Review of Making Disciples - On Amazon.com

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsWhat does it really say? Translations or merchandising?

By Java Dude on October 27, 2016

Format: Paperback

While reading this book, and this applies to all others I have read by the same author, you will have the treat of ready access to a deep and wide resource in the form of Dr. Jackson’s education, teaching, and preaching. With advanced degrees from Yale and Harvard (GJ - Notre Dame, rather than Harveard - but two of my ND professors now occupy endowed chairs at Harvard), Jackson’s writing reflects a disciplined approach he honed in the process. He has a love for footnotes and quotations from sources. Jackson will bring into play tools from original languages of the Bible, history, geography, philosophy and of course theology, and use them to craft a narrative that is unusually comprehensive. Lucid and refreshingly succinct, Dr. Jackson carves with precision to his points.

Making Disciples is not merely a discussion of the venerable “Great Commission” found in the closing verses of Matthew 28. That subject is vivisected, to be sure, but an historical background of the English versions of the Bible is also presented, along with Luther’s German Bible and the Vulgate Latin. All of this serves to add context and relevance to the discussion itself without distraction. Jackson writes with a density not to be found in many wordy so-called Christian books that flood the best seller lists. He’s not being paid by the word here, and he doesn’t profit a couple million dollars each time he takes to pen, as do the megachurch rockstars so long in enthusiasm and short in academia. Dr. Jackson writes from mind and heart and the reader is a benefactor.

After reading Making Disciples, you will learn how Bible versions often contain agendas carefully inserted into the translation, along with footnotes that work to undermine the original Greek meaning, here and there again, to bend the Bible to suit the particular theology being advanced. Many examples are provided from both Testaments, laid bare and naked, and they can be startling to behold. A question is made to whether some new versions are actually new at all, or simply a profitable exercise in Bible merchandising.

A call to appreciate again (for some of us) and anew (for younger of us) the King James Version is made by Jackson, and solid argument provided to bolster its accuracy and beauty. To overcome some of the difficulties of the KJV, Jackson recommends the 21st Century translation, available on Amazon in book form, and also online at BibleGateway dot com. I have begun including KJV21, as it is also known, in my own studies and enjoy it.

I highly recommend this short book to anybody with respect and love for the inerrant Word.

---

5.0 out of 5 starsA thorough treatise on the error of "make disciples" by ...

By Glen on September 10, 2016

Format: Paperback

A thorough treatise on the error of "make disciples" by Lutheran Bishop Gregory L. Jackson. For more history information about the destructive philosophy of Pietism check out his blog: [...]

***

GJ - Reviews really help in the teaching office of the church. Many of the books I might want to study or buy begin with reading some book reviews. One does not have to be a professional book reviewer to post a review.

Thank you for everyone who wants to help. Thanks, Java Dude and Glen.

Start by going to the Pastor Gregory L. Jackson author page and picking a book to review.

My Summary of Universal Objective Justification - The False Gospel of the Synodical Conference. From 2013

The WELS Conference of Pussycats went looking for false doctrine,
and found it - in justification by faith.

The Scriptures
Justification by faith is taught by the Holy Spirit, throughout the Scriptures. That is the Chief Article of the Christian Faith.

The Lutheran Reformation
Luther, Melanchthon, Andreae, Chytraeus, and Leyser contributed in various ways to the Book of Concord, 1580. All taught justification by faith. On this distinguished list, no one taught or even implied any version, flavor, or nuance of Universal Objective Justification.

Samuel Huber's UOJ
Samuel Huber, a former Calvinist, promoted the first version of Universal Objective Justification, shortly after the completion of the Book of Concord. He was serving on the faculty of Wittenberg University. Polycarp Leyser and A. Hunnius defeated the efforts of Huber, who became a wandering exile from Lutheranism.

Huber's UOJ sounds exactly like WELS UOJ today. And that is really no different from the eructations of Eduard Preuss, the St. Louis professor who turned Roman Catholic apologist - everyone is already forgiven. When Christ died on the cross or (alternately) rose from the grave, God said, "OK, every single Hindu, atheist, cannibal, and polytheist is forgiven and saved." No one ever recorded that statement in the Scriptures, but the UOJ Stormtroopers tell me that universal absolution is the whole point of the Bible and the Reformation.

Pietism influenced Calov, but not enough to make him spew UOJ.

Robert Preus admired Quenstedt's detail and precision in theology.

