LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1995, Page 105

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

106 RESOLUTIONS

mission work of the Synod,: beginning with outreach from
the local parish. . * “3

Action: Adopted (4).

To Reaffirm Commitment to Urban
and Cross-Cultural ‘Ministry ©
RESOLUTION 1-08A

Report R1-01 (CW, PP.. 23-80); Overtures 1-16, 1-18
(CW, pp. 132-33)

WHEREAS, The Christian church, beginning with our
Lord’ 8 ministry in ‘the village life of Palestine, quickly be-
came a religion that impacted an entire Mediterranean
world primarily through the establishment of congregations
in the great urban centers of the Roman Empire; and

_ WuEreas, The apostle Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles,
used as his mission strategy the. movement from city to city
(Rom. 15:19, 23); and

WHEREAS, The urban setting is now in the process of
being abandoned by many mainline churches, where new
opportunities. for ministry are increasing; and

WHEREAS, | .We have many congregations placed within
the urban setting, with 67 percent of all LCMS Lutherans
living in cities with populations of 50,000 or more; and

WHEREAS, LCMS World Mission has placed a high pri-
ority on urban evangelistic outreach; and

‘ WHEREAS, In 1992 the Synod in convention recognized
the United States as a cross-cultural mission field; and

WHEREAS, The cities of our nation and world are among
the fields that “are ripe for harvesting” (John 4:35); there-
fore be it

Resolved, That national and District staffs continue to
offer resources and training for supporting present congre-
gations and for planting new congregations in the urban
setting and developing new ministries; and be it further

Resolved, That the seminaries be urged to train minis-
ters for urban and cross-cultural work; and be it further

Resolved, That congregations be encouraged to plant
cross-cultural missions as parallel ministries to their own,
targeted to serve the needs of specific ethnic communities;
and be it finally

Resolved, That the Synod in convention recommit itself
to the proclamation of the Gospel in urban centers, as well
as in every community of our nation and world.

Action: Adopted as amended (4).

(The second resolve was added by amendment as well as the
words and developing new ministries at the end of the first re-
solve.)

To Further Evangelistic Outreach
among Immigrants

RESOLUTION 1-04A
Overtures 1-14-15, 1-17 (CW, p. 132)

WHEREAS, It is the will of the Lord that all should be
saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4);
and ,

-WHEREAS, More than nine million people have come to
the United States as immigrants in the last decade, many
of them as refugees without resources from their home
countries; and

WHEREAS, Many of these immigrants possess only a
nominal or no faith in Christ; and ;

WuerEAS, Many arrive with little or no knowledge of the
English language but. recognize the importance of English
and wish to learn it; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
reaffirm its conviction that it is the will of the Lord that His
people reach out with love and faith to the immigrants that
He has placed in their midst.and seek ways to serve them
in their time of need (Lev. 19:33-34); and be it further

_ Resolved, That the LCMS continue to uphold cross-cul-
tural evangelistic outreach as one of its highest mission pri-
orities; and be it further

Resolved, That the LCMS urge all of its congregations
to seek ways of becoming actively involved in outreach to
new immigrants; and be it further

Resolved, That, as LCMS World Mission works with the
Districts to further evangelistic outreach among immi-
grants (whether in English or another language), it be en-
couraged to continue its policy and practice of receiving the
advice and direction of immigrants; and be it finally. .

Resolved, That LCMS congregations be encouraged to
expand the use of the English as a Second Language (ESL)
instructional program as a way of entering and enriching
the lives of new immigrants.

Action: Adopted (4).

(A motion to insert the word legal before immigrants in the
third, fourth, and fifth resolves failed to gain a second.)

To Encourage International
Student Outreach

RESOLUTION 1-05A
Overtures 1-06-07; (CW, p. 130)

WHEREAS, The Lord of the harvest has commissioned His
church to “go and make disciples of all nations by baptiz-
ing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit and by teaching them to keep everything I
have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19-20); and

WHEREAS, Many international students who do not know
Christ as their Savior are attending our nation’s high
schools, colleges, and universities, many of whom come
from countries closed to Christian missionaries; and

WHEREAS, College and university campuses provide ideal
opportunities for bringing the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ
to international students, their spouses, and children; and

WHEREAS, These students, when brought to faith by the
power of the Holy Spirit, make natural and effective Chris-
tian missionaries upon their return home; therefore be it

Resolved, That the Synod support the mission effort of
bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ to international stu-
dents with prayer, personnel, and financial resources; and
be it further

Resolved, That where appropriate, congregations/cam-
pus ministries be encouraged to share the Good News with
the international campus community, to continue to expand