ICHABOD, THE GLORY HAS DEPARTED - explores the Age of Apostasy, predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, to attack Objective Faithless Justification, Church Growth Clowns, and their ringmasters. The antidote to these poisons is trusting the efficacious Word in the Means of Grace. John 16:8. Isaiah 55:8ff. Romans 10. Most readers are WELS, LCMS, ELS, or ELCA. This blog also covers the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and the Left-wing, National Council of Churches denominations.
A morganatic marriage is between unequal partners, like Queen Victoria's mother marrying an elderly heir to the throne. After providing that heir to the throne, Victoria's father died.
Read the bullet points slowly, because they offer many predictions about what is already happening in the WELS-LCMS-ELCA-ELS demi-semi-quasi merger attempts via Thrivent Insurance and Irrevocable Charitable Trust Business. I am a Chartered Life Underwriter, so I know about this stuff.
Higher education is losing members quickly, which is the main reason for various universities merging with online universities. Both are in weakened states. One UOP faculty member said, "I do not know if I will have a job next month." They went woke and I went, "Bye bye."
How Will This Work in the Synods?
I have watched the synods and their schools squander millions of dollars while the leaders and professors lived in luxury, anxious to secure a plush life with nothing more than an unctuous personality.
Now they are stuck with lots of real estate and buildings with little or no use in current conditions. My grade school, Garfield in Moline, went condo a few years ago. My three calls in the LCA were prosperous then but now no longer exist. My vicarage in Canada, the largest Lutheran church there, is now 2/3rds remodeled for gubmint offices and low-cost housing.
To concentrate business in one group of buyers, Thrivent will keep promoting morganatic marriages. WELS and LCMS already work closely and subserviently with ELCA, just as woke as Liz Eaton if not more so. To preserve their dignity, WELS and Missouri pretend to be oh-so orthodox and so much better than ELCA, but they are really very much the same.
Presiding Bishop Liz Eaton has this gem to offer, using her power over the hugest synod in America.
Wrong bishop, eh? This is Susan Johnson, whose grim determination to rule over Canada's Lutherans is set in stone, more or less.
As we approach March 31, many people are preparing to recognize Transgender Day of Visibility, an international day to celebrate the contributions of transgender people and raise awareness about the deadly injustices they face.
As bishop of this church, I am concerned that the rights of transgender and nonbinary Americans have been targeted all over this nation. Nearly 400 anti-LGBTQIA+ bills were introduced across the United States in 2022, most of them targeting trans youth. That is twice the number from 2021 and almost eight times the total from 2020. The language in many of these bills attacks the humanity of trans and nonbinary people, often erasing the dignity that should be afforded to everyone.
While members of our church hold various convictions regarding gender, the teaching of our church supports legislation and policies to protect every person's human dignity and civil rights. (Human Sexuality, p. 19) As Christians we believe every human being is created in God's image, and we must honor and celebrate God's creation. Our church teaches that we affirm transgender and nonbinary siblings as God's children, who are loved unconditionally. Our social statement Faith, Sexism, and Justice: A Call to Action (2019) also declares that this church commits itself to "advocate for and support laws, policies, and practices that respect diverse bodies rather than discriminating against, objectifying, or devaluing them" (p. 60).
I urge us, as people of faith, to love our neighbors, care for the vulnerable and marginalized, and work for justice and equality. We may have differing opinions on "matters related to sexual orientation and gender identity," (FSJ, p. 61) but we must always uphold the dignity and humanity of everyone. These disagreements do not allow us to accept actions that dehumanize, discriminate against or objectify any individual or group.
We must stand together, dear church, faithfully advocating for the full humanity and dignity of all people. Let us recognize and affirm the humanity of our transgender and nonbinary siblings. Let us advocate for their dignity. Let us continue to be guided by God's love and compassion as we seek justice and equality for everyone.
In Christ,
The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton Presiding Bishop Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
This is the latest photo of Presiding Bishop Liz Eaton, offering sensitive medical advice.
The Sanctus p. 26 The Lord's Prayer p. 27 The Words of Institution The Agnus Dei p. 28 The Nunc Dimittis p. 29 The Benediction p. 31 The Hymn #370My Hope Is Built
In Our Prayers
Dr. Lito Cruz, his wife, daughter, and grandson, Pastor Jim Shrader and his wife Chris, Kermit and Maria Way, Callie and her mother Peggy; those with stress and metabolic disorders.
Glen and Esther Kotten have returned from the Philippines.
1 Peter 4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer. 8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. 9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging. 10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11 If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: 27 And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning. 16:1 These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. 2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. 3 And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me. 4 But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.
John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
The Holy Trinity is taught with special clarity in the Gospel of John. Those passages are not only taught to explain the Apostolic Age, but also to guide us in this age, because the end is closer than when we first believed. Note that this verse shows the Holy Spirit coming from the Son and the Father - send and proceed.
