The Worship Wars Will Continue Until Everyone Genuflects
GUEST POST from Rev. Stanley Lacey of St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church-UAC , Magnolia.
When I got up the other day and checked my email, I saw an update from the Substack Truth and Light Media, by Karsten Christiansen, with a headline that read, in part, "Scriptural Adiaphora means LCMS worship wars must end."
In the conclusion of his post, Karsten Christensen said, "Worship wars need to end. Respect for God’s Holy Word relative to adiaphora and worship practice must be reestablished within the LCMS. Let’s get on with investing our energy and resources in pursuing the Great Commission while there is still time for those who do not yet know Jesus as their Savior, all for the sake of Christ’s Church and His people. Amen.”
Before continuing, I encourage anyone reading these words right now to listen to or watch this episode of On the Line, where Richard Stuckwisch explains the true meaning of adiaphora and how it applies today.
For my part, I want to focus on two paragraphs from Mr. Christiansen’s post. He begins with the following words:
“Dear Friend in Christ,
Lutheran worship practice has historically included our Lutheran Confessions and the sacraments while respecting adiaphora – what God neither explicitly commands nor forbids in scripture. This goes back well before the establishment of the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, all the way to Dr. Martin Luther and his contemporaries. Indeed, adiaphora is specifically noted in the LCMS Handbook (LCMS Inc.’s constitution and bylaws).
Article III Objectives, Section 7 of the Handbook reads:
“The Synod, under Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions, shall … encourage congregations to strive for uniformity in church practice, but also to develop an appreciation of a variety of responsible practices and customs which are in harmony with our common profession of faith” (emphasis is the author’s).
Some in LCMS national and district leadership, and others, including pastors and laypersons, continue seeking to restrict the worship practices of all congregations to a singular worship form described as traditional, but which is, in actuality, a form that has never historically been used within the LCMS. Some of these “traditional” worship practices are more Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox than historically Lutheran, such as genuflecting, kneeling, incense, head coverings for women, elimination of women’s public reading of scripture or children’s messages, etc.”
Rev. Gerald Kieschnick said something very similar in a now-unlisted video interview on the Unite Leadership Collectives podcast. (And don’t worry, I downloaded the video on my computer just in case they decide to delete it!) While explaining that the LCMS is in decline in part due to what he refers to as a “romanization of the clergy,” Rev. Kieschnick says,
“So, my thoughts about that are these—and, and again, I don't experience this personally as much as I do anecdotally, but I've talked to a lot of people. A lot of people talk to me, and I've heard the complaint. It's not just an observation, it's a complaint that particularly many of our recent seminary graduates—but not only recent, I don't know how you define recent, but our seminary graduates—do a lot of things that have a Roman flare to them, Roman flavor, like chanting. And I don't know anything inherently against chanting, I don't. It's okay, it can be beautiful if done properly. Not all of our pastors who think they're great chanters really are great chanters, I'm just saying. Genuflecting, prostrating before the altar. I went to a church, I went to a church with a pastor, I looked around, he was flat on the ground. He was on the ground prostrating before the altar, venerating the Host, requiring private confession and absolution, not just suggesting it. And I've noticed also adding the Corpus Christi, the body of Christ, to our otherwise typically, generally vacant crosses. You know, that's one of the things that we've done a lot for years, for decades, for centuries—well, for decades. And our crosses are empty, symbolizing the resurrection. Jesus isn't on the cross anymore, but adding the body of Christ back” (Transcribed by AI, 30:20ff)
As soon as any Gottesdienst or Gottesdienst-adjacent person begins criticizing LCMS pastors and congregations for adopting non-denominational-coded church practices, the cry we hear from those utilizing such practices is often a response like this: “We as Lutherans must have an appreciation for a variety of responsible practices and customs which are in harmony with our common profession of faith. Different churches for different people. Different practices for different contexts. It is enough to agree on the Gospel and the Sacraments.”
We say more than this based on the Scriptures in our Lutheran Confessions and in the witness of Lutherans who have gone before us. We aren’t to appreciate church practices and customs
When Mr. Christiansen issues his command that the worship wars end and cites our Synod Constitution, he quickly passes over “strive for uniformity” and italicizes “but also to develop an appreciation of a variety of responsible practices and customs which are in harmony with our common profession of faith. There’s nothing wrong with emphasizing this half of the statement, but we also ought to take special note of a few other words here. We as LCMS Christians ought to be committed to developing an appreciation for a variety of practices and customs in the church so long as they are “responsible practices and customs” and “in harmony with our common profession of faith.”
