The LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) has published Unity in Doctrine, Uniformity and Variety in Practice: A Study Document to assist the Synod during times when there is disagreement over matters of church practice.
The report is the CTCR’s answer to The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod’s 2019 Convention Resolution 5-11, which asked the Commission to study “the relationship between unity in doctrine and uniformity and variety in practice” and produce a document “designed for congregational use, discussion, and guidance.”
In this document, the CTCR examines the objectives of the Synod — in particular LCMS Constitution Article III 7 — and presents six case studies from times when the church has wrestled with conflict to demonstrate how it has historically handled these situations. The case studies span the life of the church: two from the Early Church, two from the Reformation and two from the history of the Missouri Synod.
“By putting forward these case studies, the Commission neither endorses the outcomes nor offers its opinion on the issues,” the Commission writes in the preface. “It rather believes that these historical examples model how the church can discuss disagreements over matters of practice without threatening the unity it has doctrinally.”