Fo r th e Life o f th e W o rld 6600 N o rth Clinto n Street F o rtW ay n e ,Indian a 46825 -4996 N o n -P rofitO rg . U .S .PO STAG E PAID P e rm itN o .832 H u ntingto n ,IN F o rw a rding S e rvice R eq u e sted Come Join Us as we celebrate the wonderful heritage of Concordia Senior College and Concordia Theological Seminary for the 50th Anniversary of the dedication of our award-winning Saarinen campus! Opening Service Sunday 50th Anniversary Celebration 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Brunch September 9, 2007 Music on the Plaza Shepherd’s Brass Concordia High School Combo Activities Campus Tours Bookstore open ...and more! 3:00 p.m. Opening Service In Kramer Chapel 4:00 p.m. Reception On the Upper Plaza hosted by the Seminary Guild Please R.S.V.P. for brunch by August 17, 2007 to Denita Krause at 452-2223 or krauseds@ctsfw.edu JULY 2007 2 Life of theWorld Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne July 2007, Volume Eleven, Number Three Fo r th e Kneeling in the Mud Dr. Daniel Gard Chaplaincy in Action Lt Richard Malmstrom Spiritual & Physical Wellness Rev. Albert Wingfield page 24 F E A T U R E S page 28 PRESIDENT Rev. Dr. Dean O. Wenthe PUBLISHER EDITOR Rev. Steve Cholak Rev. John Pless COPY EDITORS ART DIRECTOR Adriane Dorr Steve Blakey Michal Needham EDITORIAL ASSOCIATES Rev. James Bushur Dr. Charles Gieschen Dr. Naomichi Masaki For the Life of the Worldis published quarterly by Concordia Theological Seminary Press, 6600 North Clinton Street, FortWayne, Indiana 46825. No portion of t h i s publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher of For the Life of the World. Copyright 2007. Printed in the United States. Postage paid at Huntington, Indiana. For the Life of the Worldis mailed to all pastors and congregations of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in the United States and Canada and to anyone interested in the work of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. CONTENTS page 15 page 22 page 27 page 18 17 Kneeling in the Mud by Dr. Daniel Gard Since September 11, 2001, the lives of our citizens and especially those citizens in uniform have radically changed. Christians may differ on the political issues of the war in Iraq, but what cannot be debated is that those who serve in the armed forces are more than cogs in a military machine. They are human beings that need the great Good News of Jesus Christ. The Son of God comes into our world right in the midst of the muck and mire of our own making. Yet He comes not to condemn us, but to bring His own righteousness and peace to those who know only sin and warfare. 18 Bringing the Word to God’s People by Pam Knepper Rev. Kavouras serves as the chaplain for the Cleveland EMS, the police department, as well as the FBI helping to provide great comfort and light in the middle of so much darkness by bringing the people who work in those departments the Word of God. The sacramental understanding of the ministry became even more important on September 11, 2001. 23 Chaplaincy in Action by Lt. Richard Malmstrom Without a doubt, military chaplaincy is incredibly physically, spiritually, and emotionally demanding. Spiritually, it is demanding to be the voice of reason and hope in the midst of chaos. At the same time, military chaplaincy affords rewards beyond measure. As God carried Lt. Malmstrom and his Marines through the worst they could imagine, he saw faith grow. Every church has its own unique challenges and opportunities to proclaim the Gospel. The military chaplaincy is indeed unique. It is like no other. 4 Chaplain in Training by Shawn Found 8 A Life of Service... Continued by Valerie Kister For your free subscription, please send yourname, address, city, state, and zip code to:For the Life of the World, 6600 N. Clinton St., Fort Wayne, IN 46825. If you would like to see For the Life of the Worldon the World Wide Web, go to web site: www.LifeOfTheWorld.com. The current issue, as well as previous issues, can be found at this interactive portal. For the Life of theWorld How to subscribe to and find . . . For the Life of theWorld Volume Eleven, Number Three Fo r th e Life o f th e W o rld 6600 N o rth Clinto n Street F o rtW ay n e ,Indian a 46825 -4996 N o n -P rofitO rg . U .S .PO STAG E PAID P e rm itN o .832 H u ntingto n ,IN F o rw a rding S e rvice R eq u e sted Come Join Us as we celebrate the wonderful heritage of Concordia Senior College and Concordia Theological Seminary for the 50th Anniversary of the dedication of our award-winning Saarinen campus! Opening Service Sunday 50th Anniversary Celebration 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Brunch September 9, 2007 Music on the Plaza Shepherd’s Brass Concordia High School Combo Activities Campus Tours Bookstore open ...and more! 3:00 p.m. Opening Service In Kramer Chapel 4:00 p.m. Reception On the Upper Plaza hosted by the Seminary Guild Please R.S.V.P. for brunch by August 17, 2007 to Denita Krause at 452-2223 or krauseds@ctsfw.edu JULY 2007 2 Life of theWorld Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne July 2007, Volume