St. Thomas, Apostle and Martyr

Martyrdom of Thomas, Peter Paul Rubens

Today is the shortest day of the year—the winter solstice. It is also the annual feast day of Thomas, unfortunately remembered as “Doubting Thomas.” On this day, dedicated to his memory, I would like to rehabilitate his good name.

In the Bible, Thomas is mentioned four times besides being listed among the Twelve. First comes John 11. When Jesus announced His intention to go back to Judea where they had just tried to kill Him, all the disciples except one tried to change His mind. They put safety above doing God’s will.

But not Thomas. He exhorted his fellow disciples, “Let us also go that we may die with Him." His intrepid courage found its way into one of our most beloved hymns. “Let us also die with Jesus since by death He conquered death” (Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus, v. 3).

Second, we read in John 14 that, on the night in which He was betrayed, Jesus told His disciples: “I am going to prepare a place for you,” and “you know the way to where I am going” (John 14:2 & 4). Thomas responded, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the Way?”

This question set up one of Jesus’ most memorable teachings: “I Myself Am the Way, the Truth and the Life.” You don't need to have a roadmap of your life to walk with Jesus. His way is neither a map nor a plan. Jesus Himself is the Way. Stay with Him and you will be safe—even if He is walking into the lion’s den.

Of course, the most well-known story of Thomas began on Easter evening when the risen Jesus appeared to the disciples while Thomas was absent. Afterward, when they told him of the risen Lord, Thomas famously replied, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe” (John 20:25).

I love Thomas for taking this uncompromising stand. He was neither gullible nor credulous. By being bull-headed, Thomas’ witness to Jesus’ resurrection is powerfully strengthened. 

Jesus, far from being angry with Thomas, eagerly guided him: “Put your finger here and see my hands. Put out your hand and place it into My side” (John 20:27). Jesus also wants you to probe the science of His claims. Faith in the One who is Himself the Truth can only be strengthened by true science.

Caravaggio, The incredulity of Thomas

The fourth gospel story involving Thomas is recorded in John 21. He is fishing with Peter when Jesus stands on the shore and leads them into a miraculous catch of fish. It happened at the crack of dawn. 

That brings us to today's date. December 21 is the day when the Sun is at its lowest ebb. From here on out every day will be brighter than the one before. It is like the dawn of a new year. All over the world, people look to the rising sun for light and hope.

After that morning on the shore of Galilee, the Bible says no more about Thomas. But that does not mean there is no more to be said. When the apostles left Jerusalem to bring Christ to the nations, Thomas traveled east—toward the rising sun.

Oral histories tell us that only Thomas, of all the apostles, left the Roman Empire. He made it to the southwest coast of India. There he built Hindu Christianity. And there, in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, he received a martyr’s death.

We are told that Thomas was speared to death. What a beautiful picture to think that he who placed his hand in Jesus’ pierced side, was himself pierced by a spear. By one spear hole, he confessed his Lord and God. By a second spear hole he received the martyr’s crown. “Let us gladly die with Jesus since by death He conquered death.”

San Thome Basilica Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

The Lutheran View of “Transgenderism”

ELCA Seminarian Aaron Musser (center)

The name “Lutheran” is neither copyrighted nor regulated by any central Lutheran authority. A group of Buddhist could call themselves “Lutheran,” and there would be nothing at all that real Lutherans could do about it.

Doubtless, this is confusing and frustrating for anyone trying to understand true Lutheranism by reading the headlines of the day. Recently two headlines have been the cause of much confusion about so-called “Transgenderism.”

Last May, the Sierra Pacific Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) elected a female bishop who insists that people refer to her using third-person plural pronouns. This generated a whole slew of headlines read something on the order of, “The Lutheran Church elected its first transgender bishop” (CNN May 12, 2021).

More recently, a student pastor made national headlines when he exchanged his clerical garments for makeup and drag on a Sunday Morning in Chicago. Many were confused and scandalized by headlines such as, “Chicago Lutheran Church Hosts 'Drag Queen Prayer Hour' for Children.” This happened, again, in an ELCA congregation. 

Below Rev. Hans Fiene of our own fellowship, the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS) has published a very helpful piece that addresses the confusion caused by these headlines.

A Lutheran View of Transgenderism

November 21, 2021

 

Rev. Hans Fiene

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Editor’s note: The following essay appears in the Fall 2021 issue of Eikon.

Continue reading here.

Reflections on fellowship questions in the LCMS

On August 1, 2021, LCMS President, Matthew Harrison, traveled to Finland for the consecration of a new bishop in our partner church. His actions raised some questions that provided Pastor Lange an opportunity to engage in some churchly teaching and discussion on the website of The Brothers of John the Steadfast.

