Dan Selbo's election as NALC Bishop

[Paul O Malley]

Any thoughts about Pr. Dan Selbo's election as NALC Bishop. I have a very favorable impression from the summer of 2015 when I attended St. Timothy's in San Jose while working a temporary job in that area. 

[Coach-Rev]

I knew him from years ago when I was a part of FOCL briefly. 

As an NALC pastor, I'm pleased with the outcome.

[Richard Johnson]

Dan is a fine pastor and a fine man, and will do a good job. He is definitely at the "low church" pole of the NALC, which may prove to be a problem, or to exacerbate a problem, built into the NALC.

[MEKoch]

I was there in Indianapolis as Dan Selbo and Eric Riesen (the two finalists) presented each a ten minute Bible study on Galatians 5 and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  Riesen was interesting and theological.  Selbo spoke softly and slowly to the people about his faith, his life and God's Spirit leading him.  Thankfully the NALC had two GOOD candidates to choose from. 

I pray that he can follow Bishop John Bradosky's lead by drawing together both streams of the NALC (the word and sacrament group and the Word of God group who have a more pietistic faith).  Other parts of Lutheranism have similar groups, who exist happily with each other.  Bradosky was a wise leader, who gently and spiritually guided the NALC in good paths, and away from the post-modernism Lutheranism of the ELCA. 

Michael Koch

[Svensen]

Characterizing the "two" streams of the NALC as a "word and sacrament group" and a "Word of God group" with a "more pietistic faith" misses what exactly divides the NALC and mischaracterizes both positions. Everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about both word and sacrament, just like everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about the importance of the bible. Locating the divisions in the NALC requires more nuance than this.

[Dave Benke]

Characterizing the "two" streams of the NALC as a "word and sacrament group" and a "Word of God group" with a "more pietistic faith" misses what exactly divides the NALC and mischaracterizes both positions. Everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about both word and sacrament, just like everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about the importance of the bible. Locating the divisions in the NALC requires more nuance than this.

Where do you locate them?

Dave Benke

[Svensen]

Characterizing the "two" streams of the NALC as a "word and sacrament group" and a "Word of God group" with a "more pietistic faith" misses what exactly divides the NALC and mischaracterizes both positions. Everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about both word and sacrament, just like everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about the importance of the bible. Locating the divisions in the NALC requires more nuance than this.

Where do you locate them?

Dave Benke

I think there're at least three: the evangelical catholics, the evangelicals, and the confessionalists.

[Richard Johnson]

Sounds about right to me.

[Svensen]

A key point here of course is that all three groups would at least claim that they all emphasize both word and sacrament. There are also confessionalists in the NALC whose "worship style" (for lack of a better word) would resemble either the evangelical or the evangelical catholic sensibility. There are even evangelical catholics whose piety resembles the piety of the evangelicals...

[Charles Austin]

Just like in the ELCA, except without ...

[James_Gale]

Just like in the ELCA, except without ...

Please don’t play this game.

[J. Thomas Shelley]

Just like in the ELCA, except without ...

Or substitute LC-MS, or LCMC...

[revjagow]

Characterizing the "two" streams of the NALC as a "word and sacrament group" and a "Word of God group" with a "more pietistic faith" misses what exactly divides the NALC and mischaracterizes both positions. Everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about both word and sacrament, just like everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about the importance of the bible. Locating the divisions in the NALC requires more nuance than this.

Where do you locate them?

Dave Benke

I think there're at least three: the evangelical catholics, the evangelicals, and the confessionalists.

Boy, that sounds familiar. I'd say it's the same in the LCMS, too, and also with a lot of nuance.

Interesting that the ELCA, LCMS, NALC and WELS have all had conventions, this year. A comparison of the four would probably make a good Forum article (just sayin').

[DCharlton]

Just like in the ELCA, except without ...

Syncretism and partisan political virtue signaling.

[James_Gale]

Characterizing the "two" streams of the NALC as a "word and sacrament group" and a "Word of God group" with a "more pietistic faith" misses what exactly divides the NALC and mischaracterizes both positions. Everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about both word and sacrament, just like everyone in the NALC would be emphatic about the importance of the bible. Locating the divisions in the NALC requires more nuance than this.

Where do you locate them?

Dave Benke

I think there're at least three: the evangelical catholics, the evangelicals, and the confessionalists.

I wonder whether a decade or so back Pastor Selbo would have imagined being installed as a bishop through the laying on of hands by multiple bishops who themselves are in historic succession.