The Word-Of-God Conflict in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod in the 20Th Century
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Luther Seminary Digital Commons @ Luther Seminary Master of Theology Theses Student Theses Spring 2018 The Word-of-God Conflict in the utherL an Church Missouri Synod in the 20th Century Donn Wilson Luther Seminary Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.luthersem.edu/mth_theses Part of the Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, and the History of Christianity Commons Recommended Citation Wilson, Donn, "The Word-of-God Conflict in the utherL an Church Missouri Synod in the 20th Century" (2018). Master of Theology Theses. 10. https://digitalcommons.luthersem.edu/mth_theses/10 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Theses at Digital Commons @ Luther Seminary. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master of Theology Theses by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Luther Seminary. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. THE WORD-OF-GOD CONFLICT IN THE LUTHERAN CHURCH MISSOURI SYNOD IN THE 20TH CENTURY by DONN WILSON A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Luther Seminary In Partial Fulfillment, of The Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF THEOLOGY THESIS ADVISER: DR. MARY JANE HAEMIG ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA 2018 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Dr. Mary Jane Haemig has been very helpful in providing input on the writing of my thesis and posing critical questions. Several years ago, she guided my independent study of “Lutheran Orthodoxy 1580-1675,” which was my first introduction to this material. The two trips to Wittenberg over the January terms (2014 and 2016) and course on “Luther as Pastor” were very good introductions to Luther on-site. Just prior to the Wittenberg trip in 2014, I studied “The Theology of Martin Luther” with Dr. Steven Paulson, which was further good background for Luther’s understanding of the Word. Dr. Mark Granquist guided my study of “The History of Lutherans in North America,” “The History of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod,” and studies in biblical historical criticism in the context of the modern church – all courses which were very relevant for this thesis. My course work at Luther Seminary has been very helpful. Dr. Edward Schroeder, a professor at Concordia Seminary St. Louis during the time of this conflict, provided his interpretation of events, directed me to material in the Crossings internet site, and clarified some points about the formal and material principles. Dr. Patrick Keifert and Dr. Gary Simpson from Luther Seminary provided information that enlightened me about their experience as students during this conflict. Dr. Matthew Becker sent me a one-page description of Confessionalism in the 1830s in Germany and its influence on C.F.W. Walther. ii Dr. Samuel Nafzger, former Executive Director of the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, shared his perspective about this conflict during an interview-discussion. Dr. Robert Hausman, professor at Concordia Teachers College, River Forest, Illinois, explained his experiences as a moderate there from 1968-74. Missouri Synod pastors Dr. Thomas Trapp, Rev. Deane Schuessler, and Rev. Robert Cordes shared background from their student days at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis in the 1950s and 60s. I appreciate the contributions of all the above individuals in helping me to understand this period in church history. In addition, Joel Thoreson, Archivist for Management and Reference Services at the Evangelical Lutheran Church Archives, provided oral histories from the Oral History Collection of the Archives of Cooperative Lutheranism. Finally, I received assistance from the Library staff at Luther Seminary. Peter Susag contributed writing and technical talents related to footnotes, bibliography, and general design. Peter Watters was helpful in answering questions about books, articles, and research papers. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. ii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ............................................................................................ vii 1. INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................1 2. LUTHERAN ORTHODOXY AND THE ENLIGHTENED MIND ............................8 Lutheran Orthodoxy ..............................................................................................9 Important Theological Terms Derived from Lutheran Orthodoxy ..............12 Verbal Plenary Inspiration ....................................................................12 Inerrancy ...............................................................................................13 Scriptural Authority ..............................................................................14 The Enlightened Mind .........................................................................................15 3. C.F.W. WALTHER AND THE RETURN TO LUTHERAN ORTHODOXY ...........20 Two Expressions of Lutheran Theology: Orthodox and Erlangen .....................21 Justification by Grace through Faith ...................................................................26 4. FRANZ PIEPER, CHIEF DOGMATICIAN ...............................................................32 17th Century Lutheran Orthodoxy in 20th Century America................................33 Orthodoxy and Fundamentalism .........................................................................37 5. MODERATE MISSOURI 1932-1969, PART I ..........................................................40 A Statement-44 in 1945 .......................................................................................44 The Bad Boll Conference, 1948 ..........................................................................47 Werner Elert and the Erlangen Inroad .................................................................50 The Serious Clout of the “Little Norwegian Synod” ...........................................52 6. MODERATE MISSOURI 1932-1969, PART 2 ..........................................................58 iv The “Golden Era” of the Moderate Movement in Missouri, 1958-1969 ............63 Martin Scharlemann, Missouri’s Uncommon Person ..................................65 The Inerrancy of Scripture ....................................................................68 The Bible as Record, Witness and Medium ...........................................69 Revelation and Inspiration ....................................................................70 Concordia Theological Monthly ..................................................................72 Assessing Franz Pieper .................................................................................76 Valparaiso University and the Promising Tradition .....................................78 The Conservative Counter ...................................................................................81 Gospel Reductionism ...................................................................................81 Convention Resolutions ...............................................................................82 A Crisis .........................................................................................................84 7. TIETJEN, PREUS, AND THE NEW ORLEANS CONVENTION ...........................87 The Context for the Decisive Events of 1973-74 ................................................87 John Tietjen, an Easterner ...................................................................................91 Jack Preus ............................................................................................................95 A Statement of Scriptural and Confessional Principles ....................................100 The New Orleans Convention, July 6-13, 1973 ................................................102 To Repudiate the Historical Critical Method .............................................103 To Condemn Elements of the Teaching of the Faculty Majority ...............105 The Subversion of the Authority of Scripture, the Formal Principle ..105 Gospel Reductionism: Reducing the Authority of Scripture to its Gospel Content ....................................................................................106 Denial of the Third Use of the Law ....................................................107 8. CONCLUSION ..........................................................................................................109 BIBLIOGRAPY ...............................................................................................................115 v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AELC Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches ALC American Lutheran Church CSSL Concordia Seminary, St. Louis CTCR Commission on Theology and Church Relations CTM Concordia Theological Monthly ELS Evangelical Lutheran Synod LCMS Lutheran Church Missouri Synod MS Missouri Synod vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Tables Table 1. Important 20th Century LCMS Theological Statements .................................... 43 Table 2. Sample: Where CSSL Professors Received Their Advanced Degrees ............... 60 Table 3. Two Decades of Moderate CSSL Seminary Presidencies, 1953-74 ................... 64 Table 4. MS Doctrinal Resolutions Related to the Bible, 1959-73 .................................. 83 Table 5. Timeline of Key Events Surrounding the New Orleans Convention.................. 88 Table 6. Changes in CSSL Student Enrollment, 1973-75 .............................................. 111 Figures