VirtueOnline - News - Exclusives - PHILADELPHIA: Fr. Moyer Denied Pathway to Papal-driven Ordinariate

VirtueOnline - News - Exclusives - PHILADELPHIA: Fr. Moyer Denied Pathway to Papal-driven Ordinariate:


"Moyer's fortunes have been tied to those of TAC Australian Archbishop John Hepworth as Moyer was consecrated a bishop in the TAC in 2006 by Hepworth, a move that many Episcopalians and Anglicans seriously questioned and actively discouraged."

'via Blog this'

Two Discount Options on Lulu. Note the Deadlines

Until February 3rd, 2012
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/martinchemnitzpress

Until January 31st, tomorrow.
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/martinchemnitzpress

This is where to order.

My 2012 project is to move all titles to Amazon and increase the e-book selection. I also have help from additional editors and contributors.

St. Paul Obliterates the UOJ Arguments

Michelangelo's Conversion of St. Paul

St. Paul Comments on Justification by Faith

Michelangelo - The Conversion of St. Paul.

Pietism in America today: the Emergents and the Purpose Driven Church « Churchmouse Campanologist

Pietism in America today: the Emergents and the Purpose Driven Church « Churchmouse Campanologist: "A couple of weeks ago, news appeared in the blogosphere that the well-known Baptist pastor John Piper and the Roman Catholic Lectio Divina proponent Beth Moore appeared recently at the Passion 2012 Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. (H/T: Anna Wood)"

'via Blog this'

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GJ - The Jeske group (Church and Change) is deliberately pursuing this fad, and no one will stand up to them. The reason? - C and C already controls the schools, the magazine, and the Synod President.

The Real Presence

The Real Presence of Christ in Holy Communion is effected by the Holy Spirit at work in the Word.

All of God's work takes place exclusively through His Word, and the Holy Spirit never works apart from the Word.

Justification, the declaration of our forgiveness, takes place through the Word of the Gospel. This forgiveness is received in faith.

WELS Church Lady Defeats Jack Kilcrease with One Quotation

WELS church lady has left a new comment on your post "The Purpose of Web Discussions - Censorship - Acco...":


Galatians Chapter 3:

8"And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, IN THEE SHALL ALL NATIONS BE BLESSED."

14"That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."

22"But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." 23"But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed." 24"Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."

25"But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster." 26"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Jesus Christ."

In Christ,
Rebecca

***

GJ - I quoted from Robert Preus' final book and poor Jack Kilcrease used that as an excuse to make some more mocking comments. He did not deal with the content of the quotations because he could not.

I posted Rebecca's citation on Steadfast Enthusiasts. They cannot act like men, so they will have to be schooled by a woman.

I appreciate the discernment of the laity. The clergy have a burden in getting past the training they have had. Theories are proposed--which are bad enough--but worst of all is the pressure to conform when everyone is repeating the same fallacies.

UOJ was so foreign to me that I thought they were using "Objective Justification" as a synonym for the atonement. Laity alerted me to the facts and kept me working on the topic.

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LPC has left a new comment on your post "WELS Church Lady Defeats Jack Kilcrease with One Q...":

We do well to refer to that blog site as Steadfast Enthusiasts or Steadfast Universalists or Steadfast Waltherians.

LPC

Walther the Divider

Walther divided Lutherans
and worked to create his own myth.

I keep reading early LCMS history. I have a pile of books I am sending to another researcher. The official LCMS books remind me of Mormon and Roman Catholic devotionals. Nevertheless, history has a way of leaving behind crucial details.

One detail is the incredible closeness of the pioneers and how they protected themselves from scandal and prison by keeping the secrets. C. F. W. Walther's brother married one Buenger sister and Ferdinand married another one. Walther's brother died and Ferdinand took his call in St. Louis. Ludwig Fuerbringer's father married the Walther widow, which made Ferdinand his uncle. The Buenger family was directly involved in the kidnapping of Walther's niece and nephew, which was illegal. The mother was kept in prison for a time, thanks to the Walther brothers. She is the mother of the Walther/Fuerbringer brides.

Walther left early to escape arrest warrants for the kidnapping. Mrs. Buenger was also involved in the Walther-led riot against Bishop Stephan. The Missouri devotionals lie about Stephan's adultery being discovered suddenly in a confession and acted up with great haste and bravery by Ferdinand. Zion on the Mississippi concedes that everyone knew Stephan was an adulterer in Europe. The bishop brought his mistress over, but not his wife and children (except his healthy son). The big riot was not caused by adultery exposed but by an outbreak of syphilis in the Saxon group.

Ludwig wrote two books about the origins of the LCMS, but skipped over the first years. He did reveal that the valuable chalice used at Uncle Ferdinand's congregation was a personal gift to Bishop Stephan. That means Walther gloried in using a stolen chalice for Holy Communion. Of course, Missouri denies this fact, but there it is in Fuerbringer's book.

On the basis of a four-year degree from Leipzig, Walther made himself the one and only theologian of Synodical Conference, the Field Marshal of the Lutheran Church of North America. Everyone had to agree with his rationalistic-Pietistic opinions. America was so far gone into the Olde Church Growth Movement (revivalism) that Walther seemed Lutheran to many, in comparison. Many good things were done by the Missouri Synod to advance Luther and Lutheran theology, but it was not as glorious as people pretend.

Walther kept Lutherans apart by denouncing everyone outside his franchise as false teachers. He broke up the Old Synodical Conference, driving away many different groups instead of allowing unifying discussions.

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LPC has left a new comment on your post "Walther the Divider":

Walther kept Lutherans apart by denouncing everyone outside his franchise as false teachers. He broke up the Old Synodical Conference, driving away many different groups instead of allowing unifying discussions

This is typical of a cultic person. He persecuted those who did not agree with him and bad mouthed them. People did not agree with him because he was wrong but rather than admitting and receiving the correction, he branded those who corrected him as false teachers. He had prided himself as the champion of pure doctrine. This is what a cultic person does.

You know how I have believed that he was responsible for the fragmentation of American Lutheranism.

He was given too much power by his people and he was a legend in his own mind.

