McCain On an Otten Rampage

Paul McCain, aka Nicholas Amsdorf!, is posting about his political ally Herman Otten, on the ALPB Forum.

The American Lutheran Publicity Bureau Online Forum has a long thread on Otten speaking at Concordia, Mequon.

I saw posts from "Nicholas Amsdorf" that were clearly Paul McCain's - no effort to disguise them.

Name:	Nicholas Amsdorf
Posts:	81 (27 per day)
Position:	ALPB Forum Member
Date Registered:	January 09, 2011, 02:54:03 PM

Website: Cyberbrethren

I saw 27 posts per day for 3 days! I consider a 6-post day a good one here, but I have a real job, teaching adults at two universities. And I preach every Sunday, so I don't need to pose in a clerical outfit with a bishop's neclace hanging down.

The strangest part of this is McCain's endless rant against Otten. They were best buddies when it came to getting Al Barry elected covertly. As both of them explained to me, separately, McCain got all of Barry's materials to Christian News early, so Otten could pretend to be publishing what came in the mail.

Both of them later denied the collusion, but Otten has all the correspondence in his files.

McCain got a job at the Purple Palace as his reward, but he did not tell Otten. McCain told me but asked me to keep it a secret, so I did. When Otten told me, I said I already knew. He asked how that happened, so I told him. Otten was not happy, but they stayed in contact with each other for a period of time. Then, as always, Otten became the enemy and was shunned.

Barry and McCain spent 9 years placating the Left while dissing the conservatives.

According to Otten, McCain spiked the invitation that Barry extended to meet with Otten. According to CN, McCain reported to Barry that Otten refused to meet with the Synod President. Of course, Al could have jumped in a car and driven to New Haven (two hours) on his own.

McCain does not like his machinations known. ALPB has found him quite tiresome more than once, and that is really a debating web forum, where there is a fair amount of snarkiness, nastiness, and posturing. McCain seems to be a bottom feeder, even in that crowd.

The episode is a portrait of the Missouri Synod as it continues to sputter. The leaders all play a political game, biffing one another while complaining about being biffed. They all agree about UOJ, their one and only doctrine, but that does not unite them. McCain is more fanatical about UOJ than Otten is, but Universalism and Enthusiasm do not unite.

Here is another example of how Missouri works. The convention voted in SP Harrison by a margin slightly more than 50%. However, more than half of the voters who backed Harrison also voted to continue working with ELCA. That vote was more like 75-80%.

Yet Missouri pretends to be different from and superior to ELCA. McCain promotes that mirage whenever possible, even though he sought cuddle time with the pope via ex-LCMS, ex-AELC, ex-ELCA Father Richard Neuhaus.

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Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "McCain On an Otten Rampage":

I searched McCain's blog for references to Otten. Nothing current but certainly a significant mention when Pope worshiping Richard Neuhaus died.

Having said that, I am already cringing at the possibility that there will be featured in a certain newspaper from New Haven a graceless, ham-fisted tirade against Richard John Neuhaus the Catholic convert and more's the pity. But the Roman Church has its share of graceless, ham-fisted apologists and I suppose we must have our fair share too.

Clear reference to Otten and Christian News. Seems McCain takes offense that Otten would not be as kind as he when speaking of Neuhaus who died and went to Hell if he remained steadfast in his Roman Catholic confession.

The rest of the post must have made the Popes' wives all swoon:

"He [Neuhaus] opened several doors for me while I served The LCMS President, making it possible for LCMS leadership to make direct contact with the Vatican, when ELCA leaders were intent on cutting us out of formal conversation with Rome."

http://cyberbrethren.com/2009/01/08/a-grief-observed-richard-john-neuhaus-1936-2009/

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GJ - Brett did not do justice to the McCain post, so I have kelmed the whole thing. Here is an accurate portrait of the "confessional" leadership of the LCMS and "conscience" of the ALPB Online Forum.

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Richard John Neuhaus died today. I feel a sadness of heart and an emptiness of spirit. A place at the table of enriching conversation that I enjoy with a number of people across Christendom is now empty, a very large empty place, indeed. Father Neuhaus, once LCMS Pastor Neuhaus, then ELCA Pastor Neuhaus, was, for me, a source of ongoing inspiration and encouragement.

Encouragement? Yes, encouragement to be and remain the very best Lutheran God allows me to be. Now why do I say this? I fervently differed with Father Neuhaus on several core issues of the confession of the Christian Gospel, and he knew that. Over the many long years I had struck up a very informal and not-frequent-enough conversation with him, as I'm sure thousands of other people. I know he kindly entertained my letters and thoughts because of our shared Lutheranism, a Lutheranism he believed fervently was realized fully in communion with Rome, a Lutheranism I believe must remain apart from Rome as long as Rome clings to its Gospel-obscuring errors.

Having said that, I am already cringing at the possibility that there will be featured in a certain newspaper from New Haven a graceless, ham-fisted tirade against Richard John Neuhaus the Catholic convert and more's the pity. But the Roman Church has its share of graceless, ham-fisted apologists and I suppose we must have our fair share too.

