Connect journal fall 2013

FALL 2013 Fall 2013 • $8.95

Journal of Children, Youth & Family Ministry

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CHILDREN, YOUTH CHILDREN, YOUTH and FAMILY MINISTRY and FAMILY MINISTRY MASTER of DIVINITY | MASTER of ARTS

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FALL 2013

PUBLICATION INFORMATION Published by:

ELCA Youth Ministry Network www.elcaymnet.org

CONTENTS Welcome!

Todd Buegler

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Faith and Science in Community

Colin Grangaard

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Interviews With Scientists

Clint Schnekloth

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Your Science Playlist

Dawn Rundman

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Calendar of Events 10

Subscription Information:

call 866-ELCANET (352-2638)

or visit: www.elcaymnet.org connect@elcaymnet.org

Faith and Science

Heidi Smith Ferris and Kjell Ferris

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Science on Sundays

Cindy Blobaum

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Eight Ways to Infuse Science in Your Church

Dawn Rundman

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Lutheran Out Loud

Elizabeth Lucht

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A View from Somewhere Else 23

George Baum

Contributing Writers:

George Baum, Cindy Blobaum,

Heidi Smith Ferris, Kjell Ferris,

Colin Grangaard, Elizabeth Lucht,

Dawn Rundman, Clint Schnekloth Design and Layout:

Michael Sladek

Impression Media Group www.impressionmediagroup.com

Contributing Editor:

Debbie Sladek

Connect Editorial Board:

Rachel Alley, Chris Bruesehoff,

Todd Buegler, Tim Coltvet,

Nate Frambach, Sue Mendenhall,

Jeremy Myers, Dawn Rundman,

Clint Schnekloth, Michael Sladek

Cover Design & Photo ©2013 Michael Sladek

UPCOMING CONNECT ISSUE THEMES:

The Church in the Public Sphere (Winter ‘14) How Do We Teach Stewardship? (Spring ‘14) The Link Between Youth Ministry and College (Fall ‘14)

ELCA YOUTH MINISTRY NETWORK BOARD Julie Miller: Board Member

Valerie Taylor Samuel: Board Member

Rev. Ben Morris: Board Member

Erik Ullestad: Board Chairperson

Dr. Jeremy Myers, AIM: Board Member

Rev. Mike Ward: Board Member

Yvonne Steindal, AIM: Board Member

Rev. Todd Buegler: Executive Director

The ELCA Youth Ministry Network exists to strengthen and empower adult youth ministry leaders in service to Christ as a part of God’s mission.

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WELCOME!

NEWS BITS

According to David Kinnaman, the president of Barna Research, one of the six primary reasons that young people are leaving the church is that the church is unwilling or unable to engage science. 1

Thanks to Lisa Gray (Region 1) and Molly Haggerty Brewster (Region 5) for serving as a Network Regional Facilitator. We are grateful for your time and energy!

Young people perceive the relationship between the Christian faith and science, with which they engage every day at school, to be an “either/or.”

In fact, according to Kinnaman’s research, • 35% of young people believe that Christians are “too confident they know all the answers” • Three out of ten young adults with a Christian background feel that “churches are out of step with the scientific world we live in” (29%) • Another one-quarter embrace the perception that “Christianity is anti-science” (25%) • And nearly the same proportion (23%) said they have “been turned off by the creationversus-evolution debate.”

I read statistics like this and I want to shout “That’s not us!” We’re not anti-science. Science is not the enemy, and there is no campaign to ignore, or close our eyes to the wonders of science. There may be denominations that take this approach, but we’re not one of them!

Science is not the enemy. Science is how we explore and explain the work of God in the world.

Every scientific discovery reveals another layer of God’s creation.

But does this belief affect our ministry?

The statistic that Kinneman quoted that really startled me was that less than 1% of youth ministry leaders have talked about science regularly as a normative part of our life and faith. Less than 1%. And then I checked the mirror: How much time do we spend talking about the intersection between faith and science in the ministries of my congregation. Answer: not much.

It’s not that our beliefs don’t make sense, it’s that we’ve given up our voice. We don’t name for young people the way that science describes the work of God. We’ve given up the opportunity to tell them that every time they walk into a science class in school, they will be learning about the work of God in their world.

We don’t need to change the way we think about science…we need to change the way we talk with young people about science.

This issue of Connect gets at these important questions. What is the intersection between science and faith like? How do we talk about it? How does science enhance our faith formation?

The more insular and closed off we appear to those who are asking the questions, the more opportunities for great faith-talk we will have forfeited.

Blessings!

Todd Buegler Executive Director – ELCA Youth Ministry Network Pastor­—Lord of Life Lutheran Church, Maple Grove, MN Todd@elcaymnet.org

You Lost Me: Why Young Christians are Leaving the Church...and Rethinking Faith, by David Kinnaman; The Barna Group, 2011.

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We are grateful to Luther Seminary for renewing it’s Gold Partnership, Lutheran Retreats, Camps and Conferences of California for its new Gold Partnership, Lutherans Outdoors in South Dakota for our new Silver Partnership and Youth Encounter for renewing its Silver Partnership! We’re grateful for your support of those who work in faith formation!

The Network received an Organizational Sustainability Grant from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. We will use the grant to develop and strengthen our development efforts, and to create new partnerships. Thank you to Thrivent Financial for Lutherans!

Podcast? Why yes, I think we will!

The App: Back!

You might have been following the saga of the Network’s mobile app! Weird legal issues forced our app development company to suspend operations and our app has been “down” over the summer. By the time you read this, we should be all back up and running at 100% and our new updates in the pipeline. Thanks for your patience in the process!

Journeys for Youth Journeys For Youth was a publication of the ELCA that listed summer service and high adventure trips and opportunities.

When the ELCA could no longer publish it, Lutheran Outdoor Ministries took it on. It’s a great resource, and it’s all online. You can access it by going to www.elcaymnet.org/ journeys

FALL 2013

FAITH AND SCIENCE IN COMMUNITY

by Colin Grangaard In the summer of 2011, our proposal from Trinity Lutheran in Moorhead, Minn. won us a $30,000 grant award from “Scientists in Congregations,” a new initiative funded by the John Templeton Foundation. To kick off the programs and events that we’d be doing throughout the year for members from Sunday school through senior citizens, we had invited Dr. Ted Peters from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary to preach and present from his book, Can You Believe in God and Evolution? As the 9 a.m. service ended, we greeted people at the door and heard all kinds of responses. One of the old faithful grabbed my hand, shook it vigorously, clapped me on the shoulder and said, “I may not have agreed with everything that man said, but this was so much better than sex!”

Well, that wasn’t where we started the discussion. We had started months before we were able to welcome Dr. Peters, with a steering group of “churchy people” and members whose work brought them in contact with science every day. From the outset, one of the biggest unexpected surprises was the way that the science professionals came out of the woodwork to brainstorm with us.

Nurses and computer technicians, college professors from nearby Concordia College who had children in elementary programs, engineers and doctors, local middle and high school science and math educators—all came to imagine what we could do together. More than one person at each meeting mentioned that it was the first time they had been recognized in their vocation in all the years they had been members, and not just for the work they did volunteering at church.

One of the directors of Scientists in Congregations, David Wood, invited us to consider the way our churches model this invitation for people to consider the intersection of faith and science in their lives. “There is a sizable consensus that religion is a subject that should not be taken up in our public schools.