LPC

***

GJ - Yes, Dr. Cruz. You can see the Walther template at work among the Unsteady Lutherans. An ELCA trained "Lutheran" writes from the Roman Catholic college where he teaches religion, and he declares, "Do not listen to Meyer and Jackson."

Walther was ruthless from the beginning. His unethical, bizarre behavior began with the kidnapping of his niece and nephew from his father's parsonage. He involved his future mother-in-law in the felonies, and she was put in prison. But Mrs. Buenger was not allowed to sail with the Saxons because that might have hurt their image. One can imagine their image. They were attacked in the press at home and in St. Louis.

Walther resigned his call when he left for America, but he still called himself the pastor of that parish when he pledged obedience to Bishop Stephan and again, when he forced Stephan out with a riot five months later. A man is not the pastor of that church when he has resigned his call. Walther was not a Waltherian.

Walther defrauded the bishop by stealing back the landed given to Stephan. That was another felony. He changed the title while secretly plotting to remove Stephan, using the Buenger family once again. Did he confront the bishop? No, he avoided the bishop, although the cover story was that he suddenly knew about the adultery from a confession offered up by two women. The defense of his action is even more perverted than violating the seal of the confessional. He did not violate any confidentiality because "everyone knew Stephan was an adulterer." I suppose leaving Europe with a mistress and without a wife was one clue. Perhaps Stephan's trial and house arrest in Dresden were additional clues. Living with his mistress at the spa, in the same room? Late night walks with young ladies? Cell group meetings in odd places? Groups in Dresden and in St. Louis?

Walther took over leadership of the Saxons at the Altenburg debate and by accepting his brother's congregational call after his co-felon died. Both happened at about the same time.

Walther's ruthlessness and dishonesty have been duplicated many times over by Synodical Conference leaders. Lying is considered good management. Bullying people and threatening pastors is considered good form, especially when overlooking the gross immorality of special pals and big donors.

The Purpose of Web Discussions - Censorship - According to Roman Catholic Employee Jack Kilcrease - Paul McCain's Peritus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect

Steadfast Enthusiasts

Those of you who arguing with Jackson and Meyer, my suggestion would be that you simply ignore them. I’ve had this debate with them, and they have a pathological need to not understand the doctrine of objective justification. Jackson’s claim is that the word “justification” always means “to communicate salvation.” Historically, when Lutherans started to use this terminology in the 19th century, they used the term “justification” to mean both the declaration of forgiveness (objective justification) and the reception and communication of salvation through faith (subjective justification). The point of objective justification is that the Father has a reaction to the Son’s universal atonement- that is, he offers a universal word of forgiveness that is already actualized. The word of the gospel is already an actualized reality prior to my apprehension of it in faith. Hence, the preacher does not says “if you believe, then you will be forgiven” (this would be law), but “you are forgiven.” Of course, no one says that one does not need to receive this by faith- the point is that my faith does not make God justify me. Rather faith receives an already actualized reality.

As much as people explain this to Jackson and his followers, they refuse to accept that there are terminological distinctions at work here. They therefore insist that people who accept the orthodox doctrine objective justification are teaching universalism. This is because they claim that even though their opponents state otherwise, they must always be talking about the communication of salvation when they speak of justification (even when they directly tell them that they are not!). Jackson and Meyer believe that words always mean the same thing in every context. As everyone knows, this is obviously false. They then theorizes that when people do corrupt things in the Lutheran church bodies in America, it’s because they think they’re already forgiven (because everyone in the WELS, ELS, and LCMS are secret universalists) and therefore can do whatever they want. As I think we can all agree, this is a fairly problematic line of reasoning (to say the least). Nonetheless, they will never give it up because it is so central to their worldview. It gives them an easy explanatory model for voicing what they think is wrong with American Lutheranism.

Therefore, I would suggest no one respond to them, and they will leave pretty quickly. They’ve poisoned the discourse on a number of websites, and I hate for them to wreck this one.

***

GJ - McCain and Kilcrease would like to silence the justification-by-faith message. I do not keep track of Brett Meyer's publishing, but I seldom bother with other blogs or websites. Kilcrease seems to be imagining things. Lapdogs have a way of snarling at anyone who approaches the one who feeds them.

I appreciate the censorship efforts, Jack, because you transform required reading into forbidden reading. Nothing kills interest faster than "you have to read this." Nothing drives up interest faster than "avoid this site at all costs."

Most telling is the way every Stormtrooper avoids Robert Preus' repudiation of UOJ in Justification and Rome. That was where I suspected that the post-Concord theologians were arguing against an early UOJ opinion - and they were. P. Leyser (Book of Concord editor) and the Wittenberg faculty rejected Samuel Huber's everyone-is-forgiven falsehood. A researcher tells me there is another, earlier example as well.

All the heresies, according to Luther, are in three groups:

• Attacking the divinity of Christ.
• Attacking the humanity of Christ.
• Attacking justification by faith.

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LPC has left a new comment on your post "The Purpose of Web Discussions - Censorship - Acco...":

Jack has the pathological need not to understand justification by faith alone.

So each time he turns, there is always a Scripture that bites him in the face.

Goodness, his exegetical skills are quite appalling.

Notice how he argues historically in a fallacious way. He said that this UOJ terminology was started in the 19th century. With out admitting it, he then by default gave an argument that it is a later innovation.

LPC

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LutherRocks has left a new comment on your post "The Purpose of Web Discussions - Censorship - Acco...":

Did you catch Pastor Rydecki's comments late this afternoon? They were stellar...

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LPC has left a new comment on your post "The Purpose of Web Discussions - Censorship - Acco...":

Joe,

Absolutely. Pr. Paul's comments were precious, polite but uncompromising.

That discussion provided a lot of excitement today.

LPC

***

GJ - One must assume the constant repetition of UOJ talking points. However, if justification by faith and the Means of Grace are given some visibility, some will take notice.

Kilcrease reminds me of the Prinz Eugen. He appears to be charging into battle, but he is really blowing smoke and retreating.

The academic hirelings like to parade their philosophical discussions, but their chattering is never edifying and seldom Biblical. Given some philosophical training, any academic can spin a yarn around any passage. I have noticed that almost all laity speak the language of the Bible and the Confessions. The pastors who do have struggled with the issues and overcome the limitations of their training.