I always enjoyed my back-and-forths with Father Neuhaus. He opened several doors for me while I served The LCMS President, making it possible for LCMS leadership to make direct contact with the Vatican, when ELCA leaders were intent on cutting us out of formal conversation with Rome. Father Neuhaus was able to make direct personal appeal to Pope John Paul which led to direct contacts with Cardinal Ratzinger, with the result that the The LCMS was again given a place at the table of discussion and dialog with Rome, and most importantly, a point sadly lost on some, the chance in this formal context to make the good confession of faith. I learned from Father Neuhaus how the highest levels of the Vatican looked with considerable appreciation on the bold confession The Missouri Synod made at the time of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, and it was from Father Neuhaus that I learned that Cardinal Ratzinger had made the point, "If the Lutherans do not take their Confessions seriously, why should we?" But then he would always say, "But there is the Missouri Synod!"

Father Neuhaus kindly asked me to write a couple pieces for FIRST THINGS and he was always interested in what The LCMS was up to. He introduced me to George Weigel and others through the years. Like I said, these kindnesses were commonplace and I know many, many others shared my experiences with Father Neuhaus.

As much as I disagreed with Father Neuhaus, I agreed with so much of what he wrote in
First Things. Of course, he was a constant advocate for his "new" church, but he was fair and even-handed in his criticism, liberally applied, from a conservative point of view, of all trends and movements in Christendom. I admired his rhetorical and writing skills and the first section I always turned to in First Things was his column at the end. I suspect most First Things readers did! His wit, wisdom and breadth of engagement with contemporary trends in our culture was breathtaking. What a noble and bold spokesman for unborn human life he was!

I will miss Father Neuhaus. Through all the years he was a Roman Catholic priest there was no doubt that his Lutheran piety and catechesis was clearly a part of his very being. I felt Richard John brought to the Romanism he embraced a hearty and full measure of the joyful Gospel rediscovery of Martin Luther, for which I am grateful.

I will miss Father Neuhaus, and I join with many others in expressing my appreciation for his life and work, both for what he did that I fervently agreed with, which was much, and that which I had to disagree with, which was substantial. In both cases, he challenged me to think, to reflect, to grow and to strive for excellence in our common confession of Christ. Here is a nice reflection from a fellow Lutheran who worked with Father Neuhaus, Anthony Sacramone.

And here are comments from Fr. Neuhaus, reflecting on his own death, written a number of years ago:

“When I come before the judgment throne, I will plead the promise of
God in the shed blood of Jesus Christ. I will not plead any work that I
have done, although I will thank God that he has enabled me to do some
good. I will plead no merits other than the merits of Christ, knowing
that the merits of Mary and the saints are all from him; and for their
company, their example, and their prayers throughout my earthly life I
will give everlasting thanks. I will not plead that I had faith, for
sometimes I was unsure of my faith, and in any event that would be to
turn faith into a meritorious work of my won. I will not plead that I
held the correct understanding of “justification by faith alone,”
although I will thank God that he led me to know ever more fully the
great truth that much misunderstood formulation was intended to
protect. Whatever little growth in holiness I have experienced,
whatever strength I have received from the company of the saints,
whatever understanding I have attained of God and his ways – these and
all other gifts received I will bring gratefully to the throne. But in
seeking entry to that heavenly kingdom, I will…look to Christ and
Christ alone.”

- Richard John Neuhaus.  Death on a Friday Afternoon.  New York:  Basic Books, 2000)  p. 70.

Requiescat in pace

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GJ - I knew Richard Neuhaus; I heard his father preach on Easter Sunday in Canada. We met at the Ad Fontes conference in Pennsylvania and corresponded for years. I found him to be a great sparring partner, but it saddened me that he joined Rome after calling himself a "confessional Lutheran" for years.

McCain has tossed the mantle of "confessional Lutheran" on himself--the one thrown down by Neuhaus. McCain likes to brag about his collection of Book of Concord editions. Like most librarians, he is more concerned with the title page than the contents. We confess that the papacy is the very Antichrist, so all self-righteous comments posted by McCain reveal one thing alone - he is a confessed apostate, an anti-confessional Lutheran in Name Only.

It is indeed sad that so many graduates of Concordia Seminary, Ft. Wayne, which had so much to offer, will end their careers as life-long advocates of UOJ, teaching against Luther's Biblical doctrine, proud of the corpses they have left behind.

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Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "McCain On an Otten Rampage":

McCain quotes Neuhaus above: "I will not plead that I held the correct understanding of “justification by faith alone,” although I will thank God that he led me to know ever more fully the great truth that much misunderstood formulation was intended to protect."

Pure RCC blasphemy. Says a lot about Paul McCain as Paul prefaces that blasphemous self eulogy with, "In both cases, he challenged me to think, to reflect, to grow and to strive for excellence in our common confession of Christ."

Common confession of Christ?!? That I do not doubt. Especially considering McCain's attacks on Justification by Faith Alone while defending UOJ on Extra Nos.

This situation reminds me of an ELS essay that rivals the UOJ mishmash of Buchholz, Zarling, H.A. Preus, Becker, Wendland, Beckman, Webber, Deutschlander etc. It's titled, The Birth that Gave Rebirth to the Doctrine of Justification, by The Rev. Wilhelm W. Petersen. In it he quotes Quanbeck discussing Lutheran and Catholic confession on Justification which ties in with an Ichabod post a few days ago where (W)ELS Pastor Seiltz' confession is identical to that of the Antichrist regarding Justification By Faith Alone.

