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What is dying well?

When it comes to dying, all of us hope to die well. The question is, what does this mean and what does this look like?

The word euthanasia means ‘a good death’ and, for some, this is what ‘dying well’ looks like. Euthanasia advocacy groups sometimes refer to euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide as ‘dying with dignity’. The premise behind this thinking seems to be that to die well is to die on our terms, how we want and when we want.

The Christian tradition, however, has a very different understanding of what it is to die well.

A good death is not one on our own terms, but one which submits itself to God’s will. To die well for the Christian is to die with faith in Christ, and thus to die in the grace of God.

The Bible speaks of the ‘fear of death which subjects us to a lifelong slavery’ (Hebrews 2:15). This fear leads us to try to assert ourselves in the face of death by taking matters into our own hands. However, as Christ has died in our place to give us eternal life, we need not fear death and we can die well as we trust in him.

Healthy people have no need for legal options to end their life. But what about people whose suffering feels intolerable? Some people in western societies have begun advocating for the legal taking of life in these circumstances through physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia.

Christians are called to show mercy and compassion to those who are suffering. True mercy and compassion mean suffering alongside someone in their greatest hour of need, loving and serving them and assuring them that life is still worth living, even when all seems lost.

Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan provides us with a beautiful example of this mercy. True mercy costs us something (Luke 10:25-37).

The LCANZ opposes euthanasia and mercy killing in all forms, based on Scripture.

For Christians, our life is never our own. We are creatures owing our very existence to our creator, and so the taking of our own life is no less grave than that of another.

However, the church’s opposition to euthanasia does not mean that Christians are obligated to unnecessarily prolong life by taking on burdensome treatments.

What it does mean is that the church’s members have a special obligation to love and care for people who are suffering, including advocating for the best possible palliative care.

This is an abridged version of ‘Dying well’ and ‘Euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide’, by the Lutherans for Life (LFL) Committee, published on its website (www.lutheransforlife.lca.org.au ) and used with permission. LFL is part of the LCANZ, accountable to the church through the Commission on Social and Bioethical Questions. LFL offers resources and information on life issues on its website, through its newsletter, Life News, and on Facebook (Lutherans for Life – Australia).

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Navigating end-of-life issues

by Clare Seligmann

In the 20th century, medicine and improved public health measures in Australia were very successful in increasing life expectancy. However, this has changed the pattern of ageing and the pattern of dying.

Increased longevity has created a new population of people burdened with complex and chronic disease and ‘advanced frailty’. For this population, the traditional models of care, focusing on curative and life-prolonging treatments, without having concurrent goals of enhancing the quality of life for patients and their families, can contribute to unnecessary and prolonged suffering at the end of life, according to the Australian & New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine.

Many people find it hard to face the dependency, helplessness and discomfort that often accompanies ageing, chronic disease and impending death. They need increased support from family, carers, health practitioners and chaplains – and they need to be respected, cared for and loved as people created and loved by God.

The LCANZ, through aged care and other pastoral care ministries, has opportunities to serve people at the end of life in physical and psychological caring; and providing spiritual care to assist with a ‘good death’ for those in our care. That’s the ethos that underpins the service of many of our church’s care agencies, such as the Queensland District’s Lutheran Services.

Just as having a legal will plays a significant role in ‘getting our affairs in order’ before we die in terms of the material and financial, advanced-care planning has a very important function for other end-of-life considerations.

It is a journey with people and their families which includes starting the conversation about death; establishing the person’s priorities for their life and any goals that are outstanding; discussing values and beliefs and what will help quality of life; discussing specific details about treatments and symptom management; and documenting the conversation.

There are also legal documentation processes prepared in advance, that assist with decision-making if a dying person loses their decision-making capacity. In addition to a will, these include appointing an enduring power of attorney/s for health and finance matters and completing an advance health/care directive, depending on the jurisdiction across Australia and New Zealand.

A term we often refer to within end-of-life contexts is palliative care, which even applies to non-specialist care. It is defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as: ‘ … an approach to care that improves the quality of life of patients (adults and children) and their families who are facing the problems associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and correct assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, whether physical, psychosocial or spiritual. Palliative care also respects the choice of patients and helps their families to deal with practical issues, including coping with loss and grief throughout the illness and in case of bereavement.’

Appropriate palliative care is not confined to end-of-life care and can be provided in parallel with curative treatment, having different goals and focus. Palliative care is usually multidisciplinary and it is part of whole-person care that is not disease-specific and therefore can be complementary to curative treatment.

Again according to the WHO, when considered early in the course of the illness, palliative care not only improves the quality of life for patients, but also reduces unnecessary hospitalisations and the use of health services. Palliative care is never about withdrawing treatment or ‘doing nothing’. It requires as much work and expertise as curative treatment, but the goals are different. Access to palliative care is considered a human right by the WHO.

Specialist palliative care is only one component of palliative care service delivery. A sustainable, quality and accessible palliative care system needs to be integrated into primary health care, community and home-based care, as well as supporting care providers such as family and community volunteers.

