Setting Aside Good Order in the ELCA?
Life in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) these days is anything put peaceful and easy. Since the Churchwide Assembly in August passed a social statement on human sexuality (here, PDF)...
View ArticleThe ELCA’s Late Entry on Ugandan Anti-gay Law
By now you may have heard something about the anti-gay bill that’s been introduced into the parliament of Uganda. It offers severe penalties for the offense of “homosexuality,” up to and including...
View ArticleIdentity Crisis, Not Structural Crisis
A couple of friends pointed out an interesting blog entry by Walter Russell Mead (son of Loren Mead) titled The Holy Crap Must Go. Mead notes the troubled finances and struggles for existence of many...
View ArticleHoly Places
Yesterday’s post responded to certain streams of thought in the church about it’s future and the needs for reform and change in our life together. As a starting point, it used Walter Russell Mead’s...
View ArticleReconfiguration of Lutheranism. Really?
Today the conservative, traditionalist, and dissident group Lutheran CORE released it’s vision for what the group’s press release called “the reconfiguration of Lutheranism in North America.” It calls...
View ArticleStructural Engineering the ELCA
The ELCA, facing budget shortfalls, is forced to restructure it's churchwide organization. But the restructuring is flawed with misplaced priorities and a failure to address the real structural problem...
View ArticleGood Friday Bidding Prayer
The Good Friday service at my church was good and well done. But I have to say that the Bidding Prayer is sticking in my craw. The Bidding Prayer is a traditional part of the Good Friday liturgy. It...
View ArticleEight Is (More than) Enough: Of Seminaries and Church Support
Father Anonymous at Magdalene’s Egg recently posted about faculty changes at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, which will shortly be completing its merger with Lenoir-Rhyne University. In the...
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