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A pastoral message on the Rittenhouse acquittal
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ^ | 19 November A.D. 2021 | Elizabeth A. Eaton

Posted on 11/19/2021 5:32:09 PM PST by lightman

​Dear church,

In the book of Leviticus we read: "You shall not render an unjust judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbor" (19:15).

Our social message on Community Violence urges us to become more involved in countering the reality and fear of violence in our communities and our neighbors' communities, pursuing justice and seeking peace no matter how long the journey or complex the challenge.

When a child is allowed to become a vigilante in our society without recourse, we are forced to confront the idols of our society: guns, violence and white supremacy. To be sure, this is not about one person, but indeed about all of us, together.

Today's acquittal is an injustice. It points to the disorder in which we all live. As we seek to restore justice, so also will we restore God to God's rightful place at the center of our life together.

In Christ, The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton

Presiding Bishop Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

- - -

About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with nearly 3.3 million members in more than 8,900 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 773-380-2877 Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Illinois; US: Wisconsin
KEYWORDS: bidenvoters; elca; elizabethaeaton; fauxiantroll; fauxiantrolls; illinois; kenosha; kylerittenhouse; lutheran; lutherans; rittenhouse; wisconsin
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To: lightman

I can tell from what she wrote: she is NOT “In Christ”.


41 posted on 11/19/2021 6:42:28 PM PST by backwoods-engineer (But what do I know? I'm just a backwoods engineer.)
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To: lightman

“The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States”

This is a lie. They pretend to be Christian, but they are not.


42 posted on 11/19/2021 6:52:57 PM PST by EastTexasTraveler
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To: lightman

Who asked them? If Antifa burned their property down they would be singing a different tune. Kyle would be the one trying to put the fire out.


43 posted on 11/19/2021 6:56:56 PM PST by Cecily
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To: lightman

“Our social message on Community Violence urges us to become more involved in countering the reality and fear of violence in our communities and our neighbors’ communities, pursuing justice and seeking peace no matter how long the journey or complex the challenge.”

What about the violence the rioters unleashed on Kenosha pastor? What about the fear those people who watched their businesses burn? Seems Kyle was just trying to counter their fears and got attacked for it.


44 posted on 11/19/2021 6:56:59 PM PST by hirn_man
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To: lightman

When a child has to try to protect a city where his father lives, and do the job the Police, Mayor and Governor should have done ...


45 posted on 11/19/2021 6:57:13 PM PST by Savage Rider
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To: lightman

Elizabeth

Problem identified.


46 posted on 11/19/2021 6:57:19 PM PST by JimSp
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To: Westbrook

I remember the response of a an old Catholic priest when I asked him about the Jehovah’s witnesses.
“There’s no evidence, at any time, that Jehovah asked those clowns to be his witnesses.”
QED


47 posted on 11/19/2021 7:01:29 PM PST by KierkegaardMAN (This is the sort of stuff up with which I shall not put!)
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To: Savage Rider
... and then that child is acquitted, he should run for mayor then guvner then president.


48 posted on 11/19/2021 7:02:49 PM PST by Kevmo (I’m immune from Covid since I don’t watch TV.🤗)
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To: aberaussie; Aeronaut; aliquando; AlternateViewpoint; AnalogReigns; Archie Bunker on steroids; ...

Here is what a REAL Lutheran Pastor (Rev. Peter Speckhard, LCMS) has written in response to Eaton’s screed:

