RESOLUTION 5-07
Report R1.3 (CW, p. 52)
Preamble
The International Lutheran Council (ILC) is a worldwide association of established confessional Lutheran church bodies that proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ on the basis of an unconditional commitment to the Holy Scriptures as the inspired and infallible Word of God and to the Lutheran Confessions contained in the Book of Concord as the true and faithful exposition of the Word of God.
The origins of the ILC can be traced to a meeting of leaders of confessional Lutheran churches in Uelzen, Germany in July 1952. A second meeting was held in 1959 in Oakland, California to discuss the topic “The Fellowship Between our Churches.” This was followed in 1963 by a third meeting in Cambridge, England, where the name “International Lutheran Theological Conference” was chosen for these informal international gatherings. During the next three decades eleven more informal gatherings of the heads of confessional Lutheran churches took place. The ILC as a council of church bodies officially came into existence in 1993 in Antigua, Guatemala with 1 the adoption of a constitution by representatives from Lutheran church bodies from all six continents.
Serving as officers of the ILC are a chairman, a vice chairman, and a secretary. An executive committee made up of the officers and one representative from each of its five world areas (Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North America) is responsible for implementing the objectives of the ILC. An executive secretary, working under the general supervision of the executive committee, is responsible for implementing the objectives of the ILC (see http://ilc-online.org/about-us/). Member church bodies contribute, on an annual basis, financial support (based on their baptized membership and the GNP of the country in which it exists) for the costs of operating the ILC. The council has 35 participating church bodies. Meetings of the ILC take place on the basis of a three year cycle—in year one, regional meetings takes place, in year two the entire council meets in conference, and in year three, a conference of representatives from each of the ILC seminaries is held.
The ILC is proving to be a popular refuge for confessional Lutheran churches worldwide that seek to maintain their biblical and confessional identity, teaching, and practice within the context of a global Lutheran community that has few such forums. In addition to its existing 35 members, more than twenty additional church bodies have emerged in the last few years to express an interest in ILC membership.
WHEREAS, The majority of growing Lutheran churches are found in the ‘Global South,’ e.g. Ethiopia and Madgascar; and the era of ethnocentric and paternalistic missions having passed, the ILC provides great opportunity for mutual encouragement for the sake of the gospel; and
WHEREAS, The ILC is the primary forum for inter-church relations among The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) and her partners; and
WHEREAS, The LCMS, in obedience to God’s Word and the Lutheran Confessions, desires to engage other confessional Lutheran church bodies around the world as an equal partner; and
WHEREAS, The ILC is a growing forum for the equal participation of Lutheran partners around the world; and
WHEREAS, God’s Word would have us “be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1:10); and
WHEREAS, “Unity should be nourished by mutual offices” (Apology of the Augsburg Confession V III); therefore be it
Resolved, That the LCMS give thanks for the many blessings that the ILC is bringing to the confessional Lutheran world for the sake of the gospel and urge the members of the LCMS to support the ILC with their prayers; and be it further
Resolved, That we urge all organs of the Synod, especially the Office of the President and the Commission on Theology and Church Relations, to continue and increase their support of the ILC; and be it finally
Resolved, That we give thanks to God for the anticipated additional growth in the membership of the ILC and urge the Synod and its entities to extend all possible aid and support in order to facilitate the ongoing development of the ILC to meet the opportunities presented by its growing membership for the sake of the gospel throughout the world. [The estimated cost to implement this proposed resolution appears in the Report of the Finance Floor Committee – found in Sunday’s issue of Today’s Business.]