Two Lutheran Pastors Walk into a Timmies... (Interview with Pastor Steve Bartlett, LCC) скачать в хорошем качестве

Two Lutheran Pastors Walk into a Timmies... (Interview with Pastor Steve Bartlett, LCC)

I had the joy and pleasure to interview my dear friend Pastor Steve Bartlett today while we drank Tim Hortons and caught up for Sermon preparation reflections for the coming Lenten season. Here are the questions I asked him. (As you can see they are a little science fiction and movie orientated but theological and pastoral in nature!) Phase 1: The Introductory Orbital 1. If you were cast as a background extra in a Star Wars film, would you want to be a humble moisture farmer on Tatooine or a high-ranking Imperial officer with a spectacular cape? 2. As a Lutheran in Canada, you’re navigating a very secular landscape. Do you see yourself more as a "John the Baptist" crying out in the wilderness, or a "Commander Shepard" trying to build a crew of unlikely allies? 3. Completely random: If you are eating a hot dog, are you a "Ketchup is a sin" purist, or do you believe in the "Universal Grace" of putting literally every condiment available on it? Phase 2: Liturgy & The "Final Frontier" 4. The Lutheran liturgy is often called a "rhythm." If the Sunday service was a sci-fi soundtrack, is it more of a Hans Zimmer epic or a 1960s Star Trek theremin solo? 5. In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the answer to everything is 42. In the Lutheran Church-Canada, we say the answer is "Word and Sacrament." How do we stop that answer from becoming a "meme" that people stop thinking about? 6. If we discovered an alien civilization on a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri, would you advocate for translating the Small Catechism into their language, or does the "Real Presence" of Christ in the Eucharist only apply to carbon-based life forms from Earth? 7. Random Check: Have you ever accidentally (or intentionally) worn mismatched socks under your alb during a Divine Service? Goal: Humanizing the "liturgical uniform." Phase 3: Hard Theology & "The Glitch in the Matrix" 8. Lutherans are famous for the Simul Iustus et Peccator (simultaneously saint and sinner). If life is a simulation, is this "dual nature" a feature of the original code or a virus we’re waiting for a patch to fix? 9. The Lutheran Church-Canada is often seen as more "confessional" than other bodies. Does our commitment to the Book of Concord make us the "Jedi Council" of the prairies—guarding an ancient truth—or does it risk making us a "time capsule" that’s lost the key? 10. Random Check: If you had to choose between never being able to use a bookmark again or never being able to use a highlighter again for the rest of your ministry, which would you sacrifice? Goal: A quirky look at their study habits. Phase 4: Pastoral Care & Human Motivation 11. A member of your congregation comes to you in a crisis: they’ve lost their job, their spouse is leaving, and they feel like God has "uninstalled" them from His plan. Do you reach for a specific Psalm, or do you sit in the silence of the "Void" with them? Why? 12. Difficult Case: If a person confesses a "legal but deeply immoral" act to you in confidence—something that makes your skin crawl—what is the internal mechanism that allows you to still offer them Absolution? Is it duty, or do you genuinely feel the love of Christ for the "unlovable"? 13. Random Check: If you were forced to participate in a professional wrestling match, what would your "Pastor Persona" name be and what would be your signature move? Phase 5: The "Big Picture" Finale 14. Science fiction often dreams of "Transhumanism"—using tech to live forever. As a Pastor, how do you preach the "Resurrection of the Body" to a generation that would rather just upload their consciousness to the Cloud? Goal: Bridging the gap between ancient creed and future tech. 15. At the end of the "movie" of your ministry, when the credits roll, what is the one thing you want the "audience" (your congregation) to have learned about the character of God that they didn't know before you arrived? Thank you Pastor Steve for your time!