Bombshell - WELS Documented Blog Documents the Hypocrisy of the Wisconsin Sect. Compare Words and Deeds

Mark Schroeder could not even take a stand on the New NIV,
which he supposedly hates.
No, the convention endorsed all translations.
Is the KJV back? Don't bet on it.

http://welsdocument.blogspot.com/2015/01/growing-divisions-are-we-all-still-in.html

Is our Synod President Mark Schroeder in the same synod as our WELS churches? Obviously he is; but then how do you explain the widening gap for what he says and what our WELS churches are doing? Take a look at what he publicly states and what our congregations actually do.

"The Lutheran church has always been known for its emphasis on Christ-centered and gospel-proclaiming worship. From the time of the Reformation, the Lutheran church has also been a liturgical church. There is good reason for that. Martin Luther himself stressed the importance of holding on to the historic liturgies of the Christian church, since those liturgies provided the framework for regular proclamation—to members and visitors alike—of the timeless truths heard by Christians for centuries. Liturgical worship provides worshipers with a connection to generations of Christians who have gone before." -Synod President Mark Schroeder; A synod that values worship

...Excerpts from the 2009 President's Convention Report... Admittedly the theology of the cross is not attractive in our postmodern, self-gratifying world. Unlike the theology of glory, the theology of the cross makes no promises of instant relief for the ills of life in a sinful world. It does not beckon people with the lure of financial or personal or professional success. It does not seek validation of its success in terms of numbers. It does not offer a practical “how-to” manual to achieve temporal happiness or to mine the depths of human potential. The message of the cross cannot be packaged to be palatable and cannot be soft-pedaled to be acceptable. It is a message that this world does not understand and does not desire....

...The unbelieving people in our world look for things that make sense to their own way of thinking; they crave a message that reinforces their own self-centered view of life. They will not find that in the harsh preaching of God’s law. And unless God changes their hearts, they will not appreciate the sweet message of grace in the gospel. If we somehow make the message of the cross attractive and reasonable to those who are perishing, we will have changed the message—and will have failed in the mission God gave us. God help us always to say with Paul, “We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles...

... As confessional Lutherans, we emphasize and agree that it is the gospel in Word and sacrament that is the “power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16). We proclaim Christ crucified. The message of the cross was not the message that itching ears wanted to hear in Paul’s day, and it is not a message that finds favor in the ears of today’s postmodern, self-gratifying, self-centered unbeliever. As confessional Lutherans we will look for every opportunity to proclaim God’s law in all its harshness, and we will be zealous to share the sweet message of the gospel to every sinner convicted by God’s law. But we will never adjust, hide, or downplay a single word of God’s truth to make it somehow more attractive. To do that is to empty the gospel of its power and to lose the gospel itself...

...But confessional Lutherans are also well aware that just because something may be done does not mean that it should be done. Immediately after asserting that all things are permissible, Paul went on to say, “But not everything is beneficial . . . not everything is constructive” (1 Corinthians 10:23). In other words, when something is determined to be an adiaphoron, that’s not where the discussion ends; that is when discussion among Christians begins. It’s a discussion which asks important questions: “This may be permissible. But how does this particular practice affect my fellow Christians—both inside and outside of our fellowship? Does this practice reflect clearly what we believe, or does it send an unclear or blurred message? What impact does this have on the church today, and what long-term ramifications might this have? Is there the potential of offense or misunderstanding? Does a practice sacrifice a connection with the church of the ages for the sake of mere innovation? Will such a practice build up and express our unity or will it fracture and diffuse it?” It’s interesting to note that in almost all cases when the New Testament addresses the matter of Christian freedom, the focus is not on the Christian’s right to exercise that freedom. More often the New Testament talks about the importance of refraining from exercising myChristian freedom if doing so will potentially cause harm to others or to the mission of the church...

...The COP recognizes that doctrine shapes practice in worship, outreach methodology, and congregational organization. Likewise, the COP is aware from the lessons of church history that practice can influence doctrinal beliefs—often unintentionally. Doctrine and practice are intimately related to each other.Therefore, it’s essential that we be wary of methods and practices that have their roots in Evangelical and Reformed theology and that may inherently reflect that theology. For example, these “theological underpinnings” can show themselves in worship and outreach methods that emphasizes subjective feelings over the proclamation of God’s objective gospel truth; or that gives the impression that prayer is a means of grace; or that emphasizes the role of praise over against the centrality of the Word proclaimed and the sacraments administered...

...We will be careful not to hide our identity as a confessional Lutheran church in favor of a more appealing and less “intimidating” brand of Christianity. We will not model ourselves after outwardly popular and successful nondenominational or pan-denominational churches in which adherence to clear biblical doctrine gives way to a generic, feel-good, popular Christianity that seeks to remove barriers by setting aside the offense of the cross.We will value the time-tested heritage passed down to us through the generations, while recognizing that God has not established a New Testament ceremonial law. We will ask God for the zeal to apply law and gospel to the heart of hearers and to trust in the power of the Word and the working of the Holy Spirit to do what we could never do: to change a heart.
WELS Synod President Mark Schroeder issues scorching rebuke of Church Growth Movement
President's Report at Proceedings of the WELS 60th Biennial Convention
Synod President Mark Schroeder 
mark.schroeder@wels.net  
2009 

