If You Like Church and Change, You Will Love "O Come All Ye Faithful"

We loved it.

I am only posting the link to the music video, for obvious reasons.

The mockery displayed in the video is typical of Shrinkers. For example, when the LCMS pastor posted "Because Christmas is not my birthday," he clearly mocked Holy Communion.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "If You Like Church and Change, You Will Love "O Co...":

The only thing is that by watching this video you are going to lose over 6 minutes of you life that you will never get back. You are much better off reading a couple of Psalms in that time that is otherwise wasted.

However, the ironic thing is that many would find no problem with doing "Oh Come All Ye Faithfull" in that heavy rock style. After all isn't it "becoming all things to all people?" The sobering fact should be clear that Twisted Sister is mocking what is a beautiful Christmas song...and they know it. They (TS) must laugh heartily when many Christians today would actually think they are doing God's will by copying their antics.

Remember the Rock anthem, then Christian rock anthem, then Rock anthem once again, (this time by KISS), called "God Gave Rock and Roll to You?"

God gave rock and roll to you, gave rock and roll to you, put it in the soul of everyone.

Same refrain for every band that has done the song.

Baby Blue Eyes Explained

Baby Blue Eyes sees nothing wrong, and if it is wrong, it's harmless.
Baby Blue Eyes will cry if Holy Mother Synod is criticized.

Ichabodians know that the Chicaneries never tell the truth - they even deny belonging to Church and Change. Their hearts and minds are wrapped around Fuller, Willow Creek, Granger, Stetzer, NorthPoint, Exponential, Trinity Deerfield, and Leonard Sweet, but "they are not Changers." Ask Vicar Gurgle, whose dad at Mequon posted a Chicanery diatribe on the Church and Change listserve.

Ask Kudu Don Patterson, who led a Bible study of sorts at a Church and Chicanery conference.

The Baby Blue Eyes are a different breed, easily exploited by the Shrinkers. Holy Mother WELS can do no wrong, so there must be something terribly evil about anyone who suggests otherwise.

All the false teachers are "nice guys." How could a classmate be wrong about anything?

Worse, they are relatives. Blood is thicker than doctrine in all denominations. For instance, I wondered how Pope John the Malefactor (Little Sect on the Prairie) could stay in office. Then I read that someone named Moldstad helped found the ELS. Case closed.

Officially entered into Ichaslang.

Civil War in WELS - On Bailing Water

From: "Donald Patterson" kududon@gmail.com
To: bethanylutheranworship@gmail.com
Subject: don't be a fool

Hey, Greg,

I am not a part of Church and Change Leadership. I went to one conference a few years ago and had my own reservations. Also, Robert Timmerman does not serve as a church council pres at our church. You are lying on your blog.

Don

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Civil War in WELS - On Bailing Water":

Patterson is on the short list for VP - look out.

On Bailing Water

Monday, July 13, 2009
Civil War in the WELS ?

Greetings!

I've been following this blog since its inception, most of the time in general amusement, and often in perplexity. However, I have decided to weigh in on a comment I read recently - actually, a couple. The individual surmised that perhaps the WELS is heading toward a "civil war." Others then made reference to the incorrectly-named conflict among the states of the United States. As the Confederacy was in no way interested in taking over the U.S. Federal government - that conflagration was not a "civil war" per se, i.e. Wars of the Roses. However, what we're looking at in the WELS is a "real" civil war, or more correctly - we have already been at war for at least the last 20 years, with a good many small battles before that. The WELS is hopelessly (and I say that admitting that God can do anything) divided into 3 camps. One camp consists of the C&C folks and their hangers-on. Then there's another camp made up of the "Issues in WELS" men and various allies. But by far the largest camp is right in the middle, most of whom want little or nothing to do with the war at all. The battle is for the hearts and minds of this third group. The camp that convinces them that their way is best will win - pure and simple. I should add that there is a very small group who basically feel - "a pox on all your houses!" This then leads to my last observation concerning the comment about whether or not doctrinal issues will be dealt with at the convention. Most WELS Pastors, and a lot of laymen, know that the "real" actual work of the convention is done in the floor committees. In turn, the Presidium has pretty much carte blanche in deciding who chairs these groups and also their make-up. Thus, if the SP has done his work well - and I believe he has - the issues will be dealt with in those meetings, and the memorials which come out of those committees will tell the tale. Also, the recent Ad Hoc Committee obviously dealt with doctrine and practice and called it like it is. I believe the same will be true in the floor committees. Regarding elections: The C&Cers are on the run and hoping to get a man they can depend on into the 1st VP slot. As to finances, it really won't matter too much what is decided since our nation's leaders will continue horrible policies and the economy will not recover any time soon - with the result that more cuts will be needed anyway, regardless of how the convention goes. So, in short, a nasty little quiet war has been raging in WELS behind the scenes for decades. While LCMS and ELCA often do their fighting out in the open, that is seldom, if ever, the case in WELS. I don't see any reason for this pattern to change. I seriously doubt any group will arise at Saginaw and "walk out" of the synod, and I don't think any group will be "thrown out" either. Thus, it may look to many as though very little was done. But I believe our SP will most likely get 75 to 80% of what he needs done, and we will be on our way to fixing many problems that have accumulated over the past 20 years. From my keyboard to God's ear!

Deo Vindice!

John Bunyan - Pilgrim's Progress

William Blake illustrated the book and was buried next to Bunyan, over a century later.

Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress was once the most read book in the English language, after the King James Bible. Bunyan's most read book, after the Bible, was Luther's Commentary on Galatians. I wonder how many Church Growth gurus have read either one.

Bunyan was famous for cursing before his conversion. He did not belong to the Church of England, so he was imprisoned for about 12 years for teaching as a Dissenter. He was released under a new edict of toleration but arrested again. They gave him a little jail cell, special built, where he wrote most of Pilgrim's Progress. In all he wrote 60 books, some of which perished forever because copies were gradually destroyed from being passed along and studied.

Pilgrim's Progress has been turned into an animation, which makes it a great introduction for children.

My copy of Pilgrim's Progress is from the Limited Edition Club, which means - superb paper, color prints tipped in, large print and margins. The book is a pleasure to read for its beauty, but the content surpasses that.

Allegories are difficult to write and often even more difficult to read. Moby Dick and Lord of the Rings have been called allegories.

Pilgrim's Progress...more later. Sassy needs a walk and it is 5:30 AM already.

Paradise Lost: Columbus, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio was central to the old, old ALC of 1930, not to be confused with The ALC of 1960. Lenski and many other great theologians taught at the seminary, which influenced the Augustana Synod and other Lutherans in Lutheran orthodoxy. Much later, the seminary merged with they trendy Hamma seminary of the LCA and went downhill faster than a WELS congregation with blended worship.

In WELS, Columbus was called "the sewer of the synod" for good reason.

Floyd Luther Stolzenburg was kicked out the LCMS ministerium for cause, forced to resign. His wife divorced him for the same reason.

Floyd followed her back to Columbus and began church shopping. Soon he was at St. Paul, German Village. He never joined WELS because St. Paul was not a member of WELS at that time. Floyd also made it clear that he despised WELS.

District VP Paul Kuske got an organization together, Lutheran Parish Resources, first promoted by Floyd, to introduce the local church to Church Growth. Floyd gathered up a bunch of WELS people and pastors, including future Pastor Nitz, to attend a CG workshop at a---gasp--LCMS church.

Floyd also taught CG at St. Paul, German Village.

The local congregations did not want Floyd, so funds were arranged for Roger Zehms (recently divorced) to work with Floyd. That gave Columbus two divorced Church Growth leaders. Wait, there's more.

Marc Schroeder (not related to the SP Mark Schroeder) was the pastor of Prince of Peace. He was also divorced. And he loved the Church Growth Movement.

Out of six (6) local pastors--since Floyd pretended to be one--half were divorced.

The Columbus ministers met at The Donor's house. No one named the sacred name. He was just "The Donor" at LPR meetings. The Donor was also divorced. I did not attend those meetings, which pretended to be circuit meetings.