Petersen:
Dr. Warren Quanbeck, a spokesman for the American Lutheran Church, is quoted as saying, “Today biblically informed theologians in both traditions can agree on the teaching of the New Testament concerning justification by grace alone through faith, and can agree on theological formulations of the doctrine without denying or betraying their theological heritage.” In other words there is a Roman Catholic/Lutheran convergence today on justification. This is also evidenced by Dr. Hans Kung, a Roman Catholic theologian, who says “that neo-Lutheran doctrine is quite compatible with that expressed by Trent.” Page 19

http://www.blts.edu/essays/petersenWW/Birth%20that%20Gave%20Rebirth%20to%20Justification.pdf

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LPC has left a new comment on your post "McCain On an Otten Rampage":

And further...McCain said I felt Richard John brought to the Romanism he embraced a hearty and full measure of the joyful Gospel rediscovery of Martin Luther, for which I am grateful.

What da?

How can a so called confessional Lutheran say such a thing unless he is warped in the head?

Romanism rejects the Gospel Luther rediscovered! How can one say that Neuhaus brought to Romanism the Gospel rediscovered by Luther?

Only when one has embraced absurdity as something authored by God! This confuses God with the devil, the one who authors confusion.

LPC

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GJ - The ALPB writers are a tolerant bunch, a rainbow coalition, but they find McCain's self-serving diatribes difficult to bear.

Cardinals in the Snow

All cardinals on this post are by Norma Boeckler.

Birds reward those who feed them regularly by flocking to the food when cold and snowy weather arrive.

As Bruce Church noted, all the companies promote their food by painting cardinals on the containers. Everyone loves to see them.

Because cardinals love sunflower seeds and the shelter of bushes, we are especially blessed by them, with three males feeding at a time, and one or more females hopping to the feeder. The feeder is only eight feet from my desk, so I have a close-up view of the males, sitting in the sun, rolling seed into their mouths, spitting out the hulls, enjoying the food with a droll look of satisfaction. Bright sunlight highlights the brilliant contrasts of black and red.

The female cardinals are equally beautiful, and their subtle coloration is far more distinctive in sunlight. They are also a bit more shy than the males, so they get less press.

Although the snow and cold were on the way, the birds and squirrels did not immediately eat all the popcorn I spread for them. This makes me think they realize the duration of the bad weather and make an effort to extend the extra food supply. Birds seldom eat all of the berries, seed, suet, or other food at once.

Squirrels seem to waste food, such as scattering the corn kernels from the squirrel-feeder. Their eating habits make it easier for birds to have individual corn seeds. Blue birds dive for the ground and eat what the squirrels leave.

When New Ulm was truly socked in with a major sleet storm, the birds and squirrels ate in a panic. The squirrels chewed corn out of the ice rather than letting the seeds fall carelessly to the ground. When famine threatens, food is a luxury.

God lets us endure difficult times so we hunger and thirst for His Word. Later, remembering how He brought us through, we see our faith deepened by the experience of His wisdom, which transcends our thoughts entirely (Isaiah 55:8-10).

Bird feeders are great fun, year around. They really help the population during harsh weather. When snow and ice reduce the food supply, some fatty seeds and suet can mean the difference between surviving one more night, when extra calories are needed to remain warm.

Today the temperatures are in the single digits, with two inches of snow on the ground - extreme for NW Arkansas. The cardinals are wearing their sweaters to keep warm. Birds have downy feathers for warmth. They fluff them out in cold weather to trap extra warmth.

No one has matched the lightness and warmth of down blankets and coats.

Birds remind us daily of God's Creation. The most ardent evolutionist on TV declared their feathers are "a miracle."

Kretzmann and Objective Justification

Nothing proves the boobocracy of the Synodical Conference more than the proliferation of Objective Justification Enthusiasm.


WELS church lady has left a new comment on your post "WELS Church Lady Unloads on UOJ":

Thanks Brett. My bad! I failed to read the Kretzmann project in its entirety. I read the sections under "Justification" and "Election." These two sections appeared to have clean language in terms of Justification. I decided to read the Kretzmann section under Romans.(it is several pages long) I found some STUFF that was not worded under the Justification and Elections headings.

"In this way Christ earned righteousness for all man; the OBJECTIVE JUSTIFICATION concerns the whole world: every person without exception belongs to the number of those for whom the benefit of Christ's work has been obtained. Of the fact that this OBJECTIVE JUSTIFICATION actually becomes the property of the individual person by faith."

This reminds me of pastors who preach an excellent sermon about faith. These same pastors backflip when writing an essay or teaching a Bible Class about faith. In the Lutheran Confessions, there is NO exegesis to anything close to OJ/UJ dialogue. The quotes that I provided are found in the Romans 5 section of the Kretzmann Project.

In Christ,
from WELS church lady

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GJ - Why didn't Lutherans stand up and laugh this OJ nonsense out of the Synodical Conference?