Participation in the consecration of a Finnish Bishop -- a guest article by Rev. Jonathan Lange

So great a cloud of witnesses

Note: This sermon was delivered on the occasion of the 175th anniversary of First St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois on All Saints Sunday (November 7, 2021). The Preacher was Rev. Peter K. Lange, First Vice-President of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod.

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Dear saints, gathered for this feast today at First St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church—Chicago, Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

God’s Word for our consideration on this All Saints Sunday, and 175th anniversary celebration of this congregation, are the Old Testament and Epistle readings we’ve heard.

We’ll get to those in a few minutes, but first I’d like to tell you about a man named Frederick and his family.

It was May 5, 1891 and it was his wedding day! He was being united in holy marriage to Nellie, whose father had come from Germany and whose mother was born in Buffalo Grove. Their wedding was at First St. Paul’s Lutheran Church (at Franklin and Superior, in Chicago), and their pastor was Rev. Henry Wunder who had been pastoring the congregation for 40 years by that time. When Pastor Wunder’s ministry ended 22 years later, the church records would show that he married 5,062 couples(!), baptized 17,350 of their children, and buried 6,361 dear saints of this congregation. 

Frederick and Nellie

The church building itself (on the corner of Franklin and Superior) was quite new, because the original building at that location had been destroyed 20 years earlier by the Great Chicago Fire. Franklin and Superior was actually the second location for First St. Paul’s, the previous being on Grand Avenue, between Wells and Franklin. And, before that even, the founding members of this congregation worshipped with other German Protestant immigrants at the corner of Ohio and LaSalle, which is where the founding meeting for the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod was held 175 years ago this coming April.

As Frederick stood before the altar on that spring day, a 23-year-old man, he really didn’t remember much about that Great Fire 20 years earlier, that killed 300 people and destroyed 17 ½ thousand homes, including many from the congregation, and including his own family’s home just southeast of Goose Island. Frederick’s mother Anna was great with child that night of the fire and yet had to flee west with her husband John to escape the flames that were moving north and east. They found a safe barn where Anna gave birth to a daughter, Katie, just eight days after the fire.

Anna and John

Frederick’s father John, a milk distributor, had come to Chicago from northern Germany (near Rostock) 14 years before the fire, just nine years after that fateful congregational meeting which Pastor Selle and four other members left to form First St. Paul’s—a congregation that pledged faithfulness to the Scriptures as confessed in the Lutheran Book of Concord of 1580. John was 17 when he came to the U.S. along with his mother Mary and several siblings. All-in-all Frederick’s father John would be affiliated with First St. Paul’s for 62 years before he was buried from this congregation by Pastor Kowert, in 1919. By that time (1919) the congregation had moved to its third location—this present site—moving into a former Jewish synagogue in 1910… a building that served the congregation until this present one was dedicated in 1969.

Little did Frederick know, on his joyous wedding day, that he and his beloved bride would be blessed with seven sons, the fifth of whom was Wilburn who was baptized on September 2, 1906 by Pastor Wunder. As a grown man Wilburn would be Superintendent of the Sunday School here at First St. Paul’s, a Sunday School that in the year of Wilburn’s confirmation by Pastor Kowert had 300 students!

In 1934, Frederick, this proud father of seven sons, would receive his crown of eternal life and be buried from First St. Paul’s by Pastor Kowert. His dear wife Nellie would survive him by three years and also be buried from First St. Paul’s. (The cemetery for all these generations of Frederick’s family was the Rosehill Cemetery, as the family had moved north about the time of World War I.) 

Wilburn's Confirmation Day

But before Frederick would fall asleep in Christ, he would witness the marriage of his fourth son Wilburn to Marie Borchardt of Bethany Lutheran Church here in Chicago. Wilburn and Marie were very active at First St. Paul’s… with Wilburn serving, not only as Sunday School Superintendent, but also as an elder and usher. Marie sang in the church choir with Professor Beck, later recounting a Christmas party at his home in River Forest. The Lord blessed Wilburn and Marie with three children, the second of whom is my mother.

Finally, in October 1945, Wilburn moved his family to Algonquin, IL taking with him the fifth generation of Lettos to be associated with First St. Paul’s.

The congregation continued on, ministering to new mission fields and new ethnic groups whom the Lord brought to its changing neighborhood. And that brings us to today, celebrating 175 years of life together and ministry for the people of First. St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chicago.

My family story, as it intertwines with First St. Paul’s, isn’t unique. There are many such stories for First St. Paul’s and for every congregation of saints gathered around pulpit and altar. Each of your families has a similar story, even if not fully chronicled. And future generations will include us in their stories.

