Ivars' Voice

There are two types of secrets: those that one or two people know, but never tell; and those that everyone knows, but no one wants to talk about.

In light of the recent vote of the national assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in Orlando effectively continuing the ban on full incorporation of homosexuals in the ELCA, it becomes obvious that the church is still terrified of its dirty little secret, the one everyone knows but no one wants to talk about.

Since the Reformation, the Protestant wing of Christianity has sought, above all else, to do away with human accoutrements to religion, and instead pare it down to the basics intoned by Martin Luther, namely sola gratia, sola fides, sola scriptura -- grace alone, faith alone, scripture alone.

At the essence of the homosexuality debate that has gripped several Protestant denominations, most recently the ELCA, is this notion of "scripture alone," or "word alone."Word alone" means simply this: Do what the Bible says, and nothing less.

In the last few years a vocal group of Lutheran scholars and pastors has taken "Word Alone" as its moniker, committing itself to defending the ELCA against anti-scriptural movements, such as efforts to offer marriage to gay couples and to ordain practicing homosexuals. If we simply follow the Bible, they contend, the debate would be over. For the Bible is clear in saying that homosexuality is a sin.

And in fact, they're right. The Bible states this three times, none more clearly than in Leviticus 20:13a, "If a man lies with a man as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination ..."

But there is one small problem with "word alone" thinking, a problem that has metastasized into the one big Lutheran secret. The problem is that there are no truly "word alone" people in the ELCA, or any other Christian denomination. Plenty of people claim to be Bible-based, literal interpreters of scripture, or "word alone" Bible readers, but none truly is.

It is a problem and secret seen never more plainly than in this homosexuality debate. See, Leviticus 20:13a is not the whole story.

There is a Leviticus 20:13b. This second half of the verse reads, "...and they shall both be put to death. Their blood is on their heads." Within the same verse there is a second Biblical mandate. Not only is homosexuality a sin, but it demands death for the perpetrators.

The great Lutheran secret is that there is a whole lot that the Bible says that no one wants to acknowledge. We Lutherans claim to follow scripture exactly, but then pick and choose to meet our fancy.

If we, or any Protestant denomination, truly follow God's "word alone," if we are to claim any measure of Biblical integrity, we would be required to demand not only the condemnation but also the execution of all homosexuals.

But it wouldn't stop there. The Bible explicitly states that no less than 35 different acts are capital crimes. The list includes incorrigible children, working on the Sabbath, premarital sex, adultery, worshipping a God of another religion and blasphemy, as well as a few others a bit more blue.

The great Lutheran secret is that no one is reading the Bible literally, for imagine the carnage. Despite "word alone" claims within conservative factions, every Christian alive picks and chooses what is to be his or her canon of scripture, in part because it long ago fell out of vogue to kill people for Biblical reasons.

In truth, "word alone" has become nothing more than a watered-down euphemism for "conservative yet culturally acceptable Christianity."

Modern sensibility requires some measure of picking-and-choosing. However, the crime is committed when those claiming strict Biblical adherence then portray themselves as not picking and choosing, setting up the very hypocrisy that scripture condemns as one of the most grievous of all sins.

The heart-wrenching struggles of the ELCA will only abate when we Lutherans have the courage to discuss our secret openly and honestly. Until we admit that we deny as much scripture as we embrace, we will continue to fight among ourselves unnecessarily, and continue to be seen as the hypocrites that we are.

# posted by Ivars: 11:41 AM ikrafts@msn.com