A Review of “It’s OK to Pray”
By the Rev. Matthew Uttenreither
Everyone remembers where they were when 9/11 happened. It’s one of those events that is burned in the conscience of mankind. It was a tragic day and it was the time for the Church to stand up and be a witness of the peace that one can only find in Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
The churches in New York City were directly impacted. Many LCMS Churches were affected. President Benke had a tremendous task in front of him and from what I read in his book as it pertains to caring for the people affected as well as the pastors under his authority who were caring for their people, first responders, etc.… From what is revealed in the book, President Benke acted as a true “bishop” caring for the clergy, even getting them two weeks of “vacation” away so they can be recharged while providing fill-in clergy for them. This should be commended. It’s obvious he cares for the pastors under his care. And if that was the end of the story, it would be a story of a faithful District President who stepped up in one of the most difficult times in American History and rose to the occasion. Sadly, that is not the end of the story in It’s OK to Pray.
The Mayor of New York City called for a time of healing, as any good Mayor would do during this time. He called for a day of Prayer and it would be held at Yankee Stadium and the great Priestess of American Spirituality at that time, Oprah Winfrey was asked to officiate. What would follow was the living embodiment of a “COEXIST” Bumper Stickers. The Prayer Service was filled with religious leaders from Rome, the East, various Protestant Churches, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and our very own President David Benke.
President Benke tells a very one-sided story in his tale. Benke feels that he was in the right because he received permission from his ecclesiastical supervisor, then Synod President, Gerald Kieschnick. President Kieschnick defends this by appealing to by-laws and as we all know the by-law is the final word in the LCMS. No, where in his book does he try to justify theologically that what he did was ok and not a public sin against the first table of the Law. Instead, he appeals to how “popular” his “prayer” was as well as the marketing of said prayer in t-shirts, stickers, etc.… He truly believes that this “prayer” was a hallmark of evangelism. You would be hard-pressed to find any citation of scripture in this “memoir”. Benke even goes so far to suggest that the real reason behind the criticism of Oprah as officiant of the Prayer Services was racial.
The real hero of this sad story is VP Wallace Schulz who rightly suspended President Benke from the roster of Synod. President Kieschnick in this book even “threatens” Schulz that his own position in Synod could be in jeopardy and ultimately Kieschnick was right as Schulz was fired from the position as speaker of the Lutheran Hour. There are others that could speak to the twisting of the truth that President Benke details in this book for example President Benke fails to mention the committee on constitutional matters role and who appointed those people on the committee to give the interpretation on a resolution that dealt with the church in the public square.
Ultimately, “It’s OK to Pray” is a story of pride. President Benke revels in the “heretic” label he received. We see this in how his friends and supporters talk about Benke in this book. Benke is labeled as a “martyr” and like Luther himself, who Scudieiri wrongly says in the Introduction that Luther stood up to the Emperor in 1517. Benke claims its all about the “precious name of Jesus” and “Gospel” repeatedly in this book but he ultimately fails to proclaim what that Gospel is.
What is needed in this sad tale is a corrective written by those men who courageously filed charges against Benke. What is needed is repentance and faith. Lord, have mercy.