Abusive Clergy in WELS - Includes the Clergy, DPs, and Synod President

Tim Glende and James Skorzewski no longer post their photos with Katy Perry
on their Facebook pages. That must have been such a thrill
for these overgrown teens.

https://vdma.wordpress.com/tag/james-skorzewski/

Two WELS Pastors and Four Meritless Lawsuits

June 11, 2014

Recently, two WELS Pastors, Tim Glende and James Skorzewski, and two of their staff members filed four almost identical lawsuits against a WELS layman, Jonathan Donnan, a former member of their congregation.  Specifically, they asked a secular court to issue four restraining orders, ordering Jonathan Donnan to stop “harassing” them.

In the courthouse lobby before the first case was heard, a local attorney who handles a lot of cases in that court (and who had absolutely no connection to this case) looked at the court’s calender, and said, “When you see four restraining order petitions against one person, then usually that person did something extremely bad, or it’s a bunch of bullies ganging up on someone.”  Jonathan’s wife, Mara, who was sitting nearby, piped up and said, “It’s the second one.  It’s a bunch of bullies ganging up on someone.”

History

According to Jonathan Donnan’s wife, Mara, Pastor Skorzewski said numerous sexually inappropriate things to her over the course of months, and on at least one occasion, Pastor Glende also joined in with this disgusting behavior.  (At the time, Mara was a member of The CORE, a WELS church, and also Pastor Skorzewski’s executive assistant).

After a long ordeal involving the Circuit Pastor, District President, and even the Synod President, Pastor Skorzewski finally resigned.  However, Skorzewski almost immediately requested CRM status.  (CRM means that a man is deemed to be blameless, above reproach, and qualified to receive a call as a pastor).

Jonathan did not think the man who behaved so inappropriately toward his wife should become a pastor again, and he thought the WELS pastors from the district who would be asked to comment on Skorzewski’s CRM status should have more information.  So he wrote a letter to the pastors of the Northern Wisconsin District giving them information about Pastors Skorzewski’s and Glende’s behavior toward his wife.  This letter was signed by Jonathan, his wife Mara, and also concerned WELS pastors Lidtke and Suhr.

Having received comments regarding Skorzewski’s potential CRM status from other WELS pastors, District President Engelbrecht then also sought comments specifically from the membership of St. Peter & The CORE, which had been Skorzewski’s congregation before he resigned.  To this end, an informational meeting was scheduled at The CORE for August 13, 2013.

At the beginning of the meeting, Pastor Glende said the purpose of the meeting was so that the congregation could seek direction and make decisions about the ministry “specifically on this campus,” The CORE.  During this meeting, District President Engelbrecht summarized Skorzewski’s behavior and the Donnan’s reaction and the steps the District took to rehabilitate Skorzewski, he solicited questions, and then he gave the members of St. Peter & The CORE thirty days to submit comments to the district leadership regarding Skorzewski’s proposed CRM status.  During this meeting, District President Engelbrecht also said that he was an ardent supporter of Skorzewski and his ministry.

Jonathan Donnan showed up at this meeting because he wanted to protect his wife’s reputation and honor.  After DP Engelbrecht’s summary, Jonathan believed that DP Engelbrecht had portrayed Pastor Skorzewski’s behavior in the best possible light, while portraying his wife’s reaction in the worst possible light.  Therefore, Jonathan sat through much of the Q&A section with his hand raised waiting to be called upon.  Finally, Pastor Glende said that he would allow Jonathan to speak; however, he first informed the congregation that Jonathan was not invited to the meeting, had no legal right to be there, and that if Jonathan started attacking people, then he would be asked to leave.

Jonathan said that was a rude way to call upon him.  The entire exchange then quickly devolved into whether Jonathan had a right to be there because he was not a member of St. Peter & The CORE.  Jonathan believed that as a Christian husband he had a duty to try to defend his wife, and that St. Peter & The CORE’s constitution and bylaws could not overrule his moral obligations.  After a short period of time, Jonathan left the meeting, but announced that he was there to defend his wife, and would be outside to speak with anyone who wanted to hear the whole truth.

While Jonathan was outside, he could hear laughter and applause inside as the meeting continued without him.  While Jonathan was outside, he also received a lecture about forgiveness and about how he did not understand forgiveness.

A few days later, Pastors Glende and Skorzewski and two church staff members filed four almost identical lawsuits against Jonathan Donnan.  They asked the Outagamie County Family Court to issue four restraining orders telling Jonathan to not write any more letters to WELS pastors about Glende or Skorzewski, to not show up at any future meetings at St. Peter & The CORE where they would be discussing personnel issues, and to have no further contact with St. Peter & The CORE or its staff.

