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| Joachim Westphal of Hamburg, student of Luther and Melanchthon, drew Calvin out of his hiding place by deliberately antagonizing the Augsburg-Confession-signing phony. 1510-1574. |
History of the Christian Church
Calvin, after some hesitation, prepared a "Second Defence," now openly directed "contra Westphali calumnias," and published it, with a preface to the Churches of Germany, in January, 1556. Westphal replied in two writings, one against Calvin and one against à Lasco, and sent letters to the leading cities of North Germany, urging them to unite in an orthodox Lutheran Confession against the Zürich Consensus. He received twenty-five responses, and issued them at Magdeburg, 1557. He also reprinted Melanchthon’s former opinions on the real presence (Hamburg, 1557). To meet these different assaults Calvin issued his "Last Admonition to Westphal" (1557). Westphal continued the controversy, but Calvin kept silent and handed him over to Beza.
JOHN CALVIN TRACTS & LETTERS -
THE CALUMNIES OF JOACHIM WESTPHAL
The UOJ Enthusiasts pretend to be Lutheran and even claim to be the real Lutherans. How much do they read and cite Lutheran? Hardly at all. A study of their references will show that they start with Walther and Pieper, then take a peck at Luther - if they find a convenient phrase.
When Westphal deliberately irritated Calvin, he got the Swiss reformer to admit the vast differences between his opinion and Lutheran doctrine.
Meanwhile, the crypto or secret Calvinists were so successful that they got the Elector to reward them and to persecute the faithful Lutheran pastors. Imagine the irony of DP Jon Buchholz, rewarder of Jeff Gunn, suspender of Paul Rydecki, ordering me - yes ordering me to read about the crypto-Calvinists in Bente: 8/27/2008
Go back again and read
Bente’s history of the crypto-Calvinist controversy, and you’ll see similar
challenges that were very difficult to confront in that day. In fact, had not
the cryptos slipped up and tipped their hand as to their real agenda, I
sometimes wonder whether the gnesio-Lutherans would have prevailed as they did.
(I’m talking here specifically about enthusiast pastors who are difficult to
discipline in congregations, not published authors who have flagrantly revealed
their doctrine and haven’t been
disciplined. That’s a different, albeit related,
problem)
Buchholz - 10/5/2008 - four years ago. Look at his progress in reining in the Shrinkers!
I’m in the process of
developing a number of propositional statements that militate against the whole
contemporary style. I’m proceeding rather slowly, because I’m dealing with
smart, personable, articulate people on the other side, and I want to have
things formulated very carefully, and I’m also afraid that, given the
hermeneutical environment we’re in, my fellow pastors may be slow or reluctant
to draw the same conclusions unless the case is very carefully constructed.
We’ll see what happens.
My overriding concern
is for the souls at stake. I’m concerned not only about those that are being led
astray by the emotional, subjective, irreverent, inferior-quality worship, but
for the larger population of Christians who need to be gently instructed in the
truth. Many of our pastors and people, thankfully, have a deep-rooted antipathy
and contempt for the carnival stuff, but they’re ill-equipped to articulate a
response to it, and so it gets shrugged off as adiaphora. Ultimately, if we’re
going to be faithful to confessional Lutheranism, there will probably be a huge
split over this. (The alternative is that errant preachers see the folly of
their ways and come around, but I’m not optimistic that will happen; perhaps I
myself need to trust the efficacy of the word more in that respect.) I just hope
that the division, if and when it comes, will be over matters of doctrine and
practice, not the result of personal conflict and a mishandled
approach.
This, by the way, is
one of the reasons that I initially wanted to get to know you a little better
when I contacted you a couple of months ago. I am well aware of your history
battling the CGM in Lutheranism, and I wanted your insights into these present
challenges. I appreciate your willingness to let me tap your thinking from time
to time.
As I mentioned to Mark
Schroeder yesterday, I find myself on the front lines of something that I never
thought I had signed up for. Such is the charge the Lord places before
us!
Given his ludicrous published writing, Buchholz has never been a Lutheran. His behavior as a DP is even worse than his predecessor, who was asked to step down as DP.
So I am content to have the UOJ Hive buzzing about and calling me all kinds of names. They have gone through their list several times already, so I am immune to their itty-bitty stings. When people complain that I antagonize the opponents of sound doctrine, I only laugh. Look at them pouring out of the hive and publishing their contradictory, pseudo-philosophical Enthusiastic diatribes.
They rest from their repetitions to praise one another. My father used to say, "There is no love like that of one drunk for another." But I would add, "Or like one UOJ Stormtrooper for another." Because they know nothing about the history of doctrine, they see no fault in their own arguments. They fall all over each other to be more expressive, more combative about UOJ.
I am Joachim Westphal.
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| Jack Kilcrease teaches part-time at a Roman Catholic convent school, part-time at a portable ELCA seminary. QED - he is a "Confessional" Lutheran! Hahahahahahaha. |