Providing palliative care is legal, so long as the health professional intends to reduce or relieve a patient’s pain and suffering, not hasten their death. The majority of interventions given in end-of-life care by skilled health care teams neither hasten nor obstruct the person’s natural dying.

Care of the person and their family extends beyond death. Respectful treatment of a person’s remains and observance of cultural or religious practices need to be considered. Families also need to be cared for with appropriate time and space to grieve and follow up with bereavement counselling if this is wanted.

If end-of-life care is well managed, symptoms should be minimised and the transition from life on earth, through death to life in eternity, made as smooth as possible. In most cases, suffering at the end of life can be prevented or significantly reduced. It is often suffering and loss of control that people fear more than death.

The most controversial topic in the end-of-life area is euthanasia – the deliberate act of one person to end the life of another person to relieve that person’s suffering. Physician-assisted suicide occurs when a person requests a doctor to assist them in committing suicide. Both euthanasia and assisted suicide are currently illegal in most Australian states and territories and may result in a person being charged with murder, manslaughter or assisting suicide. However, voluntary assisted dying has been legal in Victoria since 2019 and will become legal in Western Australia in the middle of this year. New Zealanders last year voted in a referendum to legalise euthanasia, with the new law expected to come into effect late this year.

The LCANZ’s Commission on Social and Bioethical Questions CSBQ has a statement on this subject ‘Euthanasia or Mercy Killing’, which rejects the practice in all its forms, ‘because such killing is contrary to the word and law of God’. Adopted by the General Convention of Synod in 1981, you can read this on the LCA website (www.lca.org.au/social-bioethical-questions – Papers adopted by General Synod). Lutherans for Life, which is accountable to the church through CSBQ and promotes the sanctity of life, also offers resources and information on end-of-life issues.

Rather than euthanasia, the church calls for greater efforts to improve and extend palliative care and other measures to reduce suffering in our society. Such measures have demonstrated productive outcomes in the management of pain and the care of those at the end of their earthly life.

Dr Clare Seligmann is a General Practitioner with a particular interest and expertise in aged care and palliative care and a member of the LCANZ’s Committee for Ministry with the Ageing. She is the GP representative on the Queensland Health Department’s Frail Older Persons Collaborative. She served as chairperson of the LCANZ Queensland District’s Lutheran Services council from 2009 to 2019. She is a member of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, the AMA and the Australian & New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine. She worships at St Peters Indooroopilly in suburban Brisbane.

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Christian meditation: Meeting Christ in Scripture

by Lisa McIntosh

Christian meditation is an ancient practice dating back thousands of years, to the first days of the church. And it was part of the tradition of those of the Jewish faith long before that. There are many biblical references to meditation, from Genesis through the New Testament, with many specific mentions in the Psalms.

In fact in Psalm 1, God’s people are urged to meditate on his word – on his law – ‘day and night’.

Martin Luther, too, practised, taught and wrote on meditation. He reformed and simplified the medieval monastic model as he did so, according to LCA Pastor Tim Jarick, in his paper ‘Mysticism, Monks and Marty: Meditation in the Lutheran tradition’.

Pastor Tim, Chaplain at Pacific Lutheran College at Caloundra in Queensland, explains that Luther put praying to God for guidance first before reading the Scriptures in his model and made the cross of Christ central to the Lutheran tradition of meditation.

And yet, as Lutherans in Australia and New Zealand, many of us have grown without much knowledge of what Christian meditation is and how and why it is an important, even central, element of our faith journeys.

Indeed, until recent times, many modern Christians have shied away from the practice, says Lutheran Pastor Stephen Abraham. Pastor Stephen, who was already teaching Christian meditation when a spinal injury left him with permanent debilitating and chronic pain and forced his retirement from full-time ministry in his early 30s, uses meditation whenever his pain is severe.

He has developed his own style of Christian meditation over three decades, which draws on a range of influences including the Desert Fathers (early Christian hermits, ascetics and monks, who lived in the Egyptian desert from the 3rd century); Roman Catholic priest, Benedictine monk and spiritual writer John Main; the French ecumenical monastic fraternity Taizé, Martin Luther and, of course, the meditations present in the Bible.

Pastor Stephen says that in other religions meditation is about ‘controlling your mind’ or ‘mindlessly losing yourself’, whereas, in Christianity, it is about ‘giving your thoughts to God’ and ‘giving him control of your thinking’. ‘It is letting your mind-space be governed by God’s word so that the Holy Spirit can direct your daily life’, he says.

‘Meditation is something all humans share: a relaxed focus, a tool to calm mind and body, a place of solace in a busy world.

‘Muslims pray, but we as Christians aren’t afraid to pray or use Christian prayer in our daily life just because Muslims pray. Hindus sing, but we don’t write off all singing us “un-Christian” or an evil practice. Likewise, Buddhists meditate, but for 3000 or more years meditation has been part of the Judeo/Christian experience, even if modern Christians have shied away from it.

‘Just as Christian prayers and music are uniquely Christian, Christian meditation flows from our encounter with the Trinity as revealed in the Bible. In practice, it is a place where the Holy Spirit can guide our reflection as we focus on God’s word.’

