# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1956_S662
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

662

FINANCIAL MATTERS

2. Persuading congregational leaders that the total steward-
ship program is bedded on the Scriptures and our Lutheran the-
ology, that it is not merely a maze of methods having as its goal
a more effective way of raising money for money’s sake.

3. Getting the information to our people, giving them a better
understanding of Synod’s purpose and their very own program
through Synod. Too many of our members know too little about
their church, how it serves them, how they through Synod serve
others. The information is there in printed materials, filmstrips, and
mission movies. Why isn’t it used more in many of our congre-
gations? What can be done to promote missionary education and
information in our congregations? The helps are there but are
either not used or not used effectively.

4. How may congregations be persuaded that Christ Himself
placed the missionary obligation upon them and their members,
that the support of missions should receive a much higher pro-
portion of their current income than it receives in so many of our
congregations? At our synodical conventions our congregations
vote, through their representatives, what they want done, what
they want their leaders to do for them. Why, then, do so many
of our congregations not fully identify themselves with the work
their church is doing for them? Where does the trouble lie?

EXHIBIT “A”
1955 Receipts for Synod’s Budget
Synod’s Budgetary Goal for 1955 _ $9,100,000.00
Amounts Pledged by Districts for 1955 ___... _. 8,330,714.00
Amount Received from Districts for 1955 _...... _ 7,651,401.27
5 ce _ $ 679,312.73
Received from Districts — 2 2---_- $7,651,401.27
Receipts from Sundry Sources ........-.--_-...------ 559,396.60
Total Receipts 2. eee eee $8,210,797.87
Goal for 1955 coc cece eee $9,100,000.00
Total Receipts occa: eee eeceeeeeeee ee eee 8,210,797.87
Short of Goal by ene $ 889,202.13
or 9.77%

Average needed from Districts in 1955 (after subtracting
$559,396.60, Receipts from Sundry Sources) was $6.50 per com-
municant. Only ten out of 32 North American Districts of Synod
reached that average:

Central $8.08 Southern Illinois

Kansas -...... . 8.08 Michigan —_.

Iowa East 794 Southern Nebraska

Iowa West _ . 788 Western _____.. _
Central Illinois 7.40 Northern Illinois

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