TheThe

Vol. 59 No. 1 May 2016Special CRE Edition

British LutheranBritish Lutheran

A few years ago, I was huddledin a group sitting around a blaz-ing camp fire on a cool sum-mer’s evening. Each one of ushad bread dough stuck on theend of a stick which we heldover the fire in order to bakeour bread. While this activityresulted in many laughs as

some burnt their bread and oth-ers ate nearly raw bread dough,what really interested me wasthe fire.

It was a roaring camp fire com-posed of numerous dried treebranches that had been knittedtogether to form a large trian-gle. They stood over manyother smaller branches whichfilled in this neatly constructedkindling. As the bon fire wasignited, it did not take longbefore the entire pile of branch-es and logs was burning furi-ously, creating a wonderfulwarm and glowing light as thesun set.

As wewere sit-ting

around that roaring campfire,chatting and eating our bread,someone took their long stickand pulled a brightly burning logfrom the fire. As it wasremoved, you could see many

tongues offire licking atthe dry treebark. But itdid not takelong beforethe fire in thatlog disap-peared. Aslong as thelog was in themidst of thefire, it burnedquite brightly,but almost as

soon as it was removed fromthe blaze, it stopped burning.The wood had not changed, itwas still flammable but its envi-ronment hadchanged. Withoutthe heat andsparks from theother chunks ofwood; it just didnot burn as bright-ly.

It was about thattime that I realisedthis log fire was alot like attendingthe DivineWorship Service

at church on a regular basis.Regular access and immersionin God’s Word and Sacramentswill fuel our lives and enablethe light of the love of Christ toshine out through us as we liveour daily vocations. But if wechoose to separate ourselvesfrom the Divine Service, it doesnot take long for us to merelysmoulder.

Maybe that is why the author ofthe Epistle to the Hebrewsadmonishes us, not neglectingto meet together, as is the habitof some, but encouraging oneanother, and all the more asyou see the Day drawing near(Hebrews 10:25).

Over 25 years of ministry I haveheard numerous reasons whypeople have removed them-selves from regular worshipattendance – some better thanothers – but in almost everycase the person has confided in

2 The British Lutheran Vol. 59 No. 1 Special CRE Edition

From the ChairmanRev’d Jon Ehlers

Campfire by rahul rekapalli | Flickr © (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Vessels of the Lord’s Supper by Mike_tn | Flickr © (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Conti

nued

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My parents and several church familyfriends had been out for a hike in theAlaskan Rockies one summer after-noon with three year old me riding on my father’sshoulders for most of the hike. On the way backin to the car park, apparently I was the only onewith any energy left, I sang out at the top of mylungs; “This is my Father’s world and to my lis-tening ears all nature sings and round me ringsthe music of the spheres”. In Psalm 118:23-24 we read ‘The Lord has donethis, and it is marvellous in our eyes. The Lordhas done it thisvery day: let usrejoice today andbe glad.’ The Biblerelays God atwork in everydaypleasures, particu-larly outdoors. Thepeople of the Biblespent a lot of theirtime outdoors,evenings spent onthe coolerrooftops, walksbetween townsand villages, tend-ing to animals orfishing on the sea.They looked toGod for their daily needs (Psalm 145:15) andwere dependent upon him. They learnt to bethankful daily.

In our complex, industrialized civilization with asuperabundance of food and resources we oftenforget and take for granted what God has provid-ed without thanks and rejoicing. As a transplant-ed resident of Britain I am thankful for the mildEast Anglia winters, the cooler temperatures ofsummer, the rolling hills of the North, and the

green-ness ofthe West

Midlands. I’vebeen able tothank God andrejoice walkingalong the North Sea while birds their carols raiseand rustling grass reminds me that God is withus. He is with us everywhere and every day.

But God is not like air – surrounding us – invisi-bly. If that was the case then in a storm or fire or

other natural disas-ter, God could bethought of as crueland destructive.My sense of won-der at nature pointsme to God but Ionly know him –who he is and whathe is like – throughJesus and this inturn makes me seethe world in a newlight.

