Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 1973 · 50th Convention › Page 147
LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1973, Page 147

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

SEMINARY ISSUES 147

but of men guided and moved by the Spirit of God so that they
wrote God’s inerrant Word. The inerrancy of Scripture pertains
to all of Scripture, not only those portions which deal with ihe-
ological matters but also those portions which touch upon history
or the things of nature.

In fact all of Scripture, at least indirectly, pertains to Chris-
tian doctrine (2 Tim. 3:16; Rom.15:4). This is why the iner-
rancy of Scripture is so important to us in the Missouri Synod:
for Scripture is a unit, one book which points and leads directly
or indirectly, to Jesus Christ.

Christ and Scripture belong together. The Christ we love
and worship is the Christ of Scripture. The Scripture which is
the infallible, God-breathed source of our doctrine is the Scrip-
ture whose center is Christ and through which we come to be-
lieve in Christ (2 Tim. 3:15).

Resolved. That all signers of Faithful To Our Calling,
Faithful To Our Lord. who refuse to accept President Preus’s
scriptural statement on the inerrancy of the Bible, be asked
to resign from Concordia Seminary.

TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH
New Haven, Mo.
Larry Scheer, Secretary

Identical:

3-HI7B

Emmaus Evangelical Lutheran Church, Brooklyn, N. Y.,
Joseph Weber, Secretary

3-118
To Suspend Seminary Professors

Wuereas, Concordia Seminary, St.Louis, has permitted
false teaching at the seminary; and

Wuereas, Such false teaching was substantiated by an
investigation conducted by the President of The Lutheran
Church — Missouri Synod at the official behest of the Synod;
and

Wuereas, Such false teaching was substantiated by Faith-
ful to Our Calling, Faithful to Our Lord, officially published
by the seminary’s faculty; and

Wuereas, Such permissiveness and false teaching is con-
tained in all parts of the document Faithful To Our Calling,
Faithful To Our Lord; be it therefore

Resolved. That all signees of “Affirmations of Faith” in
Part I of Faithful To Our Calling, Faithful To Our Lord,
pp.5—1l1, be declared as unfit and incapable of preparing
pastors for The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod and im-
mediately suspended from any synodical position, especially
that of college or seminary professor: and be it further

Resolved, That in order to save The Lutheran Church —
Missouri Synod from further indifference to true doctrine
and from the continued exposure to such false doctrine as
permitted and taught at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, that
this resolution be put into effect immediately without delay.

Trinity Ey, LUTHERAN CHURCH
Bluffs, Tl.

George Krusa, President

Gary Vortman, Secretary
Donald Kroll, Pastor

3-119

To Remove Those Teaching Contrary
to Scripture, Confessions, and Synod’s
Historic Position

Whereas, It is clearly evident from the Report of the
Synodical President to The Lutheran Church — Missouri
Synod that the majority of the faculty members of Concor-
dia Seminary, St. Louis, are significantly in disagreement on
various points with Synod’s historic positions: and

Wuereas, This has been corroborated in Faithful To Our
Calling. Faithful To Our Lord — An Affirmation in Two
Parts by the faculty of Concordia Seminary; and

Whereas, It is inconceivable that they did not know
Synod's position on the basis of Scripture, the Confessions,
and its own resolutions; and

Whereas, They must have known of objections raised as
to their teachings through the years; and

Wuereas, With full knowledge of the circumstances they,
nevertheless, did not make clear statements in support of
Synod's historic and God-pleasing position; therefore, be it

Resolved. That we ask The Lutheran Church — Missouri
Synod to remove and declare ineligible for further service
in The Lutheran Church — Missouri Synod, without pay, all
professors who teach contrary to Synod's declared position
with regard to the interpretation of Scripture, to the author-
ship of Books, to the truthfulness of Scripture in all its
parts, and to the historicity of the events it relates.

TRINITY LUTHERAN CHURCH
Hobart, Ind.

Chifford Fackler, President
Eugene Weller, Secretary

3-120

To Ask Dissenting Instructors to Remove
Themselves as an Act of Love and Conscience

Whereas, The statements by professors of our St. Louis
seminary Faithful To Our Calling, Faithful To Our Lord,
Part I and Part II, are frank and open; and

WuereEas, Some of the statements are not in agreement
with the doctrinal position of the LCMS and the Lutheran
Confessions; and

Whereas, Those who teach in and for the Synod, and are
teachers of our future clergy, ought to be the first to uphold
and promote enthusiastically the aims and purposes and
doctrinal positions of the Synod; therefore be it

Resolved. That we thank Dr. J. A. O. Preus for his leader-
ship in the St. Louis seminary investigation; and be it fur-
ther

Resolved. That we encourage him to proeeed in an evan-
gelical and firm manner: and be it further

Resolved. That we request those teachers and adminis-
trators who cannot by conviction and conscience enthusiasti-
cally uphold and teach the positions adopted by the Synod
to remove themselves as servants of the Synod as an act
of love for the church, and in keeping with their conscience;
and be it finally

Resolved, That the District Presidents be encouraged to
find other positions of service in the chureh which may be
suitable for the convictions and consciences of those who
in a spirit of fairness and love for the Kingdom resign their
teaching and administrative positions.

ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH
Anaheim, Calif.
Stan Depue, President

3-121

To Reaffirm Confessional Position

Wuereas, The Report of the Synodical President regard-
ing the doctrinal teachings of the faculty of Concordia Sem-
inary. St.Louis, has been issued to the Synod; and

Wuereas, The Report states that a majority of the mem-
bers of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, are in disagreement
with the teachings of Scripture as interpreted by the Lu-
theran Confessions regarding Scripture as the rule and norm
of theology: and

Whereas. Certain signatory professors of the faculty of
Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, through the publication Faith-
ful To Our Calling, Faithful To Our Lord have affirmed their
allegiance to Scripture as the rule and norm of theology;
therefore be it

Resolved. That The Lutheran Church — Missourt Synod
reaffirm its confessional position that Scripture is the rule
and norm of theology; and be it finally

holding positions divergent to that above resolved be dealt
Resolved. That those professors individually accused of