Eleven, Number Three Fo r th e Kneeling in the Mud Dr. Daniel Gard Chaplaincy in Action Lt Richard Malmstrom Spiritual & Physical Wellness Rev. Albert Wingfield page 24 F E A T U R E S page 28 PRESIDENT Rev. Dr. Dean O. Wenthe PUBLISHER EDITOR Rev. Steve Cholak Rev. John Pless COPY EDITORS ART DIRECTOR Adriane Dorr Steve Blakey Michal Needham EDITORIAL ASSOCIATES Rev. James Bushur Dr. Charles Gieschen Dr. Naomichi Masaki For the Life of the Worldis published quarterly by Concordia Theological Seminary Press, 6600 North Clinton Street, FortWayne, Indiana 46825. No portion of t h i s publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher of For the Life of the World. Copyright 2007. Printed in the United States. Postage paid at Huntington, Indiana. For the Life of the Worldis mailed to all pastors and congregations of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in the United States and Canada and to anyone interested in the work of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. CONTENTS page 15 page 22 page 27 page 18 17 Kneeling in the Mud by Dr. Daniel Gard Since September 11, 2001, the lives of our citizens and especially those citizens in uniform have radically changed. Christians may differ on the political issues of the war in Iraq, but what cannot be debated is that those who serve in the armed forces are more than cogs in a military machine. They are human beings that need the great Good News of Jesus Christ. The Son of God comes into our world right in the midst of the muck and mire of our own making. Yet He comes not to condemn us, but to bring His own righteousness and peace to those who know only sin and warfare. 18 Bringing the Word to God’s People by Pam Knepper Rev. Kavouras serves as the chaplain for the Cleveland EMS, the police department, as well as the FBI helping to provide great comfort and light in the middle of so much darkness by bringing the people who work in those departments the Word of God. The sacramental understanding of the ministry became even more important on September 11, 2001. 23 Chaplaincy in Action by Lt. Richard Malmstrom Without a doubt, military chaplaincy is incredibly physically, spiritually, and emotionally demanding. Spiritually, it is demanding to be the voice of reason and hope in the midst of chaos. At the same time, military chaplaincy affords rewards beyond measure. As God carried Lt. Malmstrom and his Marines through the worst they could imagine, he saw faith grow. Every church has its own unique challenges and opportunities to proclaim the Gospel. The military chaplaincy is indeed unique. It is like no other. 4 Chaplain in Training by Shawn Found 8 A Life of Service... Continued by Valerie Kister For your free subscription, please send yourname, address, city, state, and zip code to:For the Life of the World, 6600 N. Clinton St., Fort Wayne, IN 46825. If you would like to see For the Life of the Worldon the World Wide Web, go to web site: www.LifeOfTheWorld.com. The current issue, as well as previous issues, can be found at this interactive portal. For the Life of theWorld How to subscribe to and find . . . For the Life of theWorld Volume Eleven, Number Three 3 For the Life of the World APRIL 2007 Be lli ni ,J ac op o (1 40 0- 14 70 /7 1) Cr uc ifi xi on of Ch ris t. De ta ch ed fre sc o. M us eo Co rr er ,V en ic e, Ita ly Ph ot o Cr ed it :C am er ap ho to Ar te ,V en ic e /A rt Re so ur ce ,N Y ones of this world attempted to destroy the chosen nation and her monotheistic faith. The hearers of Isaiah may have found it difficult to believe that their God would be known in all the earth. The ancient prophesies are, generally speaking, an unusual thing. They are spoken, and then time seemingly stops for ages until it finally wakes up and resumes moving. The powerful ones think that all the power is in their hands. Therefore they create empires and call cities in their honor, they build monuments and mausoleums for themselves. But in the end, it turns out that time is not in their hands. Time is in God’s hands. A day comes when that which seemed indestructible and unshakeable is destroyed. People in all the earth are given knowledge of God, acquire faith, come to church, are baptized, and bring their children. The church grows—this is how God acts in our lives. Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel. (Is 12:6) Brothers and sisters, the Lord is in our midst. We are able to hear his word and partake of him. He comes so close to us in the sacrament of Eucharist that we can even touch him. Eucharist does not only connect us to Christ, but also unites us with each other. It is so wonderful to have spiritual fellowship with the brothers with whom we share a common faith. However, the special character of this day for us Siberian people is that not only have we been one in faithwith the Church of Estonia, but, for a long time, we have also been a part of her. Now we become the autocephalous church. Still, though we are independent, the Church of Estonia will always remain a spiritual mother to us. No matter what happens, we will always