The need for creeds

Luz Maria and I traveled north to Barquisimeto for a pastor’s conference at Cristo es Amor (Christ is Love) Lutheran Church from June 25 to 26. It was privilege to celebrate the 495th anniversary of the Presentation of the Augsburg Confession with other pastors of our national church, the Lutheran Church of Venezuela.

Argénis Hernández, pastor of Ascension Lutheran Church in San Félix de Guayana, offered a meditation on Matthew 10:26-33 at the opening Matins service on June 25. I did the same for the appointed epistle, 1 Timothy 6:11-16, at Vespers.

The word “confession” is used in different ways. Perhaps most widely understood is the confession of sins. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”, 1 John 1:9. In the Lutheran church, confession of sin may be public or private. The dialogue of communal confession of sin by the congregation and absolution by the pastor as part of the Divine Service is of ancient origin. But Lutherans also retain the practice of private confession, either specific sins to a neighbor one has wronged, or sins that weigh particularly heavy on the heart to the pastor. Private confession is not a requirement, but a gift.

“Confession” as declaration of faith, or creed, is always understood as a public, not a private matter. (The word “creed” is derived from the Latin “credo” or “I believe”.) This is the essence of public worship, as shown in Nehemiah 8:1-12, the Old Testament lesson which was not read. Ezrah the priest publicly read from the books of Moses and all the people answered “Amen, Amen!”, while lifting up their hands. “And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.” God speaks to us in his infallible Scriptures, and we respond.Whether one says “I believe” or “we believe” does not matter, for what follows is not personal opinion, but an authoritative articulation of what the Scriptures say. An open proclamation of the truth and a steadfast defense of the truth, is demanded for every follower of Christ.

“Therefore whoever confesses me before men, him will I confess also before my Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies me before men, him will I also deny before my Father who is in heaven”, Matthew 10:33.

“Do the work of an evangelist”

St. Paul also tells his disciple in 2 Timothy 4, “But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” This served as the basis for another highlight of the pastor’s conference was a presentation by Carlos Ventura on “The Pastor as Evangelist”.The word εὐαγγελιστής (euaggelistés) is used in only two passages of the New Testament. Ephesians 4:11 sets evangelists among Christ’s gifts to His church: “And it was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers”.Apostles and prophets are those who received direct revelation from God. Because the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments contain all we need to know for salvation, there is no need for new revelation, therefore apostles and prophets do not exist in the contemporary church.

“Pastors and teachers” describes the regular ministry of publicly preaching the Word and administering the sacrament, which in all periods of the church has been and remained the same. The expression “teachers” probably refers chiefly to the public activity, while the other, “pastors,” to the application of the pastoral office to the individual members of the congregation. “Evangelists” is placed on the list in between apostles and prophets, and pastors and teachers.
In Acts 21:8, the title of evangelist is given to Philip, one of the original deacons of the church selected by the congregation at Jerusalem in Acts 6, but driven from the city by later persecution. Philip’s activities in Acts 8 are the only description given of “the work of an evangelist”.

He travels as an itinerant missionary, preaching and baptizing, performing miracles in Christ’s name, but under the authority of the apostles. Peter and John had to travel to Samaria to confirm the validity of Philip’s baptisms (Acts 8:14-17).

So what of Paul’s admonition to Timothy, a pastor and bishop, to do the work of an evangelist? We may conclude that even as the apostolic mission of the church continues without the apostles (Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15-16; Lucas 24:47-48; Acts 1:8), the work of an evangelist is not limited to the pastoral office. For Acts 8:4 says all who fled Jerusalem “went everywhere announcing the good news” (literally, εὐαγγελιζόμενοι, euangelizomenoi, evangelizing). It is highly desirable for all members of a local congregation to share the Gospel with family, friends and co-workers, pray for them and invite them to church. But the pastor also has an important rose to play in evangelism, as a teacher, guide and planner of intentional strategies.

Pastor Carlos Ventura and his wife, Berkis, with Meduardo Aparismo, the youngest of the five children of Rafael and Sabrina Aparismo, one of the founding families of El Redentor Lutheran Church.

A pioneer pastor

This month El Redentor (Redeemer) Lutheran Church of San Antonio de Capayacuar, Monagas state, will celebrate its 70th anniversary. During our spare moments in Barquisimeto, its current pastor, Carlos Ventura, talked with me about Heinrich Zeuch, its first pastor, installed in 1955. Zeuch was ordained as a deacon in Germany.  During World War II, his home in Berlin was destroyed by Allied bombing, leaving his family without a place to live. After the war, the Zeuchs arrived in Venezuela in refugees on an Italian ship, thanks to Gerhard Zeuch, Heinrich's son, who already had a job as an agronomist on a tobacco plantation. After many struggles and difficulties, they settled in San Antonio. At that time, San Antonio did not have electricity, a hospital or paved roads. Heinrich taught adult Bible classes and vacation Bible schools in the area, and was colloquized as Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod missionary before being called to serve El Redentor. San Antonio de Maturín became for many years in the center of a growing Lutheran presence in the state of Monagas and the southern zone of Sucre state.

Wind, rain and a wild ride

We returned from Barquisimeto on Friday. Day after day of heavy rains and strong winds in northwestern Venezuela made the rivers overflow, the dams explode, landslides and closed roads. The government quickly declared an emergency state in the mountain states of Trujillo, Tachira and Mérida, and eight of the 12 municipalities in the state of Barinas. In the afternoon Wednesday, June 25, 2025, the intense rainfall affected the state of Portuguesa, leaving the overflow of several rivers and the flooding of communities near the road that leads to the city of Guanare. Flooding of the Ospino River and overflow of a dam caused the collapse of the La Trinidad bridge on the José Antonio Páez highway, between Barquisimeto and Barinas. A detour around the collapsed bridge took us on a wild ride on a old, two-lane road as heavy traffic continued to flow as if on four lanes and roadside crews removed debris. We are now high and dry on our hilltop, but we ask you to please pray for those left homeless and otherwise affected by the inclement weather (200,000 families in Barinas state alone).

The bricks and mortar of the Church

A blessed Holy Week to everyone!

