ELCA Exposed on Homosexuality and SexHomosexuality related articles are first and toward the bottom of the page you will find the articles on sex under an "Exposing the ELCA on Sex" heading.
Letter to Bishop Eaton (2020)As I was reviewing the section on the homepage of the ELCA website entitled, “Resources for the LGBTQIA+ Community,” I was surprised to find a link to the 2009 social statement, “Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust,” because of the multitude of ways in which the ELCA violates the commitments, does not maintain the boundaries, and essentially has rewritten the documents that were approved by the 2009 Churchwide Assembly. . .
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“Your heart is not the compass that God steers by.” ―Samuel Rutherford
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Gay is O.K. According to Lutheran VoteToday is the end of the Line for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s “Journey Together Faithfully.” They vote on the second of two big issues in human sexuality and the one that the media deems so important, gay clergy. You can expect headlines and pictures of people in tears. I don’t want to belittle anyone involved, but you need two things straight. This is not about sex, but about the Bible, and second, this process has eviscerated the ELCA. It is a sad morality play about religion and politics full of ironies. It is a tale of what happens to a body of Christians when they want to be nice to everyone. In the end they forget what they were formed for . . .
The ELCA, homosexuality, and apostasy. . .Therefore, many in the leadership of the ELCA have sinned against God by compromising His word and offered an evolving, contemporary theology. In other words, they’ve sold out to the enemy, compromised the faith, and violated scripture. Such moral degradation, no matter how well intentioned, is a sign of profound apostasy. Should Christians stay in such a church? No. “Come out of her, my people, that you may not participate in her sins,” (Rev. 18:4). The ELCA needs to repent of its sin and stand firm on God’s word. . .
ELCA vote opens door to nixing conscience protections for same-sex marriage opponents (2022). . .At the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Columbus, Ohio, delegates voted in favor of potentially revising a 2009 social statement passed on the issue of "bound conscience. . .
What the Evidence Really Says about Scripture and Homosexual Practice: Five Issues by Prof. Robert A. J. Gagnon, Ph.D.. . .There are many other arguments that one can cite as evidence of Jesus’ rejection of homosexual practice, including the fact that the Old Testament that Jesus accepted as Scripture was strongly opposed. . . (For those interested in Dr. Gagnon's book "The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics," you can find it here)
NOW AVAILABLE: ELCA's Gay Marriage Resource. . .the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has written official marriage tools for gay weddings in the ELCA. The resource even claims that "God joins this celebration.". .
Response to Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust (pdf file). . .We must frankly conclude that each of these aspects of the lie finds its way into HSGT. Most pertinent for our response is the fact that what Sasse called the dogmatic lie—the notion that our age has greater understanding than our ancestors and so we have reached a “doctrinal maturity” that enables us to modify dogma—has now been made concrete in the ELCA by means of “the institutional lie” as that church bodyhas officially adopted a heretical position on human sexuality. This is not merely a case of misapplied ethics but a dogmatic decision that is, in fact, schismatic. The evaluation of Wolfhart Pannenberg rings true: “If a church were to let itself be pushed to the point where it ceased to treat homosexual activity as a departure from the biblical norm, and recognized homosexual unions as a personal partnership of love equivalent to marriage, such a church would stand no longer on biblical ground but against the unequivocal witness of Scripture. A church that took this step would cease to be the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church.” The ELCA has now taken this step, embodying apostasy from the faith once delivered to the saints. . .It is with profound grief that the LCMS can do nothing other than conclude that HSGT represents a “different gospel” (Gal. 1:6). . .
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Open Letter from Carl Braaten to Herbert Chilstrom
Your Open Letter response (dated July 21, 2009) to the Lutheran CORE Open Letter on the ELCA Social Statement and Ministry Recommendations was forwarded to me. You invite a response to it, stating that you are “open to seeing things from a perspective that may not have occurred to me.” I feel I must accept your invitation, because it is I who was asked by LutheranCORE to assemble a small group of the ELCA’s brightest and best theologians to write a critique of the documents that will be debated and voted on at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in August, 2009, in Minneapolis. Moreover, all of your criticisms of the CORE Letter are at the same time objections to doctrinal positions I have taught as a Lutheran theologian for over half a century. Your perspective and my perspective are so far apart that I am not sure it will be possible to reach any degree of mutual understanding. An outside critic reading what you wrote and what I am writing in this Open Letter might have a hard time believing that we belong to same church and affirm the same teachings of the Christian faith. . .
