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ELCA Leadership: Marriage Equality and Civil Unions

2/27/2012

A Lutheran pro-homosexuality organization reports that an ELCA bishop, the third one Exposing the ELCA has highlighted this year, is advocating for gay marriage. LCNA says, “Richard Graham, ELCA Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Synod, will be attending the rally in favor of marriage equality . . .” The bishop was reported to be attending a rally and conducting “lobbying visits to legislators in support of marriage equality bill in Maryland.” (see here)
(see the other ELCA bishops advocacy actions here and here)

In the same vain, a keynote speaker at this summer’s 2012 ELCA National Youth Gathering (see here) went to her state legislature (CO) to speak in support of “civil unions for GLBTQ couples.” (see here) This is the same person (ELCA pastor, Nadia Bolz-Weber) who recently performed a transgender renaming service at her ELCA church. (see here)

So to all those ELCA members who think that the actions and policies of the ELCA will not affect you, what to you think now? To those of you sending your kids to the ELCA Youth Gathering, do you realize you are sending them into the lion's den? To those of you who think the actions of the ELCA leadership go against God Almighty’s will, how do you justify your contentment continuing to be part of this denomination?

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ELCA Churches Celebrate Evolution Weekend

2/22/2012

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The seventh annual celebration of Evolution Weekend took place February 10-12, 2012. It wasn’t an event for a bunch of God-denying atheists. It was an event organized specifically for Christian congregations. Congregations and/or pastors who evidently do not believe God’s account of creation. The Clergy Letter Project, which organizes this annual event, listed over 500 congregations including 50+ ELCA congregations who signed up to participate in Evolution Weekend 2012. The Clergy Letter Project states that “all participating congregations will address the relationship between religion and science, many will focus their attention on the theme selected for this year: an interfaith discussion of religion and science . . . Religious people from many diverse faith traditions and locations around the world understand that evolution is quite simply sound science.” (read here) The Clergy Letter Project is an evolution-supporting, Biblical creation denying group which gathered the signatures of over 1500 ELCA pastors who are in support of evolution. (see here)

The 53 ELCA congregations listed as participants in Evolution Weekend are:

Holy Redeemer Lutheran Church
Bellflower, CA
The Rev. Mary Todd Pendergast

University Lutheran Chapel (ELCA)
Berkeley, CA
The Rev. Jeff R. Johnson

Peace Lutheran Church
Corona, CA
Pastor Mark Allert

Lutheran Church of the Incarnation
Davis, CA
The Rev. Daniel R. Smith

St. Timothy Lutheran Church
Monterey, CA
Pastor Clark Brown

Advent Lutheran Church
Morgan Hill, CA
The Rev. Anita R. Warner

First United Lutheran Church
San Francisco, CA
The Rev. Dr. Susan M. Strouse

Living Faith Lutheran Church
Santa Clarita, CA
The Rev. Pamela Challis, Senior Pastor

California Lutheran University
Thousand Oaks, CA
The Rev. Paul W. Egertson
Dr. Jarvis Streeter

Messiah Community Church ELCA
Denver, CO
The Rev. Wolfgang Stahlberg

Our Savior's Lutheran Church
Denver, CO
The Rev. Paul Carlson

Emanuel Lutheran Church
Manchester, CT
The Rev. Dr. G. Scott Cady

Lamb of God Church (A Federated Lutheran and Episcopal Congregation)
Fort Meyers, FL
The Rev. Walter Fohs, Senior Pastor

Peace Lutheran Church
Fort Myers, FL
The Rev. Walter C. Still
(see all that Peace Lutheran had scheduled for Evolution Weekend here)

St. Stephen Lutheran Church
Tallahassee, FL
The Rev. Russell L. Meyer
Executive Director of the Florida Council of Churches

The Lutheran Church of Our Saviour
Tampa, FL
The Rev. Jon Keiser

Nativity Lutheran Church
Weeki Wachee, FL
The Rev. Phil Schroeder

Peace Lutheran Church, ELCA
Steeleville, IL
The Rev. S. Blake Duncan

St Paul Lutheran Church
Villa Park, IL
Stephen H. Swanson, Pastor

Grace Unlimited
Indianapolis Lutheran-Episcopal Campus Ministry
Indianapolis, IN
The Rev. Dr. Charles W. Allen, Chaplain

