So great a cloud of witnesses

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2

There will be no tricks or treats in La Caramuca this year. Perhaps that’s not surprising, given economic condition of the country. But, in fact, there were no tricks or treats here even when times were good. Carnaval, the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, is the time for children to dress up as make-believe characters. We have a masquerade party in the preschool every year.

Carnaval is the time of mystery and masquerade.

Venezuelans know what is the custom of “trucos o dulces”. But Halloween and everything associated with it is considered foreign. It’s a North American holiday that manifests itself mainly as horror movie marathons on cable television throughout the week.

The cultural tradition in Venezuela is to place flowers on the graves of departed loved ones on November 1 and 2. To an extent, this is closer to the thoroughly Christian origin of All Saints Day, yet it also fall short of the deeper meaning as much as the horror movies. In other Latin American countries, such as Mexico, pre-Columbian traditions into Roman Catholic observances on October 31, and Nov. 1 and 2.

It is a great blessing that, in our Lutheran churches, we prepare for All Saints Day by celebrating the Reformation. Martin Luther knew what he was doing when he posted the 95 Theses on the doors of All Saints Church on All Saints Eve of 1517.

But first, let’s travel a little farther back in time. All Saints Day originally was dedicated to remembering and honoring the martyrs, the many people who died for the faith during the 300 years of Roman persecution. References to a day or days dedicated to the martyrs date back to Turkey or Syria in the second century AD. By the late fourth century, John Chrysostom wrote that All Saints Day was celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost, as it is to this day in the Greek Orthodox churches of eastern Europe and Asia.

But two interesting changes occurred in western European, Latin-speaking Christendom. On May 13, 613 AD, Pope Boniface IV consecrated the Pantheon, a former pagan temple in Rome, as the Church of the Virgin Mary and the Martyrs. In doing so, he proclaimed that date as All Saints Day, and so it was observed in Rome and many other parts of Europe. Some scholars point to that fact that May 9 to 13 was the time of the Lemuralia, a pagan festival dedicated to the appeasing of vengeful spirits of the dead. Although Christianity was the official religion of the Roman Empire by that point, and pagan worship prohibited, perhaps the Pope chose May 13 as a way of quashing any surviving pagan rituals by replacing them with a Christian holy day. But that´s really speculation.

In any event, in 740 AD, Pope Gregory III changed the date again, to November 1, with the consecration of a chapel in the first Basilica of St. Peter. Yet November 1 as All Saints Day did not become a hard and fast rule in western Christendom until the rule of Pope Gregory IV (827-844). Some time later, around 1048 AD, November 2 came to be designated as All Soul’s Day, when those who died in the faith, but not as martyrs, were remembered.

So, you ask, what about the ancient druidic festival of Samhain? Many people believe this to be the basis of Halloween, because it supposedly was celebrated from late October to early November. Did Pope Gregory III choose November 1 to steal some thunder from Irish druids? Well, the earliest written references to Samhain are found in Irish manuscripts from the ninth century AD, which is some time after Pope Gregory III, and, in fact, long after St. Patrick and the Christianization of Ireland. Nevertheless, there are some who claim the Samhain celebration dates back to the druids and the Romans may have incorporated some of the druidic rituals into their own pre-Christian observances. Except that the ancient Romans hated the druids and persecuted them as much as they did Christians, so a connection between the druids and an eighth century pope seems unlikely.

In fact, Halloween as it is known today is very much a North American development. In the 13 Colonies, All Saints Day was seldom observed because the Puritans and others considered it “popish superstition” in light of the veneration of the Virgin Mary and the saints as defined by the Roman Catholic Church. By the mid-1800s, however, Irish and other immigrants had brought with them many folkways concerning fall harvest and lengthening winter nights. In a more secularized society, these were seen as colorful and entertaining, especially when adapted to an American setting. For example, in the British Isles since antiquity, it had been the custom to hollow out turnips and insert a candle for use as a lantern. Often the carvings were creative and so were the stories invented to explain them. Irish immigrants adapted this carving skill to pumpkins, a plant native to North America, and a new fad was born.

Of course, although many people, such as myself, grew up thinking of the carving of jack o’lanterns as a means to an end (pumpkin pie), and dressing up as witches and goblins as a harmless pastime, we must realize that we live in a different world than that of my youth. Sad to say, for many people the Christian significance of All Saints Day has been completely lost. Either it’s just a celebration of autumn or an excuse to indulge an unhealthy interest in the occult.

