My obsession started during the 1981-1982 academic year when our young family lived in Damascus, Syria, where I had received a Fulbright fellowship to teach American Literature at the university. My spouse Carol taught at the British Language School there and began studying Islam in preparation for graduate work in religious studies. We made close friends with a number of Syrian Muslims.

As I learned about Islam through both personal connection and cultural immersion, I compared it and Judaism to Christianity to understand how our faiths were alike and different. I learned that both Islam and Judaism are considered orthoprax faiths, while Christianity is considered an orthodox faith. That is, you are a faithful Jew or Muslim if you behave in certain ways, but to be a Christian you are expected to believe certain things.

That distinction has troubled and obsessed me ever since. How did it happen that we’re the oddballs among the Abrahamic religions? As I contemplate what faith means to me, my thoughts pretty much always come down to how I should behave in imitation of Jesus and how I often fall short. When I consider the tenets of belief things get more complicated and problematic. Do I believe this line of the creed? Is that part really true? Should I be reciting it during the service if I’m not sure?

It is true that Christianity is creed-heavy. We have the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed, the Athanasian Creed and many more we don’t hear much about. The other two faiths get away easy. Judaism has the “shema”: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.” Islam has the “shahada”: “There is no God but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God.”

Recently I got around to reading a book that I had bought on sale because the title sounded interesting: How Jesus Became God by Bart Ehrman, professor of Religious Studies at UNC Chapel Hill. Ehrman recounts the centuries-long battle among the various groups of early Christians to determine how they could be monotheists but still believe that Jesus was more than human. Western Christians wanted Jesus to be equal to God. Eastern Christians wanted to emphasize his humanity and focused on Jesus’ claim that “the Father is greater than I.” The groups convened councils and wrote and rewrote creeds; the emperors got involved to support their side; the groups fought and even killed each other over their differences; the more powerful groups excommunicated and exiled those who disagreed with them. It’s a pretty sordid tale actually.

This history helped me understand how Christianity got so focused on its beliefs and why we define who is in and out by adherence to beliefs rather than to how much we act like Jesus. Even the 11^th Century split between the Orthodox and Western churches came down to filioque, a single word in the Nicaean creed.

I continue to see this distinction between belief and behavior as a critical part of my faith. So I am looking forward to the upcoming Lenten discussions at HTLC of Richard Rohr’s, The Universal Christ. In the book, Rohr states, “We would have helped history and individuals so much more if we had spent our time revealing how Christ is everywhere instead of proving that Jesus was God.” I expect that reading Rohr and discussing the book with my friends at Holy Trinity will help this individual in his struggle.

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Click here to read more and register for the Rohr Lenten Study.

Saturday, February 15, 5:00 p.m.

HTLoop (637 S. Dearborn)

Join the Liturgy Online:

Sunday, February 16, 9:30 a.m.

HTLakeview (1218 W. Addison)

Join the Liturgy Online:

Guest ministers this weekend!

On Saturday, 2/15 at HTLoop, the Rev. Dr. Christian Scharen will be preaching and presiding while Pr. Sharai is out of town. Dr. Scharen is Professor of Worship at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, and a member of Holy Trinity.

On Sunday, 2/16, at HTLakeview, Mother Daphne Cody will be preaching and presiding as part of a Lutheran Episcopal pulpit swap. Pr. Mueller will swap places with her and preside at her church, St. Peters (617 W Belmont). This pulpit swap is in celebration of the 25th anniversary of "Called to Common Mission." Through Called to Common Mission, Lutherans and Episcopalians recognize each other's ordained ministries and the office of bishop, and clergy can serve interchangeably in both denominations. In addition to joint sharing of sacraments, bishops participate in each other's installations/consecrations, and there are over 70 shared Lutheran-Episcopal parishes.

