An incredibly disturbing article was written a few days ago about Christ the King Lutheran Church in Cary, North Carolina. But even more disturbing than the content of the article, was the fact that the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America proudly shared this article (multiple times) to all of their followers on Twitter and Facebook.
The article is titled “Amid decline, one Lutheran church strives to live up to its namesake’s spirit.” (See here) The article begins by telling of a Bible study taught by ELCA pastor Daniel Pugh where he is “telling members of Christ the King Lutheran Church that one way to interpret the story of Adam and Eve is as a coming-of-age allegory about a pair of carefree teens caught red-handed having sex…In this, alternative reading of The Fall, the ‘forbidden fruit’ offered to Eve in Chapter 3 may be a metaphor for sex, he said, and the ‘serpent’ may be a metaphor for a penis.” This is outrageous. And it is indicative of the warped, foolish and evil way the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America views Scripture. See below how the ELCA itself is sharing this news article. Why would anyone stay in a denomination that teaches this perverted way of viewing God’s account of creation? They treat God's Word with contempt. Later in the article you learn that: - Christ the King Lutheran Church’s senior pastor is Wolfgang Herz-Lane, the former ELCA Delaware-Maryland Synod Bishop. - Pastor “Herz-Lane notified the church council that he planned to officiate at a same-sex marriage in Charlotte. Pugh, an associate pastor, performed one such marriage before coming on board…Herz-Lane now wants the church to declare itself a ‘reconciling’ congregation, meaning that it is welcoming and accepting of LGBTQ people.” - The newly appointed minister for contemporary music is a gay man. - “(C)hurch leaders want the congregation to take on more of an advocacy role…they want to start a local chapter of a national community-organizing network, the Industrial Areas Foundation, which could advocate for such things as health care, green energy, criminal justice or immigrant rights.” - “Herz-Lane hopes members gain a deeper appreciation for Luther’s willingness to break the mold and try new things.” Rev. Herz-Lane concludes “We’re here for the sake of the world, not to preserve some silly tradition.” Most Bible-believing Christians would be appalled by the anti-Biblical teaching, actions and “social justice” agenda of this church but the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is not. They proudly posted this article on their Facebook page. And on Twitter:
And again, on the ELCA News account:
Below are some ELCA Synods posting and sharing this article:
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The Northeast Iowa Synod recently shared on Facebook a blog they wrote in 2016 which encouraged people to NOT support certain (un-named) Christian charities, but instead give to ELCA-related organizations. (see here) And who might these Christian charities be? The synod says, “non-ELCA organization programs that involve putting small gifts and trinkets wrapped in boxes for children in other countries.”
This truly was an ugly, shallow, uncharitable, self-serving piece by the Northeast Iowa Synod, which gives highly questionable “reasons” to not work with such organizations. The synod blog, written by Rev. Dr. Joelle Colville-Hanson, said things such as:
“The cheap toys that people are encouraged to buy and put in the box may be made by exploited or even slave labor. Some are even made by children. Remember that we want to help children and make their lives better. Exploiting children or families is the opposite of what people want to do when they are looking for Christmas giving projects. Even if the toys are ethically produced, many of them are not culturally appropriate.” “Some of these organizations will add pamphlets with religious messages contrary to how we understand the Gospel. Many of them also have images with racist, sexist and culturally insensitive stereotypes.” “If we support organizations that contradict what we say about the Gospel, this can be confusing and even damaging to people’s faith.” It is true that Samaritan’s Purse has a different view of the Gospel than most leaders in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Samaritan’s Purse wants to share the love and truth of Christ, dying on the cross for our sins and rising from the dead three days later, having victory over death so that those who believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior (by grace through faith) will have eternal life. Whereas, the ELCA does not do this because the ELCA consensus is that “all will be saved” no matter what they believe. (see more on the ELCA’s universalism here) That is truly a dangerous and false belief, putting individuals' eternal life at risk if they believe that and do not believe in Christ. Yes, there is a different Gospel shared by Samaritan’s Purse than that of the ELCA. Which message do you agree with and what organization do you want to support?
