W W W. H I G H E RT H I N G S . O R G
/ SPRING / 2003
Anti-American protesters, including these in Rome, Italy, will often argue that Christians must be opposed to war for any reason. from
the
editor-in-chief
On the Brink By the time this magazine reaches your hands, it is very likely that the United States will
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be at war with Iraq. War is always a terrible thing, and we at Higher Things pray that this war be swift and the conclusion have the least amount of loss of life possible. It behooves us also, to consider how the young people of our nation understand war, and also what we as Christians are to think about it. It is amazing that while we are on the brink of war, I am reading more and more "Christian" pastors and others contending that war is inherently and unilaterally unchristian. Perhaps my favorite absurdity is an editorial I recently read where a Congregational pastor stated that if every family in the world prayed for peace all at the same time, that the war would disappear. How is the Christian to understand war? Simply put, war is the result of sin. Because of the fall into sin, death entered the world. Death comes in many fashions. Some deaths seem natural; others are horrific and shock us to the core. But death is a result of sin. And war has been a way of "solving problems" all the war back to when Cain murdered Abel in Genesis four. As a Christian, though, we understand that sometimes war is not only an option, but is actually necessary for a just and moral nation. There are two sides to the Fifth Commandment,You shall not murder. The first is that we should not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, and the second is that we should help and befriend him in every physical need. What that means in clear English is that we have an obligation to protect and defend our neighbors from harm. I am my brother’s keeper. That is true whether we are talking about taking care of a family, or protecting an entire nation against evil.
St. Paul wrote of this quite clearly in Romans chapter thirteen: Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience' sake (Romans 13:1-5 NKJV). The government does its job by executing judgment on those who do wrong. That doesn’t make it easy or simple of course, but it does mean that when the government is truly doing its job of protecting its citizens, then sometimes that may even mean war. Finally, our desire for peace can never truly come from the world. Peace with God can only come through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Our hope lies not in earthly rulers, but in our heavenly intercessor, who will see us through to the end. Yours in Christ, Pr.Todd Peperkorn Editor-in-Chief Higher Things: Dare to Be Lutheran
FEATURES 4
Silent No More
T A B L E
O F
CONTENTS
by Terri F. Meckes
Terri shares the story of her abortion at age 16, but her story doesn't end in guilt and condemnation. We, like Terri, rest in the forgiveness and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Cloning: A Body Double or Double Trouble? by Dennis Di Mauro
How can Christians approach the controversial subject of cloning intelligently and with compassion? Dennis Di Mauro, a Lutherans for Life regional executive, sheds light on this difficult issue.
12 The Shattered Chalice: Arthur and Christ in Howard Pyle by Kathryn Ann Hill
Christians are people of the Book—God's inerrant Word. But, when you're not reading the Good Book, where do you turn for a good read?
18 F-A-T By Adriane Dorr
Adriane’s friend suffered from bulimia. How does Christ unravel the twisted messes we make of our lives?
20 Girl Power By Kathy Luder
23 What if the Bible Were Pro-Choice? By the Rev. Klemet Preus What is God’s Word didn’t include the fifth commandment? These poems provide a thoughtful look into how the Scriptures would be different if the Bible was "pro-choice".
24 When U2 and Amy Grant Rocked My World By the Rev.Timothy Pauls
COLUMNS 7
Letters to the Editor
14 Ex Cathedra Need some advice on life, love, and faith? Check out this new column, which promises to answer all your questions.
HigherThings Volume 3/Number 1 Spring 2003 Editor-in-Chief REV. TODD PEPERKORN Assistant Editor JULIE STIEGEMEYER
Editorial Associates REV. TIM PAULS REV. DAVID PETERSEN REV. SCOTT STIEGEMEYER DR. GENE EDWARD VEITH Art Director STEVE BLAKEY
Business Manager LYNN FREDERICKSEN
Bible Studies Editor REV. ERIK ROTTMANN
HIGHER THINGS, INC. BOARD OF DIRECTORS President REV. KLEMET
PREUS
Vice President REV. MARCUS
ZILL
Executive Director REV. DANIEL WOODRING
Secretary SANDRA
OSTAPOWICH
Treasurer LYNN FREDERICKSEN
SANDRA OSTAPOWICH REV. KLEMET PREUS JEFF SCHWARZ DR. GENE EDWARD VEITH MOLLIE ZIEGLER REV. MARCUS ZILL Higher Things Magazine ISSN 1539-8455 is published quarterly by Higher Things Inc., 2026 22nd Ave., Kenosha, WI 53140. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the editor-in-chief of Higher Things Magazine. Copyright 2002. Printed in the United States. Postage paid at Fort Wayne, Indiana. For subscription information, write to: Higher Things Magazine, P.O. Box 8098, Fort Wayne IN 46898 or e-mail to Subscriptions@higherthings.org. For general information about Higher Things, Inc., please e-mail info@higherthings.org.
