Vimeo Tape - Holy Communion, New Year's Eve, 2021

 Holy Communion, New Year's Eve, 2021

Vimeo Tape

7 PM Central; the slider can be moved to the beginning of the tape.

Link below -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61kc3MFqBdE&t=2930s

Berean, Luther, KJV, and Shakespeare

 

The Bereans were so keen on the Word of God that they searched over Paul's work to make sure it was true. There are few Bereans like that available today.

Luther was so knowledgeable and powerful in his work that he shaped the German language, a masterpiece by itself, thanks to his abilities. He was so concise in his language that his German of today still remains, though very much altered by the corruption of so many languages, attempts, and twists.

The King James Version is very special in gathering the text and working it over until it was as perfect as could be. The editors were the greatest of their time. One indication is the murder of its brilliant initial translator, William Tyndale. 

William Tyndale was murdered for working on the English Bible, but his work was embodied n the King James Version.

 

Tyndale and the KJV editors established their Bible, which was so effective and useful that the KJV remains the best and most loved English version to this day. 

In the 1960s we were still being trained in Shakespeare in the high school. One teacher had us recite 100 lines of poetry to stay in the class. Shakespeare was studied in the classroom and offered for us (expected) in a live performance. 

Compare that to all the "cool stuff" promoted today. 

The ongoing use of the KJV is a way to keep up the language and the precision of Biblical English, but more importantly, it is the purest form and the most loved.

Revelation 1:8 - I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending...

Norma A. Boeckler's Concordia Open University - South India

 

Today's post is all about Christian Art and the ways in which the Gospel is projected across the world. I never had any skill in art, so I signed up for computer skills instead. Unfortunately, actual artists participated in the class and left most of us in the dust. However, that gave me the urge to do more with computers, copy and paste, and sending out into the blogosphere.

I insisted on Norma Boeckler using her artistic skills for the computer, and it never stopped after that. 

5,300 views of the latest page - and still counting.

It took me only a few seconds to copy the forlorn bear and send his sad face around the world. A lot of classical artwork is shared across all the boundaries, and many are used with stipulations.

A few examples belong with the writing and other works serve to enliven the message with colors, styles, and creativity. 

 Egypt

I am in Norma Boeckler's Egypt, looking out the window at the unrelenting snow in Minnesota. The couple is looking into the sunset and making us feel we are in another land.

 

Scriptures And Craving

 

I have read a ton of nutrition books and one of them is the most effective for me - a simple matter of craving (a life-long hobby). Dr. Joel Fuhrman is my guru for that simple matter.

As he wrote with simplicity - we often do not enjoy foods which are new to us, so we cater to those items which make us desire them. 

The irony for this error is our craving for chocolate, sugar, salt, desserts, fast foods, pizza, desserts of all kinds, crackers, popcorn, barbeque steaks and many more. Now you are hungry, maybe even starving (as we call craving).

I had Fuhrman on my bookshelves but did not read it. However, once I did (after being shocked by a diabetic reading), I devoured every page of the book. In steps for three years I removed most of the processed, sugared, oily, salt, fat foods, I lost 60 pounds (slow over 3 years). I also lost my craving for most of the fattening foods, craving for what really helped.

Scriptures Also Cause Craving 

When Used Wisely

When I was baptized, soon after birth, I listened carefully to the words spoken, the Gospel and the Promises. My mother was especially kind and eager to help my gradual steps forward. She taught Sunday School, helped me on the piano, and taught me the 23rd Psalm. Many decades later I read her those same words as she died.

I was baptized with the King James Version and came back to that Bible many years later. New translations were like candy, often given away, but they achieved many levels of ruin the Book.

The turning point came from a Lutheran layman who said, "Greg, I like your Christian News articles, but why are you not using the KJV?" 

I did not have a KJV disc for the computer, so he gave me one. Making the KJV 100% - except for easy quotes - I used the best and most accurate Bible from that time on. 