Martin Luther.

But, thanks be to God, Martin Luther has been down this road before us, and challenged an even greater error about All Saints Day. The 95 Theses questioned the false doctrine of Purgatory and affirmed all Christians, living or dead, had claim on all the blessings of Christ and His church by grace and faith alone, and not by works.

Over the centuries, the practice of remembering and honoring those who had died as witnesses to the faith grew into the cult of the saints, in which “saints” were those known to be in heaven because prayers to them had been answered with miracles. The medieval concept of penance and purgatory undermined the promise of eternal life in baptism and “the communion of the saints” in which all Christians, here on earth or in heaven, are to be considered saints (holy ones) of God, made holy by the blood of Christ.

Luther would write in the Large Catechism under the explanation of the third article of the Apostle’s Creed: “The Creed denominates the holy Christian Church, communionem sanctorum, a communion of saints...But this is the meaning and substance of this addition: I believe that there is upon earth a little holy group and congregation of pure saints, under one head, even Christ, called together by the Holy Ghost in one faith, one mind, and understanding, with manifold gifts, yet agreeing in love, without sects or schisms. I am also a part and member of the same, a sharer and joint owner of all the goods it possesses, brought to it and incorporated into it by the Holy Ghost by having heard and continuing to hear the Word of God, which is the beginning of entering it.”

But while the church, the communion of saints on earth, may be small and surrounded by overwhelming forces of evil, we are not alone. There are, as the writer of Hebrews says, the great cloud of witnesses, by which he means the believers of the Old Testament. For us today, the great cloud includes apostles and other heroes of the New Testament, the martyrs of all eras, and even those of our own family have testified to us of the worth of faith.

Article XXI of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession speaks of these saints in heaven, the church triumphant: “Our Confession approves honors to the saints. For here a threefold honor is to be approved. The first is thanksgiving. For we ought to give thanks to God because He has shown examples of mercy; because He has shown that He wishes to save men; because He has given teachers or other gifts to the Church. And these gifts, as they are the greatest, should be amplified, and the saints themselves should be praised, who have faithfully used these gifts, just as Christ praises faithful businessmen, Matt. 25,21. 23. The second service is the strengthening of our faith; when we see the denial forgiven Peter, we also are encouraged to believe the more that grace truly superabounds over sin, Rom. 5, 20. The third honor is the imitation, first, of faith, then of the other virtues, which every one should imitate according to his calling. These true honors the adversaries do not require. They dispute only concerning invocation, which, even though it would have no danger, nevertheless is not necessary.”

Not only do we confidently believe, that by God’s grace, we may follow in the footsteps of those who have risen to glory, but we join with them now in prayer and song. For the structure of our worship is based on the Apostle John’s vision in which he saw an uncountable multitude of the faithful from every tribe, race and nation gathered around the throne of God with angels, archangels and all the celestial beings in eternal adoration and joy (Revelation 7:9-17).

So, in our commemoration of the Reformation, we recall the true significance of All Saints Day: Not the fear and wonder of what might happen to us after death, but the sure promise of the spiritual life that begins with baptism and culminates with our own resurrection and ascension to join the hosts of heaven.

Oh almighty God, who has knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord, grant us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that we may come to those unspeakable joys which you have prepared for those who unfeignedly love you. Through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigna with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

This October we commended to the Lord the sould of Eladio Azuaje. Last year he received medicine, thanks to Global Lutheran Outreach.

500 years and counting

So what's the best film about Martin Luther and the Reformation? Martin Luther (1953) or Luther (2003)? The 2017 PBS documentary, Martin Luther: The Idea That Changed The World or its Wisconsin Synod remix, Return to Grace: Luther's Life and Legacy?

We did not have much of a choice. The 1953 film is not widely available here, nor is the 2017 documentary in either version. The 2003 film was shown in Venezuelan movie theaters and is available on DVD. In fact, I have a copy that I bought in Barquisimeto. We showed clips from that one as part of celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, first on October 21 and also on October 28.

