In this issue:

• A Good Cigar to the Glory of God
• The Angler's Wish
• Buying Bamboo on E-bay
• Pipes and Tobacco
• The Scantic River
• Scripture
• Websites of Interest
  

This is the premier issue of THE CHURCHWARDEN newsletter. The intended goal of THE CHURCHWARDEN is to glorify God in the ongoing discussion of biblical theology, pipes and tobacco, as well as hunting and fly fishing. Undoubtedly some people will be confused or troubled by the juxtaposition of subjects taken up in this periodical. Theology is common fare in a distinctly Christian publication; it is expected. However, hunting, fishing, pipes and tobacco set in the same context as biblical doctrine may come as a surprise, especially since political correctness and cultural Christianity may regard such pursuits as decidedly unacceptable. Yet, I strongly suspect my target readership is not terribly concerned about a high approval rating by the advocates of either political correctness or cultural Christianity.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian who was martyred by the Nazis for the cause of Christ in 1945, spoke of something he termed "religionless Christianity," a phrase which has been greatly misunderstood ever since it was first coined. If I interpret Bonhoeffer honestly then he was advocating two essentials:

First of all, that religionless Christianity is simply not religion in any form. Rather it is a relationship with the living God. Religion is anything and everything men, women or children think, say, and do to gain or maintain favor with God. Whereas, religionless Christianity is what God has done in the person and work of Jesus to establish a genuine relationship with people.

And, secondly, that religionless Christianity is evidenced (not caused) by conscientious full-orbed obedience to the lordship of Christ, as opposed to false piety or even sincere religious practices.

In other words, biblical Christianity is characteristically void of religious expression; there is no scripturally warranted dichotomy between the secular and the sacred. Every aspect of life, from puffing on a pipe to worshiping God, falls under the judgment of Christ the King.

The promotion of religionless Christianity among those who love to be scared speechless by an exploding grouse or awed silent by the beauty of a twenty-inch brown- this is the avowed purpose of THE CHURCHWARDEN.