More chance of hearing the Gospel in Africa than Sweden

Pastoral Meanderings ^ | 08-16-2015 | Pastor Peters

[NRx]

Once a solid, vibrant Lutheran stronghold, Scandinavia today is probably the most secularized region of the Western world. Spiritually, Scandinavians have become “the people that dwell in darkness.” Scandinavia is filled with large, beautiful, empty churches. This has not happened by accident. . . It is probably the case today that a randomly selected African has a better chance than a randomly selected Scandinavian of hearing the Gospel clearly preached. 

There was a time when every Swede was Lutheran from birth by law, and no other denomination was permitted. The Church of Sweden took to calling itself Den Svenska Kyrkan, "The Swedish Church." The Swedish Church was literally the only one in town, and local life centered on it, even for those who were not believers. To be a Swede was to be a member of The Swedish Church. Education was centered on Luther's Small Catechism and the schools were Lutheran parochial schools. Similar developments occurred in other Nordic lands, and Scandinavia was solidly Lutheran.

 What happened?  The Church of Sweden, as an arm of the state, became a tool of the state, of socialism, designed to strip from the Church its faith and replace the Gospel with a progressive socialism in which the government controls nearly every aspect of church life and uses the church for its own purpose.  Though the Church of Sweden was formally disestablished in 2000, it remains governed by forces outside the faith, dominated by political people pushing political agendas, in which the liturgy and catechism remain a remnant of the once profoundly Lutheran and vibrant church.

The Church of Sweden remains Lutheran only in the barest form of that identity.  The Church of Sweden has found reason to disregard or dispute passages of Scripture in favor of its own politicized agenda as you can read below in the justifying of same sex weddings:

The official position of the Church of Sweden Steering Committee in defending its decision to offer same-sex weddings in the Church:  As regards a theological perspective, what is relevant is that the commandment of love is superior to other commandments and prohibitions in the Bible. What is crucial concerning the human cohabitation forms is not individual Bible passages but what is beneficial or harmful to people  Or, to paraphrase that ancient serpent, "You can be like God, deciding what is good and what is evil." And the Steering Committee continues: We therefore have reason to be critical of individual Bible passages about homosexuality. These need to be related to the Bible's more overarching message, including the double commandment of love, and to what the Biblical authors have expressed in other contexts.  [emphasis added]   HT Scandinavia House

Yet, the miracle is that a stirring of confessional young Lutherans has begun to develop in Sweden.  Where the liturgy remains, the Word remains and God will raise up people who will hear and heed His Word and preach it without qualification or fear.  The goal of the Nordic Confessional renewal movements is to bring the Gospel back to these spiritually devastated lands.

As one who is proudly half Swedish, I am personally anxious and hopeful for the day when faith will not be a museum piece but will reflect a new hunger of people in the pews for hope built upon Christ and a new generation of confessional Lutheran clergy will work to restore the faith the Scandinavia by the faithful preaching and teaching of God's Word.  Once Sweden came to the rescue of Lutheranism and now it is time for Lutherans (like the LCMS) to come to the rescue of the Church of Sweden.  Pray for those young men whose faith and confidence in the Gospel may well signal the first real hope for the Church of Sweden in a very long time!

Imagine how something so near and dear to the culture and life of a people could become alien and estranged from their culture and life!  Look around you.  The Gospel must be addressed by one generation to those who come after.  The Church is, from our perspective, always and even one generation from disappearing.  We cannot let this happen. . . not in Europe and not here, either.

[demshateGod]

I wonder what the chances are that a Lutheran sitting in a Lutheran church will ever hear the gospel.

[Nervous Tick]

>> I wonder what the chances are that a Lutheran sitting in a Lutheran church will ever hear the gospel.

Not sure where you’re coming from with that comment.

I’m not a Lutheran, but I have sat in many a Lutheran church and heard the gospel proclaimed.

[terycarl]

People making their own interpretations of the Bible and choosing which books that they would remove from it and allowing various men to lead them hither and yon from true Christianity was never a good idea.....

[Kolokotronis]

“I wonder what the chances are that a Lutheran sitting in a Lutheran church will ever hear the gospel.”

In the MIssouri Synod or the Wisconsin Synod, probably pretty good.

