In 1922, the Missouri Synod was absolutely certain as to how it grew and how to keep on growing.

They rejected the current hyper-euro-Lutheran desire to return to pre-Waltherian, 18th Century, European Lutheran Church hierarchy here in America. They couldn't have imagined the current "Leadership Principles" borrowed from American Corporations by contemporary Church Growth fanatics, now being promoted by LCMS's Council of District Presidents. They only understood the church in terms of doctrine and not secular concepts.

The rapid growth of the LCMS was explained in its 75th Anniversary edition titled "Ebenezer 1847-1922," under the grace of God, as the result of teaching proclaimed correct doctrine and freedom from church hierarchy.

The current confusion between hyper-euro-Lutherans and those promoting the contemporary Church Growth/Leadership Training shows how many in Missouri have now lost the way established by their founders.

In 1922, Rev. D. H. Steffens of West Henrietta, New York, explained on pages 140 to 160 of "Ebenezer" in an article titled "The Doctrine of the Church and Ministry" why Missouri knew what it was doing, why Missouri grew, and why it was going to keep on growing.

Every pastor had a copy and it was widely circulated among the lay people. The 536 pages told the story of the Missouri Synod, where it came from, how it got here, its struggles, its victories, its mission and structure.

In defending the Synod from the efforts of Rev. Grabau beginning in 1841, to reimpose European Lutheran hierarchy on Lutherans in America, Steffens quotes Walther's "Church and Ministry" as follows:

"We regard ourselves as compelled to do this [publish "Church & Ministry"] especially since Pastor Grabau of Buffalo, New York, particularly in the second Synodical report edited by him, has grievously slandered us before the whole church on account of our doctrines of the church and the ministry and several other teachings closely connected with them, as well as our practice based thereon." (Church and Ministry, Walther, Preface to the First Edition, 1852, Translated by J. T Mueller, CPH, St. Louis, 1987, page 9)

Steffens writes about Walther's defense of the LCMS: "Walther's book claims to be 'a testimony of faith in defense against the attacks of Pastor Grabau. How was the attack made and met? Was the protest against the assertion of hierarchical principles within the Lutheran Church as made by Walther and the Missouri Synod justified? Were hierarchical principles taught within the Lutheran Church in Europe or America by other men beside Pastor Grabau? Did their teachings give force and point to those Zwinglinan inclinations and tendencies, which led to the publication of the "Definite Platform" as the confession of faith of the American Lutheran Church?" (Zwingli was the author of "The 67 Articles," later unified under the Consensus Tigurinus by John Calvin)

In 1922, many believed that the loss of Lutherans to Calvanistic doctrine in America was in part due to Grabau's and others preoccupation with hierarchy.

Those promoting a return to church hierarchy are active once again in the LCMS. Today clergy in his own church criticize the LCMS President because he rejects the "Agreement On Justification" signed by The ELCA and Rome. In 1922 Missouri had the guts to grow. Steffens just comes right out with candor, uncharacteristic for our day and labels Grabau a tyrannical, Lutheran bishop.

"Pastor Grabau's 'Hirtenbrief' contained doctrines and principles reiterating and emphasizing the same hierarchical tendencies so successfully used by 'Bishop' [Martin] Stephan to tyrannize his misguided adherents. How could Walther and his collaborators, by associating themselves with Grabau, put their necks into the same noose they had just escaped?" (Page 149)

Bishop Martin Stephan convinced 700 followers in 1838 to travel from Dresden, Germany to Perry County, Missouri. Here he set up Lutheran a colony ruled by dictatorship, squandered their money, slept with eight of their women and led many to exposure, disease and death.

It was there in Perry County that Walther taught congregational autonomy, Voters' Assemblies and formulated what was to eventually become the LCMS.

