Christ Is Risen Indeed – Day 3 of the LCMS National Convention
Monday, July 20
Contributed by Pastor Steve Heinsen
Northwest District Secretary
The delegates from the Northwest District, a bit on the bleary-eyed side but pressing forward, began the day at 6:30 a.m. at the hotel with a breakfast of eggs, potatoes, pork chorizo tortillas, fruit and other goodies – and an opportunity to chat together about the day before.
District President Mike Von Behren thanked the delegates for giving of their time and energy. He shared 1 Corinthians 15:19, the verse immediately before the theme verse for this convention. It reads, “If we only have hope for this life, we are of all people most to be pitied.” Our hope is and remains in Jesus, especially when we are in times of challenge.
He shared about the unexpected death of Stephanie Brandt, the wife of Rev. Dr. Phil Brandt, in Portland. She was a nurse for many years who regularly integrated the Gospel into her work. When President Von Behren texted with Phil on the day of Stephanie’s funeral a few days ago, Phil shared the following, referring to both his wife and the work of the church: “Mission is not best done through institutions. It is best done when Christians love with Christ’s love.” This is something Stephanie regularly reflected as she worked with patients in the hospital.
The delegates then heard from representatives from Concordia University-St. Paul. Rev. Dr. Brian Friedrich, the President of the University, spoke of their work to integrate portions of Concordia Portland’s academic offerings when it closed. Originally, they hoped to assume the direction of the school of nursing as well as the law school that was run in Boise, Idaho. The law school collaboration did not materialize; however, they were allowed to assume graduate-level nursing coursework. Rev. Dr. Ryan Peterson, the Vice President of University Advancement at Concordia University-St. Paul, also presented. Concordia University prepares thousands of students in the name of Jesus each year in a Christ-centered Lutheran environment.
Two Northwest District delegates then shared about their experiences being part of a Floor Committee. Rev. Eric Lange, the First Vice President of the Northwest District, is on Floor Committee #9 – Structure and Administration. He said the topic that took a significant portion of their time was bringing the election of the Synodical President back to the delegates at the Convention. As he worked with the Floor Committee, he constantly kept in mind, “How do I represent my Circuit while also voting my conscience?” Mary Schultheis is serving on Floor Committee #7 – University Education. This committee worked with 28 overtures. The restructuring of Concordia University Ann Arbor was a challenging topic for the group.
Next thing we knew, it was time to head the block and a half to the Phoenix Convention Center to begin the morning festivities. The Monday session of the Convention began with Matins led by the Rev. Christopher Esget, the 4th Vice President of the LCMS, East – Southeast Region Vice President.
The Consent Calendar for the day was then shared. Two consent resolutions were moved back to their floor committees for further discussion: Resolution 6-03 – To Give Thanks for the Office of the Holy Ministry and our Synod’s Pastors and Resolution 9-02A – To Amend Bylaws 1.5.1.2-1.5.2 to Clarify Service Expectations and handling of Conflicts of Interest. Resolution 9-01A – To Amend Bylaws 1.5.3.2-4 and Add Bylaw 4.7.6 regarding Regulations for Committees was moved back to the Floor Committee at its request. The following resolutions were adopted as being accepted by consent in the morning session:
Resolutions Adopted By Consent
1-05A – To Prioritize Revitalization Work
1-08A – To Educate Young People
1-13A – To Strengthen the Synod’s Digital Witness and Congregational Connections
1-14 – To Give Thanks for Lutheran Hour Ministries and Encourage Enhanced Collaboration
9-03 – To Amend Bylaws regarding Doctrinal Review
9-04 – To Amend Various Bylaws for Purposes of Clarification or Improvement
9-05 – To Amend Bylaws 3.6.4.3 to Increase the Number of Lutheran Church Extension Fund Directors Elected by the Synod in Convention from Three to Four
9-06 – To Amend Bylaws 3.6.1.8 (c) and 3.6.4 (a) to Clarify that Two-Thirds Approval Requirements for Synodwide Corporate Entity and Lutheran Church Extension Fund Governing Document Amendments are Based on Members Actually Present at Meeting
Greetings were shared from LCEF by President and Chief Executive Officer, Rev. Bart Day. The delegates then dove into a Floor Committee #6 – Pastoral Ministry and Seminaries resolutions presentation. There was extensive debate and discussion on Resolution 6-04A – To Support Residential Master of Divinity and Residential Alternate Route Pastoral Formation for the Sake of the Flock. Two attempts to call the question and require a vote failed, and after around 30 minutes of discussion, the proposed amendment was rejected by a 70 percent margin. In addition, Resolution 6-05A – To Reaffirm the Synod’s Process for Training and Certification of Pastors had some spirited debate. The following resolutions were adopted in the morning session:
Committee #6 – Pastoral Ministry and Seminaries
6-01A – To Uphold A Deep and Broad Study of Holy Scripture and Book of Concord in Synod Seminaries – Voice Vote approval
6-02 – To Encourage Seminary Specialized Witness and Outreach Training – Voice Vote approval
6-03A – To Give Thanks for the Office of the Holy Ministry and our Synod’s Pastors – Voice Vote approval
6-04A – To Support Residential Master of Divinity and Residential Alternate Route Pastoral Formation for the Sake of the Flock
6-05A – To Reaffirm the Synod’s Process for Training and Certification of Pastors
A series of elections for the Synod Secretary and various Synod Board of Directors positions were held. A special recognition was then shared for the LCMS President Emeritus, the Rev. Dr. Gerald Kieschnick. The President of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Rev. Dr. Thomas Egger, presented an essay titled “Christ Changes Everything.” There was a response to this essay provided by the Rev. C. Bryan Wolfmueller.
