April 2022

Dear Friends –

The apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received, that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15: 3-4)

He also wrote to his young friend Timothy, “And what you have heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well.” (2 Timothy 2: 2)

The writer of the Gospel of John penned these words.  “These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20: 31)

The witness of Scripture is clear and strong.  It does matter whether the message of the Bible is preserved, shared, heard, and believed. 

The most sacred and precious time of the year for those who love Jesus is Holy Week.  It is then that we hear and read once again of His triumphal entry, last supper, agony in the garden, betrayal, arrest, crucifixion, and resurrection.  The accounts of this one week form the major part of each of the four Gospels, and we are fortunate to have four Gospel accounts.  We know more about what Jesus did for our salvation because we have all four.

And yet what do we see going on now?  A movement to “cancel” the passion narrative in the Gospel of John and remove it from the lectionary readings for Holy Week.  The reason given is that the two chapters of John 18 and 19 are being accused of fostering antisemitism.

There is no doubt but that antisemitism is wrong, just as there is no doubt but that any form of racism is wrong.  Historically, according to the Gospels, it was the Jews who cried for Jesus to be crucified.  It was the Romans who carried out the crucifixion.  But it was my sins that nailed Jesus to the cross, just as much as anyone else’s.

This movement to “cancel” John is “gaining steam” within the U. S. Episcopal Church.  I am alarmed when I read comments also from ELCA pastors who would like to see the Gospel of John removed from the list of Scripture readings for Holy Week.

In my April letter from the director, which will be published in mid-April, I will tell more about this movement and how it is gaining ground within the ELCA.  Here we see just one more way in which the authority of the Scriptures first is questioned and then is rejected.  Anything difficult in the Bible is thrown out, rather than wrestled with and learned from.  Any time when the voice of the Bible is in conflict with the voice of our culture, the voice of our culture prevails.

If the passion readings in the Gospel of John are thrown out, what will it be next?  That is a question we continually ask regarding the ELCA.  What will it be next?  We already know of ELCA pastors who believe that the message of the cross is not that Jesus died for our sins.  Instead it is a challenge to join God in the work of dismantling oppressive, political power structures.  There are others who say that the main message and mission of the church is to support environmental causes and concerns.  What will it be next?  As everyone who has observed trends and events in the last decade knows only too well, it will not stop here.  The departure from and rejection of traditional, Biblical beliefs and values will only accelerate. 

What is at stake is the very heart of our faith – the message of the cross, the hope of the resurrection, the privilege and joy of knowing God as Father, Christ’s command to His church to fulfill the Great Commission, and God’s call to His people to holy living. 

We of Lutheran CORE have been working hard to show you how the orthodox Christian faith and Biblical moral values are first being compromised and then rejected by such things as the embrace of critical race theory by many Christian leaders, the choice of keynote speakers for national youth gatherings, the ELCA’s full embrace of the LGBTQ+ agenda and values, and the way in which many in the ELCA twist the message of the Bible in order to support that agenda.  Through our being one of the sponsors of the NEXUS Institute at Grand View University, our support system for orthodox seminarians, and our support group for younger persons, many of whom are planning on attending seminary, we are also working hard so that there will be Biblically faithful and Great Commission-minded pastors in the future.  Thank you for your interest in and support of these efforts and your generous gifts to our Pastoral Formation Fund. 

It is your ongoing prayers and gifts to Lutheran CORE that enable us to continue our work of being a Voice for Biblical Truth and a Network for Confessing Lutherans.  Thank you for your prayers for us.  Click here for a form that you can use to let us know how we can be praying for you. 

Giving thanks for the cross and the empty tomb,

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

Visit our website www.lutherancore.org

Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/LutheranCORE

Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/LutheranCORE

Join us on MeWe https://mewe.com/p-front/lutherancore

Watch us on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtoknmLRxWxGeLkpBeRjRVA

Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lutherancore/

A friend of Lutheran CORE has written a side-by-side, phrase-by-phrase comparison of every phrase in the Lord’s Prayer as used by Ebenezer HerChurch with the version of the Lord’s Prayer as translated by the English Language Liturgical Consultation.  Here is a PDF link to that comparison, but it is also below in text.  Per Lutheran CORE’s Executive Director, Dennis Nelson, “People need to know how bad Ebenezer HerChurch is and that the ELCA allows it.”