I have fond memories of the 1953 film, having seen many screenings in church basements as a child. As an adult, living in Topeka, Kansas, from 1983 to 1986, I remember the local PBS station showing the film every year during the last week in October. There was an introduction by David Soul, who some may remember from the classic 1970s television series, “Starsky and Hutch”. The actor also is the son of Dr. Richard Solberg, a Lutheran minister who served as a religious affairs advisor to the U.S. High Commission in Berlin and as senior representative for the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) refugee relief agency that was involved in the post World War II reconstruction of Germany.

“Martin Luther” still has its strong points, I think, but there are some things that make it less than the best introduction to the Reformation for contemporary audiences. It's in black-and-white, of course, and slow-paced, with less fluid camera work than more current films. Then there's the curious fact that the British-made film has all the people of higher education and status speak Oxford English, while the peasants speak with working-class accents. That's something that's hard for people not raised with British class consciousness to appreciate, even if one speaks English in the first place.

The 2003 film has its weaknesses, too. Mainly, I think, because it tries to present a broader historical context, yet within the confines of a two-hour featur film, it presents too much information and yet not enough. Who are all these people, and what is their relationship to Martin Luther? It's hard to keep track, if you do not already know. I have heard the 2017 documentary is even better, but I have not had the chance to see it.

At any rate, we showed what I think are the best parts of the 2003 film: Luther´s pilgrimage to Rome in 1511; the entire segment on Tetzel's sale of indulgences and Luther's posting of the 95 Theses; the Diet of Worms; and the Presentation of the Augsburg Confession. We invited people from the community, and the time between the clips allowed for plenty of discussion about issues which still divide us from the Roman Catholic church (penance, purgatory and the papacy), and the enduring significance of “Scripture alone”, “faith alone” and “grace alone”.

Also, in the week before our special Reformation Day service on October 29, Luz Maria presented vacation Bible school lessons emphasize salvation by faith and grace in place of her regular afterschool tutoring. The preschool children heard of the importance of everyone being able to read the Bible in their own language and made a representation of Luther's seal.

During an opening prayer service on Monday, October 30, I spoke to the families of our preschool children and their teachers about impact of the Reformation on education. The rallying cry of “Scripture alone” resulted in the translation of the Bible into many languages; the motive for printing copies of the Bible in the common tongue through the use of Gutenberg's moveable-type press; and the promotion of public education (public in the sense of teaching all to read and write, as well as other useful skills, not just a fortunate few).

But the real high point of it all was on Sunday, October 29, when we received Jeckson Gabriel Marquiz Marquina and Kimberly Gabriela Roa Marquina as communicant members of our congregation by public confession of faith. As I stressed in the sermon, public confession is not only good for the soul, it could change the world.

Six confirmed on Reformation Sunday 2010

Six young people were confirmed at our mission on Oct. 31, 2010. Here is the list of their names and confirmation verses:

• Jeison Manuel Arellano Farías, Philippians 4:7
• Jimmy Orlando Pérez Chinchilla, Joshua 1:9
• Angie Yoximar Pérez Chinchilla, John 10:27-28
• Yhonny Alexander Torres Ortega, Philippians 4:13
• Pedro José Santana Reimi, Psalm 50:15
• Karelis Santana Reimi, Psalm 51:10

This is the message that I had for them:

Today, Reformation Sunday, is a day of confession in two ways.

First, the confession of our sins. Every Sunday we begin the Divine Servie with the general confession of sins and receive absolution before the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. This is the day of first communion for six of you.

These six have been instructed according to the Small Catechism of Martin Luther, so they understand the importance of confession and repentance of all immorality and false belief before receiving the true body and true blood of Jesus Christ in, with, and under the bread and wine. Because he does not believe the words “given for you” or “shed for you for the forgiveness of sins,” or doubts them, is not worthy, nor is ready to receive Christ's body and blood. As St. Paul says, “Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself” (1 Corinthians 11:28-29).

By confession, we also mean public confession of the faith. In today's text (John 8:31-36), our Lord tells us, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” The freedom Christ speaks of is freedom from sin. The truth of Christ, that is to say, His sacrifice on the cross, frees us from slavery to sin and Satan. Christ paid the price for the sins of the whole world on the cross, and so we are justified by faith in Him, and not by our own works. However, to remain true disciples of Christ, we must abide in His Word.

