ReAnn Ring interviewed Katie Luther: Halloween Message – ReAnn Ring filled in for Cynthia this week for a special interview
ReAnn Ring
Katie Luther or Katherine von Bora ‘arrived’ to celebrate the upcoming festivities for Halloween, also called Reformation Day. She married the former monk, Martin Luther. In preparation for All Saints Day, which fell on November 1, he chose to open debate with scholars on several points of theology. He nailed the famous ninety-five thesis to the door of the castle church on October 31st, which sparked a response across Europe. The negative reaction from Catholic theologians horrified him. At the Diet of Worms, Charles V condemned him as an outlaw. Once excommunicated, he founded the Lutheran church. In contrast to the Catholics, Luther’s preaching focused on salvation by faith and reliance on the authority of Scripture. And he translated the Bible into the language of the people.
Katie’s Halloween message gave details of her life in the 1500s, which may surprise some. A former nun, she shared the story of her life with the great reformer and left a message for us in these difficult times.
Cynthia and her family visited Germany in 2005 and discovered the entire nation took a holiday for October 31st. She toured the Luther home, the castle church, the state church, and other historical sites in Wittenberg, Germany. As a result Katherine von Bora became one of Cynthia’s favorite historical women. In order to teach more about Katie, Cynthia now does impersonations for women’s ministry groups and homeschool groups.
If you’d like to know more about the life of the woman behind Luther, you can learn more here.
Once I heard someone describe the song Amazing Grace as a white spiritual. After getting over my shock, I realized this man thought the song was written to express our disappointment over life’s hardships. Clearly he didn’t grasp redemption, but all of us realize things aren’t right. Let’s face it, our world is broken. God didn’t design us to live in a damaged world.
Romans chapter eight talks about this. My husband calls this passage groaning 101. Verse twenty-two and twenty-three say, “For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”
Sometimes those groans blaze into a raging fire. What then?
Today I have Carol McLeod. Her ministry is all about suffering. Her latest book is Refined.
Read the terrifying Holocaust Story Kristy Cambron shares with readers: Sparrow of Terezin
Hide! That’s what we want to do when we sin, and that’s the first thing Adam and Eve did when they disobeyed God. It’s so easy for us to justify our sin, and yet, it separates us from God and others. When the apostle John wrote, he used the analogy of light to symbolize truth, and darkness to symbolize evil. Look at 1 John 1:7 “But if we walk in the light, as he {Jesus} is in the light, we have fellowship with one another…” In other words, if we live openly, according to truth, we can enjoy fellowship with the Savior. This is unlike what happened with the new holocaust story Kristy Cambron wrote, Sparrow of Terezin.
In World War II, Hitler decided to deceive the world by pretending to care for Jewish children at Terezin. He fixed up a pretty ‘concentration camp’ complete with schools, flowers, and art classes, and he showed the world how generous he was. Yet after ‘show and tell’ most of those children died at the hands of the Nazis. What a terrible evil!
My guest, Kristy Cambron, just released the book, Sparrow of Terezin, that tells that story and explores the dangers of deceit.
To learn more about Kristy and her work, click here.
We have a strong inborn sense of justice that comes from God. You’ll hear young children say, “That’s not fair.” Or “You’re wrong.”
I’ve heard Christian leaders say we have no rights, and I strongly disagree. The OT makes it clear that we do. The Ten Commandments state that someone should not steal our possessions or speak against us. I cannot steal your money or your watch. And much of the OT laws taught proportional justice. When someone harmed you, or violated your rights, the punishment should match the crime.
For instance, if you borrowed someone’s ax and broke it, you had to replace it. Or if you borrowed a horse that died while you cared for it, you had to buy another horse for that person.
The punishment matched the crime.
Now when someone violates one of those rights, you feel harmed and want that made right. Sometimes, an apology is enough. In others restitution needs to take place. There are times when someone hurts you and the outcome is not up to you`. For instance a pastor hurt my husband once and never humbled himself to say he was sorry. It was hard to forgive that man, but it was important that I do that.
Laurie Coombs tells the story of her father’s murder and her journey toward forgiveness.
We’ve all watched TV and movies where actors engage in immorality about as often as they eat dessert. After awhile, we get immune and shrug off sex outside of marriage. Not good. In Genesis one, God created male and female and gave them a commission to have children and fill the earth. So it’s very clear from the beginning that sex and children go with marriage and family. God designed sex for marriage.
We can’t allow ourselves to be duped into passivity on this topic. Many problems we face today come from separating sex from marriage and children. What kind of messages are we passing on to our offspring/the next generation? (Remember it takes one generation to lose the truth.) More than that, we need to compare and contrast cultural messages with Scripture. Stepping outside of God’s design brings unpleasant consequences.
Gretchen Goldsmith is the president and CEO of Rose Publishing. She has written on some of the problems that come along with illicit sex. You may learn more about her here.
The tragedy of suicide is all around us, and the numbers are growing. Susan Titus Osborn shares ways to cope should a loved one make such a heart-breaking choice.
Susan Titus Osborn has a passion for teaching budding authors to write for publication. She is the director of the Christian Communicator Manuscript Critique Service where she heads a staff of 18 editors. She has authored over 30 books, as well as numerous articles. She is on the CLASSeminars staff, a member of Advanced Christian Writers and Speakers Association (AWSA), and a member of Christian Authors Network (CAN). Susan represents New Hope Publishers for nonfiction books at writers’ conferences. Her past positions include magazine editor and adjunct professor at four Christian colleges. She has spoken extensively across the US at over 150 writers’ conferences and in eight foreign countries. Susan lives with her husband, Dick, in Fullerton, California. They enjoy camping in their fifth-wheel trailer with their five children, twelve grandchildren, and three great-grandson.