If you are an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America member who believes Scripture, that homosexuality is a sin and that marriage is only to be between one man and one woman, then you are at odds with your denomination. You are the target of a propaganda effort by ELCA leadership to push their pro-homosexuality viewpoint on you and your family. The ELCA, by way of their institutions, publications and social media (among others) are bombarding people with their false, anti-scriptural, pro-LGBTQ view. Let me show you some examples.
The ELCA magazine Living Lutheran wrote an article titled, "Equal participants in the body of Christ: LGBTQ members find spiritual home in ELCA congregations." In the article you will find three pro-homosexual stories and one pro-transgender story. (see here)
-- The ELCA, through Living Lutheran, also published this pro-homosexual article titled, "A dad’s concern." (see here) It is written by an ELCA pastor.
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The ELCA Gulf Coast Synod tweeted that "LGBTQIA people are good & holy & made in the image of God.” See below.
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Another article from the ELCA’s Living Lutheran website says, “We want to ensure that LGBT individuals are in the fabric of our church and that it is never questioned.” (see here)
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The ELCA's Metropolitan New York Synod published an article on their website about two of their synod churches participating in gay pride marches. They title the article "Pride: conversations and connections." (see here) The ELCA synod's article claims falsely, as so many in the denomination do, that the ELCA's social statement, "Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust," is “grounded in scripture and Lutheran theology.” The article also says that a resolution was brought to the “. . . 2017 Synod Assembly that asks us to have deeper conversations with one another ‘that will seek to cultivate and nurture listening to one another’s stories, concerns, and fears, especially concerning issues of human sexuality and the call for full inclusion of all on the gender spectrum.’" (here is the link to this resolution) --
One month ago the presiding bishop in the ELCA wrote this moral and political social media post:
Then the ELCA Facebook page followed up with this today:
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And here we have the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America at the Metro D.C. Synod Assembly with a rainbow banner, a symbol of support for homosexuality, front and center:
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The ELCA Young Adults' Facebook page chimes in:
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The cover page of the June 2017 issue of Living Lutheran highlighted a teenager who won a contest with a doodle of "eight diverse teenagers lined up in an over-the-shoulder embrace. On their shirts were symbols of Islam, Judaism, Christianity, LGBT pride, gender nonconformity and disability rights." (see here, front page and page 17) -- (Former) ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson made a video (below) where he talks about bullying of gay people for "being the people God created them to be."
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The shot below sat on top of the page of an ELCA Facebook group that has almost 14,000 members:
The red sign in the above picture declares, "Queer Saints."
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The founder and moderator of this 14,000 member ELCA Facebook group, Rev. Clint Schnekloth, wrote an article for the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette saying,
“June is Gay Pride month, and I'm taking a moment to proclaim loudly and proudly how thankful I am for the increasing number of Christian faith communities who celebrate LGBTQ+ [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer] lives, and who partner with them to deepen our shared Christian walk of discipleship.” He goes on, “LGBTQ+ people are leaders in our congregation, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Fayetteville, and in our wider denomination, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. They serve on council, teach our Sunday school classes, are called as pastors and much more.” (see here) -- Just a couple of weeks ago the ELCA's Lower Susquehanna Synod posted a page on their website detailing their becoming an RIC synod, which means they are accepting and supporting homosexuality, as well as LGBT participation in church leadership. The page included a number of videos and additional information in support of their message. (see here) --
Below is a social media post by the ELCA's Sierra Pacific Synod in support of people marching in Gay Pride events:
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Another Living Lutheran magazine article by the ELCA tells us: "The (sic) can also be said of same-sex couples who are seeking acceptance in a congregational setting. All congregations are supposed to be welcoming, but there’s a difference between lip-service and genuine acceptance and hospitality. Eight years ago the ELCA Churchwide Assembly voted in support of LGBTQIA folks both as rostered leaders and members within the church body, yet how many of our congregations make a point of posting visible signs of welcome to this community? Better yet, how many congregations are willing to have a Pride Sunday in addition to Mother’s and Father’s Day celebrations?" (see here)
