Fox News Glenn Beck told his viewing audience recently to take a look at your church’s website and run like heck if you see the words “social justice” and/or “economic justice.” He said they were code for a socialist political agenda.
I’ve been lumping all Lutherans together (as I did in my remarks about the March on America on Sunday, here). But, now, thanks to this article that came to my attention this a.m. I understand better. Just as there is a massive split in the Catholic Church between both religiously and politically conservative parishoners and far left activists (USCCB?), so too does the split exist in the Lutheran Church.
Here is the article that helped clarify for me the split among Lutherans in the US:
Contact: Rev. CJ Conner, Author of “Jesus and the Culture Wars,” 651-373-9137
MEDIA ADVISORY, March 22 /Christian Newswire/ — Rev. CJ Conner, author of “Jesus and the Culture Wars,” submits the following and is available for comment:
When Glenn Beck pleaded, “I beg you. Look for the words “social justice” or “economic justice” on your church Web site. If you find it, run as fast as you can,” he raised the virulent ire of “progressive” Christians.
Many congregations and people are already running as fast as they can in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. At least 160 congregations have left the ELCA since their August decision to ordain practicing gay pastors in the name of social justice. Many of these churches are 10-30 times the size of the average 110 member ELCA Congregation. But gay ordination is not the primary reason they are running for the exits.
The 6,000 member Calvary Lutheran Church in Golden Valley Minnesota has decided to begin severing ties with the ELCA. At the heart of their decision is “The ELCA’s emphasis on formulating and advocating numerous political and social positions, which has gone beyond the scope of the mission of the Church.” And, “At ELCA synod conventions, instead of focusing on how to share the good news of Jesus Christ in the world, they have acted more like the platform committee of a political party or political action group.” They are leaving because this pre-occupation with the “progressive” political agenda “causes division” and “distracts our church away from keeping the ‘main thing’ the ‘main thing’.”
Beck is right.
An analysis of the ELCA national website shows that words like salvation, repentance, and grace are outnumbered 2-to-1 by phrases like “social justice” and “advocacy.” The ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson shares a common agenda with President Obama- an agenda finely honed at the Saul Alinsky church-based community organizing center, Gamaliel, in Chicago- where both men got their start on their road to power.
There was a reason why Alinsky dedicated his book “Rules for Radicals” to Satan.
The so-called “Mainline Church” has been on the forefront of the “progressive” movement that has so bitterly divided the nation. From their policies against Israel, to their feverish advocacy for “health care and immigration reform”, to their advocacy for gay marriage, unfettered abortion rights, and a whole host of policies long associated with communist regimes rather than the Christian Church, “progressive” denominations like the ELCA have been leading the charge for years to divide and conquer America, impose their utopian views, and destroy American freedom.
In some ways maybe it’s a good thing that Obama was elected because now it becomes clearer who represents which world view and we can all stop muddling around in the middle. Baron Bodissey said at Gates of Vienna recently that it is good that the final showdown will likely come in this generation.
So how does this involve refugees? Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services (one of nine soon to be ten federal refugee contractors) is in the political Far Left camp—the camp of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Here they are a partner of ELCA. Here is LIRS history that includes ELCA.
I sure hope we don’t find out that the large outlay of federal money going to LIRS for refugee care is helping support the ELCA as we learned was happening in the floundering Episcopal Church.
And, you know what is so funny (sad! hypocritical!), LIRS that supported that demonstration for humanity on the Mall on Sunday is often cited as a refugee agency not taking very good care of the human beings they are paid to resettle. It is becoming increasingly clear to me that the refugees, the human beings, are just pawns in a larger political game.
Use our search function for ‘Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services’ for more. I discussed “progressive Christianity” here last October in a post about “progressives” pushing Japan to accept Rohingya Muslims into their country.