Texas District President Charges Cascione and Runzheimer
By Rev. Jack Cascione

 

Texas District President Dr. Gerald Kieschnick has charged me and Jim Runzheimer in his District paper. In his letter he refers to me as the "pastor from the upper Midwestern part of the nation" and Arlington, Texas Attorney Jim Runzheimer as "a layman." Below is President Kieschnick’s letter and my response.

Texas District President Dr. Gerald Kieschnick, Minister to Minister: April-May 1999 Pages 3-5

Recently, a third party, namely a pastor from another District of the LCMS in the upper Midwestern part of the nation, has written a number of similarly inaccurate, misleading and even slanderous articles, that have been published in the same periodical. (Christian News) This pastor, sponsored emotionally and probably financially by some people in Texas and perhaps by people outside of Texas, presented three speeches in the Texas District earlier this year. The theme of his speech was "Reclaiming the Gospel in the LCMS Texas District". Upon the counsel that I and the District Vice Presidents received in a conference call with LCMS President, Dr. A.L. Barry, I wrote the pastor in question, expressing regret at the title of his presentation. Dr. Barry also expressed his regret with the theme of this speech. Obviously and thankfully, as the overwhelming majority of people and professional workers in the Texas District would agree, the Gospel is alive and well in the Texas District, by God’s grace and blessing!

The recently published articles are critical of the District president and vice presidents, mostly the former, on a number of points:

  1. The president and vice presidents did not complete a 10 point questionnaire which we received from a lay member of a congregation of the Texas District, sent to us for the purpose, in the laymen’s words, of fostering dialog between some concerned laity and the leadership of the Texas District. This questionnaire was received a number of days prior to the speeches in Texas by the pastor from another District. The praesidium responded with a letter, respectfully declining to complete the questionnaire, stating that most of the questions deserved more than simple yes or no answers requested by the layman. We also offered to meet with him, person to person, to discuss in detail the questions and our answer’s to them. We subsequently learned that the questionnaire had , in fact, been prepared not by the layman who sent it to us, but by the pastor who came to Texas to make the speeches.
  2. The president was criticized by the layman referred to in the paragraph above for, in the layman’s words, refusing to meet with him for the purpose of discussing theological and spiritual issues, mostly related to the questions contained in the questionnaire referred to above. In fact, the layman himself declined to attend the meeting that had been scheduled with the president and the vice president of the Texas District Area in which the layman lives. The layman had requested, on the day prior to the scheduled meeting, that he be allowed to bring to the meeting the pastor of a congregation other than his own. The layman phoned the president to discuss this matter. The president stated that it was inappropriate for a layman to meet with a District president to discuss theological and spiritual matters about which such layman is concerned, with the presence of the pastor of another congregation, but without the presence of the layman’s pastor at the meeting. I believe most pastors would agree that such a meeting between a lay member of a congregation and the District President, for the purpose of discussing theological and spiritual matters of concern to the layman, should include the layman’s pastor. Such a meeting should not include the pastor of a different congregation, intentionally excluding the pastor of the congregation to which the layman belongs.
  3. The Texas District and its president were criticized for belonging to the Willow Creek Association. Such membership was begun a few years ago by District staff because the Association provides its members a 20% discount on materials from Zondervan Publishing Co. and provides other resources in the areas of youth ministry, adult ministry, evangelism, stewardship, etc. However, upon further checking, the president instructed members of the District staff to contact the Association, asking them to remove the name of the Texas District from any list which could be construed as a list of those ministries which fully support the ministry of Willow Creek. Certainly and obviously, that is not the case with the Texas District. For many years, however, the Texas District, its presidents, its staff, its pastors and its congregations have requested and utilized resources from other than LCMS sources. I have always believed, and still do, that the professional workers and lay leaders of the Texas District have the theological acumen and spiritual insight to examine such resources and to separate the wheat from the chaff as these resources are utilized.
  4. The Texas District and its president were criticized with inaccurate information concerning:
    1. The number of dollars that the District remits to the LC-MS for world missions, higher education and Synodical administration: That figure for fiscal year 1999 is $2,204,552.00, representing 33.8% of the World Mission dollars remitted by Texas congregations to the District. The Texas District is one of the only three Districts of the Synod remitting more than $2,000,000.00 to the Synod on a annual basis. In addition, the Texas District spends more for missions within the District than any other District in The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. None of this is said boastfully. For to whom much is given, much is required! Indeed, we have many challenges and opportunities for missions in Texas!
    2. The number of District staff members who serve the congregations, leaders and workers of the District: The Lutheran Annual lists all District and Agency staff located in the District office and employed by the District. Not all of those staff members are financially supported by the budget of the District, but by financial resources from their respective agencies or institutions. We make no apologies for the staff of the District, who serve congregations, professional workers and lay leaders faithfully and energetically for the sake and cause of the Gospel!
    3. The number of mission starts in the District in the past decade: In an obvious typographical error and/or editorial oversight in the publication in question, the District was credited with beginning only two million missions in the past ten years! Actually, including the mission starts planned for 1999, the number of the new mission starts in the current decade in Texas is some 33, including those begun by Texas Mission Action Councils, congregations, the District Board for Mission Administration, etc. The District encourages partnerships among congregations and the District in the establishment of missions in Texas. Annually, in addition to mission starts, the District budget supports established missions in over 60 sites throughout Texas, including Angel, Hispanic, African, Asian, Deaf and Campus ministries.

