“Trinity Lutheran Church has received the very good news that it is no longer on the roster of congregations of the American Lutheran Church as of November 1, 1984” writes Rev. Pomeroy J. Moore, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church & Christian Day School, 4101 East Nohl Ranch Road, Anaheim, California.
Pastor Moore adds in his “From the Pastor” column in December, 84–January 85 Trinity Tidings:
“This is considered Good News because this has been the desire of the congregation for three years as it has observed the steady and, apparently, irrevocable departure of the ALC from its Biblical foundations; a trend that has been accelerating since 1965 . When the ALC announced its intention to form a New Lutheran Church by merger with the Lutheran Church of America and the liberals who left the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod to form the AELC, it became quite obvious to the informed observer that future association with the ALC would mean abandonment of key Biblical doctrines and the Lutheran Confessions in any literal sense. This has been proven by the various documents which have been generated by the Commission for a New Lutheran Church official statements by synod leaders in synodical publications and public statements of synod and district presidents.
“Initially the congregation joined with those who sought to alert the churches of the synod through conventions, publications and materials which called attention to the doctrinal problems developing within the ALC. When a conservative Lutheran seminary was formed by Lutherans Alert National in Tacoma , Washington , to provide an alternative for seminarians to the curriculum offered by the ALC seminaries that is based on use of the Higher Critical Method of Biblical interpretation, Trinity gave her support. Yet despite efforts to gain acceptance as a legitimate expression of historical Lutheran theology within the ALC, the liberal ALC leadership refused to accept the Tacoma seminary, rejecting any fair consideration of its graduates. The ALC finally manifested its repudiation of the historic interpretation of Scripture as a basis for pastoral training. by suspending Central Lutheran Church to Tacoma for calling a Faith Seminary graduate to serve as an assistant to the ALC pastor of the congregation. Central’s appeal to the ALC was denied showing the determination with which the ALC intended to root out the confessional approach to theology represented by Faith Seminary. At no time in the seminaries nine-year history prior to the suspension of Central Lutheran Church in 1978 was there any serious attempt by the ALC to consider its merits as an expression of a theology still held by a majority of ALC church members. The die had apparently been cast!
“But, when Trinity Lutheran Church of Anaheim, California, concluded that this was an appropriate way to express her faithfulness to the Confessional statement of the ALC constitution, by calling a graduate of Faith Seminary as its pastor, and at the same time assuring its removal from the roster of ALC congregations, as executed against Central Lutheran the ALC ‘waffled.’ Postponing action against Trinity for over two years, the ALC has now ‘suspended’ the congregation, effective one day after receipt of a resolution passed unanimously by the voting members of the congregation which declared their withdrawal from the ALC. It would seem that the timely action of the ALC was designed to defuse the situation. In any even if both parties have what they want: The ALC is rid of another ‘doggedly conservative’ and recalcitrant congregation and Trinity is no longer tied to a church that is fast becoming apostate to its former doctrine. We accept that as Good News, even though it is sad that it had to happen.
“‘In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, maybe found to result in praise arid glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.’” (1 Peter 1:6–7)
News item from the Jan. 7, 1985 Christian News.
