ICHABOD, THE GLORY HAS DEPARTED - explores the Age of Apostasy, predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, to attack Objective Faithless Justification, Church Growth Clowns, and their ringmasters. The antidote to these poisons is trusting the efficacious Word in the Means of Grace. John 16:8. Isaiah 55:8ff. Romans 10. Most readers are WELS, LCMS, ELS, or ELCA. This blog also covers the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and the Left-wing, National Council of Churches denominations.
One person observed that ELCA had already lost 500,000 members, and I hasten to add, they used the Church Growth ninnies as much as LCMS and WELS.
How could they lose even more members? That is correct! You are astute. The convention was a done deal before Mark Hanson, the Presiding Bishop, began the event. He was all for a change away from the old ways, men marrying women, having children according to God's Creation.
The LCA and ALC were already infiltrated with the Left Wing when they birthed the ELCA in 1987. The AELC (Seminex) was even more so, proud of their departure and their seminary board chairman Dick Jungkuntz.
The 2009 convention was not a debate, but the tripwire to carry out officially what they had been doing since 1987 and before. Trexler, the editor of The Lutheran magazine, said (paraphrased) "The LCA has been ordaining homosexuals for years." WELS and Missouri are not different - they just keep it to themselves.
Stay tuned to the Ovaltines' conventions. They have plenty to say. One might compare and contrast ELCA with ELCiC in Canada. The Canadian version more Left than ELCA, and they have a long-term lady Presiding Bishop.
Denominations are the only vessel where the ship is wrecked, sinking, and the remnants are chipper.
As the language goes, so goes the doctrine, down down to goblin town.
The Big Five - LCMS-ELS-ELCA-ELCIC-WELS-CLC (sic) imagine that they teach grace, and they love to use the term grace while mangling and torturing its meaning. The vast majority of Big Five congregations will ignore Ascension because they do not not hold mid-week Advent or Lent services. Those that do are more likely to be copying the Roman Catholic cake-walk with a lot of strutting and billowing of incense smoke. The rest say, "We don't have enough people for mid-week anything!"
First we must define the Big Five concept of grace, using an example from Lutherans now in ELCiC. The previous leader said this about a school for naughty boys that they funded, even though not one of the boys was Lutheran! The speaker emphasized that fact and said - "Not one boy is a Lutheran, so this is an act of pure grace!" The last two words were bellowed with great authority and sanctimony.
The Big Five live according to their new versions of the Bible, especially the despicable NIV. Everyone is forgiven. Everyone! Everyone! (So sayeth the former leader of the LCMS teen group.) Forgetting the leap of faith, they flatter themselves with the Leap of Grace.
Be patient. I am getting there.
Faith in Jesus Christ gives us access to faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary, miracle worker and Teacher, who died on the cross for our sins and rose from the grave, ascending to Heaven.
KJV Romans 5 1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
The gracians, as they might call themselves, are immune to the basics of faith, which they dispose into the category of works. Even there, they do their best to get rid of the true Gospel.
KJV John 6 27 Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. 28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.
The connection is clear and never broken - faith in Jesus Christ gives us access to grace. Faith comes from the Gospel Word, as early as newborn, because faith comes by hearing. A mother took a photo of her new baby grinning and looking to her right, a big smile for her daddy. Faith comes by hearing, and so the baby was baptized according to the Scriptures. The Baptists want me to say that babies do not have faith, so I ask them how babies have faith in their parents but not in God.
The works of God are - believing in Jesus, whom He has sent.
But the yahoos of modernity still say in horror and alarm - "You are making faith to be a human work!"
Lutherdom will need a whole new generation or two before they can teach Romans 5:1-2, not to mention Romans 10. They have poisoned the well and yet cry in despair because their promiscuous spending in Church Growth and other idiocies have bankrupted them.
The LCMS Purple Palace will be sold to Roman Catholics at a deep discount.
The WELS Love Shack will become an Urban Renewal office.
The ELS office will be a fitness center called Renuvia.
The CLC and ELCA will merge into the CLC, headquarters in the nearest Masonic Lodge.
