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(The following is a letter written by a married couple to their ELCA church council. I have made a few edits to remove names and places)
On January 8, 2021, ELCA Bishop Elizabeth Eaton was one of several religious leaders who signed a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, members of Congress and the Cabinet calling for the removal of President Donald Trump from office following the events of January 6 in the Capitol. This letter was written two days following the events at the Capitol while causes of the events of January 6 were in the early stages of investigation. The letter signed by Bishop Eaton stated, "In addition, we recognize the need to hold responsible not only those who invaded the Capitol, but also those who supported and/or promoted the President’s false claims about the election or made their own false accusations." We read this to state that the leader of the ELCA is now calling for repercussions for those with thoughts and beliefs that are not her own. Our world is currently so very divided, and one place we want to feel at peace, loved, appreciated is in our church home. When we read this letter from Bishop Eaton, we immediately felt that due to our political beliefs we were no longer welcome in the church we called home. We must admit that since the covid pandemic started, our involvement with (our church) has waned. Some of it was due to covid, but much of our lack of involvement was due to our research beginning in January 2021 on the beliefs of the ELCA and our realization that our beliefs differed greatly from ELCA leadership. Polls show that 75 to 80 percent of Republicans believe there was some fraud involved with the 2020 presidential elections. We fall within that group that questions whether fraud occurred in the election process in some states. While we accepted the results of the election, we do believe that there was some questionable election activity in multiple states that should be explored. We are not saying the fraud was absolute, but there was cause for investigation. According to the leader of the ELCA, we are outright wrong in our beliefs and there is no room for discussion. Considering that at least 50 percent of (our state) are registered Republicans, and according to polls 75 percent of Republicans believe there was some fraudulent activity in the 2020 election, that would equate to a rough estimate of 40 percent of the church membership of the ELCA in (our state) that needs to be held responsible for the events of January 6 at the Capitol according to Bishop Eaton. We disagree. This was the start of not feeling welcome by the ELCA, and the beginning of our research on what the ELCA currently stands for. We moved to (this city) in 2012 and joined (this ELCA church) because it was the church at which (my wife's) father was a member and that her paternal ancestors had belonged to, though (my wife) had been raised as a Catholic and (I) as an American Baptist. We knew that (this church) was a member of the ELCA, but we didn’t do our research as to what the ELCA believed. We just believed that all Lutherans were essentially the same. The January 8, 2021 letter signed by Bishop Eaton led us to do further research. Our research found a multitude of issues to which we disagree with ELCA leadership. Below we will highlight just a few of the issues with which we disagree.
These are just a few of the reasons we started questioning whether membership in an ELCA church was right for us. Then on November 19, 2021, Bishop Eaton released a pastoral message on the Rittenhouse acquittal stating, “When a child is allowed to become a vigilante without recourse, we are forced to confront the idols of our society: guns, violence and white supremacy.” She also stated, “Today’s acquittal is an injustice.”
Following much research, prayer and discussion, we have decided to withdraw our membership in the ELCA which means we need to withdraw our membership at (this church) and seek a local church that more closely fits our beliefs. We wanted you to know that our withdrawal of membership is not based on our local church family, but rather the work and beliefs of the leadership at the highest levels of the ELCA. We love and support our friends and neighbors who are members of the ELCA and will continue to support the work of (this church) at the local level through prayer.
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(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Years ago I graduated from Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. When I attended it was moderate to liberal, today is radical with transgender and lesbian speakers and prayers to God the “Mother.”
