Thursday, July 19, 2012

Shock and Scandal - Actually Reading Schmid


Here is some typical nastiness from Tim Glende, whose worship with gay activist Andy Stanley (a crypto-Babtist) is documented by his side-kick Ski:

On his blog www.thegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com, Rev. Gregory Jackson wants everyone to download a copy of Heinrich Schmid’s Doctrinal Theology of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Dr. Jackson promotes this volume as a faithful presentation of Biblical and Lutheran doctrine. But Schmid’s Doctrinal Theology is filled with errors, especially the errors of synergism and intuitu fidei, which were dealt with by confessional Lutherans in the 19th Century.

It has been said that those who don’t learn from the mistakes of history are bound to repeat them. Greg Jackson is too smart not to remember the obvious doctrinal errors of the past. But we still wonder about his intelligence when we view the pictures he posts on his site and the obvious lies and half-truths he continues to repeat.


I am glad he produced that post, because everyone should study the gap that exists between Lutheran doctrine and bigoted, ignorant, self-preening WELS dogma.

Note what his own cited version of Schmid says:


The title page also indicates the nature of the original work. It is not a dogmatic text so much as it is a compilation of theological statements drawn from the writings of fourteen prominent Lutheran theologians who lived during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. These quotations are employed to support and clarify the Christian faith after the pattern of presentation developed in the early Lutheran tradition.


In their own preface the translators point out that, “The aim of the compiler was of a purely historical character . . . not to afford a summary of absolutely final definitions of Lutheran Theology, but to exhibit the teaching that had been current up to the time of Rationalism.” Notwithstanding the present emphasis on “back to Luther,” the great systematizers who followed him will remain important. A frank recognition of their limitations does not weaken respect for their contribution. It is this respect, and the fact that so small a part of the voluminous writings of these theologians is available in English, which underlies the decision to reissue this volume.


I am trying to discover what crime has been committed in collecting Lutheran resources for people to use, posted on this blog or linked on one convenient page. That is quite a contrast with someone who preaches Groeschel, copies Stanley, and lies about it.

First of all, Tim's comments raise the issue of whether he has ever opened that book or studied it. The first page states that Schmid collected the quotations to be a library of statements from Lutheran theologians before the Age of Rationalism. There was no guarantee that all the statements harmonize. It is a collection, not a Book of Concord. The fact remains, there is nothing like it in publishing. Ever since Robert Preus died we have no one who is familiar with all the Lutheran orthodox writers and active in writing original works. Repristination Press has done a good job of providing everyone with books never before translated into English.

But so-called conservative Lutherans do not have another Robert Preus today because they have put their millions into creating C. Peter Wagner clones, Craig Groeschel copies, and Andy Stanley minions. The yield is impressive - like a field of ragweed blowing in the wind, scattering noxious seed in every direction. Weeds grow best in fertile soil, so these synod-supported false teachers have produced with promiscuous abundance.

Tim graduated from a unaccredited seminary famous for its empty library. Students party through their years there and tell the gullible how hard their "graduate school" is. Tim's citations are absurdly dishonest. Who said each statement? Why is that cut off? Perhaps Tim barely knows any of the authors cited. The section of the book is called "The Benevolence of God Toward Fallen Man." That sound really evil, doesn't it? Tim's quotations, probably provided by Uncle John Brug or someone else who has opened a book, are from Schmid's introductory remarks.

A genuine student of theology--not the pious fraud of Freedom, Wisconsin--would list his objections to the quotations in a serious review of the book. That would require some mental labor. His post is an example of poisoning the well, the knee-jerk reaction of the Wisconsin Sect when their false doctrine is exposed.

The idea is to make readers gasp, "Oh, Schmid. Ichabod has linked Schmid on his blog. He must be evil. Tim makes that very clear and he has an uncle who teaches at The Sausage Factory. Tim must know because He. Studied. Greek."

Five seconds later, no one remembers anything about Schmid but they are sure this blog must be evil because the evil Schmid has been linked in an evil way, to promote some kind of false doctrine. 

They do not know that Northwestern Publishing House has published Schmid's History of Pietism! I doubt whether Tim knows it, owns it, or cares to crack the binding.

Here is the link, out in the open, for Mequon graduates. They are rather slow at finding links embedded in the text. It's that little hand that apppears. Never mind. Here it is.


Will the odious translator be excommunicated? I actually know the NPH title list, which includes my own work. That translator - gasp - also provided us with Timotheus Verinus, the great orthodox Lutheran work written against the Pietists. I see a pattern here. Where is my Find him! Excommunicate him! rubber stamp? Ah yes, right at my fingertips.

Joe Krohn suggested this and sent the boot graphic to me.
Schmid's collection--so despised by Glenda--consists of quotations from the Book of Concord, Chemnitz, Gerhard, Baier (used by Walther), Calov (Bach's fave), Quenstedt (Robert Preus fave), Selnecker (Concordist), and a few others.

The book is arranged by doctrinal topic (locus). Schmid was a favorite among WELS and ALC pastors. I got my first copy from the Mequon book sale.


Recirculating the Lutheran Books

I have preserved over 3,000 quotations on Megatron, the legendary database,
but Ski and Glende have preserved the sermons and doctrine of Stanley and Groeschel.
Each according to his gifts.


Yesterday seemed good for hauling books to the post office. The temperature was over 100 when I carried them in.

It was great fun. One family is getting a Lutheran library, since I have Luther on the computer. I have many books that are valuable for the people who appreciate Lutheran doctrine, so I was able to share them. When I was done with the biggest box, for this family, I still had about five more books for a later shipment.

Many good Lutheran works are available for very little through Amazon and Alibris. I keep getting them here and there, including my own books. I just got a Schmid for reading in the car (not while driving). More on that later.

I developed a good collection on Walther and that history, so one researcher has those books.

One layman has copies of the English-only Triglotta coming to him.

There are books that only a few would appreciate and use. They went to another person, whose name I forgot.