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What Synod President Mark Schroeder has Publicly Stated:
"The word Lutheran in our synod’s name, the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, is not merely a word. We call ourselves Lutheran because it clearly identifies what we believe and describes how we carry out the work that God has entrusted to his church on earth. We call ourselves Lutheran, in spite of the fact that others using that name have departed from many of the essential truths that God revealed in the Scriptures—the same truths Martin Luther believed and taught... Some have suggested that we not use the word Lutheran in our name because it has been misused by others and can be misunderstood. I believe the nameLutheran says much, as long as we are committed to explaining what it really means to be Lutheran."
What's in a Name - Forward in Christ 
By Synod President Mark Schroeder
mark.schroeder@wels.net
August 2009

What WELS Churches Actually Do:
Church: Hope in Oconomowoc, WI (http://www.hopeinjesus.org/) - Find the wordLutheran anywhere on their website. 
Pastors: Rev Daniel T Schmidt, Rev Jason W Ewart
Email: judy@hopeinjesus.org
District: Western Wisconsin

Church: St Paul's in Muskego, WI. The goal is to reach them by keeping potentially off-putting religious symbols and practices at a minimum to let the love that is the real message shine through. St. Paul's even has dropped the evangelical Lutheran parts of its full name for general purposes, Sally Wallner [St. Paul's community outreach coordinator] added, though it is still formally St. Paul's Ev. Lutheran Church and School. Muskego Now News Article 
Pastors: Rev John D Backus, Rev Peter A Panitzke, Rev Jeffrey A Bonack, Rev David M Kuehl
Email: info@stpaulmuskego.org
District: Southeastern Wisconsin 

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What Synod President Mark Schroeder has Publicly Stated:
"One activity far exceeds all others in involving people directly with the life and work of a congregation. That activity is worship. Public worship is so central to our church experience that we couldn’t possibly conceive of the church without it"......"Today people throughout our synod are discussing important issues involving the purpose of worship, the styles of worship, and how to conduct our worship in the best possible way. The Bible and the Lutheran Confessions make it clear that the form, style, and structure of our worship are matters of Christian freedom. But this Christian freedom does not imply that we are free to do anything we want.Acting in Christian freedom in an area as important as worship, in fact, implies very careful thought and decision making. Christian freedom in worship decisions involves sanctified and responsible Christian judgment. That means recognizing that the proclamation of the gospel message is vital—both in what is spoken and in what is sung. That means remembering that the purpose of worship is not to please various tastes and preferences, but rather to edify worshipers through the proclamation of law and gospel. That means a commitment to a careful evaluation of what elements of our worship need to be preserved and what can be changed in a way that gives glory to God and benefits those who worship."  
A synod that values worship - Forward in Christ
By Synod President Mark Schroeder
mark.schroeder@wels.net 
Jun 2008

What WELS Churches Actually Do:
Contemporvant Worship: Coming Soon to a WELS Church Service Near You
Should Christmas Pageants Replace a Worship Services?
Beyond "Contemporary" Worship to "Modern" Worship
Church Growth: By the Gospel or By Gimmicks?
From Nightclub to WELS Church
NEW Religious Experience at WELS Church
Watch "Karate Kid" during WELS Sermon
Comfy chairs important in WELS advertising
Real? Relational?? Relevant??? O THE HORROR OF IT ALL!!!

Read More:
From a Layman: Contemporary Worship Mocks the Solas
What is REAL Lutheran Worship anyway?
Worship Service VS Divine Service

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What Synod President Mark Schroeder has Publicly Stated:
When the focus of worship is on what God does for us, then our worship will be a blessing... If we think of worship as primarily something we do, we are missing the most important part of our worship. Worship is about what God does for us. Lutheran worship—biblical worship—is above all God speaking to us in his Word. It is God proclaiming through human messengers the crushing blows of his law. In worship, God lovingly speaks to sin-burdened sinners the sweet good news of sins forgiven and death defeated. In readings and sermons, God instructs, strengthens, equips, and motivates his people for lives of Christian service. Worship is where God comes to us in his sacraments, adopting sinners into his family through Holy Baptism and strengthening the faith of his people by giving them his true body and blood in the Lord's Supper. In worship, with every syllable of his Word that is proclaimed and spoken, God assures us of what he has done for us; in turn, he also reminds us of the mission that he has now entrusted to us. When the focus of worship is on what God does for us, then our worship will be a blessing. It will help us to understand ourselves and all of our weaknesses. It will direct us to the grace and love of God. It will transport us to the foot of the cross, where Jesus demonstrated a love both undeserved and inconceivable. It will fill us with joy that continues long after the time for worship ends. Sad to say, many lose sight of this primary focus and think of worship as primarily an activity that they do. When that happens, people tend to develop certain unhealthy expectations of worship.They begin to view worship as something that should be "fun" or entertaining. They adopt a consumer approach to worship, expecting that worship should be shaped by their own tastes and that it should cater to their own comfort level. They insist that worship should reflect what they want, what they like, and what they find pleasing. They run the risk of losing sight of what God wants to do for them in that precious time in his house. King David said, "I rejoiced with those who said to me, 'Let us go to the house of the Lord' " (Psalm 122:1). David could say that because he knew and remembered the true focus of God-pleasing worship. God-pleasing worship always focuses on the proclamation of Christ and on all that God has done for sinners like us. And if that is what characterizes our worship, if that is where our focus is, then our worship will never be dull, never boring, and certainly never irrelevant. When God's Word is proclaimed, worship becomes the blessing that God wants it to be. 
The proper focus of our worship - Forward in Christ
By Synod President Mark Schroeder
mark.schroeder@wels.net
March 2010

