LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1986, Sheet 111

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110 OTHER PRESENTATIONS

eventually visit the Soviet Union or Estonia or Latvia or
Lithuania. I plead with everyone of you to take along a
Bible in English or German or I can provide one or more
for you in Latvian if you are going to Latvia. Bring another
good theological book for your own personal devotional life.
It is legal. You can bring them in. And there is no law that
prohibits you from going to church on Sunday and giving
that Bible and that book as a gift to the pastor there. He
will know what to do with it. With Concordia Publishers
I would like to plead, that by insured mail they would send
a copy of every significant theological work that they have
published to the Consistory in Riga for the seminary li-
brary there. While books sent by individuals never get
through, those mailed from institutions to institutions by
insured mail usually do get through. Most students there
do read English and I can give you the address where to

send them and if need be I can even provide the funds for
that.

Now, finally, when I first showed up at the Lutheran
Council in the United States, someone asked me who I was
“Oh!” he said, “so you are the fifth wheel.” I said, “Yes, of
course, the steering wheel.” If I were the steering wheel,
of course, that would make our mission about which I told
you much easier, I think. But, seriously, I wish that all
the churches in the West would let Christ be their Steering
Wheel instead of keeping Him as a Spare in the trunk.
Then the mission of the exiles would really be much easier.

I thank you for this opportunity to lay my burdens upon
you. And J pray that Christ would truly steer the work
and the life of The Lutheran—Church Missouri Synod.
Thank you.

Rev. Vilis Varsbergs

6. Greetings of the President of the Lutheran Council in the U.S.A.

President Bohlmann and members and fi iends of this del-
egation:

I want to begin by expressing a word of appreciation to
you and to your other colleagues from the Lutheran
Church—Missouri Synod for your very significant and sub-
stantive contributions to the various policy-making and
decision-setting bodies of our Lutheran Council in the
U.S.A. The Lutheran Council—and you have heard much
about it and are keenly aware of its work—has been a very
noble and a worthy experiment. It is now in its 20th year
as it approaches the final year of cooperative service of
those of us in the Lutheran family in this country.

It has been my honor now for several years to serve as
President of the Lutheran Council in the U.S.A. Your own
secretary, Walter L. Rosin, serves as faithful secretary of
our council, and Bishop E. Harold Jansen of the Eastern
District of The American Lutheran Church serves as vice-
president. So I bring you greetings on behalf of those of-
ficers as well as on behalf of the 24 representatives from
the five Lutheran Church bodies who are partners; on be-
half of 153 employees in New York, Chicago, and Wash-
ington, and especially on behalf of Dr. John Houck, the
general secretary of our council.

During these last two decades there have been a num-
ber of important programs that have been implemented
by the council as its members have worked together: stud-
ies, dialogs, conversations, consultations, research, mis-
sion and ministry planning, work on campuses and with
military personnel, and a number of other events and ac-
tivities where we have found it possible and necessary for
Lutherans to work together. Now because of changes that
are taking place in the structure of Lutheranism in this
country, the Lutheran Council as a common and collective
agency of church-body partners will become history. But
as John Houck told us at the last annual meeting of the
council last May, “Its work will continue until those valid
and viable ministries which it is charged to fulfill are
turned over to the partner members.” We Lutherans are

very conscious and proud of the traditions that we have.
And I am convinced that the work of the council has been
vital and God pleasing. That is, it has been the product of
the best of the strands and the brands of Lutheranism.

Permit me now to just take a moment to cite two illus-
trations of the work that we do through our Lutheran
Council in the United States of America.

Most of us, I believe, who attended the last annual meet-
ing were impressed by the report that was given by what
we call the Department of Specialized Pastoral Care and
Clinical Pastoral Education. A Missouri Synod pastor,
Walter Baepler, is in charge of this work and oversees the
training programs and the Lutherans who are serving in
what we know as Clinical Pastoral Education. Walter Bae-
pler, with his associate, Chaplain Serge Castigliano, main-
tains contact with over 800 chaplains serving in agencies
and institutions in our country, of which 250 are pastors
of this Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. For two de-
cades Lutherans have worked with effectiveness and ef-
ficiency together to supervise and coordinate the important
work that is being done as the Gospel is offered in word
and deed in these various ministries.

The second instance in our work together that I cite is
through the Division of Mission and Ministry that faci-
liates the work of a number of the national and regional
efforts embracing the larger Lutheran community. One of
our current projects is related to our Lutheran commission
on ministry with disabled persons. This commission, given
staff service from the Lutheran Council, conducted an im-
portant survey in 1984 that gave us much-needed infor-
mation on how our congregations are involving disabled
persons in their ministry. We found that only about 10%
of the congregations of Lutheranism in this country have
something that is meaningful. But the survey revealed
that the disabled population within or near Lutheran con-
gregations offers a challenge for more effectively embrac-
ing those who are deaf or blind, mentally ill, or mentally
handicapped and those who have physical disabilities. Un-