# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1950_S275
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

840 MISSIONS

13. Iowa West _ — — —
14 as 24,340.00 — — —
15. Man.-Sask. 14,000.00 — —. —
16. Michigan __ 11,352.60 — — —
17, Minnesota 12,500.00 — 1,910.00 LSi0p0
18. Montana 2,300.00 — 3,350.00 woo
19, North Dakota 33,150.00 — 2,242.25 2.24295

20. N. Wisconsin — — —
21. N. Illinois _.. — — — _—
22. N. Nebraska . 35,000.00 — 10,000.00 10,0009
23. Northwest __ 72,092.70 — — ao
24. Oklahoma 39,900.00 — — _
25. Ontario ____ 37,150.00 — — _
26. S. Dakota .. 9,000.00 — — _
27. S. Wisconsin _ 13,250.00 — — —_
28. Southeastern 198,389.01 — — —_
29. Southern __. 22,300.00 — — —_
30. S. California _ 99,315.00 — — _
31. S. Illinois ___ 24,200.00 — — _
32. S. Nebraska — — —. —
. 45,100.00 — — _
47,000.00 — 9,800.00 __
98,466.80 — — _
Totals ..__ $1,365,757.95 $ — $31,087.09 $17,937.09

W. H. Scuiveter, Treasurer

[406]
Report of the Board for Missions in Europe

Your Board has now served two consecutive terms of three
years each with the same personnel, namely, the Rev. August F.
Bobzin, chairman; the Rev. Paul G. Sander, secretary; the Rev.
Louis T. Buchheimer; Mr. Fred A. Schurmann, treasurer; and
Mr. Herbert Thien. Two Board members have in the past triennium
been able to visit the field in Europe and so have gained a personal
insight of the work there, the Rev. Louis T. Buchheimer during the
summer of 1949 and Mr. Fred A. Schurmann during the spring
of 1949. Mr. Schurmann made the trip at no expense to the Board.
Until the European representative of the Board, the Rev. Walter
C. Daib, accepted a call as pastor of a congregation in the spring
of 1949, he made two further trips of longer duration in 1947
and 1948. In the summer of 1949 he was granted a leave of absence
from his congregation for the purpose of further consultation with
the Lutheran ‘Free Churches in Europe. He is now serving the
Board in a consultative capacity.

While conditions in Europe have been stabilized to some
extent, they have not yet been returned to normal. Any program
- adopted must of necessity be subject to modification or expansion.
Your Board believes that it should present for your guidance,
information, and possible adoption the following long-range pro-
gram for work in the European mission field.

MISSIONS

A. Belgium
oT til March of this year we had but one congregation in
pelgium: (Antwerp). This congregation consisted of 41 souls,
32 communicants. During the past two years there has been
constant, if small, gain in numbers, and we believe that we
an 100k forward to further growth. ;

In March of this year a new mission was opened in Brussels,
where Pastor Hobus has taken over the work of establishing a Lu-
theran church in the French-speaking sector of Belgium.

The Belgian field, both in its Flemish and French sections,
may be considered ripe for expansion. While the immediate needs
of the Belgian field have been met, the long-range program must
include the training of further missionaries to take care of expan-
sion possibilities. An adequate supply, both in quantity and variety,
of missionary, catechetical, doctrinal, and devotional material in
idomatic French and Flemish must be made available. As new
mission stations are opened, there will be need of suitable quarters
for worship and for housing.

B. Denmark

In Denmark we have five congregations served by two pastors.
Total membership consists of 130 souls, 92 communicants. The
situation in this country, where State and Church are so closely"
integrated and where 97 per cent of the population belongs, nomi-
nally, to the State Church, makes it very difficult to carry out
effectively a comprehensive mission program.

Denmark seems to be a mission field which will remain dormant
for some time, and it seems that all we can hope to do, for the
present, is hold the line. We do not recommend a withdrawal from
this field, but intend to make only such limited advances as can
be made by the present congregations and pastors without any
increase in expenditures of men and money. We expect to con-
centrate our forces in those localities where our main strength is.
We look for a missionary and stewardship education of the laity
with the hope of making this field self-supporting as soon as
possible. We shall continue the contacts by our local pastors with
confessional groups within the Lutheran State Church for the
purpose of keeping informed of the doctrinal development within
these churches and for the purpose of carrying ‘on the testimony
of our own doctrinal position.

C. Finland ;
Three pastors serve four congregations with a total of forty-

seven preaching stations. Total membership consists of 346 souls,
252 communicants. Faithful and conscientious efforts on the part

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