CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Dr. Marit Trelstad, associate professor,
Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, Wash., provided wisdom for
"turbulent times" in the Aug. 11 Bible study at the 2007
Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA).
The churchwide assembly, the chief legislative authority of
the ELCA, is meeting here Aug. 6-11 at Navy Pier's Festival Hall.
About 2,000 people are participating, including 1,069 ELCA voting
members. The theme for the biennial assembly is "Living in God's
Amazing Grace: Thanks be to God!"
"Lutheran ethics begins not with a set of legal codes, but
first with the baptismal font," Trelstad said. She applied
insights from the New Testament book of Galatians and Martin
Luther's treatise, "The Freedom of a Christian," to the current
study on human sexuality.
Trelstad said that Luther, the church reformer, used an
"anchored, yet flexible approach" instead of using Scripture
solely for a "list of moral prescriptions."
Trelstad reminded assembly members of Luther's conclusion,
"We are free in Christ to love and serve the neighbor." She
challenged church members "to develop a relevant, healthy
understanding of sexuality where 'health' is understood as
cultivating a growing love and concern for God, neighbor and
self."
She asked assembly participants, "What would a social
statement on human sexuality look like if it were shaped by God's
promises, our common identity, and our call to love and serve the
neighbor?" She encouraged assembly participants to respond to the
current study on human sexuality in writing.
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Information about the 2007 ELCA Churchwide Assembly can be
found at http://www.ELCA.org/assembly/ on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
