Messiah's birth.

The song of Mary (Magnificat), where Mary was told she'd give birth to the promised Messiah, who would be Yahweh himself in the flesh, given the name Jesus, which means Savior.

The song of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis), which a pious man named Simeon sang when he held the infant Jesus in his arms at the Jerusalem temple during the time when Jesus was being circumcised and redeemed (see Leviticus 12 and Exodus 13:2 for the background on the ritual. The Redeemer himself was redeemed! Neat idea...). Simeon was told he'd see the Savior, the redemption of Israel, before he died. Thought-provoking moments in history and solemn events to be sure which have inspired many hymns and artwork.

You might be thinking, what about the 4th? Well, that's the angels' song to the Bethlehem shepherds who were told to go and see this child born in Bethlehem who was the Savior, the Messiah, Yahweh (the Lord) in the flesh!

Christmas Day I'll have the chance to talk about John 1:14a "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." No more than 10 words, but more than enough substance for an eternity of meditation! We just got our microphone's working again for recording better, so you should be able to read and/or see and/or listen to the sermons on the Resurrection's website, http://www.rlcverona.org/site/cpage.asp?cpage_id=180020015&sec_id=180007160

So have this encouragement during the cold, dark days that lie ahead of many of us (those in the southern hemisphere or better climates, instead just imagine how it is for us in the upper Midwest):

God fulfilled his promise to send a rescuer from the problem of evil and death which have infected his good creation when the Word, Jesus, became flesh and lived among us. Through trusting and following Jesus (in order words, through faith in him) we join the winning team in the struggle between life and death, light and darkness, truth and deceit, so that his victory becomes your victory since he lived as your Savior, died as your substitute, and rose as your conquering Lord!

It's appropriate to use the verse that inspired the name of Resurrection Lutheran here:

John 11:25 "Jesus told her, 'It is I who am the resurrection and the life. Whoever trusts me, even though he dies, will live.'" (my translation). Jesus says, "I, not others, are this," thus evoking as well the name "I am" that Yahweh gave to Moses (Exodus 3:14) for the sons of Israel when he was told to redeem them from physical slavery (which Paul uses as an image for the slavery of sin).

Trusting, by its very nature and definition, leads to following. There are many paths to follow in this life, but they all lead to death in the end, except one! Following Jesus leads us on the path to eternal life because he's promised to come again, this time in glory, to renew creation and form the "new heaven and new earth," and give those who follow him glorified bodies in which to inhabit this new world.

Enough said for now. Is it obvious I'm about to practice delivering my sermons?

Bible Reading Plan

I've now completed week 1 of my (in my humble opinion) groundbreaking and original Bible reading plan. Basically, this one follows the church year, reads the Pentateuch, Gospels, Acts, Psalms, every year, and the rest every 3 years, including time for reading the Lutheran Confessions. I have a detailed explanation on Resurrection's website (the church I'm serving at as a student pastor for this school year).

http://www.rlcverona.org/site/bibdisplay.asp?study_id=180003697&sec_id=180007160

It's going fantastic so far. Manageable, a good variety, interesting.

In a purposely overly-simplistic way for the sake of expressing it in this blog post, if I can comfortably read though these books, then I'll have the essential base for understanding all of biblical studies, which involves in-depth knowledge of literature, history, and philosophy/theology.

These are the four books:

1) Greek and Hebrew Bible (or if you prefer, Biblia Sacra Utriusque Testamenti Editio Hebraica et Graeca). It's a single volume which contains the 27th Nestle-Aland Greek Bible and the 4th edition BHS Hebrew Bible. It doesn't get more hardcore than this. I even got a leather-cover custom made for this baby.

2) The Rahlfs-Hanhart Septuagint, 2nd edition. The Septuagint is a hard to define term, but basically it can refer to the Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible. Now, I know this isn't the critical apparatus isn't much by any means compared to Göttingen Septuagint, but my interest for the present isn't the implications or interpretations of all the Greek variants, but instead comprehending and immersing myself in the language of the Koine Septuagint itself so I can better understand the "Intertestamental Time" and the language of the Greek Bible.

