Watching the Continuing Decline of ELCA, LCMS, and WELS Seminaries

Lie down with dawgs - git up with fleas.
No, I think Liz is quite pretty and feminine.
Thrivent is a dawg - and they all have Planned Parenthood fleas.

http://www.alpb.org/forum/index.php?topic=5347.0

In the January 2014 Forum Letter, Pastor Richard Johnson has an article about theological education.
It raises some questions that perhaps a wider audience could answer or even Editor Johnson.

Two of the ELCA Seminaries have merged with church related-universities: Southern with Lenoir-
Rhyne and Pacific with California Lutheran University.

Two of the ELCA Seminaries are on the ATS Financial
Watch List (Association of Theological Schools):

Philadelphia and Chicago

This leaves us with the remaining four:

• Luther Seminary at St. Paul, MN
• Trinity Seminary at Columbus, Ohio
• Lutheran Seminary at Gettysburg, PA
• Wartburg Seminary at Dubuque, Iowa

Evidently, Luther Seminary resolved a recent financial crisis. Who makes the decisions on
the vitality of these seminaries based on enrollment, finances, etc.?

Does the ELCA as a church body have a  master plan for these seminaries to survive?

Are any of these seminaries too small to last another ten years?

***

GJ - Luther Seminary resolved a crisis by firing their president. Wartburg (started by Loehe) went insolvent, fired some professors, and hired gay activist Stan Olson as their new president. Stan's wife, also a pastor, bragged in the Yale Divinity magazine that their daughter is partnered with another woman - like LCMS exSP Ralph Bohlmann's daughter.

I would not put Wartburg on the financially robust list, but it will last long enough to pad Olson's retirement with a big salary and benefits. He has served Babylon loyally for decades - why not?

Philly and Gettysburg were supposed to merge about 50 years ago. It was planned and funded, with a swath of land at the U. of Pennsylvania. One of them left the other at the altar, proving that shotgun marriages are chancy affairs. The two loathe each other so much that it is a mistake to ask a Philly grad if he went to Gettysburg and vice-versa.

I cannot imagine them merging with each other - too galling.

Trinity in Columbus is little more than Cap Seminary serving Ohio. That does not look promising. Other ventures tend to bleed off students. Tuition = salaries. Depending on where one starts, ELCA has lost 40% of their members

Likewise, Missouri does not need two seminaries. Nor does WELS/ELS.

If we bring the numbers up through 2012 based on the same spreadsheet:

              ELCA           LCMS
2012     3,964,474     2,196,788 

          -30.4%           -21.2%   from 1969 numbers

ELCA, LCMS, WELS, and the Little Sect have been content to alienate the large congregations that once gave them the most support. The old rule was the biggest parishes were best represented in synodical leadership. The carefully trained LCMS-WELS-ELS bureaucrats make sure only those who agree with them (the dumbest, worst false teachers) have a say, so many simply sit on their hands when the special requests come along.

Large ELCA congregations simply picked up and left. Others divided and the divorce was painfully expensive. 

WELS, Missouri, and ELS alienation is quieter, more passive - but pervasive.

The Olde Synodical Conference cannot stand up for Luther's doctrine, unborn babies, or heterosexual marriages. Instead, the love ELCA while pretending to be snotty about the sect they covet.

When Patterson and Kelm give papers on how to improve the seminary,
head for the hills!
Pray it not be in winter.

Test Case for Justification - Is Bivens an Idiot or a Liar?The Chief Article Has Always Been Justification by Faith

Forrest Bivens, Sausage Factory, Mequon:

The Primary Doctrine in Its Primary Setting: Objective Justification and Lutheran Worship

1.     Justification and the Power to Worship

“The article of justification is the master and prince, the lord, the ruler, and the judge over all kinds of doctrines; it preserves and governs all church doctrine and raises up our consciences before God. Without this article the world is utter darkness and death.”[1] Luther’s appraisal of the doctrine of justification is also ours. We hold it to be the primary doctrine of Scripture, that is, the central and most important teaching revealed by God for us sinners.[2]

The truth of justification, above all others, distinguishes Christianity from all other religions. If this teaching were obscured or lost, attempts to show significant differences between the Christian religion and others would ultimately prove to be futile. Also, as revealed and emphasized in the Bible, all other doctrines either prepare for or flow from this chief article of faith. Without this truth, all others would mean little. This doctrine is the source or basis of the benefits and blessings which mankind receives from God.

