Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 1973 · 50th Convention › Page 350
LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1973, Page 350

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

SPECIAL AND SUNDRY MATTERS 347

15.27 Active Military Personnel

The commission shall —

a. keep an accurate record of all men and women
serving in the various branches of the armed
forces;

b. urge the pastors of the Synod to keep the
commission informed concerning the men and
women of their congregations who enter the armed
forces;

c. provide Christian literature for the men and
women in the armed forces;

d. advise the Synod concerning the operation of
Lutheran service centers;

e. serve as a repository for all records of pastoral
acts performed by chaplains or pastors serving mili-
tary personnel;

f. undertake other responsibilities relating to the
spiritual ministry to service personnel, also to their
dependents, as well as to civilians overseas con-
nected with or at military installations, as the Synod
may direct.

15.29 The Military and Veterans in Hospitals

The commission shall —

a. provide for the spiritual needs of members of
the congregations of the Synod and of others who
desire its service in hospitals maintained by the
armed forces and Veterans Administration;

b. endorse chaplains for Veterans Administra-
tion hospitals;

c. secure the services of civilian pastors to min-
ister in hospitals not served by a chaplain of the
Synod;

d. provide hospital chaplains and pastors with
appropriate literature;

e. review the reports submitted by all hospital
chaplains and pastors.

h. provide financial support for a reasonable
length of time for chaplains who have been hon-
orably discharged from the Armed Forces.

15.27 Active Military Personnel

The commission shall —

a. keep an accurate record of all of Synod’s per-
sonnel serving in the various branches of the
Armed Forces;

b. urge the pastors of the Synod to keep the
commission informed concerning the personnel of
their congregations who enter the Armed Forces;

c. provide Christian literature for personnel in
the Armed Forces and refer them to the nearest
chaplain or pastor and Communion service;

d. advise the Synod concerning the operation of
Lutheran service centers,

e. undertake other responsibilities relating to
the spiritual ministry to service personnel, also to
their dependents, as well as to civilians overseas
connected with or at military installations, as the
Synod may direct.

15.29 The Military and Veterans in Hospitals

The commission shall —

a. provide for the spiritual needs of members
of the congregations of the Synod and of others who
desire its service in hospitals maintained by the
Armed Forces and Veterans Administration;

b. secure the services of civilian pastors to min-
ister in hospitals not served by a chaplain of the
Synod;

c. provide hospital chaplains and pastors with
appropriate devotional literature and materials.

M. S. Ernstmeyer, Executive Secretary

a

11-02

Report of Department of Archives
and History
Concordia Historical Institute

During the V-2 bombings of London in World War II,
Winston Churchill emphasized that a nation consistently
needed to look to its past for strength and inspiration even
though it was engaged in an all-out effort to preserve its
very existence. The psalmist's encouragement to “remember
the days of old” is as important to the Synod during its
125th anniversary observances as Churchill's was during
England’s period of crisis.

In fact, it is during transitional periods that the Synod
must be especially attentive to its past, present, and future.
Anything less than thoughtful, thorough pondering and
planning will lead to chaos. The Institute exists for the very
purpose of preserving the Synod’s past experiences so that
competent planning may be provided for the future.

The founders of the Synod considered archival-historical
work important enough to provide for it at the founding
convention in 1847. Ever since it has remained an integral
part of synodical activities and services. Many have been
the occasions during the past 125 years that the Synod has
found guidance for the future by carefully considering the
work of those who have gone before and the reasons for
their successes or failures.

During the past biennium the Institute has endeavored

faithfully to carry out its synodically assigned purposes,
endeavoring always to apply the principles of wise steward-
ship. Its purposes may be reviewed in the Handbook in
Sections 15.41 to 15.51.

The Institute has cooperated closely with the 125th Anni-
versary Committee and others involved in the preparation
of anniversary resources, filmstrips, and movies. Also in this
way the Institute has endeavored to serve by bringing the
story of God's mercy at work among His people to the
entire Synod.

Collections

The raw materials, the basis of Institute services, include
2,405,000 documents, archives, and manuscripts; 55,950 books,
pamphlets, periodicals, and tracts; more than 120,000 feet
of microfilm; 1,533,600 feet of tape recordings of voices,
music, worship services; 121 motion picture films; 128 sets
of slides and filmstrips; thousands of photographs, pictures,
paintings, and museum artifacts — all giving a multidimen-
sional portrayal of Lutheran history. Together such re-
sources comprise a collection on American Lutheranism un-
matched anywhere. The storehouse of unmined information
for future research is rich and promising.

New resources added during the last 2 years number
more than 75,000, contributed by more than 2,000 donors.
Such donors have enabled the Institute to reach its present
size in spite of limited budgets for new acquisitions.

Some of the most valuable records and resources re-
ceived during the past biennium have come from the follow-
ing agencies: