ELCA Department for Communication, News & Information
8765 West Higgins Rd, Chicago, IL 60631 800/638-3522 ext. 2963
HEADLINES FOR ELCA NEWS RELEASE ISSUE #29, December 4, 1995
-- ELCA MULTICULTURAL MEMBERS GATHER
-- SUIT AGAINST ELCA FAILS IN APPEALS COURT
-- SOCIAL STATEMENTS BEGIN A NEW CHAPTER
December 4, 1995
ELCA MULTICULTURAL MEMBERS GATHER
95-29-089-BW
SAN ANTONIO (ELCA) -- "Bible Fed, Spirit Led: Empowered to
Serve," was theme for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's
seventh annual Multicultural Mission Institute held here Nov. 9-10. The
institute drew more than 250 participants from across the United States,
and Caribbean for a weekend of Bible study, worship and workshops.
"We are people from Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe and
Native Nations of this great land. Today we again gather here, children
of God called to be one family at Baptism," said the Rev. Frederick E.N.
Rajan, executive director of the ELCA's Commission for Multicultural
Ministries.
Bible study topics centered around the institute's theme. The Rev.
Robin R. Bell, Augustana Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, Wis., said the
theme "means we are placing priority on the Bible text as an authority for
our church."
"God's word is not information about something, but
communication about God's will, an announcement of our new life --
Christ in us, the hope of glory. This announcement can unite us,
encourage us and fully sustain us. `Christ in us' is a basis for our
mission as a church. It can be a foundation for the Commission for
Multicultural Ministries, even a basis for a mission in our congregations,
our synods and within our traditions," said Bell in his keynote address.
For the first time, a special youth and children's program was part
of the institute, coordinated by Barbara Capers, Stone Mountain, Ga., and
the Rev. Tyrone Partee, Minneapolis. "We need to make a place for our
youth in the church, be intentional in our efforts to make them feel `a part
of,' allow them to speak and share their struggles, hopes and needs,"
said Partee. "The adults learned a few things from the youth this
weekend; they need to feel needed and want to be active members of
the church. Give our young people a chance," he said.
In addition to the youth and children's program, child care was
provided. "These programs were added to give more people an
opportunity to experience the institute," said Rhonda Goldman, executive
assistant to the director of the commission. "It is our hope that once the
word is out about the programs for the younger ones it will make the
institute more appealing to families."
The Rev. Vivian Thomas-Breitfield, Good Shepherd Lutheran
Church, Waukesha, Wis., Bible study leader said, "Christians have a
tendency to be `I centered' as opposed to being `God centered.' We
need to be more Spirit led."
"We need to listen to God's word through active prayer -- real
prayer. Pray for guidance before we act and follow God#s lead," she
said.
The purposes of the institute are to:
*Focus on support and unity as a multicultural intergenerational
community in Christ
*Equip and inspire participants for ministry in their settings
*Build up multicultural community through dialogue
*Strengthen and support relationships and families
*Develop better understandings of issues related to multicultural
ministries
"The institute fulfilled its theme. Participants really felt `Bible fed,
spirit led and empowered,'" said the Rev. William E. Wong, director for the
ELCA's Multicultural Mission Strategy and organizer of the event. "It was
exciting to have an event with a good multicultural mix and to look out and
say `this is the ELCA." We have come a long way -- we still have a way
to go -- but we have come a long way,' he said.
The Rev. John W. Lee, Detroit Lakes, Minn., said, "I have a
positive feeling, a spiritual renewal. I have a perspective on new ideas,
on how to make my congregation more aware of the diversity of the
church and our call to be the people of God."
The Rev. James E. Bennett, bishop of the Southwestern Texas
Synod, preached for the opening worship service.
An offering of $800 was taken during the event for the
Inter-Lutheran Disaster Response and designated for Hurricanes Luis,
Marilyn and Opal relief efforts.
##########
December 4, 1995
SUIT AGAINST ELCA FAILS IN APPEALS COURT
95-29-090-AH
MINNEAPOLIS (ELCA) -- The Minnesota Court of Appeals Nov.
28 dismissed for the second time a lawsuit against the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and its Board of Pensions. The suit
was brought by a group of pastors and others accusing the church of
basing the investment policy of its pensions funds on religious grounds
rather than financial interest because of its 1989 decision to withdraw
investments from South Africa.
John G. Kapanke, president of the Board of Pensions, said in a
letter to plan members, "The appellate court found that the ELCA's
divestment strategy was motivated by the ELCA's conclusion that
apartheid must be rejected as a matter of Lutheran faith and therefore
the civil courts do not have jurisdiction to decide the issues."
The court determined that the "equivalency policy," that allowed
the Board of Pensions to divest in companies with South African
holdings whenever the conditions of risk and return were equal, was a
proper response to the ELCA's "sincerely held religious belief."
The court stated, "The forum best suited to review the pastors'
grievance is the Churchwide Assembly. The delegates to the
Churchwide Assembly debated the appropriateness of the equivalency
policy at length. As the highest legislative authority in the ELCA, the
Churchwide Assembly#s determination on this issue is final."
