Not My Blog, Not My Words, Not My Disciples

Augustana person - Again, my name is Pastor Steven Spencer. You are welcome to call me Steve or Spence, or Rev., or Rev. Fr., or Father, or hey you, but unlike yourself, I am not anonymous. Not knowing who you are, I do not know your experience with district meetings. I have had more than 40 years' worth, both as layman and as Pastor. Yes, there is a worship service with the Lord's Supper - glad for that, but most of the rest of the time, a great majority of the fellas spend the time outside the meeting hall, chatting among themselves. There is absolute NO reason for these things to go on for three plus days, IMHO. Reveal who you are and we might have a fruitful discussion. But then again, that goes for most on this blog. Why are y'all so scared? And of what, or whom? Especially those who defend the WELS in everything? Makes no sense! 

Father Spencer, didn't CMOs drop last year, after Synod expected and budgeted for almost a 4% increase? They ended up with about a 1% decrease from the previous year, and tasked the DPs and CPs to visit their congregations to "request" an increase or special offering. "You got a real nice church here, be a shame if something were to happen." So, if congregations stop sending in their Tributes, they also have to be prepared for Hans and Franz to come around for the shakedown! (I would say Guido and Vito, but, you know, German....)

Augustana, you commit a standard WELS fallacy by equating congregations and Synod to "The Church". If a congregations chooses to spend its money on local needs instead of sending Tribute, it still can build the Church, just perhaps not the Synod. They Synod is nothing more than individual congregations pooling their money for a common goal. If the pool of money is not being spend on the common goals, or otherwise spent unwisely, individual congregations have the right, and indeed the duty, to withhold their contributions.