# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1950_S1031
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

SEMINARIES AND COLLEGES 838

" 4 interpretation of the terms of a divine call. It is unethical. By no
“stretch of the imagination could one consider such an action ethical

i : and pleasing to the Lord and Master of the Church, whose servants

the professors are by virtue of their calls.

Unless otherwise stipulated specifically in the call, the recipient
of a divine call can be asked to resign only when conditions arise
which are displeasing to God. (“In such cases the congregation

4 . does not actually dismiss its minister, but only acts for God in so

doing.” Fritz, Past. Theol., p.40.) And if an arbitrary age limit is
written into a call, it would no longer be a divine call, but a mere
contract.

Such conditions which are displeasing to God occur:

1. When a pastor preaches false doctrine, Hos. 4:6;

2. When he leads a scandalous life, 2 Tim. 3:7; 1 Tim. 3: 2-4;

3. When he willfully neglects his official duties, 1 Cor. 4:2;

4, When he no longer is able physically or mentally to perform

his official duties efficiently, 1 Tim. 3:3.

These were the principles followed by our fathers in the past

for removing also a professor from office, because in their view

= his call was divine in the same sense as that of a pastor.

But the conditions listed above do not automatically come about
at the age of 70 or at any other age set in advance.

1. Nowhere in Scripture is any specific age limit, such as 65
or 70, declared to be displeasing to God per se or to disqualify
a man for further service in his divine calling.

2. Scripture records instances in which men at an advanced
age have served the cause of the Kingdom admirably.

3. We have pastors serving congregations at the present time
who have passed the age limit established by Synod for professors.
Yet Synod frowns on congregations who would arbitrarily retire
their pastors at the age of 65 or 70. But if Synod can terminate
a professor’s divine call at the age of 70, a congregation can with
equal right terminate the call of its pastor at the age of 70 and be
justified in citing Syod’s example as a precedent.

4. Members of at least one synodical board have passed the
age limit set for Synod’s professors, although that very board re-
peatedly has dealings with Synod’s professors. This is right and
proper in the light of Scripture. But why apply a man-made ruling
only to professors?

From what has been said above it follows that no man in pos-
session of a permanent divine call can have his call terminated and
be engaged on a temporary, year-to-year basis to please our Lord
and Savior merely because he has attained a certain age.