Pastor Glende’s case was heard first.  Pastor Glende spent about two hours presenting his case.  He himself testified extensively along with two laymen from his church.

Legal Issues

In order for a behavior to be harassment, it has to serve no legitimate purpose.  Does writing a letter to the men (WELS pastors) who would help decide Skorzewski’s CRM status serve no legitimate purpose?  And does showing up at a congregational meeting where they are discussing how your wife was treated, and where the District President is seeking comments and advice about whether that pastor should get CRM status, does that serve no legitimate purpose?

Is that inappropriate behavior?  Or could those be the behaviors of a man trying to protect and defend his wife?

The allegations Mara made against Skorzewski were not false.  A false allegation would serve no legitimate purpose, but a truthful allegation does.  If certain WELS pastors and a certain WELS congregation are going to be specifically asked to provide comments about whether Skorzewski should serve as a pastor again, is it legitimate that they should also hear from the victim or her representative?

The August 30 Court Hearing

Under oath, Pastor Glende testified that Jonathan’s behavior served no legitimate purpose because it hindered the ministry of St. Peter & The CORE, and it was just an attack.  (Court transcript, page 40).  According to Pastor Glende, Jonathan’s behavior served no legitimate purpose because the decision about whether Skorzewski would serve as a pastor was made back in January and April.  Pastor Glende stated this numerous times throughout his testimony.  Below is just one example.

Under oath, Pastor Glende said that Jonathan’s “behavior was disruptive in our congregation in a meeting.  It is — it attacks me personally.”  Attorney Maurer then asked Glende: “What’s wrong with that, pastor?  What’s wrong with a person attacking on how you handled the situation of allegations of sexual harassment by one of your pastors?  What’s wrong with that?”  To which Pastor Glende responded: “A group of my peers have said it’s been dealt with, addressed, move on.”  (Court transcript, page 39).

In summarizing all of the evidence presented by Pastor Glende, Pastor Glende’s attorney said:

There are statements that have been provided as evidence that … show that Mr. Donnan is not going to let this issue die.  He believes his purpose is to see this through.  The issue has absolutely been resolved, and for some reason Mr. Donnan refuses to come to grips with that.  So his conduct in sending the letters, continuing to contact people, showing up at the church and refusing to leave, clearly, in my opinion, falls within, engages in a course of conduct that has no legitimate purpose …

— Court Transcript, page 75.

Was the issue of Skorzewski’s CRM status absolutely resolved?  No.  This court hearing took place during the 30 day comment period in which members of St. Peter & The CORE were being asked to advise the District about Skorzewski’s CRM status.  And only a few months later, the District granted Skorzewski CRM status, he immediately received a call, and has already been installed as a WELS pastor in Texas.

Attorney Maurer tried to get Pastor Glende to admit that the August 13 meeting was about potentially reinstating Skorzewski to the pastoral office.  Attorney Maurer questioning Pastor Glende:

Q:   Okay, you testified earlier that the issue in the past had been resolved back in January, correct?

A:   There was an initial decision reached on it in January.

Q:   He resigned in April?

A:   Correct.

Q:   And you’re stating that the August 13, 2013 meeting had nothing to do with that whatsoever, with his disposition going forward with the church, correct?

A:   Pastor Ski resigned and is not currently a pastor.  He doesn’t have status to be a pastor.  The church has nothing to do with him going forward as a pastor.

Q:   That’s not entirely true, is it?  Isn’t it a fact that part of the purpose of this meeting was some specific members of the congregation wanted to reinstate the pastor to his previous position, correct?

A:   That’s not true.

Q:   If I have people come in and testify that there were people at that meeting that were petitioning the church to reinstate the pastor, that’s not the truth, they’re lying?

A:   Were there people there that their opinion was that the pastor should be reinstated?  Yes.

Q:   Were there people at the meeting that said that?

A:   There could have been people in the meeting that said that.  The purpose of the meeting; however, was not to reinstate him.

Q:   The purpose of the meeting was as it related to Jonathan’s wife, correct?

A:   To share information regarding the case.

Q:   So why would you think it’s inappropriate for the husband of the alleged victim to be present at the meeting to hear this?

A:   Mr. Donnan has heard all that information before, and from my knowledge, it was a meeting for the members of our congregation, which he is not one of.

Q:   Why didn’t you simply tell him to leave in the beginning?  Instead you gave him the opportunity to speak.

A:   I didn’t see him there at the beginning, I was up in the front.  I had not had a chance to do anything about it and I didn’t want to cause a scene to ask him to leave.  For two hours of the meeting Jonathan sat there.  From my position he looked agitated and upset when different things were said, which, as I have always said, Jonathan is entitled to his opinion in regards to this case.

Q:   Wouldn’t you be upset if you believed your wife was the victim of sexual harassment by a pastor and they were discussing that at a meeting?  Do you think that’s unreasonable?

