SINGING THE FAITH

The following worship services have been held at Luther Seminary in recent years. The programs are resources which may be interesting and helpful to pastors and other parish worship leaders, especially those planning Lenten services. They are free for your use as long as you give credit where credit is due. Note: "LBW" is the abbreviation for Lutheran Book of Worship.

Click for a particular service: | The Ten Commandments | The Apostles Creed | The Lord's Prayer | The Sacrament of Holy Baptism | The Sacrament of the Altar |

The Ten Commandments

(This service was written for the Singing the Faith event at Luther Seminary October 27, 1995. The theme was the Leipzig Connection so the hymns used had some connection or another to Leipzig. The hymn which were available only in the printed program may be requested from ggrindal@luthersem.edu)

"Now Thank We All Our God" LBW 534

(This hymn is second only to "A Mighty Fortress is our God" in the Lutheran canon of hymns. Written by Martin Rinkhart as a table prayer, it quickly became the Te Deum in Germany and has been used for thanksgiving services ever since it first appeared. Rinkhart was born in Eilenburg, Saxony, and received his education in Leipzig. His hometown called him back to be a pastor where he served during the 30 Years War. The setting is by J. S. Bach, Leipzig's most famous musician.)

Pfarrer: Im Namen des Vaters und des Sohnes und des Heiligen Geistes

Gemeinde: Amen

Eingangsspruch (Opening Sentences) Psalm 96:1-2

Eingangsgebet (Opening Prayer is taken from a prayer by Veit Dietrich [1536-1549] and is the first Collect for the Sunday of the Reformation in the Church order of 1585 in Lower Saxony.)

Pfarrer: Der Herr sei mit euch

Gemeinde: und mit deinem Geist.

Prayer:

THE ORDER OF SERVICE

Readings from Martin Luther's Small and Large Catechism

"Listen, God is Calling" WOV 712

(The church in Tanzania has had a long a fruitful relationship with the Leipzig Mission, which was established in 1836 and began its work in Africa in 1893 when four young missionaries built a mission at the foot of Mt. Kilamanjaro. Today the American church is now receiving new songs from the church in Tanzania. This song, transcribed by Howard Olson, an American Lutheran missionary to Tanzania, is one of the treasures we have received from that mission. Olson, a graduate of Augustana Seminary in Rock Island, has been teaching at Wartburg Seminary in Dubuque Iowa. The Leipzig Mission is still active in Tanzania, South India and New Guinea.)

Reader: "As for myself, let me say that I, too, am a doctor and a preacher--yes, and as learned and experienced as any of those who act so high and mighty. Yet I do as a child who is being taught the Catechism. Every morning, and whenever else I have time, I read and recite word for word, the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Psalms, etc. I must still read and study the Catechism daily, yet I cannot master it as I wish, but must remain a child and pupil of the Catechism, and I do it gladly.....This much is certain: anyone who knows the Ten Commandments perfectly knows the entire Scriptures." Preface, p. 361

"If You But Trust In God To Guide You" LBW 453

(This hymn by Georg Neumark has a curious connection to Leipzig. The year Neumark completed his gymnasium, he went with some merchants to Leipzig for an exposition. He traveled with them on their way to Lübeck with the intention of going to Königsberg to university. On their way through Magdeburg, they were set upon by robbers who took everything Neumark owned, except a prayer book and a small sum of money. After this attack, he tried unsuccessfully to get employment. In Kiel, he found employment as a tutor. In gratitude for his good fortune, he wrote this lovely hymn, both tune and text. Neumark studied with Simon Dach, one of the great poets of Germany at the time, and later became the poet and librarian in Weimar. J. S. Bach wrote a cantata based upon Neumark's melody, and Mendelssohn, another Leipzig musician, used the tune in his St. Paul Oratorio.)

The First Commandment

Catechist: You shall have no other gods.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We should fear, love, and trust in God above anything else.

Reader: "What is a god? A god is that to which we look for all good in which we find refuge in every time of need. To have a god is nothing else than to trust and believe in him with our whole heart. As I have often said, the trust and faith of the heart alone make both god and an idol. If your faith and trust are right, then your god is the true God. On the other hand, if your trust is false and wrong, then you have not the true God. For these two belong together, faith and God. That to which your heart clings and entrusts itself is, I say, really your God." p. 365

"Lord, Thee I Love with All My Heart" LBW 325

(Martin Schalling, born in Straßburg, was a student of Philip Melancthon. As a pastor in a time of theological upheaval, he suffered persecution for his convictions. When he failed to sign the Formula of Concord in 1580, he was kept under house arrest for 3 years. Finally, he was called to be a pastor in Nuremberg. His hymn is among the favorite Lutheran hymns of all time. Philip J. Spener, the founder of Lutheran pietism counted it to be his favorite. Bach used it for the closing chorale for his St. John Passion, which was the first passion he wrote in Leipzig. Because the Leipzigers were conservative, they demanded he not use the operatic oratorical styles of Handel and others. Therefore, Bach featured biblical quotations and chorales in St. John's Passion which was first performed in Leipzig's Nikolai Church on Good Friday, 1724.)

The Second Commandment

Catechist: You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not use his name superstitiously, or use it to curse, swear, lie, or deceive, but call on him in prayer, praise, and thanksgiving.

Reader: "Children should be constantly urged and encouraged to honor God's name and keep it constantly on their lips in all circumstance and experiences, for true honor to God's name consists of looking to it for all consolation and therefore calling upon it. Thus, as we have heard above, the heart by faith first gives God the honor due him and then the lips do so by confession." p. 374

"Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow" LBW 529

(The Leipziger Missionsgeselleschaft "Leipzig Mission" when it came into being, took over the Danish mission, which had been established in the 17th century by the Danish king. Karl Graul, the director of the mission from 1844-1860, had hoped that all Lutheran mission activity in the world could be united under the Leipzig Mission. Graul, a Lutheran confessionalist, helped to ground the mission in the Lutheran confessions and developed a theology of indigenizing the mission work in the particular place the mission found itself. In 1849, he went to India to work among the Tamil people. He returned with a thorough knowledge of the country and the Tamil language. From 1854-1856, he published three volumes of the Biblioteca Tamilica. Later he became the first professor of missions at Erlangen University. Nirmala Peter, one of our lectors, comes from that mission. Her parents live in the home of Vedamutu Masillanmony, the writer of this hymn. Masillamony grew up in a Christian family in southern India and was educated in Christian schools there. He began teaching a Siloam and Ulundurpet, Tirukoilur. In 1901, he was ordained a Lutheran pastor and became a teacher and evangelist in the South Arcot District.)

The Third Commandment

Catechist: Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not neglect his Word and the preaching of it, but regard it as holy and gladly hear and learn it.

Reader: Let me tell you this. Even though you know the Word perfectly and have already mastered everything, still you are daily under the dominion of the devil, who neither day nor night relaxes his effort to steal upon you unawares and to kindle in your heart unbelief and wicked thoughts against all these commandments. Therefore you must continually keep God's Word in your heart, on your lips, and in your ears. For where the heart stands idle and the Word is not heard, the devil breaks in and does his damage before we realize it. On the other hand, when we seriously ponder the Word, hear it, and put it to use, such is its power that it never departs without fruit. It always awakens new understanding, new pleasure, and a new spirit of devotion, and it constantly cleanses the heart and its meditations. For these words are not idle or dead, but effective and living." p. 379.

"Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling" WOV 734

(Will Lamartine Thompson's song was so much admired by Dwight L. Moody that as the great evangelist lay dying he told Thompson that of all the things he had written this hymn was the greatest. Thompson was a composer and publisher of all kinds of popular music in the 19th century. He studied at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, as well as the conservatory in Leipzig.)

The Fourth Commandment

Catechist: Honor your father and mother.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and others in authority, but respect, obey, love, and serve them.

Reader: "Let everybody know that it is their chief duty, on pain of losing divine grace, to bring up their children in the fear and knowledge of God, and if they are gifted to give them opportunity to learn and study so that they may be of service wherever they are needed. If this were done, God would richly bless us and give us grace so that citizens might be trained who would be a benefit to the nation and the people. We would also have soundly instructed citizens, virtuous wives who would faithfully bring up their children to be godly. Think what deadly harm you do when you are negligent in this respect and fail to bring up your children to usefulness and piety. You bring upon yourself sin and wrath, thus earning hell by the way you have reared your own children, no matter how devout and holy you may be in other respects. Because this commandment is disregarded, God terribly punishes the world: hence there is no longer any civil order, peace, or respect for authority. We all complain about this state of things, but we do not see that is it our own fault." pp. 388-389

"How Good, God Said, and Blessed the Two"

(This hymn by Gracia Grindal, Professor of Rhetoric at Luther Seminary, was written at the request of a Lutheran layman, Bill Raabe, who is chair of the board of the Greater Milwaukee Lutheran Schools. He wanted a hymn which would teach the Lutheran doctrine of vocation in marriage and family. Carl Schalk, one of the composers of the Lutheran church today, wrote the tune. Schalk's family has a long history in the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod whose roots are in Saxony, where Luther and the Reformation began. Leipzig is in the region of Saxony.)

