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(The following article was written 4 years ago by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Reverend Jules Erickson spoke recently at Luther Seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. She is senior pastor at All Saints Lutheran Church in Cottage Grove, Minnesota, whose website states "Pastor Jules and her beloved, Beth, live in Hastings with two bouncing Goldendoodle dogs." The ELCA began ordaining practicing homosexuals in 2009 and has been shrinking in numbers ever since. In the below sermon (minute 18:35) Pastor Erickson has the congregation say "Hell, yes" more than once. What is wrong with this? Eternal Hell is a real place and we should not trivialize the word by using it as profanity. But, sadly, many liberal ELCA pastors and seminary professors no longer believe in Hell. Universalism, the teaching that all people will be saved regardless of faith in Christ, is so prevalent that even head ELCA bishop Elizabeth Eaton told a Chicago newspaper that, if Hell exists, "I think it is empty." One of the things Reverend Erickson thinks we should say "Hell yes" to is the waning numbers going on in churches "if that means our Empire building days are over, maybe that's a good thing." I agree that the shrinking numbers of the ELCA, the United Church of Christ, the Episcopal Church in America, and the Presbyterian Church USA are a good thing. People are getting fed up with the unbiblical heresy they are hearing in these denominations and are heading for more faithful churches. In prior posts I have written of prayers to God the "Mother" being offered at Luther Seminary chapel. At the end of this service below (minute 23:33), you will hear yet another instance of this as the congregation prays a new version of the Lord's Prayer to the "Father and Mother of us all.” Earlier this year Bishop Elizabeth Eaton asked this about the ELCA's declining numbers: "What is to be done? Our congregations are growing older and smaller. At least 40 percent of our congregations have an average weekly worship attendance of 50 or less. ELCA membership decreases by 70,000 people a year...There is a dearth of people in their 20s and 30s in our pews. How do we change this?" I have an answer: Get back to the Bible, believe in Heaven and Hell and that Jesus is the only Savior (John 14:6, Acts 4:12), stop paying for abortion with offering dollars in the ELCA's healthcare plan, and stop the promotion of homosexuality and transgenderism in ELCA publications. I see no sign of any of that happening, and so I believe the ELCA will continue to shrink, and it should. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock 
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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.)
Now she proclaims on a sign that the Virgin Mary is evidence that we should be pro-choice and she calls her opponents "mother-f....ers". This isn't just some rogue pastor who to my knowledge has never been disciplined by the ELCA for her blasphemy. The head bishop of the ELCA herself, Elizabeth Eaton, went to the White House recently and stood up for abortion rights, desiring to uphold Roe v. Wade. I want to believe that most ELCA Lutherans would not be comfortable paying the travel expenses of Elizabeth Eaton so she could promote abortion rights at the White House. And I have to say it again: it is far past time to leave this on unbiblical denomination and join a good, biblical church which upholds Christian values. In Jesus our Savior, who is the Lord of life, 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.)
Augsburg University in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Augsburg University has become radically liberal, evidenced by its recent chapel series entitled “Series on Female-Identifying Leaders Who Participate in Proclamation”. Notice, the series is not about “women preachers” but “female-identifying preachers” in order, I believe, to include non-binary, transgender preachers. But it gets worse. The Lutheran pastor preaches to the students that Jesus “screwed up” in His dealings with the Syrophoenician woman (Mark 7:24-30) and that she had to redeem Him (see minute 15:30 below). That’s right, Jesus gets redeemed by the Syrophoenician woman. The preacher also uses the F word in her sermon. A few years ago I did a post on this same preacher who went on (and on and on) in a bizarre sermon telling her congregational members to call a transgender woman “they” This is the bizarre, new, "enlightened" world of many colleges and congregations of the ELCA. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock 
ELCA pastor Lura N. Groen has been highlighted on Exposing the ELCA many times. She is one of the most radical and heretical ELCA pastors I have come across. (See here and below for a number of things she has been saying. Some of it is blasphemous and vile.)
With that said, Pastor Lura N. Groen has been endorsed and placed into postions of influence and leadership by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Below are some writings and social media content from Rev. Groen. Sorry for the shocking and odious content. How can the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America leadership allow someone, who speaks and believes as this pastor does, to rise in their leadership ranks? How can they allow Rev. Groen and many ELCA pastors like her, to mock the One True God? The ELCA is culpable and responsible for this. They allow it and give it a platform in their midst. The true God of Scripture is not the God the ELCA serves. The Holy Spirit does not dwell in it. 
