Lutherans Write about the Sermon - Classic Ichabod from 2011 - 1200 Views

Luther was the swan that rose from the ashes of Hus, as the Czech reformer predicted.
Lutherans follow Schwan instead.
Art by Norma Boeckler.

Part 3

Lutherans Write about the Sermon

J-1018

"Now, all who wish to be saved ought to hear this preaching [of God’s Word]. For the preaching and hearing of God’s Word are instruments of the Holy Ghost, by, with, and through which He desires to work efficaciously, and to convert men to God, and to work in them both to will and to do. This Word man can externally hear and read, even though he is not yet converted to God and regenerate; for in these external things, as said above, man even since the Fall has to a certain extent a free will, so that he can go to church and hear or not hear the sermon."

Formula of Concord, SD, II, #52. Free Will. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 901f. Tappert, p. 531. Heiser, p. 246.

J-1019

"Likewise those fastidious spirits are to be reproved who, when they have heard a sermon or two, find it tedious and dull, thinking that they know all that well enough, and need no more instruction. For just that is the sin which has been hitherto reckoned among mortal sins, and is called akedia, i. e., torpor or satiety, a malignant, dangerous plague with which the devil bewitches and deceives the hearts of many, that he may surprise us and secretly withdraw God’s Word from us."

The Large Catechism, #99, The Third Commandment, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 609. Tappert, p. 378. Heiser, p. 175. Exodus 20:8-11. Akedia: Aristotle's Ethics, IV.

J-1020

"Against both these parties the pure teachers of the Augsburg Confession have taught and contended that by the fall of our first parents man was so corrupted that in divine things pertaining to our conversion and the salvation of our souls he is by nature blind, that, when the Word of God is preached, he neither does nor can understand it, but regards it as foolishness; also, that he does not of himself draw nigh to God, but is and remains an enemy of God, until he is converted, becomes a believer [is endowed with faith], is regenerated and renewed, by the power of the Holy Ghost through the Word when preached and heard, out of pure grace, without any cooperation of his own."

Formula of Concord, SD II. #5. Free Will. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 881. Tappert, p. 520f. Heiser, p. 241.

J-1021

"All this is the old devil and old serpent, who also converted Adam and Eve into enthusiasts, and led them from the outward Word of God to spiritualizing and self-conceit, and nevertheless he accomplished this through other outward words. Just as also our enthusiasts [at the present day] condemn the outward Word, and nevertheless they themselves are not silent, but they fill the world with their pratings and writings, as though, indeed, the Spirit could not come through the writings and spoken word of the apostles, but [first] through their writings and words he must come. Why [then] do not they also omit their own sermons and writings, until the Spirit Himself come to men, without their writings and before them, as they boast that He has come into them without the preaching of the Scriptures?"

Smalcald Articles, Part III, VIII. #5-6. Confession. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 495. Tappert, p. 312f. Heiser, p. 147.

J-1022

"Moreover [On the other side], both the ancient and modern enthusiasts have taught that God converts men, and leads them to the saving knowledge of Christ through His Spirit, without any created means and instrument, that is, without the external preaching and hearing of God’s Word."

Formula of Concord, SD II. #4. Free Will. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 881. Tappert, p. 520. Heiser, p. 241.

J-1023

Gerhard: "The more purely the Word of God is preached in a Church, and the nearer the preaching and doctrine comes to the norm of the Holy Scripture, the purer will be the Church; the further it recedes from the rule of the Word, the more impure and corrupt will be the Church."

Cited in Henry Eyster Jacobs, A Summary of the Christian Faith, Philadelphia: General Council Publication House, 1913, p. 383f.

J-1024

"Since the Word of God is this weapon [sword], it behooves us to make use of it at all times and to this end become acquainted with it both by means of public preaching and by earnest Bible study at home. Cursory reading must be supplemented by careful memorizing of proof-texts and strong passages. Only in this way shall we be able to make the proper use of the Word of God as a true weapon of offense at all times."

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the New Testament, 2 vols., St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, II, p. 292. Ephesians 6:17.

J-1025

"So much, we see, depends on the kind of men who preach the Gospel. Let all preachers keep this in mind! In the last analysis, however, the decisive assurance for all believers is the Word itself with its divine effects. See Galatians 1:8. In Thessalonians, too, the ultimate ground of assurance is the Word."

R. C. H. Lenski, Thessalonians, Columbus: The Wartburg Press, 1937, p. 259. 1 Thessalonians 2:13; Galatians 1:8.

J-1026

"So it goes in the spiritual government of the Church, as specially indicated in the narrative now before us. Where I have preached and taught during the past ten or twenty years, there another could perhaps, have done more in one year; and one sermon may bring forth more fruit than many others. Here, also, it is true that our labor, diligence and effort can accomplish nothing These two things must go together, namely, that each one does his duty, and that he, nevertheless, acknowledges with Peter: 'My labor cannot bring forth anything, if thou dost not give the increase.'"

Sermons of Martin Luther, 8 vols., ed., John Nicholas Lenker, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983, IV, p. 153. Luke 5:1-11.

J-1027

"God has chosen despised and frail human beings for the ministry of the Word that the divine power of the Word might become apparent—a power impossible to suppress even in the weakest of persons. Moreover, if the mighty of the world were to preach the Gospel, people would be captivated more by the authority of the person preaching than by the Word itself."

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed. Ewald M. Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, III, p. 1118.

J-1028

For we did not follow cunningly devised fables... "That is, we preach not the nonsense of men, but we are sure that what we preach is of God and has become so through our eyes and ears. That is to say, When we were with Christ upon the mountain, we saw and heard his glory."

Martin Luther, Commentary on Peter and Jude, ed. John N. Lenker, Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1990, p. 245. 2 Peter 1:16-18.

J-1029

"That is the reason why our Church from the very beginning declared that it requires its preachers 'not to depart an inch' from its confessions, not to turn aside from the doctrines laid down in them, non tantum in rebus, sed etiam in phrasibus, that is, both as regards the matter offered in their sermons and the manner of their teaching."

C. F. W. Walther, The Proper Distinction between Law and Gospel, trans., W. H. T. Dau, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1928, p. 277.

