Billy Sunday: Father of Sunday Schools?

If you're ever traveling through Northwestern Indiana near Warsaw and Lake Winona, you might stop in at the Billy Sunday Museum and learn more about the father of Sunday Schools.

And if you want some of that "Old Time Religion," check this out as well as his other sermons (navigate up a level).

Methodist Songs in Lutheran Sunday Schools

The following translation by the Rev. Matthew Harrison has shown up in numerous places, but it bears repetition. It is a letter written by C.F.W. Walther in response to a question he had received about the kind of music appropriate for Lutheran children. He writes:

Honored Sir, This morning I received your worthy letter, written on the 19th of the month. In your letter you ask for my opinion on whether it is advisable to introduce the singing of Methodist songs in a Lutheran Sunday School. May what follows serve as a helpful reply to your questions: No, this is not advisable; rather very incorrect and pernicious.

1. Our church is so rich in hymns that you could justifiably state that if one were to introduce Methodist hymns in a Lutheran school this would be like carrying coals to Newcastle. The singing of such hymns would make the rich Lutheran Church into a beggar which is forced to beg from a miserable sect. Thirty or forty years ago a Lutheran preacher might well have been forgiven this. For at that time the Lutheran Church in our country was in as poor as beggar when it comes to song books for Lutheran children. A preacher scarcely knew where he might obtain such little hymn books. Now, however, since our church itself has everything it needs, it is unpardonable when a preacher of our church causes little ones to suffer the shame of eating a foreign bread.

2. A preacher of our church also has the holy duty to give souls entrusted to his care pure spiritual food, indeed, the very best which he can possibly obtain. In Methodist songs there is much which is false, and which contains spiritual poison for the soul. Therefore, it is soul-murder to set before children such poisonous food. If the preacher claims, that he allows only “correct” hymns to be sung, this does not excuse him. For, first of all, the true Lutheran spirit is found in none of them; second, our hymns are more powerful, more substantive, and more prosaic; third,
those hymns which deal with the Holy Sacraments are completely in error; fourth, when these little sectarian hymn books come into the hands of our children, they openly read and sing false hymns.

3. A preacher who introduces Methodist hymns, let along Methodist hymnals, raises the suspicion that he is no true Lutheran at heart, and that he believes one religion is as good as the other, and that he thus a unionistic-man, a mingler of religion and churches.

4. Through the introduction of Methodist hymn singing he also makes those children entrusted to his care of unionistic sentiment, and he himself leads them to leave the Lutheran Church and join the Methodists.

5. By the purchase of Methodist hymn books he subsidizes the false church and strengthens the Methodist fanatics in their horrible errors. For the Methodists will think, and quite correctly so, that if the Lutheran preachers did not regard our religion as good as, or indeed, even better than their own, they would not introduce Methodist hymn books in their Sunday schools, but rather would use Lutheran hymn books.

6. By introducing Methodist hymn books, the entire Lutheran congregation is given great offense, and the members of the same are lead to think that Methodists, the Albright people, and all such people have a
better faith than we do.

This may be a sufficient answer regarding this dismal matter. May God keep you in the true and genuine Lutheran faith, and help you not to be misled from the same, either to the right or to the left. Your unfamiliar, yet known friend, in the Lord Jesus Christ,

C. F. W. Walther
St. Louis, Missouri
January 23, 1883

Abbreviating Membership Classes

Michael Reu, Catechetics: Or Theory and Practice of Religious Instruction, (Chicago: Wartburg Publishing House, 1931) p 44-45.

The catechumenate of the Early Church received its first blow when the heathen in large masses crowded to the baptismal font.

Still, a considerable measure of Christian knowledge was imparted and a reasonably thorough moral training was accomplished as long as the church insisted upon a careful examination of the baptismal candidates, upon a catechumenate of sufficient length, and, especially, upon thorough instruction during the competent period. Now, however, just these three essential conditions were increasingly disregarded. The preparatory catechetical discourse was discarded, probably as early as the fifth century. The time of a catechumenate was dangerously shortened.

Thus in 506 the Synod of Agde declared that Jewish converts must remain in the catechumenate for eight months; hence, ordinarily the time of preparation was still briefer (this action was taken because experience had showed that many former Jews withdrew from the church soon after they had joined). This, however, was not all. At the council at Bracara in 6100 time for low instruction of competentes was actually cut down to 20 days; and in most cases religious instruction was so completely overshadowed by ever increasing scrutinies that only a few formulae were memorized. That was all that remained of instruction which had one time had been conscientiously cultivated and cherished as an indispensable obligation of the Church. But all the alien elements adapted from paganism, the ceremonies and Magic formulae, were retained in the church. No wonder that this period produced large numbers of sacramentaries and liturgical treatises and books about the scrutinies, but very few catechetical writings.

The catechumenate decayed; it was buried under the scrutinies. This would perhaps have been less dangerous if conditions had been such that but few unbaptized adults remained within the precincts of the church; but the opposite is true: as the Roman Empire crumbled before the onslaught of the barbaric peoples, ever new pagan nations settled within the boundaries of the church which needed thorough instruction and training. The sad state of affairs was aggravated by the fact that even those baptized in infancy received no regular or sufficient training. A spiritually sterile church, poisoned by hierarchic thoughts with its emphasis on mystic-theurgic acts, was unable to renew these nations inwardly though she subdued them outwardly — with the help of the state.

