The Boomer DPs are the glue holding the Mark Jeske coaltion together.
ICHABOD, THE GLORY HAS DEPARTED - explores the Age of Apostasy, predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, to attack Objective Faithless Justification, Church Growth Clowns, and their ringmasters. The antidote to these poisons is trusting the efficacious Word in the Means of Grace. John 16:8. Isaiah 55:8ff. Romans 10. Most readers are WELS, LCMS, ELS, or ELCA. This blog also covers the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and the Left-wing, National Council of Churches denominations.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Deputy Doug Englebrecht Re-Elected:
WELS Will Continue To Suffer From His Leadership and Doctrinal Blindness
The Boomer DPs are the glue holding the Mark Jeske coaltion together.
We Know That Could Never Happen in WELS -
At Least They Would Never Admit It
Financial Scandals
The Hidden Wealth of the Catholic Church
By Anna Catherin Loll and Peter Wensierski
DPA
Shortly before Pentecost, Pastor S. received an unexpected early morning visit, not from the Holy Ghost, but from the police.
And lo and behold, the proliferation of cash may have been even more miraculous than initially assumed. The public prosecutor's office in the southern city of Würzburg now estimates that S. may have embezzled up to €1.5 million from collections and other church funds. The members of his flock in a wine-growing village in the northern Bavarian region of Franconia are stunned. They had blindly trusted their shepherd, who always seemed so humble and modest.
The Catholic Church is currently being shaken by a number of financial scandals, not only in Franconia but also in Augsburg, another Bavarian city, where Bishop Walter Mixa's dip into funds from a foundation that runs children's homes recently made headlines.
More than €40 million have gone missing in the Diocese of Magdeburg in eastern Germany, €5 million have disappeared in Limburg near Frankfurt, and it was recently discovered that a senior priest in the Diocese of Münster had 30 secret bank accounts. And while parishes throughout Germany are cutting jobs and funds for community work, many bishops are still living on the high horse. A brand-new residence? An ostentatious home for their retirement? Restoration of a Marian column to the tune of €120,000? None of these expenditures presents a problem to high-ranking church officials from Trier in the west to Passau in the southeastern corner of Bavaria, whose coffers are brimming with cash.
In many places, this blatant disparity, along with reports of mismanagement, misappropriation and pomposity have prompted the faithful to challenge church officials. They are accusing many bishops of just covering up the problem, as they did in the sex abuse scandal. They are determined not to allow anyone to see behind the curtain into their parallel world of bulging bank accounts and hidden assets, which, in some cases, have buttressed their power for centuries. The only aspect of church finances that is public is the diocesan budget, which derives its funding from the church tax -- but the church's true assets remain in the shadows.
Growing Questions About Church Funding
Now all of this wealth is becoming a political issue, however. The unemployed, recipients of housing assistance, families, communities, businesses, the military -- in the coming years, the federal government plans to deprive them all of billions of euros. But the church, of all things, is being spared, and hardly anyone questions the generous support it receives from the government.
Financially speaking, Germany's dioceses are in excellent shape. "The Catholic Church claims that it's poor, but the truth is that it hides its wealth," says Carsten Frerk, a Berlin political scientist who, after years of research, is publishing "Violettbuch Kirchenfinanzen" (The Violet Book of Church Finances) this fall. Frerk estimates the cash assets of the church's legal entities at about €50 billion. The Catholics, who are not releasing their own figures, accuse Frerk of being a prejudiced, atheistic critic of the church.
The assets, accumulated over the centuries, are invested in many areas, including real estate, church-owned banks, academies, breweries, vineyards, media companies and hospitals. The church also derives income from stock holdings, foundations and bequests. As a rule, all of this money flows into the accounts of the so-called bishop's see. Only a bishop and his closest associates are familiar with this shadow budget, which tax authorities are not required to review. The public budgets of dioceses consist of far less than their total finances.
This complicated web is handled with such secrecy that not even the financial department heads of all dioceses openly discuss their finances with one another. Seemingly baroque structures make these finances even more difficult to fathom. Depending on the diocese, the administrators of the church's funds can be members of a church tax council, a diocesan tax panel, a financial board or an administrative board. Sometimes assets are also spun off into foundations.
Of Germany's 27 Catholic dioceses, 25 refused to provide information in response to a SPIEGEL survey, noting that this information "is not made public." Only two dioceses, Magdeburg and the Archdiocese of Berlin, which was on the verge of bankruptcy a few years ago, were somewhat more accommodating, probably because they have so few assets to hide in the first place.
Secret Assets
The vicar general of a well-heeled diocese, on the other hand, said: "Yes, the assets in the bishop's see are secret. But perhaps it would be better if you wrote: confidential." When asked to explain this secretiveness, a spokeswoman of the Diocese of Limburg responded: "That's just the way it is." Finally, a representative of the German Bishops' Conference said: "I don't want to talk to you about this."