The Pastor’s Role

J-1030

"The Gospel ministry should spare no one, no matter how high the position may be which he occupies, but should rebuke wrong in everybody. This is why ministers and preachers exist. A very heavy burden is placed on them. They should so conduct their office that they stand ready to answer for it on Judgment Day. If they do not speak to you and rebuke in you what their office requires them to speak and to rebuke, God will require your blood from their hand. Tell me, why should we preachers burden ourselves still more by preaching to you as you desire? It is not our word. Nor do we live for your sake, as though you had ordered us, and we had to preach what you like. Preachers can, will, and should not do this. Therefore he who will not listen is free in God's name to walk out through the church door and let our Lord God keep His ministry unhindered."

            What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, III, p. 1114.

Lack of trust in the efficacy of the Word has led to a scornful attitude toward Lutheran pastors. Synodical leaders have no love for the Word of God, so they also despise the divinely called pastors under their oppressive and corrupt regimes. Synodical leaders effectively convey their contempt toward the Word and the clergy in dealing with congregations. Even if the congregation shares this contempt for the Word and deals with the pastor in the most evil and underhanded way possible, the minister is still obligated by his call to teach the Word in its truth and purity, regardless of the consequences. If the congregational leaders engage in adultery and have to be taken to court to pay support for the children of their previous marriages, they will not likely endure the pure Word of God. If the treasurer is a man who lives with and assaults his girlfriend and then damages the police car when he is arrested, he is only going to like corrupt pastors who flatter him. If the minister cuts a deal with the synod or the congregation to preserve his comfort through doctrinal compromise, he is no longer a shepherd, but a wolf with a shepherd’s crook, all the more dangerous for his disguise. Wolves love to run in packs, so the other wolves welcome him, especially if he has the sniveling, groveling attitude they crave.

Strangely, pastors have abandoned those who love the Gospel in favor of those who hate the Word and only see it in terms of benefiting themselves. The pan-Lutheran effort to promote unionism has created several generations of those who are completely indifferent to sound doctrine. Nevertheless, some remain who have not bowed the knee to Baal. The Word and Sacraments gather the congregation, so if the Gospel cannot be tolerated by one group of people, then there will be another who will listen and appreciate.

Now we are at the lowest point in Lutheran history, worse than the days before the Book of Concord was published. Pastors and congregations have the opportunity of re-discovering orthodox Lutheran doctrine. Many old Lutheran books are still circulating through book sales, so it is possible to gather a fine library in spite of what the synods are failing to do. When people read the Lutheran classics for the first time and discover names they have never known before, such as Loy, Jacobs, and Krauth, they are amazed that men could live in another century and deal with the same problems we are facing today. Even more exotic are the famous but obscure theologians of Europe. When I became a Lutheran, I could find their books in the college library in Latin, but nowhere else. Now I can at least own a selection of Gerhard, Chemnitz, Chytraeus, and Quenstedt, who are no longer just names in a Lutheran encyclopedia but clear, Gospel teachers, honored in the past for their great learning but scorned in the present for not marketing the Gospel with gimmicks and graphs.

Pastors, whether they are in a synod or independent, have the greatest flexibility in their use of time. They can control how to spend their time more easily than most professionals, or they can make themselves into victims of busy-work. Sometimes they are just lazy. A pastor’s time should be consumed with preparation for the sermon, adult classes, catechism, and visitation. He can and should ignore almost everything else. He is not the social director of the Love Boat. At meetings he should invoke the famous Kiwanis rule, “If you are in favor of this activity, you must also support it by helping out. Otherwise, do not talk in favor of something you have no intention of supporting or attending.” Pastors do not need to dither about social events, taking care of the property, or where to take the youth group on the next outing. Congregations have cleverly pushed their responsibilities onto the pastor by abandoning their own duties, then insisting that these non-essential jobs be done by him or his wife. One congregation railed at the previous pastor for taking too long on the production of the newsletter, then copied and assembled it themselves for two or three months. Suddenly they concluded that the newsletter was not needed at all. “No one reads it,” claimed the woman who had grown weary of Xeroxing, stapling, and addressing.

J-1031

"Your first desire will be that all men may obtain the same knowledge of divine grace. Hence your love will not be restrained from serving all to the fullest extent, preaching and proclaiming the divine truth wherever possible, and rejecting all doctrine and life not in harmony with this teaching. But take note, the devil and the world, unwilling that their devices be rejected, cannot endure the knowledge of what you do. They will oppose you with everything great, learned, wealthy and powerful, and represent you as a heretic and insane."

Sermons of Martin Luther, 8 vols., ed., John Lenker, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983, VI, p. 147.

I am quite sure that Luther did not have a Sunday School program, a baseball team, a flower chart, worship bulletins, or a coffee hour. If a congregation cannot get these going with their own labor, they should abandon them and not tell the pastor, “We refuse to do this on our own. It is now up to you to motivate us.” I was always impressed that members thought it was a good idea for me to deliver flowers to the shut-ins, whom I saw all the time. My idea was that shut-ins would love to see their own members every so often. Many times I organized an effort where all the members visited one another, and this was very beneficial for the entire congregation. It also frustrated those who loved being unhappy.

The lack of pastoral visitation today speaks eloquently about the lack of trust in the Word. If ministers believe in the power of the Word, they naturally take this power to people’s homes, to nursing homes, and to hospitals. They do not make appointments for people to see them in their offices. Hospital stays and family emergencies are so important that the minister should clear his schedule to be with his members when needed. In my opinion, one of the best uses of time is to sit with a family during an operation, to visit daily in the hospital, to spend extra time with a family during and after a funeral. Visiting with families in times of difficulty and in normal times will establish trust and build an interest in God’s Word.

