LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2004, Page 184

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184 THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS

Resolved, That the LCMS, in convention, spend a moment in
silent prayer, thanking God for our RSOs and asking God’s bless-
ings as they cooperate in channels for the goal and good of God’s
kingdom; and be it finally

Resolved, That the President, Vice-President, Board of Direc-
tors, and Council of Presidents be charged with finding and enact-
ing efforts to enhance and enlarge cooperative efforts between the
ELCA and LCMS through our RSOs.

Village
Bronxville, NY

3-68

To Encourage ELCA to Forbid Participation
of Bishops in Ordination and Consecration Rites

WHEREAS, The Anglican Church, also known as the Episcopal
Church, is ordaining homosexual priests and has recently conse-
crated a homosexual bishop for New Hampshire; and

WHEREAS, The consecration of all bishops in the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America requires the participation of an An-
glican (Episcopal) bishop; and

WHEREAS, Some member churches or communions within the
worldwide Anglican Communion find the ordaining of homosexual
priests and the consecrating of homosexual bishops contrary to the
will of God; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod urge the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to forbid the participa-
tion of Anglican (Episcopal) bishops in ordaining pastors and con-
secrating bishops in congregations and parishes of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America; and be it further

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod send
letters of encouragement to those churches in the Anglican Com-
munion who continue to resist the ordination of homosexual priests
and the consecration of homosexual bishops.

Holy Cross
Albany, OR
3-69

To Support Inter-Lutheran Cooperation
WHEREAS, Cooperative ministries exist with the ELCA in com-

munity and family services, in social work, in camping ministries,

in Lutheran schools, and in campus ministries; and

WHEREAS, Terminating such joint work would wreak havoc on
these ministries and would cause many to close; and

WHEREAS, Cooperation in these ministries is a wonderful wit-
ness to our common confession of the Gospel and our historical
Lutheran heritage; and

WHEREAS, Disagreements on controverted issues seldom affect
the ministries in question; therefore be it

Resolved, That St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church,
Saratoga Springs, New York, of the LCMS reaffirms support for
such joint ministries; and be it further

Resolved, That all efforts to withdraw from such ministries be
rejected; and be it finally

Resolved, That when appropriate, inter-Lutheran cooperation
should be encouraged and supported by the Synod.

St. Paul
Saratoga Springs, NY

3-70

To Reaffirm Synod’s Position and
Address Concerns to ELCA re Homosexuality

WHEREAS, The 1991 Churchwide Assembly moved to “affirm
gay and lesbian people, as individuals created by God,” to partici-
pate fully in the life of congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran

Church in America (ELCA). That welcome was reaffirmed by the
1995 Churchwide Assembly, which also urged Lutherans to “prac-
tice and teach biblical and confessional guidance for speaking the
truth in love.” In a 1996 letter to the church, the Conference of
Bishops wrote that congregations of the ELCA be “safe places for
those who are persecuted and harassed in our society”; and

WHEREAS, The Sixth Triennial Convention of the Lutheran
Youth Organization, Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, met
July 20-23, 2003, at Georgia Technical Institute in Atlanta. The
body of almost 300 voting delegates under the theme of “N’2-1”
(pronounced “Into One”) discussed and debated a wide range of
topics, including ecumenism, multiculturalism, and sexuality; and

WHEREAS, The Lutheran Youth Organization approved a reso-
lution stating the LYO “supports the blessing of same-sex unions
and the ordination of non-celibate individuals in committed rela-
tionships of all sexual orientations”; and

WHEREAS, The 2003 Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) encouraged the active par-
ticipation of youth and young adults in the ELCA’s Studies on Sex-
uality and requested that the task force overseeing the studies con-
tinue to include the concerns of young people in its work; and

WHEREAS, The assembly encouraged youth and young adults to
participate in the church’s Studies on Sexuality through discussions
in congregations, synodical youth gatherings, colleges and univer-
sities, at events sponsored by the ELCA’s Lutheran Youth Orga-
nization, and in other settings; and

WuerEAsS, The Episcopal Church in America, a church body in
fellowship with the ELCA, elected Rev. Gene Robinson as the
bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire. Robinson has been in a
committed relationship with another man for 13 years; and

Wuereas, Homosexuality comes under a categorical prohibi-
tion in the Old and New Testaments (Lev. 18:22, 24; 20:13; 1 Cor.
6:9-10; 1 Tim. 1:9-10). Paul writes in Romans | of the “‘dishonor-
able passions” to which God gives up those who worship the crea-
ture rather than the Creator and says: “Their women exchanged nat-
ural relations for unnatural, and the men likewise gave up natural
relations with women and were consumed with passion for one an-
other, men committing shameless acts with men” (Rom. 1:26—27).
In a discussion of homosexuality one might stop here with the fact
of the condemnation uttered in such passages. If we consider ho-
mosexuality in the light of the total biblical context regarding the
purpose of marriage and the man-woman duality discussed above,
however, we may come to a clearer understanding of why Christian
thought has condemned and should continue to condemn homo-
sexual lusts and acts (Human Sexuality: A Theological Perspec-
tive, III, Some Problems, A Report of the Commission on Theology
and Church Relations of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod,
as prepared by its Social Concerns Committee, September 1981);
and

WHEREAS, Many people in the world do not know the differ-
ence between the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America and
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in its
2004 convention wholeheartedly reaffirm the doctrinal position of
the Synod as presented in the 1981 CTCR document on human sex-
uality; and be it further

Resolved, That the President of the Synod address the concerns
of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod in regards to the current
position of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the
actions of the Lutheran Youth Organization, Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America, in their 2003 Youth Convention, and the
ELCA’s theological association with the Episcopal Church in
America; and be it finally

Resolved, That the Synod President, the District Presidents, and
the pastors of the Synod make every effort to remain faithful to
God’s Word and dispel all misconceptions through national televi-
sion, newspaper, magazine, and radio media that all Lutherans are
theologically alike. .

Pastors Conference
Oklahoma District