Continuing from Rev. Lura N. Groen's article posted above "I Hope You Have Only Good Sex" (see the complete article here), she writes, "This is, for me, an open expression of a deeply faith based sexual ethic. My Christian way of saying the same thing is to hope that each of you has sex in way, and only in a way, that is set free to love God, self, and neighbor. And that every time you have sex you respect the image of God in yourself and in your partner(s). That you treat yourself and every other body involved as holy, a temple, beloved by God, created beautifully, fearsomely and awesomely made."
Some of Rev. Groen's comments get even worse:
In the next post Rev. Lura Groen shared an article titled "What Promiscuity Taught Me About God's Love." The article was from QueerTheology.com.
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You can also see the above post here.
The second post is a tweeted video of ELCA pastor Jason Chesnut giving the middle figure (x2) to you. This is a pastor ordained by the ELCA who is paid by offering dollars, money intended for God and His Work.
And for good measure.
The 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering takes place this week, beginning Wednesday, June 27.
The ELCA has assembled the most appalling speakers to preach to more than 30,000 teenagers. Over the last three months Exposing the ELCA has warned you of the disturbing, foul-mouthed and extreme speakers and organizations who will be promoting their thoughts and ideologies into the hearts and minds of all those listening. One, ELCA Rev. Tuhina Verma Rasche, is a keynote speaker who co-authored the (please excuse me) "Fuck This Shit" devotional. (read here). Another is ELCA Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber, who I have written about extensively because of her horrific theology, unabashed cursing, and anti-Biblical social beliefs. (See here) Next, presenting at the gathering is a transgender boy with his trans-activist mother. (See here) And finally, several highly troubling organizations will be hosting and leading something the Gathering calls "Interactive Learning." (See here) I just learned this weekend that in addition to being keynote speakers, Rev. Tuhina Verma Rasche and Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber will be teaching the teenagers in "Live Bible Studies." The ELCA website describes the Bible studies this way:
"Part of our Community Life programming for the 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering are daily bible studies featuring some of our guest speakers on our main stage!" (see here) Below I have compiled additional information about some of the ELCA leaders who are placed in a position of authority and influence over the ELCA teenagers at the Youth Gathering.
Keynote speaker Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber is a "Christo-centric universalist," does not view homosexual sex as sin, has a drag queen perform at church functions, presided over a transgender renaming ceremony, views the Wiccan goddess as an aspect of God, views some of Scripture as just the writer's opinion, has called some of Scripture "wretched," doesn't believe every line of the Apostles' Creed and doesn't believe in substitutionary atonement. (See here) Below are some tweets by Rev. Bolz-Weber. You can also see many of the disturbing thoughts and actions of this leader, and her vile language, by viewing some more of her social media postings here.
Nadia is pictured below with a transgender ELCA pastor.
Some additional reseach, since my first blog about ELCA Pastor Tuhina Verma Rasche, (see here) has uncovered more disturbing information. Here is a quote from her "devotional" - “I’m angry because in the midst of conversations about justice, they are just that: conversations. Actual justice, the world turned upside down, has yet to appear in the fullness of her glory. And God damn it, I want to live into the fullness of who God created me to be, which is a threat to misogynist white supremacists…My anger and desire to see justice lived in the world hasn’t dissipated from last year’s #FuckThisShit devotional.” (See here)
Shame on the ELCA leadership for picking such vile speaking, theological troubling and extreme liberal spewing people to influence the unsuspecting youth. Jessica Davis is an ELCA leader. She is a chaplain for the #decolonizeLutheranism group, an organization formed of mostly ELCA leaders, and a signer of the "Naked & Unashamed Statement" which was also written by ELCA leaders. Jessica Davis was also part of a discussion panel that included the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. (see here) If there is any doubt that the devil is alive and well in the ELCA, read the following from a blog written by Jessica Davis: “All it did was remind me that the spirit of G-d is a slut. She gives exactly no shits about respectability, about who she’s supposed to be with, about the right time and place and manner in which to make an appearance. She comes and crashes the party, when and how she wills, in whatever body she chooses, and most of the time, she helps you come too. And it is from all her heavenly thotery that revolution is born. She opens her legs and invites us in, there to dwell in the house of the Lord. And today, it is enough.” (see here) That is vile, blasphemous and demonic. Jessica Davis is an example of the type of leadership that is enveloping the ELCA and embraced by them. It is truly disturbing. Below we see the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America disseminating a video of Jessica Davis on the ELCA-administrated "ELCA Reformation 500" Facebook page.  (My apologies for the vulgar quotes, references, that I have to report this and that the ELCA allows this kind of thing from their leaders.)