• Walther and Pieper slowly established it, with their minions enforcing it with great zeal.
• The Prussian style of leadership made questioning an authority a grave sin, so error only had to make it to the top to spread it outwards.
• The Synodical Conference was weak on Biblical exegesis but enchanted with theses floating in the air without Biblical support.
• The Synodical Conference was extremely weak in teaching the efficacy of the Word and remains captivated by Enthusiasm.
• Calvin was a boogey-man, but Calvism shrouded in Pietism was untouchable, because Spener and Halle were sacred topics beyond criticism. Thus unionism, Enthusiasm, and doctrinal indifference came back full in force to dominate the unwary.

Can Cornerstone (WELS/LCMS) Sign This Statement?

Defeating the Church and Change bull.

Professional Code of Ethics

• FRCI believes it is in the best interest of our clients that:
• Initial meetings with prospective clients should not be construed as services for which payment is expected.
• No payments of special consideration should be made to an officer, director, trustee, employee, or advisor of a not-for-profit organization as compensation for influencing the selection of fundraising counsel.
• No payments of special consideration should be made to an officer, director, trustee, employee, or advisor of a not-for-profit organization as compensation for influencing the selection of fundraising counsel.
• Fees should be mutually agreed upon in advance of services.
• A flat, fixed fee is charged based on the level and extent of professional services provided. Fees are not based on the amount of charitable income raised or expected to be raised.
• Contracts providing for a contingent fee, a commission, or a fee based on percentage of funds raised are prohibited. Such contracts are harmful to the relationship between the donor and the institution and detrimental to the financial health of the client organization.
• Fundraising expenditures are within the authority and control of the not-for-profit organization.
• FRCI feels it is in the best interest of clients that solicitation of gifts is undertaken by Board members, staff and other volunteers.
• Subsequent to analysis or study, FRCI should engage a client only when the best interest of the client is served.
• FRCI should not profit directly or indirectly from materials provided by others, but billed to the FRCI, without disclosure to the client.
• FRCI does not engage in methods that are misleading to the public or harmful to their clients; do not make exaggerated claims of past achievement; and do not guarantee results of promise to helps clients achieve goals.
• Any potential conflict of interest should be disclosed by the firm to clients and prospective clients.
• FRCI will not acquire or maintain custody of funds and/or gifts directed to client organization.

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GJ - I challenge any congregation using Cornerstone (Heart in Focus) to examine whether the fund-raisers are living up to the code of conduct listed above.

Cornerstone is a Church Growth/Church and Change operation. They use their connections to promote their work as especially WELS blessed. They also work with LCMS congregations and have LCMS staff.

It's not religious unionism, because it's all about the money, honey.

Any large prosperous congregation looking for fund-raising help should get a second opinion after hearing a presentation from Cornerstone. When the smoke clears and the mirrors are gone, another proposal may be far less onerous.

Lest you think I back any group in particular - I believe the Gospel alone should be trusted. The temptation for hucksters is to dream up a project that will excite people into pouring funds into it.

The man who started this Possibility Thinking is the CEO of a bankrupt ministry - Robert Schuller of Garden Grove Community Church. After all the years of bragging and building, he cannot pay his bills. His son and daughter are engaged in spiritual fratricide, and his big entertainments are canceled because he cannot pay for the previous one.

Schuller presided over the expansion of the Church Growth Movement. He invented it and his gooey excesses slopped over into nearby Fuller Seminary.

Ron Roth (WELS) is the director of Cornerstone. He began the open promotion of CG in WELS with the start of TELL. The sole purpose of TELL was to promote CG in WELS.

Roth did for WELS stewardship what Schuller did for Garden Grove's. So the same people should teach Lutherans how to manage money and give it (to them)? Hahaha. And Mothers Against Drunk Drivers will give their next award to James P. Tiefel.

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Cornerstone is a team of dedicated disciples who love their Lord Jesus. We consider it a privilege to serve God's kingdom by challenging His people to grow in the grace of giving. With almost 150 years of combined service in public ministry and 58 years of stewardship education, we strive to conduct programs that bring honor to Jesus while giving thanks to him for all things. We are highly approachable and ready to serve!

Jeff Davis (Co-Founder) - Oh Noes! He is on the Board of Church and Change! And his bio there is blank, erased. I find that scary.
Lake Mills, Wisconsin Jeff's 28 years of experience in administration, ministry and consulting, coupled with a strong desire to serve Jesus, have helped form his servant characteristics. Jeff enjoys teaching, directing and leading God's people. His personal commitment to stewardship is a reflection on his beliefs and thankfulness to Jesus. He has written extensively on stewardship, guiding and challenging God's people to live lives of thanks. Recently, Jeff co-authored Heart in Focus, a faith focused financial course (www.heartinfocus.com). Jeff and Sally, his wife, reside in Lake Mills, Wisconsin. They have been blessed with 5 children and 1 grandchild.

