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Messiah Lutheran Church and School Fun Weekly Bible Trivia, Humor, Questions, Answers & Fact Archives: |
8154 Atlee Road Mechanicsville, VA 23111 (804) 746-7134 |
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Fun Weekly Bible Trivia, Humor, Questions, Answers & Fact Archives:
Minnesota Lutheran Dies, Spouse Injured in Beijing Attack
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * How Lutheran's Worship
There is a basic pattern for worship among Lutherans. We gather. We encounter God’s Word. We share a meal at the Lord’s table. And we are sent into the world. But we do not think about worship so much in terms of what we do. Worship is fundamentally about what God is doing and our response to God’s action. Worship is an encounter with God, who saves us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Think about it like this. God’s Spirit calls us together. God speaks to us through readings from the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, through preaching, prayer, and song. God feeds and nourishes us in a saving way. And God blesses us and sends us in mission to the world. Taken together, the Word proclaimed and the sacraments -- both Holy Baptism and Holy Communion -- are called the means of grace. We believe that Jesus Christ is present in these means through the power of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we describe worship as a “gathering around the means of grace.” This is a way of saying that we trust that God is genuinely present with us in baptism, in preaching, and in sharing the bread and wine of Holy Communion. In that sense, Lutherans believe that God’s presence permeates all of Christian worship. The cross is the central symbol that marks our worship spaces and when Lutherans worship, singing fills the air. The voices of all the people joined in song and the participation of all the people in the worship is a witness to our conviction that in worship we are being drawn in to God’s own saving story. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Chaplains Serve Faithfully
Palmer, who has since served as a chaplain at Yongsan Garrison, South Korea, said that he also accompanies soldiers through difficult moments - before, during, and after combat situations. Palmer told Stars and Stripes magazine in October 2007 that he responded to posttraumatic stress disorder among soldiers when his unit returned from Iraq to Fort Riley, Kan., and he sees it on the base in South Korea. Your prayers and mission support funds make it possible for the ELCA Bureau for Federal Chaplaincy Ministries to support 198 ELCA active duty and reserve military chaplains to accompany soldiers in times of need. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Internet Resources for Musicians The Internet offers a host of resources for parish musicians - and they are mostly free! Check out the following: • Library of Congress - Music for the Nation: American Sheet Music, ca. 1820-1860, 1870-1885, http://memory.loc.gov. This huge database of the archival files of the U.S. Copyright Office contains over 62,000 pieces of sheet music. The database is searchable by subject, instrument, title, composer, style of music and/or type of choir. • Choral Public Domain Library - www.cpdl.org. With over 9,000 scores by more than 1,300 composers, something can be found for any size choir. The database may be searched by composer, title, era (chant or modern), style (anthems to oratorios) and liturgical season. (Advent to Quinquagesima). Most scores are printable in multi-page PDF format. • Werner Icking Music Archive - http://icking-music-archive.org. Classical music is predominant in this large database maintained in Denmark. Searchable by composer, the collection features scores from Europe's most familiar names. The database is updated daily and provides many pieces for organ, choir and instruments. • Hymns of Martin Luther - The Online Library of Liberty, http://oll.libertyfund.org. A free PDF version of an 1884 edition of 36 hymns by Luther in German/English. This is a historic and authoritative resource that may be used by choirs and congregations. These hymns are particularly appropriate for special services. • Free Christmas Carol Music - www.christmascarolmusic.org and http://christmassongbook.net. Between these two sites, there are more than 100 pieces of free music for Christmas - secular and religious, SATB, melody line with chords, guitar lead sheets and transcriptions for many instruments. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Stories of Faith In Action
"We live in a secular world," Jacobson said. "Everything reminds us of a movie or television show. Jesus doesn't enter naturally into our conversations. Developing a biblical imagination allows this to happen." Book of Faith is a five-year ELCA initiative, launched in August 2007, that invites this entire church to become more fluent in faith's first language - Scripture. The initiative, funded by mission support, was approved by the 2007 ELCA Church wide Assembly. The overall goal is to renew, enliven, and empower people for mission and service by reading and studying God's Word. The first-year goal is to invite everyone at all levels of the church to join the conversation, make a commitment, and become part of the initiative. Jacobson's role as director of the initiative involves traveling the United States half-time, when not teaching at Luther Seminary, in order to encourage Lutherans to experience more fully the power of the Word and to learn together about Lutheran approaches to Scripture that have been fruitful over the centuries. Jacobson added, "When you experience challenging or joyous or frightening circumstances in the world, you can bring Scripture to the process of thinking about them. In other words, God becomes a player instead of being incidental to your experience. For more Stories of Faith in Action, visit www.elca.org/Our-Faith-In-Action.aspx
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * PETER AND PAUL - APOSTLES AND MARTYRS
The statue on the left is of St. Peter. St. Paul is on the right. Both are on display at St. Peter's Square, Rome, Italy. (Click on each picture for larger version.)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Two Bible-themed parks are being planned for middle Tennessee. The Trinity Broadcasting Network plans to move some exhibits from its Bible park, The Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Fla., to Hendersonville's Trinity Music City, which it also owns. Separately, a group of developers is looking for a site for another park, Bible Park USA. The developers had faced community protests over their proposal to build outside Murfreesboro.
