The price of notoriety...

Under the title Megadeth bassist studying for Lutheran ordination at Concordia, we read in the St. Louis papers of the former bass player for Megadeth now studying for the Pastoral Ministry of the LCMS through the SMP program.  You can read the story in the paper by clicking here. 

I am not so much interested in this story, but in the way the SMP program is now being used.  Besides, with a name like David Ellefson, you'd think he would already have been a Lutheran Pastor (former pipe smoking and lutefisk eating kind of Lutheran Pastor who feels right at home in Cosby sweaters and clerical shirts in all the latest colors).

When the LCMS adopted this short cut to spending three years at the Sem and a vicarage, the reasons seemed salutary and urgent enough -- minorities who could not be uprooted from their home but needed to be trained to work among ethnic groups requiring intimate knowledge of the culture and language. Sure, this wasn't the only thing mentioned but it figured prominently in the decision to combine other short circuit paths into one more uniform way to ordination. It even offered the hope of cleaning up the mess of those non-ordained already serving in justified arrangements (lay ministers, deacons, etc., doing Word AND Sacrament ministry supposedly contrary to our Confessions and our own polity). But, in the interest of finding say, a Korean or Sudanese to serve their own population, even some who had reservations thought that a more churchly program that shortened the coursework was not a terrible thing. So the thing got passed.

Now, the bassist from Megadeth (his name is actually David Ellefson) is neither Korean nor Sudanese and, to my knowledge, is a member of no ethnic minority (except the aging population of former heavy metal band members), yet, he is part of the SMP program  -  one of more than 100 students enrolled in the program, which is limited to students who have been sponsored by someone already working in the ministry.

Combining his musical abilities and his faith led Ellefson to a deeper exploration of Christianity, he said. And it led him to start a new music ministry within the walls of Shepherd of the Desert Lutheran Church.  He called it MEGA Life, partially a play on Megadeth and an oblique reference to the Gospel of John: "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."  MEGA Life became so popular in Scottsdale that Shepherd of the Desert Lutheran Church bought a new space for the ministry.

Last year, their Pastor Jon Bjorgaard asked Ellefson and MEGA Life director Jeremy DaPena to enroll in Concordia's Specific Ministry Program.  So in this case, the SMP program is being used to legitimate the Christian rock music which this parish is using to springboard a new "ministry."

Now, I have no bone to pick with any former metal band member or groupie who finds Jesus and wants to be Lutheran (at least I will admit to none) but it seems that this program was not tailor made for this circumstance.  In fact, it sounds as if the program is being used because somebody does not want to go to seminary (who does).  Even more so, it sounds to me that one of the reasons both sponsor and praise band leader do not want to go the seminary route is to keep the guy from becoming too Lutheran (hanging around with the likes of church musician Henry Gerike at St. Louis or talking liturgy with Art Just at Fort Wayne).

We in Missouri have many messes in our house and the SMP program appears to be one of them.  According to the paper, more than 100 are enrolled currently (and this compares with 400-500 regular sem students).  So 1 of 4 or 5 of our PITs (Pastors in Training -- dontcha just love acronyms) is an SMP PIT.  That represents a pretty healthy segment -- even somewhat a revolution for this staid mostly Midwestern church body with its all Midwestern seminaries.

As I have complained so often, the biggest changes often come to the church through the back door -- without formal adoption of that which we know up front.  The short changed course work might be forgiven if it were temporary but, in the end, the SMP people will become Pastors just like me (well, probably not as old, cantankerous and curmudgeonly as me).  Or, will they....   Will we end up with two classes of clergy (not by design but by default)?  Will we end up with more and more of that which is non-Lutheran becoming mainstream in our church body because our clergy are less and less equipped to judge what is of the faith and faithful and what is not?

It makes for a great story -- at least it did until somebody checked out the communion policy of the sponsoring congregation and found out it was a "Come to Jesus" congregation in which, it seems, anyone and everyone is welcome (with or without Lutheran faith, much less membership).

Well, there you have it... my own complaints about somebody who gets to wear the same collar I wear (though who probably would never wear it) sans the seminary formation with all of its extra baggage of doctrine and practice.  So in the end you see my concern is really about somebody who got a clerical collar at a discount and my fear that such discounts have the potential to turn the LCMS into the BigLots of Lutheran Churches -- all that is church but without the big price tag, oh yes, and the quality of confession.  What the world does not need is a Filene's Basement of Lutheran Churches... nor does it need any Wal-Mart LCMS franchises.  We need most of all authenticity and honesty of who we are and why we do what we do, how we do it.... Lutherans in doctrine and practice.