Just as the originalauthor of the songI sang, M BBabcock, would

say that he was “going out to see the Father’sworld”, all of us should go out and listen to naturesinging its praises to God. Today we may not besleeping on our rooftops or walking to most of ourdestinations but we are still able to rejoice and befaithful stewards for the wonderful world that Godhas made. This stewardship and service is ourresponse to Jesus who came to actually serveus! God has given us a truly wonderful world inwhich to live. “God reigns; let the earth be glad!”

3May 2016

DevotionMarie Law

Ascension, Brandon

4 The British Lutheran Vol. 59 No.1 Special CRE Edition

Lutheran Radio UK turnsLutheran Radio UK turns4 and is in a new home4 and is in a new homeIt took 6 months to move the Lutheran Radio UKstudio from Petts Wood to Cambridge. Duringthat time the internet radio station didn’t miss asecond of broadcasting. As part of the call toResurrection Lutheran Church, Cambridge,accepted by Pastor Jaime Kriger, the radio studioalso was relocated to Cambridge. Pastor Krigercontinues his work as Lutheran Radio UKManager in conjunction with servingResurrection.Conversions are never easy! Changing the vestryinto a radio studio with the necessary engineeringspecifications involved quite detailed and costlywork. The outcome brought smiles to everyone! Ithas been a fantastic transformation. The new stu-dio was dedicated on 16th April at which time abelated 4th birthday party was also held.(Lutheran Radio UK’s birthday is 4th March.) Thededication was conducted by ELCE Chairman,Rev. Jon Ehlers. It was lovely to see membersand friends of the Evangelical Lutheran Church ofEngland in attendance.

Before

After

5May 2016

LRUK Manager and Resurrection Pastor, Jaime Kriger with ELCE Chairman Pastor Jon Ehlers

Enjoying the celebrations ... particularly as the ELCE Chairman helps LutheranRadio News presenter, Paul Hill, hear more more!

6 The British Lutheran Vol. 59 No.1 Special CRE Edition

LRUK Contact DetailsEmail: info@lutheranradio.co.ukLetter: Lutheran Radio UK,

25 Westfield Lane, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB4 3QS, England, UK

7May 2016

Lutheran Radio UK returns to the Lutheran Radio UK returns to the Christian Resources ExhibitionChristian Resources Exhibition

The Lutheran Radio UK stand will be prominent this year at the 2016 CRE. Presenting material aboutthe Lutheran view of things, LRUK has also organised – in conjunction with Lutheran Hour Ministries(US) and in co-operation with the British Bible Society – 4 speakers to present Lutheran perspectives.Tuesday 17th May – 12:00pm – Room SG23The Rt Rev. Graham Tomlin, Bishop of Kensington – Topic: Martin Luther’s InsightsWednesday 18th May – 12:00pm – Room SG23The Rev. Dr Robert Kolb, Concordia Seminary St Louis, USA – Topic: Martin Luther, Confessor ofGod’s Enduring WordWednesday 18th May – 4:00pm – Room SG23The Rev. Greg Seltz, Speaker for The Lutheran Hour (US) – Topic: Reformation MissionThursday 19th May – 1:00pm – Room SG23The Rev. Dr Boris Gunjević, Tutor at Westfield House Cambridge – Topic: 95 Antitheses – from refor-mation to transformation

Special Special Feature:Feature:Westfield Westfield

HouseHouseWhat is Westfield House?Westfield House is the house of theological studies of the Evangelical Lutheran Church ofEngland in Cambridge. It was established in 1962 and provides theological education forwomen and men with a particular focus on working in the church. Students come toWestfield House not only from the United Kingdom but from a variety of countries and insti-tutions – notably the two seminaries of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, the ConcordiaUniversities, and from Lutheran churches in Africa. Westfield House is an Affiliate Centre ofthe University of London International Programmes. Students at Westfield House also haveleave to attend lectures at the University of Cambridge Faculty of Divinity.

The academic year began last August ...

