Global Links - the monthly newsletter from ELCA Global Mission

GLOBAL LINKS – March 2011

Connect to the global church through http://www.elca.org/

Egyptian protests and refugees

Amid the chaos in Egypt sits a forgotten community, tens of thousands of refugees currently in Egypt awaiting the outcome. See www.elca.org/disaster.

Australian floods

Flash flooding overwhelms the city of Toowoomba. The Lutheran Church of Australia responds. See www.elca.org/disaster.

Young people are connecting globally through Lutheran World Federation (LWF)

Over 200 young people from 27 groups in different countries have already registered for LWF together -- the earth needs you, an innovative program sponsored by the Lutheran World Federation. Each group will be matched with two groups in other continents for a six-month period of Bible study, environmental projects, and building relationships through the Internet. Register your group of 2 to 15 members, with a majority in ages 15-30, by April 1, 2011, and receive a handbook and guidelines for the time period of May through October. See http://lwfyouth.org/lwf-together/.

Raising of Lazarus

Make the connection between the story of Lazarus (the Gospel reading for Sunday, April 10) and the ELCA’s work around the world to help communities overcome the crisis of HIV and AIDS. Find a powerful 30-minute documentary and discussion guide on The Lazarus Effect at www.elca.org/aids/lazaruseffect.

How can goats change a village?

Watch as gifts of livestock help the Lingson family in Malawi end hunger. See www.elca.org/hunger/video.

Glocal Mission Gathering in Park Ridge/Chicago, Ill., May 6-7

Equip yourself for God's work in today's global and local realities. For more information and registration, visit www.elca.org/glocal.

"For Slaves and Kings"

"As a pilot, I learned the words of another anonymous pilot: ‘Slip the surly bonds of earth and touch the face of God.‘ These words sent shivers down my spine. As a missionary, I get to touch the face of God both in slaves and in kings." Read more from this article by Phil and June Nelson, ELCA missionaries in Cameroon, at www.elca.org/handinhand; click either the copy-ready bulletin insert or the Hand in Hand newsletter, Spring 2011.

Sponsors invited

Pastor Paula Stecker, ELCA missionary in Haiti, is in need of prayer and financial sponsors. Paula is currently working with the Lutheran World Federation to strengthen communications with international partners and build up the network with faith communities and community-based organizations. Sponsors from the Southeastern, Florida-Bahamas, and Southeastern Iowa Synods are especially welcomed to minimize her travel time and maximize her effectiveness while on home leave. For more information, visit www.elca.org/missionarysponsorship or call 800-638-3522, ext. 2657.

Final call for Young Adult in Global Mission applications

March 1 is the deadline to apply for the Young Adult in Global Mission program, an opportunity to serve one year in another country. See www.elca.org/yagm.

Regional representative sought in West Africa

This position is responsible for assisting the ELCA in fostering relationships with companion churches, ELCA mission personnel and programs in West Africa, with a focus on Theological Education and Interfaith Relations. Preference given to applications received by March 15, 2011. Starts July 2011. See www.elca.org/globalserve and click Global Service Opportunities to search the database for “West Africa.”

Mission service changed my life

"The whole community had come together." After four years in South Africa, Paula Powell reflects on how the people she worked among with broadened her horizons and understanding. See her video reflections at http://blogs.elca.org/handinhand/

Three more Companion Synod Profiles

Online profiles have been completed for by the Greater Milwaukee Synod, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod, and the Upstate New York Synod. Learn what's happening in companion relationships across the ELCA at www.elca.org/companionsynodprofiles

Global headlines at www.elca.org/news (click News Releases)

+ ELCA Provides Input for Federation Regional Committee Work, Coordination
+ ELCA Presiding Bishop Responds to Veto of Resolution on Israeli Settlements
+ Record-Level Giving to ELCA World Hunger in December 2010
+ ELCA Presiding Bishop Calls on U.S. to Support Resolution on Settlements
+ ELCA Missionaries Left Egypt with Mixed Feelings, Look Forward to Return

In our prayers

Lift up in prayer Randall and Carol Stubbs, teaching music at Makumira University College of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania. Rejoice with them and their students as they learn the gifts of music and friendship. (This prayer for March 1 is available along with daily prayers from around the globe at www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Prayer-Center/Prayer-Ventures-2.aspx. )

Global Links contains highlights from elca.org of ELCA ministry or connections in other countries. See a current issue, subscribe, or follow on Facebook or Twitter at www.elca.org/global-links. Send your suggestions and comments to lanny.westphal@elca.org or to Pastor Lanny Westphal, ELCA Global Mission, 8765 W. Higgins Rd., Chicago, IL 60631.

