How the ELCA Left the Great Tradition for Liberal Protestantism

Christianity Today ^ | 9/02/2009 | Robert Benne

[rhema]

There is no authoritative biblical or theological guidance in the church. There are only many voices.

During last week's biennial Church Wide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the church affirmed major policy recommendations to allow for the blessing of same-sex unions (which practice will soon inflate to same-sex marriage) and the rostering of gay and lesbian pastors in partnered relationships.

Earlier in the week it also passed by one vote—out of over 1,000 total votes cast—a Social Statement on Sexuality that admitted there was no consensus on the moral evaluation of homosexual conduct, and offered no compelling biblical or theological reasons to support the policies it later in fact adopted. The Statement was firm and bold on issues that everyone agreed upon—the moral condemnation of promiscuity, pornography, sexual exploitation, etc.—but indecisive and vague about contested issues—co-habitation, premarital sex, the importance of the nuclear family, and, of course, homosexual conduct.

Right before the vote on the Social Statement a totally unexpected tornado hit the Minneapolis Conference Center where we were meeting as well as the huge Central Lutheran Church next door, knocking the cross off one of its towers. Orthodox voting members saw the work of God in the tornado's cross-toppling effects and in the vote that passed with a .666 majority. Revisionists noted that the sun came out after the vote. In response the orthodox quipped that the sun comes out almost every day, but rogue tornados are pretty rare!

Those in the orthodox camp warned the assembly not to vote on binding church doctrine, especially if it had no convincing biblical or theological arguments to overturn the moral consensus of the one holy, catholic, and apostolic church held throughout the ages and by 99 percent of the world's Christians.

[lucias_clay]

Am I the only one to notice an enourmous amount of irony in one protestant group chastising another protestant group for rejecting tradition ?

[TPartyType]

Greetings, sister!

Pride . . . yes. Other stumbling blocks that will likely keep many souls from leaving the ELCA are:

• the inerrancy of the Bible
• family ties
• closed communion
• being associated with an unpopular, out of step community
• no longer being perceived as "enlightened"
• theology of the cross (as opposed to glory)
• should they attempt to "cross over," realizing they have less power
• Male dominance (remember that . . . :o)
• differences in political and social views
• the shocking realization that the LCMS has its own problems

Sorry to be a downer . . . I'm truly happy to meet other LCMS Christians on FR!! One thing we can all celebrate: Our common heritage ROCKS and is substantive, and rich, and constitutes a solid foundation in the faith! What our Reformation forebears did for us is absolutely analogous to what the Founding Fathers did for America's polity.

Blessings,

TPartyType

[TPartyType]

. . . and I need to add, I would lovingly, gladly, receive any ELCA members who are fed up. But I would hope they would refrain from fanning the flames of liberalism in the LCMS. Lord knows we don't need any help in that department!

I pray they'd realize that the LCMS is precariously positioned on the same slippery slope that got the ELCA where it is today, but that the faithful traditionalists are trying to hit the brakes, so to speak. (But I would wager most who leave the ELCA for the LCMS, unlike you and ConservativeGreatGrandpa just couldn't help themselves, because they're "hardwired" to drift toward liberalism; to reject traditional, conservative theology.

[Conservativegreatgrandma]

Well, actually, I grew up in the former Lutheran church before they became the American Lutheran Church.

I look back and not only did we have close communion, you had to go to the church on Sat. afternoon before communion to "announce" that you desired to take communion the next day.

I remember that all church members kneeled at their seats during confession of sins.

If anything, I recall they were more strict than our current LCMS.

Then it became the ALC and things were still alright as far as I could tell at the time. BUT after 1988 and the merger that brought them to the ELCA was a total game changer.

I think we left in about 1992 for the LCMS.

I believe I am right where I started. Women in the clergy? My former church would not have thought of it. See what 30 years of liberalism can do?