Tom Grunow (Co-Founder of CSM, MEd, CFRE)
Portland, Oregon Tom Grunow is a 33-year veteran in Christian Education, Fund Development and Strategic Planning having served with Lutheran educational ministries in Florida, Texas and Oregon. Following in the footsteps of his father, Dr. Robert A. Grunow, known throughout the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) for his estate planning and fundraising expertise, for the past 14 years he has served as a consultant to Lutheran churches and schools throughout the U.S. Previously he served as Vice President of the Concordia University Foundation Portland and on the National Board of Directors of the Association of Lutheran Development Executives (ALDE). He currently serves Trinity Lutheran Church, as Volunteer Minister of Stewardship & Gifts, is an active member of ALDE, a member of the Christian Stewardship Association (CSA), and serves as Board Chair of the Lutheran Education Association (LEA). Tom resides in Portland, Oregon with his wife, Karin, a commissioned Lutheran schoolteacher. They have 3 children and 3 grandchildren.

Ron Roth (Director) - Founder of Church Growth in WELS
Hales Corners, Wisconsin Ron loves to teach and encourage God's people to respond to God's grace with thankful and generous gifts. He has served four congregations as pastor, leading three of them through capital expansion programs. As administrator of Christian giving for an international Lutheran church body, he developed a major gifts ministry and led three national campaigns. He was instrumental in developing a planned giving ministry which after twelve years is blessing various ministries with annual gifts of $10-12 million in current donations and matured bequests. Another $400+ million in estate gifts for the Lord's work have been completed. Ron and his wife Arlene live in the Milwaukee, WI area and are blessed with three children.

Wayne Baxmann (Associate)
Colgate, Wisconsin Wayne's forty plus years in public ministry have provided him with numerous opportunities to practice servant-leadership. He eagerly applies his spiritual gifts in working with God's people, particularly in the areas of organization, teaching and administration. He strongly believes in and models the attitude that Christian Stewardship is a manifestation of one's love and gratitude for what God has done. Wayne and his wife Renee live in Colgate, Wisconsin, just northwest of Milwaukee, and are active members of Risen Savior Lutheran Church in Milwaukee. Their three adult children and their families live in Washington and Texas.

Jon Mahnke (Associate)
Round Rock, TX One of Jon’s strengths is that of teaching where he has opportunity to personally connect with God’s people. Jon has served as pastor of a church plant, a medium size congregation, and the lead pastor of a large multi-staffed church and school ministry. He led his congregations through four highly successful major building programs. Throughout his ministry he implemented annual, congregation wide stewardship programs and emphases. Synodically, Jon has served on the Mission Board, Evangelism Commission, Synodical Council, Conference of Presidents (COP) as well as numerous sub-committees of the same. Jon and his wife Myrna live in Round Rock, TX. They have been blessed with four children and nine grandchildren.

Mel Fournier (Associate)
Leesburg, Florida Mel is "Mr. Lutheran" throughout Florida having served as a layperson in various Lutheran churches and in
every capacity both during his work as an independent electrician and later in his retirement years. He has served as both paid and volunteer for Thrivent (formerly AAL) in fraternal assistance and is well versed on the Biblical concepts of Christian stewardship.

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Ronald D. Roth

  |   Visit Guest Book

Roth, Ronald D. Went home to be with his Lord and Savior on January 3, 2011. Loving husband of Arlene (nee Biever). Father of Steve (Mary), Cindy (Andy) Petraske, and Michael. Grandfather of Kelsey, Zachary, and Noah Petraske, and Marisa Roth. Further survived by brother Phillip (Carol), nephews Rodney and Ryan (Sheila), and their children Reagan and Carson. Visitation to be held Thursday, January 6, at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, S66 W14325 Janesville Rd., Muskego, from 4 to 7 PM, service to follow at 7PM. In lieu of flowers, donations to St. Paul's Lutheran, WELS Missions, or the CJD Foundation appreciated.

WELS Church Lady Unloads on UOJ

"Makes sense to me."



WELS church lady has left a new comment on your post "Robert Preus - Justification and Rome":

"The whole world is saved, just not heaven saved."

Now tell me which Bible translation is the above quote found? He who does not believe will be condemned! "Mishmash" was the term used by DP Buccholz. He called both Becker and Myers Justification teachings a mishmash. "Somebody" talked the DP into writing the essay.(more like coercion). I motion that the DP write a new paper. "Through faith in Jesus."

My pastor quoted, "Through faith in Jesus" several times during a funeral. When pastors preach the Word as written, there is no room for UOJ garbage.

I would like to see how far one gets with the fourth Kokomo statement being used in a WELS funeral sermon. Kretzmann did not teach UOJ. Fuerbringer did not teach UOJ. J.T. Mueller did not teach it in his "My Church and Others." However, Mueller did use the term "objective justification" in his 1934 Dogmatics. When writing the Dogmatics, he used Franz Pieper as a source! I still do not understand where Pieper came up will forgiveness without faith. Faith is required, Pieper said it is not required. Faith is implanted by the Holy Spirit.(from hearing the Word) Even the BOC says that faith is needed.

In Christ,
from WELS church lady

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Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "WELS Church Lady Unloads on UOJ":

WELS Church Lady,
I understand and am glad you know I'm not trying to dismantle your comment. Your disgust and righteous anger is, in my opinion, appropriate to the severity of the problem and overall situation.