I used to take empty boxes to the Trinity Seminary library sale in Columbus. I collected the best books before the apostates filed out of chapel. Later I was restricted to last in line, but I still got the best books. Who wants German Lutheran books? Not those yahoos. Mequon students were startled that I read German. My response was, "You don't? So how do you study theology?" The librarian at the time said, "My point exactly."

Everyone in WELS knew I had free books for the price of postage. Some visited the basement of the parsonage and picked out whatever they wanted. I received boxes of books from various donors and gave away about 30 boxes of books, including entire collections on certain topics: gardening, poetry, etc.

A library should circulate rather than be a mausoleum. As I told Patsy Leppien (What's Going On Among the Lutherans?) - "Writers read all the time, and readers end up writing." Patsy read all the time about how Lutherans fell apart. She wrote her book while I was writing Liberalism, Its Cause and Cure.

Opponents of sound doctrine make the study of theology fascinating. We should appreciate them, thank them, and pelt them with dog manure as we drive them out of town - following the Book of Concord, Luther at his best.

When picking up sermons for their homiletics class....


The American Spectator : Forked Tongue at the State Department.
Just Pretend It Never Happened - Works for Missouri, WELS, ELS, CLC (sic), LCR

The American Spectator : Forked Tongue at the State Department:


Demmink also is alleged to have raped several young boys while visiting Turkey. Two of these Turkish victims through their Dutch attorney, Adele van der Plas, have brought their charges to criminal court, but have been stymied by Demmink's allies. The boys are now left only with the option of seeking civil damages against their alleged rapist. Van de Plas said, "We cannot allow Demmink's offenses to be quietly hidden away. We must demand his public accountability in a court of law." Another of Demmink's male victims, a young Dutch citizen, has now stepped forward publicly to join the other accusers against Demmink for child molestation and rape.
For years, Demmink has enjoyed the protection of fellow bureaucrats and politicians. His reputation for abusing boys is known and has been reported by a number of Dutch media outlets, to no avail. It seems the Dutch power elite are determined to provide Demmink protection.


'via Blog this'

***

GJ - Darwin Schauer? The Pennsylvania case? Missouri does not remember.

Tabor? Just? Zerbe? Stolzenburg involved with LCMS, WELS and ELS? Nope.

Rev. Harrison - Tear Down That Idol!






Pastor emeritus Nathan Bickel has left a new comment on your post "Just Like Bishop Stephan, STD - The Founder of the...":



Ichabod -

It is inconceivable that C.F. Walther was not privy to what was going on. How could he not know of Stephan's grievous sins?

As Penn State is considering taking down Paterno's statue, perhaps, some statutes of the LCMS second founder need to be considered for dismantling as well......

Nathan M. Bickel

www.thechristianmessage.org
www.moralmatters.org


---

Pastor emeritus Nathan Bickel has left a new comment on your post "Rev. Harrison - Tear Down That Idol!":

Ichabod - You have outdone yourself!

What a magnificent photo of the whitened Walther! I wonder how many gallons of solution, it has taken (over the years) to maintain his pure appearance.

Do you know if visitors to this graven image are required to wash their feet in LCMS holy water before venturing in on this festal concrete and stone garden? And, who pays for all that holy water? Does LCMS receive an annual grant from Thrivent?

Nathan M. Bickel

www.thechristianmessage.org

www.moralmatters.org

---

bruce-church (http://bruce-church.myopenid.com/) has left a new comment on your post "Rev. Harrison - Tear Down That Idol!":

Stephan is similar to Joseph Smith, and Walther to Brigham Young. Smith is the scandalous founder of the LDS who moved that sect around the US, and the less scandalous Brigham Young moved the sect to Utah where it stayed, and spread out from there. The mega-scandalous Stephan founded the LCMS and brought it to America and SE Missouri. Then the less scandalous Walther moved it to St. Louis where it headquartered and spread out from there.

***

GJ - Your analogy limps. Dr. Church. Bringem' Young had 30+ wives, expanding upon the example of Joseph Smith, who had quite a few of his own. Young thought the day consisted of 8 hours of work, 8 hours of sleep, 8 hours of fun.

Phoenix has the densest population of Mormons outside of Salt Lake City. There were many plural marriages - perhaps 10,000 of them in the metropolis. I had some classes where most of the students were Mormons, and some where the entire class deeply resented the Mormon influence in local business.

I learned a lot.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Just Like Bishop Stephan, STD - The Founder of the Missiouri Synod - And His Mistress

Traveling together without benefit of marriage?
What do you think you are - Missouri Synod?


http://www.biblebelievers.com/SDA/SDA4.html


AN ACTUAL WITNESS
Mrs. Lucinda Bodge Burdick published the following in an 1874 issue of The World's Crisis. Mrs. Burdick had become well acquainted with Ellen Harmon and James White when the three of them stayed together several times in 1845 at the home of Josiah Little (Burdick's uncle) in South Windham, Maine:
"At the time of my first acquaintance with them (James White and Ellen Harmon) in early 1845 they were in a wild fanaticism, - used to sit on the floor instead of chairs, and creep around the floor like little children. They were NOT MARRIED BUT TRAVELING TOGETHER. Considerable scandal was created by the intimacy of this man and woman, but the "talk" gradually subsided after their marriage in 1846."

Stephan left his wife in Europe, but traveled and lived with his mistress
on that holy mission to bring his message to America.



Another Clue about WELS Dogma - Wauwatosa.
In Essence, Rejecting the Creeds and Luther - In Favor of Their Own Authority

August Pieper, Wauwatosan, UOJist,
split WELS and called the victims divisive.
That sounds familiar.


http://essentiallylutheran.blogspot.com/2007/01/wauwatosa-theology.html

With Forde as my main course and Capon for desert (sic), I like the writings of the Wauwatosa Theologians as vegetable side dishes. Not necessarily tasty or easy to chew, but highly nutritious.

They taught in the fledgling Wisconsin Synod seminary in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin in the early part of the 20th century (roughly 1900 - 1930). Their names were J.P. Koehler (pictured), August Pieper and John Schaller. Highly gifted, and perhaps a bit outspoken (Koehler was kicked out in 1929), their spirit and devotion to Scripture is now looked on as representing the golden age of the WELS.

