According to Kim Riddlebarger, the bureaucrats in the LCMS have pulled the plug on the Issues Etc radio show. The Issues Etc folks were kind to have me on the show several times and they were always gracious despite our differences.
I found this site where the issue is being discussed.
As Kim and the LCMS News Spot site say we should pray for Todd and Jeff. They’ve been terrific in the defense of the gospel of justification sola gratia et sola fide. I don’t know what’s happening but as Kim says there’s no scandal and no financial problem. Like Kim, I’m an outsider to LCMS politics and I don’t know what’s happening what’s the fun of having a blog if I can’t speculate wildly?I have been told by those on the inside, most notable by the late Robert Preus, that there is a struggle in the LCMS between the “evangelicals” and the confessionalists. He said that the confessionalists had defeated the liberals in St Louis back in the 70s only to lose to the evangelicals (at one point at least) in Ft Wayne. Preus had suffered quite a lot at the hands of anti-confessionalists in the LCMS. Does this have anything to do with the sudden demise of Issues Etc? We’ll have to wait and see.
UPDATE: More here.
Kim has more contact info. He’s encouraging folks to write the powers that be in the LCMS.
Update: The Issues Etc archives are here. (HT: Talking Donkey)
UPDATE: Kim has the latest: KFUO says that the cancellation was for “programmatic” reasons.
According to the latest Arbitron ratings (12+) for the St Louis market, KFUO has a respectable 2.2 share. Radio insiders will tell you that the 12+ numbers are not very useful since virtually no advertisers target listeners in such a broad age range (12-54). Nevertheless, it gives an indication of how the station is doing. There are several stations with lower ratings, some of whom offer attractive secular programming.
Maybe the best thing anyone can do (in the St Louis market), beside supporting Todd and Jeff, is to stop listening to KFUO.
UPDATE Thurs 5PM: You can sign a petition here. When I signed yesterday there were about 377 signatures. Today there are over 1900! Kim says that the bureaucrats are getting nervous. I suspect that they thought that no one really cares about all that dead orthodox confessional stuff.
UPDATE Good Fri 10AM Reliable word is that Todd and Jeff were called to LCMS headquarters and offered severance for silence. Still no explanation from the LCMS.
R. Scott Clark
R.Scott Clark is the President of the Heidelberg Reformation Association, the author and editor of, and contributor to several books and the author of many articles. He has taught church history and historical theology since 1997 at Westminster Seminary California. He has also taught at Wheaton College, Reformed Theological Seminary, and Concordia University. He has hosted the Heidelblog since 2007.
More by R. Scott Clark ›
Aaron,
Many thanks for this. We will follow it closely and, of course, we will continue to pray.
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Here is all sorts of contact information to tell people what you think about this, let them know how important Issues, Etc. was to us, and ask why the show was cancelled:
Rev. David L. Strand
Executive Director
Board for Communication
(314) 996-1200
(314) 822-0000
david.strand@lcms.org
Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod
1333 S. Kirkwood Road
St. Louis, MO 63122-7295
(888) 843-5267
(314) 965-9000
FAX: (314) 996-1016
infocenter@lcms.org
KFUO Radio Station
(314) 725-0099
(314) 725-3030
(314) 721-2969
Rev. Dr. Gerald Kieschnick
Synod President
(314) 996-1402
(314) 842-7110
president@lcms.org
LC-MS Board of Directors
(314) 996-1350
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Meanwhile, an online petition has been started up about Issues, Etc. being ended. I don’t know how much good it will do, but it should be able to do some. it certainly can’t hurt to put your name down. Here’s the link:
http://www.petitiononline.com/Issues/petition.html
For anyone who comes across this and has Facebook, the most discussion it seems is going on at the “Bring back Issues ETC!!!” Facebook group.
http://facebook.com/group.php?gid=11679316089
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Finally, financial help for the Schwarz and Wilken families can be sent to the following address. Just put in the memo line that it’s for the “Schwartz/Wilken Fund”. The Schwarzes especially need the help and Rev. Jack Schwarz’s wife Beth has been recently diagnosed with small fiber neuropathy and they need to go to Mayo Clinic to try figuring out what can be done.
“Schwartz/Wilken Fund”
Saint Paul Lutheran Church
P.O. Box 247
Hamel, IL 62046
All help and all prayers are appreciated.
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I will be continuing to post information and resources relating to the cancellation of Issues, Etc. and firing of Rev. Wilken and Mr. Schwarz. So, if you could please help me draw people to the resource of my blog, I would really appreciate it.
http://latinkid.blogspot.com/2008/03/pulled-from-air-issues-etc.html
God bless,
–Aaron Nemoyer
No dice. Interesting.
It wasn’t when I linked it.
It looks like all you need is a google id (e.g. gmail account) and you can view the site.
Dr. Clark: Was the lcmsnews.blogspot.com site always a private (invite only) blog? It is now…