An Appeal for Vestments and Liturgy

I didn't see a date given when this paper was originally presented, but it is an interesting historic overview and a plea for vestments and the liturgy by By J. A. O. STUB, D. D., pastor at Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, MN.

Here is an excerpt:

The story of the unfortunate changes in the vestments of the clergy, the use of the sign of the cross, candles, the color symbolism of the church, etc., wrought by rationalism particularly in Germany and to a lesser degree in Scandinavia, is too lengthy a chapter for this article. The reason rationalism did not succeed so well in removing the external tokens of Lutheranism in the Scandinavian countries, was this: their kings were Lutheran, at least in name.

Suffice to restate our premise: What Reformed kings had not finished, was completed by rationalism; and the historic church, which Luther wanted to name, “The Evangelical Christian Church,” became in its vestments and liturgy largely a copy of the Calvinistic sects.

Luther retained the Communion vestments which were considered an entirely neutral matter. In the order of the mass of 1523 Luther says that: “The vestments may unhindered be used when pomp and luxury be avoided, but they should not be dedicated or blest.” This position was, however, the very opposite of that of the fanatics who wanted to abolish all the ancient and historic vestments, liturgies, etc., etc. This placed Luther in the peculiar position, t.’ hat he was forced to emphasize liberty in these Matters by emphasizing the liberty to continue the use of the ancient Communion vestments. In the fall of 1524 he thus wrote:

Here we are masters and will not submit to any law, command, doctrine, or verdict. (Suppose Luther had been living in 1737!) Therefore has the service of the Communion been celebrated in both ways at Wittenberg. In the monastery we have celebrated the mass without chasubles, or elevation—with the greatest Simplicity as recommended by Karlstad. In the parish church we have chasubles)’albs, Altar, and elevate so long as it pleases us.”

In 1526 he retained the vestments, candles, and Altar. In 1528 he contended against fanatics again, and insisted on liberty to continue vestments, etc. In 1539 Luther said:

“When only the Word may be preached in its purity and the Sacraments rightly celebrated, then go in God’s name in procession and wear a silver or gold cross; wear a cope and surplice of silk or linen; and should your master, the duke, be not satisfied with one cope or surplice—put on three, as Aaron, the chief priest, did put on three, which were beautiful and glorious—wherefore the vestments in the days of the pope were ‘Ornamenta’—for such things (when otherwise no abuse takes place) neither add to nor take away from the Gospel.”

In the motion picture depicting the story of the English nurse, Edith Cavel, is a scene that made a deep impression upon the audience. The nurse is in the death cell awaiting her execution. The title on the screen announces the visit of “the Lutheran priest.” He comes in that conventional black robe, which several makers of robes catalog as “the Lutheran gown.” I have never liked it. It makes no appeal to the eye.

I could almost sympathize with the nurse, who asks for an “English priest.” A Church of England “priest” is then ushered into the cell. Over his arm he carries the neat surplice of the old Christian Church, and the colorful stole, the mark of the ordained clergyman. Shortly after, he appears vested, seated opposite the doomed nurse, facing her across the table. Then she makes that beautiful confession: “I have come to see that patriotism is not enough.”

here is instinctively a catch in your throat and a mist before your eyes. And, as a Lutheran, I felt that in this contrast of vestments our faith was made to appear somber and joyless. No wonder an esthetic and refined soul longed for the simpler and more cheerful vestments of her church, than that black robe with its many shirrings and clumsy sleeves.

Mission Creep(s)

Did you know that, ON THEIR OWN, overseas missionaries in the LCMS have to collect 85% of the cost to operate their missions? The Synod graciously picks up the other 15%.

Oh, there's one exception. NEW missionaries have to collect 100% of their operating expenses.

Here's a radical idea:

Fund the missionaries with 100% of their operating expenses and get Gerald Kieschnick and the other district presidents to fund 85% - 100% of their salaries, going from congregation to congregation, making PowerPoint presentations and asking for money.

In the Northern Illinois District we have FOUR mission "executives." They are supposed to be facilitating the planting churches and promoting missions in the district. Would it surprize you to learn that missions aren't growing too well -- but that salaries and budgets have grown just fine?

Also in the Northern Illinois District, the district's board for missions has been given constitutional authority to review and approve grants to missions congregations. In the past year or so, however, they have not been consulted in ANY of these grants. ZERO. Who has been doing the reviewing and bestowing? The district's Ablaze! Grant Teams -- groups which have absolutely NO constitutional authority to be doing such things.

Is there someone from whom I need permission to get angry? In situations like this within Christ's church, is there some place I need to go to get approval to use strong language, make a whip of cords, overturn tables and drive out money-changers? (I'm primed to have someone pose the question to me: "What would Jesus do?")

Would I feel any better if I read Robert Bork's book The Death of Outrage?

I guess I can try to placate myself by writing up some overtures for next year's district convention . . .