3) The Lutheran Study Bible. For more in depth information, go here http://www.cph.org/t-tlsb.aspx. This is an exceptional study Bible which has excellent scholarship behind it, and it's uniquely devotional and meditational with Law and Gospel applications (including Luther's Small Catechism!), which is befitting anything Lutheran as opposed to a standard Evangelical study Bible focused more on apologetics or a certain theme.

4) The Book of Concord. This is the least important of the three, but good for understanding one aspect of Church History in a cursory way, and good for seeing how pious laymen and theologians down the ages who knew their Bibles have expressed their belief in the Word they were willing to die for (and many did). This edition has great footnotes and introductions. Perhaps next year I'll get to reading just one of the Latin and German editions I own (forget the Triglotta with the English besides! :) ). For more info on these epic statements of faith, see http://www.cph.org/t-topic-concordia-faq.aspx

So since high-school I've been reading through the Bible every year in one form or another. This is my first time mixing it up a bit more. Feel free to contact me for advice on a plan that'd fit you. I've tried many and have a lot of creative ideas for other plans as well.

I can't overstate how it's changed my life to read the Bible regularly and annually. There are tons of different types of reading plans. So if you have interest, check one out and go for it. New Years is a good time to start! If you want a boost, here's a few sites with some plans.

http://www.youversion.com/about/reading-plans

http://www.navpress.com/dj/content.aspx?id=138

Hosting Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving. The American fall-harvest festival. Back in the pilgrim days I assume the main purpose was to give thanks to the fact you might survive the harsh winter months. Today, of course, it's developed into a day to remember what you're thankful for.

I'm thankful that Katie and I got to host Thanksgiving for the first time (and probably last in a while). For those of you who don't know, members at my church are letting Katie and I rent out their old house that they were trying to sell. So we got room! And despite the chaos of taking care of someone's dog during this, buying and preparing food, entertaining four young Nephews, etc. I'd say it was a success. Family and food was prevalent.

The following might be considered too "preachy" and/or "churchy" in a bad way. If so, I'm sorry you've had bad experiences or something like that. I haven't had those bad ones, so to me it's awesome. Now, there are lots of things I could list to be thankful for (for some reason that one dinner scene in The Punisher comes to mind...), but above all I want to thank Jesus after reading the text of our Thanksgiving Eve Service, Luke 17:11-19. I want to thank Jesus for his pity, and for my faith. Jesus' pity on me and the faith/trust his Spirit has worked in me through his Word (the Bible) and Sacraments (I'm talking about Baptism and the Lord's Supper) had nothing to do with any good work I did or good decision I could've made, but everything to do with his grace, that is, his undeserved love in choosing me. Like the leprous Samaritan, I was born in this world as foreign to God and infected with the leprosy of sin. Every day by nature I waste away due to the wages of sin, which is death. But Jesus had pity on me by living the life God demands and dying the death my sins deserve IN MY PLACE, and rising to the life I, too, will live. Jesus' pity on me is what motivates me in turn to reach out to others and be simply a Christian, that is, someone who bears the image of Christ IN this world and FOR this world.

Paul states it so succinctly when talking to fellow sinner-saints in Ephesus about what it means to be made alive in Christ when he says, "It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

And my faith has kept me from screwing up my life on many an occasion. It has held my family together and it seals my marriage. My faith, given to me by Jesus, is what enables me to understand the true depth of Jesus' mercy (thinking primarily of the Hebrew חסד), of being the "snake-crusher" promised to Adam, the "seed" promised to Abraham, the "fulfillment" of the Torah given to Moses, the wisdom or word made flesh who tented among us, the true Israel for the world that no one could ever be, the Messiah, Savior, Son of Man, Redeemer, the perfect prophet, priest, and king. And through my faith I receive those benefits now, and will receive the benefits of a "not guilty" verdict on the Last Day (or as Old German Lutherans called it, the "youngest day" [der jünste Tag] looking forward to the beginning of a new heavens and new earth) when the Son of Man comes again in glory to take me to rule with him. So thank you Jesus.