Redeemer Lutheran Church
Jasper, IN
The Rev. Jennifer Owen

St. John Lutheran Church
Carroll, IA
Pastor David A. Bergstrom

St Paul Lutheran Church
Davenport, IA
Pastor Dan Kuckuck

St. Luke's Evangelical Lutheran Church
Derwood, MD
The Rev. Sarah Withers Lewis

Hope Lutheran Church
Farmington Hills, MI
Pastor Brad Gee

Shalom Lutheran Church
Alexandria, MN
The Rev. Rollen Halvorson

Our Savior's Lutheran Church
Bird Island, MN
The Rev. Cynthia M. Hopp

St. John Lutheran Church
Montgomery, MN
Pastor Bob Kaul

Augustana Lutheran Church
Omaha, NE
Charles Austerberry

Emanuel Lutheran Church
New Brunswick, NJ
Jeffrey C. Eaton, Pastor

Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd
Brooklyn, NY
The Rev. David Rommereim

Grace & St. Paul's Church
New York, NY
The Rev. Martin Hauser, Pastor

Lutheran Care Center
Poughkeepsie, NY
Pastor John Heller

Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd
Brevard, NC
The Rev. J. Edward Barrett

Lutheran Church of the Resurrection
Greensboro, NC
The Rev. Raymond A. Petrea

Good Shepard Lutheran Church
Dayton, OH
Pastor Glen Bengson

Hope Lutheran Church
Dayton, OH
Pastor John Johansen

St. Matthews Lutheran Church
Ithaca, OH
The Rev. Joene Herr, Pastor

First Immanuel Lutheran Church
Portland, OR
The Rev. Dr. Melinda J. Wagner

Christ's Evangelical Lutheran Church
Beaver Falls, PA
Pastor Kimberly A. Rapczak

Buffalo Valley Lutheran Village
Lewisburg, PA
The Rev. Theodore L. Cockley

St. Peter's Lutheran Church
Pen Argyl, PA
The Rev. C. Frank Terhune

Trinity Lutheran Church
Pottsville, PA
The Rev. Harold Hand

Bethany Lutheran Church
Reading, PA
Pastor Michael L. Reist

St. Mark Lutheran Church
Charlottesville, VA
The Rev. Sandy Wisco

Redeemer Lutheran Church
Fircrest, WA
The Rev. Dr. Gary Petersen

The Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd (ELCA)
Olympia, WA
The Rev. John P. Rosenberg, Lead Pastor

Advent Lutheran Church
Cedarburg, WI
The Rev. Dr. Janis Kinens

Our Savior Lutheran Church
Neenah, WI
The Rev. Catherine A. K. Mode

Cross Lutheran Church
Roberts, WI
The Rev. Dean Simpson

Trinity Lutheran Church
South Milwaukee, WI
Pastor Bill Mains

Bay Shore Lutheran Church
Whitefish Bay, WI
Pastor Norene Smith

Grace Lutheran Church
Wisconsin Rapids, WI
The Rev. Kent Raddatz

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The Nation's Largest ELCA Synod Votes in Support of Gay Marriage

2/18/2012

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The ELCA’s Minneapolis Area Synod assembly “went on record against changing the state Constitution to define marriage as between one man and one woman.
Their vote made them one of the largest faith groups yet to formally oppose the amendment that will go before voters Nov. 6, which would ban same-sex marriage in Minnesota.”

Lauren Morse-Wendt, an author of the ELCA resolution in support of gay marriage, said, “(T)his marriage amendment to define marriage between a man and a woman is a discriminatory amendment which would deliberately deny justice to a portion of the population of Minnesota.”

A Minneapolis Area Synod spokeswoman said she “hopes congregations will study the resolution and ‘consider how they will respond.’”

“The Minneapolis synod's resolution states that the amendment ‘would prevent one group of committed couples and their families from pursuing ordinary legislative or legal means to gain the support and protections afforded to all others.’” (see here)

The ELCA leadership is on an all-out offensive to legalize gay marriage. So much so that they have taken an aggressive position against defining marriage to be only between one man and one women.

The ELCA likes to say they are loving and welcoming, but the truth is that they are acting in hate for God and for their fellow man. God warns us to stay away from sin because He knows how destructive it is. The ELCA leadership’s position results in those with same sex attraction being bound in sin. How evil is that?

Only those who support the ELCA’s policies and theology should remain members. If you disagree with the ELCA it is time to get yourself, your family and your friends out. The ELCA has turned its back on the God of the Bible and is running full speed with the god of this world, the god who wants us to be bound in sin and separated from God.

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Another ELCA Bishop Calling for Gay Marriage

2/16/2012

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For the second time in the last two weeks an ELCA bishop is taking a public stand, advocating for homosexual marriage in his state. The Rev. E. Roy Riley Jr., bishop of the New Jersey Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America co-authored a column that was published by NJ.com, a New Jersey online newspaper.

In the column the ELCA bishop and two other faith leaders say, “(a)s representatives of faith traditions that struggled for decades with this issue, we know that attitudes about homosexuality do not change easily. Still, it pains us that so many opponents of marriage equality invoke a handful of scriptural texts — open to a variety of interpretations — to deny their fellow citizens equal treatment under civil law.”