In the LCA we did not pay any attention to the Book of Concord. We all owned one but that was it. I began to study the Confessions as I left the LCA, but the Columbus pastors really threw me into the briar patch of Lutheran doctrine. That was my Harvard and Yale, learning how supposed Lutherans could embrace UOJ and Church Growth while calling themselves "confessional" and "conservative."

A synodical conference pastor has to overcome training that assumed all synodical writers were infallible,  Holy Mother Synod indefectible. The Preus family cannot concede that Robert Preus continued to study the issues and repudiated UOJ in his final book. Their dancing around the facts is similar to Carson Kressley in Dancing with the Stars, flashy and funny at the same time.

VirtueOnline - News - Exclusives - Episcopal Blogger Spins Fleeing Episcopalians to Rome Via Ordinariate

VirtueOnline - News - Exclusives - Episcopal Blogger Spins Fleeing Episcopalians to Rome Via Ordinariate:


The drift of Episcopalians to the Roman Catholic Church via the Ordinariate is worrying some liberal Episcopal bloggers and ordinary Episcopalians who see the move getting more cyber ink and publicity than the flight deserves.

"Thus far, 100 priests and fewer than 1,400 people in 22 church communities have expressed an interest in the ordinariate. Gather them all in Washington National Cathedral, and the place isn't half full. Only six of these 22 communities have more than 70 members, which suggests that their long-term viability may be an issue. And there is no evidence to suggest that these small congregations are the thin edge of an as yet invisible wedge," writes Jim Naughton of Episcopal Café blog.

He is partly right. Most Anglo-Catholics and those in the Continuing Movement are not fleeing en masse to Rome as a safe haven for their catholicism, preferring to remain in TEC (though that group is rapidly diminishing.) or Forward in Faith, the Anglo-Catholic wing of TEC that is still very much alive and well. Forward in Faith North America defines itself as "a fellowship of Bishops, Clergy, Laity, Parishes and Religious Orders, who embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who uphold the Evangelical Faith and Catholic Order which is the inheritance of the Anglican Way, and who work, pray and give for the reform and renewal of the Church with 'no compromise of truth and no limitation of love' FiF/NA members include faithful Anglicans both within and outside ECUSA."

The prominence the ordinariate has achieved in the media has unsettled some Episcopalians. "As a denomination, we are still recovering from several years worth of news stories in which the departure of some three percent of our membership for a more theologically conservative body has been variously described as a 'schism' or an 'exodus,'" writes Naughton.

"This story has appeared in major newspapers across the country, often accompanied by commentary about the Vatican's bold move against the theologically liberal Episcopal Church. I am still trying to figure out what all of the fuss is about."

Naughton goes on to cite dubious figures that the departures both to Rome and the ACNA are but a small percentage of the whole.

He features the bogus figure of some 2, 248,000 members in The Episcopal Church when referencing those who have fled. The truth is most of those have long ago left TEC for other churches or going nowhere or who are dead and have never been taken off the rolls. The real and only figure is Average Sunday Attendance (ASA). That figure is now less than 700,000. These are the true Episcopalians paying parish, diocesan and TEC bills.

Naughton claims that some 228,000 former Roman Catholics are now in the Episcopal Church. What he doesn't say is that those who left TEC for Rome did so out of spiritual conviction, whereas those fleeing Rome did so more because they divorced and remarried but could not receive Holy Communion and could not get annulments. Many view The Episcopal Church as Catholic Lite.

"According to the 2004 U. S. Congregational Life Survey, 11.7 percent of Episcopalians were formerly Roman Catholic," writes Naughton. But that is out of 700,000 not 2.2 million.

One conservative blogger, Christopher Johnson noted that Episcopalians were fleeing to Rome decades before the Ordinariate was a gleam in the papal eye. "See if the American Catholic church has any figures about the number of ex-Episcopalians in its ranks," he writes.

Naughton admits that the Episcopal Church has shrunk some in the last seven years, and now has about two million members. Membership yes, actively Episcopalian no. Most of those are not remotely active and most no longer attend an Episcopal Church. The figure is less than 700,000. Naughton's own diocese is in free fall both in membership and money with the new bishop busy suing PNC bank to get its hands on the Soper Fund to keep the diocese afloat.

The 1500 he cites leaving TEC for Rome, and other mainstream denominations might be miniscule, but it doesn't include the thousands of ordinary Episcopalians who have quietly left TEC for Rome over the years, like my attorney and his wife who do not show up on any statistics. The Ordinariate is only months old after all.

He also omitted the fact that four, yes four bishops have left TEC and gone to Rome (with one returning) indicating that the theological Tsunami is deeper than he is prepared to admit.

Then of course there are the 100,000 plus who have left TEC to form the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) through such intermediary groups as the Diocese of Pittsburgh, CANA ET AL.

"There is no reason to fear the Ordinariate. Its creation is among the most overhyped religion stories of recent years. Some people swim the Tiber. Some swim the Thames. Media coverage suggests that reporters pay little attention until the Vatican tells them it's a big story," writes Naughton.

Again this is a half-truth. TEC has little to fear from these small groups departing. The bigger picture is the flight of TEC's parishes and parishioners to the AMIA and ACNA that continue to grow almost weekly. ACNA is working toward 1,000 new parishes and more than 100,000 new souls, most, for the moment, are ex-Episcopalians with or without their properties.

When the flight of all those in dioceses like Quincy, Pittsburgh, Ft. Worth and San Joaquin is added up the departures will be significant. They will leave behind skeleton Episcopal dioceses stripped of everything except empty buildings they cannot sell which they now have to maintain and pay taxes on. The Diocese of Pittsburgh has lost two-thirds of its entire membership. What sort of future does that diocese have in the Rust Belt? The rump diocese of Quincy cannot possibly last and will be forced to juncture in the coming year.

The newly anointed Bishop Eric Menees of the Diocese of San Joaquin is on the spiritual warpath for new souls and a revived diocese with increased evangelical fervor. The maintenance attitude of dwindling TEC dioceses shows little interest in evangelism preferring the bromides of inclusion and diversity to sustain them.

