It is (cold).

Dear Internet Reader,

It is cold here. I have cold hands. I have to wear socks all of the time. I have to wear slippers or shoes. I make hot tea so I can hold onto the mug. Pretty soon I'm going to have to get out my snow pants. I am going to have to get out my big, ugly, outdoorsy snow boots which are warm warm warm. I am going to have to deal with getting made fun of for wearing snow pants and snow boots everywhere I go. I will still have cold hands most of the time.

If I wasn't so cheap I'd turn the heat up. If I was smarter I would've purchased this coat I tried on in Bemidji while visiting friends on internship. [Don't I look like on older version of Lucy Pevensie ready to enter Narnia?] If I wasn't so whiny I'd wait a few weeks to start complaining about the cold.

Sincerely yours,

Blog Writer

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Hello everyone. It’s been a few weeks since I’ve made a post on yonder blog. I’ve been pretty consumed lately working on my thesis. I’m finally in the editing stages. I think it will be successful. What an experience! Have you ever dreamed about writing something? I have. I’ve been waking up in the morning thinking about stuff that I thought I was writing in my sleep. I actually got a voice-recorder so that I could record some of the stuff that pops into my head when I’m all groggy and sleepy in the morning. You know what they say about dreams – they help you work things out in your sleep. :) I’ve been using the recorder for taking notes in class. I actually left it on for an embarrassingly long while the other day in my pocket. It ended up recording my rendition of various radio songs in my car on the drive up to campus and a few conversations that I had on my cell phone. Awkward… definitely deleted it as soon as I realized it would be perfect blackmail material. Anyhow – I hope everyone has been having a good week. Midterms are approaching. We had the first snow of the year today too. Crazy! Soon enough the hard stuff will be over! :) There is light at the end of the tunnel!

-Dan

Why I Didn't Line Up To Cross the 35-W Bridge at 5 AM

I understand the work put in to complete the 35-W bridge reconstruction was impressive. I mean they replaced the 1964 model with the new, ultra-technologically-brilliant model built in 11 short months. Apparently, this bridge is Transporation's gold star. Still, I did not line up to cross that thing at 5 AM on the appointed day.

Here is a list of reasons why I didn't line up to cross the 35-W bridge at 5 AM (as per request of a loyal reader of this blog).

• I don't like mornings.
• I don't like traffic
• I'm really not that excited by bridges.
• I was excited to have a quicker drive on I-94 that day.
• Do you know what the world is like at 5 AM? It is not pretty.
  
• I'm in CPE and I was tired.
• I think sleeping is important.
• I thought I'd check it out later, when it wasn't so trendy.
• I don't like to cross the Mighty Mississippi.
• I felt like I experienced the event through the auditory pleasures of NPR.
• I don't like mornings.

Thanks for your requests for blog topics...please keep it up, people!

Coming soon to an inbox near you

Just when you thought you'd taken every survey the seminary could throw at you...think again. Listen, the seminary is experiencing a growing phase and is realizing that it can serve you, the church and the universe even better. In this self-aware time, the seminary could use someone like you to be their feedback. How, you might wonder? Have I got an idea for you!

Okay, so maybe I am pandering for your attention to take a survey I've been laboring over (with the help of a super task group) for over a month. Guilty. But, I'm also pandering for your answers that will help shape the future of the teaching parish program at Luther Seminary. This is important stuff!

Alright, I'll relent, you first-year students are just too busy, Greek is heading into participle territory and Reading the Audiences is starting to get overwhelming. You're off the hook. But, Middlers, Interns and Seniors...We Need You! (Except you, Daryl, you don't have to take it, you can just ignore it.)

Keep your eyes open for the survey coming soon to an inbox near you! (please)

Candidacy is a Process

I have now made it through the first two parts of the candidacy process. It can be a confusing process and may be frustrating to many individuals. I have chosen to briefly explain the steps taken by the candidate and their significance.