Lutheran Orthodoxy Fading
If the Lutheran Reformation, Luther and Melanchthon, are all neglected today, the next generations of Lutheran scholars are treated with even greater indifference. The list in Robert Preus' two-volume work is filled with names that mean nothing to most of us. Preus was the last in a line of Americans who really knew those writings - Lenski and Hoenecke being among them.

The age of Lutheran Orthodoxy became mixed with Pietism, so the list in Robert Preus' work is not one of scholars totally devoted to Luther and the Book of Concord. He stated that Calov was influenced by Pietism. I imagine Sebastian Schmidt was a Pietist, because Schmidt seemed to produce a lot of UOJ material that Preus quoted in his earlier days.

Pietism as the Great Filter
All of the America Lutheran church bodies came over from Pietism, and they were established in Pietism.

Muhlenberg was a Pietist from Halle University. He established the ULCA branch of the LCA/ELCA. 

Bishop Stephan was a Pietist who studied at Halle. He taught his version of justification to CFW Walther, and Walther never changed.

Loehe was a Pietist who founded the Ft. Wayne seminary and the LCMS. His men invited the Stephan cult to join them. Loehe was flushed down the memory hole by Walther, but he was a positive influence on the LCMS in many ways. 

The Walther ministers were trained in rationalism and associated themselves with two Pietist leaders, the second one being Stephan. Absolute obedience to the guru was demanded and enforced.

The Swedish and Norwegian Lutherans who came over in the 19th century were also Pietists, which means the entire history of American Lutheran church bodies was one of dominant Pietism. 

Adolph Hoenecke, the WELS dogmatics professor and author, graduated from Halle

Halle was the center of Pietism, so Halle and Spener were sacred cows.

UOJ and Pietism
Rambach is a convenient historical marker for Pietism, Halle, and UOJ. The first baptism hymn in The Lutheran Hymnal was written by Rambach.

Knapp is the direct connection between the Synodical Conference (WELS, LCMS, ELS) and UOJ. The Halle professor taught there forever, and his published lectures pre-date the voyage of Stephan's sex cult to Perryville, Missouri.

Knapp was so dominant in the 19th century that his dogmatics book (in English) was used in all the mainline seminaries in America. The English translation used the language of two justifications, so fondly used by all the Waltherians today. 

UOJ and Mainline Universalism
Hoenecke's mentor at Halle, Tholuck, was a self-proclaimed Universalist.

UOJ became the dogma of all mainline Protestant bodies, so the Synodical Conference (for all its posturing) simply blended with the liberal unionistic bodies it was so keen to criticize. 

That is why the SynCons are so comfortable with ELCA unionism today - they all teach the same dogma of universal absolution - in the name of pure grace.

Did Justification by Faith Survive in the Synodical Conference?
Walther ruled over his sect, following the example of Bishop Stephan. He picked the subservient F. Pieper to parrot his teaching, which he cloned from Stephan. Nevertheless, it was a Germanic group, so access to Luther was easy. Missouri produced a gorgeous set of Luther's works in German, high quality paper and binding. I once owned that set and sold it to a WELS Quisling.

Gausewitz (WELS) was respected enough to be president of the Synodical Conference. His original catechism contained not a word of UOJ. Mark Schroeder should dig up Gausewitz' body and burn him at the stake. No wait. His First VP, James Huebner, has done one better - making Gausewitz disappear completely from Grace, Milwaukee. 

The LCMS German catechism taught justification by faith in 1905.

The English KJV catechism being sold by CPH teaches justification by faith, not UOJ. "2 Million Sold!" Harrison should excommunicate Paul McCain.

Adolph Hoenecke - WELS took forever to translate his work.

WELS - And ELS - Allergic to the Book of Concord. Brett Meyer Observations. Wayne Mueller's Attack on the Book of Concord. From 2011

Wayne Mueller Think about this, ELS and LCMS fans - the former WELS VP and Seminary Professor uses the Book of Concord upon which to wipe his disgusting feet.
Use of Symbols and Scripturesin the Church and Ministry Debate

http://essays.wls.wels.net/bitstream/handle/123456789/3382/MuellerSymbols_0.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

(W)ELS is not restricted to the Lutheran Confessions. Wayne Mueller states that appeals to the Lutheran Confessions did not resolve the UOJ controversy. He fails to explain that the reason the Lutheran Confessions did not end the controversies and why the Lutheran Confessions do not limit the (W)ELS in matters of doctrine and practice is because they reject the BOC as being the faithful explanation of God's chief articles of Christian faith which they as professing the Lutheran name have sworn and oath to uphold. There are far more quotes than these but this should help begin the discussion concerning the glory of the (W)ELS.