One day I discovered that the Columbus circuit involved twice as many congregations as the metro area alone. A future DP advised me that the circuit was required by the constitution to meet. And yet, the District VP and Circuit Pastor had not called a meeting in years. Boy, did they resist having a circuit meeting. They fought it tooth and nail.

Some of the fruits of Church Growth in Columbus, WELS:

1. St. Paul, German Village, got much smaller. Robert Schumann and Nitz, both Growthers, did not get along, so the congregation become totally polarized. Schumann was forced out of the ministry and is reputedly an atheist.
   
2. Marc Schroeder was kicked out of WELS, so he and his congregation--lavishly funded by WELS--joined the LCMS.
   
3. Paul Kuske and Robert Schumann supported Floyd getting a job at an independent Lutheran congregation, though Kuske denied it. Floyd promised to commune Masons at his new job.
   
4. Roger Kovaciny joined the ELS and Thoughts of Faith, but resigned from the ELS.
   Roger raised funds at Floyd's new church for Thoughts of Faith.
   
5. Paul Kuske was voted out of office as District VP.
   
6. Doctrinal Pussycat Robert Mueller chose not to run after betraying his own district over the DMLC/NWC Anschluss. No one would stay in the same room with him, so he wisely chose not to run. WELS made him a fake missionary to Russia, which amounted to some free travel time.

Cell Groups Are the Foundation of Pietism and Reformed Doctrine

No, your eyes deceive you. That is a harmless sheep. Go back to sleep.


The quotations about cell groups, below, prove two things:

1. Pietistic lay-led conventicles are essential to the Church Growth Movement.
   
2. WELS promoted cell groups through its educational programs, funded by the offerings of faithful members.

Did WELS know what was going on? Sure! David Kuske studied cell groups and researched cell group operations in WELS. He published an article in The Pope Speaks (Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly). 1991. I think some people were getting alarmed, so Kuske's article made cell groups safe for WELS.

Notice that a lot of my quotations came from a WELS Campus Ministers training event in Madison, Wisconsin, 1990. Hmmm. Would that be where the campus church joined the Willow Creek Association, under Thomas Trapp? Oh my - I just discovered another Church Growth Principle - Use your own guys to promote false doctrine. At the 1990 event, paid for by WELS, various pastors were trained in cell groupism, with a case of books by Occultist Paul Y. Cho brought to the workshop for the participants.

Have you noticed how quickly WELS, the Little Sect, Missouri, and ELCA have grown since Church Growth promotion started in all their groups? Whoosh, the statistics climb ever sky-ward. No?

In fact, cell groups are a great way to turn a Lutheran congregation into an Evangelical Covenant franchise...or a Pentecostal sect. Any doctrine (except Lutheran) will suit cell groups. Lutheran cell groups quickly begin to rely on prayer as a Means of Grace, which paves the way for praying in tongues. After all, where do they get their training manuals - from Pentecostal cell group authors, like Cho and Ortiz and C. Peter Wagner.

Pietism and Cell Groups - Heavily Promoted by WELS, ELS, LCMS, and ELCA

First VP-in-waiting Jim Huebner has advocated Church Growthism for decades. If you liked Wayne Mueller, you'll love Jim Huebner.



From the WELS Silent Witness Program:

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Pietism and Cell Groups - Heavily Promoted by WELS...":

Oh some on you guys,you cynics, I was a member of a small group for several years and NOT ONCE did the pastor of the church under which the small group operated ever ask how it was going, attend or offer a curriculum to follow............ Oh, I guess that's your point.

Further, it was surprising to some of us (most all WELS schooled from elementary age) what "conclusions" we were starting to come up with in our spontaneous and unmonitored study of God's Word. A few of us thought it well to go and seek out pastoral assistance and get the correct answer to some of the questions we found ourselves facing. That helped. Some wanted to follow a printed Bible study book produced by the synod. One person (born and schooled in WELS and now Evangelical Free Church) fiercely objected to that idea and insisted that we do a free and spontaneous study of God's Word without being "lead to a conclusion through a synod produced guide."

I have also personally heard others' "conclusions" to their small group studies (also unlikely monitor or properly lead) come up with wild things. I remember two people discussing their recent small group and saying, "maybe WELS should encourage women to be pastors since we are having such a shortage and few graduating seminary. If men aren't willing to step up and do it, then maybe God is asking the women of the church to do it" (this was back in about 1999 when there were rumblings of fewer pastors). Then they started to sight (sic) passages in the Old Testament that I think had to do with an unusual situation, and I am sorry I can't refer to it now, but I think it was a passage that more referred to God's judgment on his people. Anyway, these kids were way over their heads and I knew it. I knew at this point that it was more about "look at what everyone is doing at our church, look at the zeal" than it was about true shepherding by a called minister of the Word. I guess you could call it Free Range theology. I lost my patience and left.

I never could understand why the pastor so fervently pushed small groups and showed so little interest in leading them or monitoring them. The fruit is now coming to bear and it ain't pretty.

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Appendix, Chapter 7, TSW: Cell Group Quotations

At the end of the chapter in Thy Strong Word.

The lay-led cell group or conventicle is at the heart of Pietism, Reformed doctrine, and the Church Growth Movement. Below are quotations from WELS, LCMS, and various non-Lutherans, all saying approximately the same thing in favor of cell groups.



J-788

"Small Group Fellowships are not, as is sometimes supposed, a formal Bible class. Instead, Small Group Fellowships are a 'relationship,' a relationship among members of the group, a relationship with God, a relationship based on and centered in the Word of God. Small Group Fellowships are gatherings of people who study God's Word together and then put the Word into action together by (a) applying it to their lives, (b) by worshiping the Triune God, and (c) by serving others—sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ and their very lives."
Campus Ministry Foundation (WELS), Inc., Small Group Fellowships, Madison: Campus Ministry Foundation, 1990, p. 3.



J-789

"The Rationale for Small Groups...5. It Follows Biblical Practice. a. Jesus and the Twelve Apostles (Jesus concentrated on investing Himself in His small group of disciples to teach and model spiritual truth, attitudes and behavior for them and to train them to be spiritual leaders. b. The Early Christians (Acts 2:42-47; 16:40; 20:20-21).
WELS Campus Pastors, Small Group Training Conference, Jan. 7-9, 1991, Madison. p. 3.


J-790

"Small Group Fellowships are lay-led."
Campus Ministry Foundation (WELS), Inc., Small Group Fellowships, Madison: Campus Ministry Foundation, 1990, p. 8.

J-791

[Aderman - Church and Change leader, lost half his membership at Fairview]
"HomeWORD Bound Groups, Fairview (WELS), Milwaukee, WI. The Boards of Elders and Education of Fairview Ev. Lutheran Church Prayerfully Extend A DIVINE CALL to____________________ To Lead a Small Group Bible Study along with ________. Purpose: A Bible study leader in Fairview's HomeWord Bound program shall facilitate lay-led, home Bible studies which assist Fairview in its ministry...."
WELS Campus Pastors, Small Group Training Conference, Jan. 7-9, 1991, Madison.

J-792

"Definition: 'A small group within the church is a voluntary intentional gathering of people, varying in number, regularly meeting together for mutual Christian purposes.' - Serendipity
WELS Campus Pastors, Small Group Training Conference, Jan. 7-9, 1991, Madison. p. 2.

J-793

"Types of Home Groups, by Karen Hurston (Church Growth Assoc.), from material by Bob Fulton."
WELS Campus Pastors, Small Group Training Conference, Jan. 7-9, 1991, Madison. p. 10.

J-794

"A Look at Several WELS Small Group Ministries. 1. Fairview in Milwaukee (Pastor Jim Aderman) 2. Wisconsin Lutheran Chapel in Madison (Mr. Rolf Wegenke) 3. Emanuel in New London (Pastor Steve Witte)"[62]
WELS Campus Pastors, Small Group Training Conference, Jan. 7-9, 1991, Madison. p. 19.

J-795

"A cell group is the basic part of our church. It is not another church program—it is the program of our church."
Dr. Paul Y. Cho (with R. Whitney Manzano), More Than Numbers, Waco: Word Books, 1984, p. 42. [Cho - an occultist - lectured at Fuller, had his books promoted by WELS evangelism leaders.]

