Lutherans are NOT a Protestant Denomination
A while back, a brief discussion thread on one of the warm, friendly, and always theologically-astute CAT41 mailing lists piqued my interest, and I’m finally getting around to blogging about it.
More specifically, a response from a Pastor that I respect (and who has graciously given his permission for me to quote from his message) really brought some things into clearer relief for me regarding the tensions between Lutheranism and Protestantism (particularly the American strain), and the fact that Lutherans are not Protestants. Rather, from the very beginning Lutherans wanted to reform the historic catholic church, not break from it — this fundamental difference (and the theological underpinnings from which it is derived) is still true today.
As Lutherans we live in a society of American Protestants. Even most Lutherans seem to think that we are just a “protestant denomination.” They listen to “Christian radio” and so, outnumbered 100 to 1 we begin to conform to them. Virtually all those “Christians” deny the means of grace. So what’s left? You have to find God on your own, so everything is about ME and I.
Evidence continues to mount against the TNIV
Thanks to the ongoing efforts of many folks, the hideous postmodern/relativistic monstrosity that is the TNIV “translation” is being thoroughly outed & exposed for what it is: a blatant attempt to “fix” what some seem to feel are errors made by the Holy Ghost when He inspired Holy Scripture to be written.
Not the least of these good people are those over at Stealth Bible: TNIV, where another outstanding post has been made, this time linking to an article/paper that shreds any pretense the TNIV has of being a faithful & accurate translation. Just to whet your appetite for going over there & reading the article/paper, here’s a brief quote:
Mainstream prestige culture finds certain patterns of thought politically incorrect. It is at war with the word of God. And so the integrity of the word of God is at stake. The TNIV fails at crucial points to maintain that integrity. The rejection of the TNIV is important for the spiritual health of the people of God.
It’s sad, it’s true, and we need to be aware of it so that we can faithfully combat it & reject the error upon which the TNIV is built.
-ghp
AI: 3/9 - the results
Well, we’ve got the Top 12.
I got half of the eliminations right — the two that I thought needed/had to go (Travis & Janay) were eliminated, and the two that I wanted to see gone (Constantine & Mikalah) were not.
I was surprised to see that Nikko & Amanda were eliminated, both because I thought they were good enough to deserve entry into the Top 12, but also because I thought they’d both built up enough of a fan base to carry them through. I’m not too terribly disappointed, however, because given the choice of them or Scott & Lindsey (who I thought could’ve been in danger of getting sacrificed for Constantine & Mikalah by America), I’d much rather see Scott & Lindsey get through to the Top 12.
So, the Top 12 are: Anthony, Anwar, Bo, Carrie, Constantine, Jessica, Lindsey, Mario, Mikalah, Nadia, Scott, & Vonzell. Overall, I think it’s a very strong group, probably the strongest group of finalists, top to bottom, that AI has had to date. I’m not sure yet if the best of this group is as good as Kelly & Clay (who get my vote for being the class of previous AI’s), but it’ll be interesting to watch it unfold.
As for predictions, well, I’m not usually too good/successful, but I’ll give it a shot…
- The guys will outclass the girls — I’m thinking that at least 3 of the first 4 eliminated will be girls.
- The final 3 will be: as easy as A-B-C — Anwar, Bo, & Carrie
- The biggest injustice will be done to: Nadia (personally, I’d rather see her in the top 3 than Carrie…)
- Dark-horse — Guy: Scott (if he gets a fan base & continues to soften the serial killer vibe, he’ll go far)
- Dark-horse — Girl: Jessica (she’s got the potential to surpass Carrie, in ability to hang with the best guys)
- The first to be eliminated: Mikalah (because I said so!)
- Least talented to advance the farthest: Constantine (and I still won’t get it when it happens…)
- Final 2 I want to see: Bo & Nadia
- Odds of me getting what I want: nil–nada–zippo
Thus endeth the predictions — So I have spoken, so shall it be! 
-ghp
AI: 3/8 - the girls
Well, the girls more or less met my expectations. Unfortunately, those expectations were not at all high. Rather than bore you with lengthy commentary, here’s the quick & dirty rundown:
They Gone: Janay (she’s cute enough, and there’s some talent there, but she’s just too young, too inexperienced, & too scared to go on as a credible candidate — I hope America does the right thing & cuts her loose…), and Mikalah (I don’t like her. It’s not, necessarily, that I think she’s too young and/or annoying, though she could use some time to mature & polish her performance skills. Rather, if I wanted to hear Fran Drescher do Babs Streisand covers, I’d just as soon hear Fran do it instead of her 17 y/o doppelgaenger. Plus, her performance last night was hideous!).
At Risk: Amanda (considering this group of girls, along with her reasonable talent & very good looks, she should be safe. But you never know…), Vonzell (better performance last night, but was rightly at risk last week. And that cowboy outfit last night surely deserves to be booted off, even if Vonzell doesn’t…), and Lindsey (Personally, I like her & would like to see/hear how she handles the theme weeks in the Top 12; however, I get the sneaking feeling that America might not agree.).
Safe, Safe, Safe: Nadia (IMO, the only girl who can truly hang with the top guys, in terms of talent, attitude, & showmanship.), Carrie (vocally, the purest/best of the girls, but has yet to get a handle on how to be truly successful in this competition. Vocal purity & potential, and her looks get her through with no problem…), and Jessica (quite possibly the biggest surprise among the women — she’s showing signs of having the confidence & attitude necessary to join Nadia as competitors on equal footing with the best of the guys…)
The results tonight will be interesting. I’m anticipating that it’ll be more likely that America will disappoint me by sending an unworthy girl through to the Top 12, than by sending an unworthy guy. We’ll see…
-ghp
-
Analytics & Hosting