Naughton says that the 100 priests who have applied to join the Ordinariate is not evidence that the Catholic Church is winning priests from the Episcopal tradition. According to the Church Pension Group, 432 living Episcopal priests have been received from the Roman Catholic Church.

Be that as it may, a former Roman Catholic priest, now a TEC Bishop in the Diocese of Long Island, Lawrence C. Provenzano is showing absolutely no ability to grow his diocese. He has bought into TEC's liberal agenda and says he will let priests in Brooklyn, Queens and on Long Island officiate at same-sex weddings. That is the kiss of death spiritually and ecclesiastically for his diocese. It will only distance himself and his diocese from the Roman Catholic mainstream on Long Island. Even the Bishop of Albany, Bill Love, an ex-Roman Catholic, who is thoroughly orthodox, is finding it difficult to bring new converts into TEC in the bleak Adirondack region. It is tough pickin's all the way round, and he IS busy promoting ALPHA and Bible reading in his diocese.

The truth is the net effect of Bishop Gene Robinson's consecration in 2003 has caused shock waves around the US and across the Anglican Communion tearing the fabric of the Communion and no amount of spin can or will change that. The consecration more recently of an openly non-celibate lesbian in Mary Glasspool only tossed gasoline on an already raging fire.

The bottom line is that the Ordinariate is one small but increasing demonstration of a widening crack in the fabric of TEC that is only expanding with time. Nothing it seems can stop it.

END


'via Blog this'

Fox Valley Jimmy Flips His Wig, Reveals His Excellent WELS Training

WELS clergy are so fierce...when they can hide their identities.
They have mouse hearts and mouse parts. 

Fox Valley Jimmy said anonymously on the anonymous blog... [GJ - Graded, D-]

Anonymous- Bear in mind that the book of Mormon is also free. The WELS leadership doesn't want to talk with you [avoid using you, which is conversational slang] about UOJ because it's a moronic debate. No one who uses the phrase "objective justification" believes in universalism- because they're [Keep pronouns consistent]  not using the word "justification" in the same way as when one talks about justification by faith. Anyone who says otherwise is a dullard. Yes, that would include Jackson. His diatribes against UOJ is [are - subject/verb agreement] just a way of getting back at the various churches that got ride  [This is not the correct usage of this word. Please consult a dictionary for the word's definition and to find the right word for this context.]  of him because he was a deeply annoying person to have as a pastor. This was the case: 1. Because he has a pathological need to inform everyone about how smart he is (this is fairly transparent for people who have read even one post on his blog). 2. He divides congregations by creating a two-tired  [This is a repeated error. Please check the rest of your paper for similar errors.]  membership. There's [there are?] his people who hang on his every word and then there's everyone else. It's like the ancient Gnostics with their distinction between true "Gnostics" and "Pististics." [new term – diabetic test?] You can observe this on his blog as well- there's the inner circle that says everything he says is brilliant and then there's  [Agreement of subject and verb problem, plural subject, singular verb] the enemies, people who apply basic logic and a basic theological knowledge that transcends  [This is a repeated error. Please check the rest of your paper for similar errors.] Lenski and other hundred-year old texts books on the Lutheran Confessions, to his moronic [overuse of moron, moronic] theological proposals, bad historical scholarship (most of which is tied up with the brain-dead task of accumulating quotations from various sources without actually analyzing them), half truths, libel, and gossip. Notice that to stay in his good graces you can't contradict a single thing he says. Look through the posts- you'll never find Meyer or the rest of them saying "Well, I disagree with you on this one point because..." [Read the 16,000+ comments again. You are wrong.]  If you begin to say something like that, you have to repent eventually or you become an enemy. There's a number of examples of this I've observed down through the years. He's an incredibly insecure person and he can't stand even a small amount of contradiction.


***


GJ - I can tell when people are waking up to the toxic waste in Fox Valley. The anonymous blog kicks into action again, anonymously.


In fact, a layman in Milwaukee has told me that the laity are waking up to the poor leadership in WELS. They appreciated all the information about Church and Change, the stealth organization funded by WELS and organized in Fox Valley.


This is probably the only Lutheran blog with almost all comments allowed. One was quite telling, so obscene that the author apologized anonymously. (I did not publish it.) I get some spam. I also copy the rants from other locations because they are entertaining and revealing.


The truly pathetic comments stopped arriving on my blog when the writers realized I was tracking the area where they came from. They only want to write when they can hide their locations and identities. They are fierce mice who hide in their smelly lairs when the lights go on.

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Strangely, Tim actually published this:

Anonymous said...

In the Confessions and Scripture it's pretty obvious that justification is always in a subjective sense. Justification is a declaring act. At best UOJ is false on paper but in practice some don't literally think that people in hell are saints. At worse it is a slippery slope to universalism because "where there is forgiveness of sins there is also life and salvation." I think it was Luther or someone in the Confessions who said that.


I agree with how 2138 on the linked blog (I think it was Meyer or Bruce or someone who linked it in a recent comment on Ichabod) talks about justification.


UOJ is confusing and seemingly contradictory. It shouldn't require this much pastoral care and teaching to teach the distinctions between OJ and SJ. JBFA is waaaaay more simple and is still orthodox. Forgiveness won and forgiveness distributed. It's as simple as that. No need for: forgiveness distributed (objective: because the declaration of forgiven is always subjective no matter how it's put) and forgiveness distributed again (subjective). "But if someone is unrepentant! Then God takes it back!" It's just asinine to me.

In the Spirit: Our Redeemer WELS still without leader

In the Spirit: Our Redeemer still without leader:


In the spring of 2010, the pastor of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in Madison left the ministry to take a private-sector job in the funeral-planning business.


Parishioners thought it might take a few months to replace him.


Some 575 days later, the congregation is still trying to fill the vacancy. It has issued 13 calls for pastors and received 13 rejections.




Read more: http://host.madison.com/wsj/lifestyles/faith-and-values/religion/in-the-spirit-our-redeemer-still-without-leader/article_7396fdbe-490d-11e1-9fb1-0019bb2963f4.html#ixzz1ks4XCSp3


'via Blog this'

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bruce-church (http://bruce-church.myopenid.com/) has left a new comment on your post "In the Spirit: Our Redeemer WELS still without lea...":

WELS Answer Man said that exactly how the congregations housed the pastor was a "local matter." Now, however, that the housing market is down, no one wants to take a call and move and thus take a loss upon selling his house. So the entire call system is in gridlock due in large part to the synod's shortsightedness in not advising against selling parsonages and giving pastors allowances to buy their own houses.