First St. Paul's original building

I tell this story because it provides a unique window into the 175-year story of First St. Paul’s, but also because it’s the story of saints… everyday saints… saints among the untold number for whom we give thanks on this All Saints Sunday… men and women, boys and girls who are saints not because they were more sinless than you or me… not because they were “family,” not because they were part of a nostalgic, bygone era… but because they were made saints by the Holy One himself who loved them, as His heavenly bride, “and gave Himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5). 

The theme for this 175th anniversary celebration is, “HE WHO PROMISED IS FAITHFUL” (from Hebrews 10:23). And the Old Testament reading for this All Saints Sunday records one of those promises of God, through His prophet Isaiah, who looked ahead during Israel’s time of exile from Mount Zion in Jerusalem, and promised those suffering saints:

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples

    a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,

    of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.

7 And he will swallow up on this mountain

    the covering that is cast over all peoples,

    the veil that is spread over all nations.

8     He will swallow up death forever;

and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces,

    and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,

    for the LORD has spoken.

9 It will be said on that day,

    “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us.

    This is the LORD; we have waited for him;

    let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

One of the interesting (and sometimes frustrating) things about Old Testament prophecies is that it’s hard to pin down a single place or time that the prophet is talking about. What “mountain” is Isaiah referring to here? When will all these wonderful things take place? And what is “that day” of which the prophet speaks?

On All Saints Sunday our thoughts are appropriately raised heavenward as we think of our loved ones who have died in the faith and are now with the Lord, awaiting the resurrection of the body, and the full number of the elect to join them around the heavenly throne. We think of them and we look forward to joining them and to the fulfillment of God’s promise that we heard in today’s Epistle reading, from Revelation chapter 21, that at the Lord’s final coming He “will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” God has promised that for those who die trusting in Jesus as their Savior from sin. And HE WHO PROMISED IS FAITHFUL! 

“This Holy Mountain” as it appears today.

So “this mountain” of which Isaiah speaks, and “that day” is ultimately heaven—the new Jerusalem of Revelation 21. But it’s also, in a preliminary sort of way, the time of Christ, the New Testament Church in which the Lord already gives His eternal gifts—“spreads a feast of rich food” as it were—because of His suffering, death, and resurrection, even though those gifts are not yet fully revealed and are still given, in this life, against the backdrop of the consequences of sin. 

And so, those who have died in the faith (including our loves ones), knew well the tears of this life. Think of the tears shed at the massive loss of property in the Chicago fire, or the loss of livelihood (and often self-esteem) resulting from the Great Depression. Think of the tears that attended the thousands of funerals in this congregation alone! And yet, by His death and resurrection, the Lord has swallowed up death forever! He destroyed its permanent grip by paying with His own life the price of death for sin. And so, because of Jesus Christ and His atoning work, the promises that will be fully revealed in heaven are revealed to the eyes of faith already now, so that even today—in the midst of hardship and tears—the Lord God wipes away tears from our faces (by His Gospel promises) and gives us a faith-filled reason to say, “Let us be glad and rejoice in His salvation!” 

What is more, “on this mountain”… that is, in His Holy Christian Church, in congregations such as First St. Paul’s, the Lord of hosts makes “for all peoples a feast of rich food and a feast of well-aged wine.” It’s a feast for “everyday saints,” like you, whose stories will be recounted by future generations. Saints who are saints, not because of how holy and sinless you are, but because your Heavenly Bridegroom has made you saints by the washing of water with the Word in Holy Baptism.

In this place the Lord of hosts already today prepares a feast of rich food. It’s a feast of the preaching of His precious Gospel, the assurance that God forgives you all your sins because of His Son Jesus Christ who gave His life into death on a cross in payment for the sins of the whole world. And it’s a feast of this very Bread of Life Himself who gives His body and blood to us as a foretaste of the eternal Feast of Victory that awaits us in heaven. All Saints Day is about the saints in heaven, to be sure, but it’s also about you, His saints on earth today, who are blessed in your mourning, and poverty of spirit, and every other seemingly lowly condition, because you are Jesus’ own by faith, and you have His promises, and HE WHO PROMISED IS FAITHFUL! 

And remember that this feast that the Lord spreads already today in His Holy Christian Church—this feast that will reach its fulness in heaven—is a feast that’s for all people… people from “every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages” (Rev. 7:9). And so, even as you have been blessed with a seat at this feast, the Lord continues to use you—the stewards His gifts and members of First St. Paul’s in its 176th year—to make provision so that His feast can continue to be shared with all whom He invites to this place.