The businessman was irritated by his experiences in the diocesan council. "I was surprised by the small size of the budget. It was something I thought we ought to look at," he says. At a council meeting, he asked a confidant of the bishop whether this was the entire budget. "There is also the budget of the bishop's see. But it isn't intended for the public," the official replied. When Steffen asked, "are you telling me that we can't see it, either?" the official said: "No!"
Trier, Germany's oldest diocese, is a good example of the Catholic divide between rich and poor. Bishop Stephan Ackermann, who also oversees sex abuse cases for the German Bishops' Conference, can be quite generous in financial matters, particularly when they involve prestigious projects adjacent to his bishop's palace. For example, the diocese currently has €1 million earmarked for a planned renovation of the square behind Trier Cathedral. Local church authorities want to make sure that the area looks its best, just in case the pope decides to lead an annual pilgrimage to the "holy robe" in 2012, joining the faithful in worshipping a robe that supposedly contains scraps from the robe Jesus wore.
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GJ - LI was at MLS when it was revealed one of the staff found a way to skim the tuition funds. The shortage was up to $20,000 when the officials stopped talking about it. The students were impressed at how many things the staffer had, considering the low wages paid. They thought he was a very astute stewards of his funds.
Close, but not exactly right.
With a Name Like Rogue, It's Got To be Good
Pastor Rydecki is one of the principles on that blog. I think the name Intrepid suits him (and his group). I have read his works and comments before. I particularly enjoy Gadfly , which I frequent. I like the way he uses language, “Don’t get into a spitting contest with a Cobra”.
Check out a good read.
“Explanation of the Common Service, Part I.”
http://www.intrepidlutherans.com/2010/06/explanation-of-common-service-part-1.html
Ichabod, The Glory Has Departed: The man who shall not be named, because everyone is afraid of him. He’s a man with a wit that cuts like a rapier and an amazingly prolific writer, too. Check out his book list.
He sticks up for the little guy and he doesn’t let the establishment types push him around, I like that.
The first time I read his blog I thought: “Wow, he really doesn’t hold back, and he tells it just like it is.” Brutally honest.
Missouri people have a wealth of insight and church history available to them if they’d read his back posts. I back-filled 30 missing years by reading his posts, I heard he’s up to 4,000 now, it didn’t seem like that many, but they’re all so interesting.
I like his blog roll, too. I frequent the sites. I would add them to my blog roll except I have technical difficulty with the Mac OS and iWeb margins. But let me list them here:
Call to Faithfulness
Extra Nos
Faithful Service
It's Time Welcome
Light from Light
Logos Bible Software Blog
Lutheran Colportage
Lutheran News
Necessary Roughness
Norman's Demesne
Sceleratissimus Lutheranus
The Brothers of John the Steadfast
The Finkelsteinery
The Gadfly
Timid Lutherans: A Definite Synodical Platform
What Sasse Said
A new addition on Ichabod’s webring is Timid Lutherans. I like his style and I don’t think he’s timid at all. Never mind that he’s anonymous, he probably has a very good reason.
I am among this blog ring, and I am grateful that Ichabod gave me a spot to unload a lot of angst, which I’m just about over with. I would have no traffic at all if not for his support. Thank you.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Lenski Set Needs a Happy Home
I am setting my Lenski commentaries because the print is too small for me. I had to take off my glasses and squint with one eye to read a portion on Luke. I will get the digital version to replace it.
The Revelation commentary actually has burn marks on it - very evocative.
Did you know how prolific Lois Lenski, his daughter, was? I grew up on The Little Engine That Could. I still quote it when we are trying to take off in a passenger plane or we are chugging up a hill. "I think I can. I think I can." Mrs. I. usually pops me one when I do that on a plane during takeoff.
LI joked that when WELS parents read Lois Lenski's books to their children, they start by saying, "Her father was not good on justification."
winning the highest awards. Her total was about 100 in all.
If you have her books, we would like to own some.
My blog email is gregjackson1948@qwest.net
The Second Sunday after Trinity
Book ready for Lulu publication.
The Second Sunday after Trinity
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship
Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Time
The Hymn # 361 O Jesus King 4.1
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #471 Jesus Thy Blood 4.6
Excuses Lead to Evangelism
The Communion Hymn # 462 I Love Thy Kingdom 4.21
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #657 Beautiful Savior 4.24
KJV 1 John 3:13 Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you. 14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. 15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? 18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
KJV Luke 14:16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: 17 And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. 18 And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. 19 And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. 20 And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. 21 So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. 22 And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. 23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. 24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.