What made them unique within conservative Lutheranism was their antipathy toward blind dogmatism based on the work of prior theologians (repristinating), openness to being taught by Scriptural authority and renewed emphasis on Biblical exegesis. In the words of Pieper:

“ … we submit to no man, be his name Luther or Walther, Chemnitz or Hoenecke, Gerhard or Stoeckhardt, so long as we have clear Scripture on our side. . . . We esteem the fathers highly, far higher than ourselves as far more learned and more devout than we are. Therefore, we want to use them, particularly Luther, as guides to Scripture, and to test their doctrines a hundred times before we reject them. But authorities equal to Scripture or opposed to Scripture they may never become for us, or we shall be practicing idolatry. . "

They saw that the conservative synods of the Lutheran church were falling victim to the same error that Luther denounced - putting the authority of the church fathers above that of Scripture. Pieper called this authority-theology.

"We renounce this authority-theology anew. It causes so much damage to the church. It is unfaithfulness to the Lord; slavery to men; it brings errors with it. But it also makes the mind narrow and the heart small. . . . Dogmatic training perhaps makes one orthodox, but it also easily makes one orthodoxist, intolerant, quarrelsome, hateful, and easily causes division in the church.
. .
Scripture is at once narrow and broad. The study of it makes the heart narrow to actual false doctrine and heresies, but broad toward various human expressions and presentations. It does not accuse of false doctrine unnecessarily; it teaches us to bear and suffer in love the mistakes of the weak. It keeps the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Therefore we want to entirely do away with this dogmatic authority-theology, and to sink ourselves ever deeper into Scripture and to promote it above all else. We know that in doing so we will best serve the church.”

- August Pieper (1913), Quoted by Mark Braun in The Wauwatosa Gospel (2002). p 25.

The Wauwatosa theologians proved that it is possible to keep dogmatics in its proper place without sacrificing it to skepticism or liberalism. In so doing, they brought fresh clarity to the Gospel which, to ears dulled by dry dogma, sounds somewhat radical.

Seventh Day Adventist History - Parallels with WELS - Including UOJ

William Miller predicted the end of the world, twice,
so his group was called the Millerites, then the Seventh Day Adventists.


The Adventists gave Kellogg the Left Foot of Fellowship.
His sanitarium was in Battle Creek, which became the cereal capital of America.



Ellen White is known as a crackpot, liar, and serial plagiarist.
She would do well in LCMS publishing today.

This is a fun book to read through. One of my Facebook friends suggested it. He was an Adventist and is now a Lutheran. One part of my family started out as Adventists. Two were bishops in the Battle Creek area, according to family stories. Aunt Lilly wrote that they moved to Iowa and became Evangelicals because they could not be hog farmers and Adventists.

Those who deny the Means of Grace--all the UOJ fanatics--should read what happens when people disregard this Biblical teaching. As Luther promised, all kinds of foul errors rush in to fill the void.

Sound familiar? -


It is this view of justification and sanctification that is to a large degree responsible for robbing God’s people of the assurance of salvation and driving them out of the church. Tell me, who wants to remain in a church that offers no real peace with God and is constantly putting you on a guilt trip?
This confused idea of salvation is what led E. G. White to correct the pastors at Battle Creek in 1890. I quoted her statement to them when we studied the Objective and Subjective salvation. Here is the essence of what she said:

“The danger has been presented to me again and again of entertaining, as a people, false ideas of justification by faith. I have been shown for years that Satan would work in a special manner to confuse the mind on this point.... I have been shown that many have been kept from the faith because of the mixed, confused ideas of salvation, because the ministers have worked in a wrong manner to reach hearts. The point that has been urged upon my mind for years is the imputed righteousness of Christ.” (FW, 18).

And this, from Brett Meyer's research -

http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/2010/11/seventh-day-adventists-agree-with.html

Brett Meyer has left a new comment on your post "Of Justification | The Lutheran Church - Missouri ...": 

Not only do all Lutheran Synods confess the same false gospel of Universal Objective Justification but they are not alone. 


The Seventh-Day Adventists also confess this same Universal Objective Justification
http://www.adventistbiblicalresearch.org/documents/Universal%20Justification.htm

---

Analysis of the Doctrine of
Universal "Legal" Justification


Larry J. Kane
Introduction

According to the 1888 Message Study Committee ("1888 MSC"), the 1888 message reveals many "fresh, beautiful truths . . . that are not usually understood today."[1] One such "truth" is the concept that Christ's death at the cross accomplished a legal or objective justification which is universally and unconditionally applied to all men.[2] This doctrine is said to derive from the observations that Christ has borne the sins of "all men" and has died the second death for "every man." It is viewed as the basis for the present life enjoyed by all men. This legal justification, also referred to as a corporate justification, is distinguished by its proponents from justification by faith, or "experiential" justification, and should not be taken to imply universal salvation wherein all men would be saved, some even against their will. The especial merit of such universal legal justification, as seen by the spokesmen for the 1888 MSC, is that it provides foundational proof and an earnest of the loving initiative taken by God to bring about man's salvation. When the full import of God's initiative on man's behalf is recognized, it is believed to be pivotal in galvanizing the sinner's complete devotion to, and saving faith in, Christ.

I. Examination of Key Scriptural Texts

A number of scriptural passages are cited as authority for the doctrine of universal or corporate legal justification.[3] This essay first summarizes an analysis of the pivotal scriptures and whether they support this tenet of the 1888 MSC. Later sections explore ancillary issues implicated by a universal or corporate legal justification, including the dimensions of justification by faith and the extent of God's initiative for the salvation of men.

Romans 3:23, 24
One of the cardinal rules of hermeneutics is that a scripture must be understood within the overall context in which it is found if the writer's intent is to be accurately discerned. The necessity of this principle lies in the fact that it is not usually possible to include all essential components of a proposition within one or two sentences. Often, several sentences or more are necessary to fully express the concept at issue. Moreover, more complex scriptural themes usually have many facets, not all of which are addressed within the immediate context of a statement on the matter. Thus, the more reliable approach for reaching a complete understanding of a particular proposition is to review all relevant statements from scripture which bear upon the issue.