[humblegunner]

If some N00b Christian African comes around “Missionarying”
at me, I’ll laugh in his face. My people have been Christian
for a thousand years and more and don’t need lectured by some
immigrant who eats grasshoppers.

[Biggirl]

Christian faith in Africa is not new. Goes back to the early years of the Christian faith.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Africa

[LovedSinner]

Such a sad story. I have Swedish ancestry.

I was reading Kristin Lavransdatter recently, which got the author a Nobel Prize in Literature, and the story was set in the late Middle Ages in Norway, with Christianity filling the whole story.

No no one will fill the churches. So sad.

[Kolokotronis]

“Goes back to the early years of the Christian faith.”

As my Ethiopian fellow parishioners are fond of reminding us!

[Mrs. Don-o]

The Christian Church in Africa began when Simon of Cyrene (Libya) was drafted by the Romans to help Jesus carry his cross. The Gospels indicate that at first he was just a didn't want to, but in Mark an added comment is made of his being the father of Alexander and Rufus, who are evidently notable men in the church. So Simon evidently sparked the evangelism project with Libyans, with historic results at least in his own family. The next fruitful contact with Africa was in the Book of Acts, where Philip is impelled by the Spirit to preach to an key official from the Candace (queen) of Ethiopia. This had BIG results, because by 43 AD St. Mark found a very willing reception there and became the first bishop of the Church of Ethiopia. It is one of the oldest continuously=existing Christian communities in the world.

I don't know who your ancestors are not anything about their cuisine or their theology as of 43 AD, but my own German ancestors were probably roasting rats on pointed sticks at the time, and worshipping Thor and his criminal consorts and colleagues.

At present, a number of German Catholic prelates are worshipping the Zeitgeist, as they so often have --- while the African Catholic Bishops are staunchly defending Natural and Sacramental marriage and defying the Devil and all his perverted sex-show NGO's.

So if some Christian African comes around “Missionarying” at me, I'll get a good seat where I can savor every word.

My FRiend, you come sit by me.

[Biggirl]

It all began when St. Mark brought the good news of Jesus to Africa starting in Egypt. At one time ALL of what is now north Africa, before the Muslim invasion was CHRISTIAN at one time. All that is left in that part of Africa are the Copts from Egypt, the Ethiopians, and the area that broke away from the Ethiopian nation, the Christian community there.

The Copts have one of the most beautiful icon paintings I have seen.

[Biggirl]

I know a fellow parishoner from my parish whose family came from Nigeria and his son is an ordained Catholic priest who has come to this country to study to become a hospital chaplain in the Dallas, TX area. I met his son.

[humblegunner]

I don't know who your ancestors are not anything about their cuisine or their theology

We're of Scots extraction.
Been Christians for a thousand years and more.

Not particularly keen on being lectured on the topic
by someone who picked up the habit last year.

[Biggirl]

Also St. Mark the Gospel of Jesus to Egypt as well and got the Church going there.

[Biggirl]

Thank-you for the info of church history and God Bless.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Well some of my husband's ancestors were Scots, and good people they were to be sure, although you'll find only a dwindling, aging and weary tribe of Christians in Scotland now. It gives me no pleasure to report this, since most of the Christian churches in the United Kingdom,including mine, are in similar decline.

Church of Scotland in Terminal Decline? (LINK)

Let me, however, recommend to you the category of N00b Christians, which you seem to disparage. It is a category which includes so many of my admired friends and mentors --- they are ardent and knowledgeable tribe. And of course "recent convert Christian" is a category which comprises all the writers of the Gospels and Epistles, and in fact every Saint of the New Testament.

They -- N00bies --- are among the hottest assets of the Church.

Its aiming pretty high, but let's aspire to be as profitable to the Lord as they are.

[vladimir998]

“The Swedish Church was literally the only one in town...”

Because others were outlawed by the Protestant government in the 16th century.

[humblegunner]

While you may choose to defer to a bunch of gibbering
bug-eating foreigners, I shall respectfully decline.

[BlueDragon]

Yeah, but what if they put chocolate on them? The grasshoppers, I mean...

John the Baptist never had it so good.

[Mrs. Don-o]

John the Baptist does not approve this message.