Second Sunday After Trinity
Lord God, heavenly Father, we give thanks unto Thee, that through Thy holy word Thou hast called us to Thy great supper, and we beseech Thee: Quicken our hearts by Thy Holy Spirit, that we may not hear Thy word without fruit, but that we may prepare ourselves rightly for Thy kingdom, and not suffer ourselves to be hindered by any worldly care, through Thy beloved Son. Jesus Christ, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
Excuses Lead to Evangelism
This Gospel lesson teaches, with a certain amount of humor, how people turn away from the Word, and yet that leads to evangelism.
This is a parable – as indicated by the words – “a certain man.”
The great feast includes both the Kingdom of God and Holy Communion. The anti-sacrament people like to go lite on Holy Communion, because it is just an ordinance to them. However, the sacraments are essential to the Kingdom of God. We can tell that from the placement of the sacraments in the Gospels and the frequency of their mention in the New Testament.
For example, the baptism of Jesus is the beginning of His public ministry. He also indicated the inclusion of children in baptism when He said, “Let the children come to Me, and do not forbid them [literally – excluding from membership] for to such belong the Kingdom of God.” He also said, “Whoever does not believe as a child will not enter the Kingdom.”
The importance of Holy Communion is indicated by its careful description in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Paul, its meaning described in John, and many more references in Paul.
The largest portion of each Gospel is devoted to the crucifixion of Christ, and the Last Supper is a central element in that series of events. We do not memorialize any other part of the Passion of Christ. The Last Supper epitomizes the meaning of the Gospel – “given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sin.”
The feast is also important because our important and favorite events are marked by eating and celebrating together. We consider invitations to these events to be very significant by themselves.
Many people fuss over the lack of believing Christians, as if that is the fault of God. They want a different formula or a reason for this happening. Of course, the New Testament is full of explanations, but that does not please these people, who seem to put on itching powder every morning.
The invitation is the same word as “call.” Jesus called His disciples. When I translate Greek with a student, I always insist on them using the verb “phone,” to get them used to connecting the Greek root with actual verb. That does sound strange – Jesus phoned His disciples. But that does convey what happened. If I phone someone to hear the Wannamaker Organ (Philadelphia), that is significant by itself. What happens to that invitation is another matter. Actually I was invited to that concert and I was unable to attend – just like the parable. The disciples were called to be apostles, and they trained men who were called to be pastors.
The general call or invitation is the Holy Spirit’s work through the Word:
The Third Article.
Of Sanctification.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; one holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
What does this mean?--Answer.
I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith; even as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith; in which Christian Church He forgives daily and richly all sins to me and all believers, and at the last day will raise up me and all the dead, and will give to me and to all believers in Christ everlasting life. This is most certainly true.
So – Number One. The Gospel invitation goes out, and that invitation is expressed in many different ways by many different voices representing Christ.
Those who were invited in this parable were also united – they all had an excuse.
· The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.
· And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.
· And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.
All three excuses are flimsy.
· The purchased land is not going to move or go away.
· Test-driving the oxen would normally precede the purchase.
· Would his wife not allow him? Family matters are often an excuse, and that was offered as one when a man left the Lutheran church to please his wife, who became very antagonist toward Lutheran orthodoxy. She did not mind lukewarm Lutheranism but she despised Lutheran orthodoxy.
The excuses are material reasons for avoiding the spiritual invitation of the Gospel. We can see how wrong that is, and yet that is often the reason behind the refusal.
Years ago, I met with one couple who had been at church. They were offended by two things. We had a building fund – that really annoyed them. They also did not like the absolution, pronouncing forgiveness. They did not want to learn – they wanted to condemn. They found reasons, and I did not see them again.
Jesus is teaching us that excuses will always accompany the Gospel invitation. That is not a reason to give up. It is not for us to judge and decide, based on false assumptions, that we are discouraged.
The gracious invitation, in this parable, was not merely ignored. It was refused with reasons given. There the wrath of God was incited. “None of them shall taste of My supper.”
To gather for the feast, the Master gave these instructions:
Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.
The four groups suggest every possible person – among the least likely. Even today they are the invisible population. People know they are present, but look past them.
Brenda Kiehler, who slowly succumbed to a bone disease, had to rely on help for almost everything. When she typed, she used one arm to pick up the other. She said, “The Gospel is all that I have, so I cling to that. I don’t have money or health or anything else.”
When large groups are suggested the Bible, as this parable does, it does not mean only those named, but everyone. The four groups are like the four corners of the world. Or someone would say today, “I looked North, East, West, and South for that.”
When the four groups do not fill the banquet hall, God says,
23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. 24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.
Lenski has many interesting comments based on the strange responses to this parable. Over the ages it has been tempting to invent a lot of things about it.