These interpretative principles must be violated if Romans 3:23-24 is to be read as supportive or a universal justification, albeit only a "legal" justification. If one were to isolate these two verses from their surroundings, one might think the two could be linked directly so as to construe them to say that "since all have sinned, all are justified freely." This is apparently the view of the 1888 MSC.[4]

However, the immediate context of verses 23 and 24 is a passage extending from Romans 3:20-31 expounding upon the theme of righteousness by faith. The broader milieu spans back to the beginning of chapter 2 wherein Paul, in comparing Jews and Gentiles in relation to God and His judgment, concludes that both are in the same predicament. God, being "no respecter of persons,"[5] judges both by the same standard: by whether their deeds are righteous or unrighteous. Such being the case, the problem is succinctly stated in verses 10 and 23: "There is none righteous, no, not one." "For all have sinned."[6] Thus, Paul rightly observes in Romans 3:20 that no person (no "flesh") shall be justified before God by the deeds of the law. All have sinned and, consequently, are already condemned under the law.

It is at this point, beginning with verse 22, that Paul introduces his insightful summary of the plan of salvation: There is a righteousness of God arising from a source other than the keeping of the law, "even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe." This "righteousness by faith" is the direct, logical antecedent of the phrase "being justified freely by his grace" of verse 24. This justification, freely available through faith in Christ, stands in bold contrast to the unavailability of justification through observance of the law.

The mechanism by which the justification of verse 24 is freely provided is explained in the latter part of that verse and the following verse. It is the operation of grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus, which is achieved by the sacrifice of His life as a propitiation. Significantly, this propitiation is stated to be effective for the sinner only through faith in His blood (vs. 25). It is the sacrificial death of the sinless Christ, as guilty man's substitute, which fully satisfies the penalty of the law and thus demonstrates God's righteousness and justice in remitting the sins of the believer and justifying him (vss. 25, 26).

From this we see that verses 23 and 24 of Romans 3 are not closely linked in parallelism such that the justification of verse 24 would be freely given, implied, to the "all" who have been found to be sinful in verse 23, as is advocated by the 1888 MSC. Instead, verse 23 is obviously a continuation of the last phrase of verse 22 and the combined passage is seen to be a parenthetical statement to emphasize that the "all" of verse 22 to whom righteousness is made available through their belief in Christ encompasses both Jew and Gentile, "for there is no difference, for all"-both Jew and Gentile-"have sinned."

This parenthetical remark harkens back to Romans 3:9-18 wherein Paul emphatically states that the Jews possess no moral superiority over the Gentiles for they all are under sin, none are righteous. Because all men, of all races and creeds, have sinned under God's law, there is no one who can be justified by the deeds of the law (vs. 20).

Consequently, Paul wishes to leave no doubt that "the righteousness of God without the law . . . which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all . . . them that believe" is equally relevant and essential to all men of all persuasions, Jew and Greek, free and bond, man and woman. Thus, the parenthetical sentence is added to accentuate the universal need. Verse 24 returns to the theme of verses 21 and 22: the righteousness (or justification) of God which is made available by faith in and through Christ.[7]

Dr. E. J. Waggoner, one of the principal articulators of the original 1888 message, is quite lucid on the interrelationship between verse 24 and verses 21-22. He comments extensively on Romans 3 in his seminal work, Christ and His Righteousness.<[8] On page 61 of this work, Waggoner declares: "The scripture that we have just been considering (Rom. 3:24-26) is but another statement of verses 21, 22. . . ."[9]

Since Romans 3:21-22 unmistakably describe righteousness (justification) by faith, we have Waggoner's unequivocal conclusion that one is "justified freely" (vs. 24) by faith alone. Nowhere in his discussion does Waggoner propose that the justification of verse 24 is different from the justification elsewhere described in verses 22-26. In fact, as mentioned below, his conclusion is quite the opposite: There is only one justification, that of faith (and, we must say, that which embraces both objective and subjective aspects).

Throughout the entire passage in Romans 3:21-31, Paul repeatedly identifies the key qualification to justification: that it is "by faith" in the redeeming Christ. (See verse 22, "which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all . . . them that believe"; verse 25, "propitiation through faith in his [Christ's] blood"; verse 26, "that he [God] might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus"; verse 28, "we conclude that a man is justified by faith"; verse 30, "one God, . . . shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.") Clearly, in the face of this consistent theme, there are no grounds on which to contend that the justification of verse 24 has a basis other than faith.

Any assertion that the justification described in Romans 3:24 is a universal "legal" justification, imputed without condition of faith, is manifestly at odds with Dr. Waggoner's understanding. As described above, Waggoner observes that Romans 3:24-26 is "but another statement of verses 21, 22." Thus, the justification freely provided by God's grace is the "righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe." Commenting elsewhere on Romans 3, Waggoner further emphasizes this point in his declaration that the justification of verse 24 means "to be clothed within and without with the righteousness of God," that is, to encompass both the imputed and imparted righteousness of God, to include both objective and subjective justification.[10] Moreover, the verses cited by Waggoner to explain how justification is given "freely" unquestionably convey the conditionality of that provision. The gift, free through it may wonderfully be, still must be accepted by the recipient. He must respond to Christ's invitation of Revelation 22:17, "'Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.' That is, let him take it as a gift."

Romans 5:12-18
It is this passage, and specifically verse 18, that is relied upon most heavily by the 1888 MSC in support of the doctrine of a universal "legal" justification. Here again, the interpretation advocated by the 1888 MSC is not consistent with application of sound hermeneutic principles, including the understanding of a verse within its larger context.

Verse 18 reads as follows:

Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. 

This verse is construed by the 1888 MSC as teaching a universal legal justification on two grounds. For one, the structure of the verse is viewed as a perfect parallel: The judgment which came upon all men by Adam's sin is matched by the free gift which came upon all men unto justification of life through Christ's righteousness. As there is no exception with the former, so there can be no exception with the latter.[11] Second, that the gift unto justification is free is viewed by Waggoner as "evidence that there is no exception to its application.[12]
In beginning an analysis of Romans 5, one first must recognize that it is a continuation of the theme introduced in the third chapter, that is, righteousness by faith. As discussed above concerning Romans 3:23-24, the only justification presented in the third chapter is that which is accessed by faith in Christ and His sacrificial death. So begins the fifth chapter: "Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." 