The Fifth Commandment

Catechist: You shall not kill.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not hurt our neighbor in any way, but help him in all his physical needs.

Reader: "God calls all persons murderers who do not offer counsel and aid to those in need and peril of body and life. God will pass a most terrible sentence upon them in the day of judgment, as Christ himself declares. He will say: "I was a stranger, and you did not welcome me, I was naked and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison, and you did not visit me." That is to say, "You would have permitted me and my followers to die of hunger, thirst and cold, to be torn to pieces by wild beasts, to rot in prison or perish from want," It is just as if I saw someone wearily struggling in deep water, or fallen into a fire, and could extend my hand to pull him out and save him, and yet I did not do it." p. 391

"Weary of all Trumpeting" WOV 785

(Martin Franzmann was born in Lake City, Minnesota, and attended school in Watertown, Wisconsin. He later became a scholar and teacher in the Missouri Synod, though he left the United States in the middle of its strife in the early 1970s. He died in Cambridge, England in 1976. This text was written during the struggles over the Viet Nam War. Hugo Distler is one of the most distinguished composers of the early part of the century. He attended the Leipzig Conservatory, was an organist and teacher at the Lübeck Conservatory. He also taught at the Hochschule for Musik in Württemberg. When he was still a young man, the harassment by the Nazis caused him to despair and finally commit suicide.)

The Sixth Commandment

Catechist: You shall not commit adultery.

What does this mean for us?

Congregaton: We are to fear and love God so that in matters of sex our words and conduct are pure and honorable, and husband and wife love and respect each other.

Reader: God established marriage as the first of all institutions, and created man and woman differently (as is evident) not for lewdness but to be true to each other, be fruitful, beget children, and support and bring them up to the glory of God. God has therefore most richly blessed this estate above all others and, in addition, has supplied and endowed it with everything in the world in order that this estate might be provided for richly and adequately. Married life is no matter for jest or idle curiosity, but it is a glorious institution and an object of God's serious concern. For it is of the highest importance to God that persons be brought up to serve the world, promote knowledge of God, godly living, and all virtues, and fight against wickedness and the devil." p. 393

"Come Away to The Skies" WOV 669

(This lovely text by Charles Wesley was written on the occasion of his wife's birthday. Charles Wesley, was the 18th child of Susanna and Samuel Wesley. John Wesley, who with Charles founded the Methodist church, was his older brother. John and Charles sailed with Moravians to Georgia in 1735 and learned the treasury of German hymns which the Moravians used to comfort themselves during the terrible storms at sea. The strong faith of the Moravians impressed the Wesleys who translated many of their hymns into English. The first Moravian hymnal, produced under the patronage of Count Nicholas Zinzendorf, of Saxony, was published in Leipzig in 1725. Charles wrote over 7,000 hymns, many of which are classics in the ecumenical church.)

The Seventh Commandment

Catechist: You shall not steal.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not take our neighbor's money or property, or get them in any dishonest way, but help him to improve and protect his property and means of making a living.

Reader: On the one hand, we are commanded to promote and further our neighbor's interests, and when he or she suffers want we are to help, share, and lend to both friends and foes. Anyone who seeks and desires good works will here find ample opportunity to do things which are heartily acceptable and pleasing to God. Moreover, God graciously lavishes upon them a wonderful blessing: We shall be richly rewarded for all the help and kindness we show our neighbor, as King Solomon teaches in Proverbs 19:17, 'The one who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and God will repay that one for his deed.' Here you have a rich Lord. Surely he is sufficient for your needs and will let you lack or want for nothing." (p. 399.)

The Eighth Commandment

Catechist: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not betray, slander, or lie about our neighbor, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain his actions in the kindest way.

Reader: Besides our own body, our wife or husband, and our temporal property, we have one more treasure which is indispensable to us, namely, our honor and good name, for it is intolerable to live among those in public disgrace and contempt. Therefore God will not have our neighbor deprived of his or her reputation, honor, and character, any more than of their money and possessions; he would have everyone maintain their self-respect before their spouse, children, servants and neighbors." p. 399

"How Blessed from the Bonds of Sin" SBH 60

(Carl Johann Philip Spitta was born in Hannover, the heir of French Huguenots. He spent much of his life writing hymns and songs, producing even a collection of folk songs for the laboring people. a pastor, he spent his evenings writing, singing and playing hymns on the harp or piano. It was in his collection of hymns Psalter und Harfe, published in Leipzig in 1833, where he made his greatest impact. Spitta's brother was the 19th century biographer of J.S. Bach.)

The Ninth Commandment and Tenth Commandments

Catechist: You shall not covet your neighbor's house.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not desire to get our neighbor's possessions by scheming, or by pretending to have a right to them, but always help him keep what is his.

Catechist: You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his cattle, or anything that is your neighbors.

What does this mean for us?

Congregation: We are to fear and love God so that we do not tempt or coax away from our neighbor his wife or his workers, but encourage them to remain loyal.

Reader: "Here it is forbidden to entice anything away from your neighbor, even though in the eyes of the world you could do it honorably, without accusation or blame for fraudulent dealing. Such is nature that we all begrudge another having as much as we have. Everyone acquires all they can and lets others look out for themselves. Yet we all pretend to be upright. We know how to put up a fine front to conceal our rascality. We think up artful dodges and sly tricks under the guise of justice. We brazenly dare to boast of it, and insist that it should be called not rascality but shrewdness and business acumen. These last commandments then are addressed not to those whom the world considers wicked rogues, but precisely to the most upright. These commandments are directed especially against envy and miserable covetousness, God's purpose being to destroy all the roots and causes of our injuries to our neighbors." p. 407

"By Gracious Powers" WOV 736

(In 1989, as the eastern bloc countries were beginning to test the resolve of the Soviet Union, the people in the Nikolai Church in Leipzig began gathering in greater and greater numbers every Monday evening for prayer and song. As their numbers grew, the Communist authorities began wondering how to stop their gathering. They locked up hundreds of protesters in stables in Markkleeberg and hinted that they would use more violent means to stop the prayer services. Soon they sent over 1000 of their party to attend the prayer services and keep regular worshipers out. There they heard the beatitudes read over and over again. "Love your enemies," etc. After the services the congregation would sing songs, among them this song by Dietrich Bonhoeffer the martyred theologian of the Second World War. After the service on 9 October, 1989, when the 2000 people from inside the church poured out onto the Square outside where tens of thousands of people were waiting, all holding candles, the troops and police did not fire a single shot. As the pastor of the church wrote, "He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted the lowly." A member of the Communist Party in East Germany wrote later, "We had planned everything. We were prepared for everything. But not for candles and prayers." "Consecrate Us, Lord," which the congregation will sing after the choir completes the Bonhoeffer song, was also extremely popular and sung by every congregation in Leipzig during the protest.)

Reader: "The First Commandment is to illuminate and impart its splendor to all the others. In order that this may be constantly repeated and never forgotten, therefore, you must let these concluding words run through all the commandments like the clasp or the hoop of a wreath that binds the end to the beginning and holds everything together." p. 410

Conclusion

Catechist: What does God say of all these commandments?

Congregation: He says, 'I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments."

Catechist: What does this mean for us?

Congregation: God warns that he will punish all who break these commandments. Therefore we are to fear his wrath and not disobey him. But he promises grace and every blessing to all who keep these commandments. Therefore we are to love and trust him, and gladly do what he commands.

Reader: "Therefore, I once again implore all Christians, especially pastors and preachers, not to try to be doctor, prematurely and to imagine that they know everything. Vain imaginations, like new clothes, suffer shrinkage? Let all Christians exercise themselves in the Catechism daily, and constantly put it into practice, guarding themselves with the greatest care and diligence against the poisonous infection of such security or vanity. Let them continue to read and teach, to learn and meditate and ponder. Let them never stop until they have proved by experience that they have taught the devil to death and have become wiser that God and all the saints. Then in due time they themselves will make the noble confession that the longer they work with the Catechism, the less they know of it and the more they have to learn. Only then hungry and thirsty, will they truly relish what now they cannot bear to smell because they are so bloated and surfeited. To this end may God grant his grace! Amen." p. 361

Segen

"A Mighty Fortress" LBW 229

No hymn states the theme of the Reformation better than this sturdy tune and text by Martin Luther. It appeared in the very first hymnals of the Reformation. It was sung by Gustavus Adolphus and his troops in the battle that won the day for the Lutherans during the Thirty Years War. It is among the favorite hymns of most Americans and is still sung lustily around the world by evangelicals and catholics alike.)