While reading Kretzmann, I also saw mainly faithful confession concerning the doctrine of Justification. His nod to UOJ may have simply been a mistake due to other factors than direct intention. This is another lesson for us. Many people today will read false doctrine and say, "but it can be understood correctly if..." All the while they allow the false teaching to exist and future generations only see the false teaching and without a Berean effort using the foundation of Scripture and the Confessions, they fall to such false doctrines.

You're right there is nothing in the BOC to support UOJ. Anyone, including Buchholz and Schroeder who point to the Ministry of the Keys as proof are blatant deceivers and not only mock and blaspheme Christ but also His Church who have the BOC and can plainly see that the assurance of the forgiveness of sins is only given to those who confess faith in Christ. Payment for sins, Christ as Mediator, is not the same as our obtaining Christ as Mediator, for the remission of sins. Christ is only obtained as Mediator through faith worked graciously by the Holy Ghost through God's Word in the Means of Grace.

Like identifying Kretzmann's error, it will be good if everyone calls it like it is and not as they would like it to be. Then, maybe, the clergy would begin to proof read their own writings and hold their tongues in an effort to ensure pure doctrine is taught and right practices are advanced.

L. P. Cruz Could Go To Town with This Fallacy

"Sounds reasonable to me."


Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "Robert Preus - Justification and Rome":

(W)ELS Pastor James Humann also provided this quote in defense of his teaching of UOJ:

(W)ELS Our Great Heritage, "Finally, "If forgiveness were dependent on faith in the sense that God does not forgive until we believe, we would always have to be sure that we are believers before we would be sure that we are forgiven." (p.60)
September, 2008

This is directly opposed to Christ when He declares in Mark 4:12, "That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them."

For those who still do not believe that UOJ replaces the faithful Gospel of Justification by Faith Alone Pastor Humann also quotes Our Great Heritage here, "God forever remains the God who punishes all sin, and at the same time he is forever the God who forgives every sin. And only the person who by God's grace has in the vicarious atonement of Christ found a way to believe both truths worships the God of the Bible." (p.53)

There are many other (W)ELS quotes that declare if Objective Justification as taught by the (W)ELS is denied then the Gospel is destroyed. Therefore they admit, and confirm with Pres. Robert Preus, that UOJ is not synonymous with the Atonement and is the once and for all divine verdict of acquittal for the entire unbelieving world. This leads into UOJ's perversion of the unforgivable sin which they call "Unbelief" but that can be the subject of another post.

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GJ - I believe Eduard Preuss--who joined the Church of Rome, after teaching UOJ at St. Louis--invented this argument.

Theology professors and MDivs stick to the same talking points without examining them closely.

Some important questions are:

1. Is this argument Biblical, with some anchor in the Scriptures?
2. Has the Book of Concord uncovered this insight?
3. Is this a logical fallacy, arguing in a circle? The author is saying, "This has to be true, because if universal absolution were not true, I would not have any certainty that it is true."

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Garrett has left a new comment on your post "L. P. Cruz Could Go To Town with This Fallacy":

This leads into UOJ's perversion of the unforgivable sin which they call "Unbelief" but that can be the subject of another post.

Please elaborate. I can remember my grade school teachers trying to pound this doctrine into my head: "The only unforgivable sin is unbelief". By Confirmation time, I started getting confused. "But didn't Jesus atone for all sins?"

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GJ - Jesus said there is no forgiveness for the sin against the Holy Spirit. For non-Lutherans, the verse is a trip into fantasy land. Faithful Lutherans realize that the Holy Spirit and the Word are used for each other in the Scriptures, although they are not the same. One is used for the other because God has bound His Spirit to the Word.

Therefore the sin against the Holy Spirit is dying without faith in Christ alone as our Savior.

KJV Matthew 12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.


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LPC has left a new comment on your post "L. P. Cruz Could Go To Town with This Fallacy":

Pr. Greg.

we would always have to be sure that we are believers before we would be sure that we are forgiven.

Yes, Pastor, this is an absolute fallacy, it contains a false assumption about faith, an assumption that is not defined by Scripture. Yet NT in Heb 11:1 says faith is the assurance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen.

I know of the same thing that happened to E Preuss happened here recently. A Reverend Doctor of LCAus, who articulated UOJ, is now an RC parishioner and lecturing at an RC college here.

UOJ and Poping are connected, specially with Vatican II.

LPC

This is just a quick answer. If I can add more later, I will.

Robert Preus - Justification and Rome

From Luther versus the UOJ Pietists: Justification by Faith:

Robert Preus, Justification and Rome

Dr. Robert Preus is known for advocating UOJ in the 1980s, when Concordia Seminary in Ft. Wayne was also deep into Church Growth Enthusiasm.[1] In his last book, edited after his death by his sons Daniel and Rolf, his clear stance against UOJ is obvious.