Many skeptics will say, “This preaching, teaching, and visiting will consume all of a pastor’s time. There will be no more time left.” That is true. We all have 168 hours per week given to us by the Creator. It is best spent on important matters. Lutherans need to abandon the Methodist model of having special interest groups (World War II discussion groups, stamp collectors), special Sundays to bring out the crowds (girl scout, boy scout, Masonic Lodge recognition day, Civil Air Patrol, favorite cookie day), and ecclesiastical intramurals.⁵¹⁸ Some people think that the ideal church has a gym, although few if any secular gyms have chapels. Of course people are free to organize sports through the congregation, but they should see all social activities as fruits of the Gospel and not as Gospel. One evangelism expert ran all around the Michigan Synod, LCA, telling pastors how to organize baseball teams in their congregations. That’s how he built up his congregation, with baseball teams. He was no longer serving a congregation or married to his wife, but he wanted to make a baseball game into the Means of Grace. Even the most jaded ministers were shocked by his devotion to gimmicks.

J-1032

"Infinite and unutterable is the majesty of the Word of God, and we can never thank God enough for it. Human reason, however, thinks: Ah, if I could hear the Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth, I would run to the end of the world! Listen, brother, God, the Creator of heaven and earth, does speak with you through His preachers; it is He who baptizes, instructs, and absolves you through the ministry of His Sacraments. These words of God are not words of Plato or Aristotle, but God Himself is speaking. And those preachers are the most suitable who very simply and plainly, without any airs and subtlety, teach the common people and youth, just as Christ taught the people with homespun parables. And those are the best and most suitable hearers who listen to the Word and do not doubt its teaching. They may be weak in faith; but as long as they do not doubt the doctrine, it is possible to help them."

            What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed. Ewald M. Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959 III, p. 1118.

David Scaer's Inadvertent Confessions - Surviving the Storms - Lulu and Kindle

Surviving the Storms. Get the Kindle, which is only $10.
Lulu for $35? An Amazon author's price would be about $5. Did Amazon refuse to print it? Just kidding.
Logia sells the PDF for $20! Schwan got them started, one of many indulgences he purchased in exchange for forgiveness. Team Ichabod gives everything away, including all of Lenski.

Did David Scaer shop his autobiography around? LCMS or WELS could have published it - both denominations are equally corrupt in doctrine, especially concerning the Chief Article.

An editor is listed, but this book defies careful reading. Scaer's use of pronouns is so sloppy that one can hardly figure out the antecedent. Some historical anchors could be used because few today lived through those events.

His description of graduate study suggests the basis for his obnoxious behavior in the classroom. He is the son of a Missouri pastor and related to two more Scaer's in higher education. That comprises most of the requirements for teaching in Missouri. He was planning on being a simple parish pastor, but he traveled to Germany for a doctorate. In those days, that meant almost certain teaching assignments in the LCMS. However, he failed his dissertation (not uncommon). Robert Marshall the LCA President, hinted to me in a letter that he also failed his dissertation (which can happen for a variety of reasons). Scaer came home to get a rescue ThD at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, using his German dissertation.

John F. Johnson, who helped ruin Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, told me a ThD from St. Louis was useless for any career outside of the LCMS. He earned a second doctorate from St. Louis University (Jesuit, so fitting). Johnson loved the Swiss Karl Barth and began raving about him - until he noticed my reaction, which was probably like unto one who has opened a bottle of spoiled buttermilk. Johnson quickly changed the subject. One faculty member said, "He lets us teach whatever we want. We had to be very careful when Barth was president." Bohlmann drove the LCMS Barth out of the presidency so Johnson could Seminexify the school, picking 40 of the 45 professors there.

Mr. Rude

The extraordinary rudeness of Scaer in the classroom comes from his massive insecurities. His lack of parish experience, with an eye on the prize, is only slightly better than Paul McCain's. Missouri and WELS seem to favor teachers who enjoy sticking their thumbs in people's eyes. Kurt Marquart was an exception, in his grasp of the material and his parish experience.

As I showed in great detail, Scaer's discussion of Justification is wrong, befuddled, dishonest, and anti-Lutheran. 

As bad as the autobiography is, the discussion of events is valuable. The historical-critical movement (HCM), which sprang from Halle University (home of the OJ Burger), peaked after WWII and led to  the Society of Biblical Literature meetings being "an exercise in creative writing," as Scaer said in class. The text no longer mattered, but Scaer got into that and even had Willie Marxen (redaction criticism) as a professor in Germany.

Fiorenza thought redaction criticism was a hoot.

I was exposed to a lot of HCM, from my home parish (JEDP) on - college, seminary, Yale, Notre Dame. My New Testament professor, Nils Dahl, studied under the celebrity scholars of the time - Bultmann, Mowinkel,etc. Elisabeth Schuessler-Fiorenza went from Notre Dame to a feminist seminary to Harvard, teaching HCM.

That is the big break in doctrinal and Biblical work. While the old scholars - like Lenski, Keil-Delitzsch - sought to explain the content of God's Word faithfully, the new ones are rationalists/Calvinists who seek to establish their theories in order to enhance their careers. "The most daring volume on 3 John - ever! Everyone is reading this book!!"

Scaer - A Basket of His Favorite Ideas

Most people have not read hundreds of books of modern theology. Bless your hearts - you have been spared. All of the moderns, including Scaer, are individually invested in their own hobby-horses.

What bothers me most is Scaer's treatment of "his theology," which is exactly what plagues all of modern theology. Everyone picks a position, a favorite theologian, and proceeds to knit a new cathedral of thought out of the used and worn-out rationalism of the last two centuries - especially Schleiermacher and Barth. Just as Barth-Kirschbaum taught their thinly disguised apostasy and Marxism, Scaer teaches Scaer. Rate My Professors has some interesting comments about him. "His schtick gets old quick."

If someone dares to disagree with a professor in graduate school or seminary, he or she may be doomed. I disagreed with Elizabeth Schuessler-Fiorenza in class (Apocalyptic literature) and one student said, "Nice knowing you, Greg." He assumed I was finished at Notre Dame. She later commended me for standing up for myself. She said, and I paraphrase, "Most of these people have never left school, so they do not think on their own."

Therefore, an insecure and tenured professor is very dangerous in delivering his lectures - or rambles - ex cathedra, with a host of hangers-on listening to every word. Moreover, his theological journal becomes a vanity press that publishes every word. If this book is any clue, the rest of Scaer's work is unreadable and unedifying.