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper and Games

Lent will (finally!) be here, just around the corner. The season of Lent begins quite late this year, on Ash Wednesday, March 9th, because Easter is so late: April 24th.

Once again, the Family & Youth Ministry Team here at CtK is hard at work putting together an evening for all ages: Shrove Tuesday, March 8th. The festivities will run from 5:30-7:30pm, and will include an all you can eat pancake supper, a cake walk, hula hoop contest, pancake toss, and more. We'll "get some of the silly out" before the somberness of Lent begins.

This is a wonderful event and tons of fun. Invite your friends and neighbors to join in!

Food for Thought

Here's an excerpt from a book I'm reading. It came off Pastor Lindean's book shelf.



From “Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Won’t Give Away More Money” by Christian Smith, Michael O. Emerson, and Patricia Snell

Consumer spending data collected by U.S. government agencies also belie the idea the more than a majority of American Christians are not more financially generous because they simply can’t afford to be. For Americans-the majority of whom are self identified Christians-turn out to have plenty of money to spend on other discretionary items. For instance:

*In 2005, Americans spent $27.9 billion on candy.
*In 2004, Americans spent $92.9 billion on refreshment beverages such as soda and bottled water.
*In 2000, Americans spent $203.7 billion on entertainment products and services, $67 billion which was spent on televisions, radios, and sound equipment; and $56 billion which was spent on fees and admissions for theater and amusement parks tickets and the like.
*In 2005, Americans spent $24 billion on movie DVDs, not counting VHS rentals and purchases.
*In 2005, Americans spent $15.2 billion on boats, engines, and other marine products.
*in 2004, Americans spent $29.7 billion in sporting goods stores.
*In 2003, Americans spent $45 billion in state lotteries.
Americans spent more than $100 billion per year on fast food in the early twenty-first century.
*Between 1978 and 2005, the average square footage of new single family houses in the United States rose from 1,750 to 2,414-a 40 percent increase in the size of single family homes in 27 years; the percentage of all new single-family houses sized 3,000 square feet or greater more than doubled between 1988-2005, from 11 to 23 percent.

*Generally, between 1959 and 2000, while the financial giving by American Christians was declining, the personal consumption expenditures of Americans increased for eating out in restaurants, toys, sport supplies, live entertainment, foreign and domestic travel by U.S. residents, lottery tickets, casino gambling, photography, sports and recreational camps, and other entertainment expenses.

What would it take for Christ the King members and friends to have an honest conversation about how we spend our money outside of church?

I welcome your comments and conversations.

Message by Walter Wink

Here's the text of the message by Walter Wink that I mentioned in my sermon on Sunday. I hope you enjoy it and that it is helpful as you grow in your understanding of the world in which Jesus lived and just how radical his message was, and is. Thanks be to God that Jesus is Lord!