The delegates then heard a series of resolutions from Floor Committee #4 – Life Together. There was limited debate and discussion on these resolutions. The following were adopted:
Committee #4 – Life Together
4-05 – To Clarify Nomenclature for Chaplaincy and Institutional Care Work and To Amend Related Bylaws
4-04B – To Clarify Oversight and Revitalize Role of Registered Service Organizations
4-07 – To Condemn Political Violence and Encourage Participation in Public Life
4-08A – To Direct the Commission on Theology and Church Relations to Examine Current Political and Social Issues
4-09A – To Address Uses of Artificial Intelligence
After a full morning, it was time for a lunch break. When we returned, Rev. Dr. Terrence Chan, Pastor at All Nations Lutheran Church in San Francisco, California, and leader of the Multi Asian Inter-Ethnic Network, led the assembly in Midday Prayer. Following that, the Committee for Convention Nominations led a series of elections for boards and Synod-wide entities, and a presentation was shared by International Missions with the theme “Planting Churches.”
Floor Committee #6 – Pastoral Ministries and Seminaries returned to the floor to continue work begun in the morning session. Two of the resolutions presented raised considerable debate. Resolution 6-06A – To Affirm and Support Established Parameters of Specific Ministry Pastor Program had previously garnered much discussion and contention in the floor committee hearing on Saturday morning. The resolution presented this afternoon was largely unchanged from the original version.
An amendment was proposed to exclude or remove any age restriction for men who wanted to become part of the training. Currently, the program requires that applicants be at least 40 years old. The committee was asked why this restriction was in place, and it was shared that there was a much higher attrition/dropout rate among those under the age of 40 than those who were older. Several current SMP Pastors who were, and in some cases still are, under the age of 40 spoke against this. They shared that they were pushed, greatly blessed by, and prepared for any major challenges that laid ahead by taking the program at a younger age. One individual shared that he started with the SMP program, then went ahead with the General Pastor certification. Because of the coursework he took, he felt very well prepared for the additional classes. Eventually, the resolution was approved as presented with no amendments.
The second resolution that received considerable debate was Resolution 6-07A – To Encourage and Support Specific Ministry Pastors to Pursue General Pastor Certification. The main question raised was, “Why does it take four years to go through the hybrid Specific Ministry Pastor program followed by an additional three years for the hybrid General Pastor Certification for a total of seven years, but it only takes four years to go through the residential seminary route to ordination?” A variety of explanations was offered. Emphasized was the understanding that the primary route to ordination is the residential seminary route. This resolution was also eventually passed without amendments. The following resolutions were adopted in the afternoon session for Committee #6:
Committee #6 – Pastoral Ministry and Seminaries
6-06A – To Affirm and Support Established Parameters of Specific Ministry Pastor Program
6-07A – To Encourage and Support Specific Ministry Pastors to Pursue General Pastor Certification
6-08 – To Amend Bylaw 2.13.1 to Clarify Terminology for Specific Ministry Pastor Mentorship and Oversight – Voice Vote approval
The next floor committee to take the floor was Floor Committee #9 – Structure and Administration.
The following resolutions were adopted in the afternoon session for Committee #9:
Committee #9 – Structure and Administration
9-02 – To Amend Bylaws 1.5.1.2 – 1.5.2 to Clarify Service Expectations and Handling of Conflicts of Interest
9-08 – To Amend Bylaws to Clarify and Streamline Responsibilities of Appointed Synod Officers – Voice Vote approval
9-09 – To Amend Bylaws to Coordinate Responsibilities of Chief Mission Officer with Other Synod Responsibilities – Voice Vote approval
9-11 – To Amend Bylaw Section 1.5 etc. to Unity in the Bylaws and Revise Corporate Formation Requirements for Instrumental Entities of Corporate Synod and Agencies of the Synod
A presentation was shared by National Missions with the theme “Church Planting.”
The final committee to take the dais this afternoon was Floor Committee #1 – National Witness. They had 20 minutes to present their resolutions. The following resolutions were adopted:
Committee #1 – National Witness
1-07A – To Increase Church Planting at the Parish Level – Voice Vote approval
1-12 – To Support Campus Ministry – Voice Vote approval
1-09A – To Promote Ministry Among Youth and Young Adults – Voice Vote approval
The session concluded with Vespers. Tomorrow, we will have another District Breakfast at the hotel at 6:30 a.m. The convention will resume at 8 a.m.
Please continue to pray for the convention itself and the delegates, that we would all be guided by the Holy Spirit in making decisions that are God-pleasing and that focus us on the mission of connecting people to Jesus.