***

GJ - The Adventist parallel with UOJ comes from the excessive plagiarism of Ellen White, their main theologian and prophetess. Her visions borrowed constantly from books previous published by Evangelicals and other authors. She was a mosaic plagiarist, like the author of the Manchurian Candidate. Instead of simply borrowing whole hog from one author, she put together her dogma from a whole collection of books, including Milton's Paradise Lost.

The archives of the Ellen White estate have tried to keep the truth from coming out. Does that sound like the Concordia Hysterical Institute? Anyone who questions the sanctity of CFW Walther is met with hysterical name-calling. The last thing Missouri wants is the factual history coming out.


WELS Shedding Teachers - Watch the Lists



The following is from one report:


------------------------------  R E S I G N E D  -----------------------------
    Volkmann, Mrs Stephanie M  St Paul Little Learner - Slinger WI  06/01/2012
    Grebe, Mr Karl E           King of Kings - Garden Grove CA      06/17/2012
    Grebe, Mrs Sarah J         King of Kings - Garden Grove CA      06/17/2012
    Buske, Mrs Hannah L        St Mark - Green Bay WI               06/30/2012
    Fricke, Mr Lucas           Mexico Kingdom Workers               06/30/2012
    Gnewuch, Mrs Faith E       St Matthew's - Oconomowoc WI         06/30/2012
    Hein, Mrs Julie B          Rocky Mountain LHS - Northglenn CO   06/30/2012
    Hennig, Mrs Karen M        St Croix LHS - West Saint Paul MN    06/30/2012
    Hering, Mr Joel            Mexico Kingdom Workers               06/30/2012
    Hoffman, Miss Sara         Christ the Lord - Clearwater FL      06/30/2012
    Kamps, Mrs Rachael L       Christ-St Peter - Milwaukee WI       06/30/2012
    Nettesheim, Miss Katherin  St John - Mukwonago WI               06/30/2012
    O'Connell, Mrs Samantha I  St John - Lannon WI                  06/30/2012
    Pelzl, Rev Eric A          WLC - Milwaukee WI                   06/30/2012
    Petrie, Miss Khrista J     Gloria Dei - Belmont CA              06/30/2012
    Sigler, Mrs Jennifer M     Green Valley - Henderson NV          06/30/2012
    Trapp, Mr Peter C          Atonement - Milwaukee WI             06/30/2012
    Vertz, Mrs Beth E          St John - Baraboo WI                 06/30/2012
    Wege, Mrs Kay M            Winnebago L.A. - Fond du Lac WI      06/30/2012
    Wendland, Mr David T       Minnesota Valley LHS - New Ulm MN    06/30/2012
    Hoffman, Mrs Erica E       Christ the King - Bremerton WA       07/01/2012

----------------------  L E A V E   O F   A B S E N C E  ---------------------
    Wittmershaus, Mr Kurt A    MLC - New Ulm MN

-----------------  C A L L E D  T O  E T E R N A L  G L O R Y  ---------------
    Mueller, Mr Raymond R                                           06/06/2012
    Kalfahs, Mr Gus K                                               06/11/2012
    Roth, Mrs Arlene M                                              06/13/2012

----------------------------- R E T I R E M E N T ----------------------------
    Buege, Mr Joel A           Illinois LHS - Crete IL              06/30/2012
    Buege, Mr Joel A           Illinois Luth Jr High - Crete IL     06/30/2012
    Gurgel, Mrs Judith L       St Lucas - Milwaukee WI              06/30/2012
    Jenkins, Mrs Ruth A        Trinity - Waukesha WI                06/30/2012

-----------  L I M I T E D   L E N G T H   C A L L   E X P I R E D  ----------
    Boushek, Mrs Ashley R      St Marcus - Milwaukee WI             06/30/2012
    Dais, Mr Andrew M          St John - Jefferson WI               06/30/2012
    Haag, Mr Andrew M          Faith - Fond du Lac WI               06/30/2012
    Maurer, Mrs Kathryn A      Shepherd of the Va - Westminster CO  06/30/2012
    Moldenhauer, Mrs Stephani  Christ-St Peter - Milwaukee WI       06/30/2012
    Shoop, Mr Andrew D         St Croix LHS - West Saint Paul MN    06/30/2012
    Sulzle, Mrs Heather L      Riverview - Appleton WI              06/30/2012
    Watson, Mrs Kristin K      Emanuel - New London WI              06/30/2012
    Zacharyasz, Mrs Emily D    St Peter - Appleton WI               06/30/2012
    Zastrow, Mr Nathan G       California LHS - Wildomar CA         06/30/2012

-------------------  P O S I T I O N   E L I M I N A T E D -------------------
    Erlenbusch, Mrs Suzanne M  Good Shepherd - Sioux Falls SD       06/30/2012

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Effective July 1, the HOPE Schools [Mark and Avoid Jeske, Inc] will become 
independent Christian schools.
The following HOPE teachers will no longer be serving in WELS called positions:

    Arndt-Eggers, Mrs Ashley   Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Berger, Mr Paul M          Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Clasen, Mrs Kristin R      Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Freudenwald, Miss Kathryn  Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Gerke, Miss Lindsey A      Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Greenman, Mrs Anna J       Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Hagedorn, Ms Erin E        Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Harvey, Mr Adam A          Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Heinen, Mrs Megan          Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Hochtritt, Ms Elizabeth C  Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Hoogervorst, Ms Laura      HOPE Christian High - Milwaukee WI   06/30/2012
    Luehring, Mr Jamie C       Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    McNair, Ms Ashley          Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Otto, Mr Mark K            HOPE Christian High - Milwaukee WI   06/30/2012
    Perkins, Mrs Jessica L     Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Robinson, Mr Steven J      Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Seeger, Mr Jeremy          Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Stratton, Mrs Kimberly M   Hope Christian Schoo - Milwaukee WI  06/30/2012
    Tess, Mrs Jessica D        HOPE Christian High - Milwaukee WI   06/30/2012


SP Schroeder was an early contributor to TELL, the WELS Church Growth  periodical.
He copped a plea about TELL, but who is rewarded, protected, and promoted today?
Huebner, Olson, Witte, Kelm, Jeske, Glende, Ski, Parlow, etc. etc.