Judge Thomas Kalitowski ruled that the District court had not
"subject matter jurisdiction" under the U.S. and Minnesota constitutions.
He said the pastors group did not show that it was necessary for the
courts to intrude. The court must meet strict tests before it can intrude
on religious authority and governance under the First Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution and the "freedom of conscience" clause in the
Minnesota Constitution, the ruling said.
The decision made by the ELCA Churchwide Assembly to
withdraw pension funds from companies doing business in South Africa
grew out of a 1977 Lutheran World Federation Assembly action rejecting
apartheid as contrary to Lutheran belief.
The Rev. Thomas L. Basich, Advent Lutheran Church, St. Paul,
Minn., led the group in opposition to the divestment policy. They
requested permission to withdraw their pension funds and were refused
by the Board of Pensions. They sued the ELCA and the board on
grounds of breach of contract and fiduciary duty. A motion by the
church and pension board to dismiss the charges was rejected in
Hennepin County District Court and now reversed by the Appeals Court.
"This is an outrageous miscarriage of justice," said Basich in a
press release. "We do not accept the Court of Appeals decision as the
final word in this matter. We are not going to raise the white flag of
surrender. We are not going to fade away. We will immediately appeal
to the Minnesota Supreme Court."
##########
December 4, 1995
SOCIAL STATEMENTS BEGIN A NEW CHAPTER
95-29-091-FI
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- "It seems to be appropriate at this time in the
life of the church to take a searching look at the way we generate social
statements," said Dr. Per Anderson, religion professor, Concordia
College, Moorhead, Minn. The Social Statements Review Committee
meeting he chaired Nov. 28-29 for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America also questioned if social statements will be the best way for the
church to speak on contemporary social issues.
The review committee is using focus groups and surveys to
assess the perceptions Lutherans have of social statements. Anderson
said most people feel the church should address social issues and the
ELCA should place a greater emphasis on "moral deliberation" in its
congregations.
"We are going to move forward with the assumption that some
kinds of social statements will be done in the future of the church, but
how often we do them, how they are done, what they are about, what
purposes they serve -- these questions are all up in the air at this point,"
he said.
Anderson said the committee is looking at ways to make moral
deliberation on social issues a defining characteristic of the Lutheran
church. That may require the church to place a greater emphasis on the
teaching responsibilities of its bishops, pastors and lay leaders, so
church members can be confident in their ability to tackle troubling
issues, he said.
A perception is that when the church adopts a social statement
there is nothing more to discuss on that topic. "That's not true," said
Anderson, "but still there is a perception that the legislative character of
social statements ends the discussion too prematurely."
Two of three Lutheran churches that formed the ELCA in 1988
used social statements approved through a legislative process which
continued in the new church. The Rev. Charles S. Miller, executive
director of the ELCA Division for Church in Society, called the ELCA's
first eight years its "primitive chapter." He asked what role social
statements should take in its next chapter.
The Rev. James E. Bennett, bishop of the ELCA's Southwestern
Texas Synod, San Antonio, suggested the church change the way it
speaks on social issues -- possibly in ways other than social
statements. He said the "greater question" is how the church can affect
change in the world, rather than vice versa. "Theology does not move
me to a conclusion -- a statement," said Bennett. "It helps me to grow."
To advocate for change in Congress, legislatures and
corporations, the church must take specific stands on specific issues
even while it discusses them, said the Rev. John R. Stumme, ELCA
associate director for studies. "As long as we have advocacy, we need
a process to authorize it," he said.
ELCA Bishop H. George Anderson told the committee that the
church must speak with humility when it addresses social issues. "It's a
very dangerous thing to speak for God," he said. The church has to
frame its statements in such a way that it acknowledges "very good
reasons" for differing viewpoints.
The committee also consulted ethicists Robert Benne, Roanoke
College, Salem, Va., and Patricia Beattie Jung, Loyola University of
Chicago.
The idea of looking at the future of social statements came from
various sectors of the church -- the Conference of Bishops, seminary
presidents, Church Council and the ELCA Division for Church in Society
(DCS). The 11-member review committee includes synod bishops,
seminary faculty, Church Council members, a parish pastor and ELCA
staff.
Per Anderson chairs the studies committee of the DCS board.
That unit is responsible for studying social issues and preparing social
statements for the ELCA's consideration and action.
Since 1988 the ELCA has adopted social statements on abortion,
the death penalty, the environment, peace and racism. Two topics --
economic life and human sexuality -- remain for development into social
statements.
"There have been concerns and questions raised about social
statements as a consequence of our difficulties over the social
statement on sexuality which is still pending before us," said Anderson.
The ELCA has tried several ways to address various controversial
issues associated with human sexuality, and many Lutherans have
questioned whether a social statement should be one of those ways.
The review committee plans to have an interim report available in spring
1996 and a final report in fall 1996.
|