What a drag - to be a WELS pastor, a Church and Changer,
and Wayne Mueller's son.

"We apply the Confessions as a limited standard to judge those doctrines which they directly or incidentally addresses."

Page 5

"IV. Application of the Confessions to the Present Controversy

Appeal to the Lutheran symbols did not resolve the inspiration of Scriptures controversy. No, our confessions do not have the last word when it comes to determining what we are to teach. That belongs to Scripture. When, therefore, the matter of the inspiration of Scripture becomes a contested doctrine in the church, as it has, God expects us to state what Scripture states. It is not necessary to call a council of all Lutherans to determine what the Lutheran stand will be: Scripture has already determined that. We are not restricted to those doctrines laid down in our confessions. (Harold Wicks, Scripture is the Course and Norm for the Christian’s Faith and Life,’ Our Great Heritage, Vol. I, p 84)"

Page 6


"We are not restricted to those doctrines laid down in our confessions. This is the very procedure followed in the confessions themselves. The Augustana did not restrict itself to those points treated in the Apostles’ Creed. The Formula of Concord [1577], in turn, did not restrict itself to those doctrinal statements found in the Augustana [1530], the Apology [1531], or the Smalcald articles [1537]. It went beyond them, because the framers of these documents considered it wise to do so. This is especially true of its Article on God’s Eternal Foreknowledge and Election. (Harold Wicks, "What is Doctrine According to Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions,’ Our Great Heritage, Vol. I, p 841"

Page 7



"Appeal to the Lutheran symbols did not resolve the objective justification controversy.

(Note Vernon Harley’s use of the Confessions to limit exegetical conclusions in his "Exegetical Study of Scripture Passages Generally Used to Teach ‘Objective’ or ‘Universal’ Justification" 1984, p8) "This is basically why they contend so strongly for ‘objective’ justification and go a step further than our Lutheran Confessions insisting that Objective Justification is the Chief article of the Christian Faith, while our Confessions give that honor to justification by grace through faith" (Formula of Concord, S.D. III, 6, p. 540 in Tappert)."

Page 7

http://www.wlsessays.net/files/MuellerSymbols.pdf

***

GJ - Judging from LI's experience, I would say that the Little Schoolhouse on the Prairie does a better job than The Sausage Factory - when it comes to using the Book of Concord.

However, since UOJ Wisconsinites dominate both sects, the results are the same. The ELS pastors know Lutheran doctrine better, but the ELS leaders parrot the WELS line on everything.

John Shep wants people to know that he coined the line, "When Mischke drinks beer in Milwaukee, Orvick burps in Mankato." Shep is now an ELCA pastor.

First of all, WELS pastors do not know Lutheran doctrine at all. What they know, they despise. There are exceptions, but they have to stay under the WELSian radar, and away from the WELS KGB.

WELS does a poor job of teaching the Confessions, so no one has the capacity to read and teach the Confessions - not that they care to do so. Wayne Mueller, another advocate of UOJ and Church Growth, is typical in his snotty attitude about the Book of Concord.

Everyone must look at the claims of WELS and the reality. The gap is breathtaking, like looking across the Grand Canyon the first time. That is always the WELS approach - a boastful claim for the public, a snide and arrogant attitude for the brothers. Their quia subscription might as well be a Chia subscription to the Book of Concord.

A Chia subscription to the Book of Concord - is just as meaningless as a quia subscription to a book they neither trust nor comprehend.
But it will grow on you. ---

2016 Update

 No, they are rationalistic Pietists.

GJ - In 1987, WELS always made a point of sticking their noses in the air whenever the LCMS was mentioned. But bad times make strange bedfellows. The three Synod Presidents have one thing in common - they disregard the Book of Concord completely and teach against the Chief Article of the Christian Religion - Justification by Faith. Now they rejoice in their joint proclamation of Universal Objective Justification - forgiveness without faith, universal absolution nowhere mentioned in the Scriptures yet spawned in Halle in the era of Pietism.

Jointly, they despise Christian News, which is really their free public relations machine and spiker of the news. One is far more likely to read about the crimes of the ELS-WELS-LCMS church workers in the press than in the synodical rags or Christian News.

