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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.) For a biological man to say that he is really a woman is to deny who God made him to be. But you won’t hear anything like that from the head bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Instead, it’s all “unconditional love and acceptance“. The ELCA even pays for hormone blockers for children and sex change operations for adults in its national healthcare plan which is funded by church offering dollars. You can see Bishop Eaton’s transgender video by tapping on the below. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock
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ELCA Lutheran denomination has zeal for social issues, but not for the salvation of the lost…4/24/2023
(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.)
Below is the latest news item from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Yes, we should all be against racism, but I have a friend who left his ELCA church because of the constant mention of white supremacy from the pulpit. Look through the news releases at elca.org and you will see liberal politics and various social issues mentioned regularly but rarely anything about evangelism, missions and bringing lost people to Christ. Indeed, Elizabeth Eaton, head Bishop of the ELCA, has said that if hell exists, she believes it is empty. So, if everybody is going to heaven, what will the ELCA do with its time and money? Promote liberal politics. This was never more evident than when some states were passing minor restrictions on abortion and Eaton reminded people that the ELCA supports abortion rights. Indeed, the ELCA pays for abortions for any reason whatsoever in its denomination’s healthcare plan, which is funded by offering dollars. 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.)
In the November, 2021 edition of Living Lutheran, the national magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton writes an article avoiding calling God “He” and twice using the word “Godself” to avoid saying “God Himself”. But “Godself” is not a word, and has been invented by liberals in the church to avoid talking about God Himself. At its most recent national convention, the ELCA passed a resolution stating it desires to move to more expansive, inclusive images for God. We must never forget the language Jesus gave us for God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). But at the installation service of the ELCA’s first transgender bishop, Eaton also referred to God as “Parent, Child, and Holy Breath” and as “Rain, Estuary, and Sea”. As the ELCA estranges itself more and more from the Biblical language for God, I believe it will experience more and more of God’s judgment. Indeed, it already has, as huge numbers have left the ELCA for more biblical denominations. In Christ, Pastor Tom Brock (See article here on page 50) (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Pope Benedict passed away recently and the head bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Elizabeth Eaton, has written the below letter of condolence.
I got to thinking. Pope Benedict believed abortion is a sin. Bishop Eaton works for abortion rights. Pope Benedict believed homosexual behavior is a sin. Bishop Eaton has produced gay pride videos. Pope Benedict believed in Hell. Bishop Eaton has said that, if Hell exists, she believes it is empty. Martin Luther believed in Hell and in the sinfulness of abortion and homosexuality. It is ironic that we live in a day when a Catholic Pope is more Lutheran than a Lutheran head bishop. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock --- ELCA presiding bishop issues message on death of Pope Benedict XVI Dear church, Yesterday we awoke to the news of the passing of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. As part of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), we mourn his death and celebrate his life eternal in Christ Jesus. In the LWF statement, which I commend to all of you, General Secretary Anne Burghardt reminds us of Pope Benedict's enduring commitment to the unity of Christ's church and, in particular, "his appreciation of the 'Joint Declaration of the Doctrine of Justification' that has enabled many advances in Lutheran-Roman Catholic relations." His brilliance as a theologian and his ecumenical spirit will continue to challenge us to build bridges of mutual understanding and visible unity through dialogue, cooperation and common witness. We also pray for Pope Francis, who will continue to lead the Roman Catholic Church in this historic time – the likes of which haven't occurred since nearly a century before the Reformation. We extend our condolences and unceasing accompaniment to all our Catholic neighbors, including the bishops, priests, deacons, scholars and laypeople with whom we are in dialogue and partnership. Pope Benedict lived in the surety that "whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's" (Romans 14:8). Now, Lord, you let your servant go in peace: your word has been fulfilled. Amen. In Christ, Elizabeth A. Eaton Presiding Bishop, ELCA (view here) 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.)
A year ago the very liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America elected the world's first transgender bishop. This is a woman who looks like a man and who wants to be called "they". Now, she (I refuse to say "they") has been asked to step down by the very, very liberal head bishop of the ELCA. You will see in head Bishop Elizabeth Eaton's letter (linked) below, Eaton is very willing to call this singular woman "they". The transgender bishop was not asked to step down because transgenderism denies who God creates people to be, but because she allegedly mishandled a situation with an Hispanic church. In our sad age of sexual confusion, it is tragic that the ELCA leads the way in confusion by electing a transgender bishop to begin with, and then consistently referring to her as "they". In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock PS In September at the transgender bishop's installation service, Bishop Eaton prayed to the "Father, Son and Holy Spirit" also as "Parent, Child, and Holy Breath" and "Rain, Estuary, and Sea" (Here) is Bishop Eaton's press release about the situation (The following is a letter to ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton from Gary Eliason. Mr. Eliason gave Exposing the ELCA permission to post his letter.) I feel the need to communicate with the larger ELCA that our family is choosing to leave the denomination. More correctly, that the denomination has left us! I was born and raised in an ALC family. As most kids in that situation, I attended Sunday School, confirmation, Bible camp, worked at Bible Camps for many summers and travelled with a Lutheran mission team for a year and a half, and naturally when the ELCA formed, joined that.