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The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, a seminary of the ELCA, posted this on their Facebook page:
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Below is a response to an Exposing the ELCA post from Mike Rinehart, bishop of the ELCA's Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod. Notice his view of those with an accurate historical and biblical view of this issue. -- Here are a number of other Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Living Lutheran articles presenting homosexuality in a positive light:
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Here is another pro-homosexual article from the ELCA magazine Living Lutheran. As you can see below it was shared by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Living Lutheran Facebook pages:
Friend to Exposing the ELCA, Rev. Tom Brock, recently wrote about the above ELCA article and shared his concern over the ELCA's pro-homosexual agenda. Here is what Pastor Brock wrote:
No surprise here: Yet another ELCA article promoting gay pride. Gus Barnes, Jr., a seminarian of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, writes a June 25th article for the Living Lutheran website, the official magazine of the ELCA. He writes: "I am now back at Wartburg (Seminary); will marry my spouse, Steve, this summer; and will finish school by the first week of February. My faith is strong, knowing the challenges I may face in the future. My inner pride is carrying me through the journey to ordination....This pride flows through me, a gay man in an interracial relationship. This pride keeps me grounded in my faith daily..." There has not been one article with a conservative viewpoint on homosexuality in "Living Lutheran", but there have been an abundance of articles like the above painting transgenderism and homosexuality in a positive light. In 2009 the ELCA agreement was to respect both conservatives and liberals on this issue. Living Lutheran has given no space to the traditional, Biblical point of view. The abundance of pro-gay and pro-transgender articles shows that Living Lutheran's leadership has an agenda and the powers that be in the ELCA are allowing them to push their agenda through the ELCA's national magazine. Yet one more example of why members of the ELCA should leave this erring denomination and join a more biblical branch of Lutheranism. ELCA offering dollars help support Living Lutheran. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock (See Pastor Brock's article here)
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Pastor Tom Brock had this to say in another blog: “Around the country, ELCA churches are often found marching in some of these lewd parades. The ELCA has a practicing homosexual bishop in southwest California who has a 'husband' And last year the ELCA's executive for worship (a 'married' homosexual pastor) came out with official materials so that ELCA pastors can perform gay 'weddings.' The ELCA materials declare this blasphemy: 'God joins this celebration, pouring out the Holy Spirit to bless your marriage...' ELCA presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton called the materials ‘faithful.'" (see here)
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Below is a small taste of all the pro-gay messages happening from individual ELCA pastors and churches:
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Here is another:
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Next is the popular ELCA pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber's church:
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This ELCA Pastor tweets:
-- Then you can read this newspaper article about a tiny ELCA church which mentions them being an RIC church here. -- Lots of ELCA Lutherans marching in this Gay Pride parade:
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This ELCA church makes a public witness by marching in a gay pride parade and posting their pictures for the world to see. (see here and below) How sad and evil that ELCA members, both straight and those struggling with same-sex desires, are being deceived and bombarded by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, pushing their pro-LGBT agenda. An agenda that stands in direct opposition to God and His Word. (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.)
According to the May 2017 issue of the ELCA "Living Lutheran" magazine, "The 2016 Churchwide Assembly overwhelmingly approved memorials from 20 synods and affirmed that this church will eliminate the doctrine of discovery from its contemporary rhetoric and programs (my note: this is a reference to Columbus, etc.), electing to practice accompaniment with native peoples instead of a missionary endeavor to them..." Did you catch that? Of course we should renounce the injustices done to Native Americans (which have been many) but to say we will no long engage in "missionary endeavor to them" is evil. The worse thing we can do to any people group is to withhold the preaching of Christ to them. This "nice" assembly decision is in fact mean and shows no concern for people and their eternal salvation. And, yes, Jesus is still the only way of salvation (John 14:6, Acts 4:12). Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org
(The following article was written a couple of weeks ago by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and twitter - here.)