The numbers change daily, but as I write this, there have been165 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Venezuela, with seven deaths and 65 recoveries in a country with a population of 29 million people according to the last census. That figure probably is lower now with an estimated 4 to 5 million having fled to neighboring nations in the wake of Venezuela’s economic meltdown. Despite the borders with Colombia, Brazil and Guyana being closed, in theory, hundreds of Venezuelans have been making their way back home, because quarantine measures in other countries have left them without jobs and income to pay high rents. Since confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been much more numerous in these other countries, the returning Venezuelans are likely to have been exposed.

Nobody that we know has been stricken with the virus, much less died, but police are patrolling the streets of La Caramuca to make sure no one is on the street without a facemask, and that people maintain a proper distance in the food markets. Access to the city of Barinas has been restricted. The slaugherhouse, which is the major source of employment in La Caramuca, is still in operation, but with hours per week greatly reduced (agriculture is the major industry in our state, Barinas, with an emphasis in livestock production).

We suspended our annual Palm Sunday street procession and marked the first Sunday in Holy Week with the service of morning prayer. We always have celebrated the Eucharist every Sunday, but for the last two Sundays we have not. Since the communion service always includes the sharing of the peace, and morning prayer does not, we made this change to mimimize physical contact. I also am not greeting people at the door until it appears the worst of the pandemic has passed. The members of our small flock all see each other every other day of the week anyway, and we do not expect visitors until the crisis is over. If and when the virus appears in our surrounding community, it is unlikely that it will be spread through our Sunday morning gatherings. And the people continue to show up. But we will take some precautions.

Living stones

“You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:5

Sometimes it is said that the church is not a building, but people. Ŧo precise, it is ŧħe assembly of believers gathered around the Word of God preached in its purity and the sacraments administered according to the Lord’s command (Augsburg Confession, Article VII). Since the church on earth exists in three dimensions, and the living stones of the spiritual house are creatures of flesh and blood, and the sacraments consist of visible elements linked to God’s Word, this implies a physical place where God’s people meet. A house of brick and mortar (or whatever building material is available) that is an image of the spiritual house.

The preaching of the Word is proclamation, seed cast throughout the field (Matthew 13:3-23; Mark 4:3-20; Luke 8:4-15). It is broadcast to all who have ears to hear. So it makes sense to extend public preaching through a PA system, the radio, television or the Internet. But the sacraments are incarnational; the infinite is made finite in baptism and the Lord’s Supper. The grace of God is made particular to each believer, but normally not to each believer in isolation, but in community. As the sacraments can be seen and touched, as the words of confession and absolutions must be heard, there must be a solid house of prayer and worship. The house of God’s people is God’s house, and its doors must be kept open for those who seek a place of refuge. Amen.

Singing grace

Gracias damos, Señor, por el pan, gracias damos, Señor, por el pan.

Por el pan espiritual que alimenta cada cual, también por el pan material.

That is one of at least two table prayers that we sing before meals in Venezuela. In it we thank the Lord first for spiritual bread, then for material bread.

For, as the Small Catechism teaches, our daily bread consists of all that we need to sustain our life on earth. We trust in God for these things, but we also remember the Lord’s words that man does not live by this bread alone, but by all that proceeds from the mouth of God, which is the Word of life (Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3).

With that in mind, over the summer break from school, our mission has hosted a series of bakery workshops led by Alba Rosa Bastidas, an instructor licensed by the Ministry of Education. About 25 women have attended, either members of our congregation or mothers of preschool children. Every session began with a Bible reading and prayer, followed by the preparation of baked goods.

Rather than bake at home, Venezuelans in the past have preferred to buy fresh bread and pastries from the local bakery/cafe called a panadería. With spiralling inflation, however, now it is more economical to buy wheat flour and make many loaves of bread at a time, rather than spend the same amount of money on just one loaf. So the kitchen in our preschool has been filled with the aroma of all sorts of bread, cookies, biscuits and, my personal favorite, cinnamon rolls!

NASA images of fires in Bolivia,
Brazil and Paraguay.

Deliver us from evil

We also pray in the Lord’s Prayer that the Lord would save us from all kinds of danger or peril in this world. Every Sunday we include in the prayer of the church specific peticions for those in our congregation and local community who are infirm and in need; for our national church and its pastor; for the nation of Venezuela and Venezuelans, especially family members, who are in exile; and for persecuted Christians throughout the world.

It is wonderful to have access to such information, for it helps the local congregation or mission feel part of a much larger, global community of Christians. Advances in communication technology have always helped drive Christian mission work. In the early centuries of the church, the replacement of heavy, cumbersome scrolls with the codex, or bound book, allowed copies of the Scriptures to easily be carried in journeys over the extensive system of paved roads built by the Romans. Johannes Gutenberg’s invention of the moveable-type printing press in the mid-1400s allowed for the economical printing of Bibles and the rapid distribution of the works of Luther and other Reformers in the 16th Century.

The telegraph wire was the 19th Century’s version of the Internet. It allowed messages to be sent around the world in minutes rather than weeks or months. Along with steamships and railroads, the telegraph allowed for Christian missions within a truly global framework. In the 20th Century, radio and television broadcasts allowed the Lutheran Hour and other missionary organizations to transmit Gospel messages in support of church planting missionaries, and even inside countries where foreign-born missionaries were not allowed. So now we have the World Wide Web and communications satellites, and we live in more of a global village than ever before, perhaps much more than Marshall McLuhan envisioned when he coined the phrase in the 1960s.

Graciously defend us from fire and flood, war and pestilence, drought and tempest, want and hunger. Heavenly Father, preserve and protect all who travel by sea, land and air. We pray for those who speak for you in distant lands; and by every medium of communication. As we all are strangers and pilgrims on this earth, help us to prepare for the life to come, before the hour of judgment arrives. Amen.

Speaking the truth in love

"So that we may no longer be children,tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ..." Ephesians 4:14-15

"Aren’t they all Catholic?”

People sometimes ask this question about Lutheran mission work in Venezuela or, perhaps, Latin America in general. The thought is that, since we Lutherans regard Roman Catholics as Christians at least in some sense, and since most, if not all, Venezuelans identify as Catholics, should we not concentrate our evangelistic efforts on those parts of the world where there is not a Christian majority?

A short answer to the first question is no, they’re not all Catholic. Not any more.

