ELCA Members and Christians Everywhere Respond to the ELCA
Below you will find letters from concerned Christians responding to the policies and theological actions of the ELCA. Your opinions and responses to the ELCA are welcome. Submit your comments on the Contact page. Some of the submissions will be published on this site.
WHY are we still affiliated with the ELCA?
. . .What follows is what I’ve discovered after almost two years of digging. I’ve discovered that the yelling and screaming ISN’T all “just about sex”. As I said earlier, the ELCA wants you to THINK it’s “all about sex.” When it’s “all about sex” they can claim the moral high ground (they think) and scream that everyone who disagrees is a hater and bigot and should just leave and go to that “other” Lutheran church! Easy. Paint everyone who disagrees with you as the monster and then they leave and the ELCA doesn’t have to worry about opposing viewpoints (and votes) anymore! . .
Why Leave the ELCA part II
. . .The ELCA is highjacking the Lutheran Church and leading it to ruin. Those that have tried to save the ELCA have been shoved to the side of the road while it is full speed ahead with a liberal, left wing social agenda with no regard to the saving of the souls of its members. We must shun this false doctrine. We must leave the ELCA behind and pray that all true believers follow and form a new synod to teach the true Gospel. . .
How the ELCA Left the Great Tradition for Liberal Protestantism
Written by Robert Benne, Director of the Roanoke College Center for Religion and Society.
. . .No one can dislodge the ELCA's commitment to purge all masculine language about God from its speech and worship, to demur on the biblically normative status of the nuclear family, to refuse to put limits on abortion in its internal policies or to advocate publicly for pro-life policies, to press for left-wing public domestic and foreign policy, to replace evangelism abroad with dialog, to commit to "full inclusion" of gays and lesbians at the expense of church unity, and to buy in fully to the movement against global warming. . .
. . .No one can dislodge the ELCA's commitment to purge all masculine language about God from its speech and worship, to demur on the biblically normative status of the nuclear family, to refuse to put limits on abortion in its internal policies or to advocate publicly for pro-life policies, to press for left-wing public domestic and foreign policy, to replace evangelism abroad with dialog, to commit to "full inclusion" of gays and lesbians at the expense of church unity, and to buy in fully to the movement against global warming. . .
A Letter to Elizabeth Eaton (the Presiding Bishop of the ELCA) - 2022
. . .I feel the need to communicate with the larger ELCA that our family is choosing to leave the denomination. More correctly, that the denomination has left us! . .
My Path to Confessional Lutheranism: Part IV
. . . It was here that I first brushed against the bare wires of higher criticism—the Pentateuch was supposedly written by J, E, P, and D, who wrote on top of each other over many centuries; Isaiah was written by no fewer than three distinct authors between the eighth and second centuries bc (or bce, as it was denoted); and the characters and books of Job, Jonah, Esther, and many others were entirely or almost entirely fictional. . .
An Open Letter to the ELCA
. . . The ELCA has made its choice, along with the Episcopal and other mainline denominational churches, taking a stand against the Word of God. In doing so, they have become apostate. Come out from them, separate from them, and join with Luther and other reformers who have made a stand at risk of life and limb on the Word of God, trusting in God alone to be their Savior and
protector. . .
protector. . .
A Doctrinal Study of the ELCA in 2012
. . .The severity of the ELCA crash is perhaps shocking even to many in the ELCA, but all the ingredients were there from the start, and they were quite visible from the beginning. This is but another sad illustration of the truth: you reap what you sow. . .
A Call for Christians to Leave the ELCA
. . .The false Gospel of the ELCA is pronounced in their teaching that faith in Christ in this life may not be necessary for salvation, along with their teaching that some things that the Bible plainly calls sin, are not sin and don’t need to be repented of (in the forefront of this is homosexuality and transexuality). This is not the Gospel, and it would be wisdom to heed the words of Paul regarding the preaching of “another gospel”. . .
Letter to Bishop Hanson
. . ."Where God built a church, there the Devil would also build a chapel."-Luther.
Sadly we are laying the brick work for Satan's chapel as we attempt to overshadow God's law with ELCA social policy separating the church from its real work; by that nature we are not a church of laws but a church of sin. Pretending the law doesn't matter, or attempting to rewrite scripture to our liking is no better than the non biblical canons that allowed the church of old to become so corrupt. And the use of benevolences to advance a political agenda is no better than the sale of indulgences Luther fought so hard to free us from. . .
Sadly we are laying the brick work for Satan's chapel as we attempt to overshadow God's law with ELCA social policy separating the church from its real work; by that nature we are not a church of laws but a church of sin. Pretending the law doesn't matter, or attempting to rewrite scripture to our liking is no better than the non biblical canons that allowed the church of old to become so corrupt. And the use of benevolences to advance a political agenda is no better than the sale of indulgences Luther fought so hard to free us from. . .
Letter to the Church Council
. . . Even though Jesus didn’t discuss “homosexuality” by name in the Bible, He was clear about leaving a life a sin. I see Him setting people free from sin. Although we live under a New Covenant, Jesus never said to disregard Old Testament teaching. He often quoted and taught from Scriptures- which IS the Old Testament! By “loving” people, He never equated following Him with continuing in sin. He tells us to “pick up our cross. . .”
