My bias is for the truth. So yes my bias has shown. This story as previewed here seems to rely on innuendo. Facts have not been forthcoming that tie to accusations. One claims to be a hybrid Christian, and claims the LCMS as one of the origins of the hybrid, yet demonstrates a casual concern for outrageous statements, a casual attitude for factual positions of the LCMS when they are inconvenient to the book's theme. One claims to be Lutheran but demonstrate through words on FR that one is anything but. Alot of claims, without understanding what is claimed. Ignoring half of historical Lutheran teaching, one has got the Gospel right though by some of the statements that would be questionable, but ignore the Law. Luther compared the Law to a mirror where one could with the help of God, realize that they were sinful and needed a Savior. By some of the comments here, that mirror has been lain aside unused.
Why are you angry, xone, about my story?
If I appear angry, it is only because in cyberspace, anyone can claim anything, and to the casual reader you might stand forth as an example of the typical LCMS Lutheran. I want to convey to any lurkers that it would be erroneous to take that view. As I said before, I don't care about this story, or how it is framed by you. It will sell to those with the same bias and disregard for reality. Anecdotes don't reality make.
You said you wanted to converse with an LCMS'er for those 'hard' questions. While ignoring anything asked of you that you chose not to answer, you posit opinion about the questioner. I'm not angry, I am trying to be the one engaged in 'hard' questioning with someone who is uncooperative even though the questioning was their own idea. Evasiveness has no place in honest discourse.
What if there are, in fact, typical LCMS Lutherans and typical LCMS Pastors? Maybe my original bias was correct after all. What if P#4 is unique? What would a typical LCMS Lutheran Church do if Pastor P#4 did not meet their typical expectations?
One comment that he told me at the start of his ministry was that He did not want to be called a nice man. Also, He said he wanted to teach and preach so that the uncomfortable become comfortable and the comfortable become uncomfortable.
2 Timothy 3:1-9 New International Version (NIV) 1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. 6 They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7 always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9 But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.
This is what I am asking about my local LCMS church and concerned it may be a systemic problem in the LCMS.