The Lord’s Prayer is one of several liturgical texts which have been rewritten for use in worship at HerChurch. How does the revision fare? Here is a side-by-side, phrase-by-phrase comparison of every part of the The Lord’s Prayer as used at HerChurch with every corresponding part of the standard edition of The Lord’s Prayer as translated by the English Language Liturgical Consultation (ELLC), with commentary on the revision.

This part scraps the biblical witness to take up unsanctioned innovation with pagan roots. In the biblical text, nowhere do we find a model of, and nowhere are we given the authority for, calling upon God by the name “Our Mother”. Worship of the “mother”, the “goddess”, the “divine feminine”, is a marked feature of pagan religious tradition. It has no basis in Christianity.

Gone, in this part, are the ideas of heaven and that we have a higher power above us. We are to look within ourselves, rather than up to the one who is greater than we are. But God is above us, and greater than us. It is this very fact which makes the incarnation of Jesus Christ so radical: that God, the Most High, humbled himself to become like us, to suffer and die for us.

This part lacks humility. Rather than ask God to do for us, in this part, we are to tell God what we do. Rather than submit to God’s authority and will, we demand that God must submit to us. Absent is the notion that God’s name is holy, and the implied petition that God’s name be made holy in us. In fact, there is no mention of holiness in the revision.

In this part, rather than ask for God’s kingdom—in which all wrongs are made right, all of God’s people belong, and all of creation is made whole—to come amongst us, here we are to ask merely for “wisdom” to be bestowed upon us. A rather myopic and self-centered request.

Gone, again, is the idea of heaven, in this part. And, again, we have a myopic request. Rather than ask for the whole world to be subject to God’s good will, we are to ask only for God’s good will to unfold within ourselves. Quite inconsiderate, myopic, and self-centered.

This part is more of a statement than a petition, an affirmation of sorts. The statement is not wrong, strictly speaking, as God does indeed give us everything we need. But the revision entirely misses a key point of the original petition: that we are told to ask, and free to ask, for our Father in heaven to provide our every need. God invites us to ask, and graciously provides for us.

Gone, in this part, is the notion that we have “sins” for which we need God’s “forgive[ness]”, which is central to Christian faith. It is replaced with the words that we are “remind[ed] of or limits” and that “we let go”. But “sins” are not mere “limits”. “Sins” are trespasses against the Law of God. And we aren’t merely “remind[ed]” of our sins, nor are we to simply “let go” of

them. God calls on us to repent–confess, turn away from our sin, and turn again to God–in order to receive God’s forgiveness. Also gone, in this part, is the notion that we, too, are to forgive.

Entirely absent, in this part, is the notion that we are tempted, let alone that we need deliverance from temptation. That is replaced with an affirmation that God, supposedly, “supports us in our power”. But what kind of power? And to what end? The prayer does not say. God does not always “support us in our power”. Scripture has many examples of God rebuking the powerful, and of God taking away power from those who misuse it.

Entirely absent is the notion that there is “evil” which we need to be delivered from. Instead there is an affirmation that, supposedly, “we act with courage”. But what act do we do with courage? Is it, or is it not, something of which God approves? Again, the prayer does not say.

This prayer is not particularly comforting to one who knows well that he or she does not “act with courage”. The original prayer is a source of strength to the weak ones who pray it in times of trouble. The revision expects that the one who prays is already strong and courageous.

This seems to be an attempt to avoid words that reflect power and hierarchy: “kingdom”, “power”, “glory”. There are some for whom it has become fashionable to replace “kingdom” with “kin-dom” for similar reasons. But the reality is that God is our King, has power over us, and has glory above ours. God is not our equal. God is greater. To strip that away masks the truth that above everyone and everything, above even the most powerful, God is King.

Again, the revised wording is self-centered rather than God-centered, inward-facing rather than Godward-facing. Rather than God’s “kingdom”, God’s “power”, and God’s “glory”, it speaks of our “dwelling place within”, our “empowerment”, our “celebration”.

“Blessed Be” is a pagan greeting, as well as a common way to end prayers in neopagan traditions. And herein is revealed the true origin of the Our Mother in Heaven prayer, and more broadly, of the “Divine Feminine” spirituality which HerChurch promotes: paganism.