Martin Luther on Homosexuality
Martin Luther correctly identifies homosexuality with the sin of Sodom. Commenting on Genesis 19:4-5 he writes:. . .
Human Sexuality - Gift and Trust Study Process
. . .In 2022, the Churchwide Assembly authorized two reconsiderations (see pages 4-5 and 11) of the social statement:
- A review of specific text references that “would consider the import that marriage legally is now a covenant between individuals;” review specific wording “in light of public acceptance of marriage of same-gender and gender-non-conforming couples;” and “consider references to diversity of family configurations;” and
- A possible revision that reconsiders the “church’s current concept of the four positions of bound conscience” found on pages 19-21 of Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust. . .
Meet Rev. Bos, first out lesbian Evangelical Lutheran bishop
. . .“My spirituality and sexuality are intertwined,” Bos said, “it’s what makes me the whole person that I am.”
She doesn’t believe that God has any gender. “I can understand how back in the day, we assigned God the pronoun ‘he’,” Bos said.
But, as our understanding of what it means to be non-binary grows, Bos said, our imagination about God expands. “It might make some uncomfortable,” she said, “but to me it makes sense to think of God as ‘they.’” . .
She doesn’t believe that God has any gender. “I can understand how back in the day, we assigned God the pronoun ‘he’,” Bos said.
But, as our understanding of what it means to be non-binary grows, Bos said, our imagination about God expands. “It might make some uncomfortable,” she said, “but to me it makes sense to think of God as ‘they.’” . .
ELCA expands efforts to increase inclusivity of outdoor ministry programs
. . .a new initiative entitled Total Inclusion!: Widening the Welcome at ELCA Outdoor Ministries. The new program is designed to equip and empower outdoor ministry organizations as they move toward more intentional welcome of people who historically have been marginalized in the church — especially people of color, people with disabilities and people who identify as LGBTQIA+. . .
Lakewood Address - by Pr. Gary Jepsen
. . .We have a nonsensical situation in which we say that the Bible is the norm for the faith, life, and proclamation of the church but we pass policies that are in violation of the clear and consistent witness of Scripture on this issue.
Not only that, but we let each person be “conscience-bound” with regard to how s/he interprets a passage which in effect means that biblical passage means nothing at all. . .
Not only that, but we let each person be “conscience-bound” with regard to how s/he interprets a passage which in effect means that biblical passage means nothing at all. . .
The E.L.C.A. Dilemma (video)
by Pastor Troy Dobbs, Grace Church, Eden Prairie, MN
. . . It is appalling and evil when an official denominational pronouncement condones and celebrates the very sins that keep people out of the kingdom of God. How is that good? How is that justice? How is the loving? How does that liberate anyone? This decision slanders God. It just misses God's word and promotes damnation in the place of salvation. . . it is better to be divided by the truth than united in error. . . Biblical heresy is not the rallying point for church unity, Biblical truth is. We rally around the word of God and the Son of God, that is where we find our unity. .
. . . It is appalling and evil when an official denominational pronouncement condones and celebrates the very sins that keep people out of the kingdom of God. How is that good? How is that justice? How is the loving? How does that liberate anyone? This decision slanders God. It just misses God's word and promotes damnation in the place of salvation. . . it is better to be divided by the truth than united in error. . . Biblical heresy is not the rallying point for church unity, Biblical truth is. We rally around the word of God and the Son of God, that is where we find our unity. .
'Progressive' churches on board with pro-LGBTQ Equality Act
. . .Several of America's mainline denominations are rejecting God's Word and supporting legislation that elevates LGBTQ policies above Scripture regarding the sin of homosexuality. . .
