Well here we go: Is this the really truly death knell for the ELCA in rural western Minnesota, this outpost of MAGA where it's hard to even have a reasonable conversation with a flat-Earther who's behind Donald Trump? Why am I writing about this again? It does no good. To the extent anyone becomes aware of my positions, I'm just likely to get ad hominem putdowns.
People will say that I'm (just) a Trump-hater. Or I have "Trump derangement syndrome." What does that mean really? There is one ELCA church left in Morris MN. I do congratulate them. It's the church on the "other side of the tracks." They finally got some clean-up done in their neighborhood. But that might not be their biggest issue for dealing with.
Faith Lutheran like all ELCA churches has had to face the significant headwinds of being "liberal" or should we say perceived as liberal. It probably doesn't take much to be branded liberal out here. There is a stiff litmus test for being observed as a proper Christian. The Good Shepherd Church of rural Morris got formed on this premise: an all-out rejection of "progressivism."
The people can get guided along by conservative radio talk hosts. This extends to TV with Fox News of course. But the ELCA bravely stands as an outlier to all that. It is unfazed. In the meantime it has been ravaged by effects of decline. It is absolutely amazing to note the actual death of First Lutheran (FLC) in Morris. It's almost beyond belief because FLC was once a total bastion of mainstream Protestant devotion in town.
We had stereotypes which is always unfortunate: FLC with the more well-to-do people of Morris, and Faith as, well, more of the "working class." It is true that people talked in those terms. We must be blunt. But I certainly have known of quite successful people at Faith.
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| First Lutheran (B.W. photo) |
For the sake of being "positive" I have tried to hold back expressing my concerns. Such as, inattention to the "little things" like making sure the microphones work properly and the overhead slides are advanced properly. I have walked out of church at least twice because of such things.
And I know this sets me up for insults directed at myself. I have been marginalized so much by this community. But I have seen so many past "town leaders" of Morris simply leave town. Maybe I'm a more positive person than the popular conception has it. Yes, I hate teacher unions so much I wish they could be outlawed. Why can't the State of Minnesota destroy the unions within the University of Minnesota? Just look at the recent embarrassment of the strike. It almost prevented "Farm Aid" from being held. Unions seem so yesterday.
And so because of my stance on these matters, I get attacked on an ad hominem basis. People call me "stupid," mock me, diss me openly. All this has happened while I was trying to point out weaknesses in my First Lutheran. Why did we occasionally cancel coffee hour on Sunday? Oh, you'll say coffee hour is no big deal. "It's not what the faith is all about." But isn't that beside the point? Church activities supplement your faith and are not the faith itself.
For church activity to be rewarding, the church should consider the little things to be important, n'est-ce pas?
Several years ago when Pastor Dan was at the church, there was a late Christmas Eve service that wasn't worth the trouble. Man, I remember the days when ANY Christmas Eve service at FLC was a big deal. Majorly. I attended the late service because I forgot the early one. Of course it should not have mattered.
Well, the overhead slide system failed to work at all. Pastor Dan stared toward the back helplessly. Then Steve Just walked up front and the two of them "fiddled" with the system. Actually this reminded me of an old "Super Dave Osborne" episode but I won't elaborate on that.
Too much time went by and I got up and walked out. My church. On Christmas Eve. The church that I wrote checks out to. I tried explaining to a well-known church member recently that I expected more for my money. And this individual accused me of suggesting that you can "buy your way to heaven."
If this is the kind of people we have at FLC, to heck with them.
Speaking of heck, the Bob Heck family had big "Trump" signs on their front lawn. So, that element of our culture can even invade our ELCA churches.
I began this post by referring to a possible new "death knell" for the ELCA in western MN. What I'm referring to, is the new presiding bishop of the denomination, Yehiel Curry. The online world tells us that Bishop Curry is "aligned with the liberal and progressive stances of the wider denomination."
So the church is headed toward more diversity and inclusion. The "liberal" theology will prevail. So is this a death knell now for Faith Lutheran of Morris? Faith is having to rely on Pulpit Supply now.
First Lutheran I guess still exists at least nominally. But members are now forced to attend the local Methodist/UCC church every other week. Yes, stranger than fiction. I am saddened.
Last Sunday I attended Faith. But in this town, if you switch from First to Faith or the other way around, "people talk." I mentioned this to the very wise Kelvin Tschetter and he responded, "Well they have to talk about something."
Addendum: Protestantism is hurt in this community by how so many people are affiliated with the Apostolic churches. This leaves fewer people to support the standard Protestant churches. The Apostolics could attend any ELCA church on a given Sunday and have a totally wholesome experience. But they stick to their "cult."
Addendum #2: I remember when the late Dennis Johnson said at FLC church coffee one Sunday "There's just no life in this church." I remember when "UMM Sunday" was a really big deal at FLC. It hasn't been done for some time.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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