Lutherans join chorus of voices slamming HHS contraceptive mandate

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/lutherans-join-chorus-of-voices-slamming-hhs-contraceptive-mandate ^ | 2/10/2012 | Christine Dhanagom

[Morgana]

KIRKWOOD, Missouri, February 9, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The President of the Missouri Lutheran Synod added his voice to the growing chorus of religious leaders from across denominational lines who are objecting to the HHS mandate requiring employers to cover sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs in their healthcare plans.

“The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod objects to the use of drugs and procedures that are used to take the lives of unborn children, who are persons in the sight of God from the time of conception,” wrote Rev. Dr. Matthew Harrison, in a statement issued February 3rd.

“Increasingly we are suffering overzealous intrusions into what is the realm of traditional and biblical Christian conscience. We believe this is a violation of our First Amendment rights,” he continued.

The statement echoes the sentiments of Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, who recently objected to the media’s characterization of the controversy as “only a Catholic issue,” and urged Evangelicals to “understand that our religious liberty is being similarly subverted and attacked.”

According to Harrison, the Missouri Synod’s own healthcare policy, which provides coverage to nearly 48,000 people, would be exempt from the mandate since it had been tailored to obtain “grandfather” status.

Under the health care reform law, existing policies can be “grandfathered” if they meet certain criteria. Grandfathered plans are exempt from many of the changes in the legislation, including the requirement to provide the “minimum essential coverage” which includes the HHS mandate. However, changes made to the policy could cause it to lose grandfathered status.

According to Patrick Reilly, President of the Cardinal Newman Society, which is working against the mandate on behalf of the many Catholic colleges and universities who would be affected by it, many religious organizations are pursuing grandfathered status as a way of delaying the need to comply with the mandate.

However, Reilly added, if the mandate stands, most of those organizations would lose their exempt status within a year or two, since insurance companies routinely make changes to health care policies in areas such as rates and privacy provisions.

“The minute anything like that changes, a grandfathered plan is no longer considered to be grandfathered under the federal law,” he said.

According to Jim Sanft, President of Concordia Plan Services, the Missouri Synod’s church’s benefit partner, the Synod operates its own health plan, and therefore has control over any changes that are made to it.

However, Sanft added, the Synod is still concerned that it may ultimately lose its grandfathered status if it is forced to make changes to the plan in order to remain competitive in a changing insurance market.

In the meantime, says Reverend Harrison, the Missouri Synod of the Lutheran church has pledged its support for those religious organizations that do not have grandfathered plans and that do not qualify for the legislation’s narrowly tailored religious exemption.

“We will stand, to the best of our ability, with all religious and other concerned citizens against this erosion of our civil liberty,” he wrote.

[oldbrowser]

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;

That is the very first part of the very first sentence to the very first amendment to the constitution.
Why doesn't Mr. Harvard constitutional expert know about it?

[Morgana]

Obozo is against all religions. Except Islam.

btw who has the Lutheran Ping?

[Graewoulf]

” - - - “We will stand, to the best of our ability, with all religious and other concerned citizens against this erosion of our civil liberty,” he wrote.”

If only our Congressmen and women would say and do the same - - - .

BTW, Rev. Harrison did use the phrase “to the best of our ability,” so maybe Congress really is limited only by THEIR ability. A good thing to remember in November, 2012.

[DNA.2012]

The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.

Southern Baptists.

Are there any other pro-life Protestant denominations?

[Vesparado]

I can certainly understand the desire to have laws/regulations that apply to all citizens equally. However, to achieve this without violating religious conscience means to me that there simply have to areas that governments at all levels (Federal, State and Local) do not enter. Obama is trying to eliminate all options other than a government program (which, if it is to be “just” as Hayek defines the term, means the same for everybody).

The only answer, IMHO, is to insure that private options (insurance/self-insurance) continue to be fostered -— and that the government cease dictating what will and will not be covered under those private plans.

[Salvation]

I’ve seen individual evangelicals.

[Salvation]

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[scbison]

Yes

[redgolum]

Obama has brought the LCMS and Sbc standing with the Catholics. That after being the best gun salesman ever.

Quite the accomplishment.

[redgolum]

Obama has brought the LCMS and Sbc standing with the Catholics. That after being the best gun salesman ever.

Quite the accomplishment.

[Charles Henrickson]

This could use a Lutheran ping, lightman.

Also, to read LCMS President Harrison's full statement, plus some comments on it, go here:

Harrison issues "A Statement on Recent HHS Decision and Religious Freedom"

[MinuteGal]

Missouri Synod bump.

Leni

[lightman]

Thanks to Charles Henrickson for the alert:

Lutheran Ping!

Christ is in our midst!

It is tragic that public opposition has come only from the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LC-MS) and the North American Lutheran Church (NALC).

Conspicuosly silent are the Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ (LCMC, destination of many congregations that have departed the ELCA) and of course the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)

The ELCA silence is because this apostate body has supported abortion and contraception without restriction through its employee benefit program for decades.

This silence of the LCMC is mainly because this decentralized body lacks a true spokesperson and has only issued one public statement in its 11 year history, that on the sanctity of Marriage.

[lightman]

Time for an LC-MS specific "Lutheran Ping'. What do you think of the layout and colors?

Lutheran (LC-MS) Ping!

Christ is in our midst!

[Mr. Lucky]

Divinely inspired, no doubt.

[Charles Henrickson]

Time for an LC-MS specific "Lutheran Ping'. What do you think of the layout and colors?

While I've never been a big fan of that cross design, it is our LCMS logo, and it is instantly recognizable. You've even got it in (as we jokingly call it) "Purple Palace Purple."

One little change I would make is to take out the hyphen. Most of us just write "LCMS" rather than "LC-MS."

Now I suppose I would be the logical guy to maintain an LCMS Ping List. I don't anticipate it being high-volume, since we don't have many LCMS-specific articles posted here on FR.

I'm pinging my own ping list for this, the one that I use for when I post my sermons, since many of those folks are Missouri Synod people.

Anyone who would like to be on an LCMS Ping List, please let me know, either on this thread or via freepmail.

And/or if anyone would like to be on my sermon ping list, let me know that, too.

[Charles Henrickson]

It is tragic that public opposition has come only from the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LC-MS) and the North American Lutheran Church (NALC).

I don't know if they have issued public statements yet or not, but the two largest conservative Lutheran denominations after the Missouri Synod, i.e., the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS) would, I am fairly certain, share the LCMS position on this issue.

[MinuteGal]

I love it!

It's strong....yet a restful, comfortable hue. The muted purple is perfect. This color signifies royalty....namely, our King of Kings.

Purple has a number of biblical references....Esther 8:15, Acts 16:14 and Judges 8:26 among others.

On a personal note, the color signifies Easter, i.e. the Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord.

Since childhood church days, my pastors always wore vestments of white, gold and purple at Easter morning services. I think purple is a color we can all identify with.

The design itself is striking and unique.

Go thou forth, Lightman....and use thou this emblem for a Missouri Synod pingeth.

Leni

[MinuteGal]

Hi, Charles.....see my # 19. I forgot to add I didn't care for the hyphen, either. I always use "LCMS" when identifying myself as a Missouri Synod-ette.

Otherwise, the "logo" is very eye-catching. It's just great for LCMS threads on this forum.

Leni