lutheran Archives

Anti-Trans Lutheran Thinks Personal Pronouns are a “Sinful Delusion”

July 30, 2023July 30, 2023Rebekah Kohlhepp

For my own sake, I do my best to avoid the LCMS entirely, but sometimes the world likes to tempt me by dropping pieces of anti-trans Lutheran literature directly in my lap. This is one of those times.

This week I had the privilege of reading a free booklet distributed by Concordia Publishing House entitled “In the Image of God: Gender & Sexual Identity.” If you want to spare yourself from a discussion of the unmasked disgust with gender-expansive people that lies within these pages, just know that it says exactly what you think it says, and go about your day.

Grove City College’s White Supremacy Spreads to the LCMS

May 29, 2022September 4, 2023Rebekah Kohlhepp

On May 2nd, 2022, I had the honor of being a featured writer with an above-the-fold story on OnlySky Media. While I was proud to be featured, I could not have been less proud of the subject of my article: my alma mater, Grove City College. (The Roe v. Wade draft opinion leaked later that same day, so my fame was short-lived. But it did happen.)

My Real Atheist Deconversion Story

April 3, 2022April 2, 2022Rebekah Kohlhepp

I have always felt most at home in communities of nonbelievers. In my very first-ever blog post in 2016, I said this for the first time.

The only problem is that I only know one atheist other than myself. I have almost no outlet for my discoveries or my questions. I hope that this blog acts as a way for me to go from being a rogue atheist to a member of a community of individuals who are either in a situation similar to my own or who were brave enough to be able to come out. I intend to share my experiences and discoveries with you as I make my way through works of atheistic literature, learn more about natural science, and form my own opinions and lifestyle choices based on my beliefs.

What the Lutheran Church (LCMS) Really Thinks About Evolution

January 2, 2022January 1, 2022Rebekah Kohlhepp

Even as my content and I have both changed and evolved over the years, I always end up finding my way back to the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s teachings on creationism. I was raised in the LCMS and only once I left did I really delve into the details of their beliefs. While it can be frustrating to return to the doctrine of my old church, I think there is something enjoyable in refuting both LCMS doctrine and creationism in general.

When Lutheran Pastors Confront Creationism

September 12, 2021October 15, 2021Rebekah Kohlhepp

This week, I stumbled upon a blog post by a pastor at a church from my old denomination, the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. The pastor, Duncan McLellan, wrote the post a few days after his church had hosted a “Genesis Seminar” in which “several experts in Creation Science and the Old Testament spent three days at the church, teaching and discussing the flaws with the Evolutionary Model and explaining many passages in the Bible that describe the Creation.” This post was particularly fascinating to me, because McLellan definitely did not come to the conclusion that one might think. But his attitude actually revealed to me a pattern in the LCMS’s views towards creationism.

Misogyny in the Lutheran Church

November 3, 2019October 4, 2022Rebekah Kohlhepp

I used to believe in God.

At least, I think I did. I probably believed about as much as any young child can, which isn’t much. I believed God was real only because the trustworthy sources in my life told me he was real. But when I was around ten, I shed my faith, and it was replaced with doubts, which ultimately won over when I was about twenty. Read more →

How Many Creationists Does It Take to Refute Evolution?

July 21, 2019January 1, 2022Rebekah Kohlhepp

Recently, I came across a post on my old church’s website that a few months back, they hosted a presentation by a creationist on “The Best Evidence Against Evolution.” You may know that a while ago, I wrote a series for this blog trying to discover the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s official stance on evolution. In the end, it seemed that they decisively hold to young earth creationism, although the church still has no definitive stance on whether evolution is actually true.

Is the LCMS a Cult?

March 17, 2019October 24, 2022Rebekah Kohlhepp

I’m excited to find out whether the LCMS could really be called a cult, especially since in a time of extreme frustration, I once made the claim that I thought it was a cult. That being said, my own analysis will be based off of my personal experience and various Lutheran doctrine that I’ve had the chance to read. I do have a personal dislike and deep disdain for the LCMS, but I’m going to do my very best to be fair and objective when pitting it against the BITE Model. Just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean it’s a cult. Maybe it is, but maybe it’s not. Let’s find out.
Read more →

An Atheist’s Thoughts on Lent

March 10, 2019October 8, 2021Rebekah Kohlhepp

It’s finally here! The best time of the year. First, people gorge themselves on all kinds of treats, then they get black ashes rubbed onto their foreheads, then they eat fish on Fridays, and then it’s Easter. That’s right. It’s Lent. Again.

Lutheran Creation Doctrine: Evolutionary Creationism

January 13, 2019October 5, 2021Rebekah Kohlhepp

This week I am continuing my study of what my family’s denomination of Lutheranism, the LCMS, believes in regards to creation and origins. I began this series after my brother-in-law read this blog post where I responded to an article about creationism written by the president of the LCMS, and my brother-in-law then suggested I read what the Concordia Theology blog states on the matter. This brings me to today, when I read Concordia Theology’s fourth post in their creationism series, called “A Travel Guide to the Evangelical Creation Debates: What is Evolutionary Creationism?” by Charles Arand. In the past, I’ve also covered their posts on Old Earth Creationism and Young Earth Creationism.