What WELS Churches Actually Do:
May I suggest that the kind of preaching needed for the nineties and beyond is somewhat different: personal, intense, eye-to-eye, well-researched and yet down-to-earth, poured out from the heart, with the smell of spontaneity, clearly outlined, simple, logical, with real applications to real life, talking and thinking out loud with your friends rather than orating at an audience, using all the storyteller’s arts, even humor, radiating the joy of being a member of the royal family of Jesus Christ.
Worship in the WELS: Changing Practices
Pastor: Mark Jeske
Email: mark.jeske@stmarcus.org
District: Southeastern Wisconsin

Church: St Paul's in Muskego, WI. Humor, video, lighting effects and contemporary Christian music combined with the pastor’s message help us all grow closer to Christ. Every Sunday a team of volunteers transforms the Trinity Gym into a modern worship environment complete with stage, large screen projectors, stage lights, and curtains.
St Paul's Website 
Pastors: Rev John D Backus, Rev Peter A Panitzke, Rev Jeffrey A Bonack, Rev David M Kuehl 
Email: info@stpaulmuskego.org
District: Southeastern Wisconsin

Church: St Mark's in De Pere, WI. The contemporary worship services at St. Mark Lutheran brings together dynamic music, compelling dramas, moving real life stories, and stirring Bible-based teachings.
Contemporary Worship-Pro and Con
Presented by Jeff Londgren
Great Lakes Pastoral Conference
Pastors: Rev Eric S Hansen, Rev Christopher D Johnson, Rev John M Parlow
Email: church.office@stmarkdepere.com
District: Northern Wisconsin 

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What SP Mark Schroeder,  the COP, and WELS Q&A has Publicly Stated:  

Encouraging the holding of free conferences among confessional Lutherans. A free conference is a forum for discussion of theology and doctrine in a setting that does not involve fellowship.
COP News - WELS Website 
Synod President Mark Schroeder and the Conference of Presidents


From the WELS Question & Answer section on their website:
Question: Why are we as WELS members not allowed to have true Christian people come to our churches and speak to us and tell us why or why not they do or don't believe in a subject....even if they are not a WELS Lutheran. Christian people of other denominations still believe in Christ and can give us perspective upon many subjects. Many times I feel as if I don't have the knowledge I should have because the speaker isn't a WELS Lutheran speaker.
Answer: Speakers can present information as long as we follow scriptural fellowship principles (Romans 16:17; 2 John 9-11).  Those principles rule out including speakers from outside our fellowship in our worship services or any activity in which worship and religious instruction are involved.  There are definitely ways in which our pastors can bring up the ideas of others and examine those ideas in the light of Scripture.  This is often done with sermon illustrations or in Bible classes. A good resource I could suggest for you is Church Fellowship:  Working Together for the Truth.  It explains biblical fellowship principles and makes application to various situations, including the one you mentioned.  It is available from Northwestern Publishing House.

Question: I am a member of a local WELS church and attend meetings and work with other Christians and we have a prayer before and after the meeting. Even though they are not members of WELS, is it wrong to participate in the group prayers? Also, if I share a meal with my family, who are all Christians, but not all WELS, what about grace before the meal? Thank you for your thoughtful response.
Answer: When Christians are joined together in faith and doctrine, they are able to express their unity by joint prayer and worship, cooperative educational endeavors and shared outreach efforts (Acts 1:14; 2:42; Hebrews 10:24-25; Psalm 78:4-7; 3 John 5-8).  When you and I interact with Christians whose faith differs from ours, we follow Scripture’s instructions and do not engage in those previously mentioned activities (Romans 16:17; Titus 3:10; 2 John 10-11).  By not worshiping or praying together with other Christians, you and I are not intending to say that we do not consider such people to be outside the faith.  God alone can see what is in the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).  We readily and happily acknowledge that the kingdom of God is bigger than our synod.  Refraining from prayer and worship with people who are not united with us in faith and doctrine is, as our Catechism points out from Scripture, a matter of showing love for the truth of God’s word (2 Corinthians 13:8), love for our own souls (Galatians 5:9) and love for those who are mixing error with truth (James 5:19-20).

Both Questions Answered by James Pope, professor at Martin Luther College, New Ulm, Minn. Pope is a contributing editor to Forward in Christ magazine. He writes the monthly “Light for our path” question and answer column.


What WELS Churches Actually Do:
Christian Leadership Experience Conference - Includes worship which is considered fellowship

Q26: Is the conference open only to CELC* members? *CELC = Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference of which the WELS and ELS are members
A: The 2015 Christian Leadership Experience and its organizing partners are specifically inviting the people who make up our constituency, which is primarily WELS/ELS or CELC. However, the event is open to whomever is interested in building their leadership skills.

Q27: Why are there non-CELC presenters?
A: As the objectives of the Leadership Experience were identified, we committed to identifying and presenting the best possible speakers on each leadership topic. A few of the speakers who are well-regarded as experts in their field are from outside the CELC (WELS/ELS) fellowship. We pray these speakers will bring value to attendees which has not been previously available to leaders and aspiring leaders in our fellowship.

