45930 Divine Call CTCR final - The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

church to do so. As in the case of the Reformers, the historic practices of the
church need not dictate how we today develop appropriate calling procedures
and practices, but they should shape and guide us as we go about
finding appropriate procedures for the divine call in the present and
future.
The Consensus of the Church. In a culture and society that prizes individuality
and autonomy, it becomes increasingly important that congregations
and Districts of the Synod not become a law unto themselves by
acting in isolation and without consideration for their commitments to the
wider church. Congregations and Districts need to guard against doing
what they regard as expedient for their situation without concern for following
through with their commitment to synodically agreed upon practices.
The diversity of call procedures in the present situation is bewildering
to many and in some cases has prompted ethical concerns. When
responses are given to this confusion, and the effort is made to forestall it
further, there is a tendency to assert as “divine” particular procedures that
have always belonged in the realm of polity. And, as attempts are made to
prescribe a particular procedure or to handle a specific situation, there is
an equal and opposite tendency to assert the autonomy of the congregation
and thus to imply that it may do whatever it wants.
Reason and Common Sense. When it becomes necessary to devise
human procedures or policies for administering the divine call, an emphasis
on human reason is appropriate. Human beings utilize all of their creaturely
gifts to analyze, evaluate, and determine the how, the when, and the
whom of the call. One ought not too blithely identify such a process with
the working of the Holy Spirit. Neither should one dismiss its importance.
An appropriate use of ministerial reason is needed to devise policies, procedures,
and rites that can best express and carry out the theology of the
divine call into the pastoral office. Because these are rooted in reason, they
ought to be vigorously debated, thoroughly tested, and critically evaluated.
Administering a Call
Throughout its history the church has consistently derived certain features
of the call process from Scripture and therefore has regarded them as
non-negotiable. These include the following: (1) the preparation of an individual
that certifies him as competent and fit for the office; (2) the selection
of an individual by the church; and (3) the ordination and installation of an
individual into the office (see the section on Lutheran Confessions). The
way in which these three elements are implemented, however, may vary
from time to time and place to place depending on the structures and procedures
established by human beings within the church.
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