This all began with a podcast about polyamory. "Polyamory...is the practice of, or desire for, intimate relationships with more than one partner, with the consent of all partners involved." (See here) Invited to speak on the podcast was "theologian" J.D. R. Mechelke, an ELCA Luther Seminary student who is getting his M.A. and is also a high school youth minister for an ELCA church. The headlines are numerous with this one so let's dive in and take a look at what this ELCA seminary student had to say, beginning with this blasphemous quote: - "Some would say that the Last Supper, Jesus is proposing to the 12 friends and so it's very gay and very polyamorous." Here is J.D. Mechelke's full statement beginning with a question from the podcast host: More from the ELCA seminarian: - "In the evangelical world, there are a lot of the songs and prayers that are used talk about, there's this very intimate, individualistic relationship that people have with God and it's very erotic sometimes. My favorite example is this old song. It's not old, but '90s, "In the secret and the quiet place, I want to touch you. I want to see the--" "You start to think, 'That's kind of erotic and yet it's evangelical.' It's that we're doing that, which is fine. There are queer theologians that are taking that and saying, 'Maybe we have this erotic thing going on with Jesus.' Also thinking about it, 'This is my body.' You're taking somebody's body in your mouth, and so there's some phallic-." - "There's this idea of the polyamorous crisis that's gained traction, but usually the safe way to say it is that God loves everybody. This isn't very safe to say, but God's a total slut in that sense." - "Oh, God, I love when Jesus says 'bush'...I don't think of the burning bush, I think of something else." (I believe the ELCA seminary student misspoke or there was a transcribing error in the second paragraph, and the first sentence that should say "...there's this guideline for pastors basically that says you can [not] have sex outside of marriage.") If you are wondering what church would be most welcoming to polyamory, J.D. Mechelke answers: "If a church is openly for gay and queer folk, my guess is that you probably won't have that much push back (on) polyamory..." See here for transcript or see the video below)
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Madeline Burbank is a Master of Divinity student at the ELCA's Luther Seminary. Below is an announcement she made on her Facebook page about her education choice and the motivation behind it. Madeline Burbank does not mention telling people about Jesus and His free gift of salvation. It is about "Effective relief efforts, lifelong service, environmental stewardship, anti-racism, immigrant and refugee support, intersectional feminism, LGBTQIA+ inclusion, interfaith dialogue, sex positivity, and improving education..."
Everyone should be frightened about the pastors the ELCA is and has ordained. (The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Luther Seminary is a seminary of the ELCA. They have had homosexual and transgender preachers at Luther chapel but to my knowledge since 2009 they have not had one preacher uphold the traditional viewpoint on homosexuality. So much for “diversity and inclusivity” at Luther. Today Luther’s seminary pastor, Reverend Justin Lind-Ayers, preached a seminary chapel sermon stating that he was heartbroken over the Methodists’ rejection of homosexuality. If you want to hear a heretical use of Jesus to promote homosexuality, start at minute 20 in the below video. Three of the lowlights of his sermon: “I have heard the voice of Jesus emboldening the defiant acts of justice”. Lind-Ayers believes “the voice of Jesus” is calling us to “dismantle heterosexism”. Lind-Ayers praises the “amazing God-given gifts of the LGBTQIA community.” I am sad and angry that my alma mater, Luther Seminary, has become captive to the spirit of the age instead of captive to the Holy Spirit. I am sad they have embraced the world and not the Word. 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.) In recent times, Luther Seminary chapel has observed National Coming Out Day for homosexuals and the Transgender Day of Remembrance. Luther chapel has featured homosexual and transgender preachers and a womanist/feminist preacher had the students stand in a circle, hold hands, and imagine they were in the “pushy womb of God.” God is sometimes referred to as "Mother" and next month Luther Seminary will have a “Global Feminist Theologies” chapel service. At another chapel service, the preacher had students practice deep breathing meditation during his sermon. The result of the above? Luther Seminary has announced it will be selling off some of its campus buildings because of its financial problems. Yesterday I received the following message: "Pastor Brock, I began fasting today over the decision to attend Luther Seminary, and I found your article on their now liberal stance. Thank you so much for that article, it was the icing I needed to inform Luther I will not be attending their seminary in the fall! ...I was forwarded a text from a relative from Luther advertising free tuition... I had my final interview...yesterday. My final question to him was, “What is Luther’s stance on homosexuality?” To my dismay... he informed me that the professors are “liberal,” and I’d be among homosexuals in my classes that were welcomed... I was floored by that admission, but still wondered could this be God’s will for me... and I just read your piece where you ended, “Sadly, I can recommend my old seminary to no one.” Thank you sir. That was an answer to prayer... I’ll keep searching... God bless you and your candidness..!" In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock P.S. Please pray for The Pastor’s Study as we seek to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ on television and also as we warn people of false teaching in today’s churches. If you would like to support our work, you may donate online at pastorsstudy.org or send a check to: The Pastor’s Study P.O. 41294 Minneapolis, Mn. 55441 (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.)
Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, is advertising the May 2019 Festival of Homiletics with numerous liberal speakers like Brian McClaren, lesbian ELCA Pastor Barbara Lundblad, and ELCA Pastor David Lose who denies that Jesus died in our place to pay for our sins. Last year liberal senators Cory Booker and Elizabeth Warren addressed the Festival participants. It is also offering yoga for attendees with this description: "Yogadevotion...is an organic response to a deeply profound experience of God’s Presence following a vinyasa yoga class. The experience of God’s Presence through the practice of yoga... Some call it a time of prayer, some a time of worship, some a time to simply be present to God in a new way, and experience an increased sense of God’s Presence in the midst of busy lives." As I have noted in previous posts, my alma mater Luther Seminary has embraced radical worship with chapel services featuring homosexual and transgender preachers, "deep breathing" meditation, and womanist/feminist worship, sometimes referring to God as "She" and "Mother". A few months ago President Robin Steinke of Luther Seminary announced that, due to financial problems, Luther is selling off a number of its buildings. There is no sign that Luther Seminary has learned that unbiblical teaching will not grow a seminary. Sadly, I can recommend my old seminary to no one. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock
Do you think God approves of a man, dressed in drag, "singing" a provocative song in a chapel, on the chancel, next to the altar? Well, that is exactly what happened recently at an ELCA seminary chapel, a school charged with raising up pastors who will be shepherds to ELCA members. The school is Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) located in St. Paul, MN.
Luther Seminary is the largest pastor-producing seminary in the ELCA.
Below is Anders Nelson, the seminary student who was allowed to give this drag performance, who will soon be ordained in the ELCA, and his Facebook posts about the event.
Why is this allowed? It is because the ELCA has turned its back on God's Word. They walk in opposition to it. The liberal elites in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America have taken over the synods, churchwide offices in Chicago, colleges and seminaries. They are producing clones of themselves: people who think, act, speak, and believe as they do. This is a problem. And when it happens in seminaries, the problem is exacerbated. Students become pastors who disseminate throughout the United States to lead and preach to congregations, passing on to them what they were taught. This is a past, present and future problem, and it is getting worse every year.
The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). A couple weeks ago, Masters of Divinity student Elle Dowd preached during worship in the school's Augustana Chapel (listen to it here or read it here).
Elle Dowd didn't want us to miss it, as she contacted me a number of times wanting me to read her sermon (and write about, no doubt). The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago certainly thought highly of it as well, because they promoted it on their Facebook page and linked to the full audio of the sermon.
(Go see the seminary Facebook post here)
Here is Elle Dowd's second tweet seeking my attention:
Below is the type of teaching and preaching future ELCA pastors are digesting (and it has been like this for years). Lowlights of the sermon:
You can read more about this ELCA seminary student here. ELCA pastor Lura Groen responded to my tweeting this article:
And this from ELCA pastor John Sipf:
(The following two articles were written a few days ago by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.) Today's chapel service at Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, observed National Coming Out Day with a lesbian preacher. In her sermon (see video below), Lauren Morse-Wendt of Edina Community (ELCA) Lutheran Church, said that God told her to go to seminary and then said "You're gay, get over it." In her sermon she thanked God for giving her the strength to come out as a lesbian. The liturgy and responsive readings were designed to tell LGBT people that they are good and sacred. Of course, not a word about repentance from sexual sin since many in the ELCA no longer believe homosexual behavior is sin. In the sermon the preacher referenced her "wife" and children. My question is: Whatever happened to the 2009 ELCA decision to allow both conservative and liberal views on homosexuality? Luther Seminary chapel has hosted a number of homosexual and transgender speakers, when will they bring in a speaker to give the conservative view on sexuality? When will they allow a whole chapel service to be devoted to the Biblical, traditional point of view? I am afraid the liberal takeover of Luther Seminary is now so complete that such a day will never come. As stated in previous posts, Luther Seminary announced months ago that it is having to sell off a number of its buildings because of its financial problems. If you are still an ELCA Lutheran, it is time to stop funding its seminaries. May many, many people finally leave the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America for a more Biblical denomination. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock This congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has two ministers who are homosexual... The below video shows the congregation of Edina Community Lutheran Church. The woman minister has a “wife“ and the male pastor, whose interests are yoga and meditation, has a “husband“. The woman minister spoke this week at Luther Seminary’s observance of National Coming Out Day. (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 service at my alma mater, Luther Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In the below video, Luther professor Amy Maria, who teaches a course in "Womanist, Feminist, Mujerista Theology", is careful in her sermon to avoid using the pronoun "He" for God, and refers to God as "Mother" and "She." At the end of the service the congregation prays the Lord's Prayer with "Our Father who art in heaven", but in the past Luther chapel has also prayed to "Our Mother in heaven". So the new normal at Luther is to periodically call God "Father" and to periodically call God "Mother." Jesus never prayed to God as Mother and never taught us to do so. But that doesn't stop people who think they are enlightened from doing so. A few months ago I wrote about Luther Seminary's homosexual and transgender chapel preachers and how Luther's financial problems are now necessitating the sale of a number of its buildings. Sadly, they are not learning from their error. From what I can see, no sign of repentance. Please say a prayer for the ELCA colleges and seminaries. It would take an act of God to turn them around, but sometimes God acts! Sincerely in Christ, 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 by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