This “Divine Feminine” is not merely a contextualization of the historic Christian faith for women; it is something entirely different, which borrows heavily from pagan traditions, without truly “baptizing” them. The resulting religion strays quite far from biblical Christianity. It cuts out essential doctrines of the Christian faith, and it adds beliefs which are contrary to the Christian faith. We clearly see it happen in this revision.

This prayer is not the Lord’s Prayer. It is not even a poor imitation of the Lord’s Prayer. It is something different entirely. It bears little resemblance to the original, since it has been so thoroughly rewritten according to the whims of the “Divine Feminine” spirituality followers.

This prayer is not suitable for use in true Christian worship; avoid it entirely. Choose a standard translation of the Lord’s Prayer instead, in order to truly pray the prayer that Jesus taught us.

Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Ethiopia Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY) no longer receives support from the ELCA due to the 2009 ELCA churchwide assembly.  Prior to that point, the ELCA had been among the greatest supporters of the EECMY.  The EECMY is now the largest Lutheran body in the world, growing by over 60,000 per month.

On August 17^th, 2021, an unprecedented flash flood on the campus of the their main seminary destroyed 96 dormitory rooms as well as the homes of 21 families including 5 missionary families.  Damage is in the millions of dollars.  Eight lives were lost from the seminary community.  Here is a link to a video showing damage.  We grieve the loss of our brothers and sisters, yet not as the world grieves (1 Thes. 4:13ff).

The future of their main seminary is now at risk.  Much of the campus needs to be rebuilt.  Students and faculty no longer have places to stay.  Serious steps are being taken to guarantee such flooding does not take place in the future.

In the words of Bishop Dan Selbo in the September NALC newsletter, “We will also be inviting ‘every pastor, congregation and member to enter into intentional and intensive prayer for Ethiopia’”.  The story needs to be told and retold, as the EECMY has no other full-communion relationship with other bodies in North America.  The NALC has only 500 congregations.

You can help.  Tax-deductible disaster relief contributions are being received by the NALC.  

It is likely that short-term relief efforts will still not adequately rebuild the campus.  Thus, if you feel called to support the seminary in their efforts to recover and achieve long-term self-sustainability, a noteworthy building project on higher ground, untouched by the flooding, has been underway in partnership with Lutheran Bible Translators.  This project provides much needed assistance as well as creating an ongoing revenue stream of $225,000 per year to the seminary.  (Details and how to give are included in a separate handout, “God is on the move in Ethiopia!”)  If 250 congregations, or one from their membership, respond with a $4,000 donation, that project will be completed, generating revenue starting early in 2022.

Both of these opportunities provide much needed assistance to Mekane Yesus Seminary at this critical point in time. 

With a heavy heart for our brothers and sisters in Ethiopia,

John Conrad,

Chair, Mekane Yesus Seminary Advancement Team

Pastor, First Evangelical Lutheran Church, Floresville, TX

JTCSwede@gmail.com

Mobile: 830-534-3139

September 2021

Dear Friends:

The Psalm for the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, September 12, speaks powerfully about why we need a faith, a theology, and a relationship with God that is more than just woke and latest-social-justice-cause oriented.

Verses 3, 4, 6, and 8 of Psalm 116 say –

“The snares of death entangled me; the anguish of the grave laid hold on me; I came to grief and sorrow.”

“Then I called on the name of the Lord: ‘O Lord, save my life!’”

“When I was brought low, He saved me.”

“You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling.”

For all of us, it is only a matter of time until the snares of death entangle us, the anguish of the grave lays hold of us, and we come to grief and sorrow.  It is only a matter of time until we find ourselves being brought low, sinking into the waves, and – like Peter – crying out to Jesus, “Lord, save me!” (Matthew 14: 30)

In contrast, what do we see happening and what do we see being offered by and emphasized in much of the church today?

• In 2019 the ELCA posted a summary of actions that were taken at the Churchwide Assembly.  Many resolutions were passed against racism, sexism, and white supremacy, but Jesus was never mentioned.  Can you even imagine a church body meeting in assembly for several days but then never mentioning Jesus in their summary of actions?