Luther's Sermon on the DAY OF CHRIST’S ASCENSION INTO HEAVEN. Mark 16:14-20
Text: Mark 16:14-20. 14 Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. 15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. 17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. 19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
1. We are to consider today the article of faith in which we say: “I believe in Jesus Christ, who ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father.” Our Gospel lesson briefly reviews the story of this ascension. But Luke treats the matter at greater length and writes, The Lord gathered all the disciples together, fully forty days after his resurrection, just as he had often shown himself to them, and spoke with them and gave them commandment what they should do, and as they were assembled together and spoke with him out at Bethany, whither he had led them, some asked him, saying: “Lord, dost thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And he said unto them: “It is not for you to know times or seasons, which the Father hath set within his own authority. But ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” And when he had said these things, he blessed them and bade them good night and departed from them and was taken up while they beheld him and a cloud received him out of their sight. And as they stood there, gazing after him, gaping at the heavens, behold, there came and stood hard by them two men in white apparel, who said: “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was received up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven.” Hereupon they returned from Bethany, from the mount of Olives, to Jerusalem and assembled in the upper room of the house where they were abiding, and continued with one accord in prayer, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus. This is the story of our Lord Jesus Christ’s ascension. Now let us consider the Gospel.
2. In the first place, there are in this Gospel two parts: one where the Lord commands the apostles to preach the Gospel in all the world; the other, treating of his ascension. We shall pass over the beginning of the text, where the Lord reproves their unbelief and hardness of heart, and take up the part where he says: “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation.” Here you have in English what the Gospel really is, to wit: “He that believeth and is baptized, is saved.” In these words all is comprehended; he that has them, has the Gospel.
I. CHRIST’S MISSIONARY COMMISSION TO HIS DISCIPLES TO PREACH THE GOSPEL.
3. We have often said ‘heretofore that the Gospel, properly speaking, is not something written in books, but an oral proclamation, which shall be heard in all the world and shall be cried out freely before all creatures, so that all would have to hear it if they had ears; that is to say, it shall be preached so publicly that to preach it more publicly would be impossible. For the Law, which was of old, and what the prophets preached, was not cried out in all the world before all creatures, but it was preached by the Jews in their synagogues. But the Gospel shall not be thus confined; it shall be preached freely unto all the world.
4. There is no need, therefore, of commenting on the text as some have done, and saying that omnis creatura (every creature) means a man. For there is no indication in these words that the Gospel shall be preached to men alone, but it shall be cried out before the whole creation, so that earth shall not have a nook or corner into which it shall not penetrate before the last day. Such is the counsel of God, wherein he has decreed that even they who cannot read and have not heard Moses and the prophets shall, nevertheless, hear the Gospel.
5. What is the Gospel? It is these words which the Lord speaks: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” We have often said — and I think we ought to thoroughly understand it by this time — that the Gospel cannot suffer us to preach works, however good and great these may be; for it seeks to pluck us down from our presumption and to set and plant us solely upon God’s mercy, that his work and grace alone may be extolled. Therefore, it suffers us not to rely upon our works. For one of these two must perish: if I stand upon God’s grace and mercy, I do not stand upon my merit and works; and, vice versa, if I stand upon any works and merit, I do not stand upon God’s grace. For, “if it is by grace,” says St. Paul, Romans 11:6, “it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace.” I cannot say that God owes me a reward, but I must confess that he has given it to me entirely as a free gift.
6. Hence, he that would preach the Gospel must cast aside all works that are calculated to make men just, and suffer nothing to remain but faith, or I must believe that God, without any merit of mine and regardless of all my works, has granted me his grace and eternal life, so that I am constrained to thank him and say: I rejoice, praise and thank God that he has freely and out of pure grace given me this most excellent boon. Likewise that the Gospel is, as Scripture says, nothing more nor less than a declaration of the honor, praise and glory of God. As we read in Psalm 19:1-2: “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge.” Therefore, we must preach in a way that the glory and praise will be given to God and not to ourselves. Now, there is no greater praise and glory that we can give to God than this, that we confess that he, out of pure grace and mercy, takes away from us sin, death, and hell, and gives his beloved Son for us, and all his treasures to us. Such a confession must give glory and honor and praise to him alone.
Marvin Schwan, of Schwan Foods, might have paid for the swan serving as product placement, very clever. Marvin donated tons of money to the LCMS, WELS, and ELS. None of the officials were concerned about him dumping his wife for the wife of one of his executives.
The official name - International Center - is often replaced with its nickname - The Purple Palace. I visited it once or twice. I ran into one of the Church Growth guys going inside to meet with the district presidents, his pride gushing and overflowing. I wonder if he has added up the numbers since that time, or should I say "added down?"
Two people wanted to know about the nickname Purple Palace. I volunteered to find some interior shots, and none showed up at first. The color is overwhelming, so it was tempting to give the expensive palace a nickname. Do not blame me. My sister-in-law thought it was very purple too. "No wonder it has that name!"
