# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1941_S874
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

874 Financial Matters

which the back dues are to be collected or by reducing the 3- and*
4-per-cent. rate to 2 per cent. for those who remit for the entire.
period.

2. Paragraph III, E, 1, we added: “Members may qualify for
the full death benefit by remitting also the non-participating
organization’s dues.” :

3. Paragraph III, E, 2, we reduced the minimum period of
service in the Missouri Synod necessary for qualification under
the special old-age benefit of $360 a year upon retirement at the
age of 68 from 35 to 25 years, and for every year lacking of 25
years a corresponding reduction of the old-age benefit is to
be made.

Nore. — That Synod’s offer of the free $360 annuity upon retirement
at the age of 68 has supplied a real need is evident from the fact that
84 veterans took advantage of it. By creating 84 vacancies, this arrange-
ment undoubtedly has contributed much toward relieving the candidate
Situation. The net expense for these benefits is not as serious as it
appears, because the majority of these men sooner or later would have
applied for Support and probably received a larger subsidy on the-
strength of a questionnaire than they accepted without any questions .
asked. Our figures show that the rate of increase in regular support
has slowed down, .

Recommendation in regard to the special old-age benefit:

We all know that comparatively few men retain their full
working capacity to the age of 68 and that many reasons speak .
for a reduction of the age limit for the old-age benefit to 65
years. Furthermore, the allowance of $30 a month is utterly
insufficient in most cases. For that reason we recommend — :
and this recommendation is unanimously supported by the 1940
Fiscal Conference and by the Board of Directors — that from
July 1, 1941, an old-age benefit of $480 be offered to workers
retiring at the age of 65, provided the necessary contributions
have been made.
B. Statistics

Total registration on March 31, 1941:
Pastors

Teachers .... 647
Professors 0 121
Workers not serving congregations 114
Female workers _000 41
2,789

Members died ow . 83

Members retired _.... . 114
Members withdrawn .... . 21 218
Total paying members _.. 2,571

Congregations enlisted .-- 1,308 -
Institutional boards see 28
Synod’s and the Districts’ salary-paying boards. 47
Pension Fund Balance, March 31, 1941 $623,034.71
Disbursed for death benefits (total) . $16,950.00