A:   I guess I don’t know how to answer that question.

— Court Transcript, pages 35-37.

Attorney Maurer further questioning Pastor Glende:

Q:   Do you believe there was any merit to the allegations against the pastor?

A:   Do I believe it was sexual harassment?

Q:   Do you believe there was any merit to any of the allegations, factual allegations, alleged against the pastor?

A:   The pastor resigned.

Q:   That’s not an answer to my question.  Do you believe there was any factual basis for the allegations of harassment made by Jonathan’s wife towards the pastor?

A:   We have said, declared publicly, that lapses in judgment happened.

Q:   I’m just — yes or no, you personally?

ATTORNEY GILL:  Objection to the relevance, your Honor.

ATTORNEY MAURER:  It’s part of a harassment injunction, conduct that does not serve a legitimate purpose.  Making up allegations of harassment just to attack these people, then that doesn’t serve a legitimate purpose.

ATTORNEY GILL:  Your Honor, the continued behavior has no legitimate purpose.

THE COURT:  The objection is overruled, he can answer.

WITNESS [Pastor Glende]:  Can you repeat the question?

Q:   I’m asking you if you personally believe there was any merit to the factual allegations of harassment raised by Jonathan’s wife against the pastor?

A:   Are you asking me if there were —

Q:   Just yes or no.

A:   You’re asking me a yes or no to — I can’t agree with -­-

Q:   So you don’t believe there was any merit to the factual allegations of harassment?

ATTORNEY GILL:  I’m going to object.  There were eight or nine allegations, your Honor.

ATTORNEY MAURER:  I’m asking about any of them.

ATTORNEY GILL:  What specific allegations are we talking about, your Honor?

THE COURT:  Overruled, he can answer.

[Attorney Maurer questioning Pastor Glende]:

Q:   To any of them in general.  Yes?

A:   Sure, yes.

Q:   Okay, so would you personally condone that type of conduct by one of your pastors?

A:   No.

Q:   Okay, so you believe that there were indiscretions by the pastor directly towards Jonathan’s wife that occurred by the pastor, correct?

A:   Yes, which were addressed.  And then once he resigned, it was over because he is no longer a pastor.  That happened in the middle of April.

Q:   Okay, but again, the August 13 meeting was to address possibly the allegations that had happened in the past?

A:   It was to share the summary of everything that had gone on from the end of October, November to that point.

Q:   What precipitated that meeting?

A:   Because of the letter that Jonathan and Mara sent out.  Our district president said it was appropriate, at this time, to set it out.  Until that point, we had not shared publicly with anyone in our congregation that this involved Jonathan or Mara.

Q:   Your superiors told you, let’s have a meeting with the congregation on this to let everyone know what happened, and it’s your position you didn’t want him and his wife to be there?

A:   He wasn’t a member, he was an uninvited guest.

Q:   Okay.

A:   Wanted or not wanted, I wouldn’t have thought of inviting him, he wasn’t a member.

— Court Transcript, pages 40-43.

Also at issue during the hearing was whether the August 13 meeting at The CORE was about how Pastor Skorzewski treated Jonathan’s wife, and Pastor Glende admitted that was true.

After Pastor Glende finished presenting all his evidence, and before the defense called a single witness, the court ruled on the case.  The standard the court used was this:  It put the best construction on everything Pastor Glende and his witnesses said, it considered Pastor Glende’s case in the kindest possible light, and gave Pastor Glende the benefit of the doubt on everything.  Nonetheless, the court ruled that Pastor Glende’s case had no merit, and dismissed his case.

Pastor Glende’s case was dismissed even before the defense called a single witness or presented any evidence.  Glende had nothing.

Aftermath

Immediately after the court dismissed Pastor Glende’s case, Attorney Maurer suggested that Skorzewski and the two church staffers should voluntarily dismiss their own virtually identical cases.  (Because Pastor Glende’s case took so long, the other three cases were rescheduled to a later date).  However, Skorzewski and the two church staffers refused to dismiss their cases, and instead attempted to negotiate a settlement out of court.

However, Jonathan refused to give up any of his legal rights in return for them agreeing to dismiss their cases.  In response, Skorzewski and the two staffers waited until the very last hour to dismiss their cases, thereby forcing the Donnans to endure the maximum amount of stress, and to pay the maximum amount in legal (attorney) fees.

