To recapitulate: In late August, the Church Wide Assembly of the ELCA passed a social statement that posed the appropriateness of gay marriage and then proceeded to expand that decision with a number of further resolutions that would open the door to gay, partnered clergy. This day had been long in the making. It was resisted by an odd coalition called CORE. It was driven by a focused faction called LCNA that had raised funds for years and was expertly managed ad advised. It is said that they also had Higgins Road and the Presiding Bishop on their side. Reports are that the latter has said at a Hein Frei lecture that he was hoping the ban on gay clergy would end during his time in office.
The former, Higgins, is easier to call. The news releases are clear: Be mad if you like but look, we are doing such good stuff. A recent news release touted the gracious invitation by a gay pastor to a CORE board member with the implication that the revisionist side is ever so gracious and the conservatives are all reactionary by withholding funds from the ELCA. That withholding will hurt our efforts to wipe out malaria in Africa.
A distraction: Malaria would better be fought by giving the African nations access to DDT again. The UN talked them into not using it. Zimbabwe reintroduced DDT and cut malaria by 90%. It must also be mentioned that the malaria initiative is a UN millennium goal. We merely signed on to it. There will be money but no DDT.
For that matter, the withheld money will not just go into socks or mayonnaise jars. It will go to mission, some defined by Matthew 28, some defined by Luke 4, where the center of ELCA mission- think seems to be. Social ministry is not mission. We have found that out at the congregational level a long time ago.
But here we stand. One side is celebrating a victory and is reported to be scheming, yes that is the right word, to solidify the victory. The conservative side is in the process of making that easy. Most of them have withdrawn from ELCA interaction on national and local levels. They are in but not really of the ELCA. CORE is in the process of making a loose association, a "synod," a network shall we call it, so congregations can ignore the ELCA and their own bishop. How this will work is not entirely clear to me.
The greatest side effect that I see is that the next round of Synodical assemblies will have elections to leadership positions without conservative candidates or votes on the floor. The result is obvious. Even with inept maneuvering synod councils, CWA delegates, and certainly bishops will be left of center. The only question to be answered is: "how far?"
Th wisdom of the spiritual directors of the church has been that one is not equipped to make decisions in the state of grief, which brings me back to Kuebler Ross. Right now most conservatives are in depression. Go to any web discussion site like ALPB and you will note that the number of posts by ELCA conservatives has dropped dramatically. I recognize that a number of them are also working behind the scenery to find ways to organize but on the whole the right side of the house is in grief and right now in the state of depression.
So what will happen when the next CWA has given the opportunity to bargain? Surely that bargaining will not bring a better result for the right. What will acceptance look like? It has been pointed out to me that being in a church body but not participating in it and keeping it at arms length at all times begs the question whether one is actually still in that church body. I myself have likened it to the onset of a divorce. One spouse has moved into the guest room and has made it known that they are done with the marriage. I have seen only one household remain somewhat intact afterwards. Visualize his and hers refrigerators with locks. My friend Scott points out to me that this situation is unstable. For the spiritual good of the congregation one must either accept the situation with all its implications and stay or one must accept that one is no longer of the ELCA and therefore there is only harm in staying.
Policies and manuals are now being written. Their publication will most certainly start another round of outrage. If the ELCA truly wants to bear with one another's burdens one must wonder what"burden" might be put on the revisionist side. Since much of it will have to be out to synod votes that now will no longer contain right side voices it is not likely that there will be any burden bearing going on any time soon.
The Old Testament tells of times when everyone went to their own tents and did as they saw right. Whenever this happened horrible things would follow. We in the ELCA are now in the place where all of us have been intentionally sent to our own tents to do as we see fit. This cannot fail but end up in the same places as it did in times of old. May God hurry the steps of Philistine and judge.
