# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1956_S316
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

316 PARISH EDUCATION

of enrollments into the hands of a competent Bible class department
leader.

2. That Synod call upon all pastors, teachers, and congrega-
tional officers to help create a more favorable climate for Bible
study through personal interest and participation in group Bible
study, in order to aid in strengthening the spiritual convictions of
our people and to overcome nominal Christianity and materialism,

3. That Synod, in order to have graded Bible classes for high
school youth, young people, and adults, encourage our congrega-
tions to accelerate the enlistment and training of Bible class

teachers, and to give them guidance for lesson preparation and
teaching.

4, That Synod encourage its congregations to make adequate
Provisions for all departments and classes of the Sunday school,
including also the youth and adult Bible classes, as they build
new church plants or remodel old plants.

5. That Synod encourage its congregations to regard a unified
program of Bible study in Bible classes and youth societies as basic
to the entire youth program.

H. Bible Institutes

Today there are about 45 Bible Institutes conducted in 15 Dis-
tricts. This is an increase of 12 over 1952. Forty-eight District
leaders and deans of Bible Institutes held a workshop at River
Forest in 1953. The educational philosophy, objectives, curriculum,
and means of operation of Bible Institutes were fully discussed;
and the result of this workshop is a 100-page manual, Leadership
Education Through Bible Institutes. It includes “Guidelines for
Bible Institutes,” which set a Lutheran standard of achievement
that existing Bible Institutes are asked to attain. Such schools
as approach these standards are to be certified by the Board for
Parish Education and listed in the Lutheran Annual. The interest
in Bible Institutes has been almost Phenomenal, and they have
rapidly spread from District to District. There are more than 200
communities in which such training schools could be set up. The
St. Louis Bible Institute, now completing its tenth year of opera-
tion, with an average enrollment of 180 per semester, offers two
semesters of eight sessions a year, and three week-end courses
annually, the churchmen’s retreat, the one-day church-officers
seminar, and a vacation Bible school workshop. Bible Institute
courses in the following eight areas are available: (1) Bible Sur-
vey, (2) Book Study, (3) Methods of Bible Study, (4) Christian
Doctrine, (5) Christian Living, (6) Christian Education, (7) Evan-
gelism, Missions, and History, (8) Church Administration.