“There are several problems with Bp. Eaton’s take, beyond simply not bringing Gospel to the table. For one thing, white supremacy had nothing to do with the trial. People had plenty of time to learn from how horrible the early reports and responses were on that score. More importantly, she seems to have viewed the trial as a statement about whether a child should be allowed to become a vigilante, with a guilty verdict being proper “recourse” and an acquittal demonstrating that there is no recourse. But that is a flagrantly unjust view of a criminal proceeding. The trial was not about whether the gun laws are good, whether protesters were on the side of justice, whether the Blake shooting was justified, whether race relations suffer from systemic abuses, whether white males are too smug and macho when they pose with guns, or anything like that. A symbol of a social problem was not going to be spending his life in jail, a person was. For all the talk about flagrant disregard of human life hurled at Rittenhouse, it would behoove a church’s social statement not to exhibit flagrant disregard of human life. But that’s what this social statement does. It declares that justice demand Rittenhouse be imprisoned for life for doing something clearly legal. The jury was tasked to determine one thing— was Rittenhouse acting in self-defence according to the law (or is there at least reasonable doubt)? The clear and obvious answer to that question is yes, he was, and therefore he was not guilty. That is the only kind of justice the courtroom was tasked with providing and even capable of providing, and it provided it. Had the judge instructed the jury to determine whether it is right that children can become vigilantes without recourse, there would have been immediate grounds for appeal to a more sane court. “


49 posted on 11/19/2021 7:09:33 PM PST by lightman (I am a binary Trinitarian. Deal with it!)
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To: lightman

Most of our mainline church denominations have changed from conservative to liberal since the 1960’s. The ELCA has become one of the lost liberal of all. Some of the other Lutheran churches remain conservative such as the Missouri Synod.


50 posted on 11/19/2021 7:32:25 PM PST by elpadre ( ying them.)
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To: Shery

Speaking of slings, she probably thinks young David who killed Goliath was a vigilante and juvenile delinquent.


51 posted on 11/19/2021 8:46:30 PM PST by Cecily
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To: DeweyCA

Every time I drive past the one in town, I want to tear down their rainbow chart showing how inclusive they are. Blech! To think I actually went to that church a few times. smh


52 posted on 11/19/2021 9:21:51 PM PST by ozaukeemom (9-11-01 Never Forget)
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To: lightman

GAY!


53 posted on 11/19/2021 10:23:40 PM PST by vpintheak (Live free, or die!)
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To: lightman

Glad I left that shipwreck a decade ago.
/\

I left after completing confirmation class at 12 years old and asked my pastor

if lutheranism was based on salvation through grace through faith

why did he contend that infant baptism conveyed salvation

and all I got was my first encounter with weasels and weasel words.

( heavy sigh )

.


54 posted on 11/20/2021 5:12:11 AM PST by cuz1961 (USCGR Veteran )
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To: WashingtonSource

It isn’t Christianity that sucks but these mainline denominations.


55 posted on 11/20/2021 5:13:35 AM PST by Lisbon1940 (No full-term Governors (at the time of election))
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To: lightman

Good Lord. This church has no belief in the presumption of innocence. Or the American justice system.


56 posted on 11/20/2021 5:25:54 AM PST by Captain Jack Aubrey (There's not a moment to lose.)
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To: lightman; NRx

Pseudo-bishop Elizabeth A. Eaton is a feminazi graduate of Harvard Divinity School!!!! There seem to be quite a number of them among the female “bishops” of the ELCA!!!!

May our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ, and his dear Mother the Most Holy Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary bless Kyle Rittenhouse all the days of his life!!!! May they also lead more and more people out of the ELCA and other heretical “churches”, and lead them into the Holy Orthodox Church!!!! AMEN!!!!


57 posted on 11/20/2021 10:13:25 AM PST by Honorary Serb (Kosovo is Serbia! Free Srpska! Abolish ICTY!)
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To: Cecily

+1


58 posted on 11/20/2021 10:14:44 AM PST by Honorary Serb (Kosovo is Serbia! Free Srpska! Abolish ICTY!)
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To: Honorary Serb

>May they also lead more and more people out of the ELCA and other heretical “churches”, and lead them into the Holy Orthodox Church!!!! AMEN!!!!

Or to a more G*d oriented and faithful Lutheran church, such as the Missouri Synod.


59 posted on 11/20/2021 1:12:31 PM PST by Jacob Kell (So a pedophile, and wife beater, and a burglar all walk into a bar. And Kyle says: "Shots on me!")
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To: elpadre

Probalby because of all the draft dodgers who infested the seminaries during Vietnam.


60 posted on 12/17/2021 9:20:09 AM PST by Jacob Kell (So a pedophile, and wife beater, and a burglar all walk into a bar. And Kyle says: "Shots on me!")
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