# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1938_S339
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Miscellaneous Matters 339

SENIOR ORDER JUNIOR ORDER
Freemasonry Knights of De Molay
Freemasonry Order of the Rainbow

Daughters of Job

Eastern Star Daughters of the Eastern Star
Knights of Pythias Knights of the Crusade
Foresters of America Junior Foresters of America
Maccabees Maccabee Boy Scouts
Woman’s Benefit Association

’ of the Maccabees Junior Rose Courts
Ku Klux Klan Auxiliary for Boys
A.0.U.W. Junior Order
Veterans of Foreign Wars Junior Order
Woodmen of Union Juvenile Department
Elks Antlers

Since 1932 the Bureau of Information, in pursuance of a resolu-
tion adopted by Synod (Proceedings, p. 176), has made a study of
all articles that appeared in our synodical reports, in Lehre und
Wehre, and in the Lutheraner, from the beginning until 1900, on
the attitude of our Church towards the lodge. This was done
through a close examination of these records and by translating
every official reference to the lodge that was encountered. From
this study it is evident that from its beginning the expression of our
Church was unanimously against the lodge and against all tolera-
tion of lodge-members but also against a legalistic, mechanical
operation with lodge resdlutions, paragraphs, and principles.

Synod should designate by what means its resolution to make
these data available to our pastors is to be carried out. The ma-
terial is now in mimeotyped form.

The prospect of the present era, during which most secret so-
cieties are waging a losing fight for membership, is a favorable one
for our Church. As long as the lodge exists, there must be a fight
against this evil. But the advantage of the fight is now on our
side. Any yielding today would not only be wicked but folly.

THEODORE GRAEBNER

O. F. ENGELBRECHT
Committee 10 reported:

In examining the present report of the Bureau of Information
on Secret Orders and comparing it with the reports given by it in
1932 and 1935, one cannot fail to note the fine progress which has
been made in dealing with this particular problem. On the one
hand, this bureau has continued its painstaking study of the various
fraternal publications and also of the literature written about them,
with the result that it now possesses definite information on 143
lodges and a certain amount of correspondence and printed liter: