1) I’m now a merchandiser. It does not pay much, but the schedule’s flexible enough to attend to my Prediger’s needs. If I ever meet the guy behind Volition.com, I owe him a beer.

2) When not merchandising, I help out at the IT committee at Science Central. I’m learning a lot about systems administration. Got more to observe IRT virtualization.

3) I had to give up Atkins. It was a great diet. But my gallbladder was angry. The surgeon will remove it via an outpatient procedure. But after that, I just cannot return back to Atkins. In the meantime, I have to eat differently. So I’m on Weight Watchers. They have a new points plan, and new algorithm to calculate the allotted points. They even gave me a special calculator. At least I can eat all the fruits (avocados excepted) and most veggies until I’m satisfied.

4) I had an idea that I need to toss out to my pastor (or any other Fort Wayne-area LCMS pastor). I am openly autistic, of the Asperger variety. As a kid, I’ve had difficulties in the Catholic Church, mainly from the attitudes of the parish. There is a big opportunity to address the spiritual needs of those of us on the Spectrum. I would like to see, at the bare minimum, an autistic-friendly church service. If we need to self-stim, we can do that without the glares of the neurotypical folk who do not know the modus operandi of stimming. Sensory matters will be kept to a minimum. The service will be liturgical. (Maybe a social story handout would go along with it.) Over time, catechesis will be available as well as pastors’ workshops helping them out with their own congregation. If his workload is too much, maybe someone else can assist me.

“Many Christians have been duped into believing that drilling for oil in Alaska will harm the pristine land.”

“Many Christians have been duped into believing that drilling for oil in Alaska will harm the pristine land.”

“Many Christians have been duped into believing that drilling for oil in Alaska will harm the pristine land.”

“Many Christians have been duped into believing that drilling for oil in Alaska will harm the pristine land.”

Stick to what you do best– promoting the Liturgy. Allow the rest of us to be good watchful stewards as we advocate the use of energy alternatives.

This is exactly the right thing he could say to us and others who by various interventions, cannot have children. Unlike the blanket dictum that all Confessional couples must be open to children or they are less than Christian (found in one unofficial Lutheran publication), Curtis understood that God has blessed and still blesses people who do not quite measure up to the norm.

Before I went to have corrective surgery that improved my health, I sought the counsel of my pastor. He prayed for me. He visited me at the hospital. And he told me that I can still enjoy the gift of children, just by caring for people. There are many unloved people out there.

I want to say to Pr Curtis: thank you. Thank you for understanding. (And I read the article anyway. So there. :P You should too.)

At the Fort, we have 21 final-year students not receiving a call. These men are indeed faithful to our Confessions and now unfortunate– for how will they pay back their student loans? How will they support themselves and their families? And will any of them be tempted to gain courage to “curse God and die”– as if God did not care about him in the first place? How horrible was that feeling. Even with medication and psychotherapy, I still have those bouts. I am sure several men are thinking that situation would require “a really futile and stupid gesture be done on [their] part.” Full circle.

Empty platitudes and glib Scripture quoting won’t help. Remember St James? “Faith without works is dead.” No, I’m not appealing to Roman Catholic theology, putting the cart before the horse. Fellow Confessionals, we have an opportunity to express our faith in God and to strengthen these students.

You can help out by contributing to the Student Emergency Fund at CTSFW. The Brothers of John the Steadfast has all the details. Also, if you know any of the 30 men at StL and FW, plus any of the Deaconess students without assignments, offer them help. These people will need help in the basic needs (food, shelter, etc) and they need employment. Let them know that their faithfulness is not in vain.

A sidenote: Bishop Obare preached at Shepherd of the City during the time when the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya is entering fellowship with the Missouri Synod. The Prediger picked him up from the Sem where he was staying. From what I heard, we are the first church in Synod to have him preach and administer the Sacrament. He was impressive at the pulpit, and it was an honor to receive the Sacrament from this man. Later that day, I realized that I committed a theological faux pas: his church body has NOT yet entered full altar fellowship! (Facepalms for me.) Yet I realized that I rather be fed by this confessional giant than by the theology of glory jockeys who oversee some of our Synod’s parishes. Sometime later, one of our fieldworkers [Dennis Meeker] was ordained by Obare and now serving with his wife Lorna in Kenya.