What a wonderful heritage God has given this congregation for 175 years! What an honor you have to be the host congregation for the formational meeting of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod! But, even better, what a precious treasure you (like those before you) have in the promises of God… promises like Isaiah 25 and Revelation 21 that are all about Jesus. And

HE WHO PROMISED IS FAITHFUL!

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen!

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CrossTalk: A Meditation for All Souls Day (November 2)

Photo by Einar Storsul on Unsplash

For over a thousand years, the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed (also known as All Souls Day) has been observed on November 2. It’s the day after All Saints Day. That’s an altogether different holiday, but a good many Christians splice them together. 

A saint, properly speaking, is not only one who has been canonized by the church but is any person who has been made holy by the Holy Spirit through the forgiveness of sins received by faith in Jesus Christ. This is the most common way the word, saint, is used in the Bible. The Apostle, Paul, begins many of his letters with a greeting “to the saints” in that place (2 Corinthians 1:1; Ephesians 1:1; Philippians 1:1 etc.).

So, it is fine to splice All Saints Day together with All Souls Day. But the latter narrows our focus further still. It considers only those saints who have remained faithful unto death; and, it gives us an opportunity to think about those who have “died in Christ,” or “fallen asleep in Jesus.”

The language of sleep as a depiction of death was used by Jesus from the very beginning of his earthly ministry. When Jairus’ daughter died, Jesus told the mourners, “The child is not dead but sleeping” (Mark 5:39 ESV). Again, when the brother of Mary and Martha died, He told his disciples, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep” (John 11:11). This usage echoes language that is already used in the Old Testament. See, for instance, Daniel 12:2 and 1 Kings 1:21.

The language of sleep is not used for the death of everyone, however. It is reserved for those who have died in the Christian faith. Their bodies rest in the grave until the last day when Jesus returns and raises them to live eternally with God. For this reason, the Church began calling her graveyards, “cemeteries.” This word comes from a Greek word that means “a sleeping place, or dormitory.”

Cemeteries are the resting place for the bodies of believers because only bodies fall asleep. Spirits and souls do not need sleep, nor can they die. Human beings, unlike either animals or angels have both a body and a soul. Their bodies sleep in Jesus while their souls go to heaven. 

When Jesus was hanging on the cross, one of the criminals crucified with him repented, believed and asked Jesus for mercy. Jesus answered, “Today you will be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). These beautiful and comforting words clearly declare that both Jesus and the believing thief would be together even while their bodies were laid in the tomb.

There is no such thing as “soul sleep.” Unlike the body, the souls of the faithful departed are wide awake. This is most clearly taught in the book of Revelation. Gazing into heaven, St. John reports, “I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the Word of God and for the witness they had born” (Revelation 6:9). Later, he reports, “I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the Word of God” (Rev. 20:4).

Christians have three great promises about eternal life. First, from the very moment any person repents of sin and trusts Jesus for forgiveness, life, and salvation, that person enters into eternal life. Second, at the moment of death the soul of that person immediately goes to be with God in heaven. Third, on the last day, when Jesus comes to judge the living and the dead, each believer’s body will rise from the sleep of death and be rejoined to his soul. 

Then we, “will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words” (1Thessalonians 4:18). 

Male and female He created them – Homosexual relationships challenge the Christian concept of humanity – Päivi Räsänen

Rev. Pohjola, Mrs. Päivi Räsänen, and family
Photo credit: Thomas M. Winger

The Luther Foundation Finland (Suomen Luther-säätiö), the legal entity behind the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland, is being investigated for incitement against a protected group.,,

The author of the pamphlet, Member of Parliament and former Minister of the Interior Mrs Päivi Räsänen, is also being investigated for incitement, a crime punishable by a fine or up to two years of imprisonment. Dr. (MD) Räsänen is well known in the country for promoting Christian ethical stances on marriage and the beginning and the end of life, for instance. The pamphlet in question addresses the issue of sexuality and marriage in its biblical and societal context.

This beautiful pamphlet has been translated into English and is available in HTML and PDF here.

Christian Culture: Jesus Wept Twice

The first time Jesus wept, it was over the death of his friend, Lazarus. They showed Him the place where he lay. Jesus wept. It was an exhibition of His true humanity—raw emotion at the wrongful intrusion of death into human life. 

The second time Jesus wept also exhibited His humanity. He wept over the city of Jerusalem—a piece of real estate, a political subdivision. This time, instead of weeping silently, He wept out loud. It was a raw display at the wrongful intrusion of war, fire, slaughter and wholesale destruction that soon would come upon the city.

“If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace.” The city of peace refused to receive her Creator, the King of Peace. The temporal consequences of such rebellion are dire. “We have deserved both temporal and eternal punishments.” So Jesus addresses her as a person—as an entity of His own creation—because she is.

