"Faithful Yet Changing: The Church in Challenging Times" is a new
82-page book written by the newly elected President of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America, (ELCA) Presiding Bishop Mark S. Hanson. (Augsburg
Fortress Publishers, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1209)
Hanson's primary agenda is to bring the ECLA to greater acceptance of
homosexual and lesbian members and clergy.
UNDER THE HEADING, "WHAT IS THE WORD OF GOD?" Hanson writes on
page 20:
"The Word of God is the revealed and written word in the Bible, but it
should not be reduced to only that. It is the living word, incarnate in
Christ, recorded in Scripture, proclaimed from the pulpit, and it is the word
we speak to one another. I wish we could reclaim that fuller sense of the word
of God. . . . The word is not just the Scripture readings and sermon. It is
the word we speak to one another, inside or outside the church walls, what
Luther called 'the mutual conversation and consolation' of brothers and
sisters in Christ. I want to ask, 'What would happen if we thought of
ourselves as means of grace?'" Page 20
UNDER THE HEADING, "STUDY ON SEXUALITY" Hanson writes:
"There are challenging issues ahead for us. The 2001 church wide
assembly has called for further study on sexuality. We will invite this church
into conversation regarding God's mysterious, powerful gift of sexuality and
the place of persons who are gay and lesbian in the life and ministry of this
church." Page 58
"I don't know what this study will conclude, but I do knew that we
belong to brothers and sisters in Christ by virtue of God's action in our
lives in the waters of Baptism, before any of us know what sexual orientation
means, let alone what sexual orientation we have. So our discussion on these
issues, as about all issues, will be among sisters and brothers in
Christ." Page 59
UNDER THE HEADING, "A CHANGING CHURCH" Hanson writes:
"If we don't become a changing church, we will be simply a museum
piece in the religious history of the American people. Historians will say
there was once an immigrant people who came from Europe, bringing with them
their faith as Lutheran Christians, but they couldn't adapt to a changing,
diverse, pluralistic culture. That's our fate unless we become a changing
church in a changing culture." Page 65
The above quotations are quoted from the May 27, 2002, issue of
"Christian News." If you are not yet receiving "Christian
News" it is a 24-page, weekly paper reviewing American and worldwide
Christianity, particularly the Missouri Synod. It is available for $25.00 per
year. Call 573-237-3110 or email cnmail@fidnet.com
How to Spot a False Teacher:
1. They confuse Law and Gospel.
2. They recommend a special life style, diet, and/or communal living.
3. They teach exceptions to marriage as instituted by God.
4. They have a new and special revelation from God in addition to the Bible.
5. They are more concerned with your happiness than your hearing the truth.
6. They are not concerned about their own eternal damnation or yours.
7. They call for further study because they can never come to a conclusion or
the knowledge of the truth.
8. They have endless new programs and changes.
9. They string together multiple texts out of context in their preaching in
order to create their own truth.