In holy baptism we received the complete assurance of eternal life in Christ and began the life of faith, we were born again of the Holy Spirit. Baptism was our first confession of faith by the work of the Holy Spirit. As it says in Mark 16:16, “He who believes and is baptized, will be saved; but he does not believe, will be condemned.” In baptism we receive the gift of saving faith.

But, it is possible to lose the benefits of baptism, if we do not abide in the Word of God. We have this Word in the Holy Scriptures, the source and rule of our faith. The Scriptures, written by the apostles and the prophets, and inspired by the Holy Spirit, tell us all that we need to know for our salvation. In the Bible, God speaks to every one of us.

But abiding in the Word is not just a matter of listening, reading and reflecting inwardly. The Word at times demands a verbal response.

For it also is the work of the Holy Spirit when we say “I believe” in the Word of God. As St. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12:3, “No one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.”

Also, when Simon Peter said, “You are the Christ, the son of the living God,” our Lord replied, “Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah; for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father, Who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17).

On the day of their wedding, a bride and groom promise each other to love and live together until death. But, for them to fulfill this commitment, it will be necessary, at times, to reaffirm these vows in the years to come, in times of joy or grief. What do you think, should it be sufficient for a man and wife to say to each other, “I love you” on their wedding day and never again? For a man to kiss his wife on the wedding day and never again? Of course not!

In the same way, the promise of salvation and faith that we receive in baptism is for always. But a times we must reaffirm our trust in the Word of God, not just to reinforce our own faith, but to testify of Christ's truth to the world.

That is why on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Germany, calling the church back to the basic truths of the Holy Scriptures: justification by faith alone, salvation by grace alone and the Scriptures as the only infallible rule of faith. Later, Luther, a simple German monk, stood before Charles V, in his day emperor of all Europe and as King of Spain, ruler of the Spanish colonies in the New World, including Venezuela, and representatives of the Roman church and the empire and confessed this faith.

Karelis, Pedro, Jeison, Yhonny, Angie, Jimmy.

They said to him, “Recant the teachings of justification by faith alone, salvation by grace alone and the Scriptures as the only rule of faith under pain of death.” And Luther replied, "Unless I am convinced by Scripture and plain reason - I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicteyd each other - my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. God help me. Amen."

In your confirmation today, six of you will publicly confess the faith in which you were baptized. Let us thank God that we live in a country where there is freedom of conscience, so that you do not confess under pain of death at this very moment. However, as you have abided in the Word of God until this moment, you must testify to its truth with your lips. Also, today we remember Luther and others who risked their lives for the pure doctrine of the Bible and express our solidarity with believers in countries where Christians are persecuted.

May God bless you richly on this Reformation Day, and this day of your first communion. Amen.

Feliz Navidad 2009

A most blessed season a greetings from all of us. We celebrated our first Christmas Eve service in La Caramuca on Thursday, December 24, 2009. It was a communion service followed by a Christmas dinner for about 30 children, youth and adults.

In fact, it was our first midweek service of any kind. It is no mean feat to get people in Venezuela to gather on Sunday morning, never mind during the week. And, as I have said before, church attendance is particularly low during the Christmas and Easter holidays, as nearly everyone heads to the beach or the mountains, or stays home to party. So we thank God for the good response this year.

The Christmas dinner was traditionally Venezuelan: hallacas, pan de jamon and potato salad. Hallacas are like Mexican tamales, but instead of being wrapped in corn husks, they are wrapped and cooked in smoked banana leaves. The ingredients include at least three types of meat. It is the custom to go door to door and present bags of hallacas to your friends and family as a Christmas gift. Hallacas require a vast amount of work to prepare, which seems to be the whole point. Luz Maria and her daughters spent the two days before Christmas Eve cooking hallacas.

Venezuelans consider hallacas more essential to Christmas than anything else and are quite puzzled when you tell them the main dish for Christmas dinner in the United States might be ham, turkey, roast beef or whatever.

Pan de jamon is bread with slices of ham baked in. This you can purchase from the bakery. The potato salad is jus potato salad.



St. Nicholas visits our preschool

We closed the preschool for the three-week holiday break on December 12 with a Christmas party for the children, their teachers and parents. San Nicolas (also known as Papa Noel or even Santa Claus) made a special appearance. If you follow the church calendar, you may recall Sunday, December 6, was the day of commemoration for Nicholas of Myra, the fourth-century bishop who provided the historical template for all the variations of the gift-giving elf king.

