A Sneak Preview of the New Issues, Etc.

PirateChristianRadio.com has provided a luscious tour of Host Todd Wilken and Producer Jeff Schwarz' new radio digs in Collinsville, IL, plus a glance at an article written by Pastor Wilken for their upcoming journal. I can taste it already!

Here is the concluding paragraph to Pastor Wilken's article, "Playing the Pharisee Card":

Those who play the Pharisee Card hope to dismiss Christians like you and me as ultra-conservative doctrinal purists with no love for the lost. But like a fifth Ace up the sleeve, the Pharisee Card is a cheat. Those who play it ignore the real errors of the real Pharisees. They wrongly apply the name to those who stand in the way of false teaching, compromising change and a watered-down gospel. In the end, The Pharisee Card amounts to nothing more than name-calling. And, like the Race or Gender Cards are in politics, in the Church, the Pharisee Card is always the sign of a losing hand.

Terms You Must Use - Bureaucrat Style

I’ve noticed a decided lack of trendy contemporary bureaucratic terminology in my own writing compared to that of many other Lutherans - please forgive me. I’ve been keeping track of the words that others might deem to be lacking in my diction, and will endeavor to incorporate them into future posts. Please help me by posting other words that I’m not using enough in the comment section, so that I can incorporate them as well. Here is the list, as best as I can figure it out:

Aggregate financial problems
Coffee
Committee
Corporate
Dialogue
Dislike
Distrust
Division
Doctrinal and theological unity
Ecclesiastical supervisor
Fiscal realities
Honor the Eighth Commandment
Incentivize performance
In truth
Jelly roll
Mutual conversation, consolation, and collaboration
Reduction in force of personnel
(Run-on sentences)
Spirit of unity
Such was not the case

In an effort to “rededicate” myself, here is my first feeble attempt at the “new me.”


Dear Readers,

While I was sitting at the prayer breakfast, eyeing that jelly roll, I was dialoguing with a fellow committee member, discussing the growing division at Stand Firm in light of the upcoming reduction in force of personnel because of fiscal realities. While he stated that there is a propensity for some to exercise the freedoms of speech and of the press in expressing their opinions in a manner that contributes to a spirit of distrust and division in our blog, I said such was not the case. I suggested we revise sales-staff compensation to incentivize performance, but he just laughed, and said I should consult my ecclesiastical supervisor. In truth, I was relieved to point out to him that I have no “ecclesiastical supervisor,” at least not one of a corporate nature. Though we had grown to dislike and distrust one another, through dialogue, over the course of two sausage links, three pastries, and a few cups of coffee, through mutual conversation, consolation, and collaboration, we were able to iron out our aggregate financial problems, put up a modest false front of doctrinal and theological unity, and walk together in a spirit of unity - all while honoring the Eighth Commandment. What could be better?

Terms You Must Use

I’ve noticed a decided lack of trendy contemporary terminology in my own writing compared to that of many other Lutherans - please forgive me. I’ve been keeping track of the words that others might deem to be lacking in my diction, and will endeavor to incorporate them into future posts. Please help me by posting other words that I’m not using enough in the comment section, so that I can incorporate them as well. Here is the list, as best as I can figure it out:

:-)
IMHO
LOL
Unpack
Well
Whatever
Wow


In an effort to “rededicate” myself, here is my first feeble attempt at the “new me.”


Dear Reader,

Bear with me while I unpack this. IMHO, there are terms we should all be using in order to more effectively reach the postmodern seeker. Well, who am I to buck the trend. LOL! Wow, there’s a whole world of words out there that I’ve just discovered - it’s so liberating. No wonder I can’t understand other people’s posts. Whatever. :-)

An Ecclesiastical Ring of Power?

Pastor Jack Bauer at AC 24 has a great post on Confessional pastors who resist the temptation to use Church Growth Movement methodologies, titled "My Precious - Church Growth Methodology as a "Ring of Power." Here's a couple of the highlights:

You know, it isn't that your liturgical pastor doesn't know how to do all that sociology-driven Church Growth Movement stuff. He could pack your church every Sunday and then some.

...In the Lord of the Rings books/movies and in The Hobbit the rings and the One Ring represents a tool of evil, power, influence. But as we know, in The Lord of the Rings, Frodo the Hobbit rarely puts on the ring and then only at great personal risk and in temptation. The methodology of the Church Growth Purpose-Driven movement is just such an ecclesiastical ring of power. It is not the only one - there are also denominational political power rings, academic rings of power, charismatic rings of power, social gospel/liberation theology rings of power, and so forth.