The following article is so startling that I need to share it with you, to write about it here and not just post the article itself on the homepage. The article is about a woman who is “getting ordained with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.” The article is in ELLE magazine and is titled, “How The ‘Pussy Pastor’ Is Bringing Sex and Christianity Together.” You can read the whole article here. Some “noteworthy” parts of the article include: - "'Jesus had a penis. And wet dreams.’ This was the philosophy that inspired Heidi Johnson to found the Pussy Club, a sex-positive group at Duke Divinity School where Christian female students would discuss, among other things, masturbation as a spiritual practice, in 2014. They also gathered to buy sex toys to explore this newfound sexuality. And so, Johnson earned herself the nickname the ‘Pussy Pastor.’" - Heidi Johnson described “the Pussy Club gatherings…as ‘loud, drunken, emotional mess[es] with tons of laughs, stories shared, and tears shed for the ways the religious community abuses and suppresses women's sexuality by labeling it as evil and sinful and temptation.’" - This September she will begin as an intern pastor in Oregon. - She discusses her “masturbation routine” a couple of places in the article. - She talks about “hooking up with classmates and enjoying her sexuality…” - The article speaks of a fellow student of Heidi’s saying, “After leaving his church because he thought it was incompatible with his queerness, Heidi taught him "’a faith that uses the word of God to help with identity exploration, as opposed to identity suppression.’" - Heidi Johnson “continues to host Pussy Club meetups and online discussions…” If you are thinking “this is just one anomaly” in the church, you have not been paying attention to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. See the following blog about similar thinking persons, leaders and pastors in the ELCA here. Also consider how the ELCA continues to push the boundaries, God set, in regard to sex by marrying those in same-sex relationships, ordaining pastors in same-sex relationships, pushing LGBT ideology, supporting LGBT causes/lifestyle in their publications and social media, paying for sex-change operations and hormone therapy in the ELCA health insurance, as well as ordaining transgender individuals. The ELCA is obsessed with sex, pushing sinful sexual practices and trying to influence the minds of its members to view it all as “good.”
Alex Raabe is a vocal and brash homosexual pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He is ultra liberal and uses filthy language with no shame. Please be warned of the vulgarity reported here:
- Pastor Raabe, who recently changed his name on Facebook to Alex Darling-Raabe after "marrying" his "husband," wrote, in what seems to be a supportive post, about a movement called "Cocks and Glocks." 
I can not imagine Jesus posting on such a topic. It is not acceptable for a supposed minister of God's word to do so.
Check out this statement Rev. Darling-Raabe writes on Facebook about police. 
So the lives of police do not matter, Rev. Darling-Raabe? How can this person have any members in his congregation after saying "racist pig police." The following Facebook post shows Rev. Darling-Raabe sharing someone else's post comparing what is happening politically in the U.S. with Germany and then Darling-Raabe comments right afterward, which seems to be referencing people being rounded up and sent to concentration camps.
Later in this thread you can find Pastor Raabe comment "...that the GOP and the GOP nominee are actually exhibiting the same characteristics of 1930's German leadership...." (see here)
ELCA pastor Raabe liked this picture so much he made it his cover photo on Facebook. 
Here Pastor Darling-Raabe posts about hanging out at a gay bar, dancing and swearing with his church. 
According to the next post by Alex Darling-Raabe, if one doesn't like the new president of the United States, "fantasizing about burning (Sh!@) down" is on the list of things that are okay to do. 
The church Pastor Raabe leads also likes to use foul language on its Facebook page. Here are two examples, one and two.
Augsburg Fortress lists Pastor Raabe as one of their writers in the 2017 publication of Sundays and Seasons. (see here, page 7)
Pastor Alex Raabe is an example of the ever-increasing type of pastor the ELCA is graduating from their seminaries and/or placing in congregations. They put the ELCA stamp of approval on them. All churches remaining in the ELCA should be very wary of what kind of pastor they will next be sent. 