It was the writings of several laymen, Dr. Carl Eduard Vehse, Heinrick Eduard Fisher and Gustav Jackel of Perry County, Missouri, titled "The Public Protestation Against the False, Medieval, Papistic and Sectarian Stephanistic System of Church Governments" that convinced Walther of the error of his way in originally following Martin Stephan. Steffens quotes Walther; "Without this writing we, perhaps, would still have gone many a false way, which we now have happily avoided." (Page 145)

Walther's congregation wrote most of what would be the Constitution of the LCMS in their Voters' Assembly at Trinity Congregation between the years 1841 and 1843. (Page 147-48)

In reference to Grabau's desire for power, Steffens writes: "Pastor Andreas Grabau, had insisted, among other things 'that congregations must pledge him [its pastor] faithfulness and obedience in all things which are not contrary to God's Word.'. Leo X never asked any more of Martin Luther." (Page 149)

"The representations of the Saxons were not well received. Grabau promptly accused the 'Missourians' (they owe this, their name, to him) of 'error' and a 'lax, unchurchly spirit.'" (Page 149)

After twenty five years, Steffens states, "the controversy between Buffalo and Missouri ended at the 'Buffalo Colloquium' of November 20, 1866, where representatives of the Missouri and Buffalo Synods met face to face and discussed the doctrine (1) of the Church, (2) of the ministerial office, (3) of excommunication, (4) of the power of the ministerial office with respect to adiaphora, and (5) of ordination." (Page 150)

The doctrinal position stated at the Buffalo Colloquium is still the position of the LCMS, though many of the laity today are unaware of it. The Synod officially teaches that the congregation is autonomous; the congregation bestows the pastoral office by issuing a divine call; there is no higher office in Synod than the local congregational pastor; the Voters' Assembly has supreme authority in matters of excommunication, all congregational affairs and business, and judges all doctrine; and ordination is nothing more than the public ratification of the congregation's divine call to the pastor.

The result was, "The assertion of hierarchical principles within the [Lutheran] Church of America was dead. The principles of catholicity so briefly and magnificently stated in Article VII of the Augsburg Confession, asserted and vindicated at Altenburg, IL in 1841, at St. Louis in 1843, at Chicago in 1847, was again asserted and vindicated at Buffalo in 1866 - not before a congregation or a group of congregations, but before the entire Lutheran Church of America." Page (150)

There were strong forces among the clergy to impose hierarchy on Lutherans in the 1840's, through the 1860's, as there are today.

Both Rev. Grabau and Rev. Loehe broke fellowship with the LCMS over what Loehe called, "'the strong intermixing of democratic, independent, and congregational principles in their constitution as doubtful and deplorable.'" (Page 150)

They would not agree with Missouri on the interpretation of Rev. 1:6, 1 Peter 2:9, namely, that the laity are "'to be kings and priest forever.'" (Page 151)

Loehe called Voters Assemblies "American mob rule." (Page 151) Loehe argued against Missouri's interpretation of Augsburg Article VII saying, "'not all parts of the Confessions are of equal binding force.'" (Page 151)

"Like Grabau and Stephan before him, Loehe wanted a firm church government. The three men had some things in common. They had a profound mistrust of laity. They had a fondness for colonization schemes. They had great enthusiasm of liturgical forms." (Page 151)

Steffens goes on to explain that Walther defended his position with quotations from Luther, Gerhard, Chemnitz, Calov, Quenstedt, Carpzov, and then the councils and fathers of the ancient church. (Page 154) It is true that "an Evangelical Lutheran congregation independent of the state," had hardly entered their minds. (Page 157) Yet this is the condition in which we find ourselves in America today.

In 1922, we see that the LCMS was driven by fervor to organize all Lutherans in America under the banner of Walther's "Church and Ministry."

Steffens writes, "This was Walther's one thought, the one desire of his heart, the spirit which fired his soul. Whether he writes into the constitution of the Missouri Synod this ground for its organization: 'The preservation and cultivation of the unity of pure Confession (Eph. 4:3-4, 1Cor. 1:10), and the common warding off of separatist and sectarian confusion (Rom. 16:17),' whether he writes to Rev. Sihler of the constitution, speaking of 'the most careful preservation of the true catholicity and an avoidance of all separatism,' or whether he speaks of 'the final realization of a united Evangelical Lutheran Church of North America' it all has one purpose: The building of our beloved Church." (Page 156)

The LCMS also had the hope of reaching out to Reformed church bodies in America by continued publishing of their doctrine and constitution.

Steffens writes, "It [the LCMS] stood for a principle of organization, for the 'protection and guarding of the rights and duties of pastors and congregations.' (Synodical Constitution, chapter 1, par. 4) It would therefore seem that any attempt to explain the growth of the LCMS must lay equal stress upon these two points, both tersely, yet fully and explicitly stated in Article VII of the Augsburg Confession, elaborated in (Walther's) 'Church and Ministry' and 'The Form of the Christian Congregation.'"