The Apostles Creed

Luther's Small Catechism and readings from Martin Luther with hymns and songs

(The first program features the Finnish tradition of hymns and song.  If you would like copies of the original, contact ggrindal@luthersem.edu)

Service II for the Apostle's Creed
(This does not use Luther's Large Catechism for the readings, but does use the Small Catechism for the congregation.)

THE APOSTLE'S CREED

GOD, THE SPEAKER OF THE WORD

John 1:1-4

"We should preach the Word, but the results must be left solely to God's good pleasure. For the Word created heaven and earth and all things; the Word must do this thing, and not we poor sinners. In short, I will preach it, teach it, write it, but I will constrain no one by force, for faith must come freely without compulsion. Take myself as an example. I opposed indulgences and all the papists, but never with force, I simply taught, preached, and wrote God's Word; otherwise I did nothing. And while I slept or drank Wittenberg beer with my friends Philip and Amsdorf, the Word so greatly weakened the papacy that no prince or emperor ever inflicted such losses upon it. I did nothing; the Word did everything. Had I desired to foment trouble, I could have brought great bloodshed upon Germany; indeed, I could have started such a game that even the emperor would not have been safe. But what would it have been? Mere fool's play. I did nothing. I let the Word do its work. What do you suppose is Satan's thought when one tried to do the thing by kicking up a row? He sits back in hell and thinks: Oh, what a fine game the poor fools are up to now! But when we spread the Word alone and let it alone do the work, that distresses him. For it is almighty and takes captive the hearts, and when the hearts are captured the work will fall of itself. (Luther's "Second Sermon, March 10, 1522," Monday, after Invocavit LW 51, pp. 77-78.)

"Thy Strong Word" LBW #233

Born in Lake City, Minnesota, Martin Franzmann attended both the college and seminary of the Wisconsin Synod. In 1946 he became a professor at Concordia Seminary in Springfield, Illinois, for which he wrote this text. In 1969 he moved to Cambridge University in England where he worked until his death. This hymn was written for Concordia Seminary in 1954. The tune--"Ton-y-botel"--by Thomas Williams a prominent Welsh musician is taken from the second movement of a memorial anthem by Williams. The name of the tune "Tune in a bottle"--comes from the legend that the tune was found in a bottle which washed ashore onto the Welsh coast during a storm.

Scripture

Genesis 1:1-2

Reader: Moses says: "Before the creation of the world there was not a single one of the creatures, but God nevertheless had the Word." What is this Word, or what did He do? Listen to Moses. The light he says, was not yet in existence; but out of its state of being nothing the darkness was turned into that most outstanding creature, light. Through what? Through the Word. Therefore in the beginning and before every creature there is the Word, and it is such a powerful Word that it makes all things out of nothing. (Luther's Commentary on Genesis.)

Catechist: I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of Heaven and earth.

What does this mean?

Congregation: I believe that God has created me and all that exists; that he has given and still preserves to me my body and soul, my eyes and ears, and all my members, my reason and all the powers of my soul, together with food and raiment, home and family, and all my property; that He daily provides abundantly for all the needs of my life, protects me from all danger, and guards and keeps me from all evil; and that he does this purely out of fatherly and divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me; for all which I am in duty bound to thank, praise, serve, and obey him. This is most certainly true.

"Maker of the Earth and Heaven" LBW 266

Heinrich Albert, nephew and student of Heinrich Schutz, one of the first Lutheran organists and composers, wrote both text and tune of this hymn. Taken prisoner by the Swedes during the Thirty Years War, he continued his study of music after his release and became organist in Konigsberg cathedral where he spent his remaining years.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 46

"God, My Lord, My Strength" LBW 484

Pan Buh comes from the Reformation among the Slovak peoples. This tune and text appeared in a collection of hymns by the great Slovakian reformer Jiri Tranovsky. It has the feel of the great Reformation chorales, though its meter is uniquely Slovak.

GOD, THE WORD MADE FLESH

Reader: There is a story or legend which is told about the devil. He was listening unmoved as the initial words of the Gospel of St. John were being read: 'In the beginning was the Word.' But when the words 'And the Word became flesh' were pronounced, he vanished. And again whether this story is truth or fiction, the fact remains that the devil will surely take to his heels before anyone who speaks or meditates on these words in true faith. That the Son of God is the Light and Life of human kind is a thought he can bear. He chuckles contentedly inside himself when he observes that humanity does not accept Christ...But the words, 'God became flesh' knock all his thoughts to pieces. (Luther's Sermons on the Gospel of St. John LW 22, p. 106)

"Oh, Love, How Deep" LBW 88

This text celebrating God's Incarnation is thought to come to us from Thomas a Kempis, the writer of the medieval classic The Imitation of Christ. The tune was the setting for a ballad commemorating the victory of King Henry V of England over the French at Agincourt in 1415. The tune is still very much a part of the English tradition; it is almost awes used when Shakespeare's play Henry V is performed.

Reader: We are not afraid that the crowds will be offended by this 'biting,' as you call it. For whom did Christ not offend? Whom did he not reprove? The Spirit of truth reproves and does not flatter. He reproves not just some people, however, but the whole world. Therefore we think that everything ought to be straight forwardly censured, reproved, confounded, and that nothing should be spared, bypassed, or excused, so that the unshackled, pure and clear truth remains victoriously among us. It is a totally different thing to accept, endure, and assist with greatest gentleness those whom you have rebuked. This belongs to the realm of love and service and not to the ministry of the Word. Even Christ, when he has reproved all people with the greatest severity, wishes then to be like a hen to them and gather them under his wings. Love bears all things, endures all thing, hopes all things. Faith, however, or the Word, endures nothing, but rather reproves and consumes. (Luther's Letter to Wolfgang Fabricious Capito, January 17, 1522 LW 48, pp. 374-375.)

"Your Word, Oh God, Is Gentle Dew" LBW 232

Carl Bernhard Garve grew up on a farm near Hanover, Germany. Ordained as a Moravian clergyman, he spent his life serving as a pastor until his retirement in Herrnhut, the home of the Moravian movement. This tune, Af Himlens, is from one of the older Swedish hymnbooks Then Swenska Psalm-Boken, published in 1697.

Reader: I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the power of the holy spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell, the third day he rose again from the dead, ascended into heaven and is seated on the right hand of God, the Father almighty, ... What does this mean?

Congregation: I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord; who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature, bought me and freed me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with silver and gold, but with his holy and precious blood, and with his innocent sufferings and death; in order that I might be his own, live under him in his kingdom, and serve him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness; even as he is risen from the dead, and lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true.

THE THIRD ARTICLE

GOD, WHOSE SPIRIT GIVES US LIFE AND LEADS US

Reader: Though a common laborer, a shoemaker, or a blacksmith may be dirty and sooty or may smell because he is covered with dirt and pitch, still he may sit at home and think: "My God has made me a man. He has given me my house, wife and child and has commanded me to love them and to support them with my work." Not that he is pondering the Word of God in his heart; and though he stinks outwardly, inwardly he is pure incense before God. But if he attains the highest purity so that he also takes hold of the Gospel and believes in Christ--without this, that purity is impossible--then he is pure completely, inwardly in his heart toward God and outwardly toward everything under him on earth. Then everything he is and does, his walking, standing, eating, and drinking, is pure for him; and nothing can make him impure. So it is when he looks at his own wife or fondles her, as the patriarch Isaac did. For here he has the Word of God, and he knows that God has given her to him. But if he were to desert his wife and take up another, or neglect his job or duty to harm or bother other people, he would no longer be pure; for that would be contrary to God's commandment. (Luther's Preface to the Sermon on the Mount LW 21 p. 34)

"Lord Keep Us Steadfast In Your Word" LBW 230

This is one of Luther's finest hymntexts. Written as a prayer for God to protect Vienna and Germany from the Turkish army, the original text condemned both Pope and Turk. Now that language has been changed to include the general enemies of the Word. Some scholars believe Luther wrote the melody for this hymn as well. It first appeared in Joseph Klug's Geistliche Lieder ("Spiritual Songs") in 1543.