***

GJ - The fact is, WELS is reducing or dropping schools right and left. One observer said the Milwaukee pastors got their congregations into debt over school buildings and then dropped the schools.

The magic of Church and Change continues. The leaders (Roth, Jeske, Valleskey, Bivens, Wendland, Olson, Kelm, Huebner) have made their careers from xeroxing the insights of Fuller Seminary.


Their big move was dropping the name Lutheran after getting rid of Lutheran doctrine and worship. That is why "Christian Academies" have sprouted all over WELSdom, so no one notices the academies are just day-care businesses subsidized by the congregation.

News Story about HOPE Schools

Notice that when there is a challenge about false doctrine in WELS, people respond with "We will always be loyal to WELS, no matter what." When it is convenient for business purposes, the leaders will drop the name Lutheran to appeal to more people at once. Confessional Lutherans are told to speak the name softly in Jerusalem (Milwaukee), lest it be heard on the streets of Gath.


---

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "WELS Shedding Teachers - Watch the Lists":

There is a strange irony about the departure of the HOPE Schools from the WELS. I am sure that there are many versions floating around about what happened. The official story is probably something about violation of fellowship principles. Yet, the HOPE model is exactly what the WELS leadership wants in their schools. As mentioned, the Lutheran name is dropped in favor of a generic title. The acceptance of government grants is the latest fad employed to disguise the real cost of operating a school. Free market economists would call this a pricing distortion. Also, making religious instruction optional allows the school to get these grants. The excuse for opening the school up to the community is that it becomes a mission arm of the church. How can this be if the religious instruction is not a mandatory part of the curriculum. This idea of accepting grants has now trickled down to the congregational LES level.

***

GJ - This will open up the 501c3 for more Thrivent grants, more government aid of all type.

http://hopeschools.org/about-hope.php

I cannot find out who is on the board. HOPE is awfully secretive for such a public charity.

Pastor Kevin Hastings says that, long ago, Historic St. John Lutheran operated a school for the children in the neighborhood, with no outside help. Pastor Brenner contributed from his own salary to help pay the teachers. Brenner did not even accept aid to buy milk for the school.

---

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "WELS Shedding Teachers - Watch the Lists":

After the concert at St. John's, Pastor Hastings gave some insight into the history of St.John's. He mentioned the fact that St. John's never took any subsidy whatsoever. He also touched on Pastor Brenner's generosity when it came to the teachers. In contrast to this, Pastor Hastings made reference to some neighboring WELS congregations who appear to be doing well by living from grants. Several years back, a synod minder justified the grants by pointing out how well an inner city congregation does when they accept them. Americans love their material wealth and success. So-called conservative Christians really squawk about government subsidies for abortion, but turn a blind eye when that dough comes in their direction to their parochial schools.

---

California writes:

rlschultz's comment that "the acceptance of government grants is the latest fad employed to disguise the real cost of operating a school" lacks historical perspective and documented history.   It is neither a fad nor recent.   The fruits of the more than  four decades of  PPBS (Planned, Programmed,
Budgeted System) to create a changed WELS, including her schools,  is finally coming to full fruition (ruination?). It  is becoming impossible to dismiss it this point in history. Her schools have been  "sacrificed on the altar of the almighty government dollar" over time, and now it is impossible to miss it.

The travesty could have been avoided in the late 1960's when a loophole was created, and it could have been stopped in the 1970's when the beginnings of acceptance of government grants in WELS schools was defended, but it wasn't.  Resisters were silenced.  There is no joy now for any of those resisters who are still alive who can say "we told you so".   Sigh!

***

GJ - California wrote earlier about the Milwaukee Nine who were kicked out of WELS for stating what WELS had previously taught, until WELS got greedy for government dollars.

Now it will be a matter of "live by taxes, die by taxes." When the revenue spigot is tightened up, the only solution is more tax money.

Does that mean Mark Jeske will start paying real estate taxes on his deluxe home in the burbs?


---

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "WELS Shedding Teachers - Watch the Lists":

California,
Thank you for the correction and clarification. Was it Lenski who wrote. "resist the beginnings"? 

***

GJ - Yes, Lenski is the one. California knows the history and documents it. She has proven to me how early WELS started to go radical. 

I suggested reading the Seventh Day Adventist history, to be posted above, which has many parallels to WELS, including kicking Kellogg out (the cereal killer) in typical WELS style.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Face It, Missouri


First United Lutheran Church, San Francisco Congregation
Banned For Gay Pastor, Rejoins Church.
ELCA Apes WELS/LCMS in Rewarding the Guilty, Punishing the Innocent



First United Lutheran Church, San Francisco Congregation Banned For Gay Pastor, Rejoins Church:


After nearly two decades of separation sparked by its inclusion of a gay pastor, a San Francisco congregation has finally rejoined the Lutheran Church.

On Sunday, First United Lutheran Church voted to rejoin the church nearly three years after receiving an apology and an invitation to reunite, according to the Examiner.

The reunion follows a 17-year split between the congregation and the Lutheran church after the congregation ordained--and refused to abandon--an openly gay pastor. The congregation was suspended in 1990, and formally expelled in 1995. Another San Francisco congregation, St. Francis Lutheran Church, was also cut loose for its protection of two lesbian pastors in the same year.

Finally in 2009, The Lutheran Church voted to admit gay and lesbian pastors into the clergy, issuing an apology and an invitation to reunite to both of the San Francisco congregations.

"There's been an acknowledgment that these two congregations were forward-thinking and committed to their ministry," said Bishop Mark Holmerud to the San Francisco Chronicle at the time. "They took a stand, paid the consequences, and our church has finally seen the wisdom of our opening the rosters to all committed gay and lesbian couples. And we're all the better for it."