J-796

"We have many different types of cell groups. I have found that there is a basic sociological principle which must be maintained in order for them to be successful. The principle is one of homogeneity."[63]
Dr. Paul Y. Cho (with R. Whitney Manzano), More Than Numbers, Waco: Word Books, 1984, p. 44.


J-797

"Students of Church Growth realize that a good structure for the church that really wants to grow is the organization of celebration plus congregation plus cell. When we see the importance of the organization of the church we are looking with 'Church Growth Eyes.' We are looking from an x-ray perspective and understanding the internal organs of the body of Christ—the Church!"
Kent R. Hunter, Launching Growth in the Local Congregation, A Workbook for Focusing Church Growth Eyes, Detroit: Church Growth Analysis and Learning Center, 1980, p. 81.

J-798

"In an article on the small group movement, J. A. Gorman notes that 'both the Church Growth Institute of Fuller Seminary and the American Institute of Church Growth became centers for influencing the use of this means for evangelizing." (Christian Education, Moody Press, 1991, pp. 509, 510)
Prof. David Kuske, "Home Bible Study Groups in the 1990s," Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly, Spring, 1994. p. 126.

J-701.1

"This writer's acquaintance with this current phenomenon is threefold: 1) he has attended one of the workshops held by Lyman Coleman; 2) he has read about a dozen books in the last ten years coming from evangelical sources [i.e. false teachers] that deal with small groups either wholly or in part; 3) he has also inquired about why a number of WELS congregations have begun to conduct small group Bible study and how they have structured these groups."[64]
Prof. David Kuske, "Home Bible Study Groups in the 1990s," Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly, Spring, 1994. p. 127.

J-702.1

"PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY AT CROSSROADS...Conduct seeker services... Provide small group leadership. At Crossroads, as people come to know Jesus they are encouraged to participate in groups of 8 to 10 people who meet weekly for 2 years of fellowship, holding one another accountable, discipleship training, encouragement and support. 1 Thessalonians. 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up."
Pastor Rick Miller, (WELS), Crossroads Community Church, 1 Thessalonians 5:11. [Crossroads is now Evangelical Covenant, and the pastor thanks three WELS ministers for getting the church going - Miller, Mark Freier, and Kelly Voigt - all WELS CG heroes.]

J-703.1

"Every disciple had responsibility over two types of cells, one cell where he formed the lives of the new converts, and another cell where he took the most advanced of those new converts and taught them how to be leaders, knowing that cell would soon be divided and the most advanced disciples put over additional cells. So came the multiplication." Juan Carlos Ortiz, Call to Discipleship, Plainfield: Logos International, 1975, p. 101. "A cell has five elements: 1) devotion; 2) discussion; 3) programming; 4) mobilization; 5) multiplication. It takes all five to form a cell group." Juan
Carlos Ortiz, Call to Discipleship, Plainfield: Logos International, 1975, p. 106.

J-704.1

"The cell groups are used to teach sound doctrine...Sound doctrine is not just belief in the millennium, the rapture, and the tribulation."
Juan Carlos Ortiz, Call to Discipleship, Plainfield: Logos International, 1975, p. 111.

J-705.1

"Another cause for the misplacement of believers is the Sunday school. The early church knew nothing about Sunday schools. They knew the best way for believers to grow and multiply is not through Bible lectures, but through living cells. This means small groups of four or five persons who meet in homes under a leader so their lives may be shaped so they may mobilize and multiply themselves in other cells."
Juan Carlos Ortiz, Call to Discipleship, Plainfield: Logos International, 1975, p. 29.

J-706.1

"Resources mentioned in this 'Bulletin' are available from CHURCH GROWTH, 709 E. Colorado Blvd. #150, Pasadena, CA 91101. Or call 1-800-423-4844."
Pastor Jim Radloff, editor, Mission Counselor Newsletter, Austin, Texas, May, 1988. [Radloff wrote the new memorial to get rid of both prep schools at once.]

J-707.1

"Types of Home Groups, by Karen Hurston (Church Growth Assoc.), from material by Bob Fulton. Copied with the permission of Charles Arn."
Pastor Jim Radloff, editor, WELS Mission Counselors' Newsletter, Oct., '91, 2929 Mayfair Road, Milwaukee, WI 53222 p. 11.

J-708.1

"The dynamics of assimilation into active church membership have very little to do with theological issues. Rather, a new members' class should focus primarily on relational issues of involvement and belonging." (Defining an Assimilated Member, by Charles Arn, copied with permission from EVANGELISM, 12800 North Lake Shore Drive, Mequon, WI, 53092. Annual subscription rate for EVANGELISM is $12...Charles Arn is Vice President of Church Growth, Inc. in Monrovia, Ca.)
Pastor Jim Radloff, editor, WELS Mission Counselors' Newsletter, Oct., '91, 2929 Mayfair Road, Milwaukee, WI 53222 p. 150. [Larry Olson also wrote for EVANGELISM, which was 100% Church Growth.]

J-709.1

"What Are Affinity Groups? by Pastor Wayne Vogt, Fount of Life, Colorado Springs, CO."
Pastor Jim Radloff, editor, WELS Mission Counselors' Newsletter, Oct., '91, 2929 Mayfair Road, Milwaukee, WI 53222 p. 8.

J-710.1

WELS Mission Counselors' NEWSLETTER, April, 1992: authors are - James Woodworth, Disciples of Christ; "Net Results," March, 1991; Roger K. Guy, Disciples of Christ; Arnell P. C. Arn, American Baptist Church; Jane Easter Bahls, Presbyterian; C. Jeff Woods, freelance writer and minister; Lyle Schaller, United Methodist; Pastor Paul Kelm; Pastor Jim Mumm, WELS; Pastor Peter Panitzke, WELS; Pastor Randall Cutter and Mark Freier, WELS; First Congretional Church, Winchester, MA." [65]
Pastor Jim Radloff, editor, WELS Mission Counselors' Newsletter, April, '92, 2929 Mayfair Road Milwaukee, WI 53222

J-711.1

"The church is no longer the community of those who have been called by the Word and the Sacraments, but association of the reborn, of those who 'earnestly desire to be Christians'...The church in the true sense consists of the small circles of pietists, the 'conventicles,' where everyone knows everyone else and where experiences are freely exchanged."
Martin Schmidt, "Pietism," The Encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church, 3 vols., ed. Julius Bodensieck, Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1965, III, p. 1899.

J-712.1

"Some 15 years ago, Peter Wagner's equation read 'Cells + Congregation + Celebration = Church.'"
Ken Sidey, "Church Growth Fine Tunes Its Formulas," Christianity Today, June 24, 1991, p. 46.

J-713.1

"Wouldn't it be terrible to sleep through the Second Reformation? Cell Group Churches. The New Lifestyle For New Wineskins. Cell Group Churches Are Really Different! A 'Cell Group' Church is built on the fact that all Christians are ministers, and that there is no 'professional clergy' hired to do the work of ministry. According to Ephesians 4, God has provided 'Gifted Men' to equip 'Believers Who Are Gifted' to do the work of ministry...The life of the church is in its Cells, not in a building. While it has weekly worship events, the focus of the church is in the home Cells."
Touch Outreach Ministries, P.O. Box 19888 Houston, TX 77079 1-800-735-5865.

J-714.1

"Cell Groups For Reaching The Unchurched Are Called...SHARE GROUPS. Touch Outreach Ministries has spent many years experimenting with the best way to train Cell Group members to form 'Sub-Groups' called SHARE GROUPS which specifically target evangelizing the unchurched. SHARE GROUPS are 'pre-Bible study' Cells, which bond relationships between three Christians and six unbelievers. A series of three small books are used over a 27-week period of training. The first book, called 'BUILDING BRIDGES, OPENING HEARTS,' guides the SHARE GROUP Team through the first part of the strategy."
Touch Outreach Ministries, P.O. Box 19888 Houston, TX 77079 1-800-735-5865 p. 7.