• At the recent assembly of the ELCA synod in which I was rostered before I retired, hardly anyone ever mentioned Jesus.  Almost everyone gave their pronouns and advocated for diversity, equity, and inclusion, but they did not mention Jesus. 

• For that same ELCA synod, their weekly newsletter rarely ever mentions Jesus.  But they do talk about many ways in which I could fight for justice, advocate for “authentic diversity”, promote inclusivity, and combat world hunger.

• They talk about grace, but it is always grace without the cross.  It is a grace of my being more inclusive and accepting rather than a grace that tells me that Jesus paid the price for my sin and won the victory over death and the devil. 

And yet the truth of the matter is that if the Christian faith is mainly about what we do, the battles we fight, the social justice causes that we expend our energies on, sooner or later we will come to the realization that we cannot do enough.  The problems are too great.  Merely human resources are too few and too small.  Sooner or later the snares of death will entangle us.  The anguish of the grave will lay hold of us.  We will come to grief and sorrow.  It is only a matter of time until we find ourselves sinking into the waves and with Peter crying out, “Lord, save me!”

We all need a faith, a theology, and a relationship with God that tells us what God has done, what God can do, and what God will do to rescue us, and not just what we can do and need to do to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.  

Thank you for your prayers and financial support of Lutheran CORE.  It is because of people like you that we are able to continue to do such things as the following –

• Sponsor a week of Bible study, theological reflection, fellowship, and vocational discernment for high schoolers through the NEXUS program of Grand View University

• Provide a system of support for young adults who are serious about and want to share their faith, as well as a system of support for orthodox ELCA pastors and seminarians

• Work with congregations that are between pastors or whose pastor will soon retire or resign to take another call

• Work with and support pastors and congregational leaders who are seeking to show their congregations how the historic Christian faith is at risk

• Expose people to contemporary dynamics and movements that threaten the historic Christian faith, such as critical race theory

• Continue to challenge the ELCA to honor its commitment to also provide a place for traditional views and those who hold them

Thank you again for all your words of encouragement and your faithful prayer and financial support.  Click here for a form that you can use to let us know how we can be praying for you.  Your timely gift to Lutheran CORE will help enable us to continue to be a VOICE for Biblical Truth and a NETWORK for Confessing Lutherans.

In the Name of Jesus who will reach out and save us whenever we cry out to Him, 

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

Visit our website www.lutherancore.org

Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/LutheranCORE

Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/LutheranCORE

Join us on MeWe https://mewe.com/p-front/lutherancore

Last weekend I attended the online synod assembly for the ELCA synod in which I was rostered before I retired.  My two strongest impressions from the gathering are as follows.

First, the words that I heard most often were “diversity,” “inclusivity,” and “equity.”  That is what almost everybody talked about and what everybody seemed to make their top priorities.  After the assembly was over, I wished that I had kept track of the number of times that somebody mentioned Jesus.  I did not keep track of the number, but I am certain that Jesus was mentioned far less often than diversity, inclusivity, and equity.  I also definitely got the message that the diversity and inclusivity that they were talking about do not include people like me. 

In mid-May that synod held an online pre-assembly gathering.  Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton was one of the presenters.  She told the group, “We talk about justice; we also need to talk about Jesus.  We need to name the Name.”  Please pray with me that what she said was meant, was heard, and will be heeded. 

Second, the discussion about the proposed budget was amazing.  It was mentioned that during the last nine years – from 2012 to 2021 – receipts from congregations to the synod have dropped from $1.4 million to $800,000.  Which amounts to more than a 40 percent decline in nine years.  And that does not include the drop during the years immediately following the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly.

The proposed spending plan for the 2022-2023 fiscal year included income of $899,000 (the major addition to the receipts from congregations was over $70,000 from the assets obtained from the sale of a former church property), but expenses of over $1.2 million.  The assembly rejected the budget, not because it was not balanced, but instead because it did not provide funding for all of the favored ministries.  The attitude of the assembly was, We need to sell more buildings from closed congregations, and we need to use more of the dollars already obtained from already selling buildings from closed congregations.