St. Francis Lutheran Church accepted the invitation. But members of First United, still wounded from years of exclusion due to discriminatory practices, didn't immediately embrace the invitation.

"Opinion in the community was divided," wrote First United Reverend Susan M. Strouse in a blog post about the congregation's consideration. "Some asked, 'Well, why wouldn't you?' Others, 'Why would you?'"

But on Sunday, First United finally accepted.

"It's like we've been without a part of our body," said Holmerud's assistant Nancy Nelson to the Examiner. "This is a time to celebrate a painful period in our church coming to a close."

In her blog post, Strouse described the process that eventually led to the church's decision:

"The discussion revealed some fear: of loss of identity, of uniqueness, of forgetting our history," she wrote. "It also revealed awareness: of the need to forgive, of the danger of moral superiority, of the courage of the ELCA to change the policy. And possibilities: of what gifts we could bring to the denomination, of being part of working for change from within the system, of being part of something bigger than ourselves."


'via Blog this'

"May the Angels Lead Her to Paradise" - RIP, Lito Cruz' Mother

Angels carry Lazarus to Abraham's bosom, by Norma Boeckler


I learned early this morning that Lito Cruz' mother died. Lito writes Extra Nos, which is an excellent blog about justification by faith.

The New Rome - Brought by the Salesmen of UOJ


Luther, following Paul, makes it clear in his Galatians work that we are justified by faith or by works.

Therefore, the Universal Objective Justification fanatics are not Lutherans but Romanists, teaching salvation through the Law in the name of their legalistic Antinomianism. They teach against justification by faith, so they are really presenting justification by works, in spite of their claims.

Fides Formata - Faith Plus Works
The Roman Catholics teach justification by faith. Doesn't everyone? They all do - until we look at what they mean. The Church of Rome means justification by faith formed by love, fides formata.


In other words, man must add works to faith because faith is inadequate. That makes Purgatory a nice, toasty place, too, because whatever works are not done in this life are performed (or atoned for) in the next. Fortunately, the wealthy can leave behind a large estate for saying Masses in perpetuity. Buying the abomination of the Mass will chip away at the years of Purgatory owed on the account of A. Catholic Sinner. Perhaps, just before the end of time, he will enter Paradise. Mother Mary helps by visiting the suffering souls in Purgatory. We know this is true because the Pope teaches this infallibly. The Holy Spirit would not allow the pope to err in teaching doctrine, even if it was made up last week. That may sound like Wayne Mueller logic, because it is, but Rome thought it up first.

UOJ - Salvation by Works
UOJ is pure Romanism because it denies justification by faith alone, then ties salvation to the visible organization, whether it be WELS, Missouri, or the smaller fragments of Walther's Pietistic kingdom.

Moravian Pietism and UOJ
The Moravian Church exists because of three contributing factors: (1) the revival of Pietism in Germany, (2) the reemergence of an old church, and (3) Count Zinzendorf. Pietism preaches the saving power of the gospel instead of dogmatic principles. This leads one to a more personal faith and away from intellectualism. The positive effects of Pietism lead to Bible reading, prayer, outwardly speaking about one's faith, and a turn from worldly activities. Its weaknesses include subjectivity due to the deemphasis of intellectualism and an attitude of self-righteousness. The Pietist influence developed many traditions in the Moravian Church. The love feast, first celebrated in August, 1727 is unique to the Moravians. This ritual consists of a light meal, singing, and a talk which together comprise an informal service that centers on communion. The Litany is another characteristic found in this tradition. It is a prayer form developed for corporate or private devotions. The Pietist movement also started the idea of small groups of believers meeting together regularly to worship and encourage each other. [GJ - Bishop Stephan belonged to this Pietistic tradition, used land given by Zinzendorf, and took the Walther crew into his cell group ministry in Dresden. Stephan trained at Halle University, the center of Pietism.]



How about that, Missourians? You were founded by a famous Pietist, Bishop Martin Stephan, STD. His  enforcer, CFW Walther, organized a mob, robbed him of all his gold/books/chalices, and kidnapped him over to Illinois. Walther was a Pietist as a college student, as a pastor, and as a Stephan follower.

Paul Calvin Kelm (DMin, Church Growth Pietism, St. Louis) described his dogma as starting with the Gospel and moving to the Law. That is very much like Moravian Pietism. WELS and Missouri did not abandon Luther for Fuller Seminary. They tired of dabbling in Luther and returned to Pietism.

"But," some will say, "the headline is all about Roman Catholicism." That is true, but there is not much difference in substance between Romanism and Pietism. Both produce works-saints and suffer from extreme self-righteousness. It is no surprise that Missouri pastors join Rome as priests, and WELS/ELS  are comfortable with featuring Roman Catholic prelates as their chapel speakers. Sure, WELS/ELS lie about that fact, but they are quite comfortable with lying too.

In Rome the ritual-starved Pietists find everything they imagine they lacked - Holy Mother Church, real bishops, and a certainty based on works.






Monday, July 16, 2012

UOJ Clashes with Justification by Faith.
The Word of God Rejects UOJ, Teaches Justification by Faith


Universal Objective Justification, which also goes by the names of Objective Justification and General Justification, consists of one solitary dogma - universal absolution.

There are some slight but trivial variations in UOJ. Some date this unrecorded declaration at the death of Christ. Others at the moment of His resurrection. The Pietists--like Rambach and Walther and Jay Webber--favor Easter.

This universal absolutions is taught by Karl Barth (Fuller's theologian), the Universalists, all the mainline denominations, and the Seventh Day Adventists.

"...must accept by faith the general absolution..."
That is not justification by faith.


The corollary to universal absolution is simple - you must believe in this universal absolution. Walther stated this with great clarity and the SynConference Lutherans have aped it ever since. Therefore, Walther's justification by faith is NOT faith in Christ or in His atonement, but faith in Walther's delusions of universal forgiveness.

Implicit is Pope Walther's "Anathema sit!" If someone denies his Enthusiasm, let him be damned to Hell. As a Pietist, he was very astute at shunning other Pietists, calling them "Pietist" and "false teacher," irony too subtle for the men who followed one cell group guru after another.

