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Below is the account of an orthodox, Bible-believing seminary student who attended the ELCA's United Lutheran Seminary. We conversed over email at couple years ago and then again last week. What follows is Joseph's letter to me and to everyone reading, about his experience attending the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America seminary.
Dan, At the time of our correspondence, I was unsure of what direction my vocation was going to take so I did not want to divulge too much information about what I was encountering at seminary, for fear of retaliation from the so-called “powers that be.“ I use quotations because the people who are in charge of the ELCA are not actually the ones who are running the show. But I’ll get to that in a moment. The reason why I am writing today is because I feel that my personal story and experience might be of some benefit to your readers. First and foremost, I must be transparent in stating that I have since left seminary and Lutheranism altogether and returned to the Catholic Church of my roots. Recognizing that there are many Lutherans of a more traditional practice who might be skeptical of Roman Catholic theology, I want to emphasize the fact that we have far more in common with one another than those same traditional Lutherans might have with ELCA Lutherans, and the proof is in the proverbial pudding. Putting all theological differences and minutiae aside, I think I can say with certainty that traditional Lutherans and traditional Catholics are at least mutually faithful to the basic tenets of Christ’s teachings. With that said, I would like to share a little bit of what I experienced—and what I still observe from social media posts and the ongoing firsthand accounts of friends who are ELCA clergy—friends who I cherish. They are not the intended target of this expose. It has been said, ad nauseam I might add, that the ELCA is the “whitest denomination in America.” This is a common phrase uttered by some of the loudest, most bloviating “pastors” in the ELCA. Statistically speaking this may very well be the case. But what I find most interesting about that is the fact that the individuals who are so quick to utter this phrase are the same individuals who initiate every attempt at dialogue with the preemptive notion that if you’re white, you have an obligation to “listen” and not speak and this is actually done as a means of shutting down the dialogue before it can even begin. So if the denomination is 99%+ white, what they’re saying is that only they, the small 1%—many of whom are also white, interestingly enough— should be allowed to speak. This is neither dialogue nor an attempt at equality; it is a hostage situation. And in no venue was this made clearer than in the seminary classroom. I had a professor of New Testament studies who started the semester right out of the gate by informing the class that if you were a white, straight, “cisgender” male, you had an obligation to stay quiet and allow other people to speak before you. Understandably this put a number of us in the position of feeling like we were paying for classes that we were being discouraged from participating in. So I took the professor’s advice and decided not to say a word in class. As the semester went on, that professor started to become passive-aggressively antagonistic toward me by calling on me at random times to contribute—usually when she knew that my opinion on the topic du jour would likely lead me to say something that the “wokesters” in the class would pounce on. I chose not to give her what she was looking for, as there is no winning on their idealistic playing field, and of course she decided to dock participation points from my grade. This same professor--and others--would dock points if you referenced God as "Father." When I explained that God as my Father was the only way I knew how to encounter Him, I was told "it's not all about you." At that time, I was still writing for a Catholic blog and I wrote a critique that was aimed at dispelling all of the nonsensical, heretical revisionist history being spewed out in her class. The fact that I wrote for this website was not, to my knowledge, known to my classmates at the time. Little did I know that the “Google sleuths” were hard at work trying to dig up material to use against me. And they succeeded, though I must say that I was not exactly hiding anything as it was all public information in plain sight. This led to almost weekly summonses to the Dean’s office where my guidance counselor and this same professor would be waiting to interrogate me and threats would be made to “call my candidacy committee.” In other words, my orthodoxy was being used against me. During one rather bizarre exchange, I was leaving class one afternoon and was blindsided by a seminarian who proceeded to scream at the top of her lungs, crying maniacally with snot bubbles and an Oscar-worthy act, calling me a racist, a sexist, a transphobe, an imperialist, a supremacist and every other “-ist” imaginable because she had come across an article I had written in defense of Western Civilization--I was, after all, a history major during undergrad. This was in a crowded hallway in front of my peers. This was supposed to be graduate school. I was repeatedly threatened by other professors, many of whom I genuinely believe felt pressured to enforce and live up to the standards set by the loudest and most unhinged seminarians and pastors, that they were going to contact my candidacy committee about things that I wrote in assignments or said in class. I was told on a number of occasions that fellow seminarians did not “feel safe“ being in the same building as me because I identified as pro-life. I was told that I was anti-woman and unchristian for opposing abortion on the unthinkable grounds that all human life is sacred. A self-described “abortion doula” said that she did not