Many think Hillary Clinton is a rape and abuse enabler. The synod presidents and Christian News are even more so. The so-called Lutheran leaders and their submissive, xerox-room editor are certain that the truth would hurt their synodical business. They suppress felony arrests, the FBI raid at WELS headquarters, murders, and the rites of sodomy (unless they are Roman Catholic).

 Strategic leaking through kin works - how well?
Deniability was invented by Richard Nixon,
perfected by WELS clergy.

The irony is, these leaders gladly promote falsehoods in order to protect their fiefdoms. They surround themselves with cronies so incompetent that the leaders look rather intelligent in comparison. The truth would make them stronger, albeit out of work. Their falsehoods have the same effect as the drunken destruction of Ulm Cathedral. The polluting efforts of the Lutheran alcoholics are gradually eroding the structure they pretend to cherish.

 The New Ulm WELS members are
as dedicated to eroding the Church
as the Ulm drunks are.

Here is a game WELS clergy play. They pretend to be sympathetic when they ask people about what is wrong. But be warned - WELS clergy are like mushrooms - they are the fruiting bodies of fungus. They have no value except to send their spores into the air, to land and draw nutrition from rot and decay, which they facilitate. WELS clergy gather information to use against critics. "Where did you get that from? Who told you?" They realize that addressing a problem, even the destruction of a parish, will only harm their own careers. Everything told them will be used against the dissenter.

Any falsehood will do. If someone leaves the congregation, "he moved away from our town," which is odd when the same person is still around.

The Mordor Class of 1970 is passing into history. Six men have destroyed more churches than the Chicago Fire, grabbing colossal salaries drawn from Other People's Money in the process. Christian News gets about $220,000 per year in donations to help protect their dogma, their destructive programs, and their overblown reputations.

Reformation Issue of Christian News - 10-31-2016 - Another Dud. Reading CN So You Don't Have To

 The Synodical Conference abhors the true Gospel
and substitutes universal forgiveness without faith - UOJ - for it.
Christian News dodges this matter all the time
and tries to finesse the dogma of ELCA and the
Synodical Conference: universalism in the name of grace.

This is yet another Kloha issue of CN, with Montgomery weighing in on legal issues. Anyone can discuss the law when dealing with common knowledge issues - though this knowledge seems to be uncommon among the unlettered and uninformed Lutherans on the UOJ Left.

Kloha copyrights his material so no one can copy it? Haha. That is so funny. In fact, everything receives an automatic copyright, whether so marked or not. Using the copyright symbol or words is a formality and warns people not to sell the material for profit - not that they should anyway.

The copyright holder can sue someone who broke the law by copying and selling the work of someone else, but that is up to the original owner. Thus, when various best-sellers have been simply stolen from the original authors, the actual author had to go to court to be paid. Roots is one example, and Alex Haley lost that one bigly. The genealogy in the novel is a hoax too, like many invented in the past to show noble or royal origins.

 UOJ is the Circumcision Party -
where faith is not taught, works take over.

One More Time - For the Synodical Conference and the Baker's Dozen of ELDONUTs

A work can be quoted for the purpose of research and for review. I do not know why anyone is spooked by Kloha's copyright mark. 

Perhaps someone could be barred from distributing a work solely for the purpose of study. That ban is usually observed. However, the author or publisher would have to sue the perp and say to the court, "They did this to make money from my original work."

The first sit-down with the attorneys will cost thousands, so that is rarely done.

I am not sure why Montgomery began waving his law degree around. I teach this topic in graduate school and deal with the issue all the time. False teachers say:

1. How dare you quote me out of context!
2. How dare you quote me extensively to show the context!
3. How dare you publish at all!

Kloha is just another boring apostate with a PhD from a little-known school. The Synodical Conference and Christian News gave up the Bible and the Gospel a long time ago, 

• By working with the LCA/ALC/ELCA, 
• By pigging out at the same Thrivent and foundation troughs.
• By teaching UOJ in the name of grace.

I did a scientific scan of the Reformation issue of Christian News:

• Justification by faith - 0 occurrences.
• Chief Article - 0 occurrences.
• Righteousness of faith - 0 occurrences.
• Jackson - 0.
• Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant - 0
• Ichabod - 0.
• Book of Concord - 1 in an article, by Surburg. Also cited here and there, in the masthead, books sold, etc.
• Means of Grace - 1 in an article by Surburg, where he correctly summarizes Luther's doctrine. "Luther taught that justification occurred the moment a person believed that Jesus Christ had paid for his sins by His vicarious and substitutionary death upon the cross. This faith was created in the individual’s heart by the Holy Spirit through the means of grace, either by the Word or the Sacraments."
• Sola fide - 2 occurrences. Surburg article.
• Kloha - 82 times, like that almost forgotten dude in Pieper's Dogmatics, Kalnis.