Now and then I drive through Luther’s parking lot to see the awful bumper stickers on students’ cars. Below is one. This person fits right in with the ELCA, which pays for abortion for any reason whatsoever in its healthcare plan, a plan funded by offering dollars. That’s right, your offering dollars at work in the ELCA, paying for abortion for pastors and their families. Way back in 1997 some of us tried at a church convention to put restrictions on abortion payments, but we failed. I left that convention hall and literally shook the dust off my feet, and later led my congregation out of the ELCA to join a more biblical branch of Lutheranism. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) I am on a Facebook page with present and former pastors and seminarians of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. I left that denomination years ago because it pays for abortion for any reason in its healthcare plan for pastors and their families, and the healthcare plan is paid for with offering dollars. I shared on the Facebook page that years ago I received a letter from an ELCA person, I believe a pastor’s wife, who was so glad the ELCA “was there” to pay for her 16-year-old daughter’s abortion. I said “Your offering dollars at work.” An ELCA pastor from Iowa responded: "Tom... who makes you judge and jury over this little girl?? From what I gather of Jesus he tells us to "Judge not, lest we be judged.” Just saying... Instead of reacting with condemnation over this 16 year old's abortion, why not react with compassion? Do you know what she was facing? Did you understand the circumstances of her life? Personally I am grateful for an insurance company who stays out of these kinds of decisions and fulfills their obligations, paying for the procedure. Its hard enough as it is. To compound that with the judgement of your insurance company would be even worse." My response to this pastor: It is tragic to me that a pastor thinks it is OK to destroy an unborn child with the offering dollars of the people of God. It is not “compassion” to affirm abortion, neither for the mother nor the child. If you are still in the ELCA, are you aware that your offering dollars can be used to pay for abortion, for any reason, in the ELCA healthcare plan? One more reason to take your money, time and talents and join a more Biblical denomination. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org Update: We pick up here with his next response to me: "Tom, what is tragic is how many people who claim to be pro-life really don't care about the woman at all. You obviously don't. Nor would I imagine you would help this young woman or any raise their children. Stop judging and assuming YOU or anyone else knows the circumstances of their decision." My response: "You claim many pro-life people (and I) don't care about the woman at all. But it isn't the pro-choice people who run crisis pregnancy centers and help women before and after childbirth to care for the newborn. It is more accurate to say that pro-choice people don't care about the woman and child. They prefer the "quick and easy" solution of killing the unborn baby. Using offering dollars to kill unborn children is about as low as the ELCA has stooped--with the possible exception of putting an 11-year-old boy who thinks he is a girl on stage to promote transgenderism to 31,000 teenagers at last summer's ELCA Youth Assembly." Please say a prayer for this ELCA Lutheran pastor, and for his congregation. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock  Nativity Lutheran Church in Reading, Pennsylvania hosts or rents space to the LGBT Center of Greater Reading. A recent article reports that the LGBT Center's new programming and services include: - "Partnership with Planned Parenthood to provide broadband access for Telehealth services." - "Free Professional Counseling for the LGBTQIA+ community." - "Support Group for Parents/Guardians of LGBTQIA+ Youth." Nativity Lutheran Church is a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). (See article here)  Rev. Harold L. Peterson is a retired ELCA pastor. For his birthday last year he was asking people to give money to Planned Parenthood. The retired Evangelical Lutheran Church in America pastor wrote, "I've chosen this nonprofit because their missions means a lot to me..." The ELCA is notorious for their support for abortion. (See here and here) The evil runs deep in the denomination and it isn't just coming from bishops and young pastors. See pastor Harold L. Peterson's post below or here. 
The Rev. Jes Kast is coming to Augustana University this month. Rev. Kast is an minister in the United Church of Christ and "serves on the Planned Parenthood Clergy Advocacy Board."
Rev. Kast has been asked to speak at the Augustana Chapel of Reconciliation as well as give a lecture titled, "Won't You Be My Neighbor? Friendship and Solidarity Across Religious Differences," which is sponsored by Augustana's Department of Religion, Philosophy and Classics, Augustana Campus Ministry and the Thomas Staley Foundation. (See here)
Augustana Campus Ministry shared the event on their Twitter page:
The following Tweets are from Rev. Jes Kast:
Rev. Jes Kast retweet the following:
"As most of you are well aware, many states have passed or are considering legislation to restrict access to legal abortion."
This letter from the ELCA was written in response to pro-life legislation, like the ones passed in Georgia and Louisiana, the Alabama Human Life Protection Act and the Missouri bill banning abortions at eight weeks of pregnancy (see here), among others. Presiding Bishop Eaton and the ELCA wrote the letter to show their opposition to these laws and legislation. Note the ELCA and its leader did NOT write a letter in opposition to the New York abortion law which passed in January 2019, allowing abortion up to birth. (See here). Nor did the ELCA write a letter about the Virginia legislation, that would loosen the laws on third trimester abortions. (See here) In the letter that was written ELCA Presiding Bishop reveals the truth about the denomination's stance on abortion: "Amid the legislative challenges to access to abortion, we must remember that this church supports ongoing access to legal abortion as well as access to abortion services and reproductive health care that is not restricted by economic factors." (See here) As you can read, the ELCA supports abortion. You should not be fooled when the ELCA claims otherwise, as the presiding bishop tried to do in her letter by saying, "this church seeks to travel a moderating path by supporting abortion as a last resort." Hear the presiding bishop's words again where she says, "this church supports ongoing access to legal abortion as well as access to abortion services..." Combine that with the fact that the ELCA pays for employee abortions and then notice how you never see the ELCA supporting pro-life causes. At the end of the Presiding Bishop's letter she implores the denomination: "I urge each of us to read, to study, to listen, to discern, and to discuss as church together. See the full statement here." There was no direction to pray for the Lord's guidance or look to God's Word. Every pro-life ELCA member should walk out of his or her ELCA church, never to return.