feel her kids were safe around me because I was a homophobe and micro-aggressive mansplainer. When it was learned that I had attended Latin Mass in my early 20's at the private chapel of Mel Gibson, I was branded a white supremacist and an anti-Semite. When that young high school student, Nick Sandmann, stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March for Life while an activist banged a drum in his face, I applauded him in class for maintaining a dignified composure. I was branded a “colonizer” and anti-Native American for that. In my Congregational Education (I think that was the title) course, I gave a presentation in class on Martin Luther‘s devotion to Mary, the Mother of God, and I was told that I was trying to infuse patriarchal Catholicism into the seminary environment. I’m not really sure how that conclusion was reached based on the presentation I gave but then again logic and reason were probably considered “white supremacist“ on campus. Simply using the word “civility“ was considered racist. If that does not exemplify the soft bigotry of low expectations, I don’t know what does. And I suppose the part that amuses me the most is the fact that throughout this entire fiasco, my mentor and closest advisor on campus was a black Baptist professor—who I am still close with today—who was, at every stage of the game, flabbergasted by the charges lobbed against me. Of course the “wokesters” would call me racist for mentioning that, because in their world everything that they say is racist is de facto racist but this brings me back to my main point which is that the hierarchy of the ELCA, flawed as they may be theologically, is being held hostage. They no longer have any power because the small minority of individuals who openly brag about the fact that they are looking to dismantle everything, including orthodox theology, controls the narrative. If the presiding Bishop or other bishops say anything that the “wokesters” disagree with, they are swarmed upon and branded every negative thing under the sun. If those same bishops say nothing on an issue, they are charged with being complicit in bureaucratic and systemic white supremacy. So either way, the well-meaning bishops lose and the “wokesters” win at their own rigged game. By appealing to the court of secular public opinion, this small minority of heretical activist "pastors" are actively destroying the church from within and with great success. During my time as a vicar at a rather conservative Long Island parish, I was repeatedly told that the needs of my parishioners, many of them law enforcement officers and firefighters, didn’t matter because they were part of the “systemic white oppressiveness” that the “wokesters” were trying to dismantle. It was my obligation, they would say, to “challenge” them and oppose their “racism.” I never saw any racism at this parish. I simply saw people who loved God and loved their neighbors. This was a parish that routinely filled the church for all three Sunday services—unlike the first parish I was initially assigned to in Philadelphia where we averaged around 11 people for the one service they held every Sunday, but hey, at least they were “woke” and “relevant.” I lasted for three weeks at that parish until a parishioner said he would no longer attend the parish if I was there because he saw something I wrote on social media about the possible connection between mental illness and gender dysphoria. No conversation took place about it, I was simply told that I needed to find a new placement because this individual “didn’t feel safe” around me. I never realized what a menacing, imposing individual I was. Nevertheless, the fact that the parish that is attracting hundreds of people every Sunday with their orthodoxy is viewed as a threat to these individuals—and the fact that this same parish has to largely insulate itself from the rest of the ELCA for fear of retaliation—is all you need to know about who is running the show. Students who lean conservative or are at least moderate tend to stay silent and keep their heads down, which is shameful because these individuals are paying for the same education as everyone else and deserve to be able to participate in their own pastoral formation just like everyone else. The fact that they have to be afraid that anything they say which might be perceived as "offensive" (which in almost every case means they're upholding orthodox Christian teaching) is a disgrace. I know that the "woke" individuals read your blog, Dan, because it serves as conversational fodder fairly often on campus so I'm sure if any of my former classmates or their crony gurus read this, they'll have all kinds of snarky responses and defenses for their actions. They'll say I'm bitter and jaded and racist and all kinds of other things, but the fact is that they engage in deflection at every turn because they know exactly what they're doing. They are actively destroying the ELCA from within and they don't even try to hide it. These narcissistic activists are perfectly fine with seeing 3 million baptized Lutherans without a church in order to push their narrow-minded, heretical agenda of fabricating a Church of Christ without Christ, to reference Flannery O'Connor. They look to burn it all down yet they offer nothing of substance to replace it with, other than idealistic pipe dreams of egalitarian utopianism and yet, in reality, what they're really trying to do is seize power in order to become the oppressors that they seem to see in everyone else. They don't want equality; they simply want to control the narrative. I could go on and on but these are some of the highlights from my year at ULS. Best Wishes, Joseph M. Di Marius
