I've jokingly titled this post 'Ex'rcist Meal Time" because of the popular program (Epic Meal Time). Growing up in an Evangelical family the old German (Lutheran) meal time prayer 'Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, let this food to us be blessed, Amen'. It was the closest we got to liturgy. Whenever I heard it later in life I thought of it as a mindless and childish substitute … [Read more...]
Reforming Advent: 'Kris Kringle'
For students of history a fundamental law of the discipline seems to be that history is simply doomed to repeat itself. As we've looked at Advent traditions throughout the previous posts we've gone through most of the disciplines, prayers, and celebrations we think of when we imagine Christmas and all its symbolism and practice. Trees, Wreaths, the Date/Calendar, and Saint … [Read more...]
Ratzinger, Luther, and Vatican II: An Episode in the History of Augustinianism
I was reading an old review from the Tablet today and it made me smile. It was discussing Cardinal Ratzinger before he was elected as Pope and made some interesting assertions that are rarely discussed any more, but were accepted at the time: "It is certainly strange that the 'enforcer' of Catholic orthodoxy should be a self-confessed anti-Thomist. His dislike of the views of … [Read more...]
Bach Friday
I'll give any regular readers a break this Friday and recommend some relaxing and historic music from a 'golden age' of the Church's history. Jesu Bleibet Meine Freude J.S. Bach was a great Christian composer from the Lutheran Tradition in Leipzig, Germany. This same tradition continued into the Evangelical Church in 1989 when anti-government protestors began prayer meetings … [Read more...]
An Episode of Demonic Possession in Reformation Germany
-EDIT: I just noticed this story occurred on Halloween! / "the Eve of all Saints"/ all Hallows eve...- One of the countries hardest hit by the Existential crisis of the Reformation, was Germany. Families were divided, and people had to choose whether to cast their lot with the old religion or the new faith as the match was commonly described. It is commonly said in Canadian … [Read more...]