Q28: Are there any "fellowship" concerns since it is open to non-CELC members?
A: Conference attendance is not an act of fellowship. The one "fellowship" activity is the worship at devotions and the closing service. Just as we welcome our friends and visitors to our congregations' worship services so also we welcome them to the conference's devotions and closing service. [Does this contradict the two answers given above from the WELS Q & A and the COP guidelines or not?]

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:
        Young professionals, business & ministry leaders and aspiring leaders
        Health workers of all disciplines
        All interested in participation in mission work
        Congregation Presidents and leaders
        Those interested in cutting edge evangelism techniques
        Anyone working in a cross-cultural setting 

Read More: 
DP Buchholz Responds to Christian Leadership Experience
Christian Leadership Experience will feature the SON Band
2015 Christian Leadership Experience Website
Intrepid Lutherans - What is the 2015 Christian Leadership Experience?
Christian Leadership Experience FAQ
Truth in Love Ministries - 2015 Christian Leadership Experience: Grow. Lead. Impact.
Facebook Event Page

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What makes a Lutheran synod confessional? It does the following: 

• Believes that the truth of God’s Word, as revealed in Scripture and summarized in the confessions, does not change.
• Stands on the Bible’s foundational teaching that we are saved by God’s grace alone, through faith in Christ alone. It recognizes that the blessings of faith come only by the Holy Spirit’s working through the gospel proclaimed in God’s Word and in the sacraments.
• Understands and applies the clear distinction between law and gospel. A confessional Lutheran church proclaims God’s law in all its stark bluntness and God’s gospel in all its amazing beauty.
• Values the rich heritage of doctrine and worship that God has preserved to us through the wisdom, courage, and creativity of those who have gone before us.
• Celebrates the freedom that God has given us in the gospel. It is careful to avoid any hint of legalism that imposes rules where God has not. It avoids misusing the freedom in a way that does not show Christian love for the other members of the body of Christ. It recognizes that often the most faithful exercise of our Christian freedom is when we willingly choose not to exercise that freedom out of love and concern for others.

I’m thankful that we are a synod that values worship—a synod in which every member can say with the Psalmist, “I rejoiced with those who said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the LORD’” (Psalm 122:1). - Mark G. Schroeder

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Notice how a beautiful old church
has been transformed by lighting into a rock venue.

GJ - Ichabod asks the obvious question - How many alcoholic, abusive pastors have their careers rescued by a congregational visit from the Synod President?

And what style of worship does that pastor represent? Here is the short answer - Messages (not sermons) plagiarized from false teachers, delivered in clean-out-the-attic clothes.

Add these pastoral abuses - approved and promoted by the Synod President:
1. Showing gross pornography to a lady working at the church.
2. Suing the worker's husband for telling the truth about the abuse.
3. Excommunicating an attorney for talking to the senior pastor, Glende, Ski's buddy, about their plagiarism and dishonesty - which Glende denied!

After Team Glende pulled off these crimes, Ski got a quickie CRM approval and an insta-call to DP Don Patterson's neighborhood. With SP Schroeder's approval, Deputy Doug Engelbrecht violated the district rules for CRM and thereby endorsed by worst behavior in WELS.

But, after all, didn't WELS buy a bar for Ski with synodical money?

Excellent Article on Bishop Cook's Fatal DUI Incident. Will LCMS-ELS-WELS Leaders Take Notice?

Heather Cook drove away from her accident
and had to be chased down to return.
The ELCA bishop also had to be chased down 
by onlookers. Hiding is part of alcoholism.

Emily C. Heath, author:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-emily-c-heath/bishop-heather-cook-sobri_b_6404226.html

A few people have asked me, as a clergy person openly in longterm recovery, what my thoughts are on whether Bishop Heather Cook, the Episcopal bishop in Maryland who struck and killed a motorist and who had a history of driving under the influence, should have been serving as a bishop. Here are my thoughts.

First of all, the person we should first be remembering, and whose family we should be lifting up in prayer, is Thomas Palermo, the man who was struck and killed by Bishop Cook, and then left to die in the roadway. Mr. Palermo and his family, including his children, should be our first concern as the church.

But to turn to Bishop Cook, and the discussion of clergy and alcoholism, this is what I can say. In the aftermath of Bishop Cook's actions, I have seen a number of posts on social media debating whether or not a person with substance abuse issues should have been elevated to bishop. In my mind, most have lacked nuance. Several things need to be taken into account.

First, there are many clergy persons in recovery from addictions. Second, there are many more who should be in recovery. Third, I don't know to which group Bishop Cook belonged.

That said, her 2010 DUI charges were particularly disturbing. Many of us in recovery never drove drunk, but the facts of her prior case seem to indicate that substance abuse was indeed a problem. My hope is that when she was charged she saw the need to get sober. My other hope is that the Episcopal Church supported her in that endeavor.

But as far as her consecration as bishop, a very short period of time had elapsed between her DUI incident and her elevation. If she was sober, she was still in "early sobriety" and taking on a position like this, with higher stress and demands on time, would have likely been discouraged. And, if she relapsed, as now seems likely, it was on her to step back and say "I need to focus on getting healthy." But Bishop Cook alone is not at fault. Church communities are often too quick to push those who have had major falls back into the spotlight. They are not doing the one who is recovering any favors by pushing a false rhetoric of "forgiveness" or "grace". Sometimes grace means saying "you need to work on yourself for a while".