When I graduated from Luther in 1979 it was somewhat liberal, today it is extremely so. In past posts I have written of Luther’s chapel services with de-sexed God language, “breathing meditation”, and homosexual and transgender preachers. Luther President Robin Steinke has sent a letter asking for funds in which she states: “We’re leading into a new vision of an inclusive, counter-cultural, Christ-centered community. This semester, a representative group of students, faculty, and staff—including international community members, students of color, individuals who identify as LGBTQ+…progressives and conservatives—collaborated on an intentional welcome statement that gets to the heart of who we are…”. Then she drops the bombshell “…we are planning to put the lower campus…on the market this summer.” Thus Luther Seminary is in financial trouble and much of the campus has to be sold. The verse “You reap what you sow” comes to mind. A woman who watches our TV show and has been a contributor to Luther Seminary asked my opinion about giving to Luther. Even though I graduated from there, I told her that I cannot give Luther a penny because of the false teaching there. A prayer that I regularly pray is: “Lord may these erring denominations turn around, but if they are going to keep leading people astray, may they shrink and die and may the people in them be moved into more Biblical denominations.” I believe God is answering my prayer. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org (The following article was written a number of weeks ago by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Some months ago I wrote about my alma mater, Luther Theological Seminary, a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which brought in a transgender pastor to preach at chapel. She is a woman who presents herself as a man and who has rejected her God-given biological sex, thus, sadly, rejecting God’s will for her life. In her sermon she said (I cannot in full conscience call her “him”) that Joseph’s coat of many colors can also be translated “princess dress” and then she led in the Lord’s Prayer “Our Mother in heaven.” Attached is a new article from a transgender clergy candidate, a man who presents himself as a woman. Among his demands is the full inclusion of transgender people in the leadership of the ELCA. No need to demand this, the ELCA is already there and now ordains transgender pastors. This was done without a vote of the national church on the issue, but liberal bishops are promoting and allowing it anyway. To quote the ELCA’s head bishop Elizabeth Eaton “Everybody isn’t male or everybody isn’t female. There’s a whole spectrum to that. I think that’s something that’s new for a lot of our people to think about, but it’s the truth…” No, it is not the truth. Our response to transgenderism? The Old Testament forbids transvestitism (Deuteronomy 22:5) and in the New Testament Jesus said “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female?” (Matthew 19:4). We are not free to tell God He made a mistake by trying to change our God-given biological sex. We should not put people in leadership who are openly rejecting God’s plan for their lives. But it appears it is now in vogue in the ELCA to believe one has become “enlightened” if one embraces this rebellion against God. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock PS And please say a prayer as this week the ELCA is bringing in a transgender 12-year-old “girl” and his activist mother to speak to 30,000 ELCA teenagers at the ELCA youth gathering. https://wetalkwelisten.wordpress.com/2018/06/25/build-a-bigger-table-nicole-m-garcia-m-div-m-a-lpc/ (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.) My alma mater, Luther Theological Seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, recently brought in womanist preacher Denise Dunbar-Perkins. At the end of her sermon Reverend Dunbar-Perkins had the congregation stand in a circle as she led them in a strange exercise. I thought I had seen the strangest Luther chapel a few months ago when the first ELCA transgender pastor preached that Joseph's "coat of many colors" can also be translated "princess dress" and then prayed "Our Mother in Heaven..." But this latest feminist service urging the congregation to "receive the gifts of the pushy womb" is perhaps even stranger. I invite you to listen to two minutes of the below (start at minute 32). This is the kind of ridiculous heresy that results when we believe we are free to reject "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" language for God and invent our own images for God. This all started back in the 1990's with the "Reimagining God Conference" when Christian feminists from around the country gathered in Minneapolis. It was controversial back then and now it is being streamlined into Luther's chapel services. Luther Seminary was liberal back in 1979 when I graduated, but it still had a fair number of professors and administrators who would not have stood for this kind of strange worship at chapel. I wonder if any faculty today are questioning what is happening at Luther. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom 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. |
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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