Someone wanted "his book" - which he did not write - published for the glory of...(deep, dark secret). And yet they knew that they were covertly glorifying a serial adulterer. "Nothing to see here, move on. You better not say a word anywhere, got that?"
How many lies and secrets are locked up forever in the CFW Walther Museum of Syphilis and Adultery? The glorification of Dr. Walther (ahem) continues to this day. Lutherans are supposed to be above and beyond but the truth is too obvious now, and the final generation is fading away fast.
Rauschenbusch and the Social Gospel
The pivotal figure was Walter Rauschenbusch, and the slogan was "The Social Gospel." A few people got together and promoted a form of socialism that spread over the years. Yale Divinity School was rationalistic already before World War 1. The fermentation grew slowly.
The mainline denominations were Calvinistic, liberal Baptist, and many flavors of Methodism. They wanted to use the church bodies to "make the world a better place," so the denominations had to be activist at all levels. The Social Gospel became the Gospel, so various tags were used to signal the actual goal of denominational politics.
Seminex struck me as a hilarious label from the start, as if they wanted to buy a potent spray from the hardware store or pharmacy. The participants are proud and always work together to keep the magic alive. That is why Matt the Fatt is so close to ELCA.
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| "Reconciling Works" is not what you think. |