Someone was asking about the establishment of the Church of Rome. The history of the Roman Empire clarifies that. When Rome fell to the barbarians in the 400s (AD), the creaky bureaucratic structure fell apart and the clergy filled in. When the Church was involved in the Pelagian controversy in that century, St. Augustine said, in Latin, "Roma locuta, causa finita est. Rome has spoken, the case is closed."
The visible Christian Church slowly shifted its authority from the Scriptures to a man-made structure - the papacy - with its elaborate structure, bishops, powers, and soldiers. The Biblical words are used today but the emphasis is upon the infallibility of the Pope, the Church of Rome, and everything from the past. ELCA and the LCMS crave the trappings of the papacy, elaborate ceremonies wrapped around false doctrine, incense, and glorious costumes.
Jesus did not say the "Holy Spirit at work through men" but the Holy Spirit at work through the Word of God. The Spirit does not speak of itself, but serves as the advocate for the Father and the Son, which are in harmony with each other.
My neighbor sent the Jehovah's Witnesses to my door, and the two ladies began to detract from the Holy Trinity. JWs - "Those are the words of the Bible, but I think..." I said, "You start with the words but you do not agree with the meaning of the Bible."
Jesus' farewell sermons are extremely important, because He prepared the Apostles for their work on earth with Jesus at the right hand of God. In short order they had the Gospels and Letters, which were copied, translated, and also put into lectionary books. No other ancient book was copied so often and translated so quickly, with great precision.
27 And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
The written New Testament was supplemented at first by the living witnesses of the Apostles and those who saw and heard the risen Christ. Their preaching and martyrdom spread the Gospel in all directions. At all times they were being taught by the Father and the Son, through the Spirit at work in the Word. The Word had the effect of converting people to faith in Jesus Christ or persecuting the believers because of their hardness of heart.
I can name two Lutheran pastors who taught Church Growth with fanaticism and then became loud, proud atheists. That happens when people listen to the Father Below, especially clergy.
16:1 These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. 2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.
The verb offended is not translated well in modern English. The skandalon in Greek is the trigger of the trap, which releases it with fatal results. Jesus has prepared the Apostles so they do not find these hardships the reason to stop believing in the Good Shepherd. . A modern version is, "I prayed to God to keep this from happening, and He did not answer my prayer." Lacking what Jesus taught about prayer and no longer trusting in Him, those persons have sprung the trap - and they often brag about losing their faith because of one thing that did not turn out well for them.
In fact, many Christians were persecuted and killed, so the Gospel spread even faster because of hostility, anger, and imprisonment. Paul was imprisoned and held for a long time, ending in execution, but that did not stop the spread of Christianity. England was Christian long before the Norman Invasion (1066 AD, William the Conqueror defeated Harold the Unready).
There has always been persecution, and yet that has continued to spread the Christian Faith.
3 And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.
Having no faith triggers hatred and vengeance, and that is especially true when people have fallen away from belief in the Father and the Son.
People have proven that all the outward appearances do not accomplish much. Jesus has no teaching about those things, much of it established in the Old Testament. But those were all focused on the future Gospel. The Passover Meal is filled with references to the future Lord's Supper and to Jesus Christ.
One church was going to be built by a famous architect, Alden Dow. It was going to be a real gem, though small, a first unit. They were still talking about it years later, because it got too expensive to build and they replaced it with an inexpensive building, which is no longer a church at all. I recently visited it with Google Earth.
4 But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.
The preparation is easily found, starting with John 10. Those chapters are what we really need to know as the completion of the first three Gospels. We would be lost without them, which is why the apostates, Unitarians, and Rome wannabees are so confused. They either reject the plain truth or they cover every important thing up with their ornate and elaborate schemes to develop a new gospel they like: self-centered apostates, man-centered Unitarians, Rome-centered bureaucrats.
In an age where everyone worries about energy, the truest energy is the efficacy of the Word. If the car will not start, it is often the energy lacking in the battery - or the gas tank run out of gas. All the gadgets in the world will not make up for lack of energy (en-ergos, efficacy) in the car.
The Bible is packed with energy that is not used or even imagined. As a joke I used to complain that the Petroleum Princess moved away from the richest source of energy in the world, Williston. Some thought it would never be used, due to various difficulties, but one person risked his money and began the operations.
Besides, God desires to have his name praised and his kingdom developed and extended. Therefore, we must praise his name, confess our faith and win others to do the same, so that God’s kingdom may be extended and his name praised.
2. Thus, faith must be exercised, worked and polished; be purified by fire, like gold. Faith, the great gift and treasure from God, must express itself and triumph in the certainty that it is right before God and man, and before angels, devils and the whole world. Just as a jewel is not to be concealed, but to be worn in sight, so also, will and must faith be worn and exhibited, as it is written in 1 Peter 1:7: “That the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold that perisheth though it is proved by fire,” etc.
The efficacy (energy) in the Word moves us to see the world and the next life as God's will and work.
