Comment from Joe Krohn's Blog
Yi'su ke Bala said...
Do I understand correctly? The WELS pastor chooses not to answer a doctrinal question simply on the account that you are not in the fellowship of their communion? How would they expect to win back an erring brother (I assume that is their perspective in this situation)if they refuse any doctrinal discussion simply on the account that you are "not in fellowship." How do any non WELS people ever inquire into WELS position if they squelch any doctrinal discussions between WELS pastors and Christians who are not in fellowship with them? I can understand them frowning on the fact that you are communing outside their fellowship, but to refuse to answer a doctrinal question on those grounds seems preposterous. I am a member of LCMS who once was considering the WELS (in fact the same congregation that you reference in your posts). The pastor once told me that WELS was 'the old LCMS.' I can concede with WELS that the LCMS is not what it once was, but by no means do I discern the WELS to be anything akin to my grandfathers' LCMS. My grandfather's LCMS valued doctrinally rich hymns and liturgy and relied on Word and Sacrament to create the faith which receives the gift of salvation found only in the precious Blood of the Lamb. They did not value cultural relevance as some sort of third sacrament, turning Divine Service into a Rolling Stone Concert and jettisoning honest Bible translations for something that is PC to the masses. I'm thankful, at least for the moment, that I stayed where I am.
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GJ - I predicted a long time ago that WELS would have women's ordination long before Missouri, to use one yardstick of conformity to the Spirit of This Age. "The church that dances with the Spirit of This Age will be a widow in the Age To Come."
Women's ordination is just a symptom. Enthusiasm took over the sect many decades ago, with a lobbying group--known as Church and Change--determined to take no prisoners. They combine stealth and deceit even today. Kudu Don Patterson is a Church and Church leader but denies being part of it, even though he attended their "last" shindig.
How Church and Change took over everything is easy to determine. People suggested that I attend the "final" meeting of these shape-shifters, Regaining Momentum. I did latrine duty in Columbus - why sub for others after my enlistment is over?
When Issues in WELS met, Gurgle announced he would attend the next meeting, when 200 men were supposed to show up. That did it. Attendance was sparse, lest anyone arouse the righteous wrath of Gurgle. Faith makes people bold, and there is little faith among the pastors of WELS. DP Free died and Issues in WELS disappeared, website and all.