 Waldo Werning fashioned himself as a Doctor. He was listed in the Who's Who in Church Growth, as Valleskey noted, glaring at me. Both clowns denied going to Fuller, though they admitted they did. Bivens is another one in this class.

Let's Talk about Waldo Werning - 

The Mouse That Squeaked and Sqawked

Scaer's book has a long section on Werning's war against him. Kincaid Smith (LCA, charismatic, LCMS, ELS) took me down to Ft. Wayne to meet Waldo Werning, Robert Preus, Kurt Marquart, and others, about 1986. Smith's DMin program at Ft. Wayne was all Church Growth, as he told me. He was offended at first that I criticized CG in Liberalism: Its Cause and Cure.

Werning stayed in contact with me, from that time on, with some gaps, until his death in 2013. I pay attention to the way people communicate, and I noticed he went from anti-Bohlmann to pro-Bohlmann. I told Otten, who disbelieved me. Sure enough, Werning targeted Otten for a time.

Werning went after a student I knew. As a pastor, he was driven out of LCMS, WELS, and ELS by Werning. Bishop James Rodham Heiser told me he was afraid to criticize Werning, warned that Werning would never stop pursuing him in the LCMS or elsewhere.

When I was in WELS, I asked Werning if he went to Fuller Seminary. He said he did and I copied that down on the date in my Daytimer. I began doing that with WELS clergy since they lied so often. When Werning later denied what he had confessed, I read my note and gave him the date. An ELS pastor told me soon after that Werning was going bonkers, running me down.

I was shocked that anyone took Werning seriously. His behavior was simply atrocious toward Scaer. I posted Werning's ridiculous false doctrine in Christian News in the midst of Waldo's Scaer war. The professor walked by me and said thanks.

I fault the LCMS that a lot of these kidney punching peewees like Werning are allowed to do the work of the leaders. Bohlmann doubtless gave Werning the flattery the man craved and aimed him at Ft. Wayne, Scaer, Otten, anyone. Remember - Bohlmann was one of many disasters promoted by Otten.

There were plenty of reasons to laugh Werning out of the seminary, but they let him file charge after charge. But Werning is just as much a product of rancid Pietism as Scaer is. The quote below is worth memorizing:

"Justification by Faith in Christ together with its twin truth, the inerrancy of Holy Scripture, are the keystone and the cornerstone of Protestantism. Neglect one or both and the whole structure will fall into ruin." 
Dr. Walter A. Maier, Maier Still Speaks, Back Cover

 The quote above is from the back cover of Otten's book on Maier.

Scaer seemed to fashion himself as a modern Biblical scholar, and he definitely rejects Justification by Faith. Why should we wonder that all the mainline seminaries are emptying just as the feminist-gay liberation people are taking over?

The spineless leaders keep doing whatever will appease the radicals of the moment - or in many cases - simply living out their own preferences. The era of creative destruction is upon us. Little will remain in a few years - with special thanks to the "conservatives" who fished for the Church Growth Kraken and found themselves devoured by it.

How about Robert Preus, Church Growth, and OJ?

Scaer repeatedly refers to the late Robert Preus as a great theologian but fickle administrator.

How did this collection of "confessional, conservative Lutheran" professors mange to create a Church Growth program, 100% CG as Kincaid Smith said?

Clearly Preus and Scaer were not watching the store while it was being robbed of its credibility. Preus liked to be a hero among the non-Lutheran Protestants, who admired someone who stood up for inerrancy. They were a mixed bag of stray cats about Justification, so that was no scandal for them. Preus went to Calvinists for help on Objective Justification.

At the time of the faculty’s conversations with Maier II, Robert Preus looked for support and found it among conservative friends in the Evangelical movement who admired him for his defense of biblical inspiration and inerrancy, including several faculty members of Westminster Seminary—Escondido, California, with its renowned Reformed [Calvinist] scholar Michael Horton (b. 1964). Preus must have been aware, but chose to ignore that the Reformed see objective justification as a component of their doctrine of election, but it was hardly universal in scope as Lutherans have historically held it.

Scaer, David P.. Surviving the Storms: Memoirs of David P. Scaer (Kindle Locations 5655-5659). Luther Academy. Kindle Edition.

That is like going to Fuller Seminary for help with evangelism!

 Ur rite, Pete. LOL. Where's my DMin?

Why was Neuhaus invited to speak to Ft. Wayners on "Becoming the Roman Catholic I Always Was"?

One dogmatic point is sure - because I invented it - The non-reciprocity of the false teachers. The Shrinkers want to draw everyone into their sect and buy their stinking books and programs, but they will never budge an inch toward the genuine, Reformation, Bible-centered, Means of Grace honoring Gospel. Therefore, they flatter and seduce insecure Lutherans into poking their toes into the Church Growth swamp, so easy when no one - and I mean no one - is teaching the efficacy of the Word.

Confidentially - you do not need to send me an email or leave an anonymous voice-mail - do you think this metastatic cancer of Church Growth was ever intended to increase the number of believing Christians? No, they were advancing their anti-inerrancy views from the start. Fuller Seminary began with a weak view of inerrancy (docrine only - not history or geography!) They repudiated that when hiring NCC-WCC spokes-radical  start their Church Shrinkage program, which they diplomatically called Church Growth. He was Disciples of Christ. WELS Pastor Jon Balge said to me, a bit irritated, "Weren't you Disciples of Christ, Greg?" when I made that point. Yes, I left that sect for the Lutherans. That does not count. One must be born in a WELS parsonage in Wisconsin to be truly and fatally WELS.

The only growth from Fuller was their growth in revenue, and even they - with their supposed marketing savvy - had to cancel expansion plans. Haha.

Where were the genius leaders during all this? They protected and paid Bunkowski, Werning, and the rest.

On Preus and OJ.
Robert was OJ all the way - until his last book, never mentioned by Scaer in his Confessions. Given the LCMS hagiographies of Herman A. Preus and Walther, we could expect that. But Preus clearly repudiated OJ in Justification and Rome - never mentioned by Scaer, who also forgets Luther almost entirely.

