In reply to Lynn.

Take heart, Lynn.

You heard correctly, that there is no prohibition on birth control, only the abortifacients, the drugs which can cause a conceived child to deliberately die. The reason there are contradictory medical testimonies is that there are contradictions in how various people rationalize the origin of human life.

The court decision will have no effect save to say that Hobby Lobby does not have to fund, overtly, on paper, the use of these drugs. The Church's direction and focus should be on the millions who are considering the use of such agents on themselves on others. The focus is in bringing everyone to Christ and embracing life to the degree that, if there is any doubt over the effect of such drugs, we err on the side of life and not try to rationalize. Only the Holy Spirit entering into a person's life can create the change of heart than embraces life.

This has no effect on your sharing the Sacrament with those of one belief as regards the Sacrament, the Law, the Creed, etc. Truth be told, Lutheran theology is not all of one mind in all its assertions and nuances, not even an entity such as the LCMS. Neither is any individual's apprehension of Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions perfect. Concordia is one heart, that means one driving intention, one motivating Spirit but, because we are all imperfect and insinuate ourselves into the process, there will be differences. We need only be sure that these remain minor differences and that we share embrace the simple truths. We can all move forward in one Spirit, as one body, with a core of doctrine.