"The Third Way"
One of the most misunderstood passages in all of the Bible is Jesus' teaching about turning the other cheek. The passage runs this way: "You have heard that it was said, `An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, do not resist one who is evil. If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also. And if anyone takes you to court and sues you for your outer garment, give your undergarment as well. If one of the occupation troops forces you to carry his pack one mile, carry it two."
This passage has generally been understood by people as teaching non-resistance. Do not resist one who is evil has been taken to mean simply let them run all over you. Give up all concern for your own justice. If they hit you on one cheek, turn the other and let them batter you there too, which has been bad advice for battered women. As far as the soldier forcing you to take his pack an extra mile, well are you doing that voluntarily? It has become a platitude meaning extend yourself.
Jesus could not have meant those kinds of things. He resisted evil with every fiber of His being. There is not a single instance in which Jesus does not resist evil when He encounters it. The problem begins right there with the word resist. The Greek term is antistenai. Anti is familiar to us in English still, "against," "Anti"-Defamation League. Stenai means to stand. So, "stand against." Resist is not a mistranslation so much as an undertranslation. What has been overlooked is the degree to which antistenai is used in the Old Testament in the vast majority of cases as a technical term for warfare. To "stand against" refers to the marching of the two armies up against each other until they actually collide with one another and the battle ensues. That is called "taking a stand."
Ephesians 6:13 says, "Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand (antistenai) in that evil day and having done all to stand (stenai)."
The image there is not of a punch drunk boxer somehow managing to stay on his feet even though he is being pummeled by his adversary. It is to keep on fighting. Don't retreat. Don't give up. Don't turn your back and flee but stay in there and fight to the bitter end.
When Jesus says, "Do not resist one who is evil," there is something stronger than simply resist. It's do not resist violently. Jesus is indicating do not resist evil on its own terms. Don't let your opponent dictate the terms of your opposition. If I have a hoe and my opponent has a rifle, I am obviously going to have to get a rifle in order to fight on equal terms, but then my opponent gets a machine gun, so I have to get a machine gun. You have a spiral of violence that is unending.
Jesus is trying to break that spiral of violence. Don't resist one who is evil probably means something like, don't turn into the very thing you hate. Don't become what you oppose. The earliest translation of this is probably in a version of Romans 12 where Paul says, "Do not return evil for evil."
Jesus gives three examples of what He means by not returning evil for evil. The first of these is, "If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also." Imagine if I were your assailant and I were to strike a blow with my right fist at your face, which cheek would it land on? It would be the left. It is the wrong cheek in terms of the text we are looking at. Jesus says, "If anyone strikes you on the right cheek..." I could hit you on the right cheek if I used a left hook, but that would be impossible in Semitic society because the left hand was used only for unclean tasks. You couldn't even gesture with your left hand in public. The only way I could hit you on the right cheek would be with the back of the hand.
Now the back of the hand is not a blow intended to injure. It is a symbolic blow. It is intended to put you back where you belong. It is always from a position of power or superiority. The back of the hand was given by a master to a slave or by a husband to a wife or by a parent to a child or a Roman to a Jew in that period. What Jesus is saying is in effect, "When someone tries to humiliate you and put you down, back into your social location which is inferior to that person, and turn your other cheek."
Now in the process of turning in that direction, if you turned your head to the right, I could no longer backhand you. Your nose is now in the way. Furthermore, you can't backhand someone twice. It's like telling a joke a second time. If it doesn't work the first time, it has failed. By turning the other cheek, you are defiantly saying to the master, "I refuse to be humiliated by you any longer. I am a human being just like you. I am a child of God. You can't put me down even if you have me killed." This is clearly no way to avoid trouble. The master might have you flogged within an inch of your life, but he will never be able to assert that you have no dignity.
The second instance Jesus gives is, "If anyone takes you to court and sues you for your outer garment, give your undergarment as well." The situation here is dealing with collateral for a loan. If a person was trying to get a loan, normally they would use animals or land as collateral for the loan but the very poorest of the poor, according to Deuteronomy 24:10-13, could hock their outer garment. It was the long robe that they used to sleep in at night and used as an overcoat by day. The creditor had to return this garment every night but could come get it every morning and thus harass the debtor and hopefully get him to repay.