Reader: Would to God that my exposition and that of all doctors might perish and each Christian make the Scriptures and God's pure word their norm. You can tell by my verbosity how immeasurably different God's word are in comparison with any human word, how no single person is able to fathom sufficiently any one word of God and expound it with many words. It is an infinite word and must be contemplated and grasped with a quiet mind, as the psalmist says, 'I will hear what God will speak within me.' None but such a quiet contemplative mind can grasp it. Those who are able to achieve that without glossary and exposition, will find my glosses and those of everyone else unnecessary, in fact, merely a hindrance. And so, my dear Christians, get to it, get to it, and let my exposition and that of all the doctors be no more than a scaffold, an aid for the construction of the true building, so that we may ourselves grasp and taste the pure simple word of God and abide by it; for there alone God dwells in Zion. Amen. (Luther's Sermons, LW 52 p. 286)

"Oh, That the Lord Would Guide My Ways" LBW 480

This text is a paraphrase of one part of Psalm 119. Watts, the first great English hymnwriter, was a Dissenter whose dislike of the way the psalms were sung in his father's congregation caused him to attempt his own, better, versions. From Watts' sturdy pen most English hymnody has sprung. The tune, in its original printing, accompanied a Robert Burns poem. Havergal took the original tune and recast it into its present form.

Reader: In Torgau a wretched woman once came to me and said, 'Ah, dear Doctor, I have the idea that I'm lost and can't be saved because I can't believe.' Than I replied, 'Do you believe, dear woman, that what you pray in the Creed is true?' She answered with clasped hands, 'Oh, yes, I believe it; it's most certainly true!' I replied, 'Then go in God's name, dear woman. You believe more and better than I do.' It's the devil who puts such ideas into people's head and say, 'Ah, you must believe better. you must believe more. Your faith is not very strong and is insufficient.' In this way he drives them to despair. We are so constructed by nature that we desire to have a conscious faith. We'd like to grasp it with our hands and shove it into our bosom, but this doesn't happen in this life...We should hold to the Word and let ourselves drag along in this way." (from Luther's Tabletalk 1543 LW 54 p. 453)

"How Firm A Foundation" LBW 507

Both the author and composer of this hymn are unknown. The tune is part of the Sacred Harp tradition and has a distinctly American feel, so much so that Ralph Vaughan Williams used the tune in his American Suite.

Reader: I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.

What does this mean?

Congregation: I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to him, but the Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in the true faith; in like manner as he calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and preserves it in union with Jesus Christ in the one true faith; in which Christian church he daily forgives abundantly all my sins, and the sins of all believers, and at the last day will raise up me and all the dead, and will grant everlasting life to me and to all who believe in Christ. This is most certainly true.

GOD WHO SENDS US OUT, ACCORDING TO THE WORD

BENEDICTION

"Come, Holy Spirit"

Written by Gracia Grindal and Mark Sedio to celebrate the first Assembly of the East Metro Synod in Minnesota, the hymn is a fairly straightforward essay on the way the word and spirit work together to give life to the church, reforming it and saving it.

POSTLUDE

The Lord's Prayer

meditations on Luther's Catechism, Large and Small

with readings from both

HYMN PROCESSIONAL

"Holy Majesty, Before You" LBW #247

The entrance hymn comes to us from the pen of Samuel Johan Hedborn, one of the writers in the Golden Age of Swedish hymnody. Born into poverty, he was able to attend Uppsala University only under severe financial strain. While at university, he developed his poetic skills and prepared to become a pastor. After his ordination, he suffered considerable doubt as to his abilities to preach the Gospel of hope. During this time he wrote many Christ-centered hymns which influenced Johan Wallin whose 1819 Svenska Psalm-Boken became the hymnbook of the Swedish church for generations. Written to the "King of Chorales" Wachet Auf, by Philip Nicolai, this is one of the few texts which has taken the place of the original text. The translator, August William Kjellstrand taught at Bethany College and later, Augustana College, Rock Island, where he was professor of Christianity and English from 1906 to 1930; during that time he was pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Davenport.

THE LORD'S PRAYER

in the plain form in which the head of the family

shall teach it to the household

Reader: We should be encouraged and drawn to pray because...God takes the initiative and puts into our mouths the very words we are to use. Thus we see how sincerely he is concerned over our needs...For this prayer is far superior to all others that we might ourselves devise. For in the latter our conscience would always be in doubt, saying "I have prayed, but who knows whether it pleased God...Thus, there is no nobler prayer to be found on earth, for this one has the excellent testimony that God loves to hear it. This we should not trade for the riches in the world."

"O Thou Who Hast of Thy Pure Grace" LBW #442

This hymn is an adaptation of Martin Luther's versification of the Lord's Prayer, Vater Unser, which he used for his singing catechism and the Deutsche Messe, the hymn version of the communion service, which you can find in LBW p. 120. The tune is one of the oldest of the Reformation and was used for many familiar hymns in the various Lutheran traditions we are heir to. Martin Franzmann, the author, was born in Lake City, Minnesota, and raised in the Wisconsin Synod. He became a professor at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis in 1946. The conflict in the Missouri Synod sent him to England where he died at Cambridge where he was serving as a tutor at Westfield House.

Catechist: Our Father in Heaven.

What does this mean?

Congregation: Here God would encourage us to believe that he is truly our Father and we are truly his children in order that we may approach him boldly and confidently in prayer, even as be loved children approach their dear father.

Reader: Where there is true prayer there must be earnestness. We must feel our need, the distress that impels and drives us to cry out. Then prayer will come spontaneously, as it should, and we shall not need to be taught how to prepare for it or how to generate devotion. The need which ought to be the concern of both ourselves and others is quite amply indicated in the Lord's Prayer. Therefore it may serve to remind us and impress upon us not to become negligent about praying. We all have needs enough, but the trouble is that we do not feel or see them. God there fore wishes you to lament and express your needs and wants, not because he is unaware of them, but in order that you may kindle your heart to stronger and greater desires and spread your cloak wide to receive many things.

"Lord, Take My Hand and Lead Me" LBW #333

THE FIRST PETITION

Catechist: Hallowed be thy name

What does this mean?

Congregation: To be sure, God's name is holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may also be holy for us.

Catechist: How is this done?

Congregation: When the Word of God is taught clearly and purely and we, as children of God, lead holy lives in accordance with it. Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven! But whoever teaches and lives otherwise than as the Word of God teaches, profanes the name of God among us. From this preserve us, heavenly Father!

Reader: Hallowed be thy name: "See, then, what a great need there is for this kind of prayer! Since we see that the world is full of sects and false teachers, all of whom wear the holy name as a cloak and warrant for their devilish doctrine, we ought constantly cry out against all who preach and believe falsely and against those who attack and persecute our Gospel and pure doctrine and try to suppress it... Likewise, this petition is for ourselves who have the Word of God but are ungrateful for it and fail to live according to it as we ought. If you pray the petition wholeheartedly, you can be sure that God is pleased. For there is nothing he would rather hear than to have his glory and praise exalted above everything else and his Word taught in its purity and cherished and treasured."

"Glories of Your Name Are Spoken" LBW #358

THE SECOND PETITION

Catechist: Thy Kingdom come.

What does this mean?

Congregation: To be sure, the kingdom of God comes of itself, without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may also come to us.

Catechist: How is this done?

When the heavenly Father give us his Holy Spirit so by his grace we may believe his holy Word and live a godly life, both here in time and hereafter forever.

Reader: Of the Second Petition Luther writes "What is the kingdom of God?" Answer: Simply what we learned in the Creed, namely, that God sent his Son, Christ our Lord, into the world to redeem and deliver us from the power of the devil and to bring us to himself and rule us as a king of righteousness, life and salvation against sin, death and an evil conscience. To this end he also gave his Holy Spirit to teach us this through his holy Word and to enlighten and strengthen us in faith by his power. God desires nothing more ardently than that we ask many and great things of him; and on the contrary, he is angered if we do not ask and demand confidently. Imagine a very rich and mighty emperor who bad a poor beggar to ask for whatever he might desire and was prepared to give great and princely gifts and the fool asked only for a dish of beggar's broth."

"Your Kingdom Come" LBW #376

This hymn was written for the 1940 convention of the Women's Missionary Society of the United Lutheran Church in America by the daughter of an English professor at Gettysburg College who herself graduated from the college in 1894. Married to a Lutheran pastor, Julius F. Seebach, she became active in mission work and was president of the LWMS of the Susquehanna Synod for a year. In 1917 she became the editor of Lutheran Women's Work, a position she held for twenty years. The tune comes from the Genevan Psalter of 1551 where it was set to Psalm 124, hence its name Old 124th.

THE THIRD PETITION
Catechist: Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven

What does this mean?

Congregation: To be sure, the good and gracious will of God is done without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may also be done by us.

Catechist: How is this done?

Congregation: When God curbs and destroys every evil counsel and purpose of the devil, of the world, and of our flesh which would hinder us from hallowing his name and prevent the coming of his kingdom, and when he strengthens us and keeps us steadfast in his Word and in faith even to the end. This is his good and gracious will.