The authors then list reasons why, they believe, the Biblical verses warning against homosexual relations should not be followed.

Then they state, “(t)hanks to the wisdom of the First Amendment, differing theological notions about the nature of marriage will continue to flourish across our diverse religious landscape. But a state has neither the right nor the competence to promote one of those theological understandings in opposition to others — particularly when doing so deprives some citizens of the rights enjoyed by others. . .It is our prayer that the state’s legislators will find the wisdom to act with . . . impartiality and justice.” (see here)

This is your ELCA leadership. Denying the clear reading and teaching of scripture (God’s word). Encouraging people to immerse themselves in sin. Trying to persuade state legislators and the public to support what they want, gay marriage.

(blog from 2-2-2012 reporting on ELCA Bishop, Chris Boerger, of the Northwest Washington Synod public statement in support of homosexual marriage)

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Exposing the ELCA Poll

2/16/2012

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Exposing the ELCA asked, “Should any ELCA leader, let alone a director in the Office of the Presiding Bishop, be showing images of Jesus as a female?”

The results of the poll:
9.25% said “Yes” (26 votes)
90.75% said “No“ (255 votes)
Total Votes: 281

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ELCA Model Church: Believe Whatever You Want

2/13/2012

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Alfred Hoerig is the pastor of Grace Lutheran Church, a new ELCA mission congregation in Texas.

In the ELCA magazine, The Lutheran, we read this from an interview Pastor Hoerig had with the magazine, “Grace could emerge as a model of the ELCA church of the future, with its diversity and openness to letting people make up their own minds about their beliefs, he added.”

“(L)etting people make up their own minds about their beliefs” sounds like something a Unitarian Universalist would say, and here we have this ELCA magazine publishing this disturbing statement, a statement many members of the denomination will read. Followers of Christ are not made by telling people to “believe anything they want to believe, it doesn’t matter to God.”

Elsewhere in the article Pastor Hoerig is quoted saying, "The [new] congregation is made up of people who've been ostracized or alienated from other congregations, and people who've been burned by overzealous Christians and judgmental people who've said unkind things or insisted that [Grace members] live a certain way in order to be members of the church." (The Lutheran no longer has the entire article available to read on the internet. Here is the beginning of the article.)

This is the typical line and sentiment from the pro-ELCA, edit-the-Bible-to-say-what-I-want-it-to-say crowd. They love to label those who believe homosexuality is a sin, based on Scriptural evidence, as not “welcoming” and “judgmental.” Their definition of "welcoming" is "endorsing the homosexual lifestyle." The truth is Christian churches welcome sinners, they do not (should not) endorse sin. Satan has deceived the ELCA leadership and supporters. True love helps people out of sin and certainly does not encourage them to fully engage it. That is what Satan wants. Sadly, many in the ELCA are working with the devil.

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ELCA Pastor’s Re-naming Rite for a Transgender Church Member

2/8/2012

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The ELCA leadership loves ELCA Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber. She is the face and voice of today’s ELCA. Bolz-Weber pastors a church whose website states it is “queer inclusive,” “social justice oriented” and “irreverent.” (see here) The ELCA leadership reveres this tattoo covered pastor (see here) so much she is constantly being brought in to speak at major ELCA gatherings, such as the "Sharing the Gospel in a 2.0 World" conference at ELCA headquarters (see here), ELCA seminaries (see here and here), ELCA synod conferences (see here), seven homosexual ELCA pastors Rite of Reception service (see here) and “Extravaganza” a ELCA conference of “500-750 adults who work with youth in congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.” (see here)

The youth of the ELCA will even get to hear Pastor Bolz-Weber because she is going to be the opening night speaker for the 2012 ELCA National Youth Gathering which will likely have 35,000 to 40,000 youth and adults attending. (see here and here)

And today we learn that Rev. Bolz-Weber presided over a re-naming liturgical rite for one of her transgender church members.

Here is how the rite went:

“(Prayers of the People)

Presider:

Holy One of Blessing, in baptism you bring us to new life in Jesus Christ and you name us Beloved. We give you thanks for the renewal of that life and love in Mary Christine Callahan, who now takes on a new name. Strengthen and uphold him as he grows in power, and authority, and meaning of this name: we pray in the Name above names, Jesus, your Son, whom with you and the Holy Spirit, the Triune God, we adore. Amen
(Lindsey) A reading from the letter of Paul to the Galatians.
There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all are one in Christ Jesus

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God
(Laying on of hands)

Let us pray:

We pray for your servant Asher, with thanks for the journey and awakening that have brought him to this moment, for his place amongst your people, and for his gifts and calling to serve you. O God, in renaming your servants Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Peter, and Paul, you gave them new lives and new tasks, new love and new hope.
We now hold before you our companion. Bless him with a new measure of grace as he takes this new name. Write him again in your heart and on your palm. And grant that we all be worthy to call ourselves Christians, for the sake of your Christ whose name is Love, and in whom, with you and the Spirit, we pray. Amen

The Giving of the name

Pr. Nadia: By what name shall you be known?