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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.) Today I turned on TV and again saw a worship service from St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi, Minnesota. In a previous post (October 4) I criticized their program in which the preacher called Jesus’ response to the Syro-Phoenician woman “ugly” and wondered whether Jesus had made a mistake. That grieved me because years ago this congregation was known for being more biblical and evangelical than many in the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. But St. Andrew’s has chosen to stay in the ELCA and it shows. On the program today the pastor gave the closing benediction and she said “In the name of the Parent, and of Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit”. Did you notice? She got rid of God the Father and replaced Him with “the Parent”. Why? The ELCA at its last convention committed itself to using more “expansive and inclusive” language for God. This means avoiding masculine images for God and coming up with new images which feminists find less oppressive and patriarchal. So now some ELCA congregations worship “God the Parent.” I live across the street from a liberal United Methodist church and visited one Sunday. The pastor baptized the child “In the name of the One who makes all things, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” I talked about this with a Catholic priest who said “I’d rebaptize the child.” I think I would too. Jesus taught us to baptize “In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:10) and we have no right to play around with that. This “de-sexing” of God language has gone on for many years in liberal denominations like the ELCA, Presbyterian Church USA, the United Methodist Church, the United Church of Christ, and the Episcopal Church. Back in 2006 the ELCA came out with its current hymnal in which all of the Psalms were de-sexed to get rid of masculine references for God. Some complained, saying we would stick with the Biblical language for God, but they lost. I pray that you attend a good, biblical church which unashamedly worships God the Father. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock  By Rev. Tom Brock (The following article is from Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) He is risen! (Yes, I said “He”). Pilgrim Lutheran Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota is a congregation of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. This past summer the ELCA in convention voted to use more expansive language for God. This means, among other things, the ELCA desires to include more female imagery for God (God as “Mother”, etc). But back in 2015, Pilgrim Lutheran was already doing this. See the below from their website on how strange things get when a congregation wants to abandon using exclusively “Father, Son, Holy Spirit“ language for God. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom From Pilgrim Lutheran’s website: “Use language that is expansive in communicating the nature and activity of God. Consider using one or more of the following strategies: Choose non-anthropomorphic language for God (examples: Eagle, baker, hen,bread), being careful not to limit these by following them with male or female pronouns. Choose titles that suggest the activity of God but do not imply gender. (Examples: Advocate, Healer, Refuge, Sustainer, Creator) Use second person language to speak to, instead of about, God. Use similes Replace pronouns with articles (for example, “God sent His Son” could be changed to “God sent The Son”) Keep in mind that although Jesus was male, his humanity is more significant to our faith than his gender. Consider using terms like Christ, Teacher, Emmanuel, Savior, Redeemer, Word in addition to or as substitute for Lord or other exclusively male descriptors." (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.) Living Lutheran, the official magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has a lectionary blog article which tortures John 3:16, thus pleasing the pronoun police. This past summer the ELCA in its national assembly passed a resolution saying they want more "inclusive and expansive" language for God, which means they want to be open to feminine language for God. The Living Lutheran blog reads (with my notes): "God loves the world such that God (note "He" is changed to "God") gave up the Son (note: not "His" Son), so that those who believe (note: not "those who believe in Him") will not perish, but enjoy eternal life instead....God did not send God’s son (note: not “His” Son) to condemn the world, but to save it." Later the article talks about "what God is willing to do to reconcile humans with Godself." There is no such word as "Godself'. It is a word invented by religious liberals who cannot bring themselves to talk about "God Himself." Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock --- (See article here)  (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Living Lutheran, the official magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has a recent article entitled “Who is God?” The author is Erin Strybis who is content editor of Living Lutheran and who writes “These days I long for a softer God. God as Breath. God as Water. God as Mother. God as Healing.” In many of its articles, Living Lutheran tortures the English to avoid calling God “He”. But Jesus never prays to God as “Mother”, only as “Father.” This past summer the ELCA passed a resolution calling for more “inclusive and expansive language for God”. My alma mater, the ELCA’s Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, periodically offers prayers to God as “Mother”. It is tragic and arrogant when people think they can improve upon Jesus’ language for God.  Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock --- (See article here)  (The following article was written last year by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Because of a snow storm, the Missouri Synod Lutheran church I attend was closed, but the ELCA Lutheran church nearby was open so I attended there (Missouri Synod is conservative, the ELCA is liberal).