Part 1: Entrance

1. Read What Shall I Say? - This is a short book which talks about vocation and calling and tries poorly to be a guideline for describing the various rostered roles and encouraging vocational discernment. It is difficult, I've found, to be in discerning conversations with a book.
2. Pay your synod money - I don't know why.
3. Get people to write you recommendations - no comment
4. Write an entrance essay - I was pleased to find out my entrance essay would double as my seminary application essay.
5. Read the document Vision and Expectations - This document gets a lot of talk in interviews and around the seminary. The church wants its leaders to live holy lives. The only reason anyone ever talks about this document is in reference to a small section about sexuality, though the document contains other important and interesting sections.
6. Participate in an initial interview - Talk, ask, listen, share.
7. Get a psychological evaluation done - Do personality tests, intelligence tests, talk about your family, talk about your past, talk all about you.
8. Participate in an entrance interview - Get nervous, talk to people from your synod, actually get to talk about God, answer tough and wonderful questions about your calling. Sweat it out.

Part 2: Endorsement

1. Write endorsement essay - You have to answer a series of questions about doctrinal and ministry issues, including your thoughts and ability to live by Vision and Expectations. I wrote mine on a train, which I highly recommend.
2. Complete CPE (if required) - In progress for me...though it's not required for my roster. (even my candidacy committee asked me why I'm doing CPE!)
3. Pay your synod money - I do not know why....
4. Participate in endorsement interview - Bring your faculty advisor (or a back-up)...it'll be more fun. Repeat part 8 from above...hopefully it's easier the second time around.

YEAH! I made it this far in the process. Celebrate.

[Other] Reading Days

Ah, the first day of Reading Days. Other than spending the entire morning in pj's and the absence of chapel, it was a day like any other. Maybe they should re-dub the first two days of the third week of October PJ days. I'd second that; will someone make a motion?

I have, in the spirit of reading days, practically spent my whole day reading (though not really for class). For whatever reason, I woke up to greet Reading Days at 5 this morning. What was first on my list? You'll never guess: Leviticus (the whole book, not just the nice parts). I know, you're jealous. "Why?" you may ask--I'm preparing a sermon and I thought it prudent to re-aquaint myself with the entire text.

There were some great surprises, like this gem from 26:3-6b
⁴⁵⁶

If you follow my statutes and keep my commandments and observe them faithfully, I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall overtake the vintage, and the vintage shall overtake the sowing; you shall eat your bread to the full, and live securely in your land. And I will grant peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and no one shall make you afraid.

I especially like the piece about the threshing overtaking the vintage and the vintage overtaking the sowing. We do reap more than we can sow.

My other non-assigned Reading Days companion is the book of collected Abraham Heschel nuggets in the book I Asked for Wonder.

The title comes from a preface to a book of Yiddish poems: "Khob gebetn vunder anshtot glik, un du host zey mir gegebn." Meaning, "I did not ask for success; I asked for wonder. And You gave it to me."

The introduction by Rabbi Samuel Dresner is worthy of the holy words that follow:

"But [Heschel showed] also astounding knowledge, keen understanding, and profound feeling: an awareness that man dwells on the tangent of the infinite, within the holy dimension; that the life of man is part of the life of God." (p. x)

Happy Reading Days, one and all!

You Behind the Wheel

Dedicated to Laura, who was my navigator (for a change).

I have lived most of my life in rural, sparsely populated areas. "Mass transportation" is non-existent. One needn't merge when entering the interstate. In the case that someone else is actually within your vicinity whilst entering the roadway - that person gets out of your way (as a common courtesy) because no one else is in their way.

It is different in Minneapolis/St Paul. In anticipation of having to navigate the city on a regular basis for CPE, I experimented with alternative transportation. I got out my trusty bike, Shera, and followed the river in the shortest bike-route path I could find. After an hour and forty minutes (and multiple breaks to revisit the map), I arrived, took a break, and turned around for home. Biking was not an option. I could not spend 3 hours a day on my bike. I was going to have to drive.

