Feeding tubes, hydration, living wills, Terri Schiavo, Pope John Paul II – What do the Lutherans have to say?

Our ELCA has a “Message” called, “End of Life Decisions,” adopted in 1992.

From God’s Word, Romans 14 is important. “Whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. (Christ) is Lord of both the dead and the living.”  This means that neither death nor life is an absolute. Life must be preserved and defended, but not in every situation. We also recognize the moral right of individual Christians to give directions based on their faith and values.

1) In the case of Pope John Paul II, we saw him make his own decisions. He first sought/allowed a tracheotomy and a respirator in the hospital. Later, he chose to remain in his apartment under the compassionate care of his physician and his friends. He accepted his own death and embraced the next life. Jesus is Lord of both realms. We concur with the decisions of the Pope. He was blessed to be an active participant in his end of life decisions, and I appreciate his witness to us all in embracing life and death as God’s realms.

2) In the case of Terri Schiavo, the choices were not as clear. They might have been had she expressed her personal values regarding a time when she could not choose for herself. She could have done this by a living will, writing her wishes down on paper, or telling family members. Because she did not, her husband and parents were left to fight on her behalf.

Lutheran moral teaching leans toward the position of her parents. Mrs. Schiavo was living without machines. The food and water she received were not prolonging the process of her death; they were sustaining her life. The quality of her life is debatable. But since she had not made known her faith or values, we believe the Bible teaches us to defend and preserve the inherent value of each human life in the image of God.

The courts made a legal decision acknowledging her husband to be her guardian, not a moral decision concerning the value of her life. This is the proper role of the courts. Morally, Mrs. Schiavo should still be alive.

3) Related to this, we Lutherans oppose physician-assisted death even when the patient seeks such action.

Finally, you and I should be letting our loved ones know what we believe and want during those times when we cannot speak on our own behalf.

You and I should not put our loved ones through what the family of Terri Schiavo had to endure. We can make clear decisions. This is a timely issue.

I will be holding a 4-5 week class on the topic. I will be using a study guide obtained through the ELCA Division for Church in Society. It includes the Church’s “Message on End of Life Decisions” and has other written material and lists of resources.

The class will meet during Sunday School starting on April 24^th, and continue until the end of the Christian Ed. year, May 22^nd. You may attend. Meet in my classroom.

AMONG OUR MEMBERS:

GRADUATIONS

Becky Frysinger: Associate's degree from LCC. MSU is next.

Loren Houseman: BA from MSU.

OTHER

John Martinich is at Navy Boot Camp and would love to have snail mail…no packages.   Address mail to:

POTLUCK

A Potluck Dinner to honor Bob & Karen Eichelberger will be held on Sunday, May 1, 2005 following the 10:30 service.  Please bring a dish to share and your best wishes for Bob & Karen as they get ready to move to Muskegon.  Drinks and tableware will be provided.

WOMEN'S RETREAT

“Being Healthy Women"

	©  Physically	©  Spiritually
	©  Mentally	©  Relationally

Saturday, May 7, 2005  9:00 a.m. ~ 3:00 p.m.
St Francis Retreat Center, 703 E. Main Street, DeWitt, MI

Cost: $15.00 includes lunch

RSVP: Sign-up sheet in the Narthex or call the church office (627.6310) by May 1.

IMMANUEL GOLF GROUP

Greetings to all,

I think we’re all more than ready to put winter behind us and head for the first tee.  I thought I’d bring you up to date with where we’re at.  The Immanuel Golf Group (IGG) will again meet on Tuesdays at Willow Wood.  The rate structure will be the same as last year.  I always took a cart, so it was $16 for the nine.  Those of you who walked will need to remind me what that rate was.  I haven’t purchased the Willow Wood discount card previously, but I know Ken V. has, so you might want to ask him about the ins and outs of it if interested.  Our first tee time will be at 5:50 p.m. for those who are retired or can get out of work early enough to get there.  If we have three or four foursomes, as was typical last year, our last group would likely tee off somewhere between 6:10 and 6:20, so if you work until 5:00 or 5:30 you should still have time to make it out.  The starting date will be either April 26^th or May 3^rd (we still have a couple of votes from the leadership team to receive).  I’ll let you know as soon as it has been determined.  Speaking of the leadership team, here is a list of those serving and their particular areas if you need to address something:

Matt Cermak (anything relating to the church – IGG is a part of Small Group Ministries at Immanuel Lutheran)

Ken Vasilnek and Gregg Vicary (all arrangements and any issues with Willow Wood golf course)

Richard Wellman (golf rules & etiquette – if questions arise, or you’re just curious about something)

John Weigel (advisory capacity)

William Gibbons Jr. (communications & statistics)

A member or a combination of members of the leadership team will function as the starter each Tuesday.  We will have a 20-week season, which is the same as we did last year.