What precisely is this “master and prince, lord, ruler and judge” over other doctrines? Justification is a declaratory act of God, in which he pronounces sinners righteous. As revealed in the Bible, this declaration of God is made totally by grace and on account of Jesus Christ and his substitutionary life and death on behalf of mankind. To phrase it somewhat differently, God has justified acquitted or declared righteous the whole world of sinners. He has forgiven them. They have been reconciled to God; their status in his eyes has been changed from that of sinner to forgiven sinner for the sake of Jesus Christ. Since all this applies to all people, the term universal or general justification is used. In our circles an alternate term, objective justification, is also used. If justification is universal, it must also be objective - sinners are forgiven whether they believe it or not. This is precisely what Scripture teaches in Romans 3:23-24, when it says, “There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. “ All have sinned and all are justified freely by God’s grace. Romans 4:5 also teaches the grand truth that our God is the “God who justifies the wicked,” all of them. “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them “ (2 Co 5:19). Literally, God was not counting “their” sins against them, and the only antecedent of “their” in the sentence is “the world,” which includes all people.[3]

---

[1] Martin Luther, What Luther Says, Vol. 2. p 703.

[2] Lutheran theologians sometimes have difficulty deciding which is the central teaching of Christianity. Usually it is said to be justification, but sometimes Christ's vicarious atonement or his resurrection as the cornerstone of the faith is so labeled. These doctrines are so intimately connected that none can be taught correctly without the others. Professor Siegbert Becker briefly discusses this (1986, p. 13.)

[3] "Subjective justification—is the very same forgiveness as it is received or applied to the individual sinner through the gift of faith. Objective justification is clearly the basis for subjective justification. The sad fact that many sinners forfeit the blessings of forgiveness and reconciliation with God in unbelief does not, however, change the fact or reality of universal justification.

Always look on the dark side of life.

***

GJ - First of all, the chief article of Christianity has always been justification by faith. Here Bivens does what all of his colleagues do. He copies and pastes Luther to teach against Luther.

Bivens--whose only qualifications to teach are the courses he took at Fuller Seminary--is either an idiot or a liar. Given his advanced age, he is well acquainted with the original Gausewitz catechism, where UOJ was not taught. In fact, the LCMS has never taught UOJ consistently. Back in 1905, their German catechism taught justification by faith precisely. Their confused publication business, CPH, still sells justification by faith catechisms (the KJV version).

Biven is much closer to atheism, Universalism, and Unitarianism than he is to Halle University Pietism. When I go back to the origins of UOJ, I see the beginnings of the WELS/LCMS fantasy, but never expressed so forcefully and stupidly.

Halle University is the place where we find the Easter absolution content, from Rambach on, where the entire world is absolved from Jesus rising from the dead. But Halle is also the watershed for rationalism. They quickly became rationalistic so that faith did not matter at all. Schleiermacher, always a doubter, was one who turned UOJ into Universalism. Tholuck, Hoenecke's mentor at Halle, confessed himself a Universalist.

Bivens essay is especially obnoxious in its false doctrine because it claims Luther taught UOJ as "primary" and includes Romans 4 as proof of that being Biblical.

The UOJ satirists simply move from talking point to talking point, because no one in WELS dares to question someone with a title.

I will let the readers decide if Bivens leans toward total ignorance of Biblical doctrine or pure dedication to deception.

To update myself on the Holy of Holies, the WELS Essay Files, I looked for some authors. Curt Peterson, an avowed atheist, still has four essays in the files. Why? He was a Valleskey Church Growth buddy. Like Valleskey's chosen successor at Apostles, he followed Biblical infidelity with marital infidelity.

Richard Jungkuntz is another fave at the Holy of Holies. He distinguished himself by being a pioneer of ELCA and the chairman of the board of the first gay Lutheran seminary in America. Seminex deliberately--intentionally is the buzz-word--partnered with Metropolitan Community Church to provide their gay ministers with an MDiv degree. Deppe, from Concordia Seminary St. Louis, taught at Seminex and went on to teach at ELCA's Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago when the portable seminary moved on, took over LSTC, and radicalized it.

The unifying dogma in WELS is UOJ. Tim Glende screamed about it through his brave but anonymous blog.

UOJ and Church Growth/Emergent Church go together.

The Intrepids did not have the guts to combat either one consistently and persistently because they never got their doctrine completely right. They dithered, wavered, and silenced themselves. When one of their own studied the topic and proved himself a real scholar in translation and exegesis, they waved bye-bye and retreated to the warrens and excuses.

