Being a Lutheran (although very laxed at this point in my life) and growing up with Davey and Goliath I’ve been following the story of the “more conservative churches” that are splitting away from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America over the recent acceptance of gay clergy, and their recent ordination of gay bishops who are involved in committed relationships and its time to put it into perspective.

There are  over 10,239 ELCA churches in America totaling over 4.5 million members.  So far LESS THAN 2 PERCENT, 199 Churches have left the ELCA.  But it becomes more interesting because these churches are not leaving the ELCA to join one of the other two organized major Lutheran bodies in the America  Lutheran Church – The much more conservative Missouri Synod (with approximately 2.41 million members and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (with approximately 390,000 members). But instead have opted to start their own called the North American Lutheran Church (NALC) through the Lutheran group called Lutheran CORE (COalition for REnewal) which will be headed by Lutheran NALC  Bishop Paull Spring

The question that remains is why if the congregations are leaving the ELCA over “gay clergy” did they simply not join the other two more conservative Synods?  The answer is simple.  It’s power,  a bit of fanaticism, and not really about “Gay Clergy” at all/

In a recent Press release from Bishop Paull Spring the hyperbole was thick hyperbole and full of prideful presumption that the actions of CORE and the NALC  Spring suggests that the ELCA gay friendly resolutions of a year ago were merely the tipping point, and it was the ELCA’s long term drift away from Scripture that is really the issue. According to an Associated Press report on the Convocation and an interview with Bishop Spring, which was reported in the Huffington Post

He gave as an example the ELCA’s use of inclusive language that strips male references to God — such as “Father” and “Son” — replacing them with words like “Creator” and “Savior.”

Okay……but I went to confirmation classes.  Even I know that Martin Luther refers to the Trinity as Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifer in the Large Catechism.

This whole split is is all about power, and those who will be the leaders. The congregations who join will have more power because they will be in a smaller pond than ELCA’s large one. Spring wants to be a Bishop,and the small percentage of hardline homophobic congregations are using “gay clergy” excuse.  Which is not only unchristian, but stands against almost everything Martin Luter stood for.