The pastor preached on Romans 10:9 "If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." The pastor asked the question "Does this mean if you don't confess and believe in Christ you won't be saved?" The pastor answered "Not necessarily."
Yes, necessarily. Read Romans 10:9 for yourself. The clear implication is that those who believe in Christ will be saved and those who don't, won't. Elsewhere in Scripture it is clear that faith in Christ is necessary for salvation (John 3:18, Acts 16:31). Sadly, the false teaching of universalism (that all people will be saved, regardless of faith in Christ) is often preached in liberal, mainline denominations. Universalism denies the existence of Hell and teaches that even Hitler and the Devil will be in heaven because God is love. Jesus taught differently. I believe if you count the verses, Jesus talks more about Hell than He does about Heaven. I hope you attended a church today that unashamedly preaches that Jesus is the only way of salvation. In Jesus the only Savior, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org P.S. This ELCA church also has a yoga class. The following are posts are from Rev. Steven Gjerde and Rev. Richard Johnson (Wednesday, Aug. 7). They are attending the 2019 Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Churchwide Assembly. (I do not know if they are voting members or visitors.) It is nice to get an inside perspective of someone attending the gathering. I think it is safe to say that the two writers are not completely supportive of all that is happening in the denomination.   "A clergywoman from New York (pronouns she/her/hers) moves an amendment that would also recognize tenth anniversary of ordination of LGBTQ etc. "All clergy are an intersection of identities and experiences . . . we need to reorient and challenge the ways some of these gifts are not fully valued." Vice president of Metro NY (pronouns she/her/hers) speaks in favor. Pr. Minneapolis (she/her/hers): "my wife and I are both ordained in the ELCA" speaks in favor. "I'm acutely aware that ten years ago I would not be able to be here. I would love to be a part of this commemoration." Young adult from Metro NY (she/her/hers) "We must recognize that until ten years ago we did not recognize all women." NO ONE speaks against. Voting. 824 to 75. And so a commemoration of ordination of women becomes yet another LGBTQ thing. Let's see how that commemoration flies in congregations. There is applause; PB Eaton reminds people not to applaud. "There are people who do not agree with the action; out of respect for their opinion, please do not applaud." The wording of the amendment finally on the screen: 'and the 10th anniversary of the ELCA's decision to remove the barriers to ordination for people in same-gendered relationships and recognize the diversity of gifts that women's ordination brings to this church.'" - Rev. Richard Johnson (See here)  "I'm getting sick of the pronoun thing, so I'm not going to play any more." - Rev. Richard Johnson (See here)  Rev. Richard Johnson writes, "Vice President William Horne called upon to give his report. He, like others, refers to "siblings in Christ." It occurred to me this morning that this isn't just to avoid the longer "sisters and brothers," but to avoid offending non-binary people. It seems that the memo has gone out that this is the preferred language now." (See here)  "Tim Blevins of 1517 Media (Augsburg Fortress, Fortress Press, Sparkhouse and something else) is introduced and presents a video about the agency. Two of the three Fortress Press books highlighted in the video have a Nadia Bolz-Weber connection--in one case, she wrote the forward; in the other, there's a quote from her on the cover." - Rev. Richard Johnson (See here)        --- Bonus from Tuesday (Aug. 6, 2019): From Rev. Richard Johnson: "Tonight I'm attending the "hearing" on the revision of Vision & Expectations. This is sort of an outlier, since there's nothing about this on the agenda. But it was set up as an opportunity to explain what's happening with this proposed revision, hear people's ideas, etc. Chaired by Pr. Peder Johansen who is apparently a Council Member on the task force working on this. He turns this over to Philip Hirsch, executive director of ELC Domestic Mission unit. The draft called "Trustworthy Servants of the People of God" (see May 2019 Forum Letter) was so problematic that it apparently has been withdrawn.The email Hirsch sent out to all "rostered leaders" recently said "Our inclination is to begin fresh and not try to edit" TSPG "and to start with your voices." So this session is part of listening to "our voices."