A Critique by Carl E. Braaten (this is a pdf file)
My critique of the first “Draft Social Statement on Human Sexuality” prepared by the Task Force for ELCA Studies on Sexuality, written and disseminated in April, 2008, offered this conclusion: “This ‘Draft’ fails to take seriously distinctive Lutheran principles of theology and ethics regarding human sexuality. Either the Task Force is woefully ignorant of the Lutheran confessional tradition regarding theological ethics, or it willfully ignores it to reach some pre-conceived conclusions for ideological reasons.” My criticisms included the following assertions:. . .
"Conscience-bound Beliefs" Rule and the "Conscience-bound-belief" Rule
(by John R. Stumme) . . .Because the ELCA has elevated the concept of "conscience-bound beliefs" to such prominence for its life and teaching, the concept deserves careful scrutiny. The social statement Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust made it the "pivotal" concept in how the ELCA "resolved" the most controversial, exhausting and expensive issue in its history, and therefore I look carefully at what is said there. . .
Defending Biblical orthodoxy in the Lutheran church (2020)
. . .The denomination has steadily departed from the gospel and Biblical teaching about God’s design for sexuality and marriage. As the ELCA grows more radical in its embrace of LGBT ideology and lifestyles, more pastors and congregants are leaving, contributing to declining membership. . .
Tornado Hits Lutheran Convention Voting on Homosexuality
In an ironic twist of fate, a tornado touched the convention center on Wednesday where delegates from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) gathered to debate and then vote on a statement that acknowledges there are "differing views on homosexuality."
Wednesday's debate was interrupted briefly in the afternoon when severe storms and a tornado passed through downtown Minneapolis, damaging the steeple of an ELCA church across the street from the convention center.
The weather event is being "spun" in both directions by liberal and conservative delegate. . .
Wednesday's debate was interrupted briefly in the afternoon when severe storms and a tornado passed through downtown Minneapolis, damaging the steeple of an ELCA church across the street from the convention center.
The weather event is being "spun" in both directions by liberal and conservative delegate. . .
'Ears to hear'? - by Mark C. Chavez
An ELCA pastor informed the churchwide assembly in a discussion of the ELCA’s HIV and AIDS strategy that his congregation hands out condoms “to anyone who asks for them, young or old.” He had emailed his bishop and asked if he could pass out condoms, and the bishop responded, “Jesus would be passing out condoms.” Churches that pass out condoms are all but saying to their members, “When you have sex outside marriage, make sure you use a condom.” Do ELCA leaders really hear Jesus saying that he would pass out condoms in a church or anywhere to people who are having sex outside marriage? . . .
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Succumbs to Heresy
. . .The contemporary re-emergence of ancient paganism, even within some Christian communities, is not the path to freedom and flourishing but to misery. It must be exposed, opposed and rejected. . .
The Confessional Crisis Created By the Decisions of the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly (written in 2009)
. . .Such actions are in violation of our Confession of Faith. The ELCA ought to repent of these actions, take steps to render them ineffectual, and overturn them at the first opportunity. The synods and congregations of the ELCA ought to reject these actions and refuse to abide by them on the basis of our own and identical Confession of Faith. . .
The Tornado, the Lutherans, and Homosexuality
I saw the fast-moving, misshapen, unusually-wide funnel over downtown Minneapolis from Seven Corners. I said to Kevin Dau, “That looks serious.”
It was. Serious in more ways than one. A friend who drove down to see the damage wrote, On a day when no severe weather was predicted or expected...a tornado forms, baffling the weather experts—most saying they’ve never seen anything like it. It happens right in the city. The city: Minneapolis.
The tornado happens on a Wednesday...during the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America's national convention in the Minneapolis Convention Center. The convention is using Central Lutheran across the street as its church. The church has set up tents around it’s building for this purpose. . .
It was. Serious in more ways than one. A friend who drove down to see the damage wrote, On a day when no severe weather was predicted or expected...a tornado forms, baffling the weather experts—most saying they’ve never seen anything like it. It happens right in the city. The city: Minneapolis.
The tornado happens on a Wednesday...during the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America's national convention in the Minneapolis Convention Center. The convention is using Central Lutheran across the street as its church. The church has set up tents around it’s building for this purpose. . .
