A call for Church Unity Four weeks ago and now Lutheran CORE wants to seperate.

ELCA NEWS SERVICE

September 10, 2009

Lutheran CORE Plans Next Steps, Intends to be 'Free-Standing' Synod

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Saying the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America(ELCA) has "fallen into heresy," because of actions taken at last month's churchwide assembly, the chair of Lutheran CORE (Coalition for Reform)said the organization intends to be a "free-standing synod" which will carry out ministries apart from the ELCA.

In addition CORE is expected to consider initiating conversations with member Lutheran congregations and reform movements in the United States and Canada toward a possible reconfiguration "of North American Lutheranism," said the Rev. Paull E. Spring, State College, Pa., LutheranCORE chair. Spring is a former bishop of the ELCA Northwestern
Pennsylvania Synod.

Those and other ideas will be discussed when Lutheran CORE holds a convocation Sept. 25-26 at Christ the Savior Lutheran Church, Fishers, Ind. Nearly 700 people have registered as of Sept. 8, said the Rev. Mark Chavez, Landisville, Pa., CORE director and vice president, WordAlone Network, New Brighton, Minn. WordAlone is a member of Lutheran CORE. Lutheran CORE is a coalition of pastors, lay people, congregations and reform groups in the ELCA. CORE expressed distress and sadness over the assembly's decisions on human sexuality. The assembly adopted by a two-thirds vote an ELCA social statement, "Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust," which CORE said changed ELCA teaching and policy on same-gender relationships. Voting members also directed that changes be made to ELCA ministry policies to make it possible for people in committed, same-gender relationships to serve as ELCA associates in ministry, clergy, deaconesses and diaconal ministers. CORE opposed that change, citing biblical teaching on marriage and homosexuality.

Following the assembly's decisions on sexuality, CORE announced it was ending its relationship as an independent Lutheran organization "officially recognized" by the ELCA. The organization is also encouraging ELCA members and congregations to send finances directly to ministries they support versus giving to the ELCA.

More than 1,000 people have contacted Lutheran CORE since the assembly, most expressing sadness and asking questions, Spring said. However, CORE is "encouraging people to remain in the ELCA -- for now," Spring said in a telephone interview with the ELCA News Service. "I myself intend to remain on the ELCA clergy roster and remain a member of an ELCA congregation," he said, adding that he and others may not participate much in the ELCA beyond the congregation. Despite his own "disappointment and shock" over the assembly's actions, Spring said he hopes Lutheran CORE can "be a visionary, future-oriented group."

"We have no desire to look back at what happened in Minneapolis. We need to look to the future with confidence, amid much uncertainty," Spring said.

CORE's 2009 convocation is expected to adopt a proposed constitution, authorize proposals for developing fiscal plans and authorize its steering committee to initiate conversations with "congregations and reform movements" within Lutheran CORE, Lutheran Congregations for Mission in Christ, and other compatible organizations, Spring wrote in a Sept. 4 e-mail to CORE supporters. There's also much planning to do over the course of the next year, he said. Convocation speakers include the Rev. Kenneth H. Sauer, Columbus, Ohio, former bishop of the ELCA Southern Ohio Synod and former chair of the ELCA Conference of Bishops; Ryan Schwarz, Washington, D.C., a CORE steering committee member and runner-up in the election for ELCA vice president at the 2009 assembly; plus Spring and Chavez. "We will try to be churchly," Spring said of the upcoming CORE convocation. "We are trying to be responsible. There's a lot at stake
here, including the future of Lutheranism in the United States."

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Editors: Pastor Spring's first name is correctly spelled as "Paull."

Okay so I am not sure what happened. In this article the leader of LutheranCore, Rev. Paul Spring, said that he would remain apart of the ELCA and stay on the rooster. But when I get to the end article I am left scratching my head trying to figure out what happened.

The church needs to be unified. I do not think Lutheran CORE would disagree with me on this point. The church just made a huge decision and needs to heal. It was a decision that has taken years to decide and will most likely take many years to heal from. My question is why would Lutheran CORE, an organization that claims that their "intention is to remain within our church and to work with congregations, individuals, and other reform-minded groups for the reform of our own church" would end its relationship as an independent Lutheran organization "officially recognized" by the ELCA and encourage ELCA members and congregations to send finances directly to ministries they support versus giving to the ELCA? Where the hell is the church unity in this?

Whether you agree or disagree with the decisions the church made, we MUST (and I stress the word MUST) stay united. We should not go and run away from this. God gave us grace and we must show this grace. We have always been able to agree to disagree and live in communion and fellowship with one another. This is no different. Yes this decision did question theology and personal piety of many Lutherans but the church has been doing this for 2000 years. I seem to remember the debate in Acts about whether or not to minister to Gentiles and not just to the Jews. It was not a decision that many were happy about but the church unified and did what had to be done.

Remember there is always grace. We all sin and fall short of the Glory of God. The church and people that make up the church are no different. I am not calling the decisions of the ELCA right or wrong but they are still the decisions we must all live with. I am not to happy about what the church decided but I have accepted it. If I had my way, it would have been a 2/3 vote for the recommendations. I feel that if the church is going to make a monumental change like it did back in August then it should of had monumental support for the changes. But the vote is done and there is nothing we can do to change the vote. We are only left to preach the Gospel and administer the Sacraments just as we have done for 2000 years. So instead of run away as Lutherans have classically done before, we should unite and be the church in the world. That is what we need most right now.