One LCMS pastor said the very expensive staff members, from their federation of groups put together to build it, were no longer filling the building. It only makes sense that increasing costs of everything are going to make people expendable over time. The Purple Palace is now 40 years old.
Does anyone else find it odd that the LCMS-WELS-ELS doctors of doctrine all fell down to kiss the feet of Marvin Schwan? Each sect is so fussy about the other two, but they are all one with the Big Bucks and cover-ups.
OPM sounds like opium - Other People's Money. The three sects are hotter than Georgia asphalt for other people's money. I visited the newly built chapel at the St. Louis Seminary. The gift book had a full page for Marvin Schwan. Wasn't he a Bethany College alumnus and a WELS member?
With the voice of singing declare ye and tell this:
utter it even to the end of the earth. Hallelujah!
The Lord hath redeemed His servant Jacob: Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Psalm. Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands:
sing forth the honor of His name; make His praise glorious.
The Gloria Patri The Kyrie p. 17 The Gloria in Excelsis The Salutation and Collect p. 19
Collect
O God, from whom all good things do come, grant to us, Thy humble servants, that by Thy holy inspiration we may think those things that be right and by Thy merciful guiding may perform the same; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.
The Epistle and Gradual
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. Christ, who hath redeemed us with His blood:
is risen and hath appeared unto us. Hallelujah!
V. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world:
again, I leave the world and go to the Father. Hallelujah!
The Ascension Holy Communion Service is Thursday, May 9th, 7 PM Central Daylight.
Randy Anderson, Pastor Jim Shrader, Chris Shrader, Sarah Buck, Lorie Howell, Kermit Way, Callie and her mother Peggy, those suffering from emotional distress and those with metabolic disorders.
Thursday is Ascension Day, 7 PM Holy Communion.
Next Sunday is Mother's Day.
KJV James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. 26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. 27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
KJV John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. 24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. 25 These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father. 26 At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: 27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God. 28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. 29 His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. 30 Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.
Individual Prayer
KJV John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.
There is one religious institution or practice which is often ignored, even though there is nothing that can get in its way - individual prayer. Apart from faith in Jesus Christ, there can be no prayer at all. Nothing can take away prayer, and it is encouraged for all who believe in the Savior.
We are living in an era where anything goes, so prayer is stifled because of unbelief. The last few chapters of the Gospel of John are directed toward the disciples and us. As if nothing more could be said, Jesus has individually encouraged each disciple and each believer to ask for God's help, no matter how small the matter may seem to be.
Because faith in Christ is opposed and hated, prayer can be stifled by the general attitude of the population. But because faith is rejected and mocked, prayer is that much more appreciated and always bearing spiritual fruit.
A good time to pray is at night before sleep. The reason is - no distractions and plenty of things to consider. During the day is always good but our days are crowded with work and all the distractions of life. There are many things we can count, problems we can face, thanksgiving to God for blessings.
This section of the Fourth Gospel shows us how the disciples became fully informed about their future, because they were trained to be followers of Jesus but also encouraged by what would happen in the future. Their new life was with the Son of God, who called them into service. Jesus' resurrection and ascension meant He would govern His kingdom from heaven, His holy angels carrying the work directory - always the Word with faith.
The Holy Spirit teaches us the work of the Father and the Son.
24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
This is one of the many Promises of God. When we ask in faith, we receive. That relationship continues, so we become more trusting in God and also receive more from Him, according to His will. The more we receive from God, the more joy we experience. That builds our trust in God, as the word - confidence - literally means - with faith.
Not asking means not receiving, and so humanity goes deeper and deeper into falsehoods, false religion, false hopes, and false words.
25 These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father.
We have the advantage of all the Gospels, more than enough letters from Paul, more writings from Peter and from Hebrews (either Paul or Apollos). But that is just the beginning. The Scriptures in the New Testament sense mean 39 books of the Old Testament. They are the Promises of God about the complete picture of the Messiah - the anointed King. Read Psalm 22 and 23 together. They are songs about the atoning death of Christ in Psalm 22 and His gentle leadership in Psalm 23.
Many statements of Jesus to the disciples were difficult to follow and understand during His earthly ministry. However, they were the basis for realizing those Promises when He rose from death and ascended to Heaven. We are all careless with the Promises until we realize what they mean in times of stress and turmoil.
26 At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: 27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.
Whether we pray in the Name of the Father or of the Son, we are praying to the Trinity, the Spirit helping and guiding us. Many people have questioned the basics and asked me if I actually believe those things. I say, "Of course I do." I get my training from small children, who say it so plainly, so clearly, "Jesus is God - He can do anything."