Because the initial invitation is refused, representing official Judaism, the call goes out to the least likely, and finally people are compelled to come in from the highways and hedges. That is to say – no place on earth is spared.
I was surprised to find out that the most pages read on my blog came from mentioning the Christian who evangelizes the Muslims from a location in America. That seems to be an unlikely quest, one hardly worth trying and certainly one filled with danger.
And yet it is being done while many people raised in the Christian faith take it for granted, the worst of them being Scribes and Pharisees of the visible church – the theology professors in the divinity schools and seminary. (The academic theologians are almost always atheists – but are the official denominational theologians any better?)
The parable reveals the grace of God. Rather than limit His call to His chosen people, He has extended it to all across the earth. The less likely one is to become a believer, the greater the call to that person.
Through persecution and hardship the call is extended. For example, those who are beset by the spiritual conflict of false doctrine are the very ones who value sound doctrine the most. It is not calm but emotional hurricanes that make people seek shelter.
The Reformation was an era of conflict and persecution, warfare to destroy the Lutherans and kill their leaders. That was also when the best hymns were written, the best books published.
When Lutheran doctrine became divided by false teachers, The scandal was so great that Lutherans could not agree among themselves at religious conferences. Their opponents said, “Why should we debate you? You are not in agreement among yourselves.” God raised up another group of religious leaders to give us the Book of Concord.
The temptation is to say, “No we cannot debate these issues. That would divide us.” But the Scriptures say there must be divisions to prove what is acceptable and good in the eyes of God.
I cannot remember a single religious document that worries about institutional issues, such as the budget, the numbers, the emotional calm of the organization. In other words, they never worried about the man-made structure. They concentrated on the doctrine – whether it was in harmony with God’s Word or not.
That is the very thing mocked by people today, within the fold and without.
The apostle John wrote:
1 John 3:13 Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.
Doesn’t that sound strange in the context of today’s attitudes? There is an assumption that a good church or a good believer will be one where the unbelieving world smiles and pronounces its blessing. Just the opposite is true. There will always be an attitude of scandal, derision, and mockery.
We know this is true from the catcalls within the visible church.
“You have a Martin Luther complex.”
“You are a legalist.”
“How many members do you have?”
“Why are you so small if you are following His Word?”
Meanwhile the false teachers are in the driver’s seat – even better – they are being driven in a limo while scattering coins among the poor.
So there is a constant choice for believers, between loving God’s Word and loving the world’s opinion. The two cannot be reconciled in this life.
The gulf is so great that I speak to a group of people and see who the opponents of the Gospel are by the way they respond visibly. They scowl, fold their arms, and find fault. Yesterday my grandson and I practiced the look. We scowled at each other, looked down, scrunched up our arms, and glared. Behind his “look” was merriment, so he laughed in between.
Opponents of the Gospel do not laugh. They get even, And they get even many times over.
Once apostasy takes over, people will not tolerate any minister except an apostate. He must be as lost as they are, a belly server and flatterer.
In the old ULCA, which preceded the LCA, many congregations would only call a Mason for a pastor. The brother Masons were so powerful that they would not consider anything else. If you think that is strange, the Secretary of the LCA, George Harkins, was told he would never get anywhere in the older organization, the ULCA, unless he became a Mason. He never did and he never became the president, which he was well qualified to do (apart from belonging to the Lodge).
Now that seems absurd because it is tough to find a Mason younger than 80, but it opened the door to free-thinking, secretive apostasy. Since money flows to false doctrine, the loot confirms false doctrine as good in the minds of materialistic people. How can it be wrong if a Mason just built a new sanctuary for us?
I know of that happening in WELS and in Missouri, while WELS made fun of Missouri for being soft on the Masonic Lodge.
One of the great comforts of this parable is to show that we are not rubbing shoulders with the elite who scorn the Gospel, but with the riff-raff, who were compelled by the Gospel call to come to the feast.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
South Dakota ELCA Rejects National Decision
Conformity to the lavender agenda is their only goal.
State ELCA Lutherans reject church's national stance on sexuality
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The 2010 South Dakota Synod Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America narrowly voted Friday against the national church's statement accepting gay relationships.
By a margin of eight votes, the state assembly passed a resolution, 251-243, with 10 abstaining, rescinding the national 2009 Churchwide Assembly's decision to recognize same-gender couples through its social statement "Human Sexuality: Gift & Trust," which also passed narrowly at the national level, according to Bishop David Zellmer, leader of South Dakota's ELCA congregations.
A re-vote was sought on Friday's action, but that request was denied by a 19-vote margin.
The state assembly is expected to vote Saturday on whether or not to rescind the national church's policy that allows gay clergy in a monogamous relationship to be on the ELCA's list of pastors and serve in churches.