J-715.1

"The cell groups have probably become the universal trademark of Full Gospel Central Church...A cell group is a cluster of church members who meet weekly in a home, factory, office, or other place for the purpose of evangelism and Christian fellowship through singing, prayer, Bible study, offering giving, announcements, sharing of needs, and praises and ministry to one another."
John N. Vaughan, The World's Twenty Largest Churches, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1984, p. 44.

J-716.1

"Cell. Sometimes called a kinship circle; a small group of 8-12 believers; an important part of the church's structure which has the primary functions of spiritual accountability and intimacy and secondary functions of Bible, prayer, and healing."
C. Peter Wagner, ed., with Win Arn and Elmer Towns, Church Growth: The State of the Art, Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1986, p. 283.

J-717.1

"Cell groups of Christians fellowshipping together date back to the first century, for it was largely through the activities of little groups or cells of believers that the message of Jesus Christ spread throughout the Roman Empire."
Waldo J. Werning, The Radical Nature of Christianity, Church Growth Eyes Look at the Supernatural Mission of the Christian and the Church, South Pasadena: William Carey Library, 1975, p. 93.

J-718.1

"Bible studies from Serendipity. Serendipity makes available Bibles (with outlines and discussion questions) and topical study booklets for adults and teen-agers. See appendix D for sample study courses. Order a SERENDIPITY SMALL GROUP RESOURCES CATALOG from Serendipity, P.O. Box 1012, Littleton, CO, 80160 or call 1-800-525-9583 (In CO call 1-303-798-1313)."
Notebook, WELS School of Outreach IV, p. 225.

J-719.1

"Introduction to Small Group Ministry outline. Evangelism Office. Buy the book Good Things Come in Small Groups, Intervarsity Press. Small Group Bible Study Materials, Serendipity, Littleton, CO (1-800-525-9563)."
WELS Evangelism Workshop IV, LOCATING THE LOST, Five Year Plan For Outreach, p. 177. [Here is the Kelm circle again - advocating Dreck from false teachers.]

Chicanery Outreach Means Reaching Out, Into Your Pockets

When Calvinists Were Still Crypto

Crypto-Calvinists, Then and Now

Read the chapter for free here.

Before Luther's death, most of the doctrinal battles were against the Medieval errors of Roman Catholicism. After his death in 1546, the errors of John Calvin began to undermine Lutheran doctrine. Calvin's errors, in this controversy, concerned the two natures of Christ as well as the Lord's Supper. What someone believes about Christ will inevitably be reflected in what he believes about Holy Communion. Calvin could not believe that the resurrected Christ could pass through solid walls (John 20:19).



J-737

“They [the Lutherans] object that Christ went forth from the closed sepulcher [Matthew 28:6] and went to His disciples through closed doors [John 20:19]. This gives no more support to their error. For just as the water, like a solid pavement, provided Christ with a path as He walked upon the lake [Matthew 14:25], so it is no wonder if the hardness of the stone yielded at His approach. Yet it is more probable that the stone was removed at His command, and immediately after He passed through, returned to its place. And to enter through closed doors means not just penetrating through solid matter but opening an entrance for Himself by divine power, so that He suddenly stood among His disciples clearly, in a wonderful way, although the doors were locked.”

John Calvin, ed. John T. McNeill, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 2 vols., Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960, II, p. 1400. Book IV, XVII, #29.



Similarly, Calvin could not accept the Real Presence of Christ with the elements of the Lord's Supper.[25] In addition, he separated the work of the Holy Spirit from the Word, so the Sacraments of Holy Communion and Baptism were symbolic and not effective in Calvin's thought. Once again, Melanchthon's unionism, timidity, and lack of honesty played a tragic part in launching the evil Crypto-Calvinist party. His desire for union with Calvin's Geneva and with Rome caused Melanchthon to change his views and try to strike a compromising position somewhere between the truth, Rome, and Geneva.

As early as 1535, Melanchthon harbored anti-Lutheran views, but hid them from Luther. By 1540 Melanchthon had changed the Augsburg Confession to conform with Calvin's views! Many people are still astonished today that Luther's co-worker could alter a confession of the Lutheran Church on his own. That is why Lutheran denominations adhere to the "Unaltered Augsburg Confession" or UAC, as found on church cornerstones. Melanchthon urged his followers to dissimulate, to cleverly deceive, rather than reveal their positions to the pure Lutherans. Modern Crypto-Calvinists, in the Church Growth Movement, also refuse to state their doctrinal beliefs.



J-738

"To all practical purposes the University of Wittenberg was already Calvinized. Calvinistic books appeared and were popular. Even the work of a Jesuit against the book of Jacob Andreae on the Majesty of the Person of Christ was published at Wittenberg. The same was done with a treatise of Beza, although, in order to deceive the public, the title-page gave Geneva as the place of publication. Hans Lufft, the Wittenberg printer, later declared that during this time he did not know how to dispose of the books of Luther which he still had in stock, but that, if he had printed twenty or thirty times as many Calvinistic books, he would have sold all of them very rapidly."

F. Bente, Concordia Triglotta, Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 189.





Joachim Westphal was the one of the first to warn Lutherans of the influence of Calvinism. John Calvin caused confusion by his early agreement with the Lutheran position. Melanchthon secretly converted to Calvin’s position on the Lord’s Supper. Westphal's polemics brought out Calvin's polemics, which clarified the differences between the two confessions. During this period of time, a group of Philipp Melanchthon's followers in Wittenberg conspired to surrender Luther's Reformation to the Calvinists. They convinced the Elector August that they were faithful Lutherans. These secret Calvinists (Crypto-Calvinists) also encouraged the Elector to drive out the genuine Lutherans, accusing the faithful men of being heretics! Luther predicted this would happen.

The Crypto-Calvinists gathered Melanchthon’s writings into a Corpus Philippicum with the approval of Melanchthon. The group of writings included Melanchthon's false doctrine and excluded Luther's writings. Those who did not subscribe to the document were deposed and driven out of their church positions. Early success made the Crypto-Calvinists bolder. They surrounded Elector August and convinced him to persecute sincere Lutherans as zealots and trouble-makers. Calvinist books were promoted to such a degree in Wittenberg that Luther's books remained unsold. The theologians craftily published a book, Exegesis Perspicua, which advocated union with the Calvinists, surrendering all doctrinal points to Calvin. Their triumph opened the eyes of the naive Elector, but one more stroke destroyed them in their cleverness.




The Crypto-Calvinists Self-Destruct



After Luther's death in 1546, Melanchthon's followers, with his help, conspired to replace Luther's doctrine with Calvin's at Wittenberg, Leipzig, and across Germany. Their stealth book, Exegesis Perspicua, revealed their dishonesty and allegiance to Calvin. Elector August, a faithful Lutheran who had been deceived by the Crypto-Calvinists, was angered and humiliated. The Crypto-Calvinists added to their fame as liars in 1574, when a Calvinist devotional book was delivered to the wrong person.



J-739

"By mistake the letter was delivered to the wife of the court-preacher Lysthenius....After opening the letter and finding it to be written in Latin, she gave it to her husband, who, in turn, delivered it to the Elector. In it Peucer requested Schuetze dexterously to slip into the hands of Anna, the wife of the Elector, a Calvinistic prayer-book which he had sent with the letter. Peucer added: 'If first we have Mother Anna on our side, there will be no difficulty in winning His Lordship [her husband] too.' Additional implicating material was discovered when Augustus now confiscated the correspondence of Peucer, Schuetze, Stoessel, and Cracow. The letters found revealed the consummate perfidy, dishonesty, cunning, and treachery of the men who had been the trusted advisers of the Elector, who had enjoyed his implicit confidence, and who by their falsehoods had caused him to persecuted hundreds of innocent and faithful Lutheran ministers. The fact was clearly established that these Philippists had been systematically plotting to Calvinize Saxony. The very arguments with which Luther's doctrine of the Lord's Supper and the Person of Christ might best be refuted were enumerated in these letters. However, when asked by the Elector whether they were Calvinists, these self-convicted deceivers are said to have answered that 'they would not see the face of God in eternity if in any point they were addicted to the doctrines of the Sacramentarians or deviated in the least from Dr. Luther's teaching.' (Walther, 56.)"

