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 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 National Council of Churches.
Born in 1928, he attended the earlier version of the now-fading Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. He gave lectures at Notre Dame and helped get my dissertation published with a positive review. The family behind A. D. Mattson wanted to publish the book via Augustana College. LSTC claimed the money was all spent from the Mattson funds. Too bad. I told the daughter, "Say these words softly and politely - 'I already talked to my attorney about this.' She said, "But I don't have an attorney." She repeated the words and soon had all the Mattson money needed.
PS - I almost forgot. I went to the Mattson book meeting with Christina, but she forgot to pack my entire suit. She realized close to the dinner that I needed slacks, too. We raced to some place where the problem could be resolved. That left the seamstresses rocking with laughter. "Mr. Jackson, could you just stand behind the podium when speaking?" The story was shared, wherever and whenever possible, for some time after that.
19 The high priest then asked Jesus of his disciples, and of his doctrine.
20 Jesus answered him, I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing.
21 Why askest thou me? ask them which heard me, what I have said unto them: behold, they know what I said.
22 And when he had thus spoken, one of the officers which stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, Answerest thou the high priest so?
23 Jesus answered him, If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil: but if well, why smitest thou me?
24 Now Annas had sent him bound unto Caiaphas the high priest.
25 And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. They said therefore unto him, Art not thou also one of his disciples? He denied it, and said, I am not.
26 One of the servants of the high priest, being his kinsman whose ear Peter cut off, saith, Did not I see thee in the garden with him?
27 Peter then denied again: and immediately the cock crew.
28 Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover.
29 Pilate then went out unto them, and said, What accusation bring ye against this man?
30 They answered and said unto him, If he were not a malefactor, we would not have delivered him up unto thee.
31 Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. The Jews therefore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death:
32 That the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled, which he spake, signifying what death he should die.
33 Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews?
34 Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me?
35 Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?
36 Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.
37 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.
38 Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all.
39 But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the passover: will ye therefore that I release unto you the King of the Jews?
40 Then cried they all again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber.
1 CORINTHIANS 13. 1 If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And if I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing. 4 Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not its own, is not provoked, taketh not account of evil; 6 rejoiceth not in unrighteousness, but rejoiceth with the truth; 7 beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8 Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall be done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; 10 but when that which is perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. 11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child: now that I am become a man, I have put away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know fully even as also I was fully known. 13 But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
PAUL’S PRAISE OF CHRISTIAN LOVE.
1 Paul’s purpose in this chapter is to silence and humble haughty Christians, particularly teachers and preachers. The Gospel gives much knowledge of God and of Christ, and conveys many wonderful gifts, as Paul recounts in Romans 12 and in 1 Corinthians 12. He tells us some have the gift of speaking, some of teaching, some of Scripture exposition; others of ruling; and so on. With Christians are great riches of spiritual knowledge, great treasures in the way of spiritual gifts. Manifest to all is the meaning of God, Christ, conscience, the present and the future life, and similar things. But there are to be found few indeed who make the right use of such gifts and knowledge; who humble themselves to serve others, according to the dictates of love. Each seeks his own honor and advantage, desiring to gain preferment and precedence over others.
2. We see today how the Gospel has given to men knowledge beyond anything known in the world before, and has bestowed upon them new capabilities. Various gifts have been showered upon and distributed among them which have redounded to their honor. But they go on unheeding. No one takes thought how he may in Christian love serve his fellow-men to their profit. Each seeks for himself glory and honor, advantage and wealth.
Could one bring about for himself the distinction of being the sole individual learned and powerful in the Gospel, all others to be insignificant and useless, he would willingly do it; he would be glad could he alone be regarded as Mister Smart. At the same time he affects deep humility, great self-abasement, and preaches of love and faith. But he would take it hard had he, in practice, to touch with his little finger what he preaches. This explains why the world is so filled with fanatics and schismatics, and why every man would master and outrank all others. Such as these are haughtier than those that taught them. Paul here attacks these vainglorious spirits, and judges them to be wholly insignificant, though their knowledge may be great and their gifts even greater, unless they should humble themselves and use their gifts in the service of others.
3. To these coarse and mean people he addresses himself with a multitude of words and a lengthy discourse, a subject he elsewhere disposes of in a few words; for instance, where he says (Philippians 2:3-4), “In lowliness of mind each counting other better than himself; not looking each of you to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.” By way of illustration, he would pass sentence upon himself should he be thus blameworthy; this more forcibly to warn others who fall far short of his standing. He says, “If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels.”
The Big Five Apostates - ELCA-LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC (sic) are so saturated with their errors and corruptions that even their Father Below is a bit choked up.
They deny Justification by Faith - so does he.
They love every Bible paraphrase except the King James Version - so does he.
They reject the efficacy of the Word - so does he.
They repudiate the Means of Grace - so does he.
They usurp authority - so does he.
"A Mighty Fortress is Our God"
by Dr. Martin Luther, 1483-1546
Composite Translation from the Pennsylvania Lutheran CHURCH BOOK of 1868
An ELCA male bishop decided to follow the number of female bishops in his local synod, starting with one - April Larson - in 1995. ELCA began on January 1, 1988. He stopped counting once they reached the 55% female mark in 2023. Partnership ratios seem to be obscured rather than promoted. "Scholars are divided."
The Big Five Apostates - ELCA-LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC (sic) - might not want to emphasize the four Watherians, the sects who worship and adore Bishop Martin Stephan STD. The Tiny Two (ELS-CLC sic) are going away soon.
That leaves ELCA-LCMS-WELS cuddling in the arms of Thrivent Insurance and its Irrevocable Charitable Annuities. I dabbed my eyes just thinking how a wobbly business, no longer Lutheran in name, could work the synods in harmony with one another, almost as if ELCA absorbed Missouri and WELS.
The advantage of the Top Three (ELCA-LCMS-WELS) is sharing the same resources, the same mega-projects in Church Growth (big flops), the same female bishops and staff executives.
Will Missouri and WELS join the happy throng?
2023 – 36 of 66 ELCA bishops are female (55%)
Wilma Kucharek (2002)
Elizabeth Eaton (2007)
Shelley Wickstrom (2012)
Ann Svennungsen (2012)
Tracie Bartholomew (2013)
Suzanne Darcy Dillahunt (2013)
Patricia Lull (2014)
Katherine Finnegan (2017)
Deborah Hutterer (2018)
Patricia Davenport (2018)
Idalia Negrón (2018)
Laurie Skow-Anderson (2018)
Sue Briner (2018)
Lorna Halaas (2019)
Laurie Larson Caesar (2019)
Shelley Bryan Wee (2019)
Regina Hassanally (2019)
Constanze Hagmaier (2019)
Laurie Jungling (2019)
Susan Candea (2019)
Leila Ortiz (2019)
Ginny Aebischer (2020 SC)
Amy Current (2020 SE IA)
Tessa Moon Leiseth (2020 E ND)
Amy Odgren (2020 NE MN)
Joy Mortensen-Wiebe (2020 SC WI)
Laura Barbins (2020 NE Ohio)
Anne Edison-Albright (2020 E Central WI)
Brenda Bos (2021, SW CA)
Paula Schmitt (2021, Allegheny)
Dee Pederson (2021, SW MN)
Staci Fidlar (2022, Northern IL)
Clair Burkat (2022, Interim Bishop in the Sierra Pacific Synod)