As always, anyone willing to serve as a starter and help in the decision making and/or has a particular idea or area they would like to see become a part of the IGG is welcome to join the IGG leadership team.  Just let me know and I’ll pass your name along to the others.   OK, if you haven’t already done so, it’s time to get those clubs out of the basement or closet and clean them up.  See you soon.

God's peace,
William

LUTHER LEAGUE II

Luther League II (for seniors)  will be meeting on Monday, May 16 at 11:45 a.m. at Old Country Buffet (next to MC Sports on West Saginaw).

Topic:  “Making certain my last wishes are followed”

Lunch will be at 12:00 Noon in the banquet room at the Old Country Buffet.  Following lunch, Marlaine Teahan will discuss the legal issues involved in making certain last wishes are followed.   Emphasis will be durable powers of attorney for health care and financial affairs.  Following the presentation, there will be question and answer time.  Marlaine is a Grand Ledge attorney who focuses on estate planning issues.  Call Sandra And Lee Bair with any questions – 627-4272.       

FUN NIGHT

Are you a trivia buff?  Do you enjoy potluck dinners?  On Saturday, May 21, 2005 from 6-9 p.m. there will be a Potluck Dinner/Team Trivia Night for folks ages 13-103.  Sign up for this fun night in the church lobby indicating number of people attending and the type of dish you would like to bring.  For more information, call Outreach member Marlaine Teahan at 627-5637. 

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY

Many of you may have heard or read that the Jimmy Carter Work Project is coming to Michigan in 2005.  Jimmy Carter and his wife Roslyn will be working in Benton Harbor and Detroit during the week of June 18-24.

Habitat for Humanity Lansing is currently planning on building 4 houses for the Jimmy Carter project.  One of those houses is going to be a local churches’ covenant sponsored house. Habitat's goal is to have 100 participating churches.  The covenant build will begin May 5^th.

Immanuel’s commitment  will be for prayers for the ministry of Habitat for Humanity, people to work on the build and a dedicated collection and/or fundraiser prior to the start of construction.  If you were trained to work on a Habitat build last year, you do not have be trained again.  If you missed the training last year, there will be opportunities again this year.  More information will be available soon.  If you are interested in working on the build or have a question, please contact Orv Erickson at 517-645-2965.

Rally for Relay

Anyone who watched the NCAA Tournament witnessed young men and women who fought together as a team to reach a goal.  I was truly inspired by the perseverance and commitment to the game of basketball.  Participating in that tournament is the dream of every player that makes a college team.

Now it is time for us to huddle up and commit to the belief that cures can be found for cancer.  We know this dreaded disease does not discriminate.  It kills young, old, men, women, of any race on this planet.  We are playing for much bigger stakes than winning a basketball game.

We have a game plan, but we need players that can show the same intensity as the college players.  Join the team at Relay for Life on May 13 and 14 at Beagle Middle School.  Together we can win this fight for life.

Jean Folk, Health Ministries

This year's Island Art Fair will be held Saturday, August 6.  This is a great opportunity for an exhibit showcasing the artistic gifts and talents of the Immanuel community.

Our church parking lot has been used for several years as a shuttle lot to the art fair.  Why not open up our church and display some of the many artistic gifts and talents of the Immanuel Community and greet our visitors with some Immanuel hospitality?

We need people with the gift of organization to help with planning and bringing the actual event together including set up on Friday afternoon or evening.  We are also going to need help directing traffic in our parking lot and organizing people for the shuttle buses.

We need people with the gift of hospitality to help for a couple of hours on Art Fair day greeting and assisting our visitors.

We are going to need:

If you are interested in displaying any of your artistic gifts and talents and using some of your spiritual gifts to assist and greet others or direct traffic in the parking lot, contact Bob or Ruth Buckley (649-2314) or Den Graeber (627-3116).  Thanks and do come join us!