LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2001, Page 165

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STRUCTURE, PLANNING, AND ADMINISTRATION
dance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught,
with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old
self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be
made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the
new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and
holiness. Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and
speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of
one body. ‘In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go
down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a
foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer,
but must work, doing something useful with his own hands,
that he may have something to share with those in need.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,
but only what is helpful for building others up according to
their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were
sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness,
rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every
form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be
imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and
live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself
up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God”; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Martin Luther says in his explanation of
the Eighth Commandment, “We should fear and love God
so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him,
slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak
well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way”; and
WHEREAS, The convention manual is published under
the editorship of the Secretary of the Synod, subject to the
approval of the President of the Synod; and
WHEREAS, Misleading and untrue material has appeared
in synodical overtures; and
WHEREAS, The inclusion of such untrue and misleading
information can do irreparable harm and is a sin against
God, individuals, and entities of the Synod; therefore be it
Resolved, That those who submit convention overtures
assume complete responsibility for the truthfulness of information contained therein; and be it further
Resolved, That Bylaw 3.19 c be amended as follows:
PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING
Overtures with reference to a case in which a member has been suspended or expelled and which is at
present in the process of or subject to appeal, as well
as overtures which, upon advice of legal counsel, may
subject the Synod or the corporate officers of the Synod
to civil action for libel or slander, or which contain libel
or slander, shall not be accepted for convention consideration;

and be it further
Resolved, That Bylaw 3.19 be amended to add:
PROPOSED WORDING
The synodical President shall determine if any overture contains information which is materially in error,
or contains any apparent misrepresentation of truth or
of character. He shall not approve inclusion of any such
overture in the convention manual and shall refer any
such overture to the District President who has ecclesiastical supervision over the entity submitting the
overture for action. If any published overture or resolution is found to be materially in error or contains any

165

misrepresentation of truth or of character, it shall be
withdrawn from convention consideration and referred
by the President of the Synod to the appropriate District President for action;

and be it further
Resolved, That the other provisions of Bylaw 3.19 be
relettered; 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 (10)
(The resolution was adopted without amendment [yes: 746;
no: 303]. The final resolve is added as required by Res. 1-02,
adopted by the convention in an earlier session.)

To Ask Congregation to Comply
with Decision of Praesidium
RESOLUTION 7-07A
Overtures 7-110, 7-112 (CW, pp. 277-78)
WHEREAS, Holy Cross Lutheran Church of Pacific Palisades, California, a member congregation of The Lutheran
Church—Missouri Synod, is currently in a fellowship
arrangement with an ELCA congregation, viz. Pacific Palisades Lutheran Church; and
WHEREAS, This relationship was established at a time
when altar and pulpit fellowship existed with a predecessor body of the ELCA, namely the ALC; and
WHEREAS, This relationship has resulted in an LCMS
congregation being served by an ALC/ELCA pastor since
1981, in violation of the Constitution and Bylaws of the
Synod, specifically Bylaw 2.45; and
WHEREAS, The Praesidium of the Synod has ruled that
such a relationship cannot continue indefinitely and has indicated through Dr. A. L. Barry in a letter dated November
15, 2000, that “at the time of the next pastoral vacancy in
the congregation, a decision about denominational membership must be made. By your choice of pastor, you will
decide in which of the two church bodies you choose to hold
membership”; and
WHEREAS, An open letter dated June 26, 2001, was sent
by the congregation to all voting delegates to the 2001
LCMS convention calling upon them to reject proposed Resolution 7-07, citing and attaching with the open letter, the
letter sent by Dr. Barry dated November 15, 2000, thereby
expressing tacit agreement with the decision of the Praesidium; therefore be it
Resolved, That the LCMS in convention honor the decision
of the Praesidium as reported to the congregation by Dr.
Barry in his letter of November 15, 2000; and be it further
Resolved, That Holy Cross Lutheran Church of Pacific
Palisades be required to file with the Secretary of Synod a
letter signed by the officers of the congregation stating that
the congregation now accepts the decision of the Praesidium as explained in Dr. Barry’s letter of November 15,
2000; and be it further
Resolved, That such a letter shall be filed by July 20,
2002; and be it further
200l Convention Proceedings