Many of us act as if science does not belong in our churches and religious houses.” So, why should we wonder why children grow up assuming that religion and science don’t mix and why their parents assume that religious life occupies a small, private compartment of their lives? The first and most significant

thing that happened from the very outset of participating in the Scientists in Congregations initiative was the opportunity to explicitly celebrate and bless everyone from our elementary school kids to their parents as they do the work of integrating science and faith in their lives by virtue of being Christians in our modern world.

There were three main ways that Trinity committed to engaging Faith and Science in Community over the course of the next year and a half. Here’s a quick overview: First, our Children’s Ministry would develop a new unit for the 5–6th grade rotational Sunday school classes on New Life and Creation (one of six units the kids learn).

Second, our Youth Ministry would help middle and high school kids to see that faith and science can be complementary instead of contradictory by incorporating the theme into our retreats, even organizing a special Rocks, Wind and God retreat.

Finally, we organized four major public events—A lecture, two public dialogues, and a science and faith fair, all made possible by the generous investment of time and energy by science and faith educators from Concordia, North Dakota State University and beyond.

At Trinity there are several ministries that we are very proud of, and the children’s ministry is certainly at the top of the list for many. There is strong parental participation. Many of the active parents are science professionals. So, our children’s minister, Sandra Anderson, suggested that we adjust one of our rotations for our fifth and sixth graders to include a science connection in each of the units. At first, the addition seemed pretty ambitious. But Sandra has said and would likely tell you that once she started looking for complementary activities, she started seeing them all over.

She drew from all kinds of sources; some that may be familiar and some less familiar. For instance, when the kids were learning about Jacob and Esau, a natural connection that the Spark Curriculum draws in one of its lessons (this is not included in the 5–6th grade 5

curriculum) leads us to the concept that each of us solves problems in different ways.

Jacob has to be creative in order to get what he wants. So kids used problem solving to separate a mixture. When we looked further afield for connections and activities, connections seemed natural. We had an astronomer talk about the stars, including the Star of Bethlehem, at Christmas time. When we learned the story of the feeding of the 5,000, the kids did experiments that showed rapid expansion. When they learned the story of Pentecost, they made anemometers which measure wind speed. The habit of looking for a natural world and natural science connection became so much a part of the planning process that it has become one of the lasting legacies of the initiative.

One of the other real gifts of Trinity is the confirmation and youth program. Besides being an amazing person with an awesome program, Kathy Hunstad sets up retreats and summer trips that the youth talk about every time they get together (for years after they graduate!). We tried to imagine what a retreat or a trip around the topic of science and faith might look like, and it took us two attempts to find a format that worked. The discussion really transformed when we changed our focus. When we stopped trying to make sure we taught the youth the right information and looked at what inspired us to think about what God was already doing in the natural world around us, we started to hit on something that worked. We returned to the kinds of experiences we looked forward to, which author and naturalist John Muir put into words many years ago: Hiking—I don’t like either the word or the thing.

People ought to saunter in the mountains—not hike! Do you know the origin of that word ‘saunter?’ It’s a beautiful word. Away back in the Middle Ages people used to go on pilgrimages to the Holy Land, and when people in the villages through which they passed asked where they were going, they would reply, “A la sainte terre,’ ‘To the Holy Land.’ And so they became known as sainte-terre-ers or saunterers.

Now these mountains are our Holy Land, and we ought to saunter through them reverently, not ‘hike’ through them.

(Albert Palmer quoting John Muir from his essay, “A Parable of Sauntering” published in 1910 in The Mountain Trail and Its Message) We live in the Red River Valley, which was the bottom of Lake Agassiz thousands of years ago, formed from an inland sea which existed millions of years before that. We decided that a mystery trip to some favorite places, all within about 8 hours of our church, might be exactly what we were hoping for. We called this Rocks, Wind and God. We learned about geology and the history of the land, visited wind farms, visited Native American holy sites and talked about homesteading. And throughout, our trip book brought our devotions and conversation back to the lens of awe and wonder that we find in Psalm 8:3–4, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?”

The aspect of the grant initiative that received the most public visibility in our community was our five major public events over the course of a year. At the beginning we followed the model of other churches who had hosted this kind of initiative before. We invited Dr. Ted Peters for our kickoff. We tried to accompany his afternoon lecture with discussion groups that asked different questions in different small groups. But we found that the groups and topics garnered the attention of the same group of faithful attendees that came to most other discussion gatherings. Since we had hoped for a slightly more eclectic appeal, we took this opportunity for a little experimentation of our own. We tried a couple of non-traditional approaches and rather than making the events more broad and general, we tried to make them more specific.

The activities and lessons in Sunday school seemed to really take off. When we decided to get more specific, the conversation went something like this: “You know, Mark and Graeme are the Concordia professors who go out and do the science fairs at schools.”

“Mark Jensen?”

“Yeah, what if we tried to open up something for all the kids? Like a science and faith fair?”

“Where would the faith part come in? I mean, besides hosting it at the church?”

“We would incorporate the experiments into a story . . . We could do something around the themes of the six days of creation with journals and stations and a kickoff and wrap up.”

ecological stewardship and care for our neighbors as food producers.

We called the science and faith fair Six Days of Wonder to give it a sense of story and cohesion. It was a runaway success. Kids from other area churches, homeschool families and our own elementary-aged kids from Sunday school packed in for a full day led by two science professors, a small army of Concordia students and parent guides. When it came time to ask the kids what they had enjoyed most, they had some great comments, but my favorite one showed the contrast of the day: “My favorite part was bugs and how God created everything. The whole thing was ‘tov’ (Hebrew for ‘good’).”

We started the public events by inviting Dr. Ted Peters to share about his book, Can You Believe in God and Evolution, and we concluded the public events with a dialogue. We invited Dr. Terry Fretheim from Luther Seminary to join our co-director Dr. Heidi Manning in a conversation about creation from Genesis and the Psalms. Dr. Manning had been working with NASA on the Mars Rover and had a great deal to say about awe and wonder, curiosity and inquiry. Dr. Fretheim has a great deal to say about our being created to be co-creators with God and stewards of a world and cosmos that invites our participation.

We recognized this would be a lively and active discussion for adults, and also saw an opportunity because there is a lot to learn and do for kids too. So, we organized a parallel event during the public discussion for kids. No, the kids didn’t argue about GMOs and organics; they did activity stations and learned where our food comes from. They participated in planting and growing activities, a station about bees and pollination (honey sticks of course!) and then a discussion about nutrition and how food from the field gets to the grocery store.

In my mind, the best thing that came out of the initiative was the recognition within the congregation that studying the natural world is one of our vocations as Christians. It was an experience that didn’t need grant funding to create. It was an experience that might not even have required a special initiative to inspire. Kids and adults alike saw and experienced that the awe and inquiry of a scientist can be fueled by holy wonder.

After that event we really started getting bold and a little more specific in what we wanted to do. One of our members, Concordia Professor Dr. Per Anderson, helped to draft the ELCA Statement on Genetics. We felt we had the resources to choose a topic close-to-home for our area. We gathered a panel to discuss “Faith, Food and Biotechnology.” We had local Minnesota Public Radio Correspondent Dan Gunderson moderate a discussion between an agronomist, a former Monsanto representative, a certified Organic farmer and Dr. Anderson. When we got into the discussion about genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and organics, we began by talking about the shared priority and responsibility for

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Colin Grangaard is beginning his second year as Senior Pastor at Our Savior’s Lutheran in Barnesville, MN. He moved to Barnesville from Trinity in Moorhead where he was the Associate Pastor for Young Adults, Evangelism and Global Mission. His wife Jeni is a creative and dynamic partner and friend, also an ELCA pastor. Together they continue to explore awe and wonder at God’s creation having just welcomed their first child, Josephine, into the family.

