LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2013, Page 187

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Theology and Church Relations
Whereas, Community events and citizens that seek to comfort
the victims of great and seemingly senseless loss both expect, and
should demand, the presence of those Christians and shepherds who
can most clearly proclaim the ultimate and only truth and love which
is found in Christ Jesus our Lord; and
Whereas, The Synod, in its 20012001 convention, commended
the jointly produced document by the President of the Synod, Dr.
Alvin Barry, and the CTCR titled “The Lutheran Understanding
of Church Fellowship,” stating “that we commend this study and
response for continued use and guidance to build that unity where it
is still lacking” (2001 Res. 3-07A), which document stated, in part:
“Pastors, teachers, and other officially recognized church workers
are often asked to participate in activities outside of their own and other
LCMS congregations. Some of these are civic events. Offering prayers,
speaking, and reading Scripture at events sponsored by governments,
public schools, and volunteer organizations would be a problem if the
organization in charge restricted a Christian witness. … Without such a
restriction, a Lutheran pastor may for good and valid reason participate
in civic affairs such as an inauguration, graduation, or right-to-life activity. These occasions may provide opportunity to witness to the Gospel.
Pastors may have honest differences of opinion about whether or to
what extent it is appropriate or helpful to participate in these or similar
civic events. In these cases charity must prevail. … There are also “once
in a lifetime” situations. It is virtually impossible to anticipate all such
situations or to establish rules in advance. Specific answers cannot be
given to cover every type of situation pastors and congregations face.
These situations can be evaluated only by a case-by-case basis and may
evoke different responses from different pastors who may be equally
committed to LCMS fellowship principles. The LCMS has always recognized this. …. However, the response to one situation should not establish a precedent for future ones. Where pastors regularly consult each
other and are convinced of one another’s integrity, they are freer to use
their discretion where such prior consultation is impossible. We do not
want to fall into the trap of case law rigidity by setting down rules for
every conceivable situation. At the same time, the exception should not
become the rule, lest the truth of the Gospel be compromised.”
and

Whereas, The Synod at its 2007 convention adopted Res. 3-05,
“To Provide Further Discussion and Guidance on the Matter of Serial
Prayer,” which resolution reads as follows:
Whereas, In 2004 Res. 3-06A, The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod commended for study [and guidance] Guidelines for Participation in Civic Events, a report of the Commission on Theology and
Church Relations (CTCR) “to help pastors, teachers, and church workers make decisions about participation in civic events” (2004 Proceedings, p. 131); and
Whereas, Congregations of the Synod have requested further clarification regarding serial prayer; therefore be it
Resolved, That the Synod in convention assign to the CTCR the task
of providing further guidance for participation in civic events that includes the offering of serial prayer.
and

Whereas, At its Dec. 11–13, 2008, meeting, the CTCR adopted
the following response to this request by the Synod:
The Commission has carefully re-examined the discussion of “‘serial’ or ‘seriatim’ prayers” on pages 19–20 of its report Guidelines for
Participation in Civic Events (April 2004).* Although some “further
clarification” (cf. 2007 Res. 3-05) may be possible in terms of applying
the “conditions” discussed in this section of the report to various events
and situations that have arisen in the past, it is impossible to provide
specific guidance for any and all events that may arise in the future. We
simply cannot anticipate the precise nature, purpose, or context of every
occasion that may arise in the future or set forth specific parameters surrounding participation in these types of events beyond what is already

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stated in the 2004 report. Ultimately, this is a matter that requires the
exercise of pastoral judgment at a particular time and place. When presented with such a situation, a pastor is, of course, urged to consult with
other pastors and advisors for counsel with regard to how to respond to
such requests within his particular context.
Adopted Unanimously by the CTCR
Dec. 13, 2008
(*The text of the CTCR’s discussion of serial prayer in its 2004 report reads as follows: “It should be noted in this connection that all
members of the Commission agree that, understood from a Christian
perspective, prayer is always in some sense ‘an expression of worship.’
The question is whether it is possible under any circumstances for an
LCMS pastor to offer a prayer in a public setting involving a variety of
religious leaders without engaging in ‘joint prayer and worship.’ Some
believe that this is not possible. The majority believes that it may be
possible depending on such factors as how the event is arranged and
understood and how the situation is handled by the pastor in question,
in order to make it clear that ‘joint prayer and worship’ is not being
conducted or condoned.”)

and
Whereas, It is a misconception to assume without proof and false
witness to accuse without fact that the presence and faithful witness
of an LCMS minister of the Gospel, ordained or commissioned, in a
public gathering or public service with ministers or individuals outside of the LCMS gives validity to the message of false teachers and
false gospels or compromises the truth of the Gospel when having
faithfully given witness; and
Whereas, The Constitution of the LCMS clearly states in Art.
VII, “In its relation to its members the Synod is not an ecclesiastical government exercising legislative or coercive powers, and with
respect to the individual congregation’s right of self-government it is
but an advisory body. Accordingly, no resolution of the Synod imposing anything upon the individual congregation is of binding force if it
is not in accordance with the Word of God or if it appears to be inexpedient as far as the condition of a congregation is concerned”; and
Whereas, There has arisen within our denomination a variety of
non-elected, non-synodically designated individuals who seek to exert
undue and inappropriate ecclesiastical discipline and supervision; and
Whereas, They thus undermine the divine call of those members of our Synod who have chosen to participate in public events
after careful theological discernment and prayer, with the support of
their constituency, and with the approval of their properly elected and
called ecclesiastical supervisors; and
Whereas, These individuals have caused tremendous public embarrassment for our Synod, have damaged the trust between
pastoral peers, have violated the law of Christ to “think not more
highly of yourself than of others,” and have hindered, as well, our
primary mission to reach all nations with the saving love of Christ;
therefore be it
Resolved, That the LCMS affirm the Scripture that states, “Christ
has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the
letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life”
(2 Cor. 3:6); and be it further
Resolved, That the pastors of the LCMS, in consultation with
their ecclesiastical supervisors, in the form of their district presidents or their circuit counselors, as may be assigned, be encouraged
to decide how best to respond to requests and opportunities to represent the true Gospel and God’s truth in joint civic and religious
settings; and be it further
Resolved, That the Synod commission the CTCR immediately to
begin a process of review and revision of guidelines for proper participation in civic events that is reflective of our current reality, to be
2013 Convention Workbook