Lutheranism vs. Tiller's assassin.

[Greg M. Johnson]

I'm sure you've heard about how a member of a Lutheran congregation in Kansas, Dr. George Tiller, was killed in his church.  Our prayers go out to all touched by this tragedy.  He had drawn attention from some of the more strident pro-life activists because of his performing abortions later in term than others in his region.  Amid the tragedy, folks are scrambling to unpack how this could happen. There is some partisan finger-pointing: I saw some liberals use the word "teabagger" to describe the assassin's views.

Here are two perspectives, one from a Christian animal rights activist and one from the head of LC-MS Human Care:

http://thinkingreed.wordpress.com/2009/06/05/violence-and-social-change/
http://mercyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/06/thoughts-on-tiller-murder.html


Someone found some comments that the killer had left on a web site devoted to pressuring the state authorities into pressing charges against Dr. Tiller. The killer wrote:

'It seems as though what is happening in Kansas could be compared to the "lawlessness" which is spoken of in the Bible. Tiller is the concentration camp "Mengele" of our day and needs to be stopped before he and those who protect him bring judgement upon our nation.'

Some may use the tragedy and the killer's craziness to indict all Christianity.   I have two views about how Lutheran theology would instead counteract this craziness. 

1) LAW AND GOSPEL PREACHING:
You make your proclamation, then get on with your life. You don't necessarily have to keep on pressuring one individual until he or she has performed an act of penance that you prescribe.  Nor do you have to make sure that the state exacts one particular punishment against the individual.  The reason being that your law preaching has preached the sinner into hell already.  And your goal is a conversion of the heart, not works or jail terms.

2) LACK OF FOCUS ON NATIONAL JUDGMENT
From the killer's perspective, he was merely trying to stop Dr. Tiller "before he and those who protect him bring judgment on our nation."  If you ever use that rhetoric or teach a doctrine like that, it seems natural for someone like the killer to conclude they did a good thing. Did Luther or Martin Luther King, Jr., ever invoke national judgment in their preaching?   I think Luther did a few times, both when complaining about oppression of peasants ("Admonition to Peace") and how rich tastes for imports could bankrupt the country ("Sermon on Trade & Usury").   So I guess there may be some role for mentioning the topic.
Could there be an Antinomian strain in such preaching?  You take the focus off of God's judgment on sin, including your own and the ones you continue to have, and place it on others' extremely politically incorrect sins.





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Greg M. Johnson
http://pterandon.blogspot.com