The content of Christian News is like John Brug's dreadful book, The Ministry of the Word, almost devoid of Lutheran content.

Roses and Anniversaries

A fun day for marriages. One post featured roses for two couples from our nearby college.

The other, on Moline Memories, notes the 50th anniversary of a classmate.

I enjoyed cutting some roses this morning and posing them on the porch. The big storm came and almost got everything damp, so I was right to water so much yesterday.

Another group photo - KnockOuts red and pink
are in full bloom on the left, plus
Falling in Love and others on the right.

Falling in Love - For Another College Couple Getting Married

I had plenty of roses when I was teaching nearby at Ecclesia College. I dropped them off when I arrived to teach a class.

A staffer in the registrar's office kept asking about a pink, fragrant rose that she loved. I did not know the name because I planted eight different roses from a TV special. All were new names to me, so I was not sure and waited for that one to bloom again. New roses bloom fast but the second bloom can take some time.

One rose did not seem to make it, so I was digging it up. The little tag appeared as I lifted it - Falling in Love. The plant was still alive, so I took care of it. When the bloom appeared, it was pink and white, fragrant.

Later I realized the staffer loved the rose because she was engaged to be married. We enjoyed going to her wedding.

When we expanded the main rose garden, I asked my wife which rose she wanted all the way across, so we had more of one type. She said, "Falling in Love," so I planted them across, East to West.

Two of my students at the college are getting married soon, so I cut two Falling in Love roses pictured above, for Ruth and Bear.

Morning Coffee, News, and Weather

Judging the posts - they must not be from ELCA
or the Synodical Conference,
or a branch of Eastern Orthodoxy.

I said to one reader, "If you are looking up old posts from the blog, you are changing what gets re-posted, because I look for those each morning and publish old ones." He laughed and now I just see the latest posts being read over the last two hours.

That may be more likely due to when I look over the statistics. Sometimes the overnight views are very high - over 2,000.

When I am drinking coffee in morning, I look at the weather and the news. Yesterday I made sure all the main plants were watered - with stored rainwater for the favorite roses  and White Profusion Butterfly Bush.

We had beautiful weather yesterday, sunny with cool breezes. The wind was steady enough that I decided to offset the drying effect with watering. Now I see heavy thunderstorms predicted for today.

The trees are still green and full of leaves, so I hope a heavy storm will move my neighbors to bag their falling leaves. We have been harvesting pine needles for the Hosta garden. When I walk Sassy, I harvest even more needles from the street. They flow toward our house on the rainwater and stop in little clumps of long, dry, friendly needles. If the needles work to suppress grass around the maple, then we can stop mulching so much there.

Meanwhile, the roses are doing well in the front yard. They all seem to take turns showing off, with orange Easy Does It blooming the most. I should have some new photos this morning.

 Reading the news each morning...

Getting the Social Media Together on Martin Chemnitz Books

 My favorite two questions are:
"You know Norma Boeckler?" and
"How did you get to know her?"

I started our chiropractor on his own personal blog. He posted a public lecture and then put the link on his Facebook page, as I suggested - for Search Engine Optimization.

A blog works best when refreshed often with new material. I appreciate clinical and alternative medicine, so I like to help the chiropractor, who has done wonders for my wife's pain.

One reader gave me the melancholy news that my Amazon links need plenty of work. I took a look when still short on coffee this morning and said to myself, "Oh bother." But I am steadily improving them.

One way readers can help is to post a review on that book's page. A retired librarian does this for me - he has always encouraged my work. The effect of posting reviews is to increase attention and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). The various social media work together to leverage what is on the Net, so 1 + 1 + 1 = 9.

Someone feels obliged to post nasty reviews, but that does not bother me. Bad reviews published on the Net are better than great reviews never posted.

To do this, go to the Gregory L. Jackson author's page, pick a book, and post a review at the bottom of that book's page. In effect, they are giving me a free website for what I do.

Norma has one, too, so stop at the Norma Boeckler author page. Reviewing her books will help get them around.

Current Plans
I am finishing The Lost Dutchman's Goldmine, studying the new Bibleworks 10, and fixin' to complete the Creation Gardening book.

