Martin Franzmann, WELS, LCMS - UOJ. From 2012

Martin Franzmann, 1907-1976,
taught for WELS and then for Missouri.
He is most famous for his hymns.

Although I sent off four boxes of Lutheran books, I also ordered a few items from Amazon and Alibris. If I can get a well known volume for for a few dollars, I order it.

I had a scan of Franzmann's commentary on Romans, but I saw the book on Alibris and bought it. The book is not a commentary at all and is certainly not scholarly. There are no references and no index. There is a list of some books on Romans with a brief description. I would call it a homiletical book.

One sentence gives away the theme of the SynConference:

In raising him from the dead, God was "justifying the ungodly" for whom He died; God was saying to a doomed mankind, "You are righteous, you shall live." There is in our faith, therefore, the same realistic recognition of the death of man that was in Abraham's faith, and the same expectation of the creative miracle of God's grace which raises the dead and calls into being righteous men.

Martin H. Franzmann, Romans, A Commentary, CPH, 1968, p. 86.

That was his statement about the ending of Romans 4. Franzmann's obscure words are the opposite of what Paul wrote.


KJV Romans 4:24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.

God was telling all of mankind "You are righteous"? Of course, Franzmann is not that explicit. The UOJ writers are seldom that clear. But the thoroughly brained-washed know that is what those words mean. They agree with the Pietist Rambach, who argued that the resurrection of Christ absolved all of mankind - especially the unbelievers. Jay Webber and Jon Buchholz support the Halle Pietism version of  universal forgiveness and salvation. You just have to believe their dogma is true: justification by faith in UOJ. 

Franzmann was a leader of the conservatives, and he was just as UOJ as Richard Jungkuntz, the leader of the Seminex coalition.

The UOJ position is not in harmony with the efficacy of the Word and certainly opposes the Means of Grace. Can the blue text be brought into agreement with Romans 10? Isaiah 55? Not at all.

Richard Jungkuntz also started out WELS, also at Watertown,
and also joined the Board of Doctrine, LCMS,
after teaching at Concordia, Springfield, Illinois.
As chairman of the Seminex board, he headed the first
gay Lutheran seminary, by partnering with the Metropolitan Community Church.
Deppe was the Seminex professor who went with the faculty to teach at LSTC, ELCA,
and later joined the MCC, where he belonged.

Lies Can Be Sustained for a Limited Amount of Time

Duper's Delight is a nickname for the smile that precedes a deliberate lie. I have seen it many times dealing with Lutheran leaders. Obama smiled for a moment when he told of learning about the private email server at the same time the public did - through the news media. However, we have copies of his emails, using the code name "bobama," that were on the private server.

I made some predictions about the Love Letter pastor in Alaska. I said it was a long-term habit - and his classmate wrote to me that it was. I assumed that a big stressor brought out the aberrant behavior, and that was exactly what happened. He had just been confronted about his ministry. Knowing WELS, I figured someone in his family was influential, so he was being protected by the District President and Circuit Pastor. Right again. More details could be added. An abusive sect behaves in predictable ways.

One former Lutheran was very upset about the Evangelical church he joined. I began telling him how people were behaving. He was quite startled and said, "How do you know?" I told him about my experiences and the common themes that reveal themselves when people are dishonest and covet power.

 If a dentist lived here, would his business decay?
The Lutheran leaders remind me of this house.

One irony is that people rush ahead with their claims even though technology has changed everything. Boomers are just about hopeless with computers, but the younger generations are almost as bad. I do not mean everyone should know the rules of subnet masking or recite the OSI model. Every so often I say to a techie, "It's always the physical layer, isn't it?" One Hispanic installer said, "Jes" with a sigh. Perpetual storage of data is the biggest threat to deceit.

The big change is this - everything is saved on hard drives, flash drives, servers, and The Cloud, usually multiple times. If someone wants to brag on the Net, the boasting is saved on the Net. The tiniest details can be put in a little pile to put together a profile. When I worked on an earlier class reunion, I paid for Spokeo ($30) to find classmates. I could start with a name and a state, find a home, discover the age of the owner, and learn about that person's job and the value of the home. I had two people named Charles R in my hometown. One was Junior. I found his address and his father's on Spokeo, by looking at their ages. There are always missing classmates, often in the school's hometown.