It is astounding to me that people want to fund their agendas, values, and priorities from the sale of properties built and paid for by people whose view of the Bible, theology, moral values, and view of the mission of the church they reject.  They show neither appreciation for the past nor any concern to do their part to make the future viable.  Rather they just want to have the financial resources today to fund their agendas, values, and priorities.

It was also mentioned during the assembly that twenty-five percent of the synod’s 107 congregations (twenty-seven congregations) do not have a regular pastor, and several more are challenged because of their size and/or financial instability.

If all that is not enough to tell the ELCA that something is very wrong, what would be enough?

To read the entire June letter from the director, click here.  

* * * * * * *

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

dennisdnelsonaz@yahoo.com

Lutheran CORE | PO Box 1741, Wausau, WI 54402-1741

Lutheran CORE defines its mission as being a Voice for Biblical Truth and a Network for Confessing Lutherans.

As a Voice for Biblical Truth we alert people to ways in which the authority of the Bible, the historic, orthodox Christian faith, and traditional, Biblical moral values are being compromised and even rejected.

1. We offer guidance in evaluating ELCA communications and decisions, such as the social statement, “Faith, Sexism, and Justice” and the “Declaration of Inter-Religious Commitment,” both of which were approved at the 2019 Churchwide Assembly.   
2. We challenge the ELCA to keep its promise made at the 2009 Churchwide Assembly to honor also the traditional view of marriage and human sexuality.  We confront the ELCA over their complete lack of support for traditional views, as evidenced in such things as the choice of keynote speakers for the 2018 youth gathering and the choice of workshop leaders and topics for the 2021 youth ministry extravaganza.
3. We provide assistance for pastors and church leaders who want to gather examples to communicate ways in which orthodoxy is being threatened within the ELCA.
4. We include articles in our bi-monthly newsletter, CORE Voice, on such topics as critical race theory, how to share your faith with people who are hostile to the Christian faith, and how to communicate in a way that is relevant to technically sophisticated, younger generations.

As a Network for Confessing Lutherans we assure confessing persons that they are not alone.  We provide connection for them with many others who share their concerns and are engaged in the same struggles.

1. We provide Facebook groups in which orthodox pastors, seminarians, and lay people can engage in conversation with like-minded people.
2. We have a private and visible (Facebook terminology) Facebook group that includes pastors, seminarians, and lay people with several different church body affiliations.
3. We have a private and hidden (again Facebook terminology) Facebook group that is only for orthodox ELCA pastors and seminarians.
4. We have a third Facebook group, Lutheran CORE Worship, where people can post worship services and Bible studies.  
5. We also have both a page and a group on MeWe.
6. We are working with a pan-Lutheran group of younger persons to do four things: (1) develop a support network for orthodox students at ELCA seminaries, (2) develop a support network for college students considering attending seminary, (3) support people who are leading and/or seeking to start young adult ministries, and (4) find ways to communicate the Christian faith to younger persons in a clear and compelling way.   
7. Through the Clergy Connect page on our website, we help Biblically faithful, confessional congregations find a Biblically faithful, confessional pastor and vice versa.
8. As requested, we work with congregations that are reviewing their church body affiliation and walk with them through the process.
9. Through our Congregations in Transition ministry initiative we have a group of (mostly retired) Lutheran pastors who have been trained to be coaches for congregations where the pastor either already has or soon will be retiring or resigning to take another call.     
10. Through our sponsoring of the July 11-17, 2021 week of NEXUS at Grand View University, we are helping provide a way for high school youth to attend a week of Bible study, theological reflection, fellowship, involvement in ministry, and being challenged to consider attending seminary and become involved in a life of Christian service.   
11. We hold our annual Encuentro festival in the Chicago area – a day of support, connection, fellowship, inspiration, and resources for pastors, lay leaders, and congregations that are already involved in or are considering becoming involved in Spanish language and/or bi-lingual (English-Spanish) ministry. 
12. We provide on our website daily devotions and worship resources, including prayers and hymn suggestions.  We are also developing a bank of sermon resources for congregations that do not have a regular pastor. 
13. We also provide on our website an annotated List of Confessional Resources – books, magazines, ministries, and other resources recommended by confessional pastors – as well as video reviews of some of these resources.
14. We provide a listening ear for pastors who want to talk about such things as congregational dynamics, personal health issues, and/or are anticipating retirement or transitioning to life after retirement. 