Tietjen the Destroyer

I lived through the Tietjen era, which made me skeptical about the LCMS being much different from the LCA. Scaer has interesting historical observations about the Concordia St. Louis president who created Seminex and facilitated ELCA, aka the Extended LCA.

Only four electors chose Tietjen. As I have said, the battle is for control of those little committees and commissions that make the decisions. Tietjen did not have to leave with his liberal professors, but he did impulsively. Jack Preus read him like a cheap tabloid, and Otten sold a lot of papers.

Tietjen next failed as Seminex president, though he did include the gays training for lavender career in the Metropolitan Community Church, with help from Jungkuntz - WELS OJ Professor - as chairman of the board. Deppe was the St. Louis professor who came out in the exodus from the seminary. He was arrested for soliciting a male police officer in a park in St. Louis. Deppe went on to teach at Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. Married with children, he joined Metropolitan Community Church as a pastor.

Seminex's AELC got a special deal on the merger commission because they were so small. Y'all could see where this was going. They pushed for gay and female quotas, which was like building a skyscraper on top of garbage and effluent. Who needs bedrock?

Seminex failed and the faculty largely moved to LSTC (LCA, then ELCA). I am not sure when Tietjen gave up his position, but he was voted in as Bishop of the the Metro Chicago District.

Tietjen insisted on a lady assistant who was part of the Seminex crowd. I am not sure whether she was ordained or not. The people who elected him said "No!" and the big guys at headquarters had to intervene. Tietjen would not budge, so after one month of His Holiness, ELCA gave him a parish call to Texas. He actually led a revolt against ELCA forming an expensive Church Growth start nearby. Tietjen was better at forming boycotts than enduring them. ELCA gave up and moved the "experiment" - as they and WELS called these things - to Yorba Linda, where it flopped faster than the snowshoe store in Yuma, Arizona.

Richard John Neuhaus was like many LCMS pastors, raised in the Missouri flavor of Ecclesia Immaculata. They decided Rome was the fulfillment of all they had been taught - anti-Creation, anti-Justification by Faith, and in favor of philosophy and the historical-critical method of bending the Scriptures to fit one's mood and agenda.

Upcoming Books - In Order

Some Lutheran Books made available by Alec Satin.

The current books  have been ordered for the intended readers. That does not mean they have all arrived. In another week, if you feel like an actor whose name was not announced at the Oscar's, let me know. Amazon's method of printing and delivery can only be interpreted at Delphi.

Priority

Luther's House Postils are the priority now, and Volume 1 is close to being sent to Janie Sullivan. They will be available in color, black and white, free PDF, and combined PDF with the House Gems. Thus Luther fans could search 11 volumes of Luther's Sermons from two free (color) PDFs. Thanks to WM for suggesting the House Sermons and Alec Satin for jumping on the project.

Next Two Books

I will writing the Ichabod Lutheran Dictionary next, a way to explain basic concepts in one volume.

Saddened by the pathetic Biblical knowledge of the Lutheran leaders, I am putting together exegesis of the Justification by Faith passages. The LCMS convention starts on Mrs. Ichabod's birthday, July 20th, so I want the exegesis out and available before then, hoping the McCain-Otten-Harrison triumvirate will be allowed to retire with dignity, grace, and contrition for their grave doctrinal sins.

Future Projects

Another request came in, over the transom - a history of American Lutheranism. I countered with a doctrinal history, because pure history gets rather tedious and does not lead anywhere by itself. Many church historians are atheists or indifferent.

Other things may develop.

Q Reports - The D:5 Avalanche Has Started - Nothing Can Stop It

The purpose of the Mueller Report was to attract attention to a hunt for a lot of snipes. The opponents thought it was building to get rid of President Trump through impeachment or a failed re-election bid.

Instead, the top floor of the FBI building was cleared of its corrupt members. Several agents turned into federal informants and gave a lot of information up.

Meanwhile, Sessions and Huber were starting up federal Grand Juries to hear evidence about a host of crimes - but in top secrecy, in contrast to the leaks from Team Mueller and House Member Adam Schiff.

Others in the Justice department were identified as participating in the Steele Report, which was a piece of fiction from the beginning. Bruce and Nellie Ohr, the wife who is connected directly to the Steele Report.

Besides treason and sedition, much more is involved, such as drug and body part trafficking, teen and child trafficking, and even worse. Much of this has been in front of people, who do not really know it. The effort to normalize Satanic and occult practices began decades ago, and Hollywood played a large role in wallowing in it and promoting it.

The Nexium sex cult - protected and financed by the Bronfman Sisters ($150 million worth) - is already in the news. Jeffrey Epstein's Pedophile Island is well known to news junkies. The Clintons flew on Epstein's plane, nicknamed The Lolita Express.

The Bronfman family is not only connected to liquor (Seagrams) but also to a notorious criminal family from Phoenix, Arizona - Senator John McCain's father-in-law, Hensley. When John married Cindy Hensley, he made the family respectable to high society. The family made him rich and gave him all the connections he needed to become a US Senator.

The mainstream news is mostly irrelevant. The best way to learn what is happening is to follow a number of independent news sources. Sometimes we watch CNN for belly laughs. Anderson Cooper worked for the CIA; no one leaves the CIA.

 Rabbit-hole is a common expression among the Q Anons. We follow various names and events to see how they are connected. Liquor, the Mob, and politics are closely related. It takes some time to get past the myths of various families and learn the truth.

David Scaer LCMS - Surviving the Storms - Another Sad Example of False Doctrine, Political Intrigue, This Self-Styled Martyr Should Apologize to the Walter Maier Family

David Scaer -
Read his confessions post here.

David Scaer is selling his autobiography Surviving the Storms through Lulu.com for $35.