Fifty years ago, when I prepared a report on Venezuela for my sixth-grade teacher, nine out of ten Venezuelans would have identified as Roman Catholics. Even in those days, however, less than 10 percent attended Mass even once a month. Even today the Catholicism we usually deal with here is a form of cultural Christianity. That means Christianity, or a certain form of it, has had an impact on the history and way of life of a tribe or nation. Most people at least pay lip service to its teachings and values, if only out of loyalty to family and country. But do they faithfully apply these teachings and values to their daily lives? Well, maybe, maybe not. Do they know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior? Again, an open question.

But times are changing in Venezuela. According to the most recent census figures, 71 percent identify as Roman Catholics and 19 percent as Protestants. The word, Protestant, is not used as much as “evangélico” or evangelical. Either Protestant or evangelical is a catch-all term that takes in quite a variety of beliefs. Most evangélicos are neo-Pentecostals, which has been the fastest-growing religious group in Latin America for some time. Some of these belong to the Oneness Pentecostal movement, which denies the doctrine of the Trinity. Evangélico may even mean Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons and Seventh-Day Adventists, all of which are active in our area (there is a Kingdom Hall in La Caramuca).

Statue of Maria Lionza by Phil Bickel

 

Besides the permutations of Christianity, there are cults of non-Christian origin. Some are homegrown, like the cult of Maria Lionza. Santeria began in Cuba, but has flourished in Venezuela in recent years. There is an Islamic presence in Venezuela, as well as various types of New Agery.

So Venezuela is not a contentedly Catholic country. Even if it were, as Lutherans we would consider it part of our confession to proclaim the Word of God in all of its purity here. The Roman Catholic Church may not be as far off base as some of the other religious options that face Venezuelans, but the fundamental issues of faith, grace and church authority that fired the debates of the Reformation still burn today. Not only that, but there are many more winds of false doctrine in our world. Our job as missionaries is to anchor weak Christians in the truth of the Scriptures, that they may be able to discern sound and unsound doctrine. To this end, the unity of all believers in heaven, even if such unity cannot be achieved on earth.

What’s more, those Venezuelans who believe that the Lutheran Confessions are the most faithful exposition of the apostolic faith face a practical problem: Throughout most of Venezuela, there are no congregations that subscribe to the Book of Concord. So if they have to move to find work, they may not find a confessional Lutheran congregation anywhere near their new home.

So, the answer to the second question is that even in countries that have a nominal Christian majority,  there is much work to be done.

Solar panels on-line

On July 22, we suffered with most of the rest of the country through the third nationwide blackout since March. We continue to experience local blackouts of varying lengths on a daily basis. On Sunday, August 4, we remembered in our congregational prayers the victims of the El Paso, Texas, shooting. However, because we were in the middle of an 18-hour power outage, we did not find out about the Dayton, Ohio, shooting, until after our morning service.

However, thanks to the generous financial support of our donors, we have installed a solar power backup system. Photovoltaic panels on the roof and a bank of batteries below now maintain our security system and emergency lighting. We also can recharge our cellphones to keep our lines of communication open. For reasons of security, I will not post photos publicly, but if you are interested, I will send some by private e-mail.

End of an era of evangelism

Luz Maria and I were saddened to hear that Cristo Para Todas Las Naciones (CPTLN), the Spanish-language arm of Lutheran Hour Ministries Intenational, had ceased operations in Venezuela as of the end of May 2017. We are grateful to the last director,Alexander Pérez, and lhe last office manager, Irys Mencias, for CPTLN's continued support of our mission and the Lutheran Church of Venezuela through difficult times.

Venezuela was one of the Latin American countries where radio broadcasts of the Spanish Lutheran Hour began in 1940, 11 years before the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod actually sent missionaries to Venezuela. The first CPTLN speaker was Dr. Andrés A. Meléndez, who also was the chief editor of the Spanish version of the Book of Concord that we use in our churches today. Over the years, CPTLN's radio spots, short and to the point, became a fixture of Venezuelan radio. CTPLN's work helped establish a Lutheran presence in Venezuela. For example, the first Lutheran Church of Venezuela congregation in Barinas, Corpus Christi, was founded after the man who became its first pastor heard a CPTLN broadcast.

When I arrived in Venezuela in 2003, CPTLN had for years operated out of a grand old mansion on a tree-lined street in Caracas, which housed state-of-the-art recording and postproduction facilities, an elaborate system of responding to telephone calls with live operators and recorded messages, and a printing operation that produced hundreds of tracts, Bible studies and other educational materials. CTPLN Venezuela took a big hit in 2007 when Lutheran Hour Ministries made drastic cuts in its worldwide budget. The historic headquarters in Caracas was sold, along with the audiovisual equipment. The organization moved to a smaller office in the city of Valencia, and continued to produce tracts and other printed materials. Dr. Jaime Paredes, who served as CPTLN director until the early 2000s, resigned and Alexander Perez assumed the post.

Every month of the year until this year, our mission received a package of CPTLN tracts and we distributed about 50 of them per month. Irys always would call me to make sure that we had received the materials. Every year, CPTLN provided a Christmas movie for the preschool children and it was through the efforts of CPTLN that we received shipments of the Lutheran Heritage Foundation edition of the Reina-Valera Bible and Luther's Small Catechism in one volume. CPTLN will be missed here and throughout Venezuela.

Alexander Perez with members of La Fortaleza Lutheran Church.

Distributing CPTLN tracts in La Caramuca.

Do not despise these little ones

We were invited to give a presentation at CEIB "Las Delicias", another preschool in La Caramuca, to kick off a new school year on September 28, 2015. This was the day before the Day of St. Michael and All Angels on the church calendar, and the first part of the appointed Gospel lesson for that day (Matthew 18:1-11) fit the occasion very well.

There is a lot of substance in this entire passage. In verses 8-9 we find these well-known words: "And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.   And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire." That is enough material for a sermon right there.

There also is the profound truth in verse 11;  "For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost."

But I used the first six verses for our opening devotion: "At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”  And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them  and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me,  but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea."

I explained that little children are not capable of providing for their own needs, or even understanding their needs, but must depend entirely on their parents for everything. "To enter the kingdom of heaven as a little child" means to realize that we are incapable of saving ourselves from our sin and must trust completely in God for our redemption and not our own good works. The passage also emphasizes the importance of small children to the Lord, and the great responsibility and opportunity we have as parents and teachers in the formation of faith and morals in our young ones.