By the way, our previous pastor wanted the congregation to sell the parsonage and give him an allowance for buying his own house, but thank goodness our congregation didn't even consider it for a second. That was just one bit of bad advice he gave, because he had his ear to the ground channeled whatever was the latest fad at the synod).

Of course what this means is our pastor can leave more easily and it will be harder to get another pastor, but trouble like that is par of the course in the WELS. At least our congregation isn't contributing to the problem:

WELS Answer Man on Selling the Parsonage:
http://arkiv.lbk.cc/faq/site.pl@1518cutopic_topicid69cuitem_itemid10259.htm

This is a matter to be discussed and resolved on the local level. There is no right or wrong, nor is there really a better or worse approach to meeting the housing needs of all called workers in all situations. Both have potential advantages and potential disadvantages for the called workers and for the congregation.

The Displaced Parsonage
Why more pastors are choosing housing allowances rather than parsonages, posted 11/01/1999

http://www.christianitytoday.com/cbg/1999/novdec/9y6069.html

http://www.divinitylutheran.org/history/

1990 The parsonage is sold and Pastor Henke and his family purchase their own home. 


***


GJ - The easiest move is parsonage-to-parsonage. The most difficult is from a home "owned" but mortgaged, needing to get a new mortgage and buy another home. Add the difficulty of selling or renting the previous home and getting a new job for wifey, since that is now assumed.

Steadfast Lutherans Unsteady on Justification by Faith. Another Preus Stormtrooper Launched

Rev. James Schulz responded to an ambiguous Andrew Preus UOJ post:


If we are going to call ourselves Confessional Lutherans, then it seems to me we ought to speak as the Confessions do about Justification. The Confessions do not use the terms “Objective” or “Subjective” when talking about Justification. Even Walther called the terms “the language of philosophers.” The terms confuse the doctrine of the atonement with the doctrine of justification.

When read in context, the Confessions – and the Scriptures! – always link the concept of “by faith” to the doctrine of justification. The Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord speaks clearly as to what is necessary for a correct definition of Justification: “…justification, in and to which belong and are necessary only the grace of God, the merit of Christ, and faith, which receives this in the promise of the Gospel, whereby the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us, whence we receive and have forgiveness of sins, reconciliation with God, sonship, and heirship of eternal life” (“The Righteousness of Faith” III:25).

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GJ -

Andrew, a member of the Lutheran Duggar family, responded by citing "Kittle." He must have meant Kittel, a giant collection of prolix opinions about individual words in the Bible. Why cite a little Kittle, when a little Norwegian would do as well. I suggest that Andrew Preus read his grandfather's book, Justfication and Rome, where UOJ is sent into the dustbin of Pietism. The Preus clan does not like to acknowledge the clear quotations of Robert Preus against Huberism, which emerged later as UOJ.

My current read on the 19th century European situation is that Protestantism was divided between the rationalists (who dominated the state churches) and the unionistic Pietists, who merged the atonement and justification. An "Old Lutheran" in that context was someone who believed in the articles of faith, as viewed by Pietism, especially Halle University's Georg Christian Knapp. I have read many examples of 19th century writers who assumed that the atonement equaled world absolution.

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James Aall wrote to Schulz:
With all do respect, I disagree. I do not believe the two terms pit justification against itself or justification against atonement. I believe that it explains that justification is for all. One must never doubt that Christ loves him. One must also understand that justification is received by faith and by faith alone. I do believe that Christ justified the entire world on the cross. If, however, one does not want to use the terms “objective” and “subjective” and instead atonement and justification by grace, I don’t think that is a problem. I’m not sure that there is actually a disagreement though. Do you believe that a confessional Lutheran pastor in good standing in the LCMS can teach the distinction between objective and subjective justification?

***

GJ -

Aall allowed for atonement and justification by grace. Isn't that interesting? Justification by faith is now a toxic phrase among UOJ Stormtroopers, just as Merry Christmas is among the modernists. In effect, Aall is saying that the entire world is forgiven (Brief Statement, 1932; Knapp, 1831), but to avoid justification by faith, uses justification by grace to repeat the universal absolution assumption. That is how justification by faith drops out of the thinking of these Stormtroopers, obliterating the Gospel in the name of the Gospel.

---

Schulz wrote:


Re: “… Christ justified the entire world on the cross.”
Could you back that statement up with a quote from Scripture or the Confessions in context? In my reading of Scripture and the Confessions, I find that “by faith” is not very far away when the doctrine of justification is being discussed.

Whenever “objective justification” is qualified by “subjective justification” it by definition becomes “Justification by faith” effectively canceling out “objective justification.” The terms are just so foreign to the way the Scriptures, the Confessions, Luther, and Chemnitz speak. Why not just stick with the term: “Justification by faith alone?”

---

Aal, shocked:

Wait! You are actually denying that Christ justified the entire world on the cross?! I didn’t know you were actually denying objective justification! “that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” 2 Cor. 5:19. Christ first justified the entire world and we preach that justification so that it is received by faith (Rom 10:17). “Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for ALL men.” Rom 5:18. So to answer your previous question, if you can be a confessional Lutheran pastor in good standing in this synod and deny objective justification, the answer is no.

---

Schulz:


I think you are saying I deny the Atonement, which is not the same thing as Justification, and which I do not deny.

Reconciliation is not the exact thing as Justification. Luther hints at this when translating 2 Corinthians 5;19, he inserts an “and,” which Paul did not have. “And did not impute their trespasses unto them.” So Luther understands a consequence of reconciliation is to be expressed.

Now we’re getting to the crux of the issue. We condemn someone who believes the Atonement, but not the term “Objective Justification.” Could that be because the terms cause the confusion?

***

GJ - The UOJ strikeforce will continue to pounce on the Lutherans, but readers can see that their broken weapons are being handed back to them.

