A Lutheran, Slightly Out Of Phase

I went to church today. Lately, I've started going again on Sundays. It was a Lutheran church within biking distance from my house. I like the Lutherans so far because long ago, when I was in junior high school, I used to be a Lutheran, and from all my experiences with Lutherans, they seem to be decent, everyday people. Also, in all my experiences in Lutheran churches, I have never had an organist try to sell me a “worship” CD.

The pastor preached on the baptism of the Lord Jesus at the Jordan river, from Luke 3:18-22. He expounded the meaning of the Lord's baptism and how He took on Himself the sins of the world. And he mentioned Romans 6 and how we were baptized into Christ's death so that we might live a new life. But in expounding the meaning of our baptism, he also talked about the joy he had experienced in baptizing...infants. This brought me face to face with the sacramentalism of the Lutherans. As a man who identified himself as evangelical for many years, I have to say that this sacramentalism takes some getting used to. There was a lively internal soliloquy going on in my head as the pastor preached. “Is sprinkling water on a baby's head enough to make that baby a Christian?!” Most mainstream evangelicals are both quick and emphatic with their answer. The leaders of the abusive church I used to belong to were especially quick and emphatic. (They are also quick and emphatic to declare their views on the sacrament commonly known as “Holy Communion.”) But writers like C.S. Lewis seemed to be far less dogmatic. For me, the answer for now lies in going back to relevant passages in the Good Book and coming to my own conclusions. Once I arrive at those conclusions, I promise not to beat anyone over the head with them. However, if I run into a stranger and we get into a conversation on religion, my policy for now will remain as it has been to date: I'll say, “You must be born again.”

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After the service, I got into a fascinating conversation with the youth pastor concerning Christians and intentional community. He told me about Christian couples who share housing with each other, and mentioned Shane Claiborne's “simple way community” which operates in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I talked to him about the need for Christians to figure out intentional community as a response to the ongoing economic collapse and the necessity of re-thinking our living arrangements. From there we got on to discussing Peak Oil. The youth pastor also bikes to church from time to time, and there is a young woman who bikes as well. It was a refreshing surprise to find such an awareness of present social issues in this particular Lutheran congregation.