Reader: We who would be Christians must surely count on having the devil with all his angels and the world as our enemies and must count on their inflicting every possible misfortune and grief upon us. For where God's Word is preached, accepted or believed, and bears fruit, there the blessed holy cross will not be far away. Let nobody think that he will have peace; he must sacrifice all he has on earth--possessions, honor, house and home, wife and children, body and life. Now this grieves our flesh and the old Adam, for it means that we must remain steadfast, suffer patiently whatever befalls us, and let go whatever is taken from us.

"Have No Fear, Little Flock" LBW #476

THE FOURTH PETITION

Catechist: Give us this day our daily bread

What does this mean?

Congregation: To be sure, God provides daily bread, even to the wicked without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that God may make us aware of his gifts, and enable us to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.

Catechist: What is meant by daily bread?

Congregation: Everything required to satisfy our bodily needs, such as food and clothing, house and home, fields and flocks, money and property; a pious spouse and good children, trustworthy servants, godly and faithful rulers, good government; seasonable weather, peace and health, order and honor; true friends, faithful neighbors, and the like.

Reader: "The Fourth petition is especially directed against our chief enemy, the devil, whose whole purpose and desire it is to take away or interfere with all we have received from God. He is not satisfied to obstruct and overthrow spiritual order, so that he may deceive us with his lies and bring us under his power, but he also prevents and hinders the establishment of any kind of government or honorable and peaceful relations on earth. This is why he causes so much contention, murder, sedition, and war, why he sends tempest and hail to destroy crops and cattle, why he poisons the air, etc. In short, it pains the devil that anyone receives a morsel of bread from God and eats it in peace. If it were in his power, and our prayer to God did not restrain him, surely we would not have a straw in the field, a penny in the house, or even our life for one hour."

"We Plow the Fields and Scatter" LBW #362

Matthias Claudius, a son of a Lutheran pastor whose parish was in Holstein, an area sometimes under Danish control and sometimes, German, was a friend of Goethe, Germany's greatest writer, and participated in the literary life of Germany at the time. He wrote this text for a story in which peasants are pictured singing the song on their way to a harvest festival of thanksgiving. Schulz, the tune writer, also grew up near Denmark and lived in Copenhagen, becoming in his lifetime an important influence in Danish music, especially the composer C.E.F. Weyse who wrote the tune for "O Day Full of Grace."

THE FIFTH PETITION

Catechist: And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive our trespasses.

What does this mean?

Congregation: We pray in this petition that our heavenly Father may not look upon our sins, and on their account deny our prayers, for we neither merit nor deserve those things for which we pray. Although we sin daily and deserve nothing but punishment, we nevertheless pray that God may grant us all things by his grace. And assuredly we on our part will heartily forgive and cheerfully do good to those who may sin against us.

Reader: "God has promised us assurance that everything is forgiven and pardoned, yet on the condition that we also forgive our neighbor. Inasmuch as we sin greatly against God everyday and yet he forgives it all through grace, we must always forgive our neighbor who does us harm, violence, and injustice, bears malice toward us, etc. If you do not forgive, do not think that God forgives you. But if you forgive, you have the comfort and assurance that you are forgiven in heaven. Not on account of your forgiving, for God does that altogether freely, out of pure grace, because he has promised it as the Gospel teaches. But God has set up this condition for our strengthening and assurance as a sign along with the promise which is in agreement with this petition. Luke 6: 37, "Forgive and you will be forgiven."

"Forgive Our Sins as We Forgive" LBW #307

The author of this hymn writes that the idea of the hymn came to her "years ago when I was digging up docks in a long neglected garden. Realizing how these deeply-rooted weeds were choking the life out of the flowers in the garden, I came to feel that deeply-rooted resentments in our lives could destroy every Christian virtue and all joy and peace unless, by God's grace, we learned to forgive." Herklots was born to British missionaries to India. She has devoted the last years of her life to the Association for Spinal Bifida and Hydrocehpalus. The tune is from the Kentucky Harmony, on of the many harp song collections out of the south.

THE SIXTH PETITION

Catechist: And lead us not into temptation.

What does this mean?

Congregation: God tempts no one to sin, but we pray in this petition that God may so guard and preserve us that the devil, the world, and our own flesh may not deceive us or mislead us into unbelief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, but that, although we may be so tempted, we may finally prevail and gain the victory.

Reader "We Christians must be armed and prepared for incessant attacks. Then we shall not go about securely and heedlessly as if the devil were far from us but shall at all times expect his blows and parry them. Even if at present I am chaste, patient, kind and firm in faith, the devil is likely in this very hour to send such a firm shaft into my heart that I can scarcely stand, for he is an enemy who never stops or becomes weary; when one attack ceases, new ones always arise. At such time your only help or comfort is to take refuge in the Lord's Prayer and to appeal to God from your heart, "Dear Father, Thou hast commanded me to pray; let me not fall because of temptation." Then you will see the temptation cease and eventually admit defeat. Other wise, if you attempt to help yourself by your own thoughts and counsels, you will only make the matter worse and give the devil a better opening. For he has a serpent's head; if it finds an opening into which is can slip, the whole body will irresistibly follow. But prayer can resist him and drive him back."

"What a Friend We Have in Jesus" LBW #439

THE SEVENTH PETITION

Catechist: But deliver us from evil.

What does this mean?

Congregation: We pray in this petition, as in a summary, that our Father in heaven may deliver us from all manner of evil, whether it affect body or soul, property or reputation, and that at last, when the hour of death comes, he may grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this world of sorrow to himself in heaven.

Reader: "The devil is not only a liar but also a murderer, he incessantly seeks our life and breaks many a mans' neck and drives others to insanity; some he drowns, and many he hounds to suicide or other dreadful catastrophes. Therefore there is nothing for us to do on earth but to pray constantly against this arch-enemy. For if God did not support us, we would not be safe from him for a single hour. Thus you see how God wants us to pray to him for everything that affects our bodily welfare and directs us to seek and expect help from no one but him. But this petition he has put last, for if we are to be protected and delivered from all evil, his name must first be hallowed in us, his kingdom come among us, and his will be done. Then he will preserve us from sin and shame and from everything else that harms or injures us."

"A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" LBW #229

This hymn of the Reformation is Luther's paraphrase of Psalm 46. Why it was written and for what occasion is lost in the mists of the past, but everyone knows it now. It is one of the most well known hymns in Christendom; it appears in over 200 languages and in most hymnbooks of today. It first appeared in a 1531 collection of hymns, though it is thought to have been written and published in 1529.

CONCLUSION

Catechist: Amen.

What does this mean?

Congregation: It means that I should be assured that such petitions are acceptable to our heavenly Father and are heard by him, for he himself commanded us to pray like this and promised to hear us. "Amen, amen" means "Yes, yes, it shall be so."

Reader: It is a pernicious delusion when people pray in such a way that they dare not wholeheartedly add 'yes' and conclude with certainty that God hears their prayer but remain in doubt, saying 'Why should I be so bold as to boast that God hears my prayer? I am only a poor sinner,' etc. That means that they have their eye not on God's promise but on their own works and worthiness, so that they despise God and accuse him of lying. Therefore they receive nothing, as St. James says, "If anyone prays, let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from God." Behold, such is the importance that God attaches to our being certain that we do not pray in vain and that we must not in any way despise our prayers.

"Thine is the Glory" LBW #145

First written in French, this text quickly made its way into German and English via the songbook of the World Student Christian Federation of 1925. Budry was a pastor in the Free Church at Vevey, Switzerland for 35 years. The tune, from Handel's oratorio "Judas Maccabaeus", first came into use as the tune for Charles Wesley's "Christ the Lord is risen today!"

The Sacrament of Holy Baptism

in the plain form in which the head of the family

shall teach it to the household

"We Praise You, O God" LBW 241

Reader: Every Christian ought to have at least some brief elementary instruction in the sacraments because without these no one can be a Christian, although unfortunately in the past nothing was taught about them. First we shall take up Baptism, through which we are first received into the Christian community. In order that it may be readily understood, we shall treat it in a systematic way and confine ourselves to that which is necessary for us to know. How it is to be maintained and defended against heretics and sectarians we shall leave to the learned. pp. 436- 437.

"Give To Our God Immortal Praise"

Catechist: What is Baptism?

Congregation: Baptism is not merely water, but it is water used according to God's command and connected with God's Word.

Reader: I therefore admonish you again that these two, the Word and the water, must by no means be separated from each other. For where the Word is separated from the water, the water is no different from that which the maid cooks with and could indeed by called a bathkeeper's baptism. But when the Word is present according to God's ordinance, Baptism is a sacrament, and it is called Christ's Baptism.

"Dearest Jesus, We Are Here" LBW 187

Catechist: What is this Word of God?

