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LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2016, Page 115

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

CONVENTION
E S S AY • 4

Rejoice—The Church Is Built on the Rock
by t he R ev. Dr . Berha nu Ofgaa ,Gen era l S ec re ta ry o f th e EEC M Y
66th Regular Convention of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod • July 13, 2016
This is an edited version of the essay given July 13, 2016, at the 66th Regular Convention of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod.

INTRO D UC T I ON AND WO R DS O F GR E E T I N G

I would like to begin with brief words of greetings
from the church I represent and my own personal
salutation. I am a graduate of Concordia Theological
Seminary in Fort Wayne, Ind. I was a rostered pastor
of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS)
before rejoining the Ethiopian Evangelical Church
Mekane Yesus (hereafter referred to as the EECMY), where I hold the position of General Secretary.
(Mekane Yesus means “the dwelling place of Jesus.”)
I served as a missionary-at-large in the Ohio District for more than six years, working among African
immigrants. My working in both the EECMY and
LCMS contexts has contributed toward bridging the
relationship between the two church bodies. Thank
you for offering me the privilege of being at this great
podium and allowing me to deliver this presentation.

made by President Matthew Harrison two years ago
has elevated the level of this partnership. I hereby
would like to convey the congratulatory words of my
church for the election of the president for his third
term and express her best wishes that this term bring
years of great blessing.
As a result of all these developments, the EECMY
has a high regard for the LCMS and her commitment to the Holy Scriptures and her strong Lutheran
identity rooted in the Book of Concord. The great
contributions the LCMS is rendering in supporting
the EECMY seminaries, especially strengthening the
Masters of Arts in Theology (MA) program at the
Mekane Yesus Seminary (MYS) through provision of
faculty members and resources, is so spectacular. At

Before proceeding with my presentation, I would like
to convey greetings from my church. The EECMY has
been in partnership with the LCMS over the last few
decades. This accompaniment, our walking together in
God’s mission, and the partnership we shared during
these years has gradually deepened the relationship
between the two church bodies. The incredible support
the LCMS has rendered to the EECMY has meant a
lot to us, as the LCMS stood by the EECMY when the
EECMY severed her relationships with her former
traditional partners, the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America (ELCA) and the Church of Sweden (CoS),
because of their legalization of same-sex marriage
and female ordination. As the saying goes, “A friend in
need is a friend indeed.” On top of this, the visitation

“Rejoice—The Church Is Built on the Rock”

U P O N T H I S R O C K • Essay

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