The social statement lists four positions on relationships accepted by the ELCA, including gay marriage, Zellmer said.
The resolution and others being discussed during the three-day assembly at Calvary Lutheran Church in Rapid City are responses to the national assembly's inclusive position on gay couples and gay clergy, which disconcerted many congregations and worshipers nationwide. It resulted in some churches choosing to withhold funding from the national assembly and others choosing to leave the ELCA altogether.
In South Dakota, seven congregations have left the ELCA since the 2009 assembly's decisions, and seven more are waiting to take second votes on leaving.
More than 600 people attended Friday's Synod sessions.
The resolution passed Friday by the clergy and lay people, representing South Dakota's 123,000 Lutherans, makes two statements to the national assembly. First, it says adopting the social statement was a violation of the ELCA's Confession of Faith, the foundation of the church's beliefs. (The assembly voted down an amendment to remove this section.)
Second, it asks the 2011 ELCA Churchwide Assembly to reconsider and remove the social statement it approved in 2009.
Zellmer said it will be difficult to convince the national assembly to change what is now church law.
At the 2009 state synod, that assembly passed resolutions asking the national assembly not to pass the changes, but it happened anyway, Zellmer said.
The Rev. David Baer of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Whitewood said some congregations are not making a decision on leaving the ELCA until they see what happens at the state Synod, and others are waiting to see what happens at the 2011 national assembly.
Baer's church stopped contributing to both the national church headquarters and the state ELCA synod. He is also a part of the Lutheran Coalition for Renewal -- commonly called CORE -- which formed in opposition to the proposed changes to ELCA policies and church teachings.
Baer said churches are waiting because leaving the ELCA is like leaving your family.
"It's emotional; we feel connected," Baer said. "We do really relate to each other, and it's hard to say ‘no' to your family."
Zellmer said Friday's resolution may help some congregations decide to stay with the ELCA, but passing Saturday's resolutions on the church's policies on gay clergy would help the most.
"It would have more of an ability to have the churches step back and wait before they would take a vote to leave," Zellmer said.
Based on response from congregations at a national level, Baer and Zellmer both said it was unlikely the national assembly would change its mind. A splinter church, the North American Lutheran Church, is already forming for congregations leaving the ELCA; a constituting convocation is scheduled for August in Ohio, Baer said.
The South Dakota Synod Assembly will meet again in 2011, and the group's position could change before the 2011 national conference, Zellmer said.
In addition to gay clergy, the assembly is expected to vote on matters regarding mental illness education, encouragement of mission partnership, church elections and ending poverty and injustice.
Contact Holly Meyer at 394-8421 or holly.meyer@rapidcityjournal.com.
Posted in Lifestyles, Faith-and-values, Religion, News, Local, State-and-regional, Top-stories on Friday, June 11, 2010 8:43 pm
From Faithful Service
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An effort in the Northwest Washington Synod to rescind Resolution 4 of the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, which allows practicing homosexuals to be pastors in the ELCA, failed. (see resolution results here)
Three DPs
Three DPs,
Three DPS,
See how they run,
See how they run!
They all ran after
The Church Growth myth
They told all the Revs
"It will be such bliss!
Just copy and paste
And you simply can't miss!"
Say the three DPs.
Ichabod Copied by Rogue Lutheran
Rogue Lutheran
The struggle is God or Group and the adversary is still the same -- it’s a War on Faith and a lot of assets hang in the balance.
WELS Northern Wisconsin District - Crossroads
WELS Northern WI District Doctrinal Issues
June 11, 2010 by Rick
The WELS Northern Wisconsin District Convention will be held in Appleton, WI at Fox Valley Lutheran High School from June 13-15, 2010 A.D. The District President (equivalent to a Bishop) will be chosen at this convention, as will the District Presidium and numerous Circuit Pastors. It is imperative that the Northern Wisconsin District choose its leaders wisely.
The Northern Wisconsin District needs leaders who will pay more than lip service to the means of grace, and who will promote and use the means of grace to change hearts. The means of grace is the gospel in word and sacrament, and the first means of grace is God’s Word.
There are serious theological divisions in the Northern Wisconsin District, and there needs to be some serious theological discussion of God’s word to deal with these divisions. From my perspective, there are at least four specific and serious doctrinal problems in the WELS Northern Wisconsin District:
The first problem is exceptionalism. This is the belief that the WELS cannot be wrong. It is a numbness that causes us to ignore the symptoms of unhealthy doctrine and practice. Those who hold to this false and unhealthy belief sometimes express contempt toward those who raise concerns about doctrine and practice in the WELS. Their opinion is: “How dare you question your WELS pastor!”
However, Paul warns us that even among the leaders of the church
men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. [Acts 20:30-31].
