Christian leaders in Turkey and Syria told CT they “have no time for feelings” as they rally the church in the aftermath of an earthquake that killed thousands.
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod paused distribution of a new annotated catechism for about two weeks due to vocal critics decrying elements of dozens of commentary essays as too liberal. The president of the conservative denomination has stood by the release and pushed back on the “un-Christian” attacks.
In Chinese diaspora communities, church leaders worry engaging the news can bring division and distraction. Even when it’s something as close to home as the Lunar New Year attack last month, Chinese immigrant pastors are less likely to preach on current events.
Even if it doesn’t feel productive or meaningful, reading’s never a waste of time.
There’s a familiar voice on Sandra McCracken’s podcast this week: It’s CT’s own Mike Cosper.
Behind the story
From Kate Shellnutt: While working on this week’s story covering the controversy over a new annotated Lutheran catechism, CT reporter Megan Fowler was confused. Critics were fired up about “liberal drift” and “wokeism” in response to the book’s essays about the fifth commandment. What did these accusations have to do with honoring your father and mother? she wondered as she read their responses.
“In researching I discovered Martin Luther (hence, all Lutherans) count the Ten Commandments differently than other Protestant denominations,” she wrote to me. The commandment she assumed was “honor your father and mother” was “do not murder” by the Lutherans’ count.
In 2021, Andrew Wilson wrote for CT about how there are two versions in Scripture with different wording and more than 10 commands total, meaning you have to group some together to land at the round number: “The Orthodox Church and most Protestants solve this problem by combining all the commands on coveting into one. Roman Catholics address it by grouping the prohibitions on idolatry: Augustine argued that the first commandment (no other gods) includes what many would consider the second (no graven images).”
A recent piece on Modern Reformation discusses how Luther’s Ten Commandments resemble the Catholic numbering but perhaps with his own theological rationale.
In other news
One of the founders of Reformed University Fellowship and the group’s first campus minister has died at 86.
A Florida man suspected of inventing a fake Christian ministry for a COVID-19 relief funds scam is now accused of feigning mental illness to avoid trial.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is announcing she’s running for president next week. In 2012, Haley spoke to CT about her “long conversion” and her feelings about politics in church.
Main job: Pastor a German Protestant congregation. Side job: Make up crimes for a fictional detective to solve.
No comments:
Post a Comment