Once this was - "Where WELS is heading."
Now Mark Schroeder has made it happen.

WELS Cannot Read the Ones They Already Have. Brug Does Not Comprehend the Efficacy of the Word, So How Can He Manage This Job?

The Wartburg Project report – page 1

The Wartburg Project January 2014

One of the delegates at the 2013 Synod Convention who did
not favor a synodically sponsored translation of the Bible also
spoke these encouraging words: “I also say to any brothers
who’d like to take their hand at translating the Bible: God
bless you. Have at it. I mean that in all sincerity. You will
learn a tremendous amount. You will grow…your people will grow. This will really be a great thing. I
can certainly think of worse ways for a person to spend his time.”
Working under the title, “The Wartburg Project,” a number of pastors and professors have now
undertaken a pilot project to test the feasibility of producing a new translation of the Bible. The name
Wartburg reflects the rather informal, unofficial nature of the project and the commitment of the project
to Luther’s philosophy of translation. (Luther translated the New Testament from the Wartburg Castle.)
The Plan
To get a test of the project under way, Professor John Brug is serving as the general editor and Old
Testament editor and Pastor Brian Keller is serving as the New Testament editor. A goal was to have five
to eight New Testament translators and eight to ten Old Testament translators. These men could also
serve as reviewers and on the editorial board which will be organized in about one year. Additional
people could later volunteer or be invited to serve as reviewers and in other capacities. Men recognized
as having gifts for translation work have already been contacted and have agreed to serve. None have
declined our invitation! The methods and organization have been developed, but they are still flexible.
They will be shaped by the initial translation efforts.
Work on this project is similar to serving the church through some board or committee or perhaps to
deciding to work on a book or a Bible class which might be published for the use of the church. A big
plus that will come from participating in this project, regardless of its ultimate outcome, is that
participants’ translation work will make a big contribution to their continuing education as teachers and
preachers of the Word.
The Process
The product to be produced by the Wartburg Project could best be called a translation/revision. It will not
exactly be a “translation” because it will not be totally from scratch, but it will not exactly be a “revision”
because it will not be based on any single template. Although our translation will be based on the Hebrew
and Greek texts, templates are being used as a starting point in the translation process. This will build on
the tradition of English and Lutheran Bible translation. The primary resources, of course, are the original
Hebrew and Greek texts.
A web-based translation, the World English Bible (WEB), is not copyrighted and in fact welcomes
translators to use it to produce other translations. The only requirement is that the name of the translation
must be changed if any revisions are made to it. This translation is a modernization of the American
Standard Version (ASV) which is in turn a modernization of the King James. The WEB is used as a
template only in a very loose sense of the word. The sample translations that have been completed so far
are more idiomatic than WEB and follow different rubrics. Often these rubrics can be implemented with
the touch of a button. For example, all the Yahwehs in a book can be turned to LORD automatically.
An additional side-benefit to having a public domain template like WEB in front of the translator while he
translates is that this tends to distance the translator from the NIV and other copyrighted translations.
Most translators, when they translate from scratch, would inevitably be influenced by the language of The Wartburg Project report – page 2

NIV84, which is engrained in their minds, and they would to a degree be making a revision of NIV
whether or not they intended to do so. Starting from a different template is a check on that tendency.
The second major resource for translators is the Concordia Translation (CT). Each volume of the
Concordia Commentary (CC) produces its own original translation of the text. These translations are
more wooden than a translation suitable for general use, but they form a good base for a our translation.
In addition, the CC provides detailed exegetical studies of all the major issues and options which a
translator would face. Concordia Publishing House has provided our project with electronic files of the
translations from the CC for our use. The first draft of a translation of Proverbs using the CT is near
completion. The CT is probably most useful for difficult Old Testament books.
In many respects, we will be “standing on the shoulders of giants,” by utilizing the work of many
individuals who have gone before us. The project will make heavy use of previous scholarship. The
translators should be more concerned about quality and clarity than in plowing new ground and making
new discoveries.
Support
In the initial stages the project will be carried out by unpaid volunteers. If translators and editors donate
their time, they would receive royalties proportionate to their contribution if a marketable product results
from the project. The advent of electronic and on-demand publishing gives us many options on how to
market the product. The Wartburg Project has many things in its favor:
• It would be inexpensive to produce.
• It would not put pressure on the ministerial education faculties.
• It would involve more pastors, as the People’s Bible and the hymnal project did.
• Involvement of teachers and laypeople in the evaluation phases would put the project closer to the
grass roots.
• The translators’ notes could provide the base for a Lutheran study Bible.
• This translation would have as its primary goal service to the people of the Lutheran church. It
would not be particularly concerned about academic prestige or universal acceptance.
• It would provide a translation which people could use with confidence since it did not have the
doctrinal errors which occur in other translations and in their translators’ notes. This would be
true regardless of whether it became our main translation or was used as a supplemental study
version.
Books with completed drafts: Matthew, Mark, Psalms, Joshua, Deuteronomy. A preview edition of
Matthew is available now on amazon.com here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HV3J3BG. We plan to
make this book available for free on Kindle for five days in late February or early March. We are able to
make improvements to our translation, so we welcome your input. Look for Psalms in late spring.

