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About the Kingdom - June 2006
The week after Easter your pastor attended three consecutive meetings in St. Louis, Missouri of three related groups, namely, Consensus, Inc., the Lutheran Concerns Association, and the Association of Confessional Lutherans "A Congress on the Lutheran Confessions," April 18-22, 2006. For your summertime reading the following report of these meetings is being published in three parts in our June, July and August newsletters.
Part One
"Consensus" is a sort of umbrella organization dedicated to communicating issues by means of a newsletter and web site. They have crafted and issued a statement called "Call to Repentance" to define the major and serious issues that are dividing The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod in our day. You can acquire a copy by either requesting one from the church office or via the internet by logging on to consensuslutheran.org .
The meeting of The Lutheran Concerns Association addressed these major issues in a number of presentations. Congregation members need to be aware of these issues because you are the Church, the priesthood of all believers, who have voluntarily joined as a congregation in the fellowship called The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. The synod is above all a fellowship of faith and agreement in the doctrine of the Gospel in all its articles. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod has been the world leader in confessional Lutheranism since its beginnings in 1847. Over the years various false teachings have nosed their way into our fellowship. For the most part those false teachings have been identified, marked and rejected. Currently there are issues that are at variance with the pure teaching of the Gospel that have gained significant standing in the LCMS. YOU need to know what these issues are so that, at the very extreme, if a day comes when you are asked whether you agree or disagree, whether you will "stay" or "leave," you will be able to answer and make your confession of the truth. As clearly as I can, here is a summary of these issues.
"Where Are We Now? The State of the Synod Today" was the topic addressed by Pastor Klemet Preus. He chose to speak of four areas of concern, specifically the four areas LCMS President Gerald Kieschnick has identified in his public comments: "Close" Communion, the doctrine of Church and Ministry, Traditional and so-called Contemporary worship, and the Service of Women in the church. Pastor Preus illustrated how the LCMS is currently holding to two conflicting positions in each of these areas.
"Closed Communion" After clearly restating the institution of the Lord's Supper, St. Paul the Apostle wrote to the Corinthians, "Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself" [1 Cor. 11:27-29 (ESV)]. Because of this apostolic warning the Church has always practiced what is called "closed communion," that is, out of love only the baptized who have been instructed in the faith and believe and acknowledge the real presence of Christ's body and blood under the bread and wine, the necessity of repentance of sin and the benefits of forgiveness, life and salvation through Christ's blood shed on the cross are to be communed. The pastor is to know who he is communing and their confession of faith. In our day some use the word "close" rather than "closed" probably fearing not being perceived as being too exclusive or unwelcoming. However today in many places there is little or no pastoral oversight resulting in "open" communion thereby allowing some to possibly "eat and drink judgment on themselves."
The Doctrine of Church and Ministry Simply stated, in the words of our Augsburg Confession, "no one should publicly teach in the Church or administer the Sacraments unless he be regularly called" (Article XIV). Only pastors, men who have been "called and ordained," that is, trained for this vocation, certified, set apart and accepted by the whole church and called to serve through actual congregations are to preach, teach and administer the sacraments. Especially since the LCMS Wichita convention (1989) and more so currently the LCMS has designated laymen in some places for seemingly "emergency" situations doing what we say in our Confession ought not be done.
Traditional vs. so-called Contemporary WorshipThe so-called "contemporary" worship movement began deeply tied to the Church Growth Movement. The fundamental problem is transforming the Sunday Divine Service to be but a tool of outreach evangelism. Evangelism is not the fundamental purpose of the Divine Service. The historic liturgy of the Church began with deep roots and identity, as ought to be expected, in Jewish synagogue worship with the addition of the New Testament of Christ, the sacrament of his body and blood. The historic liturgy is not of German origin as some have ignorantly stated but, if you want to be precise, rather North African! While all are welcomed to attend the first part of the Divine Service, the Service of the Word, it was the practice of the Church from earliest times that the Service of the Holy Communion could be attended only by the baptized and instructed, all others were excused, sometimes with the announcement, "Deacons! The doors!" You can see the above-mentioned practice of closed communion here. The Divine Service is primarily the means by which God distributes his gifts of forgiveness, life and salvation, the strengthening of faith to the people of God. To transform the Divine Service into an evangelistic rally is actually to destroy and eliminate the primary purpose of it. (Notice that "styles" of music, etc. is a secondary problem, a reflection of the primary question).
