Here’s the new WLS seminary professor of
the recently created “Chair of Everlasting All-Purpose Justification” explaining
how everyone gets to heaven. It turns out, it’s all about the money after all!
ICHABOD, THE GLORY HAS DEPARTED - explores the Age of Apostasy, predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, to attack Objective Faithless Justification, Church Growth Clowns, and their ringmasters. The antidote to these poisons is trusting the efficacious Word in the Means of Grace. John 16:8. Isaiah 55:8ff. Romans 10. Most readers are WELS, LCMS, ELS, or ELCA. This blog also covers the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and the Left-wing, National Council of Churches denominations.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
VirtueOnline - News.
Apostates Stealing the Property - Not Just in WELS
VirtueOnline - News:
SANTA ANA, CA: Superior Court Rules Newport Beach Property belongs to Diocese
By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
May 6, 2013
The Orange County Superior Court yesterday granted a motion by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles seeking possession of a Newport Beach church campus owned by St. James Anglican Church.
The Rev. Richard Crocker who serves as St. James' chief pastor, said, "We are obviously disappointed at the ruling of the court, and surprised that an agreement reached over 20 years ago to facilitate the development of our campus could be swept away like this. But we are a church seeking to follow Jesus, and pursue his mission. We will be in prayer for guidance as to our next steps."
"The wrinkle in the St. James case -- a feature which distinguished it from the cases of two other parishes in the Diocese of Los Angeles (St. David's Hollywood; and All Saints, Long Beach) which Judge Dunning ruled last September could not retain their properties either -- was that St. James had been given an explicit letter from the Diocese in 1991 prior to purchasing the property at issue here, and undertaking the multi-million-dollar expense of developing it. The letter, written by then Canon to the Ordinary D. Bruce MacPherson (who resigned last year from his later jurisdiction as the bishop diocesan of Western Louisiana), told the parish (its text is reproduced on page 5 of the opinion linked above, and a facsimile of the original may be viewed on page 12 of the brief linked here; I have added the bold emphasis below): The Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. of Newport Beach, are given permission by the Bishop of Los Angeles, the Rt. Rev. Frederick H. Borsch, to purchase and own the property on 32nd Street in Newport Beach, in the name of the Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. and not held in trust for the Diocese of Los Angeles, or the Corporation Sole", noted "Curmudgeon" canon lawyer Allan S. Haley.
The Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. of Newport Beach, were given permission by the Bishop of Los Angeles, the Rt. Rev. Frederick H. Borsch, to purchase and own the property on 32nd Street in Newport Beach, in the name of the Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. and not held in trust for the Diocese of Los Angeles, or the Corporation Sole -- a feature which distinguished it from the cases of two other parishes in the Diocese of Los Angeles (St. David's Hollywood; and All Saints, Long Beach) which Judge Dunning ruled last September could not retain their properties either.
St. James, a congregation of approximately 700, has worshipped at the Lido Isle property since 1949. In 1991, before purchasing the adjacent parcel and raising funds from its members to build an entirely new sanctuary and administrative offices, St. James asked for a letter from the Diocese waiving any ownership claims, which the Diocese provided. In 2004, after longstanding differences of opinion, St. James' congregation voted to disaffiliate from the Diocese and the national Episcopal Church. Both then sued the Newport Beach church, claiming ownership of the 11 year old buildings.
Daniel F. Lula, lead counsel for St. James, said the ruling was unexpected both in its content and because the case was scheduled to go to trial on May 6. "We're obviously disappointed in the court's ruling. By holding that the written waiver the Diocese gave St. James was ineffective, the court's opened the door to denominations walking back on their promises to local congregations. At this point, we're evaluating whether to appeal."
The court's ruling does not contain a date by which St. James must turn over the property, and the ruling may be put on hold pending appeal. For the time being, St. James continues to worship at 3209 Via Lido, Newport Beach.
END
'via Blog this'
SANTA ANA, CA: Superior Court Rules Newport Beach Property belongs to Diocese
By David W. Virtue
www.virtueonline.org
May 6, 2013
The Orange County Superior Court yesterday granted a motion by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles seeking possession of a Newport Beach church campus owned by St. James Anglican Church.The Rev. Richard Crocker who serves as St. James' chief pastor, said, "We are obviously disappointed at the ruling of the court, and surprised that an agreement reached over 20 years ago to facilitate the development of our campus could be swept away like this. But we are a church seeking to follow Jesus, and pursue his mission. We will be in prayer for guidance as to our next steps."
"The wrinkle in the St. James case -- a feature which distinguished it from the cases of two other parishes in the Diocese of Los Angeles (St. David's Hollywood; and All Saints, Long Beach) which Judge Dunning ruled last September could not retain their properties either -- was that St. James had been given an explicit letter from the Diocese in 1991 prior to purchasing the property at issue here, and undertaking the multi-million-dollar expense of developing it. The letter, written by then Canon to the Ordinary D. Bruce MacPherson (who resigned last year from his later jurisdiction as the bishop diocesan of Western Louisiana), told the parish (its text is reproduced on page 5 of the opinion linked above, and a facsimile of the original may be viewed on page 12 of the brief linked here; I have added the bold emphasis below): The Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. of Newport Beach, are given permission by the Bishop of Los Angeles, the Rt. Rev. Frederick H. Borsch, to purchase and own the property on 32nd Street in Newport Beach, in the name of the Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. and not held in trust for the Diocese of Los Angeles, or the Corporation Sole", noted "Curmudgeon" canon lawyer Allan S. Haley.
The Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. of Newport Beach, were given permission by the Bishop of Los Angeles, the Rt. Rev. Frederick H. Borsch, to purchase and own the property on 32nd Street in Newport Beach, in the name of the Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint James' Parish, Inc. and not held in trust for the Diocese of Los Angeles, or the Corporation Sole -- a feature which distinguished it from the cases of two other parishes in the Diocese of Los Angeles (St. David's Hollywood; and All Saints, Long Beach) which Judge Dunning ruled last September could not retain their properties either.
St. James, a congregation of approximately 700, has worshipped at the Lido Isle property since 1949. In 1991, before purchasing the adjacent parcel and raising funds from its members to build an entirely new sanctuary and administrative offices, St. James asked for a letter from the Diocese waiving any ownership claims, which the Diocese provided. In 2004, after longstanding differences of opinion, St. James' congregation voted to disaffiliate from the Diocese and the national Episcopal Church. Both then sued the Newport Beach church, claiming ownership of the 11 year old buildings.
Daniel F. Lula, lead counsel for St. James, said the ruling was unexpected both in its content and because the case was scheduled to go to trial on May 6. "We're obviously disappointed in the court's ruling. By holding that the written waiver the Diocese gave St. James was ineffective, the court's opened the door to denominations walking back on their promises to local congregations. At this point, we're evaluating whether to appeal."
The court's ruling does not contain a date by which St. James must turn over the property, and the ruling may be put on hold pending appeal. For the time being, St. James continues to worship at 3209 Via Lido, Newport Beach.
END
'via Blog this'
Sale of WELS Love Shack Completed | Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS)
Sale of the WELS Love Shack Completed | Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS):
On Thurs., May 2, the synod finalized the sale of the Love Shack on Mayfair Road in Wauwatosa. The sale price was $2 million.
The current Synod Administration Building has served as the synod's headquarters since it was purchased in February 1984. We remember with fondness the room divider Ron Roth hid behind when Slick Brenner came in to visit with him. The Love Shack is in need of extensive renovation, and when an unsolicited offer to purchase the building was received, the Synodical Council (SC) did high fives and authorized the purchase of a building in Waukesha for $2.85 million. The first sale of the Mayfair property fell through when the potential buyer took a good look at it. The offer of another buyer, deeply discounted, was accepted in January, and the sale closed last week. Good thing, because we were really needing all that money we wasted on buying a bar for Tim Glende.
This new home for synodical administration is located in Waukesha along I-94 on Stone Ridge Dr. It will be called the WELS P.U. Towers - for Pewaukee Universalist Towers. The building has 33,000 square feet of space on two floors and features a military grade paper shredder. All areas of ministry and departments of the synod, along with WELS subsidiaries (WELS Church Extension Fund, WELS Foundation, WELS Investment Funds, WELS bail bondsman, and WELS Benefit Plans), will be located at the new site. The building also has an unfinished basement level that will provide ample storage, a crypt for people who leak to Ichabod, and a possible future home for the WELS Archives, now housed at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary.
Work has already begun to prepare the Waukesha building for occupancy. This includes the creation of some private offices and a chapel area, replacement of the carpet, and the purchase of furnishings (mostly acquired at a very reasonable price from our church workers in the prison system). We are grateful that Builders For Christ will be donating their labor for the finish (sic - should be Finnish) carpentry work.
Funding to cover the difference between the proceeds from the sale and the cost of relocation (building purchase, building preparation, furnishings, moving) is available from the Facilities Fund, Financial Stabilization Fund, Thrivent, indulgence sales, and individual gifts.
The move is scheduled to take place by the end of June. An open house and dedication will take place in late summer or early fall. The date will be shared when it is finalized.
On behalf of the Synodical Council, I would like to thank the members of the synod for their patience and support as the SC worked to resolve this debacle.
Update on Congregation Mission Offerings
Congregation Mission Offerings received through the end of April were $6,289,635. This is an increase of 2.1 percent ($127,410) over the same period last year. These results are encouraging because they show a recovery from where we were just a month ago, when 2013 offerings were 7.2 percent less than the same period last year. We thank our congregations and their members for their faithful stewardship of God’s blessings.
Serving in Christ,
President Mark Schroeder
'via Blog this'
Google Tells the Truth When Shrinkers Deceive
bruce-church (https://bruce-church.myopenid.com/) has left a new comment on your post "Classic Ichabod - Randy Hunter - Whose Latte Churc...":
Church Growth Outfits Unmasked by Google's Algorithms:
Usually the church growthers are so vague about doctrine that they even leave the word Lutheran off their church sign, and also off of any prominent spot on their website, especially the html title of the page. Often they'll just have a graphic with the word Lutheran in the hopes that the word Lutheran doesn't end up in the search results.
However, Google unmasks the church growers because in its search results, it inserts what it feels is a descriptive title, plus a relevant snippet under the title. Thus, if you go to Randy Hunter's site, it just says "St. Andrew" for the title of the page but in the Google results for: St. Andrew Middleton, it inserts the word Lutheran right in the title, and over on the right side, too, where it gives a map. In FireFox, the browser gives the site title in a bar at the top, but in Chrome the title is in the tab. One can hover over the tab to see the entire title. Anyway, church searchers don't need to sniff around Hunter's site to find out it's Lutheran since they'll know right away:
Google: st. andrew middleton
http://www.st-andrew-online.org/
Website of the defunct St. Andrew Waunakee Campus, probably because Google exposed it:
http://web.archive.org/web/20110807124013/http://www.st-andrew-online.org/Waunakee.aspx
Google explains how it unmasks the church growthers:
http://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=35624
Google's Rich Snippets:
http://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=99170
Google unmasks web farms, too:
http://searchengineland.com/the-penguin-update-googles-webspam-algorithm-gets-official-name-119623
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