. . . Even though Jesus didn’t discuss “homosexuality” by name in the Bible, He was clear about leaving a life a sin. I see Him setting people free from sin. Although we live under a New Covenant, Jesus never said to disregard Old Testament teaching. He often quoted and taught from Scriptures- which IS the Old Testament! By “loving” people, He never equated following Him with continuing in sin. He tells us to “pick up our cross. . .”
The Bible is the Issue
. . . The issue at hand is not our determination regarding the issue of human sexuality.
The central part of this conversation does not directly involve the issue of homosexuality. The central component is our understanding of Scripture. . .
. . . The issue at hand is not our determination regarding the issue of human sexuality.
The central part of this conversation does not directly involve the issue of homosexuality. The central component is our understanding of Scripture. . .
God's Word Never Changes
. . .There are those who say that my position on this issue--the position historically taken by God, the Bible, and the Church--is unloving. But, let me ask you to imagine a scenario for a second. If you see a woman saunter out into the middle of a busy highway, heedless of the cars that speed by and threaten her life, what is the more loving act: Affirming her right to be in the road or reminding her of the consequences of such behavior and urging her, even helping her, to safety? . . .
. . .There are those who say that my position on this issue--the position historically taken by God, the Bible, and the Church--is unloving. But, let me ask you to imagine a scenario for a second. If you see a woman saunter out into the middle of a busy highway, heedless of the cars that speed by and threaten her life, what is the more loving act: Affirming her right to be in the road or reminding her of the consequences of such behavior and urging her, even helping her, to safety? . . .
Lutherans… Choose whom you will serve
. . . Of course, the issue of homosexuality, is really just the tip of the iceberg. Under the surface of the water lies the true foundation of what is sinking all churches, all denominations, across the nations. We find in the murky water, the denial of creation, destruction of marriage and family by divorce and sexual immorality, the blending of false religions with Christianity, lack of knowledge of scripture and its authority, denial of Christ’s deity, inclusion instead of separation, and then… a weak and compromised Gospel . . .
. . . Of course, the issue of homosexuality, is really just the tip of the iceberg. Under the surface of the water lies the true foundation of what is sinking all churches, all denominations, across the nations. We find in the murky water, the denial of creation, destruction of marriage and family by divorce and sexual immorality, the blending of false religions with Christianity, lack of knowledge of scripture and its authority, denial of Christ’s deity, inclusion instead of separation, and then… a weak and compromised Gospel . . .
What Would Isaiah Say?
. . . If we believe that our Savior can heal the sick, and make the blind see, and raise the dead, we can certainly have faith in His power to heal sexual brokenness. What would Isaiah say to a Church that is trying to stray from its vows to uphold his Word? Well, maybe he said it in Isaiah 55: 6-7: “Seek ye the Lord while He may be found! Call ye upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord and He will have mercy, and to our God and He will abundantly pardon!”
Agree to Disagree?
. . . Bound conscience is a destructive heresy, instigating a deep division among the faithful. This divisive teaching will only result in the moral and spiritual destruction of those who accept it. To properly uphold our Christian faith is to obey and live according to our Lord’s direction and the morals that He has instilled in us, not by our personal opinion or by some earthly authority. . .
Stay or Go?
. . .There is a belief among some confessional Christians in the ELCA that whatever happens, their own congregation will be untouched. This is probably the most dangerous illusion of all. . .
Faithful Christians Must Depart the ELCA
. . . Jude urged the true believers to “contend earnestly for the faith” and many in the ELCA did that prior to the recent vote. Now, however, the leadership has decided to reject Scripture and follow their own understanding. The duty of the true believer now is to separate himself from the apostate church. . .
Homosexuality and the Protestant Believer
. . .As a Believer in Christ, I do not “hate”, but I do believe that God has clearly defined what is and is not acceptable for His people. We must not water down or redefine His gospel for the sake of increasing church attendance, or for the fickle demands of social fashion. Because now, as in ages past, the Bible - a road-map for living the life God has designed for us- speaks a message not of ignorance or of hate, but of the true redemptive power of Jesus to rescue us from our sin!
The Lutherans and Twister Theology
. . .some of us in the press room were discussing whether the Almighty had sent a tornado to send the Lutherans a message. . .A Lutheran pastor I was talking to vividly remembered the Orlando incident. She felt the tornado was a message from God, a warning to not go in the direction the assembly was bent on following. She had been a missionary in Africa and over there, she said, people would have seen the dangling cross, stopped everything, and reconsidered. . .
Lutheran Exceptionalism—from Hope to Decline
. . . Increasingly the theology of Protestant liberalism crept in in three key areas—the nature of salvation itself; the decisiveness and uniqueness of Christ as Savior; and the familiar sexuality issues. One need do nothing to be saved, for God loves you unconditionally, just as you are, by virtue of your creation. Repentance and amendment of life are beside the point. Christianity and the other great religions are on different tracks to the same destination; evangelism is replaced by dialogue. Christian moral requirements in sexual life are outdated and need sharp revision. Inclusivism, universalism, and revisionism became the leit-motifs of the ELCA at its elite levels. . .
My Path to Confessional Lutheranism: Part V
. . .Frank was not so optimistic. He had begun his semester at the seminary and was aghast at what he was seeing behind the curtain. He told me some of the horror stories—professors who denied Christ’s bodily resurrection (one claimed he didn’t “believe in magic tricks”); outcomes of a worldview in which there is no objective sin; and of course an emphasis on multiculturalism and social justice, from which Jesus was notably absent, except to make an occasional cameo appearance as an exemplar. . .