Apologetics are almost forgotten in Lutherdom. The seldom used term means a defense of the Christian Faith rather than synodical talking points (dogma).
Melanchthon's Apology of the Augsburg Confession is widely ignored, replaced by - don't laugh - Matt Harrison, Waldo Werning, Paul Kelm, Larry Olson, and David Valleskey.
Melanchthon is second only to Luther for identifying what is wrongly taught and for making the correct argument a Biblical response.
The Church of Rome Is the Exemplar of Dogma
I was directly connected to Roman Catholicism for seven years at the University of Notre Dame. I was in the minority in all the theology graduate classes, which included a few Lutherans and Calvinists. Some faculty were Protestants, but JP.2 (Pope John Paul II) ordered the Protestants off the theology faculty, and they were offed.
Roman Dogma is the official law of Holy Mother Church, and they employ canon lawyers to handle cases of canon law. Catholic dogma is considered something to obey, because it is enforced as infallible. The Pope can declare dogma ex cathedra (from his chair) and also use commissions to back his decisions and revelations.
The Church of Rome has almost no use for the Scriptures, except to cherry-pick some verses to anchor its dogma, very much like WELS, LCMS, ELDoNUTS, and the ELS.
This is very important - Catholic and quasi-Lutheran leaders enforce their dogma, not the Scriptures. The proper attitude is obedience to the power structure rather than faith in Jesus Christ.
When the Church of Rome modified the role of nuns and sisters, 90,000 left their vocations in America alone, almost at once. Two of my ND professors were former nuns who married men. One man had been a Jesuit priest with a doctorate from Harvard.
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| ELCA bishops love their colorful and expensive costumes. |
Dogma Exists without Faith
American Roman Catholicism is overwhelmingly liberal Protestantism. I recall one ND seminary professor who recited Roman dogma in one lecture, everyone looking at the ceiling. My famous lay PhD Roman Catholic professor thought the adulterers Tillich and Barth were the ultimate theologians. He also disputed the infallibility of the Pope (sacre bleu!). The priests in training did too. An old-fashioned priest asked the class in a rage, "Why are you Catholics!?"
The Barthian theologian said, after my choice remarks about Tillich's dogmatics, "Lutherans do not understand Tillich." I asked, "Lutherans do not understand a Lutheran?" Silence. I once read Romans 5:1-4 to the class. Dead, uncomfortable silence.
Lutherans Doggedly Promote Dogmatics - Walther, Barth, Tillich, Braaten-Jenson, and the Faux Luther's Large Catechism
Walther thought he was saved from death by adopting the Pietistic dogma of Martin Stephan STD. Read carefully this nonsense, lovingly repeated by the ELS -
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The ELS proudly backs Walther in making a decision for world absolution without faith.
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In 1932, the LCMS voted for the same dogma, now called Objective (Faithless) Justification (F. Pieper):
Scripture teaches that God has already declared the whole world to be righteous in Christ, Rom. 5:19; 2 Cor. 5:18-21; Rom. 4:25; that therefore not for the sake of their good works, but without the works of the Law, by grace, for Christ's sake, He justifies, that is, accounts as righteous, all those who believe, accept, and rely on, the fact that for Christ's sake their sins are forgiven.
The addled 1932 convention failed to note that Romans 4 clearly teaches Justification by Faith and that omitting Romans 4:24 is far too clever, even for the beer-deprived delegates of yesteryear.
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.
All three - Calvinism, Pietism, and Rationalism - contribute to the fallacies and blasphemies of Objective or Universal or Universal Objective or General Justification - or the pompous Justification of the World.
Fragments of ELCA taught Justification by Faith in the past, just as WELS and LCMS did, in spite of WELS-LCMS sniveling lies.
Dogmatics for Everyone
Note what guides the ELCA and the Olde Synodical Conference - Dogmatics!
F. Pieper's Dogmatics is supposedly the guiding light of the LCMS and WELS. The Wisconsin Sect kept Hoenecke's Dogmatics under wraps until it no longer mattered. Adolph H. was too light on Church Growth and disliked Calvinism. I would say Hoenecke's book is much more of an apologetics book with Biblical explanations.
No one has to think with dogmatics as the foundation.
Why is Justification without Faith 100% correct? The answer is in dogma, absent in the Bible. Pieper cleverly blended efficacy, Means of Grace, Justification by Faith, and Justification Without Faith. The concise version is the 1932 Brief Statement. Dullards do not even need to ask, "What about Romans 4:24?"
Note well that Melanchthon's Apology of the Augsburg Confession has a beautiful, Biblical section on Justification by Faith. Where are the Preus hordes and Harrison, all the Church Growth ninnies and the Mequon faculty? The ELS has the Book of Concord on the seminary tables! - but do they open it? Apparently not.
Dogma Is Obeyed Far More Than It Is Taught
Dogmatics are perfect for the lazy. Everything is categorized and indexed. Repeat after me is the guide to WELS-ELS-LCMS synodical success. However, the chatterboxes cannot explain the enormous gulf between their synod's dogma and the consistent, inspired, efficacious truth of the Scriptures.
Pietism tells them that the moment Christ rose from the dead, the entire world was declared innocent (albeit without the Word, preaching, or teaching). They get this notion from distorting 1 Timothy 3:16. See Rambach, below.
Rationalism tells people that God is so nice that everyone is forgiven and saved. Calvinism turns into Rationalism after savoring the dogmatics of Calvin and Zwingli, both prolific writers and entirely wrong.
