Pastors PageThe Rev. Dr. Timothy Roser has been pastor of St Paul’s, Junction City and St John’s, Dancy since 2002. A native of Holbrook, NY, he became an “adopted” Wisconsinite at the age of twelve, when his family moved to Greenfield. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee (1985) and Concordia Seminary, St Louis (1989), he served as Pastor of The Lutheran Church of the Apostles in Alsip, Illinois, and of Faith Lutheran Church in Spooner, Wisconsin.
In addition to his pastoral responsibilities, earning advanced degrees in Practical Theology (STM 1995) and Systematic Theology (PhD 2005) has enabled Pastor Roser to serve as an instructor for the Distance Education programs of Concordia Seminary, St Louis. He is also currently serving as First-Vice President of the North Wisconsin District of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Pastor Roser and his wife, Ann, have four adult children, all living in the upper Midwest. |
April 2024 Newsletter
Celebrating the Risen Christ!
Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
With this glorious announcement, we come to the climax of the Church Year, the highest and most important of all our feasts and festivals: “The Resurrection of Our Lord.” With the somber time of Lent complete, our repentant purple paraments are put away, replaced with white, the color of our Lord’s holiness, and gold, reminding us that our resurrection life in Christ is precious and eternal. The joyous word “Alleluia” returns to our liturgy and hymns, and once again we sing our hymns of praise, the Gloria in excelsis and This is the Feast.
But sadly, most people in the Christian Church treat Easter the way they do Christmas, like we’re crossing a finish line after a long race. So once they show up in Church on Easter Sunday, it seems they figure “the party’s over.” No need to come back next week. They go on about their “other business” in life, and wait for the next ‘big event’ to roll around.
But the truth is we’ve not come to an end on Easter Sunday—we’ve come to a beginning! Easter is not a one-day event, it’s an entire season, and more! As far as the Church Year is concerned, The Resurrection of Our Lord is a celebration that lasts not for a single day but for fifty days, all the way to the Day of Pentecost.
During these days, just consider some of the things we hear about and celebrate. In the upcoming Gospel readings alone, we hear how our resurrected Jesus made Himself known to an accidentally absent disciple, enabling His bold recognition of Jesus as “my Lord and my God” (see John 20:19-31). Another account tells how He appeared to His disciples and opened their minds to understand the Scriptures—imagine what it was like for them to finally “get it” after three years with Jesus!—and then promised them “power from on high” (check out Luke 24:36-49, and glance ahead to Acts 2 for the sequel!).
In these weeks ahead, we meet Jesus as the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-18) and Jesus as the true vine (with us as the branches, John 15:1-8). And though He said it before His death and resurrection, He told His disciples (and us) to abide in His love, to “love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:9-17). Then He showed them (and us) what kind of love He was talking about.
Yes, this celebration of The Resurrection of Our Lord is just beginning. And beyond these fifty days, it will continue to echo throughout the Church Year, for every Sunday is a “little Easter.” Don’t miss the party! For all this is just a warm-up for an even greater celebration yet to come: the Day when Jesus returns to raise up all the dead from their graves and bring us into the unending glory of the new heavens and the new earth
Celebrating the Risen Christ!
Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
With this glorious announcement, we come to the climax of the Church Year, the highest and most important of all our feasts and festivals: “The Resurrection of Our Lord.” With the somber time of Lent complete, our repentant purple paraments are put away, replaced with white, the color of our Lord’s holiness, and gold, reminding us that our resurrection life in Christ is precious and eternal. The joyous word “Alleluia” returns to our liturgy and hymns, and once again we sing our hymns of praise, the Gloria in excelsis and This is the Feast.
But sadly, most people in the Christian Church treat Easter the way they do Christmas, like we’re crossing a finish line after a long race. So once they show up in Church on Easter Sunday, it seems they figure “the party’s over.” No need to come back next week. They go on about their “other business” in life, and wait for the next ‘big event’ to roll around.
But the truth is we’ve not come to an end on Easter Sunday—we’ve come to a beginning! Easter is not a one-day event, it’s an entire season, and more! As far as the Church Year is concerned, The Resurrection of Our Lord is a celebration that lasts not for a single day but for fifty days, all the way to the Day of Pentecost.
During these days, just consider some of the things we hear about and celebrate. In the upcoming Gospel readings alone, we hear how our resurrected Jesus made Himself known to an accidentally absent disciple, enabling His bold recognition of Jesus as “my Lord and my God” (see John 20:19-31). Another account tells how He appeared to His disciples and opened their minds to understand the Scriptures—imagine what it was like for them to finally “get it” after three years with Jesus!—and then promised them “power from on high” (check out Luke 24:36-49, and glance ahead to Acts 2 for the sequel!).
In these weeks ahead, we meet Jesus as the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-18) and Jesus as the true vine (with us as the branches, John 15:1-8). And though He said it before His death and resurrection, He told His disciples (and us) to abide in His love, to “love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:9-17). Then He showed them (and us) what kind of love He was talking about.
Yes, this celebration of The Resurrection of Our Lord is just beginning. And beyond these fifty days, it will continue to echo throughout the Church Year, for every Sunday is a “little Easter.” Don’t miss the party! For all this is just a warm-up for an even greater celebration yet to come: the Day when Jesus returns to raise up all the dead from their graves and bring us into the unending glory of the new heavens and the new earth