Continue reading at: Christian Culture, Spring 2021

CrossTalk: God is about to act.

About 615 years before Jesus was crucified and had risen from the dead, God appeared to the prophet Ezekiel in a vision. Ezekiel was a captive in Babylon (modern day Iraq)—along with his fellow Israelites. Nevertheless, God gave him an amazing word to proclaim: “Say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name’” (Ezekiel 36:22).

In hindsight, history records that God miraculously rescued the people of Israel from their captivity to the Babylonians only 70 years later. History also records that 615 years later God sent His only-begotten Son to rescue the entire world from its captivity to sin, death, and the devil. But nobody knew that history as Ezekiel was delivering God’s words. They only had the promise: “I am about to act.”

We, too, have God’s promise that “I am about to act.” The Lord of the Church, the crucified and ascended Jesus, is biding His time. He’s waiting for the appointed moment. We have no idea when. We only know that, “He will come again with glory, to judge both the living and the dead.”

Even before Judgment Day, he could act at any time to redress the evils of our day. The Psalmist wrote, “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land. In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there” (Psalm 37:7-10).

As we slog our way from day to day, we need to be reminded constantly of this. It is a great and terrible temptation to slip into thinking that God cares not about our struggles and has abandoned us to the evil of this world. 

St. Peter plainly warns us to avoid this mindset. “…[Y]ou should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation’” (2 Peter 3:2-4).

Thanks be to God, his determination to act is not deterred by our sins. “Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name” (Ezekiel 36:22). It is for Christ’s sake, that God will act. He will vindicate Himself. He does not depend on your holiness or your strength. All depends on His power and His grace. 

This does not mean that we should join in the wickedness of the world. We should live our lives avoiding sin because when God acts, it will be against all wickedness, unbelief, and pride. Cling to God’s Word. Repent of your sins. Pray that you may be numbered with the faithful when He comes to judge the wicked. Like the people of Ezekiel’s day, be certain that God will vindicate His name. We don’t know when or how, but we live in the certainty that He will do it.

The Christian in Vocation: Ethical Consequences of In-vitro Fertilization

Amber Easton

Current Ethical Issue

There are many ethical dilemmas surrounding the protection of human life, and this protection must be established for all stages of them.  The issue arises due to the debate over when human life begins, but this information has been well known for over 75 years.  Human life begins at conception, from the moment the sperm meets the egg.  This fact is established in the 23 Carnegie Stages written by a branch of the National Institute of Health.  These embryonic stages are reviewed and verified annually by a global committee of expert human embryologists, known as the Federative International Programme for Anatomical Terminology (FIPAT) (Funk, 2028), and for over 75 years these stages have remained unchanged. Therefore, the same protection that is justly given to the most maturely developed individual, should also be given to the most delicate and youngest of humans.  Artificial reproductive technologies have been the cause of a growing ethical issue regarding the protection of hundreds of thousands of the most delicate of humankind.

 In Vitro fertilization (IVF) has become a successful alternative option for families and individuals who wish to have a child of their own but are experiencing infertility issues.  IVF is a procedure that is done by taking eggs from a woman and fertilizing the egg with a sperm cell in a petri dish.  This fertilization creates an embryo which is allowed to grow and develop in the dish for about 5 days, at which time it is either implanted into the mother’s uterus where it can continue to develop and grow or it is frozen in a process called cryopreserving (Boys and Walsh, 2017). According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, in 2018 there were 306,197 assistive reproductive cycles performed.  This resulted in 73,831 live births and 103,078 eggs or embryos cryopreserved for later use. It is estimated to be well over one million embryos currently frozen in the United States today (National Embryo Donation Center, n.d.). This number of frozen embryos is steadily growing with approximately one third of these being abandoned (Pflum, 2019).  This has created an ethical dilemma on what to do with the large number of abandoned embryos. 

There are several reasons for the large number of frozen embryos.  One, is that during the IVF process, the woman takes medications that cause her body to ovulate.  This stimulation of ovulation produces many eggs.  According to Staphanie Boys and Julie Walsh, the numbers  produced can range on average anywhere from 10 - 40 eggs. Due to the high cost of the medication to produce additional eggs and the uncertainty of the expensive procedures, many of the eggs are fertilized for use. This results in many embryos being left over from IVF procedures.  The parents of these embryos must then make decisions about what to do with the remaining embryos.  Their choices range from implanting them and having a larger family than first intended, keeping them cryopreserved indefinitely, adopting them to another family, donating them to research (stem cell, or training purposes), or thawing them (preventing further development and disposing of them) (Boys and Walsh, 2017).  Another option is known as “compassionate transferring” (Riggan and Allyse, 2019) this is a procedure in which the embryo is implanted into the mother’s infertile uterus or vagina which will lead to an intentional miscarriage of the embryo.