Many leaders in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are showing their true colors. For years I've been documenting the anger and dislike they have for conservative, Bible-believing people, including ELCA members. Taking it to a whole new degree, the election of Donald Trump has them unhinged. They are exploding in vile, demonic-like hate. Be aware that there is vulgarity below. Here is some of what I am seeing.
- Lenny Duncan, who is a Vicar at an ELCA Church and Candidate for Ordination to the office of Word and Sacrament in the ELCA, recently wrote a blog that included this picture on the right. In Mr. Duncan's blog he writes, "More than half of America has spoken, and it was what I have come to expect. They have sided with hatred." "If you are a leader in the church, or in a movement of liberation, our fight has just begun. If you are complicit in this travesty, may God have mercy on your soul." (see here) ELCA pastor Rev. Kwame L Pitts wrote this: 
ELCA Rev. John P Willmann posted: 
ELCA Pastor Joelle Colville-Hanson, who is the Director for Evangelical Mission at the Northeastern Iowa Synod, has been very angry and vocal about the election. See her comment below and you can see more from her at her twitter account here. 
ELCA pastor Alex Darling-Raabe had this to say to someone on FB who said they voted for Mr. Trump: 
In a different thread on an ELCA Clergy page Alex Darling-Raabe writes: 
Francisco Herrera, a Ph. D student at the ELCA's LSTC and their "Diversity Blog Manager" posts this hate-filled diatribe: 
Then there is this from ELCA pastor Robert Franek, who if you see what he is tweeting is is a liberal fanatic (over 160 tweets and retweets in a 24 hour period this week):
Next is a comment by Sherianne Molzahn Caldwell. See her bio on the Northwest Washington Synod website here, (page 3): 
Ian McConnell, a candidate for ordination in the ELCA says:
The most popular pastor in the ELCA says:
Listen to what they are saying...many of the comments rail on people who voted for Donald Trump. I doubt they would be doing the same if Hillary Clinton or socialist Bernie Sanders won the election. Even if you do not like Donald Trump, the behavior of these ELCA leaders is ugly, evil and disgusting. They are poor representatives of Jesus Christ. A Radical Meeting and Profanity at a Gathering at the ELCA's Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago10/27/2016 (Below is an article written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. At the end of Pastor Brock's article I have posted some additional comments and information. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) The group "Decolonize Lutheranism" met recently at LSTC to combat racism (good) and to promote the acceptance of homosexuality and transgenderism (bad). They had transgender bathrooms and some very liberal speakers. Joelle Colville-Hanson is the Director for Evangelical Mission of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. She tweeted this: "Luther walked into this church and said f**k this! This shit is not right." Using profanity is now in vogue by some of the pastors and leaders of the ELCA, with popular ELCA Pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber using it in her speeches and books. I am part of a clergy Facebook page and the profanity used by some ELCA pastors is disturbing. I believe the Apostle Paul would remind us (Ephesians 4:29): "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear". In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org -- Dan Skogen writing: My apologies for the language we have posted from these ELCA leaders. But it is necessary to share with you the extent of their depravity and the rebelliousness of their hearts. Joelle Colville-Hanson, whom was mentioned in the article above, wrote this about herself, "People who know me know that in private I curse like a sailor.” (see here) Obviously Joelle doesn't just save her cursing for private conversations because in the same blog she uses the words "shit" and "bitch." And in a different blog Joelle wrote,"I used to have a sweatshirt that said: I'm not a Bitch. I'm THE Bitch. And that's MS. Bitch to YOU!" (see here) And here is a screenshot from one of the leaders of #decolonizeLutheranism, Francisco Herrera:  Also, did you know that Thrivent Financial helped to fund the #decolonizeLutheranism conference?  (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and twitter - here.)