I found using the KJV a delight, because those older words, which are few, are much more precise and melodic than than the junk food of fly-by-night Bibles.

Bethany members and friends know. BibleJohn and his sainted wife loved to see boxes and boxes of KJVs in all forms (but never) diluted. He made changes to an area where people craved getting a new KJV, a small KJV, a prison KJV, and a super-giant KJV. BibleJohn's funeral was an ornament to his energy and love for the Scriptures.

Colossians - So Clear And Filled with Wisdom

 

The Colossians graphic is so beautiful in words and art that I had to feature it.

Colossians 3:16-17

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Paul's words, inspired by the Holy Spirit, are short, condensed, and clear, as if he had to get everything across to his people. Being far away certainly made him long for the friendships and faith from a distance. 

One way to get to know  a portion of the New Testament is to think, "I know this book but not to well," or even "What is this short and clear booklet?"

2 For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;

2 That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;

Collossians 2:3-9

3 In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

4 And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words.

5 For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ.

6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:

7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

 

The young ones catch on fast!

Every time!

I had trouble getting the computer camera to be angry with the computers. The same equipment worked another way when I used them before.

"Woe! Woe! Thrice woe!" That is Shakespeare, I think.

My response was to let the new response work on the software. The trial lasted about one second on each computer. 

"Aha!" That coincided with the recent, silent improvement. 

I found a photo of Augustana College, Rock Island, which reminded me of my alma mater not letting me use the camera in the library, a place where I had read and glued many times. We had no computers then. I repaired worn out library copies as part of my income. 

The Denkmann Library in the background is now listed as a "building."

What Matters - No Matter What the Age or Content!

 The Christian Faith

I enjoy talking to members and friends - about current events, Biblical doctrine, and relationships. Like many people, I have lost interest in the corporate lives and dramas of denominations. That does not mean I oppose structures - only that members and clergy are going off in different directions, away from the Christian Faith. 

As I wrote before, the King James Version is the Christian Faith, the best expression of God - most precise, most reliable, and most trustworthy. I was shocked as a boy hearing (from my mother) that the liberals changed the Virgin Birth of Christ.  (Isaiah 7:14) into a young woman. That change was the doing of the apostates, because they rejected the divinity of Christ. Needless to say, my mother was shocked.

Many years later, my mother passed into eternal life, in our sunny Phoenix living room, as I read Psalm 23  to her from my KJV. She had no reason to abandon the best English Bible, which is still dominant today. Variations in the new versions and even back to some older attempts - that is enough to make me dizzy. Why dwell on the second best, or the changing best, or the amplified invented best?

The earliest New Testament authors, motivated by the Holy Spirit, taught the Christians and wrote down the manuscripts with exceedingly precise works. They also translated them into favored languages and preserved them. 

There is a vast collection of materials that show the precision of the good manuscripts, but the snarky know-it-alls like to make fun of anything that is not traditional, not precise, not protected through the faith of Christian scholars (like Luther). 

Corporations

My generation was happy to find new, inventive, and bizarre Bibles. "Every one will love this one?" So they say.

No matter what the good intentions are, church corporations will gather together to provide a product, which has worked well for the corporations. 

The products today are 99% not working, not working well at all - except for Mennonites, who emphasize marriage (gasp!), babies (gasp!), and their Christian Faith (what!?).

The people who inform me agree that the Corporations are losing their precious numbers, which they hope are window-dressing. The Church Growth fanatics landed squat on the Corporations, gleaned what they could in money/property/prestige, then collapsed. They are hot air balloons leaking air and sinking slowly down.

Is the Focus Too Narrow?

 

The focus on national news is now Minnesota, freezing cold, and "how did we get this way?"

Journalism is a term adopted from Latin - and increasingly flexible. Journalism began originally as "a writer of things," not the facts, but more like "my diary." Yes, I took journalism at Regent U. and other places, way back to junior high school, many times later through religious printing presses.