Someone googled a pastor's name and found a long post on Ichabod about that individual. But the pastor erased that call from his resume. Deception? Let's look at the website where the Invisible Pastor worked. No record of his time there remained. Often all the pastors are listed, but not always. Jim Huebner is the one and only pastor to serve Grace, Milwaukee. Huebner's blowhard bio sounds like he wrote it himself.

The funny part about erasing that information is that the individual draws attention to it by making it seem to go away. Church and Change had their own websty, photos and bios of the board members (half from Mark Jeske's congregation). As soon as I published that information, photos and bios disappeared faster than a bottle at an underage drinking party. Eventually Church and Change disappeared - or rather, went into hiding. The hellish members denied they were working together and hated me for publishing their gushing posts on their rather public discussion site.

When a WELS pastor threatened to gang rape a young woman, his name was erased from the congregation's website - or so they thought. I knew WELS had a policy of deleting information, so they could deny the obvious. I began opening documents and there it was, still on the congregation's website, but not on the staff page. Of course, he did not use his Christian name in making the threat. He used another name, like Carlos Danger (Huma's hubby) and the Net found him out.

The big lie among Lutherans is that they are Lutheran. This weekend the same old trite phrases will be cited repeatedly. Like love, love, love - which is now love, love, love, love, love - grace will be multiplied many times over to make up for their lack of preparation. They will invoke grace countless times, as the sectarians always do, but they will be unable to articulate the efficacy of the Word in the Means of Grace. If that did, as Professor Surburg wrote in Christian News, they would have to admit that their UOJ dogma and apostate agendas have nothing to do with the Christian Faith.

 Luther - "The world runs on greed and deception."
Or, as 29A says, "It's all about the benjamins."

Someone Forwarded This New Evangelism Program from WELS. Sic Added

WELS has an oversupply,
and their rich supply can be your school
carnivals and talent shows.

October 27, 2016  Pastor Spencer: It is true. Outreach campaigns tend to be time consuming to prepare and draining to implement. As a result, it (sic - the antecedent, campaigns, is plural) ends up on the back burner. Our ministry partners with you by handling the planning, training, and implementation of an outreach campaign for your congregation. And it's making a difference. Pastor (sic) are freed up to spend time with their people, drinking beer and cheering for the Packers. And WELS members are trained to do something they have always wanted to do -- proclaim the gospel to a lost soul, such as the District President or their Love Letter pastor. By utilizing a simple methodology and approach, your members will be trained to know what to do and say, then immediately be provided with a well-organized opportunity to put their training into action. They can turn the parish into one more generic, vaguely Protestant church with a praise band and a soloist named Brunhilda.   Could you take a few minutes to discover more about our ministry and see if it may be the right fit for you? Click here to find out four benefits that WELS congregations are receiving from launching an outreach campaign with our ministry. A. WELS will not foreclose your property this year. B. No one named Oelhafen or Ski will preach at your church. C. The Pack will win the Superbowl. D. Paul Kelm will finally retire and move to India with Larry Olson. By doing so, I will also share with you three important things we are learning from the campaigns we have already launched this year. 1) It takes a lot of money. 2) Thrivent will pony up with a grant. 3) Look busy and everyone will be pleased.   One final note It has been a blessing to help new WELS churches launch their missions in Texas and Idaho, plus assist established churches in Washington, Minnesota, California, Texas, and Colorado. We are that good. Heute die Welt! There is power in the proclamation of the gospel. When your members receive specific training and learn how to overcome fears, they become a valuable asset in all of your outreach activities. Turn your diaper-changing academy into a program of mass baptisms. I hope I have the opportunity to visit with you to learn more about your ministry, obtain some needed donations, and answer any questions you may have about our campaigns. God's Blessings, Dave Malnes President - Praise, Pub, and Proclaim Ministries dave@praiseandproclaim.com 208/685-9959

The Divine Power of the Word

The Sower and the Seed, by Norma Boeckler

KJV Isaiah 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

This passage shows that the Word of God always has divine power, the power and efficacy of the Holy Spirit.

