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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2013, Page 139

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

Witness
Whereas, There has been a rise in the abuse of women and children on many reservations, resulting in homelessness, health issues,
suffering, and in some cases even death (cf. “Tiny Little Laws” by
Kathy Dobie in Harpers Magazine, February 2011); and
Whereas, American Indians are a people in great need of the
Gospel; therefore be it
Resolved, That the Synod’s Board for National Mission analyze
all work done on Indian reservations across the United States and
Canada and give recommendations as to the most effective means of
mission and ministry to the American Indian population.
North Dakota District
1-13

To Encourage Captioning of All Video Materials
Whereas, The LCMS, its districts, and Concordia Publishing
House (CPH) make frequent and excellent use of video media in communications and study resources; and
Whereas, A significant portion of the LCMS is deaf, lately deafened (including the aged, who may have diminished capacity to hear),
or hard of hearing, leading them to struggle to use or ignore these
communications and resources; and
Whereas, This portion of the LCMS would benefit from captioned video resources and communications, thereby increasing the
effectiveness or use of said communications and resources; and
Whereas, The video resources provided by the LCMS, its districts, and CPH are seldom captioned; and
Whereas, Adding captioning after the video materials are
released is cost prohibitive and frequently degrades the video quality of the resources; therefore be it
Resolved, That the LCMS, its districts, and CPH be encouraged
to provide all of their video materials with captioning included, not
only for the deaf community, but also for the lately deafened and
hard of hearing.
Jacksonville Circuit
Central Illinois District

1-14

To Include Campus Ministry as Mission
and Ministry Emphasis
Whereas, Our Synod President, Rev. Matthew Harrison, wrote
in his Pastoral Letter Regarding Campus Ministry (Oct. 13, 2011),
“The church is losing her young people. This is a concern we all
share. While some fall away during high school, by far the greatest
losses occur during the college years. Our young adults are bombarded by a secular worldview that is antagonistic to their Christian
faith. College campuses have become a place where the truth of God’s
Word is mocked, the divinity of Christ is questioned, and the church
is scorned”; and
Whereas, Pastor Harrison continues, “Now is the time to renew
our efforts. While many have faithfully labored in campus ministry,
they have not always received our support. The Synod simply cannot afford to sit on the sideline while faithful campus congregations
are being closed. College students need Word and Sacrament ministry. They need faithful pastors and workers who will care, teach,
and prepare them for life in, but not of, the world. In short, they need
Jesus … this is not a time for us to abandon campus ministry but the

139

time to more fully embrace and expand it. Please continue to support
all the campus ministries throughout the Synod”; and
Whereas, Our Rocky Mountain District has only one dedicated,
full-time campus ministry (University Lutheran Chapel—Boulder,
serving our students at the University of Colorado, Boulder); and
Whereas, University Lutheran Chapel—Boulder serves our students by proclaiming the truth of God’s Word and administering His
Sacraments rightly; therefore be it
Resolved, That the Rocky Mountain District board of directors and
praesidium be encouraged to continue to support University Lutheran
Chapel; and be it further
Resolved, That the board of directors and praesidium be encouraged to find ways to encourage and support campus ministries at the
other universities and colleges in our district both through the work
of our congregations that are in close proximity to those places and
through the work of the Rocky Mountain District at large; and be it
finally
Resolved, That the Rocky Mountain District present an overture
to the next convention of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
to include campus ministry as one of the chief mission and ministry
emphases for the next triennium of the Synod.
Rocky Mountain District
1-15

To Commend and Support Campus Ministry
at University of Minnesota
Whereas, Our forebears in the faith built strategically located
chapels to conduct Word and Sacrament ministry at major college
campuses across our country and to promote Lutheran Christian evangelism among students and community members; and
Whereas, Ministries at these chapels are a refuge and a help to
Lutheran and other Christian college students, many of whom are
away from home for the first time, and to others who are brought to
faith in our gracious God in that context; and
Whereas, These ministries serve students from all over the country and from international locations as well, and thus their ministries
are a service to the Synod at large and indeed to the Church as a
whole; and
Whereas, One such active congregation, University Lutheran
Chapel in Minneapolis, MN, serves one of the biggest public universities in the country, provides a vibrant town/gown ministry, has
been the source of dozens of pastoral and diaconal students for service in our Synod, and has provided leadership in theological studies
that have been helpful to many other congregations; and
Whereas, This faithful congregation’s strategically located campus church home was sold by the Minnesota South District’s board
of directors for demolition by a developer who paid $3,250,000 for
it; and
Whereas, The congregation was left without a church building;
and
Whereas, Although the Minnesota South District board of
directors did not provide any funds for the continuation of this congregation, the Minnesota South District in convention granted the
congregation part of the proceeds ($2,000,000) from the final sale
price of $3,250,000; and
Whereas, On-campus property is extremely expensive, but campus ministry effectiveness is immeasurably assisted by the presence
of such a church location; therefore be it
2013 Convention Workbook