Mohler and the ELCA

While I've never pretended to be a fan of Albert Mohler, when he is critical of theological liberal denominations and the Roman Catholic Church I can (for the most part) agree with him.

And yet because he has allied himself with the Christian Right he has lost all credibility in both my eyes and often the eyes of those whom he is critiquing.

In this article a theological liberal is critical of Mohler's denunciation of the ELCA...the mainline Lutheran body in the United States.

http://www.talk2action.org/story/2013/6/10/235111/626

Now Mohler is right and yet wrong on two key points.

1. The author of the article cannot see Mohler apart from politics. And though Mohler may be correct to reject homosexuality and certainly is correct to reject its acceptance within the Church, the fact that he is perceived as a political creature...is his own fault. It discredits him and establishes an obstacle to the Gospel.

Now, F Clarkson also demonstrates a lack of understanding and certainly is no friend to Biblical Christianity, but I cannot fault for him for perceiving Mohler in this manner.

This is a tragic consequence of Christianity's embrace of power.

2. Mohler is also no friend to Biblical Christianity. Though he may grasp the mechanics and nomenclature of the Gospel message, his embrace of Sacralism and thus the advancement of the Kingdom through political power exposes his fatal misunderstanding of Christ's Kingdom message. His frankly sickening patriotism and veneration of militarism and American political mythology and soft-Constantinianism demonstrates his spiritual blindness and disqualifies him from making any valid critique.

So what are we left with? Acculturated and utterly compromised Christianity on both fronts.

One has a semblance of the Gospel but has literally gutted its meaning and imperatives.

And the other takes some of the imperatives of the Kingdom (like the Sermon on the Mount) but renders them impotent and meaningless apart from the Person and Work of Christ. Without the Resurrection, without the validation of the whole of Scripture, we're left with a Gandhi or a Buddha... but no Saviour.

I also add the following link by the same author wherein he shows (rightly or wrongly) that the theological motivations for opposing liberal mainline Christianity are in fact political in nature. I also include it for those who might think I've misunderstood or overstated Clarkson in the first article.

http://www.publiceye.org/magazine/v20n1/clarkson_battle.html

God willing in the near-future I hope to write more about the funding nexus between the Christian Right and American power circles. I guess the question is...do so many like Mohler, Beisner and others realize they're being used? Or are they happy to do it? Or do they really and truly not see it? Of course Dominionism and Kuyper's understanding of Common Grace allow for the unbeliever to aid in the building of the Kingdom. So perhaps the fact that they're being funded by Koch, Exxon, and Coors is for them a profitable irony?