How FOCL Got Started
BEGINNINGS
by Pastor Phil Lee
It seems that when Lutheran pastors gather around coffee and pie, dangerous and even creative things can happen. There are those who claim that it only amounts to indigestion (that might be a good disclaimer!) Nevertheless, such was the tenuous beginning of FOCL.
In the Spring of 1987, after accepting calls to serve congregations in the greater Sacramento area, Pastor Mike Murphy and I began to meet together to renew our friendship and to share our concerns on a variety of issues that the Lutheran Church was facing. Our meetings were of a personal, informal nature, but the conviction began to grow between us that we were not alone in our concerns.
We came to the conclusion that there was a silent majority of Lutheran pastors and lay persons in our Sierra Pacific Synod and throughout the church who shared our sense that the present pre-merger church and forthcoming ELCA were in need of Biblical and Confessiona renewal. As our concerns about the direction of the church began to grow (the legalism of the quota system, universalist inclusivity, social-political agendas, to name a few), fueled by the experience of our 1988 Sierra Pacific Synod Assembly in Sacramento, we decided to test the waters.
In July 1988 we invited a small group of colleagues to meet with us to explore the possible formation of a fellowship of pastors and lay persons within the ELCA who shared our perceptions and our concern for Biblical and Confessional renewal. From that meeting it was decided to form the Fellowship of Confessional Lutherans, with myself, Pastor Mike Murphy of Ascension in Citrus Heights (Sacramento), and Pastor Dan Selbo of St. Peter's in Elk Grove (Sacramento) to be a steering committee.
UNDERWAY
In September 1988, FOCL held its first official meeting. Cliff Pederson, President, Lutheran Bible Institute of California, was the keynote speaker on the theme "The Authority of the Word." In January 1989, FOCL held its next general meeting, centering on the theme, "The Church and Homosexuality/ordination issue that dominated the agenda of the Assembly. At that meeting Bishop Miller requested that the FOCL steering committee develop a written statement of our theological positions. At Bishop Miller's request, FOCL developed and adopted a document entitled, "Mission Statement and Declaration" (see Pages 5-6), which continues to be part of our "voice" for on-going dialogue and study in the ELCA.
In November of 1989, the "Mission Statement and Declaration" booklets were sent, with cover letter, to the Sierra Pacific Synod Council for their information, with our request for a response. We received a response dated January 8,1990, from the Synod Secretary who wrote in part, "The Council expresses appreciation to the FOCL for the outpouring of concern for the renewed study of Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions shown by them and others. The Council states its commitment to continue to work together with the Bishop's office, the FOCL, and all sisters and brothers in such study and dialogue." Although criticism was voiced in the letter, we of FOCL appreciate and accept the Council's intention "to continue to work together."
In late November and early December of 1989, the FOCL steering committee called for and publicized regional meetings to be held for clarification and deeper understanding of our purpose. These meetings were held in San Jose, Millbrae (S.F. penninsula), Sacramento and Fresno. In addition, the steering committee accepted an invitation to meet with one of the Synod Conferences (S.E. bay area/Fremont area). Although we have received no small amount of criticism as well as considerable support, our attempt has been and continues to try to be a positive voice to express the need for and benefit of renewed Biblical and Confessional study and dialogue on wide-ranging theological issues confronting the ELCA.
THE PRESENT
Following a favorable article in the AALC's (American Association of Lutheran Churches) "Evangel" last fall, FOCL has been contacted by many pastors, lay persons, congregations and other renewal ministries within the ELCA. We have heard from folks in California, Washington, Texas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York and South Carolina, and also International Lutheran Renewal and the Confessional Lutheran Fellowship in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (doing a very similar work to FOCL!) It appears that the chord for Biblical and Confessional renewal in the ELCA has been struck!
Currently the FOCL steering committee is working to develop a board of directors to share the increasing load of our work and broaden our base of support. At the same time we have made a commitment to publish a quarterly newsletter, FOCL Point (this very one!), with the intention to communicate our specific concerns and contribute a positive voice for Biblical and Confessional renewal in the church. Soli Deo Gloria!
(Note: In upcoming issues of FOCL Point, we intend to include a six-part series on our "Declaration" document, outlining our theological positions in an effort to continue to encourage Biblical and Confessional renewal in the ELCA.)
Today's Morality Can Drown Out Decency
AN EDITORIAL BY KNUTE LEE
It has been said that in his later years, the renowned theologian Karl Barth was asked, in view of the broad diversity of theological opinions current in our times, what was the most important thing. He answered, "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."
It has also been said that when people stop believing in God they don't believe in nothing ù they believe in anything! Certainly any thinking person who examines the trends of today's religious patterns must be deeply troubled by the drifting away of the priceless truths of the authority of the Word of God and Lutheran Confessionalism.