Claire Burkat is bishop of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. She gives this response to President Trump's tweet that transgendered people will no longer be allowed in the military: "Most of the discussion since yesterday's tweet set off an avalanche of hate and discrimination against people we should be thanking for their service, is centered around the bogus issue of medical costs. But what about the cost to our national security when thousands of skilled transgender military personnel are forced to leave? The loss of multiple language skills, medical skills, intelligence skills, combat skills, mechanical skills, engineering skills, leadership skills and other skills so critical and classified we don't even know about them is incalculable!" My response: "Avalanche of hate"? It sounds like she believes if you disagree with men who believe they are women serving in the military you are guilty of "hate." "Cost to our national security...incalculable?" Highly doubtful that not allowing transgendered people to shower and share close quarters with others is going to hurt America's readiness and soldiers' morale. This is one more example of an ELCA bishop jumping on the gay/transgender bandwagon that is going through our culture. Instead, she should uphold the dignity of God's creation and teach that we humans do not have a right to tell God He made a mistake by assigning us our sex at birth. And, yes, this is one more reason to leave the ELCA, which is more and more becoming the Extremely Liberal Church in America. Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org A recently passed resolution by the New England Synod Assembly says the following:
"Be it resolved that the New England Synod memorialize the ELCA Churchwide Assembly to initiate a process to amend the phrase 'bring all people to faith in Christ' in C4.02b and its constitutional parallels in order to achieve greater consonance with both our understanding of Christian witness and sensitivity to our interfaith contexts." (see here) They want "to amend the phase 'bring all people to faith in Christ...'" What kind of true Christian denomination and Christ-following church leadership would want that? None. A resolution like this is the result of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's radical rejection of the truth of Scripture. When leaders in the ELCA teach universalism, that there is no hell, and their missionaries do not seek to convert the lost, why not remove the phrase “bring all people to faith in Christ” and all similar words from ELCA official documents? Watch to see if this comes up in upcoming ELCA churchwide assemblies and other synod assemblies and if the resolution passes. Additionally, at this year's Oregon Synod Assembly, there was the “Adoption of a bylaw allowing congregations to send additional Voting Members to Assemblies who can speak to us about concerns of the LGBTQIA community.” (see here) Is this like stacking the deck? They are allowing churches to bringing additional voting members specifically because of their supportive view on LGBTQIA issues. I wonder what pro-homosexual, pro-transgender initiatives will result from future Oregon Synod assemblies? As if they were not liberal enough. The same people who passed this resolution would throw a fit if someone presented a resolution saying the synod should also allow congregations to send additional voting members to assemblies who hold traditional views of marriage and can speak to heterosexual concerns.
This year the ELCA's Southwest California Synod voted to become a 'Sanctuary synod.' The Synod describes what that means saying "the congregations of our Synod will commit to pray for immigrants and refugees among us and will strive to be places of radical welcome, refuge, and protection” and "that we will work to protect the dignity, safety, and basic human needs of all immigrants and refugees among us, even by resisting policies that seek to turn away and harm the stranger.” (see here)
They are not the only Evangelical Lutheran Church in Amercia synod to become a "Sanctuary Synod." The ELCA Sierra Pacific Synod Assembly passed “Amended Resolution 2017-2 Regarding Sanctuary Synod.” In the Resolution we find that the Sierra Pacific Synod "pledges to resist by advocacy, protest, and nonparticipation those policy proposals that target and seek to deport millions of undocumented immigrants..." (see here)
Last year the ELCA Oregon Synod announced "Oregon Lutherans Declare themselves a Sanctuary Church." The synod writes, "This past weekend official representatives of the Oregon Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted to make their church the first 'Sanctuary Synod' in the nation. This action encourages each of the 115 ELCA congregations and ministries throughout the state to 'become Sanctuary churches ready to protect refugees and undocumented sisters and brothers from arrest and deportation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.' (see here)
