LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2004, Page 460

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

460 OTHER PERTINENT DOCUMENTS

voted labor in support of the ministry of the Gospel. “If women
kept silence in the public worship of the church (1 Cor. 14:34), they
certainly did not remain inactive in the work of the church.”'' The
apostle’s friendship and the warmth of his affection must have been
a source of great encouragement to these men and women who had
toiled hard with him in the service of Christ and His church.

The biblical restraints regarding the service of women in the
church and the authority of the pastoral office need not become the
only, or even predominant, word we speak to one another. To speak
of the “eligibility” of the service of women in congregational and
synodical offices might give the impression to some that our pri-
mary concern in the contemporary church is to discourage women
from exercising the privileges and responsibilities they hold as
members of the priesthood of believers. Men and women alike,
however, need to help one another, first of all, to see that God’s
Word itself provides standards of “eligibility” for service in offices
of the church, and it does so without any diminution of the value of
persons. But just as important, God’s people must be instruments of
daily encouragement to one another and help each other to discover
and appreciate the joys of Christian service. All of us would do
well to emulate the apostle Paul’s example in giving words of sup-
port and commendation to fellow workers in the church of God.

It is the prayer of the Commission that this brief report will as-
sist the members of the Synod in understanding and faithfully ap-
plying what the Scriptures teach about the service of women in var-
ious positions of assigned responsibility. May our beloved Lord
continue to guide and bless our deliberations and decisions in this
area, to the end that we remain faithful to His will regarding the
ministry of Word and sacraments and our life of Christian service.

APPENDIX

The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, after a number of years
of careful study and deliberation, decided at its 1969 convention
“to grant women suffrage and board membership.”'* In that deci-
sion the Synod stated that it understood those statements of Scrip-
ture which pertain:to the service of women in the church (specifi-
cally, 1 Corinthians 11, 14; 1 Timothy 2) to mean that “women
ought not to hold the pastoral office or serve in any other capacity
involving the distinctive functions of this office.” Regarding of-
fices and board membership the Synod went on to state its belief
that women are prohibited from holding any other kind of office or
membership on boards or committees in the institutional structures
of a congregation, only if such a way of proceeding involves
women in a violation of this principle. Accordingly, the Synod
held, the pertinent scriptural texts do not prohibit full membership
of women on synodical boards, commissions, and committees, nor
is the manner of filling an office or establishing membership on a
board or commission, in congregations or in the Synod under any
scriptural prohibition. With respect to woman suffrage, which con-
gregations without scriptural prohibition are free to adopt, and the
matter of congregational offices and board membership, the Synod
concluded that congregations are free to alter their policies and
practice, provided the polity developed conforms to the scriptural
principles informing the Synod’s position regarding the pastoral of-
fice. The Synod recognized the sensitivity of this issue and there-
fore urged “cautious and deliberate action in the spirit of Christian
love” if changes are implemented.

Following this action by the Synod in 1969, the President of the
Synod and a number of congregations asked that guidance be given
by the Commission on Constitutional Matters (CCM) to congrega-
tions desiring to incorporate into their constitutions and bylaws the
provisions adopted in Resolution 2-17. In 1970 the CCM issued
“Suggestions for Congregational Constitutions or Bylaws Regard-
ing the Privileges of Women (Voting and Holding Office).”'* Re-
Stricting itself to the position taken by the Synod (“de iure humano
rather than de iure divino, by human right rather than divine right”),

2004 Convention Workbook

and assuming that the Synod “may further define its position in the
future, thereby making it necessary perhaps to refine the sugges-
tions being offered herewith,” the CCM offered a sample constitu-
tional paragraph under the title ‘Privileges of Women.” This para-
graph allows, in addition to franchise, that women may “serve as
officers and as members of boards and committees as long as these
positions are not directly involved in the specific functions of the
pastoral office (preaching, the public administration of the sacra-
ments, church discipline) and as long as this service does not vio-
late the order of creation (usurping authority over men).” The para-
graph then concludes (footnotes bracketed): “Accordingly, they
shall not serve as pastor, as a member of [Here shall be listed the
board of elders or corresponding board directly involved in the
functions of the pastoral office], as chairman or vice-chairman of
the congregation, or as chairman of [Here the congregation may
list at its discretion those major policy and decision-making boards
or standing committees, if any, whose chairmanship the congrega-
tion may wish to restrict to men].” The Synod affirmed this posi-
tion as stated in the CCM opinion in 1981'4 and again in 1986.'5

In response to inquiries regarding the eligibility of women for
service in congregational offices, the Commission on Theology and
Church Relations addressed itself briefly to this matter in its 1985
report on Women in the Church: Scriptural Principles and Eccle-
sial Practice. The Commission replied to the question “May
women hold office in a congregation, serve on committees of the
congregation, chair committees of the congregation?” by stating
the following:

Women may hold any office and serve on any committee of the
congregation which enhances the work of the priesthood of all be-
lievers. Women also have the privilege to chair congregational
committees, since a “chair” does not “have authority over men”
any more than the committee per se would have such authority in
the New Testament sense. The only stricture would have to do with
anyone whose official functions would involve public accountabil-
ity for the function of the pastoral office (e.g., elders, and possibly
the chairman of the congregation). The tasks of the elders in a con-
gregation are often directly associated with the pastoral office and
the public administration of the office of the keys. As stated in the
introductory paragraph to this section, everything depends on the
nature of functions assigned to various offices established by the
church.

The same general position outlined above applies to various dis-
trict or synodical committees and commissions. Affairs of the
church have never been assigned only to those holding the office of
the public ministry. Women offer valuable contributions to the
work of such committees, boards, and commissions."

Taking into account its previously stated positions, the CTCR’s
counsel, and questions and concems raised about the eligibility of
women for service in congregational offices, the Synod at its 1989
convention adopted Resolution 3-13A “To Study and Clarify Ser-
vices of Women in Congregational and Synodical Offices.” The
Synod specifically asked “that the CTCR, in consultation with the
Council of Presidents, prepare a study on the eligibility of women
for service in all offices of the congregation, including that of chair-
man, vice-chairman, and elder and district and synodical boards
and commissions where their official function would in effect in-
volve public accountability for the function(ing) of the pastoral of-
fice.”"”

Adopted by the CTCR on November 16, 1994

ENDNOTES

1. See Appendix.

2. 1989 Res. 3-13A, “To Study and Clarify Services of Women
in Congregational and Synodical Offices” (1989 Convention Pro-
ceedings, 118).