Soon after, the Northern Wisconsin District denied Skorzewski CRM status, but made no announcement.  In congregational meetings at both St. Peter & The CORE, Skorzewski then advised the congregation that they should move on without him.  (“Around the Council Table,” November 2013 church newsletter).  The November 2013 church newsletter also had a special section entitled: “MOVING FORWARD AT THE CORE” which stated:

The announcement has been made that Ski will not be returning to that position [pastor at The CORE].  Although he applied for it, his reinstatement to the pastoral office was not granted at this point.  In a special meeting at The CORE, Ski expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to serve in our midst, but encouraged all in attendance to move forward.  That is the intent of our leadership on both campuses.  We will continue to pray for Ski, his family, and his reinstatement.

Shortly after that, Skorzewski applied for CRM status a second time.  This time, the Northern Wisconsin District granted Skorzewski CRM status (under the condition that he not be a pastor in the Northern Wisconsin District), and almost immediately Skorzewski received a call to serve as a WELS pastor in Texas.  St. Peter & The CORE then announced in their church newsletter that they were holding a farewell party for Pastor Skorzewski to wish him God’s blessings as he prepared to leave for his new call.

So a WELS pastor resigned, for cause, because of sin, but before he left for his new call at another congregation, his former congregation threw him a farewell party.

On Sunday, April 27, 2014, Skorzewski was installed as pastor at Christ the Rock (a WELS) church in Texas, and Pastor Glende preached at Skorzewski’s installation service.  (Vimeo 93511608).  At 28:20 in the sermon, Pastor Glende said that Skorzewski was his best friend, and that he wished he could work with Skorzewski forever, but God had a different plan: to bring him to Texas.  At about 28 minutes into the sermon, Pastor Glende said, “I’m sure down the road or in the course of time, you’ll hear a great deal about what it is that God used to bring him here.  It’s an amazing story.”

Zank was the VP who approved Ski's CRM status,
allowing Ski to get a call before anyone knew about it.
Therefore, the district voted to elect Zank as the new District President.

---

Jane's Story: WELS Sexual Harassment

Written by "Jane"

When I accepted the Executive Assistant position at a contemporary WELS church, there were many things I expected, but sexual harassment was not one of them. In addition to the harassment, I witnessed my supervisor and "spiritual leader" demean other women (including members of the church), drink on the job, plagiarize sermons and act in the very manner you would not expect from a "called servant of The Lord".

I almost immediately observed the pastor's casualness, lack of boundaries, and what I perceived as downright laziness at times. His standards and expectations for my position as the assistant seemed to exceed his own standards as the pastor. 

Shortly after starting my position, I received a text message sometime after midnight from my supervisor telling me I should have sex with my husband. We never requested counseling or advice in this realm so his inappropriateness was rather strange at best to us. We strived to take words and actions in the best possible way. I was subjected to many routine "lapses in judgement" by my spiritual leader. Including an incident of him showing me a video that depicted nude male genitals while alone in his office.Is there ever a correct context for a supervisor to show anything like this to his married employee? (I will discuss this more at another time).

As he pushed the boundaries and inappropriateness, my conscience began to nag at me. Through even the darkest days, I allowed myself to believe that these behaviors were normal. Yet I began to feel torn between my loyalty to the church and the moral issues at hand.

I spent many nights awake and hovered over my bible in tears. There was something very wrong about what was going on at that church. I've seen it all first hand and, yet, felt obligated to keep it all a secret. It was the kind of secret that absolutely tormented me, but I thought I was doing the right thing at the time (just another lie we are led to believe as victims).

After months of utter frustration the hostile work environment began to take a toll on me and my husband. I prayerfully considered if perhaps this was an unhealthy situation for me to be in. So I gave my notice and was told to tell members of the congregation that I "wasn't a good fit" when I left my position. It was unbearable to work with a man that continued to ignore, scream, belittle, degrade and humiliate me. I left this job feeling worthless and far less confident than when I started (which was previously at a Fortune 100 company).

I suffered in silence while working at that church. I fell into a deep darkness from all that I experienced and witnessed there and its leadership. Shortly after I left the position my depression began to spiral. We maintained membership at this "relevant" church because of the relationships that we had formed with other Christians and did not want to neglect our spiritual life. The final straw was when an assault rifle was used as a sermon prop.

We decided it was best to seek the counsel of a trusted pastor since the leadership at this church either outright condoned or failed to supervise its employees and their behavior. We were convicted to resolve all this in a Christ centered way. Our hope was to see positive changes and healing for all. 

How many times does a synod president attend a
congregational meeting to cut a deal with the district president?
Mark Schroeder did, and Ski got another call.

My husband and I have continued to fight an endless battle for justice in the synod and to see that this doesn't happen to someone else. We've patiently been in contact with top synod leaders. We've encountered roadblocks, never ending circles and have witnessed inconsistencies throughout the disciplinary processes within the synod. By the Grace of God, we've encountered wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ to share in our burden. Unfortunately, we've also encountered timid leaders and those hesitant to publicly speak for the truth. People seem to selectively choose which commandments and passages to throw at you while ignoring others.