... ...As Hirsch explains this decision, he seems to be saying that a primary reason for it is that groups like ELM (Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries), weren't invited to be part of the process. He then adds seminary students and ethnic communities to those who "weren't included." The Domestic Mission unit has called together some listening groups. What they noticed is that there are two things conflated, one the need to deal with misconduct among the clergy, and the other a more aspirational piece about "expectations." In other words, the problem is that V&E was being used in a disciplinary way. There's more than sexuality that needs to go into a document like this. Cultural sensitivity to racism, for instance, needs to be included. First speaker notes that V&E had excellent theological grounding, while TSPG did not, it went right to behaviors. What's your intent for a new document? Response: a statement of faith has got to be part of the new document. What's your intention to include folks that represent the more traditional or conservative ELCA members? Response: the bishop we have on the group is Kurt Kuserow, deliberately chosen because he represents the more traditionalist view. We want to be sure that we reach out to all four "categories" in the sexuality study (i.e., the various positions on homosexuality). Minneapolis pastor who identifies herself as using she/her/hers pronoun. (I can see where this is going.) She wants to be sure that if there is to be an aspirational document, it has to be clear that is what it is and why we need it. It can't be used as a cudgel against LGBTQ community, but also e.g. seminarians, young leaders who may have different ideas about relationships (i.e., they want to have sex outside of marriage). I don't think we should have this document at all. SW PA pastor. Commend church for moving past a document used to separate those "good enough" to be pastors from those not good enough. We also need guidelines on how we are to care for ourselves; the temptation is for leaders not to do so. Chicago pastor who uses she/her/hers pronouns. I don't believe we can have a document like this without it being weaponized. Pastor from Upper Susquehanna Synod. He doesn't identify his pronouns. Let's talk and think about money also. As we prepare people to go into rostered leadership in this church, one of the most important things we need to do is to outline realistically the economic realities of the communities into which they will be called. Minnesota young adult lay person: Church needs leaders who can credibly relate to their congregations. I've seen peers go through candidacy process in conditions that encourage them to lie about their relationships and beliefs. Pastor in Northern Illinois synod. Was involved in a discussion of TSPG that included some Presbyterians. In their church, expectations are for all members, not just clergy. She also saw a document from the UCC which was brief and very good (didn't focus on sex). Have you considered other church's comparable documents. Answer: some of us have, but we will be doing that more intentionally. Adds that we have different expectations for pastors because of the power dimension. Pastor from MN (she/her/hers)--how many on the task force are single? Response: two of the twelve. Pastor says she is single, and she observes that single pastors are treated much more suspiciously than married people, who are assumed to be OK. When the people who are having the conversation are all married, that's a problem. (This gets applause) Response: Listening group is not intended to be totally inclusive. Her comment: 50% of people are single. Pr. Johansen points out that the statement in TSPG against cohabitation was there in order to have it in congruence with the sexuality statement. Minnesota "queer pastor, also married, pronouns she/her/hers". Church has been too interest in "CYA" (I think that means cover your ass) rather than the gospel. We need to be bound by the gospel, not by an unethical document. Pastor from WVA/WMD synod, serving on candidacy committee. "We've been watching very carefully." We want a document steeped in the Lutheran heritage. As a clergy woman I have to squint a little to see myself in the Augsburg Confession, but I can see myself. Pastor from SW TX: What does the church need? We need to talk about sex, when it's good and when it's bad. We need to say our pastors have sex, so deal with it. A huge part of the problem is that we're not talking about it. We want to control sex, but not talk about it. We talk about clergy having power, but female clergy actually experience men having power over them, and we need to recognize that. Candidate for ministry, on internship. Affirm what committee is trying to do. We need a document outlining expectations. I was excited by the title of the document TSPS--"trustworthy" is