Liberal Lutheran bishops stand with illegal immigrants, say nothing about upholding the law2/3/2026
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Below are bishops of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, a denomination which has aligned itself with the politics of the left, including being pro-choice on abortion and pro-LGBT. Now the ELCA is affirming illegal immigrants but say nothing about upholding our immigration laws or protecting people who have been harmed by criminals. Is it any wonder that this denomination has lost 42% of its membership since it was formed in 1988? When people go to church, they want to hear about Jesus, not liberal politics. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org
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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.) Pastor David Greenlund of Peace Lutheran Church in a Twin Cities suburb preached a Christmas sermon in which he said that the Gospels teach that Mary was raped (minute 3:07 and 10:20 below). Of course, the Bible teaches that Mary was a virgin and that the Holy Spirit conceived Jesus in her womb. But this pastor states that one option is that Mary was raped by a Roman centurion. Another option is that Mary was unfaithful. When a Lutheran pastor is ordained, even in the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America of which Pastor Greenland is a part, he promises to uphold the Scriptures and the Creeds. Both the Scriptures and the Creeds teach that “Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary“. Years ago, I was talking with one of the few conservative professors at the ELCA‘s Luther Seminary from which I graduated. I asked him “Do half of the professors at Luther still believe in the Virgin Birth of Christ?” He replied “Oh no, way less than half.” When a denomination no longer believes in the Bible and the Creeds of the Church, it is time to leave that denomination. Will the ELCA do anything to discipline Pastor Greenlund? I can pretty much guarantee you the answer is “No.” The ELCA bishop of Minneapolis is a practicing lesbian with a “wife“. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org https://youtu.be/l3KbXBUvOTA?si=ByXwWVXE0KXqsRu3 Amid Minnesota fraud scandal, Minneapolis Lutheran lesbian bishop defends Somalis and denounces ICE12/17/2025 (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) If anyone doubts that the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America promotes one-sided, liberal politics, take a look at the below statement from the lesbian bishop of Minneapolis. There is not a hint in her letter that there might be another side to this issue. She defends Somali immigrants and criticizes ICE, whose job it is to enforce immigration laws. The bishop doesn’t mention the huge scandal in Minnesota regarding multi-million dollar fraud and that most of the 53 people convicted thus far are Somali. It is clear the bishop wants everyone to protest ICE, as she writes “Many of you have already shown up at protests, as bystanders and observers at ICE actions, provided mutual aid and connected neighbors to services, or contacted your local and federal decision makers.”
The bishop claims that the “radical hospitality“ of the Christian gospel moves us to defend immigrants. But bishop, does that mean Minnesotans should be swindled out of millions of dollars? Of course, not all Somalis are Involved, but bishop, could you not at least address the fraud issue and not belittle those who want to enforce our laws by saying the White House is “cruelly disparaging and attacking these (Somali) neighbors who have contributed so much to our state”? Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org (See letter here) Minneapolis Lutheran pastors promote liberal politics, want to protect illegal immigrants12/12/2025
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Below you will see a video of many Minneapolis pastors of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America protesting enforcement of immigration laws. Only one political point of view is presented, even though the ELCA says it loves “diversity“. You won’t hear one conservative perspective from the numerous pastors.
Some of the pastors in the video are practicing homosexuals and some are proponents of very radical theology. If you ever wonder whether the ELCA is about one-sided liberal politics, take a look at the below. In one point the video is right, no human being is “garbage“. But we are all sinners in need of a savior, but that doesn’t come up in the video. The video is too busy promoting a certain viewpoint rather than bother with sharing the good news of Christ’s saving death and resurrection. Many liberal pastors no longer believe that Hell exists and they don’t believe people need to be saved. So instead of preaching the Gospel, they preach liberal politics. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org PS The new head ELCA bishop just came out with a statement on the 10th Anniversary of the Paris Climate Accords, talking about “climate crisis and grief” (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Below you will see a gay pride video produced by the bishop of the Rocky Mountain Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The bishop promotes the LGBTQAI+ agenda, and then she adds even more letters for sexualities that you’ve never heard of (start listening at minute 4:00 below). This synod also just promoted the Transgender Day of Remembrance to mourn transgender people who have been killed. I say again, of course, we are all against violence toward anyone, but has this synod ever had a special day to mourn the many more thousands of Christians killed in Nigeria? Almost certainly not, and why not? Because the cause celebre of woke bishops and pastors is not persecuted Christians, but the LGBT agenda. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock PS You will also see below a picture of the gay pride rainbow celebration of Saint Paul Lutheran Church in Denver. I got to thinking, neither Saint Paul nor Martin Luther after whom the church is named would have anything to do with Saint Paul Lutheran Church Tap below for bishop’s message: https://vimeo.com/1089589984?fl=plf  
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
The liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America prides itself for being “open and inclusive”, but here is an example where conservatives are shown the door.