During my first two weeks of CPE I drove home a different way every time...I never seemed to be in the right lane, or would come across closed entrance ramps, or detours that I couldn't seem to follow, or one-way streets, or streets that curve away from where I wanted to go. I ended up driving multiple ways and multiple bridges through downtown Minneapolis, Dinkytown, I-35, I-94, Lake Street....all over the map. Most of these routes were neither quick or low-stress. I finally figured out how to deal with the traffic, what lane I had to be on, how to get where I needed to go and avoid traffic accidents or build-ups.

Last week, I participated in yet another transportation experiment. I road the bus to downtown Minneapolis for a CPE workshop. I entered my route in the Metro Transit website. I wrote down my stop name. I wrote out the walking directions from that stop. I left early, so I wouldn't be stressed about being late. Well, I missed my stop - so I got off at the next one (which wasn't very close). I could not follow my carefully scribed notes, but I could follow the street numbers (I wrongly assumed these would go in order). After coming to a dead end facing a seemingly endless expanse of interstate lanes with no way across, I broke down. I began calling friends who may be able to use the Internet to help me out. Laura, in NY, was enjoying a bowl of cereal in her pajamas and had Internet access at her fingertips. She was able to direct me by foot to my final destination. An hour and a half after boarding the bus, I finally arrived. (I later discovered I had incorrectly entered the address information, and the stop I got off on was actually closer to my destination than the prescribed one). With the help of Catholic Charities staff and a friendly bus driver, my ride home was much less eventful.

It is certainly a learning experience to move from a community of 1,900 individuals to an urban area of 2.85 million. It is a learning experience to be challenged to try new things, like figuring out biking routes, busing routes, riding the light rail, and meeting fascinating people along the way. One of those fascinating individuals left me with this profound thought, "You can't do anything in this world if you don't know Chinese."

Blogging is Weird...Part II

This is the first request and dedication.* Yeah! This one goes out to the rapper J. S. Love, who wanted to know more about why blogs are funny things to me.

I think blogs are strange because people write with such varied motivations and stances...and so many people write them. Some people write to keep in touch with family and friends who are far away (many Seminarians on internship do this). Some people write a theme blog like Stuff White People Like or Sarcastic Lutheran. Some people write blogs because they need somewhere to rant, and, to be honest, I think some people write blogs because they hope that maybe, now, someone will know who they are. Because of blog communication, maybe strangers will actually care in a world that connects virtually rather than authentically most of the time.

I think that we have resorted to blogging because we are separated....by distance...by schedules...by lack of important relationships. Maybe we don't know how to share our deepest passions, fears, rants, ideas, or questions with real people - so we blog and see how the world responds. But maybe the internet(s) is a powerfully amazing platform to share that which is most significant in our lives.

Now, I am writing a blog. I'm writing mostly because my friend, Laura, told me "you have a good voice" (not referring to my singing) and I enjoy writing - so why not. I have no idea who is reading this blog, what you (the reader) like to find, what you hope for, what is boring, what makes you mad - yet the blog lives on.

*I may remind you that this blog takes requests and dedications like a radio station. I encourage you to submit yours (as a comment, via email, or in person).

Heretics Soccer

In short, we won 4-1 on Sunday night on key goals by Dave Lose, Jonathan Davis and sons of students Matt and Robert. All beautiful goals. Jonathan's looked like it could have come out of a highlight reel for the US Men's team. Robert sent him a beautiful cross and Jonathan jumped, kicked it in mid-air and it landed somewhere in the upper-left corner of the net. I could be wrong because the beauty of the whole thing left me a little drunk with awe. Jonathan also was incredible in the goal. I'd say he was a great candidate for MVP last night, but our whole team is pretty awesome this year.