These are only a few examples of the types of issues that have received significant numbers of column inches in a critical way in the referenced periodical. They are shared with you, simply but significantly so that you may know "the rest of the story."

In any case, please be assured that the president and vice presidents of the Texas District are ready, willing and able to proved additional information, to answer any questions and to do whatever may be necessary to share accurate and helpful information with the congregations and leaders of the District.

Please also be assured that the president, vice presidents and the other members of the District Board of Directors take very seriously our responsibility to be good stewards of the Gospel. We happily strive to faithfully fulfill the responsibilities of the offices to which we have been elected, in spite of any allegations to the contrary that you might have seen, heard or read. Thanks for your patience, understanding, encouragement and partnership in the Gospel, my dear friends, brothers and sisters in Christ!

Response to The Texas District President
By Rev. Jack Cascione and approved by Mr. James Runzheimer

This letter is a response to the Texas District President from "a pastor from another District," as the Texas District President refers to me in his April-May 1999 Minister to Minister Letter.

The Texas District’s public and aggressive involvement, financial support and promotion of the Church Growth/Leadership Training Movement, as evidenced by its involvement in The Willow Creek Association is an attack on the Gospel, doctrine of Church and Ministry, and the LCMS Constitution, Article VI - 1c. and 4.

The ten questions that Attorney James Runzheimer of Arlington submitted the Texas District Office were proposed for at least five reasons:

FIRST - I wanted to assure Mr. Runzheimer, that as a layman in the Texas District, he would not receive a response from the most simple questions about his faith and his church from the Texas District President and Vice Presidents. To prove my point and allay his skepticism, I asked him to send the following questions and guaranteed him that he would not receive an answer. To his astonishment there was no answer even to the first five of the ten. They could not answer them because they openly violate all of them and they are incapable of being straight forward about the Gospel.

  1. (Yes) (No) I support Walther’s Church and Ministry as the only correct teaching and practice for all Texas District Congregations.
  2. (Yes) (No) I oppose the confession of any manufactured creeds and statements of faith in place of the three Ecumenical Creeds in all Texas District Congregations’ worship services.
  3. (Yes) (No) I believe that the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds are correct statements of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and agreement with them, without addition or deletion, is necessary for membership in the LCMS.
  4. (Yes) (No) The only way to heaven is by faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
  5. (Yes) (No) I insist on the name "Lutheran" on all Texas District Congregations and Mission Congregations.

SECOND - The failure of the District President and four Vice Presidents to give straight forward answers about the Gospel justified the theme of my speeches "Reclaiming The Gospel In The Texas District." Creeds are rewritten in church services, the Lutheran Liturgy discarded, and worship redefined according to Willow Creek. It has come to the point where the questions about Walther’s Church and Ministry, the Creeds, and the name Lutheran are too tricky for Texas District Pastors.