I knew, met, or heard talks from the following, who are mentioned in the book:

Fr. Wayne President Dr. Robert Preus +, and his brother
LCMS Synod President Dr. Jack Preus +
Pastor Rolf Preus - see Rolf Trashes Sainted Pastor
ALC Synod President David Preus - cousin and friend of Robert and Jack.
Rev. Waldo Werning +
LCMS Synod President Ralph Bohlmann +
Walter A. Maier II (known as WAM II)
Ft. Wayne Professor Kurt Marquart +
Ft. Wayne Professor Heino Kadai +
Pastor/Editor Herman Otten
Father Richard J. Neuhaus + (LCMS, AELC, ELCA, Rome)
Robert Wilken (LCMS pastor, Roman Catholic layman)

WAM II taught what his father (and Luther taught) Justification by Faith and the inerrancy of the Scriptures. What kind of a fraud makes Justification by Faith a crime, a reason to suspect WAM III (now at Ft. Wayne)? "Dr. Walter A Maier II, Pastor Maier's father, Dr.Paul Maier, Pastor Maier's uncle, in blue Pastor Maier, and on his left is Walter A Maier III, Pastor Maier's brother."

I took a class from Scaer in the summer school, when I was leaving the LCA. I also heard lectures from Marquart and Preus. I went to a class with Jay Webber to hear Scaer and Kadai. Dr. Kadai, a liberal, did not like my repetition of a favorite Barth description - "Preaching with a newspaper in one hand, a Kalashnikov in the other, while standing on the Bible." Webber was angry with me for making Kadai upset. Barth was a Marxist adulterer and plagiarist - I was being too kind.

Scaer can be provocative and funny, but he is also rude, insulting, and tyrannical. Unfortunately, Ft. Wayne encouraged a cult following for Scaer, Preus, and Marquart. Students follow Scaer around the campus and sigh about how great he is. I asked Scaer a question in class, and a student answered it, as if he had to fend off anything threatening to his idol.

Ingredients for P. Hale's Ignorant Book - Scaer's Anti-Lutheran, 
Non-Christian, Bait-and-Switch Dogma

I used to be weary of the Objective Justification salesmen. But now I am intrigued that so many can teach the Book of Concord (like Scaer), the New Testament (like Scaer), and Dogmatics (like Scaer) while dodging the obvious, explicit, often repeated teaching - we are justified by faith alone.

I am going to take readers through Scaer's chapter on Objective and Subjective Justification, page by page, paragraph by paragraph.

Excursus XIII, Objective and Subjective Justification, p. 251-258.

 Scaer claims that Objective Justification is unique to the LCMS - so funny - when Knapp's textbook was being used before Bishop Stephan and Pope Walther landed in New Orleans. Adventists say - "Universalism is avoided by bifurcating justification into objective and subjective categories." WELS says that, too.

Page 251
P. 1 - Scaer used Pieper to make the (Halle Pietistic) claim - God justified the world at the resurrection of Christ. Does he name the "contrary claim" - No. Does he mention the Chief Article from the Book of Concord? - No. Does he cite or quote Genesis 15:5 or Romans 4 in defining Justification? - No. Instead he listed some modern theologians who teach that "faith makes justification effective." Maybe they do, but that is not the definition of Justification by Faith (Name it not! - as John Sparky Brenner seems to think; Sparky swerves from the phrase with "individual appropriation of forgiveness, which would make Romans 5:1 much clearer, nicht?).

P. 2 - Objective Justification did not arise from arguing with the Ohio Synod, Scaer's strikingly fraudulent claim. Perhaps Scaer is simply ahistorical and cares little for the known facts, easily researched. Walther caught OJ from Bishop Stephan, who doubtless learned it as a Pietist. Stephan studied at but never graduated from Halle University or anywhere else. Fact - Stephan taught Walther UOJ. Another fraudulent claim is that Walther's Election without Grace, which he used to break up the Synodical Conference, was a remedy for synergism. Excluding faith is soooo Calvinistic, that most veterans of Calvinism recognize it right away. Synergism really applies to "making a decision for" - language found in Walther and JP Meyer - see the graphics below. Justification by Faith is not synergism. Walther violated Article XII of the Formula of Concord with his foolish and divisive speculations. The end result of Walther's Election war was that he was the sole dictator of doctrine in his group, now rid of "false teachers." Note that Scaer made Luther a Synergist! Radio genius Todd Wilken calls Justification by Faith Calvinism - with a chuckle.

 Walther - "must accept by faith..." sounds like synergism to everyone but the Waltherians.

The OJ salesmen are make-a-decision synergists.

Page 252

P. 1 - Already we can see Scaer is a dabbler in the Scriptures and unable or unwilling to teach the plain meaning of the Word. Professor Shallow decided to make Lenski his pin-cushion, even though Lenski wrote widely admired commentaries on all the New Testament books. Like WELS, Scaer attacks Lenski for finding Justification by Faith in Romans. But he does not say those words in blue, which are universally known for defining the Reformation, Luther, Romans, and Galatians.
P. 2 - The "other side" is a virus introduced by the Great War, the growth of English in a German synod. LCMS Pastor showed that Missouri taught Justification by Faith officially in its German catechism in 1905, and in English after. Radicals in Missouri and WELS forced OJ onto everyone, a nifty weapon to unite their cabal and exclude others.
P. 3 - "If subjective justification completely defines..." This confused and double-tongued paragraph uses SJ to attack Justification by Faith. One is an invention of Calvinists, Adventists, and Pietists (SJ). The other is Biblical - Justification by Faith. God creates faith by the Gospel Word - it is monergistic, not synergistic. OJ/SJ is a synergistic combination - one implies the other. They go together like Stephan and syphilis.
P. 4 - This is funny, reminding me of how Mormons brag about being weird. Unique dogmas cause difficulties, like papal infallibility, thus OJ causes problems for Missouri. Scaer did not realize that his analogy condemned his OJ/SJ, which is invented - it is Enthusiasm - just like papal infallibility. The analogy also fails because all mainline denominations teach OJ, and so do the Adventists. Unique? Hardly - OJ is the chief article of mainline and cult religion.

 The Pietist argument from false exegesis, 1 Timonthy 3:16 is that God justified mankind when Jesus rose from the dead, absolving everyone of sin.

 Look up P. Leyser's history and see if he has more credibility than Scaer and Walter.

