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Robert Thieme

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R.B. Thieme, Jr.
200x115
BornApril 1, 1918
Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S.
Occupation(s)Theologian, Author
SpouseBetty Beal
ChildrenRobert "Bobby" Thieme, III

Lt. Col. Robert Bunger Thieme, Jr. (born April 1, 1918) was pastor of Berachah Church, an independent fundamentalist church that is considered cultish by some [1], in Houston, Texas from 1950-2003. Affectionately called "the Colonel" by his congregation, he is a dispensationalist theologian who wrote over a hundred books and conducted over 10,000 sermons on various theological topics during his 53 years as a pastor. He is currently retired in Houston, Texas.

Biography

Thieme was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana and raised in Beverly Hills, California due to a large family inheritance. He attended Beverly Hills High School, including four years study in Latin and went on for his undergraduate studies at the University of Arizona at Tucson where he majored in Greek, lettered in football and boxing, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa[2], graduating with honors in Classical Literature in 1940. While attending university, he met and married Betty Beal, the daughter of a Baptist minister.[2]

During World War II he served in the Army Air Corps where he eventually was in charge of training Army Air Corps cadets at Luke Field.[2] In 1946, at 28 years old, he was commissioned as a Lieutenant Colonel, from which his nickname "the Colonel" originates, and he entered the Reserves.[2] He continued in a militaristic vein after leaving the service, including as a guest speaker at the third annual Houston Anti-Communism School in 1960.[3]

At this point, he attended Dallas Theological Seminary where he graduated summa cum laude. His 1949 Master's thesis is entitled Armageddon: an investigation of the campaign of the great day of God the Almighty.[4] During his time at DTS, he held a part-time pastorate at Reinhardt Bible Church in Dallas, Texas.[2]

In 1950, he came to Berachah Church in Houston, Texas, having been recommended to the church for this position by Dr. J. Ellwood Evans of Dallas Theological Seminary.[2] Thieme met with the Board of Deacons at the close of his first Sunday service and demanded that they resign immediately, or he would. The board acceded to his surprising demand and Thieme became the dominant leader and single authority from that time forward.[2][5] He was pastor at Berachah until he retired in 2003 due to the ravages of Alzheimer's disease.

After retiring in 2003, his only son, Robert "Bobby" Thieme III, was elected by the congregation of Berachah to serve as the new pastor.[6] Since his retirement, R.B. Thieme Ministries has shifted focus to compiling Thieme's sermons and notes into new books, and reformatting and revising existing material into modern formats (eg. DVD, MP3, and Powerpoint).

Over the years, Thieme has ordained dozens of men to the ministry. While a comprehensive list is not available, an internet search turns up a number of pastors including [1], [2], [3], [4], and [5].

In 2007, C. G. Hunt wrote an unauthorized biography on Thieme's family history and upbringing entitled Robert B. Thieme Jr.: His Ancestry, His Life, ISBN 9781598582345. The book has raised questions concerning the veracity of some claims Thieme has made about his background, including his sports letters at the University of Arizona and his Latin honors from Dallas Theological Seminary.

Theology

Thieme attended Dallas Theological Seminary and was influenced by its founder, Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer, in his theology. He has, in turn, been influential in the ministries of other Christians, including the prominent authors Hal Lindsey and Chuck Swindoll, and in the personal lives of public figures including former U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle.[7][8] He can be described as a dispensational, non-denominational Protestant who believes in Biblical inerrancy and holds to some uncommon doctrines ("Right Pastor", baptism not a necessity for the current dispensation, Christians can't grow spiritually by reading the Bible themselves, etc[1][2]).

He developed his unique systems of vocabulary and doctrinal study based on what he called ICE: Isagogics, Categories, and Exegesis. Isagogics means studying the Bible in terms of the historical context in which each book was written, including both the human writer, the audience, the times in which they lived, etc. Categories refers to a topical categorization of doctrine, so that one can approach the Bible on a step-by-step basis and cross-reference scriptures effectively. Exegesis means studying the Bible in the original languages (or as best as is available) so that one is not relying on an intermediate chain of language translations which may obscure or lose meanings. Through the ICE method, Thieme sought to uncover all of the deepest truths of Scripture.

Criticisms and responses

Thieme's teachings and theology have been widely disseminated, and have been the topic of numerous critical articles and books, including those of Miles J. Stanford[9], Russell L. Harris[1], Dr. Stewart Custer[10], Rev. Robert Walter[11], and Dr. R. L. Hymers, Jr.[12]. In addition, he has been both commended and criticised in dissertations by Th.D. candidates at his alma mater, Dallas Theological Seminary, such as by Joe Layton Wall[2] (note the foreword by DTS president John F. Walvoord), and at other seminaries, such as by Todd Campo at Trinity College and Seminary[13].