The ref, who knows our team (and favors us a little because of our calls to ministry) asked if we had gone to training camp. He then said that it's not fair when we play other teams because it's like playing 14 against 7 because God is in and with us. I then said that the paradox of the whole thing is that we've lost more than we've won...

Our next game is next Sunday at 6:30 at the outdoor fields at the U of M Practice fields.

starstruck@luthersem.edu

Gush alert.

Today is the second day of Ventures in Vocation here at Luther. It is a time marked by discernment for visiting possible students. Today we all feasted on a bluegrass liturgy in chapel led by new professor Chris Scharen, whose theme for the day was this prayer:

Lord, God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Coincidence? Probably not.

Anyway, the community of Luther Seminary was invited to have fellowship after chapel, enjoy some great drumming and mingle with possible students who are getting a taste of Luther today.

Well, to my pleasant surprise, one such possible student was none other than Janet Karvonen, Minnesota Basketball Legend! She goes by a different last name now and is known for more than basketball, but that didn't keep me from shyly gushing. Aw, shucks.

Then, who walked by but Ellen Davis, a professor of Bible and Practical Theology at Duke Divinity School! Dr. Davis is in town for our very own Word and World lecture THIS WEDNESDAY. I'm really looking forward to the lecture and I strongly encourage attendance.

How cool is this place!

This Place Is Unstable

This place is unstable. It's like trying to do yoga balance poses on abandoned farm equipment - risky, unlikely, and wonderful. The Luther Seminary Community is in constant flux. The slight majority of seminarians (those doing mDiv degrees) are in school for 4 years. The first two years are spent on campus, then an off-campus internship, and then a final year on campus. If you follow that pattern, you will see that each year 1/3 of these students remain on campus. The other 2/3 are brand new or returning to a campus of students they have never met. While there are students who are PhD, MA, or going at their own pace, this is the decided reality for most here.

It came as a shock to me this fall that 2/3 of my friends are no longer here. I guess that is my punishment for being friendly and non-cliquey with those in my class. I have close friends starting their first calls, out on internship on both coasts, in Arizona and Texas, and some that have remained here. I just found out another friend will be leaving after this semester (following his wife to her new job). It is difficult to say goodbye to those we love and treasure...just as it is difficult to meet and invest in new relationships.

This community was such a blessing to me when I first came - but it is not stable. It is certainly not the same as it was 4 months ago, or 8 months ago, or at this time last year. We miss those who are no longer here with us.

This year, though, I have found another group of friends. A group returning from their internships. While we have mutual friends who are all over the country right now - most of us had never met before this fall. Yet, I feel like I have been grafted into their community. I have been a part of meals, baseball games, gatherings, Manning's excursions, movies, late nights, shopping trips, celebrations, worship, ceaseless generosity, and (of course) athleticism in their midst. It is such a blessing to be part of community...even it isn't what I expected or knew before. The unstable community is surely one with a stronger foundation than the individuals who are here at this moment.

This community is a blessing, even in its instability.

Catie Luehr, Come on Down!

A small community has gathered in our apartment this morning during the chapel hour. We are remembering Jesus' words that where 2 or 3 are gathered, but we are decidedly not in Chapel today. It's not because of the preacher or the weather or our laziness, but because one of our very best friend and co-Luther Student Catie Luehr is on The Price is Right (TPiR) today! That's right, THE PRICE IS RIGHT!!! Watch HERE.

Catie was on internship in Dana Point, CA last year and decided before heading outta town that she would go see TPiR. We've already spotted her and Ioan in the crowd and are waiting for her to come on down.

I remember when Cate told me about this. I was leaving Arizona on the way to Las Vegas. I almost got into an accident out of my excitement (and the crazy motorcycle driver.) The picture at left is Catie at our wedding. She was our wedding marshal. Not personal attendant. Wedding Marshal. And she rocked it.

Back to now. Catie has just been called down! She's so excited, both on the tv and as she sits next to me. A girl on the show spins $1.00 on the wheel and hugs everyone. Cate mentions that everyone was excited and hugged even strangers.

