LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 43

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Commission on Theology and Church Relations (Lay, 6-year term)
Jack D. Kilcrease III (MI)
Brian L. Peterson (SW)
Glenn E. Van Velson (NEB)

365 501
297 426
279

(declared elected)

Concordia Publishing House (Ordained, 6-year term)
Mark Birkholz (NI)
Karl F. Fabrizius (SW)
Travis Scholl (MO)

463 623
210
282 320

(declared elected)

Concordia Publishing House (Commissioned, 6-year term)
Jennifer L. Knox (SW)
Pamela J. Nielsen (MO)
Jonathan Wessler (NE)

243
329 503
365 445

(declared elected)

Concordia Publishing House (Lay, elect 3, 6-year term)
Position 1 of 3:
Kurt A. Battles (MNN)
Scott Diekmann (NOW)
Scott D. W. Gercken (NI)
Elaine Graff (RM)
Jill Johnson (NEB)
Kent M. Warneke (NEB)
Stephen Weller (KS)

182 214 287
146 121
159 145 130
184 205 207
188 266 321
75
22

Position 2 of 3:
Kurt A. Battles (MNN)
Scott Diekmann (NOW)
Scott D. W. Gercken (NI)
Elaine Graff (RM)
Kent M. Warneke (NEB)
Stephen Weller (KS)

466 610
67
100
224 351
94
11

Position 3 of 3:
Scott Diekmann (NOW)
Scott D. W. Gercken (NI)
Elaine Graff (RM)
Kent M. Warneke (NEB)
Stephen Weller (KS)

113
224
508
108
12

367 478
210
375 480 (d.e.)

(declared elected)

(declared elected)

Lutheran Church Extension Fund (Ordained/Commissioned, 3-year
term)
David L. Bahn (TX)
Jason M. Braaten (CI)
Blaise C. Sedney (SE)

235
494
223

(declared elected)

Lutheran Church Extension Fund (Lay, elect 2, 3-year term)
Position 1 of 2:
Julie Johnson (SI)
Jonathan H. Kramer (MO)
Jason A. Paradis (ND)
Jaime Peters (MO)

249 265
350 482
135
232 206

Position 2 of 2:
Julie Johnson (SI)
Jason A. Paradis (ND)
Jaime Peters (MO)

365
288
313

517

(declared elected)

(declared elected)

422

Catechism—Means of Grace
President Harrison introduced the Rev. Dr. Jacob Corzine
to begin catechesis on the basis of the Catechism sections on
Baptism, Absolution, and the Lord’s Supper. He showed
from the words of the Catechism texts how Baptism
includes simple water and more importantly the word and
promise of God; how it is Christ’s Baptism, which makes us
Minutes

children of God; and how Luther ties it (Mark 16:16) up with
faith, forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. Baptism
bestows a faith to be returned to through all of life. This
Baptism saves—this truth stands and comforts against all
doubt. Baptism says, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I
have called you by name. You are mine.” Baptism indicates
you are daily to be put to death in repentance and to rise
again to new life, to be found in absolution, at the cross.
During the presentation, President Harrison relinquished
the chair to Fourth Vice-President Nabil S. Nour and then
resumed it.
Presentation: “Persecuted for Your Faith”
President Harrison welcomed Päivi M. Räsänen, a longtime member of the Finnish parliament, charged criminally
for tweeting a picture of Romans 1:24–27, to ask the Finnish
state church leadership how the church’s doctrine can be
compatible with an ideology that elevates what the Bible
calls sin and shame to a matter of pride. She has for four
years faced criminal “ethnic agitation” charges for this and
for a pamphlet she had written in 2004, which took a stand
on sexuality and marriage from a classical Christian
perspective (Bishop Juhana Pohjola was also prosecuted for
publishing the pamphlet). She faced proceedings that
targeted the core doctrine of Christianity—which the judge
described as “love the sinner, hate the sin”—as “insulting
and defaming” because the identity of a person cannot be
distinguished from his or her action. But this denies that
human dignity comes from God, that God loved all people
that He gave His only Son to die for all of us on account of our
sins. In recent days, “incitement laws” in Finland have gone
even farther. Räsänen spoke of numerous complaints filed
for her speaking at a Lutheran event about Christian values,
abortion, and marriage—and the courage to act contrary to
public opinion and norms and even the law if these
contradict the Word of God. “If you believe,” she quoted
Luther, “you speak. If you speak, you must suffer. For faith,
confession, and cross belong together and are part of a true
Christian.” She thanked those who have prayed for and
supported her defense and, introducing her husband, her
supportive family. She wished the convention “courage and
blessing.”
Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese Bishop Juhana
Pohjola also addressed the convention, noting that when the
2004 pamphlet “Male and Female He Made Them—
Homosexual relationships challenge the Christian concept
of humanity” was published with the support of the
Lutheran Heritage Foundation, no one knew “how fast our
society would change for Christians from neutral to negative
and hostile.” He noted the irony that the pamphlet does not
deny human dignity but grounds it in the image of God—the
basis for equality and inherent dignity. The battle is a
spiritual one, deeper than marriage, getting to what is a
human being and who is God. “Not only every individual
human being, body and soul united, is an image of God but
marriage reflects the equal and complementary loving
union of the Holy Trinity.” The Gospel is at stake. In the face
PROCEEDINGS OF THE 2023 (68TH) LCMS CONVENTION | 43