FALL 2013

INTERVIEWS WITH SCIENTISTS

Interviews by Clint Schnekloth

There are many scientists who are members of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The University of Arkansas is a land grant college, so lots of research and scientific work is focused on the agricultural and horticultural sciences. Here, one pastor asks a young professor, and a 20-something researcher, about the intersection between their commitment to science and their commitment to Christian faith.

The Researcher (Hal Halvorson) Clint Schnekloth: How do you see your faith and your scientific inquiry intersecting and reinforcing or challenging each other?

Hal Halvorson: I think that my faith and my passion for scientific inquiry intersect at multiple levels. On one level, I see my faith as calling me to pursue science. We live in a world of so much need, and among the greatest (and unfortunately too often overlooked) needs is that of the natural world. We collectively demand so much of our environment and have already negatively altered so much of God’s creation. My research focuses on how humancaused nutrient pollution is altering stream ecosystems, with the ultimate goal that we understand how organisms are negatively affected by human impact, as well as how we can prevent future impact. I see each species and each process (think: the still-poorly-understood intricacies of the global carbon cycle!) as a beautiful result of God’s love for this world.

Our faith should call us to take action in preserving biodiversity and respecting the finite resources God has given us. My small way of doing this is by boldly pursuing my research.

On a similar level, my faith informs my passion for science. We joke in science that the more we know, the more questions we have.

As with any good research project, interesting findings only beg further questions: what mechanism(s) drive the patterns I am observing in the natural world? What are the potential policy implications of my conclusions? The complexity of our world is truly awe-inspiring, and we are only on the brim of understanding how this world works. To me, there is great beauty in the unexplained phenomena: the origins of life, the chaos of the global climate system, and the size of the universe all come to mind. Also inspiring is the unifying theme of biology: evolution. The evolution of life is a fascinating topic and one of

very active research. But the theory of natural selection? True beauty, in terms of its ability to explain so much of what we see in the world in relatively simple terms. I do not see evolution and my faith as contradictory; in the processes that have driven the diversification of life and thereby profoundly shaped our planet, I see God’s presence.

At times it can be difficult to reconcile my scientific/empirical mindset with scripture.

For example, it is hard for me to believe that Jesus turned water into wine if I also believe in (or, indeed, my very career depends upon) the law of conservation of mass. I see two approaches: one is to resolve that Jesus was divine, and that the miracles and other acts of God truly did happen because God is above all laws of the natural world. The other approach, which I personally choose, is a metaphorical interpretation of scripture: the details of the gospel do not matter as much as the message, and a message of the water-into-wine story is that the best is yet to come through Jesus’ teachings and our faith in his message.

Pastor Clint, I am wondering about your views on how to reconcile passages, such as the above, when well-studied natural or physical laws are ‘broken’ in the Bible. Are we to believe that these events truly occurred? Is there only one correct way of interpreting the miracles?

CS: That’s a great question. My short answer is “no.” We can view these events that seem to contradict our sense of natural causality in any number of ways that are still faithful.

Scripture may be like myth or legend as much as anything else, which doesn’t make it any less true. Personally, I hold out on the idea that many of the miracles in Scripture that seem to contradict science may yet be true on a literal level as well. Science explains a lot, but it does not yet explain everything, and it could equally be the case that what we know from a scien-

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tific perspective we know only in part. Perhaps for all we know all water is actually wine.

CS: Tell me about your colleagues who are agnostic or atheist. What has influenced them in their religious/scientific perspective?

HH: Many of my fellow scientists are agnostic or atheist. There is a wide range of views on religion among scientists, from refreshingly open to downright hostile. Fortunately, I do not personally know many in the hostile camp.

Many of my colleagues have surprisingly similar views to myself: much like me, they believe that science can coexist with faith (i.e. you can be religious and also subscribe to science) and that too often we render a gray area into black and white or either/or. Some of them would even call themselves spiritual or religious, although they do not attend church.

A few trends stand out to me. (1) Many scientists believe that matters of faith and science should be kept separate, especially in the public and/or teaching sector. This is to address the debate over teaching evolution in biology classrooms: evolution is a testable and wellstudied scientific theory, whereas creationism cannot be scientifically tested and is a matter of personal belief or faith. I think that this dichotomy is essential, because it ends debate over whether or not we should teach religious principles in science classrooms. (2) Many of my agnostic scientific friends feel ‘turned off’ from modern Christianity. They view Christianity as being totally opposed to the pursuit of science, a roadblock to their careers and to the furthering of science. Many of them also believe that Christians are hypocritical, often acting in opposite to Jesus’ teachings of action, humility, forgiveness, or unconditional love.

(3) Many of my agnostic colleagues are also very surprised when I explain to them that my church actually does not defame evolution or global warming, and that we actually have embraced progressive ideas like environmentalism. (4) Many of them are comfortable talking

about faith, but feel little need to pursue it, at least via organized religion. In their childhood they may have been exposed to Christianity at Sunday School or through their parents, but they have since drifted away. In some ways, they have drifted away because they felt forced to attend church and continue to associate ‘church’ with unhappy Sunday mornings.

CS: What if anything do you think might attract your colleagues who have drifted away to affiliate with intentional Christian community?

HH: I like your response to my question. The scientific story isn’t complete and I don’t think ever will be.

I can think of a few steps that would attract atheist/agnostic colleagues to begin affiliating with Christian community. First, I think that we could be more explicit about informing them that science and faith do not have to be opposed to one another and can go hand-inhand. For example, science can tell us that our global climate is changing at unprecedented rates, and our faith and scripture can inform us that this is not God’s vision for creation.

Both will inspire us to take action to emit fewer greenhouse gases, mitigate the effects of climate change, et cetera, and together the two perspectives may be especially potent.

From my perspective, our denomination (and most mainline Protestant denominations) offer a very different but often overlooked interpretation of science/faith compared to other forms of Christianity. It baffles my peers and I how many people in America seem to take for granted sophisticated technologies such as airplanes, microwaves, or even flu vaccines yet still refuse to accept foundational concepts like natural selection or the possibility that our species could change the composition of our atmosphere. I do not understand how these ideas go against God. Unfortunately, some of my colleagues group these people and gain the impression that all Christians are skeptical of science.

I think that a church that openly embraced current science would be a big draw. Just to take it one step further, imagine churches funding research under the premise that this would save or improve lives, especially of impoverished or oppressed people...do you know of instances where Christian groups

have done this? Does the ELCA malaria campaign include funding for malaria research, for example?

I also think that every biologist will admit there is so much about the intricacies of life that we do not understand - for example, the origin of life or the million different contingencies that have led to our present existence in the modern world. These are the ideas that can inspire people to turn to a higher being for potential answers or inspiration. A church that opens dialogue to address these ideas and accepts room for doubt (i.e. not simply stating that the earth is only 6,000 years old, without compromise) would be attractive to this group of people.

The general response to this question by Christian scientists (not Christian Scientists) is that the insights into the complexity of life afforded by their science reinforce and strengthen their faith in God. This has not been my experience, perhaps because I haven’t actively sought to make these connections. Instead, I see science and faith as two separate aspects of my life. For matters of faith, I look to God. To understand the natural world, I look to science. I haven’t sought any type of reciprocal reinforcement, nor have I found any. I’m an evolutionary biologist, so some people find tension between evolutionary theory and a literal reading of the Bible’s creation story. I can see how one could get hung up on this if he or she views the Bible as a scientific document.

The Scientist (Andy Alverson) CS: How do you see your faith and your scientific inquiry intersecting and reinforcing or challenging each other?