Cate just bid $1, but someone hit the bid right on the nose. Drew is teasing Cate that it is not her. It's not.

Cate quotes Paula Poundstone: "I would be the perfect video movie watcher. It doesn't matter how many times I watch Hoosiers, I still get anxiety that they're not gonna win the big game." Her heart paces and races, even though she knows how it will end.

Cate bid on ugly artwork and won! And she now is trying to win a trip to Holland. She plays the game Now and Then. She gets her first one right! She gets the second one right! She gets the third one wrong. The tension is on...She gets the last one RIGHT!!! THE PRICE IS RIGHT!!! She's going to Holland!

Drew says: "That's all your life is going to be about now: wooden shoes and tulips!"

Catie spins the wheel, but doesn't make it to the showcase showdown. She's a nickel over. Still, pretty much the coolest thing ever. I'll try to post the video later.

iBike

On my way to my internship today, I discovered on a school billboard that today, October 8, is International Walk to School Day. Did you celebrate? Was it fun? Were you lazy? Did you drive or have your mom drop you off?

While my "school" right now is an internship, I biked there today. (It would take a really long time to walk). It is so wonderful to be outside. I experience the world is such a different way than from the seat of a car. From the seat of my bike, I enjoy the smell of fall, the delicious sound of leaves crumpling beneath my tires, the thrill of feeling the vibrations of a train through my feet, the hot aroma of diesel exhaust, the cool wind and warm sun, smell of tar and seasoned fries and fresh pizza.

Let me tell you life is different, slower, better when you take time to be outside (not in traffic) and notice things like little girls in hot pink skipping down the sidewalk, or dead squirrels, or the joy of being out of breath, or where all the yard sales are this weekend. C'mon people - give it a try. You may just be pleasantly surprised at the excitement you feel by getting passed (in daringly close proximity) by a city bus, or barely missing hitting a dirty diaper, or cruising at high speeds down long hills. Go on, give it a try!

T-Minus 23 Days

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. The leaves are turning. The sky is getting grayer. Each day it gets a little colder. Lucky for me the library is toasty and warm. I picked up a thermos today for some of those early days and late nights working on my thesis. All I need to do is pick up a bag of some Caribou Coffee and things will be dandy. :)

Over the weekend I ended up getting really sick after eating at Big Bowl, which threw a wrench in my plans. Apparently Thai food isn’t my food. My girlfriend of almost two-years and I had planned to do the customary “meeting of the parents.” I ended up not being able to go. Boo. :( I did, however, get to do some thesis work and spend some time with my new doggy. Speaking of which, I’ve got about twenty-five days left to finish the project. I started writing the introduction today. The research is complete, save a few articles that are coming from an interlibrary loan. Best of luck to everyone who is working on their projects.

-Dan

Senior Assignment Dinner - Yum!

About half the senior class awaiting assignment gathered for a meal and discussion for what comes next.

What comes next is a constant question at the seminary. It starts most concretely in our entrance essay and continues from there. We seniors are getting to the point where we are close the end of the nexts and it's starting to get difficult. Like Mario at Bowser's Planet in Super Mario Galaxy, we're facing more difficult and more precise challenges, but, like Mario, we've been practicing for this for quite some time and have been gifted with experience and education to face what comes next. We've learned how to dive, how to long-jump, how to flip backwards and jump and how to find the extra stars that help us in our mighty fight against Bowser.

Classes, CPE, Candidacy, internship and community, tempered by time, have prepared us all. And it feels pretty darn good. It's a challenge filled with new possibilities, but ones we've been gifted to handle.

So, for all of us--juniors, middlers, interns, seniors--in our processes with all of our "what comes nexts," pray for us, remember that you aren't where you were and you won't go back to where you are. It is a process, a pretty sweet one.

Oh, and I'm pretty close to getting to Bowser's castle. Only three more stars!

