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A Lutheran Foundation's Bad Bets Create Sharp Divisions in Parish

When Ethelyn Moeller and her husband donated their farm to their church, it seemed like a win-win proposition: The Fairmont, Minn., couple would do the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod a good turn, and the church would do them one, too.

Under a program that encourages members to donate, the church's money-management arm sold the Moellers' farm in 1992 for $192,500 and invested the proceeds, promising to pay the Moellers a share of the resulting income. The annual payments allowed the couple to afford a new house and Mrs. Moeller...