Andy Alverson: After reading these and thinking about them a bit, I realized that I might not be the best person to ask about this stuff, mainly because I’m not all that introspective about the faith/science intersection. It’s never been that big of an issue for me personally because I just don’t see the conflict that so many others do. That isn’t to say I don’t have opinions about different issues, but on the “big” questions, you might find my responses to be less philosophical than you had hoped for. But they’re honest. Over the years I’ve read a lot of recycled answered to these questions. My responses aren’t earth-shattering, but they’re not canned either.

The biggest challenge I see for the Church is fighting the perception that we’re all a bunch of flat earthers with our heads in the sand.

That we’ll ignore mountains of data that the whole world sees for what it is, and instead call black white because of the misguided notion that evolution, climate change, stem cell research, and even embryology are fundamentally at odds with Biblical teachings.

With respect to science, these are the kinds of people shaping the image of the Church: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/06/ paul-broun-evolution-big-bang_n_1944808.html

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CS: Tell me about your colleagues who are agnostic or atheist. What has influenced them in their religious/scientific perspective?

AA: Scientists are a diverse bunch, so I hesitate to make broad generalizations. Everyone comes to these things with individual perspectives, life experiences, and cultural and family histories. That said, scientists are, by definition, natural skeptics. Science is a discipline that demands all things be viewed and interpreted with a critical and skeptical eye. The scientific method is one in which we continually try to disprove things. We establish hypotheses and come up with the best approach possible to try to reject them. Nothing is ever proven, and there are no truths or laws in biology. From the perspective of a skeptical biologist, God is an untestable hypothesis.

This is hard, if not impossible, for some people to accept.

In addition, fair or not, the loudest voices (I’m thinking, for example, of outspoken religious politicians here) paint a picture of a Church body full of “flat earthers” who reject science that the rest of the world sees as uncontroversial. These voices are, in many cases, the only ones many people ever get a chance to hear. Imagine working 60-80 hours per week for your entire adult life in passionate pursuit of some important research question only to have the very nature of your work, science itself, questioned or even mocked in some cases. I’m not suggesting that this drives flocks

FALL 2013

of people to atheism, but it certainly doesn’t help attract rational people into the Church.

CS: Andy, you know I think I would argue that God is an untestable hypothesis from the theological perspective as well. In this sense theology and science are more similar than dissimilar.

So, two additional questions.

CS: What if anything do you think could contribute to scientists not misunderstanding theological inquiry and assuming it is antithetical to Christian faith?

AA: I don’t think there’s a broad misunderstanding of theological inquiry. Rather, there might be a misperception about the existence of “theological inquiry” at all.

CS: Are there any loud Christian voices on the other side you have noticed? To notice them, how loud and outspoken would they have to be, and where would they have to speak?

AA: The loudest voices seem to be the most irrational ones, and these will almost always dominate. For the same reasons people slow

down to glimpse at a car accident, they’ll almost always click on the link to a story of someone describing evolution as “a lie from the pit of hell.” It’s outrageous, and people, including me, find outrageous to be interesting. Jim Wallis is a voice of rapprochement on a broad range of issues. And he’s not loud, he’s reasoned, which itself strikes non-Christians as unusual. As a result, he’s been given some big platforms for his ideas. I see him on the Huffington Post all the time. Maybe rational and reasoned is the new loud.

Hal Halvorson is a graduate student in biology at the University of Arkansas and studies stream ecology. He is fascinated by insects, especially in regard to how they shape and are shaped by carbon and nutrient cycling in streams

Andy Alverson graduated with a B.S. in Biology from Grand Valley State University; M.S. in Entomology from Iowa State University; and PhD in Plant Biology from The University of Texas at Austin. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Arkansas, where he teaches and carries out research on the evolutionary genomics of marine and freshwater algae.

YOUR SCIENCE PLAYLIST

by Dawn Rundman

Tune in to some great tunes about science. Download these songs, or page through your nearest green or cranberry hymnal.

“Earth and All Stars,” (lyrics by Herbert F. Brokering, music by David N. Johnson). Whether you prefer page 558 in LBW or 731 in ELW, where else can you sing about loud boiling test tubes?

“Lord of the Starfields,” (Bruce Cockburn). The master songcrafter said he was “trying to write something like a psalm” when he crafted this acoustic song about the universe.

“The Galaxy Song” (Eric Idle). This tune (also about the universe) takes a more comedic approach. It first appeared in Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life.

“She Blinded Me with Science” (Thomas Dolby). Gen Xers can’t resist dancing (and yelling “Science!”) to this 80s new-wave classic. (Honorable mention goes to “Weird Science” by Oingo Boingo, another 80s hit.)

“The Big Bang Theory Theme Song” (Barenaked Ladies). It rhymes astronomy with Deuteronomy. How can you go wrong?

“Fly Me to the Moon” (Bart Howard). This 60s hit with aeronautic lyrics has been covered by many artists, but Frank Sinatra’s version is bestknown.

“Norman Borlaug Polka” (Jonathan Rundman). Jonathan wrote this rollicking instrumental tune inspired by Nobel Laureate Norman Borlaug, an agronomist widely credited with saving over a billion lives.

And if you have kids around, you may have already memorized the entire Here Comes Science album by They Might Be Giants.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS: www.elcaymnet.org/calendar Start Date

End Date

Name

Location

Contact Person

Oct 31, 2013 3:00 PM

Nov 3, 2013 12:00 PM

ELCA Youth Leadership Event

Camp Carol Joy Holling (Askland, NE)

