LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2001, Page 159

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HUMAN CARE
WHEREAS, More Christians have died for their faith in
the past 100 years than in all the previous centuries of
Christendom combined; and
WHEREAS, Around the world Christians each day face
persecution, legal discrimination, and martyrdom for confessing their faith in Christ; and
WHEREAS, Many in The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod are unaware of this ongoing persecution of Christians worldwide; and
WHEREAS, Since 1996 one Sunday in November has been
observed as an annual International Day of Prayer for the
Persecuted Church by some 300,000 congregations worldwide, including more than 100,000 in the United States;
and
WHEREAS, Former LCMS President A. L. Barry has written: “A day of prayer for persecuted Christians is most appropriate, because prayer is the single most important
thing we can do for these people,” and “The Church will always suffer persecution, but not every Christian is called
to suffer to the same degree, or at the same time. God
grants some to be free of persecution so that they may help
those who suffer”; therefore be it
Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
encourage congregations to participate in the International
Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church each November;
and be it further
Resolved, That congregations remind members of the reality of persecuted Christians around the world and encourage ongoing prayer for our persecuted brothers and sisters and for their persecutors (Luke 6:28).
Action: Adopted (4)
(The resolution was adopted without amendment [yes: 917;
no: 10].)

159

Resolved, That the President of the United States and
other elected officials be encouraged to maintain government support of present services that serve the poor and
weak in a compassionate and responsible manner; and be it
further
Resolved, That we encourage individuals to read the
President’s document “Rallying the Armies of Compassion”
(http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/reports/faithbased.html);
and be it further
Resolved, That we encourage congregations, the Board
for Human Care Ministries, and other entities of the Synod
to consider the use of the opportunities that may arise out
of these initiatives in such a way that our unique Christian witness is not compromised; and be it further
Resolved, That the Board for Human Care Ministries
provide ongoing theological and practical resources to congregations and other synodical entities that they may in
good conscience make the fullest use of the opportunities
this new governmental emphasis provides; and be it finally
Resolved, That all action taken in this resolution shall be
used to help carry out “The Great Commission” and shall
not in any way detract or distract from the primary mission
of God’s kingdom here on earth. We will remember 1-02!
Action: Adopted as amended (12)
(The resolution was amended by adding the word Cautious to
its title after the word Encourage and by deleting its first resolve,
That the Synod in convention commend the faith-based and community initiative proposed by President George W. Bush. The resolution was adopted as amended [yes: 603; no: 193]. The final resolve is added as required by Res. 1-02, adopted by the convention
in an earlier session.)

To Implement and Coordinate Salary
Guidelines
RESOLUTION 6-06A

To Encourage Cautious Participation
in President Bush’s Faith-Based
and Community Initiatives
RESOLUTION 6-05A
Report 6-01 (CW, pp. 69–74)
WHEREAS, In the course of proclaiming the Gospel, our
Lord Himself attended to the needs of those around Him;
and
WHEREAS, Throughout history the Christian Church has
demonstrated the love of Jesus by addressing profound
human needs; and
WHEREAS, Divine love motivates us to bring human care
to persons whose lives are compromised by poverty, illness,
disaster, family conflict, disability, addiction, crime, or oppression; and
WHEREAS, The President of the United States has proposed a blueprint “to enlist, equip, enable, empower and expand the heroic works of faith-based and community
groups across America,” which includes, but is not limited
to, helping children of prisoners, improving inmate rehabilitation, supporting “Second Chance” maternity group
homes, and supporting more after-school opportunities;
therefore be it

Reports 1-08, 1-08-01 (CW, pp. 3, 13) Overtures 6-12,
6-18 (CW, pp. 233, 235)
WHEREAS, Two synodwide salary studies have been conducted, one of parish pastors and one of professional church
workers, that demonstrated that neither group is paid at a
level competitive with the career market in which they
work or at a level that is representative of the value they
bring; and
WHEREAS, The Study on Church Worker Shortage commissioned by the Board for Higher Education included
clergy income as a problem to be overcome in order to improve the recruitment and retention of clergy; and
WHEREAS, There would be tremendous value if the
Synod were proactive in addressing the compensation of
our church workers so that as a Synod these valued instruments would be lifted high and an example would be set for
others regarding the importance of these laborers in the
vineyard; therefore be it
Resolved, That we thank all Districts of the Synod for
having developed and adopted salary guidelines for the adequate compensation of our church workers; and be it further
Resolved, That we urge the District Presidents to review
and update these guidelines on a yearly basis to ensure
200l Convention Proceedings