The ELCA Vault - Room 13
The ELCA Vault is a collection of articles, blogs, and documents related to issues with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
29 moral votes against a gay pastorI am proud of the 29 people who were willing to cast votes in favor of morals. I am proud that they recognize that God's word is unchanging. . .
Ministry in a Hostile Environment…. . .Now some may say, “We don’t support the ELCA financially! But I say to you, if you have ELCA on your church sign, or on your church stationary… you are complicit! Surely if someone sits in an idling getaway car knowing that a companion is robbing a gas station… that person is legally complicit and criminal under the law. Thus any pastor or congregant of an ELCA church is accomplice to heresy and infanticide, and all voicing testimony in place should fall as prejudiced. . .
Lutheran CORE July 2012 Newsletter3 Lessons from Crisis and Decline in the Mainline. . .The two words most often used to describe mainline Protestantism in North America are "crisis" and "decline," both of which seem justified in light of recent trends. . .
First Military Base Same-Sex Wedding Held. . .About 150 friends and family attended the ceremony, which was officiated by Evangelical Lutheran Church Navy Chaplain Kay Reeb. . .
First United Lutheran Church, San Francisco Congregation Banned For Gay Pastor, Rejoins Church. . ."It's like we've been without a part of our body," said (Bishop) Holmerud's assistant Nancy Nelson to the Examiner. "This is a time to celebrate a painful period in our church coming to a close". . .
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Lutherans for Full LGBT Participation
. . .These resolutions would expand the welcome of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to specifically include trans*, bi and all people affected by binary gender oppression. . .
See No Evil
. . .For those in the ELCA, it is no longer necessary to admit one is sinful. The doctrine of bound conscience allows ELCA members to hold to their own interpretation of Scripture, and even if it is in obvious error, all are called to respect that opinion. . .
Why No Denomination Will Survive the Homosexuality Crisis
. . .We can't "unify" our way out of this mess or press people to stop having mutually exclusive convictions for the sake of our institutions, pensions, or pride. The fact is there is no third way, no fourth way, no tenth way out of this controversy that leaves all the pieces in the same places they are now. Groups will split. Bodies will rearrange. Parts will realign. . .
The Presiding Bishop's "Core" Convictions
. . .I have little doubt that in wide swaths of the ELCA this sappy and at the same time legalistic preaching prevails. Stacked up against classic Lutheran confessional “core” convictions. . .
Homosexuality, Gay marriage — what God says
. . .It’s possible to love one another and also say, “What you’re doing is wrong.” We do it all the time with our children as we raise them. So does God. He proclaims both Law and Gospel. . .
National Coverage Over ELCA Professor's Claim Jesus was a Muslim - Witness Stone Blog
Luther College (ELCA) is getting some national attention. Attention that no doubt it wishes would go away fast. Of course that is what happens when a Christian college allows foolishness to be taught. . .
Lutheran bishop makes pro-gay history
For the first time ever, a presiding Lutheran bishop spoke before a pro-LGBT faith group, which also serves a denominational advocacy organization. The historic first came on July 7, when Bishop Mark S. Hanson of the Evangelical Church In America (ELCA) delivered the keynote address at Luther Place Memorial Church in Washington, D.C., during a kickoff event for a gathering of ReconcilingWorks that spanned several days. . .
Seeking DQ? A Dilemma!
. . .a local ELCA pastor also stated that he agrees with my stance, but is yet content claiming orthodox, traditional, and Confessional Lutheranism while remaining in an ELCA congregation… one which in cashflow allegiance supports a denominational entity that will call upon God in non-biblical feminine names, and supports abortion through its insurance plan. How this mentality maintains long term hold on these persons is beyond my understanding! . . .
Me, Me, Me, I
. . .LGTBQ activists have long advocated for full inclusion in the church. Apparently, acceptance as a child of God, sinful and unclean, like all of God’s children is insufficient. The sin of homosexuality must be accepted as not sinful in order to properly love and welcome this misguided class. . .
The Presiding Bishop Steps Out
. . .I am angered to learn that ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson, who has never attended a meeting of Lutheran CORE, nor answered the repeated requests of myself and other confessional theologians to account for his partisan leadership, will address the annual meeting of ReconcilingWorks — Lutherans for Full Participation (the GLBT PAC in the ELCA). . .
The State of the ELCA
. . .There's not a lot of leadership within the denomination - for those inside or outside the seminaries. This adaptation of Luther's "my conscience is bound to the Word of God" to "my conscience is bound to me and my personal opinion" has, in my personal opinion, left a lot of people scrambling. . .
ELCA Opens (?) Feminist Dialogue
. . .one reads and hears feminist theology in Augsburg Fortress' congregational, not just academic, materials -- everything from Sunday School and Confirmation curricula to the liturgical texts and re-written psalms used weekly in congregations that have adopted Evangelical Lutheran Worship. . .
Speak the Truth to Power
. . .The amoral attitude of those that have the audacity to challenge God’s law simply advocates for man to usurp God’s role as the sole authority in our lives. The leaders of the ELCA lead the faithful over the edge like lemmings in their misguided attempt to normalize that which our God forbids. . .
Another June 2012 Update From Grace Lutheran Church of Eau Claire
The following update was provided by Grace Lutheran Church -Eau Cliare president Anne Carter to her congregation. . .
June 2012 Update on Grace Lutheran Church - Eau Claire, WI
. . .below is an update provided by Anne Carter, president of Grace Lutheran Church of Eau Claire to her congregation providing an update regarding the lawsuit filed against the congregation by former members who joined an ELCA Synod Authorized Worshipping Community calling itself Amazing Grace, but claiming in the lawsuit to be Grace Lutheran ELCA. . .
Key Minnesota pastors opt out of marriage fight
. . .Faith groups statewide remain divided over the amendment. Catholic bishops, representing the largest denomination in Minnesota with close to 1.1 million followers, have come out in favor of it. Members of the state's second-largest denomination, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with close to 800,000 adherents, have overwhelmingly voted against the amendment. . .
Lutheran Missouri Synod's Minnesota southern district supports marriage amendment
. . .Five Minnesota synods of the ELCA have approved formal resolutions in opposition to the marriage amendment.