Pastor Matt Harrison reacts to ELCA’s decisions
A radio/MP3 interview with Rev. Matthew Harrison, Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care.
Dissident Lutherans: Bullying over gays
But the splits within the ELCA, which is more than twice the Episcopal Church's size, are getting ugly in their own way. Pastors taking their churches out of the ELCA are making charges of "unethical, immoral and in some cases, illegal" acts by bishops and other officials, Mr. Kallestad said. "I'm talking to some pastors and leaders from many states around the nation, whose [ELCA] bishops are becoming very hostile," Mr. Kallestad said. . .
Lutheranism & homosexuality
. . .The ELCA’s public written confessions state that the Bible contains the Word of God. There is a big difference between saying the Bible is the Word of God verses saying it contains the Word of God. If the Bible only contains the Word of God, that means portions of the Bible are God’s Word, but other portions are not. Thus, if there is a portion of the Bible you don’t like, you toss it out claiming “That’s not really what God would say, but only what Paul (or Moses or Peter or Matthew) said.” Theology becomes nebulous. It can shift with any opinion poll or the morals of the day. But if the Bible is the Word of God, and if God is serious when he says, “I the LORD do not change” (Malachi 3:6), then there is something odd about a theology that changes from generation to generation. . .
The Dissenters Speak
. . .We contend that the recommendations proposed in Report and Recommendations, which advocate same-gender unions and the ordination of non-celibate homosexual persons, have little biblical, historical, or traditional support. The proposed recommendations advocate a radical departure from long-held moral tradition and biblical interpretation, thus distancing us further from the Roman Catholic Church, Orthodox Churches, evangelical churches and most of the churches in the Protestant mainstream. . .
No Law, No Gospel: Some Thoughts on the ELCA’s Decision
(by Shawn Smith) . . .So in essence, because the ELCA lessens the sting of the law for those who practice same-gender relationships, they are in affect pushing them away from the saving Gospel of Christ. The “grace” they are wishing to offer in these resolutions is in fact opposite of grace because it pushes one away from the only true Grace that the world has ever known. . .
What Happened When Other Denominations Passed Their Own “One Church Plan”?
. . .The ELCA’s decline has continued far beyond the first two years when the exodus was greatest. The ELCA lost three percent of its congregations from 2016 to 2017, the most recent year for which data is available.From 2009 to 2017, membership has decreased from 4,542,868 to 3,455,573, a drop of 24 percent. In that same period, the number of congregations also dropped significantly, from 10,348 to 9,039, a loss of 1,309 congregations or over 12 percent of them in a mere eight years. . .
ELCA: Answer the Question! – Part 2
. . .the ELCA is calling sinful the traditional position on sexual ethics, even though the traditional view was declared by the 2009 social statement to be one of four acceptable “conscience-bound” positions that would have a place in the ELCA. . .
Homosexuality - from Dr. Merton Strommen
(learn more about homosexuality, a practice the ELCA encourages) All people are loved by God. All struggle with moral failure and fall short of God’s standards; and therefore need the forgiveness that God provides through Christ alone. Homosexuality* is but one of these struggles. While recognizing the need to reach out in love to those struggling with same sex attraction, CMDA opposes the practice of homosexual acts on biblical, medical, and social grounds. . .
Evangelical church (ELCA Synod) releases app for children where they can marry LGBT couples
. . .Metropolitan New York Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church created the app to teach children that religion can be inclusive. . .
Was God In the Whirlwind?
My home state of Minnesota has lots of lakes, bitter cold, and Lutherans. Over 150 years ago, Scandinavians targeted this state and its climate, perhaps because it resembled their homeland. Ironically, the fathers and grandfathers of today's Lutherans left Sweden back then because they saw corruption and bad doctrine within Lutheranism in Scandinavia. But these Lutheran immagrants built Bible-believing churches for future generations. No doubt they would be crushed at such a culmination of apostasy in recent years. . .