When does the imputation of Christ’s righteousness take place? It did not take place when Christ, by doing and suffering, finished the work of atonement and reconciled the world to God. Then and there, when the sins of the world were imputed to Him and He took them, Christ became our righteousness and procured for us remission of sin, justification, and eternal life. “By thus making satisfaction He procured and merited (acquisivit et promeruit) for each and every man remission of all sins, exemption from all punishments of sin, grace and peace with God, eternal righteousness and salvation.”[2]

But the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the sinner takes place when the Holy Spirit brings him to faith through Baptism and the Word of the Gospel. Our sins were imputed to Christ at His suffering and death, imputed objectively after He, by His active and passive obedience, fulfilled and procured all righteousness for us. But the imputation of His righteousness to us takes place when we are brought to faith.[3] 

Quenstedt says, It is not the same thing to say, “Christ’s righteousness is imputed to us” and to say “Christ is our righteousness.” For the imputation did not take place when Christ became our righteousness. The righteousness of Christ is the effect of His office. The imputation is the application of the effect of His office. The one, however, does not do away with the other.  Christ is our righteousness effectively when He justifies us. His righteousness is ours objectively because our faith rests in Him. His righteousness is ours formally in that His righteousness is imputed to us.[4]

The Enthusiasts often mention Calov as their champion, knowing that almost no one has access to Calov’s books. Preus, who knew this period of Lutheran orthodoxy quite well, quoted this statement from Calov with approval, which is worth repeating -

Although Christ has acquired for us the remission of sins, justification, and sonship, God just the same does not justify us prior to our faith. Nor do we become God's children in Christ in such a way that justification in the mind of God takes place before we believe.[5]

I understand these two passages to be a repudiation of UOJ and an apology for all the harm done in the name of that fad.

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[1] "In an initial burst of enthusiasm reflecting Preus's concern for missions, the Fort Wayne faculty had petitioned the 1977 convention of the Missouri Synod to have each of its subdivisions or districts ‘make a thorough study of the Church Growth materials.’ What is more, the districts were to be urged to ‘organize, equip, and place into action all of the Church Growth principles as needed in the evangelization of our nation and the world under the norms of the Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions.’ By the time of the 1986 synodical convention, however, the same faculty, while appreciating the ‘valuable lessons of common sense’ to be learned from Church Growth, asked that ‘the Synod warn against the Arminian and charismatic nature of the church-growth movement.’ Kurt E. Marquart, "Robert D. Preus," Handbook of Evangelical Theologians, ed., Walter A. Elwell, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1995, pp. 353-65. Reprinted in Christian News, 6-26-95, p. 21.                                                

[2] R. Preus footnote: Systema, Par. II, Cap.3, Memb. 2 S. 1, Th. 44 (II, 363). Cf. Abraham Calov, Apodixis Articulorum Fridei (Lueneburg, 1684), 249: “Although Christ has acquired for us the remission of sins, justification, and sonship, God just the same does not justify us prior to our faith. Nor do we become God’s children in Christ in such a way that justification in the mind of God takes place before we believe.” Justification and Rome, footnote 74, p. 131.

[3] Robert D. Preus Justification and Rome, St. Louis: Concordia Academic Press 1997, p. 72.

[4] Systema, Par. III, Cap. 8, S. 2, q. 5, Observatio 19 (II, 787). R. Preus footnote #76, Justification and Rome, p. 132.

[5] Apodixis Articulorum Fide, Lueneburg, 1684. Cited in Robert D. Preus Justification and Rome, St. Louis: Concordia Academic Press 1997, p. 131n.                                                                                           

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CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
NEWSLETTER – Spring 1981
6600 North Clinton
Fort Wayne, Indiana 46825

THE PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE – "OBJECTIVE JUSTIFICATION"

The doctrine of objective justification is a lovely teaching drawn from Scripture which tells us that God who has loved us so much that He gave His only [sic - missing Son?] to be our Savior has for the sake of Christ’s substitutionary atonement declared the entire world of sinners for whom Christ died to be righteous (Romans 5:17-19).


Objective justification which is God’s verdict of acquittal over the whole world is not identical with the atonement, it is not another way of expressing the fact that Christ has redeemed the world. Rather it is based upon the substitutionary work of Christ, or better, it is a part of the atonement itself. It is God’s response to all that Christ died to save us, God’s verdict that Christ’s work is finished, that He has been indeed reconciled, propitiated; His anger has been stilled and He is at peace with the world, and therefore He has declared the entire world in Christ to be righteous.

Spring, 1981, Concordia Seminary, Ft. Wayne Newsletter.

Jack Cascione

***

GJ - Note that Concordia Seminary was swooning from the exotic perfume of the Church Growth Movement while Preus was declaring the entire world forgiven, without faith, without the Word, without the Means of Grace.

Later, Preus and Marquart were quite critical of the Church Growth Movement, and Preus clearly repudiated UOJ late in life.

Rolf Preus and Jack Casione want this passage to disappear down the memory hole.

I believe the passage quoted above, from Justification and Rome, does a fine job of defining what justification is and what justification is not. That is the essence of a confessional stance, defining the positive and rejecting any and all false variations.


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Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "Robert Preus - Justification and Rome":


I'm glad you footnoted a comment on the harm done by the teaching of UOJ in the Lutheran Synods.


The nature of this false doctrine, as with all false doctrine, is that it never remains within the confines of the womb that conceived it. It has grown and morphed into a dozen different variations so that the greatest offenders in the promotion of UOJ, such as (W)ELS DP Buchholz' 2005 Conference paper, have to repudiate portions of other UOJ teachings within his own denomination. Buchholz went so far as to repudiate his own statements within the same conference essay in which he made the contradictory statements. Now there's UOJ teachings coming from (W)ELS school teacher's "condemning anyone teaching justification by faith alone" and "the whole world is saved, just not heaven saved".