Does this warning not apply to the WELS? If such stringent warnings were necessary in an age of living Apostles, then how much more do these warnings apply to us today?
The second problem is a lack of trust in the means of grace (Word and sacraments). This is the belief that from our perspective, God needs our services in order to grow the church. It is also a denial of God’s promises and omnipotence. One example of this false doctrine can be found in the WELS produced songbook, Let All the People Praise You. The first verse of the song “Ready Lord” states: “… show me Lord, the service you will need.” I cannot count how many times my own congregation has sung that verse.
However, Paul says that God
is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. [Acts 17:25].
The problem here is not an inadvertent error. The problem is a persistent adherence to an error even after the error has been pointed out. Those who claim to believe God’s Word should repent of saying that God needs our services, and cease this blasphemy against the Almighty. God says: “If I were hungry, I would not tell you.” (Psalm 50:12).
The third problem is a belief in post-conversion works-righteousness/decision theology. This is the belief that Christians (after conversion) can not only choose to listen to God’s Word, but can also choose to understand and believe God’s Word. This also encompasses the idea that once God has “saved” us, it is now up to us to keep ourselves in the faith. This theology causes at least four problems: First, sermons to Christians become motivational speeches instead of proclamations of the life-giving Word of God. Second, it creates two “gospels,” one for believers and one for unbelievers. Third, it causes us to view God’s Word as a tool we use to improve ourselves, instead of as a life-line that we cling to in desperation and faith. And fourth, it causes people to base their faith and salvation on their daily choices instead of on the firm promise of God.
In contradistinction to the belief that Christians can choose to believe God’s Word, Paul told the early believers:
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead … For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this [faith & grace is] not from yourselves, it is the gift of God [Ephesians 1:17-20, 2:8].
God’s Word alone creates faith, and causes it to grow.
The fourth problem is a variation of unionism. Unionism is the belief that doctrine is not that important. This unhealthy belief reveals itself in the form of a church council president who tells WELS members that if they have doctrinal disagreements with their pastor, then they should be quiet, or join another WELS congregation. Those who hold to this unhealthy belief view doctrinal discussions as divisive and a waste of time. However, the biblical solution is to discuss and study God’s Word until the issues are resolved.
For example, in the Acts of the Apostles, Luke wrote that
the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. [17:11].
Also, in the Revelation Jesus said,
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked…
Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. [3:15-17, 19].
Most of the above listed unhealthy doctrines are not proclaimed proudly from the rooftops for all to see, but rather they are hidden and are mostly revealed by poor practices which are the primary symptoms of unhealthy doctrine. Beliefs always affect what we do. (James 2:18).
No doctor merely looks at a patient and says, “Well, I can see that you have cancer.” Rather he looks at symptoms, and probes, and seeks to discover the true sickness, and then he applies the cure. The cure is the proclamation of the pure clear Word of God. When will the shepherds apply the cure? (Ezekiel 34:1-6). Unfortunately, some of the shepherds and over-shepherds are sick, and they resent the cure.
It is vitally important that the Northern Wisconsin District choose its leaders wisely. The leaders of the districts are called to apply the Word of God. This is their job. This is their calling. The Northern Wisconsin District needs leadership that, instead of squelching discussion and quashing dissent, will commit itself to promoting open discussion and the study of God’s word.
God’s Word is not a tool we use to make ourselves better, but rather it is a life-line that we must cling to in desperation and faith. Therefore, dear delegates to the WELS district conventions, please pray and vote wisely. We need, we need the clear pure truth of God’s Word!
Kyrie eleison.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Norman Teigen on the LCMS-ELS
Norman Teigen has left a new comment on your post "Preus-Otten-McCain-Barry":
Thank you for re-distributing this link. I think that the report is probably pretty accurate.
I was glad to see that the Preus-ELS connection was mentioned. There is no doubt that the ELS suspension of fellowship with Missouri in 1955 was engineered by the Preus brothers. The Preus brothers were brighter than any of the others in the ELS.
It was painful to my father and my uncle that the Preus brothers did what they did and then went to Missouri. It was opportunism at every turn.
The Jim Adams account of Preus and the ELS should be considered as completely reliable.
Of course, my father and my uncle were supportive of Jack Preus and his internal Missouri battles.
My uncle passed away in 1970. My father and Robert were reasonably close to the end.
Jack rejected my Dad's analysis of Chemnitz. Jack torpedoed the idea that CPH would publish his book. I think that it might be fairly safely put forth that Jack was in the tradition of Missouri receptionism when he passed away.
CPH in recent years would have published my Dad's book (I think that this is true) but we survivors decided to make the book freely available through LOGIA.
Robert Preus, the record will show, was responsive to my father's work on the Chemnitz question. Robert got beyond receptionism.