Transfiguration Sunday - 2012. Matthew 17:1ff

By Norma Boeckler

Transfiguration Sunday, 2012

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship

Bethany Lutheran Worship, 10 AM Central Time

The Hymn #495               From Greenland’s Icy Mountains            3:23
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             2 Peter 1:16-21
The Gospel           Matthew 17:1-9
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #135            Tis Good              3:81

Transfigured – God Incarnate

The Hymn #307   Draw Nigh                3:72

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 #283   God’s Word                           3:90

KJV 2 Peter 1:16 For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 18 And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. 19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

KJV Matthew 17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. 3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. 4 Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. 5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. 7 And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. 8 And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only. 9 And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.

Sixth Sunday After Epiphany

O merciful and everlasting God, heavenly Father: We thank Thee that Thou hast revealed unto us the glory of Thy Son, and let the light of Thy gospel shine upon us: We pray Thee, guide us by this light that we may walk diligently as Christians in all good works, ever be strengthened by Thy grace, and conduct our lives in all godliness; through the same, Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Transfigured – God Incarnate

The Transfiguration is universally known among Christians. More than any other event, this one showed the chosen disciples that Jesus was God in the flesh, God Incarnate, far beyond a teacher, or rabbi, a miracle-worker, or a prophet.

Peter already confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” This event portrayed what that confession meant. And it happened soon after.

Matthew 17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,

Three disciples witnessed the Transfiguration. That became important later when they told the others about the Transfiguration. It was not just one or two who saw it, but three.

The resurrection was witnessed by all the apostles, and this was a fore-runner to that victory over sin, death, and the devil. The ministry of Jesus consisted of teaching and building up their faith.

It is sad to see faith disparaged by the “Lutheran” ministers who cling to the recent past, ignoring the Word of God and the Confessions.

The purpose of the Bible is to create faith. The Word alone creates that faith in God, specifically trust in the love and mercy shown to us in Jesus. Trust is slowly built and deepened, but easily dampened by our emotions, our fears.

 2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

Jesus changed completely before His three disciples. His face was as brilliant as the sun, and His robes were shining brightly. That was one indication of His divinity.

This was not a slight change in appearance, but a complete change in form. With ultra-violet we can make something white glow in a supernatural way. Some rocks will glow in various colors when bathed in black light. But that is superficial compared to what the text says. This was letting the divinity of Christ shine through, to give the disciples a way to comprehend what was before them.

This glory came from the Father, for the Son always did what the Father commanded. It was not needed by Jesus but desired for the disciples. It is another instance of showing us how the divine nature of Christ was revealed at times but often not known and not fully appreciated.

We are tempted to say, “How could they not know from one example alone?” And yet we have all the examples, the complete story, from the beginning of time until the resurrection and ascension. And still we doubt and fret.

Either we doubt the divine power to help us or we doubt the personal interest of God in us. We have souls created by Him. We are baptized, owned, and redeemed by Him. Each believer has a name, and He knows us by name.

We should consider the irony of God the Father taking the time to show three disciples, citizens of a minor colony in the Roman Empire, the true nature of His Son. And yet He did and this is the Gospel. The Transfiguration goes together with the Confession of Peter, the cross, and the resurrection.

It was the power behind the apostolic preaching and teaching, as Peter wrote.

2 Peter 1:16 For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 18 And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.

What is more important than eye-witnesses and ear-witnesses?

The Apostle John expressed much of the same in his first letter.

KJV 1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)

3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.

Just as God revealed His Son’s divine glory, so He revealed Moses and Elijah speaking with Jesus.

This reminds us of – “Before Abraham was, I AM.” Jesus is the eternal Son of God, now in flesh, active in the Old Testament – God speaking in the burning bush, the miraculous plant with two natures, burning and yet not consumed. As you recall the Angel of the Lord called Himself God.

Moses and Elijah were the most prominent in Old Testament – Moses as the giver of the Law of God, Elijah as the prophet taken into heaven. For Jesus to speak with them meant that the disciples were witnessing something impossible without God’s intervention. It gave them a view of eternity itself and God’s unlimited power.

4 Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.

Lenski:

Peter felt as though he and his fellow-disciples were very near to heaven. Though they were filled with deep awe they felt themselves in the presence of heavenly glory, with Jesus being glorified so unspeakably in divine majesty (2 Pet. 1:16), and two dwellers of heaven also appearing in glory (Luke 9:31). Peter’s one desire is to prolong this experience; hence his foolish suggestion that, if it please Jesus, he will erect three booths, one for each of the three glorious persons. The foolishness lies in the idea that beings who are in such an exalted state would need shelter for the night like men in the ordinary state of human existence. He says nothing of a shelter for the disciples; perhaps he felt so humble that he and the other two disciples would lie out in the open.

Lenski, R. C. H.: The Interpretation of St. Matthew's Gospel. Minneapolis, MN. : Augsburg Publishing House, 1961, S. 657.

I have always connected the tabernacles or shelters with Jewish religious observance. In one of the festivals, outdoor shelters are set up. While impulsive Peter is offering a suggestion that shows his piety, it is strangely out of place for such an event. Mark, associated with Peter, wrote that the apostle did not know what to say. And who would?

5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.

God the Father spoke to the disciples, and the message is especially significant. When Jesus was baptized, the Father said – “In whom I am well pleased.”

But hear He said, “Listen to Him.” Peter referred to both occasions in his letter. One is indicated by the words spoken, the other by the expression – the holy mount.

How do we know the Father sent the Son? – the initial believers asked as they were being taught. Peter, James, and John answered, “Because we heard the Father’s voice from heaven saying “This is My beloved Son.”

And so we are constantly reminded of the Trinity: the Father/Son relationship revealed by the Holy Spirit.

6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.

I recall a church member who was angered by the concept of fearing God. I suggested thinking of it as respecting the unlimited power of God. There are consequences to going against God.

That is where I conclude that most church leaders today are unbelievers. They imagine they can do and say anything they want, without consequences. They are not God-fearing. They have forgotten the Small Catechism in rejecting the Word of God itself.

Children are like that. They will play around farm animals as if horses do not kick and cows do not trample. Their lack of fear is foolishness. People, in their greed, attack large power lines, to steal the copper, because they have no respect for the amps of electrical power about to surge through their fragile bodies.