F. Bente, Concordia Triglotta, Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 190



The sly letter enclosed with the book from Melanchthon's son-in-law, suggested that Elector August be converted through his wife Anna. August ordered an investigation, which revealed even more intrigue. The Crypto-Calvinists were thrown into prison. August took on a leadership role in restoring genuine Lutheran doctrine. Martin Chemnitz, Jacob Andreae, and Nicholas Selnecker were made trusted advisors to August.[26]

As horrible as the Crypto-Calvinist reign appeared at the time, their excesses and sudden collapse provided a God-given way to unite Lutherans in a common confession. At the Colloquy of Worms in 1557, the Lutherans were divided, thanks to Melanchthon, and the Romanists refused to negotiate with them. Many unity efforts failed, until Jacob Andreae published his Six Christian Sermons in 1573. Andreae's sermons, the collapse of the Crypto-Calvinists, and Martin Chemnitz' leadership all combined to generate movement toward the Formula of Concord.



J-740

"What really gave Andreae a break and promoted his unity endeavors was the exposure of the Crypto-Calvinists in Wittenberg in 1574. Thus all three groups of true Lutherans were for the first time in many years to sit down at the table and devote their efforts to their internal problems. Just about this time Andreae providentially published his Six Christian Sermons. At this point and on these sermons Chemnitz was willing to talk."

J. A. O. Preus, The Second Martin, The Life and Theology of Martin Chemnitz, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1994, p. 183.









J-741

"The Exegesis perspicua [1573] marked the end of the hidden and underhanded efforts of those within Saxony who had espoused Calvinism. Everything was out in the open. These men repudiated the sacramental union, the oral eating of the body of Christ, and the eating of the body by the wicked. They held that Christ's body is enclosed in heaven and Christ is present in the Supper only in His power. There is no union of the body of Christ with the bread. The ubiquity doctrine of Brenz is repudiated as Eutychianism, and ancient heresy that asserted that after the union of the divine and human natures in Christ only one nature remained. Believers who participated in the Supper, the Wittenbergers asserted, become members of Christ who is present and efficacious through the symbols of bread and wine. They lavished praise on the Reformed and urged immediate union with them in opposition to the papacy."

J. A. O. Preus, The Second Martin, The Life and Theology of Martin Chemnitz, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1994, p. 175f.



The Formula of Concord required the cooperation of Andreae, Chemnitz, Selnecker, David Chytraeus, Musculus, and Cornerus.[27] Most people could not abide Andreae, because of his tactless, overbearing, and self-willed nature, but he was crucial in getting the work started and completed. Chemnitz was the dominant theologian, but the others all contributed significant insights to the Formula, which was signed in 1577. The Book of Concord, which includes the Ecumenical Creeds, the Augsburg Confession, the Apology to the Augsburg Confession, the Smalcald Articles, the Small Catechism, the Large Catechism, and the Formula of Concord, was completed in 1580.



J-742

"Such was the manner in which the Elector allowed himself to be duped by the Philippists who surrounded him, —men who gradually developed the art of dissimulation to premeditated deceit, falsehood, and perjury. Even the Reformed theologian Simon Stenius, a student at Wittenberg during the Crypto-Calvinistic period, charges the Wittenbergers with dishonesty and systematic dissimulation."

F. Bente, Concordia Triglotta, Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 188.


Crypto-Calvinism Now



J-743

"In other words, Zwingli and his numerous adherents declare that the means God has ordained are unnecessary and hinder true piety."

Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, 3 vols., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 104.





J-744

"Calvinism rejects the means of grace as unnecessary; it holds that the Holy Spirit requires no escort or vehicle by which to enter human hearts."

John T. Mueller, "Grace, Means of," Lutheran Cyclopedia, Erwin L. Lueker, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1975, p. 344.



J-745

"The Christian doctrine of the means of grace is abolished by all 'enthusiasts,' all who assume a revealing and effective operation of the Holy Spirit without and alongside the divinely ordained means of grace."

Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, 3 vols., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 127.



J-746

"Our opponents hold that saving faith must be founded on Christ Himself, not on the means of grace. This reasoning, common to the Reformed, the 'enthusiasts' of all shades, and modern 'experience' theologians, assumes that faith can and should be based on Christ to the exclusion of the means of grace."

Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, 3 vols., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 152.



J-747

"The specific Reformed cultus, due to the Reformed denial of the efficacy and objective nature of the Means of Grace, represents a quest after the grace of God revolving around human agency and subjective experience. The Lutheran cultus places the grace of God nigh unto the sinner in the Means of Grace."

Th. Engelder, W. Arndt, Th. Graebner, F. E. Mayer, Popular Symbolics, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1934, p. 21.



J-748

"The Reformed are simply deluding themselves in claiming Scripture support for their teaching regarding the means of grace. Their teaching is not derived from the Bible."

Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, 3 vols., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 150.





J-749

"The doctrine of salvation through the Means of Grace is distinctive of Lutheranism. The Catholic churches have no use for means of grace, for a Gospel and for Sacraments which offer salvation as a free gift. And the Reformed churches, while they hold, in general, that salvation is by grace, repudiate the Gospel and the Sacraments as the means of grace. It is clear that matters of fundamental importance are involved. The chief article of the Christian religion, justification by faith, stands and falls with the article of the Means of Grace. Justification by faith means absolutely nothing without the Means of Grace, whereby the righteousness gained by Christ is bestowed and faith, which appropriates the gift, is created."

The. Engelder, W. Arndt, Th. Graebner, F. E. Mayer, Popular Symbolics, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1934, p. 4f.



J-750

"This downplaying of the importance of the means of grace on the part of many in the Church Growth Movement would seem to stem from several factors."[28]

David J. Valleskey, "The Church Growth Movement: An Evaluation," Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly, Spring, 1991 88, p. 105. Holidaysburg, 10-15-90.[29] [emphasis added]



J-751

"Observe, then, the depreciative, contemptuous, and scorning ring in the words of the Reformed when they speak of the sacred Means of Grace, the Word and the Sacraments, and the grand majestic ring in the words of the Lord and the apostles when they speak of these matters...The true reason for the Reformed view is this: They do not know how a person is to come into possession of the divine grace, the forgiveness of sin, righteousness in the sight of God, and eternal salvation. Spurning the way which God has appointed, they are pointing another way, in accordance with new devices which they have invented."

C. F. W. Walther, The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel, trans., W. H. T. Dau, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1928, p. 152f.

WELS Laity Know the Score Now

Lie down with Schwaermer, get up with stingers embedded.

Email:

The last two days (Tuesday and Wednesday) you have really posted hard-hitting material on the big I. I do not think you could have spelled it out any better than you did.

Why we subscribe to the Book of Concord and why the Changers are the crypto-Calvinists of our time in WELS.

I am glad to hear that the WELS pastors are bending the officials' ears. I think this convention should be about whether we want to be Lutheran or non-Lutheran.

The schools are meaningless unless WELS wants to be Lutheran. People are really speaking out.

***

GJ - The false teachers being exposed think it is unfair to quote them, link their websites, and catalog their offenses against the Christian faith. When the synod controlled the information, and the Shrinkers controlled the official magazine, the laity thought everything was hunky-dory.

Isn't it odd that the crypto-Calvinists were so allergic to the word Lutheran that they had to get rid of it on the masthead of the official magazine?

Given the dominant content of FIC (nee The Northwestern Lutheran), a better name would have been The Milwaukee Bee.

---

"Luther protested against Rome's soul-destroying teachings and reformed the Church by restoring the pure doctrine of God's Word. Zwingli hoped to reform the Church by abolishing Rome's superstitious practices. Calvin believed that a complete reformation implied two things: First, it was necessary to abolish all ceremonies, even those which were in use in the ancient Church, such as the liturgy, the church year, pulpits, altars; secondly, a truly reformed Church must follow the pattern of the Apostolic Church in all its church practices and adopt the form of church government given to Israel in the Old Testament."
F. E. Mayer, American Churches, Beliefs and Practices, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1946, p. 24.