what we need to be, and I need to know what is expected of me. Not just about sex. Woman pastor: I've been married 35 years, but I don't see why my experience should be normative. Document puts terrible burden on pastors--we need self care, there's no document telling congregations they need to care for their pastor. (applause) Iowa pastor: remember the single people. I was single when I was ordained. I dated, got engaged, got married. I felt relief on my wedding day that now I wouldn't be asked to account for my life in a certain way. Once I got married my economic reality changed, so I could consider different calls. While you're listening, include single income households. Pastor Texas: what the church needs is healthy pastors/leaders who can have healthy relationships. Documents we've had have forced people to make decisions that have caused rushed marriages, bad marriages, etc. We don't need seminarians or pastors rushing into marriages. We don't need a document like this at all. (muttering of affirmations all around me) College student excited to start candidacy process. It's crazy to me that people are already talking to me about V&E, that I should start practicing those values already. She is LBGTQ woman of color. This isn't realistic; we know our high school and college students are having sex. We need to hear their voices. Pastor from Brooklyn. When I went through candidacy no one asked me about my sex life, because I had a heteronormative appearing marriage. Nobody asked me. This church is dying for a sexual ethic. We know the truth: we don't hold congregants to any standard, we're so desperate to have them come to our church. These documents are "white supremacist and heteronormative, based on some 1950s standards that we'll never see again" NE PA pastor (she/her/hers) We don't need a new document, because we don't need any document. We already have what we need in our baptismal vows. Pastor from Luther college (she/her/hers). Whatever we get, it shouldn't be a revision of V&E because of its history. We need to officially renounce that document. Response: We plan to begin from scratch, not revise either V&E or TSPG. Deadline is fall 2020 Ohio pastor: When I started my candidacy I was married, then divorced, single mom. Multiyear hiatus, now in my first call at 60 years old. There are churches who want pastors and can't afford them, we need to stop putting labels on people. MN pastor (he/him/his). We don't need an aspirational document Chair of synod candidacy committee. I've listened, I agree with much, but how about practical realities. What is a candidacy committee supposed to do? We've repudiated V&E but we don't have a new document. Response: Church council did debate that very question. They voted not to rescind V&E but leave it in place until a new document is decided. So we continue to use a document that's not being used for the purpose for which it was originally intended? Makes no sense. What can we do at this assembly to address this problem? Johansen: Constitution requires that there be a document, so we can't just scrap the present document until there's a new one. In the meantime, let's be better stewards of the existing document (i.e, don't misuse it). Conference of bishops did advise their candidacy committees not to misuse document." (See here) --- Another Bonus from Tuesday: "... approved with no discussion a recommendation to ask the Office of the Bishop to "provide materials to facilitate education among ELCA members so as to build awareness of the broad varieties of gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation among God's people, as well as to provide pastoral care insights regarding concerns and issues of the transgender experience and gender nonconformity, and to request that the Church Council consider authorizing development of a social message on gender identity and gender expression." Posted by Rev. Richard Johnson (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.) The following excerpts describe a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on his (? I'm not sure if this person is biologically male or female) church's website: "The Rev. Mark David Johnson (they/them) grew up in Cranston RI. They were drawn to the church by their love of music... They were graduated from Cranston High School East in 2001...They applied to the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia... Their thesis presented a theological approach to food... Mark is passionate about gun violence prevention, interfaith and ecumenical relationships, urban theory and ministry, and queer theology. Mark currently lives in Bordentown NJ with their spouse, the Rev Ian Hill, who serves as pastor of St Mark Lutheran Church in Hamilton NJ....Pastor Mark uses gender neutral pronouns. This is an important part of their identity, and is also a commitment to creating a more gender-friendly world.." This is the strange teaching that results when one rejects the words of Jesus who taught the world indeed is binary, made up of only two sexes ("He who created them in the beginning made them male and female" Matthew 19:4). The further the ELCA gets from Scripture, the stranger and stranger it becomes. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock 
