ELCA Exposed News on The Bible
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Brief History of Scriptural Authority Crisis in the ELCA:
The Formation of Lutheran CORE and the North American Lutheran Church (by The Rev. Mark C. Chavez) . . .Disagreement on sexual issues is just one of many symptoms of a much deeper division and crisis in the ELCA. The division is centered on the crisis of the authority of God’s Word over all matters of faith and life, particularly the authority of Scripture – the Bible. . .(see related timeline Crisis of Authority of God’s Word) A Tale of Two Bibles (by Fred Schamber) . . .I have encountered ELCA theologians and Pastors who approach the Bible in a similar fashion. The essence of that approach is that the Bible is a human document that, though it contains a kernel of authentic religious truth, is so badly corrupted by the biases of those who wrote and “redacted” the texts that its “true” message can be discerned only by those perceptive individuals who know how to recognize the editorial additions and tease out its real meanings. Thus, it is entirely appropriate for modern Christians to discern new truths, not incorporated in (or even contrary to) Scriptural teaching, as they think appropriate to their contemporary experience. . . _Two opposing theologies reside in the ELCA. . .I agree that there are two conflicting and irreconcilable positions in the ELCA. I disagree that they are both valid. The questioning of the authority of God’s Word in the ELCA results not from just two conflicting paradigms, but from two basic theologies in the ELCA. . . (see a table with the two opposing theologies in the ELCA)
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End of the Line for the ELCA "Journey Together Faithfully."
Today is the end of the Line for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s “Journey Together Faithfully.” They vote on the second of two big issues in human sexuality and the one that the media deems so important, gay clergy. You can expect headlines and pictures of people in tears. I don’t want to belittle anyone involved, but you need two things straight. This is not about sex, but about the Bible, and second, this process has eviscerated the ELCA. It is a sad morality play about religion and politics full of ironies. It is a tale of what happens to a body of Christians when they want to be nice to everyone. In the end they forget what they were formed for . . .
Bound by Conscience or Denying the Bible? (MP3 Audio)
Interview with Dr. Albert Mohler and Dr. Robert Benne - The ELCA believes Bound Conscience overrides Biblical authority.
Why the Historical-Critical Method of Interpreting Scripture is Incompatible with Confessional Lutheranism - by John F. Brug (pdf)
. . .the use of the historical-critical method is incompatible with confessional Lutheranism. This method must be rejected by everyone who believes in the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. The historical-critical method must be rejected by confessional Lutherans because it is contrary to what the Bible reveals about itself. The historical-critical method must be rejected by confessional Lutherans because it destroys confidence in all of the doctrines of Scripture. . .
Comparison of the ELCA and the LCMS
(details on a lot of issues we highlight on this site. Excellent!)
The Church as an Organization - by Dr. Lothar Schwabe
A theology that does not respect “the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the inspired Word of God, through which God still speaks and as the only source of the Church’s doctrine and authoritative standard for the faith and life of the Church” deteriorates into religious propaganda that serves those who pay the bill.
To say that my church is not the same any more is an understatement. . .
Living By What Authority? - Rev. David N. Glesne
. . .Christ himself presented the O.T. as completely and totally authoritative, not just in matters of faith and morals but in the area of history as well. For Christ, the Scriptures cannot be broken because they have the authority of God behind them. . .
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) - pdf doc.
The ELCA claims that it is a Lutheran church and that it honors the Lutheran confessions. But what is actually taught and practiced by these churches is not confessional Lutheranism. Several recent books supply the evidence that the ELCA is a grossly false-teaching church body. . .
A COMPARISON OF TEACHINGS - Scripture vs. the teachings of the ELCA - (pdf doc.)
. . .It does not take someone with a master of divinity degree to recognize that the teachings and practices of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) are un-Scriptural. Because the ELCA clearly teaches doctrines contrary to the pure, simple Word of God neither Prince of Peace nor the CLC are in fellowship with the ELCA. . .
Against the Holy Blasphemers
The greater problem in the ELCA, however, is called enthusiasm, or fanaticism. Fanatics are a specific type of infiltrating and clandestine false prophet. They are self-righteous. They are on a mission. They believe that they hold the key to the future. . .They believe they are the messengers and purveyors of a *new and higher law* than had ever existed before in church and world—even laws given by God himself. Furthermore, this new and higher form of law comes in the person of the Holy Spirit who gives them new spirit-led revelations that are not in Scripture but are supposed to be part of God’s hidden plan.
