# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1950_S278
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

[407]

346 MISSIONS

and salaried by the Board. We therefore recommend that,

no local Pension Fund exists, the Pension Board be author, <<

by Synod to accept as candidates for the Pension Fund sy,

as are recommended by this Board.
We pray that God will continue to enable Synod to be

instrument in His hands, working for the growth of His kingdom

in Europe.
P THe Boarp For Missions IN Europe,

Pau G. Sanner, Secretary

Support for the Only Building of Activity of the
Free Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland

The Free Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is estab.
lished for more than 25 years. Its members live dispersed very
widely in various parts of the country. At most localities there jg
only one single family or one single soul belonging to our Church,
Even at such localities where there are several members, their
number is quite limited. None of them are wealthy. For these
reasons we have received continuous support from the Missourj
Synod for carrying on our activities.

Everyone of you will undoubtedly perceive the significance
of the fact that during the entire existence of our Church not a
single congregation has been able to assemble in a church room
of its own. Meetings have hitherto been held, to a lesser extent,
in rented assembly halls — for the most part they have been held
at the homes of the members of our Church. Since the wars it
has been all the more difficult to rent assembly halls for our
meetings.

Thus it became extremely indispensable to have a central
building of activity at least at one locality where the local con-
gregation could assemble and where our Church would have a
permanent center for its activities.

Such a central building has now been erected in Lahti, the
locality of the largest congregation of our Church. It consists
of a parsonage and a two-story building with a church hall upstairs
and five rooms downstairs for various other functions.

When completed, this building, including furnishing, will cost
about $44,300 in all, with the dollar calculated to 231 Finnish marks,
which is the present official rate of exchange. The erection of
the building has just been completed. It still lacks furnishing,
painting, and. furniture.

For this building enterprise we have been successful in

Ch men ‘

MISSIONS 347

ulating $21,300, and from a bank we have got a $19,500 loan.
We are paying an interest of 7% per cent for the loan. The com-
etion of the building will still require $3,500.
pl How is it that we have been able to accumulate the rather
large sum of $21,000? For the erection of the building we have not
received @ single dollar from America. With the permission of our
Government we have, however, been able to exchange the dollars
received by us for paying the salaries of our pastors, etc., and
ich otherwise would not have sufficed even for this purpose,
into Finnish marks at a special profit by making use of special
business transactions known as “charity trade.” During the most
dificult postwar years such wealthier people as wished to buy
extra foodstuffs (especially coffee) were allowed to do it, but
they were obliged to pay a special charity price for it, and it was
in this way that we succeeded in saving the above large sum of
money. — Now this special form of trade has been canceled, and
as a result of it we are now encountering our present difficulties.

Among the members of our congregations there is not a single
wealthy person who could bring relief to our financial difficulties
by making a considerable donation. This is why we are compelled
to turn to you in this matter.

The loan taken by us for erecting the building is a mortgaged
loan. Should we fail to receive sufficient support in good time,
we shall be compelled to sell everything in order to pay off the
debts. This would be an exceedingly hard blow to our activity in
the front lines of the Lutheran Church here in the far North. We
shall continue our efforts to exchange the dollars received by us
at a more profitable rate through ordinary business methods. This
will undoubtely prove much more difficult than hitherto and may
later on become quite impossible. ,

We dare trust that the Missouri Synod, which has made sacri-
fices for our yearly support and which, above all, in matters regard-
ing one faith, one doctrine, and one confession has been our spiritual
support, our teacher, our encouragement, and our joy, remembering
the benediction it has been allowed to enjoy, can find means and
will be able to give support to this only building of activity we
have succeeded in erecting and which would include our only
church hall.

The final sum required for this purpose depends ultimately
on whether any other brother church will be able to help us in
this matter and whether we shall be successful in obtaining through
ordinary business transactions a better rate of exchange for the
dollars received by us for our support. We beg, however, that the
Hon. Missouri Synod — in the event of it being able to extend us
a helping hand also in this matter —would decide on the sum

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