Evidence of False Doctrine in Waltherians
There are many lapses in the teaching of the Waltherians, including silence about:

  1. The efficacy of the Word.
  2. The Means of Grace - except when twisted in the service of UOJ.
  3. The Holy Spirit working only through the Word.
  4. Justification by faith only found in Luther, Melanchthon, Chemnitz, the Book of Concord, and the next generation of theologians.
  5. Samuel Huber, their first UOJ champion.



Symptoms of UOJ Enthusiasm
False doctrine leads to obvious symptoms, just as cancer and gangrene give themselves away with symptoms. Some symptoms are:

  1. Enrollment in Fuller Seminary, Trinity Divinity, and Willow Creek programs. Synodical funding.
  2. Pentecostalism.
  3. Receptionism.
  4. Joyfully working with ELCA in Church Growth projects.
  5. Subordination to Thrivent funding of any denomination, any religion.
  6. Promotion of false teachers and known sex offenders.
  7. Discipline reserved for those who question Holy Mother Synod about anything.
  8. Laziness and plagiarism in preaching.
  9. Non-visitation of members and prospects.
  10. Mark Schroeder, Pope John the Malefactor, Matt Harrison.


I expect little to happen in the right direction, but the truth is coming out. The pastors are too wedded to Mama Synod, and the congregations are loyal to their buildings.


---

Pastor emeritus Nathan Bickel has left a new comment on your post "UOJ Clashes with Justification by Faith. The Word ...":

Ichabod -

As popular and photogenic, (at the time), as Walther was, he apparently [incorrectly] thought that human souls actually want to be saved from their unconverted state. He says that everyone "who wants to be saved........" That desire, however, can only be implanted by the Holy Spirit. When a human soul comes into contact with the Word of God and [by God's grace, through the Spirit's working] recognizes his fallen, corrupted and hopeless condition, - only then will he have a [genuine] desire to be saved. Apparently, Walther was of the same misconception as modern day universal objective justification enthusiasts that people can capriciously (on their own) muster the wherewithal to believe in Christ.

Again, looking at this Walther quote, I see nothing Biblical. No mention of repentance. Somehow in UOJ fanatical thinking, is the false notion that a general absolution replaces repentance and personal belief [faith] - a grace bestowed by our loving God:

The Grace of Repentance

http://www.thechristianmessage.org/2012/07/grace-of-repentance.html

Nathan M. Bickel

www.thechristianmessage.org

www.moralmatters.org 


Lutherans Today Would Rather Teach Themselves and Their Sect Than Luther's Biblical Doctrine


How many catch the irony of Lutherans officially rejecting Luther's doctrine?

The first responses are - "What does Holy Mother Synod say?" and "Aren't we loyal to Holy Mother Synod most of all?"

The apostates repeat the arguments of the living and the dead, the same ones who delivered vast sums of synod money to Fuller Seminary, Trinity in Deerfield, and Willow Creek Community Church. As long as everyone is ignorant of the facts and resistant to studying the issues, the fraud can continue indefinitely.

The functionaries appoint their political friends to carry out the agenda. It only takes a few votes on a few boards to control everything.

C. F. W. Walther was a college graduate only - nothing more. But the SynConference pretends that the Great Kidnapper is Equal to the Apostles (Constantine's favorite title) and the Exegete of Luther. The Concordists would have laughed at someone so poorly educated as the ultimate authority on everything.

Walther took over Stephan's Pietistic sex cult and appointed his own successors, worried that someone  might write an actual history of the Missouri Synod's founding. There is no record of Walther knowing that Bishop Stephan, STD, kept a whole series of young mistresses, until he "suddenly" found out his boss was adulterous. Walther later blamed the adultery on Mrs. Stephan.

Left unsaid are the obvious symptoms of syphilis in Stephan, his sick wife, and his dying children. Leaving his wife in Dresden and coming across the ocean with his main mistress, Stephan shocked Walther and associates with his adultery? Ha.

Zion on the Mississippi details the role of Walther as a fox, a mob organizer, an unscrupulous power-grabber.

Walther and his minions gradually established a replacement for justification by faith. They were not 100% successful. In teaching Luther they had to reprint Luther. The Missouri Synod produced a magnificent Luther set in German. Like many of their early productions, the set could double as a bunker in case of war.

The German catechism of the Missouri Synod taught justification by faith, not UOJ. Another catechism still being sold by Missouri, their KJV catechism, is also silent about UOJ. Likewise, the original Gausewitz, a catechism for the entire Synodical Conference, taught justification by faith until he was long gone and WELS "fixed" it in 1956.

Claiming to be Lutheran while supplanting Luther is bound to cause problems. All the American Lutheran groups had the same difficulty. Pietism sponsored missions, and Halle was the mother ship for Pietism, the training ground for American Lutheran leaders - from Muhlenberg to Stephan to Hoenecke.

Augustana (Swedish Lutherans) struggled with unionism and Pietism, realizing that their original passions were causing them nothing but trouble in America. The same could be said for the Muhlenberg tradition, which was gradually united by an interest in the Confessions, just as Pietism tore it apart in the first place. But that confessional interest did not last long. The displaced liberals regained the upper hand and made rationalistic Pietism the theme of the ULCA, then the LCA, and finally ELCA.

WELS began as a union sect, Reformed and Lutheran, fell in with the Waltherians, and amalgamated their Pietism with a dash of orthodoxy. Unfortunately, the Walther-trained Pietists were bound to lead the sect in the wrong direction.

The Protest'ant crisis of WELS revealed that they learned their lessons from the Great Kidnapper himself. The WELS leaders said to the Protest'ants - "Shut up and listen while we tell you off." They kicked out everyone who said something was wrong. They got rid of their seminary president, so no one was safe from the gremlins, from that time on. They became easily frightened by anyone with brains, because conformity to the sect became the ruling norm.

The encroachment of UOJ has been gradual ever since. Watchdogs with no academic credibility make sure that no one teaches justification by faith with impunity.