The inevitable resultant morality here among us, surrounding us, is drowning out godliness, purity, obedience and decency in the Lutheran Church that we love.
Conscientious pastors who are serving the Lord, who seek to exalt Christ and who believe that the wages of sin is death (Ro. 6:23), believe also that the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. These people are troubled today as never before. Shocked and bewildered at the landslide of permissiveness across a widening spectrum they are calling for help! Heretofore totally unknown, today's unbelievable permissiveness, "universalist" inclu-sivity and biased ecumenism, are only a part of the ever-expanding malady. More and more people are praying:
Lord, keep us steadfast in thy Word, curb those who fain by craft or sword, would wrest the kingdom from thy son, and set at naught all He has done.
In devout expectation that our sovereign Lord will answer deepening prayers among both clergy and laity, F.O.C.L., the Fellowship Of Confessional Lutherans, are urging others to join the prayer-chain for Christ-centered, Spirit-filled renewal, to bring back from the pinnacle of destruction our beloved Lutheran Church.
NEWSBRIEFS
A Call To Faithfulness
A theological conference, initiated by three independent Lutheran journals, "Dialog", "Lutheran Forum Letter", and "Lutheran Quarterly", is being held on the campus of St. Olaf College on June 4-6,1990. The conference, entitled, "A Call to Faithfulness", is an attempt to bring together persons with various concerns and positions regarding the present state of the Lutheran Church in this country and to rally them around a shared concern for the theological and confessional integrity of Lutheranism. To that end, discussion at the conference will be informed and led by theological leaders representing opposing positions. An opportunity will be given to all to share in the discussion and debate surrounding various theological issues. FOCL sees this as an excellent opportunity to share in what may be a history-making event in the life of the Lutheran Church in America.
At last report, the conference is reaching its capacity very quickly. If you have not yet registered and wish to do so, contact Ronald F. Pechauer, Office of Church Relations, St. OlafCollege,Northfield,MN. 55057. Cost for the conference is $135.00, which includes meals and lodging.
Let The Redeemed Of The Lord Say So! PS. 107:2
One of the more exciting bits of information regarding our fellowship has to do with the birth of several charters throughout the country. Gatherings from Nebraska, Texas, New York, Southern California, Minnesota, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Missouri, all with the same name, FOCL, have begun to form and address similar concerns. Each one of these fellowships has requested a copy of our "Mission Statement and Declaration" and has expressed its support and appreciation for our efforts in this Synod. It has been encouraging to see that many throughout the country share in the concerns expressed by our fellowship.
We have also been informed of and in contact with a group in Canada by the name of the "Confessional Lutheran Fellowship within the ELCIC", and of a gathering in Germany which goes by the name of "Call To The Middle" (much more impressive in German!).
Although there are no immediate plans to work in conjunction with these other fellowships, the possibility is there for national and international correspondence. We will keep you informed as to the developments that occur in this regard.
Where Do We Go From Here?
In November of last year, the steering committee for our fellowship sent a copy of the FOCL "Mission Statement and Declaration of Affirmations and Concerns" to the Synod Office and Synod Council of the Sierra Pacific Synod. The request was made to the council that they review the statement and the concerns and respond to them on two accounts. First, to the position of our fellowship that, "the Bible and the Confessions are the foundation of all that we teach and believe as the Lutheran Church," and second, "that there has been significant departure from the Confessions within our Synod." It was requested that the Council respond directly to the concerns expressed in the FOCL Declaration.
In a letter January 1990, the council expressed its appreciation to our fellowship for the outpouring of concern for the renewed study of Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions. The Council stated its commitment to "continue to work together with the Bishop's office, the fellowship of Confessional Lutherans, and all sisters and brothers in such study and dialogue." The letter went on to say that concerned consideration was given to the second of our requests, but because the allegations were unspecified the Council felt it best not to respond.
The FOCL Steering Committee has since decided to respond to the Synod Council and expressed its appreciation for their commitment to the Scriptures and the Confessions, but also to express its concern over the lack of response to the documents themselves. The Committee sees this as yet another avoidance of the issues, perhaps on the basis of a commitment to unity or in an attempt to defuse the passion with which these documents were originally written, on the part of those who sit in power within our Synod. It continues to be the position of this fellowship that our unity within the Church must be based upon our united commitment to the authority of the Scriptures and Confessions and our willingness to confront some of the difficult issues facing the church today. If, in fact, we cannot unite in these areas and find some common ground in the Scriptures regarding these issues, then there is nothing that a common name (ELC A) can do for us in the area of unity.
