How does this factor in District budgets? I realize there is no real way to look at each individual congregation's work plan/budget to see how it is spending money on local mission work.
To my understanding, all money directed to international missions must go through OIM. But, there is no such requirement for national mission work, which is often done at the congregational, circuit, and district level for work and funding.
Rather than trying to quantify total spend in each sphere, we are highlighting lost domestic evangelism opportunities and capacity when money, time, and effort are exported abroad at a time of great need on the collapsing home front. Another way to look at this is to invert your question. How much are the foreign missions and church bodies raising for themselves relative to the direct and indirect LCMS subsidies they receive? What is the cumulative total? How do we quantify the time and treasure invested in Ethiopia, only for its Lutherans to remain insistent on being Pentecostals and ordaining women? How do we justify being in fellowship with SELK if we cannot be in fellowship with the Australians? So, it’s about money + entanglements, many of which are impossible to quantify in dollar terms or other hard metrics.
I do not know if you can quantify mission work, either domestic or abroad. Not only is there the difficultly in having a hard metric, everyone and their dog is going to argue over what is and is not mission work. For example, is the congregational school a mission or not? If a school is a mission outside our nation, why would it not be considered a mission at my hometown? So, we have that whole mess as well.
In theory, every Christian is a witness of the Gospel, making them a missionary. We primarily live this out within our vocations. For example, when it comes to my family I have fulfilled the first half of Matthew 28:19 by having my children baptized, and now I am working on the second half by teaching them what it means to be a baptized child/disciple of God (and by having children the Lord has blessed me in fulfilling His command of being fruitful and multiplying). But, also living my vocation as neighbor to those who live close to me, helping out my community, being a good citizen, etc. I do those things as if to God and they are a reflection of God's love.
I am not trying to be adversarial in any of this, by the way. I am the Oklahoma District Evangelism Executive. Depending on how you want to count it, 60-85% of the OK District workplan/budget is going towards missions/evangelism/outreach within the borders of the District. So I am just trying to think through and work through what you wrote. Maybe we need to put those signs back up in all our churches on the inside of the doors so people see them when they are walking out, "YOU ARE NOW ENTERING THE MISSION FIELD!"
As far as Ethiopia, I am completely unfamiliar with it and cannot comment one way or another and so will refrain.
And, as far as the SELK, my understanding was the break happened after our last Synod Convention. If I am wrong on the timeline, I apologize. It takes passage of a resolution to break fellowship. In like manner, it takes a passage of a resolution to recognize fellowship.
We can certainly quantify the dollars sent abroad vs the dollars invested at home. With the LCMS in an attendance death spiral, we cannot avoid re-prioritizing our efforts to the home front lest the people languish for the bread of life. I'm sure the OKD could do with an infusion of cash and talent.
Best wishes for your efforts. May God bless them to bear the fruit he provides.
How does this factor in District budgets? I realize there is no real way to look at each individual congregation's work plan/budget to see how it is spending money on local mission work.
To my understanding, all money directed to international missions must go through OIM. But, there is no such requirement for national mission work, which is often done at the congregational, circuit, and district level for work and funding.
Rather than trying to quantify total spend in each sphere, we are highlighting lost domestic evangelism opportunities and capacity when money, time, and effort are exported abroad at a time of great need on the collapsing home front. Another way to look at this is to invert your question. How much are the foreign missions and church bodies raising for themselves relative to the direct and indirect LCMS subsidies they receive? What is the cumulative total? How do we quantify the time and treasure invested in Ethiopia, only for its Lutherans to remain insistent on being Pentecostals and ordaining women? How do we justify being in fellowship with SELK if we cannot be in fellowship with the Australians? So, it’s about money + entanglements, many of which are impossible to quantify in dollar terms or other hard metrics.
I do not know if you can quantify mission work, either domestic or abroad. Not only is there the difficultly in having a hard metric, everyone and their dog is going to argue over what is and is not mission work. For example, is the congregational school a mission or not? If a school is a mission outside our nation, why would it not be considered a mission at my hometown? So, we have that whole mess as well.
In theory, every Christian is a witness of the Gospel, making them a missionary. We primarily live this out within our vocations. For example, when it comes to my family I have fulfilled the first half of Matthew 28:19 by having my children baptized, and now I am working on the second half by teaching them what it means to be a baptized child/disciple of God (and by having children the Lord has blessed me in fulfilling His command of being fruitful and multiplying). But, also living my vocation as neighbor to those who live close to me, helping out my community, being a good citizen, etc. I do those things as if to God and they are a reflection of God's love.
I am not trying to be adversarial in any of this, by the way. I am the Oklahoma District Evangelism Executive. Depending on how you want to count it, 60-85% of the OK District workplan/budget is going towards missions/evangelism/outreach within the borders of the District. So I am just trying to think through and work through what you wrote. Maybe we need to put those signs back up in all our churches on the inside of the doors so people see them when they are walking out, "YOU ARE NOW ENTERING THE MISSION FIELD!"
As far as Ethiopia, I am completely unfamiliar with it and cannot comment one way or another and so will refrain.
And, as far as the SELK, my understanding was the break happened after our last Synod Convention. If I am wrong on the timeline, I apologize. It takes passage of a resolution to break fellowship. In like manner, it takes a passage of a resolution to recognize fellowship.
We can certainly quantify the dollars sent abroad vs the dollars invested at home. With the LCMS in an attendance death spiral, we cannot avoid re-prioritizing our efforts to the home front lest the people languish for the bread of life. I'm sure the OKD could do with an infusion of cash and talent.
Best wishes for your efforts. May God bless them to bear the fruit he provides.