It’s Not all a Bed of Luther Roses Out There, by Pr. Ben Ball
(Editor’s Note: we welcome Pastor Ben Ball from St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Brookfield, Illinois. He will be offering analysis and commentary on…
Author: Pastor Tim Rossow
Rev. Dr. Timothy Rossow is the Director of Development for Lutherans in Africa. He served Bethany Lutheran Church in Naperville, IL as the Sr. Pastor for 22 years (1994-2016) and was Sr. Pastor of Emmanuel Lutheran in Dearborn, MI prior to that. He is the founder of Brothers of John the Steadfast but handed off the Sr. Editor position to Rev. Joshua Scheer in 2015. He currently resides in Ocean Shores WA with his wife Phyllis. He regularly teaches in Africa. He also paints watercolors, reads philosophy and golfs. He is currently represented in two art galleries in the Pacific Northwest. His M Div is from Concordia, St. Louis and he has an MA in philosophy from St. Louis University and a D Min from Concordia, Fort Wayne.
An Allegory On Restructuring, by Pr. Klemet Preus
(Editor’s note: Pr. Preus’ spot in the Brothers’ Cafe has several posts about synodical restructuring that you may want to re-read.) One upon…
A Historical Review of the Relationship Between District and Synod, by August Suelflow, Summarized by Dr. Ken Schurb
Pastor Charles Henrickson passed along this timely summary of a report given to the synod back in 1961 when structural changes were being…
Listening to Issues in the Canadian Shield, by Pastor Rossow
Driving through the radio broadcast wasteland in the Canadian Shield north of Lake Superior in Canada could be a mind-numbing trip if not…
Being Steadfast Includes Being Vigilant: Preview of the LCMS Convocation on Structure, by Pr. Tim Rossow
Being steadfast in part means being vigilant, i.e. keeping watch. For the next three days it is crucial for steadfast laymen (and pastors)…
Mission Mosaic
(Editor’s note: We thank Pastor Dennis Bestul from Cupertino, California for this excellent article reminding us that traditional, liturgical worship exemplifies true diversity,…
This Was Your Grandfather’s Church
by Pastor Walt Otten The Brothers of John the Steadfast have asked this 1959 Concordia, St. Louis graduate to prepare a bi-monthly post…
The Feast of St. Mary the Mother of Our Lord
By Rev. Klemet Preus August 15 is the Feast of St. Mary the mother of our Lord. Now I know that at Glory…
I Do Not want My Grandfather’s Church Nor Captain Kirk, by Pastor Klemet Preus
While theology does not change, management style and theory do. And these days we are experiencing a leadership style which is painfully similar…
Editor’s Update: Over 5,000 Readers, Worldwide Interest, Discussion of the Nature of this Website
Readership Totals We have some great statistics from the month of July for the John the Steadfast website. We had 5,358 unique visitors…
More Good Things Coming Out of Texas – The TCL Free Conference September 5-6
Our good friends down in the nation of Texas, the Texas Confessional Lutherans, are holding a free conference early next month, September 5-6…
Response to the Texas District President, by Pastor Rossow
I will be sending President Hennings a personal e-mail and giving him a phone call on Monday to address the issue that we…
Good Things Do Come Out of Texas – Our Steadfast Parish of the Month, by Elaine Gavin
Steadfast Parish of the Month – Memorial Lutheran Church, Houston, Texas Once upon a time – a half century ago, to be exact…
We Need Some Levity – A New Cartoon by Pastor Blazek
After all this serious (but necessary) discussion of the Texas “Lutheran” Youth Gathering, we need some levity. If it strikes his fancy I…
Special Texas Lutheran Youth Gathering Edition of “The LCMS in Her Own Words” by Pastor Rossow
Where do I start? Pastor Wilken has introduced us to a nightmare called the Texas Lutheran Youth Gathering. The problems with this event…
What’s in a name?: Northern Illinois Confessional Lutherans
(This is another of our regular posts from Confessional groups around the synod and beyond.) The name really says it all. Northern Illinois…
Our Favorite Petition Comments
(Twice a month for the next few months we will be featuring our favorite quotes from the “Bring Back Issues, Etc.” petition site….
“Mighty Ignorant One” Please Read This
Someone with the handle “Mighty Ignorant One” wrote a comment last night or this morning and it got accidentally deleted. “Mighty Ignorant One”…
Prediction on the Restructuring
(from Pr. Preus) OK, we are all waiting on baited breath for the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Task Force on Synod’s Structure…
The LCMS In Her Own Words – Leadership has Replaced Faithfulness
(from Pr. Rossow) In this column we will be passing on extended quotes from various LCMS communications from around the synod. The intention…
A Journey Back to Confessional Lutheranism – From the CLCC
I’m a lay person who has been constantly being educated in what it truly means to be a confessional Lutheran. I love it!…
KFUO finances
Mollie here. So the July 2008 issue of Board Briefs indicates that the 2008/2009 budget for KFUO is $3,761,960. A reader notes that…
Two more Board items
Mollie here. One of the two most discouraging things to happen in Synod this year was the resignation in March of Pastor Edward…
Reading the Reporter
Mollie here. So I was reading my copy of the Reporter tonight and see that the quarterly newsletter from the LCMS Board of…
Johann Sebastian Bach
(from Mollie) Today we commemmorate Johann Sebastian Bach, the most wonderful composer of all time. Or, as the Aardvark put it last year:…