The South Gibson Star-Times serves the towns of Haubstadt, Owensville and Fort Branch.
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B-7 Tuesday, April 19, 2022 South Gibson Star-Times Eyewitness testimony Judge Judy on her television show is picky about eyewitness testimony. She will not allow litigants to testify to what someone else said to bolster their case (second-hand testimony). If you want their testimony, she says, you should have brought them here! As a jurist, she believes eyewitnesses are the best evidence. Even better is someone testifying who has no dog in the fight (has a personal stake in the issue). Thousands of people witnessed the death of Jesus on the cross in Je- rusalem. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus records this event in his book, "Antiquities of the Jews," writ- ten around 93–94 AD. "Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, for he was a do- er of wonderful works, a teacher. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had con- demned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day" (The Works of Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews 18.63). Except for the most radical anti-Je- sus' critic, no contemporary histori- an disputes the fact that Rome cru- cified Jesus. What is in dispute is Je- sus' resurrection. A fter securing Jesus' death, the religious authorities were deter- mined to crush this "Jesus' sect" lest it spread. They knew of Jesus' teaching, especially the claim that he would rise from the dead. These religious leaders approached Pilate, stating Jesus had predicted he would rise from the dead on the third day. They demanded, "Command there- fore that the sepulcher be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. Pilate said unto them, You have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went, and made the sepulcher sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch." (Mt 27:62-66). The religious authority's request for Pilate to secure the tomb would play right into God's hands. No guard, no "official seal," no eyewit- ness to the resurrection. Case closed. Any breach of security during their watch would be their execution. A band of Roman guards would be un- impeachable eyewitnesses! Three days later, shortly before daybreak, without warning, there was a great earthquake. An angel of the Lord came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. Those Roman soldiers on watch shook with terror and "became as dead men" (they fainted). When re- vived, they fled the scene in panic. Did they go tell Pilate? No! They fled to the chief priests and told them what had happened. Jerusalem would erupt in a firestorm if these Roman "eyewit- nesses" testified what they wit- nessed—Jesus indeed had risen from the dead (50 days later on the day of Pentecost, a firestorm would erupt as the Holy Spirit fell). The re- ligious authorities were in a quanda- ry. How could they squelch eyewit- BUCKSKIN ST. JOHN'S CHURCH OF BUCKSKIN 8260 E. 900 S., Buckskin Sunday school 9 a.m.; Worship ser- vice 10 :15 a.m. CYNTHIANA FIRST UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST Corner of North and Walnut Sunday worship service 9 a.m. FAIR HAVEN CHRIST FELLOWSHIP Church Street, Cynthiana Mike Douglas, Pastor Phone: 812-724-4735 Sunday morning worship 10 a.m.; Wednesday evening 7 p.m. FORT BRANCH BETHLEHEM GENER AL BAPTIST CHURCH 3208 W 525 S, Fort Branch (CR 325 W off of Hwy. 168) Steve Wilson, Pastor Bible study 9 a.m. Sunday worship 10 a.m. FIRST CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE 601 S. Lincoln, Fort Branch Pastor Bryan Holzappel Sunday school 9:30 a.m. Morning worship 10 :30 a.m. FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 212 West Locust, Fort Branch Pastor Corey Atkins Phone: 812-753-4623 Sunday school 9 a.m.; Worship ser- vice 10 a.m. (Communion first Sun- day); Second Cup of Coffee (ladies' group) all ladies welcome, second Wednesday, 9 a.m. FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF FORT BR ANCH 100 W. Vine St., Fort Branch Rev. John Baylor, Jr., Pastor 812-753-4424 Sunday School 9:30 a.m.; Sunday Worship 10 :30 a.m., nursery pro- vided for preschool age and under. Youth Groups for grades 4-12 meet at 6 p.m. on Sunday evenings, Sept. through May. Details on the church website www.fbfirst.org. HOLY CROSS CATHOLIC CHURCH 200 S. Church St., Fort Branch Fr. Christopher Droste, Pastor Fr. Kenneth Betz and Fr. Luke Hassler, Associate Pastors Joe Siewers and William Brandle, Deacons Saturday Mass 4:30 p.m.; Sunday Mass 8:30 a.m. PROVIDENCE PRIMITIVE BAPTIST CHURCH CR 550 S., NE of Fort Branch Mitch Breidenbaugh, Pastor Sunday school for children and adults at 10 :30 a.m.; worship 11 a.m.; For information, call 812-753-3386. ST. LUCAS UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST 6777 S. 350 East, Fort Branch Pastor John Heumann Sunday school 9:30 a.m.; Sunday worship 10 :30 a.m. ST. BERNARD CATHOLIC CHURCH SNAKE RUN 5342 E. SR 168 (East of Fort Branch) 812-753-4568 Fr. Gary Kaiser, Pastor Sunday Mass 8:30 a.m. ST. PAUL'S UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST 4222 E. SR 168, Fort Branch Pastor John Heumann Sunday worship 9 a.m.; Sunday school 10 :15 a.m. VERTICAL CHURCH Coal Mine Rd., Fort Branch Rich Clark, Pastor Sunday morning worship services 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. Vertical Kids chil- dren's ministry available during both services for children from birth to fifth grade. Ignite Ministry is 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays for students in sixth-eighth grades. WESLEYAN CHURCH 202 E. Vine St., Fort Branch Sunday school from 9:30 to 10 :30 a.m.; Sunday worship, 10 :30 a.m.; Sunday evening worship 6:30 p.m.; Wednesday evening adult Bible study, 6:30 p.m., GIG (Growing in God) Club for ages 5 to 11 (available while school is in session), Teen Group for ages 12 and up. For more information call the church at 812- 677-5007. HAUBSTADT NEW LIBERTY CHRISTIAN CHURCH Hwy. 68 between Cynthiana and Haubstadt Gordon Jones, Pastor Services Sunday 10 :30 a.m. NEW LIFE HOUSE OF PR AYER 208 West Street, Haubstadt Adam and Lindsay Ping Phone: 812-215 -9003 Sunday morning service 10 a.m.; Children's Sunday school during ser- vice; Food Pantry open first and third Wednesdays of the month from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Everyone welcome! IMMANUEL LUTHER AN CHURCH (LCMS) 1-1/2 miles south of I-64 and U.S. 41, Volkman Rd. Rev. Kirk Horstmeyer Saturday evening services 5:30 p.m.; Sunday worship services 8 a.m. and 10 :15 a.m.; Sunday school 9:10 a.m. ST. JAMES CATHOLIC CHURCH Old Princeton Rd., Haubstadt Fr. Christopher Droste, Pastor Fr. Kenneth Betz and Fr. Luke Hassler, Associate Pastors Joe Siewers and William Brandle, Deacons Saturday Mass 5 p.m.; Sunday Masses 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. STS. PETER AND PAUL CATHOLIC CHURCH 201 Vine St., Haubstadt Fr. Christopher Droste, Pastor Fr. Kenneth Betz and Fr. Luke Hassler, Associate Pastors Joe Siewers and William Brandle, Deacons Saturday Mass 5 p.m.; Sunday Masses 7 and 10 a.m. ZION UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST Second and Elm St., Elberfeld Rev. Paul Fraser Sunday school 9 a.m.; worship ser- vice 10 a.m. LYNNVILLE BARNET T CHAPEL Stanley Road, Lynnville Don Williams, Pastor reflections From the Page By Cleoramae G. Stunkel See CHURCH on page 8 South Gibson Church Services Suppose that you were a bish- op, in France, in the 12th century, who wished to have the persons for whose souls you had a responsibili- ty become better versed in Scriptur- al knowledge- -what could you do to bring this about? It wouldn't be any good to go to the board of elders and persuade them to appropriate church funds to provide a Bible for every home in every vil- lage in the land. The product just wasn't there. It would be a few hundred years, still, before Mr. Gutenberg would come along with his printing press. Every manuscript needed to be cop- ied by hand. How could you secure all those ad- ditional copyists? There existed also the problem of language. While the Old Testament had been translated from the He- brew, and the New Testament from its original Greek, that was mostly into Latin, which, while well-under- stood by the clergy and some mem- bers of the more monied classes, was not spoken by most of the populace. But even if the texts were put into the native language of your parishon- ers, most of them wouldn't be able to read that, either! What, then? Train more copyists, secure more translators, build school-buildings and hire teachers, so that people could be taught to read their own language? Agriculture in the 12th century fairly much demanded that all hands be to the plough, to the scythe, to the shepherd's crook or the herdman's goad. There wouldn't be much time available for sitting around in class- rooms. What, then? If most of the people could not be brought to read letters, they could still "read" pictures. So, the grey stone walls of cathe- drals were opened up with vast win- dows of stained glass, illustrating Bi- ble stories that the people would also have heard preached about on Sun- day mornings. Statues of patriarchs, prophets, and apostles were carved in the stone of the walls, usually identified by some attribute, such as crossed keys for Peter, or a bag of coins to re- mind viewers that Matthew had been a tax collector before he was called to be an apostle. But still there would be small spac- es left, such as in the pointed arch of a lancet window, or on the smooth side of