By comparing the Word of God to snow and rain, the prophet revealed that the Word have no effect is an impossibility. Especially in the desert, snow and rain always cause growth. In the Midwest, people will water their lawns during a dry spell, but one rainstorm will accomplish what all the sprinkling cannot – green up all the lawns at once. Snow also has that effect, blanketing the earth, keeping it warm and moist, melting down into growth-producing water.

“It shall not return unto Me void” is a double-negative making any exception impossible. No one can say, “Sometimes the Word is powerful and effective, sometimes it is not.” That is why the Holy Spirit cannot be separated from the Word, because the Word is always God’s and always has divine power.

In addition, this power and effectiveness is declared in three ways, reminding us of the Trinity:
1. It shall not return unto Me void.
2. It shall accomplish that which I please.
3. It shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Nothing is said about man making God’s Word effective.

In the Parable of the Sower, (Matthew 13 and Mark 4) man broadcasts the seed, which is the Word. Like seed, the Word is already alive with divine power.

Another comparison is Hebrews 4:12-13 -

KJV Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

This means the very teaching or preaching of the Word has the power of the Roman two-edged sword. That is why preaching the pure Word has an effect on all audiences. Some riot because of its effect. Some repent and believe, overcome with the truth of the Word. Some harden their hearts against the Word, as anti-Christian cultists at door do when they hear the Gospel spoken to them.

The Word of God belongs to Him alone, not to man:

KJV 1 Thessalonians 2:13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

BibleWorks 10 - First Impressions

List of YouTube Presentations - In Order - Tutorials for BibleWorks 10

When being a Christian was a crime against the Roman Empire, believers used the fish symbol to identify other followers. If strangers met along the way, one would draw part of a fish on the ground, using his staff or perhaps a sword. A curved line by itself meant nothing. The other person would complete the fish to show that he too was a Christian.

BibleWorks 10, when first opened, will dazzle and confuse anyone, including those (like me) who used the earlier versions. I think I had  version 4, so opening BibleWorks 10 was like being promoted from Kindergarten to graduate school.

However, do not let that intimidate any serious student of the Bible, including those without Biblical language training. This program is the equivalent of owning all the important reference works on the Bible and all the translations and versions.

Clergy are known for having plenty of books, and using printed works will never go out of style. However, keeping a lot of books open and in order is a major problem when pursuing an issue. The advantage of computer research is the orderly search accomplished and the results saved where they will not be lost.

English Only Students
Those who only know English at this stage will enjoy comparing translations and looking up examples of various terms and doctrinal issues. This kind of research, in the Word alone, is the best way to grasp the unified Truth of the Word.

Too many stay in the "about mode" - as described by Paul Holmer of Yale University. The about mode means reading a famous expert's opinion and keeping those opinions as filters by which everything is interpreted. For example, the official academic version of Shakespeare is that the actor wrote the plays and sonnets. If one assumes that position, countless puzzles spring up, such as  "How did this actor, who owned no books, know so much about the classics, the law, history, and English court rituals?"

Dr. Malherbe at Yale is a great scholar who always emphasizes the text itself and not the theories. He took us through examples of "faith" used in the New Testament, to show that a single word had various meanings, depending on the context. A student of the Bible learns that only by searching and reading, not by reading about the topic and remembering what someone wrote.

Malherbe also showed us how to use the little embedded references in the text, which were equivalent to the same kind of search, but with broader implications.

All this points to the real meaning of Biblical studies for everyone - the Holy Spirit teaches us through the Word.

 107,000 views of this post

"The Holy Spirit teaches man better than all the books; He teaches him to understand the Scriptures better than he can understand them from the teaching of any other; and of his own accord he does everything God wills he should, so the Law dare make no demands upon him."

Sermons of Martin Luther, 8 vols., ed., John Nicholas Lenker, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983, III, p. 280. Pentecost Sunday John 14:23-31.     


When the sectarians argue that they know a secret teaching of the Bible revealed only to them - and contrary to the plain meaning - the individual can learn from the best professor of all, the original Author - the Holy Spirit.