Reparations, Music, & James Baldwin - NEXT WEEKEND

Saturday, 2/22 + 4:00 - 4:45pm at HTLoop

Sunday, 2/23 + 10:45 - 11:30am at HTLakeview

Or on Zoom

The HT Reparations Team invites you to a discussion connecting African-American Spirituals and Reparations, with a focus on the James Baldwin essay, "Many Thousands Gone"

TWO LENTEN STUDIES - Beginning March 12

Two Lenten studies begin on March 12, with options for in-person attendance at HTLoop and Lakeview and on Zoom. Read more and register at htchicago.org/lent.

Daytimers Recital - Wednesday, February 19 + 10:30 a.m.

A Daytimers Recital, featuring our own Andrew Fredel on Organ, and Anita Arch on Violin, will be hosted at Saint Luke (1500 W Belmont) on Wednesday, February 19 at 10:30 a.m. Followed by a potluck.

Saturday Book Group - Saturday, February 22 + 6:30 p.m.

The Saturday Book Group meets in the Loop monthly on the last Saturday - in February we’ll be meeting at Half Sour (755 S Clark), we'll be discussing The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylväinen.

Click here for more information.

Newcomer Orientation - Sunday, February 23

New to Holy Trinity? Following worship on Sunday, February 23 we will host a Newcomer Orientation. Receive a tour of the building, meet pastors and staff, and learn more about this congregation. Please email Pr. Mueller if you can attend.

Young(ish) Adult Game Night - Thursday, February 27 + 6:30 pm

Young(ish) Adults (20s-30s) meets monthly for fun activities and fellowship. This month they will gather at a member's home on the northside for board games and build-your-own bowls! Email Krista Stanley for more information and where to meet.

More information about upcoming events can be found on our website calendar.

Hot Soup Group: Wednesday, February 19 + 5:30 p.m. at Saint Luke

The Hot Soup Group is a mission of the Lakeview Lutheran Parish which prepares and delivers food monthly to our unhoused neighbors in Lakeview living under the viaducts at LSD and Lawrence & Wilson. The group will meet at Saint Luke (1500 W Belmont).

Contact Kerry Flemming for more information or to get connected.

Holy Trinity’s Social Ministry Team facilitates Service, Education and Advocacy. God uses our hands, through our direct service work and our voices, through advocacy efforts, to restore and reconcile our world. Your Social Ministry Team will publicize ELCA Advocacy opportunities so you can consider reaching out to officials on relevant, timely issues–joining others to effectively impact public policies. 

Click here to visit the ELCA Action Center. This site sends out new Action Alerts with easy-to-use forms to send letters directly to your congressperson and senators. You can personalize the letter, or simply use the template provided.

February ELCA Action Alert: Help Combat HIV/AIDS Globally

The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Releif (PEPFAR) has been a life-saving global health program devoted to fighting HIV/AIDS for over 20 years. The current congressional authorization for PEPFAR expires in March 2025. Congress needs to pass new legislation to reauthorize the continuation of the program, which is under threat under the current administration.

Here at home, nearly 1.2 million people live with HIV, and issues such as access to healthcare, stigma, inequality, and other factors have led to increased disparities in new HIV and AIDS cases - rapidly becoming a core threat to addressing racial and gender justice inequities in our communities.

Click here to write to your Representatives asking them to support PEPFAR reauthorization and allocate robust funding for PEPFAR and domestic HIV/AIDS programs like the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) and Ryan White HIV/AIDS Programs.

PRAYERS for those ill, or with special needs or circumstances:

• For an end to gun violence.
• For the people of Palestine, Congo, Sudan, and for all indigenous peoples worldwide experiencing violence and oppression.
• For Molly Beran and her family, who are grieving the death of her father, George Beran.
• For Michael Schnell, who has entered hospice care.
• For Marianne, friend of Sarah Hanson, who is recovering from surgery for stage 4 colorectal cancer.
• For John Nordwall's father, John, who has been diagnosed with lung cancer.
• For Sara Church, daughter of Kristi Bangert, who is recovering from surgery.
• For Kris Hiepler-Hartwig who is recovering from surgery.

If you would like to be included on the prayer list please contact Pastor Sevig. Prayer requests remain on the list for four weeks before being removed, and requests can be renewed as often as needed.