# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1973_S86
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

86 THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS

2-131F

Immanuel Ev. Lutheran Church, Mellen, Wis., Donald
Koosmann, President; Robert Kretzschmar, Secretary.

2-131G

St. Paul’s Ev. Lutheran Church, Mellen, Wis., Ken Lind-
quist, President; Donald L. Kulbachi, Secretary.

2-132A

To Withdraw from Pulpit and Altar
Fellowship with American Lutheran Church

Whereas, The Holy Scriptures include clear and sufficient
passages which prohibit the ordination of women to the
office of the holy ministry (1 Cor. 14: 26-35; 1 Tim. 2:11-14;
3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; Heb.13:17) but regard the pastoral office
to be conferred upon qualified men only; and

Wuereas, Dr. Martin Luther regarded such passages to
be the words of the Holy Spirit (i.e., “It is, however, true
that the Holy Spirit has excepted women, children, and in-
competent persons from this function, but chooses [except
in emergencies] only competent males to fill this office, as
one reads here and there in the epistles of St. Paul, that a
bishop must be pious, able to teach, and the husband of one
wife,” Luther’s Works, American Edition, Vol. 41, p. 1540);
and

Wuereas, Our Synod regards “the Old and New Testa-
ment as the written Word of God and the only rule and
norm of faith and of practice”? (LCMS Constitution, Art.
II 1); and

WuereEas, The American Lutheran Church in its national
convention (Oct. 1972) almost unanimously rejected an ap-
peal from the LCMS to reconsider its 1970 decision to ordain
women to the office of the holy ministry and rescind said
decision, but rather almost unanimously reaffirmed its
earlier decision without any regard for the Biblical, con-
fessional, doctrinal, or practical concerns expressed by fellow
Lutherans with whom pulpit and altar fellowship supposedly
exists; and

WuereaS, This rejection constitutes a clear departure from
God's clear Word and a uniquely Lutheran confession and
practice and in effect declares those passages of Scripture
cited above invalid for the Lutheran church of the 1970s,
and therefore capable of being set aside as historical relics;
and

Wuereas, The doctrine of the inspiration of Holy Scrip-
ture is at stake here; and

Wuereas, Other Bible doctrines may well suffer the same
fate when modern theologians tire of them; and

Wuereas, Meaningful fellowship cannot exist between two
bodies of Christians when there are divergent theologies,
practices, and approaches to Holy Scripture and its mean-
ing; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod.
in a true spirit of love toward the Lord of the church, His
Holy Word and our Christian brethren, express our dismay
and disappointment to the American Lutheran Church for
its refusal to uphold Biblical doctrine and practice by re-
affirming its unscriptural decision to ordain women to the
office of the holy ministry; and be it further

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod
withdraw from pulpit and altar fellowship with the Ameri-
can Lutheran Church until such time as true unity of spirit
exists in doctrine, practice, and our common understanding
of Holy Scripture — including the doctrine of inspiration of
Scripture.

BETHEL LUTHERAN CHURCH

Glenshaw, Pa.

Robert Hertzog, Executive Director

Irvin Sallach, Director of Doctrine and Worship
Robert V. Neeb, Pastor

Similar:

2-132B

Peace Lutheran Church, Sussex, Wis., J. Goehner, Pastor;
H. Neumann, Chairman.

2-132C

Mount Hope Lutheran Church, Casper, Wyo., J. B.
Brown, Pastor; F. D. Stewart, President.

2-132D

Trinity Lutheran Church, Sturgis, Mich., Bruce Schaeffer,
Chairman; Albert Bumann, Secretary.

2-132E

Our Savior Lutheran Church, Muscatine, Iowa, Tom
Garrison, Secretary; Merlin Petersen, Pastor.

2-1338A

To Sever Fellowship with ALC

Wuereas, The LCMS declared fellowship with the ALC
in 1969 despite the fact that no true unity in doctrine, prac-
tice, or spirit had been achieved; and

WHEREAS, Positions over against which the Missouri
Synod has expressed its disapproval (e.g., the doctrine on
Scripture, the ordination of women, lodge practice, unionism,
etc.) are consistently espoused and defended by the ALC;
and

Wuereas, These same issues causing strained relations
between the LCMS and the ALC are to a great extent those
which are threatening the unity within the LCMS; and

WHEREAS, Any and every attempt to bring about true
unity within our own Synod is made meaningless and futile
as long as we maintain relationships with a synod which
openly tolerates and espouses doctrine and practice to which
we object; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod
be herewith requested to sever its fellowship relations with
the American Lutheran Church until such time as the doc-
trinal controversy within our own Synod has been satisfac-
torily resolved and until true unity of teaching, practice,
and spirit reign between the two synods.

St. Paut’s LuTHERAN CHURCH
Fairmont, Minn.

Duane Roloff, Chairman
Herbert Haertel, Secretary

Similar:

2-133B

Zion Lutheran Church, Plainview, Nebr., Martin Hoyer,
Pastor; Dennis Johnson, Secretary.

2-134A

To Sever ALC Fellowship

Wuereas, The LCMS in convention at Denver, 1969,
adopted Res. 3-15, declaring itself to be in altar and pulpit
fellowship with the American Lutheran Church; and

Wuereas, The LCMS in convention in Milwaukee, 1971,
adopted Res. 3-21, deferring new implementation of fellow-
ship with the ALC until it has had an opportunity to respond
to our Synod’s concerns; and

Wuereas, The ALC has responded by disregarding the
doctrinal position of the LCMS by publicly declaring its ap-
proval of the ordination of women to the pastoral ministry;
and

Wuereas, This ordination of women is contrary to Scrip-
ture (1 Cor. 14:34 and 1 Tim. 2:12); therefore be it

Resolved. That The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod
rescind Resolution 3-15 of the Denver convention; and be it
further

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod
sever altar and pulpit fellowship arrangements with the
American Lutheran Church.

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF OUR SavIiOR
San Jose, Calif.

Paul Noostra, President

Richard Husman, Secretary