Some ELCA pastors go out of their way to avoid using male pronouns and words for God. Some decide they will address God using female pronouns and words:
ELCA Bishop Guy Erwin tweets this: 
In an article in the ELCA's Living Lutheran magazine titled, "God or mother? Both" we read, “The metaphor of God the Father is not enough for me now. I now see God as the Mother.” (see here and see the end of this article for a response from Rev. Tom Brock) The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America seminary, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, posted an article that says this, “So we decided to appeal directly to the Holy Spirit and the power of God and wait to see what She did.” (see here)
The above tweet by First Lutheran in Lynn, Massachusetts, posts a quote from their pastor Pr. Jon Niketh's sermon (at the 7 minute mark):
“A God who is known by her handiwork… her creative genius… her wisdom and skill that gave birth to a complex and beautiful universe..." (see here) (The following article was written a few weeks ago by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Today in my morning devotions I read the beautiful chapter John 14, famous for "In my Father's house are many mansions." I noticed God is called "Father" 23 times. Jesus not once here nor anywhere calls God "Mother" or "Parent". Contrast Jesus' words with the liturgist who opened chapel at Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with the words "We open our service in the name of the Parent..." A transgender pastor at Luther chapel told the congregation to pray the Lord's Prayer "the way you are comfortable with" and then led "Our Mother in heaven." Another Luther Seminary chapel service had a male quartet sing the 23rd Psalm which was changed to read "The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want, She makes me lie down in green pastures, She leads me beside still waters, She restoreth my soul..." And all the Psalms of the official hymnal of the ELCA have been de-sexed to get rid of masculine pronouns for God. Does it not strike as arrogant that the ELCA thinks it has the right to change the Bible's language for God? Do they know better than Jesus Christ? Can they improve upon His words? It is a beautiful teaching, especially for those who had an unloving, earthly father, that we have a loving, Heavenly Father. Jesus Himself gave us this teaching, and, no, we are not free to change it, nor should we want to. In Christ, 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.)
The most recent edition of Living Lutheran, the national magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has an article about “Seeking the Spirit Within”. It states “Prayer can include coloring mandalas, using beads, meditating over a piece of Scripture, walking a labyrinth or repeating a name or phrase.” A mandala is a ritual symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the universe, which is used for the purpose of meditation and trance induction. So why is the ELCA promoting this? Repeating a name or phrase over and over is also part of Buddhist meditation (think “Om”), but where does Jesus ever teach us to say a word over and over in order to meditate? This is called syncretism, taking non-Christian practices and beliefs and mixing them together with Christianity. It is what got the ancient Jews in trouble when they tried to mix Baal worship with the worship of Jehovah. The ELCA needs to remember the words of the First Commandment regarding syncretism: Thou shalt have no other gods. June is gay pride month and Living Lutheran devotes a whole article to ways your church can be gay-friendly. Don’t talk in Sunday school materials about mom and dad since we need to “remember your same-gendered-married couples.” Get a gender-neutral bathroom in your church. Celebrate gender identity and transition (changing one's sex) in your fellow Christians. Don’t say Christian “brothers and sisters” since this excludes non-binary and transgender people. It appears the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has swallowed the GLBT agenda whole. Living Lutheran no longer allows the conservative view on homosexuality to be even heard. Sincerely in Christ, 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.)
