Our Steadfast Commitment to Christian Love

From Pastor Kristofer Rhude:

It is common across administrations for politicians to make false statements or institute sinful policies regardless of party. To respond to them all would be a full-time job in itself. But I am writing today to respond to a specific attack made against our own church. You may have seen that this weekend, Elon Musk, in his new government role, has made false accusations about the Lutheran church—accusing our church of both federal crimes, and questioning the legitimacy of our religious beliefs.
 
Mr. Musk’s statements are offensive and obviously false. The legal funding for these programs was publicly approved by the federal government, and robust accountability structures are in place to ensure it is spent as appropriated. And while our church is not perfect, we have always striven to follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ: to feed the hungry, care for the sick, welcome the stranger, and accompany the imprisoned. Lutheran Social Services (LSS) and Global Refuge (formerly Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services), are two of our non-profit ministries whose mission is to answer this calling—both joint projects of the ELCA and the Missouri Synod (LCMS).
 
Around the country, LSS provides services for seniors, youth, veterans, refugees, and people with disabilities. LSS helps people find housing, jobs, and the healthcare they need. Nearly 1 in 50 Americans access life-giving services through these ministries each year. Right here in Northern California, LSS is currently supporting nearly 4,000 formerly homeless individuals with safe, stable housing in 32 supportive housing programs across seven counties. LSS has also been a leading partner to California communities rebuilding after wildfires.
 
Global Refuge is one of the largest resettlement organizations in the country, welcoming over 800,000 people to the United States since 1939 and helping them to build new lives and a new home here. Last year alone, Global Refuge welcomed 14,000 refugees from across the world to our shores, helping them to immigrate, and then aiding them in finding housing, jobs, healthcare, and access to other necessary services. These organizations are some of the most impactful ways that our church serves our neighbor in communities in every region of our nation. This is the work of the church: in the love of God and in service to our neighbor.
 
Now, I believe it would be worthwhile to have a thoughtful conversation around the relationship between government funding and religious institutions like ours. However, these comments did not question this relationship, but instead made a direct attack on the legality and legitimacy of our work to follow the Gospel of Christ—work that this church has been engaged in long before the idea of the United States was even a dream.
 
Such attacks are becoming commonplace. In addition to anti-Semitic and Islamophobic rhetoric continuing to rise across the country, a resolution was recently introduced in the House of Representatives to condemn a single sermon of an Episcopal priest. The vice-president has attacked his own Catholic Church after their bishops criticized his administration’s rescinding of protections for churches from immigration raids. A clear pattern rooted in the sin of Christian nationalism has emerged: that to many in power in our government, religious speech and practice is only legitimate if it aligns with particular political and theological agendas. These threats to our freedom of religion should be deeply and personally concerning to all of us.
 
The threat to the vulnerable in our community is even more immediate. If our government ends these already budgeted programs as Mr. Musk has promised, it will cause immense suffering—primarily amongst those who are already at most risk in our country. Global Refuge’s work has already been severely impacted, after a stop-work order from the State Department in January effectively halted much of their operations. Nearly 6,000 legally resettled refugees are in danger of eviction and food insecurity because of this order.
 
I am deeply concerned, and I am angry about all of this. But I encourage you to watch presiding bishop Elizabeth Eaton’s response to these accusations, which shares the good news in this moment—the good news that our church will never be intimidated or threatened into abandoning the Gospel of Christ. In faith, I trust that our church, our ministries, and our members will continue to share the love of Christ in our communities—especially in service to the most vulnerable. Though this is a single threat among many which we face, it is an opportunity for us to recommit ourselves to our living, active faith, which teaches us to walk with those in need, regardless of what the powers of this world demand.