Pastor Stephen says there is no ‘one right way’ to do Christian meditation. ‘We are free in the gospel and there are no biblical instructions on exactly how to practise meditation. We only have the command to meditate (Joshua 1:8) and references to meditation throughout Scripture, especially in the Psalms.’

Pastor Anthony Price, who serves the worshipping communities of Gawler Lutheran Church north of Adelaide and is accredited as a Spiritual Director and Retreat Leader, teaches Christian meditation and offers spiritual direction. He believes there are several reasons why meditation may have become a ‘lost’ practice in the Lutheran church.

‘Firstly, maybe that’s to do with the New Age movement and that people have a perception that it’s a bit weird’, he says. ‘That’s the unhealthy forms of meditation that take us off of the word, and Jesus and the Triune God.

‘I also think there’s a fear of the unknown – people just don’t know about it.

‘And I have to think about my role as a church leader. If I wasn’t really experiencing it myself, I wouldn’t have been teaching it. So while we as pastors may have learnt about it, if we haven’t experienced it in a life-transforming way, we may not have taken on board the centrality of meditation. And Luther is a fine example, who tells us and teaches us how important it is for us.’

Kathy Worthing, a member of the World Community for Christian Meditation state executive for South Australia and leader of a Christian meditation group, believes this contemplative ministry form is having a revival among everyday Christians – including in the LCA/NZ.

‘Recent spiritual writers such as John Main, Laurence Freeman, Joan Chittister and Richard Rohr have been at the forefront of the resurgence in the practice of Christian meditation, taking it beyond the monastery walls and into the lives of everyday Christians’, she says. ‘As Laurence Freeman said in A Pearl of Great Price, “Our world sorely needs the silent infrastructure of contemplation woven into the institutions and frenetic schedules. It needs the healing and transforming power that only the spirit can set free in us and among us”.’

Pastor Anthony, who had a life-changing experience through attending a retreat based on the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius in 2009 says he came to realise that it’s an important element of our faith-life to have a heart – or experiential – connection with Scripture, as well as a head – or intellectual – one.

‘When I came out of seminary I was very focused in knowledge and doctrine, so that came easily to me’, he says. ‘But when we’re talking about meditating on Scripture, these are matters of the heart. So I needed to grow in that and exploring traditions, such as those of the Jesuits who specialise in meditation and prayer, has really just opened up to me the matters of the heart. It was interesting for me later on to do some research on Luther and discover an experiential emphasis in relation to Scripture from him that some people miss out on.’

Pastor Anthony took a year out of parish ministry in 2012 to complete a Master’s degree in Spiritual Direction with the University of Divinity. He has led retreats using his Lutheran adaptation of The Ignatian Exercises, a retreat program written by Ignatius of Loyola, a Spanish Christian layman at the time who would later become the founder of the Jesuits. The program features Christian meditations centred on the Scriptures, the gospels and various prayers.

He believes the main benefit of Christian meditation ‘is to experience Christ himself’. ‘He says, “I am with you always”, so it enables us to experience him and his love and helps us to grow in faith, to grow in hope, to grow in love – real love in action as we join Jesus in his mission’, Pastor Anthony says.

‘The word meditation literally means “to chew on”, so it belongs to all of us as human beings. Jesus says, “Do not worry”, and worry is a form of meditation; it’s something that we ruminate again and again. So we all naturally meditate, but in terms of Christian meditation, the all-important aspect is, “Where’s the emphasis? What’s the content that we’re meditating on?”

‘For us as Christians, it’s the God that we believe in, the Triune God, Father, Son and Spirit, and where we experience him most centrally is in Scripture, through God’s word.’

Pastor Stephen has written a Christian meditation program with the hope of making the practice easy for time-poor people. For a copy, you can email him at stephen.abraham@lca.org.au

He also has produced YouTube meditation videos, which can be watched and heard at www.youtube.com/c/StephenAbrahamMusic/videos and songs on online social audio platform SoundCloud, which are available for free at https://soundcloud.com/stephenabraham/sets/breathing-scripture/s-pv895

What is Christian meditation?

  • Christian meditation is a verbal activity – literally saying God’s word to one’s self.
  • It’s a different way of abiding in God’s word, resting with him, and receiving the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
  • Meditation is not a means of salvation. It doesn’t make you ‘better’ than other Christians.
  • There are two broad types of Christian meditation – guided meditation and self-guided meditation.
  • While guided meditation is a relaxation exercise in which someone else’s voice guides your awareness and focus, self-guided meditation involves just you and words from Scripture, a prayer or a song.
  • Generally, any Bible verse which encapsulates a key theme of that passage/chapter and that lends itself to breathing and memorisation can be used.

Some important tips for meditation

  • Make it a daily routine and dedicate time to meditation in your calendar
  • Find a quiet place, away from distractions, get physically comfortable and mentally relax.
  • Have a scriptural point of focus.
  • Always start in God’s name: ‘In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen’ – thereby claiming your baptism and identity as a forgiven child of God.
  • Meditation opens you up spiritually, so ask for God’s protection as you begin by quoting Scripture.

