# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1975_S395 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 8. SOCIAL MINISTRY 8-01 Report of Board of Social Ministry and World Relief Life as we know it in this 20th century is rough on people. Although God has created people most miraculously and has endowed them with wonderful powers to withstand the strains and tensions that sin has brought into our world, there comes a breaking point beyond which a person just isn’t able to func- tion calmly or productively. Such has been the situation in our world during the past decade. The political, economic, and social ills in society have pressed down on people with the result that many have lost their sense of balance. They have become confused by the struggle for power marked by sinister and sinful schemes. Add to the con- flict in society the tensions within the church, and you find people who have lost their moorings and are struggling to stay afloat. Though one frequently suspects that our world resembles some of the days before the Renaissance and the Reformation, one also asks: How long can people withstand the pressures without a breakdown that throws them into a state of despair and hopelessness? The social Ministry program of our church may seem like a small voice or an insignificant part of our church’s work, but we believe it has a powerful and positive affirmation that is desperately needed in the church and by the world. It is the great eternal truth that Jesus Christ Cares The very existence of the church today is evidence of the activity of the caring Christ. The church was founded on a rock; it was empowered by the Holy Spirit, and it was protected by the long arm of God. Even the gates of hell cannot overcome it (Matthew 16:18). This is evidence that Christ cares. Never has the church in any age merited the distinction of its existence. Made up of sinners, called by God’s grace, and commanded to move out into the world as a light, it has imperfectly accom- plished this only because Jesus cared enough to give His life for its continuance. Apart from Christ there would be no church. As part of the body of Christ we have been strengthened by the rainbow of promises that come from the Lord. The guar- antee of forgiveness of our sins of commission and omission; the assurance of strength and support as we struggle with life’s problems; the promise of everlasting life—all give evidence that Jesus cares. The message of the Gospel raises our spirits, engenders hope, and conveys God’s love because of a loving Father, a caring Savior, and a life-giving Holy Spirit. Christ's Care Must Move Us to Care God doesn’t love us without a purpose. He expects His love to beget love in our life. And this love must be two-dimensional. It must reflect back to Him, and it must reflect out to others. He made this plain when He agreed with the lawyer who re- ported God’s law as: ‘“‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself” (Luke 10:27). The principle of cause and effect holds good in this matter. Jesus caring for us is the powerful cause that warms our heart, produc- ing the effect —a ‘faith that works by love.” It can’t be otherwise for the Christian. God’s care must move us to care. Christ Cares for People Jesus’ love was not in a vacuum. It was extended to people, the crown of God’s creation. Nothing is more important to Christ than those for whom He suffered, died, and rose from the dead. Principles and precepts, traditions and training may rate high on the priority list of scholars, but all sink into insignificance when compared with the object of Jesus caring. He cared for people—all kinds of people—sinful people, sick people, im- prisoned people, poor people. The Board of Social Ministry and World Relief has attempted during the past years to reflect the caring of Christ for people. We have felt the tensions in the 395 world and church; we have been frustrated by the lack of resources—men and money-—to reach out to hurting people: and we have been limited by our own human frailties as well as by circumstances that have stood in the way of caring for people as Jesus would care for them. Yet we thank God for the grace and guidance given as well as a measure of success in healing hurts, relieving suffering, and providing help on a world- wide scale in Jesus’ name. Christ Cares for Hungry People World Relief programs have reached out to hungry people in more than 30 different countries including the United States. Some of these programs have provided milk for children in India and Hong Kong: some have assisted people to share water in reservoirs in Baramati, India; some have provided medical help in Central America; and some have offered agricultural and technological help in Nigeria. Poverty-stricken people in Brazil, handicapped children in Taiwan, crippled children in the Middle East, starving people in Africa, war- scarred people in Vietnam, chronically poor people in Appa- lachia, economically deprived people in the Bootheel of Mis- souri, and tornado-ravaged people in Honduras are some who have experienced the compassion of Christ through our ongoing World Relief activities. Under the direction of Rev. Melvin Witt, Secretary for World Relief, we have provided almost $144 million worth of help during the past biennium for programs of self-help, rehabilitation, and development. We have used various channels to get the help to people in need, Our principal avenue of outreach overseas has been Lutheran World Relief, the inter-Lutheran agency that has served us well for more than 25 years. Lutheran World Service, Church World Service, Canadian Lutheran World Relief, and our overseas sister churches have also served as channels to transmit help to those in need. A special effort is currently underway to raise a minimum of $1 million in behalf of world hunger. Authorized by the New Orleans convention, this effort is now at the halfway mark in regard to time and the financial results. Our congregations as well as special contributors have responded generously, for which we are most grateful. The ‘‘Loaves and Letters” em- phasis suggesting that people forgo one meal a week or two meals a month and put the saving in a fund to be transmitted to our Hunger Appeal, and that they write a letter a month to a public official about world hunger, deserves the support of all of our congregations. We are attempting to recruit 25,000 members who will support this program. We call such people “Hunger Fighters.” Some of the funds for world hunger have already been transmitted to hunger areas. Specific projects are being screened by our World Relief Committee, which will make rec- ommendations to our board for action. This committee includes Dr. Robert Mugge, Washington, D.C. (chairman); Mr. Ray Dankenbring, St. Louis (Secretary); Miss Hildegard Herfurth, St. Louis; Mr. Marvin Tank, Chicago; and Rev. Norman Walter, Salina, Kans. Christ Cares for Broken People The record of caring through the 59 health agencies and institutions related to our church is a distinguished one. For more than 115 years our congregations have sought to show mercy and compassion for children and adolescents whose homes have’ been broken, to the aging and the infirm who sought security and care, and for families that were shaken by illness, unemployment, misunderstandings, and poverty. Special attention was given during the past years toward bringing these agencies in to a closer relationship with the church. Excellence of program, financial accountability, and an ongoing reflection of the church’s concern for people in need are marks of a well- managed agency. Under the direction of Mr. Alfred Y. Arm- stead, ACSW, Secretary for Agencies and Institutions, the accreditation process has moved ahead. Many agencies have experienced increasing problems because of the economic condition of our country. Some have secured new administrative leaders. Most have revised their programs to meet the changing needs of people.