In some cases, criticisms are misunderstandings or misrepresentations. For instance, Thieme teaches that there is no human soul in a fetus and that it doesn't become a person until the point of birth (see: Adam's Rib and Right Man Right Woman); the critique may therefore be made that he teaches abortion is acceptable, which is a conclusion that Thieme categorically denies (Wall, p.60-61). On the other hand, the criticism could be made that these distinctions and the appropriate conclusion or application should be taught as dogmatically as the doctrines themselves to prevent misapplication or wrongly inferred conclusions.

In addition, his continuing study over the years has led him to revise some of his older teachings, making some criticism on these points anachronistic and outdated. For example, the 1987 printing of The Integrity of God included a one page supplemental insert clearly admitting a doctrinal error on an issue, stating:

CORRECTION

Ongoing study has led me to revise certain expressions of Bible doctrine that appear in this book, The Integrity of God.

[...]

In emphasizing God's righteousness and justice, however, I understated His love. While work on this book was in progress, I taught that holy God cannot love the unbeliever. This is false, and I have since ceased to make that extreme statement. Scripture clearly declares that "God so loved the world" that He gave His Son (John 3:16).

Controversial Quotes

Regarding spiritual growth:

The soul is a receiver. The lungs of the soul are apertures designed to receive bible doctrine. Either directly in Bible teaching or in Bible study or through the storage area of the human spirit. The mechanics of this thing involves several aspects: You can store doctrine in the human spirit and use it later. You can take it directly through Bible teaching; and when you have become mature enough, so that you are spiritually self sustaining you can read and benefit from the Bible, but the worst fallacy in the world is the idea that a born again believer can sit down and read the Bible and derive spiritual benefit. That is a farce and every evangelist says 'Now read your Bible every day and everything will be alright.' and reading your Bible everyday isn't going to mean a thing, you have to be taught. So the greatest farce in the world is that you, a believer, a new believer, can sit down and read the Bible and learn something. That's why the gift of pastor-teacher exists in the church and its a long time before you get to where you can read and understand. When you see a passage you may not understand it, but once you have categories of doctrine, you can identify categories and work it out. So, don't kid yourself, when the day comes that any new believer can open the Bible and become an expert that's the day when we won't need pastors and teachers and I'll go to Hawaii or I'll go back into the service or something. ... So whether you like it or not, you are dependent on me.[14]

1. No believer can attain spiritual maturity and become an invisible hero or glorify God apart from postsalvation epistemological rehabilitation.

a. This means that no believer can read the Bible and attain spiritual maturity. The Bible is our textbook, but the gift of pastor teacher is designed to communicate the specifics of the mystery doctrine that cause spiritual growth. Doctrine must be learned under authority, and that authority is vested in the spiritual gift of pastor teacher.

b. No believer can read the Bible daily for himself and discover and learn the mystery doctrine for the Church Age, and understand the mechanics of the protocol plan of God. It must be taught through authority. Authority is always the key to teaching.

He must personally grow spiritually by his own personal study of the Word of God. No pastor can grow apart from personal study. He is the only one who can grow by personal study, it is connected with his spiritual gift. The congregation cannot grow by personal study, it can only grow by being under authority.[15]

Regarding Roe v. Wade:

This is one of the wisest and most brilliant decisions that the Supreme Court has made in many, many, many years.[13]

Abortion is a decision between a patient and her doctor.[13]

A pastor has no right to impose his volition on others — that's tyranny from the pulpit... [People must] carefully consider what is taught in the pulpit so they can make their own decision before the Lord... I can't advise whether to abort - [that is] an intrusion of privacy and the freedom of another person.[13]

Regarding nuclear weapons:

The people of the United States, and obviously the president, do not have the courage to do what has to be done, and that is to use the weapons that are sophisticated. We aren’t going to go over there and nuke anyone; we are firing shots across the bows of ships... This is ridiculous! You don’t fight wars this way.[16]

The only good decision that was ever made was when we had a president, Harry Truman, who actually nuked Japan. That was a magnificent decision! That was a strategic decision. That was a decision that saved millions of American lives and shortened the war. But we made one tactical mistake. We dropped one of those bombs in a part of Japan where they’re all crybabies, and they’ve been crybabies right up to now. You’re shocked at these things, but you don’t understand how nations survive.[16]

Regarding Bible translations:

Psalm 100 verse 2, corrected translation: serve the Lord with a SUPER ABUNDANCE OF HAPPINESS! - That’s the correct translation. and in Psalm 100 if you have anything besides this: ‘serve the Lord with a super abundance of happiness’ then if you have anything beside this, then you do not have a good Bible, a good translation.[17]

...mistranslated, terribly mistranslated, they call it clans or something, but it isn’t clans, its generals and as a matter of fact they are retired generals...[18]

Ministry

File:RobertBThiemeJrBooks.jpg
Some of Thieme's works. The titles in the top row illustrate his military style.

