The following information is from a speech called "Equipping the Saints for Ministry: ‘These are the times that try our souls’ - by Pastor Gary Jepson from Puyallup, Washington.
Last fall, I wrote an email to our ELCA Bishop, Mark Hanson, asking him if he was aware of the ELCA congregation in San Francisco, Ebenezer Lutheran Church. I was pretty sure that he was aware but I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. If you are not aware of this congregation, look it up on the Internet – www.herchurch.org. In short, this is a congregation that has been taken over by a radical feminist element and pastor, and it practices “goddess worship.” It does not confess the Trinity as Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit. They confess Mother, Christ Sophia, and Holy Spirit. If you go to their website you will be able to buy a rosary (strange enough in a Lutheran context, but not necessarily bad), a rosary, not with a cross (because that’s a symbol not of divine love, sacrifice, and salvation but of divine child abuse), but a rosary with a goddess figure on it. The goddess is the likeness of a fertility goddess from ancient Baalism. Baalism, of course, isn’t a problem for the leaders of Ebenezer Lutheran Church because all that stuff in the Old Testament condemning the Baal cult and fertility worship is in their view merely patriarchal paranoia in an effort to repress the feminine.
Now, I think all of us would agree that they have the right (as individuals and as a group) to believe whatever they want. They can even band together to start their own congregation, denomination, or religion. However, on the basis of their own posted statements, they claim to be an ELCA congregation. But they are in complete violation of the ELCA constitutional faith statement because they are completely at odds with the Bible and the Lutheran Confessions.
And the pastor is completely at odds with the ELCA “Visions and Expectations” statement for clergy. How do they justify that? How do they justify hijacking a congregation founded and paid for by Lutherans?
Of course I know the ELCA is organized in synods! What I wanted to know was whether or not Bp. Hanson was going to do anything about this situation to hold this congregation accountable, or to hold the synod bishop of the San Francisco area accountable for his failure to discipline the congregation and its pastor in terms of their violation of the ELCA faith statement and such.
You see, what we have here is a major violation of the fiduciary responsibility of the synod bishop and of Bp. Hanson to fulfill the responsibilities of their offices. And, if he’s going to do that, why on earth did we ever need bishops (overseers) in the first place? And why did we need the historic episcopate when one of the arguments for it was to strengthen the “magisterial” (teaching) office of the church in order to insure orthodoxy?!!?
Can you imagine the Apostle Paul allowing that? Or Martin Luther? Can you imagine Pope Benedict XVI allowing one of his bishops to deal so irresponsibly with a rogue congregation? And then just wash his hands of the matter!!! Frankly that’s not only a violation of Bp. Hanson’s fiduciary responsibility as Bishop, it’s also a violation of his ordination vows to preach and teach in accordance with the Scriptures and the Confessions of the Lutheran Church. Unfortunately, I was so disgusted with that e-mail that I deleted it so I cannot produce it as evidence. You have to trust my memory.
So, on this basis, we have a cynical commentary right out of ELCA headquarters on what ordination vows mean for our church. Little or nothing! What do the words of the ELCA faith statement mean? Little or nothing! Instead, in place of our ordination vows and faith statement we have some fuzzyheaded notion of “tolerance” and “inclusivity”! Because, if what I have described is accurate (and it is), then it appears that in the ELCA you can preach and teach heretical doctrine, thumb your nose at the Scriptures, the Lutheran Confessions, and so on (so long as you do liturgy correctly). Do all that and you will be welcomed in the ELCA with open arms because, after all “we are an inclusive church!” However, if you raise a question about heretical doctrine and improper procedure you will be virtually banished for “intolerance”, and treated as if you don’t exist!
At least the Roman Catholic Church of Luther’s day took him seriously enough to excommunicate him. The ELCA just banishes you, ignores you, and refuses to answer legitimate inquiry.
This is what happens when a church is seduced by the culture of death into cultural agendas and into cynical methods of interpretation when a church is not only in the world, but also too much of the world. Then it fails (by submitting itself to the heretical rubric of “tolerance”) to hold people accountable to its founding documents and statements of faith.
Whether intentionally or not, the very leaders we elected to lead and guide us in accordance with our founding documents have now, in effect, subverted those documents without any clear statement of why or where they are trying to take us.