The View of Scripture in the Eangelical Lutheran Church of America: A Covert Denial of the Orthodox Christian View of Scripture
(Unsure when written but based on bibliography, it was some time after 1999)
Martin Luther broke ties with the Roman Catholic Church because the Holy Spirit through Scripture proved to him that its doctrine was not in accord with the Gospel of Christ. Luther’s tenacious struggle for reform centered on three basic truths: Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Sola Scriptura. We are justified by God’s grace alone, through faith in Christ Jesus alone, which we know by Scripture alone. To Luther, all teachings and traditions of the church had to be put next to the standard and rule which God established, namely His inspired Word, the Bible. . .
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America moves closer to apostasy
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has decided to officially disregard the Bible's clear condemnation of homosexuality and instead adopt a politically correct view. When any Christian denomination puts political correctness above Scripture, cares about its own image instead of biblical truth, and even seeks to "play nice" with those who openly contradict God's mandate of heterosexual marriage, it ceases to be a true representative of Christ. . .
Theological Issues Challenging the ELCA
. . .Our beloved church, the ELCA, is awash in the culture of American religion but, as I said, we are in the same boat with many other churches. By all the polls America is a very religious nation, but its religion is predominantly not New Testament Christianity but neopagan gnosticism. . .
Scripture v. opinion - which gets last word?
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's presiding bishop is gaining negative attention over a recent statement. Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson said, in effect, that the Bible does not hold the last word on the issue of homosexuality. Alan Wisdom of The Institute on Religion and Democracy tells OneNewsNow that his proclamation is highly dismaying. . .
Break-ups in the ELCA
. . . the church no longer regards the authority of Scripture as absolute. I find that the main culprit in this undermining of the Holy Word has been the movement of scriptural interpretation away from the Sola Scriptura approach of the Reformers and toward the modern historical-critical interpretation. . .
The Aroma Of An Empty Bottle - by Carl E. Braaten
. . . This is what happened in Minneapolis: appeals to reason and experience trumped Scripture and tradition, punctuated with pious injunctions of Lutheran slogans and clichés. The majority won. And they said it was the work of the Spirit, forgetting that the Holy Spirit had already spoken volumes through the millennia of Scriptural interpretation, the councils of the church, and its creeds and confessions. . .
God-Breathed by Rev. Josh Schneider
. . .The way this happened in the ELCA and in so many other church bodies is that the Holy Word of God has been pushed from its place of honor and authority to become common and ordinary. Itching ears wanted new teachings that would suit our own passions and sensibilities. While they might say that the Bible contains truth, they would not affirm that all of the Bible is God’s truth. The one slogan of the Lutheran Reformation that was conspicuously missing from their official statement on accepting homosexuality was “scripture alone. . ."
Making Our Brains Bigger Than God - Part I
(the ELCA uses the Historical Critical Method for interpreting the Bible) . . .this method that is the enemy of the Historic Christian faith that your parents and grandparents were taught from pastors and professors who were faithful to God’s Word. Many laypeople wonder: “what has happened to our church?” And the answer is: the “Historical Critical Method”. It has led countless churches, denominations, pastors and laypeople away from the rock-solid foundation of God’s life-giving Word, to doubt and question the Bible and the faith of prior generations of believers. . .
Teachings of the ELCA: Biblical Authority and Human Experience
. . .When arguments are based on experience we fall into one of the ancient heresies of the church called Gnosticism. Gnostic expressions currently thriving in the ELCA include first, a rejection of the law of God. . .
The Idolatrous Religion of Conscience — A Lutheran Lesson for Us All
. . .The idea of a bound conscience is deadly dangerous unless the conscience is bound by the Word of God. Those who would claim a bound conscience but pervert, deny, subvert, or relativize the Word may indeed be bound by conscience. But a conscience bound by anything other than the Word of God is a conscience given over to idolatry. . .
Lesson Learned from Ethiopia
. . .This ELCA theologian was invited to teach a class on the Gospels at an Ethiopian Lutheran seminary.
