From
Living Theology in the Metropolitan Chicago Synod
Volume 4, Number 3
Epiphany 2000
"Wellness"
Susanne
Havlic
In 1998, the Inter Lutheran
Coordinating Committee on Ministerial Health and Wellness published a booklet
concerning issues of health, faith and ethics, titled A Letter on Peace and
Good Health. The “letter,” which
was the outcome of three years of joint study by representatives of the ELCA
and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, was sent to all ordained ministers and
lay professionals of both bodies.
Since not all our readers may have
read this compact and enlightening document, we offer this brief synopsis,
hoping it will spur you to read the entire 36-page report.
The author is the Rev. Dr. James P
Wind, president of the Alban Institute.
The letter begins with praise for God’s blessing of life and health that
we so often take for granted. Wind
points out that in this age of amazing medicine, the true meaning of health has
become ambiguous, and we often put our faith in “an idol that frequently comes
draped in medical garb and regularly seeks to seduce with its offers to perfect
our bodies and souls.”
Stating that all is not well in our
congregations and denominational systems, Wind calls church leaders to “recover
the life and health-giving treasures at the heart of our faith.” The picture of health, says Wind, is a
picture of people in perfect relation to God, neighbor, self and cosmos.
Wind reviews Hebrew and New Testament
scriptures, giving examples of God’s healing activity in a world that, although
created in God’s perfect image, has fallen deep into sin and imperfection. Yet God has not forsaken his creation, says
Wind, and God’s healing activity continues today.
Jesus’ resurrection has propelled a
healing community, the church, into the world.
“The peace experienced in encounters with the risen Christ released the
Holy Spirit, a healing and forgiving energy that continues to heal the world in
this day.” Table fellowship, the
ministry of healing, and care for the poor were the earliest forms of this new
healing community.
Yet, even in the church, the
multidimensional reality of health has been obscured by the successes of
medical science and technology, and health has been reduced to physical
functioning, Wind points out. What is
needed, he says, is an understanding of health that returns to a scriptural
framework.
The work of the church is to proclaim
the good news of God’s healing in Jesus Christ to the world. And God has given leaders in the church
today many means to experience and promote healing. The sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist have brought new
creation to all life. The Sabbath rest
allows participation in God’s wholeness and practices of compassion.
Perfect health, says Wind, is an
illusion; but God has a greater wholeness to offer—a wholeness established in
healthy relationships with our God, our neighbors and those who may be
strangers.
The editors recommend that you dig
this little book out from wherever you may have filed it and keep it handy,
especially for those times when health and wellness seem an elusive reality.
If you would like an additional copy,
contact Pastor Stephen Ganskow-Wold in the ELCA Division for Ministry at
773-380-2881.