What I'm doing instead of Hither and Thither

Frank Turk has the two-word answer ready. We'll get to it.

As you can easily imagine, any time I've ever talked to a church about pastoring, or even about pastoring a church, one question is sure to pop up:

"Will you keep blogging?"

I've always given the same answer, and you can all probably recite it like a catechism. I've always said that I expect I would, but the local church ministry would always come first — because, after all, Jesus did not institute blogging per se, but He did institute the church. And, as I've always told folks who write me for personal counsel, while I may be a pastor, I'm not your pastor; he's who you should be talking to.

So now, hey presto! I am someone's pastor. I am the guy I'd be telling them to talk to.

For me, the joyful responsibility of pastoring Copperfield Bible Church officially began last Monday. One of the folks I'd been looking forward to knowing better was a lively, brightly-smiling older gentleman, a veteran and a teacher, named Glenn. Before my trip out here, I'd been saddened to learn was in the hospital, and my family prayed for him. So Monday, I spent some time with him, followed by another visit Tuesday, after which I visited his wife at her home.

The next day, Glenn passed away, to my sorrow.

What I'm doing instead of HTing this week, then, is preparing for that funeral, as well as for my installation sermon on Sunday and a number of series and sermons to come. And just getting situated and up to speed.

Once the dust settles and I get my bearings, if the church ministry allows, I expect to be more regular. But HT is really time-consuming, following up the many links and leads I'm sent and doing my own. Though it's a favorite and I enjoy it, it's likely the first thing to go.

Hope you understand, and I hope you'll pray for Glenn's widow Dorothy, for my church, for my family, and for me.

So I hope to return to HT soon, but hope you'll understand that I'm hip-deep in other things right now...

...wait for it...

...like ministry.

(c:

Question for my church historian readers: Zwingli and Luther and Marburg

My dear wife has been doing some research preparing for our annual Reformation Celebration. She asks me to pass this question along to you, Dear Reader:

I have read that Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli agreed on 14 of 15 points in the Marburg Colloquy in 1529. However, I can find nowhere what these 15 points are. There has been some reference to the Articles of Schwabach that Luther drew up before hand. Were these the points that were discussed in Marburg? I find 17 or 18 points, not 15.

I don’t know if these 15 or 17 or more points were all discussed or if the meeting really centered around Luther’s and Zwingli’s disagreement over the Lord’s Supper.

I’d really like to know what the 15 points are. How did they come about, and were they discussed and agreed upon in Marburg — except for the meaning of the Lord’s Supper?

Link or documentation of any answer, please.