Ezines and My Dizzy Head

Today has been a 'down' day for me. The thermometer reads nearly 100, both outside the house and inside my body, and most of the day I've been in bed. As the day ends I'm feeling a bit better, but not much. . .

Having said that, I still cannot turn off my head. Thoughts about my proposed e-zine still chase one another within it. In the mail I received the August 2007 editions of Forum Letter and Reporter (LCMS' official newspaper).

In the Forum Letter current editor, Pr. Russell E. Saltzman writes his farewells. In his comments he lists the problem the ELCA has with their rules about gay pastors--they recently removed one from office. He raises the question about when human life begins--"If we would kill the unborn, we must first declare their "inhumanity." And he points out that Lutherans have always insisted on the the marks of the church (Word and Sacrament)as the way to identify the true church, while Rome insists on an ordered ministry in apostolic succession. Finally he says that over his 17 year tenure as editor he has written as a parish pastor who encounters the church at her elemental level, in the parish, and more particularly, a Lutheran parish.

Perhaps that's a clue to what I see my e-zine doing.

The LCMS Reporter, on the other hand, reported on the recent convention in Houston. President Kieshnick reports that "this convention demonstrated by far the greatest sense I have seen of collegiality and harmony and frank discussion of the issues. . . in a spirit of Christian respect--and in a spirit of trust..." Of course, not everyone feels that way.

What interests me in this issue of Reporter is an ad for the new Pastoral Care Companion that accompanies the recent publication of Lutheran Service Book (LSB). There's a long and interesting list of topics and rites for the parish life that may well be useful in determining what to address in a parish-oriented e-zine. Samples: apostasy, children in crisis, suicide, infertility, mental disorders, poverty, stillbirth, trouble at work, etc. I'm going to keep the list and am considering ordering the book.

So that's what's going on in my dizzy head. Perhaps I'd better get back to bed if I'm going to be of any use tomorrow.