# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1956_S279
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

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PARISH EDUCATION
Il. PARISH EDUCATION

Report of the Board for Parish Education
; (Report 201)

Parish education is one of the basic concerns of every Christian
congregation. This concern is portrayed in Eph. 4:12,13 as in-~
volving the “perfecting of the saints,” the “edifying of the body
of Christ,” the “unity of the faith,” the growth in “knowledge of
the Son of God,” the growth toward perfection, and growth “unto
the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” There is
only one instrument through which the Holy Spirit operates to
achieve this spiritual growth, namely, His holy Word. Through
the agencies of Christian education our congregations seek to
provide an organized and systematic program of teaching God’s
Word to both young and old.

Our congregations have provided in and through Synod a pro-
motional, directive, unifying, and protective influence in parish
education. The Board for Parish Education has developed instruc-
tional materials for the various agencies in Christian education
and has attempted to provide the broad leadership in parish
education that its directives from Synod require. Our District
Boards and Committees for Parish Education and the District
Superintendents have co-operated with Synod’s Board for Parish
Education and have provided assistance and advice to local congre-
gations for the expansion and improvement of their work in parish
education. Our circuit Visitors have given leadership on some
phases of parish education and in some Districts have, in co~
operation with the District Boards of Education, appointed circuit
committees on parish education for ‘the purpose of developing
more effective educational activity in the circuits. At every level
of the synodical organization the boards and committees have
had but one objective in mind, namely, to help build the Kingdom
through plans, procedures, and materials that would help us
measure up to God’s standards for Christian education.

During the past triennium the Board for Parish Education
has tried to discharge the responsibilities assigned to it by Synod
and to carry out the specific resolutions of the 1953 convention.
We shall first provide a general overview of the work and give
special attention to our work with specific educational agencies.

A. A General Overview of the Work of the Board

After the Houston Convention the Board for Parish Education
found it necessary to replace two members who resigned because
of the press of other duties. Dr. Paul Bretscher was replaced by

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