The moment I toy with the Word of God, to distort it or prove it wrong, I am doing the same thing as the men tearing out live power lines. There will be consequences.

On the positive side, the power of God’s Word is so great that it can and does achieve His will constantly. The Word of the Gospel will settle in wherever it lands, and work faith or blindness, love of Christ or anger against the Christian faith.

I really try to avoid controversy about religion on Facebook, in my normal conversations with people. I link Ichabod but seldom go beyond that. However, atheists always have their fists up for a fight against religion. I had two atheists in class once and they went silent when I said “Merry Christmas” to them.  As I mentioned recently, “Merry Christmas” made one of my classmates furious.  

The power of the Gospel means that pronouncing us forgiven in Christ through faith gives us absolute certainty. To a believer, that is comfort and peace. To an unbeliever, it is an irritation and a source for bickering about the Word. How can that be?

All the miraculous events of the Bible coalesce in showing us how such things can be true. The Holy Spirit teaches us to realize that God’s love and power make forgiveness a reality.

We have only one book in the world where God speaks directly to us. It is His Word and He guides us as we read and study it. Augustine looked down upon the Bible as too plain, compared to the classical literature he knew so well. One day he heard a child's voice say "Take and read," because of a game. He picked up the Scriptures and was converted by the Holy Spirit at work in the Word. He did not debate inspiration, inerrancy, efficacy, because he knew and experienced it.

Crucial Differences

Anonymous said...to Tim Glende The WELS wouldn't dare give me free books (shipping included) and be readily available to discuss Justification with me from an honest view of the Scriptures and Confessions. I've tried to discuss UOJ with WELS pastors before. In one case he never responded to my email (what great pastoral care for an honestly concerned layman). In other cases they just used out of context Scripture passages and S. Becker quotes. Trust me, I've had to do the research on my own to see who was right. From one side all I heard is that Greg Jackson is a heretic who is the Devil himself and on the other I hear that the entire world has been justified when Christ died and/or rose from the dead (which is a teaching that is contrary to what I've been taught Rom. 16:17). I've come to the conclusion that UOJ is a false teaching.

***

GJ - Glende actually let a comment go through that was not from his UOJ buddies.

Unlike the UOJ fanatics, I quote verbatim the opponents and give historical background for their false doctrine. Thus everyone can see both sides and read the words with their eyes. I do not have to filter the information for them. That is how Bishop James Heiser saw the falsehood of UOJ, by reading their favorite quotations, patiently gathered by the Megatron research team.

We are giving away 50 copies of Luther versus the UOJ Pietists: Justification by Faith, because people are contributing toward the cost of printing. I am happy to give away Lutheran books. We have done that in every place we lived and shipped them various places as well.

The UOJ proponents act as if their peculiar opinions are the pure Gospel, but those are the same "Lutherans" who chase after every denomination and fad for the way to be successful. If they really believed in their precious UOJ, they would not be sitting at the feet of McGavran, C. Peter Wagner, Driscoll, Sweet, Stetzer, Andy Stanley, and a host of others.

Tim Glende is hotter than Georgia asphalt for UOJ, but he had to be trained by Stanley (Stealth Babtist), Driscoll (Emergent), and others while plagiarizing Craig Groeschel's sermons and lying about it. That is one of many contradictions coming from that bunch. The more they follow their abusive sect, the less they want to read Luther, Chemnitz, or Melanchthon. They are the real Lutherans, they claim, but they openly despise the Book of Concord.

---

Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "Crucial Differences":

If they really believed in their precious UOJ, they would not be sitting at the feet of McGavran, C. Peter Wagner, Driscoll, Sweet, Stetzer, Andy Stanley, and a host of others.

I think it's because they really do believe in the false gospel of Universal Objective Justification that they have become the lickspittle of the worlds false teachers. UOJ is a new and different way to become righteous before God and thereby reject the Holy Spirit's faith, blaspheming Him when they call His faith and empty and withered beggars hand. Laying their whole trust in righteousness and the forgiveness of sins before and without faith they are simply chaff being sifted by the wind and every change in doctrine.

It would be better if they would go off and devour each other but they slither around trying to devour the worlds men, women and children too. Hochmuthians.

***

GJ - I will concede that reading, Brett. UOJ means they do not believe anything, so everything is justified. It is universal justification, after all. But do not question them. They save the wrath of God for that sin.

But they telling people they are the real, spiffy, best, brightest Lutherans. Their act is quite different. What's the word for that? Hypocrisy.

WELS Church and Change - Still Operating

Lutherans pay me to explain this to them,
and they love it.

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "WELS Church and Change Basics. Milwaukee Members A...":

The C and C apostates always push the envelope. Then, when they are called out on the carpet for their misdeeds, they act clueless. They knew what Leonard Sweet stood for, but they invited him anyway. At my former congregation, I plunged a dagger into the heart when I confronted the congregation president about the connection that Jeff Davis has with C and C. This was after I informed him that they had invited Ed Stetzer to speak at a C and C conference.

Jeff Davis, Cornerstone,
Church and Change board.

The president claimed that when he talked to Mr. Davis about it, he was told that Stetzer was "dis-invited" due to the controversy that was created. So, Stetzer was invited to speak. But, the C and C'ers claimed afterward that he never was invited. So, with this level of dishonesty, why would you pay Cornerstone big bucks to show you how to fleece the members of your congregation? The president also defended Stetzer by stating that old Ed had actually written a paper that was critical of the Emergent Church movement. My humble opinion would be that Stetzer more closely resembles a "Crypto Emergent" and the C and C guys use tactics very close to the Crypto Calvinists.

Ed Stetzer, on the right, is a typical, angry, Emergent Church promoter.

WELS - "We love Stetzer. He has a Fuller drive-by degree
and he cannot spell either."

***

GJ - I kept the Stetzer invitation in the news. Finally the Conference of Pussycats told Church and Change to withdraw the invitation - something that never happened with Leonard Sweet or Martin Marty. The radicals depend on things blowing over. They hate seeing the story pursued.