I grew to love the foundation of the church focusing on Grace alone, Word alone and Christ alone. However, in my estimation, the church has been drifting more toward Humanism and choosing to conform to this world, rather than be transformational to those that are in the world. We are told from ELCA pastors, that it doesn’t matter which god you believe in, as long as you believe. We are told that there is no hell or place of judgement. From a seminary professor we are told that Jesus’ death on the cross was not as atonement for our sins, but rather an example of how we should live our lives. Regarding the subject of sexuality, the church’s teaching seems to harken back to a rallying cry of the Hippie era, “If it feels good, do it!” I’m not sure how that coincides with lessons from living a disciplined life, or choosing the narrow way. I am not anti-gay, and I do believe everyone has his/her own rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. However, Biblically I have found no reference to same sex marriage. Marriage always seems to be referenced in the context of a man and a woman. If 2 people of the same sex choose to live together, I see no reason for them not to, with a civil agreement and legal holdings of traditional marriage, but I find it troubling that we take the sacred meaning of one word and apply it to another circumstance in order to fit our thought pattern, and again, conform rather than transform. Along the same lines, to have openly gay pastors, and to celebrate a trans individual as a church leader is not a concept I find in Scripture. Yes, we must accept all people seeking salvation to be an active part of the church, for we are all sinners, but how can it be justified to say that we are a welcoming church, and that we celebrate all life as holy, but then not welcome or celebrate the life (or as stated “the neighbor”) growing in the womb of the mother into that same church. The neighbor? I can only think of the lesson from the Good Samaritan. Is any abortion justified? While I believe it is the last resort in the case of rape, incest, or the life of the mother, it is interesting to note that the only other 2 countries that have laws as liberal as the US regarding abortion are China and North Korea, where Christianity is banned! The 3 types of cases I referred to account for less than 2% of all abortions, and in fact, 85% of rape victims choose to bring their child to term. To say that the ELCA bases its current views about abortion on a document from 1991 comes full circle to the reason Martin Luther rebelled against the Catholic church. Their teachings relied more on church doctrine and tradition than on the Word alone. I am truly saddened to see that nearly 1.5 million people have chosen to leave the ELCA. Could it be that because the church has tried to stand for everything, it has ended up standing for nothing? In wanting to validate every lifestyle, much of pop theology, yet failing to say yes, yes, and yes to unborn children, it shows no differentiation from itself and much of modern culture. What once was a city on a hill, is now just another house in the subdivision. I am praying that I will be able to find a church that will not leave me again.
If you are prolife you need to stop supporting and end your membership in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). It is time to leave.
See the ELCA news release and the tweet below from the ELCA Presiding Bishop, Elizabeth Eaton, about the Supreme Court and their likely decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which would give states the right to decide on abortion. 
The news release is a statement from the Presiding Bishop titled "A pastoral message on abortion." (See here) The tweet above is included in the ELCA news release. Here are some additional quotes from the statement:
I don't care what your reason is to remain in the ELCA, whether you are a pro-life pastor or a pro-life congregation or a pro-life member. You are part of a denomination that supports and advocates for the killing of unborn children (the ELCA also pays for employees' abortions). You can not justify remaining.