The ELCA's New England Synod voted this year to become a "Sanctuary Synod." (see here)
The Central States Synod of the ELCA is looking at becoming a "Sanctuary Synod" and will likely make a decision on it next year. (see here) I have no doubt many others will follow. ELCA Synods and ELCA churches declaring themselves to be places of sanctuary to illegal immigrants need to look carefully at what that means because they could very well be braking the law. ELCA Bishop Rick Jaech of the Southwestern Washington Synod warns his Synod "...no country today, including the United States, provides legal permission for a church to deny entrance to a legal authority looking for someone who is suspected of having committed an illegal act. Therefore, a congregation that is considering whether to give shelter to a person who is at risk of deportation should first consult with an attorney to research all of the specific legal considerations." (see here)
Mike Housholder is the senior pastor of the ELCA’s largest church, Lutheran Church of Hope, in West Des Moines, Iowa. Last week Lutheran Church of Hope hosted the ELCA’s Southeastern Iowa Synod Assembly where Pastor Housholder was one of five sponsors of a resolution which seeks to bring more refugees into the United States. Here are the main parts of Housholder’s resolution:
“RESOLVED that the Southeastern Iowa Synod Assembly of the ELCA, encourage its bishop, pastors, and congregations to engage in a process of education, conversation, and prayerful discernment regarding the ongoing refugee crisis; RESOLVED that the Southeastern Iowa Synod Assembly encourage members of the Southeastern Iowa Synod to live out our biblical mandate to welcome the stranger by advocating to their elected officials for an increase, rather than a decrease, in refugee arrivals to our nation and communities;” “Respectfully Submitted by: Luis Arredondo, Lutheran Church of Hope, West Des Moines Rev. Minna Bothwell, Capitol Hill Lutheran Church, Des Moines Rev. Mike Housholder, Lutheran Church of Hope, West Des Moines Rev. Chris Olkiewicz, Windsor Heights Lutheran Church, Windsor Heights Rev. Sarah Trone Garriott, Faith Lutheran Church, Clive” The resolution was “adopted.” (see here and then click "Resolution 2." That link will take you to a document that must be downloaded to view) As is noted in the resolution, this is about the "ongoing refugee crisis." Given recent world events and the current political climate (i.e. "the Muslim ban" discussion and legal battle), it’s troubling that Mike Housholder and the SE Iowa Synod are asking the U.S. government to bring more refugees into the United States of America. A major concern is that a vast majority of people leaving their homelands and considered “refugees” today are from pre-dominantly Muslim countries where Muslim radical groups continually advocate for death to Christians or Americans. (here is an article about the world's refugees) The ideology of Islam, which many Muslims embrace, is that of its founder and the writer of the Islamic holy book, the Quran. What did the founder teach and practice? Forced submission to the Islamic faith, persecution or death. This is not just a former characteristic of this ideology, but we are seeing extremists of the Muslim faith continuing this all over the world today, most recently in Manchester, England where teenagers and parents were targeted at a concert attracting thousands of young people. Knowing this, we have an ELCA pastor in Mike Housholder, whose church is growing so much that they have opened up satellite ELCA churches in nearby towns, advocating that the United States bring more refugees in our country--some whose religion teaches to persecute and kill Christians if they do not convert, treat women as cattle, kill homosexuals, hate Jews, celebrate the murder of “infidels,” perform female genital mutilation on young girls, arrange for child brides, advocate the hatred of dogs and practice and enforce sharia law over the law of the United States. Look at all of the terrorist acts being committed in the world today and who is taking responsibility for them? Muslim extremists groups. And Pastor Mike Housholder wants to bring more refugees into the U.S. from countries that sponsor and harbor Muslim extremists? Have you seen the problems and crimes, including rapes and terrorism, happening by Muslim refugees in European countries? Check out the videos in this link regarding what is happening, in Germany alone, by Muslim "refugees." And who will pay for all these refugees to come here, to live here? Mike Housholder and the SE Iowa Synod wants you, the U.S. taxpayer, to foot the bill by asking the U.S. government to accept more refugees. That will fall on you, the taxpayer to fund this endeavor. Mike Housholder and the SE Iowa Synod are advocating for a policy that could put YOU and your family in danger, AND they want you to pay for it. I recommend every member of Lutheran Church of Hope let Mike Housholder and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America