Congregation: As recorded in Matthew 28:19, our Lord Christ said, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

Reader: It is of the greatest importance that we regard Baptism as excellent, glorious, and exalted. It is the chief cause of our contentions and battles because the world now is full of sects who proclaim that Baptism is an external thing and that external things are of no use. But no matter how external it may be, here stand God's Word, and command which have instituted, established, and confirmed Baptism. What God institutes and commands cannot be useless. It is a most precious thing, even though to all appearances it many not be worth a straw. We ought to regard Baptism as much greater and more precious because God has commanded it and what is more, it is performed in his name. So the words read, "Go, baptize," not in your name but in God's name." p. 437

"O Zion Haste" LBW 397

Catechist: What gifts or benefits does Baptism bestow?

Congregation: It effects forgiveness of sins, delivers from death and the devil, and grants eternal salvation to all who believe, as the Word and promise of God declare.

Reader In Baptism, therefore, every Christian has enough to study and to practice all his life. He always has enough to do to believe firmly what Baptism promises and brings--victory over death and the devil, forgiveness of sin, God's grace, the entire Christ, and the Holy Spirit with his gifts. In short, the blessings of Baptism are so boundless that if timid nature considers them, it may well doubt whether they could all be true. Suppose there were a physician who had such skill that people would not die, or even though they died would afterward live forever. Just think how the world would snow and rain money upon him! Because of the pressing crowd of rich men no one else could get near him. Now, here in Baptism there is brought free to everyone's door just such a priceless medicine which swallows up death and saves the lives of all. pp. 441-442.

"My Hope is Built on Nothing Less" LBW 294

Catechist: What is this Word and promise of God?

Congregation: As recorded in Mark 16:16, our Lord Christ said, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned."

Reader: Faith alone makes the person worthy to receive the salutary, divine water profitably. Since these blessings are offered and promised in the words which accompany the water, they cannot be received unless we believe them whole-heartedly. Without faith Baptism is of no use, although in itself it is an infinite, divine treasure. So this single expression, "He who believes," is so potent that it excludes and rejects all works that we may do with the intention of meriting salvation through them. For it is certain that whatever is not faith contributes nothing toward salvation, and receives nothing. pp. 440-441

Fylt av glede Svein Ellingsen

Catechist: How can water produce such great effects?

Congregation: It is not the water that produces these effects, but the Word of God connected with the water, and our faith which relies on the Word of God connected with the water. For without the Word of God the water is merely water and no Baptism. But when connected with the Word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a gracious water of life and a washing of regeneration in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul wrote to Titus (3:5-8), "He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life. The saying is sure."

Reader: To appreciate and use Baptism aright, we must draw strength and comfort from it when our sins or conscience oppress us, and we must retort, "But I am baptized! And if I am baptized, I have the promise that I shall be saved and have eternal life, both in soul and body." This is the reason why these two things are done in Baptism: the body has water poured over it, though it cannot receive anything but the water, and meanwhile the Word is spoken so that the soul may grasp it. p. 442.

"Praise and Thanksgiving Be to God" LBW 191

Catechist: What does such baptizing with water signify?

Congregation: It signifies that the old Adam in us, together with all sins and evils lusts should be drowned by daily sorrow and repentance and be put to death, and that the new man should come forth daily and rise up, cleansed and righteous, to live forever in God's presence.

Reader: Being dipped under the water and emerging from it, indicate the power and effect of baptism, which is simply the slaying of the old Adam and the resurrection of the new person, both of which actions much continue in us our whole lifelong. Thus a Christian life is nothing else than a daily Baptism, once begun and ever continued. For we must keep at it incessantly, always purging out whatever pertains to the old Adam, so that whatever belongs to the new person may come forth. What is the old person? The one born in us from Adam, irascible, spiteful, envious, unchaste, greedy, lazy, proud, yes, and unbelieving: beset with all vices and by nature has nothing good in him...now, when we enter Christ's kingdom, this corruption must daily decrease so that the longer we live the more gentle, patient, and meek we become, and the more free from greed, hatred, envy, and pride. p. 445

"We Know That Christ is Raised" LBW 189

Catechist: Where is this written?

Congregation: In Romans 6:4, St. Paul wrote, "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."

Reader: Therefore let everybody regard their Baptism as the daily garment which they are to wear all the time. Every day we should be found in faith and amid its fruits, every day we should be suppressing the old person and growing up in the new. If we wish to be Christians, we must practice the work that makes us Christians. But anybody falls away from his Baptism let them return to it. As Christ, the mercy-seat, does not recede from us or forbid us to return to him even though we sin, so all his treasures and gifts remain. As we have once obtained forgiveness of sins in Baptism, so forgiveness remains day by day as long as we live, that is, as long as we carry the old Adam about our necks. p. 446

"How Great Thou Art" LBW 532

Reader: Baptism remains forever. Even though we fall from it and sin, nevertheless we always have access to it so that we may against subdue the old person. But we need not again have the water poured over us. Even if we were immersed in water a hundred times, it would nevertheless be only one Baptism, and the effect and signification of Baptism would continue and remain. Repentance, therefore, is nothing else than a return and approach to Baptism, to resume and practice what had earlier been begun by abandoned...Thus we see what a great and excellent thing Baptism is which snatches us from the jaws of the devil and makes God our own, overcomes and takes away sin and daily strengthens the new person, always remains until we pass from this present misery to eternal glory. p. 446

"Oh, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing" LBW 559

The Sacrament of the Altar

(This service was done to commemorate the 300th anniversary of Hans Adolf Brorson, the Danish bishop whose hymns have been loved by many American Lutherans, even though he is but sparsely included in the newest Lutheran hymnals. Those who would like copies of the hymns, write to ggrindal@luthersem.edu and she will supply you with them.)

October 30, 1994

Luther's Small and Large Catechisms

On Confession and the Lord's Supper

"Through the Night of Doubt and sorrow" LBW 255

Bernard Severin Ingemann, a poet and writer of historical romances is considered a fourth, lesser, star in the Danish crown of hymnwriters. A pastor's son, he was orphaned early, and sent to school by his mother in hopes that he would follow in his father's footsteps. While in Copenhagen studying he witnessed the bombardment of the city by the English, and was enlisted to help defend the city. The prevailing winds of Rationalism deadened his interest in the things of the Spirit until his mother and four brothers died. He then experienced a spiritual awakening and began writing Christian hymns along with his historical romances and poems. Appointed Professor of Literature at the Sorø Academy, he taught there until his death. As one of Grundtvig's closest friends and colleagues, Ingemann helped make Grundtvig's hymns popular by including them in the hymnal which he prepared for the church of Denmark in 1855. This pilgrim hymn became famous when, in 1867, Baring-Gould translated it and it was published in the People's Hymn-book in 1867, and then later in the 1875 edition of the most famous English hymnal of all, Hymns Ancient and Modern. Another pilgrim hymn by Ingemann, "Dejlig er Jorden," sung to the tune we know as "Beautiful Savior" is one of Denmark's most beloved Christmas carols.

CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION

how plain people are to be taught to confess

Catechist: What is confession?

Congregation: Confession consists of two parts. One is that we confess our sins. The other is that we receive absolution or forgiveness from the confessor as from God himself, by no means doubting but firmly believing that our sins are thereby forgiven before God in heaven.

Reader: Confession consists of two parts. The first is my work and act, when I lament my sin and desire comfort and restoration for my soul. The second is a work which God does, when he absolves me of my sins through a word placed in the mouth of a human being. This is the surpassingly grand and noble thing that makes confession so wonderful and comforting. In the past we placed all the emphasis on our work alone, and we were only concerned whether we had confessed purely enough. We neither noticed nor preached the very necessary second part: it was just as if our confession were simply a good work with which we could satisfy God. We should take care to keep the two parts clearly separate. We should set little value on our work, but exalt and magnify God's Word....What you must do is to lament your need and allow yourself to be helped so that you may attain a happy heart and conscience. p. 459

"How Fair the Church of Christ shall Stand"

Thomas Kingo is the first great Danish hymnwriter, of the three great ones, Kingo, Brorson, and Grundtvig. Kingo, a gifted man, began writing hymns which were first published in 1674 in a book called Aandelige Siunge-Koors første Part. ("Spiritual Singing Choir's First Part.") He continued to publish these volumes and was asked to edit a new hymnal for the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway, which when he presented was rejected, and redone without any of his hymns included. The king soon saw the injustice of this and his hymnal was approved for use in the Danish and Norwegian churches in 1699. Known from that time as Kingo's Hymnal, it was popular with Danish and Norwegian immigrants, even as late as 1890. His preparation of the Lutheran service caused him to edit his hymnal so that there were hymn services for every Sunday in the church year, a form which was used in the Lutheran Hymnary of the Norwegian Lutheran churches in America in 1912, and will be continued in the new hymnal of the ELS, a Lutheran synod with its headquarters in Mankato, Minnesota. This hymn by Kingo was very popular in the preceding hymnals, but was rejected by the compilers of the Service Book and Hymnal. The traditional tune is from Martin Luther's setting for the Lord's Prayer, which he used both in his "Deutsche Messe" and his "Singing Catechism."

