Time for the LCMS to Cut Germany's SELK Loose
Australia's model for incrementally advancing women's ordination is how the Evangelical Lutheran Church gets hollowed out. Don't wait for Germany to get there next.
The 15th General Pastoral Convention of the Independent Evangelical Lutheran Church (SELK) in Germany, held from June 23-27, 2025, in Hofgeismar, was overshadowed by a refusal to once and for all reject women’s ordination. SELK is a member of the International Lutheran Council (ILC) and in altar and pulpit fellowship with the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS).
Although delegates ostensibly refused to advance women’s ordination, there were so many weasel words and accommodations that it is only a matter of time before SELK caves and goes the route of the Australian Lutherans.
SELK Bishop Hans-Jörg Voigt wants a clear direction for further deliberations, whatever that can mean. Here are clear directions: 47% of SELK delegates to the pastoral convention believe it is “theologically possible” for women to be ordained. That is simply astounding; almost half of SELK’s pastors have no theological objection to female pastors! That percentage will increase until the Liberals win.
What the convention voted against was a classic example of churchmen’s folderol. Using secret ballots (Matthew 5:37?), the pastors voted 53 to 28 to reject any structure allowing women's ordination as a parallel option in some congregations. In other words, the reason SELK is claiming a “strong majority” position against women’s ordination is procedural, not theological.
The equivocation and ambiguity were evident everywhere:
"Currently viable structures for the introduction of the ordination of women are not conceivable" if limited to a portion of congregations.
Tolerance of and support for advocates of women's ordination, "brotherly cooperation, respect for their position, and a willingness to listen to their concerns".
Committing to promoting women's services in non-ordained roles, such as pastoral assistants, lectors, church council members, deacons, catechists, and lecturers (passed 67 to 9, with 7 abstentions). Seven-eighths of SELK pastors oppose 1 Timothy 2:12: “And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence.” Let that sink in.
This sets SELK directly against the LCMS on core theological and doctrinal issues (on paper, at least), and to pretend otherwise is foolishness (1 Timothy 6:20).
Both the first and second resolutions from the convention qualify their rejections with "currently," implying the assessments of viability and theological impossibility are tied to the present context (e.g., "currently viable structures... are not conceivable" and "a majority... currently consider it impossible"). Here’s a translation: “Future circumstances—such as evolving theological views, membership changes, or broader church discussions—could alter these conclusions, but without committing or not committing to any such change.”
The supposed majority view against women’s ordination is vacuous, considering the receptive and coddling language applied to the dissenting factions. Likewise, note that the second resolution links “impossibility” to "a majority of its members," indicating the stance depends on current delegate composition and the perpetual curse of “democratic vote outcomes” rather than having a resolute and immovable doctrinal barrier.
Combined with the report’s emphasis on "the path now chosen" for unity, this confirms that the SELK’s decisions are conditional, pragmatic, and time-bound. A majority view, not Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions, will be the final outcome, and it will never be reversed once it takes effect.
LCMS ecclesiastical leadership needs to be decisive and firm in this matter. The Synod cannot be in fellowship with a church body where nearly half the pastors reject St Paul’s teaching, and a majority agrees to promote females to leadership roles forbidden to them.
☩TW☩
Yes, even permitting a vote on this is like putting the Trinity or the Two Natures up for grabs. Even allowing a vote to proceed on it is a no-confidence vote against the Holy Scriptures. They should be thrown out of the ILC, and hopefully, the ever-shrinking remnant of the faithful remaining in SELK can find likeminded pastors and congregations with which to reorganize. The German people need to have a Christian alternative to both the abominable state-church, and the corrupted and compromised independent liberal alternative.
No. We should be slow to form fellowship ties and equally slow to break them. If they were to ordain a woman to the pastoral office, that would be grounds to sever fellowship. Time will tell. We have to resist the sectarian temptation as strongly as we resist the temptation to unionism.