Title: ELCA Leaders Stress Concordat Clarity ELCA NEWS SERVICE January 8, 1998 CONCORDAT WRITERS SHOULD STRIVE FOR CLARITY, CANDOR 98-01-01-AH CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Church leaders stressed clarity and candor in their advice to the teams charged with drafting a revised proposal for full communion between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and The Episcopal Church. An advisory panel of ELCA pastors and lay people, bishops and scholars met here Dec. 18-19, together with the ELCA and Episcopal writing teams. The Rev. Thomas A. Prinz, Alexandria, Va., said he hopes "we can assist with the clarity needed to give this agreement a second time at bat." In August the ELCA defeated the original "Concordat of Agreement," which sought to establish full communion between the two churches, but rededicated the ELCA to work toward that relationship. The writing team is to rework the document in time for the ELCA's spring synod assemblies. But the discussion showed there is little consensus among factions in the ELCA supporting and opposing certain essential portions of the proposal. The Rev. Joan A. Mau, Washington Island, Wis., said, "No one seemed to agree on what the text of the Concordat meant. To agree on a document we need to know what we're talking about." "Don't dumb it down," urged Terry L. Bowes, Longmont, Colo. "Give it life and meaning -- the way Jesus did in his teaching." Albert Quie, Minnetonka, Minn., said, "Lutheran folks are so divided over the historic episcopate. We need to find a point of unity within the ELCA and provide clarity of language that will lead to trust." Lutherans and Episcopalians agree on the doctrine of "apostolic succession," an ongoing faithful proclamation of Christ; Episcopalians bring the "historic episcopate," an unbroken succession of bishops as a sign of unity back to the earliest days of the Christian church. The Rev. Mary Beth A. Peterson, Omaha, Neb., said the document should "state our missional goals clearly," rather than assume they will be recognized. The Rev. Ronald B. Warren, bishop of the ELCA's Southeastern Synod based in Atlanta, said it should be "a missionary mandate" and added that the eight Episcopal bishops in his area "have the same concern." The Rev. Peter Rogness, bishop of the ELCA's Greater Milwaukee Synod, said, "I hope we can reduce the size of a perceived toggle-switch that makes a loud click with the historic episcopate and a church run by bishops on one hand and a locally-run democratic church on the other." Rogness said, "Both churches acknowledge apostolic succession. Our understandings of oversight and authority are much the same. The proposal's increased emphasis on clergy is not as massive as some in the ELCA think. It does not call for such a big shift, just an affirmation of both traditions." The Rev. Todd W. Nichol of Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn., said, "There is a practical element to the situation. We are quite badly strained, quite deeply divided, perhaps even dangerously so. We Lutherans need to be tending to the unity of our household." Nichol, a professor of church history, is one of three members of the ELCA writing team. "Our task is to achieve a consensus as broad and deep as possible so as many ELCA members as possible can say 'Yes.' Ecumenism begins at home. Our ecumenical efforts need to take account of the fact that the ELCA is a young and tender church, only 10 years old," he said. "We need to practice honesty," Nichol said. He added, "Both churches need to be absolutely clear with each other, so that each fully understands and agrees to the meanings and consequences attached by the other to words and gestures, documents, practices and ritual actions." Prinz said the issue is "not just a matter of Lutheran unity." He said, "It is not primarily an interior issue, but a particular part of the call to unity in Christ. Lutheran unity alone will fall short of the larger goal." Dr. Michael Root urged against "changing the Concordat too much." He said it should be "rational" and stressed the need for "clarity and a mission context." Root, another member of the writing team, teaches at the Institute for Ecumenical Research at Strasbourg, France. Root said the ELCA should "not try so hard for 85 percent of the vote if that means not producing something that will get 75 percent." A decision will require a two-thirds vote at the ELCA's Churchwide Assembly in 1999. Greeting the group the Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the ELCA, said he was "amazed and thrilled that everyone we asked was willing to serve." He said the advisory panel was to "assess concerns, represent various regions of the church and points of view, and help the drafters see both possibilities and how issues rank in importance." The Concordat, he said, is an effort to come to reconciliation of our ministries through the historic episcopate. The drafters must bring to this the Lutheran context in the United States today, he said. The ELCA writing team is made up of Nichol, Root and the Rev. Martin E. Marty, Chicago. Marty, who serves as moderator, called the discussion, "extremely valuable and moving." The ELCA group was joined by the writing team from The Episcopal Church: The Rev. J. Robert Wright, professor of history, General Theological Seminary, New York. the Rt. Rev. C. Christopher Epting, Bishop, Diocese of Iowa, and the Rev. William Norgren, retired ecumenical officer for The Episcopal Church. Epting told the group about his work with Lutherans through Ecumenical Ministries of Iowa: "We are continuing to work together without breaking stride. We are encouraged by the ELCA's vote to move forward." ########## January 8, 1998 LUTHERAN STUDENTS COMPARE FREEDOM IN FAITH AND DEMOCRACY 98-01-02-MR WASHINGTON, D.C. (ELCA) -- Under the theme "Free for All: A Capitol Celebration of Democracy and Grace," Lutheran students from