With Bishop Cook too many questions are unanswered, and too little time had elapsed since her "rock bottom" of a few years ago. Something went wrong, and she found an even lower "rock bottom", and this time a man is dead, not because she was in recovery but because of her own bad decisions. Add to that the fact that this was a hit and run, and Bishop Cook took no responsibility for her actions until she was chased down, and it is clear that her behavior is exactly the opposite of what we are taught in recovery, regardless of whether or not she was drinking when she hit Mr. Palermo.

The question for me is not "should a person in sustained, active recovery be elevated to a position of leadership" but instead "should Heather Cook been elevated"? Because what we don't need in the discussion of Heather Cook's actions is a knee-jerk response that people in recovery shouldn't be in leadership positions anyway. That will only add more reasons for people to hide when they are struggling. And I know plenty of clergy who are struggling, and who fear the reaction of the church and their parishioners should they seek help. In the end, if they do not get sober, they will cause far greater harm than if they continue to carry on as functional alcoholics.

In the recovery community we have a saying: "you're as sick as your secrets". I believe that's true. And I believe that the church is sick when it makes people who need treatment hide out of fear for their professional lives. This is what happens when we don't encourage honest discussions around alcohol and addiction within clergy circles. We need to be able to talk about it, and to encourage recovery.

In the end this will not just benefit clergy, but the entire church as well. As I have written elsewhere, our inability to talk about our imperfections as clergy has only been a detriment to the church. We have somehow communicated the idea that Christians must be people of perfection, and not people of grace.

That's too bad, because when the day is done, I think that people with long-term sustained sobriety actually are assets to the ministry. Staying sober requires a sort of spiritual journey and honesty that can only help clergy. I would not hesitate to elevate a person with sustained recovery to a position of leadership.

And in the end, a story of recovery is a story of grace, and a story of the healing power of God's love for us all. This is the story the church should be telling, because it is a Gospel story. I long for the days when our clergy's stories of recovery are celebrated, and our stories of tragedy and destruction are avoided. This is possible. But it's going to take a huge cultural change in the way we talk about recovery and addiction in the church.

The good news is that, like Jesus said, the truth can set us free.

Follow Rev. Emily C. Heath on Twitter: www.twitter.com/emilycheath

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GJ - WELS has a big problem with drunken clergy and professors. They think they are manly men because they drink too much, a habit started in their synodical schools. That is a very young age to start a chemical addiction, because it also forms emotional habits difficult to break. Got a problem? - get drunk and make it go away.

I also see it as a major cause for WELS clergy acting like teenagers and sticking together to hide one another's crimes. Alcoholism is a strong bond, so one clergy drunk is going to protect other clergy drunks. 

The WELS Society of Drunks is the worst place for an alcoholic, because his worst habits will be winked at and excused, and any attempts to break up the booze at every gathering rule will be frowned upon. 

Roman Catholic priests are known for their excessive drinking. I attended a big theology conference at Notre Dame where a featured speaker was drunk. I thought he was odd - the priests told me - "No, he was staggering drunk." That meeting began with a cash bar - just like James P. Tiefel's worship conference, where he served drinks.

If a man shows up at work drunk, whether it is to preach or lead a choir or give a lecture, it is no service to him when others look away and ignore the obvious. But WELS rewards and protects its clergy for drinking on the job, which is odd - unless the leaders are also alcoholics. 

I served a small congregation in Michigan where two young people were killed by drunken drivers. One was recovering from his own addiction to drugs. The other was a young woman with a promising athletic career. The fatalities shattered both families. Both drunks survived the accident with little or no injuries.

Howlers from the World of Roses

John Paul II

White roses were famous for lacking fragrance. That makes sense. If the quest is to make the rose as white as possible, the perfume is going to be secondary. One catalog said, "The only fragrance is in the imagination of the gardener."

However, John Paul II is said to be especially fragrant - and a perfect white rose.

Some have complained that Peace is no longer as yellow as it used to be - "from over-propagation." That seems to ignore the way roses are multiplied. They do not have babies. Instead, the stems are rooted in water and turned into new Peace roses. They all came from one perfect Rose developed in Germany before WWII.

One wise gardener pointed out that Peace was developed and grown in an era when manure was the fertilizer used for roses. The chemical fertilizers do have the ability to give roses what they need.

A rose gardener complained that her organic friends were getting much better roses than she did with all the proper "rose fertilizers." In other words, she had no concept of soil biology and the delivery of nutrition and water to rose roots. Therefore, her roses were fading during the summer, in spite of repeated applications of bagged, dry, inorganic chemical fertilizer.

One rose website even suggested adding extra fertilizer for a bush that was more demanding of food. Nevertheless, many rose gardens are smarter than that.

During our first year of rose gardening here, we added no fertilizer at all and had constant blooms, including the KnockOut roses, which constantly bloom. Underneath the roses, between the upper part and the roots, was a layer of newspapers covered by wooden mulch (Jackson Mulch). The roses were surrounded by lawn and topsoil that rotted under the mulch layer, feeding the creatures that live in the top 12 inches. We only added a lot of red wigglers from Uncle Jim's Worm Farm.

Hard work - buy about 2,000. Place them on top of the soil. They know what to do. They dig themselves in at once and begin to feed and multiply.

I did put a little sprinkling of Epsom Salts on the rosebed when it rained - very little.

The keys are:

• Organic matter that the fungi, bacteria, nematodes, and earthworms use to feed the roots.
• Regular watering when needed.
• Regular pruning - which means cutting roses for yourself and friends.

