# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1998_S138 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 138 CONGREGATIONAL SERVICES could be a new church plant or the development of new mission work within an existing congregation. Board for Congregational Services 2-41 To Encourage District Rural/Small Town Ministry Committees WHEREAS. The national Rural/Smali Town Ministry Commit- tee during the last three years has discovered that District Presi- dents along with lay leaders and pastors from rural/small town set- tings are seeking assistance with mission and ministry issues of rural/small town congregations; and Wuereas, The 2,100 (33 percent) rural/small town congrega- tions spread throughout all the Districts have a unique cultural makeup and outlook very different from suburban settings; and WHEREAS, The 653,000 baptized members (25 percent of Synod’s membership) live in geographic areas where agriculture, leisure/tourism, and the extraction industries of mining, fishing, or forestry are dominant means of making a living; and WHEREAS, The congregations need to recognize the mission fields God has placed around them or the LCMS could lose 20-25 percent of rural/small town congregations in the foreseeable future; and WHEREAS, The Board for Congregational Services has recog- nized the importance of the ministry to rural/small town congrega- tions by establishing a national Rural/Smail Town Ministry Com- mittee; and ; WHEREAS, The Board for Congregational Services’ Rural/Small Town Ministry Committee properly serves as a linking and coordi- nating center with the Districts by training pastors and other full- time workers to understand rural cultures, effective outreach and leadership styles; by assisting congregations with adult, child, evangelism, family, leadership, schools, stewardship, youth de- partment resources, by developing adult Bible studies through CPH; by linking LCMS Human Care and government social wel- fare agencies; by collating and sharing supportive resources with District leaders and rural/small town committees and establishing ongoing communication with Districts and congregations; there- fore be it Resolved, That Districts be encouraged to establish Rural/Small Town Ministry Committees to work in partnership with the Board for Congregational Services’ Rural/Small Town Ministry Commit- tee to strengthen the mission and ministry of the LCMS congrega- tions where farming, leisure/tourism, mining, fishing, or forestry are the dominant means of making a living for the members. Board for Congregational Services 2-42 To Encourage Congregations to Work on Public Relations WHEREAS, Our society has become visually oriented; and WHEREAS, People are attracted only to those products and causes which catch their attention; and WHEREAS, Companies invest millions of dollars in advertising to keep their products before their potential customers; and WHEREAS, Polls indicate that people sense unmet spiritual needs; therefore be it Resolved, That the congregations of The Lutheran Church— Missouri Synod, either separately or jointly, be encouraged to con- sider the possibilities that are open to us to advertise the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; and be it further Resolved, That we make better use of print media, television commercials, radio, and computers with home pages and e-mail to present the good news of Jesus Christ. Our Savior Norfolk, NE 2-43 To Produce Index to Synodical Conventions WuereaS, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod celebrates its 150-year history; and WuerEAS, The history of our church body at work in its con- ventions is a rich source of intensive biblical research and atten- tion to detail in the ministry, mission, and relationships of its mem- bers; and WHEREAS, The resolutions of previous synodical conventions have not been referenced for ready access, which in some cases means a reduplication of efforts in our own time; therefore be it Resolved, That the Synod in convention direct Concordia Pub- lishing House, working in conjunction with the Concordia Histori- cal Institute and under the auspices of the President, to provide an index to the synodical overtures and resolutions which have been formally proposed or passed in our 150-year history; and be it fur- ther Resolved, That this task be completed by June 25, 2000. Zion Fort Wayne, IN 2-44 To Commission Written History of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod WHEREAS, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod during 1997 celebrated the 150th anniversary of its founding; and WHEREAS, There has been no written history of the Synod since the 1947 centennial; and WHEREAS, Previous written histories of the Synod are no longer in print; and WHEREAS, Such a history would be of tremendous value to our pastors, seminary and college students, lay leaders, and the church at large; and WuereEAs, The Synod has a wealth of talented resources for such a project in the Concordia Historical Institute, the historical departments of our seminaries, and elsewhere; therefore be it Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in con- vention commission a written history of the first 150 years of the Synod. Concordia Hillside, IL 2-45 To Honor Forefathers by Republication of Books and Commentaries WHEREAS, The Scriptures teach us to honor our elders (Ex. 20:12; Fourth Commandment); and WuerEAS, Other religious traditions honor their theological forefathers and elders by keeping their theological books and com- mentaries in print long after they have been taken to heavenly glory; and WuhEREAS, In recent years the LCMS has allowed to go out of print blessed orthodox biblical commentaries by William Arndt (Luke), G. Stoeckhardt (Ephesians), Theodore Laetsch (Jeremiah and the Minor Prophets), W. A. Maier, Sr. (Nahum), L. Poellot (Revelation); P. E. Kretzmann (Popular Commentary); and WHEREAS, Many other books have gone out of print and are unavailable to current and future generations of Lutherans—e.g., L. W. Spitz, The Life of Dr. C. F. W. Walther; R. Preus, The Theology of Post-Reformation Lutheranism, vols. I and IH; T. Grae- buer, Outlines of Doctrinal Theology; T. Laetsch, ed., The Abiding