ELCA Exposed News on Abortion
Analysis of the ELCA Position on Abortion
We commend the tens and hundreds of thousands of members of the ELCA who have held steadfastly to the teaching of the Bible and the historic Christian commitments regarding the sanctity of human life. We know they are grieved by the strange doctrine and teaching, which advocates the killing of innocent, unborn children, into which many bishops, pastors, and other leaders have taken their church.
. . .A member of the ELCA inquired of the Board of Pensions as to whether they would pay for an abortion for the purpose of sex selection. That board stated that they would pay for an abortion for that purpose. The secretary of the ELCA confirmed this conclusion. . . ELCA Churchwide Assembly Minutes 1997 (p. 774-784)(In the action below the ELCA rejected putting any restrictions on the abortions the ELCA health insurance covers)
Yes–271; No–651 DEFEATED: To amend the recommendation of the Memorials Committee by substituting the following for paragraph five: To express to the Church Council that the spirit of this Churchwide Assembly is that the ELCA Health Plan should pay for induced abortion of pregnancy only in cases that involve pregnancy that results from the violence of rape or incest, or serious threats to the physical health of the mother, or abnormalities of the embryo or fetus that are incompatible with life. |
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ELCA Churchwide Assembly Minutes 2001 (p. 360-366)
Three ELCA Synods asked the ELCA "to direct the Board of Pensions
to enact regulations that would limit payment for abortions to those exceptional cases where the life of the mother is threatened, where the pregnancy resulted from rape, incest, or where the embryo or fetus has lethal abnormalities incompatible with life."
But the Memorials Committee made a recommendation that was moved and seconded. It said ". . .To decline to direct the Church Council of the ELCA to undertake at this time alteration of the terms of the medical plan for church workers that is
administered through the Board of Pensions."
The Assembly voted on the Memorials Committee recommendation. It passed, Yes–815; No–125
to enact regulations that would limit payment for abortions to those exceptional cases where the life of the mother is threatened, where the pregnancy resulted from rape, incest, or where the embryo or fetus has lethal abnormalities incompatible with life."
But the Memorials Committee made a recommendation that was moved and seconded. It said ". . .To decline to direct the Church Council of the ELCA to undertake at this time alteration of the terms of the medical plan for church workers that is
administered through the Board of Pensions."
The Assembly voted on the Memorials Committee recommendation. It passed, Yes–815; No–125
The ELCA Health Plan Covers Abortions - Exposed Blog
Abortion 'must be legal and accessible': Evangelical Lutheran Church (2022)
. . .This is not the first time the ELCA has garnered controversy for its progressive ecclesiology. . .
A pastoral message on abortion (2022 from ELCA top Bishop)
. . .I urge you to work locally to moderate any Supreme Court decision similar to the leaked draft. Not only would such a decision cause grave harm for many people with unexpected pregnancies, but it could create other problems as well. It has the potential to foster communities of conflict and moral policing rather than complex moral discernment. It will likely endanger or cause the deaths of people who need an abortion. And the legal bases established by any such decision threaten people's access to birth control, same-sex marriage, voting rights and their right to privacy. . .
An Analysis of Bishop Eaton’s “A Pastoral Message on Abortion” (2022)
. . .It is very typical of Bishop Eaton to say a few words to make it sound like there is room for traditional views within the ELCA, but then she always comes down solidly on the revisionist side. . .
Bishop Eaton issues pastoral message on SCOTUS ruling regarding Roe v. Wade (2022)
. . .Overturning Roe v. Wade and placing decisions about abortion regulation at the state level encumbers and endangers the lives of all persons who need to make decisions about unexpected pregnancies. . .
The ELCA's Abortion Policy: What Other Lutherans Have Said
| the_elca_abortion_policy1.pdf |
New Abortion Supporting Letter By the ELCA's Presiding Bishop Should Be the Last Straw
. . . the letter that was written ELCA Presiding Bishop reveals the truth about the denomination's stance on abortion:
"Amid the legislative challenges to access to abortion, we must remember that this church supports ongoing access to legal abortion as well as access to abortion services and reproductive health care that is not restricted by economic factors." (See here). . .
"Amid the legislative challenges to access to abortion, we must remember that this church supports ongoing access to legal abortion as well as access to abortion services and reproductive health care that is not restricted by economic factors." (See here). . .