“That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:10-11).

Not obtain, but attain.  What is the difference?  We shall all be raised in a moment in the twinkling of an eye at the last day.  But not all shall be raised with Christ in a resurrection like His.  Those who have loved the Lord will receive in themselves the resurrection like Christ and the others will be raised for condemnation.   The Lord is at work.  Is He at work in you?

Lord, help me to pay attention to the little things so that I may be guided by Your Word and walk according to Your will.  Lead me, O Lord, in order that I may attain the resurrection You have prepared for me in Christ.  Help me not waver as many in this world do, but to walk boldly in the truth of Your presence and purpose.  Help me Lord through the difficulties of this age so that I may always stand firm in the faith You give.

Lord Jesus, You are the way and there is no other way beside You.  You have been glorified through Your death and resurrection and have invited us to join You.  Help me today to be raised up for good works so that I may do what is pleasing in the Father’s eyes.  Help me now and always to humbly walk behind You and in Your example.  Grant all that I need for this day is to do Your will.  Amen.

April 2021

Dear Friends –

Every year the Gospel reading for the second Sunday of Easter is from John 20: 19 ff.  I remember how last year – when we first went into lockdown during the middle of Lent – around the middle of March – many felt that certainly we would be able to worship again in person by Easter.  But it did not happen.  Who would have thought at the time that some churches would not even be meeting indoors in person by Easter 2021?

As we have been living for a year now in various stages of lockdown, and some have been under quarantine because of exposure to COVID-19, I have gained a new understanding of the position the disciples were in in John 20: 19 ff.  The Bible tells us, “When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week (Easter Sunday evening), and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews.”  In that kind of situation, what did Jesus do for them?

• He gave them His presence.  “He came and stood among them.”  (verse 19)

• He gave them His peace.  Twice He said, “Peace be with you.” (verses 19 and 21) 

• He gave them unmistakable evidence of the resurrection.  He showed them His hands and His side.  (verse 20)

• He gave them a renewed sense of purpose and a calling.  He said, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”  (verse 21)

• He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” (verse 22)

• He gave them authority.  He promised, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (verse 23)

If we are going to be able to not just survive, but actually be strong in our witness for Christ, if we are going to be able to advocate for the historic, orthodox Christian faith in the midst of all of the pressures and opposition – not only from the world, but also unfortunately from within the church – we are going to need the same gifts from Jesus.  We need His presence, peace, unmistakable evidence of His resurrection, a renewed sense of purpose and calling, the Holy Spirit, and His authority.  The good news of Easter is that Jesus has all those same gifts for us.

I would like to tell you about one of our newest ministries.  We are working with a group of younger persons that includes two students at an ELCA seminary, four college students who are planning on attending seminary, and others.  Of this group –    

• One of them is leading a young adult group at his church.
• Two of them are working at starting new groups – one at his university, one at his church.
• Several have written articles that have appeared or will appear in our newsletter, CORE Voice.
• One of them made a video book review, which has been posted on our You Tube channel.
• Three of them attended NEXUS while in high school.  Two of those three have been college-aged mentors for NEXUS and plan to be mentors again this summer.

NEXUS is a program of Grand View University in Des Moines for older high school students, which includes a week of Bible study, theological discussion, fellowship, relationship building, and being challenged to consider a church-related vocation. Lutheran CORE is sponsor of the week of NEXUS which will be held this summer.  

• From this ministry we are seeing develop –

A support system for orthodox students at ELCA seminaries.

Young adults leading and starting groups for young adults. 

Opportunities for NEXUS alumni to stay connected and continue to be involved in ministry as they prepare to enroll in seminary.

Seeing the risen Christ, the disciples had the strength and courage to face all the challenges and opposing forces in life.  Because we know that Jesus is alive, we are able to continue our work of confronting the forces that are undermining the historic Christian faith, offering guidance and assistance to congregations that are or soon will be between pastors, working with congregations that are reviewing their church body affiliation, providing a system of support for orthodox ELCA pastors and seminarians, hosting our annual Spanish language and bi-lingual ministries festival, and challenging the ELCA to honor its commitment to also provide a place for traditional views and those who hold them.    