Expectations Of Ordained Ministers (ELCA)
The ordinations of a lesbian couple and a gay man received a great deal of press in Northern California and throughout the country. The issue has become, in the words of one of the ordaining pastors, an issue of "justice and human freedom" for the gay and lesbian communities. The ordinations were held without the support of the Bishop or the Synod Council, although some of the members of the Council are known to be in support of such action in principle.
Bishop Miller has since filed charges on the basis of "willfully disregarding the constitutions of their own congregations and of the ELCA." The battle appears to be taking place on ecclesiastical grounds and not on the basis of what is right or wrong in relation to Scripture. Thus far no action has been taken against any of the pastors involved in the ordinations.
Although the purpose of FOCL is not to enter into the disciplinary process of the Synod, there has been discussion as to whether or not such a position should be taken. Many believe that the pastors involved in a supportive role at these ordinations are just as responsible as the ordaining congregations and thus charges should be filed against them. A letter to this effect will be sent to Bishop Miller and the Synod Council on behalf of the steering committee of FOCL.
Late Happenings
On Feb. 23, 1990, Bishop Lyle G. Miller of the Sierra Pacific Synod issued a Pastoral letter to Synod Pastors and Congregations clarifying the discipline process to be utilized following the Jan. 20 irregular ordinations in San Francisco. Bishop Miller requested that this drafted letter be enclosed in parish newsletters.
In his second point, "Why are they not approved?," Bishop Miller writes: "The ELCA has many high standards for call and ordination as Pastors. Among these regard the area of sexuality. Intimate sexual activity is to occur only within the heterosexual marriage. All single persons are asked for a commitment to abstinence from sexual activity. The three persons in question are not in compliance." Well done Bishop Miller!
Also on Feb. 22, each member of the FOCL steering committee was sent a letter from both Bishop Miller and the Rev. C. Daniel Lindstsrom, Sierra Pacific Synod Secretary initiating "engagement in dialogue" between FOCL and the Synod Council. In so doing, FOCL has been formally "invited to participate in planning for a congregational study asked for by the 1989 Synod Assembly on issues of sexuality and the ministry."
First and Second Timothy and Titus
Book Review by Pastor Michael E. Murphy
This reviewer seldom gets very excited over a biblical commentary, but Thomas C. Oden has produced an extremely useful tool as part of the Interpretation Bible Commentary series for teaching and preaching.
A masterpiece! It is scholarly, intellectually stimulating, theologically provocative, and uniquely faithful to the text. The commentary's emphasis is unusual indeed for a contemporary product. As one studies this work, one comes to the realization that although Oden seriously wrestles with the contemporary theological, literary and exegetical issues connected with the pastorals, he has a mind of his own and "not one to be intimidated by popular trends."
Although this commentary keeps the student abreast with current scholarship and opinion, it also produces a solid dialogue with classical, historical interpretation. In the introduction, the author comments: "My intention is to provide a modern commentary on the pastorals grounded in the classical, consensual tradition of interpretation of these texts. The classical writers upon whom I have most depended are Atha-nasius, John Chrysostom, Augustine, Jerome, Luther, Calvin, Henry and Wesley.
The underlying conviction is that the better interpreters of the pastorals are classical Christian exegetes ... because they were more attentive to a received tradition of consensual exegesis and less distracted by speculative theories. Modern commentaries, to their discredit, have ignored them. Using the best, most accurate research concerning the historical, literary, and philosophical aspects of the Pastorals, this commentary seeks to do in our time what its classical models did in their's to treat the text as Word of God."
The book is again unusual, in that its exposition of the text does not follow the flow of the letters as most traditional commentaries do; but rather it is organized in a systematic topical sequence which lends itself well for a study of the pastoral's theology and it also makes the pastorals more accessible to thematic preaching.
Oden refuses to side-step the difficult issues which fills the pastoral letters like mines in a mine field. His study on the role of women in worship is the finest, most informative and provocative treatment I have ever read.
This is an excellent, very useful tool, that should sit on every pastor's library shelf right next to his/her other commentaries of the pastorals, such as Kelly's Harper's New Testament commentary.
F.O.C.L. Mission Statement and Declaration
Lutheranism, from its inception, has been a Confessional and evangelical movement. It is not a separate church entity, but rather it has perceived itself as a Confessional voice within the Church catholic committed to Church reform and renewal.
In this tradition, the Fellowship of Confessional Lutherans (F.O.C.L.) is an organization of clergy and lay persons who are concerned that the present prevailing mood within our Church is one of cultural accommodation and theological relativiza-tion, and who seek therefore to promote Confessional integrity and biblical theological fidelity by:
1) Establishing a voice for Confessional / Evangelical concerns;
2) Creating mutual support systems for its participants;
3) Providing a source of information sharing and educational opportunities;
4) Encouraging theological dialogue; and
5) Being understanding and sensitive to issues of theology, mission and ministry.