One class was devoted to discussing the miracles of Jesus. The professor told the class of Ethiopian seminarians that his wife had a doctorate in Chemistry and had confidently assured him that it would have been physically impossible to change water to wine. . .
An Ecumenical Council to Address “Biblical Fundamentalism?”
. . .Over the past half-century, various heresies, aberrant beliefs systems, and theological movements have found a safe home under the umbrella of the “mainline” denominations. Now, Bishop Hansen want to convene a global council to combat literalist interpretations of the Bible. . .
Quote
When the Bible uses an allegory or figure of speech, it is usually obvious. But when an interpreter arbitrarily takes a passage that is obviously intended to be a literal statement of fact, and treats it as allegory, he is twisting the Word of God and knowingly perverting its meaning. - Dr. David L. Cooper
More articles on this topic - from the Exposed Blog
Today is the end of the Line for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s “Journey Together Faithfully.” They vote on the second of two big issues in human sexuality and the one that the media deems so important, gay clergy. You can expect headlines and pictures of people in tears. I don’t want to belittle anyone involved, but you need two things straight. This is not about sex, but about the Bible, and second, this process has eviscerated the ELCA. It is a sad morality play about religion and politics full of ironies. It is a tale of what happens to a body of Christians when they want to be nice to everyone. In the end they forget what they were formed for . . .
Bound by Conscience or Denying the Bible? (MP3 Audio)
Interview with Dr. Albert Mohler and Dr. Robert Benne - The ELCA believes Bound Conscience overrides Biblical authority.
Why the Historical-Critical Method of Interpreting Scripture is Incompatible with Confessional Lutheranism - by John F. Brug (pdf)
. . .the use of the historical-critical method is incompatible with confessional Lutheranism. This method must be rejected by everyone who believes in the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. The historical-critical method must be rejected by confessional Lutherans because it is contrary to what the Bible reveals about itself. The historical-critical method must be rejected by confessional Lutherans because it destroys confidence in all of the doctrines of Scripture. . .
Comparison of the ELCA and the LCMS
(details on a lot of issues we highlight on this site. Excellent!)
The Church as an Organization - by Dr. Lothar Schwabe
A theology that does not respect “the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the inspired Word of God, through which God still speaks and as the only source of the Church’s doctrine and authoritative standard for the faith and life of the Church” deteriorates into religious propaganda that serves those who pay the bill.
To say that my church is not the same any more is an understatement. . .
Living By What Authority? - Rev. David N. Glesne
. . .Christ himself presented the O.T. as completely and totally authoritative, not just in matters of faith and morals but in the area of history as well. For Christ, the Scriptures cannot be broken because they have the authority of God behind them. . .
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) - pdf doc.
The ELCA claims that it is a Lutheran church and that it honors the Lutheran confessions. But what is actually taught and practiced by these churches is not confessional Lutheranism. Several recent books supply the evidence that the ELCA is a grossly false-teaching church body. . .
A COMPARISON OF TEACHINGS - Scripture vs. the teachings of the ELCA - (pdf doc.)
. . .It does not take someone with a master of divinity degree to recognize that the teachings and practices of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) are un-Scriptural. Because the ELCA clearly teaches doctrines contrary to the pure, simple Word of God neither Prince of Peace nor the CLC are in fellowship with the ELCA. . .
Against the Holy Blasphemers
The greater problem in the ELCA, however, is called enthusiasm, or fanaticism. Fanatics are a specific type of infiltrating and clandestine false prophet. They are self-righteous. They are on a mission. They believe that they hold the key to the future. . .They believe they are the messengers and purveyors of a *new and higher law* than had ever existed before in church and world—even laws given by God himself. Furthermore, this new and higher form of law comes in the person of the Holy Spirit who gives them new spirit-led revelations that are not in Scripture but are supposed to be part of God’s hidden plan.
The View of Scripture in the Eangelical Lutheran Church of America: A Covert Denial of the Orthodox Christian View of Scripture
(Unsure when written but based on bibliography, it was some time after 1999)
Martin Luther broke ties with the Roman Catholic Church because the Holy Spirit through Scripture proved to him that its doctrine was not in accord with the Gospel of Christ. Luther’s tenacious struggle for reform centered on three basic truths: Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Sola Scriptura. We are justified by God’s grace alone, through faith in Christ Jesus alone, which we know by Scripture alone. To Luther, all teachings and traditions of the church had to be put next to the standard and rule which God established, namely His inspired Word, the Bible. . .
