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“[Oh, come] let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2, the Gradual for Sundays in Lent)

One day last week I was talking with the construction superintendent for our new office building when I noticed a man standing on Ninth Street looking up and staring intently at our steeple. Upon finishing our discussion, I walked over to the man, introduced myself, and asked him if I could be of any help. The man was surprised to see a pastor in a hardhat, but he, nevertheless, went on to tell me how he was a Delta Airline Pilot who had flown into Milwaukee the night before and that he was scheduled to fly out again mid-afternoon. He also said that he was extremely interested in church architecture, and it was his habit to visit as many churches as possible in whatever city he had a layover in. This flight was his first layover in Milwaukee. He said that when he got up in the morning and looked out the window of his hotel room, he saw our steeple, which made him decide to walk over to see the church.

After talking about the exterior, I asked him if he would like to see the church interior, and his eyes lit right up. It turns out that this pilot is a Missouri-Synod member who lives out east but has parents living in Madison. I also found out that he has a keen interest in church organ music and when he heard who our church organist was, it excited him as much as the church architecture. It seems that he owns several CD’s of Dr. Behnke’s music. One comment he made, however, stuck with me because I hadn’t heard it in a long, long, time. He said he really loved flying into Milwaukee because there are so many church steeples. He then quoted one of Milwaukee’s old slogans referring to Milwaukee as “The city of Steeples”.

Most people today do not know the significance of church steeples. They actually have their roots in the great cathedrals of Europe. The dominant feature in any given European city was the cathedral. Some of them, such as the great twin-spire cathedral in Cologne, Germany, took 600 years to build. In many ways, these structures were overly extravagant and built more for the pride of man than for God, but they also showed something else not quite so obvious. They showed a willingness of people to structure their lives around the place where God said He would distribute His Word and Sacrament. The church dominated the thinking and regular order of life. Steeples reaching to the skies were beacons of hope in the midst of a sea of sin.

It’s important to note that Luther condemned Roman Catholic heresies, but he never condemned their building of cathedrals as places of worship. In fact, his monumental hymn, “A Mighty Fortress”, was written with just such a building in mind. And it is with that same thought that church steeples took over our landscape, especially here in Milwaukee.

It’s a sad commentary that as the population of Europe increased, Christian church attendance decreased and the building of new Christian churches became almost non-existent. It’s also a sad commentary on our society that the centrality of church in our lives has seemed to shrink in comparison to the modern idea of low-profile church buildings.

When walking into a cathedral, one cannot help but look up. The very architecture pulls the eye toward the heavens. It’s the same with church steeples. We are truly blessed at Trinity to have that sense, both inside and out, of drawing one’s eyes up to the heavens. It’s true that building churches with steeples and high ceilings are two of the most costly construction items, but too often they are discarded strictly because of expense without understanding their true significance.

There is one other sad commentary about losing our “high” churches and steeples, and that is how so many churches are losing their “high” view of the historic liturgy. The historic liturgy says back to God more perfectly than any other order of worship what He first said to us. The “high” view of the liturgy means that our worship is focused on God’s grace to us in Christ. Everything in the service is dealing with sin and grace. Where that isn’t done, worship is reduced to what man does as the main action taking place. Worship is reduced to not much more than emotion and performance—not God’s forgiveness.

The question before us, especially at this time of year with Holy Week beginning next Sunday, is this: What is your view, high or low, concerning the centrality of worship and of God’s grace in your life? Do you have the “high” view which means you work to fit your life around God’s Word and Sacrament, or do you have the “low” view which means you fit God’s Word and Sacrament around your life—when it is convenient? Your view will go a long way in determining what your attendance will be at our Holy Week services.

I was extremely gratified in the number of people who expressed regret over not having mid-week Lenten services this year due to our construction issues, but I am equally concerned about those of us who welcomed the cancellation of services because it meant no conflict with personal agendas. To those I would ask, what does it mean that Jesus “scorned the cross” for the joy set before Him. It means that Jesus did not let personal agendas or the fear of pain and death deter Him from saving us miserable sinners. He endured the cross so that He might give us forgiveness and life through His Means of Grace.

“Holy” has a basic meaning of “unique” or “one of a kind”. Holy Week is surely that—especially when we realize how “unique” and “one of a kind” Jesus was and still is! From Jesus’ humble entry into Jerusalem that we celebrate this coming Sunday, to the institution of His last will and testament and betrayal on Maundy Thursday, to His march to Calvary on Good Friday, Jesus, the God/Man, the Holy One of God, made the week that we remember His Passion “unique” and “set apart” for His baptized believers. The truth is that we cannot properly remember Easter without properly remembering the Passion of our Lord at all its opportunities. That’s the high view of it! It’s a view that only comes through the grace of God! The low view says we can pick and choose what services to attend according to personal agendas. So, what’s your view?