Exposing the ELCA

Each month The Lutheran attempts to bring news, features and views that inform, uplift and occasionally entertain its readers. Editors haven't found the formula that hits it dead-solid perfect every time, but we keep swinging.

That's why a letter like that of Charles M. Horn ("Good, bad news needed for reality check") in the June 2011 issue lifts our spirits. Our charge can be found in the magazine's mission statement published each month. Driving those five statements is the imperative to keep ELCA members up to date on what is happening, not only in our denomination but also in the world in which we live.

So we publish articles such as this month's cover story, "10 trends to watch" in American religious, social and cultural life. Frankly, some are unnerving. But as writer Kathryn Sime reports, "To be clear, not all these trends are negative. Many present significant opportunities for ministry. Regardless, the message is clear: the world is changing; we need to take note and keep up."

Horn understands this. The reality of our situation, whether good or bad or both, "needs to be shared so members can deal with the issue faithfully," he says. ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson provides guidance ("Christ present in challenges") for a healthy mix of looking to our past while addressing our future.

With that said, it's again worthwhile to explain the editorial and advertising direction of The Lutheran. It is indeed a magazine of the ELCA. For certain matters such as publication of denominational notices (see page 29 of print edition), it serves an official purpose. It is not, however, "official" in the sense that every word, photograph or advertisement carries the endorsement of the ELCA or represents its "official" position.

Here's a case in point. A letter-writer from Iowa was "hoping there would be a retraction of the Rob Bell endorsement on page 38 of the April edition (Worship: "Nooma"). But there was none" in the May issue. The writer referred to a column on trends in worship beyond regular "Lutheran" circles. Bell leads a large non-ELCA congregation in Grand Rapids, Mich., that has a sizable youth following and features what is called postmodern media-based worship. The columnist cited the style as effective and worthy of review.

Bell subsequently appeared in a Time magazine article in which he questioned the existence of hell. The letter-writer said: "For The Lutheran to promote Bell's teaching materials, the ELCA is opening the door for the cancer of universalism ...."

The column was about worship style — not doctrine. It was the opinion of the columnist. It was the judgment of the editor to run the column. The editor, not a board or higher ranking church official, is responsible for the magazine's content. The staff and I edit the magazine on behalf of its members. We err on the side of more, not less, potentially useful material.