What does a seminarian do over break?

Ever wonder what a seminarian does over break? Do you think that we lock ourselves up in our rooms/houses, eagerly awaiting the start of the next term? Well, yeah… some of us look forward to class… but we also have lives outside of the seminary.

What am I doing this break (two weeks between end of spring term and start of summer term)?

First, I’m helped out at a wonderful church in Southern Illinois last weekend and I will be preaching this next weekend at my home church. This will be my third time helping out there… and my first time preaching… ever! While I am certainly nervous about this… I’m also excited about this opportunity.

Second, I’m doing a lot of work with the American Red Cross. I’ve been a lifeguard instructor for about six years now. I’ve since expanded out to nearly all the available first aid and CPR courses that the Red Cross offers. Yesterday and today I helped with a lifeguarding course at SLU. Tomorrow is a day of rest and preparation. Thursday I teach a First Aid and CPR course at a Lutheran Camp. Friday I will help with testing and skills tests at a lifeguard class.

Saturday I head with my wife to see my grandfather who is having is oil changed… aka… getting a new defibrillator. This will be his third one. Please keep him in your prayers… his name is Elvis (how cool of a name is that!). With this visit to Central MO comes preaching at my home church.

Then the big event begins on Monday… I’m still not entirely sure if the “big event” will happen… so I’m not going to talk about it. If it does… I’ll be posting pictures and videos. All I can say and ask is that you keep me in your prayers as I will be partaking in something that has an “inherent risk of injury or death.” Don’t worry… I will be with trained professionals. 

Then… back to class. Lutheran Confessions II, John and the Catholic Epistles, and (pending approval) Christian Initiation (a independent study course looking at Christian initiation rites and working toward a faithful Lutheran practice of the catechumenate). 

Appropriate Prayer

An appropriate prayer this evening as St. Louis mourns the loss of at least five public servants:

Almighty God, merciful Lord, be gracious to the families of those whose lives have been tragically ended and who are now at rest with You. Comfort them in their grief, deliver them from danger, and sustain them with the knowledge that they are upheld by Your everlasting arms. Grant them Your Holy Spirit that they may meet the days to come with steadfastness and patience, and with the hope of the glorious resurrection and a blessed reunion in heaven with those they love who have departed in the faith; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

(from the Lutheran Service Book: Pastoral Care Companion)

Idiocy in St. Louis

The City of St. Louis has been embroiled in a bitter debate about the status of the fire department. The former (as of yesteday) Chief of the Fire Department refused to promote a number of firefighters to senior leadership positions because he felt that the test that they took was “biased against African-Americans.” A federal court ruled against the firefighters that made this claim. However, the chief refused to make the promotions even under pressure of the mayor’s office.

The chief got demoted and a new acting chief was named. Today, five new battalion chiefs were named. The Post-Dispatch points out that they were the top scorers on the exam that was called “unfair” ans “biased.” The irony is that out of this group…. two are African-American, one is the first woman battalion chief, and the other two are white. Seems racist to me.

What truly bothers me is the claims made by the former fire chief… that he alone gets to make decisions regarding promotions. He has a boss, just as everyone else does. The mayor told him to do something. He should have done it. The courts told him he was wrong. What also bothers me is that the top-scoring candidate said that he didn’t think the test was equitable. How… I’ve yet to hear a valid argument as to why these tests are “racist” and “unfair.” Also what bothers me is that in St. Louis city there are two fire-department unions… one for blacks and one for whites. How is this possible??? I personally have problems with labor unions as a whole…. but this goes waaayyy beyond a problem with the concept of labor unions. Something needs to change.

St. Louis Post Article