We Are God's Frozen Chosen - Scientifically Confirmed!

Greetings,

Lutherans have often been tagged as 'God's Frozen Chosen' because of our staid German & Scandinavian ways, our highly formalized liturgy and our slow, reverent hymns. A recent scientific study reported on Fox News' website confirms this:

— People of the Jewish faith and agnostics are 20 percent more sexually active than Christians. On the average, Protestants are less sexually active than Catholics. Presbyterians and Lutherans report less sex than Baptists.

and if that isn't bad enough -

Is your sex life a bit busier than most? If you’re a “25-year-old, high school-educated, married, Catholic jazz fan who earns $10,000 a year and who smokes and drinks regularly,” than you are probably having more sex than a college-educated, non-smoking, non-drinking Protestant.

Brings new meaning to 'cold orthodoxy' doesn't it? As a 42-year-old, college-educated, married, Lutheran who doesn't listen to jazz, makes $_ a year and rarely smokes (cigars two to four times a year) and barely drinks anymore - I plead the 5th.

Full story here

TTFN,

Jim

Nice Observation!

Thoughtful Conservative said,

My “What?” moment for the day

August 27, 2008 — thoughtfulconservative

The Journal Sentinel’s NewsWatch reports,

Joel and Victoria Osteen, pastors of the largest church in America, will hold a worship event at the Bradley Center on Sunday, Nov. 23 at 7 p.m.

“A Night of Hope” is an outreach of Joel Osteen Ministries. Also scheduled to appear are Dove Award winner Cindy Cruse Ratcliff and the Lakewood Band and Ensemble.

More than 45,000 members strong, Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, is the largest and most diverse congregation in America. According to Nielsen Media Research, Joel Osteen is the most watched minister in America and reaches 95% of all U.S. television households.

Tickets went on sale Saturday through www.ticketmaster.com, all
Ticketmaster locations and the Bradley Center Box Office. Tickets are $17 plus applicable fees.

Tickets? $17.50? Methinks Pastor Osteen should recheck his New Testament.

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COMMENTARY:

Reminds me of when pop icon Bono of U2 said his God is never out of cash in response to the 1980s televangelist scandals. It also reminds me of an early Church father (Irenaeus or Ignatius?) who cautioned about false prophets who ask for money 'while in the spirit'.

Peace in Christ,

Jim

Revelation Commentary Reading Update

7 Headed Beast by Albrecht Durer

Greetings,

Maybe I feel this way because I'm not a lettered clergyman, maybe I am getting dumber as I get older but I just shoveled my way through another chapter. I always end with the Lenski commentary because it is the most challenging. I used to read it and think 'scholarly' and now I am getting to think 'pedantic'.

It would be sufficient for him to have said that a certain word or words is nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, aorist, participle, etc - but he has a tendency to use terminology like 'punctilliar aorist' and so on which is fine if you are a scholar of language but a bit heavy handed if you are not. I find I generally agree with his theological conclusions thus far but feel a bit like the soldier who is dragged over barbed wire by a comrade on his way to the field medic.

When my purse affords it, I am hoping the new Revelation commentary recently published by the LCMS bridges the gap between the People's Bible commentary with it's entry level simplicity and Lenski's with its overdetailed treatment. Lenski (IMHO) does great when he waxes more devotional and theological but gets mired in the details when he handles the Greek.

TTFN,

Jim