One more thing, I had someone at church ask me an interesting question after our Thanksgiving Eve Service. "Does thanks have to have an object?" In other words, can I "be thankful" without anyone or anything in particular to be thankful to? He was thinking of how the Greek word "πιστις" normally translated 'trust" or "faith," inherently has an object, that is, something or someone that you trust/have faith in/regard as dependable. My knee-jerk answer was yes. What do you think?

Tim Hortons

I have to admit, the unanticipated gem of my visit to Trinity Western University has been nothing other than Tim Hortons.

Now, I have to admit, as I did many times on this trip (and those from the Columbus area can understand), I thought it was an Ohio chain! I mean, it's had a merger with Wendy's, and according to the current Wikipedia entry (which isn't always the most reliable, but nearly always the most convenient), it has more stores in the Columbus area than in any other US metro area.

So when I first arrived at the Toronto airport, lo and behold, Tim Hortons everywhere! And they dominate the Canadian fast food scene.

You see, Tim Hortons exemplifies down-to-earth excellence. 24-hour quality coffee and a large variety of donuts for a reasonable price! A good place to chill at any hour of the night or day. And I suppose I enjoy it more because it reminds of home, of Buckeye country.

Now, Tim Hortons kept me from going crazy last night. Let me explain. I got talking with a student named Justin at TWU, and in typical friendly Canadian fashion he showed me around town, around Vancouver. We saw some churches, some great downhill views of the cityscape and landscape (breath-taking, even at night!), and walked around the downtown. It was all going well until we forget where we parked...so the next 3 hours (no joke) ensued with at first "Hey, this is funny, eh?" to "Where's you car, dude?" to outright panic. Needless to say, I discovered firsthand 1) the value of taking note of where you park, especially in large metro areas and 2) Justin wasn't lying when he said he had a bad sense of direction! So once the panic ensued, we stopped at the nearest Tim Hortons, enjoyed some double chocolate donuts and hot coffee (it wasn't "freezing" outside, but definitely cold), and rested our feet. At this point I had laid out a new exhaustive method for sweeping the streets in a zig-zag pattern up the major avenues we knew the car was between so that no moments would pop up again where we said, "Wait a minute, didn't we go here once we parked?" We stuck to the method, even when one of us thought we were "feelin' it," and the car was found since probability took its course. Crisis averted.

I should mention, the somber part of the night was meeting this Australian chap who was in dire straights. I didn't understand the details, but basically he had been wandering around the city that night in need. He said no one else had given him a chance to talk. His hands looked nearly frost-bite and he had some mild Tourette syndrome! He clearly wasn't a bum going by his appearance and accessories. He told a sad story that basically that night he needed $20 more to get a bus ticket to see his daughter. There was something about a manager who went on vacation and papers he needed from him. The story sounded shady, honestly, but he clearly wasn't a bum and it brought us to tears to see the sadness in his eyes and how he debased himself in begging so fervently. He said he'd give us his headphones, iPhone, and even shoes for the $20. We didn't want to do that to him and Justin hooked him up after quizzing him a little bit to see if this guy was for real and I gave him my business card with my email. I told him to email me how it went with a picture of him and his daughter. I've prayed for him, and we'll see what happens....

So thank you Tim Hortons for memories of home, a refreshing brew, and fresh donuts. The sun is now rising here in the Toronto airport as I sip my brew, and I will once again cling to my wife, be reunited with my love (parallelism). Life is good.

Oh, and just a side note. Despite all the news about it, I haven't gone through any body scanners or gotten "groped" so far, despite all the security gates I've been through. Take that for what it's worth?

N.T. Wright at Trinity Western University

So I did get to Trinity Western University safe and sound, though late into the night. And by now I've gotten to meet nearly all, if not all, the professors in the MA Biblical Studies department, and wow, what a diverse and well-grounded group with specialties in so many areas of biblical studies, including premier roles in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint research!