The first step was denying that Church and Change invited Stetzer, so I reproduced the link and the wording of Stetzer's Tweet and blog. In both places he bragged about being hired by Church and Change and a Missouri Synod group. Stetzer had both events on his web calendar as well. That invitation happened after Kudu Don Patterson took a group of WELS workers to Exponential in Orlando, Florida. Stetzer was a featured speaker there. I am sure that was a co-inky-dink that the invitation happened AFTER the Exponential Conference.

That is the fun thing about narcissists on the Net - they leave footprints everywhere. Stetzer even made fun of conservative Lutherans while boasting about being hired by them.

After the invitation was withdrawn (which meant paying a kill fee), the Changers said it was a lie that Stetzer was ever invited. I get contacts from WELS pastors who have heard I was lying about something. So I sent him the link to the Twitter and blog.

The ending of WELS Church and Change this time is just as much of a lie as it was under Gurgle, who claimed the same thing. At that time an innocent told me that Gurgle ordered it shut down. I said, "Then why are they registering people for their next C and C conference on the WELS.net website?" Response - "They are?" I provided the link. Like I said, narcissists on the Net leave their footprints everywhere.

Under SP Schroeder, Church and Change says they are shut down, but they leave their website and documents available for those who know. Mark Schroeder promotes and protects the Church and Changers, who have changed the color of their fleece but not their agenda.

KJV Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

WELS Church and Change.
Time of Grace.
Men of His Word.
Grace in Action.
WELS Prayer Network.
Jars of Clay.
Cornerstone.
Youth Conference.
Etc. Etc. Etc.

Aardvark Alley: + Matthias Loy +

Aardvark Alley: + Matthias Loy +:

  + Matthias Loy +

26 January AD 1915; transferred to 28 January*

Matthias Loy (1828-1915) was born on 17 March to Matthias and Christina Loy, a pair of German immigrants. The family lived in near-poverty in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, near Harrisburg. He was the fourth of seven children. Matthias, Senior was a lapsed Catholic who apparently held only nominal religious beliefs for most of his life. Christina came from pietistic Lutheran stock in Württemberg. She did what she could to give the family some semblance of a Christian education and made sure that all but the eldest child were baptized as infants. Even her first-born son eventually was confirmed into the Lutheran Church.

When Matthias was six years old, the family moved to Hogestown, Pennsylvania. He lived with his family until he was fourteen. They then apprenticed him to Baab and Hummel Printers of Harrisburg. During the next six years, he worked for them while attending school. Mr. Hummel brought Matthias to the attention of Harrisburg minister C. W. Schäffer. Pastor Schäffer urged Matthias to consider a pastoral vocation. To this end, he studied studied Greek and Latin under the Harrisburg Academy's principal. This led to enrollment as a full student at the Academy. He hoped to enter the Gettysburg Theological Seminary, perhaps the epicenter of Lutheran liberalism in America.

Illness led Loy's doctor to encourage the young man to move farther west. Matthias found an employment opportunity with the United Brethren Publishing House in Circleville, Ohio. There he would become printer for the Brethren's semimonthly German paper. Loy came to Circleville in 1847 and quickly met the Lutheran pastor. This good soul suggested that Matthias waste no more time getting on with his pastoral education and suggested that he enroll at the Theological Seminary in Columbus. The Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Ohio was much more conservative and confessional than the Lutherans he had left behind in Pennsylvania.

With the promise of financial aid through the Lutheran pastor, Loy sought and received release from his printer's contract and left for Columbus. Of Matthias's time there, C. George Fry writes, "It was at this institution that he received the only two years of formal higher education deemed necessary to be a pastor. In 1849, after a two year 'cram course' that included academy, college, and seminary, Loy was graduated and installed as a minister in Delaware, Ohio."

According to Fry, these two men, along with Charles Porterfield Krauth, "must be seen as a common effort to preserve traditional Lutheran theology from the corrosive effects of 'the acids of modernity' in the last half of the nineteenth century. These three titans — Walther in the West, Krauth in the East, and Loy in the middle — could be compared to three anchors holding fast the ship of Lutheran Confessionalism during the ferocious storms of the Modernist-Fundamentalist Controversy."

In 1860, the Joint Synod of Ohio elected Loy President. Four years later, he was appointed editor of the Lutheran Standard. After sixteen years in the ministry, Capital University, Columbus, Ohio called Loy as professor of theology. He resigned as president of the Ohio Synod in 1878 he resigned as President of the Ohio Synod. Around this time he also returned the call to become English-language professor of theology at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. Wilhelm Friedrich Lehmann, Loy's successor as synodical president, died in 1880 and Loy returned to that office, succeeding him also as President of Capital University. He started the Columbus Theological Magazine in 1881. Loy retired as professor emeritus in 1902 and died on 26 January 1915.

Loy was finally surrounded by orthodox Lutheran theology and he made the most of his time at the seminary. As a student, he began reading Der Lutheraner, edited by C. F. W. Walther. This led to a long relationship with Dr. Walther, a friendship that grew so great that even their eventual disagreements over predestination and the fracturing of the Synodical Conference couldn't destroy.

Loy was instrumental in the formation of theSynodical Conference. However, at the Ohio Synod meeting at Wheeling in 1881, the synod withdrew from the Conference. This came about over sharp differences in understanding Predestination. Many Ohio Synod pastors taught that God predestined people according to His foreknowledge of whether they would come to faith while the Missouri Synod condemned this as false doctrine.

During his life, Loy wrote several books. Of special note is his seminal work The Augsburg Confession: An Introduction to Its Study and an Exposition of Its Contents.

He also wrote at least twenty hymns, including An Awe-full Mystery Is Here, The Law of God Is Good and Wise, The Gospel Shows the Father's Grace, and Jesus, Thou Art Mine Forever. His hymn translations included All Mankind Fell in Adam's Fall, The Bridegroom Soon Will Call Us, Let Me Be Thine Forever, and Thy Table I Approach.

*Since his death date (26 January) and birth date (17 March) both conflict with long-standing festivals on the sanctorial calendar (Titus and Pádraig respectively) and since 27 January belongs to John Chrysostom, I moved Loy's commemoration the first open date, 28 January.

'via Blog this'

***

GJ - The Delaware congregation in Ohio was just north of us in Columbus. I knew the retired minister of that congregation, a fine man, who studied under Lenski.