Books already in progress: Luke, Proverbs.
Books expected to be in progress or completed in 2014: John, Acts, Galatians, Ephesians, 1 and 2
Timothy, Hebrews, James, 1 and 2 Peter, Jude, Revelation, Song of Songs, Ezekiel, Ruth, Jonah,
Amos, and probably others.
Translator’s Prayer
Help me hand on your timeless Word in a timely way to our time and place. Bless my study and deepen
my understanding of your Word. Bless my efforts so that my work may be a blessing to me and to others.
For more information, contact:
 Editor-in-chief, OT editor, Dr. John F. Brug -- brugj@wls.wels.net
 NT editor, Pastor Brian R. Keller – pastorkeller@gmail.com

The Donald's Pharisaical Prayer and Jeske's Men of the Absurd - WELS

Ski - Jeske staff member,
Church and Change board member,
embarrassment.

Mike Westendorf

Yesterday

From Pastor Don Are you to judge someone else's servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand. - Romans 14:4

Dear heavenly Father, it is too easy for me to categorize people by how they dress, how they speak, what hobbies they like, what kind of worship style they dig, whether they talk too little or too much or by the way they spend their money. When the truth is, that's for you to do. They are your servants and they stand before you to receive their judgment. I want to be free from man made judgments about people. I want to reflect your truth about morality so others see how you want us to live, but I do not want to create my own morality as if I am the judge. I want to help wayward souls back onto your path but I do not need for them to be on my path. I am only one of your servants who stands along side of all the others. Remove from my heart the sinful pride that makes me trust my own opinions about the many choices we can make. Help me to give my parents and my children the freedom to choose without disdain from me. Make me an encourager of truth and love but help me leave room for the variety of approaches to everyday life. AMEN

