Today, July 28, is the commemoration of Johann Sabastian Bach, Heinrich Schutz, and George Frederick Handel church musicians. What a great day to give thanks to God for the gift of music. I’ve had some terrific musical experiences in recent months.
On March 21, I attended Bach’s Birthday Bash in St. Paul, an annual event I only learned about this year, sponsored jointly by the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists and Minnesota Public Radio’s classical station. It’s a bit like a progressive dinner, with successive courses (appetizer, soup, salad, entree, dessert) at different homes, but one dines on Bach’s music at five different church venues, which this year included one each Lutheran, Episcopal, and Presbyterian churches, and two Roman Catholic parishes. Each hour-long concert included a series of musicians – lots of organists, some piano pieces, and one piece transposed for saxophone, plus a cantata by the local choral ensemble Elm – with travel time in between (and a longer break for lunch). What a feast of Bach music! The first concert was broadcast live and can be heard here.
Early this month Mark and I attended Bach’s St. Matthew Passion at St. Olaf College, as part of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM) conference, “in conjunction with the 2026 Lutheran Summer Music Academy and Festival.” The webpage states:
St. Matthew Passion
The Bach Collegium Valparaiso is an ensemble composed of the finest period instrument and vocal forces in the Chicago area. The mission of BCV is to perform the great masterworks of the 16th-18th centuries with attention to historically informed practice and the highest standards of musical performance. At the helm of this multi-ensemble, multi-generational celebration is ChristopherCock, Senior Research Professor in Music at Valparaiso University. As Director of the Bach Institute at Valparaiso from 2001-2022, he led multiple performances of all of Bach’s major works and numerous cantatas. This distinguished conducting experience combined with his critically acclaimed performances as a Bach Evangelist have made him one of America’s foremost experts on the music of J. S. Bach.
It was a rich and beautiful performance, enhanced for us by the many friends who sang in the choir and other friends in attendance. To listen to the performance, find the link on this page. As Bach wrote, “The aim and final reason for all music should be the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul; where this is not remembered there is no real music but only devilish hubbub.” We are thankful to live in a place that is full of music opportunities and offer this prayer:
O God of majesty, whom saints and angels delight to worship: Pour out your Spirit on your servants who, with the gifts of music, enliven our praises and proclaim your word with power. Through this ministry give us new awareness of your beauty and grace, and join our voices with all the choirs of heaven, both now and forever; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (ELW, p. 74)
I’m so grateful to Concordia University, St. Paul for hosting this book event (yes, in the library) on October 7, 2025. And it was very affirming to have friends from our church and CSP colleagues from over the years attend the event. It was a chance for me to thank publicly many people who contributed in a variety of ways to the birthing of Journey to Jesus and to share a bit about the contents of the book. The Q & A time after my remarks was full of interesting, thoughtful questions.
A special shout out to the Department of Theology and Ministry, especially Dr. Mark Koschmann, VP of Faith and Ministry, and DCE Kristi Bauer, staff for Church Relations at CSP. They did all the arranging for the event, and Kristi took all the photos here.
And yes, I was once again signing books afterwards! Thanks be to God for the interest in the book.
My friend and liturgy scholar, Thomas Schattauer came!Book signing for Mark, a member of our congregation, St. Peter’s. Book signing for friend and colleague Suzanne Hequet.
On Holy Cross Day (Sunday, September 14) I was warmly welcomed by pastors and members, and visitors of St. John Lutheran Church, which was one of our four “case study” congregations. Invited in 2019 to be part of the study because of a strong adult faith formation process introduced by the Rev. Dr. Scott Bruzek (pictured with me in the banner photo) and refined by him over 20 years, Pastor Bruzek said YES to the invitation because of connection between us dating back to the 1980s (photo, right).
I was delighted to see Val Gaede (photo, left), a Lutheran classroom teacher who served her entire ministry at St. John, her first call upon graduation from Concordia, Seward. Our interview was invaluable for understanding some of St. John’s history; and it was great fun to get to know this fellow church worker, hearing about her varied ministry roles at St. John over four decades. From my interview with Val, I heard her perspective on training the new catechumens, who help with the stripping of the altar on Maundy Thursday. She begins her instruction by reminding the catechumens that the ritual is “all about Jesus.”
The word “love” permeated many of my interviews, a clear indication that Pastor Bruzek’s statement, “At St. John, love is the primary virtue,” is truly part of the congregation’s ethos. Like many of the people I interviewed, I was welcomed on this day and, as I signed books and chatted with folks, I heard over and over that St. John is a “special” congregation.
Pastor Bruzek had suggested I bring 20 copies of the book to sell; in a moment of optimism, I packed 2 boxes with a total of 45 books. We brought one box into the church to start, and my marketing assistant (and beloved husband) Mark had to return to car for the second box after the 8:30 service. Before the 11:00 service—well the photo says it all!
With thanks to …
Pastor Bruzek, for working on the logistics and publicity for the day and for preaching a great sermon;
Pastors Nelson and Ferguson, for their warm greetings;
John Crowe, parish administrator, for having our table set up in a prime location and who assisted with the set up;
Val Gaede, for her kind words about the book; and
Derek and Mary, a couple I interviewed in 2019, for their welcoming hugs.
At a chance sidewalk meeting with CSP President Brian Friedrich last month, I shared the news of the publication of Journey to Jesus, and then told him of my idea to email my former students now working in the church as Directors of Christian Education and Christian of Outreach, offering them a special deal on the book (and working with CSP faculty and staff to distribute the books at the upcoming LCMS National Youth Gathering). President Friedrich made a better offer, saying that CSP could purchase the books at the special discount price and gift them to my former students.
With the help of Kristi Bauer, CSP’s Director of LCMS Placement, I tracked down the emails of about 30 former students, wrote to them, and the first 15 who responded received Journey to Jesus when they stopped by the CSP booth at the Youth Gathering. Jessica Blocker, DCE at St. John Lutheran Church in Luverne, Minnesota, was the first to respond to my email with the words, “Oooo! Yes, please! That’s very exciting. Looking forward to seeing you in NOLA [New Orleans, LA, location of the youth gathering]! And I’d certainly love a signed copy.” Although I did not get to see Jessica or any others who received the book, she did send me this photo, and I personalized a message with my signature for each of the 15 book recipients.
Kent’s (my co-author) and my desire is to get the book into the hands of church professionals and lay leaders in congregations. These “front line” folks are the people who are most likely to find the stories of faith formation told by individuals and the descriptions of the various models of the adult catechumenate useful in their ministry. THANKS TO
President Friedrich, who first suggested this plan;
Mark Koschmann (CSP VP of Faith and Ministry), who facilitated the process;
CSP Campus Pastor Tom Gundermann, who transported the books to New Orleans; and
Everyone working at the CSP booth, who helped distribute the books to our CSP graduates.
