The turning point for The Episcopal Church, headed by Katharine Jefferts-Schori, came when one diocese decided to enthrone an openly gay bishop, formerly married with a daughter, who was living with his male partner.
Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson, taking office in 2004 and now retired, sparked the revolt in his denomination that motivated bishops to leave, taking many congregations with them. Centuries-old congregations, older than the ecclesiastical corporation, left The Episcopal Church, but Presiding Bishop Katie mortgaged her headquarters to take her congregations to court. She took away the property of parishes that should have been protected by law.
Her radical actions have been part of a world-wide Anglican split. Although the Archbishop of Canterbury is the nominal head of all Anglicans, the Third World bishops refuse to be in the same room with him, and these bishops have adopted American congregations.
ELCA Ferment
This action has been brewing in the ELCA since its founding 25 years ago. ELCA began with gay activism and quotas, but everyone pretended otherwise. Suddenly, shockingly, all the activism came to fruition when ELCA voted in Minneapolis in favor of homosexual ordination and marriage. The trickle out of ELCA became a flood, with exits continuing to this day. Starting with 5.3 million baptized members, ELCA now boasts of 4 million - and that may be a stretch. Thanks to The ALC roots, many more congregations have been able to leave with their property. Results vary with the bishop.
I was pleased to see my hometown LCA congregation, Faith, leave ELCA while telling the bishop, "If you or your staff appear on our property, you will be arrested by the Moline Police." More bishops and district presidents should be told the same thing.
What Now, WELS/ELS and Missouri?
Just as ELCA congregations and pastors pretended there was no gay agenda or quotas, so WELS/ELS and Missouri have pretended they are not in bed with ELCA.
Missouri did vote on continued work with ELCA, and that vote got more yeas than the votes for Matt Harrison for SP. Thrivent is not so anxious to brag about their ELCA-ELS-LCMS-WELS evangelism and worship projects.
WELS denied those joint religious projects when I was writing about it, and I quotedThrivent materials verbatim as proof. I even phoned ELCA headquarters to verify that SP Mischke was lying about the Joy Radio Show (LCMS-ELCA-WELS religious programming).
WELS and Missouri had to acknowledge the validity of female ELCA pastors, working with them and under them in joint projects.
Episcopalians, even the traditionalists, did not draw the line with female bishops, or even with a female presiding bishop. But Gene Robinson was a bridge too far for them.
Is there a breaking point for the SynCons or will they continue their game of smoke and mirrors, looking down on ELCA while working with ELCA?
Watch Thrivent, with Mark Jeske on the board, praise the latest events. Perhaps he can get Koine to play for the installation, updating one of those old-fashioned songs.
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| Two presiding bishops, ELCA and Episcopalian, Mark Hanson and Katharine Jefferts-Schori, have the same agenda. |