LCMS Seminaries Discussing Future, Issuing Official Denials

This should be taken seriously since:

1) Even though they deny the idea of merging the seminaries is coming from official channels, then why was there an official summit discussing it at Ft. Wayne?

2) The LCMS HQ denied that they were going to sell KFUO-FM, and then a few months later it was sold. Kieschnick cares nothing for honesty.

3) there are only about 88 students in each seminary class taking the MDiv residency route. That hardly justifies having two seminaries, esp. when the cost is $18k and going up.

[GJ - Official denials draw attention to actual plans. The Boomers went to seminary for almost nothing, but they lavish offering money on themselves while forcing students into permanent debt. The congregations, pastors, and districts should be ashamed, but they are not.]

Helpful Information on the Status of the Seminaries in a Note from President Meyer to CSL Students
November 12th, 2009 Post by Pastor Tim Rossow

Dear Students,

A short e-mail to thank you for a good quarter! After the recession’s stomach punch last year, I’m thankful…

* That our Seminary is operating in the black;
* That there’s a good spirit/Spirit to move the Savior’s mission forward through us;
* That we’re looking at topics that will impact our futures in ministry, especially “Life Together.”

This is a unique place in the world and church, and I’m thankful for your positive contributions these past ten weeks.

As you have opportunity, please share the thanks of our Seminary community for the support (prayer support, encouraging words, and financial support) that so greatly helps us in our work of formation and mission.

And should the question come up about the future of LCMS seminaries…

Contrary to rumor, there is no offer from Washington University to buy our campus.

* There is no proposal “on the table” to close or consolidate seminary campuses. Yes, there is talk about such possibilities but it is not been put forward through established channels, not “on the table” but in the shadows.
* In the next weeks I will send you an e-mail report about the recent Summit in Ft. Wayne on the future of theological education.
* My time in the President’s Forum on December 2nd will be given to the rumors and realities about seminary futures.

I hope that you will enjoy a restful break. Jesus led His disciples away from ministry into times of rest, and I invite you to get away with Him and your loved ones to a quiet place that you may rest (Mark 6:31).

Last but not least, coming from a guy who in some ways gets more scared the older I get: Please drive safely!

Dale A. Meyer

Comments (4) Leave a comment

1.
sumbody
November 12th, 2009 at 11:19 | #1


Really in the Black. I am a doubting Thomas! Did Thrivent come thru again? I would like to see the books .
2.
Jack
November 12th, 2009 at 11:50 | #2


If the seminary is in the black, it likely means the students are in a deep, crimson red.

For the most part, when I was on campus (2005-2009), past letters informing students of the seminary operating in the black were never heavily celebrated, because those of us living on campus saw the bill for around $5,000 that arrived in each of our mailboxes every ten weeks.

It’s good that finances are somewhat tamed now in light of the recent economic problems, but I understand that tuition was to be raised by 3% starting with the new academic year. I suppose that means the recession for students goes on, because the tuition grants only cover around 40-50% of the charges.

Please keep all of this in your prayers!

Ordination as a Sacrament

Melanchthon was a hyper-European.
He would be banned today by LutherQuest (sic).

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Luther and Ordination":

Why don't we call ordination a sacrament? Because the author of the Formula insists it isn't:


Martin Chemnitz, Ministry, Word, and Sacrament: An Enchiridion

Q. 222

Q: "But why is ordination of ministers of the church not a Sacrament, though the Apostles laid hands on those called to the ministry and through that laying on of hands necessary gifts were conferred on ministers? (1 Ti.4:14; 2 Ti 1:6)

A: No doubt the legitimate call and ordination of ministers of the church is established by the Word of God and confirmed with the promise of divine blessing; and that affords very sweet comfort. But ordination does not have this promise, that he who wants to obtain the grace of God and eternal salvation must be invested with the holy priesthood. For also many who have prophesied will hear this fearful sentence of Christ on that day: I never knew you; depart from Me, etc. (Mt. 7:23). And besides, the laying on of hands has no express command in the Word of God, but the apostles used that ceremony as a thing indifferent, for the sake of public prayers.

And unction, which the papists practice in ordaining elders, has neither any command nor promise in the Scripture of the New Testament; but, contrary to the Word of God, it reduces the ministry of the New Testament to the shadows of Levitical ceremonies. Since, then, the ordination of ministers of the church lacks both the element and the promise of grace, both of which are required for the essence of a Sacrament in the New Testament, it neither is nor can be called a true sacrament.