9May 2016

The past year was an excitingtime for Westfield House, with awide variety of students, our con-tinuing academic seminar pro-gramme, six Westfield Sundays,a number of accreditation visits,activities to honour former facultymembers and a large and stimu-lating group of faculty, adjunctsand visiting scholars.Study abroad students from theConcordia Universities are wellknown at Westfield House andthis year saw the addition of thenew Concordia Irvine CoreCambridge Programme whichbegan last September. ELCE students, Juliana LaMie (neeKriger) and Anne Shelton con-cluded their final year of studiesat Westfield House (and are stillundertaking exams as this issuegoes to print). We wish them well.Jean Rajaonasy fromMadagascar who completed hisfour year programme at WestfieldHouse last year, graduating witha Bachelor of Divinity (taught byWestfield House and awarded bythe University of LondonInternational Programmes) aswell as a Westfield HouseDiploma in Lutheran Ministry,returned this year for his graduation together withhis wife, Aina, and daughter, Hannah. It was lovelyseeing him again. Jean is now pursuing furtherstudies in the Netherlands and plans to return toMadagascar to teach in their Lutheran Seminary.The ELCE congregations which hosted WestfieldSundays: St David, Cardiff; Redeemer, Harlow; St

Timothy, Sunderland; Our Saviour, Fareham; StPaul, Borehamwood and St Andrew, Ruislip;Good Shepherd, Coventry. These providedopportunities for the students to meet and wor-ship with ELCE members and were enjoyed byall who participated. Many involved anovernight stay with sightseeing, including visits

That was the year that wasThat was the year that was

Students come for a semester or a year (or two or three or four) for a wide range of courses.

The first intake of students in the new Concordia Irvine Core Cambridge Programme

Anne Shelton and Juliana LaMie aboutto cut an ‘end of year’ cake

10 The British Lutheran Vol. 59 No. 1 Special CRE Edition

to castles, cathedrals, acrossto Wales and even thebeach!

Never in the history of Westfield House has a single year benefittedfrom the participation of so many competent Lutheran teachers andscholars, including Dr Boris Gunjević, who accepted the call toserve as a full time tutor and was installed in March 2015. Dr Joel Humann continued to serve asPreceptor and full time Tutor, and Dr Lumley taught part-time in addition to serving as Principal.In addition to the faculty, Westfield benefited from the teaching assistance and work of visiting scholarsDr Robert Rosin (Concordia Seminary, St Louis), Dr Greg Schulz (Concordia University, Mequon,Wisconsin), and the Concordia Irvine study directors Dr James Bachman and Dr Susan Bachman.Adjunct instructors included the continuing work of Rev. George Samiec, as well as Rev. Claudio Flor,Rev. Tapani Simojoki, Dr Lidija Gunjević, Mr Jim Prothro and Mr Andy Niggemann, the latter two beingLutheran Ph.D. candidates of the University of Cambridge.

Jean returns to the UK to graduateL to r: Jean Rajaonasy, Cyndy Lumley(Principal), Tony Wood (Housekeeper), AinaRajaonasy, Hannah Rajaonasy, Hilary Wood(Housekeeper)

Paula and Greg Schulz

Laine and Bob Rosin

www.westfieldhouse.org.uk

11May 2016

On 30th September 2015 Dr Norman Nagel, former ELCE pastorand the first Westfield House Preceptor, celebrated his 90th birth-day. Westfield House helped to mark the occasion with a celebra-tory tea on 12th September (when Dr Lumley was in the USA) and

by naming his former office the ‘The Norman Nagel Room’. The common room in Luther Hall, whichwas furnished through a generous bequest from the Nagels, has been named ‘The Betsy and Norman

Nagel Common Room’.

The Rev. Dr Ronald Feuerhahn, former ELCE pastor and Westfield HousePreceptor, was called to rest with Christ in March last year. Westfield House islaunching a new fund in memory of Dr Feuerhahn to raise funds for its library.

Westfield House also welcomed Carolynand John Schulze, the sister and brother-in-law of former Tutor the Rev. Dr GlenZweck who was called home in 2014.They shared that Westfield House wasnamed as a beneficiary in Glen’s willand, following discussion with Carolynand John, Westfield House established a‘Rev. Glen Zweck Scholarship Fund’ for seminarians studying at Westfield House. Westfield Househas sought to honour Revd Zweck by naming his former office the ‘Glen Zweck Room’.

