Barth-- Proving Himself to Be False--
A Man of Sin Preaching in the Temple--
Will Be Abandoned in Favor of Reverent Study
(In a None-Too-Schleiermacherian Way)

My reading of the German for Barth's Epistle to the Romans-- called simply Romerbrief-- is netting diminishing new returns from the same kinds of conclusions that I have made by way of Verstehen for this Church Father: I find to be highly repetitive of a highly-tilted thesis-- 'Word of God'-- that those who take a scientific approach to religion (in the sense I would understand) are fallen from grace, are both sinners and represent sin. I am supposed to listen to the What-- content-- of this kerugmatic and not to the How-- but the What with me as I have said repeatedly is the moral implication of what-one-preaches. Given that the A = B of Barth's life does not make a What I would call 'good Christian conduct'-- the What of his sermonizing-- a drone tweedledum tweedledee of 'music' (I am told to call it music; that it is sinful to call it otherwise) in preachings when the-man-of-sin IS Barth expounding from the Temple. Now the True must leave Barth, the Sinner, as we are instructed by 2 Thessalonians 2. Thus I esteem Barth not to be a man of God, but an apostate who only knows how to make a redundant sermon loosely put-together with Bible verses.

I need to move on. In a not-too-Schleiermacherian way, I find this an exhausting experiment, not an exhaustive experiment: further reiteration of this same Barthian lostness is just not in me to effect. When I deal with yet another Barthian (say from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) I shall when the direct-sales-approach to Barthianism is made, just say 'we don't want any; we got some; but how was Barth resurrected to visit Baptistland in Louisville some ten years after his death on December 10, 1968????'

Hermeneutik und Kritik does not have to be done on false subjects that bore me. The process of understanding is something that I in my station-- looking for true creative reverent behavior-- need to do-- others may want to have this need to fill as well. I think I have given Barth as much logical scientific generosity as the principle of charity and his theses warrant-- to the point of A = B invalidation. Barth "has been weighed in the balances (enough) and found wanting": I shall certainly move onto truly reverent behavior and work.

--Vernon Lynn Stephens, Culdee
Time of Prime
Apparition of Archangel Michael in Colossi (Orthodoxy)