As expected, delegates at the annual assembly of the St. Paul Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted Saturday to opposed the proposed state constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage.
The group met in Burnsville; the annual assembly theme: “Living Lutheran: What Does This Mean?”
The synod represents 116 congregations with about 132,000 members. The larger Minneapolis ELCA synod has also voted to oppose the marriage amendment.
The controversial proposal has religious groups in the state on both sides of the issue. While gay marriage is already illegal in the state by law, supporters of the stronger constitutional proposal don’t want it imposed by judges.
The Catholic bishops in the state are spending heavily to get the proposal passed.
Living Lutheran Prejudice
Clearly the Synod has found a means to justify their prejudice. If it is true that, in part, prejudice is based in ignorance, then in this case an ignorance of spiritual laws concerning Life (that’s Life with a capital “L”) is at work. The synods beliefs (and beliefs are temporal mental constructs) reflect this lack of depth in understanding. The form is not the Life, as the belief is not the truth. And as we can clearly see here, ignorant belief is the wellspring of suffering in the world. As a youth, nuns from post war Germany tried to teach me that only catholics were permitted into heaven. Imagine what I would be thinking of these synod members had I took that belief on as my own? A belief, like any other construct, will certianly pass away like all THINGS. Until an objectified truth reveals itself without prejudice to all, be skeptical of ALL belief. That said, the synod should keep their sticky beaks in their own gardens, where there is plenty to tend.
Bravo ELCA!
As to sticky beaks, the catholic church is poking its beaks everywhere.