Remembering with ThanksWorking hard in ‘The Norman Nagel Room’

John Schulze, Joel Humann (Preceptor), Carolyn Schulze, Cyndy Lumley (Principal)

12 The British Lutheran Vol. 59 No. 1 Special CRE Edition

A Happy Birthday Indeed!The 90th birthday party for Dr NormanNagel began with delicious traditionalBritish tea: sandwiches, scones, sher-ry, and tea. The attendees, who weremostly Westfield House alumni, dis-cussed their time at Westfield Houseand where they were now.The programme was led by Dr Lumley,who gave a presentation about the his-tory of Westfield House and sharedthat Westfield had recently obtained aCrest and Coat of Arms, a goal sincethe Nagel era. Dr Nagel and Betsychimed in about their experiences,sharing stories and memories of thetime they spent in Cambridge. DrNagel recounted the story of howWestfield House had been acquiredfrom a local physician, though severalother parties had been interested inpurchasing the building. A few surprises were in store for the Nagels. DrLumley read a wonderful letter from ELCEChairman Rev. Jon Ehlers, thanking Dr Nagel forhis time and work at Westfield House, and wish-ing him blessings on his 90th birthday.Everyone in attendance received a gift fromBetsy – a copy of Dr Nagel’s dissertation,‘Luther’s Understanding of Christ in Relation to

His Doctrine of the Lord’s Supper’. The book wasrecently transcribed, through many hours of work,and published by the Rev. Joel Brondos, a formerstudent of Dr Nagel, who was present at thegathering.After the presentations were finished, the groupenjoyed a beautiful cake featuring the new Crestand Arms of Westfield House. In conclusion ofthe afternoon, Dr Nagel blessed the group andled a singing of the Doxology.

Solotiana RajaonariveloSolotiana received financial sponsorship from the LCMS to studyLutheran Theology and Christian Education at Westfield House at therequest of the Malagasy Lutheran Church. He has been involved in aLutheran school in Madagascar – Lycee Prive Lutherien MangarivotraAntsirabe – for many years, some of which as headmaster. Solotiana’sstudies were tailored for his church’s school needs and were predomi-nantly in the Lutheran Confessions and Education. He hopes to returnto Westfield House for further studies.“Studying at Westfield House helped me to serve both school andchurch. Access to Westfield House’s library provided me with

resources about Lutheran school teaching and ministry. I enjoyed learning from my professors, whoare very experienced in both Lutheran teaching and theology. Cambridge has a very rich academicenvironment and it is a blessing to study here. If there one idea that has been re-enforced by my timehere, it is that the Church and Church schools need to work together in the Gospel.”

California to Cambridge

Drs James and Susan Bachman joined WestfieldHouse as inaugural directors of the ConcordiaIrvine Core Cambridge Programme - an academ-ic and church-related overseas study program forundergraduates. The program welcomes studentsin theology, literature, history, philosophy, human-ities, languages, and more. Through WestfieldHouse, students participate in the academicstrengths of Cambridge lectures and Westfieldinstruction.The program goes beyond a typical global termabroad. Students, regardless of their major, live in

Luther Hall and are immersed fully in the disci-plines of Westfield’s church-related academicand spiritual life, including daily worship.The Bachmans have been happy to get backon their bikes in Cambridge. Jim became agraduate resident at Westfield House in 1968as he read theology through FitzwilliamCollege for a Masters at Cambridge on aFulbright Grant. He and Susan married afterher term of study in Germany and her B.A. atValparaiso University, where they had met inthe touring choir. As newlyweds they partici-pated in the rhythms of Westfield House whileliving in a flat on Richmond Road. They wereenriched by relationships with Westfield schol-ars, including resident theologian MartinFranzmann.

Jim is continuing pastoral and academic workspanning theology, philosophy, and humanities,with emphases in medical ethics and logic;Susan’s work includes classical rhetoric,Germanic language history, English and Germanliterature, and argumentation and compositiontheory. They have three married children andeight grandchildren. Both hold ham radio licens-es, enjoy camping, and collaborate plenty, but inshort: Jim manages the family finances whileSusan does all the bread baking. They havebeen known to enjoy single malt whisky withBritish gin a close second.