As an organization, F.O.C.L. seeks:
1) The guidance of the Holy Spirit and to glorify Christ in all we say and do;
2) To be a positive, pro-active and affirming presence within our Church; and
3) To influence Synodical and National (ELCA) Church practice and policy.
By this declaration, it is our intent to affirm the theological teachings found in the Lutheran Confessions. It is also our goal to focus on and to articulate our concerns identifying what we perceive to be significant departures from these teachings.
I. The Mystery of God
1) We affirm the historic position of the Lutheran Confessions that there is one God in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. All three are one divine essence, without division, forming one Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier and Preserver of all things visible and invisible. We believe that this one true and Triune God is a jealous God, demanding exclusive fear, love, trust, worship, and devotion.
2) We repudiate any and all attempts to invoke or to incorporate into Christian worship the name of any foreign, mythical or other god or spirit.
II. The Human Condition
1) We affirm the historic, Confessional Lutheran understanding that since the fall, all human beings who are propagated according to nature are born in a state of sin. That is to say, humankind is sinful by nature, subject to death and wholly in need of salvation.
2) We repudiate all theologies, Church politics and philosophies which contend for forms of realized salvation and eschatology through social political processes. We believe these to be attempts to negate and supplant the gracious gift of God, applied to human beings only through the all-inclusive redemptive work of Christ.
III. The Uniqueness of Christ
1) We affirm the historic Confessional position of the Lutheran Church, that there is one Christ, true God and true man, who without sin, fulfilled the requirements of the law, suffered and died on humankind's behalf , and truly physically rose again, that He might reconcile believers unto God the Father.
Our salvation, which comes as a gracious gift from God, is appropriated apart from individual merit, through faith in the work of Christ alone. We believe that through this act of reconciliation, God calls all people into a living relationship with Him, and that the proclamation of this Good News is the primary commission and task of the Church.
2) We repudiate the creeping universalism (the doctrine of the ultimate salvation of all people) which is found in some parts of the Church's life and ministry, which we believe has compromised our obedience to Christ. We believe this universalism has seriously inhibited our efforts in evangelism, directly contributing to the Church's decline in membership over the past two decades; and we believe it has also diminished our involvement in world missions.
3) We repudiate the tendency to pursue social justice to the neglect of evangelism, and also the failure to pursue justice while pretending to evangelize.
IV. The Place and the Authority of Scripture
1) We affirm the position articulated in the Lutheran Confessions (LQ, that the Holy Scriptures must be "the only rule and norm according to which all doctrines and teachers alike must be appraised and judged" and that "other writings of ancient and modern teachers, whatever their names, should not be put on a par with Holy Scripture." Scripture must be the Church's primary judge of what is "good or evil, right or wrong."
2) We therefore repudiate any attempt to build the Church on secular foundations by:
• Giving precedence to the insights of secular resources, neglecting the witness of Scripture as the "touchstone" for doctrine, mission and ministry;
• Abandoning biblical language about God as Father, Soji and Holy Spirit, in order to conform to current social ideologies; and,
• So seeking after theological pluralism and unity that we surrender the standards set forth by Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.
V. Christian Life
1) We affirm the teachings of the Lutheran Confessions that God speaks through both Law and Gospel. We rejoice in the concern expressed throughout our Church for spiritual vitality and in the increasing call for repentance, forgiveness and spiritual formation, resulting in Christ-centered lives.
2) We repudiate attempts to deny individual responsibility for personal morality. Unrepentant persons who continue to practice fornication, adultery or homosexual erotic behavior should be disciplined by the Church and considered improper candidates for Church Office. We, therefore, repudiate the affirmation of homosexuality as an acceptable, natural life-style and any claim that it is in itself a gift from God. We reject all efforts within the Church to promote the ordination of practicing homosexuals to the ministry of Word and Sacrament. We further repudiate current trends which attempt to legitimize sexual practice outside the marital union of one male and one female.
VI. The Church
1) We affirm that we are blessed and enriched by our diversity and indeed we perceive this diversity to be a gift from God. We believe we are called to be an inclusive Church; to nurture, equip and elect to leadership women and men of all racial-ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds.
2) However, in the process of selecting persons for leadership positions we insist that the biblical criterion of spiritual giftedness and maturity along with soundness of doctrine be given primacy. Therefore, we repudiate the application of any system which fails to recognize these important standards.
We commend these affirmations and concerns to the church at large, and offer them as a rallying point for those who share our hope for reformation and renewal within the Lutheran Church.