When Sassy walks me every morning, I have time to think about doctrinal topics. The morning walk is the longest and often the most eventful. People have time to talk and to pet Sassy. Yesterday we saw a minor accident where a woman drove her plastic GM car into a pickup truck. The car's alleged bumper was smashed up. The pickup was undamaged.
I wake up at about 5 AM, drink coffee, and read various news blogs. No Lutheran blogs are left worth reading or mocking - they are too boring to mention.
I insist on some daylight to start the walk, so I have time to get one post done. Today will be the satis est of the Augsburg Confession. Everyone agrees with this, I am sure. ELCA accepts the Augsburg Confession but is not keen on the Book of Concord.
The Augsburg Confession is short, so WELS-LCMS leaders can get through the AC before passing out into their bowls of popcorn and peanuts at the local bar.
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Victory of the Lamb, blessed by WELS,
where court appearances for a DUI are
resume enhancers. |
The problem is - WELS-LCMS repudiate the Gospel, the Chief Article. They patted each other on their scaly heads and said, "Thank God we teach justification without faith and universal salvation without faith."
Some of the readers have already reviewed Article VII above and are saying, "But the Babtists reject the sacraments as such and only consider them ordinances with effect." That is true, but the Babtists still teach Justification by Faith, the Chief Article, even if their seminary professors flow along with the same mainline drift of apostasy so well established in the LCMS, ELS, WELS, and micro-mini groups.
I am willing to argue that most laity in the "conservative" Lutheran groups are loyal to the Chief Article, by default, simply because it takes quite a bit of brain-washing (or a paucity of brains) to fall for Universal Justification without faith.
Alcoholism is often denounced for the destructive effect it has on the body, mind, spirit, family, and and soul. But nothing keeps leaders in line better than an absence of thought, a neglect of study, and a dedication to Demon Rum. They are one in the spirits.
Splintering Pietists - Victims of Their Own Shunning Rules
One could counter that the conservative Lutherans are not Lutheran at all. Each one has a set of contradictory rules on shunning, which is really their chief article, the master and prince, the judge of all articles.
The Great Walther's example was repeated when ELDONA's bishop began by following a molester of young people, boys in this case. Like Stephan, the LCS bishop was arrested by the police. Although the ELDONUTs teach that it is "unScriptural" to not be in their group, they forget that Bishop Heiser went back to the LCMS and stuck to Missouri like velcro for the longest time. Upon leaving the LCMS with the property of Salem Lutheran Church in Malone, Texas, Heiser failed to convert his parents (who joined Steve Spencer's WELS congregation) and his own brother, who is Lutheran Brethren - nevertheless communing in WELS.
If one presses the shun button with so much vigor and Enthusiasm, should not the same bell tolling for others toll also for him?
The larger groups are just as confusing. When Missouri, WELS, and the ELS shun, they shun for life. They do not simply shun the object of their wrath - they shun their target, the spouse, the children, and those unto the fourth and fifth generation. But at the same time, they cuddle with ELCA, find no fault with ELCA, and obey's Thrivent-ELCA's rules for carrying out their many joint ministry projects.
These same greedy leaders, even when sober, see the wrongs perpetrated by ELCA, but they have no issue with Mark Jeske's Thrivent-ELCA projects and continue to promote them with pious glee.
The recent election revealed how tone-deaf the national leadership is, I am told. Even the Left is scolding the Left, which is rare indeed. The denominations, large and small, anticipated this attitude by turning a deaf ear and blind eyes to their membership:
- Rewarding their fellow drunks and adulterers.
- Rejecting anyone faithful to the Word.
- Clawing millions into their pockets in the name of mission, but really in the name of salaries and benefits.
- Wrecking congregations to get even.
- Publishing false doctrine by the hundredweight, suppressing and ignoring Luther, their putative doctrinal star.