Jesus has explained that to us. "Unless you believe as a child, you cannot enter the Kingdom of God." Because God the Father loves us, we also believe that Jesus comes directly from God the Father. That seems so simple, and it is. Nothing is more frequently and defiantly attacked than the divinity of Jesus Christ and His miracles. Just when we thought no more false teaching could have been throne at the Son of God's power and mercy, even more attacks rise up.
Here is
the great wisdom of Hollywood,
the unbelieving seminaries,
the snip and clip Bibles sold at outrageous prices.
Bound up together, they have an explanation for all their doubts, and they are great missionaries of doubt, explaining away everything. The truth of God's Word makes them rage. Instead of pursuing the truth, they condemn and destroy.
The modern Bibles erase words, phrases, verses, and larger sections like Mark 16:9-20. The Westcott-Hort Greek New Testament starts out Mark 1:1 -The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ...erasing the Son of God.
The love of God gives us faith in Him, and great spiritual benefits come from this. Whether people snicker or rage about the Word of God, they are only confirming their hardness of heart and perhaps their fear that it may actually be true.
27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God. 28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
We live in a terrible time of violence, distrust and fear. Satan is that much more angry and anxious as his time draws near. Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ defeats the forces of evil, which build up in the last days, not because the demonic is so strong but because the Kingdom of Satan is so weak before the Savior.
And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
Paul felt the terrible burden of his thorn in the flesh, and his opponents mocked him for it.
8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
29 His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. 30 Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God.
Jesus knew His disciples would face more than they could imagine, but He strengthened them with faith, and it all came together in the locked room, the time after the Resurrection, and His ascent, which we will celebrate on Thursday.
"The first is, that we have from God his promise or his permission to speak to him, and that we remember the same before we pray and remind God of it, thereby encouraging ourselves to pray in a calm and confident frame of mind.
In the second place, it is necessary that we never doubt the pledge and promise of the true and faithful God.
In the third place, if one prays doubting that God will hear him, and only offers his prayers as a venture, whether it be granted or not granted, he is guilty of two wicked deeds. The first is, that he, himself, makes his prayer unavailing and he labors in vain. The other wicked deed is, that he regards his most true and faithful God as a liar and an unstable and doubtful being; as one who can not or will not keep his promise; and thus through his doubt he robs God of his honor and of his name of truth and faithfulness.
In the fourth place, some say: Yes, I would gladly trust that my prayer would be heard, if I were only worthy and prayed aright. My answer is: If you do not pray until you know and experience that you are fit, then you will never need to pray.
In the fifth place, one should so act in this confidence of prayer as not to limit God and specify the day or place, nor designate the way or measure of the prayer’s fulfillment; but leave all to his own will, wisdom and almighty power. Then confidently and cheerfully await the answer, not even wishing to know how and where, how soon, how long, and through whom."
And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
Dr. Jackson, thank you so much for responding! John 1:3 is one of my favorite scriptures. It implies the difference between what begins to exist versus the One who has always existed. In essence, there is one thing that did not come into being or just begin to exist. That is God!
When the 2022 Churchwide Assembly voted last summer to form the Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church (CRLC), which will recommend how to restructure the ELCA’s governing process, it reached back four decades for a name. The original Commission for a New Lutheran Church, which met between 1982 and ’87, was a mammoth research project that held forums across the country, reviewed over 12,000 letters from Lutheran faithful, and processed responses from the synod, district and national conventions of three Lutheran denominations hoping to merge. Its work led directly to the creation of the ELCA, so the branding of this new commission feels nothing less than epochal.
The new group of 35 rostered ministers and laypeople from across the church will conduct a more condensed version of the original group’s investigation, examining “statements of purpose” and “principles of organization” for all three expressions and conducting nationwide research and listening forums. Ten synods sent memorials to the 2022 Churchwide Assembly requesting the commission. “The governing documents, constitutions, bylaws, and continuing resolutions of the ELCA do not allow [congregations, synods and the churchwide organization] to reorganize quickly to meet the changing realities for effective mission in today’s world,” wrote the Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Synod in language that was echoed by the other nine.
When the next churchwide assembly convenes, in summer 2025, the CRLC will present its findings and recommend whether the church should then mount a special reconstituting convention without delay.
“Church itself has changed. The people coming to church have changed, and the systems necessary to support the work the church is doing have changed”
Appointed in April, the commission met in person for the first time in mid-July, convening for three days at the Lutheran Center in Chicago. Not long after that, its co-chairs, Carla Christopher and Leon Schwartz, sat down for a Zoom meeting with Living Lutheran to discuss the commission’s work. Both expressed excitement at the first gathering of the commission and stressed the urgency of their task.
