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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.)
The liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has just concluded its national assembly. At the assembly, smoke was dispersed to cleanse from evil spirits and negative energy according to the Native American ceremony called smudging. No, ELCA, evil spirits are not driven out by smoke but only by the name of Jesus Christ. If you tap on the second link below, you can watch pagan smudging going on during an ELCA worship service. Also, the ELCA took up the issue of "bound conscience". Back in 2009 when the ELCA voted to ordain practicing homosexuals, conservatives were assured that their "bound conscience" against homosexual behavior would be allowed in the ELCA. But now, some want that reconsidered so that LGBT people will feel more welcomed in the ELCA. The ELCA already has two practicing homosexual bishops and a while ago elected the world's first transgender bishop. But that is not welcoming enough, some say, and they want the "bound conscience" language to be reconsidered. Kevin Strickland, an ELCA homosexual bishop with a "husband", took to the microphone to share his angst that someone refused to receive holy communion from him because the person objected to the bishop's homosexual behavior. The bishop said that he is tired of having his "personhood" challenged. He wants the church to "reconsider the church's current concept of bound conscience" because the ELCA should be a place where all are welcomed and loved, not condemned. I personally have struggled with homosexual temptation most of my life but for the sake or Christ and my soul, I abstain from this behavior (see "My struggle with same sex attraction" at pastorsstudy.org). I would say to the ELCA's homosexual bishops that no one is challenging their personhood. People are challenging homosexual behavior which the Bible condemns and in which the bishops engage. It is out of love that we tell people to turn from sin since sin dishonors God and hurts us. Indeed, it is very unloving to condone a sin which can eternally separate people from the Kingdom of God (I Corinthians 6:9-11). So now the ELCA has reached the point where it will examine whether to even allow the traditional, biblical view of homosexuality in its ranks. Indeed, the ELCA's national magazine already bans the conservative viewpoint in its pages. Given the ECLA's syncretism with pagan practices and its affirmation of homosexuality and transgenderism, it is long past time for Bible-believing Christians to leave this denomination. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock (To see Bishop Strickland's convention remarks, tap on second link below). Smudging at the 2022 ELCA Churchwide Assembly https://www.facebook.com/100075432623373/videos/839357237232129/
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Last week the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America held it's Churchwide Assembly. The assembly brought ELCA leadership from across the nation together. A social media post that includes a picture shows one unofficial gathering that took place (see below) and it includes a comment saying "@ELCA how many rostered ministers you think we can get in a gay bar? #elcacwa #cwa2022". The picture posted below shows ELCA Synod bishop Kevin Strickland, ELCA seminary president (United Lutheran Seminary) R. Guy Erwin, along with apparently many other ELCA ministers. The person in the front row with red hair and in blue is unknown.  (or see here) The person who wrote the social media post was apparently under 18 years old in April of 2021 according to an ELCA biological information for nominees form this person filled out. (The ELCA form is posted on an ELCA run website but I am not posting a link because it contains personal information). The ELCA official Twitter account shows its approval by retweeting the post/picture and saying "Having an awesome time in #Columbus for #ELCAcwa!" (See below)  "Goodness and Mercy can be the names of God's righteous lesbian angels, mercilessly (and consensually) flirting with you your whole life. If you like that sort of thing. Ruthless and sacred pursuit from lesbian angels." A pastor in synod leadership in the ELCA, Lura Groen, wrote that on her Facebook page. (see below) Anything seems to go in the ELCA, from polyamory, to goddess worship, to sexual thoughts about angels and so much more. The ELCA, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, is a denomination that has twisted the Bible for years. Satan is the biggest perpetrator of twisting the words of God and it looks like Satan is active and in many ways controlling this denomination.  2022 ELCA Churchwide Assembly happens in a couple weeks. On the docket:
"Proposals (known as memorials) from the ELCA's 65 synods that address social justice issues and matters relating to the structure of the ELCA, including greenhouse gas reduction; gun violence; LGBTQIA+ welcome; pastoral counseling as a result of changes to Roe v. Wade; the land back movement; ELCA governance restructure; specialized ministries and on leave from call status; and review and revision of the ELCA social statement Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust, adopted by the 2009 Churchwide Assembly." ttps://www.elca.org/News-and-Events/8163 ELCA’s new gay pride video, but do they support Christians who abstain from homosexual behavior?7/5/2022 (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 video from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's head bishop, Elizabeth Eaton, in which she promotes gay pride. She celebrates and supports her “LGBTQAI+ siblings” (can’t say “brothers and sisters”, too binary). She especially is troubled about bills “targeting transgender youth.” I sure hope this doesn’t mean the bishop supports allowing sex change operations for children. But does the bishop support people like me, who believe the Bible’s teaching that homosexual behavior is sinful? Eaton has never produced a video supporting the traditional, biblical viewpoint. I personally have struggled with same sex attraction most of my life, but for the sake of my eternal soul, I abstain from this behavior (I Corinthians 6:9-11). Countless Christians with same sex attraction for 2000 years have abstained from this behavior. Why are such people not so much as mentioned in the bishop’s video? At pastorsstudy.org you can read my story "My struggle with same sex attraction." You will not find such a story in an ELCA publication, it is not allowed. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Below is last week’s memorial service for Lowell Erdahl, long-time bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Bishop Erdahl was a difficult bishop for me. As you may know, I have struggled with same sex attraction most of my life but I follow the Bible's teaching and abstain from such behavior. But Erdahl championed it. I remember a difficult meeting I had years ago with Erdahl in which another pastor and I urged Erdahl to follow the Bible's teaching on this issue, but we left grieved by Erdahl's stance. Erdahl co-authored a book with head ELCA Bishop Herbert Chilstrom entitled "Sexual Fulfillment: For Single and Married, Straight and Gay, Young and Old" in which both Lutheran leaders affirmed gay sex, masturbation and more. At minute 1:09 below you will see a homosexual pastor praise Erdahl for championing the LGBT cause and that Erdahl "unlearned" what he had been taught. May you and I never unlearn the Scriptures. May we follow God's Word even if it goes counter to our desires and to the direction of our culture. What a tragedy to be praised at one's funeral for violating the Word of God and for causing such damage to Christ's Church. Erdahl's view won over the ELCA in 2009 when the ELCA voted to ordain practicing homosexuals. Today the ELCA has the world's first transgender bishop and many ELCA congregations perform homosexual and transgender "weddings". But at the below funeral service, Erdahl was praised as a "faithful servant". Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock PS Tap this link to see Erdahl's "testimony time" of how he came to believe in homosexual behavior. Erdahl states that he ordains practicing homosexuals because “I try to follow Jesus “. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5ZNWtPRGF8&t=226s (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Go to minute 25:20 below and watch this bisexual senior student preach how he experienced Jesus Christ by embracing his bisexuality. Long ago I preached my senior sermon at Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Back then Luther was somewhat liberal, today it has become radical. I am grieved by what has happened to my seminary. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock
The ELCA's Greater Milwaukee Synod Bishop, Paul Erickson, wrote a letter a couple weeks ago "Affirming our LGBTQIA+ Siblings". (See the Facebook post at the end of the blog or here)
As Christians we need to love people. But the ELCA is making a detrimental mistake encouraging thoughts that go against what God has said. It is NOT an act of love encouraging people to believe their desire for sexual relations with someone of the same sex or their wanting to be anything other than their gender is "good" or is "God's will." God did not make people homosexual. God did not make people one gender at birth and want them to live as the opposite gender. Encouraging people to live out their sinful desires is detrimental to spiritual and physical and mental health. Satan has deceived so many and he has religious leaders encouraging destructive behavior. Rev. Emily Scott is the pastor at Dreams and Visions. (see here) it is a newer church plant of the ELCA's Delaware-Maryland Synod. (Rev. Scott once speak at an ELCA National Youth Gathering.) The church website says "Worship is Queering and spirit-led, invites truth-telling and gratitude, and moves us toward God’s dream of justice." (See the second picture below) Elsewhere on the church homepage it says "we seek to be a place where..." "False binaries are left behind" and 'Queerness is holy." See below. On the church "about" page they write: "The ELCA is a denomination that supports the lives and ministries of LGBTQ people and, does incredible work with refugees and immigrants. The local expression of our denomination called the Delaware-Maryland Synod. Bishop Bill Gohl, Dr. Amsalu Geleta, and the Synod Council have all worked together so that Dreams and Visions might come into being" Money going to the ELCA is helping pay for this kind of church and teaching.   
(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Bishop Lowell Erdahl, retired Bishop of the St. Paul Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, died this month. He and I were on opposite sides of moral issues back in the days when I was still in the ELCA. He and former head ELCA Bishop Herbert Chilstrom, who died last year, co-wrote a book entitled “Sexual Fulfillment: For Single and Married, Straight and Gay, Young and Old”. The book endorsed homosexual behavior in ‘loving, committed relationships” and also stated that “self-pleasuring” (masturbation) can be a gift from God.
I have personally struggled with same sex attraction for most of my life, but for the sake of Christ and my eternal soul, I abstain. Thus, I was grieved that Erdahl and Chilstrom promoted the acceptance of homosexual behavior in the Church. And they won. Since 2009 the ELCA has ordained practicing homosexuals and transgender persons and many ELCA congregations now perform homosexual “weddings.” In May, the ELCA elected the world’s first transgender bishop. Today, Erdahl and Chilstrom stand before God to answer for denying the Bible which teaches “homosexuals will not inherit the Kingdom of God” (I Corinthians 6:9-11). Romans 1:32 talks about people who give “hearty approval” to sin. I am sad to say, I think these two bishops did that. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock --- (Here is Bishop Erdahl's obituary)
Jennie (Jennifer) Chrien is an ELCA pastor at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, in Simi Valley, CA. She has this to say about Mary, Joseph and Jesus:
The ELCA's Southwest California Synod Bishop, Brenda Bos, a lesbian, made a comment under this Facebook post by Rev. Chrien. There was no admonition by the ELCA bishop. Below are some additional posts from pastor Jennie Chrien on her Facebook page.
