LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1973, Page 187

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SYNODICAL ADMINISTRATION 187

Thankoffering

To organize the second phase of the anniversary observ-
ance, the executive committee of the 125th anniversary ob-
servance committee successfully sought. and the Board of
Directors of Synod approved, the services of Rickman As-
sociates as consultants to give direction to phase two of the
celebration: The Thankoffering.

On the basis of the studies referred to above and a de-
tailed survey by Rickman Associates as to what might be
the potential of a Thankoffering effort, the Board of Direc-
tors set a broad goal of between $20 and $30 million dollars.

The Synod will remember that synodical resolution in
Milwaukee in 1971 designated that 25° of the Thankoffering
should be retained by the various Districts for promotion of
special ministries or missionary expansion within their own
territories. Recognizing the validity of the absolute mini-
mum requests of the departments and agencies of the Synod
and adding to that the expense of gathering a Thankoffer-
ing and the 25¢. to be retained by the Districts, a minimum
goal of $28 million was established.

Since organization of the Thankoffering procedures is
in progress as this report is being written, we are asking
Rev. Rickman, the financial consultant, to submit a separ-
ate report on the Thankoffering, and he has consented to
do so. Detailed information must. of course, await the con-
vention and will be conveyed orally when the committee
appears before the Synod.

Acknowledgment and Thanks

The 125th anniversary observance committee and staff
acknowledge the excellent cooperation of all of the boards,
commissions, and agencies of the Synod especially at the
time when they were asked to offer suggestions as to their
own respective contributions to the anniversary observance.
They were also very conscientious in stating the amount of
dollars they hoped to receive from the Thankoffering. Nu-
merous meetings took much valuable time, but there was
no complaint.

For all of this the anniversary observance committee and
staff express sincere gratitude.

May the Good Lord continue to grant _a spirit of “Re-
joicing in Mercy” to the members of the Synod for a great
future.

125TH ANNIVERSARY OBSERVANCE COMMITTEE
Oliver R. Harms, Director
Mrs. Ray Hodges. Secretary

4-10B

125th Anniversary Thankoffering
Progress Report

Esteemed brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus our Lord:

Introduction

Reports of this nature are usually written when a pro-
gram has been completed. It. therefore. becomes extremely
frustrating to prepare this report for the CONVENTION WORK-
BooK at the time when the 125th Anniversary Thankoffering
program is just completing the organizational and material
production phase and moving into congregational participa-
tion which ultimately will determine the success of the pro-
gram.

Thus we will need to limit this to a progress report with
an up-date at the 1973 convention and a final report to the
Synod in convention in 1975.

The Synod determined to bring a thankoffering as one
of the means of recognizing the 125th anniversary and to
provide resources for a forward thrust in mission and min-
istry to our world.

Thankoffering Objectives

The Executive Committee set four objectives it felt were
interpretive of Milwaukee resolution (11-03) and worthy
goals to be achieved by the Synod in the thankoffering en-
deavor!

1. By this thankoffering we intend to help one another

rejoice in God's mercy to us in our lives and in the
Synod’s history;

2. Learn more of the Synod’s mission and ministry and
gratefully respond;

3. Discover and develop new resources of support for the
Synod'’s work;

4. Recognize the obligation and privilege of cooperative
effort in the Synod.

In correlation with the thankoffering objectives, the Ex-
ecutive Committee also adopted six major “Guiding Princi-
ples” for the thankoffering program. This progress report
uses that framework to assess and analyze the achievement
to this time.

Guiding Principle I: The need of our Lord’s people to
give thanks —

In all of our planning. communication, and training, we
have attempted to maintain a profile that would evoke a re-
sponse of joyous thanksgiving, as an outgrowth of Gospel
motivation, as each of us remembers what He has done: for
me personally. for my personal family. for my congregational
family. for my District family, for my synodical family in
125 years.

We have found an overwhelming acceptance of this prin-
ciple. This 1s. of course. as it should be. Whether congrega-
tions and individuals will be able to translate the concept
of being thankful into responsive “Gifts of Joy” through the
thankoffering will probably not be revealed until the end
of the effort.

Guiding Principle H: The needs this thankoffering can
fill quite naturally involve sacrificial gifts. It is the means
of undergirding an expansion program for the whole church
— an expansion of concern for people and an expansion of
concern for the work to be accomplished. A resource needed
for effective expansion is, of course, money.

We have attempted to portray needs” as strategic and
welcome opportunities for rethinking our Christian mission
and recommitting our resources in relation to the corporate
“need” of the church.

Every department of our Synod was asked to present
plans for programs that would require beyond-budget fund-
ing if these plans were to be realized. Only after projects
submitted were evaluated and reevaluated were they in-
corporated in the program —— and then in terms of priorities
and with specific dollar costs.

Program and Project Designations

One of the most perceptive decisions made by the com-
mittee, as confirmed by Synodwide acceptance, was to pro-
pose options whereby advance gifts. special gifts, and whole
congregations could identify with one or more of the 115
specific projects or the broad categories of “needs.”

If choices are oversubscribed, the remainder flows into
the general thankoffering. By agreement with the depart-
ments of Synod involved, all programs and projects are clas-
sified: Extremely Urgent: Urgent: Critical; Essential. Use
of these terms is not an exercise in semantics. While these
“needs” are all urgent. there is a difference in these pri-
orities.

Guiding Principle III: We recognized from the beginning
of the effort that while most people have the very nat-
ural tendency to measure the success of any offering by
the number of dollars received, this does not necessarily
measure the depth nor extent of gratitude of individuals
or of a group. Therefore, the thankoffering objectives aim
at more than (nancial results.

The Dollar Goal

The dollar goal of $28,000,000 for the thankoffering was
arrived at by the committee on the basis of a feasibility
study, using factors too intricate for detailing in this report.
Ultimately, the goal was based on the challenging. but surely
realistically attainable potential over a 2-year period. We
hare no reason to change our mind as to the validity of the
process which led to the established goal at this time.

The need to give thanks — the needs to be filled — the
dollars to fill these needs — the strong, capable leadership
on all levels to effectively articulate the need for this pro-
gram to others — were all available. Where these basic pre-
requisites were used in the right “mix,” they provide the
vital ingredients for success.