John Tietjen's close account of the conflict within a Christian body moves with the skill, the drama, and the characterization of a novel. But there is no shred of fiction here. The author stood at the center of the conflict. His observations of the events (both broadly public and closeted in private) that altered the facepolitic of Lutheranism in this country are absolutely accurate. Here is the selfish expression of faith, as well as the dangers of the right hand of power within churches. Here, too, is the sweetness of human communityeven while individual people of faith must stand in their decisions ultimately alone. Tietjen has written a memoriam and a history and a jubilate and a confession. Excellent!Walter Wangerin Jr."John Tietjen tells the unpleasant story of crisis and conflict in the church. It is a story that needs to be told, and he tells it in a way that people will find both gripping and uplifting. This is his personal account, done with the precision and documentation of a professional historian, but his writing also produces a narration of many key events and a strikingly human portrayal of the people on both sides of the conflict. In John Tietjen's hands, this story of conflict and crisis brings us back to the God who produces order out of chaos and blessing out of the suffering of God's people."Jeanette H. Bauermeister