Heretics (Proper) Football...the morning after

It is the morning after the Luther Seminary Heretics Proper Football match against some team in pastel blue. It was awesome. The skill and depth of our (male) bench was phenomenal, not to mention intimidating. We had enthusiasm, subs for everyone, good coaching, and got to play under lights. While we lost a goal early on in the first half, it was quite a match. (I take a significant amount of the blame for this, unfortunately).

Proper football used to be my deal. I even had a necklace with a female soccer player on it circa 1996. (which is featured in my passport photo). I was so excited for this match and had an unbelievable amount of fun. I was reminded that I am unable to just stand on the sideline like everyone else when I'm not playing. I have so much energy that I pace the sideline yelling everything I say twice. "MAN ON! MAN ON!" Today I'm not so energetic. Once I finally got out of bed -which took much longer than it should have - I've discovered a sore knee and back, stiff leg muscles, a bruise on the top of my foot from getting stepped on, and a welt and series of bruises (soccer-ball sized) on my inner thigh. I'm tempted to post of photo, but....no (sorry).

My Most Surprising Performance Award (MSPS) goes to former academic dean David Lose. What a game, Dave! He's got speed, makes smart tackles, foot skills, an unabashed defensive pressure, an experienced read of the field and a four inch scar down his knee that matches mine. He held his own in center fullback. I hope to see him on the pitch again.

Your (tired) Right Fullback

Ray LaMontagne: The Voice of a the Soul

The four of us--Anna, Jesse, Colin and I--went to see the Ray LaMontagne concert last night at the State Theatre. This was my third time seeing him, the boys' second time and Anna's first. He knocked all of our socks off.

Ray LaMontagne's story is one that legends are made of. Working in the back woods of Maine, he awoke one early morning to the Stephen Stills song "Tree Top Flyer." Upon hearing that, he called in sick, went to the record store and found a new vocation: singer. He worked for months and months to get his voice to perform the way he wanted it to.

His voice sits somewhere in a bivouac of soulful, visceral perfection. It's intense, and yet mellow, wounded, yet strong. He holds it somewhere between heaven and earth, lofted just beyond our grasp. You don't listen to Ray LaMontange, you wrap up in his voice like a down comforter on a cold morning while you sip your morning cup of joe.

I've been reading C.S. Lewis' An Experiment on Criticism and I can't help but return to Lewis' sentiment that we ought to be (though most of us aren't) receivers of art instead of users, surrendering to object and becoming ourselves its object. Letting it work on us than the other way around.

Take for instance this song by Ray, called Jolene:


Now, on a cursory listen, our pieties may be offended. But notice its witness to a story that frees us to imagine a life outside of our own. Its rich imagery lifts us out of our experiences and puts us into another's. Songs are stories that enliven our imagination to a world beyond us.

Ray's new album comes out in a couple of weeks, but I still haven't gotten over his first, Trouble.

Yikes!

Here’s a friendly reminder to always keep on your toes! I had been working on my thesis project on and off most of the summer. I revisited some subjects of interest on and off: the war “ban”…God’s relationship to war…and sacrifice (to name a few). Thank goodness - I had several sources and a concrete thesis in development. Well, well, well… I received an email while I was in class on Tuesday reminding me that my thesis statement, outline of my thesis as a whole, and a bibliography would be due TODAY, Wednesday! Talk about a shock! I felt like I was having a bad dream. For one reason or another I thought I still had a week or so to work on developing it.

After about three cups of coffee and three hours of class I spent about six hours researching in the library. I recommend studying there. Living off campus, I tend to study in the comfort of my own home. Time really seems to fly when you don’t have all of the distractions of home. You don’t get distracted by the television, pets, or food. So today I ironed out a thesis statement and an outline of my paper. All of my research is done for the most part – but there’s always room for more (kind of like that old Jello slogan). If you catch me on campus it will most likely be in the library sacrifice in Israelite war practice for the next month or so.
:/

-Dan