The journey has been incredibly lonely and frustrating since we were asked to remain silent and be patient. We are exhausted and completely astonished that after everything was brought into the light this man continues to be a pastor and counsel members. We will continue to persevere with others until positive changes are made in this synod so that all victims of abuse are protected rather than the perpetrators.

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, (‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭3‬ ESV)

The abusive pastor protected at all cost by WELS
and supported by the clergy?
I have seen it before.

Maynard G. Krebs Gardening Buying Seeds - There Is Still Time

On the Dobie Gillis Show - "Work?!"

Today a  reader asked about seeds. Did I use seed tape?

My approach to gardening is to avoid as much work as possible, especially when the work is completely unnecessary or unproductive.

Soil should not be moved around unless necessary. The colonies of soil creatures, from fungi to earthworms, do better when their established networks are kept mostly intact.

We began spring preparations by laying down Jackson Mulch wherever planting areas were anticipated. Newspaper kept arriving, so I kept buying shredded wood mulch.

To plant edible pod peas, we pulled back the mulch a bit, threw in loose peas, and covered the area with some mushroom compost - sanitized horse manure, really like rich soil. Some of you city-slickers will never make it in gardening, with those wrinkled noses.

We pushed some mulch back a bit and turned on the soaker hose aqueduct along the fence top. That took all of 10 minutes, to plant two fat packages of pea seeds. I ordered more and will run them back to where the fence turns a corner, about 80 feet of free supports for pea vines.

Seed tapes are expensive and not needed, unless we want plants to grow up like soldiers on a parade field. Instead, wide rows are better for more production and suppression of weeds. If the soil is disturbed weeds can grow, but the weeds will not grow where productive plants shadow the soil.

As Ruth Stout observed, some weeds grow on top of mulch or grow through mulch. Those weeds can be pulled and placed on top of the mulch. They have the nitrogen and moisture content that help the soil. Plants mine minerals and move them around when composting and mulching.

When seeds pop up through mulch, they have instant protection against weather extremes, wind and rain erosion. The mulch feeds the microbes that make soil fertile, while favoring earthworms, the apex of soil generation. Worm food equals worm casts (poop), and worm casts mean the best soil. Mulch is worm food.

We already have our fertilizer (Jackson Mulch) in place, and birds rummaging through the mulch will prey upon the insects and grubs that damage crops.

The difference with a new rose garden is that we will plant the roses in the lawn, then surround the plants with Jackson Mulch, turning the lawn into instant compost. So much less work! My parents would look at my short-cuts, and say "You are so lazy!" When I carried 100 pounds of shortening down the basement stairs at the bakery, instead of 50 pounds, that was so-o-o-o lazy. It saved trips.

My grandfather invented things, so I look at gardening as a way to save labor, which all inventions do. I made tons of compost in piles and wheelbarrowd them around the yard. Like Edison before the light bulb, trimming lamp wicks, I said, "There has to be a better way."

I like having a compost pile, because they is the convenient deposit place for all kinds of rotting organic matter. We had a whole layer of banana peels and coffee grounds on top, then our helper added a layer of leaves to make room for the peas. The sycamore leaves refused to rot, so they piled up in the corner of the fence. Maple leaves are far more cooperative, staying in place and added to the Jackson Mulch.

So someone can generate tons of mulch without hauling it up and down, around the yard on soft soil, in a weak, cheap wheelbarrow. Of course, the big construction wheelbarrows haul more and create even more work per foot. Spring soil is not the best pathway for moviing materials.

Scarlet runner beans are relatively rare and hard to find late in the spring.
Hummingbirds love their flowers.

Buying Seeds
Drugstores and hardware stores are not the best places to buy seed. I will get tomato plants at Walmart and Lowe's. Tomatoes are weed-like, ready to grow and fruit in the bright sun. I took some half-dead leftovers from Walmart, late in the season, and grew some grew tomatoes, even though they were growing in the crabgrass of the sunny garden (no newspaper under the mulch).

Bargain seeds, leftover seeds - no problem. That is late in the season. It is fun to experiment with inexpensive seed.

I have some definite plans for seed in the garden, so I buy from Burpee's website. They have a great system for ordering in each category.

If I cannot find an odd seed, like Scarlet Runner beans, I look it up on Amazon. They have the unusual items that the big companies no longer carry.

When I buy praying mantis egg cases, I will get them from Amazon, the only place I have found them this year. By that I mean they are not in the big seed catalogs, where I used to find them...and scarlet runner beans.

By sticking to one company overall, I get emails about specials and sales. That works well for roses, too.

I never regret buying too much seed, because someone can use the seed. Kids love to try gardening. I could have used more pea seeds, so I ordered a big packet in addition. Someone else will grow them. Mr. Gardener will probably be buying seed, so we can do some swapping.

