Picture this
Hope and Faith Kirstin Springmeyer (right) an ELCA pastor and chaplain in the Neonatal Intensive Care unit of Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, baptized Knatalye Hope and Adeline Faith, children of Elysse and John Eric Mata, when they were 7 months old. The conjoined twins were born April 11, 2014, and were successfully separated Feb. 18 by more than 26 medical professionals. The girls shared a chest wall, lungs, pericardial sac (the lining of the heart), diaphragm, liver, intestines, colon and pelvis, which meant 23 hours of surgery for Knatalye and 26 hours for Adeline. Separation came 18 hours into surgery. A fundraising page for the girls says they were given a 20 percent chance of survival when the Matas, from Lubbock, Texas, learned of their condition during an ultrasound. “You can’t have hope without faith, and you can’t have faith without hope,” Elysse told a local news station last year, explaining their names.
Time to talk, indeed I agree with the presiding bishop that the church is an appropriate place to talk about race (February, page 50). Relatedly, the article by Jose David Rodriguez on immigration (Feb- ruary, page 14) acknowledges that “for us Lutheran Christians, there is another element of confessional urgency”—to have a conservation about anti-immigrant attitudes and legislation. Our bishop is right, we need to talk. David Ochoa Naples, Fla.
Use pad and pen Thank you for the article encouraging letter writing (February, page 32). The illustration reinforces the perception that letter writing is outmoded and a dying art—the very thing the author wishes to debunk. I am keenly aware of the value of written correspon- dence for succeeding generations. What will my children and grandchil- dren inherit when I send them only emails and texts that disappear in the computer cloud or cyberspace? Let- ters allow the writer to reflect on what he/she is saying, to try to imagine the impact on the reader and its repercus- sion for the long term. I am probably
TEXAS CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL/ALLEN S. KRAMER
one of the few readers of The Lutheran who still sends you an occasional let- ter via U.S. mail. Richard Kaeske Deerfield, Ill.
Not too happy Nine letters to the editor (January, page 48) applaud the ELCA as it is projected or described in the maga- zine. One is an exception and I find myself in total agreement: “When the church, which has no experience or expertise in that which a govern- ment does, asks the government to do its work, the stage is set for our post-Christian age.” In future issues, I suggest that letters which point out the disconnect between the church and many of its members (or perhaps those who have left) be published. Mary Louise Olson River Falls, Wis.
Editor’s note: Letters are published in proportion to the content of those received.
April 2015 49
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