# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2016_S325
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

FLOOR COMMITTEE REPORTS AND OVERTURES ASSIGNMENTS

3. Mercy

cohabitation, sexual promiscuity, homosexuality, transgenderism, etc.
(Rom. 1:21−32; Gal. 5:19−21; Eph. 5:3−5; Col. 3:5); and be it further
Resolved, That we direct all LCMS entities to prioritize a bold and
unambiguous witness to the sanctity of holy marriage and godly policies that attest to that witness, no matter what financial, institutional,
or governmental pressures might be threatened to compromise that
confession; and be it finally
Resolved, That we as individual stewards, and the LCMS as a
whole, pledge ourselves to undertake to supply whatever financial
costs may be imposed upon those institutions of the Synod that are
penalized for speaking and living according to God’s Holy Word.
Board of Directors
Wyoming District

REPORTS
R1, R1.1, R1.2, R1.3, R6, R7, R18, R54
OVERTURES
3-01

To Help Our Mercy Agencies
Be Free to Be Faithful
Preamble
The founding fathers of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
were drawn to American shores by the prospect of the free exercise of
religion. Oppressed in their own country by the Prussian Union, they
saw firsthand the damage to the preaching of the Gospel when church
and state are confounded. Today we face that prospect once again.
The loss of freedom to exercise religion is not only a theoretical
possibility; it has already happened in our midst. Both in Illinois and
in Massachusetts, state laws forced our LCMS adoption agencies into
an impossible dilemma. Unable to comply with the unjust command
to place children into the harmful environment of same-sex homes,
they were forced to cease operating altogether.
On the Federal level, the Affordable Care Act has put Concordia
Plans in a very difficult position. Only a narrowly defined “grandfather clause” is keeping it from being forced to cover abortifacient
drugs.
As President Harrison’s official statement of June 26, 2015, predicted, the Obergefell ruling has already unleashed a torrent of attacks
on those who seek only “to obey God, rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Not only in the arena of marriage law are Christians being hounded
to speak and act against their own consciences; we are even seeing a
move to overturn numerous long-standing laws designed to exempt
Christians from the abortion culture.
While, at present, pastors and houses of worship are generally
exempt from both of these onslaughts, this alone is not satisfactory.
We must also speak in defense of the individual Christian in our
pews: the baker, the florist, the musician, the public school teacher,
the county clerk, the nurse, the doctor, and a thousand other vocations where financial, career, and legal pressures are brought to bear
on people in an effort to coerce words and actions contrary to the
Word of God.
Also, between the individual and the Church itself, there are a host
of institutions that we must and ought to defend: educational institutions from preschools to seminaries, church insurance agencies,
charities, adoption agencies, Christian counseling agencies, and the
list goes on and on.
We, the LCMS, recognize the myriad pressures that a godless society will bring to bear upon organizations both near and far from the
Church’s mission; therefore be it
Resolved, That the LCMS thank the numerous recognized service organizations that support the diaconal work of the Synod in
various ways. And we encourage each to stand firm in confessing the
whole counsel of God, being wise as serpents and gentle as doves;
and be it further
Resolved, That we direct the Concordia University System to
establish clear ethical standards for campus life that confess and
encourage the sanctity of marriage, life, and family as a light that
shines in a dark place. Such standards will naturally proscribe
325

3-02

To Encourage Synod to Educate and Advocate
for Persecuted Christians
Whereas, Paul reminds us in 1 Cor. 12:26, “If one part [of the
Body of Christ] suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it”; and
Whereas, Ancient Christian populations in the region of the
Middle East are suffering persecution of the most severe kind; and
Whereas, Many of these populations face extinction because of
their faith; and
Whereas, Many men, women, and children have been brutally
murdered, or driven from their homes, becoming refugees in their own
homeland or interned in countries looking to a future place to live; and
Whereas, Many have been kidnapped from their families; therefore be it
Resolved, That pastors and congregations be encouraged to
become “educated” about this issue in the Middle East and wherever
persecution of Christians is known and taking place; and be it further
Resolved, That The Lutheran Witness, Reporter, Lutherans Engage
the World, and other LCMS publications, blogs, and Internet sites be
encouraged to become channels of information and direction as to
specific ways to help channel funds and sympathy; and be it further
Resolved, That individual Lutherans, according to their conscience, be encouraged to contact their respective elected officials
concerning the plight of Christian refugees; and be it finally
Resolved, That this convention take time to remember such concern in prayer, should this resolution be received with affirmation.
Southern District
3-03

To Oppose Use of Aborted Fetal Tissue in Vaccines
Whereas, The Holy Scriptures define human life as being present from the moment of conception (Ps. 139:13–14); and
Whereas, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod strongly
upholds the right to life for all unborn children; and
Whereas, Recent reports have been made public about the sale of
aborted fetuses for research or incorporation into products and treatments made available to the public; and
Whereas, The LCMS maintains that fetal tissue harvested from
an aborted fetus should not be used even for purposes which claim to
be beneficial (Rom. 3:8); and
Whereas, Aborted human fetal protein is currently used in a number of different vaccines; and
Whereas, Forty-eight states currently allow a religious exemption to vaccinations; therefore be it
2016 Convention Workbook