From ‘Christian Meditation’, by Pastor Stephen Abraham

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Be still and really get to know God

by Kathy Worthing

The practice of Christian meditation is not well-known in our Lutheran congregations and schools. We have tended to focus more on the intellectual side of our faith (the head) than on the spiritual side (the heart). But there is much to be gained through practising Christian meditation, which aims to connect us with the God-centred core of our being.

Significantly, Christian meditation, once well-established in the contemplative traditions of the church, is making a return among everyday Christians – including Lutherans.

But just what is Christian meditation? It draws upon a deep desire and willingness to enter into a more intimate relationship with God. It is not centred upon the individual meditator but upon God.

The Christian meditator seeks to be still and silent, to listen to God and to simply be in his presence. To do this, many sit upright when they meditate to focus without becoming drowsy and repeat a word or phrase to keep their mind from wandering. Many say the biblical word ma-ra-na-tha (‘Come, O Lord’) silently to aid their focus. Others prefer to repeat the name of Jesus, or to say ‘Lord, have mercy’. For those repeating ma-ra-na-tha, each syllable is said silently with even stress as the word is repeated slowly to help silence our thoughts.

Experienced meditators will do this for 20 or 30 minutes, but those new to the practice may want to start with 10 or 15-minute sessions. This can be done in groups, but is also done by individuals once or twice each day in a quiet place.

Many wonder what to expect when meditating. Do not expect anything. Trust the process. Many find that meditation opens them to greater awareness and attentiveness to God, others and themselves. Meditation is a form of prayer that assists us towards being continually transformed to be more like Christ, and less centred upon ourselves, leaving the ego behind.

I have been practising Christian meditation for more than four years and have been thankful for the journey upon which God has led me. I have experienced many transformations and experiences of communion with Christ, but all in God’s own time. I discovered that I have been carrying with me many layers of protection in the form of insecurities, attachments, fear and a lack of confidence.

By learning to be still before God and listen, I have found that Christ has gently changed me, bringing me not only closer to him but also closer to whom he wants me to be.

Kathy Worthing is a member of the WCCM state executive for South Australia and leads a Christian meditation group meeting at Immanuel Lutheran Church, North Adelaide.

How to find out more

For those looking for structure, advice or a group to meet with, a good place to begin is with the ecumenical WCCM (World Community for Christian Meditation), which has branches in Australia and New Zealand. For more information, go to www.wccmaustralia.org.au

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Ruminating on God’s word

by Pauline Simonsen

‘Look how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these’ (Matthew 6:28-29).

Can you see Jesus, sitting on the hills above Lake Galilee, people all around him, listening? Can you see him gesturing towards a scattering of wildflowers, drawing people’s attention to the flowers’ simple beauty? I wonder where Jesus got this idea from – to compare the wildflowers with King Solomon’s regal finery, as an example of God’s loving provision.

Jesus was a contemplative! He spent time looking, noticing and reflecting on what he was seeing. He gazed at God’s creation and noticed how it demonstrated so much from God’s word. He reflected on what he learnt at the feet of the rabbis in the synagogue, considering how God outworked that teaching in human lives. In his father’s carpentry business, he pondered as he sawed and sanded.

He connected God’s Torah truths with everyday life and so could speak parables of God’s kingdom.

Remember all those times in the gospels when Jesus withdrew by himself to pray (for example, Luke 4:1, 4:42, 5:16, 6:12 and 9:18)? I’m sure a lot of that time was sitting silently in his Father’s presence, listening, looking, pondering … contemplating!

Contemplation has been described as a ‘long, loving look’: slowing down to ponder what one is looking at – whether a Bible verse, an idea, or a flourish of lilies. Contemplation is countercultural in our world. We are people of the fast click, of ‘surfing’ the net, skimming over images and text. We pause briefly on what catches our attention but click on immediately if it doesn’t hold us.

Perhaps many of us read the Bible that way, too. Quickly read my devotion or verses for today, then go! Contemplation isn’t that. It’s going in slowly, with an open, noticing attitude and pausing on something that grabs our eye, ear, mind, or heart. Stopping there; giving the Spirit of God time and space to speak. Waiting quietly, patiently, receptively.

Contemplation, like meditation, has a long Biblical heritage. Do a word search in Psalm 119 for the number of times the psalmist says he will ‘meditate on God’s law’! Think of young David, up there in the hills around Bethlehem, tending his father’s sheep. What did he do in those long solitary hours? Reflected on the Hebrew scriptures, pondered the creation around him, thought deeply about God, wondered how it all related to his life … and wrote songs and psalms expressing these personal meditations. David contemplated!

These words – contemplation and meditation – have been taken over by western culture dabbling in New Age and Eastern religions and we as Christians are often understandably wary. It’s good to clarify that we are speaking of Christian meditation. So what is it?

In New Zealand we have lots of dairy farms and I often drive past and see cows lying down, chewing their cud. That’s the best image of meditation I can think of. The cow has spent the morning eating grass and now sits quietly, regurgitating semi-processed grass so it passes more readily through the cow’s four(!) stomachs. Cows usually spend more time chewing during rumination than when they eat, breaking down grass so it can be absorbed and nourish them.