(The following is a letter written by a married couple to their ELCA church council. I have made a few edits to remove names and places)
On January 8, 2021, ELCA Bishop Elizabeth Eaton was one of several religious leaders who signed a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, members of Congress and the Cabinet calling for the removal of President Donald Trump from office following the events of January 6 in the Capitol. This letter was written two days following the events at the Capitol while causes of the events of January 6 were in the early stages of investigation. The letter signed by Bishop Eaton stated, "In addition, we recognize the need to hold responsible not only those who invaded the Capitol, but also those who supported and/or promoted the President’s false claims about the election or made their own false accusations." We read this to state that the leader of the ELCA is now calling for repercussions for those with thoughts and beliefs that are not her own. Our world is currently so very divided, and one place we want to feel at peace, loved, appreciated is in our church home. When we read this letter from Bishop Eaton, we immediately felt that due to our political beliefs we were no longer welcome in the church we called home. We must admit that since the covid pandemic started, our involvement with (our church) has waned. Some of it was due to covid, but much of our lack of involvement was due to our research beginning in January 2021 on the beliefs of the ELCA and our realization that our beliefs differed greatly from ELCA leadership. Polls show that 75 to 80 percent of Republicans believe there was some fraud involved with the 2020 presidential elections. We fall within that group that questions whether fraud occurred in the election process in some states. While we accepted the results of the election, we do believe that there was some questionable election activity in multiple states that should be explored. We are not saying the fraud was absolute, but there was cause for investigation. According to the leader of the ELCA, we are outright wrong in our beliefs and there is no room for discussion. Considering that at least 50 percent of (our state) are registered Republicans, and according to polls 75 percent of Republicans believe there was some fraudulent activity in the 2020 election, that would equate to a rough estimate of 40 percent of the church membership of the ELCA in (our state) that needs to be held responsible for the events of January 6 at the Capitol according to Bishop Eaton. We disagree. This was the start of not feeling welcome by the ELCA, and the beginning of our research on what the ELCA currently stands for. We moved to (this city) in 2012 and joined (this ELCA church) because it was the church at which (my wife's) father was a member and that her paternal ancestors had belonged to, though (my wife) had been raised as a Catholic and (I) as an American Baptist. We knew that (this church) was a member of the ELCA, but we didn’t do our research as to what the ELCA believed. We just believed that all Lutherans were essentially the same. The January 8, 2021 letter signed by Bishop Eaton led us to do further research. Our research found a multitude of issues to which we disagree with ELCA leadership. Below we will highlight just a few of the issues with which we disagree.
These are just a few of the reasons we started questioning whether membership in an ELCA church was right for us. Then on November 19, 2021, Bishop Eaton released a pastoral message on the Rittenhouse acquittal stating, “When a child is allowed to become a vigilante without recourse, we are forced to confront the idols of our society: guns, violence and white supremacy.” She also stated, “Today’s acquittal is an injustice.”
Following much research, prayer and discussion, we have decided to withdraw our membership in the ELCA which means we need to withdraw our membership at (this church) and seek a local church that more closely fits our beliefs. We wanted you to know that our withdrawal of membership is not based on our local church family, but rather the work and beliefs of the leadership at the highest levels of the ELCA. We love and support our friends and neighbors who are members of the ELCA and will continue to support the work of (this church) at the local level through prayer. Living in and embracing sinful behavior is wrong. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has chosen to defy God and His will by celebrating and encouraging sinful sexual lifestyles. But more than that, the ELCA is advocating for children to be placed in households that are openly living in sexual perversion. In the ELCA article linked below the ELCA's Presiding Bishop writes about "...recognizing and affirming the vocation of LGBTQIA+ people as parents and foster parents." People living the LGBT life should be lovingly cared for as we pray they would chose to live in obedience to God. But children should not be placed in a household where the adults have decided to joyfully and defiantly live in sexual sin. So the ELCA is harming both those that are attracted to people of the same sex and also children who are forced to live in that defiant-to-God household. (See the ELCA 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.)
Today is the first day of gay pride month. Last year the head Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in American made a gay pride video and wrote the below message. Notice she talks about LGBT "siblings"--presumably because saying "brothers and sisters" is too binary and excludes transgender people. Here is the quote from Bishop Elizabeth Eaton: "But this celebration (of a pro-LGBT Supreme Court decision) and this Pride Month is not just something that happens one month out of the year. We celebrate all year round for the many gifts and the ways that this church and this country have been enriched by the gifts of LGBTQIA+ people. “Our congregations are stronger. Our communities are more vibrant. There's still more work to be done and we will do it. But we know that we're moving closer to the time when these siblings cannot be made invisible by the church or by the country. They are seen and always have been seen by God. And now we can see that, in fact, all of us, all of us are created in God's image. “Peace. Be well, dear church.” So here it appears we have the head bishop of a Lutheran denomination celebrating a sexual behavior which God's Word condemns (see my article "What does the Bible teach about homosexuality?" at pastorsstudy.org). Bishop Eaton has never said a contrary word about homosexual behavior and she promotes gay pride so I can't assume otherwise. BIshop Eaton has also publicly stated that the ELCA supports abortion rights. Also, I shopped at Target today which I rarely do, it is very liberal on social causes. I snapped the below picture (see here) and complained saying "I'm a conservative, I don't appreciate Target promoting this to people who are not where they are on the political spectrum." Yes, I realize complaining to Target will not do much, but it is better than doing nothing. Hopefully it gave the employee to whom I complained something to think about. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock PS When LGBT pride month comes I think of the verse Philippians 3:19 "Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things." It is tragic when the world does this, it is super tragic when the Church (ELCA Lutherans, PCUSA Presbyterians, the United Church of Christ, the Episcopal Church in America) does this
A letter signed by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is calling for President Trump's removal from office. Even more shocking, the ELCA comes against anyone who believes the 2020 election was fraudulent saying, "In addition, we recognize the need to hold responsible not only those who invaded the Capitol, but also those who supported and/or promoted the President’s false claims about the election, or made their own false accusations." (See here)
Buckle-up God-fearing Christians, in a country that was built on freedom of speech, half of our society, big tech and the faux-Christian community have succumbed to hate and are now calling for repercussions for those with thoughts and beliefs that are not their own. It is time to reexamine your relationship with God, invest in your faith, grow in your knowledge of God's Word and train up those around you to do the same. Fear not, God is with you. Here is the article on the ELCA website announcing the "ELCA presiding bishop joins NCC leaders in letter to vice president, Cabinet and Congress." 