Pro-transgender advice from ELCA Lutheran magazine: Say "siblings in Christ, instead of brothers and sisters in Christ; parents and guardians, instead of mom and dad; and all genders, instead of both genders" These pro-transgender articles from Living Lutheran keep coming, without a hint that there is another side to the issue, namely, that rejecting one's appointed sex is a rejection of God's plan for one's life. No one is ever allowed to say that in this official magazine of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The church I attended as a teenager in Omaha used to support the camp referred to below. My old pastors would weep to see what the ELCA has become. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock (See article here) Luther Seminary has a website that provides advice and help for pastors writing sermons. An article on the ELCA seminary website shows you how far the denomination has departed from Scripture and how the secular world mindset has taken over the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The article's authors edited the following Bible verse to say: “They cried to the Lord in their trouble, and Ze delivered them from their distress; Ze brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart” - Psalm 107:13-14.
The article's ELCA affiliated authors replaced two pronouns for "He," used to refer to God in the verses, with the recently invented word "Ze." According to the Cambridge Dictionary, 'ze' is "a pronoun sometimes used instead of 'he' or 'she' because it does not show a particular gender." (see here) This is all part of the gender fluidity lie, transgenderism embrace, rejection of calling God "Father" and rewriting of God's Word that is dominating the culture. Again, this is an article for pastors posted by a website of Luther Seminary, an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America institution. (see here) The article was co-authored by Rev. Jennifer Chrien and Jessica Davis. Jennifer Chrien is the senior pastor at the ELCA's Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church in Simi Valley, CA. Jessica Davis is a chaplain for #decolonizeLutheranism, an organization formed of mostly ELCA leaders, and a signer of the "Naked & Unashamed Statement" which was also written by ELCA leaders. Interestingly, last year Jessica Davis was part of a discussion panel that included the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and is obviously in a position of influence in the ELCA.
The apostate church, the world and ultimately the devil want to destroy the life, faith and souls of our youth. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is part of this: injecting sexual perversion and evil into the hearts and minds of young people. They are justifying and encouraging sexual sin and denying the clear reading of scripture against it.
Take a look at some of what the the ELCA has been doing lately that is aimed at the youth of the church: - The ELCA's Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod, in their newsletter, invited LGBT youth on a youth retreat - 
- Lutherock is a camp of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, located in Newland, NC. They hold all kinds of gatherings for children and teens. Below Lutherock posted this message and picture of a same-sex wedding of their past staff members. It gives us clear indication as to the mindset and beliefs taught to the children who attend the camp. 
- A large gathering for ELCA high school youth in regions 1-4 was held at California Lutheran University (CLU), June 28 - July 2, 2017. One of the featured speakers was transgender ELCA pastor, Megan Rohrer. (see here) 
Below is the transgender pastor's post on Instagram while at the youth gathering.
Of course, this ELCA gathering for youth had "All Gender Bathrooms."
- Lastly, we have the #ELCA Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza. This is a gathering for ELCA persons who work with the youth of the denomination. The following are tweets from the ELCA Youth Ministry Network and people at the "Extravaganza." Most are related to the session given by a transgender child's mother. 
On a different topic, we have the ELCA Youth Ministry Network tweeting this gender-avoiding reference to the Trinity.
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
In the current February edition of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's national magazine, Elizabeth Eaton, ELCA head bishop, wrote this in her monthly column: "The history of salvation is one extended love story between God and God's creation, between God and human kind, between God and God's people". Notice the tortured English in order to avoid calling God "He". It reminded me of the transgender pastor who recently spoke at Luther Seminary and asked the congregation to say the Lord's Prayer in a way that was comfortable for them. She then led them in praying "Our Mother in heaven..." The Bible regularly refers to God as "He". The Bible says God is "the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ". We do not know better than Jesus, who taught us to pray "Our Father...." In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom (see Presiding Bishop Eaton's column here) |
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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