[rhema]

Am I the only one to notice an enourmous amount of irony in one protestant group chastising another protestant group for rejecting tradition ?

Tradition ain't all it's cracked up to be, notably where it diverges from the Bible. Jesus chastised the Pharisees, telling them, "By your traditions you make the Word of God to no effect."

The authority of God's Word is what counts, not any denomination's tradition. Where the ELCA has wrought its latest apostasy is by thumbing its collective nose at the clear Biblical proscriptions against homosexual behavior.

[lucias_clay]

Jesus also told the people to obey what the scribes and pharisees told them.

The question though of violating clear proscriptions in the word of God is a fascinating one. Whether it is clear or not depends, increasingly, on which translation you use. Many modern translations blur that line more and more, leaving one free to determine for instance that it wasn’t homosexuality it was doing it in the context of shrine prostitution for instance. ( I refer to various passages that have been retranslated that way ).

Just a couple days ago the International Bible Society or as its now called Biblica announced plans to produce a more correct NIV version. Particularly “more inclusive” They have tried this before resellign the NIV Inclusive version in the US as the Readers version. The TNIV crashed and burned as well. So they will try again.

Whats fascinating for me in all this is the NIV is the most popular ( sales wise ) version out there today. Just for fun I did some research and found out Zondervan went public on the NASDAQ a few decades ago, then was bought by Harper Collins which itself is a subsidary of Newscorp Rupert Murdochs company. As in Fox News parent company I think.

This is all just interesting trivia I found today and thought I’d pass on.

Cheers.

[pray4liberty]

Jesus also told the people to obey what the scribes and pharisees told them.

Not exactly.

"Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not." Matthew 23:2-3

Jesus meant for them to follow the Commandments of God, which God gave Moses. It was mistranslated from "he" (Moses) to "they".

[rhema]

Former ELCA pastor Tom Brock (Hope Lutheran AFLC in Minneapolis) chronicles more of the ELCA's recent apostasies and heresies, universalism among them.

[skandi]

I am one who has left the ELCA and joining the LCMS. Some friends and I are not tiptoeing, some have, some may. NOt tiptoeing has cost us relationships. This has been very hard. Some of us have been very vocal to a pastor with an agenda that does not match ours.

I caution you that your post reflected an attitude that was not very welcoming to those who are hurt and seeking. This is the time for LCMS to shine. It is the judgmentalism we have heard and experienced by LCMS in the past that makes many reluctant to come. I’m glad I had the choice of an LCMS church and that the church and members have been very welcoming in embracing us.

[TPartyType]

Thank you, Skandi.

Just a note of clarification: I meant to voice more skepticism than judgmentalism. I understand how it came across as judgmental, but I was trying to observe what I take to be some of the factors that keep people from taking radical steps; making radical moves.

Leaving one's lifelong church is a difficult thing to do, and I've looked for people to leave the ELCA every time there is a new step away from the authority of scripture, but it hasn't happened, so I wasn't expecting it to happen this time, to any significant extent . . . boy was I wrong! HA!

We've got about a dozen people coming to our church right now who've left a local ELCA church! Hallelujah! And, believe me, we are doing everything we can to make them feel welcome.

However, as an elder, I have to say, I'm still concerned that they understand that we want them to assimilate to the LCMS. We cannot handle any more pressure to become more liberal. It's already too difficult to fight those battles within the synod. I can imagine how it would be that some (many?) would have a sentimental/emotional attachment to tradition, given the battles in the ELCA the past decades, but, in practice, will feel compelled to "enlighten" their new congregation. I think this is a matter of "temperament," so to speak, and therefor, I would suspect, they won't be able to help themselves. (Again, not to be judgmental; just an observation and/or hypothesis. I obviously could be wrong here . . .)

So I ask you, as one who's left: Do the people who are leaving the ELCA understand that, if they start trying to get the LCMS to accommodate them in terms of opening up and being less traditional, in a few years they may likely be right back in the same situation?

Blessings,

T