First Lutheran Church

PASTOR ULF LUNOW

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I came to the First Lutheran Church of Throggs Neck in November 2001 from the Land of the Reformation.

Born in 1957 in Essen, Germany, where my parents still live, I received my academic, theological and philosophical education at the University of Bonn, followed by two years of specific training for ministers at a Lutheran Seminary in Essen and Bad Godesberg.  Later I earned a degree in counseling while I was a chaplain in a big rehabilitation clinic near Aachen (Rhineland).  After the reunification of Germany, I moved to Berlin when I was elected as a pastor at St. Mary's Church (A famous landmark in the historic center of the city).

When I entered the beautiful sanctuary next to the I-95 the first time, I fell in love with First Lutheran. It is a jewel in a city where you can sometimes get lost. I felt welcomed and at home in a congegation where people care about each other.  I believe that I am here at the right time and place.  God needed me to serve this particular congregation, and in return he gave me a congregation that is alive, inclusive and caring so that I may grow spiritually and as a human being. 

I was ordained in May of 1987.  Many things have happened since then.  Yet it is still the reason why I am a pastor.  It is the Word of God, the Word of forgiveness and promise.  It is alive in people who live with the Bible and experience the fire and passion of the Spirit that makes us part of God’s history with the whole world and us. The Bible gives us the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, stories of loyalty under pressure (Ruth and Naomi), of moral heroes (Joseph and Potiphar), parables that judge self-righteousness (Pharisees and collectors) and the wonderful parable of the Good Samaritan and Prodigal Son.  You read between the lines and discover that you are already part of the story.  You become what you already are.  You will be blessed with every breath you take because joy and happiness and feeling that you are loved is what happens when you are who you were created to be and live the life you were created to have.  It is the freedom of a Christian.  It is the courage to be.  It is the greatness to stand for what we believe. 

We live in a time in which freedom is confused by consumerism, pursuit of happiness and the denial of accountability, where the craze of political correctness and godlessness has reached its peak.  This is a time when the words from the Mighty Fortress’ third stanza ring remarkably topical: “Though hordes of devils fill the land, all threatening to devour us.”  In this environment some of us are aching to hear someone, like Luther at the Imperial Diet of Worms, say: “Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason...my conscience is captive to the Word of God.  I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against the conscience in neither right no safe.  Here I stand, God help me.  Amen.”  I love to preach this kind of freedom.  It is Christian freedom.

I am a pastor for the people in my congregation and for everyone who approaches me.  I am a pastor not only for Lutherans.  I will listen.  I will not offer simple answers to questions like "Why a friendship died, a relationship died, or why God allows evil things to happen."  Yet I will let you know that I struggle with similar questions and that together we can learn to live without answers and that someday we will find answers. 

I am an outdoor person.  If I am not at my desk, you will not find me sitting on my porch.  I bicycle through the Bronx.  I love the mountain peaks and the edges of volcanoes.  I love to walk through dark forests and watching magnificent sunsets.  You can also find me in the Film Forum, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art or in a concert hall.

Home is where you find joy and a purpose for your life.  Here at First Lutheran you will find me and many other people who share your worries and hopes and give you a sense of belonging.  Come and join us.

 Pastor Ulf Lunow

 

Sermon from 2004 September 11 Commemoration Service

First Lutheran Church and Throggs Neck Community

 

People asked me, “Do we have to hold September 11 commemoration services every year? Isn’t it time to move on?”

 

On September 11, 2001 I was still a pastor in Berlin. The day started as a day of joy. I received the letter of call from the bishop of New York. In the afternoon I learned what happened in New York. “Turn on your TV”, one of our employees called me, “there is war in Manhattan.”  I took one of the first planes to get into the war zone. I came to stay and to pray with my new parish.

 

I was warned. Visiting “Ground Zero” would be a heartbreaking experience. When I came close to the site the air was still filled with dust and death. The most frightening though was what I couldn’t se, what I was left to imagine. That is the terror of those taken hostage and trapped in the doomed tower. And to see thousands of people, wanderers in the night of the towers, see the faces, see the gestures, see the suffering see the resistance to evil and see evil itself.

 

And then we have the words of victims on their cell phones, “ I love you. We had a wonderful life. Forgive me…” These words are so powerful because they are so human. In their anguish they made room for someone else, for the grief of someone they loved.  Saying something for the sake of another person in the presence of death, isn’t that the place where we find God?

 

On the same weekend when I came there was another place to discover God. A couple of our parish celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary and renewed their vows to live together in good times and in bad times.  That is what all of us will be remembered for, not for our accomplishment, but for the love we share.

