# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1950_S318
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

420 CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS

shall be the responsibility of the Faculty of Concordia Semin
St. Louis. ,
_. €oncordia Publishing House shall pay all expenses of the edj
tors and editorial boards of Synod’s official organs. ~
These By-laws, if adopted, automatically repeal By-Laws 6.163

and 11.23 h. L. Meyer
[526]
Department of Public Relations — Restudy 1947

Resolutions

Wuereas, The words of the Lutheran Witness in 1919 are stil] -
true, “Publicity, advertising the Church, is in itself neither good
nor evil; it depends upon the purpose. If the advertising of our |
work and doctrine is intended to serve the purpose of bringing :
souls to Christ, all advertising is good; aye, let us cry the Gospel
from the housetops! If our publicity is intended to satisfy an itch
for recognition among outsiders, it is wholly evil”; and

Wuereas, Synod in 1949 established a “Department of Public
Relations” and authorized the Fiscal Conference “to allocate ample
funds ... which will compare favorably with those of other lead- :
ing church bodies” (Proceedings, 1947, p. 467 f.); and

Wuereas, The cost of this department was $11,995.10 in 1948;
$25,000 in 1949 ($28,225 had- been requested); and $37,000 was
allocated in 1950 budget (the original request was $41,660.44); and

’
'

Wuereas, This department calls for District Public Relations

Departments at a yearly expense of one to several thousand dol-

lars per District; and

Wuereas, This arrangement calls for an aggregate Synod-wide
expenditure of approximately $100,000 every year; and

Wuereas, This enormous expenditure shows that this depart-

ment has become another expensive bureau of the Church; now

therefore be it
Resolved, That we request Synod to re-study its resolution of

1947:regarding the establishment of a “Department of Public Re-
lations”; and be ‘it furthermore

‘Resolved, In the event that Synod resolves to continue the

department, Synod place stringent restrictions on the expenses of
this department. . 3

“(Signed) (Rev.) J. Bertram, Fort Dodge, Iowa

| (Dr) P. E. Krerzmann, Cuba, Mo.

Zion Ev. LUTHERAN CxHurcH, CHICAGO,

Cart G. Kruse, Pastor

Signatures attested by (ReEv.) H. D. MENsING
Tinley Park, Il, April 5, 1950

Iu.

CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS 491

‘continuing Publicity and Missionary Education
fet Department

“WHEREAS, Synod’s Department of Publicity and Mission Edu-
cation has from 1929 to 1949 spent a total of $874,005.39 to inform
the members of Synod regarding the work of Synod and to edu-
cate them to become more Synod and mission conscious (cf. Report
of Synod’s Treasurer, in Proceedings, 1932, 1935, 1938, 1941, 1944,
1947, in the Lutheran Witness, 1948 and 1949, and the Fiscal Con-
ference. Minutes of 1949); and

Wuereas, The special publications Go and Tell i
Banners Go cost an additional $121,802.19 (cf. Lutheran Wisness

- 1949); and

WuerEas, It cost Synod $126,846.59 in 1947 to coll
846. + the Cen-
tennial Thankoff a
ania offering of $1,358,945.31 (cf. Lutheran Witness,
Wierras, The budget for Publicity and Missi
onary Ed i
has been set for 1950 at $80,000 (cf. Fiscal Conference February 2
and 3, September 7 and 8, 1949); and ad
Wuereas, The expenditure of the enormous
sum of one milli
two hundred thousand dollars has evidently not had the desired
effect of educating the members of Synod in regard to missions
and of inducing them to contribute more for the work of Synod,
as is seen from the fact that while Synod received about, 12 cents
o! every church dollar” in 1929, the contributions for Synod’s
budget in 1948 were only a little over 6 cents of every dollar raised
for all church purposes within the congregations of Synod (cf. Lu
theran Witness, 1949); now therefore be it - im
; Resolved, That we request Synod earnestly to give considera-
ton to the advisability of discontinuing the Publicity and Mission
Ds partment off Synod according to its present policy, and of substi-
, in its place.an office which would merel
1 y supply the past
of Synod with all necessary information; leaving it to the pastors,
as the divinely called bishops of the flock, to. convey this infor-
gation to their respective congregations without further cost to
ime - ne savings realized by discontinuing the practice of print-
g a- multitude of pamphlets and other pi
: = . lec
literature for the individual members of the congregations could .
more wisely used for direct mission work. *

Trinity Ev. Luraeran Cyurcu, Crete, Itt.
A.'T. KrerzmMann, Pastor
W. J. Brase, Chairman -
R, E. Prepensrink, Secretary