I had complained about three weeks ago to Gustavus' President about the upcoming event and the obscene language in Lea DeLaria's comedy routine (you can google it on Youtube, it is vile). I especially complained that it would take place in the large Christ Chapel. Today, the day after the event, the President wrote me saying it is customary for secular events to be held in Christ Chapel. One of the sponsors of the event was Gustavus' chaplain's office. After the event, the comedian tweeted this: Thank you Gustavus Adolphus College for the fab time. I f___ing Heavy black heart️ speaking to Universities. One student tweeted her: "You are f___ing awesome!!! My favorite line of the night 'it would be great to do acid in here'". "In here" is a reference to Christ Chapel. Below is the email I just sent to Gustavus Adolphus' President. Would they allow someone to speak at Gustavus who holds a traditional, Biblical view on homosexuality? You will read below that a Christian band tried to do that a few years and Gustavus shut down the concert and apologized for the "hate speech." Please pray for Gustavus. I highly recommend you don't send your children there. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.com Thank you, President Bergman, for your reply. It still grieves me that a college of the Church would allow this kind of profanity to begin with, but to put it in Christ Chapel is especially grievous. I am a person who has struggled with same-sex attraction most of my life, but for the sake of Christ and my eternal soul (1 Corinthians 6:9-11) I abstain from this behavior. I wonder if Gustavus would allow someone with my point of you to be given such a large audience. I was told that by a Gustavus student that some years ago a Christian rock band member at a concert on the Gustavus mall shared how Jesus saved him from homosexual behavior and the concert was stopped by the college and the college apologized for the "hate speech". I can't help but wonder if Gustavus would even allow a diverse viewpoint on this issue. Again, thanks for responding, it is not what I would've hoped for but I appreciate your time. In Jesus the Savior, Pastor Tom Brock PS. If you want to read my story on this issue, you can go to Pastorsstudy.org.
You can tell a lot about a person by what they say on social media. That is also true of pastors. Let's look at what a number of ELCA pastors are saying. (sorry about the language)
Rev. Scott A. Johnson is an ELCA pastor at St. Petri Lutheran in Story City, IA. Check out this screen shot of his twitter page. Notice the unbecoming words on the Chevy Chase picture that this ELCA pastor chose to post.
The language used on his picture is not funny and the people of St. Petri in Story City, Iowa should be embarrassed and disgusted that their pastor posted such a thing. He should be disciplined. Jesus said "Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Matthew 15:10b,11
--- Fritz Wendt is an ELCA pastor living in New York City. He gets political sometimes on Facebook, one time calling republicans "repugnicans." (see here) And Pastor Wendt apparently liked the following enough to share with all his Facebook friends - Posted by Fritz Wendt on Sunday, January 3, 2016
---
Next is Eric Clapp. He is an ELCA pastor in Clinton & Camanche, Iowa. On his blog he is pictured holding a sign that says "I'm a Pastor's husband and I'm a Jesus Feminist". (see here) Eric is not a stranger to Exposing the ELCA. We blogged about him previously pointing out the filth that proudly spills from his mouth. (See here) --- ELCA Rev. Jealaine Marple at Elvira Zion Lutheran Church in Clinton, Iowa describes herself on twitter this way: “Wife. Mom. ELCA Pastor. Church nerd. Bearcat (NWMSU). Feminist. Liberal. Tattooed. Foul mouthed. All tweets my own. Grace abounds! Pronouns: She/her” (see here) --- Candice K. Wassell is an ELCA pastor at Faith Lutheran Church in O Fallon, Illinois. She likes to share her social and political opinions on twitter. Here are a couple of them:
Rev. Dr. Kevin S. Kanouse, bishop of the ELCA's Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana Mission Area, spoke to the youth of his synod while in Detroit for the ELCA's National Youth Gathering and told them he is gay.