Reasons for abandonment of embryos range greatly due to family situations.   One scenario is that once a family has their desired number of children, the embryos that are not being used are frozen.  This costs patients anywhere from $500.00 and upwards to $1,200 annually to keep their embryos cryopreserved (Boys and Walsh, 2017).  Clients either choose to stop paying or can’t afford to continue to pay for the storage of their embryos leaving them abandoned. Others parents might move and neglect to forward their mailing address, so they no longer receive bills and information from the fertility clinics where their embryos are being stored.  These growing numbers of abandoned embryos leaves ethical decisions up to fertility clinics and healthcare workers.

So the ethical questions are; what to do with this high number of cryopreserved embryos? Whose decision is it to make when it comes to abandoned embryos?  What is the ethical action to take with them, and finally how to prevent these numbers from continuing to grow?

Relation to Nursing Code of Ethics Provisions 

American Nurses Association Code of Ethics provision 1 pertains greatly to this ethical dilemma.  Through showing compassion, respect and dignity to all patients from the very youngest to the oldest.  Nurses will be able to anticipate issues that may arise from certain decisions.  By having a knowledge base of what the client is dealing with, and the current situation of the great number of cryopreserved embryos, nursing staff will be able to better educate their patients on considerations for the future.  Through the expression of dignity and respect to the client, the client will feel as though they are being well cared for and will have more success in dealing with difficult decisions (American Nurses Association, 2015).

Additionally, the nursing code of ethics provision 8 also relates to this ethical concept.  It is imperative that nurses maintain universal rights of health for all (American Nurses Association, 2015).  Nurses and healthcare workers must practice by the non-malfeasance principle, which means to do no harm. By respecting the right of all humans, regardless of their developmental state, it will ensure that appropriate care is provided for all patients.  This includes the care for both the parents and the children, even if those children are immaturely developed and in an embryonic phase. It is important that nurses who are dealing with clients who are undergoing IVF consider the consequences of poorly educating patients resulting in further complications to families and the healthcare industry.

Impact on Nursing and Patient Care 

There is great debate over when human life begins, and for individuals who understand that life begins at conception this is a terrible injustice to hundreds of thousands of individuals.  This will impact many patients who have IVF after they discover that they have to make an incredibly difficult moral decision with their remaining children. These decisions will impact these families for the remainder of their lives, either by increasing their family members or by choosing other fates for their children.  The decision may cause incredible joy, guilt or sadness for the parents of these embryos.

This may also impact nurses, through the care for families who have fertility problems. This ethical impact will be greatest for nurses who deal with women's health and fertility the most.  This is because they will be most responsible for properly informing their patients about these difficult choices, and it may cause great moral conflicts for nurses who feel a responsibility for the lives of the embryos.  For those families who get to adopt children through this process of IVF surplus. Nurses and families get the great privilege of aiding in the rescue of children who might have otherwise bleak endings, as well as being able to help with the correction of this growing ethical dilemma. 

Factors that Impact this Dilemma

The main factors that impact this dilemma are the views of when human life begins. These differing views and understandings will be the deciding factor of life or death for hundreds of thousands of frozen embryos.  Another important factor is how healthcare workers educate patients on future decision making and how to prevent this issue from growing.

Possible Solutions

Some possible solutions for this issue are better education for patients prior to the IVF process.  This will help clients to be better prepared in the event that they have to make a decision regarding a surplus of embryos. Embryonic adoption needs to be part of the education and options for  patients considering this alternative reproduction. Another solution is to limit the number of embryos created for clients and make it mandatory that all embryos that are created are implanted and given the right to full development. This would elicit more thought from parents and doctors who are undergoing or performing artificial reproductive technologies. As for the hundreds of thousands of frozen embryos, a time limit should be set on how long individuals may keep them frozen, indefinitely should not be an option.  This indefinite cryopreservation of embryos only passes the responsibility of care and decisions making onto the future generation. Once the allotted time for this is up, the embryos should be placed up for adoption. 

Impact on My Future Nursing Practice 

Before studying this ethical dilemma, I believed that artificial reproductive technologies were 100%  innocent and without any ethical fault.  Now that I have studied this it has come to my attention that even through the joy of becoming a parent, this procedure can leave individuals with feelings of loss and guilt.  This will impact my future nursing practice through better understanding of the loss and moral guilt that parents may experience through IVF.  It will also impact me to become more educated on technologies that seem to be completely innocent and without any negative consequences, so that I can make sure that if I am responsible for educating on that particular technology I have the ability to fully inform my patients about that procedure.