Pastor Don Patterson

---

http://www.menofhisword.org/content.cfm?id=313

 Sessions at a Glance

Jeske's Men of the Absurd

1. What Do I Do? Helping a Loved One Struggling with Addictions                                     Mrs. Ski
 Each year millions of Americans struggle with substance abuse or addiction. In fact, researchers suggest that nearly everyone can identify at least one person they love who is struggling with an addiction. The presence of this addiction is disruptive not only to those struggling with it, but often deeply impacts those closest in their lives. Learn ways to lovingly and productively engage, communicate and establish boundaries with a loved one struggling with addiction.
2. Christ Centered Marriage? I'm All In!                                                                              Brian Lampe, Self-Appointed UPS Pastor to Everyone
Are you willing to explore new ways of thinking about marriage, love, and intimacy, and to work on personal goals for improving relationships? This workshop encourages the development of open communication, intimacy, and practical problem-solving—important areas of personal growth for a Biblical husband. Come to honestly discuss issues and receive encouragement that will lead to strengthening your supportive role through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
3. Time for Member Ministry…Leading Volunteers?                                                                 Bill Meier
What is the difference between Member Ministry and recruiting volunteers? While on the surface these activities may seem the same, the outcomes you are praying for are quite different.  Join us to explore the differences from an outcome and purpose perspective.  In addition, share and discover more tactics/strategies of engagement in Member Ministry! Pray for better outcomes. WELS is going down the drain.
4. It’s Time to Include Them – God Has!                                                                       Bill Truebenbach
People with an intellectual and developmental disability need to know how much Jesus loves them. This session will explore how you can be part of answering Jesus’ call to share that love to people with developmental disabilities, such as the Mequon faculty. It is time to get involved in disability ministry. It is time to provide those with a developmental disability hope in Jesus for eternity.
5. Loving Them Back                                                                                                              Bill Bader
Every congregation has people leaving the Savior’s side. Reaching out to people who have strayed from Jesus is a vital part of Christian ministry.  Learn the “How” and “Why” of this important work of loving all age groups back into the Shepherd’s fold.
6. The Bible Calls Them Chayil                                                                                          Bruce Becker
Proverbs 31 speaks about the “wife of noble character.” Before one can be a wife of noble character, she is first a woman of noble character and, prior to that, a daughter of noble character.  The Hebrew word for “noble character” is chayil (חַיִל), i.e., “might, strength, power, or valor.” So, how do Christian parents raise a strong daughter, one who is of noble character? In this session, we will discover the keys to raising daughters who are chayil. It is never too early or late to begin. The time for fathers to act is now! But we won't talk about how often WELS clergy dump our wives for our girlfriends.
7. Put Down The Christian Check List and Let God’s Living Water Flow                                    Dave Long
We all know the checklist of what good Christians say and do, but it’s easy to let that checklist become a roadblock to truly experiencing God’s love. In this session we will explore how God makes things new each day and what we can do to live every moment of our lives in His grace. Let’s see what happens when we take church out of the box and let God’s living water flow from within!
8. Passing the Bourbon to Your Sons                                                                               Don Patterson - Whose Son Was Kicked Out of NWC
From the moment children are born, they are learning to understand life by watching their parents. Their hearts are wide open to receive the baton in the relay race called life.   In this session we will explore the ways our parents have passed the baton to us as well as the various important ways that fathers, grandpas, uncles and leading men can pass the baton to the next generation.  Cash bar follows.
9. Time-out! Are Church Growth Meetings Robbing Us of Our Passion?                                                      John Johnson 
In business, many men say, “If I did not have to go to meetings, I would love my job.”  Similarly, many in the church have lost their zeal for ministry because of its “business.”  We must ask if meetings are getting in the way of Gospel work.  As long as we have organizational systems, meetings are a must, but do they have to be so painful and often so unproductive?  Absolutely NOT!  Meetings can be transformed into something productive and energizing.  Come and discover the basic changes which will make this shift possible at your church.
10. Is There Such a Thing as Enough Time for…Everything?                                              Jeremy Mattek
Your job needs excellence. Your church needs a volunteer. Your wife needs a loving and attentive husband.  Kids need someone to hang out with and someone to teach them important life lessons. Can you get it all done without disappointing anyone? Should you be expected to?  And where do your needs fit in? As a man whose time is in high demand, your heart is pulled in many different directions, but so was the heart of our Lord Jesus. And it’s his heart alone that will help us find peace as we use the time we have to serve the needs of those around us.
11. The Brady Bunch—Blended Families and Me                                                                 Mark Henrich
Remember "The Brady Bunch"? In their unique blended family, every issue was resolved within 30 minutes. Today with 42% of all Americans part of "blended families," the Brady Bunch is not so unique, nor do the challenges that come into our blended families all get neatly resolved in 30 minutes.  In this session, we will travel through the joys and challenges of our blended families and leave with Biblical advice "for such a time as this," divorce and remarriage in the parsonage.
12. Transformational Leadership                                                                                          Mark/Avoid Jeske - Thrivent Board Member, Planned Parenthood Sponsor
You know things have to change in your congregation, but how do you get things done? How do you reach out to new people without alienating and antagonizing long-time members? What’s essential to Lutheranism and what can be thrown out? Pastor Mark Jeske has spent more than three decades working on self-agrandizement and will share insights in how to lead the change process.
13. Time to Conquer Porn                                                                                                Ski, Tim Glende, and DP Engelbrecht
Statistically, if two church-going, Jesus-loving men sit in a pew, one of them struggles with pornography.  For tens of millions of American Christian men the results are horrific:  shame, guilt, fractured marriages, wasted time, scarred children, damaged ministries, rewired brains, addicted bodies, and ravaged consciences.  But there is hope.  Time to Conquer Porn reveals the  steps that recovering pornography addicts have taken to move from conquered to conquering.  Whether you battle this sin or desire to help your friends/family who are addicted (yes, some are, we guarantee), check out Time to Conquer Porn so God can help you, and you can help them.
14. Now’s the Time to Share Our Hope!                                                                           Rich Warnecke
Have you hesitated sharing the hope you have in your heart?  Do you shy away from mingling in unfamiliar settings or with strangers? Building relationships first will help.  When we develop trust, people are more willing to discuss personal, even spiritual, matters.  This workshop offers a practical, role-playing approach to assist you in speaking to anyone, at anytime, about anything. Learn to read body language and improve social skills.  Learn how to be confident in sharing the “hope we have in our heart” (I Peter 3:15) with anybody!  Now’s the time!
15. A Time for Hope Amidst the Ashes                                                                                Steve Stern 
When our children or siblings break our hearts by their behaviors or life choices, how do we find a way to bring them back home?  By sharing our own life experiences, talking about what works and what makes it worse, and looking at the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15, Chaplain Steve Stern shows every heart-broken parent there is hope that God’s redeeming love can prevail.
16. Weight Watchers’ Worthy                                                                                        Don Scheuerelin
With all of the competition for weight loss participants, how does Weight Watchers maintain itself?   Accountability.  Members are accountable to one another, to themselves and to the truth of the scale.  Shouldn't this also be true among Christians?  Shouldn't we be accountable to one another, to ourselves, and to the truth of Scriptures?  In this session we will provide tools and skills for making accountability part of our daily walk with the Savior and with one another.    
17. Tool Time: A Warrior’s Tool Box                                                                                      Phil Moore
This session will deal with the anger, guilt, forgiveness, grief and love that are experienced by a combat veteran during service, upon returning home and in the following years. Discussion is encouraged in a safe, honest, non-threatening and non-judgmental way.   What goes on in this session stays in this session.  Your leader, who has faced many of the same struggles, will provide Biblical tools and resources to deal with the difficulties faced by veterans. This session is for veterans and anyone who wants to help veterans (or victims of any trauma) in their struggles.
18. Start Your Own Bible Study Group!                                                                                 Steve Loehr
Learn how one congregation stepped out—literally—and started an off-site Bible study group.  Discover how this Saturday morning group called “Band of Brothers” formed, flourished, and fostered other avenues of service.  Join Steve in this session to discuss the challenges and rewards of stepping out in his and in your congregation.
19. A Forum on the Future of Men of His Word                                                                   Russ Wagner
As we host our fifth Men of His Word Conference, we see our ministry blessed with growth and opportunity and the Intrepid Lutherans killed off by the District Presidents. The collective potential of Christian men immersed in the Word and following Christ is unlimited. Join us as we discuss ways to use that potential to strengthen each other through sharing and service. Help us develop and refine a vision for the future of Men of His Word as we explore the opportunities God places before us.
20. Youth Track- Times Change – Who Are You Now?                                                    Mike Westendorf
Who you are now is not who you will be.  New experiences, mountain top highs and depressing valley lows will all conspire to shape your identity.  Between 18 and 25, your identity formation peaks as you move from being your parents’ child to becoming your own man.  In this session, we’ll look at your identity formation after high school, your shifting identity through life, and the one true foundation that never changes.
21. Youth Track- Permission to Plagiarize Willowcreek                                                                                             Bill Limmer
Most people inside and outside of the church think that God is a God of rules, regulations and restrictions…and God is saying, “You heard WHAT about me?!”  God’s Word is not to limit us but to liberate us and give us the freedom that only the owner of the universe can give.  The Triune God is the God of permission.  Come to this session and hear God say, “Yes,” to you.  