Thieme's style of teaching and vocabulary reflects strongly his military background. For example, he sometimes wore his Military uniform while preaching from the pulpit and he refers to believers as "Christian soldiers" and has written a number of booklets on nationalistic topics, including War: Moral or Immoral, Follow the Colors, Christian, at Ease!, and The Christian Warrior. This style is appealing to people with an analytical or regimented bent and, added to his extremely anti-Communist stance (as illustrated in many of his books), his teachings have been popular among military personnel, especially overseas.[19][20][21]

Members of Berachah Church and other people under his ministry sometimes referred to themselves "Thiemites", a term that Thieme himself rejected as emphasizing his person instead of Bible teaching.[citation needed]

Berachah Church supports both United States and worldwide evangelism, especially through an outreach group called Operation Grace: World Missions. OGWN currently supports missionaries in the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, Brazil, Thailand, Korea, the Philippines, Africa, England, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldovia, and Kazakhstan.

Even since his retirement, Thieme's ministry has continued to grow world-wide in a number of ways. As of January 2007, many of his books have been translated into a dozen languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, German, Hungarian, Romanian, Korean, Chinese, Thai, and Russian. Currently, his sermons are broadcast on the radio in a number of US states, Africa, and the Philippines.[22] Study groups have also been formed by so-called "tapers", a term hearkening to the pre-internet era of messages recorded and distributed on cassette tapes, in the US, England, Canada, Germany, and the Philippines.[23] To facilitate easier world evangelism, tape distribution centers have been opened outside the US in Australia, England, the Philippines, and Germany.[24]

Financial Policy

A key position of Thieme's theology is that the Word of God should be based on the same Grace shown to believers by God. As a result, his ministry has never charged money on any materials, including books, tapes, and DVDs, of his doctrinal teachings. This facet of his ministry is so important, that in the cover of all of his booklets, the following note appears:

Financial Policy

No price is placed on any of our materials for two reasons. First, this is a Grace ministry, dependent entirely upon the freewill offerings of believer-priests. To place a price on Bible Doctrine is incompatible with grace. Second, people who are positive toward doctrine may be financially unable to purchase books or tapes. We do not wish to limit the positive volition of any believer.

Therefore, no price list for tapes or publications is furnished. No money is requested. When the Lord motivates a believer, that individual is free to give. When a believer, regardless of financial status, is positive toward doctrine, he has the privilege of receiving the teaching of the Word of God. This is grace.

This financial policy has been instrumental in expanding the teaching of the Bible worldwide, as many millions of people in developing nations would not be able to pay for Biblical books or tapes. These poorer countries are reached through individual missionaries, the evangelistic ministries noted above, and now over the internet.

Selected Publications

Most of Thieme's books are compilations of his notes and sermons from his years of teaching. Many are out of print, although R.B. Thieme Ministries does keep many in print as well. The below list is a small subset of his total work.

References

  1. ^ a b c Wolves in Sheep's Clothing revised March 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Bob Thieme's Teachings On Christian Living by Joe Layton Wall. 1982.
  3. ^ CACC Newsletter. 1960.
  4. ^ DTS Online Library Search. Search BIBLOS for "armageddon campaign almighty" to bring up the index entry.
  5. ^ Study of the Teachings of R.B. Thieme, pp. 14.
  6. ^ "Investiture Service: The Charge to the Pastor" GDC Media. Retrieved May 11, 2007.
  7. ^ Adherents.com quoting Tarpley, et al. George Bush: The Unauthorized Biography, 2005.
  8. ^ Time Magazine A New Second Lady. January 23, 1989.
  9. ^ The Green Letters ~1972.
  10. ^ What's Wrong With the Teaching of R.B. Thieme, Jr.?. Dr. Stewart Custer, 1972.
  11. ^ Bible For Today catalog False Teaching of R. B. Thieme, Jr., 1972.
  12. ^ The Cults, Dr. Macarthur, and the Blood of Christ Sermon. September 22, 2002.
  13. ^ a b c d Dissertation: Neshamah: Is There Life In The Womb: A Critical Analysis Of The Teaching Of R.B. Thieme On The Origin Of Life.. Todd Campo.
  14. ^ link to audio file source for quote
  15. ^ Thieme lesson on 2 Tim. 3
  16. ^ a b Onward Christian Soldiers? by Garry Wills. The Record (New Jersey). Dec. 30, 1990.
  17. ^ Series:383 Lesson:0027 Minute:16:00
  18. ^ Zech. 14:2 Series:383 Lesson:0007 Minute:5:20
  19. ^ Voice of the Soldier Newsletter of SpecialForces.com. December 2006.
  20. ^ Voice of the Soldier Newsletter of SpecialForces.com. February 2007.
  21. ^ S2 Company
  22. ^ RB Thieme Ministries Broadcast messages, retrieved January 2007.
  23. ^ Berachah Church Study groups, retrieved January 2007.
  24. ^ RB Thieme Ministries Foreign tape distribution, retrieved January 2007.

See also

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