Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 1969 · 48th Convention › Page 427
LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1969, Page 427

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

11. SPECIAL MINISTRIES AND SUNDRY MATTERS

(11-01)

Report of Commission on
Fraternal Organizations

The 2 years since the New York convention of the
Synod have seen a distinct shift in emphasis in the in-
quiries and requests that have been addressed to the
office of the Commission on Fraternal Organizations.
The year 1967 followed the pattern of the preceding
biennium with interest centering in the “animal lodges,”
alleged ‘social memberships,’ and the commission’s
attempts to bring about modifications in the rituals of
some lodges. In 1968 the Masonic lodge and its allied
orders began to receive a great deal of attention, and
inquiries to the commission office increased almost
threefold. The largest increase in requests, however,
was for materials dealing with the “lodge question” in
general. Such requests totaled more than five times
those of the previous year. Without doubt this increase
was due primarily to the desire of congregations and
pastors to become better acquainted with the lodge
issue in relation to the proposed declaration of fellow-
ship with The American Lutheran Church. During the
same year there was also a notable increase in requests
for materials from American Lutheran pastors and con-
gregations. Total requests from all sources rose from
2,400 in 1966 to 2,900 in 1967 and more than 4,000 in
1968.

The commission's library and files continue to be
used by candidates for various academic degrees, in-
cluding several doctorates at present. Requests from
non-Lutheran and nonreligious sources continue to
increase as the extent of the commission's services be-
comes better known.

The commission continues in its attempts to meet
with lodge officials for the purpose of expressing the
church's concerns regarding the religious involvement
of the lodges. The validity of the church's concerns is
frequently more readily recognized by local lodges than
by national committees assigned to meet with the
church's representatives.
meetings is related to the general denominational cli-
mate in America. Most professing Christians belong
to churches that have in one form or another deplored
Several of
these churches have entered into mergers in the last

Success in arranging such

the religious involvement of the lodges.

2 years or are contemplating the forming of larger
Lodge officials are not inclined to enter
with the of the
churches while interdenominational affairs are unset-

tled.

During 1969 the commission lost the services of
a valued member, Mr. Edward G. Johnson, who was
called to his eternal rest in February. The present
membership of the commission is Prof. John Constable,
chairman; Teacher William P. Ahlbrand Jr., secretary;

associations.

into negotiations representatives

427

Rev. Julius W. Acker; and Mr. Paul T. Koenig. Rev.
Philip Lochhaas serves as executive secretary for the

commission. Joun W. Constasce, Chairman

(11-02)

Report of The Lutheran Church —
Missouri Synod Foundation

The Board of Trustees of The Lutheran Church —
Missouri Synod Foundation herewith presents its fourth
convention report to the membership of our church.

Established in 1959 by the San Francisco synodical
convention, the Foundation is completing the first 10
years of its history in the summer of 1969.

Aware that our church could be more effective in
its all-important mission and move forward more vigor-
ously if it had a sizable and dependable source of “be-
yond budget” income, the Foundation was established
as “an agency through which members of our church
and their friends may give additional financial support
to the missionary and educational activities of our
church, as well as to other organizations, agencies, and
projects operating within it.”

The Foundation’s areas of activity include the fol-
lowing: (1) outright gifts and donations of money; (2)
gifts of real estate and similar properties; (3) bequests
through wills; (4) gift annuity agreement: (5) life-in-
come gift agreements, regular and tax-free: (6) gifts
through life insurance: (7) gifts of stocks and bonds;
(8) foundations: (9) gifts through revocable and irre-
vocable trusts; (10) special arrangements: and (11)
miscellaneous.

The Foundation receives both undesignated and des-
ignated gifts. The wisdom of undesignated gifts is
clear, as it is impossible to predict the needs of the
church in specific areas, say 10, 20, or 50 years in ad-
vance. Undesignated gifts enable the Foundation and
finally the Board of Directors of the Synod year by
year to survey the needs of the church and thus allocate
these gifts where they will do the most good. Desig-
nated gifts allow the donor to name the specific cause
(within our church or its agencies) for which the gift
is to be used. In many instances the Foundation simply
acts as the agent to transmit such gifts according to the
wishes of the donor. The Foundation desires, for rea-
sons previously mentioned, that the greater proportion
of gifts be undesignated.

A great. practically unused source is the wealth
which our people have accumulated through the years.
The Foundation encourages people to put this wealth
to work permanently in behalf of the church by includ-
ing the church in their plans for both immediate and
deferred gifts.

The Economy of Giving

The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod Foundation
believes that the primary motivation for giving to the