LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 57

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OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
The commission also included an executive summary of the 10
points. This opinion reaffirmed the earlier positions of Communion
and Covid-19 while urging that LCMS churches refrain from online
Communion. This opinion is included in the Workbook appendix.

3. Shut-In Communion
In the 2013–2016 triennium, the CTCR received a request for
an opinion from the president of the South Wisconsin District on
questions related to the administration of the Lord’s Supper to
shut-ins by a commissioned minister. After due deliberation, at its
December 2022 meeting, the commission unanimously approved a
response and subsequently communicated it to the South Wisconsin
District. This opinion is included in the Workbook appendix.

4. Guidelines for Laymen Conducting Public Worship
Services
In November 2022, the CTCR received a request from the President of Synod to provide a rationale and recommend guidelines for
laymen who must publicly read sermons or conduct worship services in the absence of a pastor, whether in an emergency situation
or for an extended period of time. The commission assigned staff to
produce a response, which it intends to complete in advance of the
Synod convention.

F. Expressions of Dissent
Bylaw section 1.8 provides a process for orderly “[d]issent from
the doctrinal position of the Synod as expressed in its resolutions
and doctrinal statements.” That process involves, first, discussion
“within the fellowship of peers” and thereafter the dissent is to
be “brought to the attention of the Commission on Theology and
Church Relations” (Bylaw 1.8.2).
In the 2019–2023 extended triennium, the CTCR received correspondence regarding a potential dissent to the status of C.F.W.
Walther’s theses on church and ministry. Out of concern for unity
and in order to provide further fraternal discussion, the commission and its staff engaged in prolonged correspondence with the
prospective dissenter. In 2022, faculty members from both seminaries met independently with the individual in question to discuss
his concerns. Both the commission, in several written responses,
and the respective faculty representatives, advised the individual
that his concerns were unclear and his position not at odds with
Walther’s theses. Ultimately, the individual chose to reject the commission’s opinion on the legitimacy of his dissent and indicated his
intention to proceed with an overture to the convention.

II. Church Relations
The CTCR has the responsibility to “assist the President of the
Synod at his request in discharging his constitutional responsibilities for maintaining doctrinal integrity as he relates to other church
bodies” (Bylaw 3.9.5.2.2). This includes circumstances in which a
church body requests LCMS recognition of fellowship. The commission’s approval is required for each fellowship request. In light
of the many changes occurring in world Lutheranism, the LCMS
has increasing numbers of fellowship requests and the CTCR seeks
to address them both efficiently and faithfully. What follows includes four parts: (A) matters of policy and procedure undertaken
to clarify the process leading to recognition of church fellowship;
(B) formal requests for fellowship that have been recognized by the
commission or are anticipated to be recognized prior to the convention; (C) relationships with church bodies that may eventuate
in a formal act of dissolution by the convention; and (D) official

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theological conversations with various church bodies that the commission does not believe will eventuate in formal recognition of
church fellowship.

A.

Policies and Procedural Matters

1. Theological Considerations and Procedural Guidelines regarding Altar and Pulpit Fellowship
At the request of the Synod president in 2003, the CTCR adopted a formal policy for declaring altar and pulpit fellowship, which
it subsequently revised in 2014 to reflect convention actions and
bylaw changes in the intervening years. Since the 2019 convention
amended Bylaw 3.9.5.2.2 concerning the procedure for recognizing altar and pulpit fellowship, the commission again reviewed its
policy in order to bring it into conformity with the Synod Bylaws.
In addition to a number of changes made for the sake of clarity, the
commission inserted a new section (III.E) detailing a “procedure
for contemplating and/or recommending the termination of recognition of altar and pulpit fellowship with another church body.” A
full text of the policy is included in the Workbook appendix.

2. Proposed Bylaw Revisions (Bylaw 3.9.5.2.2)
Following consultation with the Office of the President’s director of church relations and the Secretary of Synod, the commission considered revisions to Bylaw 3.9.5.2.2, which pertains to the
CTCR’s function in the recognition of church fellowship. At its
April 2022 meeting, the commission approved the revisions and
forwarded them to the Secretary of Synod for consultation with
the Commission on Handbook and the Commission on Constitutional Matters. It proposed the elimination of 3.9.5.2.2 (e), which
had been added at the 2019 convention, while also clarifying and
condensing 3.9.5.2.2 (b–d).

B. Requests for Church Fellowship Approved by
the CTCR
In addition to the requests below approved by the CTCR, many
existing and new requests for fellowship remain under consideration. In collaboration with the Church Relations staff of the President’s Office and the Office of International Mission, the CTCR
continues to monitor developments among church bodies requesting fellowship, maintain conversation and correspondence with
them, and discuss those requests at meetings of the commission.
Due to the sheer volume of such requests, it is inadvisable to include all such relationships in this report until such a time as a request for fellowship is approved by the commission.

1. Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese in Finland
(ELMDF)
Representatives of the LCMS and ELMDF began formal correspondence and discussions concerning the possibility of fellowship
between our two church bodies in 2017. In 2018, the ELMDF was
accepted into the International Lutheran Council as a full member.
At the same time, the ELMDF formally requested a recognition of
fellowship with the LCMS. The ELMDF is in fellowship with several LCMS partner church bodies, including the Lutheran Church‒
Canada. After further CTCR consideration, the ELMDF, represented by then-bishop Risto Soramies, met with the commission
in February 2020. At that meeting, the CTCR voted unanimously
to recommend the formal recognition of altar and pulpit fellowship with the ELMDF pursuant to Bylaw 3.9.5.2.2 (c), forwarding
its recommendation to the Office of the President for declaration
and subsequent endorsement by the Synod in convention. President
2023 Convention Workbook