wfn.org | ELCA Youth Deal with Death, Get a 'Glad Surprise'

[News News <news@ELCA.ORG>]

ELCA NEWS SERVICE

July 1, 2000

ELCA YOUTH DEAL WITH DEATH, GET A 'GLAD SURPRISE'
00-YG09-FI

     ST. LOUIS (ELCA)   Perhaps the heaviest topic life has to offer
  death   greeted 22,000 teen-age Lutherans gathered July 1 for a
morning Bible study in the Trans World Dome here.  Stories of death
were shared through skits, videos and song, based on the theme
"Dancing on the Edge."  The Rev. Craig J. Lewis, Central Lutheran
Church, Minneapolis, provided a "glad surprise."
     The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA) Youth
Gathering is meeting here June 28-July 2 and July 5-9.  The two
events bring together some 40,000 Lutheran youth of high school age
who are engaging in worship, Bible study, learning, community service
and fun.
     Lewis has served as director of the ELCA Commission for
Multicultural Ministries, assistant to the ELCA's presiding bishop
and vice president for Shore Bank, Chicago.
     Several youth introduced the morning's topic in a skit, telling
the biblical story of the death and burial of Jesus Christ, and the
despair of Christ's disciples.  A number of short video clips told
modern stories of teens who had died of disease, suicide and traffic
accidents, and described the hopelessness felt by those left behind.
     The videos left the audience with many unanswered questions.
"Where is God in the midst of my pain?"  "What do you want me to hang
on to?"  Ken Medema, San Francisco, the gathering's music director,
sang, "Where is God when you need Him most?"
     "Death is never a good thing ... but it is inevitable," said
Lewis.  "Nobody gets out alive."
     "The injustice of premature death is another story," he said.
     Lewis said his family had a difficult time dealing with the
death of his mother two years earlier but returned to the graveyard
last Thanksgiving.  He recalled the words of the Rev. Martin Luther
King Sr., who dealt with several deaths in his family: "God always
leaves enough to make life worth the living."
     The biblical story of Jesus' death and burial is followed by
the story of women going to the grave the next Sunday morning, and
finding it empty and Christ risen from the dead, said Lewis.  "The
women at the tomb found themselves at the crossroads of life," he
said.
     There may still be times of grief, said Lewis.  "God didn't
promise that every day would be Sunday, but He did promise not to
leave us alone," he said.  "He may not be there when you need Him,
but He's there right on time."
     Lewis defined "glad surprise" by telling several short stories.
When you've locked your keys in the car but discover the passenger
door still open, that's a glad surprise, he said.
     "Sunday was a glad surprise," said Lewis, referring to Christ's
resurrection after the despair of his death.  "Life eternal is a glad
surprise."
     "I urge you to go to the grave," he told the gathering, and
learn that God is with those who have died.  "Be a witness that death
has been overcome."
     Lewis concluded by leading the gathering in dance to the Gospel
spiritual "In the Morning When I Rise."
     Teens told stories by videotape about how a good friend helped
them deal with the death of another friend.  "Being a good friend is
a gift, a gift from God," one said.  "God was with me all along,"
said another.
     The program's emcees   April M. Barfield, Inglewood, Calif.;
Becky Gulsvig, Moorhead, Minn.; and David Scherer, Minneapolis   took
the stage.
     "He is with us in our pain.  He is with us in our joy.  God is
alive," said Gulsvig.
     "Go out and tell that," the three said together, sending the
crowd away for the day's activities.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
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