remember the many years in which you cared for us. No matter what happens . . . We went through a number of things together. And who knows what else we will have to go through. We know how the church buildings, even those that are large and sturdy, are destroyed. We know also how fragile temples of human lives are destroyed. It happened often—and who knows—it may happen again. Who knows what the future has in store for us. Global warming, materialism, street extremism, Islamic terrorism, liberal theology: there are so many terrifying and deadly things around us! But Christ is among us, both now and forever. Neither death nor hell nor the devil may change that. We will receive forgiveness of sins, rest, and a blessed eternity in Christ. Amen. CTS Student Mission Society hosts “Mission in the City” and Every Wednesday Lunch Over lunch onWednesdays, CTS students wereable to hear pastors speak about missions. Thepastors came from campus ministries, inner city churches, mission plants, ethnic ministries, world missions, established churches reaching out to neighbors and the community, and churches who support specific mission projects. One of the highlights of Student Mission Society was a 3 day series during Symposia, entitled “Mission In The City.” Featured speakers were Rev. Elliott Robertson and Rev. Charles Wildner of Baltimore and Rev. Eric Andrae of Pittsburgh. Rev. Charlie Ravelonjato received his M.Div. f CTS in November, 2001. He was born and raised i Madagascar. He received his university educat in Russia. During his time at CTS, he travele Haiti for his vicarage. He now serves at Redee Lutheran Church in Brampton, Ontario. He is married to Tanya and they have four children Presenters from all over the world and even ou own church body address our students over lunch in the Katherine Luther Dining Hall or the Stu Commons. 31 Chapla in For the Life of the World4 At that point, I became acquainted with the Chaplain Candidate Program. The Army’s basic description of this program reads, “The Chaplain Candidate Program is another means by which the CCH (Chief of Chaplains) procures qualified chaplains for the Active Army, ARNGUS (National Guard) and the USAR (Army Reserves). The program provides basic orientation and introduction to the duties and responsibilities of an Army chaplain. It also provides practical training experiences on installations, specialized military settings, and/or unit training, and evaluates the suitability of the candidate for commissioning as an Army chaplain (Army Regulation 165-1).” I soon found myself assigned to train with an Indiana Army National Guard unit, the 1/293rd Infantry, just two miles down the road from CTS. The troops of the 1/293rd are the quintessential citizen-soldiers of the post-September 11 era. They were called up for the initial invasion of Iraq in 2003 and have since received the alert for a second tour in early 2008. Thus, my time spent with the 1/293rd could be described as the calm before the next storm. For two and a half years, it has been my privilege to serve these soldiers as their chaplain candidate. One of the hardest things for me to deal with these past few drills has been training with these men and women as they prepare to deploy while knowing full well that I will not be going with them. In August, I will be moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico, in order to serve Grace Lutheran Church as its vicar. I will transfer to a new unit in the New Mexico Army National Guard. The 1/293rd will be in good hands, however, as the UMT (Unit Ministry Team) that will go with them to Iraq is comprised of dedicated individuals that I have had the pleasure of training and growing alongside. Essentially, serving as a chaplain candidate while attending CTS has functioned like an extension of my field work. As a chaplain candidate, I am governed by two regulations that limit what I can and cannot do. First, since I am not yet a chaplain, I cannot formally counsel anyone who comes to me with an issue. I can listen, pray, and share Scripture with a soldier in this setting, but I cannot yet prescribe formal advice on what the soldier should or should not do. Secondly, I am not allowed to freely maneuver during training without the supervision of an actual chaplain. Ibegan my theological education at Concordia Theological SeminaryFort Wayne in the fall of 2004. My wife and I moved to Fort Waynefrom Boulder, Colorado, where I had been a member of the Colorado Army National Guard since 1998. I was an enlisted soldier at the time. I originally trained as a 13-B (Canon Crewman in the Field Artillery). When we prepared to make the move to Indiana so that I could attend CTS, I immediately thought of becoming an Army National Guard chaplain. It made sense as a natural complement to the parish ministry for which I would soon be studying and preparing. Although as many as 80 percent of our soldiers register themselves as non-denominational Christians, the basic knowledge of the Christian faith can sometimes be limited. For example, if asked what role Jesus plays in our