This was the springboard for Luz Mariá's PowerPoint presentation about the Scriptures as the source of our values. We have the moral law written in our minds and hearts, but because of our sinful nature, we have the perfect knowledge of God's will, we are also rebel against their will because of our pride and selfishness. However, Scripture is the revelation of the moral law in its fullness, also the good news of Jesus Christ, who paid the price for our sins on the cross and therefore we restored to a right relationship with God.

We had no special weekday service, but on Wednesday I talked with the preschool children about verse 10 of Matthew 18, which ties in with the Day of St. Michael and All Angels: “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven."

There still are churches dedicated to St. Michael.

Sometimes called "Michaelmas", the observance of this day on the church calendar dates back to the fifth century A.D. with the dedication of a church outside of Rome to the Archangel Michael. The Lutheran Reformers removed from the church calendar many saints' days that had no basis in the Holy Scriptures. But they retained the Day of St. Michael and All Angels because, of course, angels are mentioned in the Bible. Michael is one of the holy angels given names (the other is Gabriel) and he is presented as the defender of God's people in times of trial. He appears in both the Old and New Testament in visions of the end times.

“At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." Daniel 12:1-2

And in Revelation 12:7-12, Michael and his army of angels are associated both with Christ's victory over the devil on the cross and with the Final Judgment.

"Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back,  but he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven.  And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world— he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.  And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.  And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.  Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

Images like these often are the object of
idolatrous worship in Venezuela.

In our confirmation classes, when we discuss the Apostle's Creed, we speak of the angels as God's (normally) invisible creations, who have power and knowledge beyond what we have. But there are only two classes of angels: The holy angels who exist solely to do God's will and are therefore not to be prayed to or worshiped; and the devil and his angels, who are the adversaries of God and humanity, and are therefore not to be prayed to or worshiped. In Venezuela, many people use images of the Archangel Michael for idolatrous purposes. For example, they carry pictures of Michael in their wallets for good luck.

With the preschool children, I spoke of all the times that angels appeared to people in the Bible, starting with the angel with the flaming sword barring Adam and Eve from returning to the Garden of Eden, and emphasizing the appearance of Gabriel to Mary, the chorus of angels that announced the birth of Jesus, and the angels who told the women at Christ's tomb of His resurrection. And, although we cannot see them now, there are angels all around us today, watching over us. As Psalm 91:11 says, "For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways."

Summer of the prophets

We completed our vacation Bible school for the summer in five days, from Tuesday, August 16, through Saturday, August 20. In addition, on Sunday morning, August 21, the sermon was tied in with the final lesson of vacation Bible school and after the service, several students were recognized for outstanding memorization of Bible verses. Sixteen children attended the first day of vacation Bible school, with attendance of around 30 for each of the following days. Each daily session included an opening devotion, songs, crafts and games. This year's Bible school focused on several prophets of the Old Testament: Elijah, Elisha, Joel, Habbakuk and Christ in His role as prophet. The materials were developed and provided to us by the Lutheran Church of Venezuela.

The text for the first lesson was 1 Kings 17:1-15 (the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath). The objective was that the children might learn that God provides all that we have and all that we need. Each lesson was divided into a teaching of the Law and a teaching of the Gospel. In the first lesson, the message of the Law was that we often are afraid that we will not have everything we need because of a lack of faith that God will provide for us at all times and in all circumstances. The Gospel message: Knowing what God works and how He provides for each of us in our need, He promises to multiply the blessings in our lives, so we seek first the Kingdom of God and all the rest will follow.

The text for the study of Elisha was 2 Kings 4:38-44 (Elisha and the miracle of the great pot). The theme was the miracles of God in our lives and the objective was for the children to learn that in any situation, good or bad, God never will leave us and will provide the means necessary for us to emerge victorious. The Law: When we do not trust in God, we do not see His wisdom displayed in our lives, therefore we do not receive all blessings He intends for us. The Gospel: God has the power to transform the bad things in our lives into blessings. The text for the third lesson was Joel 2:27-32. The theme was the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in baptism with the objective that the children learn about holy baptism and the Holy Spirit comes to them through the visible means of grace. The Law: God judges all nations according to His commandments and punishes those who do not trust in Him. At times we may believe that we can obtain salvation through our own works and forget that we are saved only by the merits of Christ, Who comes to us by means of Word and the sacraments (baptism and the Lord's Supper). The Gospel: God will pardon all who call upon His name and all who receive the Holy Spirit in baptism will be illumined by His gifts and be able to confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

The text for the fourth lesson was Habakkuk 1:2-4, 3:17-19, and the theme was the just shall live by faith. The objective was that the children understand although many bad things may happen in this world, God does not abandon us, but justifies us through faith in Christ Jesus. Law: We may be tempted to despair, because we do not trust in God does everything good in His perfect time. The Gospel: We may have confidence that God will do justice in the perfect moment because we are not traveling through the valley of fear, but rather climbing the heights of faith.

The text for the fifth and final lesson was Matthew 17: 1-8 (the story of the Transfiguration). The theme was that Christ is now the one and only prophet and that the children understand the office of Christ as prophet, knowing that there is no true revelation from God apart from Him. Law: There are many things that we do not understand, so we look toward our own security and avoid venturing outside our comfort zone. The Gospel: With Christ as our Guide and Counselor, we need not be afraid and look toward the future with hope and joy.

That Sunday's sermon text was 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, in which St. Paul compares Moses, whom the Jews regarded as the greatest of the Old Testament prophets, with Christ, the prophet greater than Moses of whom Moses prophesied, and the liberation of the Israelites from slavery with redemption and new life in Christ. In baptism we cross from slavery to sin to freedom in Christ, as the Israelites by a mighty show of God's power, were able to cross from slavery in Egypt to liberty on the other side of the waters of the Red Sea.

But they still had a long journey to the Promised Land, so God provided for them food and drink in the wilderness, as He provides His body and blood in the Lord's Supper to sustain us through our journey through this life. Despite God's loving care, however, most of the Israelites died in the wilderness and did not reach the Promised Land. So it will be with us if we do not stay true to the faith of our baptism and fall into idolatry. No matter if we receive the blessing of baptism, if we do not live as sons and daughters of God, if we fall into sin and not repent, we will not escape the judgment of God on the Last Day. And if we receive the Body and Blood of Christ unworthily, that is, without repentance, we receive the sacrament to our condemnation.