So, again, it isn't that your curmudgeon pastor doesn't know how to pack them in, he wisely resists using this ring of power. The means of grace are the true way and yet this calls for patience, catechesis, reverence, bearing the cross, and repentance.

TODD AND JEFF ARE BACK!

Pastor Todd Wilken and Producer Jeff Schwarz have announced the "resurrection" of their radio broadcast, in a new form.

"Jeff and I have been working hard on a new radio show. What will it be like? Well, we’re going to pick up right where Issues, Etc. left off. And at the same time, we’re going to be truly independent, free to speak, no holds barred. As always, Christ-centered, cross-focused. Everything you loved about Issues, Etc., and more." Folks, it’s coming back."

Jerry's not gonna be happy!

Spread the Good News! http://www.piratechristianradio.com/

Is the Liturgy Really "Adiaphora"?

Pastor Randy Asburry, on his blog RAsburry's Res, has a short, insightful post on the liturgy titled "Is the Liturgy Really 'Adiaphora'?" I hope you'll check it out. Here's a couple of quotes:

But if we Lutherans take the Augsburg Confession at all seriously, we may want to repent of our mistaken notion of liturgy as "adiaphora" modernly interpreted. No, God has not dictated a specific form of liturgy, but He has indeed seen fit for 20 centuries to have His Church hand down liturgical forms that faithfully confess Jesus Christ and His eternal love of saving sinners by forgiving them and restoring them to life with Himself.

So, the point of the liturgy is not "liturgy for the sake of the liturgy." Rather, the point of the liturgy is faithfully to confess the mighty deeds of our Lord's salvation and to keep us centered in them. And for this reason, observing the Church's historic liturgy (as opposed to the forms of American evangelicalism/Pentecostalism) is a fundamental matter of our Lutheran confession of the faith and quite essential to the Christian faith and life, even to the mission of the Church.

Why is the Gospel Powerful?

Quoting Klemet Preus from his excellent essay "THE THEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH GROWTH MOVEMENT: An Evaluation of Kent Hunter's Confessions":

One of Luther's most significant contributions to theology, built upon his doctrine of justification, is his understanding of the inherent power of the gospel. The gospel does not become powerful when and if something is added. It is powerful always because Jesus is both its content and its administrator. Every false teaching can be evaluated and described in terms of what that false teaching tries to add to the gospel to make it work. The word becomes powerful when it is preached by a spirit-filled preacher or when the message is "anointed" by the spirit (Wesleyanism, Holiness Movements, Pentecostalism). The word becomes powerful when the sovereign God wills it or when preached to the elect (Calvinism). The word becomes powerful when placed into the teaching office (Romanism.) The word becomes powerful when combined with the willing heart (Arminianism). The word becomes powerful when the "meaning of the words," combines with the "power with which these words are spoken," and the "existential reception of the content" and the "correlation of these" into a "constellation in which the words become the Word" (Paul Tillich). The word becomes powerful in an "I/thou encounter" (Barth). The word becomes powerful "when we get out of God's way," or when placed into the hands of a church that has accepted the "mission paradigm" or "thinks like a missionary," or that has become a "great commission church" (Hunter and the Church Growth Movement). To Luther, and we might add, to the Holy Spirit, the word is powerful because in it Jesus speaks and forgives. "At whatever hour, then, God's word is taught, preached, heard, read or meditated upon, there the person, day and work are sanctified thereby, . . . because of the Word which makes saints of us all" (LC I, 91).

A Third Seminary in the LCMS?

If you were going to start up an airline, you'd need to hire pilots. The Federal Aviation Administration requires that all pilots first be trained by an approved training program, and that would mean hiring people to train those pilots. The question is, who would you hire to train the pilots? I know - hire a bunch of business men.

That sounds stupid doesn't it? Yet that's part of the mindset at PLI, the Pastoral Leadership Institute, the third seminary of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod.

PLI was begun in 1999 by LCMS Pastor Dr. Norbert Oesch, with input from many LCMS notables, including then Texas District President and now LCMS Synodical President Gerald Kieschnick.