"The divine power must never be separated from the Word of Scripture; that is to say, the Holy Ghost does not operate beside or outside the Word (enthusiasm, Calvinism, Rathmannism in the Lutheran Church), but always in and through the Word, Romans 10:17; 1 Peter 1:23; John 6:23."
John Theodore Mueller, Christian Dogmatics, A Handbook of Doctrinal Theology, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1934, p. 134f. Romans 10:17; John 6:23; 1 Peter 1:23.

"The doctrine of the means of grace is understood properly only when it is considered in the light of Christ's redemptive work (satisfactio vicaria) and the objective justification, or reconciliation, 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, which He secured by His substitutionary obedience (satisfactio vicaria). If these two doctrines are corrupted (Calvinism: denial of the gratia universalis; synergism: denial of sola gratia), then also the Scripture doctrine of the means of grace will become perverted." John Theodore Mueller, Christian Dogmatics, A Handbook of Doctrinal Theology, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1934, p. 442. 2 Corinthians 5:19-20.

"Calvinism rejects the means of grace as unnecessary; it holds that the Holy Spirit requires no escort or vehicle by which to enter human hearts."
John T. Mueller, "Grace, Means of," Lutheran Cyclopedia, Erwin L. Lueker, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1975, p. 344.

"Pietist preachers were anxious to discover and in a certain sense to separate the invisible congregation from the visible congregation. They had to meet demands different than those of the preceding period: they were expected to witness, not in the objective sense, as Luther did, to God's saving acts toward all men, but in a subjective sense of faith, as they themselves had experienced it. In this way Pietism introduced a tendency toward the dissolution of the concept of the ministry in the Lutheran Church."
Helge Nyman, "Preaching (Lutheran): History," The Encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church, 3 vols., ed. Julius Bodensieck, Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1965, III, p. 1943.

"All those doctrinal questions which were not immediately connected with the personal life of faith were avoided. The standard for the interpretation of Scripture thus became the need of the individual for awakening, consolation, and exhortation. The congregation as a totality was lost from view; in fact, pietistic preaching was (and is) more apt to divide the congregation than to hold it together."
Helge Nyman, "Preaching (Lutheran): History," The Encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church, 3 vols., ed. Julius Bodensieck, Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1965, III, p. 1943.

"Pietism greatly weakened the confessional consciousness which was characteristic of orthodox Lutheranism."
Helge Nyman, "Preaching (Lutheran): History," The Encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church, 3 vols., ed. Julius Bodensieck, Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1965, III, p. 1945.

"In other words, Zwingli and his numerous adherents declare that the means God has ordained are unnecessary and hinder true piety."
Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, 3 vols., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 104.

True Confessions

Martin Chemnitz was superbly qualified to be the chief author of the Formula of Concord and senior editor of the Book of Concord, 1580.

False teachers like to change the subject and use the straw man logical fallacy. Some examples:

1. I worship Jesus, not Martin Luther. Straw man.
   
2. The Bible did not fall out of the sky from heaven. Straw man.
   
3. The only true Word of God is the Bible. Changing the subject (ignoratio elenchi.)
   

They will explain that the word Trinity is not in the Bible, ignoring the revelation of the Trinity hundreds of times, including the Old Testament.

False teachers will also confess that the word Sacrament is not found as such in the Bible, in spite of Chemnitz teaching how newer words (like Trinity) are used as shorthand to discuss a Biblical truth.

The official statement about the two norms are: The Canonical Scriptures are the ruling norm (norma normans) and the Book of Concord is the ruled norm (norma normata).

So, the right way to talk about the Book of Concord is thus - "I believe the Book of Concord is a correct exposition of the Scriptures." (quia subscription)

A qualified subscription is called a quatenus subscription and is often used to argue against the Confessions - "I believe the Book of Concord is correct insofar (quatenus) it agrees with the Word of God."

The old Synod Conference parts (LCMS, WELS, the Little Sect on the Prairie) and their offscourings (LCR, CLC, CLC, etc) are officially hotter than a Phoenix sidewalk for the quia subscription.

Unofficially, they treat their Midwestern Pietistic forefathers as the Twelve Apostles. All argumentation starts with the quest for the historical Walther and other sentimental rubbish.

The Chicaneries, for instance, try to wrap themselves in Biblical piety. After all, only the Scriptures count. Forget not the wonders of Wauwatosa.

In their ignorance they overlook the distinction between the revelation of God and the confession of man. The Book of Concord does not compete with the Scriptures. The Confessions do not supplant the Word of God. Our Book of Concord is our confession of faith, just as the Ecumenical Creeds are. In fact, the Book of Concord starts with the three Creeds of Christendom.

The faked Biblical piety is a mask for the Calvinism of their agenda, which they no longer hide. As the preface to the History of Pietism says, crypto-Calvinism is no longer crypto with Valleskey's "spoiling the Egyptians," endorsed by the Wisconsin Lutheran Quarterly and the District Pussycats.

What is the use feigning a quia subscription while providing massive amounts of money to Schwaermer schools and conferences?

In the last 25 years, the path to promotion in all the synods has been time spent at Fuller, Willow Creek, or Trinity Deerfield. Ask Larry Olson, Our Staph Infection. Or Jim Huebner, First-VP-in Waiting.

The button to push for immediate defenestration is criticism of the Church Growth Movement. The Left Foot of Fellowship has been extended many times.

Tell me, you who hold the Church Growth Movement so dear - does Fuller Seminary spend as much time defending Lutheran as you spend defending theirs? Do they suggest Luther's books to their confused and confusing students?

Victory of the Movie Screen - Update - WELSians Are Waking Up

Church and Chicanery has its own pair of rocker-bloggers.

Some people found the eye-witness account of Victory of the Movie Screen shocking, but they are not as jaded as I am.

Pastor Roger Zehms, VP Paul Kuske, and ex-pastor Floyd Stolzenburg started their own little "experimental mission," called Pilgrim Community Church. That was 20 years ago. DP Robert Mueller approved the stealth mission, but it flopped. Only one person openly opposed it - moi - yielding a multi-page venomous diatribe from Kuske, which he mailed to everyone. 1989.

In 1991, a few months after agreeing in public that Church Growth was dangerous, Doctrinal Pussycat Robert Mueller approved the start-up of Crossroads Community Church in S. Lyons, Michigan. That "experimental mission" is now a proud member of the Evangelical Covenant sect, sharing the same doctrinal statements (more or less verbatim) with CrossWalk (quasi-WELS) in Phoenix, a more recent "experimental mission."

There are three reactions to reading the truth about Victory of the Movie Screen, The CORE, Latte Lutheran Church, Cross-Something in Chicago, CrossWalk in Phoenix, and Rock N Roll in Round Rock, Texas.

One - disgust and fury with a synod, DPs, and Circuit Pussycats who have let this develop and spread like an untreated cancer.

Two - disgust and fury with anyone who dares oppose the designs of Church and Change, although no defender of Chicanery is a "Changer." No, the Chicaneries are a movement without members whenever this is discussed. They are open Calvinists but crypto-Changers, one and all.

Three - Baby Blue-eyes - can't be true - I know these guys are right just fine. Those people are the most dangerous to Lutheran doctrine because they judge the person, not the doctrine. No amount of written evidence is enough because "he is a nice guy." All the Baby Blue-eyes get upset because someone is suggesting Holy Mother Synod might be less than perfect, contrary to what they have been taught. If the organization is infallible, then the Word of God is fallible. If the structure is worshiped and defended, Christian doctrine is attacked and left undefended, if only through apathy.

WELS Prayer Institute Promotion For the July Synod Convention

The WELS Prayer Institute wanted a nifty promotion for the convention, so they got a Thrivent grant for giving away hats. I think they are sporty and inspirational at the same time. Keeps your bald spot from sunburning while inculcating an atmosphere of Pietism,
I mean, piety.

Tim Felt-Needs - In Need of Conversion, Furioso Feels

Dude, where's my car?

Furioso has left a new comment on your post "WELS Members Visit Victory of the Movie Screen:Ano...":

Hey Tim,

I think you and your church's approach to worship is conflicted. You say you're Lutheran but the casual "Hey man, bring yer coffee, bring yer pets, let the kids distract everyone else..." argues with that claim.

Lutherans believe that worship should be orderly and reverent--AND in a manner that sets worship apart from our secular lives, and the trappings of the world.