We give thanks to God for the children who were able to attend this vacation Bible school and we hope to host another during the Christmas-New Year break.

Stations of the Cross

Although we have a small group of people that have been baptized and confirmed as Lutherans, our mission actually serves a somewhat wider community. Because there are so few schools with any kind of Christian orientation here, some of the people who send their children to our preschool are devout Roman Catholics or Pentecostalists. The father of one of our little girls is the pastor of a Pentecostalist church, while two of our preschool teachers are Catholic (ideally, all of our teachers would be Lutheran, but Venezuelan law dictates that the preschool have a certain number of state-certified teachers and there are not that many state-certified Lutheran teachers here).

Of course we do not demand that faithful members of other churches join ours in order to send their children to our preschool. Attendance at our Sunday services is alway be invitation. Therefore, we strive to maintain a solidly Lutheran position in doctrine and practice while respecting the beliefs of those who subscribe to other confessions.

The preschool will be closed for Holy Week, therefore we are using this week to teach the preschool children that Holy Week means something other than vacation time. One of our teachers, Yosaira, had approached me with her huge family Bible. It was a "Catholic" Bible, including the "deuterocanonical" books in its Old Testament and some beautiful color-plate illustrations of the traditional Stations of the Cross. Yosaira thought perhaps we could scan the illustrations and use them to teach the children about the events of Good Friday.

The Stations of the Cross were first mentioned in writings from the fifth and sixth centuries as a series of numbered stops for pilgrims to meditate and pray while retracing the Via Dolorosa, or Christ's path from the Garden of Gethsemane to Golgotha, in Jerusalem. Supposedly these were places where Jesus paused on His way to the Cross, except for the last four which involve Him actually being nailed to the cross, dying, and being taken down and laid in the tomb. Eventually a list of 14 "stations" became the accepted norm and every year to this day hundreds of Christian pilgrims to Jerusalem follow this pattern in following the Via Dolorosa.

Somewhat later, since relatively few people had the time or money to travel to Jerusalem, it became a devotional practice to recreate the path to the Cross with paintings or crosses along a circumscribed route in a church or elsewhere. For example, in Colonia Tovar, a German-Catholic enclave in the mountains north of Caracas, the main street of the town is marked with crosses representing the Stations of the Cross as it winds down to its end at St. Martin of Tours Church.

The imagery of the Stations of the Cross have provided inspiration for Christian art for centuries. Not only paintings and sculpture, but also Christian theater, as the European "Passion Play" tradition incorporates dramatizations of the various stations. This includes Mel Gibson's movie, "The Passion of the Christ," which is essentially a Passion Play on film (see postscript on Passion Plays).

However, there is a problem with the traditional Stations of the Cross: Not all of them are really part of any of the New Testament narratives. The traditional 14 Stations of the Cross are as follows:

1. Jesus is condemned to death
2. Jesus is given his cross
3. Jesus falls the first time
4. Jesus meets His mother
5. Simon of Cyrene carries the cross
6. St. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
7. Jesus falls the second time
8. Jesus meets the daughters of Jerusalem
9. Jesus falls the third time
10. Jesus is stripped of His garments
11. Jesus is nailed to the cross
12. Jesus dies on the cross
13. Jesus' body is removed from the cross
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb and covered in incense

Only eight of these stations have clear Scriptural foundation. Numbers 3, 4, 6, 7 and 9 do not and the traditional representation of Jesus' body being placed in His mother's arms as it is lowered from the cross in number 13 is an embellishment of the New Testament story. The Roman Catholic Church today recognizes this and, as I pointed out to Yosaira, in 1991 Pope John Paul II approved an alternative form of the Stations of the Cross that is completely consistent with the Scriptures. This form also was approved by Benedict XVI in 2007. This is the new pattern:

1. Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane
2. Jesus is betrayed by Judas and arrested
3. Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin
4. Jesus is denied by Peter
5. Jesus is judged by Pilate
6. Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns
7. Jesus takes up His cross
8. Jesus is helped by Simon to carry His cross
9. Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
10. Jesus is crucified
11. Jesus promises His kingdom to the repentant thief
12. Jesus entrusts Mary and John to each other
13. Jesus dies on the cross
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb
15. Jesus rises from the dead on the third day

I told Yosaira I would have no problem with using this form of the Stations of the Cross. We used most of the pictures from her Bible and I filled in the gaps with graphics from the Wisconsin Synod Web site.

There is another problem with the Roman Catholic interpretation of the Stations of the Cross and that is this form of devotion still is considered an "act of reparation" or, in essence, a meritorious work.

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Reparation

"Reparation is a theological concept closely connected with those of atonement and satisfaction, and thus belonging to some of the deepest mysteries of the Christian Faith. It is the teaching of that Faith that man is a creature who has fallen from an original state of justice in which he was created, and that through the Incarnation, Passion, and Death of the Son of God, he has been redeemed and restored again in a certain degree to the original condition. Although God might have condoned men's offences gratuitously if He had chosen to do so, yet in His Providence He did not do this; He judged it better to demand satisfaction for the injuries which man had done Him. It is better for man's education that wrong doing on his part should entail the necessity of making satisfaction. This satisfaction was made adequately to God by the Sufferings, Passion, and Death of Jesus Christ, made Man for us. By voluntary submission to His Passion and Death on the Cross, Jesus Christ atoned for our disobedience and sin. He thus made reparation to the offended majesty of God for the outrages which the Creator so constantly suffers at the hands of His creatures. We are restored to grace through the merits of Christ's Death, and that grace enables us to add our prayers, labours, and trials to those of Our Lord "and fill up those things that are wanting of the sufferings of Christ" (Colossians 1:24). We can thus make some sort of reparation to the justice of God for our own offences against Him, and by virtue of the Communion of the Saints, the oneness and solidarity of the mystical Body of Christ, we can also make satisfaction and reparation for the sins of others."

