(The following article was written by Rev. Tom Brock of pastorsstudy.org. You can follow Pastor Brock on Facebook - here and Twitter - here.)
Theresa Latini is the president of the newly formed United Lutheran Seminary in Pennsylvania, a merger of two shrinking seminaries of the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Years ago Latini was the director of OneByOne, a group of which I am a board member and which teaches that homosexual behavior is contrary to God’s will. Someone found articles Latini wrote back in the late 1990s with OnebyOne's heading and she and OneByOne are now under attack. See this article by the pro-homosexual group Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries: https://www.elm.org/…/elm-statement-concerning-united-luth…/ And see this blog by a professor at United Lutheran seminary who laments that Latini used to think homosexuality is wrong: https://happylutheran.blog/…/forgiveness-a…/comment-page-1/… Most tragically, however, is that President Latini has now repudiated the Bible’s teaching on homosexuality and has wholeheartedly embraced the LGBTQ community. She believes the Holy Spirit helped her “evolve” to embrace homosexual relationships. She has experienced “transformation”. To quote Latini: “Thanks to the Spirit’s work and relationships with an ever-expanding community of others, my understanding and ministry evolved into one that is “open and affirming” of LGBTQ+ persons. I listened to church leaders and theologians who had adopted an inclusive sexual ethic based on compelling interpretations of scripture and theology. I met LGBTQ+ Christians who celebrated their sexuality as a gift of God and somehow managed to remain in a church that rejected them—barring them from ordination and refusing to bless their faithful partnerships…In short, transformation worked its way in me…I apologized to persons I knew had been hurt by my previous work, and committed myself to teaching, writing, and administrating from a position of support and advocacy for my LGBTQ+ students, colleagues, and others. I regret the ways that my words and work once failed to embody inclusion, justice, and care. I am now the proud President of United Lutheran Seminary, a Reconciling in Christ seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). As the leader of this community of faith and learning, I acknowledge the beauty and diversity of God’s creation, including all sexual orientations and gender identities. Together we are working to become culturally competent, actively identifying and resisting homophobia and heteronormativity (as well as other forms of bias) in our community and world.” (For Latini’s entire statement here: http://theresalatini.com/open-and-affirming/) The trustees of United Lutheran Seminary are now making this “highest priority” and are expressing “our distress and concern for the pain experienced by so many”. They are calling for a special meeting (see here: https://unitedlutheranseminary.edu/statement-board-trustees-march-2nd/) Wait a minute. What happened to the 2009 decision of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America that conservatives’ “bound conscience” on homosexual behavior would be just as respected as liberals’ “bound conscience”? What happened to the decision that the ELCA will allow both views? It appears now that a seminary president cannot hold to the traditional, biblical teaching on homosexuality without perhaps losing her job. And this president doesn’t even believe the Bible anymore on the issue. It appears to me the liberals are firmly in control of the ELCA and will permit no view but their own. Most sadly in all this is that Latini attributes her endorsement of homosexual behavior to the Holy Spirit. That is much too close to blasphemy. Please pray for her and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America which grows more heretical by the day Sincerely in Christ, Pastor Tom Brock pastorsstudy.org
7 Comments
JS
3/6/2018 05:16:44 pm
“Thanks to the Spirit’s work..."
Reply
John
3/7/2018 05:15:24 pm
JS,
Reply
Didaskalos
3/10/2018 06:13:43 am
If you want to see the self-deceived depths of apostasy to which the ELCA's leadership has sunk, the latest exhibit is "Open Letter to the ULS President and Board of Trustees" [ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Lzd2PeFulBFu2CKUdNKID63bQy9wCOdtLVZuWwxJ85s/edit ]
Reply
John
3/6/2018 10:36:01 pm
The ELCA is an Orwellian trainwreck. Besides Latini, they've targeted one of ELM's board members too -- "Give us names!"
Reply
3/7/2018 07:32:41 am
Before selling out to the world, most of the ELCA used to hold to a Biblical sexual ethic:
Reply
Slade the Leveller
3/12/2018 06:56:24 am
First and foremost, I normally don't mind whatsoever putting up my real name because I fear very few mortals in this life. But seeing the political climate we live in these day *and* these Regressive Liberals being reprehensible pieces of garbage, I decided to go against my better judgment and cloak my identity in secrecy. That said I will move on with the following.
Reply
3/20/2018 09:26:04 am
The Problem, Pastor Brock, is that of free will on both sides. No one is saved by the law, neither those who demand it be kept nor those who cannot keep it (that being all of us). We are saved by faith alone. Both sides are fruitlessly arguing two sides of the same coin: the law. ELCA doesn't get it because ELCA is theologically non compos mentis.
Reply
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
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.
Give online by clicking the "donate" button below: Categories
All
Archives
February 2025
Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. - Ephesians 5:11
|