The Crux of the Matter

In this episode Scott and Todd discuss funerals, the difficulty of ministering to non-members in times of grief, the centrality of the resurrection, and music in funerals.

• Scott Murray’s article on funerals from the Lutheran Witness
• Final Victory: Contemplating the Death and Funeral of a Christian - Milestones , By Bryan Wolfmueller
• Holy Cross Lutheran Church Funeral Practices

• Table Talk Radio, with Rev. Bryan Wolfmueller and Rev. Evan Goeglein

SCOTT

• The Five Love Languages, by Gary Chapman

TODD

• Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus, by James Gray

Todd and Scott co-host THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.

You may find Todd Peperkorn  @toddpeperkorn on Twitter or facebook.com/toddpeperkorn on Facebook. He also blogs, posts sermons, and random nonsense at Lutheran Logomaniac and Dark My Road. Todd’s parish is Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California. You can find his sermons & bible classes on YouTube HERE.

You may find Scott Stiegemeyer @scottstieg on Twitter or Facebook.com/scottstiegemeyer on Facebook. Scott’s parish is Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. 

Email the show at [email protected]

To subscribe directly, please paste the following link into your pod-catcher of choice:

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In this episode Scott and Todd discuss handling criticism in the congregation. How does the pastor receive criticism? Are there different kinds of criticism? Are there any examples from the Bible about how either Jesus or the Apostles handled criticism?  

• Pastors in Transition: Why Clergy Leave Local Church Ministry, by Dean R. Hoge and Jacqueline E. Wenger
• Clergy Killers, by G. Lloyd Rediger
• Proverbs 26:4:  "Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself."

• Mollie Hemingway at The Federalist

• Moleskine Journals
• The Hobbit Notebook
• How to Pronounce “Moleskine"

• Letters to Lutheran Pastors, Volume 1, by Hermann Sasse
• Letters to Lutheran Pastors, Volume 2, by Hermann Sasse
• Letters to Lutheran Pastors, Volume 3, by Hermann Sasse

Todd and Scott co-host THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.

You may find Todd Peperkorn  @toddpeperkorn on Twitter or facebook.com/toddpeperkorn on Facebook. He also blogs, posts sermons, and random nonsense at Lutheran Logomaniac and Dark My Road. Todd’s parish is Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California. You can find his sermons & bible classes on YouTube HERE.

You may find Scott Stiegemeyer @scottstieg on Twitter or Facebook.com/scottstiegemeyer on Facebook. Scott’s parish is Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. 

Email the show at [email protected]

To subscribe directly, please paste the following link into your pod-catcher of choice:

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To subscribe via iTunes, please go to:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/podcast-the-crux-of-the-matter/id959171811

In this episode Scott and Todd talk about Lent and Ash Wednesday, why Lutherans sometimes freak out at physical practices surrounding Lent such as the imposition of ashes, and how pastors are to introduce good and faithful practices in a new congregation. Oh, and Scott manages to mention Pope John-Paul II, again.

• Holy Cross at Prayer

• Ancient-Future Faith, by Robert Webber
• Introduction to Worship, by James White
• Concordia Lutheran Church, Brentwood, Pennsylvania
• Why Lent Should Matter to Everyone, by Todd A. Peperkorn
• Dr. James Bushur, Ash Wednesday Sermon, “A Severe Mercy”, on Mark 8:31-38 (still working on the link for this)
• What is the Significant of Lent

• CTS Video Podcast on the Lectionary, Dr. Just on Transfiguration in Mark

• The Family Project, by Glenn Stanton and Focus on the Family

• Great Lent: Journey to Pascha, by Alexander Schmemann

Todd and Scott co-host THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.

You may find Todd Peperkorn  @toddpeperkorn on Twitter or facebook.com/toddpeperkorn on Facebook. He also blogs, posts sermons, and random nonsense at Lutheran Logomaniac and Dark My Road. Todd’s parish is Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California. You can find his sermons & bible classes on YouTube HERE.

You may find Scott Stiegemeyer @scottstieg on Twitter or Facebook.com/scottstiegemeyer on Facebook. Scott’s parish is Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. 

Email the show at [email protected]

To subscribe directly, please paste the following link into your pod-catcher of choice:

https://thecruxofthematter.squarespace.com/podcast/?format=rss

To subscribe via iTunes, please go to:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/podcast-the-crux-of-the-matter/id959171811

Todd and Scott talk about prayer, why it’s hard for pastors and Christians in general, and some tools for the pastor to make it a part of their regular discipline.  Oh, and Scott talks about magic bullets.