Peas will be growing when asparagus roots arrive. We will just plant them along the fence, giving up a few pea plants in the process. The pea roots will help feed the asparagus.

Keep your grandkids out of trouble - teach them gardening skills.

WELS, Missouri, and the Little Sect Model the Left Wing - Political Agenda Disguised as Education

Mark Jeske makes at least $170,000 to serve on the Thrivent Board,
so he can fund his favorite Left-wing cause, himself.

Unless you are blind or blind-drunk, you have realized that the entire public education system is designed to promote the agenda of the extreme Left.

Wherever you turn, the educational courses are not much different from life in Mao's China. Medical education is pro-abortion.

Social work is pro-abortion.

Charities like United Way are pro-abortion.

Universities are pro-abortion.

ObamaCare funds abortion.

Long before ObamaCare, ELCA's health insurance paid for abortion on demand - for their clergy, bishops, professors, and teachers. WELS and Missouri said - "No problem. We can work together."

Race for the Cure funds Planned Parenthood.

Every time you wipe cake crumbs off your mouth with "free" Thrivent napkins, you are endorsing and promoting the pro-abortion agenda of that insurance business. They fund Planned Parenthood too.

Look at any other issue and the Left's position on it - you will find that all educational courses in all aspects of America are slanted toward one viewpoint alone, condemning anything else.

The latest super-educational approach, successful beyond all hope, is diversity training - well, selective diversity training. It has nothing to do with race, gender, or the disabled. It is all about enforcing a quota system that serves the Left, funds the Left, leverages the Left.

WELS and Missouri, and their pipsqueak relations have done the same thing.

Everything is apostasy education. Borrow $80,000 to attend a synodical college - to learn classical Lutheran doctrine and academic content? Oh no. To learn how to glide along the apostate death spiral and profit from it.

Borrow $100,000 for an LCMS seminary degree. Ditto. Learn how to become anti-Lutheran, anti-Christian, in love with Fuller or the Church of Rome. For the weak, Eastern Orthodoxy is an alternative.

Find out how to make fun of the English version of Luther's Bible - the KJV - and promote various Calvinistic, feminist, demonic paraphrases.

Quit whining and give up on the established synods. It is all over.

Jon Buchholz bailed on the Jeske fund-raiser, then endorsed it.

Who Spoke on "Evangelism" (Church and Change) Day at Martin Luther College

Cheerleader tryouts for Martin Luther College will be held at the Joel Hochmuth Early Learning Center in March. 

Puh-leeze shave your legs first.

I had two great scoops for MLC "Evangelism" Day. The first time they listed all the Church and Changers who would appear.

The second time the list was leaked by someone and I posted them - Church and Changers again.

Should expect anything different this year?

If Glende and Buchholz can cripple their congregations with debt and skip town,
with both of them hailed as teachers in WELS,
why can't Ski do whatever he wants too?

Suspended Blogs Moved Down the List on the Left Margin

I did not want to get rid of suspended blogs that have a lot of good material on them, so I made up a separate list, alphabetical, and moved it down the line on the left. Thus I have active blogs in the upper left and suspended ones lower down.

The active blogs that I enjoy reading are back at the top. I find the list convenient for my morning reading, and I enjoy staying at the top by posting often.

"You stupid mule. I am going to beat your ascii."

WELS killed off Issues in WELS and chased away the writers for Bailing Water, three of them, as I recall. DPs like John Seifert organized death squads to get everyone off the list at the Intrepid Lutherans blog.

In contrast, anything related to Church and Change, the Jeske Mob, or Fuller Seminary is rewarded, promoted, funded, and praised by the "orthodox, confessional Lutheran" sect called WELS. Good think y'all voted for Mark Schroeder, to clean up the messes caused by Mischke and Gurgle. He is running again, on the Church and Change ticket, because they lub, lub, lub him.

John Lawrenz and Steve Witte - Church and Change founders,
now Asian seminary pest-presidents.
John was howling about everything had to change
when Mark Jeske was still on a trike.

Lawrenz, like John Brug, has an Old Testament PhD but neither one has a grasp of the efficacy of the Word taught so clearly in the Old Testament.

Creation took place through the Word, and Isaiah 55 teaches how everything happens through the Holy Spirit through the Word.

Witte has a drive-by DMin from Gordon Conwell, a joke upon a joke. Both of them have changed WELS for the worse, and they are proud of it.

WELS - "We are not Suthern Babtists.
They HATE the NIV.
We lub it."

Birds and Squirrels Love Cracked Corn - Hydroscopic Water

I bought cracked corn at the hardware store, a better buy than a bag of field corn ears. All the birds and the squirrels love cracked corn. I saw cardinals and blue jays on the ground for corn, so I decided to get that instead of sunflower seeds.

