# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1953_S324
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

324 INTERSYNODICAL AND DOCTRINAL MATTERS

The American Lutheran Church, meeting in Columbus
October, 1950, adopted Part I of the Common Confession,
convention in Waverly, Iowa, in October, 1950, it received
in its tentative form as a progress report. 4

It is the committee’s conviction that the entire Comm
fession as now presented to the convention is an adequate stat
of doctrine and practice, which, if also Part II is adopted'}
Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod and the American Jj
Church, will be a blueprint according to which, with the
God, full unity in doctrine can be attained and agre ‘
practice can be achieved between the two Churches.

In accordance with another resolution of the Milwauk
vention a meeting bringing together the committees, Pr
Vice-Presidents, and District Presidents of the two Churcht
held in February of this year. About 70 men were prese t: :
three-day meeting. The history of the union ‘movement ny
the two Churches was reviewed, and the Common Confes.
discussed with special emphasis on church fellowship anc
Christian organizations. As in all of the other meetings of
committees, the discussion was very frank, but friendly. This.
ing, in our opinion, constituted a major step forward. . Thy
resolved that further meetings of this kind should be held
to corroborate and verify the unity in doctrine and bring
unity in practice as well as eventual church fellowship. 3

Throughout the triennium your Committee was not una
the fact that the American Lutheran Church is contempla
organic merger with the four other bodies of the Amer.
theran Conference. The document which is to form the d
basis for this union is entitled the United Testimony on Fai
Life. While the American Lutheran Church, the Evangelic
theran Church, and the United Evangelical Lutheran Chu

adopted the United Testimony and are willing to enter the proj
merger, the Augustana Synod at its meeting in June, 1952, d
that it would not participate in the present merger, and
theran Free Church, also meeting in June, 1952, would not
itself to the goal of organic union. Your Committee ha
discussion of the United Testimony for the agenda at several;
meetings with the committee of the American Lutheran {
_ but lack of time prevented’ the realization of this discussic
case the proposed merger comes to pass, an entirely new sift
will have arisen, which will require the attention of our Syn

Your Committee herewith officially presents to this con
the Common Confession, as augmented in accordance with the
visions of the Milwaukee Convention.