When those in our Synod who wish to promote non-denominational-coded church practices in their divine services (both the Chief Divine Service and other divine services) use this section of our Synod’s Constitution to defend their rejection of old church customs in favor of church customs originating in heterodox churches, it begs the question: Are the church practices and customs of heterodox pastors and churches responsible and in harmony with our common profession of faith? Assuming they are without close and critical examination would contradict Scripture, which says, “Test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21).
Based on what Christiansen goes on to say, one must also ask: Is it spiritually healthy for a Christian to speak pejoratively of customs that originate in Scripture and are practiced by faithful Christians even today?
It may be helpful to distinguish between what is prescriptive and descriptive in Holy Scripture to determine what is truly commanded and forbidden, and what is neither commanded nor forbidden. However, even when Scripture describes the faithful practices and customs of true believers that are not necessarily binding for a Christian because they lack God’s express command, they should never be disparaged as the property of a heterodox church by saying something like, “That’s too Roman Catholic!”
Genuflecting (bowing the knee), kneeling, using incense, ministers wearing special clothing in the conduct of the liturgy, and even lying prostrate in the presence of the Lord are not the property of Roman Catholics or Eastern Orthodox. These practices and customs belong to the people of God in both the Old and New Testaments and the church of all time.
“Now take Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister to Me as priest, Aaron and Aaron’s sons: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. So you shall speak to all who are gifted artisans, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments, to consecrate him, that he may minister to Me as priest. And these are the garments which they shall make: a breastplate, an ephod, a robe, a skillfully woven tunic, a turban, and a sash. So they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, that he may minister to Me as priest” (Exodus 28:1-4).
“Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and they fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them” (Numbers 20:6).
“Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days” (Daniel 6:10).
“And when the Magi had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11).
“All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: ‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen’” (Revelation 7:11-12).
“Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations” (Exodus 30:7-8).
“So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense” (Luke 1:8-11).
“Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (Revelation 5:8).
Would Mr. Christiansen or Rev. Kieschnick balk and sneer at our Lord when He fell on His face before the heavenly Father?
“Jesus went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, ‘O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will’” (Matthew 26:39).
At one point in his post, Christiansen asserts, “We believe that it would be good and right for us all to remember that it takes all kinds of churches to reach all kinds of people. A singular worship practice being pushed by some may be good for certain congregations and not for others. One size does not fit all, as even Martin Luther recognized.” It should be said at this point that no one is saying that we should force congregations of the LCMS to use “a singular worship practice.” Not even the editors and fans of Gottesdienst can claim that they all have a singular worship practice! Also, no one is saying that keeping church practices in common is necessary for salvation or merits grace before God.
But, even if we concede that a church’s worship practices vary by context, it is beyond dispute that every believer and unbeliever who has ever existed or will ever exist will eventually genuflect in the presence of and at the name of the Lord Jesus, whether they ever practiced genuflecting in this life or not. They will bow their knee on that day, whether they embraced or despised genuflecting in this life.
“God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)
Anyone like Karsten Christiansen, representing Truth and Light Media, or Rev. Gerald Kieschnick, carrying the credibility of a former LCMS Synod President, writing or speaking to a large audience of LCMS Christians ought to do their research before making such confident assertions about which worship practices have been used within the LCMS and are historically Lutheran. And if we are going to talk honestly about worship practices that are truly foreign to historic Lutheranism and the LCMS, we need to look not at what these figures deride as Roman Catholic, but at the practices they want us to assume are responsible and in harmony with our common confession.
It is much more accurate to say that the following church practices tolerated in the LCMS today are actually practices and customs that have never been historically used in the LCMS and are more non-denominational, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, and generally heterodox than historically Lutheran:
Jettisoning the donning of ornate vestments by the Lord’s ministers in the public worship services (Exodus 28:1-4).
Dispensing with the basic historic structure of the Chief Divine Service found already in synagogue of Jesus’s day, the narrative arc of the Gospels (Jesus preaching ministry—Service of the Word & Jesus’ suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension—Service of the Sacrament), the outline of Revelation (Jesus’ message to the Seven Churches—Service of the Word & Marriage Supper of the Lamb and God and God dwelling with His people—Service of the Sacrament), the description of Christian worship in the Acts of the Apostles (the doctrine of the Apostles—Service of the Word & fellowship, breaking of the bread, prayers, and sharing all things in common and giving to those in need—Service of the Sacrament).