'Glitter Ashes' Available At Gay-Friendly Chicago Churches Wednesday
. . .The sparkling ash symbol is an "inherently queer sign of Christian belief, blending symbols of mortality and hope, of penance and celebration," according to Parity.The group says marking foreheads with it is a way for LGBTQ Christians to say, "We are here" as well as others to make a public statement supporting them. . .
The ELCA Homosexual Deception
. . .The ELCA had an well planned out agenda. To come up with a "passable" defense against the Bible's clear teaching on homosexuality. To declare homosexuality is not a sin. To allow homosexuals to teach, lead, and preach. To encourage homosexuals to live out their (God declared sinful) behavior. And to get their membership to believe
it! . .
it! . .
Vocation and full personhood: Brenda Bos is first openly lesbian bishop elected in ELCA
. . .The process is about recognizing your full personhood, Bos said. “As you become a fully integrated person who has come out to themselves, you realize that God has created you this way, God delights in you,” she said. . .
ELCA will not allow synods to maintain traditional standards
ELCA synods will not have the option of upholding traditional Christian teaching on marriage and homosexuality in their standards for pastors and other rostered leaders according to a draft of candidacy rules released Oct. 10 by the ELCA churchwide organization. . .
ELCA Seminary Names Homosexual Guy Erwin as Seminary President
. . .Bishop Erwin is the ELCA’s first gay, partnered bishop and the first openly gay male to serve in that office in the churches of the Lutheran World Federation. . .
John Piper - Repentance Everyday, All Day Long: Tornadoes, Lutherans and Homosexuality
Tales from the Darkside
. . .Only the naive believe that the assurances that nobody will be forced to act contrary to their "bound consciences" with regard to gay pastors or gay "marriage" are worth the paper they're printed on. The entire logic of the homosexualist position is that rejection of active homosexuality on moral grounds constitutes "discrimination" against gays. . .
Everlasting Extras: Gay Marriage
Should We Support Gay Marriage? NO by Wolfhart Pannenberg
. . .If
a church were to let itself be pushed to the point where it ceased to
treat homosexual activity as a departure from the biblical norm, and
recognized homosexual unions as a personal partnership of love
equivalent to marriage, such a church would stand no longer on biblical
ground but against the unequivocal witness of Scripture. A church that
took this step would cease to be the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic
church.
20 Frequently Asked Questions about Homosexuality
. . .These are written in the hope that Episcopalians (and ELCA members) will begin arresting the
rhetorical steamroller that has contributed to the current crisis. . .
ELCA's Website - Resources for the LGBTQIA+ Community
The ELCA has a page on their website listing resources for LGBT+ persons.
Trailblazing gay bishop to march in Atlanta Pride parade
. . .“Who I am personally also affects who I am publicly,” he said. “I think it’s important for people to see the church can and does create spaces for people to be who they want to be. . .
Embracing unconditional love and transformation: Get to know Bishop-elect Jeff Johnson (2023)
. . .As a young boy he began to discover his identity as a gay individual, leading him to question whether God’s love included him. It wasn’t until he attended California Lutheran University, Thousand Oaks, and later went to Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, Calif., that he found unwavering acceptance, love and understanding from campus pastors. . .
ELCA distributes LGBTQIA+ handbook on ‘sexual orientation,’ ‘gender identity’ to churches
. . .The handbook defines gender identity as “a person’s innate, deeply felt psychological identification as a man, woman or another gender, which may or may not correspond to the sex assigned to them at birth. . .
Against the 130 "Teaching Theologians"
. . .The claims of these teaching theologians are misleading and self-contradictory. . . If these teachers affirmed the authority of Scripture, they would take their orientation on the question in dispute from the weighty and ecumenically recognized texts of Genesis 1:26-28 and Mark 10:2-14, as the Lutheran christocentric hermeneutic of Scripture requires. . .
How Noah Hepler found “reawakening” in Queer Eye (ELCA official magazine)
. . .Noah Hepler, pastor of Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Atonement in Philadelphia, was nominated by a member of his congregation council to be a featured “hero” on the Netflix series Queer Eye. . .
A Love Story: Church celebrates pastor's marriage, complete with dancing unicorns
. . .A church pastor dancing in the street with a herd of unicorns might make you question your own eyes.