The Service of Women in the Church The Biblical "Order of Creation" has always been a fundamental part of the discussion of the role of women in the Church. Modern "liberation" or "feminist" movements are based only on a functional argument like "equal pay for equal work," etc., but ignores the more essential and Biblical identities of male and female. Put most simply, God has revealed Himself in male terms and, everyone still agrees, Jesus is a Man. Therefore God has called men as prophets, apostles and pastors to represent Him in speaking His Word and administering His sacraments. As far as I am aware only the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox, some Lutherans including the LCMS and the Southern Baptist Convention reserve the pastoral ministry for men only. Interestingly, I recall Pope John Paul II saying of the suggestion to allow women priests, "We do not have the authority to make such a change"! The LCMS still officially holds to the position that women may not serve as pastors. However, as of the 2004 convention, the LCMS now allows women to hold elected and appointed positions that are directly involved in the authority of the pastoral ministry such as serving on the Board of Elders or as President or Vice President of a congregation. Pastor Preus repeatedly quoted Lutheran theologian Charles Porterfield Krauth warning that where error is at first tolerated it then proceeds to be treated as equal and finally claims preference over truth. If this is allowed to continue it is inevitable that the LCMS will eventually allow women's ordination.
To
be continued. About the Kingdom - July 2006
The week after Easter your pastor attended three consecutive meetings in St. Louis, Missouri of three related groups, namely, Consensus, Inc., the Lutheran Concerns Association, and the Association of Confessional Lutherans "A Congress on the Lutheran Confessions," April 18-22, 2006. For your summertime reading the following report of these meetings is being published in three parts in our June, July and August newsletters.
Congregation members need to be aware of the issues because you are the Church, the priesthood of all believers, who have voluntarily joined as a congregation in the fellowship called The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. Synod is above all a fellowship of faith and agreement in the doctrine of the Gospel in all its articles. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod has been the world leader in confessional Lutheranism since its beginnings in 1847. Over the years various false teachings have nosed their way into our fellowship. For the most part those false teachings have been identified, marked and rejected. Currently there are issues that are at variance with the pure teaching of the Gospel that have gained significant standing in the LCMS. YOU need to know what these issues are so that, at the very extreme, if a day comes when you are asked whether you agree or disagree, whether you will "stay" or "leave," you will be able to answer and make your confession of the truth.
In Part One we reported especially on the presentation by Pastor Klemet Preus, "Where Are We Now? The State of the Synod Today" in which he outlined four issues in which the LCMS is currently holding two conflicting positions, namely, "Close" Communion, the doctrine of Church and Ministry, Traditional and so-called Contemporary worship, and the Service of Women in the church.
Part Two The above four issues were also included in the presentation, "The Options Before Us, Pros and Cons" by the Rev. Charles Henrickson. He, however, addressed four more issues: Joint Prayer and Worship, Ecclesiastical Supervision, Doctrinal Discipline and Missions.
Joint Prayer and Worship Where the LCMS has never agreed with the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) "unit concept" that prayer is on the same level as what we call "pulpit and altar fellowship," we have always believed, taught and confessed that to participate with other Christian denominations with which we are not in fellowship or especially other non-Christian religions in official, public services of worship wrongly gives the impression that our confessional, theological differences are not that important and therefore amount to a denial of what we believe, teach and confess. The most egregious demonstration of this violation was the participation of our LCMS Atlantic District President, David Benke, in the televised "Prayer for America" after the 9-11 attacks in New York, as well as the participation of him and LCMS President Kieschnick in a service of worship in a parish of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) with whom we are not in fellowship. There are rules and situations where an LCMS pastor may lead a prayer at a civic event as long as he is not required to share the event with other religious leaders. Again you can see how this issue involves the other issues of closed communion, the office of the ministry and the role of women in the church.
Ecclesiastical Supervision This term has never been used among us in the LCMS until the new "Definition of Terms" was added to the Bylaws at the 2004 convention. In the "Handbook" the phrase "evangelical supervision" appears in the Constitution, and Article VII states that, "In its relation to its members the Synod is not an ecclesiastical government exercising legislative or coercive powers." It lists as the first duty of the President "the supervision regarding the doctrine and the administration" of officers, employees, Districts and their Presidents. District Presidents are to "exercise supervision over the doctrine, life, and administration of office of the pastors and teachers of their District."
This became an issue primarily because of the above-mentioned Joint Prayer and Worship issue when the LCMS President sought to excuse the Atlantic District President's involvement by claiming that he had the permission of the LCMS President as his "ecclesiastical supervisor." Rather than properly excusing or allowing an exception, however, this only served to involve the LCMS President in the District President's sin. No ecclesiastical power exists that can validly violate a doctrinal position.
Doctrinal Discipline As a result of the above-mentioned issue of ecclesiastical supervision, the 2004 convention voted to prevent anyone but "ecclesiastical supervisors" (Synod and District Presidents) to be able to bring charges against a pastor for violating doctrinal or confessional positions. This violates the fundamental, divine right of any and all Christians to judge their preachers' teaching and doctrine by now requiring the "permission" from their District or Synodical Presidents. Involved in this is also the authority and roles of Synod's Board of Directors (BOD), the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR), and the Commission on Constitutional Matters (CCM) the latter being not elected but appointed by the Synodical President. Pastor Henrickson's dark humor suggests that the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20 - Go and make disciples of all nations, etc.) has been trumped by "The Great Commission S " (the CTCR and CCM).
Missions It has been said that those of us who are trying to preserve pure doctrine and the historic liturgy of the Divine Service are, therefore, somehow against "missions" or evangelism or the growth of the church. This, of course, comes from the fundamental confusion in all of the issues listed above.
Pastor Henrickson suggested that "The Synod is Wrong," that is, in error, and "The Synod is Broken," that is, the system of dealing with errors is not working. On the question, "What Can We Do About It?" he addressed the questions of leaving or staying in synod. A case can be made for leaving when channels of correction are effectively cut off. Reviewing a bit of history he noted "leaving broken synods is nothing new." "Staying" is an option because of (1) the LCMS' reputation as a world leader in confessional Lutheranism, (2) for the sake of the flocks, the members of our congregations, (3) because President Kieschnick is "beatable" in upcoming elections. He noted, however, to stay means that we must protest errors. He concluded his presentation by saying, "though staying under protest is difficult and dangerous, stay and fight, but get ready to leave it if comes to that."
About the Kingdom - August 2006
The week after Easter your pastor attended three consecutive meetings in St. Louis, Missouri of three related groups, namely, Consensus, Inc., the Lutheran Concerns Association, and the Association of Confessional Lutherans "A Congress on the Lutheran Confessions," April 18-22, 2006. For your summertime reading the following report of these meetings is being published in three parts in our June, July and August newsletters.
Congregation members need to be aware of the issues because you are the Church, the priesthood of all believers, who have voluntarily joined as a congregation in the fellowship called The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. Synod is above all a fellowship of faith and agreement in the doctrine of the Gospel in all its articles. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod has been the world leader in confessional Lutheranism since its beginnings in 1847. Over the years various false teachings have nosed their way into our fellowship. For the most part those false teachings have been identified, marked and rejected. Currently there are issues that are at variance with the pure teaching of the Gospel that have gained significant standing in the LCMS. YOU need to know what these issues are so that, at the very extreme, if a day comes when you are asked whether you agree or disagree, whether you will "stay" or "leave," you will be able to answer and make your confession of the truth.
In Part One we reported on the presentation by Pastor Klemet Preus, "Where Are We Now? The State of the Synod Today" in which he outlined four issues in which the LCMS is currently holding two conflicting positions, namely, "Close" Communion, the doctrine of Church and Ministry, Traditional and so-called Contemporary worship, and the Service of Women in the church. In Part Two we reported on the presentation by Pastor Charles Henrickson, "The Options Before Us, Pros and Cons," in which he discussed four more issues: Joint Prayer and Worship, Ecclesiastical Supervision, Doctrinal Discipline and Missions.
