Blog post from the Lutheran minister who was on the HHS panel

[tanyev]

Oh, the poor dear.


My Trip into the Monkey Cage

So.... I was just minding my own business when last Tuesday the call came from D.C. "We want you to testify on the HHS provisions." Hmmmmmmmmm..... Nuts! I've got a ton of work to do! LCMS Board of Directors' the next day, then the Southern Illinois District Convention, then Council of Presidents. Congressman Issa's staff were making the inquiry. Thought about it for a bit. Staff thought yes, no, maybe. I'd just been in D.C. with LCMS friends. There were lamenting the absence of our voice in D.C. Couldn't let them down at this point. OK, I'll go.

-snip-

Headed to the Capital Hill Club with friend and LCMS layman Tim Goeglein at 7:30. "Wouldn't change a thing" he commented on my statement. "They will throw everything possible at you to make you look like an idiot, a bigot or whatever...." "Don't respond in kind."


(Fun fact! Tim Goeglein is the guy who got busted for plagiarism and resigned in disgrace from the Bush administration. )


-snip-

I felt like I was in monkey cage frankly. But the media circus followed. The Dems lost the argument in the hearing, so they sent in the troops to obfuscate and create drama for the ever willing press. So the story is turned to something like this: "Why do you guys hate women?" "Why do you want to take our contraceptives away?" "How can you men be testifying about women's health?" There were some exceptions. Tim Townsend gave us an accurate piece in the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The New York Times wasn't all bad. Others were pathetic. Nancy Palosi was blasting away on the Sunday morning shows with the obfuscation. (I regard that attack as a badge of honor.) The panel photo even appeared on SNL. More nonsense. I couldn't care less.


The constitution is with us. And like Hosanna Tabor, it may take some time, but I believe the HHS provisions are going to fall with a crash in the Supreme Court. And we'll have another shot at talking about what the "real" issue is.

http://mercyjourney.blogspot.com/

[Swede Atlanta]

1. I was raised LCMS and no more....

When we moved my Father to Assisted Living I spoke with his pastor. I told him I had moved to the ELCA (the generally rationally-based Lutheran denomination) and that my Father didn't believe in the whole Genesis story, rejected the idea that women should not be ordained and hold positions in the Church and that homosexuality, per se, was not prohibited.

The pastor choked on these and said my Father was wrong. To that I replied, no sir, "YOU AND YOUR ILK ARE WRONG"...oh and by way of the gift you were to receive under my Father's will, I have the power to modify that $100K gift and you will receive ZERO. Good day to you.

As a small-town church that gift would have been their salvation. Now they forfeit that because they hate women and gays. Oh well......

[Dawson Leery]

2. To religious organizations, including "charities", my lifetime contribution is $0!

[tanyev]

4. Yep. I grew up LCMS and we have decided to join the ELCA.

So much more sane.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

6. When I first saw the headline I thought it odd

that a Lutheran pastor would be involved in such right-wing shenanigans - then I saw it was LCMS. All the Lutherans I know (with the exception of one, who belongs to WELS and is certifiable) are sane, rational, fairly liberal people - but they are ELCA. Here in MN the ELCA just appointed a woman as a bishop, and there are a lot of female pastors. Missouri and Wisconsin synods - not so much.

[MineralMan]

3. Missouri Synod?

Might as well be Southern Baptist, as near as I can tell.

LCMS Tagline: Keeping them wimmins in line!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Could be worse, could be Wisconsin Synod (WELS).

That's Michele Bachmann's church (or was, I think she stopped going there for some reason). They are waaaay out there.

Oh, I remember why she resigned: It's because WELS specifically claims that the Catholic Church is a "whore church" and the Pope is the Antichrist. And she was about to run for President. And she needed all those conservative Catholics to vote for her - so she renounced her church.

(WELS is about as wingnutty as a church can get, but maybe they are right about the Pope. The current one, anyhow.)

[MineralMan]

7. Well, yes.

They still have in their official doctrine that the Pope is the Antichrist. You don't get stranger than that.

There's a WELS church not far from my home. The bumper stickers on the cars in the parking lot tell the story. There aren't that many cars, though, which is encouraging.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

8. Yes, the Wisconsin Synod thinks the Missouri Synod is made of wild-eyed lefties

They won't even let their members be attendants in LCMS weddings, because standing up at the altar rail would imply approval of those crazy loosie-goosie heretics. They may attend such a wedding as a guest, but only if they don't partake in the ceremony in any way (singing hymns, joining in the prayers, etc.)

As Ocelot said, certifiable.

[Wellstone ruled]

9. Way-to-go!!!!!!

LCMS,what a regressive group. We left this group years ago for the ELAC. My spouse and I just had enough of the anti-female dogma. LCMS at one time was very progressive,until they formed alliances with the anti-abortionist,now they are totally a male Hierarchical group.

The present election cycle is the last hurrah's for the fundies and their allies. You are seeing the demise of the God party. Expecting a Dem controlled House and Senate after this cycle. Should last for at least 2 decades.

Remember this: we White Males are now a Minority,and the new Majority are all people whom have a brown skin color,Get Over It already.

[tanyev]

10. Kick.