---

7] The adversaries understand priesthood not of the ministry of the Word, and administering the Sacraments to others, but they understand it as referring to sacrifice; as though in the New Testament there ought to be a priesthood like the Levitical, to sacrifice for the people, and merit the remission of sins for others. 8] We teach that the sacrifice of Christ dying on the cross has been sufficient for the sins of the whole world, and that there is no need, besides, of other sacrifices, as though this were not sufficient for our sins. Men, accordingly, are justified not because of any other sacrifices, but because of this one sacrifice of Christ, if they believe that they have been redeemed by this sacrifice. 9] They are accordingly called priests, not in order to make any sacrifices for the people as in the Law, so that by these they may merit remission of sins for the people; but they are called to teach the Gospel and administer the Sacraments to the people. 10] Nor do we have another priesthood like the Levitical, 11] as the Epistle to the Hebrews sufficiently teaches. But if ordination be understood as applying to the ministry of the Word, we are not unwilling to call ordination a sacrament. For the ministry of the Word has God's command and glorious promises, Rom. 1:16: The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. Likewise, Is. 55:11: So shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My mouth; it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please. Augsburg Apology

***

GJ - I don't want to go all Iowa Synod on the readers, but I can see both viewpoints. Of course, Chemnitz' fine book is not the ruled norm while the Apology is.

I find it rather dense to argue against a position taken by the Apology. By itself, Melanchthon's defense of the Augsburg Confession would be one of the great theological works in history.

But of course, the Synodical Conference has consistently taught a position against Luther - ever since Pieper, with the stage set by CFW Walther himself. The ELS has made the Book of Concord null and void while raising a Walther sermon to the level of Holy Writ. The Methodists did the same with Wesley's sermon collection - with predictable results.

I suggest people read the Apology's clear and compelling witness about justification by faith.

If more Zinzendorfs keep showing up, people will start reading the Book of Concord again.

***

PS - "Not unwilling" is a litotes, something not taught in the synodical education process, apparently. Here is a Mormon link to help out someone in need of rhetoric lessons.

The litotes is a way of insisting on something in a modest, understated way. If someone mentioned that I had over 3,200 posts, I could say, "I was not unaware of the total."

Or I might post, "Dealing with the evasions and confusions of the UOJ crowd is no small task." Does that mean it is a small effort or a Herculean labor?

---

LCMS Pastor Art Bolstad sent this:

"Ordination and installation look a lot alike, in a sense, both make a
man the pastor of sheep (the Greek word for "pastor" literally means
"shepherd". However, there is a difference.

When a man decides he should study to be a pastor, he is doing something
approved by God (1 Timothy 3:1). Notice the focus here on the desires
of the man. There is no call mentioned only his "desires". Notice too
that "desire" is not the same as achievement. In other words, just
because a man desires to be a pastor, does not mean that he will ever
actually be one.

In John 10:1-5 Jesus talks about the difference between a shepherd who
comes in through the door of the sheepfold and a thief who comes in over
the fence. Then in John 10:7 He says that He Himself is the door.
Ordination is the door through which the sub-shepherd meets His sheep.
A man attempting to "shepherd" sheep on his own (without going through
Jesus (the door) or not being ordained) is described in John 10:12-13 as
a hireling, and worthless.

Ordination places a man in an office created by God (administered by His
Church), the office of Pastor. In ordination a man accepts the
responsibility of being a shepherd for the sheep which God sends him.
Ordination itself does not imply that there are (or even will be) sheep
to be shepherded. Ordination is, if you will, between God and a man.
That ordination brings with it God's direction and blessings is
commented on in 1 Timothy 4:14). Both 1 Timothy 4:14 and 1 Timothy 5:22
say that ordination is given by other previously ordained pastors.
Ordination then is going through Christ as the door in John 10.

On the other hand, installation is when a pastor receives sheep to be
cared for. No one would want to be installed without the promise of
God's blessing on the man being installed, nor would the people
receiving the pastor want one who proposes to operate without God's
blessings. The choosing of a particular pastor is done by the
congregation (Acts 14:23).

Consider the parallel to the anointing of David. David was anointed
King as a young man but did not become King for around 20 years. Thus
there was a distinction between entering the office and entering the
application of the office. 1 Samuel 16:3; 2 Samuel 5:4. Also David
became King by the choice of the people even though he had been anointed
by Samuel some 15 years earlier.

Installation and ordination, as was commented above, are the activities
of 2 different sets of Gods representatives. Installation is a
congregational activity while ordination is a pastor's activity. The
meaning of each is different, they involve different sets of God's
representatives, and both are documented and prescribed in Scripture."

Close Down The Surrendered Fort and Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrows, aka, The Two Concordias?

Both schools are on double secret probation.

Tim Rossow - <--Mequon grads, left click on the link
As I read the opening editorial in the most recent Concordia Journal (page 10 or 346 here) from the St. Louis Seminary I was pleased to find the president, Dale Meyer, defending residency seminary education. He writes a stirring description of life for seminarians in an urban setting at the St. Louis campus and it is worth the read.

