Questions about the Formal Church

Has the WELS (or any other church body) over time in'ad·ver'tent·ly changed what was orginially designed and set up by God?

What does it mean to be a WELS Christian?
What is WELS?

The WELS.net ABOUT page says in it's first line:
"WELS, characterized as theologically conservative, is the third largest Lutheran church body in America." -wels.net

So what's Lutheran?

Lu·ther·an
"Of or relating to Luther or his religious teachings and especially to the doctrine of justification by faith alone." -The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004


So what's a church body?

Church Body
"A church body is a Christian religious organization made up of congregations, members and clergy. They are organized more or less formally, with constitutions and by-laws, maintain offices, sometimes seek non-profit corporate status in the United States and often have state or regional structures. Church bodies often belong to a broader tradition within the Christian religion, sharing in a broad sense a history, culture and doctrinal heritage with other church bodies of the same tradition." -"Church Body." Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 2005.

We call our selves Christian. What does that mean?

Chris·tian
"Professing belief in Jesus as Christ or following the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus." -The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004

So what is a religious organization?

re·li·gious
"Having or showing belief in and reverence for God or a deity." -The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004

or·gan·i·za·tion
"1. The act or process of organizing."
"5.a. A structure through which individuals cooperate systematically to conduct business." -The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004

Putting all together we might have WELS being...

the third largest Christian {Professing belief in Jesus as Christ or following the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus} Lutheran {relating to Luther or his religious teachings and especially to the doctrine of justification by faith alone} religious {Having or showing belief in and reverence for God or a deity} organization {A structure through which individuals cooperate systematically to conduct business} in America.

It seems to me that WELS is a well institutionalized Lutheran religion.

in·sti·tu·tion·al·ize
"To make part of a structured and usually well-established system."
-The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004

re·li·gion
"a. Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
b. A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship."
- The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004

I am not saying this is a bad thing.
We need organizational structure for a large group of people to effectively work together and encourage one another.

What I do feel is that sometimes the people in the institution (whether it is the local congregation or a larger organization, like an area of ministry directed by 2929) have lost some of the love, creativity and big picture purpose for being.