 

And there was also something astonishing in Manhattan, as well as across the country in the weeks following the attack. It was the swirling desire to do something. “What can I do, Pastor?”

I told them that they could go downtown and see how they can support the rescue workers. Yet there is something very important to do. We have the opportunity, here and now to live and to give a part of our life as a sacrifice, and develop the habit of fighting fir right, for justice, for goodness. In some small way each of us can be brave as a firefighter, a policeman, or a soldier overseas.

 

I have seen many places of terror and destruction, also in my own heart. We all might have seen them.

Still remember that a human being is everything. I have in me what everyone has. I am the totality of the human species. So are you. So is everyone else. That is the beauty about. That means I have something of you. That also means you have something of me. A human being is never replaceable. They are unique, irrespective of their color, creed, national origin and religion. That means I owe you something because you are God’s beloved daughter and son. Terrorists do not believe in the dignity of human beings. Man is only a tool in their fanatic worldview.

 

Let us celebrate the dignity of a human being. Let us take each other hands, hug and hold each other now and urge and help each other to move forward. We carry the names and faces and stories of those who died with us and take them into our heart. Their stories are now our stories.

 

We hold our hands because we believe God can bring good even out of the worst. What is meant to terrorize us makes us brave. What is meant to divide us will unite us. What is meant to humiliate us brings us close to God.

 

“We want to move forward”, people tell me. Yes we, too. Yet memory is the secret of redemption, only memory will set us free. Only memory will give us the courage to move on. Listen to one another with deep emotion. Do not shield yourself from what has happened. It will keep the embers of life burning. Through our memory we hold forever high the banners of human dignity, conscience and life.

 

Amen.

 

 

 

Dear Friends,

 

Frankly I have never been much interested in or concerned about a politician’s religious faith or lack of it as a political issue. As Lutherans we should be very careful about mixing religion and politics because it is often done in objectionable ways. There is something, however, to be said for Civil Religion if it strengthens our democratic institutions. There is a common religious language to be shared and it is not limited to Christian and Jews since Buddhists and Muslims may also soon be able to join in this interfaith discourse about faith and values as well. I do believe that there is an issue of concern that should be at the center of American Civil Religion. That is the question of justice, especially the Biblical question of justice for the poor and the marginal in our society!

Rooted in the scriptural traditions of Jew, Christian and Muslim, consistent with Buddhist’s regard for compassion, and vital to the welfare of any nation, the question of how politicians seek justice for those most likely to miss out in our commonwealth is an enduring issue. What is the fair share of resources to be allotted to the single women with small children in our culture? How do issues of education and health care impinge of the life of the poor for better or worse? What will improvements in Medicare and changes in social security do for the well - being of the elderly poor? Do the poor caught up in the system of political justice receive the same impartial treatment and vigorous defense in capital cases as the better off who can afford lawyers? Does an immigration policy need to be revised that is more concerned about an amnesty for illegal workers than showing sympathy and justice to those who do not seek a better living but the acceptance as political refugees.

I believe that in the U.S. are enough citizens who are willing to participate in a just society by supporting candidates with the courage to tell voters not how much they can expect to benefit by voting for the candidate in question, but how fairly they can expect others in the community by voting for a candidate with a developed sense of justice. That really tells me something about faith in politics, the faith of the voter as well as the faith of the politician.

When Lutheran theologians wrote the Augsburg Confession in 1530 they professed a belief in “civil righteousness” – the ability of public officials and citizens alike to practice the good works prescribed for us by God in Scripture. It is here that the political responsibilities lie, both for the voter and the votee, when the language of faith enters politics.

If  this is intention of the formula” One Nation Under God” I can only plead for more religion in public life.

I am shocked when I recognize that we live in an extremely polarized society where hatred is sown and where people do not listen carefully.

 If you need to talk about 9/11 do it very, very carefully because you risk offending all of those who lived through it. It is a holy topic.

 Be happy when people dare to commit themselves to each other for better and worse no matter which sexual orientation they have. There is no culture war. There is only a distraction from what really matters.

Let your light shine before the people that they see your good deeds (and all become Democrats or Republicans or Christians or like you). We know how Jesus’ word goes on that they praise your Father who is in heaven.

If there is a God above us we do not need to blow ourselves up to be bigger and bigger. There is grace in shrinking enough to recognize the other who makes us human and loveable and full.  The God who watches over America is not the God of crusades. It is the God of justice and peace and freedom that recognizes its own limits.

 

Your Pastor in Christ,

 

The Reverend Ulf Lunow, Pastor