February 7, 2025
Dear friends in Christ,
Yet again, I feel I must write to you and address the false accusations made toward Lutherans and Lutheran Social Services over this past week. Last Sunday morning, surrogates of President Trump announced on social media their intent to break government contracts with more than 40 Lutheran public service organizations, accusing the Lutheran church of not being a real religion but rather a “money laundering organization.” This is a shameful lie. And far worse than an attack on our good name is the real harm this could cause for the millions served by our social service organizations. An estimated 1 in 50 Americans relies on aid from Lutheran Social Services every year. LSS provides essential services to individuals and families in need, providing refugee resettlement and immigration services, disaster response, child welfare and adoption services, mental health and addiction recovery services, food assistance, and community support. This is why the government has long funded the work of LSS: the government has recognized it as work that needs to be done, and it has also recognized LSS as an organization that can do it better than the government can. And now, it’s all under attack, and of course, the ones to suffer the most are the most vulnerable among us.
This kind of rhetoric is not just absurd, it’s dangerous. It feeds a broader trend of demonizing institutions that have long provided essential services, especially to marginalized communities. And the hypocrisy is blatant – Elon Musk benefits massively from government contracts and subsidies, yet attacks social services that operate under the same basic funding principles.
As Pastor Clint Schnekloth wrote this week, “The real issue here isn’t legality – it’s an attack on the very idea that society should provide care for the most vulnerable. LSS and similar organizations exist precisely because communities need them. Cutting off their funding wouldn’t eliminate the need for food, housing, or refugee resettlement – it will just make it much harder for people to get help.”
Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton addresses these false accusations here in this video. I commend it to you.
So what do we do? We continue to follow the call of Christ: to feed the hungry, to welcome the stranger, to speak the truth. We pray for all our neighbors served by LSS, and we advocate for their humanity and care. We call our elected representatives and speak up on behalf of our charities. We donate to Lutheran Social Services (this is where our Christmas offering went this year!) and we write to tell them how grateful we are for them and their work in our community. We come to church to hear the good news and refuel for the week to come.
Be of good courage, dear friends. This is a hard, chaotic, troubling time. And we have the truths of our faith and the love of community to help us make a way through it. I’m so grateful for all of you!
In Christ,
Pastor Sarah
Every Friday, we send an email to the congregation and any others who would like to learn more about the Grace community. The last four Friday emails are posted below.