# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1954_S102
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

102 Proceedings of the Forty-Third Convention,

“Ultimately all the doctrines of the Holy Scriptures have an
organic connection with the central theme of the Scriptures, which
is the Gospel. A denial of any teaching of the Scriptures involves
a mutilation of, and a departure from, the complete Gospel, and
it is for this reason that a full and common obedience to the Holy
Scriptures is an indispensable requisite for church fellowship.”
(Italics ours.)

Is it fair, when a whole church body offers its explanation of
its statement and when the Commission that issued the “Friendly
Invitation” draws up such a statement as I have just read, to keep
repeating:

‘a) That we are negotiating with a church body whose official
position is that it is “neither possible nor necessary to agree in all
matters of doctrine”?

b) That this church body (while it was only their Fellowship
Commission) with its statement on “allowable and wholesome
latitude of theological opinion” is challenging “the clarity and
therefore the authority of the Scriptures”? And to do this without

calling attention to the progress there has been made in this matter?
In view of what our Synod has done in this matter, has the Wis-
consin Synod the right before God to accuse a sister synod of
unionistic practices in this case?

Brethren, I am convinced that you are sincere and want to be
fair in judging others. You would not have asked for this discussion
if you had not expected to weigh all the facts. We have sought
to present to you some of the facts connected with the items you
have brought to our attention as examples of “persistent adherence
to... unionistic practice” on our part. In Jesus’ name, give
consideration to these facts! We have tried to give heed to your
admonitions. We have not ignored them. We have honestly striven
to go forward with you in holy obedience to our Lord and His Word.
We have presented our case in an effort to show that we want
to march forward with you as children of God, faithful to the
Lord’s Word, a truly confessional church that at the same time
must be eager to reach out where it can and share the treasures
of the Gospel with as many as will share it with us. May God’s
Holy Spirit show us the way. Amen,

Unionism, the Communion Agreement, Negotiating
with Lodges, and Joint Prayer
By Pror. E. E. Kowake

The 28th Article of the Brief Statement contains this sentence:
“We repudiate unionism, that is, church fellowship with the adher-
ents of false doctrine, as disobedience to God’s command, as causing
divisions in the church, Rom. 16:17; 2 John 9,10, and as involving
the constant danger of losing the Word of God entirely, 2 Tim.
2:17-21.” This passage has been cited as an all-inclusive definition
of unionism, as though no unionism were involved unless actual
church fellowship were being practiced. The 28th Article of the
Brief Statement is, however, not attempting a definition of union-