We Value Unity

by Timothy Teuscher

“We value unity in doctrine, proclamation, and Confessions.” That is the third value statement identified by a vast majority of pastors, deacons, and lay people from across our synod as part of the Strategic Framework process that was presented at our recent synodical convention. Yes, ‘unity’—which is, as the dictionary defines it, ‘a condition of harmony, oneness, and common accord.’

Let’s unpack this value statement briefly. First, ‘unity in doctrine and proclamation.’ St. Paul, for instance, says to the church in Corinth: “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10). Or, as he writes in Ephesians: “[I urge you] to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:1, 3-6). And again: “He [Christ] gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors, and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God” (4:11-13).

Our Lutheran Confessions put it this way: “For the true unity of the Church it is enough to agree about the doctrine of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments” (AC VII.2). And further: “For thorough, permanent unity in the Church, it is necessary, above all things, that we have a comprehensive, unanimously approved summary and form of teaching. The common doctrine must be brought together from God’s Word, which the churches of the true Christian religion must confess” (FC SD Summary, Rule, and Norm.1).

This is why the constitution of our synod states: “Lutheran Church–Canada, and every Member of Lutheran Church–Canada accepts without reservation: the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament as the written Word of God and the only rule and norm of faith and of practice; and all the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church as a true and unadulterated statement and exposition of the Word of God.”

This is what the word ‘orthodoxy’ means: ‘right praise’ or ‘right teaching.’ And where does such right teaching or unity in doctrine and proclamation lead or manifest itself? Why, to ‘unity in practice’ – that is, to ‘orthopraxy’ or ‘right practice.’

To be sure, as the Augsburg Confession adds, “It is not necessary that human traditions, that is, rites or ceremonies instituted by men, should be the same everywhere” (AC VII.3). At the same time, however, it goes on to say that “ceremonies and other practices that are profitable for tranquility and good order in the Church ought to be observed” (AC XV.1). This is why our synod’s constitution speaks about such things as the regular call of pastors by congregations; the exclusive use of doctrinally pure agenda, hymn books, and catechisms; and the striving for uniformity in church practice on the part of all our pastors, deacons, and congregations. After all, nothing destroys the unity of the church faster than practices which are contrary to the Scriptures. The apostle Paul deals with this in his letters to the Corinthians, admonishing them about divisions in their midst over practices connected with the Lord’s Supper, worship, and the like; and reminding them of that which ought to be present “in all the churches of the saints” (1 Corinthians 14:33). In order to assist pastors and congregations in this matter of unity in practice, our synod’s website contains the PMC document ‘Guidelines for Congregational and Pastoral Practice.’

The founding father of the Missouri Synod, C.F.W. Walther, sums it up this way: “As every true Evangelical Lutheran local congregation has the same official confessions as the true Evangelical Lutheran Church, it should also diligently seek to be united with the latter in life and with it to speak the same thing, in the same mind and in the same judgment.”

“Holy Father, keep them in Your name, which You have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.... Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth” (John 17:11, 17). So our Lord Jesus prayed for the apostles on the night before He would be crucified for the sins of the world. And He concludes His high-priestly prayer with this petition for us today: “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word, that they may all be one, just as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You have sent Me” (John 17:20-21).

How fitting, proper, necessary, and important it is that “we value unity in doctrine, proclamation, and practice, as expressed in Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.”

Rev. Dr. Timothy Teuscher is President of Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC).