Part One: ELCA Studies on Sexuality
The ELCA Church Council specified that one of the first steps in this study process should be the development and use of a study guide for the discussion of the ELCA's "A Message on Sexuality: Some Common Convictions" ("Common Convictions"). Therefore, this study guide to "Common Convictions" has been prepared for use throughout our church. More extensive documents will follow as our church’s study process moves forward, including materials for a discussion of homosexuality in our church, a subject not addressed in "Common Convictions."
Talking about "A Message on Sexuality: Some Common Convictions" will give ELCA members a chance to review our church’s stated consensus on certain matters of sexuality. A careful look at this document is the logical place to start in order to get our bearings for the journey together through the studies that lie ahead.
The official text of "Common Convictions" is reproduced in full and divided into four parts, one for each of the suggested four study sessions. Discussion questions related to each portion of "Common Convictions" are added. The questions are designed to help church members look at this document from three different angles: (1) exploring its basic content; (2) reflecting on its teachings in the light of their experience and observations; and (3) identifying concerns that require further attention.
The questions invite participants in the discussion to consider both what is right and wrong in sexual conduct and how our ministry in this church can nurture healthy sexual practices that are faithful to God and others and that enrich people’s lives and enhance our witness in the world. Questions other than those suggested may also arise as the discussion proceeds. Groups may not find it possible or helpful to deal with all the questions.
The four sessions into which the study is divided is simply a suggested approach. Congregations and other groups using the guide are certainly free to adapt the number of sessions to their own needs.
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Journey Together Faithfully, Part One: ELCA Studies on Sexuality 