Catechist: What sins should we confess?

Congregation: Before God we should acknowledge that we are guilty of all manner of sins, even those of which we are not aware, as we do in the Lord's Prayer. Before the confessor, however, we should confess only those sins of which we have knowledge and which trouble us.

Reader: Besides this public, daily, and necessary confession, there is also the secret confession which takes place privately before a single brother or sister. When some problem or quarrel sets us at one another's throats, and we cannot settle it, and yet we do not find ourselves sufficiently strong in faith, we may at any time and as often as we wish lay our complaint before abrother or sister, seeking their advice, comfort and strength. So if there is a heart that feels its sin and desires consolation, it has here a sure refuge when it hears in God's Word that, through another, God looses and absolves them from their sins. p. 458

"Be still my soul and listen" Kaj Munk -1944

Be still, my heart, and listen,
You know that God is great,
Though Satan may seem greater,
In all our pain and hate.

Stand fast! In all your battles
Trust as you struggle on,
Though Satan may be mighty,
He is not great as God.

Kaj Munk, one of the greatest Danish heroes of World War II, was a pastor and author in a small parish called Vedersø. As a pastor, Munk heroically opposed the philosphy of National Socialism in his sermons and lays. This hymn is from the time in 1938 just after he had published a popular play which directly challenged the racist theories of Hitler. After the occupation of Denmark, he spoke out so courageously against the Nazis in Denmark, that, in 1944, he was martyred and his body thrown out on a lonely stretch of highway, where today a cross silently marks the spot. The tune is one of the most venerable in Lutheran history. "Christus der ist mein Leben," by Michael Vulpius, one of the early Lutheran composers of hymn texts and tunes. The translation of the text is by Gracia Grindal and copyrighted by her.

Catechist: What are such sins?

Congregation: Reflect on your condition in the light of the Ten Commandments: whether you are a father or mother, a son or daughter, a master or servant; whether you have been disobedient, unfaithful, lazy, illtempered, or quarrelsome; whether you have harmed anyone by word or deed; and whether you have stolen, neglected, or wasted anything, or done other evil.

Reader: We urge you to confess and express your needs, not for the purpose of performing a work but to hear what God wishes to say to you. The Word or absolution, I say, is what you should concentrate on, magnifying and cherishing it as a great and wonderful treasure to be accepted with all praise and gratitude. p. 460

"Around you O Lord Jesus" LBW 496

Franz Michel Franzèn was a Swede-Finn, born in Finland of Swedish parents, who taught at the University of Åbo, until the Russian takeover of Finland in 1812. With difficulty, he left Finland to take a call in a small country parish in Sweden, and later, as the pastor at St. Clara church in Stockhold, where he became known for his stirring preaching and religious poetry. He later became bishop of Härnösand, and had jurisdiction over the Norrland province as well, where he struggled tirelessly against the ravages of liquor in the northern reaches of the kingdom. This melody comes from the 1569 Danish hynal, which was edited by Hans Thomissøn, a Danish pastor at Vor Frue church in Copenhagen. He revised several texts from the Middle Ages for use in evangelical worship, among them the text that Grundtvig would use for his hymns celebrating the 1000th anniversary of Christianity in Denmark, "O Day Full of Grace."

Catechist: Please give me a brief form of confession.

Congregation: Dear Pastor, please hear my confession and declare that my sins are forgiven for God's sake.Catechist: Proceed

Congregation: I, a poor sinner, confess before God that I am guilty of all sins. In particular I confess in your presence that I have not been faithful in training my children, servants, and wife to the glory of God. I have cursed. I have set a bad example by my immodest language and actions. I have injured my neighbor by speaking evil of him, overcharging him, giving him inferior goods, and short measure.

Catechist: "God be merciful to you and strengthen your faith. Amen. Do you believe that this forgiveness is the forgiveness of God."

Congregation: Yes, I do.

Catechist: Be it done for you as you have believed. According to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Go in peace.

"I See Thee Standing, Lamb of God"

Hans Adolph Brorson was born in Randerup, Denmark, 300 years ago on June 20, 1994. Brorson, a pastor's son, who also became a pastor, and later a bishop in Ribe, was deeply moved by the pietist awakening coming out of Halle, Germany. In 1729, he was called to be the 3rd Danish pastor in the church at Tønder, where the cultural life was both German and Danish. As Brorson became acquainted with the senior pastor in the Tønder church, J.H. Schräder, a German, who himself was a translator and writer of hymns, he began to translate Paul Gerhardt's hymns so the congregation would be able to sing in Danish what they were already singing in German. As he began to translate these hymns, he also began to write his own hymns, at first to put Christ back into Christmas. His first collection, published in 1732, included many such famous Christmas hymns as "Thy Little Ones Dear Lord are We." After Brorson's death in 1764, his son collected his unpublished hymns into a collection called Svane Sang, ("Swan Song.") This collection has among it some of the most famous of all of Brorson's hymns, including this popular text. The melody, a popular one at the turn of the century, has an unknown source, though it is frequently referred to as being Danish and was found in the edition of the Danish-American songbook Sangeren published by the more pietistic Danish American church in 1909.

Reader: When I urge you to go to confession, I am simply urging you to be a Christian. If I bring you to this point, I have also brought you to confession. Those who really want to be good Christians, free from their sins, and happy in their conscience, already have the true hunger and thirst. They snatch at the bread just like a hunted hart, burning with heat and thirst, as Psalm 42:2 says, "As a hart longs for flowing streams, so longs my soul for thee, O God." That is, as a hart trembles with eagerness for a fresh spring, so I yearn and tremble for God's Word, absolution, the sacrament, etc. In this way, you see, confession would be rightly taught, and such a desire and love for it would be aroused that people would come running after us to get it, more than we would like.... Let us lift our hands in praise and thanks to God that we have attained to this blessed knowledge of confession.

"Children of God, Born Again by the Spirit"

Hans Adolf Brorson wrote this text for his book Troens Rare Klenodie ("The Rare Treasury of Faith"), which he published in 1735. This popular hymn of confession and forgiveness is from the section of Brorson's hymnal called "Troens Grund," or, the "Ground of Faith." This is only a part of the original 18 stanza hymn which treats the topic of the new birth in terms of adult conversion, a part of Christian experience which Brorson knew to be necessary when so many people in the church lived unregenerate lives and needed conversion, even though they had been baptized as children. This conversion was strictly God's work in the life of the sinner, and agreed with the teaching of Erick Pontoppidan, the Danish bishop and teacher who wrote the "Explanation to the Catechism" which most Norwegian and Norwegian Americans memorized from its publication until the last generation. Pontoppidan taught that the Word did for adults what Baptism did for children, as in the return of the Prodigal Son. Brorson bases his hymn on the text in I Peter 1:23, Galatians 4:6, and Romans 8:15, especially focusing on the notion that becase of Christ Christians can call God, Abba, or "daddy." Although the tune for this hymn in the Danish American Hymnal for Church and Home is by August Winding, the contemporary church in Denmark uses the tune "Lobe den Herren, O Meine Seele," from Ansbach. It is LBW 539 tune for "Praise the Almighty," found in the 1664 Seelen Harfe tune book.

THE SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR

in the plain form in which the head of the family

shall teach it to the household

Catechist: What is the Sacrament of the Altar?

Congregation: Instituted by Christ himself, it is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the bread and wine, given to us Christians to eat and to drink.

Reader: With this Word, you can strengthen your conscience and declare: "Let a hundred thousand devils, with all the fanatics, rush forward and say, 'How can bread and wine be Christ's body and blood?' Still I know that all the spirits and scholars put together have less wisdom than the divine Majesty has in his little finger. Here we have Christ's word: 'Take, eat: this is my body, etc. Drink of it, all of you, this is the new covenant in my blood., etc.' Here we shall take our stand and see who dares to instruct Christ and alter what he has spoken. It is true, indeed, that if you take the Word away from the elements or view them apart from the Word, you have nothing but ordinary bread and wine. But if the words remain, as is right and necessary then in virtue of them they are truly the body and blood of Christ. For as we have it from the lips of Christ, so it is: he cannot lie or deceive." p. 448

Catechist: Where is this written?

Congregation: The holy evangelists Matthew, Mark and Luke, and also St. Paul, write thus: "Our Lord Jesus Christ on the night when he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is my body given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, 'Drink of it, all of you. This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.'"