The PLI leadership training program for pastors is a four year commitment, with annual attendance at two collegial events plus a conference at various host LCMS mentoring churches. Each year a different major topic is examined, for a total time commitment of 69 days spread over the four years. Specific mentoring churches are selected to host the events because they exhibit one or more "signature ministries" and conduct ministry "excellently," and participants are encouraged to observe and interact with the staff of these mentoring churches. Each participant is assigned mentors, who are experienced "pastor-leaders." The participants stick with their collegial group of six or seven fellow attendees throughout the four year program. Pastors build their "mission consciousness" by exposure to a congregation involved in multi-ethnic urban ministry, and through a two week international mission "vision" event. The annual fee for the program is $950 for the pastor and $3,250 charged to their congregation.

PLI had somewhat of a rough start. While it is a private concern not officially sanctioned by the LCMS, more than $300,000 was given to it by the Lutheran Church Extension Fund. Some synod members were upset by that contribution and other incidents that gave the appearance that the LCMS was allied with PLI more closely than it should have been. There was also controversy surrounding the original "call" of Dr. Oesch to his position of Executive Director of PLI by the Pacific Southwest District, the Commission on Constitutional Matters (CCM) eventually ruling that the District had no authority to issue such a call. Since those days, the LCMS has studiously avoided the appearance of an official sanction of PLI, at least at the top of the LCMS corporate structure. You now have to dig through LCMS Board of Directors meeting minutes and obscure Reporter articles to find mention of PLI from the top. Yet those ties still exist.

PLI states in its information packet (to access the proper link, click and then download the Pastor Information Packet):

What is the relationship of PLI to the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod?

PLI is a 4-year continuing education learning experience with a special focus on leadership training and missional formation for pastors and their wives. Though PLI is neither an organization designated by the LCMS as a Recognized Service Organization (RSO) nor an auxiliary organization (like Lutheran Hour Ministries), PLI originated within the LCMS and serves the LCMS.

Assigned to the PLI Board of Directors is a member of the Council of Presidents. Both LCMS seminaries give academic credit toward a Doctor of Ministry degree for work completed by pastors in PLI. Concordia University Chicago gives academic credit toward a Masters Degree for work completed by pastors' wives in PLI.

In addition, members of both LCMS seminary faculties attend conference events to participate in theological dialog with mentor pastors. Faculty members also serve as conference presenters.

All mentors and their host site congregations as well as conference churches are members in good standing within the LCMS.

PLI further blurs the line of distinction between themselves and the Synod by saying it is "...a Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod ministry."

Others seem to miss the distinction between the two as well.

Click HERE to continue reading >>

A Tale of Two Reports

This post is a tale of two reports issued by different bodies within the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS). These two reports, while investigating the same topic, the Church Growth Movement, leave the reader with two different impressions of the Church Growth Movement and its influence on the LCMS.

At the 1995 LCMS Synodical Convention, a resolution was passed to address the Church Growth Movement. In response to that resolution, the Church Growth Study Committee in 2001 released their report, “For the Sake of Christ’s Commission.” Their report is an excellent review of the theological and cultural considerations associated with the Church Growth Movement (CGM).

In 2002, President Gerald Kieschnick asked the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) to review “For the Sake of Christ’s Commission.” Their report, titled “CTCR Review of ‘For the Sake of Christ’s Commission’” was released in 2003.

Their report refers to the original Convention resolution, quoting in part:

--That The Lutheran Witness, Reporter and other publications of the Synod report on the errors in some Church Growth materials and practices and also in fairness show how some materials and practices may be used in service of the Gospel and the advancement of the Kingdom;

They go on to say

For reasons not explicitly stated in the report (e.g., perhaps a prioritizing of time and concerns, committee convictions about the nature and proper focus of its assignment, etc.), little attention is given in FSCC [“For the Sake of Christ’s Commission”] to the Synod’s request to “in fairness show how some [Church Growth] materials and practices may be used in the service of the Gospel and the advancement of the Kingdom,” toward the end that “congregations, Districts and entities of the Synod which are using Church Growth materials and practices” may “use them with proper discernment.”

The CTCR then proceeds to “remedy” this perceived lack of attention to the positive side of the Church Growth Movement in “For the Sake of Christ’s Commission.” They do so with great fervor.

While the CTCR report often praises “For the Sake of Christ’s Commission,” it rarely does so without adding qualifying language. They add conditional language so often that it would seem their purpose may have been to undermine FSCC rather than praise it. An example:

Once again, FSCC contains numerous salutary cautions and warnings in this regard.

At the same time—precisely because of the all-sufficient power of God’s means of grace—the church should be emboldened and encouraged to use all appropriate resources that God places at its disposal...