know, in writing and in person, that they vehemently disagree with their refugee resolution (and the ELCA’s LGBTQ policies, transgender policies, pro-abortion policies, Anti-Israel policies, universalist beliefs, anti-biblical teachings and agenda of gender-neutral language for God, among others), and let them know you will not be part of their church and denomination any longer. -- Your gift helps this ministry continue to warn of the heretical teachings and troubling direction of the ELCA. Give online by clicking the "donate" button below: The ELCA’s Gulf Coast Synod will be giving prayer beads to those that attend their synod assembly this year. As Lutherans you do not hear about prayer beads too often (unless you’ve read about the ELCA churches which use prayer beads for their goddess rosary services. See here and here) (link to the synod post here)
Prayer beads are often associated with other religions, like Islam, and with the Catholic church. Some people would tell you using prayer beads for your Christian prayer life is fine, a tool which can help you pray beyond your own needs. Others would caution that prayer beads are not a practice found in the Bible. They would also say that Scripture warns us to not thoughtlessly repeat prayers over and over, which the prayer beads are used for. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:7 “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” Got Questions Ministries says this about prayer beads, “Prayers are not to be merely recited or repeated mindlessly as though they are automatic formulas. Many who use prayer beads today claim that the rosary helps them take the focus off themselves and onto Christ, but the question is really one of the efficacy of repeating the same phrases over and over in a mantra-like manner. Prayer is an incredible privilege for the Christian, as we are invited by the Creator of the universe to come ‘boldly’ into His presence (Hebrews 4:16) and communicate with Him. Prayer is the means by which we praise Him, adore Him, give thanks to Him, submit to Him, and bring before Him petitions for ourselves and intercessions for others. It’s hard to see how that intimate communion with Him is enhanced by repeating simple prayers over and over again via prayer beads.” (see here) --- Your gift to Exposing the ELCA will help this ministry continue. Gifts can be made by going to the “Help” page 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.)
Years ago when I was a pastor in the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, three of the worse days of the year were attending the Minneapolis Area Synod Assembly. Speakers were almost always pushing us to the left of the theological spectrum. I just glanced at the schedule for the upcoming Minneapolis Area Synod Assembly. Things are as bad as ever. The keynote speaker is Dr. David Lose, President of the Lutheran Theological Seminary of Philadelphia. Dr. Lose denies that Jesus died on the cross in our place to bear the wrath of God in order to make atonement for our sins. A second speaker is popular speaker Reverend Barbara Lundblad. She has been in a lesbian relationship for many years, way before the ELCA decided in favor of the ordination of practicing homosexuals. She broke the rules for years and now she is invited to speak at an ELCA Assembly. I am so glad I am no longer a part of the ELCA and no longer required to go to these assemblies. May the Lord grow the churches that honor Him, and may those that dishonor Him repent, and if they don't repent, may they shrink--and the liberal denominations are indeed shrinking. In Jesus our Savior, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org The ELCA’s Western Iowa Synod is publicizing a "White Privilege Conference" to synod members, saying, "All are encouraged to participate." (see below) The conference is sponsored in part by the Transgender Training Institute. (see here) Ron Havick is an ELCA pastor at St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Chula Vista, California. In one of his Facebook posts, he seems to be advocating for women to be able to walk around topless in public and chiding Christians for not agreeing. Here is his post and more of his comments below. Here is the news article Pastor Havick posted. The vast majority of Pastor Ron Hovick's Facebook posts contain anger at Republicans and President Trump. However, once in a while, he posts something nonpolitical like this quote from heretic, John Dominic Crossan, about Bible stories being symbolic. What?!?! An ELCA pastor who doesn't believe the accounts of Scripture actually happened? Unbelievable! It's hard to come across a raging liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America pastor without finding that they also demonize Israel. Pastor Hovick is no exception. The post below shows his support of an extremely biased report which calls Israel an apartheid state. And finally, here is ELCA Pastor Hovick swearing and name-calling.
