The Challenge of Christian Deliberation in a Libertarian Context: The Case of the ELCA 's Social Statement on Genetics

In 2005, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA) Churchwide Assembly authorized the formation of a task force to prepare a social statement on genetics and faith. Although the Churchwide Assembly voted to adopt the social statement in August of 2011 by a wide margin, there had been an earlier controversy. In June 2010, an article in the Dakota Farmer questioned whether the ELCA was accusing farmers of "sin"for planting genetically engineered crop seeds. At least two churches in rural North Dakota cited this factor as a reason for leaving the ELCA. Seven synods with strong farmer constituencies proposed resolutions challenging the social statement. This paper explores how the opposition used agrarianism and libertarianism to attack the ELCA's use of the Christian concept of the common good in the social statement. This case reveals the challenges that the Church faces when contributing to ethical deliberations on controversial issues.