Temperatures To Stay Near 80 for the Rest of October

 Mrs. Ichabod continues to make great suggestions for the garden.
The Calladiums, among her favorites, were a big hit this year.

Sassy and I walked in warm weather at 7:30 this morning. She is as quiet as an LCMS dissenter if Mrs. Ichabod is still asleep. However, discussing the news over coffee gave Sassy license  to bark happily about leaving. I said, "Your fault. You woke up and talked. The silence code no longer counts."

 Calladiums love the shade and show off color all summer.

Sassy got to meet three friends and bark her greetings at Roach the cat. She met a runner who made the mistake and reaching around too much. She saw that as a threat and began warning him with barks and planted feet. I said, "She is just happy to meet you," and got her attention. If I circle my arm around her head, Sassy snaps at me, looking ferocious but smiling. A serious threat would have a bad time with her lightning reflexes.

 These Veterans Honor roses on the altar
were even more stunning at the chiro's office.
The receptionist agreed that she got this vase for her desk.

She played the Go game with me again, holding back and smiling until I chanted "Go, Go, Go." She ran at me and veered off so I could not touch her.

Squirrels are so loaded with acorns that they are walking from her, not running. She gave one the jitters today, closing in on him as he strolled slowly to the tree.

I expect more roses blooming for the next two weeks. We are a bit short of rain, but the warm, sunny days with a cool breeze are great for added blooms from mature roses. Even the neglected roses in the neighborhood are doing rather well.

 People used to ask me, "Do you get tired of donuts?"
No one asks if we get tired of roses. No one does.

LCMS Dictatorial Power a "False Report"?

 As a not-very-good editor,
Paul McCain has served as a hired gun for Harrison.
Is a CPH functionary a member of the synod or district staff?
Who called a plagiarist into the teaching office of the Church?

I cited the LCMS resolution in this post yesterday, and several hundred read it at once.

"Resolution 12-07A (adopted 684 to 244) clarifies, in LCMS Bylaw 1.8, the definition of dissent, bringing it “into alignment” with the recent CCM opinion 13-2665, according to Wille. Dissent from the doctrinal positions of the LCMS is to be discussed first — in private, rather than a public forum — with those who are “competent to evaluate the issue critically” and then brought to the attention of the Synod’s Commission on Theology and Church Relations. Any “public teaching” — including on blogs and Facebook pages — that is contrary to the established doctrinal position of the Synod “shall place in jeopardy membership in the Synod.”
[source:http://blogs.lcms.org/2016/convention-adopts-subst itute-resolution-on-ecclesiastical-supervision-hea rs-linnemann]

Here is the latest on expelling pastors -  from the LCMS itself.

Several hundred read the post immediately, and one LCMS pastor condemned me for "a false report," Exodus 23, instead of the time-worn Eighth Commandment.

But Missouri has said - "God has blessed us with this resolution..." And note - Harrison and the COP are for it. Anathema sit! Anathema sit!

 102,000+ views - the most popular of all the Ichabod posts.
Graphic based on Norma Boeckler's work.
Study the quotation to realize its powerful meaning.
Norma Boeckler's art.

The condemning pastor did not support his accusation, because that is not the way sect loyalists operate. They make an accusation and leave it floating in the air. Of course, my opinions are up for debate, but the objective facts of the resolutions are not.

The LCMS has simply made official what was long assumed to be policy in ELCA, WELS, and the ELS. The LCA was so touchy about criticism that they always repaid candor with vindictiveness, shunning, and name-calling.

WELS excommunicated several families in Milwaukee for citing the synod's own policy about not taking government money. Later, WELS excommunicated the two Kokomo families for their objection to the Kokomo Statements, then blamed them for the Kokomo Statements. That is like France criticizing Marie Antoinette for bleeding all over their nice guillotine.

Pope John the Malefactor got rid of pastors and congregations for criticizing the ELS/WELS confused position on ministry.

These failing sects, descendants of the Stephanite sex cult, are not in a position to get rid of pastors and congregations. They are failing rapidly and now draw their hopes from mutual cooperation as they go down together. When WELS was eager to get rid of Northwestern College, I told LI, "Don't worry. You will graduate from NWC. I know the timeline." And he did. WELS Church Growth leaders got what they wanted, spend a ton of money on the merged colleges, and now the merged MLC is fast declining.

Biblical To Debate the Word - Remember the Reformation!