***
GJ - The LCA pastors said their merger in 1962 was modeled after the General Motors corporate structure. The 1987 ELCA merger was more like the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, because the Seminex faction was given leverage for all the big decisions. They were the smallest in size and got the greatest proportion of everything. They were the radicals' radicals, who came close to removing the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit from ELCA constitution. The Holy Trinity won the title, but only by a small margin of votes.
Notice the ELCA box with the three-fold Change motif. That reminded me of the WELS' Church and Change stealth operation, where the WELS Church Growth stars predicted the utter doom of their abusive sect until and unless everything changed. They even sold trinkets and promoted their underground Church and Change movement on the WELS website.
Although WELS and LCMS have done everything right, according the genius con artists of Fuller Seminary, their church bodies have plummeted in numbers, no matter what they claim. How could all of them lose so many members at the same time. They had the doctorates (sic) in Church Growth from Pasadena, Ft. Wayne, and St. Louis. Yes, even Robert Preus endorsed the Ft. Wayne version of Fuller, although he said WELS was even worse than LCMS in Fuller intoxication.
Barna had Lutheran pastors giving this disgusting book to members. The clear message of Church Growth - "We will wreck the Gospel of faith in Jesus Christ by slowly increasing the heat until the old fuddie-duddies are boiled alive." Where were the animal rights people? I wondered.
I had a lot of fun tracking down the main culprits: their conferences, their funds, their publications, and their flame-outs. Pasadena veterans did not appreciate being described with so much attention and so many curated quotations.
When the next churchwide assembly convenes, in summer 2025, the CRLC (Commission for a Renewed Lutheran Church) will present its findings and recommend whether the church should then mount a special reconstituting convention without delay.
This sold well - WELS published it. Sadly, the Church and Changers did not approve and wanted it squashed. They were getting Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant ready to print when they suddenly changed their minds.
Deluded?
I was absolutely astounded when I read ELCA
Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton’s response to the
recent action taken by the United Methodist Church
to affirm the historic Christian view
of marriage and human sexuality.
Speaking of the very different vote
that the ELCA took nearly ten
years ago, she said, “Yet, though a
controversial decision at the time,
our 2009 action has brought
strength and blessings for our life
and mission beyond what we could
have imagined a decade ago.” [emphasis added]
How in the world could she make a statement like
that when she wrote the following in the February
2019 issue of “Living Lutheran”?
“Our congregations are growing older and smaller.
At least 40 percent of our congregations have an
average weekly worship attendance of 50 or less.
ELCA membership decreases by 70,000 people a
year, or roughly the loss of a synod per year.
Clergy retirements outnumber new candidates for
ministry.
Financial pressures and building maintenance
create stress.
There is a dearth of people in their 20s and 30s in
our pews.”
18. And here we also see that to “believe in Christ” does not mean to believe that Christ is a person who is both God and man; that does not help any one. But that this same person is the Christ; that is, that he went forth from the Father and came into the world, and again leaves the world and goes to the Father. The words mean no less than that this is Christ, that he became man and died for us, rose again and ascended to heaven. Because of this office of his, he is called Jesus Christ, and to believe this concerning him, that: it is true, means to be and to abide in his name. There follows further in this Gospel: “His disciples say, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no dark sayings.”
19. Here you see that to speak “plainly” (“frei heraus”), or to speak in clear terms, means to speak without parables, or without dark and covered words. And the good disciples think they understand very well what he tells them, that Christ comes from the Father and goes to the Father; but they do this as good, pious children of Christ. They are easily able to understand it, and in love they tell him so. In ordinary conversation, people sometimes say to one another Yes or No, or give assent, saying, It is so, and in a sense one understands, even though he is still far from the meaning of another’s words. In such case the conversation is without hypocrisy and in true simplicity. The Evangelist hereby shows what a beautiful, plain, friendly and loving life Christ led with his disciples, since they were so very able to understand him. Then the disciples say further: “Now know we that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee.”
20. That is, you anticipate and explain yourself and speak no more in parables, concerning which we must question you; for you know in advance where we are lacking in understanding. All this reverts to the fact that they wished to ask what the “little while” meant, and he noticed it and explains by saying that he must go to the Father; which they still did not understand, and yet it was clearer than his words: “A little while and ye will not see me.” Now, because he saw their thoughts — that they wished to question him — they confessed that he comes from God and knows all things, so that we need not to ask him, for he himself sees very well where the trouble is.
