Report to the Twelve--Soon to be Fifteen--Shrinking WELS Districts
Knee-slapper from WELS COP Report
Fuller alumnus James Huebner will lead the development of policies and procedures for called workers. And - get this - continuing professional education. Why not send everyone else to Fuller Seminary? The District Mission Board members went. The WELS leadership went. The World Mission guys went. Do not forget Willow Creek, that other WELS center of higher education.
More Proof That Hard-Working CG Guys Produce Results
After 30 years of Church Growth at the Sausage Factory in Mequon, enrollments are expected to decline 25% in four years, from 160 to 120. Valleskey, Kelm (worked for Valleskey), and Bivens built their careers on CG. Any CG professor who retires from the seminary is replaced with someone even worse.
Tuition Hikes Sucker-Punch Enrollments
Both preps have lost a big chunk of students, due directly to enormous tuition hikes under Gurgel-Mueller. Both prep schools charge $8,000 a year tuition. LPS engages in all kinds of ridiculous commercial fund-raising tactics besides. Declining prep enrollments will add to additional declines at MLC and the Sausage Factory.
Church Growth in Brazil
After 21 years of Fuller-inspired effort, the WELSian Brazil church has two (2) congregations and 200 souls. Oh no! For a fraction of all the money spent, the Mission Board could have flown in a bunch of illegal immigrants, given them money to build a village, and had 1,000 people to brag about. Just think, Ichabodians, Missionary Starr was not content to build a Brazilian national church the slow-poke old-fashioned way. When people came into the WELS center and asked about Christ, they were ushered into a room where a video tape played. A farmer asked Starr, "You played them a tape? A tape?"