across the country met Dec. 31- Jan. 5 in Washington, D.C. for the 75th anniversary gathering of the Lutheran Student Movement-USA. Joel Christenson, 20, Virginia Miliary Institute, Lexington, was elected president of LSM-USA for 1998. Christenson is pursuing a bachelor's degree in international studies. He is a member of St. Stephen's Lutheran Church, Stephenson, Mich. Through speakers, worship, small group discussions and faith-oriented study, about 600 students and Lutheran campus ministry staff compared the freedom given by a democracy to the "gift of freedom won ... by Jesus Christ." "The country we live in is a democracy. It is our free government which gives us the right to simply gather together as a group of Lutheran college students," said Emily Moyer, 20, University of Virginia, Charlottesville. "As Christians we are also aware of a different sort of freedom, our freedom given through Jesus Christ. Gathered in our nation's capital, the symbol of our free country, we celebrate and contemplate God's grace, which is free for everybody who wants it," Moyer said. "Martin Luther's definition of Christian freedom has two parts. The first part is that the Christian is free lord of all, subject to none. A person is not to be put down by authorities who say, 'Just do what you are told and don't ask any questions.' The second is that the Christian is the servant of all, subject to all," said the Rev. Timothy F. Lull, president of Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley, Calif. "The freedom that we have comes to us as a gift not just for us, but to be used for the benefit of others. If we really understand the gift we do not claim it, we do not clasp it or hold onto it, but we give it away," he said. Lull was a keynote speaker. "The struggle for freedom is not simply about the political, economical and social freedoms. The most intense, the most basic and the most personal part of the struggle for freedom is the struggle of every young person growing up in this society and every other society, trying to figure out what is her or what is his God-given destiny. What is the plan, the hope and what is the gift that God has given to your life?" said Lull. "It is a very challenging thing to be a Christian working in a democracy," said Dr. John J. Hamre, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense. "The role of a Christian working for government ... is to do justice, to finds ways for our society to share its abundance and to walk humbly with our God. We have to act in an efficient way to end violence and hunger, and we have to be very careful not to use our enormous resources for cheap reasons," Hamre told the students. "God did not put us on earth simply not to act. God put us on this earth to fix the world. This is what it means to be a Christian working in government and to be a Christian citizen. There is only one real sin that a citizen can commit, and that is not to exercise the right to vote," Hamre said. "God's grace is free. You do not have to work for God's grace. God's blessings come through human agents," said the Rev. Barbara Berry-Bailey, Trinity Lutheran Church, Philadelphia. "Democracy should be free but it is not. Each of you has to work so all receive that type of freedom. Each of you are important to the mission of God," she said. Berry-Bailey was a keynote presenter. "I came to this conference with serious questions as to whether democracy and God's grace are consistent. I think some liberal and conservative church groups cozy up to our government way too much," said participant Jeff McCurry, 21, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore. "The church risks being infected by capitalism; the biblical witness is one of giving and community, the capitalistic witness is one of getting and individualism. Christians have a role to play in democracy in putting forth to the nation a people constituted by virtues such as giving, community and hope," said McCurry. LSM-USA celebrated its 75th anniversary at a banquet held during the gathering where the establishment of an endowment for the movement was announced. "An investment in the Lutheran Student Movement is an investment in the future of the church," said Matthew Mather, president of LSM. Mather is student at Iowa State University, Ames. The endowment will provide a continued base of support for the expansion of a full-time staff position, leadership development, scholarships to national gatherings and increased autonomy as a movement. LSM began in May 1922 when Lutheran Brotherhood America invited students from colleges and universities across the county to attend an organizational meeting in Toledo, Ohio. One year later, 74 delegates representing 41 campuses initiated the tradition of an annual conference. "The intent was to get students involved in their faith by starting student centers at universities and colleges around the county," said Mather. Students collected $1,813 for V.O.I.C.E. International (Voluntary Organizations Initiative in Central and Eastern Europe/Eurasia), an information clearinghouse and technical assistance network to support the formation and independence of civic organizations in Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltics and the former republics of the Soviet Union. "V.O.I.C.E. is LSM's national service project for 1998," said Heidi Marquez, LSM secretary for international and multicultural concerns. "We will be helping this organization in its efforts to provide a Lithuanian community library much needed information and resources concerning people with disabilities," said Marquez. LSM-USA is an independent organization of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod students at public, Lutheran and other private colleges and universities across the United States. For information contact: Ann Hafften, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask] http://www.elca.org/co/news/current.html