Certainly Colossians 1:24 read in context does not support the above assertions. Paul writes in Colossians of the redemptive work of Christ as being sufficient to atone for all the sins of all men. In verse 24, he says that he is able to endure "the sufferings of Christ", that is, the difficulties that he, as a preacher of the Word, experiences above and beyond the normal problems of life for the sake of Christ, as being something that will benefit Christ's body, the Church. If he, Paul, is able to endure these sufferings, then perhaps the Church will be spared some suffering for the sake of Christ. But as in baptism Christians share in the resurrection of Christ, they also will share some of the same sufferings as Christ (persecution and rejection by the world). In no sense, however, do our sufferings add anything, or need to add anything, to the price Christ paid for our sins on the cross.

I addressed this issue in an introductory talk to parents and children on Monday and again in my presentation of the pictures on Wednesday, saying that our worship and praise during Holy Week were not required of us to earn His love and favor, but rather were our response to what Jesus did for us on the cross. Through His suffering and death on the cross He paid the full price for our sins and that therefore we are justified before God through faith in Him, not through any of our works. Therefore, the Stations of the Cross ares simply a tool for us to remember and appreciate Christ's sacrifice for us.

No preschool next week, but our Holy Week schedule includes services on Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday.


Postscript on Passion Plays

When Luz Maria and I visited my family in South Dakota in 2006, we stopped at the Spearfish Amphitheater in Spearfish, S.D., which for nearly 70 years was the main venue for the Black Hills Passion Play. The Black Hills Passion Play was presented on a 350-foot outdoor stage with seating for 6,000 people. Performances were Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays during the summer months.

In 1932 a troupe of Passion Players from Lünen, Germany, where a Passion Play had been presented since 1242, began touring the United States. One of them was Josef Meier,
a seventh-generation Passion Player. Their script was in German, which meant their engagements were limited to theaters and churches frequented by German-speaking immigrants. Because of political and economic conditions in Germany, Meier decided to stay in the United States. He had the script translated into English, hired American actors to replace the German cast, and while touring various towns, began looking for a permanent home for his Passion Play.

Spearfish was chosen in part because of the site's excellent natural acoustics. The amphitheater was built in 1939. During its heyday, the Black Hills Passion Play company not only made special appearances throughout the United States and Canada, but in 1953 established a winter home in Lake Wales, Florida, where the play was presented until 1998.

There were no performances scheduled for the winter of 2006, but Luz Maria and I were given a personal tour of the Black Hills Passion Play Museum by Guido Della Vecchia, husband of Johanna Meier, Josef's daughter. Guido spoke Italian while Luz Maria spoke Spanish, and they were able to communicate to a limited extent.

So I was saddened to learn that the Black Hills Passion Play gave its final performance in 2008. For me, the Passion Play was always part of the Black Hills, just like Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse monument and the Needles. I understand the museum is still open.

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Giving thanks for a successful semester

On July 5, the first Sunday in July this year (and also Independence Day in Venezuela) Sandro Perez requested a special prayer of thanksgiving for the completion of another semester of school. Our summer break has begun and the new semester begins in mid September. Sandro, who suffered a couple of bouts with dengue fever this past year, will start seventh grade. This is an important moment for Sandro, because many children in our community drop out of school after sixth grade (the maximum amount of education required by law).

Angie Perez and Noel Marquina also will enter seventh grade next semester. Sandro and Noel have been confirmed, while Angi is preparing for her confirmation this fall. She and Sandro are not related; Perez is a name like Smith, Jones or Johnson in the United States. The Venezuelan equivalent of "John Smith" would be "Pedro Perez".

We also prayed for the health of Angi s brother, Jimmy Perez, who was ill to the point of coughing up blood, but who now is recuperating and for the nations of the world to peacefully resolve their problems. Amid our everyday concerns, all eyes have been glued to the television for news of -- well, not so much the aftermath of Michael Jackson's death, although the pop star's funeral was enough of a spectacle to merit extensive coverage. People here are more concerned with the civil unrest in Honduras and what it means for all of Latin America.
Later in the week Luz Maria went to town with Sandro and some of the other children receiving scholarships from Children's Christian Concern Society of Topeka, Kansas, to help them buy school uniforms with their scholarship money. Almost all Venezuelan schools, public or private, require school uniforms. The children in our preschool wear a uniform that consists of a red shirt and blue slacks.

On Wednesday, July 15, we had a graduation ceremony for 12 children who will be leaving our preschool and starting first grade next semester. The group included Luz Maria's granddaughter, Oriana Montoya, who will celebrate her seventh birthday in December. Oriana was born just six months before my arrival in Venezuela in 2003, so strange as it seems to say, I have known her nearly all her life.

The other graduates were:

• Kelvis Artahona
• Yerika Galindez
• Kemberling Altuve
• Gianny Roa
• Jeiximar Arellano
• Yorman Poveda
• Maikel Caraballo
• Jhon Piñero
• Ana Garcia
• Gaudis Rangel

Only Gaudis was not able to attend the graduation. The rest were there with their families. I opened by reading from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 18, verses 1-10. Then, since the children learned the Lord's Prayer this semester, I led them in singing a version of it set to music. I liked this song from the first time I heard it. Ruth Witte, wife of Pastor Henry Witte, a former missionary to Venezuela, sang it to a group of vacation Bible school children at Roca de Eternidad (Rock of Ages) Lutheran Church in Quebrada Seca, Monagas.

Padre nuestro, que estás en los cielos,
Santificado, santificado sea Tu nombre.

Venga a nos, Tu reino, Señor, hágase tu santa voluntad.
En el cielo y la tierra, haremos Tu santo voluntad.

Danos hoy, dánoslo Señor, nuestro pan, el pan de cada día,
Y perdona nuestras deudas, así nosotros perdonamos.

No nos dejes caer en tentación; antes bien, líbranos del mal.
No nos dejes caer en tentación, líbranos del mal.

Porque tuyo es el reino, Señor, el poder y toda la gloria,
Por los siglos de los siglos, para siempre, aleluya, amén.

I cannot sing like Ruthie Witte, nor can I play the cuatro (four-stringed guitar). But the children sang from memory and with impressive volume and enthusiasm, which was the main idea.

Later on, Vicar Alonso Franco arrived from Barinas to lead the children in more songs to the accompaniment of a guitar. He was delayed by rain and road construction, but that really did not matter. Alonso has begun teaching the guitar to a group of boys in La Caramuca on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I have given up trying to learn guitar chords for the time being so these guys will have the chance to practice with our guitar.

