Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder?

Well, did it? :-)

Took a long break from the ol' blog. Been quite busy. But hopefully I can post a little more . . .

I'll start with this past weekend. I was in Saint Louis for the pre-Synodical Convention Floor Committee weekend. I was asked to serve on committee #5 - Theology and Church Relations. It was interesting. Theology-wise, there were overtures dealing with creation, cremation, and Scripture, (and probably a few others), and Church Relations-wise, there were overtures dealing with altar and pulpit fellowship with other Lutherans in Belgium, Portugal, Denmark, South Africa, and Sri Lanka. We had one on changing our relationship with Canada, and another on the Lutheran World Federation - the worldwide association of (mostly) liberal Lutheran churches. (I was on the subcommittee on our relations with other church bodies.) I learned a lot - not only about how this whole process works, but also about how complex our relationships with other church bodies around the world can be.

Of the 42-some overtures we were given, we boiled them down to 13 resolutions (if I remember right!) for the convention to consider . . . that is, if there is enough time to get to all 13. Each committee is given an allotment of time on the floor, and depending on how much conversation and debate there is, may not get to them all. So we also had to prioritize them, most important ones first.

Our Floor Committee will also meet the day before the convention begins. First privately, in case anything has come up between now and the convention that may necessitate a new resolution or adjusting one of the ones we drafted this weekend. And then second, there are open hearings the morning of the start of the convention when others can come and speak to each Floor Committee with any concerns they may have. That should be interesting, too!

I got to worship in the International Center Chapel a few times while there - that was nice. Wonderful organists played, and I got to enjoy listening to some sermons. We finished a little early, so I bumped up my flight home and for some reason, they seated me in First Class for my flight from Saint Louis to Philadelphia! That's the first time I've ever gotten to fly that way. Nice. A guy could get used to that.