Infallible Episcopalians - Like the Infallible WELS - Cannot Admit to a Leader's DUI

Episcopal Bishop Hides behind Miter, Gated Community and AttorneyOther bishops in auto accidents have been open about their incidents
By Mary Ann Mueller
VOL Special Correspondent
www.virtueonline.org
Jan. 4, 2015

Bishop Heather Cook (Maryland suffragan) is not the only Episcopal bishop, or Catholic for that matter, to be involved in a fatal automobile accident or accused of drunk driving. Recently, however, she is the only bishop who has hidden behind her miter, withdrawn into a gated community, or been protected by her diocese, an attorney and even the investigating police department, thereby shielding her from not only media scrutiny but also from facing the legal consequences of her actions.

On June 3, 2007, Bishop James Kelsey (X Northern Michigan) was killed in a three-car crash while returning from an episcopal visit to the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in St. Ignace, Michigan. The Michigan State Police theorized that following a rain storm, the Episcopal bishop lost control of his SUV and broadsided another vehicle killing himself and the other driver, Michael Wiita. Following the initial accident, a third vehicle rear-ended one of the damaged cars; that driver was not killed.

The same day that Bishop Kelsey was involved in the fatal accident the police were forthcoming providing accident information and the incident was duly reported by the Episcopal News Service. Then, responding to reports of Bishop Kelsey's death, Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori commented, "The Episcopal Church has today lost one of its bright lights."



As of Jan. 2, 2015, six days after Bishop Cook's Sunday hit & run accident which left bicyclist Thomas Palermo dead, the Episcopal News Service had yet to publish a story. Top ENS stories include the posting of the Archbishop of Canterbury's Christmas Sermon; a story about Canon Paul-Gordon Chandler's desire to foster better understanding between East and West through his film "Ports of Call;" the fact that Christmas celebrations were cancelled in Peshawar following the school attack and Bishop Andrew Dietsche's (XVI New York) reaction to the killings of two New York City police officers following the death of Eric Garner. However, there is not one word about Bishop Heather Cook's newest legal difficulties and traffic problems, nor has the Presiding Bishop weighed in on the matter.
Catholic bishops also have had their traffic problems. In August 2012, then Roman Catholic Bishop of Oakland, who at the time was also the Archbishop-designate of San Francisco, Salvatore Cordileone got snagged in a DUI stop. After dinner with his elderly mother, he was stopped near San Diego State University for drunk driving. He failed the field sobriety test and was arrested on the spot, booked into jail, and posted a $2,500 to get out.

Following Archbishop Cordileone's brush with the law, he quickly held a news conference and publically admitted his failure. He did not hide behind his miter nor allow an attorney to speak for him; he took responsibility for his actions. Since he was involved in a traffic violation which did not end in an accident or vehicular death, he did not resign his episcopal office.

"I will repay my debt to society, and I ask forgiveness from my family and my friends and co-workers at the Diocese of Oakland and the Archdiocese of San Francisco," the archbishop said. "I pray that God, in His inscrutable wisdom, will bring some good out of this."

In October 2004, Archbishop Cordileone, following a plea bargain, pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of reckless driving and, as a result, was sentenced to three years' probation, ordered to pay a $1,120 fine, and was also required to attend a panel discussion sponsored by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

Nearly a decade earlier, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Phoenix, Thomas O'Brien, was involved in a fatal hit & run accident. Reports show that on Saturday, June 14, 2003, the Arizona bishop was involved in a pedestrian accident where Jim Reed was killed. Witnesses, who saw the bishop flee the scene, turned his license plate number into police who tracked the bishop to his rectory. He was arrested two days later and booked with a felony charge. He was then released on $45,000 bond. However, before his arraignment took place Bishop O'Brien resigned his diocese.
Then in February 2004, the resigned Catholic Bishop of Phoenix was found guilty in a jury trial of a felony charge of hit & run. He was eventually sentenced to four years' probation and 1,000 hours of community service for his crime. He could have faced 45 months prison time for his offense.

Now almost a week after Bishop Cook left the scene of a fatal accident, she has yet to be arrested or booked while headlines are made around the world depicting her as a "female bishop" while she is described as "Number Two in the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland." There is still not a word posted by the Episcopal News Service and the police are stonewalling, claiming that the incident is "under investigation." The national secular and religious media are scrambling for information and have uncovered an earlier 2010 drunk driving incident which involved Bishop Cook which, at the same time, also involved the alleged possession of marijuana.

Again, The Episcopal Church is being humiliated by the actions of an Episcopal bishop.

It is time for Bishop Heather Cook to take legal responsibility for her traffic mishap and subsequent actions. She should turn herself in and allow herself to be arrested and booked and post bail, which is needed to jumpstart the legal process. As a penance, following the lead of Catholic Bishop O'Brien, she needs to resign her bishopric and allow the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland to move forward without her legal entanglements.

She may be of the "fairer sex", but that should not shield her from admitting to and assuming her responsibility in the death of another human being. The "female bishop" needs to do what is right, not only in the eyes of God, but also in the eyes of the law. There are spiritual and legal ramifications which need to fully be played out. As an Episcopal bishop, she is not above traffic laws and her miter should not shield her from wrong doing, but energize her to do the right thing and make amends not only to God but to the wider community.

Mary Ann Mueller is a journalist living in Texas. She is a regular contributor to VirtueOnline

***

Or - Ichabod.