This describes Christian meditation: ruminating on God’s word. Taking in a portion of Scripture and pausing; chewing on it, re-reading it (several times, maybe in different translations), waiting with an open heart for the Holy Spirit to highlight truths from those verses that God wants you to hear today. Allowing the living word to speak life to you right in the middle of your busy day.

Why? Because God wants you to hear his word. He is always speaking, but we so rarely pay attention. Prayerful Christian meditation slows us and opens us to hearing and receiving God’s word.

All this is, of course, the work of God’s Spirit in us and through his word. Inevitably we humans turn it into our ‘work’: I must meditate to ‘hear God’! But it is the Spirit who draws us, opens the word to us and gives us receptive hearts. It’s like any Christian practice we do in response to God giving us new life: prayer, regular devotions, worship, service … These too are the Spirit’s work in and through us, growing us to be more like Jesus. This is the grace and kindness of a God who wants to communicate with his beloved children.

Christian meditation has many forms. One ancient practice is lectio divina or ‘holy reading’, encountering Christ the Word in Scripture. It is simple, word-centred, Spirit-directed and leads us to Jesus.

A helpful introduction to this form can be found at https://bustedhalo.com/ministry-resources/lectio-divina-beginners-guide. Through it, the Holy Spirit fills me with stillness and peace. This is the joy and delight of Christian meditation!

Dietrich Bonhoeffer explained meditation well in his book Life Together: ‘Silence is nothing else but waiting for God’s word and coming from God’s word with a blessing, but everybody knows that this is something that needs to be practised and learned, in these days when talkativeness prevails … Often we are so burdened and overwhelmed with other thoughts, images, and concerns that it may take a long time before God’s word has swept all else aside and come through. But it will surely come, just as surely as God has come … and will come again … This stillness before the word will exert its influence upon the whole day … Silence before the word leads to right hearing and thus also to right speaking of the word of God at the right time.’

Dr Pauline Simonsen is Dean and a lecturer at Christian training provider Emmaus at Palmerston North in New Zealand. She is also a guest speaker, spiritual director and retreat leader and a member at St Lukes Lutheran Church.

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God’s word brings life in PNG

by Hanna Schulz

We know from 1 John that the ‘word of life’ is revealed in Jesus – the Word who took on flesh, lived among us, defeated death and is living still. The Bible is this word of life, it is ‘alive and active’ (Hebrews 4:12) and brings us life.

It is for this word that we named our new training building in Ubuo village, Papua New Guinea – the ‘Oroi’io Madei Training Centre’. This can be translated as either ‘Word of Life’ or ‘Living Word’ Training Centre. Both translations remind us that the word brings life and is alive in Jesus, speaking to us today, across time and cultures.

The centre was built to train and support people in translating God’s word into their language, for Bible-use training and supporting literacy work.

Since 2015 I have worked alongside the Kope people, training and supporting them in translating Luke into Kope. I have seen the translation team members’ faith grow as they come to understand God’s word more clearly. These co-workers share their learning with their families, churches and communities.

I also have become increasingly aware that neighbouring language communities do not have similar access to God’s word and I have been looking for ways to support them. A training centre seemed a good path.

The path from dream to reality, from planning and fundraising to building, has been long and rocky, but steeped in prayer and with each step taken in faith. God confirmed our path, often providing what was needed just in time. For example, just as solar panels and batteries needed to be paid for, I received a gift from the sale of Peace Lutheran Church Anna Bay in New South Wales! This is love in truth and action.

Despite the challenges of such a big project, especially during COVID, God raised up partners to help. Local villagers contributed through land and foundation preparation and assisted the building team. As a result, the building was completed in three-and-a-half weeks. Local women fed hungry builders and a day before the opening, the builders and electricians worked into the evening, with the power only turned on at 10.00pm.

The dedication and opening on 15 November was a huge communal effort and what a day of celebration it was! With guests from throughout the region and with much joy, we dedicated the building to the glory and work of God.

In June we plan to host a Scripture-use workshop and in September a literacy workshop. Further ahead we hope to reach out to a dozen language groups through training in oral Bible storying. This is a first step in translating God’s word into their languages.

Praise God for all he is doing among the Kope people and their neighbours. Pray for more workers and that he will prepare the hearts of those attending workshops. Pray that as they spread the word in their own languages, their communities may believe and, ultimately, know eternal life.

Hanna Schulz is a linguist and Bible translation advisor in PNG with Wycliffe, a partner of LCA International Mission. Email her at Hanna_schulz@wycliffe.org.au

To support Hanna, visit the Wycliffe Australia website at www.wycliffe.org.au/hanna or email finance@wycliffe.org.au

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Gifts to fellow pastors reflect God’s love

When Pastor Matt Anker, the LCA/NZ’s Assistant to the Bishop – International Mission, called on Lutheran pastors in Australia and New Zealand to support their brother pastors in the Philippines, he says the response was ‘breathtaking’.