“For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.”  1 Corinthians 11:9

The Apostolic Era was known for its conferences concerning doctrinal issues. If the Word of God is effective (I vote yes) and able to teach everyone (go on, go on) and not make anyone a slave to dictators, then an honest debate about doctrine is always good - and not limited to the high priests (pace, ELDONUTs). 

The early centuries of the Christian Church included a series of conferences where the nature of Christ was debated as various heresies confused the Two Natures. Nicene Creed? Yes, that is the blessed result of a council located near Constantinople.

The LCMS resolutions and the ELCA-WELS-ELS-CLC actions suggest that one should not remove the buggy flour from the good flour, but let the parasites grow, breed, and ruin everything. That works well for the parasites already in the flour, as the SP and COP realize.

Following the Apostolic precedents, the Reformation engaged in many different conferences, which occupied the time of Luther, Melanchthon, and others against the papalist party. The Lutherans knew they were in trouble when they could not agree with each other against the Roman party, a fact that revealed the need for the future Book of Concord - far more blessed than any sect resolution.

Does the LCMS not remember that their headlong plunge into mainline apostasy was briefly arrested by the Seminex crisis, when various speakers went out and exposed the Unitarian stance of the Concordia Seminary, St. Louis professors and president? If not for that, Marie Meyer would be Synod President now - instead of Matt the Fat. And Missouri would be in merger talks with ELCA and the Unitarian-Universalist Association.

 Roma locuta est, causa finita est.
Rome has spoken, the case is closed.

Long Standing Oppression and Underhanded Nastiness
The Synodical Conference - forming again like the Necromancer (Sauron) - has engaged in nasty tricks against clergy for a long time.

The clergy know this. They have traded their freedom as Christians for the security of a call and the esteem of other spineless pastors in their circles. 

In contrast, I traded the security of the synodical strait-jacket for the freedom of the Word. I have witnessed the dirty tricks, behind the scenes stunts, practiced by the pusillanimous politicians. Many of them have tumbled - for a lady, for the bottle, for other carnal traps - but the degradation of Holy Mother Sect continues. Many are eager to take their place, like Zank standing on the oxygen hose of Engelbrecht while praying for the ailing DP in the hospital. (Joking - that is metaphorical)

I have observed many clergy tossed out, deprived of a living and stuck with worthless training. As one friend said, "The officials do not care what that does to the family and the pastor. The congregation is also indifferent." But such actions do not escape God's justice. Like the murderer who gets away with his crime, the felony is just as real. 

One lawyer suggested that one way they obtain the truth from suspects is by noting the weight of sin bearing down on the felon. They suggest a sincere confession will give the man peace for the first time. 

Many synodical officials need to confess their sins instead of running down their faithful clergy. Here is a belly-laugh. I ran into the ELS President's report online (Pope John the Malefactor). He has treated clergy and congregations like dirt. Moldstad is so ignorant of Lutheran doctrine and so dishonest about his failings that he continues to be a mockery of the pastoral office. Like his pals Schroeder and Harrison, he does not grasp Justification by Faith. Like them, he cannot tolerate the teaching of Luther and St. Paul.

Does he have a word of warning against the ELS-WELS-LCMS working with ELCA? No, instead he quotes this pastor - 

So, where are we headed? If the winds and waves surging against the church are not already gale-force, apowerful hurricane is emerging on the horizon. One pastor put it this way: “At the very eye of the satanic hurricane which is battering the church is the vicious attack being waged upon the Bible… Even manyso-called evangelical churches today are advocating accommodation with our culture in order not tooffend or in order to get along.” (D. Barnhardt, The Vine and the Branches, vol. 31, Issue 1, p. 4.)

What better way to batter the Church, Pope John, than to use the sledgehammer from the inside, where protection is weakest, where one can excommunicate willfully and maliciously?

 Pope John the Malefactor,
his mitre resting uneasily on his head.

Is Missouri Better Off with Matt Harrison?

 "You may discuss Missouri doctrine and practice after we kick you out!
Did someone say Brats and Beer?"

I recall when Missouri had to get rid of Kieschnick as Synod President. They put on a big campaign and got Harrison in.

Otten went along with this by letting Harrison and Crew serenade him with "The Ballad of Herman Otten," Harrison playing his banjo. Too bad Otten did not reveal this at the time.