(W)ELS' own Our Great Heritage (Vol 3) states, "And yet many Lutherans still labor under the delusion that God does not forgive us unless we believe. Instead of seeing faith as nothing more than the spiritual hand with which we make the forgiveness of God our own, they see it as a reason why God forgives us. They believe that Christ has indeed provided forgiveness for all men, that God is willing to forgive them, but before he really forgives he first of all demands that we should be sorry for our sins and that we should have faith. Just have faith they say, and then God will forgive you. All the right words are there. The only thing wrong is that the words are in the wrong order. God does not forgive us IF we have faith. He has forgiven us long ago when he raised his Son from the dead." (p. 59)


How long will the (W)ELS laity allow the Synod administrators and school systems to abuse and pervert the central doctrine of Christian faith - leading their children and families away from the true teaching of Justification by Faith Alone. They've built their foundation on sifting sand and it's eroding.


In Christ,
Brett Meyer

Tacoma To Host SP Trifecta

"Trifecta. Get it? Made you laugh."


Alexander Ring has left a new comment on your post "Otten To Speak at Concordia, Mequon.UOJ Champions ...":

The free conference with Presidents Harrison, Schroeder and Moldstad will not be in Portland, but Tacoma, WA at Parkland Ev. Lutheran Church May 5 & 6 2011.

Civic Center: Bishop Arrested by Homeland Security.This 2006 Post Says a Lot About the San Fran Clergy

Civic Center: Bishop Arrested by Homeland Security

The long-standing cleric who actually runs Grace Cathedral, Dean Alan Jones (on the left, above, standing next to Bishop Andrus) "disagreed on tactics" with his new Bishop and offered the crowd of 200 a prayer on the front steps of the church but politely declined to be involved in the protest.



Bishop Andrus then offered a lovely speech about a bishop he had known who was one of the most adamant opponents of women being ordained in the church, but who eventually officiated personally over the ordination of his daughter. "Have you changed your mind, bishop?" he was asked, and in reply he said, "No, but I am acting from my heart."



Talking to Episcopalians on the route down the hill over the controversy, there were a variety of reactions to this rift, ranging from "it's good to be part of a church that allows for these kinds of disagreements" to "Dean Jones has always been a horse's ass."



The sight of an Episcopalian bishop with staff and full regalia marching through the Tenderloin was oddly surreal and wonderful.



The diocese had obtained a permit for use of the Federal Building plaza for the early afternoon...



...and the crowd was charming as it shivered slightly in the shaded expanse.



There was quite a bit of media there, including Steve Rubenstein of "The Chronicle" (on the right above, click herefor his truncated story) and Jan Adams of the indispensable "happening-here" photoblog (on the left above, click here for her brilliant account of the event).



There were also lots of law enforcement men standing around...



...led by a Homeland Security guy puffing away on a cigarette the whole time who looked almost comically evil, as if he'd been hired to play the bad guy in a Steven Seagal movie.



The government also had undercover photographers taking pictures of every individual in the crowd, and they were not even remotely subtle in their subterfuge.



Bishop Marc, as he likes to be called, gave a short, sweet sermon that involved another disagreement with a more conservative colleague who had somehow mixed up the Old Testament of Vengeance with the New Testament of Mercy.



This was followed by a Eucharist conducted with army surplus canteens, which was a brilliant touch.



Markley Morris, the Quaker organizer of the weekly vigil on Thursdays in front of the Federal Building, gave a short speech on his horror at the entire phony "War on Terror" in the United States before receiving the host.



He then went to one of the doorways of the Federal Building and laid down on the ground, wrapping himself in a sheet as if it were a shroud.



He was soon joined by Bishop Andrus himself, who adjusted the cross around his neck so it wasn't splayed across the sidewalk.



Bishop Andrus soon decided that he was more comfortable sitting rather than laying, and he was joined individually by people who decided they had the courage to be arrested.



As a young man standing besides me stated, "I would love to join them but I can't. I'm in the Coast Guard and they'd kick me out."



This was an extraordinary act of courage by the new Bishop, one that should be emulated by the leaders of American clergy of all faiths everywhere, because unfortunately the newly elected Democratic majority in Washington, D.C. is just as much the War Party as their Republican counterparts.



If that seems hyperbolic, read the recent interview with Dennis Kucinich (click here) about how the Democratic caucus wants to throw even more money at a military solution to the Iraq War.



It's amazing that the majority of the American population, even after five years of steady propaganda by the elites running the current United States Empire, don't support the current Iraq Occupation on any level.



A polling organization called World Public Opinion has just released some startling findings which should light a fire under the backsides of a few politicians (click here for their site):

"A new poll by WorldPublicOpinion.org finds that three out of four Americans believe that in order to stabilize Iraq the United States should enter into talks with Iran and Syria, and eight in ten support an international conference on Iraq. A majority also opposes keeping U.S. forces in Iraq indefinitely and instead supports committing to a timetable for their withdrawal within two years or less."

Thank you, Bishop Andrus, for your leadership and welcome to San Francisco.

Labels: peaceniks, politics

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