This is quite ironic (or maybe purposeful) since just last week President Kieschnick met with President Meyer and President Wenthe in Ft. Wayne to noodle the idea of closing down the seminaries and instead remaking pastoral education to be done in some sort of drive-by style combination of on-line courses and a few seminars at one of the Concordias, colleges that is, not seminaries.
Kudos to President Meyer. We have been critical of the seminaries, joining in with our cartoonist Scott Blazek in referring to the seminary professors as dust bunnies. In this editorial however, President Meyer takes an excellent stand on a timely issue. We would appreciate Dale Meyer being a little more direct. He never mentions the threat of closing down the seminaries but clearly this is a defense of on-site, residency based seminary education.

This is an important issue. How would you like your doctor to perform surgery on you based on a few on-line courses? If your MD messes up you only pay for it temporally. How would you like your pastor to operate on your soul based on a few on-line courses? If your M Div messes up you pay for it for eternity. (M Div refers to the Master of Divinity degree awarded to seminary graduates.)

There were some troubling aspects to the editorial. President Meyer announced a new program of joint work with the adjacent Fontbonne College. That is fine except that it is a Roman Catholic school To his credit President Meyer is quick to point out that the sharing is only in non-theological areas. That’s good but I just can’t imagine Martin Luther or C. F. W. Walther proposing any sort of joint work with a Roman Catholic college.

One of the proposals is the seminarians take some business courses at Fontbonne. I think it is good for seminarians to learn the basics of goal setting and how to create and manage a program in the parish where helpful to the Gospel but this is the least of our problems. Our problems in the LCMS are not of a practical, business nature but of a theological nature.

Thank you President Meyer for defending residency seminary training. Keep it up. We encourage you to be a little more direct but this is certainly a start toward the “dust bunnies” rising up and hopefully becoming a herd of stampeding “jackelopes” running over the proposals to close the seminaries, stampeding the BRTFSG proposals, and ultimately trampling the non-Lutheran Ablaze movement.

Note: For those of you unfamiliar with the “jackelope,” it ain’t no dust bunny! It is a mythic character, the product of some early photo-shop work that combined a jack-rabbit with an antelope. It was a fearsome looking character. It was seen on countless vacaton (sic) postcards mailed home from the great west back in the 60’s and 70’s.  I think you can still find them in various tourist traps out west.

***

GJ - Do you remember how long ago I said Missouri would close the Ft. Wayne seminary? Nevertheless, The Surrendered Fort went ahead with a multi-million dollar expansion of the library.

St. Louis bought the entire college adjacent to it, later selling it for a loss. St. Louis has enjoyed princely donations from the Schwan Foundation. They built the Chapel of St. Timothy and Titus and Marvin with a princely donation from him. St. Louis also spent millions on the cafeteria and dorms.

Wisconsin, Missouri, and the Little Sect on the Prairie should have viewed St. Marvin of Schwan as a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, since all three have been in dire straits after enjoying an avalanche of money poured over their heads.

Incompetent leadership stretches back to the Bohlmann years (at least). The Shrinkers and women's ordination buffs got their start during The Terror, as the Bohlmann administration is fondly remembered. One faculty member of Missouri ordered something from me, but made sure I mailed it to his home address - not the school - during those years.

Nine years of Barry and McCain gave Pentecostals, Shrinkers, and unionists a playground larded with fat financials. Barry led boldly and decisively - in every direction. I met Kent Hunter (DMin, Fuller Seminary) on his way into the Purple Palace, where he taught the DPs and Barry how to grow the synod. The statistics, as Hunter and Werning taught me in their books, tell the story. Missouri has been in steep decline ever since.

There is the argument for the Church Growth Movement in graphics too horrifying to deny. There too is the bitter fruit of UOJ. The old Synodical Conference began with Pietism and Enthusiasm, aided by  healthy flirtations with orthodoxy. Over time, all three synods have returned to their Pietistic roots.

Zinzendorf is a good example to remember - for bad results. With the best of intentions, he devoted his life to helping others at Herrnhut and supporting missions. His son got another settlement going that was so bad the guys could have starred in Party in Fire Island Pines.

Dale Meyer is defending his hyper-expensive residential seminary? How charming. The seminary posted a video of Meyer interviewing heresiarch Leonard Sweet, the Missouri leader looking like a devoted puppy ready to spring into Sweet's lap and nibble his ear. For that alone, St. Louis should be closed.

Our Lady of Sorrows gave Paul Calvin Kelm a DMin in Church Growth. For that alone, St. Louis should be closed.