Nor did Harrison reveal his Gollum-behind-the-scenes, Paul McCain. Once Harrison had the prize, Paul McCain romped around the Purple Palace executive offices again, his angry and vindictive grin adorning his various chins.

Apparently, Kieschnick was a much better judge of character than Harrison.

This may slant my objective coverage, but Kieschnick has always been my Facebook friend, even when I criticized him. Harrison unfriended me, as so many UOJ fanatics have. Of course, McCain went sour when I questioned Barry's leadership spine, long before that.

For me, the deal-breaker is dishonesty, especially when publishing lies. McCain, like Glende and Ski, never had the training to write anything on his own. Concordia at Ft. Wayne is an ideal place for poorly trained, dictatorial blowhards:

• Paul McCain
• Jay Webber
• Jack Cascione
• Jim Heiser.

Like Walther, they could call themselves pastor - even bishop - without anything more than  superficial language training. But they were experts - just ask them. Their highest level of thinking is "repeat after me." They only know their required reading from seminary, the favorite epigrams of their professors, and expect everyone to be in awe of their shallow, misguided, and toxic insights.

For instance, Heiser teaches his sheep that NOT belonging to ELDONA is unScriptural. Does that remind anyone of Bishop Martin Stephan, who considered himself the sole Means of Grace in Europe? Missouri still reflects much of that triumphalism, legalism, and clericalism. One can only be a member of the cult by agreeing completely with the leader, whether he is Harrison, Heiser, or Otten.

So McCain took the work of Roman Catholic scholars, who are very good at propping up the papacy with their fables, yarns, and fabrications - and published them as his own - on his late, expunged blog, called Cyberbrethren. Did anyone wonder about that cute title? McCain was early in amalgamating the Net and stained-glass English.

I do a fair amount of writing, editing, and alas - editing of student papers. My plagiarism alarm is easily tripped. When someone who barely spoke English wrote about music like an MA in musicology, I googled the text. No surprise - it was word for word from a musicology source and written by someone with graduate degrees in the subject.

When Matt Harrison's Gollum sent out "his" columns fairly reeking of incense and Catholicism, I did the same checking. Whoa, Nellie. Back up. The McCain posts were from The Catholic Encyclopedia, almost verbatim - the almost being a sure sign of deliberate plagiarism. A few were taken almost verbatim from the blogs of his Lutheran friends. I traced them and cited the original sources, reporting the plagiarism on this blog. Nothing happened for a time. McCain's boss said it had nothing to do with Gollum's job at  Concordia Publishing House, a sue that will sue anyone for seeming to take a nickel from their income.

 Disagree with McCain?
Double-secret probation.

Eventually Cascione stopped linking the McCain posts and Cyberbrethren sank back into the ancient mists of subnet masking, HTML coding, and deceit. No apologies for the deceptions came forth from the consecrated and consecrating lips of Cassione, McCain, or Harrrison.

We should stop and check out the associates of people who claim to be leaders. Luther's associates were so brilliant in their Biblical work that they extended the Lutheran Reformation and its justification by faith orthodoxy out - far past the Book of Concord in 1580.

Stephan surrounded himself with boot-licker pastors who failed to notice the bishop's syphilis or his many young mistresses. The same dictatorial dishonesty found its way to America and appears untouched today.

The new LCMS decree, established and revealed from the throne of Harrison's heart, makes public discussion of Missouri doctrine and practice a cause for removal from the sanctified rolls of the synod.

That has been the rule in the WELS and the Little Sect on the Prairie,  a characteristic typical of cults.

Heiser has exceeded the ambitions of his episcopal peers. No one is allowed to cast his eyes upon a publication which has not undergone the bishop's vetting, or anything lacking his imprimatur. One cannot even party with the bishop unless that person is completely within the fold - certified, enrolled, and approved by fellow submissive clergy. Until then, he is "unScriptural," according to them. Not kosher. Not allowed to make unclean that which is purified by bonafied membeship in the ELDONUTs. The laity cannot party with the bishop either. They are a lower order.

 The cult brags about itself as a threat.

 Jay Webber should approve -
100% chasuble.
That is what really matters.

 St. Ignatius Seminary, ELDONA,
almost doubled its enrollment,
but the second student decided against
attending the Little School House on the Plains.

I wonder if all those who conspired to replace Kieschnick with Harrison are happy now. Their ability to rebel against Harrison is muted by the new excommunication law. Note well - the resolution passed. The LCMS is just as much a thrall of the Harrison papacy as it is of the ELCA-Thrivent domination game.