Circles

Who's in your circle?

If you remember the comic strip Ziggy you might also remember one particular cartoon in which Ziggy is standing and looking at a mall directory (I call it a mallmanac) and finds the X with the words "You are here" (I call that a here-o-glyph). There happens to be another here-o-glyph in the upper left corner of the mallmanac that says "Everyone else is over here". Poor Ziggy. What a loner.

Ever felt like that-- standing alone for whatever reason while it seems like everyone else seems so distant because of some supposed or apparent superiority on their part? Or like everyone is in the same circle except you because you just don't measure up and you've been relegated to your own circle.

We seem to divide humanity up into circles labeled "us and them", "in and out", "right and wrong", "good and bad", "beautiful and hideous", "worthy and unworthy"... you get the idea.

The idea that there are different circles is a myth designed to keep people we are uncomfortable with under our thumbs. Which leads to parable that Jesus told to a man who was an expert in circles.

This expert, who had his own circle, approached Jesus with a question, "What must I do to make sure my circle isn't breeched by people who don't belong in it?" Jesus answered, "You're the expert. Why don't you tell me?" The expert replied, "Love God and love my circle." "Right!," said Jesus. But then comes the $64,000 question posed by the expert:

"How big should my circle be?" (interpretation--You'd better say that it should remain small!) So Jesus told this story:

Once there was a man who had a circle much like yours, and as he was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho he was accosted by thieves who beat the snot out of him and took his clothes, leaving him hanging onto his life by a mere thread (interpretation-- the man's circle just got much smaller and was now filled with cooties-- a circle all to himself).

The man's pastor, who used to have this man in his circle, but no longer because of what just occured, happened to be walking down the same road. When the pastor got close enough to see the man, he made sure he walked around the man as far away as possible. "Not in my circle," said the pastor.

A few minutes later the assistant pastor happened to be walking down the road, and when he got close enough to see the man, he made sure he walked around the man as far away as possible. "Not in the pastor's circle," said the assistant pastor.

A few minutes after that and across the deep valley full of jagged rocks and steep cliffs there was a road for people who belonged to the "never goes to church" circle. On that road a man was traveling with his donkey. When he looked across the valley at the man who had been beaten and left for dead, he experienced an upwelling of compassion because he knew that the pastor and his assistant would have treated him the same way. He tethered his donkey, grabbed his bag, climbed down the steep and dangerous cliff, walked across the valley filled with sharp and jagged rocks, climbed up the other steep and dangerous cliff, and approached the man who was left for dead. He turned the man over and noticed that he was wearing a cross necklace.

"Oh! One of those 'goes to church' circle people," said the man under his breath.

But no matter. He opened his bag and pulled out some ointment and disinfectant. He applied them to the man's wounds and bandaged them as best as he could. He then lifted the man onto his shoulders, climbed down the steep and dangerous cliff, walked across the valley filled with sharp and jagged rocks, climbed up the other steep and dangerous cliff, placed the wounded man on his donkey, and took him to a place where he could be treated.

Now it was time for Jesus to ask his own $64,000 question:

"Which of those three men figured it was time to abandon the 'circle' mentality?"

"The one who went out of his way and risked his own life," mumbled the expert. He couldn't even bring himself to say, "The man who never went to church."

"Good answer!", declared Jesus, "and don't you think it's about time you did the same thing?"

The point of the story? There is only one circle of humanity, and everyone is in it, including you!

Thank You, Tim Hetzner!

A good friend and mentor, Tim Hetzner, President of Lutheran Church Charities, is going to teach a 30-week class on the book of Revelation, called Apocalysis Jesu Christou. Finally, someone is going to bring a sensible approach to this book. I've signed up our church as a site for this class that will be starting in September. Here's a excerpt of what Tim says about Revelation:

Revelation is a prophecy about imminent events – events that were about to break loose on the world of the first century. Revelation is not about nuclear warfare, space travel, or the end of the world. Again and again it specifically warns that “the time is near!” St. John wrote his book as a prophecy of the approaching destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, showing that Jesus Christ had brought the New Covenant and the New Creation. Revelation cannot be understood unless this fundamental fact is taken seriously.

Thank you, Tim!! I'm looking forward to this study!!

Okay, so I'm back!

I'm back in my office, but I'll be leaving again on Saturday for Orlando!! Hot, humid Orlando. Sunny, hot, humid, with brief afternoon thunderstorms Orlando.

Convention was good. Dull, but good. The LCMS declared altar and pulpit fellowship with the American Association of Lutheran Churches (AALC). That was nice, seeing that the LCMS hasn't been in fellowship with another American church body for over 30 years. The AALC is pretty small-- 72 congregations located across the US. There were some concerns about the establishment of fellowship with this body, but overall the delegates were for this declaration.

Houston is a great city between the hours of 7 am and 6 pm. At 6 most of the businesses close and downtown Houston becomes a ghost town. Seriously, this town has absolutely no nightlife. It's even worse on the weekends. Everything closes at 3 pm on Saturday and doesn't open again until Monday. It's probably for the better. Next to no one lives in downtown Houston, so it doesn't make much sense to stay open and not get any business. Still, if at least the restaurants would've known that there was a big convention in town...

But I found Houston to be a very nice city. It's clean, has a beautiful skyline to see at night, and filled with very friendly people. I enjoyed my stay and hope to return to visit sometime. The LCMS 2010 convention will again be held in Houston, but this time when the Astros are in town!

Mr. Hoag Goes to Houston

This next week will find me and the family in Houston, Tejas because I will be attending the LCMS Triennial Regular Convention as our circuit pastoral delegate. I'm not sure how I'm going to vote on things. I'm thinking about not voting at all and being a slacker. Seeing that I'm quite apathetic when it comes to power politics (which is basically the norm in all political arenas), I'm not exactly what you would call an ideal delegate. My instincts tell me to vote for the least qualified people. I would love to see a bunch of people in office who don't know what they're doing. I may even nominate myself to be president. Of course I won't win, but if I did win I would be in over my head and I'll probably spend much of my time in bed, giving no leadership at all and sending the synod into a tailspin. More than likely what the synod needs-- lack of leadership. What a refreshing change that would be!!

One of the issues that will be faced by the delegates is approving a resolution to secure altar and pulpit fellowship with the American Association of Lutheran Churches (AALC). I don't know much about this church body, and I honestly don't care, but I'm just glad that the LCMS will be in fellowship with SOMEBODY! It's about time!! It's really no wonder that a major publication a few years ago called the LCMS a cult. We were our own little island in American Christianity. Some groups are against this resolution, probably because they didn't think of it first.

I will refuse to listen to lobbyists who will no doubt be swarming the convention center. I'm not interested in anything they have to say. They're just a bunch of sad sacks with nothing else better to do than badger the delegates into voting a certain way. I may just pay some of them to leave me alone and let me do what I need to do in peace.