Kate: The name shall be Asher

Asher: My name is Asher

The community may respond by repeating

Your name shall be Asher

Pr. Nadia: Bear this name in the Name of Christ. Share it in the name of Mercy. Offer it in the name of Justice.

Christ is among us making peace right here right now. The peace of Christ be with you all. And also with you.” (see here)

On a side note, the said transgender member had this to say, “I’m currently pursuing candidacy towards ordained ministry in the ELCA.” (see here)

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ELCA News Briefs

2/6/2012

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Synod Assemblies are coming up, which means that now is the time to submit resolutions. Every year a host of liberal affirming resolutions are submitted and passed. Very few represent orthodox Lutherans, so we encourage you to start writing. If you have a resolution prepared, or when it is written, please send it to Exposing the ELCA and we will post them for others to use for submission to their synod gatherings. I have heard that a resolution has been submitted to the Northern Great Lakes Synod, ELCA called "Welcoming Traditional Lutherans." If anyone has a copy of it, we would be happy to post it on this website.

Pastor Eric Carlson wrote this about resolutions:

“One avenue of access for congregations, conferences, synod organizational units and voting members to address issues and propose a plan for action is the resolution. Resolutions help organize the work of the assembly by clarifying important issues or concerns. Resolutions are first reviewed by the reference and counsel committee, which will make recommendations to the assembly to facilitate its work, but the resolutions belong to the assembly and may be amended, rejected, or adopted after consideration by the voting members. Resolutions may be submitted until 45 days prior to the first day the assembly meets.” (see here)

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Rev. Julie Boleyn, on January 14, 2012 became “the first lesbian to be ordained in the Greater Metropolitan Chicago Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.”

Rev. Boleyn “spent about four years working for Planned Parenthood.” (see here)

Is that where we are now getting our pastors? Planned Parenthood?

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Reverend William E. Flippin, Jr., “a staunch supporter of Barack Obama and an ELCA pastor,” wrote a blog posted in The Huffington Post entitled “Would Martin Luther Vote for Barack Obama?” Rev. Flippin implies that Luther would. He says he believes “wholeheartedly that the political views of President Barack Obama would resonate with his (Martin Luther’s) vision of universal needs for all.” (see here)

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ELCA Bishop Pushes For Homosexual Marriage

2/2/2012

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Here is a statement made by ELCA Bishop, Chris Boerger, of the Northwest Washington Synod to the Washington state Senate Government Operations, Tribal Relations & Elections Committee:

"Mr. Chairman, I am Chris Boerger, the bishop of the Northwest Washington Synod of the Evangelical Church in America . . . In 2009, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted to commit itself to find ways to allow congregations who choose to do so, to support and hold publicly accountable lifelong monogamous same gender relationships . . .One of the people who had questions about our doing this said, "Bishop, isn't that marriage?" And my response is, "Well, in everything but name." The reality is, the Lutheran church has always held that it is the state that defines what marriage is; it's the church that then blesses people who enter into that relationship. We have now stated our desire to bless those who are publicly accountable in lifelong, monogamous, same-gender relationships. We can't call it marriage, you can . . . we ask for that freedom." (see here, beginning at the 1:12:20 mark)

I find it very interesting that this high level ELCA leader said that the ELCA sanctioned gay marriage in 2009. The ELCA leadership used to claim that they did not. They wouldn’t even admit they were “blessing” gay unions.

This isn’t the first appearance of Bishop Boerger on Exposing the ELCA. Here is a story we linked to in which he boldly stated, “It is ‘blatant sin’ for human beings to fail to protect creation.” (see here) The Bishop makes a highly questionable and subjective declaration like this, yet he encourages people to embrace a sinful lifestyle which is clearly in opposition to scripture. What a picture of the leadership of our dying denomination.

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ELCA Leadership: Marriage Equality and Civil Unions

ELCA Churches Celebrate Evolution Weekend

The Nation's Largest ELCA Synod Votes in Support of Gay Marriage

Another ELCA Bishop Calling for Gay Marriage

Exposing the ELCA Poll

ELCA Model Church: Believe Whatever You Want

ELCA Pastor’s Re-naming Rite for a Transgender Church Member

ELCA News Briefs

ELCA Bishop Pushes For Homosexual Marriage

Dan Skogen

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