Ed Kay

Sr High Youth

Nov 3, 2013 1:45 PM

Nov 3, 2013 3:00 PM

AK Synod: Going Public

Central Lutheran Church

Jane Hanson

Sr High Youth, Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents

Nov 9, 2013 8:00 AM

Nov 9, 2013 2:00 PM

N/W Lower MI: Breaking The Mold

Mt. Pleasant, MI

Rev. Sue Hand

Nov 9, 2013 12:00 PM

Nov 9, 2013 4:00 PM

Faith Formation Support

Lord of Life

Heidi Cryer

Nov 22, 2013 6:00 PM

Nov 24, 2013 12:00 PM

Lutheran Youth of Nebraska (LYON) Assembly

Holiday Inn & Convention Center-Kearney

Lisa Kramme

www.nebraskasynod.org

Sr High Youth, Adult Volunteers

Nov 22, 2013 6:00 PM

Nov 24, 2013 12:00 PM

Lutheran Youth of Nebraska (LYON) Assembly West

Sullivan Hills Camp-Near Lodgepole

Lisa Kramme

www.nebraskasynod.org

Sr High Youth, Adult Volunteers

Nov 23, 2013 8:00 AM

Nov 23, 2013 2:00 PM

NGL Synod Breaking the Mold

Messiah, Marquette, MI

Rev. Katherine Finegan

www.nglsynod.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents

Nov 23, 2013 9:00 AM

Nov 23, 2013 2:00 PM

SEPA Synod - Dog Eat Chicken & St. Luke, Devon Theories of Culture

Molly Beck Dean

www.sepayouth.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents

Dec 27, 2013 6:00 PM

Dec 30, 2013 9:00 AM

N/W Lower MI: Breaking The Mold

Lansing, MI

Rev. Sue Hand

mittensynod.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents

Jan 18, 2014 10:00 Jan 19, 2014 AM 4:00 PM

Nebraska Synod Middle School Gathering

Bethany Lutheran ChurchElkhorn

Lisa Kramme

www.nebraskasynod.org

Jr High Youth, Adult Volunteers

Jan 25, 2014 9:00 AM

Jan 25, 2014 2:00 PM

SEPA Synod - Inculturating the Gospel & When Necessary Use Words

St. Luke, Devon

Molly Beck Dean

www.sepayouth.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents

Jan 25, 2014 6:00 PM

Jan 27, 2014 11:00 AM

RoadTrip

Ocean City, MD

Ed Kay

demdsynod.org

Sr High Youth

Jan 30, 2014 1:00 PM

Jan 31, 2014 3:00 PM

Extravaganza 2014 Intensive Care Courses

Hyatt Regency; St. Louis, Missouri

E-Team

www.elcaymnet.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals

Jan 31, 2014 7:00 PM

Feb 3, 2014 12:00 PM

Extravaganza 2014

Hyatt Regency; St. Louis, Missouri

E-Team

www.elcaymnet.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals

Mar 29, 2014 9:00 AM

Mar 29, 2014 2:00 PM

SEPA Synod - Walking Together in Solidarity & Going Public

St. Luke, Devon

Molly Beck Dean

www.sepayouth.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents

Jan 29, 2015 12:00 PM

Jan 30, 2015 3:00 PM

Extravaganza 2015 Intensive Care Courses

Marriott, Detroit, Michigan

E-Team

www.elcaymnet.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals

Jan 30, 2015 6:00 PM

Feb 2, 2015 11:00 AM

Extravaganza 2015

Marriott, Detroit, Michigan

E-Team

www.elcaymnet.org

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals

Jul 15, 2015 6:00 PM

Jul 19, 2015 11:00 AM

ELCA Youth Gathering

Detroit, Michigan

ELCA Gathering Office

www.elca.org

Sr High Youth, Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals

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Web Site

mittensynod.org

Targeted to:

Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals, Parents Adult Volunteers, Adult Professionals

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frame January 30 - February 3, 2014 Intensive Care Courses: January 30 - 31 Main Event: January 31 - February 3 Hyatt Regency at the Arch St. Louis, Missouri www.ELCAYMNet.org/Extravaganza

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN! 11

EXTRAVAGANZA 2014: FRAME

SPEAKERS This year’s Extravaganza main stage speakers are going to take a new and different format. Styled after TED Talks, each general session will have several dynamic, concise talks, that will last no longer than 10-15 minutes.

Speakers will come from the depth and breadth of the church, and will describe the frame in which God has called them to do ministry.

Four frames will shape the 2014 EXTRAVAGANZA. 1. The Biblical Frame. Scripture has many layers. We cannot spend enough time reading, studying, praying with, and contemplating the power of God’s word.

2. The Theological Frame. Our Lutheran understanding of how God works in the world provides a distinct worldview of how we interact with community and with creation.

3. The Discipleship Frame. One of the ‘frames’ we are living into is the framework provided by the Practice Discipleship initiative.

Discipleship is nothing unless it is practiced.

4. The Children and Youth Subculture Frame. This fluid and dynamic frame is always in transition. But viewed through the other frames, and tended by those who give attention faith formation, this frame has deep relevance to the stories of those we minister among.

Catherine Anderson (Preaching) Brenda Bos Jennifer Chrien (Preaching) Raul Garcia III (Segue) Jonathan Hemphill Rachel Hunstad Ian McConnell Rafael Malpica Padilla Tuhina Rasche (Presiding Pastor) Andy Root Dawn Rundman Erik Ullestad

Since The Extravaganza is framed within the Network, AND the Network if framed within the church, AND the church is framed within God’s mission...E 2014 will use the FRAME as a way to see ‘into’ a variety of ministries.

MUSICIANS

Jonathan Rundman Jonathan Hemphill

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A FEW OF OUR EXTRAVAGANZA WORKSHOP TITLES*:

INTENSIVE CARE COURSES The Network is committed to being a learning community. The Extravaganza provides a great opportunity through the workshops and the main stage to learn. But folks were asking for more...more time and more in-depth. So we created “Intensive Care.” It is 2 days of going deep into a single subject. It digs into topics that you just can’t cover in 60 or 90 minutes. It connects you with experts in the field and helps you to grow in your vocation.

• Compassion, Fatigue and Self Care • Confirmation via the Faith Practices • Grief and Loss: A Peer Ministry Approach • Equipping Congregations to Worship Well with Kids • Faith Webbing • Framing Youth-Led Congregational Hospitality • I am a Mom of Young Children and Still Called to be a Youth Minister with Teens

Course Dates: Day 1 - January 30, 1pm-6pm Reception, 9pm Day 2 - January 31, 8:30am-3pm

• Prayer: Practical Ideas for Group • Preventing and Responding to Abuse in Ministry

Plus, 30-40 more workshop titles!

Course Titles: Children’s and Youth Ministry and Theology: Oxymoron or Possibility Dr. Andrew Root $150 per participant

The complete list will be available at www.elcaymnet.org/workshops * Workshop list subject to change.

The Bible: Beginning to End Dr. Phil Ruge-Jones $150 per participant The First Two Years Kathy Hunstad and Heather Hansen $50 per participant

Note: “The First Two Years” is being underwritten by the ELCA Youth Ministry Network, because of its deep commitment to supporting those new to ministry.

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frame REGISTER NOW! www.ELCAYMNet.org/register Network Members: Early Bird: July 1 to Oct. 31, 2013 - $250 Standard: Nov. 1 to Dec. 31, 2013 - $275 Late: Jan. 1 to Jan. 31, 2014 - $305 Full-Time Students: $140 Retired Members: $140 Spouse Rate: $75 (participate in all materials and programs) Non-Members: $525 Day Rate: $100 (for Network members who can only be with us for a single day of the event.)

Book your housing NOW at www.elcaymnet.org/housing

ELCA YOUTH MINISTRY NETWORK www.ELCAYMNet.org 14

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3rd Tuesday Conversations are monthly gatherings of friends. They are great continuing education events. They are opportunities to hear from, and interact with experts in the field. 3TC conversations are free for Network members.

Our schedule: Stay tuned at www.elcaymnet.org/3tc for Fall schedule!

Our conversations: We use online webinars. You can log in to a special webinar site and listen to the conversation while watching images on your screen. Or, you can watch on the computer while calling in and listening on your phone.

You will have opportunities to ask questions as well.

Times: All 3TC conversations begin at:

2:00 p.m. Eastern, 1:00 p.m. Central

12:00 p.m. Mountain, 11:00 a.m. Pacific

Join the conversation! www.elcaymnet.org/3tc

Here’s our belief: There is an amazing amount of talent, expertise and skill within our community.

open source youth ministry

And we have all developed resources for use in our congregations.

Many of us are willing to share those resources that we have created. MartinsList is a place to do that. Here, we can share our work with each other...and can create a community of mutual support in our ministry.

It’s open source ministry.

www.MartinsList.org

It’s MartinsList.

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FAITH AND SCIENCE Faith and science live together in our house on a daily basis—actually they are married. Kjell is a Lutheran pastor while Heidi is a science teacher. For us, the relationship between faith and science makes sense and stems from the abundance of God’s love, stewardship for creation and wonderment of the unexplained.

Science and faith have a lot of common ground. One way to define science is “problem-finding” plus “problem-solving.” One of the pillars upon which Martin Luther reformed the church was the doctrine of vocation—the idea that we are called by God to use our strengths in making this world a better place.

What if this means learning about the world around us, finding what’s not working and discovering solutions? Yes, science can be a calling, a way to make the world a better place for all.