Below an ELCA synod posts pictures of kids sharing their reasons for opposing fracking. I did not see the synod post pictures of children voicing their support for fracking:
- Then we have ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton taking a position on the Standing Rock pipeline issue and she points to racism as a reason for the crisis. She writes: “I believe that we are called as a church to support the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe: to stand with the Tribe as they seek justice, to encourage our congregations to pray for them and to offer material support, and to examine the racism inherent in our system that contributes to the current crisis.” (see here) - Standing on the liberal side again, WELCA posts a blog that opposes the celebration of Columbus Day:
- During the spring of 2015 the ELCA’s St. Ansgar Lutheran Church in Portland, Maine celebrated ecofeminism! (see here)
The ELCA has always been political, pushing their liberal democrat viewpoints and policies. But the political climate of today has the ELCA leaders raving mad and constantly making news.
Bringing refugees to the United States is the hot topic this week with President Trump's executive order placing a temporary halt on refugees coming here from seven countries where terrorism and violent extremist ideology is so prevalent. You can read more about President Trump’s Executive Order here. President Obama did something very similar, as have other presidents (see here and here), in stopping immigration from certain countries, but, interestingly, I don't remember the liberals marching in the streets and throwing a fit at that point in time. That is certainly what the ELCA leadership is doing now. They are wrong. They are risking the safety of Americans. They are placing our society at risk, and they have no Biblical justification for what they are doing. The ELCA has been frantic in producing letters, social media posts, news releases and calls to action in response to Donald Trump's temporary halt on bringing refugees from a few select nations into the United States. Just yesterday the ELCA released this message, ELCA presiding bishop addresses President Trump’s refugee executive order (see here), where she writes, "I am convinced that temporarily banning vulnerable refugees will not enhance our safety nor does it reflect our values as Christians. Instead, it will cause immediate harm..." Regarding this message by the ELCA's presiding bishop, the ELCA Rocky Mountain Synod's bishop Jim Gonia said "I am asking all ELCA congregations in the Rocky Mountain Synod to share this statement by our Presiding Bishop with congregants, and to encourage all people in your communities of faith to take action with respect to our church's long-standing commitment to accompanying refugees in this country." (see here) Many other ELCA synods posted Presiding Bishop Eaton's message on their Facebook pages.
Next is a list of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America leaders who signed a letter against the refugee executive order, saying "This nation has an urgent moral responsibility to receive refugees and asylum seekers..." (see here)
(I have listed all the ELCA bishops who signed the letter as of Feb. 1st. There are many more ELCA pastors listed that I have not included here) Here is a press release from LIRS, an organization promoted on the ELCA's website under "Our Work," titled Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service Condemns the Trump Administration’s Actions Against Refugees and Migrants (see here) Of course, ELCA Advocacy is up in arms about the Executive Order: Again we see the ELCA's Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) which "has resettled a half-million refugees and migrants since its founding in 1939,” (see here) and takes in a great deal of government money for their refugee work. Here is something else that they posted: Bishop Rick Jaech of the ELCA's Southwestern Washington Synod writes, "Immigration Refugee Blockage is Contrary to Way of Christ". (see here) Anne Edison-Albright is an ELCA pastor at Luther College. She tweets:
He is not ELCA but the Bishop of the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada tweets this:
Finally, I believe these last two tweets are from ELCA laypersons:
Thank the Lord that He has given us some godly, wise ministers and laypersons to counter the ELCA's falsehoods. The son of Billy Graham, Rev. Franklin Graham writes, “It’s not a biblical command for the country to let everyone in who wants to come, that’s not a Bible issue.” He goes on, “We want to love people, we want to be kind to people, we want to be considerate, but we have a country and a country should have order and there are laws that relate to immigration and I think we should follow those laws...Because of the dangers we see today in this world, we need to be very careful.” (see here) Popular speaker and blogger Matt Walsh writes, "And I know that there is nothing in Scripture that compels me to become an open borders advocate. Nowhere does it say that countries may not rigorously screen immigrants and refugees. Trump has so far done nothing with respect to refugees and immigration that I, as a Christian, am called upon to oppose. Nothing. Sorry." (see here) Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary addresses the situation here, How should Christians think biblically about President Trump's latest Executive Order on refugees? (read here) On a different blog, Matt Walsh writes: "Trump has temporarily prohibited the citizens of 7 particular countries from entering the United States. Those countries were singled out as 'countries of concern' -- by Obama originally -- because they churn out terrorists by the bushel. Any rational, honest person would agree that we must be careful in how we admit people from places like Somalia and Libya and other failed states where militant jihadists are hatched by the thousands. It's not Trump's fault that the most dangerous nations in the world happen to be majority Muslim. And, anyway, there are 43 majority Muslim nations left unaffected by this new rule. Muslim ban? No. Not at all.” (see here) There are even Muslims and a former Muslims who support the President's Executive Order. Here is a CBN interview with a former Muslim who said "Don't bash this banning. This is wisdom, this is not racism....you can't shake hands with the devil." (See here) And read this article from a Muslim Iraqi who agrees with President Trump's Executive Order, "Chris Kyle's Iraqi Interpreter Has Blistering Message for All the Protesters Over Trump's 'Muslim Ban'" The ELCA is clearly an ultra-left, Democrat, money-collecting, quazi-Christian, social justice entity. They stand against Republican policies and conservative ideas. They stand against Biblical beliefs. And if you are one of these, the ELCA stands against you. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has an obsession with sex, and increasingly, as in this case, sexualizing God.