Abortion Funding - This Is How Thrivent Treats Their Friends. LCMS and WELS and ELS Are Sucker, Promoting Thrivent

http://blogs.lcms.org/2014/thrivents-abortion-funding#.UtlRGatX4fE.facebook

LCMS responds to Thrivent’s ‘pro-abortion’ funding

on January 16, 2014 in NEWS, REPORTER, TOP STORY 12

By Paula Schlueter Ross

With the revelation that Thrivent Financial for Lutherans has provided funding to at least four Planned Parenthood affiliates as well as to the NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota Foundation, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s Office of the President has issued a statement of concern. (Click here to read the statement, “Thrivent Funding of Pro-Abortion Organizations: LCMS Concerns.”)

According to the Jan. 15 statement, “Today’s news indicates that Thrivent not only has suspended funding for pro-life, nonprofit organizations serving women and children in need, but now also directly supports organizations providing abortion services and pro-abortion advocacy.”

On Dec. 19, after learning that a Planned Parenthood affiliate was eligible to receive funding through its Choice Dollars program, Thrivent “temporarily suspended” one pro-choice and more than 50 pro-life organizations from receiving Choice Dollars funding while it conducts “a comprehensive review” of the program.

In the Choice program, Thrivent members can help direct funds to thousands of nonprofit organizations, including Lutheran congregations.

