LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1989, Page 114

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114 RESOLUTIONS

considered the questions that had been placed to us. And
these 11 members consisted of 3 people who are serving
on the CTCR and 2 on the seminary faculties. So, 5 of the
people on the voting membership of this committee were
members of the CTCR or the seminary faculties.

Starting at this point with statements such as this from
the commission’s report, and I quote from our document,
“When a congregation is temporarily without a man to fill
the office of the public ministry in its midst, it may ask a
properly supervised teacher or lay leader to perform some
functions of the office of the public ministry. The oversight
and accountability remain with the one whom the church
has called and designated as a pastor and who supervises
those who temporarily perform some pastoral functions.”
In conclusion, the commission stated in this report, “Func-
tions that are essentially exercises of the ministry of Word
and Sacrament should be performed by those who hold the
office of the public ministry. Thus, preaching in the wor-
ship service, leading in public prayer, celebration of the
sacraments, weddings, and funeral services should be car-
ried out by those who hold the office of the public ministry.
However, in exceptional circumstances, or in emergencies,
members of the auxiliary offices and other individuals may
temporarily be called upon to perform, under proper su-
pervision, functions that are otherwise performed by the
pastor.”

It was just such statements as this from the Commis-
sion’s report that formed the starting point and the basis
and the boundaries upon which the Lay Worker Study
Committee established its guidelines as presented in this
resolution. Therefore, it is consistent with this position to
recognize that at the present time, with the blessing of the
Synod, there are 125 lay ministers carrying out ministries
of Word and Sacrament. At the present time that’s going
on. It’s also consistent with the statement that was made
recently by the District of which I am a member, the Mis-
souri District. And I want to read to you a statement that
was sent out by the president of the Missouri District, Paul
Spitz, in which he makes precisely the same point:

It has come to the attention of the District Praesidium
that nonordained workers in the District are being in-
vited to preach on occasion from the pulpits of our con-
gregations during the regular divine services. Such
invitations place these workers in an awkward position,
since they are not called by the congregations of the
District to perform the ministry to which ordained pas-
tors have been called. Our Confessions state, “Our
churches teach that nobody should publicly preach in
the church or administer the sacraments unless he is
regularly called” (Augsburg Confession XIV).

And then, listen to this statement from the Missouri Dis-
trict Praesidium:

Certified lay ministers are an exception because they
work under the supervision of pastors, and they have
been certified to preach by the Synod and the congre-
gations they serve. Nor does this rule out special and
emergency situations, in which a layman may be called
to lead a service or read a sermon written by an ordained
pastor. Because of our confessional basis and for the sake

of good order in the church, the Praesidium requests that
the congregations please take note of this concern. Non-
ordained men can certainly speak at graduation cere-
monies, school chapel addresses, etc. This should be
without vestments, and not from the pulpit. We suggest
that when District staff are invited to speak during the
worship service, that they give their message from the
lectern and that the pastor also have a shorter sermon
or homily. Another option is that the pastor have a short-
ened service and give the District worker time to speak
before or after the service.

What we have proposed is exactly what is stated here.
But at the present time in the Synod, there exists no pro-
vision for the proper supervision or accountability of those
workers who have been asked to carry out distinctive func-
tions of the pastoral office without having been placed in
that office.

We have many dedicated lay ministers who for up to
20 years have been asked to carry out a ministry of Word
and Sacrament without recognition or supervision, with-
out roster or doctrinal oversight. If we want to undermine
Art. XIV of the Augsburg Confession, the surest way is to
leave things the way they are, and to have no accounta-
bility or supervision. The adoption of Res. 3-05 does not
initiate a single new practice in the doctrine of the ministry
of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. It will, how-
ever, initiate proper supervision of those practices which
we have long recognized as being consistent with our un-
derstanding of the doctrine of the ministry so that we may
all together tell everyone what He has done.

To Strengthen Relationships with LCMS
Partner Churches

RESOLUTION 3-06
Reports R1-8, R3-01 (CW, pp. 3, 60-61)

Wuereas, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod en-
joys altar and pulpit fellowship with partner/sister
churches throughout the world; and

Wuereas, Many of these churches are small and in need
of encouragement and additional resources; and

Wuereas, The President of the Synod has called into
being the Church Relations Department to coordinate
church-relations contacts with partner churches; and

Wuereas, The Commission on Theology and Church
Relations has initiated and supported plans for an Inter-
national Theologians’ Convocation involving theologians
from the Synod’s partner churches to be held in Seoul,
Korea, in September of 1989; therefore be it

Resolved, That the Synod rejoice and give thanks to God
for the confessional unity that binds us together with these
partner churches; and be it further

Resolved, That the Synod commend the efforts that have
already been made to strengthen these relationships; and
be it further

Resolved, That the Synod encourage the President of
the Synod and the Church Relations Department to in-
tensify such efforts; and be it finally