Pastor's Corner

He was born in an obscure village, the son of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village, where he worked in a carpenter's shop until he was thirty. Then for three years he became a wandering preacher.

He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a house. He never went go to college. He never visited a big city. He never travelled two hundred miles from the place where he was born. He did none of those things associated with greatness. He had no credentials but himself.

He was only thirty-three when the tide of public opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them even denied him. He was given to his enemies and went through a mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two criminals. He was executed by the state. While he was dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing, the only property he had on earth. When he was dead he was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.

Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today he is the central figure of the human race and followed by all Christians. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as that One Solitary Life.

This essay was adapted from a sermon by Dr James Allan Francis in “The Real Jesus and Other Sermons” © 1926 by the Judson Press of Philadelphia (pp 123-124 titled “Arise Sir Knight!”).

“He is not here; for he has been raised.” (Matthew 28:6)

The Passion

Where is the Passion ? Where is the passion of our faith ? Can we take our lives and transform it into a passionate affair ?

Can we walk out of our routines and obligations and change the way we look at things ? Or can we transform our routines and obligations into something passionate ?

I have recently witnessed how a local church is transforming their identity . They visualized their mission statement into an awesome video production of what they envisage for their faith community and it was so spectacular words can not describe it . It left me with an inkling of perhaps what the first Christian disciples experienced when they witnessed the resurrection of Jesus .

I did not quite understand why I chose this title until I recalled that I saw a contemporary musical on Palm Sunday called “the Passion”. I only saw the second hour but it was riveting. It was our story retold live in a city that dug its’ way out of hurricane Katrina, New Orleans. All the music used was contemporary and popular and has been played millions of times outside the context of this production. An illuminated cross was being carried by the people of New Orleans and everyday people of the city participated in the event. We can literally say that the Passion of Christ went “live.” If you have ever participated in a Good Friday walk you have experienced some of that dark passion. This was amazing to see. What a witness to our story! The passion is still alive outside the confines of the church. It was portrayed the way it should be...full of life ! If ever there is a purpose to repeating the story, that would be it.... To remind us that it did happen and we were part of it whether we know it or not. It is also fitting to have this event overshadow another of New Orlean’s claim to fame, the Mardi Gras.

Live passionately!

The Editor

Web Page prepared by:

Roger Kenner & Jette Blair.
Content-New Topics Last Updated: 2016/04/06
St. Ansgar's Lutheran Church - Montreal