When Seminaries Rot, Congregations Pay the Price:Two Chicaneries Advised The Sausage Factory

Randy Hunter has a female worship leader, so he gets a vicar--thanks DP--to spread the apostasy.

WELS used to say about the LCMS:

1. The fish rots at the head.
   
2. The seminaries go first.
   
3. The worst liberals are in the headquarters city.

That would never happen to WELS, they imagined, because they had watchmen on the towers of Zion, to borrow a phrase from Walther. To honor the latest and perhaps last convention of Church and Change, let us recall some horrifying facts.

1. Two of the most notorious C&C members--a competitive list, needless to say--have advised The Sausage Factory on how to improve seminary education! Those Chicanery leaders are Paul Calvin Kelm and Kudu Don Patterson. Kinda like Planned Parenthood advising Lutherans For Life.
   
2. David Valleskey and Frosty Bivens worked together to promote the Church Growth Movement, coming out of the Fuller closet rather early. Valleskey became VP of The Factory and Bivens became a professor and VP. In WELS, VPs become president.
   
3. Richard Gurgle, at The Factory, agitates for the Chicaneries on their listserve. The Enthusiasts do not want just one Manchurian Candidates on their sem faculty. They want the bench full of them.
   
4. James Tiefel presided over the most feminist, Pietistic, and Growthy hymnal in Lutheran history. To defend their feminist Creeds (note the plural), WELS hauled out heresiarch Ted Hartwig, of Two Isaiahs fame (Mary Lou College).
   
5. The Doctrinal Pussycats have sat around "with their teeth in their mouths," to use a Midwestern expression. Doctrinal oversight must mean "to overlook, to ignore, to extend the Left Foot of Fellowship to anyone who notices the change."

After years of grabbing power and saying, "You must listen to us, because we hold the office that gives us authority," the Chicaneries are now furiously fighting the top official, who was elected to undo their harm. Some recent exits include:

1. Wayne Mueller, former First VP, denying/promoting Church Growth;
   
2. Peter Kruschel, another Love Shack drone;
   
3. Dave Kehl, in the control tower for the Love Shack's Airport;
   
4. Bruce Becker (Love Shack and Chicanery board);
   
5. Paul Calvin Kelm, DMin, AARP (The CORE Bible study leader);
   
6. Elton Stroh, who turns imaginary churches around;
   
7. Mark Goeglein, the genius behind Cross-Cultural, MLK, and Latin American disasters.

Congregations are paying the price for 30 years of seminary mis-education, leveraged by sage advice from Chicaneries Patterson and Kelm. Recall, if you will, that Patterson led a group of WELS workers to the Exponential Conference, possibly the worst confab of wacko Enthusiasts in the land. Recall, also, that Kelm resisted all efforts to disinvite Leonard Sweet (New Ager) as Chicanery Conference speaker. Not only that, Kelm refused to address the issue on his own secret Chicanery listserve, even though the Shrinkers always say, "You have to sit down with me and tell me my sins instead of going public." As they say on every sportscast, "What is the bottom line?" The bottom line is - WELS seminarians are graduating as lazy Enthusiasts who give horrible sermons, turn worship into entertainment, and embarrass anyone who is even mildly Lutheran.

In one incident, the sermon given by a guest pastor (WELS) was so bad that the lay leaders refused to put it on their website. Parlow/Kelm stopped uploading their downloaded sermons and calling them their own. Ski and Glende gladly agree that their joint sermon ideas and content come from Okie Craig Groeschel. After all, Kelm has no problem giving a Bible study downloaded from the Net. Was that the advice Kelm gave Mequon - more sermon downloads?

It is a sad commentary on Lutheran education that the One Thing Needful is scorned, neglected, and abused. Every single Lutheran pastor has four great opportunities in his congregation: 1. To give original, Biblical sermons, in a quiet and respectful atmosphere, where everyone listens. 2. To lead a liturgical service where the Gospel Promises are emphasized and articulated in a variety of ways. 3. To teach adults and youth the Word of God. 4. To take the Word of God to people in pastoral visitations - to the bereaved, hospitalized, shut-in, and unchurched.

KJV Luke 10:39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. 40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. 41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: 42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. I enjoy the daily albeit anonymous demands that I repent. I also get scornful comments on how no one reads the blog - especially funny when that person reads every single post critical of CG and responds to it. And - how few members I have. Every single comment like that reveals how far they have fallen, not only from the Lutheran confession of the truth, but from the Christian faith entirely. The word for that is apostasy.

KJV 1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart (verb form of apostasy)from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; KJV 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away (apostasy)first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Church and Change is a synod-funded agency for apostasy. That apostasy has reached and permeated synod headquarters, Mequon, and Mary Lou College.