# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2004_S22 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 22 SYNODICAL REPORTS missionary training for professional workers and laity. The chal- lenge is to bring creative ideas and funding to extend our mission in the 21st century. A Synod in Mission “In grateful response to God’s grace and empowered through Word and Sacraments, the mission of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod is to make known the love of Christ by word and deed within our churches, communities and the world.” (LCMS Mission Statement) The people who founded The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod set out on a mission that brought them across oceans, through woodlands, beyond plains, and over mountains. This mis- sion is not accomplished. Their children’s children encounter a ter- rain that is equally fearful and exhilarating, new frontiers of atti- tudes, languages, and beliefs. Throughout the generations, this has been, and continues to be, a restlessness that Jesus Christ commis- sions: “Go ... make disciples ... baptize ... teach.” While times and conditions change, the God of all generations does not change, promising through His Son, “And surely I will be with you always to the very end of the age.” Geographic bounds of this North American territory have been explored. Now the demographics of North America present a “new land” of opportunity. The challenge is more than maintaining mem- bership in our congregations; it is also a challenge to be faithful to our Lord’s Great Commission. The United States has changed; it is again a “foreign land” where the languages and the cultures are not the same as the founders of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod knew. This country is not the same as the congregations of the Synod knew 50 years ago. The Mission 21st Century Task Force calls on the people and congregations of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod to see themselves as missionaries in mission outposts. In adapting mission strategies—learn the culture, learn the language, train the leaders, do the mission—this mission force will bring honor to the Savior who grows the church by reaching lost souls. Larry A. Stoterau, Chairman R1-8-02 The Next Generation Task Force Abstract From the earliest days of the Synod, congregations formed schools to aid in their mission to educate succeeding generations in the truth of God’s Word. As time has passed, more and more non-theologically trained men and women have been engaged to teach in Lutheran schools. Today, only one-third of our teachers have received college-level education in the Bible, the Confessions, and the doctrine and practice of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. While the non-theologically trained teacher in a Lutheran school frequently has a life-long history of membership in Missouri Synod congregations, the only formal theological education most have received came during confirmation at age thirteen. Examina- tion of the opinions and ideas of the typical non-synodically certi- fied teacher reveals a broad mix of Christian thinking, including numerous elements of historic Calvinism, Arminianism, and Roman Catholicism—in other words, generic American Christian- ity. The implication is obvious: If the teacher’s understanding of Christian doctrine is a mixture of popular Christian thought derived from Methodism, Presbyterianism, Lutheranism, Roman Catholi- cism, the Southern Baptists, and other denominations, the lessons taught in school will widely miss the goals for which our schools were established in the first place. The long-term implication is that 2004 Convention Workbook the cherished doctrinal heritage of our Synod will be understood by fewer and fewer people as the years pass, and the Lutheran school will evolve into a generic Christian school or merely a pri- vate school, as, indeed, in some communities it already has. If this trend is to be reversed, congregations must seek teachers who are synodically trained or they must enroll their non-theologically trained teachers in our Synod’s teacher colloquy program. While efforts on the part of some local congregations to provide theolog- ical training to teachers may be admirable, they have not been very successful. To facilitate ease of access to formal colloquy educa- tion for the teachers of our congregations who are not synodically certified, the Board for Higher Education has created an effective online colloquy program as a counterpart to the existing on-campus colloquy programs. In an effort to move matters forward, The Next Generation Task Force has recommended five resolutions as pro- posed memorials to the 2004 convention. The first addresses a nu- meric goal for enrollment in the teacher colloquy program of teach- ers not presently synodically certified. The second addresses Bylaw revisions. The third addresses teachers who are not members of an LCMS congregation. The fourth addresses teacher compensation, and the fifth addresses a numeric goal for recruitment of under- graduates into the teacher education programs of our Synod’s col- leges and universities. Report During the summer of 2002, a special Task Force was created to examine the degree to which teachers in Lutheran congregational schools have received the necessary theological training for their roles. The Next Generation Task Force is submitting this report of its findings together with recommendations. Specific Assignments to the Task Force The Next Generation Task Force was charged to research and address a number of specific issues: 1. Determine and articulate the values of a collegiate-level educa- tion in religious studies, including the doctrine, practice, and confessions of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, for those who teach in an early childhood, elementary, or secondary school of the church. 2. Determine the number of early childhood, elementary, and sec- ondary teachers who are a. not members of a congregation of The Lutheran Church— Missouri Synod; b. members of a congregation of The Lutheran Church—Mis- souri Synod but who did not graduate from a synodical col- lege program and are not certified by the Synod; c. members of a congregation of The Lutheran Church—Mis- souri Synod who graduated from a synodical college program but are not eligible for certification by the Synod; d. members of a congregation of The Lutheran Church—Mis- souri Synod who graduated from a synodical college program and are eligible for certification by the Synod but have elected not to be certified; e. members of a congregation of The Lutheran Church—Mis- souri Synod and are certified by the Synod as Ministers of Religion—Commissioned. 3. Determine the factors discouraging non-synodically certified teachers in our Lutheran schools from seeking formal education in religious studies, including the doctrine, practice, and Con- fessions of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. 4. Form recommendations and/or design initiatives aimed at in- creasing congregational support for and participation in the teacher colloquy programs of the Synod. 5. Form recommendations and/or design initiatives aimed at in- creasing the enrollment of undergraduates in the regular teacher education programs of our synodical colleges.