Recently it was reported that Dr. Caroline Wilkinson of England's Manchester University, using measurements of the bishop's skull (which still exists) and modern computer technology, reconstructed the face of St. Nicholas. The result is quite similar to traditional portraits of St. Nicholas, except for one thing: He had a badly broken nose, similar that of a boxer or hockey player. This might be considered consistent with the story that Nicholas got involved in fisticuffs with the arch-heretic Arius at the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D., a fight that had to be broken up by fellow bishops.

Jesus and John the Baptist

However, since the beginning of the Advent season, we have spoken more of John the Baptist and his relation to Jesus, both at Sunday service and in the midweek Bible lesson in the preschool. The story of how Mary visited her relative, Elizabeth, after the archangel Gabriel had announced the impending birth of Jesus (Luke 1:39-45) provided the opportunity to talk about when human life begins. The passage in Luke says that in his mother's womb, John leaped for joy at the sound of Mary's voice, because even unborn John was a prophet and knew that Mary was, as both his mother, Elizabeth and the angel had said, "blessed among women" and would give birth to the promised Messiah. This passage is one of many in the Bible which asserts that human life begins in the womb and that, therefore, those who say abortion does not constitute the taking of a human life are wrong.

We also talked of how John the Baptist, with his call to repentance, was, as Luther wrote, the consummate preacher of the Law, which convicts people of sin. But Jesus, was in His Person the living Gospel itself, Who through his life, death and resurrection made possible reconciliation between a just and holy God, and sinful human beings. But the relationship between Jesus and John illustrates that Law and Gospel are inseparable. They were friends and relatives, and both were sent by God. The archangel Gabriel announced both their births and both births were miraculous; Jesus was born to a virgin and John to a woman past childbearing years. Jesus said of John, "Among those born of women, there has arisen none greater than John the Baptist" (Matthew 11:2-10) and in Matthew 17:10-13 that John fulfilled the prophecy that Elijah would return before the Messiah came. John said of Jesus that he, John, was not worthy to untie Jesus' shoelaces and "Behold, the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:27-30).

Finally we talked of the difference between John's baptism and the baptism of Jesus. The baptism of John was an exterior ritual that expressed an interior state (repentance), which is how some people think of Christian baptism today. But, as John himself said, the baptism of Christ is quite different. It is truly baptism with water and the Holy Spirit, in which we receive the forgiveness of sins, the adoption as children of God and the righteousness of Christ. The promise of baptism does not depend on our own will, understanding or state of mind, and in that we take comfort in times of doubt.

Our Spanish hymnal, Culto Cristiano, contains a version of the Matins service with the Benedictus or Song of Zechariah (the words are based on Luke 1:68-79, the priest Zechariah's song of thanksgiving upon the birth of his son, John the Baptist). Sadly we have not had much opportunity to use the Matins service here, and I am not sure if I can recall the music well enough to sing the Spanish version of the Benedictus. But it always was, along with the Te Deum Laudamus, my favorite part of Matins.

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Let us praise the Lord, the God of Israel,
For He has come and redeemed His people.
He has raised up a mighty Saviour for us
From the house of His servant David,
As He promised long ago
Through His holy prophets,
That He would save us from our enemies,
From the power of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our ancestors,
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which he swore to our father Abraham,
To rescue us from the power of our enemies,
So that we might worship the Lord without fear,
Holy and righteous in His sight
All the days of our lives.
And you, my child, will be called the prophet of the Most High,
For you will go before the Lord to prepare His way,
To give the knowledge of salvation to His people
By the forgiveness .of their sins.
Through the tender mercy of our God,
The day of salvation will dawn on us from heaven,
To shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.


Speaking of light in the darkness

Thanks to generous donations from supporters in the United States, we have purchased a gasoline-powered generator. Several weeks ago Luz Maria went out to get an estimate on the price of a generator and found a wide array of models of different sizes and prices. When we returned to the shop where she found the best deal, there were only two models left in stock. Clearly other people had the same idea that we did. We continue to experience almost daily power outages of several hours duration.

There remains one obstacle to putting the generator in place; another of our mysterious shortages of materials, this time of cement. We do not want to run the generator in our living quarters, neither do we want it stolen, so we must build an outdoor enclosure. And that will have to wait until we can get cement.