Page 253

P 1-5 - Scaer takes us on a false narrative about OJ, which comes from Pietism, clearly stated by Rambach, above, but attempted before by Samuel Huber, a "former" Calvinist at Wittenberg. Huber was defeated and kicked out. Norwegian Pietists were naturally attracted to Walther's Pietism. Rolf Preus likes to wear Herman Preus I around his neck, his perpetual relic of an OJ martyr and saint. But Herman lost his call for only a few days and returned to his pulpit to continue teaching OJ.
The loyalty of Jack and Robert Preus to OJ came from Pietism, not from the Bible, Luther, the Confessions, Chemnitz, or Gerhard. Both men moderated the toxic effect of OJ. Jack translated Chemnitz (rather than Baier? how significant!). Robert  repudiated OJ in Justification and Rome.

 As chairman of the board of Seminex, Jungkuntz approved his school for training future Metropolitan Community Church (gay) pastors. Many Seminex leaders were graduates of Northwestern College (WELS), where he taught earlier.

Page 254

P1 - 3 - As John Sparky Brenner acknowledges, Walther promoted Election without Faith to prop up his OJ. Walther's predestination claims, so similar to Calvinism, drove away those who understood Justification by Faith and made CFW the Pope of the remnant. As many have observed, Walther's exclusion of faith excommunicated the Means of Grace, too. But Jack and Robert Preus took this seriously, unlike cousin David. Scaer attempts to blame ELCA's apostasy on The ALC's failure to embrace OJ. But the Seminex gang, led by Jungkuntz (OJist) shaped the merger commission with quotas and efforts to remove Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (The Trinity won on a vote of 33-30. Whew!)
I wrote to David about communion with the Reformed. He made fun of the Real Presence in his response. The ALC-LCA leadership was pathetic, but Missouri longed to unite with them. The years since have shown that ELCA-LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC sic are in the same abyss of OJ apostasy and pan-sexuality.

P4 - Now we begin to smell the pot roast. The Maier Family! Woe, woe, thrice woe. Jack Preus called WAM II to teach at Springfield (which moved to Ft. Wayne). As Scaer says, after four years on the same campus, Jack should have known what WAM II. "The students did!" I can hear the sound of ominous thunder in the background - no facts - but scary, dreadful sound effects.

P5 - When Jack was elected LCMS President, with vast help from Herman Otten's Christian News, people ached for something to be done about the blatantly liberal Concordia Seminary faculty, St. Louis. Many of us knew that WAM II was the logical alternative to replace Jack if he did nothing. WAM II did not have Jack's carpet bag baggage. According to Scaer, WAM II remained an alternative to Jack Preus as synod president.

Page 255

P1 - WAM II was so respected by his students that they wrote out notes on his lectures, which were available to Scaer. Though he is glib in making WAM II a false teacher, he did not bother to study them or give the reader his impression. He had access to Maier's dissertation, but "lacked the fortitude to wade through" all the materials available.

P2 - Scaer passed over the disgraceful Jack and Bob tag-team clobbering of WAM II, but conceded WAM II was a threat to Jack's tenure as synod president.
Jack and Bob could (get this) accept the "denial of Objective Justification" by Dr. Maier, WAM II, and - oh noes - WAM III, being called to Ft. Wayne. I and III earned Harvard doctorates - but I am not sure of WAM II's.
The faculty worried that III agreed with II and I. Note this Scaer quote verbatim - "Neither understood this doctrine according to traditional Missouri Synod definitions." The Scriptures? The Book of Concord? Luther? Chemnitz? No mention is made, and Justification by Faith is left unheralded. LCMS is the Church of Rome, Missouri franchise, which is why so many pastors join the Real Thing.

P3 - This was "not a minor issue" for Jack and Bob. Ralph Bohlmann was looking at the issue. Missouri had been "Protestantized" and was becoming Arminian. Justification by Faith is the Chief Article, but it is Arminian? For the innocent - Bohlmann was 100% political and a dedicated liberal, backed by Otten to follow Preus.
P4 - Scaer's jealousy of the Maier family knows no bounds. This is his description of Dr. Walter A. Maier, who virtually invented radio evangelism, taught Justification by Faith as the capstone and inerrancy as the cornerstone of Christianity. Scaer: "Here was a potentially deadly potion of historical, theological, political, emotional and family issues."

P5 - Robert Preus - who is raised by Scaer to the level of greatest Lutheran theologian in this book - went to the Calvinists for support for his position. Preus knew the Calvinists had OJ, but it was a different OJ than Lutheran OJ! But I thought that OJ was born during the conflict with the Ohio Conference. Please do not use Scaer's book as a history of doctrine textbook.

Page 256

P1 - Scaer wrote "The Sides of Justification" for Christianity Today during the extended roast of WAM II. Wally Schulz told him twice that he was not at his stellar best, and "he obviously did not approve..."
"It may show that Maier II's views were representative of a large group in the Missouri Synod, even those who saw themselves and were seen as conservatives." Aha, so Justification by Faith makes someone a liberal. However, there is a decided lack of detail in this paragraph, only a brotherly shiv in the back for Wally.

P2 & 3 - WAM III's interview for a position "raised the same concerns about the son that they had with his father."
P4 - "Walter III's appointment to the faculty would assure that what the faculty once saw as an aberrant doctrine on justification could be perpetuated for another generation." Scaer is Henry II shouting, "Will no one rid me of this troublesome priest?"

P 5 - Scaer reverted to the WAM III case and said they forged a compromised based on 1 Timothy 3:16, which Scaer found contrived.

 Kilcrease is the OJ fanatic who also co-authors with Scaer. Kicrease, who teaches at a Catholic school, became famous on this blog by posting lame arguments and erasing his comments soon after. Therefore, "Kilcreasing became a verb for erasing." He teaches at the ELCA online seminary where Jay Webber finally got an STM.

My Intuition about the LCMS-WELS Fake Solution

This is said today by OJists correcting, they imagine, Justification by Faith - "We are justified BY GRACE! through faith."

That may be the formula Bob Preus urged onto WAM II, because it could be seen two ways. The phrase might not seem wrong by itself, since it reminds us of the Scriptures, but it allows the OJists to say, "Ah yes, everyone is declared forgiven because of God's grace, and this is accepted by faith in the universal absolution."

Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Parsing the sentence stops OJ from creeping in on little cat feet. "Saved through faith" belongs together. Paul contrasts grace and works, faith and works.

Lenski: "God accomplishes his purpose of delivering the Ephesians when by the power of his grace and the means of this grace (Word and Sacrament) he kindled faith in their hearts. Faith is not something that we on our part produce and furnish toward our salvation but is produced in our hearts by God to accomplish his purpose in us. Col. 2:12 states this directly: "through the faith of the operation of God." One often meets careless statements such as: "Grace is God's part, faith ours. Now the simple fact is that even in human relations faith and confidence are produced in us by others, by what they are and what they do; we never produce it ourselves." Ephesians 2:8-9

Pastor/Editor Herman Otten - Please Read the Back of Your Book and Apologize to the Maier Family. Rolf and the Preussian Reunion - You Are Next

 This is the front of the book, which Scaer says was based on Otten's research essay. Scaer said STM, but I thought Wash U. MA. Otten was close to the Dr. Maier's widow and the family.

 This is the back of the Otten book. The OJists would have us believe that everyone in the LCMS always believed in OJ. CFW Walter caught it from Bishop Stephan, but it was not as contagious as the bishop's syphilis, which he gave to many young girls in his sex cult. Missouri's 1905 German catechism and later KJV catechism only taught Justification by Faith.

 Walter Maier II is a jolly guy. I met him at the Rutz funeral.  This group picture seems to be 4 earned doctorates out of 4, maybe 3 out of 4, a good return. Have you noticed how grim and angry the OJists are? Brrr. The anti-Gospel cowardly Universalism of OJ bears no fruit. Hence, LCMS-ELCA-WELS-ELS-CLC sic have "fallen into ruin."

 Scaer's jealousy of the Maier family knows no bounds. This is his description of Dr. Walter A. Maier, who virtually invented radio evangelism, taught Justification by Faith as the capstone and inerrancy as the cornerstone of Christianity. Scaer: "Here was a potentially deadly potion of historical, theological, political, emotional and family issues." (p. 255, Surviving the Storms. Ha. [Referring to Dr. Walter A. Maier, who earned a Ph.D. in Semitics at Harvard. Scaer failed his doctorate in Germany and came home to get one at Concordia, St. Louis.]

ELDONA - Home of the Whopper. Heiser Graduated from Concordia Seminary, Ft. Wayne, Without ever Hearing Objective Justification?Fellow Alumnus Verified David Scaer Taught OJ in Dogmatics

 The Right Reverend James Rodham Heiser, STM, has no credibility when it comes to Justification by Faith.
ELDONA has a strange passion for beards.

Mars Society Presentation




Note on the video above -

1. Rydecki knew there were pastors who actually taught the Chief Article 16:50;
2. ELDONA certainly had pastors who were loudly UOJ and ones like Heiser who knew the difference, but gladly worked with Rolf Preus;
3. Bishop Heiser gulped (17:03) when he lied about "not being cognizant of this heresy"  UNTIL Pastor Rydecki was booted from WELS, 2012. Heiser was quite aware in 2000. He refused to deal with the issue for 12 years, so ELDONA was not a swarm of OJ deniers, as he claims. An alumnus of Ft. Wayne verified that Scaer taught OJ in Dogmatics class. Scaer mentioned OJ twelve times in his autobiography.
4. The video at 5.20 is fun, all kinds of excuses for not knowing OJ was wrong in seminary. Nobody mentions who troubled the waters of OJ while they were still comatose - moi.

What did he know and when did he know it?

 "Bishop Jim Rodham Heiser - what did we teach you at Concordia, Ft. Wayne? Bob Preus and I hammered OJ into you. You were upset at the Norfolk conference that someone "denied OJ", your words. Have you forgotten so soon?"

First, Pastor Paul Rydecki (formerly WELS) speaks about DP Buchholz lying to his congregation. All the WELS DPs are liars - Buchholz is just especially inept.

Rydecki was in the WELS Intrepid Lutherans (sic), a blog I suggested for group discussion of doctrine. They argued and were divided over Justification. At first, Rydecki argued for Objective Justification. My blog posts got them debating the origin of OJ, and Doug Lindee on that blog and now in ELDONA, I think agreed that OJ came from Halle Pietism.

Note this post on Pietism and OJ in particular - and the date - 2011.

Heiser's claim, 16.44 on the tape - that he "first became aware" of OJ during the Rydecki-Buchholz battle - is a blatant lie. He became aware when he read and sold copies of Thy Strong Word in 2000, which anyone can read for free here. He sold the first edition in 2000 and also told me he discovered how bad OJ was from my OJ quotations there. Before that, as a typical Ft. Wayne student, he thought OJ was fine. However, like many, he assumed OJ meant the Atonement - another deception by the OJists.

I challenged Heiser when he aligned with the Rolf Preus Synod and pretended nothing was wrong. He said, "We will get rid of Rolf later." I told him he would have to deal with Justification eventually, and that happened only with the prospect of Rydecki's congregation and property joining ELDONA and Kneprath's group also joining.

I gave up on Heiser when he decided to link up with the Rolf Synod, but I was encouraged when he was motivated to teach the Chief Article, even if a decade later. They did get rid of Rolf, as planned, but the rest of the tiny group ran back to the Little Sect on the Prairie, sobbing on Pope John the Malefactor's shoulder, hoping the terms of reconciliation would not be too harsh (Krauth reference). Rolf was not alone in his OJ fanaticism. His group agreed with him completely.

Rydecki conveniently skips the fact that he and I were in contact about Justification by Faith. Through a WELS friend, I put him in contact with the Latin works of Hunnius, which he translated.

 Most ELDONUTs are from Concordia Seminary, Ft. Wayne.
That may explain their attitudes and poor education.

Unfortunately, the OJ seminaries of WELS-LCMS-ELS teach their students to play political games and venerate their immaculate sect. OJ is the fuel that energizes deception - a habit that is hard to break.

How does one leave the greatest seminary ever - Bethany or Mordor or the Concordias - and not know what the Chief Article is? Please someone explain that to me.

 Fuller Seminary alumnus, Mordor President, destroyer of congregations.