But this joyful dance of unicorns to Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” was a gift from Pastor Charis Weathers to her newly wedded spouse Deborah Frost. . .
But this joyful dance of unicorns to Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” was a gift from Pastor Charis Weathers to her newly wedded spouse Deborah Frost. . .
‘Now is the moment’: Berkeley pastor elected as bishop
. . .Johnson, a Berkeley resident of more than 20 years, is the first openly gay man to be elected bishop at this synod, according to a press release from the Sierra Pacific Synod. . .
Atlanta congregation shines light on Pride ministry
. . .People lined the walls of the tiny sanctuary of Atlanta’s St. Luke Lutheran Church, anticipating a type of worship that had never been done before. The summer heat climbed into the 90s that day, typical during Georgia’s midsummer, but that didn’t stop the excitement from building as several drag queens joined the pastor for “Drag Me to Church,” a community worship service in partnership with the Atlanta Pride Committee to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City. . .
St. Paul Lutherans reject gay marriage ban
. . .St. Paul-area Lutherans on Saturday went on record against changing the state Constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
About 430 Lutherans representing 115 congregations in the St. Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted on a resolution opposing the marriage amendment at the group's annual assembly at Burnsville's Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. . .
About 430 Lutherans representing 115 congregations in the St. Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted on a resolution opposing the marriage amendment at the group's annual assembly at Burnsville's Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. . .
PA Bishops Support LGBT Anti-Discrimination Bill
. . .seven Pennsylvania bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America released a letter June 18 in support of legislation that would amend the Pennsylvania Public Relations Act to prohibit discrimination in areas of employment, housing and public accommodation on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. . .
Pro-LGBT Lutheran Seminary President Unceremoniously Purged for Leading Ex-Gay Group 17 Years Ago
. . .Theresa F. Latini was hired as the first president of United Lutheran Seminary in Pennsylvania last April, she was unceremoniously ousted from the institution of higher learning after news broke that she once led a Christian ministry helping believers overcome same-sex attraction. . .
Living History (ELCA article lifting up LGBT movement)
. . .We call this an LGBTQ “movement” and that image is apt. None of us are ever there at “the beginning” of the movement, since the beginning is when God spoke the heavens and earth into being. We only enter this movement because of Christ’s redemption. Empowered by the Spirit, we move this movement along. . .
ELCA synod elects its first openly gay bishop (2023)
. . .Shortly after winning the election, Johnson addressed the synod gathering, celebrating the fact that he belongs to "a Church that is more open, more welcoming, more inclusive, more affirming than the Church we started out in." . .
Rev. Paul Landahl, 82, Lutheran bishop served on RBHS board
. . .While he was bishop of the Metro Chicago Synod from 2001-07, he advocated for the rights of LGBTQ parishioners and ministers in the ELCA and led the efforts to become a Reconciling in Christ synod. . .
Augustana to allow civil union ceremonies
. . ."The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, to which the college is related, permits same-gender weddings so long as the local congregation consents," he said in the email. . .The college already provides health insurance coverage to same-gender couples and openly accepts the participation of gay people in its campus ministries. . ."Several of our most faithful faculty and staff, who serve our students exceptionally well, are gay or lesbian," president Bahls said. . .
ELCA deacon channels closeted Minnesota childhood into book on churches accepting LGBTQ youth
. . .For his part, he will sometimes discuss LGBTQ issues in his sermons or share his experiences as a gay man, such as talking about coming out. . .
North Fargo Pastor Resigns After Feeling Pressure For Not Officiating Same Sex Weddings
Same sex marriage is legal, but causing controversy in a local Lutheran church. The Senior Pastor at Messiah Lutheran in north Fargo just resigned after feeling pressure from his parishioners for not performing same sex marriages. . .
Pride Youth Camp (ELCA) 2023
. . .A NEW week of faith-based camp in western South Dakota for 14-18-year-old LGBTQIA+ youth and their allies. . .
Evangelical Lutheran Church Welcomes LGBTQ members
. . .their wedding was the first union between two gay pastors in the entire ELCA, and was officiated by the Bishop of the NY Synod. . .
