March 17, 2016

So, are you Irish? Do you have some Irish blood flowing through your veins? Today is St. Patrick’s Day. Today people wear green, they go to bars to drink green beer, and it is another day for the secular world to belittle the thoughts, actions, and ministry of another Saint.

So, what does St. Patrick stand for? Why was he elevated to Sainthood?

Patron Saint: St. Patrick is a patron saint – he is a saint who in Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family or person.

Missionary: St. Patrick was a missionary in Ireland during the second half of the 5th century. After being held as a slave in Ireland, he escaped only to be returned to the country. Upon returning, he used the knowledge of Irish language and culture that he gained during his first captivity and brought Christianity and monasticism to Ireland in the form of more than 300 churches and over 100,000 Irish baptized.

Sainthood: March 17 is popularly known as St. Patrick’s Day because it is believed that he died on this date and, and as such is the date celebrated as his Feast Day. For most of Christianity’s first thousand years, canonizations were done on the diocesan or regional level. Relatively soon after the death of people considered very holy, the local Church affirmed that they could be liturgically celebrated as saints. As a result, St. Patrick has never been formally canonized by a Pope; nevertheless, various Christian churches declare that he is a Saint in Heaven (he is in the List of Saints). The Lutheran church does not venerate saints like some churches (e.g. the Catholic, Episcopal or Orthodox churches) but we still recognize the importance of particular people who had profound ministries throughout space and time. Some Saints that you might want to read more about include but are not limited to:

Saint Augustine, Saint Anselm, Saint Athanasius, and Saint Joseph.

Pastor Dave

March 16, 2016

The Lord has done great things for us;
we are glad. 4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like streams in the Negeb! 5 Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy! 6 He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him. Psalm 126:3-6

The Psalmist is proclaiming joy – he is happy because of the things the Lord has done, and the things the Lord will do in the future. This is true faith – trusting that the Lord will do great things.

The future will not always look bright to us. There are many reasons that we can fear life, and have doubts. We see the church in a state of decline, and our society becoming more secular and less religious. We fear that we worship in futility, not in the futility of the promises of G-d, but in the futility of fulfilling the great commission given by Jesus in Matthew 28:19 –to make disciples of all nations. And so we worry about how we are going to reach people in the community with our message of Christ, that brings us joy. Sometimes we think we are called to go out and drag people in to hear the Gospel of Jesus. What we need to remember is our very life is a living Gospel of Christ – that when we live into the joy of Christ, we stand out. When G-d has filled us with joy and we show our happiness, everyone around us notices. So when people ask us what is up, we don’t need a sermon to explain — just a simple word of explanation to those around us about the greatness and glory of G-d, and how G-d is working in our life.

If G-d is doing great things in your life, then live in a manner that people notice.

Pastor Dave