Thank you for all your words of encouragement and your faithful prayer and financial support.  Please click here for a form that you can use to let us know how we can be praying for you.  Your timely gift to Lutheran CORE will help enable us to continue to be a VOICE for Biblical Truth and a NETWORK for Confessing Lutherans.

Living with hope because of the resurrection of Jesus,

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

Visit our website www.lutherancore.org

Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/LutheranCORE

Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/LutheranCORE

Join us on MeWe  https://mewe.com/p/lutherancore

“I DID NOT HEAR ANYONE NEAR ME PRAYING THAT VERSION OF THE PRAYER”

I remember after the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly, which provided for the possibility of the ordination of persons who are in (PALMS) publicly accountable, lifelong, monogamous same sex relationships.  There were several people who had already been ordained as Lutheran pastors, but outside of approved ELCA procedures.  The question was raised, How do these people now come onto the ELCA roster?

It was felt that they should not be ordained, since they had already been ordained – though not through established and approved ELCA procedures.  Instead there was a service of welcome.  Several ELCA bishops participated in that service, including the bishop of the synod in which I was rostered at the time.

As part of the service – at the time when we would normally pray the Lord’s Prayer – there were seven different prayers offered (you could take your pick!), including a prayer to the goddess Sophia.  This prayer was provided by Ebenezer HerChurch, a radically feminist ELCA congregation in San Francisco.

I had read that the ELCA Conference of Bishops had had a discussion of the service as part of their next meeting.  At a subsequent gathering at which my bishop was present, I asked him about the discussion.  I asked him how did the bishops feel and what did the bishops have to say about the service – including the prayer to the goddess Sophia.  His response was the same minimize-the-whole-thing kind of response that I have received countless times from ELCA bishops ever since.  He said, “I did not hear anyone near me praying that version of the prayer.” 

I would like to thank the friend of Lutheran CORE who has written a side-by-side, phrase-by-phrase comparison of every phrase in the Lord’s Prayer as used by Ebenezer HerChurch with the version of the Lord’s Prayer as translated by the English Language Liturgical Consultation.  Here is a link to that comparison.

Here is a link to the website of Ebenezer HerChurch, a congregation in the Bay Area that is in good standing with the Sierra Pacific Synod of the ELCA.

Reading that comparison, learning more about that congregation, and seeing what the ELCA will allow, how could you possibly say something like the following?  “It is OK because it does not affect me.”  “It is OK because I did not hear anyone near me praying that version of the prayer.”

* * * * * * *

A NEW LOW  

In the July 2018 issue of our newsletter, CORE Voice, we told you about the agenda that the ELCA was relentlessly pushing at the triennial youth gathering.  One of the keynote speakers was a transgender activist and her pre-adolescent transgender child.  Another one was a highly celebrated ELCA pastor, who led 31,000 young people in a chant rejecting traditional views of human sexuality as a lie. 

What kind of workshops on human sexuality do you think were provided for the adults who work with our young people at the annual ELCA Youth Ministry Network Extravaganza, which was held online and at host sites earlier this month?   

I need to warn you, some of this material is very explicit and deeply offensive. 

Here are videos that were used to promote three workshops on sexuality that were offered at the ELCA Extravaganza.

Sexuality and Faith Conversations

Affirming Logistics: Showing God’s Care for LGBTQ Youth in the Practical Details of Ministry

Internal Welcome and External Witness: LGBTQ Youth Ministry and Public Advocacy

If you want or need further evidence of the kind of perspective that the ELCA is pushing and promoting to those who work with youth, here are links to two sections of the website of the presenter at the first workshop.

Section 1

Section 2

What can we say?  All three presenters are LGBTQ+ affirming.  All three presenters leave the LGBTQ+ affirming position as the only option for faithful advocacy, caring about and for LGBTQ+ youth, and providing “safe space” for them.  There is no support at all for a traditional position and/or for youth workers who hold and want to teach a traditional position.  There is not even a mention of an alternative that would affirm the value of LGBTQ+ persons while also helping and equipping them to live faithfully. There is no concern at all to provide support and a “safe space” for youth workers and youth who hold to traditional views.