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References

American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/nursing-excellence/ethics/code-of-ethics-for-nurses/coe-view-only/

Boys, S.  and Walsh, J. (2017). The dilemma of spare embryos after IVF success: Social workers’ in helping clients consider disposition options, 18(2). 583-594. DOI:10.18060/21551 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2020). Assisted reproductive technology (ART). https://www.cdc.gov/art/artdata/index.html#:~:text=Based%20on%20CDC's%202018%20Fertility,and%2081%2C478%20live%20born%20infants. 

Funk, C. (2018). Nonprofit works to fill the knowledge gap on human embryology.  https://lozierinstitute.org/nonprofit-works-to-fill-the-knowledge-gap-on-human-embryology/ 

National Embryo Donation Center. (n.d.) What we do. https://www.embryodonation.org/#:~:text=That%20surplus%20is%20estimated%20at,do%20with%20their%20remaining%20embryos. 

Pflum, M. (2019).  Nation’s fertility clinics struggle with a growing number of abandoned embryos.  https://www.nbcnews.com/health/features/nation-s-fertility-clinics-struggle-growing-number-abandoned-embryos-n1040806 

Riggan, K. A., Allyse, M. (2019).  ‘Compassionate transfer’: an alternative option for surplus embryo disposition.  Human Reproduction, 34(5), 791–794. https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/dez038 

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Amber Easton  April 10, 2021

Nursing Program, Western Wyoming Community College

Ethics Paper--Nursing 1200

June 17-19 Lutheran Family Retreat in the Uintas

Headwaters Family Retreat

Date: 2pm June 17 through noon June 19

Place: Uinta County Youth Camp – southwest of Robertson, WY (Directions)

Theme: “Baptized for this Moment”

4 teaching sessions – aimed at all, including children

1. What is worldview and what does it matter?
2. Secular Humanist/Evolutionist worldview
3. Christian worldview
4. Where do we go from here?

Activities: hiking, fishing the camp pond, shooting (on a range with a certified range master), canoeing on Meeks Cabin Reservoir, campfire, horseshoes, playground,  basketball, volleyball, stargazing, and watching the clouds roll by...

Cost: $100.00 per family regardless of size and inclusive of lodging and food

Lodging: 12 cabins are reserved. Each contains 6 bunk beds. The cabins are rustic, toilet and shower facility are in a separate but close building. People will need to bring their own bedding – sleeping bag, pillow, blankets etc. Families will share cabins to accommodate the number of people in attendance. 

Go here to register: https://www.wylcms.org/familyretreat/

Schedule: 

Thursday 6/17

2:00pm Check in

2:30pm Welcome & Opening devotion

3:00pm Session 1 - Rev. Patrick Baldwin

4:00pm Family time

5:30pm Supper hour

6:30pm Session 2 - Rev. Kevin Rose

7:30pm Family time

9:00pm Campfire devotions

Friday 6/18

8:00am Breakfast

9:00am Matins - Rev. Jonathan Lange

10:00am Session 3 - Rev. Jim Martin

11:00am Break

11:15am Session 4 - Rev. David Bott

12:15noon Lunch hour

1:15pm Family time

5:30pm Supper hour

6:30pm Family time

9:00pm Campfire devotions

Saturday 6/19

8:00am Breakfast

9:00am Panel discussion / Closing Devotion - Rev. Mark Mumme

10:30am Check out (reservation expires at noon)

Lutheran Laymen’s Declaration and Petition

This document, authored by Lutheran Church-Canada (LC-C) laymen from Waterloo, Ontario, requests our spiritual fathers to continue to celebrate weekly Divine Services uninterrupted during the pandemic. We believe that the weekly physical gathering of God’s people around His Word and Sacrament is crucial at all times. Our petition is chiefly supported by a series of theological statements, but we also present supporting scientific and sociopolitical statements.

This document has been sent to LC-C churches and to our Synodical leaders. Because there are sharp divisions among us regarding these issues, we hope to foster biblically-based unity within our Synod.

We ask that you prayerfully consider this document and cause it to be circulated among the laymen in your congregation. We encourage laymen to support the petition by signing their names to it at the following website (the document is also available for download at the website): www.sdnp2020.com

Your Brothers in Christ,

Paul Gyger, Bruno Korst, Topias Nieminen, Daniel Smilek, Marinus Veenman, 

Sine Dominico Non Possumus / (Advent 2020 AD) 

Read the document here.

CrossTalk: In the cross of Christ I glory

Crosses are everywhere you look. You see them not only on and in church buildings. You see them at hospitals, in cemeteries, on bumper stickers, tattoos, billboards, and jewelry. Crosses are so ubiquitous that we hardly even notice them.