John Shadrack DonkohDuring the 1980sJohn began histheological stud-ies with theTheologicalEducation byExtension pro-gramme in Accra,Ghana. Later hestudied in theLutheranTheological

Seminary in Nigeria. John was one of the firstLutheran evangelistic missionaries to Ugandafrom 1994 to 2003 after which he returned toGhana and served as an evangelist.In 2012, John was sent by the Evangelical

Lutheran Church of Ghana to Westfield House for6 months as a student visitor to take some cours-es as ‘enrichment’. In 2014/15 he returned totake the University of London InternationalCertificate of Higher Education in Theology. Johnis back at Westfield House seeking more confes-sional Lutheran education and to finish aBachelor of Divinity degree with the University ofLondon. John hopes to return to Ghana fullyequipped to take up a teaching assignment at theEvangelical Lutheran Church Seminary in Ghana.“I am grateful for the unique opportunities afford-ed by a confessional Lutheran centre to provide ascriptural and Lutheran focus for theological stud-ies as well as practical preparation for service inthe Lutheran church and alongside one of theworld’s great English-speaking universities. I amglad, as a student from Africa to join in the aca-demic offerings of Westfield House.”

14 The British Lutheran Vol. 59 No. 1 Special CRE Edition

me that their faith in Jesus Christ hassuffered. This habit of not meetingtogether with other brothers and sis-ters in Christ has negatively affectedtheir faith in Christ. Some left the

church because they were angry and wanted toteach their congregation a lesson. But, in theend, the congregation continued while that per-son’s faith only smouldered. Some left becausethe church was boring or not doing enough toreach out to the lost but going out and doing theirown thing almost always lead to frustration andburnout. Still others thought that they could walkwith Christ just fine by themselves. They didn’tneed organised religion to dictate to them what tothink or do. But when we take this approach, it isfar too easy to shut our ears to God’s Word andreplace it with our own feelings and desires whichinevitably leads to heartache and burn out.

No, the Church is not what she should be! Afterall she is filled with selfish and rebellious sinnerslike you and me. But the Church IS the placewhere each week God’s Word is read andproclaimed. The Church IS the placewhere absolution is pronounced over usassuring us that God, for the sake ofJesus Christ our Saviour, has forgiven us

our damnable sin. The Church IS the placewhere Jesus comes to us in Holy Communion toforgive us, unite us, and strengthen us. TheChurch IS the place where we pray for oneanother. The Church IS the place where Godgives to us His gifts of life, salvation, and forgive-ness, so why would we want to separate our-selves from the Church?

In John 15:4 Jesus says, a branch cannot bearfruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neithercan you, unless you abide in me. Don’t cut your-self off from God’s Word and Sacraments;instead abide in Christ, receive His free gifts atthe Divine Service, and prepare yourself for theDay that is drawing near.

If you are tired of having a smouldering faith andsitting in the cold night all alone, then throwanother log on the fire and come back to theDivine Service. We are still here, chatting aboutJesus, absolving sins, dining at His table, andpraying for you!

From the Chairman, continued from p2

Supporting The British LutheranThe British Lutheran is supported by congregation-

al levies, ELCE funds, and donations. We are notable to operate a subscription service especially foroverseas readers. Copies mailed to readers cost £3

(UK), £3.50 (Europe), and up to £5 (rest of theworld). We are able to receive donations on-line at

www.lutheran.co.uk/supportCheques need to be in Sterling and made payable

to the ELCE. Thanks for any help you can give to help us pro-

duce The British Lutheran.

Favourite Bookmarks:www.lutheran.co.uk

www.lutheranradio.co.ukwww.westfieldhouse.org.uk

The academic year ended in May ...

15May 2016

TheBritishLutheranEditor: Rev. George Samiec, 2 Hawthorn Walk, Beck Row, Bury StEdmunds, Suffolk, IP28 8UD, England, UKTel: +44 (0)1638 510024Email: gsamiec@gmail.comNext Issue: June 2016Letters to the Editor: Letters to TheBritish Lutheran are welcomed. Short let-ters (less than 250 words) will be givenpreference. Letters may be cut or edited.