• Treasury of Daily Prayer, Ed. by Scot Kinnaman
• The Minister’s Prayer Book, by John W. Dobberstein (is this really out of print?)
• The Pastor at Prayer, Revised Edition, by George Krause

• Issues, Etc.

SCOTT

• The Magic Bullet
• Vitamix (Todd’s equivalent)

TODD

• A Simple Way to Pray, by Dr. Martin Luther
• Chemnitz on the Lord’s Prayer

Todd and Scott co-host THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.

You may find Todd Peperkorn  @toddpeperkorn on Twitter or facebook.com/toddpeperkorn on Facebook. He also blogs, posts sermons, and random nonsense at Lutheran Logomaniac and Dark My Road. Todd’s parish is Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California. You can find his sermons & bible classes on YouTube HERE.

You may find Scott Stiegemeyer @scottstieg on Twitter or Facebook.com/scottstiegemeyer on Facebook. Scott’s parish is Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. 

Email the show at [email protected]

To subscribe directly, please paste the following link into your pod-catcher of choice:

https://thecruxofthematter.squarespace.com/podcast/?format=rss

To subscribe via iTunes, please go to:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/podcast-the-crux-of-the-matter/id959171811

In this episode Scott and Todd talk about bioethics, what it is, and why pastors and the Church should care about it. Oh, also Todd gushes about pens, and Scott gushes about Pope John Paul II.

• Hippocratic Oath
• Dr. Robert W. Weise

TODD

• The Pen Addict
• The Pen Addict Podcast

SCOTT

• Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body, By Pope John Paul II, and translated with an introduction by Michael Waldstein.
• Theology of the Body for Beginners: A Basic Introduction to Pope John Paul II's Sexual Revolution, Revised Edition, by Christopher West.

Todd and Scott co-host THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.

You may find Rev. Todd Peperkorn  @toddpeperkorn on Twitter or facebook.com/toddpeperkorn on Facebook. You may also email him at [email protected]. He also blogs, posts sermons, and random nonsense at Lutheran Logomaniac and Dark My Road. Todd’s parish is Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California. You can find his sermons & bible classes on YouTube HERE.

You may find Rev. Scott Stiegemeyer @scottstieg on Twitter or Facebook.com/scottstiegemeyer on Facebook. You may email him at [email protected]. Scott’s parish is Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst, Illinois. 

Email the show at [email protected]

To subscribe directly, please paste the following link into your pod-catcher of choice:

https://thecruxofthematter.squarespace.com/podcast/?format=rss

To subscribe via iTunes, please go to:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/podcast-the-crux-of-the-matter/id959171811

In this episode Scott and Todd discuss pastoral recruitment, why it is hard to encourage men for the Holy Ministry, and Jesus' ongoing work of pastoral formation. They also mention David Maxwell's article on the Nicene Creed, and have a short discussion about caring for transgenders in the Church.

• Old Testament: Jonah 3:1-5, 10
• Epistle: 1 Cor 7:29-31 (32-35)
• Gospel: Mk 1:14-20

Mark 1:14    Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”          

     Mark 1:16    Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20 And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him. 

Todd and Scott co-host THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.

You may find Todd Peperkorn in the cyberverse  @toddpeperkorn on Twitter or facebook.com/toddpeperkorn on Facebook. He also blogs, posts sermons, and random nonsense at Lutheran Logomaniac and Dark My Road. Todd’s parish is Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California. 

You may find Scott Stiegemeyer @scottstieg in the cyberverse on Twitter or Facebook.com/scottstiegemeyer on Facebook. Scott’s parish is Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst, Illinois.

Email the show at [email protected]

To subscribe directly, please paste the following link into your pod-catcher of choice:

https://thecruxofthematter.squarespace.com/podcast/?format=rss

To subscribe via iTunes, please go to:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/podcast-the-crux-of-the-matter/id959171811

• http://admission.ctsfw.edu
• http://www.csl.edu/admissions/
• Guiding Themes for Pastoral Education
• Luther's Sacristy Prayer: http://www.ctsfw.net/media/pdfs/LutherASacristyPrayer.pdf
• Coptic Church in South Milwaukee (Flickr Photos)

TODD

• The Nicene Creed in the Church, David Maxwell’s article in the Winter 2015 issue of Concordia Journal.
• The Self-Made Man, by Norah Vincent
• Voluntary Madness, by Norah Vincent

SCOTT

• The Man Who Would be Queen, by J. Michael Bailey

In this episode we talk about what it means to be a Lutheran pastor in the 21st century, the theology of interruptions, and why we aren’t buddhists.