Lutherans Endorse Homosexuality God Sends Tornado!
. . . The ELCA voted to separate itself from biblical Christianity by accommodating and endorsing unrepentant homosexual relations on Wednesday August 19, 2009. At precisely 2 PM - the deadline for the "Social Statement on Human Sexuality" - the Lord sent a tornado, defying conventional wisdom, directly to the Minneapolis convention center and Central Lutheran Church area. So intentional and directed was this action that it sheered the cross clean off of the historic steeple while leaving the roof and building intact. In his mercy no one was harmed. A true historic miracle in the old testament vein, God in His infinite mercy has sent a clear warning. Lutherans are your hearts so hard that you cannot see God reaching out? Repent and return to sound doctrine - uphold the word of God.
The Tornado, the Lutherans, and Homosexuality (2009)
. . .official church pronouncements that condone the very sins that keep people out of the kingdom of God, are evil. They dishonor God, contradict Scripture, and implicitly promote damnation where salvation is freely offered. . .
No, Christianity Should Not ‘Welcome’ or ‘Include’ Your Sinful Lifestyle
. . .What was revealed in the last few years that proved the prophets, the apostles and all Christian denominations until recently wrong? What new piece of information did humanity obtain? What great revelation occurred? You think a 2,000-year-old faith that professes timeless Truths should “keep up” with the whims of modernity, but why? What do we know in our time that the Church didn’t know -- that God Himself didn’t know — up to now? Be very careful in how you answer that question. . .
Christians must avoid nationalism -- Rev. Dr. Jerry Folk (retired ELCA pastor)
. . .The act would make marriage equality federal law and therefore protect it from Supreme Court action, . .
Newly elected Park Slope bishop plans to advocate for LGBTQ+ community
. . .Rev.Paul Egensteiner, the new bishop elected to lead the Metropolitan New York Synod Evangelical Lutheran Church, is working to break the barriers between the LGBTQIA community and the church with hopes of creating more diversity. . .
The History of LGBTQ bishops in the ELCA (ELCA video)
The Lutherans and the tornado
. . . “We trust the weather is not a commentary on our work,” said the Rev. Steven Loy, chairman of an ad hoc committee on a controversial statement on human sexuality that was on the floor that afternoon. . .
Sierra Pacific Synod Bishop-Elect Talks About The ELCA’s Future And ‘Rebuilding Trust’
. . .Johnson, talking about what he aims to accomplish said, “We have urgent work ahead of us, given any number of overwhelming, era-defining problems we face as a people: the climate emergency and the collapse of planetary sustaining systems; the rise globally of antidemocratic authoritarian governments; desperation; mass migration; our enmeshment with the systemic evils of racism, misogyny, nationalism, heterosexism, etcetera.” . .
"queering Holy Week" - from an ELCA Synod
. . .By linking Jesus’ suffering on the cross to queer suffering in the here and now, it provides a tangible and powerful message to queer people. . .
VDS alumna becomes Nashville’s first queer female Lutheran pastor
. . .born into a New England Catholic family with a father who served the church as a deacon, two gay brothers and a lesbian sister, Bennett notes the varying spiritual beliefs that influenced her throughout her life. Despite her immediate family later leaving the church, Bennett delved into advocacy work and began considering divinity school. . .
Not OK and a New Low
. . .All three presenters are LGBTQ+ affirming. All three presenters leave the LGBTQ+ affirming position as the only option for faithful advocacy, caring about and for LGBTQ+ youth, and providing “safe space” for them. , ,
LGBTQ Concerns Prompt ELCA Lutheran Synod Move from Messiah University
. . .“At its meeting on November 20, 2021, the Synod Council voted not to hold our assembly at Messiah University, due to a conflict between that institution’s recent public controversy regarding LGBTQIA+ students and the Lower Susquehanna Synod’s status as Reconciling in Christ,” . .
Members of ELCA congregations in central Ohio invited to be part of the 2018 Gay Pride Parade (posted by the ELCA's Southern Ohio Synod)
. . .For the sixth year, the Reconciling in Christ ministries in Central Ohio (First English, Gethsemane, Trinity, Lord of Life, Redeemer & Trinity Seminary) will be gathering as an ELCA witness at the 2018 Gay Pride Parade in Columbus. . .