Throwing out 500 years of historic Lutheran chorales in favor of hymns written by sacramentarians—or modern praise music produced almost entirely by sacramentarians. Even what the Songwriter Initiative is producing now still has a long way to go to write texts as substantive as those we have from the Lutheran tradition. Their time, treasure, and talent might be better spent composing new melodies for hymn texts from Walther’s Hymnal, the Lutheran Service Book, etc., for churches that can’t make an immediate leap to older melodies.
Eliminating biblical worship practices like kneeling, genuflecting, and at least recognizing the use of incense in worship as good and Scriptural, even if your parish doesn't use it. Even if you really have people who are allergic or experience respiratory issues in response to incense, no Christian should deride this Biblical practice as “too Roman Catholic.”
And—arguably one of the most harmful church practices adopted by LCMS pastors and congregations today from the heterodox groups—the practice of allowing Christians joined to heterodox pastors and congregations to partake of the Lord’s Supper at LCMS altars. When a congregation gives guests the impression that anyone can come forward to receive the Lord’s Supper regardless of whether they are Methodist, Roman Catholic, Assemblies of God, ELCA, or non-denominational—teaching by their practice that false doctrine, so long as it is not a false doctrine that denies the bare facts of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, isn't spiritually perilous—that is not LCMS or Lutheran practice.
This last example of non-denominational-coded church practice adopted by many LCMS congregations, even many that may utilize other traditional worship practices, is evident whenever a pastor tells visitors in the crowd from the chancel or stage if they’ve “received training or instruction in this,” or “they are baptized, confess their sinfulness, believe Christ is somehow present in the Supper, and desire to live a godly life,” or “they believe in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and the Real Presence,” and say nothing concerning the necessity of already receiving the Lord’s Supper as a member in good standing of a congregation in fellowship with the LCMS, they may receive the body and blood of Jesus at that altar. Such a practice of Holy Communion belies a rejection of the Biblical teaching that Christians are commanded to avoid false teachers and false teaching (Romans 16:17-20). Our Lutheran fathers firmly upheld this Biblical teaching in the Book of Concord, even in the article on adiaphora.
The non-denominational-coded ceremonies of the heterodox are designed to make the church's public services immediately accessible to the visitor. This isn’t just seen in stripping away complexity in the service and reducing it to a few praise songs, announcements, a prayer, the Lord’s Supper, a sermon, and a few more praise songs. It is also seen in what is lacking in the preaching and in the administration of the Lord’s Supper.
To be accessible and avoid offending visitors, non-denominational-coded pastors and churches will avoid polemics, i.e., refuting and warning against false doctrine and false teachers, almost completely. They will also explain who may receive the Lord’s Supper in such a way that almost any self-identifying Christian who believes in some sense of the Real Presence will think it appropriate to come up and receive it. This hardly qualifies as a responsible practice or custom in harmony with our common confession of faith. This church practice ignores God’s command to Christians to avoid heterodox pastors and teachers. And yet, many LCMS pastors and congregations adopt this, along with other visitor-friendly practices of non-denominational churches. False teachers and false doctrine exist within and without our Synod. They and it can destroy saving faith, and Christians must keep away. This is why our churches teach:
“Under the title and excuse of outward adiaphora, things are proposed that are in principle contrary to God’s Word, although painted another color. These ceremonies are not to be regarded as adiaphora, in which one is free to do as he wants. They must be avoided as things prohibited by God. In a similar way in such a situation ceremonies should not be regarded as genuine free adiaphora, or matters of indifference. This is because they make a show or pretend that our religion and that of the papists [insert: “the heterodox American sects”] are not far apart in order to avoid persecution [insert: “in order to avoid offending visitors or make them feel uncomfortable or out of place in any way”], or they pretend that the papist’s ceremonies [insert: “the ceremonies of the heterodox American sects”] are not at least highly offensive to us. When ceremonies are intended for this purpose, and are required and received (as though through them contrary religions are reconciled and became one body), we cannot regard them as adiaphora. When returning to the papacy [insert: “becoming indifferent toward doctrinal differences along with most of the heterodox American sects”] and departing from the Gospel’s pure doctrine and true religion should happen or gradually follow from such ceremonies, we cannot regard them as adiaphora. For in this case what Paul writes shall and must win out: ‘Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? … Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them’ (2 Corinthians 6:14–17)” (FC SD X 5-6).