The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) When New York State passed a law affirming abortion up to the day of delivery, Bishop Elizabeth Eaton of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America said nothing, even though the ELCA's abortion statement speaks against late-term abortion. But now that some conservative states have passed restrictive abortion laws, Eaton has decided to speak (see letter below). She reminds us that "...we must remember that this church supports ongoing access to legal abortion as well as access to abortion services and reproductive health care that is not restricted by economic factors." The ELCA'a 1990 abortion statement is a confused document. On one page it sounds pro-life, the next page sounds pro-choice. In a nutshell, the ELCA statement opposes abortion except in the cases of "clear threat to the life of the woman", "extreme fetal abnormality" incompatible with life, and in cases of rape and incest. Beyond these cases "this church neither supports nor opposes" other abortion-restricting legislation. At the ELCA's 1997 assembly, some of us offered a resolution to restrict ELCA funding of abortion to the three cases stated above. The resolution was rejected 70% to 30%. The upshot is that the ELCA continues to pay for abortion for any reason (and no reason) in the church's health care plan for pastors which is funded by offering dollars. That's right, your offering dollars at work, killing unborn children for any reason in the ELCA. Eaton's statement of the ELCA's support for abortion access makes it tragically clear that some secular states are more Christian than the ELCA in their desire to defend unborn human life. If you are still in the ELCA, this is one more reason to take your money, time and talents and join a denomination which celebrates God's gift of life and which will not kill unborn children with your offering dollars. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Letter on abortion from Bishop Eaton (see here) 
Today at a chapel service of Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the closing benediction was given “..in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Mother of us all” (see minute 45:52 below). The problem with this is that Jesus never prayed to God as “Mother” but only as “Father.” So why this change in God language at Luther seminary? Because the ELCA is bowing the knee to feminism rather than to God’s Word. The ELCA hymn book has eliminated all masculine pronouns for God in the Psalms, and contains the hymn “Mothering God, you gave me birth…” The ELCA is so committed to feminism that it even pays for abortion for any reason in the church’s health care plan. And this healthcare plan is funded by offering dollars. That’s right, your ELCA offering dollars can be used to kill unborn children. Head bishop Elizabeth Eaton said nothing about New York State’s radical law to allow abortion up to the day of delivery, but she makes numerous comments in favor of liberal political causes. The ELCA has lost many members and much financial support since it voted to ordain practicing homosexuals in 2009. As the Bible says “You reap what you sow”. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock Portico Benefit Services says, "As an ELCA ministry, Portico offers health, flexible spending, retirement, disability, and survivor plans to help rostered leaders and lay employees strengthen their well-being." (See here) In a questionnaire, Portico asks ELCA employees "How do you describe yourself?" The first two choices are "Man" and "Woman." The next choice is "Transgender" and the forth choice is "Do not identify as man, woman or transgender." Seriously? What is going on with this denomination? See the screenshot below.  Since we are talking about Portico Benefit Services, if you haven't heard before, this ministry of the ELCA "will cover services including . . . hormone therapy, and sex reassignment surgery..."  What about abortion? In the following email sent by Portico Benefit Services they say "the ELCA health plan does cover a range of procedures that includes those for abortion, up to 20 weeks gestation." Portico also states they cover abortions that fall after 20 weeks of pregnancy, "when the life of the mother is threatened; or...when the fetus has lethal abnormalities indicating death is imminent."  (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) If you go to the website of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, you will find the ELCA frequently taking liberal positions on all kinds of social and political issues. Recently the ELCA quickly responded against a Supreme Court decision because it may keep transgendered people out of the military. Since then, the State of New York has passed a radical law allowing abortions up to the due date. And the governor of Virginia made a statement in favor of infanticide, saying that a newborn child with severe deformities may be allowed to die. What is the ELCA's response? Silence. Even though the ELCA's official abortion statement is against late-term abortion, ELCA leadership is silent. Why? My guess is that when they are passionate about a social cause, they