LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1998, Page 165

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THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS 165

defend through earthly means the well-being of these United
States; and

WHEREAS, The chaplains endorsed by The Lutheran Church—
Missouri Synod to serve as her missionaries go forth into the har-
vest field armed with only the Word of God and the means of grace
to advance the kingdom of God; and

WHEREAS, All chaplains are compelled as rostered members of
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod to uphold their ordination
vows as well as the doctrines and teachings of the church that has
endorsed them to serve in such a ministry; and

Wuereas, The President of the Synod has the supervision re-
garding doctrine and shall conscientiously use all means at his
command to promote and maintain unity of doctrine (Art. XI, B,
1995 Handbook, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod); there-
fore be it

Resolved, That the Central Illinois District memorialize the
Synod asking the Praesidium to investigate the present position and
practice of those responsible for the oversight of the Ministry to
the Armed Forces and that the church’s position on the practice of
close(d) Communion (Res. 3-08, 1995 Convention Proceedings,
pp. 121-22) be upheld without question by those servants of The
Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s Board for Mission Services;
and be it further

Resolved, That the Central Illinois District memorialize the
Synod asking the Ministry to the Armed Forces to establish clear
guidelines for the administration of the Sacrament of the Altar
given its “special circumstances” and that these guidelines be
clearly articulated to all LCMS chaplains; and be it finally

Resolved, That the Synod send a report of its findings to the
church through its official organ, the Reporter.

Central Illinois District

3-37

To Express Sorrow and Confess Truth

WHEREAS, The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America at its
1997 convention adopted a “Statement of Agreement’’ and thereby
declared itself to be in full Communion with the United Church of
Christ, the Reformed Church in America, and the Presbyterian
Church (USA); and

WuerEAS, The aforementioned agreement does not address the
historic questions regarding the understanding of the presence of
Christ in the Lord’s Supper but instead accepts the principle of
“reconciled diversity’’; and

WHEREAS, Such an action has further confused the understand-
ing of what it means to be a Lutheran church body in this country;
therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod express
publicly to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America its sorrow
and regret that the ELCA has abandoned the scriptural and confes-
sional Lutheran position on such a key doctrine of the Christian
faith: and be it further

Resolved, That the Synod and its members pray for the mem-
bers of the ELCA that they might reconsider the actions taken and
again confess the truth of the Holy Scriptures and the Lutheran
Confessions; and be it further

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod humbly
confess the truth regarding the Holy Supper of our Lord as taught
in the sacred Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions (especially
Art. VII of the Formula of Concord) and that we witness to the
same in our doctrine and practice; and be it finally

Resolved, That the President of Synod, in consultation with the
Commission on Theology and Church Relations, plan a series of
free conferences on the Holy Scriptures and the Lutheran Confes-
sions in order to foster the true unity of the Christian church by a
common confession of the faith.

South Wisconsin District Pastoral Conference, Wisconsin
Dells, WI; Pilgrim, West Bend, WI

3-38

To Clarify Status with ELCA

Wuereas, The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America prac-
tices “Eucharistic sharing’’ with the Episcopal Church; and

WHEREAS, When two or more churches enter into altar and pul-
pit fellowship, they thus become one communion, one church; and

Wuertas, An Invitation to Action: The Lutheran-Reformed Di-
alogue, Series Ill, 1981-1983 (Fortress Press, 1984) is predicated
on the claim that “The Reformed Confessions have always taught
and still teach the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist,’’ and
that the difference is simply about the “mode’’ of this presence,
and should not divide the churches; and

Wuereas, Such claims directly contradict the Formula of Con-
cord (see especially SD VII, 1-8); and

WHEREAS, By its non-protesting membership in the Lutheran
World Federation the ELCA is, according to the LWFS 1984 con-
stitution, in full pulpit and altar fellowship with all other members
of that federation; and

WHEREAS, Many member churches of the Lutheran World Fed-
eration are in pulpit and altar fellowship with Reformed churches
on the basis of the Leuenberg Agreement, thus denying the sacra-
mental teaching of Holy Scripture as faithfully confessed in the
Book of Concord; and

WHEREAS, The ELCA has officially endorsed a position of full
Communion between it and three other Reformed church bodies in
America (Aug. 18, 1997 Assembly), thus denying the sacramental
teaching of Holy Scripture as faithfully confessed in the Book of
Concord; and

WHEREAS, Such actions directly contradict the Formula of Con-
cord (see especially SD VII, 108); and

Wuereas, The ELCA, in opposition to the apostolic-prophetic
Scriptures of God, ordains women into the sacred ministry of Word
and sacraments; and

WHEREAS, The ELCA, in opposition to clear statements from
God’s Word, ordains homosexuals and lesbians into the sacred
ministry of Word and sacraments (Vocations of Gay and Lesbian
Lutherans, Ann Arbor, MI, 3-6-97); and

WHEREAS, The ELCA’s leading dogmatics textbook used in the
education of its clergy (Christian Dogmatics, Braaten/Jenson)
mocks the Trinity and our Lord’s eternally preexistent divine na-
ture; therefore be it

Resolved, That the 1998 synodical convention of The Lutheran
Church—Missouri Synod publicly state through its official period-
icals and its official discussion with the representatives of the
ELCA, that the LCMS cannot regard or treat the pulpits and the al-
tars of the ELCA as confessionally Lutheran in the sense of the
Book of Concord, but must recognize them as heterodox, union
pulpits and altars; and be it further

Resolved, That the Colloquy Board, together with the Council
of Presidents and the seminaries in the case of experienced ELCA
pastors seeking entry into the LCMS on conscientious grounds, and
whose orthodoxy and general suitability are fully established, at
their discretion adjust the colloquy requirements to ease entry of
such men into the ministerium of The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod.

Salem
Taylorsville, NC

3-39
To Acknowledge New Ecclesiastical Status of ELCA

Rationale

The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) has from its
beginnings over 150 years ago been a confessional Lutheran
church. Some of our forefathers came to this country to escape the
forced union between the Lutherans and the Reformed in Prussia
(the Prussian Union). Our forefathers likewise stood against a sim-