THIRD - Anticipating his reaction to the above questions, President Kieschnick’s current statement to all the District Pastors has proved my point, namely, that he is thoroughly unqualified for the office of Synodical President.

FOURTH - I wanted to show that many of the Texas District Pastors, like the Michigan 102, conspire to elect officials who subvert the Gospel. As is the case of the District officers many of the Texas District Pastors would not answer the above five questions. The point of my lectures were to encourage Texas lay people to recover what you Texas "pastors" are stealing from them.

FIFTH - The Texas District President was a candidate for Synodical President and will most likely be a candidate in 2001. His article on "Doctrinal Unity" is a distortion. He advocates doctrinal unity without the necessity of following Synodical Resolutions. He emphasizes Article VII and then avoids Article VI relative to Conditions of Membership.

President Kieschnick is correct when he says that I was "sponsored emotionally and probably financially by some people in Texas." Yes, these "people" are appalled by what their clergy are doing to the Texas District.

President Kieschnick has discovered the plot. In hindsight, he knows how right he was in not answering those questions whose origin is from across the border. I assured Mr. Runzheimer if the questions came from outside Texas there was less chance of an answer than if they came from inside Texas. The District never answers "outside Texas questions" let alone "inside Texas questions" especially if they are about the Gospel.

The President justifies his refusal to meet with Mr. Runzheimer and the pastor of his choice because "such a meeting should not include the pastor of different congregations, intentionally excluding the pastor of the congregation to which the layman belongs." These must be Texas rules. One marvels that the District President refuses to meet with a layman to talk about theology without his pastor. In Michigan, the District President and his appointees have regularly met with lay people to discuss theological issues when their pastors were not permitted to be present. Some of these pastors have also been removed from their congregations as the result of such meetings. It is wonderful to know that this doesn’t happen in Texas. In Texas, lay people can talk about theology with anyone they choose except the District President unless their pastor is present. Perhaps there are more exclusions on the list. A lay person can even speak about theology with the Synodical President when his pastor and his District President are not present, but not with the Texas District President.

President Kieschnick writes, "The Texas District and its President were criticized for belonging to the Willow Creek Association." This is correct. He should include all the Vice Presidents, the District Office Staff, and all the Pastors in Texas who love to practice the lies and false doctrine of Willow Creek.

The following statement appeared in the January "News Letter" of the Grace Lutheran Church, Arlington, Texas, Vice President Joeckel’s congregation:

Become a Contagious Christian

The angels announced that good news! The angels returned telling everyone what they had heard and seen. Do you know how to share the Gospel? If you could use some help, then consider attending the ‘Become A Contagious Christian’ workshop on Saturday, January 30th." Mr. Paul Krentz, of the Texas District Office, said: "This is the finest witnessing course out because it helps people learn to share Jesus from their own natural style rather than with a contrived set of questions." The course is based on the book by Bill Hybels, Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church, the largest Christian Church in America.

The workshop will be held on Saturday, January 30th from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. at Bethel Lutheran Church, 11211 E. Plano, in Dallas. Registration is $20 and must be received by Monday, January 18th to reserve a participant’s guide. Contact the church office or phone Bethel at (214) 348-0420. Cost at the door is $25.

The District President explains that there is a 20% discount on Zondervan books when you belong to the Willow Creek Association. Also, Willow Creek provides materials on "youth ministry, adult ministry, evangelism, stewardship, etc." The President writes, "However, upon further checking, the President instructed a member of the District Staff to contact the Association, asking them to remove the name of the Texas District from any list which would be construed as a list of those ministries which fully support the ministry of Willow Creek." I respond, that if you fully supported Willow Creek you would be one of them. Let’s just say you partially support Willow Creek in a friendly, heterodox way.

As your executive Paul Krentz says above, "This is the finest witnessing course out...." The District President is correct about examining other materials, but we can see from above it has gone much farther than examination. Hopefully, the additional 20% my objections have cost you will add a significant financial burden to the Texas District.

Vice Presidents Joeckel and Linderman publicly accused me of putting out false information when I presented numbers published in the 1999 Lutheran Annual about your mission giving in 1997. How did they know the numbers?

I now accuse your District President of avoiding the issue. What is false about the following numbers published in the Lutheran Annual and Statistical Year Books?