Abortion is Still 100% Indefensible
. . .The leader of any church who approves of abortions and tells the church members that they can reconsider the 6th commandment, “You shall not murder,” should be ignored. . .
ELCA part of White House reproductive rights meeting (2022)
. . .“We were all in agreement that we wanted to protect reproductive rights,” . .
Pro-Life Resolutions Help Provide a Clearer Picture of the ELCA’s Pro-Choice Stance
. . .I recommend you take a few minutes to read the linked documents. . . as they provide a clear picture of the ELCA’s true positions on abortion and the life of an unborn child. . .
Lutherans are for Life
. . . ELCA co-owns a Chicago hospital called Christ. It was there that nurse Jill Stanek discovered little victims of live-birth abortions who had been placed in the broom closet in cold metal pans-there to gasp out their young lives in the darkness. Jill held these suffering children as they died, praying for them and singing to them. For her pains, Jill was fired by the administrators of this hospital. . .
In Budget Battle, Church Officials Fast against Cuts, Silent on Planned Parenthood
“Why are church groups denouncing budget cuts for reputedly hurting the poor but SILENT about public funding for Planned Parenthood and Medicaid abortions in D.C.?”
The ELCA and Abortion by JoAnna Wahlund
. . .In my 22 years as a faithful, churchgoing member of the ELCA, I could not remember hearing a Lutheran pastor preach a sermon on abortion. It was not an issue discussed in any of the three ELCA churches I’d attended up to that point in my life. Shortly thereafter I accessed online the ELCA’s Social Statement on Abortion (SSOA), and as I read it my faith in the ELCA was shaken to the core. . .
Atrocity: Many Churches Support Abortion
. . .Evangelical Lutheran Church In America's Social Statement On Abortion is an exercise in hypocrisy and nothing more than an attempt to please everyone involved except the unborn. . .
Is the ELCA Really the Kind of Church It Claims to Be?
. . .The following litany pairs quotes from the ELCA’s Social Message on Immigration, issued in November 1998, with the message conveyed by the ELCA’s Social Statement on Abortion and its employee health benefits plan, which will pay for any and all surgical abortion procedures performed during the first five months of the unborn child’s life, no questions asked. . .
Leaving the Culture of Death Behind
. . .After my pro-life conversion, I wanted to tell the world about the senseless slaughter. When I shared my story with our pastor, he kept badgering me about who would take care of the crack babies and who would adopt all these children. Eventually, my pastor reminded me that the ELCA has a pro-choice policy. . .
The March for Life and the Tale of Three Lutheran Churches
. . . (the ELCA) had never produced pro-life literature, joined any pro-life organizations, encouraged local congregations to observe the annual pro-life Sunday (this past year on January 20, right before the march), promoted participation in state or national marches, nor advocated for pro-life policies in any of its state or national advocacy offices. As far as the ELCA is concerned, there is dead silence on the matter. . .
Pro-abortion reverend calls pro-lifers “wolves” and “false prophets” in Christmas greeting
. . .I wonder how anyone with a faith in Christ and a belief in the Bible could possibly be blind enough to read a letter like this and nod in agreement or click a link and donate money at Christmas to kill a baby. . .
Concerning Social Statements (1992)
. . .First, consider the composition of the Task Force. Strong prejudice must have been involved in selecting its members. The bias of selection worked powerfully in this case, and apparently will be a dominant factor in all social statements by the ELCA. . .
Washington Post Finds Thriving Anti-Abortion Church and Moribund Mainline
. . .Steps from the U.S. Supreme Court at an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Sunday service, a white, non-binary identifying pastor with the pronouns they/them laments not promoting abortion strongly enough as elderly parishioners uncomfortably shift in sparsely filled pews. . .
My take: Life that is really life (Abortion Supporting ELCA Article)
. . .Can we as a society really honor the lives of these beloved by unnecessarily restricting their access to abortion if they, in their best assessment of their own situation, understand it to be their only/best option? . .
Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famous letter holds message of justice for the unborn
. . .What would King say about the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice? The RCRC is filled with United Methodists, ELCA Lutherans, Episcopalians, Presbyterian USA, and other denominations that once supported truth and now support a woman’s right to kill her baby — claiming to do so in the name of equal rights. . .
Less Than Half of Mainline Protestant Pastors Preach About Abortion
. . .The survey also finds that half of Catholic priests report pro-life programs in their own parishes, while only 9 percent combined Mainline (2 percent) and Non-Mainline (7 percent) Protestant pastors report the same. . .
