(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Lutheran Leader Calls for Excommunication of White Nationalists [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-02-23 Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod President Matthew Harrison The leader of the second-largest Lutheran denomination in the US has taken a strong stand against white nationalists. As Religious News Service reports (emphasis added): The president of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod has called for the excommunication of unrepentant white supremacists in the church’s ranks, rebuking an extremist effort to exert influence within the conservative Lutheran denomination. In a letter dated Feb. 21, LCMS President Matthew Harrison said he was “shocked to learn recently that a few members of LCMS congregations have been propagating radical and unchristian ‘alt-right’ views via Twitter and other social media.” He noted far-right members were causing “local disruption” for congregations and alleged that LCMS leadership and deaconesses had fallen victim to online threats, some of which he described as “serious.” “This is evil. We condemn it in the name of Christ,” Harrison writes. Harrison’s letter opened with a categorical denunciation and reject of the “horrible and racist teachings of the so-called ‘alt-right’”, in which he specifically called out white supremacy, Nazism, pro-slaver, anti-interracial marriage, women as property, fascism, death for homosexuals, and genocide. The denomination is currently engaged in controversy over the latest edition of one of their doctrinal texts, Luther’s Large Catechism, and Harrison identified extremists’ efforts as the “genesis” of that controversy. In taking issue with certain additions to that text, the Christofascists followed a pattern we’ve seen elsewhere, invoking hot-button terms: A one-star review on Amazon complains, “Women, forbidden from teaching according to Scripture, are afforded extensive opportunities to do just that in this sorry compilation.” Others slam the accompanying essays as “woke” and accuse them of promoting pedophilia. In particular, a popular Twitter thread by Ryan Turnipseed takes issue with essays acknowledging “economic and societal privilege” and same-sex attraction, as well as suggesting a Lutheran approach to social justice. Harrison made it quite clear that, while the denomination does not have disciplinary mechanisms that reach individual members or congregations, he intends to use his bully pulpit as LCMS President to do his best in purging these noxious voices from LCMS churches (emphasis added): He noted that while the LCMS is “not a top-down institution,” he would work with local pastors and district presidents “to address this matter wherever it arises among us and reject it.” Citing Scripture, he called on those spewing hateful ideologies to repent. “Where that call to repentance is not heeded, there must be excommunication,” he writes. You can read further details of Harrison’s action in the RNS article linked at the top of this story; for more information on the rise of the white supremacist faction in the LCMS, see “Dismantling the Fortress”, by Machaira Action. Now, let’s be clear on this one: the LCMS is not anywhere close to what we name the Religious Left. While it tends to stay out of politics at the denominational level, the LCMS is a staunchly conservative denomination; they are not welcoming to LGBTQIA+ folks, women are forbidden from leadership roles, they’re loudly anti-choice, and they adhere to Biblical inerrancy and literalism. They’re also very much an “on their own” organization; they don’t participate in ecumenical groups, and they don’t make common cause or share fellowship with conservative Christian denominations outside the Lutheran sphere. That makes it an especially good thing to see LCMS leadership draw a bright line against the bigotry, racism, and incipient fascism of white nationalists. I think we can wish President Harrison and the LCMS good luck in their efforts to rid themselves of Christofascists. UPDATE: Someone in the comments asked (I’m paraphrasing) “Will this really have an impact, or is this just a ‘so what’ or ‘good riddance’ moment?” Several folks suggested that I add my response to that question here in the main story, so here it is… I’ll give you a general answer, then a more specific opinion. 1) Just as we often criticize religious groups for their failures, we need to recognize and support them when they do what we consider the right thing. One of the common arguments found here at Daily Kos is that US liberal/progressive religious believers in general, and US Christians in particular, aren’t “fighting back” against the Religious Right and Christofascists in theological terms. That’s a false perception, and it’s exacerbated by the lack of media coverage of such actions when they occur. It isn’t just a question of denominational entities like the LCMS; when’s the last time we saw significant media mention of Lutherans for Social Justice, Christians Against Christian Nationalism, Evangelicals for Democracy, the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, or any other religious group fighting the good fight? (For that matter, when’s the last time you saw a DK staff writer cover any of these groups in any detail?) I wrote this article, in part, to illustrate that point. Beyond the linked article by Jack Jenkins of the Religious News Service (who does excellent work in this area — check out his Twitter timeline for examples) and commentary in various Lutheran sources, I can find no mention of this event in any other media outlet of significance. NYTimes? Zippo. WaPo? Bupkis. MSNBC? Nada. If a tree falls in the forest, but CNN doesn’t issue a BREAKING NEWS alert...you get the picture. 2) This isn’t only the LCMS cleaning its house, but also a public example for other conservative religious entities. You and I may see this as obvious, but some folks need to hear it from folks within their own bubbles. The worst thing that’s going to happen to these alt-right yahoos within the LCMS is that they’ll be excommunicated, which makes them persona non grata in any LCMS church. That would not only constitute a public condemnation and shunning, but it would also deprive them of any sort of direct influence in the LCMS. With these people publicly identified, it’s going to be hard for them to enter into other Lutheran circles, including other Lutheran denominations (like the equally conservative Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS)). However, there’s also the line-in-the-sand aspect to be considered. Outside the Lutheran sphere, this could be a ‘stand up and take notice’ moment for other denominations and religious entities which are, like the LCMS, outside the Religious Left. The simple statement that “This is evil. We condemn it in the name of Christ.” will hopefully resonate with those entities and their members. Thanks for reading... [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/23/2154532/-Lutheran-Leader-Calls-for-Excommunication-of-White-Nationalists Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/