Everyone here has been so friendly, open, helpful, and interested in this "Lutheran" guy who came for the N.T. Wright symposium and such. This photo is the best I could do my wife's Palm Pixi. I suppose it worked out fine despite the low quality. N.T. Wright and I were pretty much the only people wearing ties, because not even the professors here or department chairs wore any (which is nothing I wouldn't expect). I had the privilege of having a dinner (all my meals are provided!) with him and other students here where he talked about the importance of today's young people getting into very textual biblical studies programs for the sake of Christ's Church and its gospel mission.

Now, I didn't take a picture of the guest suite they provided me with, but it includes all the amenities of a quality extended stay suite, although I won't be using most of them (the cooking supplies, refrigerator, table and chairs, long closet, etc.).

As I mentioned earlier, it's been great for me personally to learn about Canada from Canadians, to learn about the various religious backgrounds represented here, and also talk about Lutheranism and the rich traditions it maintains.

I could say more, but I just wanted to give some praise here to Trinity Western University for its excellence and share my personal and professional enthusiasm for getting to know and engage with great minds. Now, at the same time it's bittersweet because at late night moments like this I don't have my Katie next to me to share a bed with and to talk about how the day went and whatever random ideas came into my head. So it's good to be here, and it'll be good to go home and see my Katie as well.

Trinity Western University

In a few days I'll be visiting Trinity Western University for a symposium on the historical Jesus featuring distinguished lecturer Bishop N.T. Wright. I'm pretty pumped. I've been looking forward to this for months. Vancouver is a very scenic and urban area, with mountains, ocean, forest, the works.

I'll be leaving Katie Sunday evening and coming back to her Friday morning. The interesting part will be what I do once I get to Vancouver National Airport! You see, I picked the cheapest flight I could, which arrives around 1am local time. So in some way shape or form, I'll have to make it to Trinity Western that morning, which is about 42 kilometer (26 miles) away. That's about a marathon! Now, I could get a rental car, but that costs a lot, like more than $200, so no. I could rent a taxi, but that'll be around $100. So I've opted for the cheap plan, walking...and/or buses. According to Google Maps, it can be done in about 3 hours for $5 with public transit. We'll see how it goes! They can give me a ride back, so I don't have to worry about that. I'm not worried, mainly because my friend Mike Schneider and I traveled around Mexico in places 1) more crowded 2) much more dangerous 3) without any real idea where we were going. And we lived.

I plan on attending their MA level classes while there and talking to most, if not, all of the faculty about their program and opinions on certain subjects. I've read up on their curricula vitae and have some comments and questions for each of them. It sounds like a great school and I'll be making the most of this opportunity.

Now, you may be asking yourself, why or how is David going? Well, to make a medium-size story short, Aaron West and I went to several lectures on the Dead Sea Scrolls last year while they were on display at the Milwaukee Public Museum. Both Martin Abegg and Peter Flint, professors at TWU, spoke and I had the chance to eat breakfast with Professor Abegg (he invited and paid!). I had to chance to tell him about Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS). After seeing how nerdy I can get in conversion in talking about Greek, Hebrew, and ancient texts and manuscripts, he invited me to this conference. He said, referring to the faculty, "We're normal people with abnormal interests." Sounds like me!

Genesis

Hello world.

So for a variety of reasons I've decided to keep a blog. It's mainly intended for close friends and family members I don't get to talk a lot to, but obviously it's open for everyone to read. I thought for a bit that I'd actually update my facebook status regularly, or something along those lines, but I find facebook too cluttered now, and I almost never check it. So I opted for this instead.

I guess I decided my life's intriguing enough to keep a blog, and it is a good way to reflect on what I've been doing so I can make better decisions as to my future plans, Lord willing.

So friends and family, add this site to your RSS feeds to check it every once in a while to see what's up. Also, I do regularly, almost daily, check my Google Reader, so if you want to see more of my opinions on matters of scholarship and politics and such, check that. I share quite a bit of articles and sometimes add comments of my own.

Also, people like pictures, so I'll probably have those with each post, too.

And for those wondering what in the world the blog title means, it means "David's life" in Latin.