Texas District President and Vice Presidents Refuse to Answer Lawyer’s Questions About Their Faith (Pt. 1)
by Pastor Jack Cascione

 

On February 11-15, 1999, Pastor Jack Cascione of Redeemer Lutheran Church in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, spoke at three locations in the LCMS Texas District. Some of the major goals of the trip were to alert LCMS lay people of the urgency to adopt two resolutions at the 2001 LCMS Convention. These resolutions propose the reaffirmation of Walther’s "Church and Ministry" and returning all LCMS District Presidents to full-time service in the parish. Other goals were to alert the lay people of the immanent threats to their congregations from "Faith Inkubators", "The Church Growth Movement", "Leadership Training", and Pastoral Leadership Training (PLI), all promoted by the Council of District Presidents.

 

Lutheran attorney Jim Runzheimer and engineer Ralph Tate made all the arrangements for me to speak on Reclaiming the Gospel in the Texas District at a rented hall in Arlington Texas on February 11th. I also spoke in San Antonio on Feb. 12th, and Houston on Feb. 14th in two other rented halls.

Runzheimer was concerned that the District Office be given an opportunity to respond to some of the points I was going to address. Runzheimer sent 10 basic questions about his concerns to the Texas District President and Vice Presidents by return receipt.

I promised Runzheimer that they would not answer the questions which is why I wanted them sent return receipt. Runzheimer was skeptical, to say the least, and thought I was prejudging the President and four Vice Presidents. I responded that the Texas office would never answer me because I live in a different District. Furthermore, my own Michigan District Board of Directors also refuses to respond to my letters so why should it be any different for Runzheimer in Texas? The following are the questions sent by Runzheimer to the Texas District President and Vice Presidents.

Questions for the Texas District President, Vice Presidents, and Executive Staff

In view of Rev. Jack Cascione’s book Reclaiming the Gospel in the LCMS which speaks about the problems with Church Growth, Leadership Training, Pastoral Leadership Institute (PLI), Promise Keepers, abandonment of traditional worship in many Texas District worship services, abandonment of Lutheran hymnbooks, Luther’s Small Catechism, and the Lutheran Agenda in violation of Handbook Article VI.4, abandonment of Walther’s "Church and Ministry" as the one and only position practiced in the LCMS, promotion of an undefined relativized Gospel, and the confession of manufactured creeds and statements of faith in place of the three Ecumenical Creeds, would you please promptly answer the following questions with a yes or no.

Please Check One:

  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 Congregation 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.
  6. (yes) (no) In accordance with Handbook Article VI.4, I advise all Texas District Congregations that they must practice exclusive use of Lutheran hymnbooks, Luther’s Small Catechism, and Lutheran Agenda in Church and School.
  7. (yes) (no) I oppose the marketing, management, and business philosophy taught by Peter Drucker and the Leadership Network becoming the practice of LCMS congregations.
  8. (yes) (no) I oppose the restructuring of LCMS congregations promoted by PLI that turns the pastor into a CEO and places a Board of Directors over the affairs of a Voters’ Assembly as a replacement to the polity taught by C.F.W. Walther.
  9. (yes) (no) I oppose the changes being introduced into congregations by PLI that were announced in 1997 because the Synod was not allowed to vote on it in Convention in 1998.
  10. (yes) (no) I oppose so-called "contemporary worship" because it has no definition and therefore cannot qualify as worship or church practice in any sense of the term and because it is little more than the product of the minister’s religious fantasies.

The full text of Runzheimer’s introductory letter will be in an article titled Dallas Attorney Wants Answers from Texas District LCMS. The full text of the letter sent from the Texas District Office to Jim Runzheimer that explains why they will not answer his questions in print will be published in an article titled, Letter Signed by Texas District President and Four Vice Presidents Refuses To Answer Questions.

There is an old song called the "The Big Rock Candy Mountain." One verse goes "On that big Rock Candy Mountain, You can ride a horse, it’s your own of course, and you’re so high your daddy can’t reach you." The Texas District President and Vice Presidents all signed a letter that they would not offer any written answers to questions about the Gospel, Creeds, or Walther and more. Just because member congregations sent in more than 8 million dollars to the Texas District Office in 1997 doesn’t mean the District President and Vice Presidents have to answer any questions in writing about what they believe, teach, and practice to any Lutheran layman.

Surprisingly, Runzheimer received an answer, more than I have received here in Michigan or from the English District. He received a letter signed by the Texas District President and all four Vice Presidents explaining why the Texas District President and the Vice Presidents would not answer his questions. To say the least Runzheimer was astonished.

In each of the three locations, after I spoke on the topic Reclaiming the Gospel in the Texas District, A Texas District Vice President was present to challenge what I said about the practice of "Church Growth" congregations in Texas rewriting the Creeds, making up their own gospel, promoting Bill Hybles and Willow Creek, and refuting any quotation of District financial statistics published in the Lutheran Annual. Most Texas lay people will confess any creed, statement of faith, or liturgy the pastor makes up and never ask what happens to the $8.7 million going to the District Office. I also distributed a copy of the 10 questions the Texas District Office refused to answer when I spoke.