The ELCA has reached a new low.  Once again, how can the ELCA claim to be inclusive?  How can the ELCA claim to want diversity?  How can the ELCA claim to have any moral integrity when it so blatantly violates the commitments that were made at the 2009 Churchwide Assembly to also honor and give a place to traditional views and those who hold them? 

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

dennisdnelsonaz@yahoo.com

Dear Friends:

Have you ever noticed that among the first words of the angels to Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds were the words “Do not be afraid”?

In Luke 1 the angel said to Mary, “Do not be afraid, for you have found favor with God.”

In Matthew 1 the angel said to Joseph, “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.”

In Luke 2 the angel said to the shepherds, “Do not be afraid; I bring you good news of great joy for all people.”

We today have many reasons to be afraid.  In fact, many people are deathly afraid.  Between the pandemic, the economy, political unrest, and racial tension we have many reasons for fear.  Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds also were living at a time when there were many reasons for fear.  But in the midst of those times, God said to them, and God is saying to us, “Do not be afraid.”

“Do not be afraid, for you have found favor with God.”  Romans 8: 31 says, “If God is for us (which He is), who is against us?”

“Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.”  God is saying the same thing to us.  “Do not be afraid to continue on with your life.”  It will not be the same.  It will not go back to exactly what it was.  It may never develop into a new normal.  But it will develop into a new reality, and God will be with us in that new reality.

“Do not be afraid; I am bringing you good news.”  Into the midst of such a bad news world, we as the Church need to bring good news – good news of great joy for all people.  A Savior, who is Christ the Lord, has been born.

Thank you for standing with us as we work to be a VOICE for Biblical Truth and a NETWORK for Confessing Lutherans.  We are glad that we can count on you as we work to help people to not be afraid even in the midst of all the forces that challenge the historic Christian faith and seek to undermine traditional, Biblical moral values.

Recently I was talking with an ELCA seminarian who was saying how much he wished that there was a list of Biblically and confessionally faithful books and other resources.  I was very pleased to be able to tell him about the List of Confessional Resources, which can be found on the Seminarians page on our website, www.lutherancore.org.  You can find the Seminarians page by clicking on the hamburger symbol in the upper righthand corner of our website.  Seeing that list of books, commentaries, videos, ministries, and movements that have been recommended by friends of Lutheran CORE, he said, “That is exactly what I have been looking for.”

That resource is now being taken to the next level.  We have begun the process of providing video reviews of some of the books on YouTube.  Here is a link to our YouTube page:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtoknmLRxWxGeLkpBeRjRVA

Here is a link to the first video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeX_hZTTBnM

A link can also be found on the homepage of our website, www.lutherancore.org.  Our plan is to publish a new video review during the first week of every month.

Another new ministry that we are working on is a new medium of communication by and for younger people.  The idea here is to develop a platform which will give younger people an opportunity to express their faith and which will present the historic Christian faith in a way that is clear, relevant, and compelling for younger people.  We of Lutheran CORE want to make sure that we do our part to pass on the faith to younger generations.  Please pray for the team of younger people – including younger pastors, seminarians, and lay young adults – who have responded and/or will respond to the invitation to work on this project.  It will be fun to see how this idea unfolds and how God blesses.

Both of these new ventures are in addition to our already existing ministries of confronting the forces that are undermining the historic Christian faith, offering guidance and assistance to congregations that are or soon will be between pastors, working with congregations that are reviewing their church body affiliation, providing a system of support for orthodox ELCA pastors and seminarians, hosting our annual Spanish language and bi-lingual ministries festival, challenging the ELCA to honor its commitment to also provide a place for traditional views and those who hold them, and supporting the work of Grand View University to help raise up future leaders for the church.

Thank you for all your words of encouragement and your faithful prayer and financial support.  Please click here for a form that you can use to let us know how we can be praying for you.  Your timely gift to Lutheran CORE will help enable us to continue to be a VOICE for Biblical Truth and a NETWORK for Confessing Lutherans.

Thanking God for His presence, protection, and promises, which enable us to not be afraid,

Dennis D. Nelson

Executive Director of Lutheran CORE

Visit our website www.lutherancore.org

Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/LutheranCORE

Join us on MeWe: https://mewe.com/p/lutherancore

Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/LutheranCORE

Lutheran CORE

P.O. Box 1741

Wausau, WI 54402-1741