The British Lutheran is themagazine of the EvangelicalLutheran Church of England.The magazine also providesa forum for viewpoints and

opinions and, as such, these viewpointsand opinions do not necessarily reflectthose of the editor, the magazine team, orthe teachings and policies of the ELCE.Advertising: Acceptance of advertise-ments does not imply endorsement byThe British Lutheran or the ELCE. Rate:£20 per column inch (3 column page).Acknowledgements: Thanks to Jaime Kriger, Marie Law,Susan Bachman, Ashley Prothro, andCyndy Lumley for supplying or helpingwith photos.Front cover: Stained glass window andcandle in the Augustinerkloster, Erfurt. (Isthis where Luther got the idea for the Luther Rose?)

Stating the obvious: Readers of TheBritish Lutheran will be very aware thatthe magazine has been absent withoutleave - or missing in action - and for that Iapologise. Busyness as a reason onlytakes you so far down the excuse track -as does drowning! My apologies particu-larly to those who have contributed mate-rial that still hasn’t seen the light of day.The plan is to produce a ‘Big Issue’ inJune and then resume the bi-monthlyproduction. As always (and yes, it israther cheeky, I know) I still rely on peo-ple sending material, ideas, and sugges-tions. Thank you for your patience. (Andto those who are reading The BritishLutheran for the first time just considerthis overhearing a family discussion!)

ELCE On-linewww.lutheran.co.uk

See Directory for a list of all ELCECongregations and Missions

In LondonBorehamwood – St PaulKentish Town – Luther-TyndalePetts Wood – Christ ChurchSouth Ruislip – St AndrewTottenham – Holy Trinity

In England, Scotland,and WalesBrandon (Suffolk) –AscensionCambridge – ResurrectionCardiff – St DavidCoventry – Good ShepherdEast Kilbride – St Columba

Fareham – Our SaviourHarlow – RedeemerPlymouth – St PeterSunderland – St Timothy

ELCE MissionsBrighton Mission, EastSussexBristol Mission, Bristol (inPortuguese)Cheltenham Mission,Gloucestershire (inPortuguese)Ipswich Mission, SuffolkOxford Mission, OxfordshireRainham Mission, Kent

The Last WordThe Last WordRev’d George Samiec

My granddaughter will be one in July. It is exciting to watch hergrow. Every day is a new adventure as she explores the worldand as Charlotte and I smile at the parenting tasks my daughterand her husband are doing. Similar but different. I see Ariana most daysbut I’ve only been in the same room – actually, the same country! – asher on two occasions. She lives in Australia and I live here. Now grantedthat those two occasions were a month each when the family came tovisit and those were precious times. But now the contact is different –mediated – almost daily photos or little video clips with brief instantmessages and when time allows a phone call via the wonderful commu-nication technologies we have and I don’t have to wait for a letter thatmay or may not arrive months after it was sent.

I imagine that when Ariana is talking there will be many a time when herNana and Pa will be in that little screen – again – calling out to her. Forher I imagine this will be oh so normal. I’m used to it but I still marvelthat I can speak to my children all around the world – it’s so Star Trekkyfor me … in a small way!

As a species we love to communicate, relate, engage with, discuss,share, dialogue, talk, converse, speak, correspond, and dare I say it,commune with each other. Whether with words or deeds, art or technol-ogy we extend ourselves to make contact with others. The power of theadjective makes us almost divine for our words can create perceptionsand imaginary worlds. The Christian Resources Exhibitions are a currentlitany of both the message and the means that is not of our invention.Christians claim that in all the stories on this planet, the accounts foundin the Old and New Testaments are God’s revelation to us. God’s Word isimportant because it was made flesh for us. The centrality of Christianitycomes into focus with Jesus and him crucified and with that as the cen-tre we learn about God and about ourselves. This is the story of God’sgrace and our sin and how we live with God whom we don’t see but whouses humble and common technology to reach us and be with us –words, water, bread and wine.

I hope you enjoy the CRE – and gain new insights – make contacts withothers – where faith is strengthened in the God who communicatesthrough the person of Jesus – and most amazingly of all in the personalcontact with words, water, bread and wine in his name.