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America moves closer to apostasy
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) has decided to officially disregard the Bible's clear condemnation of homosexuality and instead adopt a politically correct view. When any Christian denomination puts political correctness above Scripture, cares about its own image instead of biblical truth, and even seeks to "play nice" with those who openly contradict God's mandate of heterosexual marriage, it ceases to be a true representative of Christ. . .
Theological Issues Challenging the ELCA
. . .Our beloved church, the ELCA, is awash in the culture of American religion but, as I said, we are in the same boat with many other churches. By all the polls America is a very religious nation, but its religion is predominantly not New Testament Christianity but neopagan gnosticism. . .
Scripture v. opinion - which gets last word?
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's presiding bishop is gaining negative attention over a recent statement. Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson said, in effect, that the Bible does not hold the last word on the issue of homosexuality. Alan Wisdom of The Institute on Religion and Democracy tells OneNewsNow that his proclamation is highly dismaying. . .
Break-ups in the ELCA
. . . the church no longer regards the authority of Scripture as absolute. I find that the main culprit in this undermining of the Holy Word has been the movement of scriptural interpretation away from the Sola Scriptura approach of the Reformers and toward the modern historical-critical interpretation. . .
The Aroma Of An Empty Bottle - by Carl E. Braaten
. . . This is what happened in Minneapolis: appeals to reason and experience trumped Scripture and tradition, punctuated with pious injunctions of Lutheran slogans and clichés. The majority won. And they said it was the work of the Spirit, forgetting that the Holy Spirit had already spoken volumes through the millennia of Scriptural interpretation, the councils of the church, and its creeds and confessions. . .
God-Breathed by Rev. Josh Schneider
. . .The way this happened in the ELCA and in so many other church bodies is that the Holy Word of God has been pushed from its place of honor and authority to become common and ordinary. Itching ears wanted new teachings that would suit our own passions and sensibilities. While they might say that the Bible contains truth, they would not affirm that all of the Bible is God’s truth. The one slogan of the Lutheran Reformation that was conspicuously missing from their official statement on accepting homosexuality was “scripture alone. . ."
Making Our Brains Bigger Than God - Part I
(the ELCA uses the Historical Critical Method for interpreting the Bible) . . .this method that is the enemy of the Historic Christian faith that your parents and grandparents were taught from pastors and professors who were faithful to God’s Word. Many laypeople wonder: “what has happened to our church?” And the answer is: the “Historical Critical Method”. It has led countless churches, denominations, pastors and laypeople away from the rock-solid foundation of God’s life-giving Word, to doubt and question the Bible and the faith of prior generations of believers. . .
Teachings of the ELCA: Biblical Authority and Human Experience
. . .When arguments are based on experience we fall into one of the ancient heresies of the church called Gnosticism. Gnostic expressions currently thriving in the ELCA include first, a rejection of the law of God. . .
The Idolatrous Religion of Conscience — A Lutheran Lesson for Us All
. . .The idea of a bound conscience is deadly dangerous unless the conscience is bound by the Word of God. Those who would claim a bound conscience but pervert, deny, subvert, or relativize the Word may indeed be bound by conscience. But a conscience bound by anything other than the Word of God is a conscience given over to idolatry. . .
Lesson Learned from Ethiopia
. . .This ELCA theologian was invited to teach a class on the Gospels at an Ethiopian Lutheran seminary.
One class was devoted to discussing the miracles of Jesus. The professor told the class of Ethiopian seminarians that his wife had a doctorate in Chemistry and had confidently assured him that it would have been physically impossible to change water to wine. . .
An Ecumenical Council to Address “Biblical Fundamentalism?”
. . .Over the past half-century, various heresies, aberrant beliefs systems, and theological movements have found a safe home under the umbrella of the “mainline” denominations. Now, Bishop Hansen want to convene a global council to combat literalist interpretations of the Bible. . .
Quote
When the Bible uses an allegory or figure of speech, it is usually obvious. But when an interpreter arbitrarily takes a passage that is obviously intended to be a literal statement of fact, and treats it as allegory, he is twisting the Word of God and knowingly perverting its meaning. - Dr. David L. Cooper
More articles on this topic - from the Exposed Blog