GJ - Which WELS District President had a DUI and simply transferred to another district?

Which WELS missionary, famous for being a drunk, drove his car up a utility pole and became a missionary thanks to Marvin Schwan money?

Which Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary professor was convicted of driving under the influence, used a powerful law firm, and had the evidence dropped and the conviction erased?

WELS is justly famous for its alcoholic pastors, an addiction begun at a WELS college and fueled by Mequon partying.

Mequon gatherings have to serve alcohol, or many leaders could not last through the festivities.

Bad teeth are better than a bad liver -
ask your local WELS pastor - better yet - the DP.

Sam Birner, Zak Stowe's Friend, Began His Transgender Change before Graduation from Martin Luther College, WELS

Sam is now Amber Noel Birner. 

Amber Noel Birner

January 1 at 11:00am · 

"I have had a boyfriend for the past year who has supported me every step of the way in this journey. And now, exactly 13 weeks ago, I began hormone replacement therapy so my body will produce less testosterone and run more on estrogen and progesterone." January 1, 2015 post.

WELS GLBTQ and Allies on Facebook

Sam Birner graduated from Martin Luther College in December of 2014.

Sam thanked Ichabod for the earlier post and copied it onto his Facebook page.

The Second Sunday after Christmas, 2015.

The Second Sunday after Christmas, 2015

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Time

The Hymn # 131           The Star Proclaims                4:89

The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual       

The Gospel              

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn # 305:1-5                   Soul Adorn Thyself                4:23

 Planned from Eternity for Us

The Hymn #305:6-9               Soul Adorn Thyself             

The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #657            Beautiful Savior                                       4:24      

Ephesians 1:3-16

King James Version (KJV)

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

⁴ According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

⁵ Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

⁶ To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

⁷ In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

⁸ Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;

⁹ Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

¹⁰ That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:

¹¹ In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

¹² That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

¹³ In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

¹⁴ Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

¹⁵ Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints,

¹⁶ Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;

 

Matthew 2:13-23 (King James Version)

¹³ And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.

¹⁴ When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:

¹⁵ And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

¹⁶ Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying,

¹⁸ In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

¹⁹ But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,

²⁰ Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.

²¹ And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.

²² But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee:

²³ And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

SUNDAY AFTER NEW YEAR

O Lord God, heavenly Father, who didst suffer Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ, to become a stranger and a sojourner in Egypt for our sakes, and didst lead Him safely home to His fatherland: Mercifully grant that we poor sinners, who are strangers and sojourners in this perilous world, may soon be called home to our true fatherland, the kingdom of heaven, where we shall live in eternal joy and glory; through the merits of Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Revealed in History

We can take one thing for granted in the Christian Faith - all this happened in history and through history. That sounds obvious, but it is a dramatic contrast to the rest of world religion.

Judaism is the exception, because Judaism is the first stage of Christianity. From the Promise of the Savior in Genesis 3:15, the Old Testament is full of promises and blessings based upon Jesus as the Son of God, Messiah, and Savior.

God determined to surround His message of His Son in historical facts. The rest of the world teaches something that must be believed in spite of the facts. For instance, magical numbers play a role, or the influence of where doorways are placed. If a a lot of nonsense is added together, it is a world religion that takes years to study.

People need money in the world to come, they say, so money is burned to provide it. No one wants to burn real money, so they burn play money. The person who hesitates is seen as breaking with tradition and the family.

The significant matters of the Christian Faith are revealed by the Holy Spirit and not proven with facts, but all these things take place in history.

The center is the birth of Christ in the Roman Empire. Before that, all the details were recorded in the Old Testament prophets and Psalms, studied and learned for centuries.

King David was a model for the Messiah, but the central message was lodged in Isaiah 53, so important that many Jewish people become believers because they see that Jesus is prophesied in those few verses.

The Star of Bethlehem.

The Star is so remarkable because the phenomenon in the sky fills people with wonder or with scorn. I grew up with people openly doubting such a thing existed, because it was an event that could be studied and rejected.

Kepler wrote about it, but he was dismissed as a "mystic," a term used in Germany for anyone who believed anything. Mystics have no credibility.

But modern man created machines for tracing back the movements of the stars and planets, using ancient observations as well. When they did, the Star emerged again.

I favor the conjunction of planets as the Star, but there are other candidates as well. For believers, the Star of Bethlehem makes them say, "Of course." And how wonderful it is that the celestial marvel brought Wise Men to Jesus, so they could take the Gospel message back to their pagan land.

The Star also brought terror to Herod, as God's judgment will to those who oppose Him. 

Joseph and Mary had trust in God, believing in His guidance in the midst of hostility and violence. They traveled where God led them, just as the Apostles did later.

Each person had a role to play, and with that role came hardship and self-denial. 

Purpose of the Gospel

When we sing the hymns of Gerhardt, or those that emulate him, there is a clear message of God's love wrapped in the midst of difficulties and doubts.

The hymns assume doubts or questions. God's own Son took on our flesh to bring His message to us. How surely God must love us. He cannot despise our humanity, because He took on our human nature.

In his hymns are a combination of the Nativity and the Atonement.

From Vernon Knepprath - Lutheran Layman

The Votum -
was the traditional ending of the Gospel sermon,
not a coaching session, not a fix-it talk.