The latest news relates to a different funding program known as “Gift Multiplier” that’s available to Thrivent employees through the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation.

Concerns about the Gift Multiplier program were brought to light by the Rev. Michael Schuermann, senior pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Sherman, Ill., who told Reporter he “was contacted by some people associated with Thrivent who were familiar with the fact that this was going on.” (Schuermann also helped disclose in December Thrivent’s link to Planned Parenthood through its Choice program.)

The informants shared documentation of the Gift Multiplier funding that Schuermann posted to his website, daringlutheran.net.

The documentation lists five Planned Parenthood affiliates in Columbus, Ohio; Des Moines, Iowa; Milwaukee; New York; and St. Paul, Minn., as well as the NARAL Foundation in St. Paul as Thrivent Gift Multiplier charities.

After Schuermann posted the information online and alerted LCMS leaders to the news Jan. 15, it was picked up and shared by other websites as well as numerous Facebook and Twitter users.

Schuermann said it’s “disappointing,” “sad” and “frustrating to see Thrivent — an organization that puts itself forward as Christian and Lutheran — engaging [with] and giving money to organizations that really, as Christians, we just cannot support.”

Many LCMS congregation members are among the 2.5 million members of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, a Minneapolis-based, Fortune 500 fraternal-benefits organization with more than $75 billion in assets derived primarily from Lutherans over the past 100 years. Thrivent members voted last year to open the organization’s membership to all Christians, which took place in June.

According to its website, Thrivent is “faith-based” and its “common bond” is Christianity.

Thrivent also issued a statement Jan. 15: “The Thrivent Gift Matching Program provides matching funds for contributions made by corporate employees and members of our field organization to nonprofit organizations. We are aware of the issue that has been raised, and we will address it as we review this program.”

A Thrivent spokesman told Reporter Jan. 15 that “the ‘hold’ on all pro-choice and pro-life organizations from the Thrivent Choice program remains in effect as we continue to conduct a comprehensive program review.”

Maggie Karner, director of LCMS Life Ministries, said all of the suspended pro-life organizations “already do wonderful mercy work, with limited resources, to serve women, children and families in need. They include LCMS Recognized Service Organizations, maternity homes, pregnancy resource centers, pro-life educational organizations, ultrasound services for pregnant women and organizations providing free resources.”

The Rev. Dr. James Lamb, executive director of the national pro-life organization Lutherans For Life (LFL), noted that “Thrivent claims to be ‘neutral’ on ‘controversial issues’ and yet they have once again closed the door to Lutherans For Life and other life-affirming ministries to receive Choice Dollars.

“LFL will lose nearly $2,000 monthly in contributions because of this decision,” Lamb said. “Now we learn that they continue to fund pro-abortion groups like Planned Parenthood and NARAL through their financial Gift Multiplier program. There is no neutrality in this. It is simply theologically impossible to claim to be ‘Christian’ and ‘faith-based’ and at the same time support the intentional killing of unborn children created by God and for whom Jesus died.”

According to the recent LCMS statement, the Synod “is in conversation with Thrivent regarding this matter and hopes it can be resolved in a way that upholds the sacred value of human life. We encourage Thrivent to clear up confusion with its members by unequivocally stating that it supports pro-life and pro-family values.

“We urge them to follow those words with action by restoring funding to the pro-life organizations that lost funding in December and by developing a policy that denies all funding for Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota Foundation.”

The statement also encourages Thrivent members to “voice their concerns and opinions directly to Thrivent,” and provides contact information to help them do just that.

Schuermann, who does not own Thrivent products himself, said he’s heartened to see that Thrivent leaders “are reacting, they are listening” and is “hopeful that they’ll see the error of this course of action and correct it so that people in good conscience can continue to use them as an investment and insurance provider.”

He, too, asks Thrivent members to “kindly and lovingly get in touch with Thrivent and just tell them that you don’t agree with [funding pro-abortion groups].”

Said Schuermann: “For now, I’m uncomfortable calling it sinful or unchristian to continue doing business with Thrivent, and I don’t want any Thrivent members to feel that way. But each of us should be letting Thrivent know that what they’re doing is wrong. And it needs to change.”

(See related Reporter Online stories: “Synod issues statement on Thrivent, Planned Parenthood” and“LCMS responds to Thrivent’s Choice Dollars statement.”)

Why Not Write to Matthew the Fat, Mark the Bookkeeper, And Pope John the Malefactor?