(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 below worship service led by a transgender pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, this man who presents himself as woman says "The grace of Jesus the Christ, the love of God the Creator, and the communion of the queer-making Spirit be with you all." The creed in this service states "I believe in Jesus Christ, Sophia, the Word". "Sophia" is a feminine image for God that feminists use to worship the "Divine Feminine." Along the same line, God is referred to in the service as "The Divine Seamstress". This is the strange new world of the ELCA. One cannot say that the extremes of the below service are not shared by the ELCA's national leadership. ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton has made two gay pride videos and at the ELCA's Youth Gathering an 11-year-old boy who thinks he is a girl was put on stage to promote transgenderism to 31,000 Lutheran teens. At the installation of the ELCA's first transgender bishop, Bishop Eaton prayed to God as "Parent, Child and Holy Breath" and as "Rain, Estuary, and Sea". I hear from people periodically who say they stay in their ELCA congregation because they have been members so long and they would have to leave their friends. But sometimes Jesus says to leave and "shake the dust off your feet". I believe that time is now for Bible-believing Christians who are still in the ELCA and supporting it with their offering dollars and their presence. Our first allegiance is to Jesus, not to our friends nor to our denomination. 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.) I passed this church today in the Twin Cities and it appears to be a merged church of two very liberal denominations, the United Church of Christ and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Since the 1960s the UCC has shrunk more than any mainline denomination and for good reason. One can deny the Trinity, affirm a Unitarian view of God, and be a pastor in the United Church of Christ. Both the UCC and ELCA ordain practicing homosexuals and transsexuals, and pay for abortions with offering dollars in their churches healthcare plans (you will note in the picture below the church’s gay-affirming rainbow banner). Both denominations have many pastors who teach that all people will go to heaven and faith in Christ is not necessary for salvation. As liberal denomination shrink, they merge. Two ELCA seminaries in Pennsylvania had to merge, my alma mater ELCA Luther Seminary in Saint Paul had to sell off buildings, and the building which housed the ELCA seminary in California was sold to Muslims. The UCC’s United Theological Seminary in New Brighton, Minnesota, had to be sold and now houses an evangelical ministry. The second picture below is the large banner outside this merged congregation saying what it means to “Be the Church”. You will notice Jesus, evangelism, and disciple-making are not mentioned. It’s basically “let’s all be nice”.  It once again reminds me of the three pillars of liberal theology that are killing the Church: 1. God is nice 2. We too should be nice 3. Isn’t that nice? Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock (Rev. Brock continues in a follow up article) I just went to the website of the church mentioned in the previous post to see what they believe. Below is their statement of faith. You will notice, not a word about the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and nothing about salvation through Christ. Again, it is "Let's all be nice." I checked their calendar to see that they offer a Progressive Christianity Study Group and a drumming group. One would never dream from their statement that there will be a Judgement Day and that we need Christ. If one believes in Heaven and Hell and that the Church should help people be ready for the Last Day, their nice statement of faith isn't very nice. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock THIS WE BELIEVE We believe the umbrella of God’s love, as exemplified in Jesus the Christ, is big enough for everyone to be welcomed. We believe that love, not doctrine, holds us together. We believe the deepest expression of our faith is found in the way we treat others. We believe you don’t need to take the bible literally to discover God’s profound truths and message. We believe it is important for faith to value both the mind and the heart. We believe that we learn from one another’s diverse experiences and perspectives, and it’s okay if we don’t share the exact same beliefs. We believe listening to others and respecting them is a deeply spiritual act, even when we disagree. Not all claims to truth are the same, to be sure, but we believe every claim should be measured by love. We believe the wisdom offered from other faith traditions can complement and enrich our spiritual journeys. We believe church should be a place of peace that welcomes those who believe in God some of the time, or none of the time, or all of the time. 
The ELCA post and video below does not say that people should turn from sexual sin, instead it says "God loves you just the way you are" implying that God approves of their sexual desires and sins.
Jesus called people to "follow" Him. He also directed people to "go and sin no more." The ELCA does not do that. By rejecting God's Truth, the ELCA harms people struggling with sin. 
See video below or here. (Warning. The following article contains content that is inappropriate. I have added black boxes to cover some of the picture. This is an example of how bad the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is.) Last month bisexual ELCA pastor Dawn Bennett took to Facebook and made the public post which you can see here. At least one ELCA bishop commented afterward with a favorable statement. (Also shared below)  In the comment section ELCA Pastor Bennett writes:  Also in the comment section is this from Brenda Bos, lesbian bishop of the ELCA's Southwest California Synod:  How can anyone continue to support the ELCA, a denomination that allows this? A denomination that has a "Pastor of Public Witness" who brags about having sex with her boyfriend. A denomination that elects a transgender person as bishop of their synod.
Evil is alive and well and it controls the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. |
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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