There’s an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America congregation in San Francisco, Ebenezer Lutheran Church, which despite its name is apparently no longer Lutheran, or even Christian. Rather, ELC has decided to make up its own religion, and calls it “HerChurch.” They worship a goddess, they even have a goddess rosary, and in November they are inviting a priestess of Isis to join them for a conference they’re having. Among other things.
The problem is not that this congregation and its people cannot do what they please (as outlandish as what they please is) but that they do it while wearing the name and identity as a Lutheran congregation. They give us a black eye and cause others to judge Lutheranism as a looney bin of extremists rather than the evangelical and catholic faith of its confession. That this congregation is allowed to remain in a Lutheran church body, one which seems to have no trouble waving good bye to people who disagree, seems to confirm the opinion that such faith and practice is not divergent from but consistent with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Is it no wonder that Pres. Harrison of the LCMS can say that we are through with the ELCA?!
The congregation says that its mission statement is: The Christian-Lutheran Feminist/Womanist/Mujerista Movements exist to celebrate the feminine persona of God/dess and dimensions of the sacred as expressed in faith, worship, learning, mutual care, and acts of justice.
To say that this is compatible with creedal and confessional Lutheranism represents idiocy of the highest proportion. Yet I know of faithful Lutherans in the ELCA who are being pushed toward the exit while this aberration is being allowed to exist unhindered and unchallenged. Makes you think, doesn't it...
4 comments:
As I (more-or-less) said over at the Bad Vestments blog,
Jesus was circumcised the 8th day, and it wasn't a female circumcision (I cleaned that up a bit). So excuse me, he HAS to be male/masculine.
When are women going to get over the scummy boyfriends/husbands in their past? Get on with it! We are focused in the wrong direction: Men don't define God; God REDEEMS them.
I bet you that the ELCA would tolerate the inclusion of the most conservative of LCMS churches joining up with them if the congregation would send in their $$$ to the Synod. The "Her Church" probably does some good works and sends in some $ and they contribute #'s. So, it's all good. Except for that it's not.
Sierra Pacific Synod. Nothing surprises me there.
At this point in the life of the ELCA, I have no idea on what basis they would discipline the pastor (eh, priestess? whatever) or call the congregation to repentance. Not to say that we in Missouri haven't had problems that we have failed to deal with.
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