After saying a prayer for the coming semester, for the children passing on to first grade and for those returning to our preschool, the graduation ceremony continued with the awarding of diplomas, and, of course, cake and refreshments.

Homilectics and hermeneutics

From June 29 to July 3, 2009, I attended a seminar in homilectics in Caracas, taught Dr. Douglas Rutt of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. Actually, the course combined the study of homilectics (preaching) and hermeneutics (Biblical interpretation) as the two are closely related. It is a course generally taught to second-year students at the Fort Wayne seminary. Our thanks to Dr. Rutt for his willingness to travel to Venezuela to teach this course.

Pilgrimage to Paradise

During Holy Week 2009, we accompanied 12 preadolescents, from six to 13 years of age, to El Paraiso Lutheran Church in Barquisimeto for a three-day retreat. We left Wednesday morning, April 8, and returned Saturday afternoon, April 11.

Five of the children were from La Caramuca and the rest were from Corpus Christi Lutheran Church in Barinas. With the children from Barquisimeto, there was a total attendance of 37 preadolescents. In addition there were six adolescents and 19 adults, including representatives from La Caramuca and Barinas.

Barquisimeto lies north of the city of Barinas, a journey of about three hours. Thanks to donations from our supporters in the United States, we were able to rent a bus.

The capital of Lara state, Barquisimeto is the fourth-largest city in Venezuela with a population of more than 800,000 people. It is home to a professional baseball team, the Lara Cardinals, and professional basketball and soccer teams, both known as the Lara Guaros. (The term guaro refers to a species of bird similar to a parrot. It also is used as a slang term for a person born in Lara and some surrounding areas). The large public soccer stadium in Barquisimeto was built specifically for several matches in the Copa America, an international soccer tournament that Venezuela hosted for the first time in 2007.

Barquisimeto is known as the location of several universities, a flourishing musical and cultural life and for the manufacture of musical instruments.

The city also is home to two Lutheran Church of Venezuela congregations, Cristo es Amor (Christ is Love) and El Paraiso, plus two new Lutheran mission stations. None of these congregations are served by their own pastor. Rather a national missionary, a young man named Miguelangel Perez, has been assigned to serve them all. This year he has the help of two vicars, Isaac Machado and Angel Eliezer Mendoza. All four groups in Barquisimeto were represented at the retreat.

"El Paraiso" means "Paradise", but the name of the church has no Biblical significance. Rather, the church was named for El Paraiso de Cabudare, the "urbanizacion" or suburb, where it is located. Nevertheless, it is an apt name because the church grounds are landscaped and immaculately maintained, with stately trees and a collection of rare and beautiful flowering plants (rare and beautiful even for Venezuela). These all are well cared for by an older fellow who lives on the grounds.

There is a freestanding worship sanctuary, a large parish hall with kitchen, showers and guest bedrooms (where we all stayed), and a separate office building. This is quite an elaborate setup compared to what we are used to in Barinas.

There were devotions every morning, and throughout the day Bible studies and games for the children. Everything was aimed at explaining the events of Holy Week, starting with Jesus' entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, His suffering and death on the Cross, and ultimately the hope of the Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Of course, on Thursday and Friday evenings there were Maundy Thursday and Good Friday worship services. In Venezuela Maundy Thursday is simply called "Jueves Santo" or "Holy Thursday". "Maundy" is a peculiarly English word of uncertain origin. One popular explanation is that it derives by way of Old French and Middle English from the the first word of the Latin translation of John 13:34, "Mandatum novum do vobis ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos". This passage is part of Jesus' words to his disciples after washing their feet after the Thursday Passover meal, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love another as I have loved you".

However, other scholars say that the archaic English word "maund" originated with the Latin "mendicare" (to beg), and the name Maundy Thursday developed from a medieval custom whereby the English royalty handed out alms to the poor on this day. "Maund" also is the root of "maunder", a word sometimes still used in modern English. It means either a) to talk in a rambling, foolish, or meaningless way; or b)to move, go, or act in an aimless, confused manner (after the manner of a beggar or homeless person)".

At any rate, the Thursday service was a communion service and Isaac Machado preached a sermon, based on Mark 14:12-25, about the significance of the sacrament. It perhaps was a little long and involved for the younger listeners, but he made all the right points, especially in regard to closed communion.

Closed communion means the practice of restricting participation in the sacrament to those who have confessed and received absolution for their sins, and who have confessed a common belief about the nature of the sacrament. This is based on a reading of Scripture passages such as 1 Corinthians 11:27-29:

"Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body."

Thus it is an act of Christian love and responsibility to prevent those living in sin, including the sin of false belief, to participate in that would bring further judgment upon them.

St. Paul also writes in 1 Corinthians 11:26, "For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes". For Lutherans, this means that those who commune at the same altar are thereby declaring publicly that they are united in the doctrine of the Apostles (Acts 2:42, 1 Corinthians 10:17).

So in Lutheran churches participation in the sacrament normally is limited to confirmed members of a Lutheran congregation, or, in other words, those who have publicly confessed the belief that in the Lord's Supper we receive the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the bread and wine, that along with the bodily eating and drinking we receive forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.

But the practice of closed communion was not invented by Lutherans and limited to Lutherans. Justin Martyr wrote this about early church practice in the second century A.D.:

"And this food is called among us Eukaristia [the Eucharist], of which no one is allowed to partake but the man who believes that the things which we teach are true, and who has been washed with the washing that is for the remission of sins, and unto regeneration, and who is so living as Christ has enjoined."

Some form of closed communion remains the rule in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox churches, and conservative Presbyterian, Baptist and even Mennonite churches around the world. Nevetheless, since the 18th Century, many Protestant denominations have absorbed the rationalistic idea that no belief, if sincerely held, can be considered a sin. More recently, the worldwide neo-Pentecostalist movement has mounted a renewed attack on the teaching that the Holy Spirit works through visible, exterior means.

Thus the widespread practice of "open communion", in which anyone, even those who have not received Christian baptism, may participate in the Lord's Supper. This is particularly true in Venezuela where "Protestantism" and "Pentecostalism" have come to mean almost the same thing. (Of course there are "charismatic" Catholics in Venezuela, too, but most people who become involved in this type of error wind up leaving the Catholic Church.)

