Delegate Newsletter -- No. 13

The Difference Between the One List and the United List

For many years LCMS convention delegates have used “official” and “unofficial” lists as voting guides during the election of officers and committee members. A few days ago you received the One List from Jesus First. By now you should also have received The United List. The letter that accompanies The United List states, “The United List is comprised of lay and pastoral representatives from Balance-Concord, LCA, Consensus, CAT41 and other major organizations in the Synod who are concerned about keeping the LCMS rooted in its Biblical confession and faithful in Christ's mission.”

There are major differences between the two lists. Within these differences you can find the major difference between Jesus First and all other groups. Jesus First has clearly stated the goal of electing leaders who are Gospel-Centered, Mission-Driven, and Future-Oriented. In order to accomplish this goal, Jesus First encouraged congregations to nominate Jerry Kieschnick, Bill Diekelmann, Vern Gundermann, Victor Belton, David Buegler, Paul Maier, Dean Nadasdy, and Tom Zehnder as candidates for the positions of President and Synod Vice Presidents 1-5. We thank God for the wonderful support these men received from our congregations!

In order to accomplish the goal of electing leaders for all other positions, Jesus First submitted nominees to the LCMS Nominating Committee for every other position that will be elected at the Convention. Some of the people Jesus First  suggested to the Nominating Committee became official nominees for the official ballot in the Handbook. Many of the people Jesus First suggested were NOT included as official nominees. That is the process of the LCMS and Jesus First supports that process.

District Conventions elected 17 people (clergy and lay) from 17 different districts to serve on the Nominating Committee. This allows for fair and balanced representation. The Nominating Committee spent many hours researching and checking into the background of the people who were suggested from individuals and congregations. Over 1,000 names were suggested for the elections in St. Louis, but only the best candidates are selected as final candidates. You will notice that ALL of the people listed on The One List are official nominees from the LCMS Nominating Committee. You will hear from that Committee in convention, and I ask that you pay attention to all of the information they give about the process of creating a slate for election. They have done a fair and God pleasing job.

In contrast, The United List claims the Nominating Committee was biased. Their cover letter states, “We regret the fact that the Synod’s Nominating Committee has provided a slate tilted against confessional candidates…” It is truly disappointing and wrong that in the LCMS all of these political groups have joined together in an effort to convince delegates that there is a conspiracy!! How can they disparage the work of 17 independent workers from across the LCMS? According to the United List, the Nominating Committee did not do a good job, because they are biased against confessional candidates.

An analysis of The United List reveals that of the 37 elected positions, (excluding President and VP which were nominated by congregations) the United List is supporting 24 people who are not on the official ballot! As one example, The United List cannot find even one pastor on the official ballot who can be supported for the Board of Directors! It is clear from this analysis that The United List has no desire to work within the system established by the LCMS. It is a list from people who want things their own way. These people want to flood the convention with floor nominations and expect delegates to make an informed decision with limited time to look at the biographical information of these 24 “unofficial” candidates.

In contrast, it would have been easy for Jesus First to do the same thing, but we support the election process of the LCMS. We could have easily put out a list filled with people who have signed our affirmations and those who regularly contribute to the work of Jesus First. However to do so, we would have negated the work of the Nominating Committee and the process of the LCMS. Jesus First supports the Synod. We are NOT trying to negate the work of the Synod!

When it comes time to vote, Jesus First encourages you to vote your conscience. Study the biographical information and the statements of nominees found in your supplement to the Handbook. Then support those people who are part of the process and who can best support the vision of President Kieschnick – One Mission, One Message, One People.

 

Rev. Jon Coyne is pastor of Bethany Lutheran Church, Menlo Park, CA

 

We have been informed that there is an error in our mailing entitled, The LCMS Leadership Debacle. In that newsletter, we stated that First Vice-President Daniel Preus, “without consulting President Kieschnick, voiced the public opinion on synodically-sponsored radio station KFUO) that the prayer at Yankee Stadium was wrong.” This statement was not made on KFUO, but was written in a public letter to Pastor Steven Flo and subsequently was posted on a website run by Rev. Jack Cascione. We regret this error and apologize to Pastor Preus and all of our readers for the misstatement of facts. However, we stand by the fact that First Vice-President Preus was not supporting the office of the President when he spoke, knowing that his ecclesiastical supervisor, President Kieschnick had made the opposite decision.