When Night Falls Upon A Lutheran Day School
This is the kind of thing that absolutely breaks my heart.
At this point, and after the past year, I suppose that nothing should surprise me when it comes to the LCMS Church that me and my family currently belong to as well as the Lutheran Day School (affiliated with the same LCMS Church) that my two kids attend and where my wife works and where I volunteer.
I was sadly mistaken.
Today, I saw something that felt like another punch to the gut while being simultaneously stabbed in the back by those who should know better.
If it's just me, then please lovingly correct me here (Ephesians 4:15; Matthew 18), but I almost punched my computer screen (Lord, please forgive me for my anger and lack of self-control!) when I just opened the email newsletter from the private Lutheran Day School where my two kids attend (a school that has been around since 1851!) and found a mind-boggling, head-shaking, righteous anger-inducing message to parents.
Ready for this?
I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they're turning their backs on 163 years of that school's history and tradition when they're willing to turn their backs on nearly 500 years of our own church's orthodox history and tradition.
Why in the world would a Lutheran School ACTIVELY promote and encourage its families/students (many who attend the LCMS Church affiliated with the school) to attend a Catholic Private School where they will surely be exposed and indoctrinated into the beliefs and practices of the Catholic faith!?!
Where is the District President? Where is the Pastor? Where are the faithful Lutheran Teachers? Why does it always fall to a faithful few (a humble layman and a parent like me) to have to speak up and speak out against something like this?
And yet, doing so will instantly brand me as being "divisive" and "unloving" and as "being apathetic about a Christian education" or something I'm sure.
Plus, I'll now be the one Dad at all of the school's events/functions this year who no one will want to be seen hanging around or talking to since I'm the guy who "had to open his mouth" and upset the status quo simply because I believe a Lutheran Day School should not be ashamed of being Lutheran...or intentionally work to sabotage years of catechesis at home, at church, and at school by trying to get its graduating students to attend a local Catholic School.
I'm sorry for the rant.
I suppose if I were to try to "put the best construction" on all of this, then I hope and pray that the motivation behind this decision is so that our "well-catechized Lutheran youth can infiltrate the local Catholic churches and schools in order to expose Catholics to 'the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints' (Jude 1:3)."
That's gotta be it, right? Right!?!
I know, I know, "Come on, Jeff! What's the big deal? So they go to a Catholic School? So what? It's gotta be better than a public school, right? And who cares too because we're all on the same team, right?"
NO! WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, W-R-O-N-G!!!
Again, if I'm "overreacting" here, then I will certainly take a deep breath and apologize, but I just feel like it's been one punch to the gut with a simultaneous stab in the back from this church and school after another the past year and it's wearing on my heart and mind for sure.
In a Lutheran layman's terms, this is what happens when night falls upon a Lutheran Day School.
And we all know that nothing good ever happens in the dark at night.
NOTE: As you know, I am a newly converted Confessional Lutheran who recently escaped American Evangelicalism. That being said, please contact me ASAP if you believe that any of my "old beliefs" seem to have crept their way into any of the material you see published here, and especially if any of the content is not consistent with our Confessions and Lutheran doctrine (in other words, if it's not consistent with God's Word, which our Confessions merely summarize and point us back to) so that I can correct those errors immediately and not lead any of His little ones astray (James 3:1). Finally, please be aware that you might also discover that some of the earlier pieces I wrote on this blog back in 2013 definitely fall into that category since I was a "Lutheran-In-Name-Only" at the time and was completely oblivious to the fact that a "Book of Concord" containing our Confessions even existed. In addition, there are some entries that are a little "out there" so-to-speak since the subject matter was also heavy influenced by common Evangelical concerns/criticisms that aren't that big a deal for us Lutherans. I know that now and I'm still learning. Anyway, I decided to leave those published posts up on this website and in cyberspace only because we now have this disclaimer and only to demonstrate the continuing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit in my life (Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 1:6). Finally, please know that any time we engage in commenting on and/or interpreting a specific portion of the holy Scriptures, it will always follow the verse-by-verse notes from my Lutheran Study Bible unless otherwise noted. Thank you for stopping by and thank you in advance for your time, help, and understanding. Grace and peace to you and yours!
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At this point, and after the past year, I suppose that nothing should surprise me when it comes to the LCMS Church that me and my family currently belong to as well as the Lutheran Day School (affiliated with the same LCMS Church) that my two kids attend and where my wife works and where I volunteer.
I was sadly mistaken.
Today, I saw something that felt like another punch to the gut while being simultaneously stabbed in the back by those who should know better.
If it's just me, then please lovingly correct me here (Ephesians 4:15; Matthew 18), but I almost punched my computer screen (Lord, please forgive me for my anger and lack of self-control!) when I just opened the email newsletter from the private Lutheran Day School where my two kids attend (a school that has been around since 1851!) and found a mind-boggling, head-shaking, righteous anger-inducing message to parents.
Ready for this?
OPEN HOUSE: Our 6th-8th grade boys -- there are two open houses coming up at area Catholic Schools. The first is St. Francis High School in Athol Springs on Sunday, September 28 from 10:00am-12:30pm and Monday, September 29 from 5:30pm-7:00pm. For info call 627-1200. The second is Canisius High School on Sunday, October 5 from 9:00am-2:00pm. For info call 882-0466.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they're turning their backs on 163 years of that school's history and tradition when they're willing to turn their backs on nearly 500 years of our own church's orthodox history and tradition.