Nevertheless we thank the donors for this Christmas present.

The Reformation always has crossed cultural lines

The ecclesiastical calendar developed for the new Lutheran Service Book has some interesting additions. For instance, July 30 has been designated a day of commemoration for the English Lutheran martyr, Robert Barnes. I thought of Barnes on that day, and also of two Spanish-speaking heroes of the Reformation, Casiodoro de Reina and Juan de Frias. It is good to remember such people because:

• Their stories show the Reformation was an international movement that crossed boundaries of culture and language.
• The Reformation was an ecumenical movement in the true sense of calling all Christians away from false doctrine and back to the Holy Scriptures.
• We are reminded that martyrdom is not something that only happened in the first century A.D., but continues to this day.
• And, indeed, religious liberty and the ability to read and study the Bible for ourselves are gifts for which some paid the highest price.

Let's start with the remarkable life of Robert Barnes and I will continue with the others in future posts.

Robert Barnes was born in Norfolk, England, in 1495. As a young man, Barnes joined the Augustinian Order as a friar and became prior of the Augustinian monastery in Cambridge, England, and, in 1523 earned his doctorate in divinity from the University of Cambridge. He also studied at the University of Louvain in Belgium from 1514 to 1521, where he may have had his initial exposure to the works of Luther and Erasmus (one of the Belgian university's distinguished alumni).

While at Cambridge, Barnes become a prominent member of a group of scholars that would gather after-hours at the White Horse Inn for Bible reading and lively discussion of the writings of Martin Luther.

David Knowles writes in his book, The Religious Orders in England that:

From 1520 onwards the opinions and writings of Luther were being diffused at Cambridge by a group of exceptionally gifted young men who were to be the leaders of opinion ten and fifteen years later and who were almost all, in one way or another, to suffer for their opinions...their meeting-place, the White Horse tavern, passed into legend as the cradle of one, at least, of the schools of English Reform.

Other regulars at the White Horse Inn included:

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• Thomas Cranmer, future Archbishop of Canterbury and primary author of the original Anglican Book of Common Prayer. He was burned at the stake in 1556.
• Hugh Latimer, future Bishop of Worcester. A farmer's son who became one of the most popular preachers of his day, Latimer was burned at the stake in 1555. As the flames rose, he called out to Nicholas Ridley, former Bishop of London, who was being burned with him, "Be of good cheer, Master Ridley, and play the man, for we shall this day light such a candle in England as I trust by God's grace shall never be put out."
• Miles Coverdale, who in 1535 produced the first complete English translation of the Bible to be printed in England. He was twice exiled from England.
• William Tyndale, who in 1526 produced the first full printed edition of the New Testament in English. Tyndale also translated about half of the Old Testament before his death, and much of his work was later incorporated into the King James Bible of 1611. Tyndale was strangled to death, then his body burned in 1536.

On Christmas Eve 1525, Robert Barnes preached a sermon at the Church of St. Edward, King and Martyr, that would be called the "first sermon of the English Reformation." The sermon was based on Philippians 4:4-7 and quoted from one of Luther's postils. However, Carl R. Trueman, in his book, "Luther's Legacy: Salvation and English Reformers 1525.1556", suggests that the sermon may not have been that radical in terms of doctrine (the original sermon text was lost). Rather, it was because Barnes openly criticized the corruption of the English church hierarchy that he was arrested and imprisoned in 1526.

In 1528 Barnes escaped from England and lived for a time in exile on the European continent. He journeyed to Wittenberg, Germany, where he met Martin Luther face to face. Thus began a friendship that would last the rest of Barnes' life.

In "Martyrs and martyrdom in England, c. 1400-1700", Thomas S. Freeman and Thomas Frederick Mayer write:

(In Wittenberg) he flourished; he became intimate with Luther himself, as well as with Melanchthon and Bugenhagen, and from this point on, his theology became thoroughly and unambiguously Lutheran.

In 1531, Barnes was allowed to return to England, thanks to the influence of Thomas Cro

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mwell, chief advisor to King Henry VIII. This was not an act of kindness, as Cromwell had a political goal of building an alliance between England and Lutheran Germany against the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, and Cromwell wanted to exploit Barnes' German connections. In 1535 Barnes was given the thankless task of seeking Luther's approval of the King's divorce from his first wife, the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon (who, incidentally, was the Emperor's aunt).

