As you are well aware, here in Minnesota the DFL is in control of both legislative branches and the governor’s office. With that “political trifecta,” they have already enacted a long list of radical progressive policies into law. However, laws can be changed in relatively easy fashion when there is a change in political control. Therefore, they are currently attempting to embed these policies into our Minnesota State Constitution which will be much more difficult to reverse. Specifically, the DFL is trying to pass legislation that would place a (misnamed) “Equal Rights Am ..read more

     “That may be true for you, but it is not true for me.” It’s a common phrase heard among people in our culture today. Truth has fallen on hard times. It echoes what Pilate said to Jesus while on trial: “So you are a king then?” He was trying to determine if Jesus was indeed a king. Jesus responds, “For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” (John 19:37-38) Pilate was dumbfounded by Jesus’ reply ..read more

     Friends in Christ, I. The points of contact / tension between the dominant culture and Christianity continue to increase in number and intensity. Recently, I was interviewed by Pastor Bryan Stecker of Trinity, Waconia for his podcast series, “On the Line,” during which we touched on many of these “points of contact.” Click here to view it. As you will see, it is a long-format production and so you may not choose to view all of it, but I suspect you’ll at least find parts of it of interest. Recently, several people have suggested that our public policy efforts might be enha ..read more

  “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2:10b). The Apostle John heard these words of Jesus to the Church of Smyrna in His heavenly vision. They are a call to faithfulness amid a culture hostile to faith. They are fitting words for Christians of all times, but certainly for us. At all times we are called to discipleship—to repent of our sins and to live out our faith according to our daily stations of life. In other words, faithfulness is never static. Faith is always in motion. Faith, says Martin Luther in his preface to the book of Romans, is a living, b ..read more

     What does it look like … what does it feel like to be pushed to the margins of society? Well, of course, for Christians, things have been moving in this direction for quite a few years now, but it appears that this may become a much more felt reality for all of us in the near future. In recent years, here in Minnesota especially, elements on the political left have been systematically and forcefully implementing a wide variety of radical actions, all of which seem to have the same end goal in mind: pushing Christians and a Christian view of humanity and the world to the f ..read more

  Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Lenten greetings to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Suffering Servant. I write you with an important update which impacts our religious liberty in the State of Minnesota. Please be sure to read through this entire letter and watch the attached video. As you will see in the video, something rather extraordinary and disturbing occurred in a committee hearing of the Minnesota House last week. The topic being discussed addressed whether or not the special status offered to certain protected classes in the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA) wil ..read more

     There is nothing new under the sun, says Ecclesiastes (1:9). Challenges come and go, repeating themselves throughout history, including within the Holy Christian Church. Nonetheless, each age encounters challenges new to those living in it. So it is for the church today. A digital world, a fractured and secularized culture, obsolete institutional structures, outmoded governance models, contracting church bodies, shrinking congregations longing for the past, pastoral shortages, all exacerbated by a global pandemic, just for a start. With the rest of culture, the North Ameri ..read more

     Ash Wednesday greetings to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! Once again, we begin the journey of following Jesus on His way to the cross of Calvary. Mark’s Gospel gets us right into the action and movement of Jesus’ ministry: The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him (Mark 1:12-13). This brief temptation account differs from the more familiar versions in Matthew and Luke. Yet it offers one tidbit the other two syn ..read more

  “Record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham…” Matt. 1:1 Genealogies are about as much fun to read as running into a brick wall. Most of us don’t care much for them unless we need some good bedtime reading to put us to sleep. At first glance, trudging through a long list of names can be rather cumbersome and boring.  However, if we pause and look at the big picture, genealogies are quite fascinating and informative. With each name mentioned in a genealogy, there is an incredible story to tell. Sometimes that may mean digging a little bit to find ou ..read more

      “We’re not in Kansas anymore!”  This familiar line from the Wizard of Oz has, of course, become a shorthand way of indicating that something around us has fundamentally changed … that, in one way or another, we’re no longer living in the same world we were before.  More and more, I believe this is an apt description for the cultural circumstance we Americans find ourselves in recently. Which is to say, from my perch as the Public Policy Advocate for the LCMS Districts here in Minnesota, it seems to me the societal turmoil we’ve been experiencing of late no ..read more