Popular Articles of 2022 from The Canadian Lutheran

ONLINE – As we transition into 2023, The Canadian Lutheran is looking back at some of the popular feature articles frequented on our website over the past year. Interestingly, some articles that were popular in 2022 were actually pulled from our archives.

One of the most popular reads of 2022 was Mathew Block’s Decline and Growth: A Look at the Lutheran World Today (January/February 2022) which provides us with a glimpse at the changing Lutheran world in our time, as churches decline in the West but expand dramatically in places like Africa.

Another popular read in 2022 was Lutherans and the Sacraments (September/October 2018) by Rev. Dr. Edward G. Kettner. Kettner is Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology at Concordia Lutheran Seminary (Edmonton). In his article, Kettner carefully considers the Lutheran view of the sacraments as “one of the distinguishing marks between Lutherans and other church bodies who deem themselves ‘Protestant’”.

Unsurprisingly, many of the articles shared with us from our partner church, the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Ukraine (SECLU) were among the most-read online publications. The most in-depth, recent update includes a letter from LCC’s Missionary-at-Large in Ukraine and shares some current processes and the results of LCC and SELCU’s collaborative efforts in Ukraine (You can read this article Here). A popular feature article on the topic The most powerful weapon is not nuclear: Jesus and the War in Ukraine (March/April 2022) reflects on the question: “Where is God in all of this?” The article is written by Rev. Roland Syens, who served as a missionary pastor in Ukraine for Lutheran Church–Canada from 1993-2005.

Another popular article came from the Regional Pastor Columns. LCC’s Central Regional Pastor, Rev. David Haberstock, wrote The Paschal Pillar of Fire(March/April 2022) which answers questions about the Paschal candle, what you do with it, and what it teaches us. The article is a helpful reminder that “traditions such as this are neither commanded nor forbidden by God, but are valuable as a means to confess and teach something about Jesus.”

Finally, another archive feature from January 2019 was a popular read this year, entitled Honourable Wound: What’s the difference between a hero and a warrior? (January/February 2019). The article features a profile of Rev. Dongjoo (DJ) Kim, an LCC Missionary-at-Large who serves as a chaplain to police in Regina and Moose Jaw and provides street ministry. The article itself is written by Jennifer Ackerman, a journalist with the Regina Leader-Post. This article first appeared in the Fall 2018 of The Crow, and was reprinted in The Canadian Lutheran with permission in the January/February issue of 2019 on the theme of “Struggling Shepherds: Church Workers and Mental Illness”. The Editor’s note begs the important question: Pastors are called to administer spiritual care to their flock. But what happens when the pastor is the one in need of spiritual care?

Those wishing to leaf through past issues of The Canadian Lutheran to find these and other hidden gems can do so on Issuu.com.

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