We Talk. We Listen is a website that is connected, at least informally, with the ELCA’s Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. An LSTC professor is the editor. An LSTC emblem adorns the homepage that also has multiple links to LSTC. And most contributors are connected to the school. Last spring, the website posted a piece called “Re-Naming God and Smashing Idols” by Francisco Herrera, a Ph. D student at Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. After reading his garbage, and you should read the whole blog, one has to wonder what kind of insanity is permeating this once Christian denomination. The article begins with the author telling about a class discussion where Song of Songs 2:8-13 was read. The question was asked, “If this excerpt from the Song of Songs is God speaking to us, what does it say about God?” The author, Francisco Herrera replied “God is a woman… who loves us, who desires us, who wants to make love to us, who longs for us in a perfumed garden, eagerly waiting to give herself to us with passion and abandon.” Then he writes, “And as I spoke, seduced by my own imagination, there I was – languishing in some highland orchard, hiding myself among the apple and peach blossoms – oiling my skin, lining my eyes with kohl, waiting for my Lord to come so that that he could delight in me, and I could delight in him.” He continues with these gems, “And yes, I was being provocative, at least for this crowd, but I believed my insolence towards the class honest and just. Despite the shocking nature of what I said, in truth, my comment was actually a classic example of biblical literalism. If this excerpt is God speaking to us, well then, God is a woman who wants to have sex with us – apples and turtledoves and young stags and all. No imagination necessary. What’s more, these soon-to-be-pastors’ well worn theological tropes – though socially acceptable – completely drained this holy Scripture of its unquenchable fire and, well, butchered its song. But what really took my breath away was how quickly students moved to hush me – scandalized by the idea that God could possibly be a sexually active woman.” “And at that point I could truly appreciate how shocking and vital it was to speak of God not only as ‘not male,’ but in brave and shocking ways, indecent ways – because doing so exposes the hidden idols in our theology that so often blind us to the pain and suffering and oppression that we initiate and/or perpetuate.” “Using such powerfully transgressive language for God often does a fine job of exposing destructive limitations in our theology, limitations that we have been taught, even inherited – and hence makes it easier for us to query them and, as with any idol, to smash them.” (read here) What warped thinking and theology! Come on ELCA, you are championing this evil? Rev. Dr. Linda E. Thomas, Professor of Theology and Anthropology, Chair of the LSTC’s Diversity Committee and Editor of “We Talk. We Listen” made this comment about Francisco Herrera’s article, “if we don’t open ourselves to myriad ways of talking about God, then we can very well sacrifice others on the idols of our own theological complacency.”
(The following was written last week by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and twitter - here.)
ELCA Lutheran homosexual pastor is thrilled that the ELCA in Texas offers three options for sexuality in registrations... Tragic to see how far things have fallen so quickly. Another reason to leave the ELCA. Pastor Tom Brock Pastorsstudy.org |
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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