LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1981, Page 278

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278 PARISH SERVICES

Son of Man, Go... (Ezekiel)
Remember-Rejoice (2 Peter and Jude)
Lessons from Life (Ecclesiastes)
Read, Mark, Learn (Mark)

In addition to these 13-session courses, the board published
the following new courses in its adult school of religion format
(six 90-minute sessions, student guide only):

Questions About Marriage. Designed for married people or
those contemplating marriage. Useful also for premarital
counseling sessions.

Created for Community. A Bible study about relationships
with God and people, with an accent on helping one another
and growing in our life with God as fellow members of the body
of Christ.

Dear Lord, I’m Aging is a discussion-oriented course for
adults of all ages. It specifically meets the goals outlined in St.
Louis (1979) Res. 7-06: ‘““That the Board of Parish Education
design short-term Sunday school/Bible class and other types
of courses in a suitable format for the continuing education of
the elderly ... that a substantial effort be made... to integrate
the aging into the regular adult Sunday school/ Bible classes of
the congregations.” The BPE course is ideal for an inter-
generational course. The lessons are in large print to facilitate
reading by the elderly and the visually impaired.

In order to help adult-education leaders and teachers, the
board published Adults Who Learn and Like It as part of its
series of departmental “Guides for Sunday School Teachers.”

Prepared in cooperation with Synod’s Commission on
Worship, a forthcoming eight-session Bible course on worship
aims to lay a foundation for the introduction and use of
Lutheran Worship, the Synod’s new hymnal.

Board editors also produced a resource for camp directors
(Equipping the Saints—Reformation Challenge for Camps)
and for congregational leaders in ministry to the disabled
(Congregational Resource Packet for Ministry with the
Disabled).

L. Concordia Sex Education Series

Under the auspices of the Family Life Committee of the
BPE, Concordia Publishing House produced the original series
in 1967. That series of six books and accompanying filmstrips
has served parents, children, and schools of the Synod well for
more than 14 years. The series was in fact hailed by theo-
logians, educators, and parents outside the Synod as a pioneer-
ing effort—unique in that it looked beyond the mere imparting
of biological facts about reproduction. The original series
provided guidance for the development of Christian attitudes
about sex and sexuality.

The same reverent, Christian, Bible-based approach that
characterized the original series will be the touchstone for a
new series, with a hoped-for publication date of spring 1982.
The new series will include one book more than the old series,
making possible greater grading on the early childhood levels.
The new series calls for a book and a filmstrip each for
preschool, grades 1—2, 3—5, 6—8, high school, and parents.
There will also be a teachers/use guide.

M. Christian Parent Series

The last 4 books in this series of 12 books will be available in
fall 1981. For professional church workers, parents, parent
groups, social agencies, and schools, this series provides
resources to help equip parents and parents-to-be for the task of
child rearing through the various age stages of the life cycle.
Each booklet of 48—64 pages may be used in a class discussion
or as an individual reading piece.

Now available: Child Development (focus on three- to five-
year-olds); Home Enrichment (focus on three- to five-year-olds);
Empty Nest Parents; Your New Baby (child development and
guidelines for Christian training of children from birth to
age 2); Being a Parent: To Elementary-Age Children; Being a
Parent: Helping Moral Development; Being a Parent: In
Today’s World; Becoming a Parent (prenatal period to first few
months after birth).

Available this fall: Being Parents to High School Age
Youth; Parent and School as Partners; Single Parents; and
Family Worship.

N. Writers Workshops

St. Louis (1979) convention Res. 7-11 resolved “that the
Synod encourage its members, as they become aware of those
having special talents for writing, to commend the writers to
the attention of Concordia Publishing House and the Board of
Parish Education and to recommend their participation in the
various workshops sponsored by the Board of Parish
Education.”

With the assistance of a generous grant from the members
of the Aid Association for Lutherans, the editorial staff of the
board is once again able to offer workshops for potential
writers of curricular materials, preprimary through adult
levels. There will be six seven-day workshops in a variety of
geographical locations, two workshops per year in the summers
of 1981, 1982, and 1983. All workshops will be held at Synod
terminal schools, usually in connection with each institution's
regular summer program. In 1981: June 21—27 at Concordia
College, Bronxville, N.Y.; July 19—25 at Concordia Seminary.
St. Louis, Mo.

IV. Forward in Remembrance in Families

Forward in Remembrance is a good theme for Christian
families. Strong families build on their past experiences to help
them live in the present and prepare for the future. The Family
Life Education Department of the Board of Parish Education is
committed to strengthening families in Jesus Christ through
the development of family-life education programs, the produc-
tion of family-life education materials, and training events
that respond to the needs of Districts and congregations.

During 1981, the Board of Parish Education is producing
special all-congregational mailings, articles, and newsletters
and is encouraging each District to begin at least one family-
life program or schedule one family-life event. Some Districts
are developing their own programs and materials; others are
using resources from the Synod’s Board of Parish Education.

The three most popular programs of the Family Life
Department are Effectiveness Training for Lutherans, Mar-
riage Enrichment Experience, and Family Enrichment Experi-
ence. A fourth program, The Marriage Education and Counsel-
ing Seminar, has been concluded after 11 years of ministry
with pastors and teachers.

Effectiveness Training for Lutherans began as a board
project in June 1973, funded by a grant from the Aid Associa-
tion for Lutherans. Grants from Aid Association for Lutherans
continued through December 1979, when ETL became self-
supporting.

Effectiveness Training for Lutherans is a communication-
skills program that teaches mutually satisfying problem solv-
ing and healthy views of self and others. Combined with
Biblical principles of parenting, ETL offers Districts and
congregations a way of improving relational] skills for parents,
pastors, and teachers.

While Effectiveness Training is a parenting program, it is
useful to people in a variety of work and social] situations. More
than 30,000 people have completed training in ETL-sponsored
classes in the United States and Canada.

About 800 LCMS pastors, teachers, and lay people have
been selected by Districts and by appropriate boards to receive
training as instructors. These instructors have been involved
in many activities throughout the church that have improved
person-to-person communication skills. These influences have
positively affected families, youth programs, and practically
any kind of activity in which the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ
is shared.

Marriage Enrichment Experience is a program designed
exclusively for married couples. It is conducted as a weekend
retreat. It introduces couples to the skills that they can learn in
an indepth way. Some of the areas covered during a weekend
are learning to talk to each other, learning to handle conflict,
and learning to set goals together. Each section of the weekend
is tied together by the use of devotions and Holy Scirpture,
which emphasizes that God has given us marriage and that

_ Christ is the center of marriage.

Since the first Marriage Enrichment Experience training
event in October 1977, couples have been trained as leaders in
all parts of North America. The original training model was a
three-day event. At the present time each training event is five