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.

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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.

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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."


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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.

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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!

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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.

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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.

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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.