Norman Teigen (left) and Rolf Preus. Norman's father exposed the Synodical Conference error about the efficacy of the Word in the Lord's Supper. The ELS ministers chickened out on the topic,
just as they did with Pope John the Malefactor's destruction of the divine call.
LutherQuest(sic)
Rolf Preus: "When the synod is a church and a synod president with no altar or pulpit is nevertheless a pastor of the church then divine gospel authority is replaced by carnal legal authority not just potentially but necessarily.
The reason men cannot understand this is because they think they can understand the ministry of the Word apart from the actual divine justification of the sinner through faith. It cannot be done."
GJ - This comment is from a pastor I know:
Doesn't this sentence contradict UOJ? Rolf Preus arguing about the nature of the office of pastor!
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Another person wrote:
Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Kurtzahn, The Pancake Pope of the CLC (sic), Unloa...":
Rolf cannot comprehend the contents of the book he "edited", with his brother, maybe because they so mucked up the text and references of their late father's book; JUSTIFICATION AND ROME by Robert Preus.
They gave the book a very poor layout. But more importantly, it is obviously tampered with in the actual text proper, as well as in the reference sections, in not a few, but many places.
Many quotes from the BoC that their father would, I believe, have intended being in the text proper (to give greater clarity to non-Lutherans reading it), appear to have been dropped by his boys, probably because too detrimental to the UOJ barrow the Preus boys so vehemently continue to push.
The true Apostolic/Lutheran Justification by Faith Alone teaching; nevertheless shines clearly through, on the whole,in spite of the afore-mentioned impoverishments.
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GJ - Some synodical trivia: I noticed that Rolf took on David Buegler here. Buegler was Jack Cascione's candidate for DP in Ohio. Cascione was delighted that his guy won - then his guy turned ecumenical overnight. What a shock! Rolf is Cascione's chapel dean at LutherQuest (sic). Rolf once went to the Ukraine to spend some Schwan or Stolzenburg money, thanks to Jay Webber. Birds of a feather do flock together - do not stand under their roosting places too long.
Rolf's position on the ministry, quoted above, contradicts UOJ. I hope he donates the manuscript of Justification and Rome to a library, so scholars can see what his father actually wrote. Having Rolf and Daniel edit it was a stroke of genius - like having two house painters touch up a Rembrandt.
The Little Sect on the Prairie had a chance to deal with doctrine when B. Teigen wrote his famous book on the Lord's Supper. Instead, they accepted synodical orders to silence themselves about Receptionism - the Synodical Conference error that the elements become the Body and Blood of Christ when received by the individual. The political reason behind the silencing was clear enough - no one could admit that Holy Mother Synod was ever wrong about anything. The doctrinal error behind Receptionism is Enthusiasm, thoroughly denounced by the Book of Concord - separating the Holy Spirit from the Word.
In muting themselves about Enthusiasm in the Lord's Supper, the ELS clergy and laity also silenced themselves about Enthusiasm in the Church Growth Movement. Orvick welcomed an essay endorsing Valleskey's Figs from Thistles essay (WLQ) and this endorsement was duly published in the ELS knock-off journal. CG is not just good - using it is analogous to plundering gold, silver, and jewels. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow. Amen. Here endeth the lesson.
Ditto the Mueller/Gurgle theses on the ministry. Once again the ELS clergy and laity rolled over and played dead. Are they the same group that stood up to the LMCS long ago? Obviously not. Emboldened, Pope John the Malefactor extended the Left Foot of Fellowship to anyone who dared to question Him (the divine pronoun used on purpose). I do not agree with Rolf's curious doctrine, but what Pope John did to Rolf's congregation was despicable: fire the pastor or get kicked out of the Little Sect. Moldstad, who was voted into the VP slot by the WELSian faction, has no aptitude for theology. As John Shep predicted long before it happened, Moldstad's attitude was and is - "Walk the plank."
Enthusiasm and compromise have contributed to the the neutering of the ELS. Perhaps the clergy have taken this verse to heart - and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. (Matthew 19:12)
I am pessimistic that Rolf Preus, Jay Webber, and others can ever admit to the error of UOJ, even as they contradict themselves in public and in private. If the Word does consecrate and Church Growth is evil, as Jay Webber seems to say, then UOJ is simply a third cancerous growth of Enthusiasm.
If one cannot divorce the ministry of the Word from the office, as Rolf did say on LQ (sic), quoted above, then UOJ is impossible.
One layman was struck by Kurtzahn and Preus looking down their noses at Lenski. This layman wrote:
"Just reading posts on the big I. I wonder what these guys do not like about Lenski`s comments about justification. What good does all Christ did for us without faith? Seems these guys do not want anything to do with faith and keep going on about the predestination controversy of the 1880`s. Also seems these are the same guys that promote the church growth stuff. I guess these guys make disciples."
In the past, the WELS pastors from the Bethany program seemed to have a much better grasp of Lutheran doctrine than did the pure-bred Wisconsin parochial school to NW prep to NWC to GA to Mequon students. Bethany program vet Dom Perignon Patterson is an exception, but I am told he started out well.
The only solution I can see for the ELS/WELS is having a multi-year, in-depth study of the Book of Concord. The Confessions are best studied in small sections, so they do not overwhelm people. I would start with the Formula of Concord (1580), since it constantly appeals to and uses the Augsburg Confession (1530) as its authority. I also like the Formula because of the issues addressed. Augsburg was more concerned with Rome. Fifty years later, Reformed influence also emerged as significant. Reformed doctrine is the biggest problem in the ELS and WELS today, especially since the leaders, past and present, are so smitten by it.
The major weakness of the Formula is quoting Luther. The conservative synods do not like Luther being quoted. That may kill any project involving the Formula of Concord.