Pastor Matt had heard from President Antonio Reyes of the Lutheran Church in the Philippines (LCP) about the effect of COVID-19 church shutdowns, inadequate health facilities, isolation and the lack of a government safety net on LCP pastors. Rev Reyes also shared that for months his pastors had not received stipends as their congregations were not meeting in person, and many members had lost their incomes.

‘He asked if we would consider buying a month’s supply of rice for each of their pastors to help them get by – the cost of which was A$7000’, Pastor Matt says. ‘Although this is not the usual work of LCA International Mission, it was an appeal I couldn’t ignore. Calling to mind the Apostle Paul’s encouragement in Galatians 6:10, “As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers”, I wrote to our pastors and asked them to consider supporting their brother pastors in the Philippines by donating $60 to help one family.

‘Literally within minutes of hitting the send button on the emails, our pastors started to donate and they didn’t stop! Within a couple of days, we were beyond the goal of $7000 and still the donations continued. Some pastors shared this need with their congregations and one congregation sent on a $9000 bequest they had just received so that the ministry of word and sacrament in the Philippines could continue unhindered.

‘Thanks to the generosity of our pastors and those they shared this need with, we have sent more than $35,000 to the Philippines, enabling their pastors to continue their ministry without having to seek alternative work to feed their families.’

LCP’s Pastor Daniel Pondevida sums up the response of our friends in the Philippines when he says: ‘No words of heartfelt thanks can express my joy for your goodness and kindness towards us.’

Pastor Matt says that, while the scale of generosity he has witnessed in this example is ‘breathtaking’, he has been more surprised by the words of thanks he has received from LCA/NZ pastors who ‘were grateful for the opportunity to support their extended family in this way’.

‘Their words reminded me that their generosity is not of their own doing, but instead is born of gratitude for the abundant generosity of our Heavenly Father who did not spare his own Son, but willingly gave him up for us all that we might have forgiveness of sins and life in his name’, Pastor Matt says.

‘Their gifts reflect the love they have received from the Lord, a love which is so generous it overflowed their own lives and reached all the way to the Philippines.

‘Thanks be to God for his generosity in Christ that enables us to be bearers of his generous love to others.’

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Christian meditation: Meeting Christ in Scripture

Christian meditation is an ancient practice dating back thousands of years, to the first days of the church. And it was part of the tradition of those of the Jewish faith long before that. There are many biblical references to meditation, from Genesis through the New Testament, with many specific mentions in the Psalms.

In fact in Psalm 1, God’s people are urged to meditate on his word – on his law – ‘day and night’.

Martin Luther, too, practised, taught and wrote on meditation. He reformed and simplified the medieval monastic model as he did so, according to LCA Pastor Tim Jarick, in his paper ‘Mysticism, Monks and Marty: Meditation in the Lutheran tradition’.

Pastor Tim, Chaplain at Pacific Lutheran College at Caloundra in Queensland, explains that Luther put praying to God for guidance first before reading the Scriptures in his model and made the cross of Christ central to the Lutheran tradition of meditation.

And yet, as Lutherans in Australia and New Zealand, many of us have grown without much knowledge of what Christian meditation is and how and why it is an important, even central, element of our faith journeys.

Indeed, until recent times, many modern Christians have shied away from the practice, says Lutheran Pastor Stephen Abraham. Pastor Stephen, who was already teaching Christian meditation when a spinal injury left him with permanent debilitating and chronic pain and forced his retirement from full-time ministry in his early 30s, uses meditation whenever his pain is severe.

He has developed his own style of Christian meditation over three decades, which draws on a range of influences including the Desert Fathers (early Christian hermits, ascetics and monks, who lived in the Egyptian desert from the 3rd century); Roman Catholic priest, Benedictine monk and spiritual writer John Main; the French ecumenical monastic fraternity Taizé, Martin Luther and, of course, the meditations present in the Bible.

Pastor Stephen says that in other religions meditation is about ‘controlling your mind’ or ‘mindlessly losing yourself’, whereas, in Christianity, it is about ‘giving your thoughts to God’ and ‘giving him control of your thinking’. ‘It is letting your mind-space be governed by God’s word so that the Holy Spirit can direct your daily life’, he says.

‘Meditation is something all humans share: a relaxed focus, a tool to calm mind and body, a place of solace in a busy world.

‘Muslims pray, but we as Christians aren’t afraid to pray or use Christian prayer in our daily life just because Muslims pray. Hindus sing, but we don’t write off all singing us “un-Christian” or an evil practice. Likewise, Buddhists meditate, but for 3000 or more years meditation has been part of the Judeo/Christian experience, even if modern Christians have shied away from it.

‘Just as Christian prayers and music are uniquely Christian, Christian meditation flows from our encounter with the Trinity as revealed in the Bible. In practice, it is a place where the Holy Spirit can guide our reflection as we focus on God’s word.’

Pastor Anthony Price, who serves the worshipping communities of Gawler Lutheran Church north of Adelaide and is accredited as a Spiritual Director and Retreat Leader, teaches Christian meditation and offers spiritual direction. He believes there are several reasons why meditation may have become a ‘lost’ practice in the Lutheran church.