Where major religious groups stand on abortion
. . .Even when a religious institution has a clearly stated policy on abortion, church members may not always agree. . .
Abortion and liberal Protestant decline
. . .Depleted denominations mourn the baby-saving reversal of Roe. . .
Protesters praying 'to end abortion' gather outside Iowa City clinic Friday
. . .Members of the Lutheran Campus Ministry, including Pastor Sarah Goettsch, second from left, hold signs in support of the Emma Goldman Clinic. . . (an abortion providing clinic)
Blogs from Exposing the ELCA on the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Abortion
Three pages from the Exposed Blog on the ELCA and abortion. At the bottom of each page go to the next page by clicking the "previous" link.
ELCA Pastor Tweets Her Support for Abortion Rights - Witness Stone Blog
. . .Here is her tweet. . .
Lutheran, Episcopal and United Church of Christ Clergy: “We Stand With Planned Parenthood” Abortion Biz
. . .female clergy from Iowa wrote a letter this week to publicly state their support of the abortion chain Planned Parenthood. . .
Planned Parenthood Logo on Clergy Clothes? A Collection of Lutheran Pastrixes Praising Abortions
. . .The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is one of the evilest denominations in America. Pro-homosexuality and pro-choice, it’s populated by spiritually decrepit senior citizens and virtue twerking LGBTQ twenty-somethings. . .
Lawmaker eyes Texas-based program that funds abortion alternatives (2022)
. . .Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-Windsor Heights, a pastor with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, said she was concerned about state money going to organizations that can use the program to proselytize or provide faith-based information. . .
Lutheran University Holding Event With Planned Parenthood Where Women Brag About Their Abortions
. . .“PLU’s middle name may be ‘Lutheran,’ but I sense the campus desires to divorce itself from traditional Christian values and pursue trendy social movements – like any typical American college campus.” . .
Easter Greetings and Pastor Gjerde’s Letter Asking Bishop Eaton to Stand Against Abortion
. . .the messages of the Office of Presiding Bishop, as currently listed, do not display a letter addressing the harm and tragedy of abortion in America. Frequent messages on behalf of refugees and the victims of violence appear, but there are no messages remembering the victims, both nascent and adult, of this killing industry, nor even a call for us to love and welcome the unborn into our homes and congregations through prayer, care, and the support of parents and struggling families. . .
At Sunday services, D.C.-area churches tackle Supreme Court draft leak
. . .Ewing said. “In the church, we have been afraid to name reproductive justice, and that has made the one in four people with uteruses who have had abortions feel even more isolated.” . .
66 Methodist, Lutheran, Episcopalian and United Church of Christ Leaders Sign Letter Supporting Abortion
. . .The letter blasts Iowa lawmakers who are trying to pass a bill prohibiting abortions from the moment an unborn baby’s heartbeat is detectable, about six weeks of pregnancy. . .
Iowa United Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran and Other Clergy Sign Letter Supporting Abortion
. . .Despite arguing that their faith and religious beliefs are irrelevant to abortion matters, the religious leaders had no problem calling the pro-life legislation “immoral” and “wrong.”. .
Raging Pro-Abortion Activists Behind the Pulpits
. . .For those inclined to doze during long sermons, or any being tricked by pastors who say one thing behind the pulpit and another out in the Public Square, the Lutheran, Episcopal and United Church of Christ women of clergy who wrote a letter praising Planned Parenthood. . .
Gay ELCA Pastor Tells Pro-Choice Congregants ‘Your Church Stands With You. Your Rage is Holy’
. . .I want to start by saying directly to those of you gathered here and those of you watching online today who are angry or afraid for yourselves or for your daughters or your granddaughters or who feel betrayed by the Supreme Court. I see you. I hear you, and I stand with you. Your church stands with you. . .
Church Members Who Believe in Abortion, by Denomination
. . .Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: 65%. . .
Real Churches “Still” Don’t Kill Babies
. . .the ELCA Church Council in November of 1995 essentially overruled it by considering all abortions as “medically necessary services” covered by the health plan. . .
Nadia Bolz-Weber Asserts Life Begins at Breath
. . .Bolz-Weber, who has had an abortion herself, holds that because God created man from dust, “that was the moment we had a living soul.” But citing God’s creation of the first man from dust is a very different creation process than God’s reproductive design. Plus, the Creation story does not end there. . .
