Saturday, October 29, 2011

Eschatological Ambiguity and the Commonwealth of God

Tonight I have the awesome responsibility of representing Christian tradition at Decoding Judgment Day, part of East Lansing's Jewish/Christian/Muslim interfaith series Beyond Coexistence. In studying up for this - I am by no means an expert on Christian end-times thought - I found a paper I had written in my final semester of theological education at Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago in 2007. I have decided to post that paper here as the basis for my participation in tonight's conversation. Also, I am doing this because what's the point of having a blog if not to try new and frightening things, making questionable decisions along the way? Enjoy.




Eschatological Ambiguity and the Commonwealth of God

Eschatology is theological reflection on the future, on last things. In constructing an eschatology we live in the maddening predicament that we are trying to reflect on the ambiguous future with which we have had no experience. This problem is as contemporary as it is age-old: When we speak of the future, what information is reliable? That of the past? Of the present? Uncertainty about the unknown future mingles with anxiety and fear, and we try to assuage our anxieties by trying to discern the future.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Hearing the Cries: Faith and Criminal Justice, ctd


Hearing the Cries:
Faith and Criminal Justice


Hearing the Cries: Faith and Criminal Justice is a study written by the Criminal Justice Task Force of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and published by the ELCA. It is an invitation to join this church’s moral deliberation on a major social issue that not only affects millions of our neighbors whom we are called by God to love and serve, but also many in our congregations. Your participation is crucial.

Enter into this important conversation on October 29th as we welcome Judith Roberts, ELCA Director for RacialJustice Ministries, to lead an introduction and conversation on this Study. Copies of Hearing the Cries will be available, along with instructions on offering feedback to the Task Force by November 11th 2011.

Saturday, October 29th
10:00 am to Noon
Lunch to follow
Please RSVP to andrew.tengwall@gmail.com for lunch

3616 East G Avenue
Kalamazoo, Michigan

For more information, contact Pastor Andrew Tengwall at andrew.tengwall@gmail.com

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

October 2011 Newsletter article


As saints of old their first fruits brought
of orchard, flock, and field to God,
the giver of all good, the source of bounteous yield,
so we today first fruits would bring,
 the wealth of this good land, of farm and market,
shop and home, of mind and heart and hand

- Frank von Christierson, “As Saints of Old,” ELW 695

Sarah and I were married this month, in a unique and powerful worship service featuring original music, vibrant preaching and a marriage ritual ancient in form and modern in content. We celebrated with a great party and a just-as-great afterparty, joining loved ones from far and near in an event for which I will always be grateful.

One of the great unexpected blessings of this time was the fact that so many of our loved ones chose to donate to causes dear to our hearts instead of simply buying us a gift. We wanted to offer this opportunity, but had no idea that so many friends would take us up on the opportunity to share our joy with organizations trying to do God’s work in the world. We received at least 25 donations, to organizations ranging from Lutheran World Relief and the UN World Food Programme who feed the hungry around the world to the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Alliance that strives to end bullying to five different aspects of the ELCA to the most formative organization for my own faith and life, Lutheran Volunteer Corps. It is truly a blessing to know that people love us enough to give to those in need around the world.

This brings me to think about our financial stewardship for the coming year. This month we will begin our annual reflection on our walk with Jesus, and how we can respond to God’s grace and mercy by sharing what we have with God’s church for the sake of the gospel and the world. When Jesus walked this earth with his disciples, he often talked about money and possessions. If money was a part of Jesus’ first walk on this earth, it should be a part of our walk with Jesus today.

My own stewardship for 2011 has been disappointing, I’m afraid. In 2010 I made a mistake with my taxes such that I needed to make up the difference in early 2011. Between that and the costs of a wedding and an as-yet-incomplete move to Battle Creek with Sarah, I have only been able to half-tithe this year. I am excited that 2012 will bring enough stability that I will once again be able to tithe, giving 10% of my income directly to the church in honor of all God has done for me, and giving to other vital causes on top of that.

Everything we have is a trust from God, given to us to care for and manage. What we do with our money is very much a part of our relationship with God. On the last three Sundays of October we will read a bulletin insert and hear a talk in worship and receive a letter from the congregation. All of these will focus on our walk with Jesus, and how money plays an important part in this walk. 

Then, on Sunday, November 6th, each member of Lutheran Church of the Savior will have the opportunity to complete an estimate of giving card. On this card, each of us will indicate our plan for giving for the coming year. This will not only be a plan for giving to Lutheran Church of the Savior, it will also be a plan for how we will walk with Jesus in the coming year.


Pastor Andrew

Campus Ministry at Western Michigan University

So it came to pass recently that I became the President of the Board of Lutheran-Episcopal Campus Ministries at Western Michigan University. Pretty exciting stuff, especially in that I don't entirely know what I've managed to sign myself up for.

Of particular interest is the impending lecture series LECM is sponsoring with the Department of Comparative Religions at Western on Religious Perspectives. This year the series focuses on Islam, and our first speaker from a Sunni perspective will be at Fetzer Center on Friday October 14th at 7pm. See the LECM link above for details. These days it is vitally important for people of faith to learn from one another.This series provides an excellent chance for us to learn about our brothers and sisters of faith as well as to meet people from a variety of backgrounds interested in interfaith efforts.

Also exciting is LECM's Sunday evening worship, featuring music from the Taizé community in France in a contemplative celebration of the Eucharist. Another time I'll tell the story of how centrally formative Taizé has been in my own spiritual life, but for now suffice to say you should check this out. We at LCS will be worshiping in a Taizé style on Wednesday evenings during Advent, and I am very excited for that opportunity as well.