# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1944_S965
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

382 MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS

Wartime has of necessity gone side by side with the work

Evangelism of conserving our own Lutherans. Gripping ao

stories of winning souls for Christ during these
two years by individual laymen and women, by pastors, by con- ©
gregational effort, and by District planning are recorded in
heaven for all time. One congregation reports an accretion of
158 by baptism and by confirmation within one year. — Sunday
schools report an increase of unchurched children of anywhere
from 25 to 200 and 300 per cent. There has probably never
been a time in the history of our Church in which evangelism
and the approach to the unchurched has received greater

_ attention than during these past two years. In the work of

conservation and evangelism ours is truly a Church at work
in a world at war.
The Emergency Planning Council takes this opportunity to
express its appreciation to the Central District Mission Board
for the loan of Rev. W. C. Birkner in
Rev. W.C. Birkner’s the early stages of its planning and
Assistance survey. Rev. Birkner did yoeman serv-
ices in surveying, planning, and con-

_ Sulting with many of the District Mission Boards and mission-

aries in phases of mission work which had never before con-
fronted them. He served from May to October, 1943.

It is impossible to secure statistical data. On the one hand;
we. are very much discouraged because we know that thousands
upon thousands of our fellow Lutherans are being lost to our
Church. It would be unwise stewardship not to face this loss.

Some members of our Church did not do what they
Results could havé done to keep their moving members ‘with

the Church. We have heard too Many instances
where members have been gone from their congregation six
months to two years and have never made gontact with the Lu-
theran Church in the community to which they have moved.
Others are very infrequent in their attendance at worship. Others
attend church Promiscuously, sometimes in other Lutheran
churches, even though a Missouri Synod church is available, and
sometimes in churches of other denominations.

On the-other hand, we believe that there is no church body
in the world which has been more blessed in its work of con-
serving its membership in these days of world turmoil than our
own Missouri Synod. Our Council takes no credit for this. Next