Friday, December 16, 2011

A Sad Gift Left for St. Nicholas' Day

On December 6, the Board of Directors published the minutes from the special meeting it held with President Harrison of the LCMS and President Fondow of Minnesota North.  The minutes are noted for two reasons.  First, they say nothing of the BOD of MNS -- every word that was expressed by the BOD was in closed, executive session and is known only to those who were there.  Second, these minutes appear to have so mischaracterized the comments of the President of the Synod, that on December 3, Pr. Harrison seemed compelled to ask to have a statement added to the minutes as an appendix.  Is there no shame or embarrassment or public statement by those on the BOD?  I mean, really! Read for yourself the shell of words that represents the official record. 

Yes, the sale is a done deal.  Would it have been so hard for the BOD to simply acknowledge and confess that they would have done some things differently if they had to do all over again -- even if the outcome was the same?  Would it have been so hard for the BOD to indicate that they did not just listen to the President of Synod but they heard what he had to say and appreciated his candor and his integrity in approaching them directly?  Would it have been so hard for the BOD to say something heartfelt and sympathetic to the good people and Pr. Kind of ULC about the consequences of their actions to this congregation and its vibrant campus ministry?

Merry Christmas ULC..... I hope that this thing will not just go away and the good people of MNS will remember the lack of transparency, the haste, and the arbitrary nature of the BOD actions in this matter.  It is not just what we do that counts, but how we do it.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

One of the reasons for much of the
disharmony in the LCMS is the fact
that people don't mind their own
business. We don't need any Monday
morning quarterbacks from Clarksville
trying to interpret the decisions
made in Minneapolis. Each parish and
district needs to operate without
interference from the outside.

Terry Maher said...

Bull. One of the reasons we do not "walk to-gether" is we do not walk to-gether. We are not with the path, as the Greek means, but on several different paths. We are not concordia, with the heart (singular), but with several hearts.

Here is the post where I have not one word to say criticising what Pastor has written.

And here also is something to make me glad that during the time I lived in Minnesota I was RC.

Anonymous said...

Each parish and
district needs to operate without
interference from the outside.

And we sure do that well, don't we.

Not even sure why we call our local churches parishes -- ultracongregationalism is alive and well in the LCMS.

Sage said...

Anonymous uses a certain level of passive-aggressive snipe shooting from the shadows. How brotherly is that?

As far as comments, last time I checked, we are the body of Christ, not an arbitrary dvision of districts. Has the MN BOD suddenly exited the body through the alimentary canal? Ohhhh, bad metaphor. Sorry. Maybe.//sarcasm off

Anything posted/published is for public record and most people with a modicum of understanding can read what it plainly says or doesn't say and what is left between the lines. Obfuscation of intent and content by veiling 90% of the proceedings by "executive session" is a poor excuse for reporting.

If I submitted minutes like that for official review they'd be rejected by the participants for lack of content (among other things.)

Bottom line, it is in the public record for public comment. Fair game for unraveling a most distasteful situation that is compounded by a lack of transparency by the BOD.

It shows a tremendous lack of respect and consideration of not only a solid congregation, but of the body at large who witness this lack of compassion and ask themselves how the commands our Lord would apply to this.

This situation is a perfect example of corporate greed rather than Christian love. THAT is what is unsettling to the LCMS, rather than pointing out the Emperor has no clothes.

snark away!

James said...

Anonymous #1,

I strongly disagree with your comment. But unfortunately I think you characterize the LCMS quite well.

I live in Pastor Peters district. I sense a clear lack of unity among the LCMS churches in my neck of the woods. Sad. I am coming to the realization that the LCMS is much like the Southern Baptist Convention - a very loose affiliation of churches. Individual church autonomy seems to be the norm. Sacrificing one churches individual desires for the "unity of the whole" just doesn't happen. It seems this MN incident is indicative of many other locals in the LCMS. Again, sad.

Caleb said...

If each parish was actually left up to it's own way, then University Chapel wouldn't be homeless because the district wouldn't interfere in church matters. Anonymous want's it both ways and CAN'T have it. So either let the parishes be or be willing to have conversations about how we should walk together. Choose!

Anonymous said...

If the people in the Minnesota South
District want a change in leadership,
then this year's District Convention
is their chance.

The current District President is
retiring and board members will up
for election. The Good News is that
only the members of the Minn. South
District can vote. People in other
Districts can complain, but not vote.

Anonymous said...

Bad deal. The ULC should have seen this coming. Being a renter is never good. The way this church was treated by the leadership is bad. It's just another sign of dysfunction in the LCMS, symptomatic of lack of Confessional unity. The beat goes on...