Our Holy Thursday service concluded with the stripping of paraments from the altar in anticipation of the Good Friday "Tenebrae" service.

Seven candles were placed on the bare altar and Miguelangel, Angel Eliezer and I took turns reading the seven last words of Christ from the Cross. We extinguished one candle after the reading of each lesson.

Miguelangel let me be the "officiant" at the Good Friday service, which meant a couple of things. First, I got to wear the black vestments (coal-black alb and a black stole with silver-gray trim). It was quite a striking variation on the regular theme and I felt bad that the church only had one set of the vestments. Miguelangel and Angel Eliezer simply wore their black clerical-collar shirts with black trousers and shoes. It would have been quite a statement if we all three at least had worn black albs. I continually am impressed by how the ancient liturgical practices of the church teach the basic truths of the Bible in both visible and audible ways (much better than PowerPoint presentations).

The second thing was that I read the seventh lesson and, after the seventh candle had been solemnly carried out of the church, slammed the Bible shut as the church was plunged into total darkness. After some time, the seventh candle, representing the promise of Christ's victory, was returned to the altar where it remained burning for the rest of the night.

Angel Eliezer preached the Good Friday sermon on John 19:28-37. He had asked my advice on it, as he was struggling with how to explain why Christ had to die on the Cross for our sins. He was working with the idea of penal substitution, that Christ suffered and died for our sins so that the demands of God's justice might be met while making it possible for us to receive God's mercy. But he was not sure if he could make the congregation, especially the younger members, understand the legal concept of why things that happened so many centuries in the past would have a profound impact on their lives today.

I suggested using a medical metaphor, speaking of sin as a disease transmitted from generation to generation, and invariably fatal if left untreated. Christ offered Himself as a sacrifice so that His pure blood might cleanse our tainted blood. This might make sense to the children as during the week they had studied the Passover tradition and the importance of blood sacrifice in ancient Judaism. Angel Eliezer liked this suggestion and decided he would use the specific example of HIV/AIDS, since it is a big social problem in Venezuela and everyone would understand the analogy. HIV/AIDS is transmitted through the blood, often from generation to generation, poisons relationships between people, destroys trust, and is always fatal if not treated with expensive medicine. I had not thought of that, although we have talked to the children in La Caramuca about HIV/AIDS.

After the Good Friday service, the electric lights throughout the church's compound were shut off for about a half hour. As we sat in the darkness, some of the adults whispered the most difficult questions about divine truth and justice that they received from unbelieving friends and neighbors. Such as:

• If God is all-powerful,all-knowing and good, why does He allow evil to exist?
• If God made Adam and Eve so that they were capable of sinning, did not God make a flawed creation?
• With all the different religions and philosophies in the world, how can one be sure what is the truth?

The difficulties arise because, in fact, there are some things only God can know and only God can judge. Who deserves to live and who deserves to die? Actually, according to Scripture we all deserve to die and only by God's grace do we still draw breath. Yet the Bible also assures us that God formed us all in our mothers' womb (Isaiah 44:24) and because all human life is precious in God's sight, Christ died for all that all might have eternal life (John 3:16).

But what is the worse fate, to die at 18 in a terrible car accident with so much unrealized potential? Or to live to middle age and see so many youthful dreams turn out to be either false hopes or if realized, not really what you envisioned? Or to live to nearly 100 and, even you are fortunate enough to stay reasonably healthy and financially secure, see the world of your childhood fade completely into memory?

God only knows. But God promises that as long as we are still here on this earth He has a purpose for our lives (Jeremiah 29:11), that all things work for the good of them that trust Him (Romans 8:28) and that if we trust God, we will never be tested beyond our endurance (1 Corinthians 10:13).

How could an all-powerful, all-knowing God have made a world in which our choices have consequences for ourselves and others? Could He not have made a world in which we could put our hands on a hot stove and not be burned? Or throw ourselves off a cliff and not break our bones? Did not Satan once ask that of Jesus?

We have only the reply that Job received: Let God be God and trust that His will is holy and good. Aside from these Biblical assurances, what hope do we have? Even if we deny God, we still are left with a world full of pain and suffering and no expectation of ultimate justice or redemption.

But in Christ, all Biblical promises are made good, and in Christ we may see that in this world of suffering, God Himself suffered more than we will ever be called on to suffer. And, since the teaching of the Bible all point to Christ on the cross, in God's Word we may find certainty amid the babel of religions and philosophies, all of which boil to down to finding salvation or enlightenment in ourselves rather than saving work of Christ (Ephesians 4:14).

I thought of these things as I prepared my Easter Sunday sermon on John 20:1-18. This is the glorious Easter story as told by John, but it also illustrates that all the evidence in the world does not compel faith. For the synoptic Gospels record that Jesus told His disciples three times that He would die on the Cross and rise on the third day: once after the confession of Peter (Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31; Lucas 9:22), again after the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:22; MarK 9:31; Luke 9:44-45); and a third time (Matthew 20:18-19; Mark 10:33; Luke 18:31-33).

Despite this, what was Mary Magdalene's reaction upon seeing the open tomb of Jesus? She ran back to the other disciples and said, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we (she and the other women) do not know where they have laid Him". Then Peter and John went to the tomb and examined the discarded (yet neatly arranged) linens that had covered the dead man's body. But they still did not completely understand what had happened.

After Peter and John left, Mary Magdalene had a vision of two angels in the tomb, then encountered the risen Christ Himself. But she still asked Jesus, standing right in front of her, where they had taken her Lord's body. Only when the Lord spoke did she recognize Him. But if they had paid more attention to His words in the first place, they could have spared themselves much fear and doubt.

Our faith is based on evidence, not wishful thinking. Palestine is a real place on the map, not an imaginary country. Jerusalem is a real city that still exists today, as do the towns of Bethlehem and Nazareth. Pontius Pilate, Caesar Augustus, Tiberias, King Herod and his sons, and Quirenius the governor of Syria were real historical figures. There is much testimony outside of the New Testament to indicate that something extraordinary happened in Palestine 2,000 years ago. At the very least, the Roman and Jewish authorities had an extraordinarily hard time explaining an empty tomb.

Yet it is not the evidence interpreted by human reason that leads to savng faith, but rather the Holy Spirit working through Word and sacrament. May God bless you with the certainty of this faith.