Contrary to a popular misconception, there was no clean break between Rome and the Church of England during Henry VIII's lifetime. Henry had no profound theological differences with Rome. Rather, he was solely obsessed with justifying the abandonment of his 24-year marriage to Catherine, who he blamed for his lack of a male heir. In 1521 the King published a book intended to refute Luther's teaching on the sacraments and for that was honored by the Pope with the title, "Defender of the Faith."

Nevertheless, when the Pope would not grant an "annulment" of the King's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Henry apparently thought Luther might provide him with some kind of moral justification (which would provide the foundation for a German-English alliance). But to no avail; Luther and the Pope were of one mind on this matter.

Robert Barnes was again pressed into diplomatic service in 1539 to secure a politically advantageous marriage between Henry VIII and German noblewoman Anne of Cleves. This effort was more successful at first; the King actually went through with the ceremony. But since neither the King nor Anne of Cleves found each other physically attractive in the slightest degree, the marriage was never consummated and was quickly dissolved.

Moreover, in 1538 King Henry rejected a German proposal for an Anglican statement of faith ba

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sed on the Augsburg Confession. In 1539, Parliament approved the Six Articles of Religion, which reaffirmed Roman teaching on six key points:

1. Transubstantiation;
2. Withholding of the cup from the laity during communion;
3. Clerical celibacy;
4. Observance of vows of chastity;
5. Private masses;
6. The necessity of private confession.

During his period of favor with the King, Barnes had the opportunity to continue presenting Lutheran doctrine to English listeners, sometimes in personal audiences with the King himself, and to promote Tyndale's translation of the New Testament. Barnes' written works include "Sententiae", a Latin summary of the main doctrines of the Augsburg Confession, and a history of the rise of the Papacy, considered to be the first treatment of the topic from a Protestant perspective.

However, the events of 1538-1539 ended any plans for an alliance between England and Germany. Because of this, Thomas Cromwell's enemies were able to turn the King against Cromwell, who was beheaded on July 28, 1540. Robert Barnes was burned at the stake two days later, on July 30, 1540.

King Henry continued to regard himself as a good Catholic through the end of his life. His idea that he, and not the Pope, was the head of the English church was really not consistent with Roman teaching. But he was able to separate his religious identity from what he considered a political matter. Henry's attitude perhaps was not much different than some prominent Roman Catholic politicians today in regard to abortion in the United States. But it was not just a political matter as decades of religious strife would show.

The very manner in which Robert Barnes was executed illustrates the terrible confusion between secular and spiritual matters that existed under Henry VIII. Barnes was burned alive with two other men who had violated the Six Articles statute (this was the punishment for heretics, or religious dissidents). At the same time, three Roman Catholics were hanged, beheaded and quartered for treason (political dissent) for refusing to sign an oath affirming that the King's authority was greater than the Pope's.

But before he died, Barnes wrote a final confession of his faith. Luther had this document published under a German title with his own foreword. Luther spoke of Barnes as “our good, pious table companion and guest of our home, this holy martyr, Saint Robertus.”

One additional observation: We are instructed as Christians to respect and obey the civil authorities, whether just or unjust (Romans 13:1-7), except when the commands of human government directly conflict with the will of God (Acts 4:19-20, 5:29). Since the kingdom of God is not of this world, we should avoid confusing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a particular political platform or ideology. But when the secular government lays claim to religious authority, even in the name of Christ, it becomes more and more difficult to remain untouched by political controversy. Robert Barnes and all of the men mentioned above were for years torn between their passion for the truth of God's Word and their keen sense of loyalty to king and country. Those who died a martyr's death in the end took their stand on God's Word and gave testimony to their faith in eternal life in Christ. May God grant that we all would have both the wisdom and courage to do the same under similar circumstances.

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• Vatican opens Secret Archives on Henry VIII

Martin Luther movie in Venezuela

As I was sitting in Quinta Lutero, reading El Universal, I noticed the 2003 movie Luther was showing in Caracas. The movie tagline was "Luther: Rebel. Genius. Liberator". Probably Luther would not have been comfortable with any of those titles, but the words chosen to draw in the crowds were interesting. I don't think they were selected specifically for Latin America, but "Libertador" has serious , almost messianic connotations here.

