Lutheran (EL
* as of August 19, AD 2009, a liberal protestant SECT, not part of the holy, catholic and apostolic CHURCH.
Marantha--Come, Lord Jesus!
Posted on 12/15/2009 2:51:57 PM PST by lightman
Christmas Message 2009
A message from Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson
But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us...
-- Titus 3:4-5a
Into this shadowed world light shines and joyous voices sing. Glad tidings cheer the heart and liberate hope. “A child has been born for us, a son given to us” (Isaiah 9:6). God our Savior has appeared!
God’s saving goodness and loving kindness have arrived in Jesus, the Word made flesh. Though hidden in the humility of a manger, and later in the scandal of the cross, God’s promise is being made good in plain sight for all to see, in a life of generous mercy, richly poured out for all.
“See, your salvation comes,” the prophet wrote (Isaiah 62:11). God’s faithfulness to God’s promises calls us to a new hope, for the hope of eternal life is an inheritance that we can enjoy today in lives of generosity and compassion, joy and peace.
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
What is the relationwhip between God and Jesus, the Word made flesh? Is there any relationship at all? One would never know from that sentence!
God’s faithfulness to God’s promises calls us to a new hope,
Clearly, Father (as in God the Father) has become the F-word of ELCA-speak.
The Presiding Bishop has said that the ELCA has two hermeneutics; the issue goes beyond two hermeneutics, as there are two vastly different litugical and theological vocabularies and at least two sets of creeds.
The ELCA is indeed a house divided--multiple ways.
* as of August 19, AD 2009, a liberal protestant SECT, not part of the holy, catholic and apostolic CHURCH.
Marantha--Come, Lord Jesus!
Ping.
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Of course the Bishop couldn't simply use the word "Son" or any masculine pronoun! Just think how much effort Hanson expends trying to be true to his liberal pc beliefs but still appear to have a modicum of orthodoxy. As the late Richard John Neuhaus dryly observed as the Commission on the New Lutheran Church was cobbling together the monstrosity that became the ELCA, "It's not that easy to wire something together and have it look like the Church."
Get thee behind me, Bishop!!!
"God’s faithfulness to God’s promises . . . [doesn't make a dent on us as we rewrite orthodox translations of verses like 1 Corinthians 1:9 -- God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.]"
Announcement from ELCA News Service
>Dear Friends:
As you know, the ELCA churchwide organization recently underwent a series of budget reductions, as well as staff reductions. Because of those actions, I regret to inform you that the "ELCA News Blog" has been discontinued.
One would never know from that sentence.
It would never occur to me to question that sentence. Doesn’t the fact that Word is capitalized indicate he is speaking of a connection between the Word and the Father?
This message was produced both as a written statement and as a YouTube-genre video clip. In the video clip and its audio version capitalization can only be assumed; and that assumption would stem from past catechesis, not the present proclamation.
Why would you assume he is breaking with past catechesis with this message?
You may have misunderstood me: A listener understanding that the Word is indeed the only-begotten Son of the Father would solely be the result of good catechesis. S/he would not have understood the relationship between the Word and the Father through a verbal rendition of ++Mark’s message.
What is the relationwhip between God and Jesus, the Word made flesh? Is there any relationship at all? One would never know from that sentence!
I was trying to say that, absent the orthodox language of “Father” and “Son”, the relationship between God and Jesus, the Word made flesh is very indistinct and ambiguous.
You and I implicitly recoginize the relationship to be that of the only-begotten Son and His Father, and we recoginize that because we have been nurtured on the Nicene and Athanasian Creeds.
A person whose knowledge of Christianity has not been similarly nuturted might well wonder if “Jesus, the Word made flesh” is a second God, or a mere part of God’s created order (Arianism).
I posed the question because departure from the historic language of the Church seems to be the primary m.o. these days: “Political correctness” in avoiding the dread masculine pronoun has become the first principle rather than theological accuracy.
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