a projecting stone corbel, which could be appropriated to the teaching project. Even in such small areas there could be exhibited a single element which would represent the entire ex- perience of which it was a part. A stalk of wheat could call to mind the bread of Communion into which it could be made; a cluster of grapes, the wine in the Communion goblet. Moreover, the bishop and his craftsmen had at their disposal, be- yond those elements of the natural world, certain fanciful notions re- garding beasts and birds never seen, or in any case, never seen exhibit- ing the behaviors claimed on their behalf. With no National Geographic pho- tographers trotting about the world to gainsay the notions, nor ornithol- ogists reporting in to the local Audu- bon Society, imaginations could run rather far afield. It was said of the pelican, for in- stance, that in time of famine, it would peck open its own breast to feed its young with its blood. Then there was said to be- -living in far-off Arabia- -a bird who would live 500 years, then make itself a nest of spices, incinerate itself, and rise re-born from the ashes. Not difficult to see how these birds could come to be employed as sym- bols of Christ's Crucifixion and Res- urrection, respectively. In fact, we can imagine that a real- ly well-organized cathedral architect could tuck into this nook and that cranny symbols that could lead the worshipper all the way through Ho- ly Week, beginning with branches of palm to symbolize Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sun- day, with coins and a whip of cords used to remind of his cleansing of the Temple the following day. Maundy Thursday could feature an assemblage of pitcher, basin, and towel, as employed in the foot-wash- ing, and a loaf of bread and a chal- ice to remind of Jesus' institution of Communion. Lantern and torch could bring to mind Jesus' subsequent capture in the Garden of Gethsemane, and a Can you understand? Insight By Dave Ingler "The disciples did not understand any of this." (Luke 18:34) Jesus had just told the disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and experience everything that is writ- ten by the prophets about the Son of Man. While in Jerusalem He would be rejected, killed and on the third day rise again. The fulfillment of Isaiah's prophesy written centuries earlier would occur before their very eyes. "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed." (Isa- iah 53:5) How could these men under- stand this saying about their mas- ter? Was He not the Christ, God's Messiah? What about the deliver- ance He would bring? Certainly it must be a deliverance from the evil Roman domination surrounding them. And His kingdom! His would be a kingdom with no end and Is- rael would once again stand in its glory for all to see. And they would have a part in the politics of it. Or so they thought. For even as Jesus celebrated the Passover with them a few short hours before His crucifix- Points to Ponder By Curtis Bond See POINTS on page 8 See INSIGHT on page 8 See MINUTES on page 8 Two Minutes With the Bible By Pastor John Frederickson Does your heart murmur? A fter high school, I worked in a huge plant that employed thou- sands. Four gals from my high school worked there also, so we be- gan sharing lunch breaks. However, one of them was constantly negative. Nearly everything out of her mouth was a complaint about something or someone, and it had a negative effect on the others in the group. It was de- pressing just listening to it all. A f- ter nearly a week, I decided I simply wouldn't be around them any more. God's children of faith are not im- mune to a complaining spirit. When Moses was sent back to Egypt to de- liver Israel out of cruel slavery, the Israelites repeatedly complained. Even a chance at freedom should have brought appreciation. But af- ter finally being miraculously re- leased, Israel murmured (meaning "to grumble") against Moses when Pharaoh's armies pursued them. Lat- er "the people murmured against Moses" over a lack of water (Exo- dus 15:24). Then while in "the wil- derness of Sin," they murmured over a lack of food (Exodus 16:1-4). It had become a pattern of life. When God promised victory over the inhabitants in Canaan, they once again murmured in disbelief that God would give the victory (Num- bers 14). God's anger was so kin- dled that an entire generation, ex- cept for Joshua and Caleb, perished without seeing the Promised Land. Paul refers to this in 1 Corinthians 10 :10 warning the believers: "Nei- ther murmur ye, as some of them al- so murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer." Complaining is a dangerous, neg- ative habit. It embitters the soul, sours the spirit, ignores the rich blessings of God, and robs one of See REFLECTIONS on page 8