“You aren’t making Christianity any better, you’re just making rock and roll worse!”– Hank Hill

And now, my first experience with CCM, in 1984: Steve Taylor’s Meltdown (at Madame Tussaud’s). Flipping through the UHF channel, past the scrambled SelecTV, past the foreign language channels…it’s TBN, channel 40! It was one of my earliest brushes with Protestantism.

1. How often is Jesus mentioned? For his purposes, a simple tally will suffice.
2. Is Jesus the subject of the verbs? Is Jesus the one who acts, or are you?
3. What are the verbs? What has Jesus done and what is He doing?

My English prof is this Methodist, the type that loves hymns and does not dig the fluff. I’m printing this out for her so she can see where I’m coming from.

-First, there is inconsistent syntax. The letter was written like a Evangelical Protestant would have done: “We raised her with strong Christian beliefs”, “I’ve prayed over her at night while she sleeps, enlisted friends in a phone prayer tree”, “God-fearing”. What threw that off was when the letter-writer mentions that she has contacted her priest. Evangelicals do not refer to their clergy as “priests”…they call them “pastors” or “preachers”, depending on their denomination. Anglicans do have priests, but the syntax just does not fit.

-Second, Catholics do not conduct exorcisms regularly. Note this sentence: “…spoken to my priest about the possibility of an exorcism.” What did the priest said? I cannot ask the parish priest down the street and have him and his colleagues come by the house in a few days. In order to have one, you must ask the diocese bishop for permission. Same thing applies with Anglican priests. Any of the priests will rule out any psychological factors before they determine that it’s supernatural. They would advise the psychologically afflicted to go seek professional help and give them a blessing. And good luck telling him that you want an exorcism for your non-believing daughter. You might as well ask them to exorcise Dr Stephen Hawking for his unbelief. Also…Protestants who performed such services do not call them “exorcisms”…they call them “deliverance sessions”.

-Third, most clergy agree that it’s a matter of free will to reject Christ. They might chat with the daughter about where’s she’s at spiritually, but ultimately, it’s up to the questioning person to figure things out. By the way…if you are parents of a college student, why not visit the campus churches and see what they can offer for your student?

-Calling the FBI seems over the top. Atheism is not a thoughtcrime and is protected under the 1st Amendment. The days of J. Edgar Hoover are long past, and I’m sure that there are dedicated FBI agents who are questioning or non-believing. The only way they would respond is if she does actual crimes like movie piracy, trafficking or terrorism.

-Finally, why would this conservative Christian write to a secular agony aunt? The sort of person writes or calls Focus on the Family, EWTN (if Catholic), or even the 700 Club for advice before she considers asking someone outside the faith. Ergo… this letter is a troll.

The following is a rant. My apologies in advance.

I went to church expecting Jesus, and left empty handed.

The screens are questionable at best. But that is the least of my concerns. You guys had a 20 minute sing-a-long…of simple peppy hymns…not from LW, TLH, or the new Hymnal…with canned music…and no Lenten hymns.

Via a puppet, you told the children that keeping the 10 Commandments are a way to a good life as a Christian. Where is Jesus? The adult sermon is not much better.

I’ll tell you, Pastor, why people are excited over our favourite TV shows and why they are hesitant to attend your church: YOU DO NOT SHOW JESUS IN WORD AND SACRAMENT AS THE FOCUS OF OUR LIVES. Where’s the forgiveness of sins via the work of Christ Crucified? Instead, we are subjected to moralising and how following the 10 Commandments are a matter of having a “relationship with God”–by the way…which god? Not once you ever pointed to the Cross. Not once you did say we failed miserably at keeping the 10 Commandments and only Jesus followed it to perfection.

I walked out after the sermon, did not go to the Lord’s Supper as we are not in agreement theologically, despite its LCMS name. (And by the way, there’s no chalice, just little jiggers.)

I’m hesitant to attend church in Phoenix, lest I get disappointed. What should I do? Some of you are doing the Lenten non-commenting, so here’s the email: madtheo attt carolrutz dooott com !!!1!