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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2019, Page 108

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

108

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS

R15

Concordia Publishing House
“The Word of the Lord endures forever and this
Word is the Gospel that was preached to you.”
1 Peter 1:25
“The first and chief article is this: Jesus Christ,
our God and Lord, died for our sins and was raised
again for our justification (Romans 4:24–25). . .
. Upon this article everything that we teach and
practice depends.” (Smalcald Articles II I 1, 5;
Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions, second
edition; CPH, 2006)
In this year of our 150th anniversary, Concordia Publishing House thanks God for the honor and privilege that we have
been given by The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod to be its
publishing arm. It is our duty and pleasure to be and remain
joyfully Lutheran, standing firm on the Word of the Lord that
endures forever. As we look back over the past three years, we
see many highlights of the work we have done. From the last
convention until now, well in excess of 250 new items have been
published, major new initiatives have launched, and several new
curriculum projects have become available.
In partnership with the Office of the President and the Commission on Theology and Church Relations, the new Explanation of Martin Luther’s Small Catechism offering a fresh survey
of the Bible’s teachings on many issues facing the Church today,
organized around Luther’s magisterial catechism, was published
in October 2017 and has been very well received throughout the
Synod. It is available in several print editions, including a large
visual layout, a spiral-bound lined edition, and a traditional
hardback book form, along with ebook and LOGOS editions.
Both young people and adults are discovering how useful it is
as a devotional and prayerful survey of the major proof texts of
the Scriptures. With a wide variety of topics in the traditional
Q&A approach, the Explanation section follows the style that
has been used in editions of Luther’s Small Catechism since the
sixteenth century. It is already being used worldwide by other
Lutheran and Christian churches as a resource that stands out
uniquely among helps for teaching the faith to inquirers, seekers, and both new and more mature Christians of all ages.
The new Explanation is the source for our new confirmation curriculum, which appeared in August 2018 in thirty- and
sixty-week formats. These will be followed by an apologetics
resource and Bible curriculum, available later in 2019. Incorporating a comprehensive approach for teaching the faith and
helping catechumens learn the truth of Scripture and how to
live those truths in their lives, the new curriculum has also been
well received. A new comprehensive curriculum for use with
children at any time—Sundays or midweek—and in a variety
of formats launches this fall, replacing our older Sunday School
curriculum.
During this triennium, we launched CPH FaithCourses, an
exciting new video- and web-based platform with a wide variety
of materials and teaching opportunities. We are adding content
to it monthly and are rapidly expanding the breadth and depth
of offerings in the platform, which is being used by congregations, individuals, and various congregational groups in a variety of settings. For instance, a congregation in the Synod has
2019 Convention Workbook

500 members enrolled in a study of a CPH book supported by
the CPH FaithCourses teaching component; those learners are
moving at their own pace through various materials: books,
Bible studies, topical studies, and the like.
CPH continues to place a high priority on delivering resources in digital formats. We now offer 800 titles as ebooks,
in both Kindle and Apple formats, and continue to issue our
professional and academic titles in the powerful LOGOS software platform. We are enhancing our digital options for Sunday
School and Day School curriculum. Working in close partnership with active parish school teachers, principals, DCEs, and
professors across our Concordia University System, we are developing innovative resources that address a diversity of learning styles in various teacher-driven educational formats using
the latest in digital technologies.
Several new editions of Holy Scripture have been released,
including The Growing in Faith Bible, which is aimed at younger
readers, placing into their hands an entire copy of the Scriptures, with notes, helps, and original artwork throughout. We
offer Bibles for every age and stage of Christian faith and life,
from picture Bibles to The Lutheran Study Bible, in all sorts of
editions and formats. The Enduring Word Bible offers the opportunity for journaling in both notes and pictures.
The Every One His Witness program, with supporting resources, has been very well received across the Synod, and we
were honored to partner with the Office of National Mission’s
Witness and Outreach Ministry department to publish this resource.
To meet the challenges of our culture, we have released a
number of important resources aimed at reaching all ages of the
Synod’s members on a range of vital moral issues, such as human sexuality, gender confusion, homosexuality, and abortion.
These issues continue to challenge the Church to respond in loving and faithful ways, to honor the truths of God’s Word, and
to reach people in constructive and helpful ways. CPH resources
equip our members to speak faithfully and effectively to current problems and trends. In addition to resources aimed at our
lay members, we also focus on providing helpful ministry tools
and resources for our pastors, teachers, and other professional
church workers as they minister to and among millennials, the
aging, young families, and single parents, and in times of crisis
and struggle such as suicide, death, and chronic illness.
Our major scholarly projects continue apace, with the release every year of two volumes in the Concordia Commentary
series; a volume a year in the continuation of the American Edition of Luther’s Works, the most important and longest work of
systematic theology; and the Loci Theologici of Dr. Johann Gerhard. In 2018, we fulfilled our commitment to Synod to provide
the major works of Dr. C. F. W. Walther in English in a unified
series of his works. Additionally, we have added to the works
of “the Second Martin,” Martin Chemnitz, and expanded his
works available in English, including his foundational Church
Order and Apology of the Book of Concord. In partnership with
the LCMS Office of the President, a significant collection of essays on the historic faithful practice of closed Communion has
been made available and has found wide circulation throughout
confessional Lutheranism among our partner churches.
Encouraging and equipping the laity with faithful Lutheran devotional works has also remained a key focus. We have
released the masterful Lutheran Prayer Companion, originally