When our two preschool-aged daughters are asked what they want to be when they grow up their answers include pastor and science teacher along with mom, grandma, swimmer, artist and nurse. Modeling science and faith, often together, is something we are intentional about. Here are some around-the-house examples: • Starting seeds indoors then planting them in your home garden • Encouraging kids to try five times to solve a problem • Reducing waste by asking if items are “wants” or “needs” • Creating a family energy conservation plan for your home that reduces air pollution while saving money • Measuring then building things together • Figuring out why something is broken then fixing it rather than tossing it in the garbage • Encouraging questions about everything then researching answers together in scripture, books or online.

by Heidi Smith Ferris and Kjell Ferris

A common misconception is that you can’t be a faithful Christian and competent scientist at the same time. Often people believe they must choose between the two. The power of this misconception is highlighted in the book You Lost Me by David Kinnaman, in which he summarizes almost thirty thousand interviews with 18–29 year olds in the United States who were once active Christians and now, to varying degrees, have left the church.

This research shows the church is perceived as anti-science, but at the same time young adults “see the mostly helpful role science plays in the world—medicine, personal technology, travel, care of the natural world and others. Because science has come to play such a defining role in our culture, it is shaping perceptions of the church and it is these perceptions we must deal well with if we desire to make young disciples.1” We need to break down the false dichotomy between faith and science and emphasize the common ground in order to engage younger adults.

Faith and science are both full of curiosity, questions and wonderment. At church and in Heidi’s science classroom young thinkers have asked: “Where are dinosaurs in the Bible?”

“How can the Bible’s stories of creation and the scientific theory of evolution both be true?” “Are there billions of years between earth forming and fossil evidence of people?”

How might we respond in a fashion that empowers questions? Hopefully, teachers in school and church settings are willing to be vulnerable and respond, “Tell me more.” “Keep asking questions.” “Let’s find a reliable source or ask an expert.”

What if we used the scientific method to structure a Bible study or solve a problem around the church? Say we run the story of King David and Bathseba through the scientific method:

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1) Define the problem—King David had an affair with Bathsheba and killed her husband to cover it up.

2) Create a hypothesis—We also use our power to get things we want even if it costs someone else a great deal.

3) Test the hypothesis with an experiment— Think of ways we have hurt our neighbor by getting what we want.

4) Collect and analyze data—Some of the heavy metals in my cell phone are mined in Indonesia at a great cost to the people and environment.

5) Draw conclusions—I have some of the same faults King David did.

You could run the process again and ask questions like: “How do David’s faults affect his relationship with God?” “Does God still work through David?” In the end it isn’t about finding right or wrong, rather we want to know if our hypothesis holds true, does not hold true or is inconclusive. And no matter what naming your use of the scientific method in a church setting is a subtle yet powerful way to show church and science working together.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, and when I consider the atmosphere, water cycle, the rocks beneath our feet recycling for 4.6 billion years, that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? 2 This adaption of Psalm 8 gives a modern day spin to the spirit of amazement and wonder people of faith have had for creation.

Our church camps and summer trips have often provided wilderness or outdoor experiences that give kids the chance to see interconnected systems, where faith and science are present for play, amazement and community. Whether you call it ecology, outdoor play or building relationships in God’s creation, it

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turns out that research supports a number of benefits to experiencing the outdoors.

Researcher Louise Chawla studied urban communities around the globe and their engagement in the environments they lived.

She found that having basic needs met, time outdoors and opportunities to practice resourcefulness leads to positive mental, physical and emotional health benefits.3 In the bestseller, Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv writes “Children need nature for the healthy development of their senses, and therefore, for learning and creativity. This need is revealed in two ways: by an examination of what happens to the senses of youth when they lose connection with nature, and by witnessing the sensory magic that occurs when youth—even those beyond childhood— are exposed to even the smallest direct experience of natural setting.” 4 While a Boundary Waters trip or week at camp may not fit into everyone’s budget or schedule, connecting people with nature is profoundly important for their ability to thrive.

Even energy conservation and recycling activities are a natural and easy fit for youth groups interested in the science, economics and faith

connections with creation care. What may seem like small science connects to greater good. Examples include: using cloth napkins, composting, conducting energy audits, using mass transit, holding garage sales, reading library books, insulating attics, tending a garden, using carbon footprint calculators, hosting a Bible Study outside and going for hikes.

Science and church can coexist and, in fact, they can strengthen each other’s mission.

We want and need scientific-minded people in our churches. First, Jesus commissions us “go to all nations” including the “nation” of science. Second, science-minded people are great problem solvers and add breath and depth to our communities. Third, it is estimated that 52% of our youth will have careers in science fields and needlessly alienating them won’t be beneficial to the sustainability of our congregations. 5 Finally, the scientific community is better off having people of faith in its ranks since advancing technologies will continually be asking difficult ethical questions. There is a need to reflect upon not just “Can we do this?” but also “Should we do this?” Food supply, changing climate, cures for diseases,

Kinnaman, David, You Lost Me, Barker Books, 2011 pp 92, 136.

Psalm 8:3-4, NRSV 3 Chawla, Louise 4 Louv, Richard, Last Child in the Woods 5 Kinnaman, David, You Lost Me p 139 1 2

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energy demands, conservation efforts and other social justice problems are waiting for bright thinkers of today to discuss, address, research, serve and solve. Faith and science benefit each other; they can live together and maybe even be married.

Heidi Smith Ferris has over a decade of firsthand experience through teaching middle and high school level science courses and curriculum writing for classrooms, faithbased groups and secular nonprofits. Heidi started Growing Green Hearts to share up-to-date scientific knowledge, support teachers with educational techniques and engineer on-site solutions for today’s environmental issues: climate change, local nutrition sources, natural resource conservation, childhood health and creation care. www.GrowingGreenHearts.com

Kjell Ferris Is the Associate Pastor at Christ Lutheran Church in Blaine MN.

SCIENCE ON SUNDAYS A number of years ago, I replied to an ad looking for a curriculum writer for a new Sunday school program. After receiving the project overview, I developed my sample, sent it in, and waited. When the project leaders got in touch, they told me although they selected a different writer for that particular assignment, they would be happy to keep my name on file for future work. What were my areas of strength and interest? Science activities for kids, I wrote back.

“You like SCIENCE?!” they replied. You could almost hear the incredulity rippling through the computer cable. I was a bit surprised by the response. According to Elaine Howard Ecklund, author of Science vs. Religion: What Scientists Really Think (2010), about half of the scientists at top American universities identify with some established religious affiliation. And nearly 75% say “there are basic truths in many religions.”

I have to wonder: does the same percentage of religious education programs believe in teaching science? From my limited experience, and the reactions I get whenever I mention I write science activities for religious education programs, I doubt it. And I have to wonder— why not?

Actually, I didn’t wonder much about any of it until I was asked to write this article. You see, ever since that first contact, I have been kept quite busy putting science into Sundays. And Vacation Bible Schools, Wednesday classes, and where ever else they can find a way to work it in—because I don’t like science, I love it. You’d have to ask the program developers why they first decided to include science because I’ve never asked. For me, it’s a natural fit, a no-brainer.

Quite honestly, I see some parallels between the two areas. Both are based on questions, the search for “why.” Why are we here? Why

by Cindy Blobaum

do I have blue eyes? And I have always been a questioner. Both are universal. It doesn’t matter whether you believe in gravity or not, or whether or not you understand why there is gravity (we don’t). You are still affected by it. In my mind, this is like the commandments.

Killing is wrong, whether you believe in God or not. Both include very personal stories. God spoke to Abraham, Joseph, Jacob and many others through dreams. DNA model pioneer James Watson said he dreamed of the doublehelix model. Elias Howe credited a dream for his invention of a sewing machine. There are more similarities, but you get the idea.