Robert was described by Bohlmann as a church politician. Who wasn't? I have always felt that the treatment of Robert Preus by the Missouri Synod was one of the saddest things to have occurred in that era.
Now, the Preus family continues to be prolific. Some might suggest that the Preus family gene pool has gone into decline. Old Governor Jake and then Jack and Robert were pretty strong guys.
I don't know the family but some think that the family isn't as bright as it had been in earlier times. These assessments are based on 'Luther Quest' posts.
Thanks again, for this post. I hope that the discussion of who owns the history of the church continues.
Norman Teigen
ELS layman
***
GJ - Receptionism is derived from Enthusiasm. To say, "We do not know when it is the Body and Blood of Christ" is an admission of Biblical apostasy and studied ignorance.
'Tis funny that the UOJ Enthusiasts know exactly when the entire unbelieving world was forgiven, at the death of Christ, or at His resurrection. Come to think of it, they have not figured that out. Continuing my thought, they think they know the Moment of Absolution, but they do not know the Word consecrates.
No wonder Lutherdom has fallen into such disarray.
People howl about how unfair it is that I discuss doctrinal issues out in the open, as if that is harmful. But they have no trouble ruining the careers of people through their covert actions, their shameful behavior, and their words hidden away.
I tried to explain to another high school alumnus that WELS pushed me out of the ministry for telling the truth while the same officials supported an abusive ex-pastor getting back into the ministry. WELS and the ELS worked together on that. But according to Gaylin Schmeling,* it "hurts the face of the church" to keep abusive clergy out of the ministry by addressing the Biblical issues.
That is why no one will hear WELS or the ELS admit that Holy Mother Synod has ever made a mistake, published false doctrine, moved around adulterous pastors, or promoted false teachers to positions of greater authority.
*Sem prez, The Little Schoolhouse on the Prairie, richly endowed by Marvin Schwan, who left his wife and married the wife of one of his subordinates, ending two marriages. There is no absolution more certain than one paved with gold, eh?
Lutheran Books Selling
I listed the Lutheran books, so people can write at
gregjackson1948@qwest.net.
When I get done with the Lutheran books, I will list my fabulous collection of history and literature.
I have a lot of English and Medieval history. Literature includes classics from all over, from Chaucer to Dorothy Parker, some great novels and short stories.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Preus-Otten-McCain-Barry
Norman Teigen provided this link about the LCMS wars. The review is from Day Star, not exactly the confessional redoubt of Missouri. Still, it contains plenty of information and some dubious facts. America really favors liberalism, according to the article. That would have surprised Reagan.
I have met or known most of the main characters: Herman Otten, his sister Marie Meyer, David Scaer, Waldo Werning, Carl Hofmeyer, Fred Rutz Sr, Ralph Bohlmann, Al Barry, and that Jesuit Paul McCain.
Otten and his group played politics and won a few battles, losing the war.
The most effective weapon is the Word, which is hardly used. The WELS district meetings will probably be proxy fights, with people hoping everyone gets the hint about what they are saying on the floor or in conversations. It is a mortal sin to be direct in WELS, scaring the apostates half to death. More obviously, it makes them resentful, and they get even.
Meanwhile, it is no sin to copy directly the so-called sermons of Babtists who deny the efficacy of the Word, the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, baptismal regeneration, and infant faith. Their attitude toward Holy Communion is the same - denying the Sacrament, denying forgiveness.
This week I am teaching an MA class about plagiarism and copyright laws. When a minister publishes a sermon on the Net or anywhere else, it is copyrighted by default. When another minister copies that sermon, changing a few words, and publishes/preaches it as his own, he is a liar, a thief, and a plagiarist. WELS does absolutely nothing about that.
But dare to question Holy Mother WELS...
Money Changer -
It's My Potty and I'll Cry If I Want To
mark has left a new comment on your post "Too Little and Too Late?":
Notice how few readers Jackson has these days?
Maybe it's because he's to (sic) angry to do any good. Or maybe because he's wrong?
Well at least no one's reading the site anymore.
***
GJ - Exactly how does this illiterate son of WELS know how many readers I have? My only source is Google Analytics. I trust he does not have the secret password for those statistics.
In the last year I have had 56,000+ unique readers.
Over 350,000 pages have been read.
Comments decreased when people realized they would be tracked for their unique identities. Some had trouble getting OpenID to work. Still, comments come in and I get more personal email than ever before.
Too Little and Too Late?
Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "Proxy War":
The question is whether the apostates can be converted or expelled by the politeness of the Intrepid Lutherans.