‘Firstly, maybe that’s to do with the New Age movement and that people have a perception that it’s a bit weird’, he says. ‘That’s the unhealthy forms of meditation that take us off of the word, and Jesus and the Triune God.

‘I also think there’s a fear of the unknown – people just don’t know about it.

‘And I have to think about my role as a church leader. If I wasn’t really experiencing it myself, I wouldn’t have been teaching it. So while we as pastors may have learnt about it, if we haven’t experienced it in a life-transforming way, we may not have taken on board the centrality of meditation. And Luther is a fine example, who tells us and teaches us how important it is for us.’

Kathy Worthing, a member of the World Community for Christian Meditation state executive for South Australia and leader of a Christian meditation group, believes this contemplative ministry form is having a revival among everyday Christians – including in the LCA/NZ.

‘Recent spiritual writers such as John Main, Laurence Freeman, Joan Chittister and Richard Rohr have been at the forefront of the resurgence in the practice of Christian meditation, taking it beyond the monastery walls and into the lives of everyday Christians’, she says. ‘As Laurence Freeman said in A Pearl of Great Price, “Our world sorely needs the silent infrastructure of contemplation woven into the institutions and frenetic schedules. It needs the healing and transforming power that only the spirit can set free in us and among us”.’

Pastor Anthony, who had a life-changing experience through attending a retreat based on the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius in 2009 says he came to realise that it’s an important element of our faith-life to have a heart – or experiential – connection with Scripture, as well as a head – or intellectual – one.

He took a year out of parish ministry in 2012 to complete a Master’s degree in Spiritual Direction with the University of Divinity. He has led retreats using his Lutheran adaptation of The Ignatian Exercises, a retreat program written by Ignatius of Loyola, a Spanish Christian layman at the time who would later become the founder of the Jesuits. The program features Christian meditations centred on the Scriptures, the gospels and various prayers.

He believes the main benefit of Christian meditation ‘is to experience Christ himself’. ‘He says, “I am with you always”, so it enables us to experience him and his love and helps us to grow in faith, to grow in hope, to grow in love – real love in action as we join Jesus in his mission’, Pastor Anthony says.

‘The word meditation literally means “to chew on”, so it belongs to all of us as human beings. Jesus says, “Do not worry”, and worry is a form of meditation; it’s something that we ruminate again and again. So we all naturally meditate, but in terms of Christian meditation, the all-important aspect is, “Where’s the emphasis? What’s the content that we’re meditating on?”

‘For us as Christians, it’s the God that we believe in, the Triune God, Father, Son and Spirit, and where we experience him most centrally is in Scripture, through God’s word.’

Pastor Stephen has written a Christian meditation program with the hope of making the practice easy for time-poor people. For a copy, you can email him at stephen.abraham@lca.org.au

He also has produced YouTube meditation videos, which can be watched and heard at www.youtube.com/c/StephenAbrahamMusic/videos and songs on online social audio platform SoundCloud, which are available for free at https://soundcloud.com/stephenabraham/sets/breathing-scripture/s-pv895

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Fundraising for the kingdom – which servant are you?

by Jonathan Krause

I learnt my first big fundraising lesson in the dusty warehouse of a noisy printing factory in an industrial suburb south of Melbourne.

It was 1986. I had hair down to my waist. And I had the stupidest job in the world – writing poems for greeting cards. It seems I was the only person in the southern hemisphere with this job, which led New Idea to do a feature about it, and Gold Logie winner Ernie Sigley to invite me on to breakfast TV so he could crack jokes at my expense.

Each week I would be assigned 50 greeting cards to write poems for. Thinking I already knew everything, I set out to change the world of greeting cards forever by vowing never to write a rhyming poem. No love/glove/dove for me … which is when my boss beckoned me to follow her into the warehouse.

She pointed to a pallet of boxes of greeting cards – returned greeting cards from shops that couldn’t sell them. She said: ‘Jonathan, it’s not about you or what you want to write. It’s about what people want to buy.’

Fundraising is all about what you want to do for others.

So, my fundraising job at Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS) is straightforward. I simply introduce you to people who need your help, support them to tell you what you can do to help and then leave you to decide what action you will take.

Of course, I try to present people’s story as clearly as I can. And I look for exciting ways you can act, such as Gifts of Grace, the GRACE Project, Walk My Way.

Of course, I respect you enough to be frank with you. Show you the urgency. Explain the challenges. Tell you what it costs.

Then, ask unashamedly for your help.

That’s Fundraising 101 – but really it’s one-to-one.

My dad sometimes grumbles that he gets too many letters from charities. Other people ask not to receive letters, so they can save money for the charity and help lower ‘overheads’. I understand those feelings, especially when you help people (and animals) through multiple charities.

However, in fundraising, we know that unless you talk to people at least every couple of months, they can forget about you, donations drop off, fewer people are helped, and ‘overheads’ actually go up.

So, my job in fundraising is to balance the ‘smell-of-an-oily-rag’ approach – over a five-year average ALWS ‘overheads’ are less than 15 per cent – with doing what my 30 years of experience have shown me to be the most effective, efficient way to raise money to help people.

