# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1981_S9 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) MISSIONS 9 LCMS, the Board for Missions will continue to assist the IELC financially and to encourage its veteran partner to more energetic planning and outreach in mission. Sri Lanka Population: 14.8 million; popluation growth rate: 7%. Sri Lanka (Ceylon) is a “tear drop” island southeast of the southern tip of India. The LCMS in conjunction with its work in India has conducted mission work on this predominantly Buddhist island off and on since 1927. Later the India Evangel- ical Lutheran Church also sent national pastors to work in Colombo. The most successful work is in the tea estates in the hill country outside of Colombo. This was begun by an LCMS missionary in 1962. Today the work at six stations on these tea estates, known as the Church Council of the Lanka Lutheran Church, is being continued among the Tamil-speaking Indians by two of their own national pastors. This group numbers 469 souls, 172 communicants. In more recent years the Board for Missions made two different attempts to begin mission outreach to the Tamil Muslims in Sri Lanka. In both instances, for reasons of health and other difficultues, the missionaries found it necessary to return home. If the board decides to continue an effort to reach Tamil Muslims for Christ, it will want to send a team of two missionary units into this very difficult but challenging work. Papua New Guinea Population: 3.2 million; population growth rate: 2.5%. The Gutnius (Good News) Lutheran Church (GLC) is the outgrowth of the Synod’s mission efforts begun among the Enga people in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea in 1948. The church, of which Rev. Waema Waesa is bishop, is in partnership with the LCMS. It now numbers about 25,000 communicants, served by 442 national workers. Expatriate missionaries sent out by the Board for Missions currently number 19 units. The GLC is active in medical missions, Bible translation, education, and in training of evangelists. It has been involved in the training of evangelists at Timothy Lutheran Seminary in Birip, and of pastors and teachers in Martin Luther Seminary and Balob Teachers College, both located in Lae. As young people leave the Highlands to find jobs in coastal cities, the GLC recognizes the need to prepare workers for bringing the Gospel to the urban areas. Several GLC members are prominent in the government of Papua New Guinea, both on the national and provincial levels. From the time of the early missionary beginnings, the High- landers have been introduced to agriculture, cooperative market- ing, and economic development. The church is disengaging itself from direct involvement in much of this kind of activity. Of great help to the church is an expatriate layman, Mr. Kermit Reedstrom. He left a responsible management position in a large company in the U.S. and with his family answered the Lord’s call when the Board for Missions extended an appointment to him to serve the GLC as its finance officer. Another lay couple also followed the Lord’s call to Papua New Guinea. They are Dean O. Smith, D.D.S., and his wife Marion, a trained dental assistant. As lay missionaries of the Board for Missions they will serve in the hospital at Mambisanda. The Church Council of the GLC is operating under a plan whereby the church with adequately trained workers can become self-supporting through a program of Christian steward- ship. Its plan includes requesting additional expatriate mis- sionaries. It is giving a high priority to evangelistic outreach and to strengthening congregations and their leaders. The Gutnius Lutheran Church is moving Forward for Christ. Hong Kong/ Macao Hong Kong population: 4.8 million; population growth rate: 1.2%. Macao population: 0.3 million; population growth rate: 2.2% The work in Hong Kong and Macao began in 1950 when some of the LCMS missionaries who had to leave mainland China were reassigned in different parts of East Asia. Under the blessing of God this work developed into the Lutheran Church—Hong Kong Synod, the Rev. Andrew Chiu, Th.D., president. _ Its more than 5,300 baptized souls in 34 congregations and. mission stations (a growth of approximately 30% during this __kiennium) are served by 28 Chinese pastors and 4 missionaries plus one Volunteer Youth Ministry worker. In addition, there are 18 LCMS teachers at the LCMS-owned and -operated Hong Kong International School, with an enrollment of more than 1,400 students from 30 different countries. There are five secondary evening schools (total enrollment more than 17,000), one seminary, and nine vouth and social service centers serving a total of more than 5,000 Chinese people. One of the missionaries is a teacher who formerly served at HKIS. He was reassigned by the Board for Missions to the Hong Kong Synod to assist the Hong Kong Christian Service Migration Services Department with programs to help prepare the many Southeast Asian refugees encamped in Hong Kong for entry into other countries. Under his guidance and leader- ship many Chinese as well as English-speaking Lutherans residing in Hong Kong had opportunity for Christian witness to the refugees. Another of the missionaries is a recent arrival, Mrs. Carol Halter. She is a trained deaconess with a background of Chinese experience in Hong Kong. The Lutheran Church— Hong Kong Synod is looking forward to her leadership for setting up a deaconess-training program. One of the urgent needs for the church is adequate staffing for their seminary. The Board for Missions is looking for at least two theological professors with earned degrees to teach at the seminary in Hong Kong. This partner church is placing a high priority on Lutheran theological education for its future Chinese pastors and missionaries. The church’s goal is an exciting one—not only to maintain seminary accreditation, not only to reach out to more Chinese in Hong Kong, but most exciting of all, to venture out in mission to mainland China! The Lutheran Church—Hong Kong Synod’s president, Dr. Andrew Chiu, has already made several exploratory trips to the mainland and has been well received by officials and Christians in his former home town and province. What an exciting challenge. What a direction in which to move Forward! We thank God for this partner church and its forward- looking vision for mission. Japan Population: 116.8 million; population growth rate: 0.9%. This crowded, modern, mountainous island country (about size of California) still identifies only about 0.5% of its popula- tion as Roman Catholic and only 1.2’ as Protestant. The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod began mission work in Japan in 1948. The Japan Lutheran Church (JLC— also known as Nippon Ruteru Kyodan, NRK), Rev. Tohru Shiba, president, is a full partner with the LCMS. The JLC in 1976 declared itself “independent and interdependent” with the LCMS. The Board for Missions of the LCMS continues to assist the Japan Lutheran Church on a project basis. At the present time this includes financial support for two expatriate missionaries and for projects in evangelism, mass communications, youth work, and theological education. The Japan church’s members, which represents a 4" growth, are served by 35 national pastors and the two remaining LCMS missionaries. Through the Board for Missions the LCMS Board of Youth Ministry has a team of 22 volunteers (VYM) who teach English and assist the Japan Lutheran Church in outreach to young people in the three major geographical areas where the JLC is at work. The Synod also helps subsidize an international Lutheran congregation in Tokyo (St. Paul’s) to provide English-speaking Lutherans in the greater Tokyo area with achurch home away from home. In Japan there are millions who do not yet know Christ as their Lord and Savior. We pray with our partner church that together we may reach out to the non-Christians in that land, pointing the way—Forward for Christ! Korea Population: 38.2 million; population growth rate: 1.6%. During the past 100 years Christianity has made a consider-