Church Controversy

A recent Churchwide Assembly meeting of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, of which I am a member, has caused quite a stir. The Chicago Sun-Times declared "A Huge Victory for Gay Clergy," and Reuters News Service explained, "Lutherans to Allow Pastors in Gay Relationship." What actually happened?

At the biannual Churchwide Assembly in Chicago in August, the following resolution was passed:

Resolved, that in an effort to continue as a church in moral deliberation without further strife and pain to its members, the Churchwide Assembly prays, urges, and encourages synods, synodical bishops, and the presiding bishop to refrain from or demonstrate restraint in disciplining those congregations and persons who call into rostered ministry otherwise-qualified candidates who are in a mutual, chaste, and faithful committed same-gender relationship; and be it further

Resolved, that the Churchwide Assembly prays, urges, and encourages synods, the synodical bishops, and the presiding bishop to refrain from or demonstrate restraint in disciplining those rostered leaders in a mutual, chaste, and faithful, committed same-gender relationship who have been called and rostered in this church.

At a recent meeting at my home church, Upper Arlington Lutheran, Senior Pastor Paul Ulring expounded on the details of the resolution and what it means for UALC.

The resolution itself passed in part due to calculated maneuvering. Proponents of the resolution were supported by a $2 million lobbying effort, complete with five professional parliamentarians. Late Saturday evening, when the Assembly was winding down and approximately 100 delegates (delegates were 40% ordained and 60% lay) had left, the resolution was brought to a vote and passed in a fairly close (42-vote spread) vote.

Ulring also stated that of the 65 bishops in the ELCA, 45 oppose the measure, and 10 more are on the fence. The other 10 support it, and in many cases, their support is in part a response to "family situations" where someone close to them has declared themselves a homosexual. Pastor Ulring is a member of the Lutheran CORE, a collection of concerned ELCA clergy, laity, and congregations. The CORE ranges from "farmers from Minnesota to East Coasters who, I am pretty certain, sleep in their collars--in fact, a few of them joined us here for worship, and they genuflected when they entered the pews, and I didn't know what they were doing...." This rather diverse CORE, Ulring said, is already preparing for the next Assembly in 2009.

The question remains of what direction UALC should follow. Many different viewpoints on the church's relationship to homosexuality are present in the UALC congregation, Ulring noted. Some are fed up, and want to leave, and others would acquiesce, because, to them, denomination has never been particularly important. Others have themselves left UALC because their own children came out of the closet and they no longer felt comfortable. Still others want to stay, "for history, for tradition, for family"; to leave the ELCA would be unconscionable to them.

For Pastor Ulring, the question must be answered: "What do we want to accomplish?" Leaving the denomination would make a statement, but would it be effective in anything other than satisfying ourselves or assuaging the trauma? Ulring doubts it. He was "sad, angry, disappointed, and surprised," but he has not given up.

First, the situation should force to consider our own behavior. Have we, he asked, prayed for the ELCA and for our bishop? Ulring admits that he himself failed to do so for far too long, until the Lord convicted him to call upon Him in hope, rather than grumble in bitterness. He challenged us to do the same.

Second, the pressing issue is not any particular view of human sexuality, but the authority of the Word in our own personal lives and in the church as a whole. And merely professing its truth is woefully inadequate. Confidence in Scripture is unimportant if the Bible is never applied. Ulring notes, "I know some people who will talk up and down about the infallibility, the inerrancy of the Word of God, but they never read it."

Third, a contentious discussion within the congregation over leaving the ELCA would distract from the true mission of the church: to reach out to the lost and preach the power of Christ's crucifixion and Word. This is not to say the church's response to homosexuality should not be discussed, but a cantankerous split, at this time, would cost too much and gain too little. Instead, he has written a letter to ELCA leadership expressing his dismay over the resolution, excerpted here.

"We believe this resolution violates both the authority of Scripture and God's will....Where in this church is there now real, viable room for conservative Christians who read the Bible for what it is: God's revealed Word? Alongside the ancient Councils of the Church, we reject the notion of two or more ‘equally valid’ ways of taking what Scripture says. The authority of the Word is not something upon which we take votes...I convey to you, on behalf of the members of Upper Arlington Lutheran Church, our strenuous objection and profound dismay over the decisions and directions emerging under your leadership. We call on you, in Jesus Name, to turn from this course....Already the call to leave the ELCA is strong. That would be a huge step for us. I would like to think it would matter to you and to the ELCA, as well."

In short, Pastor Ulring concluded that this resolution, although troubling, does not warrant dissociation with the ELCA. But he did warn that, if "a line is crossed," he is prepared to offer the leadership necessary to guide UALC through a potential dissociation, which, he added, would not be constrained by a potential loss of property, since all would remain in possession of the congregation regardless.

Finally, Pastor Ulring warned the UALC congregation as well against pride. "We must be careful to guard our hearts against anger, self-righteousness, and lovelessness...it is a high responsibility to be right, or at least to think you are, and we would be wise to remember the verse that says that the anger of man never works the righteousness of God."

My two cents: First, I am pleased we decided not to leave the ELCA at this time. I am hesitant to cut off a relationship without any attempts at reconciliation, and pray that peace would return between our congregation and the ELCA.

Second, we must be always be aware--indeed, intently focused--on the witness we present to the outside world. A quick way to paralyze a church with malaise is to turn inward, expending one's energy on internal struggles and bickering, regardless of the importance of the conflict. To neglect our witness is to starve the church. Most importantly, we must never forget that the gay community is included in those we are trying to reach.

What a victory for evil if we forget them. What a victory for darkness if we believe standing up for truth means ignoring the lost. I believe that if we do reach out to gays with the same fervor that we oppose misguided interpretation of Scripture in ELCA leadership, we will lose our opportunity to reach them, and be viewed as yet another example of a church that condemns and of a god who hates. If we do not guard ourselves just as strenuously against self-righteousness concerning our relationship with the gay community as we must do in our relationship with the ELCA, we will end up judging gays, rather than loving them. We must never use our vigilance for the truth as an excuse to deny their humanity and their value.

We must be wise, and recall who wanted Christ crucified. Certainly there are many in our culture, and many in the ELCA, who would oversee the death of morality and bury righteousness. Many echo the indifference of Pilate, asking, "What is truth?" But theirs was not the only evil that drove the nails into Jesus; the pride and the self-righteousness of the Pharisees could not bear the One who dared to love the condemned.

On the day that Christ died, there were many who did not know of Him and what He stood for. Men who gave up belief, men who saw the decay of a decadent and brutal Imperial regime, men who saw that righteousness had no place in a world of power and greed. Men who asked, "What is truth?"

But still other men thought they knew the truth, but they were not set free. Men who knew only condemnation from the elders, and found what they felt was love through homosexuality among outcasts like themselves.

Both these groups did not know Christ when He died. But He died that they might know of Him soon--that they would know of truth, and that they would know of love.

As a church that bears Christ's name, we must fight against the indifference of Rome. But we must guard as vigilantly against pride, as well. We must not regard ourselves as holier than anyone else. We must not disdain those who remind us of our own brokenness. We must not hate those who dare to love. We cannot take up the pride of the Sanhedrin, and carry thirty pieces of silver to pay traitors, and three pieces of iron to pierce flesh.

We cannot proclaim Christ by crucifying Him again.