I’ve been blessed to be able to teach fundraising around the world – the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Thailand and even to 500 hospital administrators in the middle of China!

What I’ve found in all those places is that people always give from their heart. Someone’s need touches them, and they are moved to help.

You cannot educate people into giving by teaching lots of facts or statistics to persuade them. It doesn’t work, because the ‘head’ is not strong enough to overturn a decision made in the heart.

The only time fundraising should be about educating, is when we try to show you the most effective way for you to help others. For example:

  • DON’T send boxes of ‘stuff’ that cost a fortune to transport and can create ‘winners and losers in communities’.
  • DO support local communities with training and long-term development, rather than going and doing everything for them.
  • ALWAYS work hard to make sure no-one is forgotten, including people with disabilities, seniors and minority groups.

There’s another ‘Boss’ who has taught me about fundraising – Jesus.

Ever since I was on the Student Representative Council organising ‘Rice Days’ at Luther College in 1976, I’ve been driven by the words of Matthew 25:34–40. This is the story of the sheep and the goats, where Jesus talks about his people feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty, visiting the sick … and pointing out that when you and I do this for someone overlooked, ignored or forgotten, we are doing it for him.

What’s interesting is what Jesus teaches directly before that, in Matthew 25:14–30. Here, he tells the story of the Master giving his servants ‘talents’ – or in modern translations money – different amounts according to the servants’ different abilities.

When you read it in The Message version of the Bible, you see language that wouldn’t be out of place in a business operational plan: ‘delegated responsibilities’, ‘depending on their abilities’, ‘went to work’, ‘doubled his master’s investment’.

For the first two servants, who worked hard and doubled the master’s investment, we read: ‘Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.’

However, when the master calls to account the last servant, who simply buried what he had been given because he was too scared – or lazy – to put it to work, we read:

  • ‘It’s criminal to live cautiously like that.’
  • ‘If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least?’
  • ‘… get rid of this ‘play-it-safe’ who won’t go out on a limb.’

Each day I must ask myself which servant I am. It’s a question we as the Lutheran Church need to ask each day too.

As a fundraiser, I (and ALWS) try to be the bold, hard-working servant of verses 14–30 – inspiring you with ideas, being efficient with your donations, helping you have as big an impact as you can with the gifts God has given you … to bless others as we follow Jesus as the sheep of verses 34–40, feeding the hungry, giving water to those are thirsty, caring for the homeless and sick.

For me, fundraising is a critical part of this ministry.

I thank God I have been given the opportunity to serve this way and been blessed to see the transformation in people’s lives as we work – and raise funds – together to bring love to life. What a joy!

Jonathan Krause is ALWS Community Action Manager.

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God multiplies our gifts

by Wendy Habel

‘Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered’ (Proverbs 11:25).

How do you motivate yourself? How do you do something day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year?

It may not be exactly the same, but as I have found over the years since becoming a member of Lutheran Women of Australia (LWA), women have become very adept at fundraising for projects across the Lutheran Church.

Time is a God-given privilege; it is measured out in seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks and years by the grace of God. He alone knows how much time we have and when he will call us to our heavenly home.

There is a catchcry among some women: ‘I’ll help. If I find time to help with the Lord’s work, I can be pretty sure he’ll give me the time to finish what I have to do!’ This is the motivation I see in the faces of beautiful ladies as I have travelled in my role on the LWA executive.

Each state serves on the executive for a three-year term and we have 11 projects to support through fundraising. These include Aboriginal Missions; Australian Lutheran World Service; LCA International Mission programs and partnerships in Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, Malaysia and Thailand; support for overseas students studying at Australian Lutheran College (ALC); the ALC Women’s Auxiliary and the ALC Pastoral Ministry Assistance Fund.

Between January 2019 and December 2020 an inspirational total of $251,924.15 was raised. Even during COVID-19 LWA women have continued in their support. Innovative fundraising activities have included ‘cakeless stalls’, brown-wrapped auctions, catering for fellowship luncheons and high teas, and giving through knitted or crocheted rugs, toys, children’s clothing and beanies for all ages.

We are privileged to serve and when each women’s fellowship gives – no matter how much or little – God multiplies our gifts and these monetary amounts are used to support many needs. Each state has projects, too, and these are also supported generously.

Leonie from the Bethlehem Ladies Fellowship in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, sums up the women’s attitude to serving and giving in a quote from the Lutheran Women magazine article ‘Busy hands and thankful hearts’: ‘Being able to give so many items to those in need … is a double blessing. Our prayer is that we can continue to do our “work” in his name.’

It’s important to remember we are all special in God’s sight, not because of our talents and skills but because we are filled with the Spirit, which is how we serve God’s purpose.

Wendy Habel is Lutheran Women of Australia President.

LWA is an auxiliary of the LCA. Lutheran Women magazine is issued bi-monthly in print and digital editions and is available at https://lutheranwomenofaustralia.org/ or through LCA Subscriptions via phone 08 8360 7270 or email: lutheranwomen.subs@lca.org.au

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