Comments on: Is it a Sin that there is no Japanese-American LCMS Caucus? http://yamabe.net/2010/02/19/is-it-a-sin-that-there-is-no-japanese-american-lcms-caucus/ Life Under the Cross Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:10:30 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=5688 By: Harry Juech http://yamabe.net/2010/02/19/is-it-a-sin-that-there-is-no-japanese-american-lcms-caucus/comment-page-1/#comment-12151 Harry Juech Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:52:42 +0000 http://yamabe.net/?p=309#comment-12151 Our congregation after 80years of existence is dealing with and dying with the concerns of diversity. A once thriving congregation with a Lutheran Grade School, was one of many who supported secondary Christian education in our Lutheran High Schools. As time went on and the community became more diverse, the membership declined and the age of the congregants meant less children, the Academia decided that a new concept had to be adopted. First, a new Hymal. "This Far by Faith", with a prayer for "A Mother with a son on drugs", a Wedding Liturgy, "Jumping the Broom", Then came "School Choice". whereby a school could get tax dollars by enrolling minority students regardless of their religious background. Now 13 years later, we have gone from 3000 members to 300, we have 56 giving units supporting the budget, yet we get $6400.00 for every student in the school. That is a million dollars, and that can only be used for salaries and supplies. End result, a school with 244 kids, mostly minority, with backgrounds in the COGIC and Baptist, and little chance of becoming Lutheran. Our High Schools are dying in this economy, because the feeder schools are dysfunctional or out of business. Our congregation after 80years of existence is dealing with and dying with the concerns of diversity. A once thriving congregation with a Lutheran Grade School, was one of many who supported secondary Christian education in our Lutheran High Schools. As time went on and the community became more diverse, the membership declined and the age of the congregants meant less children, the Academia decided that a new concept had to be adopted. First, a new Hymal. “This Far by Faith”, with a prayer for “A Mother with a son on drugs”, a Wedding Liturgy, “Jumping the Broom”, Then came “School Choice”. whereby a school could get tax dollars by enrolling minority students regardless of their religious background. Now 13 years later, we have gone from 3000 members to 300, we have 56 giving units supporting the budget, yet we get $6400.00 for every student in the school. That is a million dollars, and that can only be used for salaries and supplies. End result, a school with 244 kids, mostly minority, with backgrounds in the COGIC and Baptist, and little chance of becoming Lutheran. Our High Schools are dying in this economy, because the feeder schools are dysfunctional or out of business.

]]> By: Norm Fisher http://yamabe.net/2010/02/19/is-it-a-sin-that-there-is-no-japanese-american-lcms-caucus/comment-page-1/#comment-12149 Norm Fisher Fri, 19 Feb 2010 11:32:31 +0000 http://yamabe.net/?p=309#comment-12149 Excellent post! What I find obnoxious about the news release is that someone asked a group of 100 "non-white" how many were delegates to the 2010 convention. Only one person stood up, and the presenter said something like "This is proof that non-whites do not have a voice in the church". This is not a valid statistical method of checking this -- if I ask a random group of LCMS church members I may get the same results -- 1 or 2 at the most. The real method is to look at the delegates and find out how many there are, then compare that to the proportion of that grouping who are LCMS church members. Of course, as you point out, the LCMS needs to put doctrine first and not try to give each particular minority a voice! Excellent post!

What I find obnoxious about the news release is that someone asked a group of 100 “non-white” how many were delegates to the 2010 convention. Only one person stood up, and the presenter said something like “This is proof that non-whites do not have a voice in the church”.

This is not a valid statistical method of checking this — if I ask a random group of LCMS church members I may get the same results — 1 or 2 at the most. The real method is to look at the delegates and find out how many there are, then compare that to the proportion of that grouping who are LCMS church members.

Of course, as you point out, the LCMS needs to put doctrine first and not try to give each particular minority a voice!

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