CTCR meets under new leadership, approves ‘Mission and Ministry’ document

(LCMS/Erik M. Lunsford)

The LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) met Oct. 3–4 at the LCMS International Center in St. Louis, where it was helmed by a new chair, welcomed a new seminary president, and completed two new assignments.

The Rev. Dr. Brian Saunders, president of the LCMS Iowa District East, took over the chairmanship of the CTCR following the retirement of the Rev. Dr. Lawrence J. Rast Jr. as president of Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne (CTSFW). Rast had served on the CTCR for 18 years, including 14 as chair, before Saunders was elected to succeed him in May 2024. Saunders had served as CTCR vice-chairman since 2019 and as chairman of Floor Committee 6, Theology and Church Relations, for the 2023 Synod convention.

The Rev. Dr. Joel D. Lehenbauer, CTCR executive director, praised both the former and current chairmen. “Throughout my nearly 35 years on the staff of the CTCR,” he said, “I have been blessed and privileged to work with many outstanding chairmen, but it is hard to overstate the value of Dr. Rast’s leadership during his record tenure of 14 years. He has left big shoes to fill, but I am confident that the commission will continue its unified and productive service under the fine leadership of its new chair, Dr. Saunders, with whom I have worked closely in numerous capacities.”

With the retirement of Rast, the Rev. Dr. Jon Bruss replaced him on the CTCR as the recently installed CTSFW president. Bruss, who also serves as associate professor of systematic theology, brings a wealth of theological competence to the CTCR.

“My first CTCR meeting was a great blessing to me, even as I pray that I was able to return the blessing,” Bruss said. “The level of theological discussion, the pastoral concern at every turn, and the zeal for all the teachings of the Scriptures and our Confessions … exhibit the same commitments we have at CTSFW as we continue the shaping of pastors and deaconesses for faithful ministry and diakonia in the LCMS and our mission fields in the 21st century.”

The CTCR’s primary accomplishment at its October meeting came in the form of formally approving a document titled “Mission and Ministry Principles and Practical Observations and Suggestions.” In Res. 1-02A, the 2023 Synod convention charged the CTCR with producing a set of “theological principles that would address the theological and practical issues faced by small congregations and multi-congregational parishes.” These principles were to be shared with the LCMS Office of the President, Council of Presidents (COP) and Pastoral Formation Committee as a starting point for conversations over how the Synod might address its pastor shortage.

The CTCR staff presented an earlier version of the principles at the Feb. 5–8 meeting of the COP. Lehenbauer, along with the Rev. Dr. Richard J. Serina Jr., CTCR associate executive director, spoke on the principles and received feedback from the Synod president and district presidents, and the commission revised the principles accordingly. The document itself is divided into two sections. The first lays out a set of theological principles for Lutheran mission and ministry, while the second provides practical suggestions for how Synod leadership and congregations might work together to meet the growing need for pastoral care in ways that are consistent with those theological principles.

LCMS First Vice-President Rev. Peter Lange, an ex officio member of the CTCR and a member of the COP, has been closely involved with conversations surrounding Res. 1-02A. “Our Synod is firmly committed to what the Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions teach about the church and her ministry … and to meeting the growing needs of our congregations and bringing the saving Gospel of Christ to all. Those two commitments are not at odds with one another,” said Lange.

“These CTCR principles will be a valuable resource for renewed efforts by the COP to address the pressing needs of our congregations and culture in a way that is theologically faithful.”

The CTCR also completed another assignment at its October meeting, this one at the request of LCMS President Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison. In 2021, discussions between the Roman Catholic Church and the International Lutheran Council (ILC), an association of confessional Lutheran churches, resulted in a final report on its first round of conversations, which covered such matters as justification and the Lord’s Supper. The ILC Board of Directors had asked all member churches, including the LCMS, to respond to the contents of that document, and Harrison formally requested that the CTCR do so on behalf of the LCMS.

Read/download “Mission and Ministry Principles.”

Posted Nov. 21, 2024