Many of your persuasion are blunt in their admission that they craft your style of worship service to be attractive or acceptable to the random unbelieving visitor. (I don't know if you'd claim that) Whatever the motivation, you and those of your persuasion have ended up with a worship service disorderly as a flea market and about as irreverent as a rock concert. (oh... wait...)
You thinks it's okay to let your kids be noisy and rambunctious in church? That sure sounds disrespectful (to God and other worshipers). I think you should bring your pets so Pastor Billy-Bob can bless them. You could start a dog walking ministry! Would you mind if I brought a spit cup to church? I can't have coffee without a nice big dip of Copenhagen Long Cut. Oooo Oooo or MAYbe you could get some Pinball machines in the sanctuary!

*Interlude to everyone else*:
Did you notice that Tim used the term 'secret shopper'? This is because he looks upon church as a business and doctrine as a commodity. He and his fellows Shrinkers approach evangelism with the savvy of Marketing gurus. They ask, "What is it that customer wants? What brand is going to sell best in this neighborhood? Should we use the Caucasian or the Black Jesus picture? We should do a focus group! Better yet, a Hallepalooza!". What more evidence is needed that the C&Cers refuse to acknowledge the Holy Spirit's power and role in conversion?
*End of Interlude*

The sarcasm comes from frustration at your inability to be honest. You are not Lutheran, and do not want to be. That's unfortunate, and we'd love to have you back on the straight and narrow, but we both know that's not happening. Churches that deny the Holy Spirit's power through the means of Grace are not Lutheran. You're business-model approach to Worship is a threat to your faith, Tim.

In the meantime, for the sake of everyone involved, please take a stance of honesty. Encourage your church and pastor to admit that you're not Lutheran and vote to leave the Lutheran church. I wouldn't want strangers to think you were "mind-numbing". Your church could write a grant for a new sign, with the word Lutheran left off. Don't be painted into a box by antiquated terminology!

Real Lutherans who subscribe to the Book of Concord don't like, need, or want you associated with our Church.

Make no mistake Timmy-boy, If churches and people like you don't leave the WELS we'll get ya. A separation needs to happen. Make the break or it'll be done for you.

---

Secret Shopper has left a new comment on your post "Tim Felt-Needs - In Need of Conversion, Furioso Fe...":

PS

The "Felt Need" that Tim lacks is a reality check. Generously, there were maybe 50 people in worship.

I understand its summer but I think his estimates on worship attendance are a little faulty.

---

Tim claimed: "What you could find out from me is that membership is about 85 members with about 40 of those from other WELS congregations. The rest were unchurched or under churched. We have about 120 - 130 worshiping each week. There are about 10-15 people in Adult instruction at any given time."


***

GJ - How can a "mission" fatten itself from the members of other congregations? Stadler did that for years and left WELS. Before that, he was a big hero to the WELS leadership, serving as the keynoter at the WELS Youth Conference in Columbus, Ohio.

Chicanery-Speak

Church and Chicaneries speak with forked tongues, so their words need translation. Their terms are listed below, reverently posted in red, followed by their real meaning:

Outreach - Sheep-stealing from other congregations.

Excellent Worship - Entertainment by a Praise Band.

Praise Band - Members of various denominations who want to perform in a Lutheran church.

Ichabod! - Our funds are being cut.

Divisive - Someone who makes clear distinctions between sound and false doctrine, with examples of both shown.

Legalist - A person who does not like garage bands, Zwingli's doctrine, unionism, the destruction of the historic liturgy, and closeted-Calvinism.

Creative Minister - Someone who slavishly copies the latest fads among the Enthusiasts.

Violating the Eighth Commandment - Publishing our false doctrine.

Violating Matthew 18 - Failure to speak privately to us about our public sins, because we need time to trash the speaker before anyone pays attention to him.

Church Consultant - Fuller Seminary graduate.

Mission Counselor - Fuller Seminary graduate.

Seminary Professor - Fuller Seminary graduate.

Staff Ministry - Finding a way to ordain women.

WELS Prayer Institute - A place for Chicaneries to hide in case Church and Change is shut down.

Foundation Grants - The lifeblood of C and C.

Thrivent Grants - The lifeblood of C and C.

Synod Subsidies - The lifeblood of C and C.

Stewardship - Arranging for various funds to keep us going because we hate to give.

Totally Awesome Worship Leader - Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, Marc Driscoll, etc.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Chicanery-Speak":

Amen, and Amen!

I am glad the "WELS Prayer Institute" was mentioned. I just heard that we had one last week.

Is the "WELS Prayer Institute" an admission that up to now we didn't have a prayer?

I suppose looking for a WELS Means of Grace Institute is expecting way too much!

***

GJ - Actually, you are at the Lutheran Means of Grace Institute right now - serving all synods since the last century.

The Information Age Stinks - As Far as Church and Change Is Concerned

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "Michigan Lutheran Seminary Will Close And Then What...":

Many of us have moved on. Either we have totally left the WELS or we have practiced "selective fellowship" by transferring to another congregation and/or shunning the contempo ones. It is important to look at the past and the present to establish cause and effect. Also, unintended consequences should be pointed out. One of these is that there will be disgruntled laity who exercise discernment. Some of us will not play in the C&C/CGM sandbox. We will not be intimidated into silence. Ever since Al Gore invented the Internet, information leaks spread faster. Those who have kept the laity in the dark can no longer do so. They often have to engage in damage control. Examples of this would be Ed Stetzer being dis-invited to this year's C&C convention and Phil Gurgle's lame attempt to defend Ski's brazen unionistic practices.

---

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "The Information Age Stinks - As Far as Church and ...":

"WELS stubbornly refuses to acknowledge this negative consequence of their obsession and meddling with C&C/CGM."

Amen. When I requested a transfer, the pastor that I spoke to said that he would compose it right away. Instead, the other pastor wrote it and it took him three to four weeks to get it out. The tone of it was that I was being distracted by my concerns and it conveniently neglected to mention the doctrinal issues that I had. Not a single one of the elders bothered to speak with me. They were either afraid to or else were satisfied with the version that was given to them. Any hint that my talking points were valid could have possibly discredited the doctrine of leadership infallibility.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "The Information Age Stinks - As Far as Church and ...":

WELS leaders keep lying about their innocence even after they were caught holding the smoking gun and standing over the mortally wounded body of WELS.

Chicanery Unplugged - In More Ways Than One

Pietism: Past and FutureIdentifying Signs of Spener's Sect

Spener's Book and Conventicles remain with us today.

Pietism, Part II, Adult Education,
Bethany Lutheran Church

Spener was born 55 years after the Book of Concord, 1580, was published.

As Schmid's History of Pietism noted, the Thirty Years War and caesaropapism contributed to the decline of the Lutheran Church. Caesaropapism means the secular rulers took control of the church.

Spener did two things which continue to influence Lutherans today. Copying the former Catholic Labadie, he organized cell groups. He also wrote Pia Disideria, which began as a preface to a popular book. The agenda in the book included cell groups and a downplaying of doctrinal differences.

Using small groups to promote piety has always been popular in the Roman Catholic Church. Since they see themselves as The Church, their congregations are often large and impersonal. The various societies organized around Mary encourage intense devotion and a focus upon one's personal experience. A congregation may have many different small devotional groups. Labadie took this into the Reformed church, which was especially destitute from its elimination of the Sacraments. Labadie's prescription was another version of the papal method.

Differences between the Lutheran Confessions and Pietism

Method versus the Word of God

The cell group (affinity, share, care, or home Bible study) is a method. Those who deny the efficacy of the Word will necessarily turn to a method to produce the fruits they desire. If they are not satisfied, they will tweak their method until they get what they want. For example, cell groups tend to degenerate into Pentecostalism. Pentecostal cells look for a bigger buzz by turning to holy laughter, miraculous dental work, and claims of raising the dead.

Luther allowed that faithful preaching may produce no visible results for 20 years, but that was not his concern. He trusted that faithful preaching and teaching would produce God's results, which include the cross.