Here are a few reasons I think some people shy away from science: 1. Scientific study isn’t in the Bible.

The Bible mentions history, arts, music, farming, fishing and a whole lot of other disciplines. A few references to a bit of basic science, like astronomy, can be found, but not many. Why not? Looking historically, science as rudimentary discipline didn’t start until around the time of Aristotle in 384 B.C. Not much scientific study happened after that until Copernicus came along and challenged the order of the universe in the 1500s AD. So when Jesus was living, he wasn’t going to use science to explain things to people. He was going to use what they were familiar with, and that was stories. Thus we have parables. If he were around today, I wouldn’t bet against him using some science to illustrate his points!

2. Some scientists try to find an alternative explanation for miracles.

I don’t read the Bible as a science text, and I don’t use science to prove or disprove biblical teachings. My goal is to help people make connections with the Bible, to make it real. So I cherry-pick what I present. Activities about sound resonance created a number of aha! moments when used in conjunction with the tumbling walls of Jericho. Talking about blood

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and scabs and making fake samples of these was a hands-on way to get kids involved in the story of the Good Samaritan. One hope in having kids create mock gene-based glyphs was to connect kids from blended families with Joseph’s family of one father and many mothers.

3. Group leaders are concerned they will need to know all the answers, to be able to explain everything.

Science in the one discipline I can think of where people feel they have to know it all in order to lead a lesson. Just as I can’t explain everything in the Bible, or how to solve every math problem, or explain the theme of books I haven’t read, I’m perfectly comfortable in saying, “I don’t know the answer.” to a sciencebased question. I have discovered that working to combine science and religion has made me delve deeper into my study of the Bible, looking for connections.

Hopefully, you are open to considering adding science to your lessons. Here are a few helpful hints to ease your entry: A. Keep the science simple. That means simple equipment, minimal set up and only one concept at a time. A study of surface tension to demonstrate how a water strider walks on water needs cups, water, paper clips and paper towels. That’s it. Kids learned about different kinds of vision using toilet paper tubes, pennies, yardsticks and index cards. Simple, engaging, fun and relevant—lessons that will get them talking and thinking and creating memorable moments.

B. Reassure your leaders that science exploration is not memorization or rigidly following the scientific method. Real science is making observations and trying new things. Let kids make choices. I consider Adam and Eve to be the first scientists. They were curious to find out “what if?” Of course, there

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were consequences— there always are! I think it’s important for kids to realize that the choices they make have a direct impact on the outcome. And it’s okay to give second chances, and sometimes third, fourth . . . Surely you can relate that to one or more biblical teaching!

C. Sometimes it’s easy to find a science connection (the ark and buoyancy anyone?); sometimes it’s more challenging.

Sometimes my inspiration comes from just one word. For example, for safety considerations, I didn’t develop an experiment using fire when talking about Moses and the burning bush. Instead, I focused on sandals (or shoes). Moses had to remove his when he was on holy ground. Believe me, kids related

well to this study. Everything was fair game here—insulation, tread, protection and durability were just the starters.

D. Enlist the help of great editors. I have been so fortunate to have editors who are supportive, thorough, wise and honest. They help clarify my thinking and connections, do a truly terrific job of making my loose ramblings into coherent thoughts and always have my back theologically.

preaching from the pulpit on Sundays to using songs, videos, text messages, tweets, blogs and more. Why not science?

Cindy Blobaum is the author of five hands-on science based activity books for kids and a contributor to multiple Augsburg Fortress education initiatives.

I see the overarching goal in developing science-based lessons as part of your religious curriculums as reaching out to more people, especially younger ones. Churches have already expanded their methods from simply

EIGHT WAYS TO INFUSE SCIENCE IN YOUR CHURCH

by Dawn Rundman As a curriculum developer for over a decade, I’ve worked on several resources that incorporate science into faith formation in amazing ways. But curriculum content doesn’t have to be the only source of science. Try one or more of these ways to bring science into congregational life.

Science by Vocation: Who are the science teachers, scientists, and others in science professions in you congregations? Invite them to share about their faith and vocations during a temple talk, Sunday school session, or other congregational gathering.

Science Questions: The kids and adults in your congregation may have questions about faith and science. Provide a forum for people to write their questions. Take it public on Facebook, or provide a place where people can post questions anonymously. Then find a way to address their questions! (See the next suggestion if you need help with the questions that stump you.)

Join the Alliance: Check out the ELCA’s Alliance for Faith, Science and Technology at elca.org. Download their free “Faith and Science” curriculum for high school students, check out “Faith and science news updates, or invite youth to submit a question to the “Ask a Scientist” feature.

Social Statements: Several of the ECLA’s social statements intersect with scientific topics, like the environment, health and healthcare, and genetics. Plan a session or two to explore the ELCA’s position on these complex and fascinating topics.

Science Class: Science concepts are typically introduced in preschool curriculum! Science is part of the daily academic life of kids and youth, so you can ask them what they are learning in their science classes.

Celebrate Science in Daily Life: Imagine asking people in your congregation “How has science saved your life?” What stories could they tell?

Whether it is an account of stents to treat artery blockages or daily medication World Health Emphasis: Has your youth group, Sunday school, or other congregational group adopted a fundraising goal for an initiative like malaria eradication or clean water? Include information about the science behind these programs. For example, learn how malaria affects red blood cells or why microorganisms in unclean water breed trouble.

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LUTHERAN OUT LOUD “Science and religion are two windows that people look through, trying to understand the big universe outside, trying to understand why we are here. The two windows give different views, but both look out at the same universe. Both views are one-sided, neither is complete. Both leave out essential features of the real world. And both are worthy of respect” —Freeman Dyson, Physicist.

My entire life, church has been my foundation.

I was baptized, received first communion, confirmed, and will be married later this year in my childhood congregation. My wedding party consists of my life-long youth group friends, the religion “window.” Also from a young age, the natural world has fascinated me. I asked how things worked and why they worked, the science “window.” I did not realize that many people feel these two “views” are exclusive of one another.

I received my bachelor’s degree from Agnes Scott College (ASC). While in college, I served as the president of the Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) in Atlanta, biological honor society and the American Chemical Society. Since ASC was founded as a women’s seminary, religion was accepted campus-wide, including in the sciences. My lab advisor, “Dr. P,” is Catholic and served as the faculty advisor for the Catholic campus ministry. Therefore, my first encounter with a Christian scientist showed no issues with accepting both points of view.

Dr. P and I had wonderful discussions about God, creation and evolution while performing experiments at the lab bench. As graduation approached, I was torn between proceeding to graduate school in science or entering the ministry. After long talks with my pastors and prayerful consideration, I decided to be a strong Christian scientist.

Upon my arrival at graduate school, I quickly learned that Christianity and science are not both accepted by most individuals in my field.

by Elizabeth Lucht

An Episcopal colleague of mine from Agnes Scott was already enrolled in the Ph.D. genetics program when I arrived. She advised me to keep my Christianity a secret because our professors would pre-judge my scientific abilities and academic potential negatively if they were aware of my strong faith. She told me that many academics feel that Christianity is a religion based on hearsay, rather than intellectual thought like scientific inquiry. I chose to follow her advice with my professors, but was my authentic self with my cohort.

