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LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1938, Page 138

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

188 Missions in General

adults baptized and confirmed in 1936 has risen to 12,491. — Let
every congregation commemorate the entrance of our Missouri
Synod into the second century of its existence with renewed in-
terest and consecrated zeal to reach out to the unchurched within
the bounds of its parishes.

5. Mission Opportunities in Adjacent Territories. — In the days
past every pastor and every congregation felt it to be their duty
to watch for an opportune moment to extend the Kingdom into
the near-by community, to open a new mission, and to serve it
until such time as it would be in need of more attention than
could be given by them. In this manner the majority of our
congregations in the large cities came into being. In the past
decade or two this method, however, has seldom been followed.
If today any opportunity for mission expansion is believed to be
there, the Mission Board is asked to take matters in hand. True,
in this day of transportation, of auto and bus facilities, we need
not establish our missions so closely to one another as it was
deemed necessary in the earlier days. But let us ever be mindful
of covering the strategic centers and confidently enter upon the
extension of God’s kingdom if the welfare of precious souls
demands it.

6, Mission Opportunities in the East, the South, the South-
east, the Pacific Coast.— The East, particularly the Atlantic Dis-
trict, with a population of no less than sixteen million, and the
fast developing Southeast and Southern California, together with
numerous centers in the South, Middle West, and Northwest, offer
outstanding mission opportunities. With the help of the Mission
Expansion Fund a number of new fields and also Christian day-
schools were opened during the past triennium. It has been the
policy of the Board of Home Missions to apply our resources
to the best advantage, to grant subsidy to missions which, humanly
speaking, have the best opportunity for future growth and de-
velopment.

7. Organization of a new District in the Southeast. — We be-
lieve the organization of a new District in the interest of the
development of our mission opportunities in the Southeast to be
essential. We are confident that only in this way proper atten-
tion can be given the vast opportunities before us in this territory.
We deeply regret that we have been aroused to see our oppor-
tunity at so late a day. May this venerable body see fit to au-
thorize the organization of the proposed District!

8. Missions in Old Mexico. Years ago we subsidized a mis-
sion in Mexico City. The missionary, however, preached in Ger-
man only. No mission-work was attempted among the natives.