Fruit versus the Tree

Walther came from Pietistic circles and his spiritual father, Bishop for Life Stephan, was a Pietist. Walther made a good observation - that the Pietists look for the fruit rather than the source of the fruit. A farmer or gardener looks for good stock or seed, knowing that is the source of a good harvest. The Pietist judges the source by the harvest, trusting in the method - not the real source, the Word.

Some Lutherans itch because they do not see enough happening to satisfy themselves so they look for something besides the efficacy of the Word. In fact, that is exactly what Bruce Becker (WELS Perish Services, Church and Change Board, now Time of Grace) asked of congregations - "What, besides the Means of Grace, has led to your growth?" Of course, he only asked certain pals in his doctrinal circle.)

Unionism versus Communion Fellowship

Spener was the first union theologian, as Otto Heick observed. He advocated Reformed methods within the Lutheran Church and downplayed the Means of Grace, to use a term abused by David Valleskey. Halle University was founded to promote Pietism and soon became a center for all European Pietists. Lutherans and the Reformed worked together on charitable projects.

I came from an Augustana Synod congregation and attended Augustana College. The Swedish Pietists did not hide their Pietistic origins. Their most famous leader, Conrad Bergendoff, was known for his motto: "Doctrine divides, but service unites." Doctrine does divide - the sheep from the goats. No easier path can be found than one where all doctrinal differences are ignored. That broad path is also why Halle University went from Pietism to Unitarianism in one generation, all the while churning out future Lutheran leaders for America, from Muhlenberg to Hoenecke.

Cell Groups versus the Means of Grace

Cell groups are essential to Pietism. They are the foundational method of Pietism, just as yoga is essential to Hinduism. Where cell groups start, the Sacraments become an embarrassment. Decades ago, some WELS congregations began hiding their Holy Communion service because that might detract from recruiting efforts at the Sunday service.

I heard Willow Creek's Bill Hybels lash out at his Sunday members for not showing up for the Wednesday service, where they have "communion," where they really worship.

If cell groups produce the results desired, the liturgy and hymns and creeds and sermons must go. The General Synod was unionistic and Pietistic, so the first Lutheran body in America was more likely to have a Mourner's Bench (Anxious Bench, Altar Call) for Come-to-Jesus moments during a revival service.

One WELS pastor wrote me that his synod would have more Blacks if they had sponsored more revival services in the past. He was very pleased with theirs.

Needless to say, all the Billy Graham Crusades start with unionism and end with an Altar Call - where they make a decision for Christ. Instead of teaching that Christ comes to use through the Word and Sacraments, the Pietistic revivalists present us as coming to Christ and making a decision.

Levels of Christianity versus One Church

There is only one true Church, invisible, made up of all those who trust only in the merits of Christ for their salvation.

Pietists invented levels of Christianity, which is also why they fall prey to Pentecostalism and other temptations.

We all suffer from spiritual pride, or the inner Pharisee, which must be beaten down by the Law and Gospel, but Pietism inflames this pride. Pietists are holier than thou, and they never stop telling people so. I heard one of the proponents of cell groups (koinonia) tell his audience that the cell groups did all the work in the congregation, created most of the attendance at the annual picnic. For this layman, the cell groups were the Real Church while the others in his congregation just sat there in spiritual torpor.

Nothing is quite so Spenerish as those thoughts.

The Church Growth Movement Is Pietism, Unionism

The Church Growth Movement came out in the open with TELL magazine, in 1977, but probably had an earlier, secretive start. CGM has flourished in WELS, Missouri, ELCA, and the Little Sect on the Prairie - with dismal results.

CGM characteristics reveal the DNA of Pietism:

1. Cell groups are essential for good results.
   
2. The Sunday service is not for worship through the Means of Grace, but serves as a recruitment tool through entertaining Sneaker Services. For instructions, read We Believe, Therefore We Sneak, by Valleskey.
   
3. The liturgy is all but abolished. Pop songs are substituted for real hymns, and the sermon is slavishly copied from non-Lutheran sources, such as Driscoll, Hybels, Groeschel, and anyone who posts on the Net (but never Luther).
   
4. The only way to learn the arcane secrets of Church Growth is by sitting at the feet of teachers at Fuller Seminary, Willow Creek, Trinity Divinity School in Deerfield, Drive and Exponential Conferences, Granger Community Church, and many more. The Shrinkers will offer their favorites, but some like Ski go to all of them, on a monthly basis.
   
5. Spiritual arrogance is the key characteristic of the Shrinkers, in spite of their failures, scandals, and broken marriages. They do not lower themselves to defend their beloved movement, because the hoi polloi would not be able to grasp their brilliance. Calling themselves apostles of love, they really hate their synod, Lutheran doctrine, and anyone who raises an eyebrow about their manifold heresies.
   
6. Shrinkers are the Real Church.

Schmid's book is available from NPH.

WELS Members Visit Victory of the Movie Screen:Another Chicanery Showcase

Tim Felt-needs, Victory of the Lamb Blogger

We went to Victory of the Lamb a while back. The irony of the whole scenario is that we stopped going to our normal place of worship because we felt it wasn't liturgical enough. I didn't have high hopes for VotL but my friend said, "Its kind of contemporary, but it's done right."

He couldn't have been more wrong.

I drove past another WELS church about three miles and arrived at Celebration Cinema and immediately had reservations. I walked into the lobby, smelling of old popcorn, and was greeted by Pastor Ben...more reservations. He invited us to grab a snack and a drink from the "Victory Cafe"...I was unsure because it was already after the time church should start but he invited us to bring it with us into Theater #1.

We walked in just as the praise band started.

Got to our chairs as people said hello to us and tried to carry on conversations (the first "hymn" was still in session). We awkwardly tried to sing along but gave up and mouthed the words. Then "Pastor" Ben invited us to greet each other. After the confession of sins which was somewhat normal...the rest of the service was contrived and awkward. We were unable to sing anything and people clapped after each praise band performance.

I was perturbed when the children left before the sermon, except for one who screamed loudly and the parents acted like they were in a movie theater--wait, they were. Zero transcendence at this point. "Pastor" Ben started his sermon which contained five lengthy stories--probably taking up 1/4 of his actual speaking time. The rest of his time was spent retelling those stories (using Abraham) and then retelling them again (using us) and giving us a "takeaway."

Then, the coup de grace was when he claimed that we need to be attached to the means of grace...didn't mention the Lord's Supper once...and said we "can remember our baptisms every time we wash our face in the morning..." (paraphrase)

After the service he gave a announcement about "Hallepalooza" and Soccer Camp. We got out of there as fast as I could.

They are having "success" - many of their families are from established congregations but there are a few large convert families as well (from the soccer camps)...however sowing seed in shallow ground often has early success. I can guarantee you, as a WELS Lutheran...I would not have communed there (as if it had been offered) and my wife and I did not feel the least bit edified.

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Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WELS Members Visit Victory of the Movie Screen:Ano...":

Anon@10:22

No the sermon did not center on the savior. The word "God" was used in stories about Abraham. The words "Jesus" or "Christ" were not.

As for the hymn, the entire atmosphere at VotL (along with other happy clappy churches) is a performance. When you take the people out of worship by installing a praise band no one can sing along to--no one sings(Koine is the obvious WELS exception).

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Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WELS Members Visit Victory of the Movie Screen:Ano...":

As the writer/visitor states, I too, like many WELS members, are beginning to do what may be called Selective Fellowship. I do not think this is recognized by the leadership in WELS as a scriptural principal. I have heard it said "we do not practice selective fellowship. We either are in fellowship with our brothers or we are not." Those leaders who are not doing what the Bible tells us to do, with regards to those who cause divisions among us, have allowed laity to do it. That is simply to "Mark and avoid", which the laity are doing in a very quiet way.

I myself, having been in Greenbay not too long ago, found it quite a job of finding a sound Lutheran church in town. But I did. Web sites can tell you volumes of what a church is doing and you can save yourself the heartache caused by much of what is being done in the name Lutheran. Some people say, "step out of your comfort zone." I say, step into the light of discernment.

Bye, bye.

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Joseph Schmidt answered the howls of Joe Krohn here.

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GJ - Many of us have seen choir members, organists, choir directors, and acolytes in a cassock and surplice. I am so high church that I chant the announcements.