I was honest and open with my fellow graduate students regarding my faith once friendships were established. This honesty provided me a unique opportunity to share my faith with my peers, many of whom were against or uninformed about Christianity. Specifically, I had the chance to witness to a friend, “Jessica,” who never was exposed to faith. Her parents wanted their children to feel comfortable to choose their beliefs without external pressures, therefore they never discussed religion at home. Instead of finding her own faith, Jessica now considers herself an atheist. If you’re raised in darkness, it is difficult to seek the light alone as an adult. I never hid my beliefs from Jessica, nor did I bombard her with scripture. Instead, whenever the opportunity presented itself, I gave my view as a Christian to situations in a nonthreatening manner.

Often, these views led to Jessica verbally attacking me.

While in grad school, I have stayed active in both my home congregation and LCM in Atlanta. I invited my grad school friends to attend the annual LCM Low Country Boil fundraiser in Atlanta. I was open with them that proceeds went to LCM, and they opted to attend anyway. I prepared the pastors present at the fundraiser for my anti-Christian friends’ attendance, hoping that interactions between my friends and pastors would be positive experiences. It was amazing to watch my friends,

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especially Jessica, interact with my female pastor and gay pastor; people she assumed the church shunned. Through their example and conversations, the pastors demonstrated the acceptance our church has for everyone.

Since this acceptance was not something my science friends associated with Christianity and church, it was an eye- and heart-opening experience for all of them.

Eventually Jessica’s verbal attacks on me became so frequent that I had to distance myself from her. During this time, Jessica’s sister took her own life. I used this opportunity to witness to Jessica again. I arranged to have grad students cook Jessica’s family meals and had flowers sent to her sister’s service. Without being invited, I drove several hours to the memorial service to deliver the homemade meals and provide my support to the family. I was brought to tears during the service; Jessica’s family elected to use an ELCA pastor! After the service Jessica and I spoke briefly. I told her how lovely the service was to her sister’s memory. Jessica told me that the only church she felt comfortable with was the ELCA. Jessica found acceptance when discovering God through our interactions, even if she was and still continues to be argumentative towards me. Jessica would not proclaim herself a Christian, but at least she has been introduced to an accepting, loving God. Even though being an “out loud” Christian is frowned upon in science, I never pretend to be something I am not. I am a Christian who relies on grace through Jesus Christ my savior to survive life and specifically the hard times of grad school. Other friends in my program unfamiliar with Christianity have also been impacted by my faith through our interactions.

“Erin” was raised without religion, although her mother is Muslim. When Erin and her live-in fiancé needed a minister to marry them, they did not know where to look. After asking several members of the clergy and

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being rejected because they were cohabitating, she asked me for guidance, knowing our church is accepting of all. I helped them find a wonderful pastor who did not judge them for their choices. It was humbling to be asked for assistance with this honor.

Not all my interactions with graduate student colleagues have been positive. I have been prejudged negatively because of my faith.

I completed my teaching certificate while working on my Ph.D. in genetics. My education classes were interdisciplinary (sociology to English to math majors). In these classes, I did not hide my faith when it came up during our classroom discussions. I discovered a year later during a “reunion” of our course that some of my colleagues labeled me as a “religious-type” aka someone they didn’t want to get to know. While enjoying our dinner, the discussion drifted to gay rights. After I expressed my belief in equality, one of my colleagues, “Marcus” said, “Now I can like you.”

When I asked him what that meant, Marcus told me that he assumed because I was verbal about being a Christian that I must be narrow minded and un-accepting of others, as the church itself is judgmental and un-accepting.

Through our discussion that followed, I helped Marcus and others at the table redefine what being a Christian meant to them.

Graduate school has not been easy as a Christian or as a scientist. It has been a challenging, dark place at times; however, I am blessed with a wonderful support system in my church family. When my dissertation advisor and committee have been unsupportive and even prohibitive of my progression in the program, I wanted to leave and follow a different path.

Fortunately, my church family rallied around me through prayers and support. As I am finishing my dissertation and prepare for my biology professor position in the spring, I will continue to live my Lutheran faith out loud.

I strive to be a science professor like Dr. P at Agnes Scott and share how faith and science do not conflict. As the ELCA genetics social statement says, “There is no inherent conflict between scientific findings and the understanding of God as creator, redeemer and sanctifier.” I personally have reconciled Christianity and science in this way: Science looks at the “how” and religion the “why” behind the natural world.

“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.”

—Albert Einstein Names have been changed for privacy.

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Elizabeth Lucht is a Ph.D. candidate of genetics at the University of Georgia, Athens. Her main research centers on telomeres (aging) using the study system K. lactis (a budding yeast). After graduation, Elizabeth will teach college biology and genetics as a professor of biology.

Elizabeth loves her service as an adult volunteer for her home congregation youth group, Southeastern Synod Summer Leadership and Discipleship Camp called Affirm, and the ELCA Youth Gathering

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FALL 2013

A VIEW FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE SCIENCE AND...STUFF “You don’t see something until you have the metaphor to perceive it.”

—Robert Shaw from Chaos: Making a New Science (1987) There was a time, a long time in fact, when people honored the God of the Gaps. In simple terms, when something could not be explained, it was Because God. Anything one could think of that could not be explained was Because God. Obviously, as people started to figure out that natural forces created things like rain clouds, the need for praying to a God to bring rain seemed unnecessary on some level and—to some people—downright silly.

And thus, the more we learned about our environment, the less we needed God as an explanation for the gaps. Hence, the God of the Gaps began to die a slow and quiet death with the advent of the Filler of Gaps: Science.

There was also a time when religious folks (i.e., nearly everybody) accepted that God was in everything. (You know, the One in whom we live and move and have our being?) But over time we kind of confused being in everything with being in charge of everything. We lost the notion that God was everywhere to the steady advance of knowledge. The more we learned, the less we needed God to fill in the gaps. And if God wasn’t everywhere, and was only where we needed an explanation, well, explanations crowded God out of the picture.

Sadly, to many people, this means God must be defended from the encroachments of science, lest God be banished entirely. If God isn’t everywhere, then the God of the Gaps gets smaller every year. Sure, people still have their personal gaps they can fill in with a #2 pencil in a pinch. God saved me this parking spot. God beat back the incurable cancer. God let the Cubs win the World Series. (Okay, that one really would have to be God.) But on the whole, a God of the Gaps is headed for retirement, plain and simple. We only need that god until we can explain things. And science is racking up points in the game of explanation, that’s for sure.

Enter the relief pitcher named Quantum Physics. On the smallest most intimate level, the rules are completely different, right? An object can be two places at once. A cat can be both dead and alive. An object can move from one place to another without actually traveling the distance in-between the two points. And suddenly, all that explaining “stuff” doesn’t explain things at their most basic level. On the subatomic level, things are not made up of matter; they’re made up of forces holding matter together. And with all that craziness, maybe we can get back to thinking about God being in everything rather than being in charge of everything. And the reason I can say that is because of this: It’s all about relationships.

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by George Baum

Quarks are the things that make up protons and neutrons; they live inside bubbles called hadrons. And the really interesting thing about quarks—or, I should say, the most significant thing to me about quarks—is that there is no such thing as one quark. They always come in groups of two or three. Protons and neutrons consist of a little trinity of three quarks. They live in that little bubble of life and make up everything you see. On the absolute most intimate level, everything is made up of relationships. There is no individual. There is no lone gun, loose cannon or self-made atom.

It’s all about community. It’s all about interaction. It’s all about what God has been telling us all along . . . a dance of life where two or three are gathered.

Turns out, it seems you don’t have a metaphor until you can’t see something to perceive it.

George Baum is one half of the band Lost And Found (speedwood.com), and is also a supply priest in the Episcopal Church, the father of two, and the husband of one.

ELCA Youth Ministry Network 11821 98th Pl. N., Maple Grove, Mn 55369

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