‘Why we gather’: Floor committees draft resolutions for convention

(From left) The Rev. John Bussman, advisory ordained delegate from the LCMS Southern District, converses with Christian Preus, chairman of the LCMS Board of Directors (BOD), as they exit the LCMS International Center chapel after worship and an address by the Synod president on May 29. Preus is concluding his service on the BOD with this triennium. (LCMS/Erik M. Lunsford)

By Cheryl Magness

More than 150 LCMS (Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod) pastors, commissioned ministers and laypeople from around the country gathered at the LCMS International Center in St. Louis May 29–June 1 to begin their service on floor committees for the 2026 LCMS convention, set for July 18–23 in Phoenix under the theme “Christ Is Risen Indeed.” The floor committees (FC) are charged with working through the submitted overtures and reports in the 2026 Convention Workbook to draft the resolutions that will be considered during the convention.

This year was a brisk one for submission of overtures. There were 464 submissions, amounting to 374 unique overtures, compared to 322 submissions and 279 unique overtures for the 2023 convention. By the time this year’s gathering was over, 106 resolutions (plus three omnibus resolutions) had been crafted, compared to 96 resolutions (and three omnibus resolutions) in 2023.

The full list of resolutions is included in the first issue of Today’s Business, now available for free download. (A printed copy is being mailed to voting delegates; advisory delegates; officers of the Synod; and members of boards, commissions and the LCMS Council of Presidents.) A quick scan of the resolutions reveals calls, among others, to:

Observe the 500th anniversary of Luther’s catechisms in 2029;

Strengthen the Synod’s digital witness and the ability of people to use online tools to find LCMS congregations;

Promote awareness of Christian adoption and fostering needs;

Encourage a response to the addiction crisis;

Establish “Tell the Next Generation” as the next Synod mission and ministry emphasis;

Clarify oversight and revitalize the role of Recognized Service Organizations;

Reinstate the Commission on Worship;

Recognize altar and pulpit fellowship with the Evangelical Lutheran Christian Church of Bolivia and encourage/support altar and pulpit fellowship with Lutheran Mission—Australia;

Reaffirm the sanctity of human life regarding the practice of in vitro fertilization;

Support residential Master of Divinity and Alternate Route pastoral formation;

Embed church work formation and recruitment in the culture of the LCMS;

Affirm that those who preach the Gospel should be able to make their living doing so;

Clarify prior approval protocols for university theological faculties and presidents;

Clarify “Lutheran identity” in connection with the Concordia universities;

Study the corporate status of the Concordia University System;

Give thanks for Concordia University Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor, Mich.; and

Revise the membership of the Pastoral Formation Committee.

The number of floor committees has varied over the years. In 2023, there were 12 floor committees; this year there will be 10: National Witness, International Witness, Mercy, Life Together, Theology and Church Relations, Pastoral Ministry and Seminaries, University Education, Finance, Structure and Administration, and Ecclesiastical Supervision and Dispute Resolution.

An 11th floor committee — Registrations, Credentials and Elections — is not involved in the resolution process but oversees the elections held during the convention.

Erich Keller, a lay delegate from the LCMS Northern Illinois District, served on Floor Committee 7 (University Education). He was also a delegate to the 2023 convention, but this year was his first time to serve on a floor committee. He described the weekend as “a wonderful opportunity to see how the work of the Synod in convention takes shape and to connect with pastors and laypeople from around the Synod. It was remarkable how well the committee members worked together as we reviewed, discussed and synthesized resolutions from the many overtures submitted by districts, congregations and others.”

Keller added that, while he is not looking forward to the extremes of heat (outdoors) and cold (indoors) in Phoenix, he is looking forward to seeing the process play out.

“It is a privilege to witness the debate and deliberation that go into the work of the Synod. Above all, I look forward to worshiping the Lord with thousands of fellow Lutherans, receiving His gifts in Word and Sacrament, and lifting our voices together in joyful and beautiful praise.”

The schedule for the weekend included chair and vice-chair meetings with the Synod president; floor committee secretary training; a report from the Synod president; multiple opportunities for each committee and its subcommittees to meet; and daily worship, including Divine Service with Holy Communion. For Vespers on May 29, a children’s choir composed of singers from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and School in Collinsville, Ill., and St. Paul Lutheran Church in Hamel, Ill., sang under the direction of Zachary Stegman, Good Shepherd’s director of children’s music.

‘Because He is risen’

In his report to those who assembled in St. Louis for the weekend, LCMS President Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison pointed to 1 Corinthians 15, from which the convention theme is drawn, as a guide for all things, including the Synod convention: “It is the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead that makes our labor in the Lord meaningful. … Because He is risen, the Word preached actually creates faith. Because He is risen, the Sacraments truly give what they promise. Because He is risen, this convention’s work, every careful resolution, every patient hour of debate, every collegial conversation across the table, is taken up into His ongoing work for His church and for the world He is still in the business of saving.

“This is why we gather. This is why we labor. The risen Christ is in His Word, the speaking presence around every floor committee table this weekend. He has given us His Word, His Sacraments, His church. He has placed us in this Synod at this moment in history. Our task is not to invent the church’s mission — that has already been given — but to receive it, steward it and pass it on to those who come after us. We do this together. We do it in the joyful confidence that because He lives, we shall live also, and that this labor is laying up treasure that endures.”

In addition to the resolutions, the first issue of Today’s Business includes late reports and overtures; the second part of the Synod president’s report; a tentative convention schedule; times and locations for floor committee open hearings; convention standing rules; and official announcements. There will be six more issues of Today’s Business published during the convention — two on July 19 and one each of the remaining four days of the convention. They will include the schedule for each day, substitute or revised resolutions, wording for proposed amendments, and other official announcements and information. A limited number of additional copies of daily editions will be available for visitors.

Floor committee members are appointed by the LCMS president in consultation with the Council of Presidents and Praesidium (Bylaw 3.1.7). Appointments are made from among the voting delegates, advisory delegates and advisory representatives (Bylaw 3.1.7 [a]).

Learn more about the 2026 LCMS convention at lcms.org/convention/national.

Posted June 19, 2026