A Queer Church
. . .My “agenda” has not changed since I became a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in 2003. My agenda is simple: I want the church to go beyond being “open and welcoming” to the LGBTQIA+ community. My goal is for the church to be radically inclusive of the LGBTQIA+ community. . .
Fayetteville (ELCA) church to host 'Queer Camp' this summer
. . .Queer Camp will offer typical summer camp activities like swimming and hiking, but also involve programs led by leaders from the LGBTQIA community across Northwest Arkansas. . .
Stealth Queers
. . .She came out publicly at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly through a photo booth with a hand-written sign proclaiming, “I am Bisexual by God’s Grace!” She “wanted to be out in order to better support others in their struggle with the call process and with navigating being queer and faithful.” . .
See Additional Articles on The ELCA and Homosexuality Here
Exposing the ELCA on Sex
ELCA Bishop Supports Polygamy
. . .“How do you judge and how do you point fingers and condemn people that don’t know any other way of being?" -Elected Bishop Leila Ortiz of the ELCA Metropolitan Washington, D.C., Synod.
High Profile ELCA Pastor Outlines His Support of Polyamorous Unions
. . .A topic that seems to be growing in ELCA circles is that of multi partner relationships. . .
Radical Female Lutheran Pastor Plans on Melting Down Purity Rings to Make Vagina Statue
. . .Perhaps she enjoys all the praise and attention she gets for being a “Christian” who condones premarital sex and pornography (oh, but only if it’s “ethically sourced.”). . .
Feminist Pastor asks Christian women to send her their purity rings so they can be melted into golden vagina sculpture
. . .pastor is suggesting Christian women send her their purity rings, which have been hailed as symbols of patriarchal theology, so that she can melt them down into a gold vagina. . .
ELCA Church Gives Out Lotion on Easter Sunday to 'Pleasure Yourself'
. . .The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America continually demonstrates their departure from Biblical Truth and Christianity, as they encourage people to embrace and participate in sin. . .
Proposed Revision of “Definitions and Guidelines for Discipline” – A Chance for Honesty or One More Example of Duplicity” (scroll to send part of article)
. . .The email from the Rocky Mountain Synod was sent out on March 31 – the Wednesday of Holy Week. Even though it was Holy Week, top billing in the email went to the Trans Day of Visibility. The second item was a letter from ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton about gun violence. Holy Week came in a sad and disappointing third. . .
ELCA Leader in a Polyamorous/’Ethically Non-Monogamous’ Relationship
. . .hey offer that this polygamous relationship is a “beautiful example of the love and care of a Triune God who is relationship”. . .
When a Lutheran denomination becomes radically liberal
. . .a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has recently posted this: "...I have friends who are in wonderfully healthy poly relationships. Mutuality, consent, health, these are critical. I don't know what I would do about a throuple seeking a church blessing or marriage. It hasn't come up. I'd probably start by learning from them." . .
United Methodist Queer Clergy: Gospel Can Affirm Polyamory (ELCA Youth Minister part of discussion)
. . .“Some would say that the Last Supper, Jesus is proposing to the twelve friends and so it’s very gay and very polyamorous.” . .
Nadia Bolz-Weber on Pornography as Part of Sexual Flourishing
. . .Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) celebrity Nadia Bolz-Weber is on a crusade to combat the church’s “misogynistic interpretations of Scripture” and “the fear of sex stuff that came into Christianity.” That includes easing the Church’s moral objections to pornography, apparently. . .
Is it big news when liberal Lutherans say the early church was wrong on sex? Why not?
. . .Read that second part again – especially noting the connection between "holy" and all forms of sex before (and maybe outside) marriage. In terms of moral theology, what limits does the Denver Statement see on sexual activity? Now, I am sure that Bolz-Weber (and the ELCA) believe there are still oppressive expressions of sexuality (pedophilia, sexual trafficking, maybe a few other things), but it's clear that sex outside of marriage is no longer in the list. . .