To illustrate this undermining effect, here is a list of the majority of these qualifying words, listed in order as they’re used in the CTCR report: “But,” “At the same time,” “also need to,” “But,” “At the same time,” “But,” “At the same time,” “it is also important to recognize,” “At the same time,” “At the same time,” “but it is important to emphasize,” “It seems reasonable and theologically defensible to hold that,” “At the same time,” “one might have expected more discussion,” “but more might have been said about,” “At the same time,” “we also need to guard against,” “may also find it helpful to.”

Click HERE to continue reading >>

Let's Hear it for the Small Congregation!, by Rev. Matt Harrison

Pastor Matt Harrison is the Executive Director for LCMS World Relief and Human Care. In this article, also available on his LCMS page, he offers encouragement for the small parish. Reproduced with permission.


Amid all the hype in the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod over the last number of years about “growth,” some important facts about small congregations have been overlooked.

In fact, I wouldn't be surprised that—if such a thing were measurable—all the well-meant talk about getting congregations to grow has in many cases impeded the very numerical growth we all want.

What do I mean? I'm afraid that much of the material that we “Synod types” have put out in the church in this regard, while well-intentioned and often very good advice, has disregarded the great blessings which Jesus brings people in the small congregation. When our talk is all about “grow, grow, growth, mega, meta, magnificent,” we run the very strong risk of giving—inadvertently—the small parish the message: You're bad, you're sick; you're backward, your abnormal. Any pastor worth his salt, with a decade or two of experience under his belt, will tell you that one significant factor in whether or not a church grows is how its members view their parish. That was certainly my experience in the parish.

I'd like to put before you a few simple thoughts in order to affirm and build up our small churches. Of the some 6,150 LCMS churches around the nation: 73 percent (4,510, more than three-fourths!) have fewer than 500 members on their roles; 38 percent have fewer than 200 members; 35 percent have between 200 and 500 members. Of those parishes of 200 or fewer members, average attendance is 53. For those between 200 and 500 members, average Sunday attendance is 128. Yet nearly one-third of these small parishes operate schools! That, frankly, is amazing!

Here's a couple more interesting stats. We know that as a percentage of the congregational budget, small congregations give considerably more to their district and to the Synod. And perhaps as significant as anything, smaller congregations have in many cases significantly better member attendance (48 percent attendance for the 2,363 churches under 200 members).

Over the course of my pastoral service, I served two parishes. (One was well above 500 members; the other somewhat below that number.) I can tell you from experience, the quality of pastoral care in smaller congregations is quite often phenomenal. The LCMS has some of the best-trained clergy in the nation. The vast majority of our pastors and teachers serve parishes with small numbers with “full-scale” commitment. This blessing has marked the existence of our Synod from her earliest days and will continue to mark our existence well into the future. Despite radically changing demographics, many rural parishes live out their lives in Christ with “gusto.”

Are there challenges and areas in which we fall short? Of course. But this little article is about the good things.

More important than anything else is that in these small parishes, Christ Himself, through His blessed Word and Sacrament, dwells to give sinners life and salvation. That is a point C.F.W. Walther loved to drive home when he sensed any devaluation of smaller parishes by anyone in the Synod. Very important to me as executive director for LCMS World Relief and Human Care is that so many small parishes so well approximate the ideal Luther held up for the church, as we all are members of the same body, caring for one another. He spoke about the Lord's Supper:

“Christ said, I am the head, I will first give Myself for you, will make your suffering and misfortune Mine own and bear it for you, that you in your turn may do the same for Me and for one another, have all things in common in Me and with me, and let this sacrament be unto you a sure token of that all, that you may not forget me.”

Christ cares for us, gives Himself for us. We in turn give ourselves for the neighbor. This happens nowhere as well, as naturally, and as constantly as in the small parish. Where mistakes are made, we flee to the forgiving waters of baptism, confess our sins, and resolve in faith to begin anew in love, both “laying down our burdens in the midst of the congregation” (Luther) and also finding the burdens of others there to take up. God knows that as we often know well the sins of our neighbors (and they know ours!) in smaller congregations, the need for forgiveness and grace as we work together is all the greater!

We heartily support, thank God for, and affirm our many larger congregations that have been blessed by circumstances, God-given wisdom, demographics and grace to work hard—all which have allowed them to grow to such an extent. But let us always give thanks for the small congregations, which constantly remind us all that the church on earth is truly, and always, a “little flock.”

Come to think of it, the Synod would do best if we had many, many more small congregations!