# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1956_S811
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

CONVENTION MINUTES 809

bership in Synod was granted to the congregations listed in Today’s
Business, pp. 88, 137, 245; and to pastors and teachers listed on
pp. 89, 137, 199, 245. Committee 15 was dismissed.

Under the auspices of Committee 2, the Executive Secretary
of Foreign Missions, the Rev. O. H. Schmidt, pointed out the bless-
ings experienced in our Foreign Mission fields. The growing
nationalism urgently calls upon us to enter doors now open and
to build indigenous church bodies, as is being done in India, the
Philippines, and Japan. Missionary Olive Gruen, who has spent
35 years in the Foreign Mission field, briefly addressed the conven-
tion. She referred to the joy of serving and bringing the message
of salvation to people in China and Formosa, where the people
spend millions for temple services and sacrifice to idols, which
actions bring them neither comfort nor help. Synod congratulated
Dr. O. H. Schmidt on his contemplated marriage.

Resolutions adopted: to dedicate ourselves to the privilege of
evangelizing the world, to expand our Foreign Mission program
by added manpower and funds, to keep our church informed of its
progress and needs (TB:208—209, 30), to express gratitude to God
for past blessings, for prompting our membership to supply man-
power and funds, and for inducing thirty people to enroll in the
Mission Department of our St. Louis seminary (TB:209, 31), to
encourage our Mission Executives to visit the foreign fields as
necessary (T'B:209, 32).

. The Committee introduced Rev. Harold Ott, Executive Sec-
retary for Missions in Latin America, who presented a brief survey
of the growing work in those countries. In the Central American
countries the Board pursues the policy of training native workers,
who are to be developed into a native ministry. Presented to the
convention were Dr. Hasse and Dr. Rupp, who work in Brazil,
and President Beckmann of Argentina.

_” Election Results: Austin, Teacher Wm. H. Nielsen and Messrs.
Paul Nerger and Elmer Gast; Seward, Teacher E.A. Buchholz and
Messrs. A. C. Bek, Harold Riggert, and Oscar Wilk; Board of
Appeals, Prof. H. J. A. Bouman, Pastors Wm. F. Krueger, Carl A.
Eberhard, Herbert Berner, Erwin Kurth, Erwin Schnedler, Messrs.
Eugene Wengert, Julius M. Friedrich, Harry Bar, Carl J. Thrun,
Henry Schepmann.
' Time having been extended for 15 minutes, Synod on recom-
mendation of Committee 11 passed the following resolutions:
To authorize the Board of Directors to borrow up to $4,000,000
during the next triennium as necessary (TB:247, 18);
At future triennial conventions +o have all resolutions dealing
with money reviewed by the Floor Committee on Finances
before presentation to the convention (TB:243, 14A);