The Holy Land Experience stages daily re-enactments of the Crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus and has one of the largest private Bible collections in the world. Bible Park USA is proposing a working reproduction of a first-century Galilean village, reenactments of Bible stories, a parted Red Sea for visitor to stroll through and indoor rides. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 1. In what river did John the Baptist baptize Jesus? (Matthew 3) 2. What body of water did Moses bring the Israelites through? (Exodus 15) (Answer -B. The Red Sea)
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * These are ACTUAL announcements from ACTUAL church bulletins. 1. Don't let worry kill you - let the church help.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * WHAT IS THE SEASON AFTER PENTECOST? Because Pentecost is the day that God poured out His Holy Spirit on Christ's disciples, the Season after Pentecost is centered on sanctification, the work of the Holy Spirit in the day to day life of the Christian. This is reflected in the liturgical color for this season: green, the color of life and growth. Through the gift of faith that comes only from the Holy Spirit, Christians are enabled to trust in Christ and proclaim Him in their daily lives by service to their neighbors. The season after Pentecost is the longest season of the church year -- it lasts from Trinity Sunday until the first Sunday of Advent. This is the non-festival portion of the liturgical calendar during which the church stresses vocation, evangelism, missions, stewardship, almsgiving, and other works of mercy and charity as ways in which Christ empowers us by His grace to share the Gospel with others. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Women of the ELCA Women of the ELCA, the women’s organization of the church, has thousands of participants in thousands of congregations. Together we are committed to growing in faith, affirming our gifts, supporting one another in our callings, and engaging in ministry and action that promotes justice and wholeness for all people. To learn more, visit Women of the ELCA’s Web site.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Athanasian Creed: This creed is of uncertain origin. It was supposedly prepared in the time of Athanasius, the great theologian of the fourth century, but many scholars have theorized that it seems more likely that it dates from the fifth or sixth centuries because of its Western character. It communicates two essential
points of Bible teaching: that God's Son and the Holy Spirit are of one being with the Father; and that Jesus Christ is true God and true man in one person. Traditionally it is considered the "Trinitarian Creed." In many congregations it is read aloud in worship on Trinity Sunday, the Sunday after Pentecost. To read the Athanasian Creed, click here.
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In 1907, Anna M. Jarvis (1864-1948), a Philadelphia schoolteacher, began a movement to set up a national Mother's Day in honor of her mother, Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis. She solicited the help of hundreds of legislators and prominent businessmen to create a special day to honor mothers. The first Mother's Day observance was a church service honoring Anna's mother. Anna handed out her mother's favorite flowers, the white incarnations, on the occasion as they
represent sweetness, purity, and patience. Anna's hard work finally paid off in the year 1914, when President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the second Sunday in May as a national holiday in honor of mothers.
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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Martin Luther's Marriage to Katharina von Bora (1525)
Katharina took over the household, particularly the household expenses; it is said that Dr. Luther did not have a clue how to run a household. She also proved herself to be a good housewife and gardener.
Luther's household included not only his wife and six children, but also one of Katharina's relatives and after 1529 six of Luther's sister's children. Luther also housed students in his home to help the family's financial situation.
Luther's Table Talk (Tischreden) are characteristic of Luther's family life, in which his language and his closeness to the people become very clear.
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What is a Lutheran? While there are a variety of ways one could answer this question, one very important answer is simply this, "A Lutheran is a person who believes, teaches and confesses the truths of God's Word as they are summarized and confessed in the Book of Concord." The Book of Concord contains the Lutheran confessions of faith.Perhaps you have attended an ordination of a pastor and heard him promise that he will perform the duties of his office in accord with the Lutheran Confessions. When people are received into membership into a Lutheran congregation through confirmation they are asked if they confess the doctrine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, as they have learned to know it from the Small Catechism, to be faithful and true. These solemn promises indicate to us just how important the Lutheran Confessions are for our church. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * FACT or Fiction? Only great minds can read this? fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * FACT: Martin Luther (1483-1546) stands in history as one of those unique forces, an individual who by force of will and by his ideas changed the world fundamentally. The following is Martin Luther's prayer when he was ordained.
Oh, Lord God, Thou hast made me a pastor and teacher in the Church. Thou seest how unfit I am to administer rightly this great and responsible Office; and had I been without Thy aid and counsel I would surely have ruined it all long ago. Therefore, do I invoke Thee. How gladly do I desire to yield and consecrate my heart and mouth to this ministry! I desire to teach the congregation. I, too, desire ever to learn and keep Thy Word my constant companion, and to meditate thereupon earnestly. Use me as Thy instrument in Thy service, Only do not Thou forsake me, for if I am left to myself, I will certainly bring it all to destruction. AMEN.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * As you may know, Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon after the Spring
Equinox, which is March 20th.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * On the Fourth of July, 1851, the first English translation of the Book of Concord began rolling off the Henkel Press in which Virginia city? (Answer - New Market, VA.)