Does this bewilder you as much as it does me? I am bewildered because I fail to understand the reason or the logic that enables them to justify their actions. In fact, there appears to be an abandonment of reason and rationality when it comes to these practices and trends. I suppose, in their thinking, logic and reason are just a vestige of patriarchy and its repression of the more holistic feminine embrace of feelings and intuition.
"They confess Mother, Christ Sophia, and Holy Spirit."
So what's the big deal? That's just another acceptable ingredient in the theological fruit salad the ELCA is serving up these days. The ELCA must be waxing nostalgic for some of those pagan idols that have been getting short shrift for millennia.
Now if Ebenezer Lutheran were to do something egregious like singing "The Son of God Goes Forth to War, a Kingly Crown to Gain" [ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTZ7hbIJdTU ], offended bishops everywhere would be in high dudgeon.
Remaining members of the ELCA can be likened unto countless members of the Masonic Lodge. So many lodge members believe that their vows are just "college stuff". That the blood vows taken actually mean nothing.There are beautiful, Christ-loving parishoners that do not take serioussly what is happening in their synod and the world.
The letter states that you can now preach anything you wish in the ELCA "so long as you do the liturgy correctly". I fear that not even the liturgy is well protected in our church body. In fact, in my experience there is quite a lot of meddling and strange revisions of the western liturgy in our midst. Sometimes making it unrecognizable.
The new ELCA hymnal has suffered the ravages of political correctness and progressivism, to be sure.
"Are the texts of the Psalms changed so as not to offend the ears of the politically correct? Sit with a version of the Bible you know and compare it carefully with the version in the new ELCA hymnal. Have the pronouns referring to God been changed, from the original "he" in the Hebrew, to "you" in order to avoid "he," the third person pronoun for God? One can see it in ELW's Psalm 95 that has changed the great line in verse 5: "The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands have molded the dry lands" to "The sea is yours, for you made it, and your hands have molded the dry land." This change is a serious matter for a movement that believes in sola scriptura (Word alone). Should we allow the Word to be mistranslated in order to be politically correct?
"Look at some of your favorite hymns and compare the texts carefully with an older hymnal, especially as regards the language referring to God with a masculine pronoun. Here is an example in the great Lutheran hymn, "If You but Trust in God to Guide You," from the second line in the first stanza, "If you but trust in God to guide you/and place your confidence in him" has been changed to "If you but trust in God to guide you/with gentle hand through all your ways." There is no "hand" in the original German. The second line in the original German is "und hoffet auf ihm allezeit." My literal translation would be, "And hopes in him through all times."
"Feminism: Progressives regard God's name - Fa­ ther, Son, and Holy Spirit - as offensive to feminist sensibilities. Therefore alternate gender-neutral invoca­ tions and benedictions are offered in every setting.
Masculine pronouns in reference to God are dropped in many hymns and liturgies, as in the follow­ ing: "It is right to give him thanks and praise" shifts to: "It is right to give our thanks and praise" - with the consequence that the focus shifts to "us" and "our praise" rather than to what God has done for us.
Hard for husbands to be "a fruitful vine," but in the ELCA and ELCiC gender-neutrality is trump.
"Pacifism: All soldiering language is out. The idea that the Christian life is one of spiritual warfare is ab­ sent. Gone are "Onward Christian Soldiers," "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus," "God of our Fathers."
Gone are stanzas such as: "Oh, may your soldiers faithful, true, and bold, fight as the saints who nobly fought of old," 'Warriors fighting for the Lord," "the hosts of God in conquering ranks combine," "all new­ born soldiers of the Crucified," etc.
Pastor Jepson hits the nail on the head insofar as corporate ELCA is concerned. Bishop Hanson ("leader within the ELCA" ?), a want to be flower-power hippy, has been given power in a corporate structure and wants to change the Lutheran world. He has, along side other "believers" from the 60's movement.
Our prayer for these folks may be to have them read a copy of the Holy Bible and ask our Creator for guidance. It seems many people yet think the old testament is just an ole book not worthy to read, believe or connect to the new testament as Christ taught.
It is yet possible for them to discern God's will and stop their wayward path to certain judgement. Relating to leadership, it is not a good thing to lead God's people astray, although one must believe that the Bible is indeed inspired by God. Bishop Hanson nor others around him seem to embrace that fact.