In Arlington/ Dallas/Forth Worth

Vice President Joeckel announced to the 110 people present that he would not answer any written questions. He said he would be glad to meet privately and discuss them but he would not answer them in print. I asked what about questions on the Creeds, the Gospel and Walther? He said he would not answer them but would talk about them privately. He also said felt there was nothing wrong with the creeds and confessions of faith in the Texas District. Two examples of bogus confessions of faith reproduced from Texas congregational bulletins were shown as exhibits in each location and are published in the article titled Texas District Vice President Confused On Which Creeds to Confess.

Joeckel said all of the financial statistics and numbers of people "at the District Office" about Texas, reproduced from the Lutheran Annual were wrong. He accused me of erroneous information. He defended a Willow Creek/Bill Hybles conference endorsed by the District at Bethel Lutheran Church.

In San Antonio

Vice President Linderman insisted that no one was publishing and confessing any of their own creeds in the Texas District. I then offered a bulletin from Prince of Peace Lutheran Church with its own creed published in it. Linderman said this was the first time that he heard or seen of such a thing in Texas. The assembly laughed openly. I asked if I were the first person to ever show him such a thing. He agreed and the assembly laughed again. Linderman said all the financial statistics and numbers of people "at the District Office" from the Lutheran Annual were wrong.

In Houston

Vice President Black said he did not sign any questions about doctrine because that has never been his practice for 40 years. He said he would be glad to talk about the questions face to face. When I asked him if he would sign any statement about what he believed when we meet together and he said would never sign any statement. A pastor in the audience responded this was all very interesting because the District Office expects pastors to fill out PIF forms and answer extensive questionnaires about every aspect of their doctrine and practice. However, the Texas District Office refuses answer any questions about what it believes and practices.

Below is the flyer advertising my visit to Texas with the cooperation of the members of Texas Concord and its Texas Action Committee:

Reclaiming the Gospel

in the LCMS Texas District

How You Can Stop the Changes and Keep Your Congregation Lutheran

Speaker: Rev. Jack M. Cascione, LCMS, Redeemer Lutheran Church St. Clair Shores MI

Author of "Reclaiming the Gospel in the LCMS" (Sent to every 1998 LCMS Convention delegate to keep the three Creeds in LCMS worship services. Call 573-237-3110 )

Dates.....Times......Places.....More Information

Dallas-Ft. Worth Area...Thursday, February 11, at 7:30 PM; The Arlington Community Center, 2800 South Center Street., Arlington; For More information Call 817-795-2020

San Antonio Area...Friday, February 12, at 7:30 PM; Seven Oaks Convention Center 1400 Austin Highway; For More information Call 210-342-4337

Houston Area ...Monday, February 15, at 7:30 PM;

SPJST Hall at 5508 Nolda Street (located 1 block south and 1 block west of the intersection of TC Jester and IH 10. The TC Jester Exit from IH 10 is #765; For more information call 713-862-2626 or 713-682-7192

Cost: Admittance is Free, Donations Will be Appreciated

Cascione will explain:

  1. How the Church Growth Movement removes control of church property from LCMS congregational voters’ assemblies with "revised constitutions" modeled after American Corporate Structure and so-called "contemporary worship" modeled after television entertainment.
  2. How the Church Growth Movement removes the Gospel, Creeds, doctrine, authentic worship, liturgy, hymn books, catechisms, the name "Lutheran", and the Lutheran Agenda from LCMS worship services.
  3. How District Presidents are promoting the new Pastoral Leadership Institute (PLI) to retrain 225 LCMS pastors in "Church Growth" techniques called "Leadership Training" with LCEF money to function as corporate CEO’s instead of pastors.
  4. How the Church Growth Movement promotes market-created point-of-purchase religion.
  5. How the 1998 LCMS Convention rejected "Church Growth" practice and voted to keep Creeds in LCMS worship services but few LCMS congregations will hear about it.
  6. How the new book titled "Church and Ministry" sent to every LCMS congregation explains the collapse of congregational structure, church constitutions, and pastoral practice now taking place in the LCMS.
  7. What lay people must do to regain control of their doctrine, worship, membership roster, constitution, voters’ assembly, church property, and keep their congregation Lutheran.

Cascione will distribute documented evidence:

  1. Exposing the secular origins of the Church Growth Movement in the LCMS;
  2. Exposing names and organizations promoting, funding, and networking the changes in LCMS congregations including the Michigan 102 and "Forward";
  3. Exposing the marketing, mind control, information management techniques used to achieve "Church Growth Objectives";
  4. Exposing the Church Growth Movement’s reliance on dialectic transformational processing, Marxist style cell-group structure, social psychology, and behavior modification techniques instead of Christian doctrine to achieve outcome-based theology and turn congregations into agencies of civic and social change.

Rev. Jack Cascione is pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church (LCMS - MI) in St. Clair Shores, Michigan. He has written numerous articles for Christian News and is the author of Reclaiming the Gospel in the LCMS: How to Keep Your Congregation Lutheran. He has also written a study on the Book of Revelation called In Search of the Biblical Order.
He can be reached by email at pastorcascione@juno.com.

March 21, 1999