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| "If I could only get one of them Thrivent grants, everything would be hunky." |
Narrow-minded Lutheran has left a new comment on your post "Not Impressed with the LCMS/WELS Public Relations ...":
How many LCMS people know that they are also in default fellowship with ELCA through LWF? "We don't belong to that rotten LWF." Really? The LCMS is in fellowship with ten church bodies who are LWF members.
Bishop Obare, of the Ev. Lutheran Church of Kenya, was awarded an honorary doctorate from Fort Wayne for "taking a stand" against the LWF. To this day, however, ELCK is still an LWF member, and the LCMS is in fellowship with ELCK. Don't condemn it, though, lest you be accused of not caring about poor and starving people.
"Membership doesn't equal fellowship, so there." Really? According to the LWF, membership equates to full altar and pulpit fellowship. An LCMS member visiting Kenya could commune at an ELCK parish with an ELCA member also visitng. "Who is going to Kenya?" That's not the point, and you guys know it. Of course, Benke will gladly commune with ELCA folks in this country.
Bonus question of the day for extra credit: How many of you LCMS pastors in the North look the other way when you know some of your parishioners who winter in Florida commune at ELCA churches, then come home to your altar in the summer months?
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GJ - Many challenged me on Facebook when I posted originally. Dave Peters (WELS, Union Grove) insisted that I provide proof, but never answered the many links I provided. Others were also silent.
WELS even gave funds to the Salvation Army, through Thrivent. One WELSian responded, "But it was for the children." Why not raise money for milk for Muslims too?
Another broad and winding way, paved with good intentions, is Lutheran Social Services. The last I heard, Missouri and ELCA were joined at the hip through LSS.
For those who are innocent, blind, or willfully stupid about this - SP Harrison worked the charity career for a long time before becoming The Boss. He has always worked with ELCA and will continue to do so. That kind of work entails work with many other denominations, because the big organizations overlap through various meta-sect agencies: Lutheran World Relief, Hunger Funds, CROP Walks, Lutheran Social Services, National and World Council of Churches.
Missouri voted to work with ELCA, yet Missourians squeak and holler about this simple fact - voted on at their last convention. WELS leaders sit on boards with ELCA leaders. They go to conferences with ELCA leaders, as do Missouri executives.
Mark and Avoid Jeske is on the Thrivent board, whose leaders have taken a somewhat conservative Lutheran company (AAL) and made its assets a tool for marketing in ELCA, where all the loot is.
ELCA members make more money, and there are lots more of them. Thrivent is smart. LCMS and WELS get-along-go-along-guys are dumb.
- Jeske now has more power than any SP, because his board gives Missouri $50 million a year.
- ELCA must get at least $100 million a year from Thrivent.
- The ELS gets $15,143, plus free napkins.
- The CLC (sic) gets a couple of gift cards to Starbucks.
Yes, the CLC (sic) does participate in Thrivent, in spite of their claims otherwise.
