Jack’s Winning Words 9/13/13
“No sin is so light that it may be overlooked.  No sin is so heavy that it may not be repented of.”  (Moses Ibn Ezra)  One of the days that has brought me close to my Jewish friends is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.  The need for confession and repentance before G-d is “holy” for both religions.  Hank Greenberg refused to play baseball on that day, even though the Detroit Tigers were in the midst of a pennant chase.    ;-)  Jack

 FROM SHARIN' SHARON:  Thank you for these WW. Hank Greenberg's actions are certainly a strong example of faith. Glad to read your blog this morning and think on these things.====JACK:  When Hank showed up at the synagogue on Yom Kippur he received a standing ovation.

 FROM HY YO SILVER:  Hank Greenberg worshipped at my synagogue: Shaarey Zedek!====JACK:  You probably weren't there to see Greenberg worship or play ball, but memories of the "good" deeds of those who have gone before us can inspire us to follow their example.

  FROM HONEST JOHN:  Don't you wonder if Hitler and Stalin have been forgiven?    My guess is "Yes" but they probably turned it away.====JACK:  People often have a hard time understanding the connection between confession and  forgiveness.  Can forgiveness be given when the Hitler or Stalin or anyone has no sense of needing to confess any wrong?====JOHN:  Exactly.   I can't see them owning up to it.   Does this then undermine Universalism?    Does lack of confession allow folks to condemn themselves?====JACK:  Ultimate judgment is the Lord's.  In that sense, we don't condemn ourselves.  But as the saying goes.  "You've made your bed.  Now, you'll have to lie in it."  Oops...I've forgotten about grace!====JOHN:  Oops we've forgotten about the New Testament.  Which makes it very clear that there are both sheep and goats.  From whence cometh the goats if Grace is irresistible?    We can't choose just one side of a paradox
====JACK:  God doesn't have to deal with paradoxes.====JOHN:  God certainly offers them to us and it is not for us to solve them

 FROM TARMART REV:  The Lord's Table presents such a favorable environment for me in this regard . . . for more years then I can remember we celebrated it every first Sunday of a month . . . now it is regulated seemingly three or four times a year . . . when missing it, I can just attend a good Lutheran church any Sunday I please!!!====JACK:  Weekly communion has not always been the practice among Lutherans.  When I was a youth we received the Lord's Supper about 4 times a year.  The theology now is that we need the assurance of forgiveness more frequently than that.

 FROM MICHIZONA RAY:  I like the idea that I can have my own Yom Kippur everyday, and often many times a day! I also like the idea that I can experience "communion" and acknowledge the "Christ in me" much more than just a few times a year! I need more forgiveness than once a year, and I need more "remembrance" of the Christ in me than just a few times a year.====JACK:  In seminary, we had a theoretical discussion..."If you were in a desert, with no water, and someone wanted to be baptized, could you use sand instead of water?"  It's not the sand or water; it's not the special day; it's not the bread and wine; it's just God and you, wherever and whenever that might be.  I read that during the Vietnam war, a soldier baptized his buddy, using his own blood.

 LS IN MICHIGAN:  I disliked working on Sunday's. God's holy day of rest.====JACK:  I liked working on Sundays, and people wanted me to do it.  God understands circumstances and knows the heart. ====LS:  I agree whole heartly!   So true, So true.====JACK:  "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy" is one of the TEN.  But how to keep it holy begs for some interpretation.  I think God cares more about the faith of a person than he does about regulations