ELCA transgender pastor Megan Rohrer tweeted this -
Two gay news websites also reported this A few days later, Bishop Kanouse wrote a letter to his synod explaining what happened. (read here) There are a number of things to be said about this letter: 1) The bishop spoke to 400 youth and adults announcing he was gay, something that was previously unknown. This is what you subject your children to when you remain in a denomination that has denied God's Word regarding homosexuality. 2) The bishop spoke of his homosexuality saying that is how God made him. He wrote, "Being gay is not a sin. My sin was a lifetime of denying that the God who created me, also accepts me and loves me. It was faithlessness." If the bishop means "same-sex attraction" is not a sin, but rather a temptation, when he writes, "(b)eing gay is not a sin," then I agree. But if he means acting on that attraction in thought and deed, then he is 100% wrong. How do you think the youth understood this message from the bishop? 3) The bishop painted a dark picture of the Biblical view of marriage and homosexuality if his letter is any indication. He writes, "the arguments defending those few scriptures condemning gay, lesbian, and bi-sexual persons sounded more and more hollow. It did not sound like the truth of the Gospel I have been preaching." 4) Bishop Kanouse says he and his wife of 40 years, "are both committed to our marriage." I commend him for this decision and pray that they remain committed to their marriage in every way. Then strangely enough Bishop Kanouse wrote this about the same event on his facebook page - 
Click the day and date link below to view the post yourself -
Does God speak like that? Who is really speaking to this man? I would be very upset if I had sent my children to the youth gathering and they were indoctrinated toward believing same-sex attraction is from God and that it is good. This man needs us to pray for him, as do all who listened to his non-God-glorifying message. God tells us, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29). He also tells us, “It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person” (Matthew 15:11). With that in mind, listen to the disturbing and defiling things ELCA leaders are saying. Note: I have edited the foul language with asterisks (*). The ELCA leaders did not edit their words. “Job took his precious handful of seeds to God and God – there’s no delicate way to say this – God s**ts on him,” spoken by Rev. Wil Gafney during her sermon given at The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia's chapel service (ELCA) where she teaches. The seminary website and Rev. Gafney's website later posted the sermon. (see here and here) Rev. Gafney's sermon also included this crude remark in reference to Job, “Then when he loses every thing he has including the skin he is in, it is because God gambles with his life and the lives of his children, consigning them to death to prove a point and win a bet with a character who is a satan but not the devil, (yet). And Job has the – I have to say it because the text calls for it – Job has the balls to sue God over what he knows was an injustice done to him . . . ” ELCA Pastor Ericc Clapp, serving Immanuel Lutheran Church in Camanche, Iowa writes in his blog - “If you are constantly negative or acting like an a*s, you will be banned.” (see here) And, “We need to call bulls**t...” (see here) And, “I won’t lie, the only words that ran through my head when I put this book down after finishing it were, 'Holy s**t.'” (see here) ELCA New England Synod bishop Jim Hazelwood recommended in his blog that people should “Form a WTHIGOAU group. This stands for What the H*ll is Going On Around Us.”(see here) The queen of foul language, the popular ELCA pastor, Rev. Nadia Bolz-Weber, has so many examples to choose from, here are just a few - Breaking the second commandment, Bolz-Weber says, “Oh my god, are you people whiny.” (see here) Here are some snippets from Rev. Bolz-Weber's new book. “'S**t,' I thought to myself,” and “It's a f**king fairy tale,” and “What the h*ll am I'm doing?” and “Jesus gathered with some real f**k-ups, held up bread and said take and eat . . .” (see Bolz-Weber's book Pastrix, in the section “Fall 2005” here) These are ELCA leaders proudly, with intent, saying these things. This kind of talk is not Christ-like. Granted, these people serve in a denomination with a track record which shows little regard for what the Bible says. Scripture is arbitrary to them. But one would think this kind of talk would be something of which these “Christian” leaders would be embarrassed and try to refrain. That is not the case; these ELCA leaders are proud of the foul words they use. ELCA pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber defends her foul language, “I swear like a truck driver . . . I refuse to pretend I’m somebody I’m not . . . I speak like other people.” And “I have not said the ‘F-word’ in a sermon. When I swear it’s really for emphasis or humor, not to be mean or to be foul toward someone. Just colorful and funny speech that is effective.” (read here) Additionally she comments, “Some people think pastors shouldn't swear. I think pastors shouldn't pretend to be people they're not.” (see here) ELCA leadership, this is what God tells us in Psalm 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” In James 3:10, God says, "Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be." I see prideful church leaders who have no interest in conforming their speech to be more like Christ. It is no surprise. It is clear that it is not only speech that is affected by stubborn unwillingness to conform to God's ways, leadership and teaching. This translates to encouragement toward other blatantly sinful choices and ways of living. Leaders lead . . . one question is, to where are they leading those who will follow? --- Updates: ELCA pastor Martin W. Eldred of Joy Lutheran Church in Eagle River, AK commented on an ELCA facebook page saying "Now THATS f**king offensive." (find here) ELCA pastor Eric Clapp, referenced and quoted above tweeted this: |
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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Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. - Ephesians 5:11
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