Gottesdienst Online and Matthew Becker

I thought it a bit curious that Becker's controversial musings on his blog were receiving so little notice. Or so I thought. Unbeknownst to me until a chance comment on Becker's site, there has been quite a bit of conversation going on over at the Gottesdienst blog. Although clearly in a minority, Becker is to be credited with being as open as he is with his views. With 52 separate comments to comb through, you can get a fairly good idea of the current response to Becker's recent 'coming out' efforts.

This, however, is only the second installment on the issue. The article that first responded to Becker occurred already on Thursday, the day of his post to which I responded. "SELK: Reports of Our Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated" itself generated no less than 87 comments! I read and scanned a good deal of it. Great discussion and worth time in reading. Since the abundant material there speaks for itself, I will not even attempt to summarize or analyze.

If you want to jump in and get a feel for the debate, go over to Gottesdienst and read. You may, though, want to get a cup of coffee first. It's gonna take a few minutes.....

P.S. It would appear that the possibility exists that charges could be filed against Dr. Becker for false teaching. He was more than once admonished to do the honest thing and leave the Synod with which he so adamantly disagrees. He was called to repent. However, he sees nothing wrong with his views and convictions and certainly no reason he should leave the LCMS. As I stated in an early post I do not understand those who remain in a church body, attempting to change it, when they could just as easily leave and join another with which they are more attuned.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Historical Roots of the Warham Guild Hood

Image
In doing just a little checking on the internet, it's interesting to see how the Warham Guild hood, which I have as part of my STM degree attire, is actually a throwback to the Medieval hood. One article notes "the work of the Warham Guild in its imaginative renderings of medieval hoods" (reference is from here ). Again, here is my hood: The Medieval hood, which was originally a very practical outer garment to cover a person's head and shoulders, protecting both from the elements, bears striking resemblance to this revived form: This hood was also a part of the garb of monks in that era. The Medieval hood, in some cases, also had what is known as a "liripipe," a long tail hanging from the back of a hood. You can see the modern stylized version of this on my own hood. From an article on "Academic hood development" we read that "By 1463 the favourite dress of doctors was the hood with round bell-shaped cape, and the lir
Read more

The Firefighter's Cross

Image
[Note: A similar article to this will be shared with my department at their next meeting. During this Lenten season when we are meditating on the significance and meaning of the Passion of our Lord and the Cross at Golgotha, it seemed like one way to offer a witness to the department that captured their interest and yet was not too heavy.] [Editorial Note: In response to a recent comment on this article I have made some changes to the original version of this article especially in regard to references to the so-called St. Florian's Cross. For any confusion the previous unreferenced information may have caused I apologize. I hope that the changes are satisfactory.] THE STORY OF THE MALTESE CROSS In many ways the familiar symbol to the right requires no explanation. It is the universal insignia of firefighting nationwide. Yet the precise origins of this symbol are less clear. The most popular explanation proposes its beginning in the far distant past of medieval Crusaders fi
Read more

KFUO-FM Sale: Editorial from Board of Directors

October 9, 2009 Letters to the Editor St. Louis Post-Dispatch 900 N. Tucker Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63101 RE: “Missouri Synod agrees to sell KFUO” - Oct. 7, 2009 Dear Editor, The ongoing news coverage of the sale of KFUO-FM has been disappointing in its lack of completeness. There is significantly more to the story than has been reported. The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s (LCMS) Board of Directors is elected by convention delegates and is responsible—on behalf of the 2.4 million members of the church—for conscientiously evaluating the assets of the church to determine how best to use those assets to further the proclamation, mission, and ministry associated with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Synod’s board has been open about its intentions regarding the disposition of its FM station. Since as early as February 2008, this item has been on the board meeting agenda. Board minutes are made public by posting on the LCMS Web site and summaries are reported in the board’s insert “Board
Read more