But a visitor from ancient Rome would be aghast. In pre-Christian Rome, references to crucifixion were vulgarities of the highest order. The cross was not referenced in polite company. Among the most disgusting insults a foul-mouthed Roman could hurl was, “go get yourself crucified.”

Against this backdrop, St. Paul, the apostle to the gentiles and first missionary to the Roman world, must have struck his hearers as some sort of kook. He said things like, “far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal 6:14). To the Corinthians he wrote, “I decided to know nothing among you, except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ is the single most important event in the history of the world. It changed everything—absolutely everything. Unless God Himself became a man and suffered the penalty for all sins, the penalty would still remain unpaid. But God the Father did offer up His only begotten Son. The only begotten Son of God did give His life for the sins of the world. As a result, everyone who repents can truly be forgiven every sin he has ever committed. The blood of Christ does that!

Jesus’ death was the one human sacrifice that counts. But it was not just a sacrifice by any means at all. Jesus was not thrown off a cliff—although they tried (Luke 4:29-30). He was not stabbed with knives, like Julius Caesar, or poisoned like Socrates. He wasn’t even stoned to death—although they tried that, too (John 8:59). 

God Himself tells us the reason why He wasn’t stoned. “This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death Jesus would die” (John 18:32). On multiple occasions Jesus had said, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day” (Matthew 20:18-19). 

There is something so special about this kind of death that God wanted to accomplish the single sacrifice for the sins of the world in that way and in that way only.

That is why the cross—and no other symbol—has become synonymous with Christianity from ancient times. Let us ponder that fact. Let us appreciate that God specifically chose it. Let us learn to rejoice in the cross of Christ like St. Paul and all the apostles did.

Jesus’ passion on the cross does not only refer to the pain that he endured. It also refers to the fact that it happened to him. “Passion” is derived from the word, “passive.” It is the opposite of active doing. It is passive receiving. 

From this we learn a great truth: Unless God Himself is actively working, we can accomplish nothing. Unless we are passively receiving the gifts of God, we are not being saved. That’s why St. Paul said, “I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

In the cross of Christ I glory, 

Tow’ring o’er the wrecks of time. 

All the light of sacred story 

Gathers round its head sublime.

Cross Talk: The Divine Gift of Self Control

“What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” is one of the most well-known ad campaigns of all time. Despite its popularity, it is really a horrible slogan. It invites a person to ask what evil he would do if no one would ever find out.

How far would you go if you knew you would never be caught? Would you lie, steal, cheat, and commit adultery? Would you murder and take advantage of helpless people? What evil things might you do anonymously if you weren’t worried about your reputation?

As exercises in self-examination, such questions are terribly uncomfortable. If you turn them around and ask what your enemy might do to you if no one would ever find out, the world can become a very frightening place.

Imagine an enemy who has no restraints whatsoever. Imagine an enemy who sees everything you do and hears every word you say. Then imagine that this enemy is willing to do absolutely anything to harm you without any moral restraints at all.

You may be thinking about the CIA, FBI or some other three-letter agency that has the power to ruin your life. But these are small potatoes compared to Satan. If big government scares you, Satan should scare you far more. He is far more powerful than any human agency, and he has no humanity at all that might tug at his conscience.

Of course, there is One—and only One—who is more powerful than Satan. God is all-powerful and all-knowing. But, unlike Satan, God has self-restraint. The fundamental difference between God’s character and Satan’s is that there are certain things that God will not do.

The self-restraint of God is what we call goodness. And, as Jesus makes plain, “No one is good except God alone” (Luke 18:19 ESV). This is why the fear of God is not at all like the fear of Satan. We have reason to fear the devil because he is unbounded evil. We both fear and love God because He is unbounded goodness.

The most amazing thing about God’s goodness is that He maintains His self-control and goodness even in His confrontation with the devil. Even when faced with Satan, who will stop at nothing in his pursuit of evil, God never stoops to do evil.

Rather, He sacrifices Himself on the cross to defeat Satan with all his power and willingness to do evil. In fact, Jesus’ own self-control is the way that He defeats the unrestrained evil of Satan. In so doing, He proves once and for all that goodness is not a hindrance in fighting evil. Rather, it is the only way.

That brings us back to the Christian ethos. Rather than saying, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” Jesus says, “everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God” (John 3:20-21).

In this world we see evil men who are willing to do and say anything and who desperately hide their actions. They do not restrain themselves, but do whatever they can get away with. This should not make us envious. It should arouse our pity.

Here we see the demonic consequences of the loss of self-control. These frightful displays give opportunity to repent of our own lack of self-restraint and to pray. We should pray both for forgiveness and for the fruits of the Holy Spirit: “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).