I have seen the movie, which stars Joseph Fiennes as Luther, Claire Cox as Katherine Luther and Peter Ustinov as Frederick the Wise. The film may serve as an introduction to Luther's life and times for some, but I think Luther is portrayed as having too much 21st Century angst in some parts and too much of an action hero in others (if you have seen the movie, too, you will know what I am talking about).

One of the best scenes did not involve Luther at all; that was where the princes who signed the Augsburg Confession bowed their heads for beheading rather than recant their faith. I am not sure that really was what happened, either, but it still was a scene which dramatized what was as at stake for many people who professed their faith at that time.

For me, the 1953 film, "Martin Luther", starring British actor Niall McGinnis, remains the best, most historically accurate movie made about Luther's life.

Anyway, I looked at the ad and thought of the night before. Isaac Machado had brought a set of snare drums to Quinta Lutero (I gather the drums will play some role in the second Congress of Lutheran Educators, scheduled for next month). My fellow students, Sergio, Eduardo and Juan Carlos, all much younger and more musically talented than myself, were with the drums and guitars rocking out to Luther's hymn, "Er­halt uns, Herr, bei dein­em Wort". The most familiar English translation, by Catherine Winkworth, goes like this:


Lord, keep us steadfast in Thy Word;
Curb those who fain by craft and sword
Would wrest the kingdom from Thy Son
And set at naught all He hath done.

Lord Jesus Christ, Thy pow’r make known,
For Thou art Lord of lords alone;
Defend Thy Christendom that we
May evermore sing praise to Thee.

O Comforter of priceless worth,
Send peace and unity on earth.
Support us in our final strife
And lead us out of death to life.

The Spanish, rock-oriented version of this was rather good. So is most of the music the guys select for our morning chapel service up the hill at El Salvador Lutheran Church (where the instrumental accompaniment is guitars and piano, no drums). Unfortunately, Venezuela, like the United States, has its share of "Jesus is my boyfriend" music, but we sing the less politically correct but more doctrinally sound stuff. For example, I almost had forgotten what a great hymn is "Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus" ("Estad por Cristo Firmes"), or "Onward, Christian Soldiers"("Firmes y Adelante").

As we offer these songs as our prayers for our Lord's guidance and strength in grateful response to His grace in Word and sacrament, we receive counsel and comfort as we contemplate the challenges ahead of us. One of the books we are studying from is a Spanish translation of Luther the Preacher by Fred W. Meuser (Augsburg/Fortress Publishing, 1983).

Meuser writes: "For Luther, preaching was not a preacher's ideas stimulated by the prod of a text. It was not human reflections about God and life. It was not searching around in one's personal religious insights for some kind of contemporary message that one thinks that people need. Christian preaching -- when it is faithful to the word of God in the Scriptures about our need and God's response to it -- is God speaking. When it focuses on what God has done for the world in Jesus Christ, it is God speaking. When it invites faith and presents Christ so that faith becomes possible, it is God speaking...When the proclamation about Christ is the biblical message of God's judgment and grace, not only is the preacher's word God's word, God is really present and speaking. In the sermon one actually encounters God. That makes preaching -- and hearing -- a most dangerous business."

Meuser writes further: "...for Luther, a sermon was an apocalyptic event that set the doors of heaven and hell in motion, a part of the actual continuing conflict between the Lord and Satan.It is the most dangerous task in the world because 'where Christ appears, there the devil starts to speak'. The sermon -- and the congregation that hears it -- is a battlefield in the eschatological struggle beween Christ and the adversary...Aside from this war, the word and what it sets in motion in the souls of people cannot be understood."

We are being entrusted with the task of taking the holy Gospel of Christ into places where perhaps the Devil himself sits enthroned. Please pray for us.


Please also remember in prayer:

• Our preschool in la Caramuca. We have started the new semester with 28 children enrolled;
• Neida Gónzales de Mireles, whose grandmother died last week;
• Veronica, the infant daughter of Pastor Francisco Cabarcas and his wife, Dagnys, who just underwent an operation;
• The congregation of Corpus Christi in Barinas, which has started onstruction of a new kitchen, bathroom facilities and an apartment to house a vicar in January. The plan is for myself and another man to serve both Corpus Christi and la Caramuca as vicars.