What religious movement began with Martin Luther's attack on the sale of indulgences? (Answer - The Protestant Reformation) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * A preacher visited a home for the elderly where he met this particular lady. While they had a long discussion the pastor helped himself to a jar of peanuts on the night stand by the ladies bed. As they talked he kept eating, until he had ate almost all of the peanuts. As he prepared to leave, he offered to pay the lady for her peanuts. The lady insisted that he owe nothing. The preacher kept insisting that she let him pay her, and the lady replies, "I'm through with that jar anyway, I've licked all the chocolate off."
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In what Book of the Bible will you find the Ten Commandments? (Answer - Exodus 20:1-17)
What is there more of - nonreligious people, Hindus or Muslins? (Answer - nonreligious people)
What Biblical epic was the top-grossing movie of the 1950's? The Ten Commandments
What storied city on the Euphrates River was 55 miles south of Baghdad? (Answer - Babylon)
What word appears exactly 773,692 times in the King James Bible? (Answer - Amen)
What is the only domesticated animal not mentioned in the Bible? (Answer - Cat)
How many books of the Bible can you find in this story? (Click here for story) (For the answers, click here)
A pastor decides to visit some of his flock on a Saturday afternoon. He knocks at a door. He thinks he hears someone inside but no one comes to the door. The pastor takes out a business card and writes on it, Rev 3:20 which says, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears me and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." On Sunday his card appears in the collection plate and on it was written Gen 3:10 that says, " I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid." |
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Todd and Barbara Bachman, Farmington, Minn., members of Christiania Lutheran Church, Lakeville, Minn., a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), were attacked Aug. 9 while touring the Drum Tower in Beijing, China. Todd Bachman, 62, chief executive officer of Bachman's Floral, Home and
Garden, Minneapolis, was stabbed by the attacker and died, and Barbara Bachman underwent eight hours of surgery after being stabbed and is hospitalized in serious but stable condition.
For Lutherans, worship matters. In fact, worship lies at the heart of how we understand ourselves together. While some of the approaches to worship may differ from one congregation to another, we hold certain things in common.
“There is a lot of outreach to Iraqis that doesn’t always get reported amid all the very real horrors of the war here,” said the Rev. Glenn Palmer in The Lutheran magazine’s November 2005 issue. During his two tours in Iraq as an ELCA military chaplain, Palmer’s ministry included interacting with Iraqi children and helping to distribute toys,
clothing, school supplies, and vitamins sent by people in the United States.
The history of Mother's Day is centuries old and goes back to the times of ancient Greeks, who held festivities to honor Rhea, the mother of the gods. The early Christians celebrated the Mother's festival on the fourth Sunday of Lent to honor
Mary, the mother of Christ. Interestingly, later on a religious order stretched the holiday to include all mothers, and named it as the Mothering Sunday. The English colonists settled in America discontinued the tradition of Mothering Sunday because of lack of time. In 1872 Julia Ward Howe organized a day for mothers dedicated to peace. It is a landmark in the history of Mother's Day.
Grace and peace from the Lord. As you desire to know whether my painted seal, which you sent to me, has hit the mark, I shall answer most amiably and tell you my original thoughts and reason about why my seal is a symbol of my theology. The first should be a black cross in a heart, which retains its
natural color, so that I myself would be reminded that faith in the Crucified saves us. "For one who believes from the heart will be justified" (Rom. 10:10). Although it is indeed a black cross, which mortifies and which should also cause pain, it leaves the heart in its natural color. It does not corrupt nature, that is, it does not kill but keeps alive. "The just shall live by faith" (Rom. 1:17) but by faith in the crucified. Such a heart should stand in the middle of a white rose,
to show that faith gives joy, comfort, and peace. In other words, it places the believer into a white, joyous rose, for this faith does not give peace and joy like the world gives (John 14:27). That is why the rose should be white and not red, for white is the color of the spirits and the angels (Matt. 28:3; John 20:12). Such a rose should stand in a sky-blue field, symbolizing that such joy in spirit and faith is a beginning of the heavenly future joy, which begins already, but is
grasped in hope, not yet revealed. And around this field is a golden ring, symbolizing that such blessedness in Heaven lasts forever and has no end. Such blessedness is exquisite, beyond all joy and goods, just as gold is the most valuable, most precious and best metal. This is my compendium theoligae (summary of theology). I have wanted to show it to you in good friendship, hoping for your appreciation. May Christ, our beloved Lord, be with your spirit until the life hereafter. Amen.
On June 13, 1525 Luther married Katharina von Bora, a nun who had fled from a convent in Nimbsch, near Grimma, and had taken refuge in Wittenberg. Luther's marriage to Katharina (who was 16 years younger than Luther) was oppposed by many of his friends who saw in it the downfall of the Reformation. Philipp Melanchthon spoke of it as an "unlucky deed". He did not know anything about Luther's plan and was not invited to the wedding.