A book was recommended to me in May that I just now got around to reading: The Prodigal Son, by Henri Nowen. The book is a very thorough, very detailed examination of Rembrandt’s painting, “The Return of the Prodigal Son” [pictured above, on the book’s cover]. Even so, at the same time, the book is…… Continue reading Henri Nowen & The Prodigal Son
Category: Holy Week
A Thought for Judas on Good Friday
On Good Friday, when death and despair take center stage, I think always of Judas, and his death of anguish, and hopelessness. His death of remorse and regret. His death of guilt and shame. Have you died such a death? On Good Friday, when the narrative of the crucifixion highlights so many bad decisions, scapegoating,…… Continue reading A Thought for Judas on Good Friday
![Palm Sunday: Preparation to Celebration [Luke 19:29-34]](https://i0.wp.com/happylutheran.blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/palm.jpg?resize=892%2C900&ssl=1 "Palm Sunday: Preparation to Celebration [Luke 19:29-34]")
Palm Sunday: Preparation to Celebration [Luke 19:29-34]
“When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you,…… Continue reading Palm Sunday: Preparation to Celebration [Luke 19:29-34]
Treasure, and Faith
Members of the Wartburg Seminary community have been writing short daily devotions during the Lenten season, and I have really enjoyed the opportunity to start my morning with these meaningful reflections. Last week, two of my colleagues, Dr. Samantha Gilmore [our preaching professor], and the Rev. Dr. Troy Troftgruben [our New Testament professor] each wrote…… Continue reading Treasure, and Faith
Ordinary People at Auschwitz
Yesterday we visited Auschwitz-Birkenau. As many of you know, Auschwitz was the largest of the Nazi concentration camps and extermination centers. Over 1.1 million men, women and children were murdered there. Auschwitz proper was actually a whole network of sub-camps, forty in all, that exploited the prisoners as slave labor. [The website, by the way,…… Continue reading Ordinary People at Auschwitz
New Life—Christ’s & Ours, Really
Make no mistake: if he rose at allIt was as His body;If the cell’s dissolution did not reverse, the molecule reknit,The amino acids rekindle,The Church will fall. It was not as the flowers,Each soft spring recurrent;It was not as His Spirit in the mouths and fuddled eyes of theEleven apostles;It was as His flesh; ours.…… Continue reading New Life—Christ’s & Ours, Really
Two Things Can be True at Once
How are you doing? If you ask me that question, I have two very different answers, both of which are true. The first one is that I am fine, and I have much to be thankful for: my health is good, and so is the health of my family; I have a safe home and…… Continue reading Two Things Can be True at Once
Lenten Thoughts on Judas
So, in case you are ready to read something that is NOT about the Coronavirus, I have a quick recommendation. I don’t usually read graphic novels, but I have a very strong theological interest in Judas (basically, I think Judas is the exemplar of salvation in Jesus Christ—if he isn’t saved, none of us are).…… Continue reading Lenten Thoughts on Judas
Bonhoeffer, Palm Sunday and Our Walk to the Cross
This Sunday, we have a meaningful and poignant confluence of Christian commemorations: it is, of course, Palm Sunday, but it also is the feast day of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This means that we will be beginning Holy Week–starting our long walk to the cross–hand in hand with Bonhoeffer; with his words in our ears, and the…… Continue reading Bonhoeffer, Palm Sunday and Our Walk to the Cross
Happy Lutheran 