Biblical Languages - Beginning and Advanced.
BibleWorks 10 is superb for the Biblical languages, because the extra dictionaries, grammars, and lectionaries are included in the program.

I will write more about that later.

Mrs. Ichabod Commissioned This Rose Portrait

The photo above is the Little Chef himself in a baby picture. To the right is Little Ichabod holding his first-born daughter. The coffee pot and roses are resting on a very large world literature book, which I used at the local college. The blue cup is for measuring Sassy's food. The drawers are from Hobby Lobby.

The front rose is Falling in Love. The orange rose is Easy Does It. The reddish one is probably a KnockOut. Another Falling in Love is hiding in the back.

This shows the stunning white/pink of Falling in Love.
I have not seen a Net photograph as good as this one,
and I give credit to Canon for that.

Navigation for BibleWorks 10 Review Articles

I am starting the review of BibleWorks 10, so this page is featured in the left column of the blog and contains the links to all the articles about BibleWorks.

Congregations should consider buying this for their pastor. Nothing is more powerful in accomplishing God's will than teaching His Word.

Review Articles
One Sample of the Power of BibleWorks

First Impressions of BibleWorks 10

Forgot That One Little Detail - Creation Is All About the Details

I set up the coffee maker and began going through the news at 5:20 AM. I check the Drudge Report first, because he drives the broadcast news with 1 billion views per month. I am extremely disappointed in poor writing on the American Spectator and other blogs. My favorite round-up for news is Free Republic, because they link the most important stories and features - good and bad - with the actual titles, followed by commentary.

Free Republic got me started in blogging when they kicked me off for posting that George W. Bush is a liberal. They erased all my posts, some of which were commended as best of the day (quips) or unusually insightful (about Bill Clinton's early connections).

I look for the overnight statistics on Ichabod and check Facebook for birthdays and new developments.

Time for fresh coffee. What? Nothing there. Fresh coffee grounds in the basket - check. Water in the tank - check. Plugged in - check. Power on..... I missed one little detail.

I do this every so often. I complete the early morning coffee making instructions but omit one detail. The loss of any given detail means no coffee - or worse - coffee all over the floor because the pot was not empty when I started it.

Creation Details
No one can list all the details in Creation, since a plant operates like a cluster of chemical factories at the cellular level. In growing roses, I may do less than 1% of all the work involved - and that may easily be boasting.

I do not do more work than other gardeners, but I aim the work to be in harmony with Creation rather than defying the way God made our world, engineered each part, and manages it now.

These are the Four Noble Truths of Rose Gardening

1. Mulching - roses need moist soil and a supply of rotting organic matter.
2. Watering - rain is not enough, and stored rain is the ultimate booster.
3. Pruning - roses love to be pruned and grow even bloomier with extra pruning. John 15:1ff.
4. Earthworming - red wigglers do the most obvious work of gardening, but not all of it.

The first three are ongoing tasks. The last one should be once for all time, but it is fun to buy some additional earthworms and share them with neighbors. I often give them red wigglers before I share plants. 

Weeding is greatly reduced by mulching with organic matter. More important is leaving the soil alone. No one would transplant their favorite rose every few weeks, because we know about roots being left behind and the shock of moving the plant.

But people gladly move the soil all the time and buy huge machines to toss more soil around per second. I stopped at one yard sale where the owner had a mega-tiller for doing just that. And he had a very large tank for spraying herbicides on his lawn. "I don't spray any more because my neighbors have dandelions, so I have to start all over again." I said nothing but thought about four years of leaving the dandelions alone and having almost none. Dandelions are herbs, help the soil, and provide birds with nesting material. Where is the crime, the indictment, the evidence against them?

My wife and I are happy about a wedding invitation for December, a young couple I taught at the local college. Both were home-schooled and excellent students. The bride began college with 40 advance credits toward graduation. One staffer asked me, "Do you know how smart she is?" I responded, "Did I notice the 1,000 watt bulb in the room? Yes." I made the arrangement below for them, but realized they should see it live, not just as a photo. December is too late, unless we have freaky weather this year. So I am taking a new arrangement over in a few days, when they are done with choir tour.

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.