16 News and Notes 28 In His Face information page Information and notes about the upcoming youth conference.
26 PULSE: Music Videos By the Rev. Eric R. Andrae
30 The Catechism: Called by Name By the Rev. David Petersen
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The Shat t is not required that Christians be readers: faith comes by hearing. But it is often true that believers in Christ, born and reared by words of the utmost importance and beauty, will develop a love for literature that wants feeding. So, when you are not reading the Good Book, where do you turn for a good read? Turn to Howard Pyle’s Arthuriad.The tales of King Arthur and his knights "were never so finely told in prose before," wrote Mark Twain of his fellow American’s fourbook series.These are stories of knights and the famous round table, of queens and romance, of chivalry and courage. But even beyond the plots and characters, the themes in the stories can point us toward Christ. Lutheran readers accustomed to the liturgy and hymns of The Lutheran Hymnal will feel right at home with Pyle’s stately prose. Consider this excerpt from the first book:
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Then Merlin smiled upon the King, though not with cheerfulness, and said, "Lord, why art thou in such haste? Know that when this Round Table shall be entirely filled in all its seats, then shall thy glory be entirely achieved and then forthwith shall thy day begin for to decline. For when any man hath reached the crowning of his glory, then his work is done and God breaketh him as a man might break a chalice from which such perfect ichor hath been drunk that no baser wine may be allowed to defile it. So when thy work is done and ended shall God shatter the chalice of thy life."
Then did the King look very steadfastly into Merlin’s face, and said, "Old man, that which thou sayest is ever of great wonder, for thou speakest words of wisdom.Ne’theless, seeing that I am in God His hands, I do wish for my glory and for His good will to be accomplished even though He shall then entirely break me when I have served His purposes." Lutherans find here not only familiar elegant diction, but also an arresting word picture that helps us meditate on the Passion of our Lord.The Gospel of John teaches us that Christ is glorified when He
Arthur and Christ in Howard Pyle
is lifted up on the cross (John 3:14-15; 8:28; 12:23-24, 32; 17:1-4). His crowning glory there is a crown of thorns.The blood Christ shed there is the perfect sacrifice for sin, acceptable to the heavenly Father as the perfect wine is offered to and accepted by the lord of a banquet. Christ drank the cup of God’s wrath (Mark 14:36; John 18:11). It pleased God to crush Him (Isaiah 53:10). By faith in our Savior, we are spared the death our sins deserve. We receive instead, from His Holy Chalice, forgiving, life-giving blood. Pyle’s Arthuriad, like other books about Arthur published in the early twentieth century, was meant to teach young men chivalry and integrity. No Christian would quarrel with Pyle’s exhortations, placed here and there between compelling knightly adventures, to imitate good behavior and avoid temptation. But Lutheran readers will find most thrilling those glimpses of Christ that show forth in knightly deeds. Our Lord suffered humiliation in order to work our redemption.Think of Christ when you read more of this episode from book three: In order to free the captive Queen Guinevere after his horse is slain,
noble Launcelot rides to the rescue in a fagotmaker’s cart.This was the mode of transport reserved for lawbreakers on their way to the gallows.Though he accomplishes the queen’s rescue, he is bitterly scorned by his kinsmen knights for choosing this humble way of travel. In loyalty to his king, Sir Gawaine weds an ugly old hag to reward her for saving Arthur’s life. Read this story with a surprise ending in book one.Then ponder how Gawaine’s marriage is a picture of Christ and His Church. Pyle’s Arthuriad is by no means the exclusive territory of young men.Young women will also find sympathetic, exemplary heroines.There is likely nowhere else in English fiction a more powerful picture of womanly dignity and grace than Elaine the Fair’s behavior when she finds her husband alone with the powerful, seductive Guinevere. Fans of the popular Harry Potter books and Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings will find similar attractions within the world of King Arthur.When the luminous Lady of the Lake appears, Rings fans will be sure they have wandered very near Tolkien’s Elvish forest. The wizard Merlin, guardian and advisor to Arthur, is likely the model for Gandalf. And Morgana le Fay and the more-than-mischievous Vivien, out of envy and spite, work potent spells against good King Arthur. Even better than discovering a good book is to find that its author has written several sequels. Pyle’s four books of Arthurian tales promise you many hours of reading pleasure, with moments that will quicken your understanding of Christ’s redeeming work for you. Kathryn Ann Hill, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is wife of the Reverend Michael James Hill and copyeditor of Gottesdienst: A Quarterly Journal of the EvangelicalLutheran Liturgy.
