LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1975, Page 164

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164 RESOLUTIONS

through its membership renew a strong encouragement
‘to our government through the appropriate elected and/or
appointed leaders to do its utmost in the humanitarian
task of alleviating and eliminating hunger and starva-
tion wherever possible throughout the world; and be it
finally

Resolved, That the Board of Social Ministry and World
Relief together with the Commission on World Hunger
continue to provide aggressive leadership and direction
in the spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ for this important
and urgent ministry.

Action: Adopted (4).

(But see also Res. 4-15 re Commission on World Hunger.)

To Support Brothers
and Sisters in Namibia

RESOLUTION 8-04
Overture 8-14 (CW, pp. 400—401)

Wuereas, 650,000 of the 750,000 inhabitants of
Namibia are black and suffering severe racial oppression
under the apartheid (segregationist) rule of South Africa;
and

Wuereas, 340,000 of the 650,000 black inhabitants
of Namibia are members of the Ovambokavanga
Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in South-West Africa; and

Wuereas, The selfsame system of apartheid which
oppresses our black Christian sisters and brothers in
South-West Africa (Namibia) continues to cause suffering
among black Christians, many of whom are Lutherans,
in South Africa; therefore be it

Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod support brothers and sisters in Christ in their
struggle for justice and racial equality, remembering
God’s call to us “to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk
humbly with thy God” (Micah 6:8); and be it further

Resolved, That the Anaheim convention send through
the secretary of the Synod our Christian greetings and
concern to the Rev. Leonard Auala, bishop of the
Ovambokavanga Evangelical Lutheran Church, and to
Rev. Johannes de Vries, president of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in South-West Africa; and be it
finally

Resolved, That the synodical Board of Social Ministry
and World Relief disseminate information regarding the
plight of the Namibians and South Africans, along with
suggested action to congregations and Districts.

Action: Adopted as amended (4).
(Amendment: the third whereas and the addition of “and

South Africans” in the final resolved. A motion to strike the
first resolved was declined.)

To Stand with Persecuted Christians
RESOLUTION 8-05

Overture 8-04A, 8-04B, 8-04C (CW, p. 398)
Wuereas, As Christians we are concerned about

injustice and oppression wherever these are to be found;
but toward our fellow Christians we have a special
obligation, particularly where they are experiencing
oppression in severe form; since it is well known that
Christians are being more severely persecuted in ter-
ritories under Communist rule; therefore be it

Resolved, That we solemnly declare our solidarity with
the suffering, bleeding, yet confessing church under
oppression (1 Cor. 12:16); and be it further

Resolved, That we praise -God for the inspiring,
victorious faith and love with which He has blest these
our persecuted brethren; and be it further

Resolved, That we thank our gracious God for having
hitherto preserved our nation and church from the
scourage of terror and persecution; and be it finally

Resolved, That we call on all Christians who enjoy
the privilege of political freedom to be well informed
about the fate of Christians under oppression, to pray
fervently for our persecuted fellow believers and for the
conversion of their tormentors, to support these suffering
Christians by every proper means, and to imitate humbly
their great zeal and self-sacrifice in the service of the
crucified and risen Savior; and be it further

Resolved, That we call on all church leaders to keep
the cause of the oppressed Christians before world
opinion and not by silence to aid and abet their persecu-
tion. We encourage them to use every proper means to
do this: through the United Nations Organization, which
has guaranteed the citizens basic human rights (Articles
18 and 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights),
urging these nations to take all steps possible to secure
compliance with these declarations; through special
national observances, such as Captive Nations Week;
through personal leadership in their own areas to make
people aware of the need for such intercession; and be
it finally

Resolved, That we call on all Christians to pray for
their fellow believers in the-captive nations especially as
a reminder to us of their needs and struggles, the same

struggles with which we identify as fellow members of the
body of Christ (James 5:16).

Action: Adopted (4).

(An amendment to replace “Communist” with a reference to
all oppressive forms of civil government failed.)

To Expand Project Compassion
RESOLUTION 8-06
Report 8-01; Overture 8-13 (CW, pp. 396, 400)

Wuereas, Project Compassion has captured the imag-
ination and attention of people in and outside the Synod;
and

Wuereas, The volunteers of Project Compassion are
active in prisons, nursing homes, mental health institu-
tions, homes for the aging, and general hospitals, and are
being utilized by parishes for friendly visiting to home-
bound elderly, handicapped, and chronically ill in the
communities of which our parishes are a part; and