Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 1969 · 48th Convention › Page 157
LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1969, Page 157

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

CHURCH RELATIONS 157

the church” (Essay, Adopted by the Commissioners of
The American Lutheran Church and The Lutheran
Church — Missouri Synod— Doctrine of the Church,
p. 15); and

Wuereas, The American Lutheran Church is guilty
of such practice when it admits members of anti-Chris-
tian organizations into membership and to Holy Com-
munion; and

Wuereas, Such practice is not “in conformity with a
pure understanding of” the Gospel (Augsburg Con-
fession and Essay, Doctrine of the Church in the Lu-
theran Confessions); and

Wuereas, The American Lutheran Church has no
method of dealing with members of lodges, though it
declares them to be anti-Christian, and therefore altar
and pulpit fellowship with The American Lutheran
Church and what it is declared to mean would create
great confusion and weaken our Scriptural position and
practice on lodgery; and

Wuereas, We cannot overlook the fact that The
American Lutheran Chhrch holds membership in the
Lutheran World Federation and the World Council of
Churches nor ignore the unionism involved in this; and

Whereas, The resolution of The American Lutheran
Church to enter into altar and pulpit fellowship with
The Lutheran Church in America has added another
dimension to the question of altar and pulpit fellowship;
and

Whereas, It is stated that a church must be judged
by its teachings and positions as stated in its official
documents, but it is just as strongly affirmed that a body
must be judged by the interpretation and teaching of
these official statements by its leaders and teachers
(Essay, Doctrine of the Church, p. 13); and

Whereas, The statement that we cannot claim to be
without error ourselves does not argue for fellowship,
which wou'd only tend to compound this condition;
therefore be it

Resolved, That we do not declare altar and pulpit
fellowship with The American Lutheran Church.

TrIniTy LUTHERAN CHURCH
Hobart, Ind.
Rosert L, WortuHIncTOoN, President
EuceNE HAuuer, Secretary
(3-178)

Not to Declare Fellowship at This Time

Wuereas, It is said by some that The American Lu-
theran Church must be judged by its teachings and
statements of policy as stated in its official documents,
but it is just as strongly affirmed that a church body
must be judged by the interpretation and teaching of
these official statements by a body’s leaders and teach-
ers; and

Wuereas, The constitution of The American Lu-
theran Church states that this body accepts the Bible
as a whole and in its parts to be “the divinely inspired,
revealed and inerrant Word of God,” but its President

has stated that this inerrancy does not pertain to the
text of the Scriptures but only “to the truths revealed
for our faith, doctrine, and life”; and
Wuereas, The American Lutheran Church has no
effective method of dealing with members of lodges,
even though it declares them to be anti-Christian and
forbids its clergy to belong to them, and therefore altar
and pulpit fellowship and what it is declared to mean
would create great confusion and weaken our Scriptural
position and practice on lodgery; and
WHEREAS, We cannot close our eyes to the fact that
the American Lutheran Church holds membership in
the Lutheran World Federation and the World Council
of Churches nor ignore the unionism which such mem-
bership involves; and
Wuereas, Another dimension was added to the ques-
tion of altar and pulpit fellowship with The American
Lutheran Church when it resolved to enter into altar
and pulpit fellowship with the Lutheran Church in
America and declared itself ready to participate in
union discussions with the LCA at its last convention
in October of 1968 although we have not carried on such
negotiations with the LCA; and
WuereaS, The fact that we cannot claim to be with-
out error ourselves does not argue for fellowship (which
would only compound this regrettable condition, as a
result of the transfer of members between Synods, the
calling of pastors from either Synod, and the training
of students for the holy ministry in the seminaries of
either Synod) but rather that it behooves us to deal
with this fact in our midst first; and
Wuereas, Should altar and pulpit fellowship be en-
tered into, many pastors and congregations wou'd be
driven by conscience to withdraw from The Lutheran
Church — Missouri Synod or practice selective fellow-
ship and selective stewardship; therefore be it
Resolved, That in view of the above we do not
establish altar and pulpit fellowship with The American
Lutheran Church at this time.
SHEPHERD OF THE VALLEY LUTHERAN CHURCH
West Des Moines, Iowa
MELvIN Prigss, President
Tom DeLano, Secretary

(3-179)

Not to Declare Fellowship but to Remove
Hindrances

Wuereas, The American Lutheran Church practices
religious unionism through membership in the Lutheran
World Federation and the World Council of Churches,
which have in their membership church bodies that do
not adhere to the Word of God in its truth and purity;
and

Wuereas, In its recent convention this body took
action, which although it must still be ratified by all
its districts yet nonetheless stands as a resolution of
this official convention of The American Lutheran
Church, to declare altar and pulpit fellowship with the