Picture this
tians of other sects don’t flock to our congregations. In my town of 8,000 people there are four ELCA congre- gations and nearly all members are of European (white) origin, but we all would welcome anyone who would want to join us. The Christian church is worldwide and diverse. The ELCA by itself is not, because we all hang with our ancestral tribes. That’s just the way it is. Phillip J. Reitan Decorah, Iowa
It’s all Greek The February issue contained a let- ter (page 48) chastising the magazine for publishing a cartoon that spelled Christmas as “Xmas.” X stands for the Greek letter chi, the first letter of the Greek spelling of Christ. X has been a symbol for Christ’s name for thousands of years. Using the X is in no way taking Christ out of Christ- mas, but keeping him right where he’s always been, at the heart of our remembrance of when God became man. Carol Sturz Clifton, Va.
Thanks for the help Was the February letter writer (page 48) intimating that Lutherans may/ should only utilize an organ dur- ing worship services? I, too, am an organist, was raised a Lutheran and am now proud to be a clergy spouse. It is wonderful that some congrega- tions can afford a beautiful organ and a talented musician to play it. Sadly that is not the case for all. Thanks to The Lutheran for providing us with ads/resources that can help strug- gling congregations worship in ways that are meaningful to them. Christine La Croix Cape Coral, Fla.
CHRIS ZUPPA Remembering homeless
About 200 people who are homeless gathered at Trinity Lutheran Church, St. Petersburg, Fla., Dec. 22 to remember 49 others who had died in Pinellas County in 2013. Since 1990, the nation has observed National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day on or around Dec. 21, which coincides with the winter solstice, the longest night and darkest day of the year. Celebrate Outreach, a group of local congregations, hosts the service in which participants light candles and remem- ber by name those who have died. The group also urges the community to find solutions to homelessness and honor those who have died and look at their deaths as “one less fellow human being, one less of ourselves,” one pastor said. This unidentified man, one of 49 volun- teers who held candles in remembrance, wept, saying he knew four of the dead.
Send us your best: The Lutheran is looking for photographs that tell the tale of your faith life or that of your congregation or the ELCA. Send your
high-resolution photo to
lutheran@thelutheran.org with “Picture this” in the subject line, along with caption and contact information.
Prayer makes a difference I agree that God is not to blame for all things that go wrong or for all things that go right. Yes, that is nonsensical (January, page 3). Part of it is that’s just the way it goes. On the other hand, prayer makes a difference. I do believe that God does intervene
in response to prayer, otherwise why bother to pray? Peter W. Marty’s col- umn does not lead one to believe that prayer does any good. Didn’t he leave this part out? J. Sweeney Denver
March 2014 49
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