I heard about Columbus, Ohio, long before the Twin Cities had a similar concentrated area and world-wide attention. I thought it was strange and wrong to sweep in a section of people and own the property. Already next in the news will be various states where the same kind of errors have been made and the solutions questioned. 

I suggest paying attention to various large state populations where the same errors are being addressed and often denied. 

The Two Natures of Christ are clearly revealed in this passage, and yet the Mainline Denominations (denying the Holy Trinity) refuse to acknowledge this miraculous passage. One of many clear passages brings down and nullifies the Scriptures. Readers can easily point out the "wisdom" of the Left as the rejection of the Word of God. Journalism is usually a little more than a "writer of things."

This Is Our America

 

The wheelchair is waiting behind the 104 year old WW 2 veteran, who played the sax beautifully. 104-year-old Dominick Critelli, a World War II veteran, performed the national anthem on his saxophone - with gusto!

Reviewed the 2021 Vimeo This Morning

 

 Luther's Works were prolific in the earliest days of the printing press, a combination that changed the West completely.

I picked a Vimeo video tape, 2021, but I want to do more for the future. We have gone from IBM to Vimeo to Zoom. YouTube alone might work.

I wonder how well this works already -

Click here for the latest YouTube Videos 

St. Stephen's Day - Video Tape of Complete Service.

 

 Veteran's Honor was placed on the altar, a few years earlier.

Click for St. Stephen's Day - The video tape came from several years ago. This includes the liturgical service and Holy Communion. The slider can move forward the first "9 minutes" to get started, because the camera was already running.

In our prayers - Alicia Meyer, Lori Howell, Lito and Family.

Psalm 91 - The Universal Prayer

 

Erin Joy wore out the newspaper photographer, trying to get one good photo for the press. Nothing worked until one of us said, in a fake tone of anger, "Erin! Do NOT hold that teddy bear!" Erin wrapped her arms around the teddy bear and grinned at all three of us.

Like Erin Joy's photo nearby, Bethany Joan Marie is always on my mind. There are many soldiers like them, many battles, but always in God's hands.

I chose these photos because Psalm 91 is often called "The Soldier's Prayer." I have often asked Old Testament students, "Which is your favorite Psalm?" Many have said, "The Soldier's Prayer," based on parents or their own military experience.

I often think of the patients and their families.

Psalm 91 is linked on the top of the left column. The Psalm is hanging on the wall of many homes, including the one where I am staying.

KJV Psalm 91

KJV Psalm 91 

 91 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;

10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.

15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

The Largest Lutheran Seminary - Now Selling Off Both Patches of Land

 

Robin Steinke

Luther Seminary to sell St. Paul's More Nimble campus after 120 years

The seminary was founded in 1869.

Luther Seminary's campus in St. Paul, which has operated for 120 years, will be vacated after the 2026-2027 school year, seminary leaders have announced. 

In a statement Tuesday, Luther Seminary President Robin Steinke said the seminary will be seeking a new space in the Twin Cities area and "shifting to a more nimble model" as 70% of its current students choose online education. 

The seminary's Board of Directors voted unanimously to begin the transition, which will involve seeking a buyer for its 10-acre upper campus in the St. Anthony Park neighborhood. 

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Luther Seminary has placed the Lower Campus property—which includes Lauderdale and St. Paul parcels encompassing Northwestern Hall, Stub Hall, and Breck Woods—for sale and is working with CBRE as the real estate broker.

The board approved a future sale of the lower campus in May 2018 as part of an overall campus redesign. The current listing follows a period when the property was removed from active sale due to challenging market conditions. Any proceeds from a potential sale will be reinvested to support the seminary’s mission to educate leaders for Christian communities.

Community members with questions may contact Heidi Droegemueller at hdroegemueller001@luthersem.edu. Please direct any external or media inquiries to Rachel Farris at farrisr@augsburg.edu. Any inquiries related to purchasing the property should be directed to Brian Pankratz, Brian.Pankratz@cbre.com.