I would rather talk to the synod popes:
you only have to kiss their rings.

http://blogs.lcms.org/2014/thrivent-funding-of-pro-choice-organizations-lcms-concerns

Thrivent Funding of Pro-Abortion Organizations: LCMS Concerns

on January 15, 2014 in OFFICIAL STATEMENTS, PRESSROOM 19

A Statement from the Office of the President

Following the news in December indicating that Thrivent Financial for Lutherans® has recognized Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota as potential recipients of funding through its Thrivent Choice Dollars® grant program, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod is saddened to learn today that through another program, that additional Thrivent contributions are being made directly to support pro-abortion providers. At least four Planned Parenthood affiliates throughout the United States, along with NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota Foundation, have received support from Thrivent through its Gift Multiplier program for Thrivent employees. The LCMS is currently seeking clarification on this issue directly from Thrivent.

Today’s news prompted Thrivent to provide the following statement: “The Thrivent Gift Matching Program provides matching funds for contributions made by corporate employees and members of our field organization to non-profit organizations. We are aware of the issue that has been raised, and we will address it as we review this program.”

Following initial feedback in December from Thrivent members and The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, Thrivent responded by suspending Choice Dollars funding not only to pro-abortion organizations but to all pro-life organizations as well. According to a Dec. 20 statement from Thrivent, the fraternal-benefits organization was “temporarily suspending all pro-choice and pro-life organizations from the Thrivent Choice program, placing a temporary hold on the addition and removal of nonprofit organizations from the program, and conducting a comprehensive program review.”

Previously, the Choice Dollars program supported more than 50 pro-life organizations in the United States. These organizations include LCMS Recognized Service Organizations, maternity homes, pregnancy resource centers, pro-life educational organizations, ultrasound services for pregnant women, and organizations providing free resources to pregnant women and families in need.

Today’s news indicates that Thrivent not only has suspended funding for pro-life, nonprofit organizations serving women and children in need but now also directly supports organizations providing abortion services and pro-abortion advocacy.

The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod always has been, and continues to be, clear and faithful in its biblical witness to the sanctity of all human life from conception until natural death. Just as our Lord cared for both the spiritual and physical needs of all humanity, His mercy motivates us to care for our neighbors, no matter how vulnerable or small.

The LCMS is in conversation with Thrivent regarding this matter and hopes it can be resolved in a way that upholds the sacred value of human life. We encourage Thrivent to clear up confusion with its members by unequivocally stating that it supports pro-life and pro-family values. We urge them to follow those words with action by restoring funding to the pro-life organizations that lost funding in December and by developing a policy that denies all funding for Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice Minnesota Foundation.

We encourage Thrivent members to voice their concerns and opinions directly to Thrivent at:

800-THRIVENT (800-847-4836)

Kudu Don - Who Hosts Drunken Ladies Spiritual Retreats Will Be the Speaker for Mark/Avoid Jeske's Men of His Word. Jeske's Groups Are Not on the DPs' Death Lists

------------------------  C A L L S   A C C E P T E D  -----------------------
    Doebler, Rev Matthew D     East Asia Administrative Committee   01/12/2014
         Professor, Asia Lutheran Seminary

------------------------------  R E S I G N E D  -----------------------------
    Kuske, Rev John D          Christ the Redeemer - Barre VT       12/29/2013

    Sausage Factory, '85: The Class the Stars Fell On - Steve Witte, 

Randy Hunter

Speaking of Steve Witte, a founder of Church and Chicanery - 

Classic Ichabod - Saturday, March 20, 2010






Here Comes Doebler Cottontail, 
Hoppin' Down Chicanery's Trail





 I told you DP Patterson would get rid of him so
The Donald could develop the richy-rich Round Rock suburb for himself.

Doebler got a $20,000 grant for this?



Source
Are WELS congregations in Texas so devoid of the Gospel that they need live bunnies and an Easter egg hunt to draw visitors?

Kudu Don Patterson did this last year, so I borrowed the bunny photo and replaced Dom Perignon's face with Doebler's.

WELS Church Lady says Doebler is confessional. If Doebler is a confessional Lutheran pastor, then Glaeske is a conservative DP.

For all you missionaries looking for a call, any call, and all the congregations and schools that are out of money - rent a bunny suit. The grant-givers love a touch of fleece.

I am sure the ELS and WELS boards of doctrine will jump on this like hobos on a hotdog.

Search Easter egg hunts in WELS.

Search Easter egg hunts in the LCMS.