Are we a cult?

Cult:

• a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object : the cult of St. Olaf.
• a relatively small group of people having religious beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange or sinister : a network of Satan-worshiping cults.
• a misplaced or excessive admiration for a particular person or thing : a cult of personality surrounding the leaders.

Now the question… are we, the Holy, Catholic, and Apostlic Church a cult?

This question got posed to me in my contemporary cults class at CUNE. The general consensus of the class, after some debate was, “Yes, we are a cult.. and that’s okay.”

I started thinking more about this on Friday as I gave a presentation in my Teaching the Catechism with Luther class. I’ve been researching the early church catechumenate, specifically focusing on the mystagogical preachers, Ambrose of Milan, Cyril of Jerusalem, Chrysostom, and Theodore of Mopsuestia. I’m also studying Augustine, since he was a catechumen under Ambrose. As I was describing the early church rituals surrounding the catechumenate, specifically focusing on the Lenten discipline, the Easter Vigil, and the subsequent Mystagogy (preaching on the mysteries), I brought up the secrecy and the mystery that surrounded the church. This was not discouraged, but was encouraged by the Fathers. They didn’t want people to know, prior to Baptism, what took place with the Sacrament. They were encouraged to keep the creed amongst the baptized and not let it “get out.” A fourth-year said, “This sounds awfully cult-like,” to which I responded, “Yup… and I think that’s okay.” I also said, “think about it… we make exclusive claims about salvation, are a relatively small group (the invisible church), we have an exclusive object of our faith (Jesus Christ), and we do things that are considered strange (pouring water on a baby’s head and drinking small sips of wine and eating small pieces of bread).”

Yup… I think we are a cult… and that’s okay.

What do you think?

Thoughts from a Roman Catholic leader in Rome

New Liturgical Movement

The article linked to above provides a lot of food for thought for Lutherans.

Highlights:

• Discussion on sermon length
• Discussion on communion received in the hand (also discussion of the presence of Christ in the Sacrament)
• Focus on the sacred in worship as well as a discussion of the divine mystery

Ahhh… Bach

Enjoy this wonderful video of Felix Hell showing off the true beauty of the pipe organ and of J.S. Bach

HT: Cyberbrethren

Book Review: American Band

American Band: Music, Dreams, and Coming of Age in the Heartland by Kristen Lane

Heels Together!
Toes Apart!
Stomach in!
Chest Out!
Shoulders Back!
Chin! Pride!

That was the chant that I learned in high school marching band. We would chant it with our director after every competition and every halftime show. Marching band is truly a way of life, both for the students and their families. Students march in unbearably hot weather in the summer to prepare and finish the season in terribly cold weather. Their families put in time serving as “band moms and dads” preparing sets, uniforms, drinks, and helping with first aid. Students who never thought they could lead step up and take over. I loved every minute of marching band. It was something I inherited from my mom (we are both clarinet players). While my high school band was quite small and never excelled in competition, my mom’s high school marching band in Alexandria, Virginia was of championship quality.

This heritage in my family (my mom and I were both in band and my grandma served both as a band mom and even as a band grandma) spiked my interest in American Band: Music, Dreams, and Coming of Age in the Heartland by Kristen Laine. This book, published in 2007, deals with a championship caliber marching band in Concord, Indiana. The town is a small one and is perhaps best known as being the former home of the Conn instrument builders. While small, it boasts a school that is entirely devoted to its instrumental music programs (marching, concert, jazz, and pep). This is fascinating to me because in many small towns life revolves around sports (think Varsity Blues) including my hometown.

The book examines all aspects of the marching band including its “feeder system” of elementary and junior high bands. It also examines the directing staff including the head director, a legend in Indiana music circles. The marching band cuts no one (except in cases of misconduct or just plain poor performance) and marches approximately 250. The book begins with “freshman camp” in the summer and then covers the main full band camp and examines their move from competition to competition, where they win every virtually every single tournament leading up to the state championship. American Band also focuses on individual members of the band which gives a glimpse into the life of small town students.

Perhaps the most fascinating and most relevant to a seminarian reader is the examination and commentary on religion in a small town. Concord is near Goshen, Indiana, and is thus home to a heavy Mennonite population, of various levels of observance, including some quite large mega-churches. The community also includes Catholics and Lutherans (although I’m unsure of what specific denomination). The dominant church in the book is the local megachurch with strong baptist leanings. The theology seems quite typical… “pray-harder,” “find God’s will for your life,” etc etc. The sad and frightening truth of this is the damage that this theology does to students. There was no Gospel, only Jesus being used as an example. You see how students are left to their own “fear and wrestlings” and not pointed to Jesus. We even see a girl who wears a star-of-David, not because she is a Jew, but because she is convinced that she wants to work to bring about the kingdom of God on Earth and convert all the Jews (noble goal, but consider this in the light of Left Behind theology where you must work to bring about the return of Christ).

If you are interested in any or all of the following: small town life, American evangelicalism, music, marching bands, or leadership this book is for you.

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)

Liturgical Beauty

We normally sings the Psalms unaccompanied in the chapel at the seminary. There is great beauty in this with the entire congregation singing in unison. What makes it even better is the Gloria Patri at the end. There is always a change in volume as a large portion of the congregation bows its head reverencing the Holy Trinity and then an increase in volume as the words “as it was in the beginning” are said.

Pure beauty.

Liturgical Observation: Stand or Rise?

Just a little observation:

If you choose to give audible rubrics (which I don’t recommend as they distract from the liturgy) remember this: bread rises and people stand.  

Ack! Christian News

The words that no seminarian ever wants to hear are: “You’ve made Christian News!”

A friend of mine from Ft. Wayne, vicaring up in Wisconsin calls me this afternoon and utters those very words. The various four-letter words that came to my mind are not for print. Thankfully the mention of me (by way of this blog) was just in a list of Lutheran blogs that the publisher prints from time to time.

Whew…

Thoughts on Lutheran Service Builder

First off, I’m not trying to knock CPH, the Commission on Worship, or the developers of Lutheran Service Builder, because I think all of them together have done an excellent job in the development of the hymnal and the software. Through my fieldwork congregation I’ve had the opportunity to work with the software and it is excellent, minus some small glitches which are obviously being corrected in updates.

My concern is that this software fosters in some pastors a “cut and paste” mentality. With the click of a button a pastor can quickly mash together any number of elements from any number of services. A service I recently attended included portions of DS 4, DS 3, and DS 1/2. This is done on a regular basis. What good does such mixing do?

My other problem with the software is in the printing of the liturgy. While I can see the use of printing the liturgy on certain occasions, I fail to see the value in printing the complete liturgy every week. I think that it discourages people from using and exploring the hymnal and also is a waste of paper. I do think it is fine to print an outline of the service (the bulletins with the extra tab on the side work really well for this!). This, combined with the ease of use of Lutheran Service Book makes the services quite easy to navigate.

I would like to hear some response to this… I’m open to arguments for or against…

Modern Heresy

It is widely reported that Arius wrote hymns containing his heretical theology. This allowed his doctrines to spread easily and quickly.

Now for a modern day heresy (not a new heresy… just a new heretical song):