LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2001, Page 114

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114

OTHER PRESENTATIONS

dent of only a portion thereof. This is indeed my earnest
pledge.
3. A growing need for synodical leadership that will rekindle
in the hearts of the pastors and people of the church the
mutual respect, love, and trust that many of us believe is
both necessary and possible in our relationships with one
another as The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. This
is indeed my fervent endeavor, with the help and blessing of our triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
A number of matters of importance face our Synod in the
years ahead:
1. The fulfillment of the Great Commission. Today is the
day to begin to refocus our efforts on the mission that
Christ has given to His church on earth and to do so with
renewed vigor, energy, and passion.
2. The recruitment, training, and support of pastors, educators, evangelists, musicians, and other professional
church workers. In recent years our Synod has lost almost 1,500 more pastors and 3,000 more teachers than
we have gained. We must aggressively seek to encourage
the best of our young people and of our second-career
people to respond affirmatively to God’s call for service
and to support them in a way that results in the performance of faithful, effective, and productive ministry.
3. The priesthood of all believers. Our church, without the
full support and creative involvement of its lay leaders, is
destined for mediocrity. We must find better ways of facilitating the priesthood of all believers, one of the
church’s greatest unclaimed treasures. Our people have
the intelligence, the education, the financial resources,
the dedication, the love for the Lord and for His church
necessary to move this church forward in unprecedented
fashion! The development, mobilization, and utilization
of the people of this church must receive high priority!
4. Relationships between and among the Synod, its Districts and its congregations. The Synod, especially
through its Districts, must continue to raise its profile as
a servant of its congregations, their members and their
church workers. The right question is not “What can congregations do for the District and Synod?” The right
question is “What can the District and the Synod do to
support and enhance the mission and ministry of each
congregation?”
5. The place of the grace of God among us. A hallmark of
the Lutheran church is its emphasis on proper distinction between Law and Gospel. Yet, quite unfortunately,
our Synod has become known in some circles as a heavily
Law-oriented church body. We must refocus our primary
emphasis as an evangelical, Gospel-focused church, one
that values highly the grace of God, demonstrated on
Calvary’s cross in the death of the Son of God, the Savior
of the world, for the sin of all mankind, sealed with His
resurrection from the grave, assuring us of victory over
sin, death, and the devil.
6. Synodical solidarity.
We read these important words in the Constitution of the
LCMS:
200l Convention Proceedings

Article III. Objectives
The Synod, under Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions,
shall—
1. Conserve and promote the unity of the true faith (Eph.
4:3–6;1 Cor. 1:10), work through its official structure toward fellowship with other Christian church bodies, and
provide a united defense against schism, sectarianism
(Rom. 16:17), and heresy;
2. Strengthen congregations and their members in giving bold
witness by word and deed to the love and work of God, the
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and extend that Gospel witness into all the world.

May such objectives receive our undivided effort and
wholehearted support toward synodical solidarity!
What does our new president believe?
A Texas politician once said, “There ain’t nothin’ in the
middle of the road but yellow stripes and dead armadillos!”
As I assume the office of the presidency of the Synod, you,
the members of the Synod, deserve to know my beliefs:
• I accept the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testament
as the written Word of God and the only rule and norm of
faith and of practice.
• I believe the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible,
written Word of God.
• I accept all the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church as a true and unadulterated statement
and exposition of the Word of God.
• I believe the world was created in six 24-hour days less
than 10,000 years ago.
• I believe the flood was an historical event.
• I believe that Moses parted the Red Sea.
• I believe that Jonah was swallowed by a big fish.
• I believe that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and
born of the Virgin Mary, that He healed the lame, the
deaf, the blind and that He raised the dead back to life.
• I believe that He was crucified, that He rose from the
grave, and that He ascended into heaven.
• I believe that the Holy Spirit calls individuals to faith in
Christ through the Gospel and the Sacraments and gives
His gifts to His people whenever and however He wishes.
• I believe that abortion is not a moral option except as a
tragically unavoidable byproduct of medical procedures
necessary to prevent the death of another human being,
such as the mother.
• I do not believe in the ordination of women to the pastoral
office. I do believe that women should have the privileges
of voting in the church and serving in any and every capacity except pastor and elder. I also believe that our
Synod should explore the clearly acceptable biblical role
of prophetess and its implications for women in the
church in the 21st century.
• I believe in the importance of the Ten Commandments,
one of which, the eighth, is in frequent violation among
us. It, along with Matthew 18, should form the basis of
our dealings with one another. I believe it is way past
time for the less than charitable and sometimes even
judgmental, harsh, inaccurate, and untruthful voices