# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1950_S1332
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

864 MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS
Your Committee desires to inform the convention that Reso-
lution 13 was presented in good faith in the conviction that this
procedure protected the best interests of the brother involyeg.
Contrary to the promise which he had made that he would rest
his case in the hands of the committee to be appointed by the
President, Mr. Edward Zepp personally released the information
contained in this morning’s. papers. Your Committee and the
Department of Public Relations of Synod are not responsible for
this action and consider it very untimely and unfortunate both for
Synod and for the appellant.

The Committee on Church Architecture |
(Unprinted Memorial 53)

During the years of the depression and the war there was little
building activity throughout Synod. During the past two or three
years, in spite of inflationary costs, many church buildings and
schools have been built by our congregations. This, of course, has
meant that a vast number of letters has been received and an-
swered.

Many congregations are of the opinion that the work of an
architectural committee is to provide our congregations with
drawings, either free of charge or at a nominal cost. They are
not aware that practically every State has passed laws making it
mandatory to employ an architect who has been granted a State
license to practice and has satisfied the State Examining Board of
his professional training and experience. This fact has been men-
tioned before, but since the question comes up again and again,
attention should be called once more to the existence of such State
laws. They appear on the statute books not to impose a hardship
upon our congregations, but they are in the interest of public .
health and safety.

Dug to the fact that very few architects nowadays specialize
in church design, the great majority of our congregations are
obliged to employ men who have never designed a church before
and whose professional training has been limited to residential
and business structures. In such cases many congregations have
sent their drawings to one or the other of your Committee for
suggestions and possible suggested revisions. Such drawings are
checked not only in regard to design, but particularly in regard to
structural safety and possible violations of existing safety codes.
In cases of this kind no charge has been made, but it is important
that preliminary drawings and not finished working drawings be

' submitted, for preliminary drawings permit ready revision, while
changes in final dimensioned drawings are much more difficult
to make and are usually costly to the congregation.