Boxing Day - Today - British and Canadian Custom

 

Boxing Day is bound to perplex Americans, but it is honored by Canadians. The day is marked after Christmas Day and known for helping household helpers. Christina thought it was a great idea to visit a couple from my vicarage, and so we went on an icy day when streets were empty except for the sleet falling. I slid down the driveway before I could ring the doorbell, so everyone (except me) was laughing and laughing.

Since nothing really happens in Canada on December 26, the sliding vicar was discussed for a long time afterwards. Christina even asked the older couple for a chance to live upstairs since the seminary duties and degrees were finishing. We were going to fly to England on an incredibly cheap flight because the University of Waterloo club offered an extremely low price for the trip.

Last night, our son Martin was told that he was on the way soon after the two tickets to England were bought. "We can go another time," we imagined. Christina attended her MA degree in German literature at UniWat, and we all enjoyed her honors, Opa and Oma especially. Waterloo Lutheran Seminary faculty paid for my required MDiv stole, which arrived later. 

A few months later, a famous Yale professor was glad to use Christina's research skills at Yale Medical School, where they hosted children's works. I xeroxed next door for the Yale Medical Library, so we often took the little bus together.

The three of us went to Yale Divinity together in the fall of 1972. The first greeter (at the married dorm) was Connie Youngdahl, who said to Christina from the upstairs window, "Are you expecting?" Her husband, decades later, met up with Martin, very considerate.

I put this together last night, for Martin and me - great fun.

The Day Missions Library is next to Yale Divinity Library, where the Revised Standard Version changed the Virgin Birth (Isaiah 7:14), using the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA.

Very little happened at the impressive but ancient Yale Medical Library, on one side. The other, modern side, the latest books, were very small in number, because they were replaced so quickly.

Luke 2 and Psalm 91

 

Tom Fisher's flock of sheep.

2 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)

As one writer observed, Jesus was predicted a thousand years before His birth. But that claim is rather mild, since the Burning Bush displayed the dual nature of the Burning Bush, Exodus 3:14, And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you. Even earlier, Abraham trusted in God - Genesis 15:6 - And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness...and the future King David, and the Son of David.

3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Is anything more common than having a baby, especially when treated as a commoner with no obvious benefits, poor housing for the mother and child, humble shepherds as staff, a food trough for a crib?!

8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

We need a revision of the shepherds in the field. The angels of the Bible are the most powerful forces under the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Angelic messengers are not cute stage-hands but  soldiers who accomplish anything needed and reveal what needs to be said. The magnificent display in the fields was blocked off from the hoi polloi (everyone else, even royalty) while they marched over to meet the tiny Prince.

15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.

16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

Their AWOL was God-inspired, so the shepherds knew among themselves what they needed to do and to say. While mankind is always figuring out how to grab riches and force dominance, God sets the stage for the next level of His majesty. He multiplied the opportunities for the tiny child to lead His people, His nation, and His world. But that was 30 years into the future. How often we cheer the instant thrill and overlook the divine riches ahead. 

 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.

18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.

19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

This was just the beginning, but a change from Promises to fulfillment. The disciples and Paul would deal with the most wrenching trials, fears, dismay, and terror. But they had the strength of their Savior to follow in His steps. The Faith of Jesus is our guide, a Bible with an endless supply of the Spirit at work in the Word.

Psalm 91 - daily reading

91 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;

10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.

15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

 

For Christmas Eve Today - And Use the Second Tape Link Today or Tomorrow

 

Christmas Eve - Click on the link for the better Christmas Eve tape. It should repeat when it is started again at its beginning.

 http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/search/label/Christmas%20Day%202022

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Christmas Eve - An Older Version - Lesser Quality. Could be used tomorrow.

http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/search/label/Christmas%20Eve%202021

Be patient - I am counting on people to practice and use these links today and tomorrow. More efforts are coming, God willing.