From Vernon Knepprath:

I think I finally have a more complete understanding of UOJ and its effects.  Your posts helped me considerably with that understanding. I saw the changes going on under my nose.  I knew Lutheran theology (or so I thought) and pushed back as effectively as I could.  But I couldn't for the life of me understand why the changes were being driven with such vehemence.  It was a long process to reach an understanding, but now it seems very clear.

If everyone is forgiven, then the church can, no, it must be re-defined.  It seems the Lutheran leadership advocating these changes would have us believe that the Christian church is no longer for believers. The church must be changed to fit the desires of everyone, and the desires of unbelievers must clearly trump the desires of believers.   One must allow the worship of self to "hook" the unbelievers.  So the theory goes.  But who is really being "hooked"?  The liturgy no longer matters, because the liturgy was only important; it only had significance for believers.  The liturgy means nothing to unbelievers since they are not beneficiaries of the work of the Holy Spirit.  So toss the liturgy, and hopefully the toss carries it far enough to be sight unseen. 

This idea that man knows best is pervasive ... but it always has been.  The Lutheran church is repeating the history spelled out so clearly in Scripture that it chooses to ignore. Rejection of Truth is ALWAYS a matter of choice. This is the nature of sin, and the evil that comes with it. 

When we say the Apostles Creed, we are joining with the saints of all ages
in confessing the truth of the Scriptures.

Garden Seeds Arrived Yesterday - Is Anything More Remarkable?

The mammoth striped seeds of the sunflower
create geometric patterns in the giant disk they form at maturity,
God's own Spirograph.

The rain was coming down in a slow, cold drizzle yesterday - and the first batch of seed arrived. The fragrance of sunflower came through the package. One variety is supposed to grow to 15 feet, and I will have some special compost filled holes just for them. Overall, the sunflowers will be a screen against the back fence, but they also happen to be a favorite of ours and our neighbor to the right - Mrs. Wright.

Nothing is quite like a seed, because each one is alive and ready to grow with the help of a little moisture. A true bulb is actually a flower with its own energy bar tucked around it. But a seed is far less developed - a baby with just enough food to start on its own in the battlefield of the garden, where birds and mice attack, molds help or hurt, and the early rain may fail.

My first lesson in gardening was learning to provide steady moisture after planting. Germination is not enough. The plants need to become established. Planting in Jackson Mulch is the best way to allow a reserve of moisture nearby, protection against water and wind erosion, and a supply of nutrition for the soil. All the seed and plants will go in mulched beds, except for new roses in the lawn, where mulch will be applied around the newly planted bare root roses.

By Norma Boeckler

Some of you will get out your 10 horsepower rototiller this spring and osterize your soil until it looks like rye flour. Meanwhile, I will just move aside a line of Jackson Mulch (shredded wood on newspapers) and plant in soft soil teeming with creatures. The soil creatures are eager to deliver food and moisture to plant roots, the champion (fungus) delivering the most for carbon credits from the roots.

Watering extra for the new seedlings will assure them a great start, and strength against early attacks by insects and disease. Watering also keeps the mulch rot going, since the decomposition of mulch has the effect as building a compost pile. Why not do both?

Stretch your arms out and make a circle, like you are measuring a bishop's tummy. That is how large the mammoth sunflower disk will be at maturity. The same musky sweetness of the seed will be powerful in the plant and flower. No wonder it drives squirrels and bees mad with hunger.

The variation in cells from the seed to the full grown plant is nothing less than astonishing. They specialize in root formation, stems, leaves, flowers, and seed. I doubt whether many gardeners are atheists, because too many things develop from that tiny seed to think man is the measure of all things.

Multiply this factory by the millions - at work in your yard.

The Word - Living Seed

The Word - Living Seed
The clergy and the denominational leaders - even some laity - are the gardener who received this shipment from the Burpee Seed Company:

• Garden Planning Software - customize for your property
• 10 bags of NPK fertlizer 
• Peat pots - for seedlings - dissolves into the soil
• Collapsing garden hose - 100 feet
• 1 three-toothed hoe
• Books - You Are Already a Great Gardener and Every Day Is Saturday
• 5 cans of insecticide
• 1 bag of fungicide
• 6 bags of herbicide

And one very large invoice.

Didn't you order any seed? To plant?

"I am going to do that some day, but I need to get ready, to make sure my gardening efforts are a big success. They have studied successful gardeners at the Fooler Institute of Gardening - all them have these tools at the very least."

And they do not plant the seed, broadcast the seed, or even think about the seed as the Living Word.

Some sunflower seeds get eaten by birds, squirrels, and rodents. Some seed will be killed off by soil diseases. We do not know which ones will succumb to these threats. No seed is marked. But we buy seed to plant it since one seed can produce a plant 15 feet tall with hundreds of new seeds ready to eat and to plant.

Jesus knows something about gardening and the Gospel, since He is the Creating Word revealed in Genesis 1 and John 1. The Gospel Word is even more marvelous than that living seed, because it works through the power of the Holy Spirit to carry out God's will.

The Word is not marked any more than gardening seed is marked:

1. This one will be eaten by a squirrel. Forget it.
2. This one will sit in water too long and rot. Forget it.
3. This one will start out well but get smothered by weeds. Don't even plant it.
4. This one will produce hundreds of seeds - be sure to plant it.

If living seeds are so effective than a little order can turn a yard into flowers, food, and vines, how much more powerful and effective is the Word?

1. To condemn unbelief.
2. To convert blinded and hardened hearts.
3. To comfort the grieving.
4. To provide grace and forgiveness for believers?