salvation, many soldiers might respond that He is simply our example to emulate or a teacher of wisdom that can help us earn salvation on our own. For those who do confess a more traditional Christian faith, the question “How can I know for sure that I am saved?” predominates. Without fail, at least one soldier asks me at almost every drill how he can know for sure that he is truly a Christian. By Shawn Found ain Training 5JULY 2007 For the Life of the World6 Despite these limitations, I have had ample opportunity to apply what I have learned at CTS. I have been hit by many flashbacks of Dr. Schroeder’s Pastoral Care and Counseling class as I have listened to the worries and issues that some of the soldiers have shared with me. I was surprised at the amount of training from Dr. Schroeder’s counseling class that was similar or even identical to what I was taught at my Chaplain’s Officer Basic Course (CHOBC). I completed the thirteen-week CHOBC course at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, in 2006. I attended the course with my classmate Leroy Laplant as well as four Concordia Seminary candidates. To be one of six Missouri Synod candidates sprinkled among one hundred twenty-eight students from every denomination imaginable was quite an experience. It ended up functioning as a case study in how to operate within the confines of a highly pluralistic and politically correct environment. Unfortunately for me, I took Dr. Muller’s Religious Bodies in America course and Dr. Moeller’s World View: Culture and Religion class after I had returned from CHOBC. Many times I found myself nodding my head and thinking, “Yeah, I could have used that last summer.” Despite that, the CHOBC experience was informative and beneficial. Over the course of time, we made many friends. We also found ourselves engaging in spirited discussions from time to time. There seemed to be something about going to the field that brought out the spirit of debate and discussion between chaplain candidates of varying views and confessional loyalties. On one occasion, we listened in on a Greek Orthodox candidate as he used the story of Luther and Zwingli at the Marburg Colloquy to refute the denial of the bodily presence in the Lord’s Supper, a belief espoused by some of our more stridently antisacramental classmates. On another occasion, it was my turn. During the same field exercise, I was confronted point-blank over chow by a classmate who found the practice of closed Communion offensive. Fortunately, I was fresh off of reading Werner Elert’s Eucharistic and Church Fellowship in the First Four Centuries. It ended up being a great exercise in slowing down, keeping emotions and feelings out of the discussion, and explaining what Lutherans believe and confess in truth and love. Upon my return from CHOBC, I rejoined the 1/ 293rd. Each month, I eagerly look forward to serving as their chaplain candidate. There are a few critical convictions that motivate me to serve these soldiers at each drill I attend. First, the words of C. F. W. Walther constantly remind me that the Gospel assumed is the Gospel denied. Although as many as 80 percent of our soldiers register themselves as non- denominational Christians, the basic knowledge of the Christian faith can sometimes be limited. For example, if asked what role Jesus plays in our salvation, many soldiers might respond that He is simply our example to emulate or a teacher of wisdom that can help us earn salvation on our own. For those who do confess a more traditional Christian faith, the question “How can I know for sure that I am saved?” predominates. Without fail, at least one soldier asks me at almost every drill how he can know for sure that he is truly a Christian. While there are challenges, they are outweighed by the many opportunities to share the Gospel with a group of people who are eager to hear it. The vocation in which these soldiers are serving, with all its risks, dangers, and struggles, has prompted many to become interested in what the Word of God has to say to their situation today. I have found Luther’s short treatiseWhether Soldiers,Too, Can be Saved to be a timeless and indispensable tool in presenting the theologies of the two kingdoms, two kinds of righteousness, and Law and Gospel to the soldiers. These concepts are practical and relevant for the operational climate of today’s military. As I look to the near future and the day when I will become a chaplain, the words of Luther in 1526 will endure in my heart as my personal motto: “For whoever fights with a good and well-instructed conscience can also fight well.” Chaplain Candidate 2LT Shawn Found is a 3rd Year Delayed-Vicar at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. While there are challenges (as a Chaplain Candidate), they are outweighed by the many opportunities to share the Gospel with a group of people who are eager to hear it. The vocation in which these soldiers are serving, with all its risks, dangers, and struggles, has prompted many to become interested in what the Word of God has to say to their situation today.