Many of you know the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America recently added seven pastors who are gay, bisexual or transgender, to its clergy roster. This occurred at a Rite of Reception service.
Here are a few things you may not have heard concerning this.
1) During the "festival Eucharist celebrating the reception and reinstatement of pastors," (p 4) the congregation recited the “Our Mother who is within us” prayer taken from the Goddess Rosary (read more about the Goddess Rosary here). The prayer goes like this -
"Our Mother who is within us
we celebrate your many names.
Your wisdom come,
your will be done,
unfolding from the depths
within us.
Each day you give us all that we need.
You remind us of our limits
and we let go.
You support us in our power
and we act in courage.
For you are the dwelling place within us,
the empowerment around us,
and the celebration among us,
now and forever. Amen"
(p 16)
"The paraphrase of the Lord’s Prayer, 'Our Mother
who is within us . . .' is a part of the Goddess Rosary
offered at University Lutheran Chapel of Berkeley (ELCA)."
(p 24)
2) The sermon for this "celebration" was delivered by Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber, who is a "Featured Speaker" at the publicized ELCA "Sharing the Gospel in a 2.0 World" event on August 11-14, 2010. (read here)
3) Much like item 1), they included a number of other prayers (listed below) to a god they call "Mother." (note that the Bible never calls God this name)
"O Sophia, Wisdom and Mother of us all, you are One with many names and images. May we see in all who are gathered here today your multiplicity of blessings. Today we honor your unlocking systems and practices that devalued and demeaned us for so many years and by putting your way of honoring people in its place. Most Holy One."
(p 11)
"Life-giving Mother, you make a home for us in the midst of our fear…
…that we may share your gifts with a hungry world:"
(p 15)
View and read the Rite of Reception service here.
One should also take note that there were a number of ELCA bishops involved in this Rite of Reception, as well as many ELCA pastors.
This kind of thing would not be happening if the ELCA did not support it.
Have you ever prayed to the Goddess? Recited the "Goddess Rosary?" Joined an ELCA Goddess small group? If you stay in the ELCA long enough you may just get your chance. ELCA church, Ebenezer Lutheran in San Francisco (http://www.herchurch.org) has been doing this for a long time, but they are not the only ones. Rev. Jeff Johnson, recently elected to the Sierra Pacific Synod Council, and his church University Lutheran Chapel (ELCA) in Berkeley, CA are conducting a monthly "Goddess Rosary" service.
Here is what the University Lutheran Chapel newsletter says about the service.
"Goddess Rosary.
Last Sunday of the Month Goddess Rosary, 6:45PM at the Chapel. During the 1-hour session, the Divine Feminine will be recognized and reclaimed through recitation of the Goddess Rosary, silence, music, and movement. This very special Rosary consists of prayers by feminist theologian Carol Christ and musician Sister Miriam Therese Winter. The evening will be based on Rev. Stacy Boorn’s Goddess-centered devotion at Ebenezer/herchurch Lutheran Church in SF. People of all gender identities are welcome." ( See here )
You can't have a Goddess service without praying the "Hail Goddess" prayer. It goes like this,
"Hail Goddess full of grace. Blessed are you and blessed are all the fruits of your womb. For you are the MOTHER of us all. Hear us now and in all our needs. O blessed be, O blessed be. Amen (adapted from Carol Christ)(see here)
One participant in the Goddess Rosary service (at herchurch) described her experience this way -
"From the basket of rosaries, I took into my hand a strand of vibrantly-colored beads with a silver goddess icon in place of the traditional cross. The goddesses came in a variety of shapes and sizes, celebrating the beauty of the feminine form; I found reflections of my own figure in the full hips and Rubenesque curves of my goddess. Once gathered, we began to recite together the “Our Mother” and “Hail Goddess” prayers."
(see here)
This is what is happening in the ELCA! The ELCA is well aware of this and they have chosen to accept it. If they didn't, they have the power to stop this practice. But the ELCA does not. This is false teaching and praying to a false god. This is on the ELCA's head. Let's not forget that they have promoted it in official publications (See on Page 6) AND have allowed a pastor who sanctions it to be on a Synod Council.
For those of you on the fence concerning if you want to remain in the ELCA, what is it going to take? For those that insist on staying in the ELCA, there is more than enough evidence that the ELCA has abandoned scripture and true Christian teaching (see here), you cannot deny it. You are living for your own desire for your church and placing that above the will of God which is clear to all in His scriptures.
Below is an email reply with a friend, who is a pastor. I sent him a link to this website and he replied. This is my reply to him. I have done minor edits to clear up confusion and make it more understandable to the reader. To understand more of my points and views read more of my blogs and the links contained on this website -
And now, the email -
. . .I did not know your position on the issue but figured if you agree "great," if not I'd like to hear your thoughts as someone I respect. I find some of your thoughts helpful, and thank you for them. You may not find my site helpful, but the real intent behind it is to inform the regular ELCA members (like my grandmother) about the truth - what the denomination is teaching and doing, as well as to encourage them to take a stand for their churches.
