Saved by Polity Alone

Mad Jack Cascione has made a career out of championing the Supremacy of the Voters' Assembly. How he graduated from a Lutheran seminary remains a mystery to most people.

On the other hand, ELDONA will save the Lutheran Church with a diocese arrangement and a bishop, even if most of their congregations are "meeting at..." In other words, they are renting a room at a Holiday Inn or Millard Filmore Grammar School.

First of all, the New Testament is rather sparse on polity matters. One can find plenty of material later, as the Christian Church took on characteristics of the Roman Empire, where it first grew. Of course, they knew nothing of democracy, which was long dead when Christ rose from the dead. Julius Caesar was stabbed to death decades before the Day of Pentecost, so the last shreds of the Roman Republic were gone and forgotten when the Christian Church began.

The Lutheran Reformation took place in Medieval Europe, which made the Roman Empire look positively liberal in comparison. A rotten, corrupt church was mortally wounded by the Word of God, not a different polity. Once the Lutheran Church came into being via defenestration, polity devolved into caesaropapism - the local ruler supervising the church. Martin Chemnitz tried to be independent of the ruler in religious matters, but he was bounced for one critical comment about the ruler aping Rome.

There is nothing wrong with the title bishop, but I doubt that the current baggage of the title has the same meaning as the New Testament term. The word means supervisor in Greek, not Fancy Hat, Curved Cane, Clouds of Incense, All Rise.

I wonder how many are going to rush to join a congregation because it calls itself episcopalian in governance. Will Lutherans and prospects say in unison, "That is the answer"? I doubt it.

Likewise, Casione's congregation gets to vote only to agree with him. When they wanted to leave the Missouri Synod, he refused. Those who disagree are not allowed to vote. Old Missouri even has a handbook which directs the pastor to excommunicate anyone who disagrees with the excommunication. That has to be fun. "Now vote!" How everyone must tremble!

I find those getting involved with trappings and crypto-congregationalism will always neglect the efficacy of the Word alone.