This time I added food to the wheelbarrow, as well as the filing cabinet folly and the ground near the trees.

The energy of the sun and the wealth of the soil
are given back to God's creatures in the yard.

I am not up with the birds. I am up before the birds. They seem to take their time to warm up and get breakfast. We had a light frost, and that may affect their need to eat. Why not stay warm in bed until the sun is really up?

I was grading essays before this. At 8:30 AM I am posting and drinking fresh coffee. I open the window to hear the birds burbling as they enjoy their food. The starlings are hanging from the suet and eating most of the day. Nothing lasts so long as suet in a mesh bag.

I looked out to see a chickadee grab a sunflower seed from the bird feeder. Doves and the squirrel are eating the cracked corn. The cold weather includes groups of male cardinals eating together. Later they will woo a mate and pair off for nests and territories. Then the male cardinals will get very jealous of the males they see in reflections here and there.

Blue jays eat from bird feeders on a pole, but they are happy to eat corn from the ground, too.

Later Today - Extending the Soaker Aqueduct
All my soaker hoses on the dead tree were damaged on the end, so I bought an extension for the aqueduct on the fence.

I will run the next 50 feet of soaker hose on the ground, to water the sunflower seeds I just planted and the Butterfly Bushes waiting to break dormancy. Watering settles the soil around newly planted seed and increases the rate of decomposition for the mulch.

I have never found dry mulch on top of the soil. It must be the way mulch captures and holds the moisture bound up in the soil. Each soil particle has a film of hydroscopic water around it. Only baking the soil will make the water go away. That adds up to a lot of water, and a good reason the soil creatures can thrive in an ocean of "dry" ingredients like sand and clay. The soil particles are not dry at all but coated to provide channels for transportation and food. Bacteria and slugs travel on slime, so that water matters especially to them. Humus, soil creatures, and earthworm casts also contribute to soil moisture.

Over 60,000 kinds of protozoa are known and, contrary to any residual youthful hope you may have that they only live in pond water, a majority of them live in the soil; however, all do require moisture to lead an active life . 

Lewis, Wayne; Lowenfels, Jeff;  (2010-09-10). Teaming with Microbes: The Organic Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web, Revised Edition (Kindle Locations 1123-1125). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

Protozoa need moisture to live, travel, and reproduce, and hydroscopic water— that thin film of water left on the surfaces of soil particles and aggregates— provides it, under normal soil conditions. If things dry up, however, most protozoa stop feeding and dividing and go dormant, encasing themselves in a cyst.


Lewis, Wayne; Lowenfels, Jeff; (2010-09-10). Teaming with Microbes: The Organic Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web, Revised Edition (Kindle Locations 1169-1171). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

As I mentioned before, a few days of sun and wind dried out a row of newspapers and sent them flying around the yard. We used wood mulch to pin them down again, since the backyard leaves abandoned their post and frolicked in the wind. Where the leaves are wet and packed, a bit slimy, they weigh down newspapers and promote soil creature population growth.

Newspapers are thin sponges that hold and give up moisture easily; the newspapers breathe and do not promote bad decay in the soil. That is why plastic "weed barriers" are terrible and never work well. Weeds pop through them and get tangled up in the mess.

Hydroscopic water is a thinner film of water, only a few molecules thick, which, like capillary water, is attached to extremely small soil particles by virtue of electrical properties . This film is so thin that the bonds between water molecules and soil particles are concentrated and extremely hard to break. 

Roots cannot absorb it, therefore, but this film of water is critical to the ability of many microbes to live and travel. Even when conditions are dry, the soil particulate surface holds some hydroscopic water; it is impossible to remove it from soil without applying lots of heat and actually boiling it off. Just about half the pore spaces in good soil are filled with water. The other half are filled with air. 

Water movement pushes stale air out and sucks in air from the surface, so adding water means an exchange of air occurs, which is important . If a healthy soil food web is in place, the metabolic activity of soil organisms uses the oxygen and creates carbon dioxide.

Lewis, Wayne;  Lowenfels, Jeff; (2010-09-10). Teaming with Microbes: The Organic Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web, Revised Edition (Kindle Locations 374-381). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

Therefore, if God had not designed soil to hold this film of water--or water to cling to soil particles-- most of the life in soil would suffer and die back, with plants suffering with them. Water obeys the conditions placed upon it at Creation, and those rules provide for the entire population of life, from the smallest microbes to man, the epitome of everything on earth.