speak, and when they are not passionate about even their own official position, they choose to remain silent. The ELCA abortion statement is a problem. In one paragraph it sounds pro-life and in another it sounds pro-choice. The tragedy is that for years now the ELCA abortion statement has been interpreted to allow the ELCA to pay for abortion for any reason in the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. The ELCA healthcare plan for pastors and their families is paid for with offering dollars. That's right, the ELCA pays for abortions with offering dollars. I remember years ago when I was still in the ELCA I received a letter, I think from a pastor's wife, who was so glad the ELCA "was there" to pay for her 16-year-old daughter's abortion. Years ago the congregation that I served and I left the ELCA over this and other issues. I pray that if you are still in the ELCA, you will take your money, time and talents, and join a denomination that does not destroy unborn children with offering dollars. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock 
Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) made a statement today that is very indicative of where the ELCA is now, how they have swallowed the lies of the world and departed from the Word of God. Presiding Bishop Eaton declared,
"No human institution decides who is human, who is visible, who is valued. Human sexuality and gender identity is a beautiful mystery. Trans people, like all people, are beloved by God." 
Here is Bishop Eaton's Twitter post -
Presiding Bishop Eaton's statement is one of support for transgender persons. It was apparently made in response to a recent statement made by President Trump "that his administration is 'seriously' considering changing the way it treats transgender people under the law, confirming what administration officials describe as a debate about whether to define a person’s sex as a biological fact determined at birth." (see here) There was at least one request for a statement by Bishop Eaton about this:
God does love all people. But that does not mean He loves everything we do, everything we say, everything we "are" or all of our actions. Bishop Eaton, by her statement, is affirming homosexuality, bisexuality, transgenderism and all the claimed gender identities as "beautiful," that they are good, that they are not sin. This is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Harming people by encouraging sin. Standing against our holy and loving God. Why would anyone be part of this denomination, this evil work of the devil that emerges in proclamations and statements such as this? Also, notice how the Presiding Bishop says "No human institution decides who is human, who is visible, who is valued." Yet, the ELCA supports the killing of unborn humans and actually pays for employee abortions in their health care insurance. Many who are pro-abortion love to claim that the unborn children are not humans to justify their position. You can't have it both ways, Bishop Eaton. Below you will find tweets of praise which Bishop Eaton received for making this statement. (Her statement has been shared on Facebook almost 2700 times and over 400 times on Twitter.)
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) ELCA former bishop to teens: “I’m pissed off” about school shootings, “I grieve” unclean water, “I am furious” about separation of children at the border, but says nothing about separation of children in the womb Former bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Reverend Stephen Bouman, told 31,000 Lutheran teenagers at the ELCA’s youth assembly last week that he is angry about school shootings, the unclean environment, blaming Muslims, and separating children at the border. But in his speech he said nothing about the tragedy of separating children in the womb. Why? The ELCA is so radically pro-choice that it pays for abortion for any reason in the ELCA healthcare plan, which is funded by offering dollars. That’s right, your ELCA offering dollars at work, killing unborn children. I believe people who are pro-choice should sit out the discussion about separating children from their mothers. If you have any doubt that the ELCA wants its teenagers to be liberal democrats, endorse things like “Black Lives Matter”, etc., watch the below video. The ELCA claims to be a “big tent” which welcomes everyone, including conservatives. No sign of that in this message. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock ELCA Pastor/A Former Leader In Lutheran CORE Shares Her Support of Abortion and Gay Marriage6/4/2018  A few weeks ago, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s NPR news station posted an article entitled, “The Politics And Ethics Of Pennsylvania's Proposed Down Syndrome Abortion Ban.” The article’s reporters spoke to several people about the abortion ban. One of those interviewed was Evangelical Lutheran Church in America pastor Natalie (Gessert) Hall: “Hall said she doesn’t know if she would be capable of raising a child with Down syndrome, which she said is why she might have considered terminating such a pregnancy. ‘I’m not convinced that I would have the care and support I would need to embark on caring for a child with Down syndrome,’ she said. ‘Or a child with any other significant developmental or physical difficulties.’ ...Hall said she’s counseled women who have struggled over whether to have abortions. Ultimately, she said it’s a personal choice that’s made more difficult by a society that’s not very accepting or supportive of people with disabilities.” (see here) And thus we have another public statement by an ELCA clergy person who is supportive of a woman aborting the baby who is growing and developing in her womb. This is a common position for ELCA leadership and is reason alone for pro-life people to leave the denomination. But there is more to this blog than Pastor Hall's public statement about abortion. See, I am familiar with her. She “follows” me on Facebook. Rev. Natalie Hall, formally Natalie Gessert, was a part of Lutheran CORE for a time (I am assuming that is no longer the case). In fact, she held a leadership position with Lutheran CORE. Lutheran CORE is a "Network for confessing Lutherans...(and an) advocate for Biblical authority and confessional fidelity among churches of the Lutheran community..." (see here)  A Lutheran CORE publication said: “Pr. Chavez recognized and thanked the Lutheran CORE staff, all but two of whom are part-time…Facebook Moderator Natalie Gessert." (Page 2 of http://www.lutherancore.org/archive/pdf/Connection-Aug-Sep-11.pdf) She was also involved in this project: “The 2010 Sola/ReClaim Edition* is a faithful word-for-word translation from Luther’s German Catechism.” “By the cooperative effort of Sola Publishing and ReClaim Resources this edition of the Small Catechism was produced in 2010 translators/authors representing Lutheran Core, WordAlone, LCMC, and NALC. The primary translator of the 2010 edition is Rev. Scott Grorud, with Rev. Thomas Jacobson, Rev. Natalie Gessert, and Dr. Gracia Grindal as translational consultants.” (see here)  So what happened to Pastor Natalie (Gessert) Hall? Why is this former leader in Lutheran CORE speaking out for abortion rights. Why is she posting on Facebook her support for homosexual marriage and rights? (see screenshots from her page posted on this blog). I do not know the answer, but I do know it is dangerous to place yourself in toxic cultures and environments. That is what you are doing by staying in the ELCA. It is dangerous and can bring about the compromising of your faith and Scripture. Sometimes when you are around someone long enough you succumb to their beliefs. This is one reason I encourage people to leave the ELCA, pastors and members alike. Below are additional interesting Facebook posts by Rev. Hall.    A recent article titled, “Can I Get An Abortion If I'm Religious?” features a number of religious figures in the United States who share their thoughts with the author, and two are pastors in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).  ELCA Pastor Paul Eldred, who is "married" to a man, answered, "In my reading, the Gospel of Luke tells us that Mary consented to becoming the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:38)…If God Gave Mary that option, why wouldn't we think that all women should have the choice to become a mother or not?" Following that mind-blowingly ludicrous response  from the ELCA pastor, the author of the article continued, “For Eldred, the creation story in Genesis 1 reveals another biblical argument for access to comprehensive reproductive health care, abortion included. ‘We are told that God created humanity in God's own image,’ he says. ‘We believe this makes every human body holy and that every body bears divine image — this certainly includes the full expression of women's bodies, including trans, non-binary, etc. No one should be able to make choices about someone else's holy and divine body without their consent. God wants our bodies to be healthy, and that means that our choices on healthcare should be our own and are between us, our doctor, and our God.’" Does everyone see the absurdity of that statement? What about the unborn baby’s body, Rev. Eldred? It is okay to destroy their “holy” body? I thought you said “No one should be able to make choices about someone else's holy and divine body…”  The second ELCA leader interviewed was Pastor Anna Ernst from Elmhurst, Illinois. She is quoted saying, "I am concerned for the rights of all women. We cannot go back to clothes hangers and knitting needles. That is not life-giving, and I believe that is not what God wants," (see article here). God does not want babies to be killed. This article gives us an example of the depravity of ELCA leadership and how far the denomination has gone since its founding. To learn more about the ELCA and its leadership's position on abortion see here and here (scroll down). |
Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Dan Skogen
Former ELCA seminary student and former ELCA member who is fed up with the ELCA's consistent mockery of God's Word. If you have been helped and blessed by Exposing the ELCA's ministry, please help us continue to proclaim the truth of God's Word to ELCA members who need to hear it.
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