Jesus' audience is made up of debtors -- "If anyone takes you to court..." He is talking to the very people who know they are going to be dragged into court for indebtedness and they know also that the law is on the side of the wealthy. They are never going to win a case. So Jesus says to them, "Okay, you are not going to win the case. So take the law and with jujitsu-like finesse, throw it into a point of absurdity. When your creditor sues you for your outer garment, give your undergarment as well."
They didn't have underwear in those days. That meant taking off the only stitch of clothing you had left on you and standing nude, naked, in court. As the story of Jonah reminds us, nakedness was not only taboo in Israel. The shame of nakedness fell not on the person who was naked, but on the person who observed their nakedness. The creditor is being put in the position of being shamed by the nakedness of the debtor. Imagine the debtor leaving the courtroom, walking out in the street and all of his friends coming and seeing him in his all-togethers and saying, "What happened to you?"
He says, "That creditor has got all my clothes," and starts walking down to his house. People are coming out of bazaars and alleys, "What happened? What happened?" Everyone is talking about it and chattering and falling in behind him, fifty-hundred people marching down in this little demonstration toward his house. You can imagine it is going to be some time in that village before any creditor takes anybody else to court.
What Jesus is showing us in these two examples so far is that you don't have to wait for a utopian revolution to come along before you can start living humanly. You can begin living humanly now under the conditions of the old order. The kingdom of God is breaking into the myths of these people now, the moment they begin living the life of the future, the kingdom of God.
Jesus' third example is "If one of the occupation troops forces you to carry his pack one mile, carry it two." Now these packs weighed 65 to 85 pounds, not counting weapons. These soldiers had to move quickly to get to the borders where trouble had broken out. The military law made it permissible for a soldier to grab a civilian and force the civilian to carry the pack, but only one mile. There were mile markers on every Roman road. If -- and this is the part we have left out -- the civilian were forced to carry the pack more than one mile, the soldier was in infraction of military code, and military code was always more strictly enforced than civilian. So Jesus is saying, "All right. The next time the soldier forces you to carry his pack, cooperate. Carry it and then when you come to the mile marker, keep going."
The soldier suddenly finds himself in a position he has never been in before. He has always known before exactly what you would do. You would mutter and you would complain, but you would carry it. As soon as the mile marker came, you would drop it. Suddenly, this person is carrying the pack on. The soldier doesn't know why, but he also knows that he is in infraction of military law and if his centurion finds out about this, he is in deep trouble. Jesus is teaching these people how to take the initiative away from their oppressors and within the situation of that old order, find a new way of being.
It is interesting that Gandhi said, "Everyone in the world knows that Jesus and His teaching is non-violent, except Christians." What Jesus is articulating here is a way of living in the world without violence, a way of overcoming domination in all of its forms by using a way that will not create new forms of violence. In the past, we have thought we had only two choices, either resist evil or don't resist evil. Jesus seemed to be saying, "Don't resist evil," and, therefore, non-resistance seemed to be the only alternative. Be supine, submit, surrender, flee, give up. It seems as if Jesus were asking us to be a doormat for God, to give up all concern for our own justice as well as the justice of others. Now we see in this passage interpreted in a new light, Jesus is not calling on people to be non-resistant. He is calling on them to be non-violent. He is calling on them to resist, yes, but to resist in a way that is not injurious or harmful to the other person.
In just the last few year, non-violence has emerged in a way that no one ever dreamed it could emerge in this world. In 1989 alone, there were thirteen nations that underwent non-violent revolutions. All of them successful except one, China. That year 1.7 billion people were engaged in national non-violent revolutions. That is a third of humanity. If you throw in all of the other non-violent revolutions in all the other nations in this century, you get the astonishing figure of 3.34 billion people involved in non-violent revolutions. That is two-thirds of the human race. No one can ever again say that non-violence doesn't work. It has been working like crazy. It is time the Christian churches got involved in this revolution because what is happening in the world is that the world itself is discovering the truth of Jesus' teaching, and here we come in the church, bringing up the rear.
This is the most exciting time a person could imagine to be alive. The gospel has never been more relevant. The world has never been more ready.