WELS Documented Blog Records the Sect's Abusive and Hypocritical Behavior

WELS Synodicat demonstrates how to instill obedience and humility in pastors.

http://welsdocument.blogspot.com/2015/01/among-hidden-fear-of-speaking-out.html?showComment=1421991085104

Donald TilburyJanuary 22, 2015 at 11:31 PM

I spoke out once and I received a forced resignation during my vicar year. I would not marry a couple that my bishop asked me to marry. He asked me to lie and forge his signature on the marriage license (he was going on vacation the week of the wedding). The next thing I know I was accused of dividing the congregation, undermining his authority, not agreeing with church fathers, changing sermons in the pulpit, the list goes on.

After a year of emails, calls, and meeting, I was told that I did not possess the qualifications to serve in the pastoral ministry. I asked for specifics and i was told to consider 1 Timothy 3 and the Ten Commandments. I tried attending Bethany Lutheran Seminary but was not allowed to attend because the President of Bethany Lutheran Seminary did not receive a recommendation from WLS... I asked him he if had received any reasons as to why I was not suitable for the ministry. He told me the answer he received was "unknown reasons."
I even had MLC professors ask WLS professors as to why I was not allowed back. The answers they received, "they didn't know."
Which contradicts the emails I received which said the faculty discussed my future ability to attend WLS and said that I was not qualified.

If you ask i can forward the emails to anyone who wishes. My former classmates have not even talked to me since the incident. My former Pastor wouldn't even ask why I wasn't allowed back to continue my studies but told me to accept the answers from the seminary since they were far wiser men than he.

So I left the WELS. Yep, I'm was tired of getting the runaround for doing the right thing so I left. I'm much happier now, I will never trust another Pastor in my lifetime but that's me and my situation.

I have church services right here in my living room with my family and I pray that I can teach my daughter not only what Jesus has done for us but to have the courage to do the right thing when the situation comes.

---

AnonymousJanuary 22, 2015 at 11:41 AM

Or try asking your called worker wife to explain what is going on between her and the Pastor and see what happens. A called worker wife who was already caught cheating & lying threw her teeth about it twice. And one of those incidences resulted in a forced resignation from a previous call for cheating with a Pastor only because I had documented evidence. Suddenly, she claims to be the lifelong victim of abuse. And factor that her daddy works at synod headquarters and her brother is the principal at the church/school. And her brother straight faced told me when I was going to divorce her... "God hates divorce," "And he personally hates seeing broken homes on campus." And I was already pre-judged for being in violation of the 8th commandment by the CP for doing exactly what I am doing now. You want documentation? I have plenty. You want names? I would be more than willing to provide them.

***

GJ - These are but indications of the normal conduct of abusive WELS pastors. I could list many more, but people fear retaliation against their family members or complete abandonment by their families. WELS leaders have no trouble initiating whisper campaigns against anyone who crosses them. Because the clergy are so cowardly, they shrink back or even join with the Slander Machine managed by the Love Shack. It is so much fun to say, "I hear that..."

They do not like my signed articles and use guilt by association with anyone who employs more than a dozen brain cells at once. But what does the Synod President do? He has a "confidential conversation" and makes the other party swear never to reveal a word. What a convenient way to poison the well.

It goes back to CFW Walther, their hero. He blamed Martin Stephan's adultery on Mrs. Stephan. He broke with Loehe, perhaps because Loehe developed healthy strong leaders for America rather than pimping a bevy of young girls for a lusty, diseased bishop. The victors write the history, but Walther wanted no history written at all - ever wonder why?

If Anonymous Says Something Worthwhile, It Will Be the First Time - But...Sob...He Is Going! Bad Spelling and All

Anonymous is so wise, so wonderful -
why does he not share his name?

http://welsdocument.blogspot.com/2015/01/is-there-wels-sermon-clearinghouse.html

AnonymousJanuary 22, 2015 at 2:57 PM

I am tremendously disappointed in this blog site. I thought you would be sharing ideas and events in other WELS congregations. Instead, you are simply regurgitating the complaints and gripes that have been expressed on other sites. Some of those no longer exist. [GJ - And why is that, anon? Were they forced to shut down by threats from those who patiently use God's Word to cover up for felons, drunks, adulterers, and peculators?]

You are addressing the very same things that Greg Jackson puts on his site, Ichabod. I think of WELS Documented now as no different than his, except you don't have the goofy insane pictures. 

And then the resident WELS Romanizing pastor, Steve Spencer, who calls himself "Father," shows up on this site, too, like he has on all the others. I'm just waiting for you to deny universal objective justification. 

What you and others are doing is simple: you are impatient with the means God's Word gives us to resolve problems. You are impatient with the procedures we have established in the WELS to resolve issues. So you are trying to make an end run and deal with these matters on your own. Good-bye, so-long, auf Wiedershehen (sic), farewell.

They spell badly in English and German.
Can they be trusted with theology?
No!