Lenny Duncan is a highly controversial pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It should surprise no one that he and his radical message have been embrace by the denomination's leadership and pastors, who are paid by conservative, Bible-believing membership.
A recent article talks about Rev. Duncan and his former church, Jehu's Table, saying, "At Jehu’s Table church in Brooklyn, New York, Duncan proclaims his gratitude during Communion for African American role models ranging from transgender activist Marsha P. Johnson to Nation of Islam leader Malcolm X to civil rights minister Martin Luther King Jr." (See here)
Below you can read what Pastor Duncan is about and what he is saying. You will also see that the ELCA has embraced Rev. Lenny Duncan all the way up to the highest of ELCA leaders.
- The official ELCA magazine published an article written by Rev. Duncan where he says,
"I believe that the call of the church in the 21st century is to dismantle white supremacy; that the way of the cross for the entire church is to lay down our lives, resources, buildings and endowments to this cause. That our entire future as a church and as a credible, viable Lutheran witness in the 21st century and beyond is balanced on this alone." And, "Our church is the place to have hard and loving conversations that call us to repentance and reparations..." (See Living Lutheran article here) Rev. Duncan then says implementing his vision for the ELCA will bring about church vitality, that sanctuaries will swell.
- “You can't have reconciliation without repentance. Until the ELCA recognizes the way that it's treated persons of color, specifically black folks, and until they realize their style of church is inherently racist and repent from that, until they talk about reparations to the children of pastors who were never paid full salaries, then I don't think there can be reconciliation.” - Lenny Duncan (See here)
- As a form of reparations, Rev. Duncan also advocates for, "..all straight white males in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to remove their names from ballots for bishop." (See here) 
- Fortress Press, Rev. Lenny Duncan's publisher, describes Rev. Duncan's book saying, "It is time for the church to rise up, dust itself off, and take on forces of this world that act against God: whiteness, misogyny, nationalism, homophobia, and economic injustice. Duncan gives a blueprint for the way forward and urges us to follow in the revolutionary path of Jesus." (See here)
(See above article http://www.outsmartmagazine.com/2019/07/queer-lutheran-preacher-calls-on-church-to-end-white-supremacy/
- At this time Lenny Duncan was the pastor at Jehu's Table:
- From ELCA Bishop Patricia Davenport, of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod.
- Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton appeared in a film made by Lenny Duncan. 
- Kristen Kuempel, ELCA bishop of the Eastern Washington-Idaho Synod is promoting Rev. Lenny Duncan and says about his book "I know several of our church leaders are reading" it.
- Rev. Duncan now has a new job as the Mission Developer Pastor an ELCA church, Messiah Lutheran Church and Preschool in Vancouver, Washington. Currently, Rev. Duncan is writing blogs calling for the ELCA to pay reparations. (See the first of four, so far, here) Pastor Duncan is throwing ELCA higher ups under the bus and making things difficult for the ELCA with his anger, race baiting and demands. This should be no surprise to those who know history. (The following article is from Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Look at the picture below and you will see Elizabeth Eaton, head bishop of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, holding hands with pro-abortion rights Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi on the right and homosexual ELCA Bishop Guy Erwin (who has a "husband") on the left. This is not surprising since Eaton has publicly defended abortion rights, transgenderism and homosexuality. The below video claims that the ELCA is neither blue nor red politically, but look through the news releases at ELCA.org and you will get a different story. The ELCA doesn't lean to the left, it falls over to the left. Eaton publicly was thrilled by the recent Supreme Court decision affirming transgender rights and she did a video celebrating gay pride in June. In a press release some months ago Eaton reminded that the ELCA supports abortion rights when she thought some conservative states would make restrictions on abortion. The ELCA continues its practice of paying for abortion for any reason in the denomination's healthcare plan, which is funded by offering dollars. Yes, that is right, your ELCA offering dollars can go toward killing unborn children for any reason whatsoever. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock  |
Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Dan Skogen
Former ELCA seminary student and former ELCA member who is fed up with the ELCA's consistent mockery of God's Word. If you have been helped and blessed by Exposing the ELCA's ministry, please help us continue to proclaim the truth of God's Word to ELCA members who need to hear it.
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