The fictional story above is grounded in reality. For two thousand years, what you read above has happened over and over. It’s not just the history of this congregation, the LCMS, or even the churches of the Reformation. You can read this same story in the book of Acts. You can read how different churches responded to the ministry of St. Paul in his letters. Or I could share with you the autobiography of one of my relatives who served as pastor in Grafton and Fredonia in the 1880’s. The stories are as old as time.