Pastor Jepson - may I suggest your faith community begin the process of expelling your church body from the bowels of the ELCA.
As a devotee of Sophia, i have to say that people like *you* give me *hope*!
& as dear to us as new beginnings.
With Wisdom, each day is forever new.
Wisdom promises us a new life in Her.
for Wisdom is of a great nature.
from the heart of Divine Being.
Heart of Wisdom overflows with a constant good hope.
speaking to us from the very center of our own being.
Wisdom speaks meaningfully to every thinking mind.
Wisdom conveys truth in beauty & perfection of expression.
There is no more wholesome aspiration than to be aspiring unto Wisdom.
Wisdom is compassionate; Wisdom consoles.
Wisdom heals the broken heart; Wisdom makes whole again.
Wisdom reveals the holy meanings.
Wisdom always speaks good sense -- in Spirit Holy.
When you say a devotee of Sophia, you do know Jesus is a guy; and our father (god) made man first in his image, than he made woman in man's image. If u want me to prove this just read the first book of the bible (genesis).
Indeed, Cody, i *do* know that "Jesus is a guy" (tho *one* contemporary claimant to being the Second Coming happens to be a *gal*, in her 60's now, and we debated a book's worth of words, back-&-forth over the course of *years*).
But do *you* know Jesus *personally* enough that you are *aware* of what *he* is saying about his Divine Mother Sophia *now* -- and for the past several years?! (for when was there *ever* a real Father without there having been a *Mother* to *define* the Father as definitely being a Father?! When has there ever been up without down, an inside without an outside?). *You* have a father. Did you or did you *not* have a mother? What human being ever born who *never* had a mother? How could Christianity have remained so *blind* for most of 2,000 years?
Are *you* aware of what was written in Proverbs 8:30? (Sophia, ie: Wisdom, Hokhmah, speaking) "then I was beside him, like a master workman" [Footnote: "The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain"] [[-- because the translators do not want to admit that it was *She* -- Sophia -- who existed *before* the "beginning" Who was beside God like a "master workWOMAN" -- thru Whom *all* Creation *happened*; Christians *falsely* project *Jesus* into those verses -- having him take over the role of his own Divine *Mother*, in their spiritual blindness... but he *is* restoring the credit that belongs to Her already -- to any who is in genuine contact with him].
23: beneficent, humane, steadfast, sure, free from anxiety, all-powerful, overseeing all, and penetrating through all spirits that are intelligent and pure and most subtle.
24: For wisdom is more mobile than any motion; because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things.
25: For she is a breath of the power of God, and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.
26: For she is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of his goodness.
28: for God loves nothing so much as the man who lives with wisdom.
*Wisdom* (ie *Sophia*) was the "fashioner of all things" -- as Heavenly Father's WorkWOMAN. She is "all-powerful"; She oversees *all*, Her pureness "pervades and penetrates all things". She "renews all things" and *SHE* is the one who makes holy souls "friends of God".
God *is* my friend; Christ *is* my friend; *both* of Them have disclosed secrets about Sophia and Their relationship with Her that have never been written in *any* scriptures of the past (at least to the extent of my awareness).
Anyone who *truly* comes to *know* Her, She can make that person God's friend *too* -- and Christ's friend -- so that it is no longer a one-way non-conversation, but you actually can *hear* Them speak to you, teaching you, Divine Mind straight into *your* mind -- just as *She* teaches those who *truly* love Her and *yearn* for Her -- holily.
Jesus makes *very* clear *Her* role and *importance* in John 3:5. "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water AND THE SPIRIT [Who is *Sophia* -- Jesus Christ's Divine *Mother*], he cannot enter the kingdom of God."
When Her Spirit is translated as "he" (as in John chapter 14) this is a *false* translation -- for the word that Jesus spoke that is translated into English as "Spirit" was *Rukha* (in the Aramaic) and *Ruach* (in the Hebrew) -- both of which are FEMININE nouns. So all *false* translations of the New Testament *change* the *femininity* of the Holy Spirit into the *masculine* -- thus *deceiving* Bible believers for almost 2 millenia.
I, too, wrote the ELCA about this...they, too, pawned it off on the local Synod leadership.