Look at the below post from ELCA Bishop Bill Gohl of the Maryland-Delaware Synod. He is urging his churches to observe the “Transgender Day of Remembrance“, but if you disagree with this, he will delete and block your comments. Not very open and inclusive. I wonder if this bishop has asked his congregations to observe a day of remembrance for the thousands of Nigerian Christians who have been killed by Muslim extremists. Maybe he has done this, but I doubt it. The priority in the ELCA is all things LGBT. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) The Grand Canyon Synod of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America just released the below, praising God for the “faithfulness” of the ELCA’s first three head bishops. Let's talk about each. (See here)
Bishop Herbert Chilstrom was my bishop in Minneapolis before he became head bishop over the entire denomination when it formed in 1988. He was very nice, diplomatic, but liberal, man. He did not want anyone teaching in ELCA seminaries who believed in the inerrancy of scripture. So much for diversity. During his tenure or shortly thereafter, I sent 11,000 letters to all ELCA churches when I discovered the ELCA was paying for abortions for any reason with offering dollars in the denomination’s healthcare plan. Chilstrom was pro-choice on abortion. Next is Bishop H. George Anderson. During his tenure, it went all the way to the ELCA’s national convention to stop paying for abortions for any reason with offering dollars. That resolution failed two to one. It was then I came back to my church and suggested that we leave the ELCA. Next is Bishop Mark Hanson. During Hanson's liberal leadership, the ELCA voted to ordain practicing homosexuals, which started the largest church split in American history at that time (I think the recent split in the United Methodist Church over the same issue is even bigger). Hanson also referred to “God Godself” in order to stay away from referring to “God Himself.” Hanson has also defended “children who are transitioning” to the opposite sex. In a sermon Hanson stated that Jesus was mean and hurtful to the Syrophoenician woman. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has lost 42% of its membership since it was founded in 1988. These three head bishops are not reasons to rejoice, but reasons to mourn. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) St. Olaf College of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Northfield, Minnesota, was founded by Norwegian pastors in 1874 to teach young adults Christianity. But ELCA colleges have been hijacked by liberal theology and the LGBT movement.
For example, St. Olaf’s President Susan Rundell Singer has announced in St. Olaf Magazine that the beautiful Boe Chapel on campus, once dedicated to the glory of Christ, will now be used for “meditation and smudging”. Smudging is a pagan practice of Native American religion in which herbs are burned to produce smoke to connect with the spirit world and “balance energies”. Rundell Singer writes “We are expanding initiatives to support community and belonging on the Hill, including opening two new spaces in Boe Memorial Chapel focused on meditation and faith-related incense and smudging — a practice involving the burning of herbs like sage that has roots in various faith and cultural traditions, including many Indigenous cultures”. (see page 2 here) I looked through St. Olaf Magazine and did not find one mention of the words “God“ or “Jesus“. But I did find a picture of a lesbian wedding. Contrast Saint Olaf College with University of Northwestern in Saint Paul, Minnesota, an evangelical college. Northwestern states “We believe that we are under divine obligation to contend earnestly for the faith once delivered unto the saints by proclaiming to a lost world the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and the enthroning of Him as Lord and Master (Jude 3, Acts 16:30, Col. 3:1-3)…. our relationship to Jesus Christ and commitment to obey God’s Word will be at the very center. This promise to God and to each other is what binds us together and sets us apart from the world. We believe that it is our duty, honor and delight to live under the Lordship of Christ, to study His Holy Scriptures, to reach all nations with the gospel of salvation through faith in Christ and teach them how to be disciples”. The difference between St. Olaf and Northwestern is night and day. The ELCA’s Luther Seminary of which I am a graduate also held a Native American smudging service in its chapel. Luther Seminary is now selling off all of its buildings and moving elsewhere as attendance and donations have declined. St. Olaf was King of Norway in 1015. After his conversion to Christ in France, he returned to Norway with a mission to Christianize his kingdom. His influence led to the widespread conversion of the Vikings to Christianity. I am guessing that Saint Olaf would like to have his name removed from Saint Olaf College. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org PS You will notice that Jesus is nowhere mentioned in St. Olaf’s “Why I Study Religion” (see here)
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Here is another video from the lesbian New York bishop of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America promoting homosexuality. She claims God led her to speak to a young woman who is “queer”. The bishop assured the woman that God made her queer, even though her family has religious objections to homosexuality. The bishop says the woman’s family exhibits “the height of hypocrisy“. But the bishop, who has a “wife”, does not see the hypocrisy of calling herself a bishop of the Church and yet engaging in homosexual behavior.
This is the “right is wrong, and wrong is right” world of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock PS For the Bible’s teaching on homosexuality, see my article. “What does the Bible teach about homosexuality?“ at pastorsstudy.org.