This is one half of the issue. Can they convert those who are manipulating the Synod and laity, to achieve their New Age Emergent success, with polite discourse on issues that are a result of the core problems and not the core problems themselves? Note that the apostates who have ushered in the New Age doctrines and practices have been exposed to and confronted with the refutations of their actions with Scripture and the Confessions by concerned laity, and have at one time taken an oath to uphold the teachings of Scripture and the BOC before. They have already rejected these for the wisdom and success of men.
The other half of the issue is the laity. Can the IL overcome the effect of doing nothing for years by discussing the fringe effects of the core problems? Can it be accomplished without offending anyone? Without giving specific examples? IL is waging a gentle 30 year campaign in a war that has been waging for years and will be over in 5-10 - it may already be over. Combine that with the fact that the majority of the (W)ELS clergy and laity take their sole lead on what to believe and confess from the authority of the Synod and not Scripture and the Confessions. The fact that IL represents only a few hearty souls means that the laity will feel far safer following the same old path than to take a chance on Scripture and the Confessions. Fear replaces faith and the (W)ELS have destroyed faith with their central doctrine of UOJ. Unless IL starts at the central article of Christian faith they will simply be rearranging the chairs and ironing the linen on the Titanic.
This is not to say that Scriptural and Confessional efforts are without benefit as God works through the Means of Grace alone and the Word purely taught and Sacraments rightly distributed always work to either harden sinful hearts or create contrition and saving faith in those God has called by His grace. The application of the medicine needs to exceed the extent of the infection.
*Leonard Sweet is also adored by Paul Calvin Kelm and the president of Our Lady of Sorrows, St. Louis.
Proxy War
Herman Otten recently decried Lutheran groups splitting, but he comes from the era of synods modeled after General Motors - a fact well known about the LCA corporate structure. The LCA, now ELCA, has gone the way of GM.
Someone asked about Intrepid Lutherans and the discussions on the liturgy.
In WELS especially, every battle is a proxy war. The real topic is not the subject mentioned. It stands for something else.
Those emphasizing liturgy are criticizing Church and Change. They imply this without saying it.
For Church and Change, promoting the liturgy is a legalistic stance, their way of dismissing the confessional Lutherans as false teachers. They imply this without saying it.
The Church and Money Changers are nasty, unscrupulous, dishonest, and greedy. Their love of false doctrine is exceeded only by their lust for loot.
The question is whether the apostates can be converted or expelled by the politeness of the Intrepid Lutherans.
I see three positive signs, in spite of my general gloom (based on the evidence) about Lutherans in general:
- WELS laity and pastors are working together in the open and expressing themselves on a group blog.
- The Anything Goes district is giving the Book of Concord as a confirmation gift. That is like finding out that the Billy Graham Crusade is reprinting What Luther Says.
- WELS is promoting the Confessions from the top down, a complete reversal from the apostate leadership of the last 33 years, when Ron Roth's Church Growth was allowed to sow its toxic seed.
WELS is tiny, so changing direction is more a case of digging one oar in a little harder.
WELS and Missouri have abandoned the Confessions so long that people are hungering for something doctrinal rather than listening to practical advice from the Babtists and New Agers.
That will put pressure on the Little Sect to have doctrinal leadership. Orvick and Pope John were both products of the WELS CG faction.
Ruling Norm and Ruled Norm
John has left a new comment on your post "Un-Emerging Theology Book Given to Confirmands in ...":
WELS Church Lady says: "...our friends at CPH allowed for the word objective justification. No place in the body of the book is this term mentioned. Needless to say it is not found in the Concordia Triglotta."
Isn't Scripture the norm?
Aren't there many things that the Book of Concord does not address, specifically?
Does the Book of Concord specifically address abortion?
I am not commenting here on any subject other than what the norm is.
John
***
GJ - Scripture is the ruling norm, while the Confessions are the ruled norm.
Lutherans are the only ones with a coherent, harmonious confession of faith, but the BoC is neglected by all the synods today.
Father Neuhaus called himself a confessional Lutheran, right up to the point where he became a Roman Catholic priest. He was an ELCA pastor when he called himself confessional. I wrote to him, "You are really just less liberal, not confessional." He conceded that point.
John is flirting with the logical fallacy called the "argument from silence." There is no OJ content in the BoC. What people claim for that is always another passage about the Atonement of Christ.
The argument from silence has been used for Preus' Justification and Rome, where UOJ is clearly repudiated. I would love to see the original manuscript, before Dan and Rolf Preus got their UOJ hands on it. Nevertheless, the doctrine of justification by faith alone comes through clearly.
There is only one justification, justification by faith, as Preus wrote.
UOJ Stormtroopers are avoiding two key issues:
- George Knapp invented double-justification, which is a testament to the Calvinistic basis of Pietism.
- Robert Preus repudiated his earlier stance in favor of UOJ.
There may be UOJ fans who tell the truth, but I have not found one yet.