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It's time to Confess: The Augsburg Lutheran District Joint Council Adopts Concrete Strategy to Help Lutherans

The First ALD Joint Council Meeting

The Joint Council of the Augsburg Lutheran District met at Holy Nativity Lutheran Church, New Hope, Minnesota, on October 25, 2001. This was the first meeting of the Joint Council since the district's constituting convention in Elk Horn, Iowa. The meeting began with prayer and a working lunch provided by the Fahnings. Threats and attacks from ELCA bishops, which caused six members of the Joint Council to miss the meeting, were reported and discussed. The members present asked Pr. Dave Mohn of Holy Nativity Lutheran Church, to lead us in prayer, public confession and absolution, and Holy Communion. 

Mark Jamison, District Pastor, and Lenae Rasmussen, Executive Chair, gave a presentation on the confessional crisis in America, and recommended specific ways in which the Augsburg Lutheran District could respond to the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are being persecuted for confessing their faith. The Joint Council adopted their proposal as a guideline for the future.

Overview of the ELCA Strategies and Tactics 

1. The ELCA's overall strategy in dealing with confessing Lutheran pastors and congregations is to create fear, i.e., fear of being removed from the clergy roster, fear of never getting another call, fear of being removed from the roster of congregations, fear of not being sent pastoral candidates when calling a pastor, and a general fear of being ostracized and marginalized. 

2. The ELCA's primary tactic in dealing with confessing Lutheran pastors and congregations is to issue threats that they cannot carry out, i.e., to bully and bluff people. 

3. The ELCA operates in a paradigm of secrecy, i.e., they try to "keep the lid" on their activities so as to keep people in the dark about what they are doing. 

4. The ELCA thinks in terms of a deficiency model, i.e., they are trying to hang on to a shrinking base of congregations, pastors, and assets. 

A Strategy for ALD to Help Confessing Lutherans 

1. Stand by one another. Standing by confessing Lutherans who are undergoing persecution removes fear, creates courage, and inspires others to stand fast on the Word of God. 

2. Ignore the ELCA bishops' attempts to bully and bluff pastors and churches with unscriptural, unconfessional, and unconstitutional threats, i.e., until served with a Complaint and Summons to appear in court, and even then, don't react in fear-call their bluff by voting to leave the ELCA and join ALD/LCMC. 

3. Publicize the ELCA bishops' attempts to bully and bluff pastors and churches. People who operate "in the dark" hate to have light shined on their activities. The way to combat gossip and false rumors is to tell the truth openly, exposing the ELCA and its bishops for what they are. 

4. Plant mission churches, mentor seminarians, fill vacant pulpits, recruit member churches, chapters, affiliated pastors, church workers, and individuals, i.e., be "mission oriented" and "growth oriented" to build up our district fellowship, LCMC, and the body of Christ until Christ comes again. It is no use to fight over "lost" seminaries, colleges, and other institutional assets. We can do more by diverting benevolence funds and building the future. We need not fight over the past.

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