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I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing. -- II Timothy 4:7-8  I'm a faithful Lutheran boy. Y'all know that by now. And if you read my post from yesterday, you know that I'm not going to take kindly to words spoken in mockery regarding the death of John Paul II. He was a good Polish boy. He was a fellow Christian. He was a powerful advocate for life in all its permutations, showing a deep concern for the spectrum of life issues, from conception to death. During his tenure as Bishop of Rome, the Catholic church has made some powerful decisions. And, strangely enough, though I disagree profoundly and deeply with many of his core theological convictions, I have great respect for him and for his church. Unlike churches that share the name "Lutheran" with me, John Paul II never compromised what his church stood for. The "Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification" was a powerful witness to this reality for the Roman Church. They made it perfectly clear this was not a modification of their teaching on justification, and John Paul II was quick to make clear that the Council of Trent's classic formulations stand and are not changed. It was so-called "Lutherans" who compromised the very heart of the Reformation and sacrificed it on the altar of ecumenism. And so while I deeply oppose the essential theological errors that John Paul II has stood for and embraced, I admire the man and respect him for many things. I find him to be one of the most fascinating personalities and leaders of our time. He was faithful even unto death. Now that he has passed, it is my prayer that the Lord has given him the crown of life. Lord, let at last Thine angels come,
To Abram's bosom bear me home,
That I may die unfearing;
And in its narrow chamber keep
My body safe in peaceful sleep
Until Thy reappearing.
And then from death awaken me
That these mine eyes with joy may see,
O Son of God, Thy glorious face,
My Savior and my Fount of grace,
Lord Jesus Christ,
My prayer attend, my prayer attend,
And I will praise Thee without end.Rest in peace, faithful soldier. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine: et lux perpetua luceat eis.For all the saints who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confess,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
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"If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector." -- Matthew 18:15-18 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." -- Matthew 7:3-5 The Eighth Commandment according to Luther's Small CatechismYou shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest possible way. That's the way it's supposed to be. Unfortunately, you know how it really is. Color me:  frustrated
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