Abortion Letter to Bishops
. . .Why did you not cry out for the sake of justice and the most vulnerable among us, the unborn who are smitten, stricken, and afflicted like our rejected Jesus? . .
(ELCA Pastor) Letter: War against abortion rights disrespects individuals
Letter by ELCA Rev. F. Allan Debelak. . .as a member of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, I will call them deliberate acts of violence against women. I will call them acts of disrespect against responsible men and women who understand the importance for each of us to choose life that is not defined by others. . .
What can pro-choice people of faith do to support abortion rights?
Written by a queer ELCA seminarian who is an "abortion doula."
ELCA leader releases pastoral letter on abortion, expresses support for Roe v. Wade
. . .“I believe Jesus, who said ‘Inasmuch as you do it to the least of these my brethren, you do it unto me’ (Matthew 28:40), is grieving over what the ELCA has become: an advocate for Roe v. Wade which has killed 62 million unborn children since 1973.” . .
The ELCA’s Presiding Bishop Tiptoes through the Abortion Minefield
. . .At the end of May poor Bp. Eaton issued a letter on abortion, followed swiftly by a “correction.” Obviously she stepped over a line on the first try, which did fairly accurately represent the statement. . .
Popular ELCA pastor/writer attacks pro-life laws and prolifers
. . .The way to deal with abortion is not by punishing women or their medical providers through a surge of unconstitutional state laws that display a thrilling self-righteousness. . .
What would Martin Luther say to pro-abortion Lutheran pastors? (2022)
. . . The head bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America recently went to the White House with other Protestant leaders to take a stand in favor of abortion rights. . .
ELCA pastor writes of her support for abortion - "Domestic violence and choice"
. . .“For me, the bottom line is, we are not free creatures of God unless we have bodily autonomy.” . .
There is no absolute right to be born or to terminate a pregnancy (by retired ELCA pastor)
. . .A developing life in the womb doesn’t have an absolute “right” to be born. In cases of incest, rape or a threat to the mother (who may have other children to care for), the absolute “right to be born” might be questioned. . .
Why 37 SC clergy believe abortion should remain
. . .We prioritize the love of God, neighbor and self and, therefore, are opposed to a total ban on abortion. . .
Letter: We support reproductive rights because of our Christian faith
. . .We support reproductive rights because of our faith, not in spite of it. . .
Some Milwaukee faith leaders want abortion normalized. Others want more help available to women so they don't consider it
. . . over the last year, Crane has noticed a "groundswell" of local ELCA pastors who feel passionately about making abortion more accessible. . .
Jill Stanek's story of exposing live births after abortion (at an ELCA hospital)
Quote from ELCA pastor Angela Denker
"Supporting life is infinitely more complicated than outlawing abortion. As I much as I believe life to be infinitely sacred, the American pro-life movement forces me to remain pro-choice. For myself, for my children, for women everywhere. And, perhaps, for a God who knows that life is so complex as to require death to allow resurrection."
Harris-Walz: The Most Radically Pro-Abortion Presidential Ticket ‘America Has Ever Seen’ (2024)
. . .Walz belongs to the liberal Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), which has paid for its employees’ abortions through its health care plan, ordained non-celibate homosexual clergy, and promoted transgenderism and “queerness” as “beauty.” . .
Luther Seminary's 'Reproductive Freedom' Article Warns Prolife Responses Will Be Deleted
. . .Special Reminder: Your classmate’s bodies are not topics of theological debate. The comment section of this post will be a place to share your learning. It is not a place to express anti-abortion sentiment. Any comment that breaks this boundary will be deleted. . .
Babies Are Being Left To Die In America. President Trump Just Helped More Of Them Live
. . .The Sept. 25 order directs Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar to implement “the policy of the United States to recognize the human dignity and inherent worth of every newborn or other infant child, regardless of prematurity or disability, and to ensure for each child due protection under the law.” . .
‘Overjoyed’ to ‘shock’: Faith-based advocates on both sides of abortion issue react to Supreme Court decision, vow to continue work
(2022)
. . .Crane also said the church would advocate for abortion rights on a state and federal level. . .
. . .Crane also said the church would advocate for abortion rights on a state and federal level. . .
Their View: On abortion: An open letter from Idaho faith leaders
. . .Denying someone the right to exercise their divinely given moral agency and bodily autonomy, and to make decisions about their family and future is a violation of both human rights and religious freedom. . .