Time, Talent, Treasure and Tresses

As some wise sage has said, "Stewardship is everything you do after you say, 'I believe.'"
We are called to be stewards of our whole lives: financial resources, relationships, the planet, our time, the gifts and skills God has given us, our bodies, etc. A small group of folks at CtK, inspired by another member who wrote about donating her hair to Locks of Love at Christmas in 2009, decided to grow our hair out for a year and cut it off at Valentine's Day this year. And we did, this past Sunday, February 13th. Below are some pictures. All the hair was sent either to Locks of Love or to Pantene Beautiful Lengths (a similar program that requires only 8" and not 10" of hair).
It's a simple way to give, and didn't cost us any money, but we hope that our gifts will have a big impact on those who receive them.


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Chili Cook Off and Wii Bowling Fun

Here are some pics from the 5th Annual Chili Cook Off and 2nd Annual Wii Bowling Tournament. Congratulations to Jim O. for winning first place in the "Best Overall" chili category, and to Barb N. for being crowned the Wii bowling champ! Congrats as well to the other winners and participants. It was tons of fun! (and this non-chili eater thought the mac n' cheese was mighty tasty, too!).


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Famine Photos

Here are some photos from the 2011 30 hour famine and lock in - making Valentines to send to the troops we pray for each Sunday, helping the quilters tie quilts to give to those in need, enjoying the break-the-fast-feast:


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5th Annual Chili Cook-Off and 2nd Annual Wii Bowling Tournament

It's not too late to decide to bring a pot of chili! There will be prizes in four categories: Barn Burner, Mild but Tasty, Most Original, and Best Overall. About 7pm the Wii Bowling fun begins - perhaps you'll win the traveling trophy!
Don't make chili? Don't eat chili? Come anyway! There will be alternatives and this is always a SUPER FUN event!

Let your light shine before others

Salt and Light

Jesus call us in Matthew 5:13-14 to be “salt of the earth” and “light of the world.”

Last Sunday (February 6th) I named some people in my life who have been salt and light.

Who in your life has been salt and light? Have you been inspired to do the same?

Together we get to be the Body of Christ. Together we get to be salt and light to the world.

New Issue of "Cafe": Single & Loveable

Check out the newest issue of Cafe - Single and Loveable. Cafe is the zine of the Women of the ELCA, and has great articles, faith reflections, podcasts and opportunities to join the online conversation.

SUPER Souper Bowl of Caring!

Eleven middle school and high school youth and a handful of lucky adults had a GREAT time during the 30 hour famine and lock-in over the weekend. The feast Saturday evening was a wonderful way to end the fast.

And check out all the food brought in for the Gallatin Valley Food Bank! Way to go CtK! Thanks to the Willson Preschool for participating, too!

In addition to the pile of food (more than 530 cans/boxes), $660.47 was collected in the noisy soup pot offering for the food bank! CtK blew WAY past the goal of 300 cans and $300.

God is SO GOOD!

Bring Soup to Worship on Sunday!

This Sunday is Super Bowl Sunday, but it's also the SOUPER BOWL OF CARING! The Family & Youth ministry of CtK encourages EVERYONE to bring a can of soup (or several!) with them to worship this week - the goal is to collect 300 cans of soup and $300 in the "soup pot offering" for the Gallatin Valley Food Bank!
Middle School and High School youth will be participating in a lock-in and famine from Friday-Saturday, going 30 hours without food to learn about what it's like to go hungry. There will be games, guest speakers, Bible study, worship, hunger awareness activities and lots of water for drinking! The event concludes with a potluck feast to break the fast at 6pm on Saturday. All are welcome to join in for dinner - just bring a dish to share.
And please be sure to pray for the youth and adults participating in the famine - ask them about their experience on Sunday!

St. Brigid of Ireland

To be honest, I don't keep track of that many saints' festival days. I remember the feast day of St. Michael and All Angels on September 29th (because it's my birthday). And, like most Americans, I remember St. Valentine's and St. Patrick's Days, since they're pretty hard to miss. Today is one of the few saint's days that I remember without all the trappings of commerciality: February 1st is the feast day of St. Brigid of Ireland.

There are lots of great legends about her - a Christian in pagan Ireland in the 5th century, she founded abbeys and was known for her extreme generosity to the poor. One story tells of how she wove a cross out of rushes from the floor while sitting at the death bed of a pagan chieftan. When he asked what she was doing, she explained the cross and life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The chieftan then converted and was baptized before he died.

I wear a silver Brigid's cross most days- it was a gift from Grant while we honeymooned in Ireland. It reminds me not only of what Jesus has done for me and for the world, but also reminds me of my time and friends in Ireland, and that I need to be ready to explain my faith, even to unlikely people. Brigid's cross has sparked more than one conversation, when folks have commented on the "different-ness" of my necklace, which has given me opportunities to talk about Jesus when I would have least expected it.

Who could you share your faith with today?