By Kathryn Ann Hill
ttered Chalice: The four books composing Howard Pyles’s Arthuriad are The Story of King Arthur and His Knights,The Story of the Champions of the Round Table, The Story of Sir Launcelot and His Companions, and The Story of the Grail and the Passing of Arthur, all available as Dover reprints of Scribner originals. Each book is over 300 pages; prices range from $9.95 to $12.95. Pyle was a gifted illustrator as well as writer. His detailed penand-ink drawings in the Arthur books are reminiscent of Albrecht Dürer. Never was illustration better wedded to text than in the works of Howard Pyle.
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FAT By Adriane Dorr
F-A-T. With a sharp, glistening razor blade, my friend carved that word into the flesh of her bony thigh, leaving scars that will last forever. In an effort to deal with both anorexia and bulimia, she mutilated herself with a razor blade to try to relieve her problems, abusing herself in a vain effort to find acceptance and self-worth.
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Pushing her body to the limit, she ate massive amounts of food and then purged her body of all that she ate. She exercised constantly, lifting weights and running for miles. Her search for acceptance and love has resulted in years of pain, discomfort, and agony. Obviously, her eating disorder took a hard toll on her body. Even as my friend has begun to heal from her disorder, her stomach is still extremely sensitive. She also loses chunks of hair and is constantly cold. My friend, along with eight million other people in the United States, suffers from an eating disorder. At first glance, food seems her most obvious problem. Yet she struggles immensely in her heart and mind. For her, as in most cases, bulimia was not centered on the desire to look trim and feel fit. A poor relationship with her parents, a troubled childhood, and a poor self-image contributed to her problems. During the time she lived with me, I realized that the only way she knew how to relieve the emotional pain was to physically take it out on her body. Essentially, her quest for perfection
had come down to a search for peace and control. As Lutherans, we know that there is only one Person in whom that calming peace can be found. "The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blessed his people with peace" (Psalm 29:11). As a confused and questioning Catholic, my friend saw little comfort in the gifts given to her by Christ. She has wrestled viciously with her faith for quite some time. When she would attend the Lutheran church with me, she would slump down in the pew, flip restlessly through the hymnal, heave frustrated sighs, and do her best not to look in the pastor’s direction. Although she heard Christ’s Word, her ears heard only the Law, and that made her extremely uncomfortable. She knew that abusing her body was wrong, and yet she did not change.The hard thing about sin is that it wraps itself into the midst of medical and potential chemical imbalances in her body, so that it is hard to see right from wrong sometimes. The simple answer is to simply say it is either her fault for this mess she’s in, or that it is simply a medical condition where she has no fault at all. But the Small Catechism reads, "The devil, the world, and our sinful nature try to mislead us into false belief, despair, and other great sins." Sin is never so simple. There are always multiple causes, which draw us into the messes of life, both big and small. However, as she has begun to heal and has started to come to terms with her disorder, my friend is beginning to realize that her only source of comfort and stability is in Christ. Although she was raised a Catholic, she has begun to attend a Lutheran church where Christ’s forgiveness has been dumped by the truckload upon her. The Law shows her the sin she has tried to ignore and hide, but now she has begun to rejoice in the Gospel as well, hearing words of forgiveness and peace. While she cannot depend upon her earthly parents, she has begun to realize that she can rely whole-heartedly upon her heavenly Father. While she cannot find comfort or relief in earthly food such as pizza or chicken salad, she can find life and forgiveness in the Body and Blood of the Lord’s Supper. While she understands that her physical body on earth will be impaired for life, she knows that her body in heaven will be perfect. God aches when He sees His children hurting because of the sin in their lives and sent His Son to forgive those sins and provide healing and life. Lutherans rejoice in the forgiveness found in our Lord’s free gifts of Word and Sacrament. All people, even those who are struggling with an eating disorder, may find release in His words. "He said to her,‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering’" (Mark 5:34). Adriane Dorr is an English Student at Concordia University Wisconsin.
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