"God's Word is our Great Heritage" LBW 239

This text is the only one, besides the original, that has been strong enough to be sung to the great tune by Martin Luther, "Ein Feste Burg." In fact, it was intended by Grundtvig to be the fifth stanza of the original, and it was first published as such, but later, separately. It was among the few hymns by Grundtvig that the orthodox Norwegian Synod would allow in its hymnal of 1903. It remains a classic of Grundtvig and is frequently used as the Gospel response at festival events. The tune, of course, is written by Martin Luther for his great texts, the battle song of the Reformation, "A Mighty Fortress is Our God."

Reader: It is easy to answer all kinds of question which now trouble human beingsfor example, whether even a wicked priest can administer the sacrament, and like questions. Our conclusion is: Even though a knave should receive or administer it, it is the true sacrament (that is, Christ's body and blood) just as truly as when one uses it most worthily. For it is not founded on the holiness of human beings, but on the Word of God. As no saint on earth, yes, no angel in heaven can transform bread and wine into Christ's body and blood, so likewise no one can change or alter the sacrament, even if it is misused. For the Word by which it was constituted a sacrament is not rendered false because of an individual's unworthiness or unbelief. Christ doesnot say, "If you believe or if you are worthy, you receive my body and blood," but, "Take, eat and drink, this is my body andblood." p. 448

"Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow" LBW 529

The Danish church, both in Denmark and in this country, have done vigorous mission work in India, among the Tamils, and the Santal mission, which was a joint mission with the Norwegians and where the heroic, and colorful, Lars Skrefsrud, and the Danish Børreseb were a missionaries for many years. The story of the development of the first Christian mission in India is an interesting one which we celebrate this evening with this hymn which comes from the Tamil speaking traditions of the Indian sub-continent.

Catechist: What is the benefit of such eating and drinking?

Congregation: We are told in the words "for you" and "for the forgiveness of sins." By these words the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given to us in the sacrament, for where there is forgiveness of sins, there are also life and salvation.

Choir Anthem: "Arise all Things That God Has Made"

One of Brorson's most well known songs praising God the creator, this choral setting is a chestnut out of the Dana College tradition. Gunnar Malmin was the choir director at Dana for many years, until he moved to Pacific Lutheran College, in Tacoma, Washington, where he directed the Choir of the West until 1969. Malmin was a vigorous champion of the Lutheran choral tradition in his writing and choral arrangements. This was one of the best known of his arrangements in the Dana Choir Series published by Augsburg Publishing House. Malmin is now living in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Reader: The Lord's Supper is given as a daily food and sustenance so that our faith may refresh and strengthen itself and not weaken in the struggle but grow continually stronger. For the new life should be one that continually develops and progresses. Meanwhile it must suffer much opposition. The devil is a furious enemy; when he sees that we resist him and attack the old man, and when he cannot rout us by force, he sneaks and skulks about everywhere, trying all kinds of tricks, and does not stop until he has finally worn us out so that we either renounce our faith or yield hand and foot and become indifferent or impatient. For such times, when our heart feels too sorely pressed, this comfort of the Lord's Supper is given to bring us new strength and refreshment. p. 449

"Du fødtes på jorden" Lisbeth Smedegaard Andersen 1988

The hymn explosion of the past decades has swept from Europe to the United States. Scandinavia has been a fertile place for the new hymn explosion as hymnwriters have attempted to sing praise to God in the language of the contemporary, modern life they live. The heritage of the three great hymnwriters of Denmark, Kingo, Brorson, and Grundtvig, however, seems to have suppressed, until recently, the Christian muse in Denmark. Now, however, as the Danish church is moving toward a new hymnal, new voices have arisen. Among them, Lisbeth Smedegaard Andersen is one of the most accomplished. Smedegaard Andersen is a pastor in Copenhagen, as well as a teacher of homiletics in the theological school there. She has published two books of religious poetry and writes devotional literature for the modern Dane. She is a growing presence in the hymnological treasures of Denmark, and we are delighted to premier one of her most promising hymns this evening.

Catechist: How can bodily eating and drinking produce such great effects?

Congregation: The eating and drinking do not in themselves produce them, but the words "for you" and "for the forgiveness of sins." These words, when accompanied by the bodily eating and drinking, are the chief thing in the sacrament, and he who believes these words has what they say and declare: the forgiveness of sins.

Reader: It remains for us to consider who it is that receives this power and benefit. Briefly, as we said concerning Baptism and in many other places, the answer is: It is the one who believes what the words say and what they give, for they are not spoken or preached to stone and wood but to those who heard them, those to whom Christ says, "Take and eat," etc. And because he offers and promises forgiveness of sins, it cannot be received except by faith. This faith he himself demands in the Word when he says, "Given for you" and "poured out for you," as if he said "This is why I give it and bid you eat and drink, that you may take it as your own and enjoy it." Whoever lets these words be addressed to them and believes that they are true has what thewords declare." p. 450

"How Gladly I My Place Have Taken" Concordia 280

Peter S. Vig, was born in Kolding, Denmark, and came to this country after training in Copenhagen to be a missionary, where he graduated from the Missionary Institute in Copenhagen. As pastor in Neenah, Wisconsin, he later became president of Trinity Seminary in Blair, Nebraska, the seminary of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church, which later merged with the ALC, ELC, and LFC, to become the ALC. He wrote many hymns from the Danish for publication in the Hymnal for Church and Home, 1927, the hymnal of the Danes in this country. The tune for this text is a Norwegian folk tune from the 1932 Concordia.

Catechist: Who then receives this sacrament worthily?

Congregation: Fasting and bodily preparation are a good external discipline, but he is truly worth and well prepared who believes these words: "for you" and "for the forgiveness of sins." On the other hand, he who does not believe these words, or doubts them, is unworthy and unprepared, for the words "for you" require truly believing hearts.

Reader: That one who earnestly desires grace and consolation should compel himself to go and allow no one to deter him, saying, "I would really like to be worthy, but I come not on account of any worthiness of mine, but on account of thy Word, because Thou hast commanded it and I want to be thy disciple, no matter how insignificant my worthiness." This is difficult, for we always have this obstacle and hindrance to contend with, that we concentrate more upon ourselves than upon the words that proceed from Christ's lips. Nature would like to act in such a way that it may rest and rely firmly upon itself; otherwise it refuses to take a step. In the second place, a promise is attached to the commandment, as we heard above, which should most powerfully draw and impel us. Here stand the gracious and lovely words, This is my body, given for you. This is my blood poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. These words, I have said, are not preached to wood or stone, but to you and me. p. 454

"I Know a Kingdom without End" Concordia 117

This hymn is based on a translation from German by one of Denmark's first hymnwriters, Hans Sthen. Sthen, a gifted scientist, preacher, poet, translator, and theologian, is thought to have been born in Roskilde, Denmark, 450 years ago this year. He was pastor in Malmø, now in Sweden, but at the time part of the Kingdom of Denmark. John Dahle, the professor of Church Music at Luther Seminary during the early part of the century, remarks in his book on Christian hymnody that Sthen's hymns should be classified as spiritual folk-songs to which popular melodies were used. His hymns are noted for their gripping simplicity and directness. The first editions of his hymns and translations have disappeared simply because they were so worn by use. The tune is known in Denmark as "Jeg ved et evigt himmerig," but it is originally German from Luther's time.

Reader: Let this serve as an exhortation, then, not only for us who are grown and advanced in years, but also for the young people who ought to be brought up in Christian doctrine and a right understanding of it. With such training we may more easily instill the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord's Prayer into the young so that they will receive them with joy and earnestness, practice them from their youth, and become accustomed to them. For it is clearly useless to try to change old people. We cannot perpetuate these and other teachings unless we train the people who come after us and succeed us in our office and work, so that they in turn may bring up their children successfully. Thus the Word of God and the Christian Church will be preserved. Therefore let every head of a household remember that it is their duty, but God's injunction and command, to teach or have taught to his children the things they ought to know. Since they are baptized and received into the Christian church, they should also enjoy this fellowship of the sacrament so that they may serve us and be useful. For they must all help us to believe, to love, to pray, and to fight the devil. pp. 456-457.

"Now Thank We All Our God" LBW 534

This is one of the great hymns of the Christian church and was first translated into Danish by a contemporary of Brorson and included in Bishop Erich Pontoppidan's 1740 Hymnal. The hymn is remembered for being sung at a service of thanksgiving at the end of the 30 years war, a war which decimated northern Europe and left the people weary of religious conflict. The original German text is by Martin Rinckart, a courageous pastor who may have originally written this text for his family to sing before meals. It has become one of the most popular hymns in the Christian church. The tune is by Johan Crüger, the great composer of Berlin who, together with Paul Gerhardt, created countless hymns that shaped Christian praise over the generations.

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