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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2026, Page 59

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
the landscape dramatically. After outside consultation and internal
discussion, a new report was drafted to address those developments
from several vantage points: theological foundations for the sanctity of human life, medical-ethical considerations related to end-oflife care and decision-making, and the distinctively Lutheran approach to pastoral care and personal reflection at life’s end. It also
includes extensive chronological and bibliographical resources as
appendixes. The commission unanimously approved the report at
its February 2023 meeting. Though this report was approved during
the previous triennium and reported in the 2023 Workbook, it is
included again in this triennium’s report and printed in the 2026
Workbook appendix.

2. Responses to Overtures
2023 Omnibus Resolution A included 12 overtures for referral
to the CTCR (and in some cases also to other entities; see 2023
Convention Proceedings, 235–37). At its December 2023 meeting,
the commission approved responses to those who had submitted
these overtures, indicating various ways that their concerns were
being or would be addressed. In numerous cases, the concerns of
those overtures were taken up in current assignments.

3. Response to Wyoming District Request regarding
Immortality of the Soul (2021 Wyoming District Res.
1-01)
In July 2021, the Wyoming District communicated its Res. 1-01,
which requested clarity concerning the Synod’s position on the immortality of the soul. The commission unanimously approved a
response at its February 2024 meeting. The commission detailed
the position of its 1969 report and affirmed the teaching on the immortality of the soul expressed by the 1973 convention (1973 Res.
2-03) in commending that report. The response is included in the
Workbook appendix.

4. Mission and Ministry Principles and Practical
Observations and Suggestions (2023 Res. 1-02A/2023 Res.
5-12)
2023 Res. 1-02A asked the CTCR to produce a brief document
on mission and ministry principles to be disseminated to the COP,
Office of the President, and Pastoral Formation Committee for their
use in aiding small congregations and multi-congregation pastors
and parishes. The CTCR produced a set of theological principles
outlining the basic biblical and confessional parameters of the
church and its ministry, as well as a set of accompanying practical observations and suggestions for how, within those parameters,
the Synod might faithfully and realistically address its shortage of
pastors and provide for congregations who are unable to obtain a
regularly called pastor. The CTCR approved this document at its
February 2024 meeting, shared it with the above-named entities at
the February 2024 COP meeting for consideration and feedback,
and then revised it in accordance with that feedback. The document
was finalized at the CTCR’s October 2024 meeting. It is included
in the Workbook appendix.
In addition, 2023 Res. 5-12 asked the CTCR to produce a report
on “the present challenges to Christianity in the North American
context to equip pastors and congregations for faithful ministry and
outreach in a post-Christian world.” However, this assignment is so
closely related to the Mission and Ministry Principles and Practical
Observations and Suggestions, which arises from the same convention via 2023 Res. 1-02A, that the commission believes it has already
adequately addressed the concerns of 5-12 in its response to 1-02A.

5. Response to the 2021 Final Report of the Theological
Conversations between the ILC and the Roman Catholic
Church
The President of the Synod officially requested that the CTCR
respond to the Final Report of the theological conversations between the International Lutheran Council (ILC) and the Roman
Catholic Church’s Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian
Unity. The CTCR drafted a response that assessed the arguments of
the Final Report, noted which important issues remain and which
should be further addressed, and commended the continuation of
these discussions. At its October 2024 meeting, the CTCR unanimously approved the document and subsequently shared the draft
with the President of the Synod, the chairman of the ILC, and other
members of the ILC conversation team. The response is included in
the Workbook appendix.

6. Response to the Lutheran Church of Australia’s Way
Forward Proposal
The President of the Synod officially requested that the CTCR
evaluate the Lutheran Church of Australia (LCA) Way Forward
proposal to approve a path for women’s ordination, which was adopted by the LCA at its assembly in October 2024 and allowed for
two different practices within the church. At its December 2024
meeting, the CTCR unanimously approved a critique of the LCA
proposal and has since submitted it to the President’s office for
consideration and dissemination. The response is included in the
Workbook appendix.

7. Use of Online Technology in the Church: Study
Document (2023 Res. 5-13A)
2023 Res. 5-13A directed the CTCR, in conjunction with the
COP and the Office of the President of the Synod, to produce a
joint document considering the various uses of online technology
in the church. After consulting with representatives of both the COP
and the Office of the President, it was decided the CTCR would
provide a study document on the uses of online technology in the
church that would then be shared with the above-named entities,
who would disseminate it throughout the Synod. The document
evaluates five practical applications of online technology: livestreamed services, virtual multipoint parishes, online reproof and
church discipline, online membership, and artificial intelligence–
generated sermons. It was unanimously adopted by the CTCR at
its December 2024 meeting and conveyed to the COP and Office
of the President for distribution, study, and conversation. The study
document is included in the Workbook appendix.

8. A Theology and Philosophy of Lutheran Education
(2023 Res. 5-10)
2023 Res. 5-10 asked the CTCR to develop “principles of education rooted in Lutheran doctrine,” in consultation with representatives of the Concordia University System and its universities and
Synod educational executives, among others, to be shared with Lutheran educators from kindergarten through higher education. The
CTCR drafted a report that asserted the authority of Scripture in all
matters of faith and life, including education, as well as addressing
perennial questions in Lutheran education according to the three
creedal articles of creation, redemption, and sanctification. The
CTCR approved a draft of this report at its May 2025 meeting. The
report was distributed to all ministers of religion—commissioned
and ordained—by Concordia Publishing House. It is included in
the Workbook appendix.
2026 Convention Workbook