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Lura Groen is a pastor of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In the past, she has stated that God “is so f___ing queer”. Regarding abortion, Groen said “God told me, my body, my f___ing choice.”
In the below video, Groen preaches the heresy of Universalism, the teaching that everyone is going to heaven, regardless of faith in Christ. Universalism denies what Jesus taught about the reality of Hell. The just retired head bishop of the ELCA also taught Universalism, saying “Hell may exist, but I believe it is empty.” In contrast, the Bible teaches that it is only through faith in Christ that a person can be saved (Acts 16:31, John 14:6, Acts 4:12). Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org PS Groen is a woman married to a biological woman who identifies as a man. At least this was the case five years ago—I’m uncertain if their “marriage” is still intact today—when Groen’s spouse sued a Catholic hospital because the hospital refused on moral grounds to remove her healthy uterus. In June of 2025 Groen’s “spouse” lost her case, but got the sex change operation elsewhere. This is the strange new world of the ELCA.
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Below is a sermon clip from a pastor of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Many pastors in liberal denominations no longer call God “He“ because that is supposedly sexist. Instead we get God as a “They“, which I believe is a nod to including transgenderism in the nature of God. A liberal Lutheran church near my house on its sign in front says “God is proud of all THEIR children”, “THEIR” is in rainbow letters. And beware of pastors and bishops who open their sermons not with “Brothers and sisters in Christ“ but with “Siblings in Christ“. “Brothers and sisters“ is too binary and excludes the transgendered and so we get “siblings”. But Jesus was very binary, teaching God only made two genders (see Matthew 19:4). What a day in which we live. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Decorah, Iowa, is having its annual LGBT pride parade today (October 11th) and Luther College wants its students to be a part. Luther College is a college of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Many years ago, Norwegian immigrants founded the Iowa college to teach their young adults Christianity. They would be grieved to see what Luther College has become and they would be grieved to see themselves mentioned in the gay pride banner below. As a Lutheran pastor, I can recommend ELCA-related colleges to no one.
June is LGBT pride month, but someone has said, “It is no longer gay pride month, it is gay pride year.” Indeed, the just retired head bishop of the ELCA produced a gay pride video in which she said “We celebrate you, our LGBTQAI+ siblings, this month (June) and all year long.” You will never hear a word from the ELCA about repentance from this sinful sexual behavior. Please check out my article. “What does the Bible say about homosexuality?“ at pastorsstudy.org. It is a point of view you never hear from an ELCA bishop or from an ELCA college. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock PS The ELCA’s healthcare plan, funded by offering dollars, pays for hormone blockers for minors and sex change operations (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Kevin Strickland is a bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He is a man “married” to a man and is one of 10 practicing homosexual ELCA bishops (the ELCA has 65 bishops). As you can see from his below Facebook page, he stands for abortion, transgenderism, homosexuality, and “science” (which I think means he believes in evolution). His letter to the Supreme Court urges them to keep gay marriage legal and Strickland informs them that the ELCA approves of homosexual behavior and regards gay unions as the equivalent of Christian marriage. The bishop states that the ELCA marries homosexual couples not in defiance of the Christian faith, but because of it. As a Christian who has personally struggled with same sex attraction most of my life, but who abstains from that behavior for the sake of Christ and my soul, I ask you to please say a prayer for Strickland and the other 9 ELCA gay bishops and their partners. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 says people who persist in impenitent sin will not inherit the Kingdom of God. If you are still an ELCA member, it is time to run from the ELCA. This is your leadership. In its healthcare plan, which is funded by ELCA offering dollars, the ELCA pays for sex hormone treatment for minors and also for sex change operations and abortion for any reason. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org PS You can see the story on my struggle at pastorsstudy.org. And if you need help in this area, go to restoredhopenetwork.org   See here.
ELCA pastor Paul Drees posted a video on social media (see below) where he says "I've been praying for Trump to die" and then pastor Drees tries to justify his position. Paul Drees is featured in this month's Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's Living Lutheran Magazine. (see here) In the Living Lutheran article the aforementioned video is addressed. 
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Transgender Pastor Asher O’Callaghan is assistant to the bishop in Wisconsin of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. This is a woman who identifies as a man. She, I can’t say “he”, is said to be especially able to help congregations in transition since she herself has gone through sex transition.
She says to transgender “siblings” in the below video: “You are gorgeous…God is proud of you…Your body belongs to nobody but you.” But the Bible says “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit…You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). But the ELCA does not honor the bodies that God has given us. The ELCA pays for sexually castrating children through hormone blockers in the ELCA‘s healthcare plan, which is paid for by offering dollars. ELCA offering dollars also pay for sex change operations. If the below video doesn’t convince a person to leave this erring denomination, I don’t know what would. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock |
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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