Dr. Walter A. Maier, PhD in Semitics, not a DMin in coffee bars -
The keystone and the cornerstone of Protestantism are Justification by Faith in Christ together with its twin truth, the inerrancy of the Scriptures.
"Neglect one or both and the whole structure will fall."
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I reversed one Maier sentence to emphasize the soundness of the structure and construction materials, tragically lacking in the tofu buildings of China - video in the post below.
Look at a similar example in America -
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One of the plain-spoken commentators said the site for the Leaning Tower of Frisco was questionable from the start, with soft mud and sewage as the foundation. The same company not allowed to build nearby was given the chance to build Millennial Tower - a very tall, deluxe building - without going down to bedrock to support the structure.
The parallel to WELS-LCMS-ELS-ELCA is clear.
Their common foundation is not the cornerstone - Biblical inerrancy. What ELCA openly rejects is slyly insinuated in all the WELS-LCMS-ELS work - the hopeless NIV, the runner-up ESV, and sometimes a nod in using the closeted NKJV (which honors the Nestle Aland anti-Majority Text snip and clip of the New Testament).
Justification by Faith is the keystone of Christianity - rejected and derided equally by Roman Catholicism, ELCA, WELS, LCMS, and the ELS. ELCA is not so fanatically nasty as its Thrivent ministry partners are, because their Mistress of the Dark is completely indifferent, lodged in the utterly dark ELCA headquarters.
Luther argued with some force that denying Justification by Faith is the equivalent of promoting justification by works, clearly the position of Rome and glaringly obvious in the mini-ELCAs. The beauty of the LCMS-WELS-ELS position is their ability to make their beloved Objective Justification the Chief Article of Christianity! And then - to make matters worse - the LCMS-WELS official doctrine began as Justification by Faith. The poorly educated CFW Walther, who trained Pieper to be as dumb but more sly, inserted Bishop Stephan (STD) into the mix, but really did not win until 1932.
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Pastor Pepperpot repeats his points, pouting and extending the Left Foot of Fellowship when told he is completely wrong. He reads his cue cards sitting at a desk below an enormous collection of unread theology books.  |
