Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 2016 · 66th Convention, Milwaukee › Page 28
LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2016, Page 28

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

28

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS

looking for resources and prayer support. SPM is pleased to provide
devotional materials, pastoral care to family members, and referrals
to nearby parish pastors.
Because SPM is outside the mainstream of LCMS parish ministry, those who serve in SPM can feel isolated, misunderstood, and
underappreciated. The creation of local peer support groups is one
way to overcome the loneliness sometimes associated with those in
SPM. Since the last Synod convention, the SPM office has formed a
pilot peer support group that has met monthly for two years. Effort
is now underway to promote the organizing of SPM support groups
nationwide.
Cooperation in Externals is the way in which SPM can maintain
dialogue and collegiality with ministers from other church bodies who
are engaged in similar specialized pastoral contexts. Collegial interactions include the following:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Membership and attendance at national SPM-related professional
organizations
Shared editorial responsibility with the ELCA for the Caring
Connections online journal
Co-sponsoring a Lutheran breakfast at professional conferences
Hosting a triennial Zion conference and extending an invitation to
ELCA and NALC colleagues
Board membership on the St. Louis Cluster of Clinical Pastoral
Education Centers
LSA (Lutheran Services in America) Chaplains Network Executive
Committee

Deaconess Ministry—Deaconess Grace Rao, Director

The chief role of the director is to serve as a catalyst nurturing and
strengthening the Synod to identify, plan, encourage, and support the
educational and diaconal needs of the Synod with special support
and coordination with the deaconess training programs of the Synod.
Over the past three years, ONM has awarded $175,000 in grants
to develop capacity and strengthen internal resources to meet human
care needs, to support deaconess internships, and award scholarships
for the deaconesses attending annual deaconess gatherings or conferences. The ministry also strives to encourage the deaconess programs
at the various centers and institutes of the Synod. ONM was blessed
to support two special retreats for deaconesses this past triennium;
one hosted by Grace Place Wellness and the other by DOXOLOGY.
A special LWML grant of $40,000 will be used to support various
domestic deaconess ministries over the next three years.
The current statistics in the tables below indicate the growth of
the ministry over the past four years.
Table 2
Deaconesses (2013–16, by Roster Status)

Missionary District

0

0

1

1

Missionary Other

1

1

1

1

Missionary Synod

2

2

5

9

Other Special Ministry

8

7

5

4

Professional Staff

1

0

0

0

Principal

0

0

1

1

Recognized Service
Organization

19

1

15

18

19

Serving Member Congregation

82

902

1043

101

Synod College/Seminary Faculty

2

3

3

3

Synod Executive or Staff

6

9

9

105

Synod Schools Faculty or Staff

9

9

94

10

Teacher

2

2

0

0

Total

142

145

162

165

Notes:
1
One additional deaconess awaiting district papers = “net total” 143
in Table 2 above.

Two additional deaconesses awaiting district papers = “net total” 147
in Table 2 above.
2

3
One additional deaconess awaiting installation and 4one deaconess
serving two positions = “net total” 162 in Table 2 above.
5
Two deaconesses serving two positions = “net total” 163 in Table
2 above.

Table 4
Active Deaconesses (2016, by LCMS District)
District

Total

District

Total

Atlantic

2

Montana

0

California/Nevada/Hawaii

4

Nebraska

5

Pacific Southwest

4

New England

1

Eastern

5

New Jersey

0

English

4

North Dakota

2

Florida-Georgia

12

Northwest

8

Central Illinois

0

Ohio

4

Northern Illinois

19

Oklahoma

3

Southern Illinois

2

Rocky Mountain

0

Indiana

20

South Dakota

0

Iowa East

1

South Eastern

5

Iowa West

1

Southern

1

Year

2013

2014

2015

2016

Kansas

1

Texas

6

Active
Candidates
Non-Candidates
Emeritus
Total

143
24
27
41
235

1472
22
36
44
249

1623
18
39
49
268

163
22
41
53
279

Michigan

7

North Wisconsin

1

Mid-South

0

South Wisconsin

10

Minnesota North

3

Wyoming

0

Minnesota South

5

SELC

1

Missouri

26

Grand Total

163

Table 3
Active Deaconesses (2013–16, by Service Context)
Year

2013

2014

2015

Soldiers and Veterans of the Cross—Rev. Dr. Carlos Hernandez, Director
2016

Chaplain Institutional

6

4

3

3

District Executive Staff

2

2

2

2

District Other Staff

1

0

1

1

Executive Director

1

1

0

0

2016 Convention Workbook

In economic matters, church workers are no different than those
they serve as well as the general population. There are times when the
human needs of our church workers exceed their financial resources,
especially in times of crisis and illness.
Recently, a worker inflicted with cancer could not begin treatments
until he paid the insurance deductible up front. Serving a small congregation with limited resources, he labored in the Lord’s vineyard