Total Work At Large

Synod’s Budget At District Office

Confirmed Members
1968   $1,747,549.00   $680,854.00   3 deployed offices   69,245
1972   $2,141,338.00   $835,488.00   4 staff listed   76,368
1992   $6,905,724.00   $2,454,774.00   11 staff listed   100,215
1997   $8,684,579.00   $2,025,000.00   15 staff listed   107,550

You Pastors in Texas are so used to trusting lay people accepting whatever you do at the District Office you can’t imagine anyone finding fault with obvious inconsistencies in the above statistics. Rather than answering the question about the decline in giving to the Synod in the Texas District from 35.5% in 1992 to 23.6% in 1997 with a clear decline of more then $400,000.00, the District President speaks about 1999. Suddenly your giving for the current year, even before the year has ended, has made a marked increase.

The District President claims that not all of the above staff listed in the 1999 Lutheran Annual are paid by the District. The next question is, which of the above staff are being funded, if not directly then indirectly by the Texas District laity? Or should we believe that the District Office has paid staff and unpaid staff that benefits the Texas District?

The District President reports the initiation of 33 mission starts in the past 10 years. The questions are: Where are those missions? Who are the pastors? What year were they started? There are serious doubts about the existence of these phantom missions and/or the District President’s definition of "a mission start."

President Kieschnick’s sponsorship and promotion of the Pastoral Leadership Institute, PLI, is designed to retrain LCMS clergy into Bill Hybel clones under the direction of Dr. Norbert Oesch. These Hybel clones will serve as pastors for the Texas District/Willow Creek mega-churches now being promoted by the District Office. The LCMS has not recognized, let alone, endorsed the PLI program. Doctor Norbert Oesch writes February 6, 1998, "In consultation with Concordia Seminary President, Dr. John Johnson, with Dr. Bill Meyer of the Board of Higher Education, and with President Gerry Kieschnick of the Texas District, the idea of the Pastoral Leadership Institute was shaped." Doctor Bill Meyer, Executive Director of the Board for Higher Education writes July 13, 1998: "Your former pastor, Norbert Oesch, is my life-long friend. I firmly believe he will provide effective leadership for PLI." December 7, 1998 Dr. Oesch writes to Holy Cross, Arlington, TX about Pastor David Bahn, advising that the Texas District will give Bahn $1,500.00 dollars toward PLI brainwashing.

Even though the LCMS Reporter wrote that the St. Louis Seminary will include PLI in a Doctoral Degree Program, President John Johnson writes May 14, 1999. "The Doctor of Ministry Degree Committee of the Seminary states their willingness to consider the matter but no decisions have been made. Nor, I might add, will such decisions be made unless PLI becomes in some way officially associated with the LCMS (as an auxiliary or Recognized Service Organization, for instance)." The LCMS Board for Higher Education has thus far twice declined to give RSO status to PLI.

As if a Doctor’s Degree from Fuller is not enough, Bahn needs more training from PLI! You Texas pastors want more and more pastors trained not to answer questions about the Gospel, like the District Office. This way you can grow churches that don’t know their Catechism.

The inability to answer direct and simple questions about the Gospel shows that the Gospel is the real problem for the Texas District. Thereis a conspiracy, led by the Texas District Office in consort with many of the Texas District Pastors, similar to the manifesto issued by the Michigan 102, to lead the laity away from the Gospel and Catechism to non-denominationalism for the sake of worldly gain. The Crypto Calvinists were not the last conspiracy led by clergy in the Lutheran Church. The above issues lead us to the conclusion that the entire Texas District is being patterned after Willow Creek. President Kieschnick will continue the same approach on the CTCR and for the entire Synod if elected Synodical President.

I didn’t ask about the Athanasian Creed in question three (3) because I thought it may be too complicated for you. The fact that you Texas clergy defend your elected officials who will not answer the above questions, is a sign of your own failure to keep your ordination vows. You take oaths about preaching the Gospel but won’t even answer simple questions from your lay people in writing. How will you explain this to Christ at the judgment?

In Christ,
Rev. Jack Cascione
Mr. James Runzheimer

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May 26, 1999