Monday, December 9, 2024

*** This is a rough transcript of today’s show ***

It is the 9th of December 2024. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

A very happy Monday to you in this Advent season- today’s mailbag is something of a miscellany of various topics and questions that have popped up from you over the past few weeks.

I want to first make a note that when I say Christopher Gillespie is on the “ones and twos,” this is just old radio talk. We are digital, as the listener Tom pointed out, and thus Gillespie is on the “Zeros and Ones”- we are digital and not analog, and there are not turn tables involved.

I have been asked a number of times about the cover art for this show. It was created by Brenton Little, who has been responsible for much of the look of 1517 since 2016, when we started our annual conference. I came on board full-time, and we started humming—more on that in a minute.

So, in March 2019, when the Almanac first became an idea in my mind—this would be March 2019, as my old show, Virtue in the Wasteland, had ended—I needed to think of something to make, a way of teaching, to be like the public church historian and teacher that 1517 allows me to be.

Brenton, as an artist, took the things that he heard from me about what the show would be and what Brenton knew about me and created the awesome art- a few notes- that is a baptismal font in the bottom middle- our “entrance” into the church- we have an old skull for the common theme of “memento mori” in Church history- “we are all going to die”- the man is a depiction of Luther as a monk and you have various symbols relating to theological topics (a lamb, a dove) and things that represent time and writing and an old radio on a column… that column is part of a tattoo I have on my right forearm of the muse of history: Clio sitting on a column.

And if you will indulge me briefly, and a longtime listener- one of those “every single show” folks who I really want to apologize to for being kinda boring in the early part of the show… anyways- Jane in my literal and spiritual hometown of Lake Arrowhead- where you will likely find me when the kids move out…  

She asked about the history of 1517- this organization which is, well, really unique and special to me. 1517 is the year Luther posted/presented/published his Theses, and the Reformation was underway.

Like the origins of Santa Claus, there are many streams from whence we come. But I will take you to Faith Lutheran Church in San Juan Capistrano - a church that flourished under the now-sainted Ron Hodel. He had invited Rod Rosenbladt from Concordia Irvine to teach a bible study- this attracted some of his old students from Westmont College, now in San Clemente, CA, to this church.

When I moved home from Scotland, I joined this church. My boys were baptized there, and I became an Elder working with adult education. Scott Keith had a long relationship with Hodel and this church and moved to Southern California to work at Concordia. 1517, which was “New Reformation Press” set up by Rod’s son Ted, had one of a few “make or break” moments around 2012 when a few of us were asked to become more regularly involved and to write articles. I was teaching A LOT. And so an old colleague of mine and I started a podcast to think through ideas and hopefully reach people who might not be reading articles- that show Virtue in the Wasteland became the first 1517 podcast, soon followed by the Thinking Fellows, and now… well, a lot.

Scott Keith started full-time first. Steve Byrnes- a long-time friend and graduate of Westminster Seminary, took over publishing (I was able to put him in touch with my old student Sam Leanza… and now they work together.

I came on in 2016- took a gamble, sort of- not a gamble because I knew the people and trusted them. 2017 is a year I’m happy to erase from memory- but I spent time in the hospital, and 1517 stood by me the whole time- they just wanted me to be well and to get back to being a church historian and teacher.

There are more stories. Obviously, I will pepper in now and then- because I do think we are a fun, unique, Christ and gospel-centered- don’t bury the lede- this is why we do what we do- it’s who we are, and we can’t help but take history and apologetics and theology and want to tie it all back to the good news…Rod, John Warwick Montgomery, and Jim Nestingen, all in glory now and the foundation of so much of what we do, are deserving of their own shows in the future.

The last word for today is from the daily lectionary from Romans 8: 

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 9th of December 2024, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by known to go a wassailing, he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who doesn’t care for all the cloves in wassail.. a little goes a long way, I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.