Also,
“[A]ll Christians should beware of participating in the godless doctrine, blasphemies, and unjust cruelty of the pope [insert “heterodox American sects”]. They should desert and condemn the pope [insert “heterodox American sects”] with his [“their”] followers as the kingdom of Antichrist, just as Christ has commanded, ‘Beware of false prophets’ [Matthew 7:15]. Paul commands that godless teachers should be avoided and condemned as cursed [Galatians 1:8; Titus 3:10]. And he says, ‘Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers.… What fellowship has light with darkness?’ (2 Corinthians 6:14). To dissent from the agreement of so many nations and to be called schismatics is a serious matter. But divine authority commands everyone not to be allies and defenders of impiety and unjust cruelty. In this, our consciences are excused well enough, for the errors of the kingdom of the pope [insert “heterodox American sects”] are clear” (Tr 41-42).
The heterodox sects of America reject the Biblical teaching concerning the true and substantial presence of Christ’s body and blood under the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper. We Lutherans believe Jesus when He says, “This is My body…This is My blood.” The bread and wine do not contain Jesus' body and blood. The bread and wine are not plain, ordinary utensils we use to receive Christ's true body and blood. The bread and the wine do not symbolize the body and blood of Jesus. The body and blood of Jesus are not present only spiritually. Jesus is not present in the Lord’s Supper by His divine nature alone, nor by any other twisting of Holy Scripture about the Lord’s Supper. According to Christ’s own words, we confess along with Justin Martyr, “This we receive not as common bread and common drink. We receive them as Jesus Christ, our Savior, who through the Word of God became flesh. For the sake of our salvation He also had flesh and blood. So we believe that the food blessed by Him through the Word and prayer is the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ” (FC SD VII 39).
The old Lutheran church customs flow from the conviction that Christ is truly present, speaking to His people in the preaching, and that the bread and the wine of the Lord’s Supper are truly His body and blood for our forgiveness, life, and salvation. The Bible is full of examples of how saints behaved by God's command and spontaneously in the presence of the true and living God. The old Lutheran church customs flow from the conviction that the same true and living God who appeared before Moses and Aaron at the tabernacle of meeting comes to us now to preach to us and nourish us with His own flesh and blood.
The customs and practices of the American sects and their non-denominational messaging flow from a rejection of this true and substantial presence of Christ in and through the Means of Grace. Instead, they insist God must come to us through forms of public worship that resonate with us personally and make us feel the way we think we ought to feel. Above all, they can’t be boring, because God would never want us to be bored!
The customs and practices of the heterodox groups are not in harmony with our common confession of faith as orthodox Christians. Because they are not in harmony with our common confession, LCMS pastors and congregations cannot adopt them responsibly. On the contrary, adopting these church practices is unloving and militates against the harmony and public unity God desires for His people by obscuring what we actually believe is going on when God’s Word is read and preached and when the Lord’s Supper is celebrated.
If Mr. Christiansen wants the worship wars to end, then LCMS pastors and congregations need to show that non-denominational-coded worship practices and customs are responsible and in harmony with our common profession of faith. They need to provide compelling reasons to justify casting aside the old Lutheran church practices and customs in favor of the customs and practices of heterodox sects. If they cannot do this, they ought to abandon the customs they have adopted from the heterodox and restore the old Lutheran church customs, since our churches teach that, “Nothing in the customary rites may be changed without good reason. Instead, in order to foster harmony, those ancient customs should be observed that can be observed without sin or without proving to be a great burden. In this very assembly we have sufficiently shown that, for the sake of love, we will reluctantly observe adiaphora with others, even if such things may prove to be somewhat burdensome. We judge that the greatest possible public concord which can be maintained without offending consciences ought to be preferred to all other interests” (Ap XV 51-52).
Unless and until the LCMS pastors and congregations that have abandoned old Lutheran church customs in favor of non-denominational-coded practices and customs have given compelling reasons for such a change, a change that has violated love and violently disrupted the public unity and concord among LCMS pastors and congregations both locally as well as at the district and synodical level, we cannot and will not appreciate their particular practices and customs. We must only appreciate responsible practices and customs that are in harmony with our common confession of faith. As long as we are tempted by the Devil, the world, and our own sinful nature to adopt church practices and customs that fall short of this standard, we must continue to fight the worship wars in ourselves, our own congregations, and in our district and synodical gatherings, until our Lord Jesus returns in glory. On that day, “everyone will genuflect, and every tongue will confess to God” (Isaiah 45:23).