LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1981, Page 3

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MISSIONS 3

students enrolled at CTC during these years have come from
the Crow and Northern Cheyenne Indian reservations in
Montana. Eleven Indian students were enrolled during the
1980—81 school year.

While the CIMS program seeks to attract Lutheran Indian
young people for full-time service in the church, it is more
specifically a unique effort designed to recruit and support
non-Lutheran Indian students interested in obtaining a quality
education, while at the same examining the Lutheran faith
and tradition, and, hopefully, considering full-time work for
the church among Indian people. Mr. Alfred Ebel is the acting
director of the program. Rev. Donald W. Johnson of Neah Bay,
Wash., whois the only native American pastor in the LCMS, is
the pastoral adviser.

At the present time there are 496 Indian reservations
throughout the country. LCMS Indian ministries are located in
Neah Bay and La Push, Wash.; in Navajo and Crownpoint, N.
Mex.; in Fort Washakie and Crowheart, Wyo., and in Oneida,
Bowler, Red Springs, and Morgan Siding, Wis.

A campus ministry program is supported by the Kansas
District at Haskell Indian Junior College in Lawrence, Kans.
Wiley and Caryn Scott initiated the program, and Caryn is
now employed as a lay staff person for this ministry to Indian
students. A house has been purchased adjacent to the campus
for use as a student center and has been named “The LIGHT
House” (Lutheran Indians Gathering and Helping Together).

While the American Indian Advisory Council is advisory to
the Board for Missions, it also serves as adviser to the Board for
Social Ministry and World Relief with reference to that board’s
program of social ministry among Indian people. The Board
for Social Ministry and World Relief relies on the National
Indian Lutheran Board, an agency related to the Lutheran
Council U.S.A., for suggestions concerning consideration of
self-help, hunger, educational, and related projects. Approx-
imately $70,000 per year is provided through the Board of
Social Ministry and World Relief for these social ministry
projects among Indian people. In addition, that board annually
provides one-third of the support ($33,000) for the Indian Desk
of LCUSA, Mr. Eugene Crawford, executive director.

In response to Res. 1-14A of the 1979 convention of the
Synod, the American Indian Advisory Council submitted to
the January 1981 meeting of the Board for Missions its report
and recommendations concerning the future of LCMS ministry
among American Indians (see Appendix I). After careful
consideration the Board for Missions accepted the report and
adopted the recommendations (see Appendix II). These were
forwarded to the Board of Directors. For the Board of Directors’
action see their report.

The report and recommendations of the American Indian
Advisory Council and the Board for Missions reflect a commit-
ment to achieve the stated goal, adopted by the Synod in Res.
1-14A: ‘“‘More American Indian people believing in Jesus
Christ as Lord and Savior’ through a meaningful proclamation
of Jesus Christ complemented by a concern for and a ministry
to the whole person.” (1979 Convention Proceedings, p. 93).

The American Indian Advisory Council reminds the Synod
that the biggest challenge for American Indian ministry in the
’80s is the recruitment of workers.

Forward in Campus Ministry

Resolved, That the LCMS accept the mission challenge for the
80s to establish 20 new LCMS campus ministries.

This resolution (mission challenge) was adopted by the 1979
synodical convention in behalf of campus ministry. It is a
resolution that calls for renewed commitment on the part of the
church to an aggressive campus ministry program on the
nation’s secular college campuses.

A survey of the Districts of the Synod reveals that the
commitment to this vital ministry is still very evident. Except
for subsidies allocated to mission congregations, campus
ministry continues to be the recipient of more mission dollars
in our Districts than any other subsidized ministry. After
working through the societal upheaval of the late 60s and
early ’70s, the nation’s campuses appear to be more receptive to
the Christian message than ever before. In addition to the
thousands of young people from our own country (11.5 million
students were enrolled during 1980—81 at more than 3,000
two-year and four-year institutions, both public and private),

there are almost 300,000 international students studying in our
country. More than ever before our Lutheran young people,
together with their campus ministers, see themselves as a
“point of Christian contact” for people of diverse life-styles,
languages, and cultures.

During the District conventions of 1980, two Districts
resolved to establish new full-time ministries. The Missouri
District resolved to establish full-time campus ministries at
Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, and at the
Univeristy of Missouri— Kansas City (a project including also
other schools in the Kansas City metropolitan area). The
English District resolved to initiate a full-time ministry at the
University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont., in consultation with the
Lutheran Church in Canada. Thus three new full-time min-
istries are to be initiated during this biennium.

The administration of campus ministry, program planning
and development, and financial support are the responsibility
of each District. The Synod’s Office of Campus Ministry serves
in an advisory and coordinative capacity to each District. The
coordinator of campus ministry in the Synod is the secretary
for campus ministry and special ministries of the Board for
Missions. His counterpart in each District is the District
campus ministry coordinator, usually appointed by the District
President.

“Word and Sacrament” continue to be key words in campus
ministry as opposed to an issue-oriented approach. Current
reports from campus ministers indicate a high degree of
Christian commitment among many of today’s students.
Campus congregations report increasing attendance at wor-
ship, renewed interest in Bible study, and a lively interest in
personal witnessing. Almost 400 students are confirmed
annually through the campus ministry of the Synod.

In addition to the above-mentioned activities, a growing
number of our young people desire to become involved in some
form of volunteer ministry for their Lord and their church. The
requests for information are increasing as young people seek
out opportunities for a year or two of Christian service before
“settling in” to their secular careers. The church must provide
such service opportunities and make every effort to utilize the
talents and abilities of these enthusiastic young Christians.
The Board for Missions is continuing to give attention to this
subject as directed by the 1979 convention Res. 1-26, “To
Encourage Identification and Training of Lay Expatriates for
Effective Witness.”

Campus ministry also provides a fertile recruiting ground
for our synodical colleges and seminaries. A significant
number of students at the two seminaries of the Synod are
products of our campus ministry program. As an example,
during the 1980—81 school year, 14 graduates of the University
of Wisconsin, Madison, members of Calvary University
Lutheran Chapel (Rev. James Knuth and Rev. Carl Selle,
pastors), were enrolled in seminary training.

At the present time there are 84 full-time campus ministries
in the Synod. In addition, there are almost 500 “contact”
campus congregations. A contact campus congregation has
been defined as “a congregation [and pastor] desirous of
assuming responsibility for ministry to a nearby college,
university, or vocational school, and for including that min-
istry as an important aspect of its total parish program. Such
congregations are officially designated for this purpose by the
synodical District in which they hold membership and become
officially committed [by congregational decision] to this respon-
sibility as prescribed by the District.”

In some instances, campus programs become so significant
by reason of the local situation that the term ‘“‘town gown” is
used to identify a particular congregation. Of the 500 contact
congregations, more than 60 have been identified by their
Districts in this category, namely, parishes that are doing
significant work in campus ministry in addition to usual
parish programming.

To assist “town gown” congregations and to better equip
their pastors and other staff persons for campus ministry, a
special “town gown” campus ministry conference was held in
St. Louis in May 1980.

The Synod needs congregations committed to the “doing”
of campus ministry and is determined to provide all the
assistance possible to help, equip, interpret, and initiate modest
parish-based programs in behalf of this important ministry.