(To answer your points)
I disagree with your statement on the August decision. The fact is the ELCA has allowed churches to ordain practicing homosexuals and bless their unions. That is an endorsement by the ELCA no matter how you look at it. They wouldn't allow it if they disagreed with it. The synod offices and positions will be allowing it, will they not?
I have a different idea about where authority should be, with God and his Holy word. But as you know, if you have read my links, that is the issue (the ELCA view on the Bible.)
1) I like and agree with your thought that I should claim authorship of the website by putting my name on it.
2) (concerning information on the tornado at the ELCA August meetings and if God caused it) The truth is that God does, at times, speak and use nature for his purposes. Think of Noah, the Red Sea, darkness during Jesus crucifixion, Jonah and the storm, etc. So it is possible God was doing the same here. The storm did not injure anyone, so I don't see any suffering because of it. If the ELCA doesn't take heed to God's Word and Will (that is stated so clearly in the Bible on homosexuality), or with conservative pastors' pleas not to vote for it, I don't think it is too far fetched to think He may use a less than F1 tornado to shake the voting ELCA representatives and as a way to try and convince them to obey His word. I don't believe all disasters are warnings from God, but some are. Isaiah 45:7, "I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster, I the Lord do all these things". Also, Matt. 16: 2 He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times."
3) I do have a problem with the ELCA's stance on the Israel/Palestine issue. We both know Israel has a longer claim on the land. They have had a continuous presence for over 3000 years there. They also won that land when the arab world attacked them. As Yusef Diya al-Khadidi, Mayor of Jerusalem (1899) said, "Who can challenge the rights of the Jews in Palestine? Good Lord, historically it is really your country." There are 56 Islamic countries and just 1 Jewish country. In 1870, Jews were the majority population in Jerusalem.
The ELCA attacks Israel for its security fence and wants it taken down. The fence was built to prevent suicide bombers from walking into Jewish populations and blowing up innocent men, women and children. Many countries have fences and walls. The U.S., Turkey, Northern Ireland, the Netherlands, India, Spain, Thailand, Yemen, etc.
The ELCA states it wants Israel to give up Judia, Samaria, and half of Jerusalem. God gave that land to Isaac and Jacob. The Bible says its for their descendants. (here is another point where the ELCA puts their will above what the Bible says.) Have you seen what Gaza is like with the terrorists in leadership? The same will happen in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. If the ELCA cares so much about the issue lets ask one of the arab states to parcel off some of their land and create a Palestinian state away from Israel. That would be a more peaceful solution. After all, Hamas' charter says, "Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it." I encourage you to read my articles listed about Israel and the ELCA. If those in Gaza are suffering greatly, it is because of the radical muslims there, for the most part, not the Israelis.
The ELCA uses bias terms such as "occupied" territory. Where are the calls for Palestinians to change their ways, to lay down their weapons, to stop teaching their children to hate the Jews, to put in their charter that Israel has a right to live there, to form a true democratic government (like Israel), to allow Jews to live in Gaza if they choose?
I am glad we all care about the Palestinians. Absolutely God loves them. But the way the ELCA has chosen to "care" for them is really to blame Israel. I don't see the ELCA confronting those countries that keep "Palestinian Refugees" in poverty and refugee camps and denied them citizenship, since 1948. Do they really care about them or does the Israel angle fit their agenda? I don't see the ELCA demanding Hamas stop using the billions in international money they get to buy weapons and benefit the few.
(concerning the ELCA using "mother" as a reference for God)
4) On "mother" God. I don't think most ELCA members would approve, and I want them to know about the ELCA's stance. Wasn't Jesus, God Himself, a man? Did Jesus ever call God "mother?" Did the disciples? Did anyone in the Bible? Why do we think we know better and understand more about God then them? If Jesus called God "Father" that is the term we should use, in my opinion. It seems to me the ELCA thinks they are so intellectual, they are so wise, and they know so much more than the authors of the Bible (God included) that they can decide what is true and what is not. What is real and what is not. What Jesus said and what he didn't. They can dismiss thousands of verses that talk about prophecy and things that will happen because they "know" it's not possible for someone to know the future even if it is God speaking through them. They have put their view above God's Word, which He is said to "inspire." If the ELCA's view of the Bible was right, don't you think Jesus would have said that? If it wasn't from God and true, don't you think Jesus would have said, "Hey everyone, the scriptures are just human's writings. They're not from God. And prophecy? It's a bunch of hogwash." The fact is, Jesus didn't say that and He read and viewed the writing as true and as God's Word.
Good connecting with you. If you have more comments and thoughts, I'd love talk with you about them.
Peace,
Dan
In a Lutheran CORE newsletter they write an article entitled "ELCA worship resources offer prayer to ‘Mother’ God." The article says that "the ELCA publishing house is recommending a prayer addressing God as “Mother” in worship materials for Sunday, Dec. 27. The prayer is one of the Prayers of Intercession in the Sundays and Seasons worship planning resource widely used by ELCA pastors and is included in the “Celebrate” bulletin insert used by many ELCA congregations." (News from Lutheran CORE, Dec. 2009)
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