Why in the world would a Lutheran School ACTIVELY promote and encourage its families/students (many who attend the LCMS Church affiliated with the school) to attend a Catholic Private School where they will surely be exposed and indoctrinated into the beliefs and practices of the Catholic faith!?!
Where is the District President? Where is the Pastor? Where are the faithful Lutheran Teachers? Why does it always fall to a faithful few (a humble layman and a parent like me) to have to speak up and speak out against something like this?
And yet, doing so will instantly brand me as being "divisive" and "unloving" and as "being apathetic about a Christian education" or something I'm sure.
Plus, I'll now be the one Dad at all of the school's events/functions this year who no one will want to be seen hanging around or talking to since I'm the guy who "had to open his mouth" and upset the status quo simply because I believe a Lutheran Day School should not be ashamed of being Lutheran...or intentionally work to sabotage years of catechesis at home, at church, and at school by trying to get its graduating students to attend a local Catholic School.
I'm sorry for the rant.
I suppose if I were to try to "put the best construction" on all of this, then I hope and pray that the motivation behind this decision is so that our "well-catechized Lutheran youth can infiltrate the local Catholic churches and schools in order to expose Catholics to 'the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints' (Jude 1:3)."
That's gotta be it, right? Right!?!
Galatians 1:6-10 (ESV) 6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. 10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
I know, I know, "Come on, Jeff! What's the big deal? So they go to a Catholic School? So what? It's gotta be better than a public school, right? And who cares too because we're all on the same team, right?"
NO! WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, W-R-O-N-G!!!
Galatians 5:9 (ESV) A little leaven leavens the whole lump.
Again, if I'm "overreacting" here, then I will certainly take a deep breath and apologize, but I just feel like it's been one punch to the gut with a simultaneous stab in the back from this church and school after another the past year and it's wearing on my heart and mind for sure.
In a Lutheran layman's terms, this is what happens when night falls upon a Lutheran Day School.
And we all know that nothing good ever happens in the dark at night.
NOTE: As you know, I am a newly converted Confessional Lutheran who recently escaped American Evangelicalism. That being said, please contact me ASAP if you believe that any of my "old beliefs" seem to have crept their way into any of the material you see published here, and especially if any of the content is not consistent with our Confessions and Lutheran doctrine (in other words, if it's not consistent with God's Word, which our Confessions merely summarize and point us back to) so that I can correct those errors immediately and not lead any of His little ones astray (James 3:1). Finally, please be aware that you might also discover that some of the earlier pieces I wrote on this blog back in 2013 definitely fall into that category since I was a "Lutheran-In-Name-Only" at the time and was completely oblivious to the fact that a "Book of Concord" containing our Confessions even existed. In addition, there are some entries that are a little "out there" so-to-speak since the subject matter was also heavy influenced by common Evangelical concerns/criticisms that aren't that big a deal for us Lutherans. I know that now and I'm still learning. Anyway, I decided to leave those published posts up on this website and in cyberspace only because we now have this disclaimer and only to demonstrate the continuing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit in my life (Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 1:6). Finally, please know that any time we engage in commenting on and/or interpreting a specific portion of the holy Scriptures, it will always follow the verse-by-verse notes from my Lutheran Study Bible unless otherwise noted. Thank you for stopping by and thank you in advance for your time, help, and understanding. Grace and peace to you and yours!
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So I shared this with 3 different Lutheran Groups on Facebook and got tons of thoughtful responses! If you're one of the many people who commented there, then THANK YOU VERY MUCH since it's what I was looking for and I have much to consider and to pray about.
ReplyDeleteFor everyone else, including those who don't have a Facebook account, the general response was that it obviously comes down to the parent's choice of what's "best" for their children, which will certainly vary from family-to-family. No argument from me on that! In addition, many asked if there was a local Lutheran High School while many others pointed out that a Catholic School -- ANY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, FOR THAT MATTER -- would be much better than sending them to a Public School. Here's how I responded to that in case you're interested...
"Thanks everyone! Similar points were brought up in other forums where I posted this so I thought I'd share the same response I put there. No, there is no Lutheran High School in the area and only Catholic ones or Non-Denominational ones. Perhaps I'm 'overreacting' a bit here after all (if these initial comments are any indication; thanks to everyone for them, by the way!). However, on the 'Christian vs. Public' argument in regards to this discussion, I guess I just look at it as having two key components. First, and most importantly, my child's faith is most important and due to what we read in Galatians 5:9 about 'a little leaven' then why take the chance and expose them to beliefs/practices that are completely contrary to our faith or that would certainly promote unionism? Second, at some point my kids will have to fully enter the 'non-Christian' world and they won't be in a 'Christian Bubble' (so-to-speak) like a Christian School for so many hours throughout their day. So, for me, yes, even though I'm a few years away from i becoming a real issue, I think I'd rather they attend a public school (where they can come home with questions about how to explain to their non-believing friends not just 'what' they believe, but 'why' they believe it if they don't know already) and perhaps even confess their faith to those same individuals, than go to a 'Christian' school that distorts the Gospel. Sure, one may be a more 'moral environment' than the other, but are we looking to raise obedient moralists or Christians who DAILY see the reality of being simultaneously a saint and a sinner? Just my two cents on the matter."
Grace And Peace,
Jeff