Part Three You should know that a number of members of synod (pastors and congregations) have brought a lawsuit against the President and First Vice President of the synod on behalf of the synod for violations of the law of the State of Missouri governing non-profit corporations. The primary accusation is, in plain terms, "ballot box stuffing" during the last convention by means of making many exceptions to the rule defining the validity of "circuits" sending voting pastoral and lay delegates. Mr. Robert Doggett reported some of the evidence that shows that, in especially five synodical districts, while the number of congregational members has decreased by between 2.2% and 5.75% since the last convention, these districts had an increase of between 12% and 36% of voting delegates at the 2004 convention! He asked, "When you're losing members how do you gain votes?" Mr. Edwin Hinnefeld reported on the lawsuit noting a "hunger for power is the root cause for many decisions which compromise" doctrine, the Word of God, the Articles of Incorporation, the Constitution and Bylaws of synod. Also involved is the granting of authority to the appointed Commission on Constitutional Matters (CCM) in areas that are clearly the responsibility of the elected LCMS Board of Directors (BOD). Efforts at negotiating avenues of settlement of the pending lawsuit have evolved into only more "power plays."
Rev. Richard Bolland addressed the subject, "Finding Common Grounds with Progressive Missouri Dissolution." Noting that of the 58 Lutheran bodies organized in America between 1840 and 1875 only the LCMS still exists more or less in its original form. Almost all "synods" come and go over time. Pastor Bolland believes that the LCMS is "an impossibly divided synod." He noted how confessional pastors and congregations are impediments to the progressives. Referring to the usual practice where the President has his five Vice Presidents share in "chairing" the convention at different times, and the unusual practice that the President chaired the entire 2004 convention by himself, Pastor Bolland observed, "Without us, it might even be possible for the President to take a break from the podium at a synodical convention!" He said, because we will not be "converted" to their way of thinking any more than we are going to "convert" them, he concluded that someone must leave this synod. The bottom-line reality is that we desire a future without them, and they desire a future without us. "The future of Confessional Lutheranism is in our hands."
Dr. Frederick Baue spoke more optimistically on the theme, "The Church Militant" saying, in summary, "Stay and fight. Dividing Synod at this time is stupid. Pray and fast. Present trends never continue. Repent, Do the work of an evangelist. Don't be functional schizos. Embrace politics. Don't cocoon. Focus on long-range catechesis."
Dr. Ken Schurb spoke on "Toward 2007." His purpose was to describe the nuts and bolts, the procedural details and deadlines for choosing delegates, nominations and submitting overtures for the next (2007) synodical convention. Voting delegates must be chosen by October 14, 2006. Nominations for President and Vice-President must be submitted by March 14, 2007, and for Boards and Commissions by October 14, 2006. Overtures must be submitted by March 10, 2007. Suggested action included overruling certain "opinions" of the Commission on Constitutional Matters (CCM), establishing a procedure for synodical review of the CCM, removing the face-to-face requirement of conflict resolution, assign the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) to restudy the subject of civic events by July 1, 2009, rescind certain decisions (8-01A, and 3-08A regarding women), and assign seminary faculty's input. Information on these suggestions is available from the 2004 Convention "Proceedings."
Finally, The Association of Confessional Lutherans ' Congress on the Lutheran Confessions was more objective and intentionally less political. The highlights included Dr. Ron Feuerhahn's presentation on "Concerning Prosperity and Health." Dr. Gene Vieth presented a paper on "Concerning Cross and Glory." Pastor Klemet Preus ' presentation on "Personal Holiness" was a typically thorough, pastoral, Lutheran treatment of the Christian as "saint and sinner at the same time." Mr. Daniel Johansson, a Theological student from Sweden, presented "Concerning Speculative Theology." Dr. John Maxfield made a fine presentation concerning Vocation. Rev. Timothy Pauls spoke on the Church Growth Movement. Dr. David Scaer did his usual insightful treatment on the subject of "Free Will." Dr. Louis Brighton was not present as scheduled because of some scheduling confusion.
In conclusion, we live in a day and society that prizes "pluralism" and despises any who would say there is truth and error. In that situation it is not the ones in error but those who point it out that are considered the "trouble makers." Still, to attempt to stand for and allow everything ultimately results in standing for nothing. To say "this we believe, teach and confess" must also logically be followed by "therefore, this we condemn." "Lord, keep us steadfast in Thy Word!"
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