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| When two Mequon students went to Dean Brenner to express their opposition to the secretive hazing ritual at the seminary, Sparky defended GA/HB and said "The good outweighs the bad." The two students did not graduate from Mequon. |
I am going to review Brenner's
Jars of Clay fairly soon, but I found a couple of pages ideal for showing how the LCMS mythology slopped over into WELS. Brenner calls this a history of Mordor, aka Mequon aka Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary. But it is really a public relations booklet for insiders, a hagiography, often ignoring the basic details and skipping the real issues.
Do not ever look for a critical history of the Synodical Conference. Only the insiders care about their history. Only an outsider would dare to tell the sordid truths.
But here is the good part. I looked through the index of Sparky's book for Church Growth, which is not even mentioned. How can that be! Mordor is 100% Church Growth. What about hazing, GA or HB? No, even though WELS hazes students at the prep, college, and seminary level. I looked for UOJ - nope. I searched for OJ - nope.
Then I found in the Index -
Justification, objective, p. 64. As Kenda would say, "Now. I. Am. Interested." Of course, there was no entry for the Chief Article of Christianity -
Justification by Faith. In time, the facts and Biblical study will eliminate the Wisconsin sect - or merge them with the United Church of Christ.
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| August Pieper, Concordia St. Louis graduate, 1879. |
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J. P. Kohler graduated from Concordia, St. Louis 1880.
Kohler was the WELS seminary president first, disagreed with A. Pieper, and Pieper became president when Kohler was canned. |
What is Sparky going to do with the topic of Justification? If he is faithful to the Scriptures, he will disappear faster than cases of beer at the dorm. Now that Gausewitz has been erased from synodical memory and Rydecki is anathematized, the Gospel can find no place to root on the flinty hearts of WELS.
Note the Twisted Use of Luther
August Pieper
Reflections, 1922
"Make no mistake," Pieper insisted, "The secret of Walther's power lay in his clear, popular, joyful, and convincing presentation of objective justification. That was also Luther's power , Paul's power, and the power of the Gospel itself, the power of God which creates faith unto salvation."
He goes on to explain -
In contrast to the justification scheme of later dogmaticians, Walther taught, not a justifying act of God in view of faith, but rather a faith in view of God's justification. God's act of justification [GJ - OJ] forgiveness of sin] precedes faith. It is not that the sinner must first believe [and only then that God forgives sin]. In this connection Walther repeatedly cited Luther's example of a royal castle that was actually bestowed on a beggar, whether he accepted it or not.
Jars of Clay, pp. 64-5
Classic Pietistic Blunder - Merging the Atonement and Justification
Walther was a wonder-boy, with all his energy and alpha-male leadership skills in bullying, threatening, and kidnapping. The Wunderkind confused the atoning death of Christ with God's declaration of forgiveness when someone believes. This is clearly stated in Romans 4, which the blind UOJists use as if it teaches their dogma.
May I mention that UOJ was decidedly advantageous in excusing the abuse of Martin Stephan, STD, and his loyal disciple until the disciple turned into Pope Walther?
Romans 4 KJV
13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
14 For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect:
15 Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.
16 Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.
18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb:
20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;
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.
PS - Brenner's book includes a savage, accurate portrait of the many failings of Walther as a seminary president and professor, as experienced by Pieper and Kohler. In short, Walther was poorly trained in Biblical languages and announced his doctrine rather than teaching from the Scriptures and leading people into the Scriptures. See the pages following the UOJ propaganda - Brenner p. 65ff.
