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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2026, Page 353

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

THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS
Ov. 5-28

To Affirm That God Does Indeed Prohibit Females
from Public Reading of Scriptures, for Reading Is
Preaching/Heralding the Word
Preamble
It cannot be denied that we at Trinity Lutheran Church, Tryon, N.C.,
are concerned that the Synod is drawing ever closer to the edge of
allowing female pastors—if we have not already fallen over and are
hanging on that edge. The Rev. Dr. William Weinrich has provided
the most significant argument against women pastors in his lengthy
article, “It Is Not Given to Women to Teach” (Matthew C. Harrison
and John T. Pless, eds., Women Pastors? The Ordination of Women
in Biblical Lutheran Perspective: A Collection of Essays [St. Louis:
Concordia Publishing House, 2008], 353–88). Our concern goes to
the present practice within the Synod of female readers in the public
service. If the intrinsic work of a pastor is to preach the Word, and
if to read the Scriptures in the public service is to preach or to
herald, as James plainly states in Acts 15:21, it is easy to consider
that de facto we are there already. The following overture
encourages a scripturally mandated reset regarding the Office of the
Ministry before it is too late. For information on the practice of the
Lutheran Reformers, see Gunther Stiller’s Johann Sebastian Bach
and Liturgical Life in Leipzig (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing
House, 1984, 66–74, 121, 136).
WHEREAS, The Synod holds the Bible to be the Word of God,
both incapable of error and free from error, and that as stated in the
Lutheran Confessions, We believe, teach, and confess that the sole
rule and standard according to which all dogmas together with all
teachers should be estimated and judged are the prophetic and
apostolic Scriptures of the Old and of the New Testament alone”
(FC Ep, Summary Content, 1 [Triglotta]); and
WHEREAS, The Synod recognizes that preaching in the services
of the congregation is intrinsic to the Office of the Ministry, and
therefore the Synod recognizes Jesus’ prohibition against females
serving as preachers and does not allow females to preach; and
WHEREAS, By the Holy Spirit, James, the leader of the church in
Jerusalem and brother of our Lord, authoritatively declares in Acts
15:21, “For from ancient generations Moses has had in every city
those [preaching/heralding] him (τοὺς κηρύσσοντας), since he is
read (ἀναγινωσκόμενος) every Sabbath in the synagogues” (author
translation); and
WHEREAS, This public reading of Moses (Genesis to
Deuteronomy) itself entails his being preached/heralded as
recognized and stated plainly by Gerhard Friedrich, “In Acts 15:21
the weekly reading of the OT Law in the synagogue is called a
preaching of Moses” (κηρύσσω, in Theological Dictionary of the
New Testament [Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1964], 3:705); and
WHEREAS, St. Paul refers to his own appointment as a
herald/preacher (κῆρυξ), apostle, and teacher (1 Tim. 2:7), leading
up to his clear exclusion of a female (γυναικὶ) from teaching or
exercising authority over a male (ἀνδρός) in 1 Timothy 2:12, “but
for a female to teach I do not allow, neither to exercise authority
over a male” (author translation) because of the order of creation
and the way in which the female (γυνὴ) was involved in the fall; and
WHEREAS, The source of Synod’s current position that Scripture
does not prohibit women from reading the Scriptures in the church
service goes back to 1989 Resolution 3-14, “To Address

353

Appropriate Roles for Women and Men in Worship” (Proceedings,
118):
WHEREAS, The Gospel images and expectations of women—
particularly those associated with the incarnation, the
resurrection, and the ministry of Jesus—present strong and
persistent recognition of the active and vital roles of service that
women can offer to our Lord and to others; and
WHEREAS, The Commission on Theology and Church
Relations (CTCR) has stated that there are certain distinct
functions which should not ordinarily be carried out by the laity
(who may hold auxiliary offices) but which are to be exercised
by the pastor, including the following:
1. Preaching in the services of the congregation
2. Leading the formal public services of worship
3. The public administration of the sacraments
4. The public administration of the Office of the Keys
(Women in the Church, p. 42); and
WHEREAS, The CTCR has also stated in its report Women in
the Church: “There is no ceremonial law in the New Testament
regarding the reading of Scripture in the context of public
worship. Nor is there explicit apostolic prohibition of such
reading by women. Nevertheless, it is the opinion of the CTCR
that the reading of the Scriptures is most properly the function of
the pastoral office and should therefore not ordinarily be
delegated to a lay person, woman or man,” (Women in the
Church, p. 45); and
WHEREAS, The use of lay assisting ministers, both female and
male, is permitted within the rubrics of Lutheran Worship for the
reading of the lessons, except the Gospel and the leading of the
prayers of the people; therefore be it
Resolved, That the Synod urge and encourage the continued
service of women and men to our Lord and His church in
accordance with His will as set forth in Holy Scripture; and be it
further
Resolved, That the CTCR report Women in the Church and
especially Section III, “Guidelines for Practice,” be commended
for study and guidance; and be it finally
Resolved, That the congregations of the Synod proceed with
care and sensitivity in making decisions permitting the lay
reading of the Scriptures, recognizing decisions in this regard lie
in the area of Christian judgment.
Action: Adopted (15).
and
WHEREAS, The 2005 Commission on Theology and Church
Relations report The Service of Women in Congregational and
Synodical Offices with Guidelines for Congregations, in its section
“Scriptural and Confessional Basis” (20), states:
…
4. Neither the Scriptures nor the Lutheran Confessions provide a
detailed list of the activities required of pastors in the
congregations they “are called to serve.” Intrinsic to this office,
however, are the following functions: “1) preaching in the
services of the congregation; 2) leading the formal public
services of worship; 3) the public administration of the
sacraments; and 4) the public administration of the office of the
keys.”

2026 Convention Workbook