By Rev. Dan Selbo
The Theme was, "Here Is My Family"
The 1990 Assembly of the Sierra Pacific Synod was a combination of both a refreshing change from the two previous Assemblies, as well as a disheartening realization that very little has changed in the past year. It may not be obvious how both of these realities can exist at the same time and in the same Assembly, but perhaps a review of some of the highlights will make it more apparent.
The theme of the Assembly was "Here Is My Family," taken from a section in Matthew's gospel where Jesus speaks to a request to allow His mother and His brothers an audience before Jesus. The reply given by our Lord was, "Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother." It was quite apparent that the theme centered upon the first part of Jesus' statement, "Here are my mother and my brothers," with very little attempt to move into the second part which deals with the "how" and the "why" of what identifies us as "family."
The statement given by Jesus was not simply an invitation nor a declaration that all people share in the family of Christ, but rather an opportunity to speak to that which makes us part of God's family. Our family connection comes in the fact that we are about the task of doing the Father's will and not so much that we share a common identity as human beings. The presentations given by Dr. Roland Martinson, Luther-Northwestern Seminary, were both insightful and inspiring. But, again, perhaps it would have been more appropriate to address the "how" and the "why" of what makes us family.
Secondly, there was great encouragement by both the worship life of the Assembly and the vision and guidance offered by Bishop Miller. This year's Assembly worship was not of the agenda-oriented type that had been experienced in years past. With the exception of one obvious error in judgment on the part of the worship committee, that being the inclusion of an offering of tears on behalf of the Gay and Lesbian communities during the closing worship service; the worship offered the opportunity to do just that: worship! It was exciting to see the changes that took place in just one year's time!
It was also good to note some of the words shared by our Bishop which seemed to indicate the he will not allow any agenda other than the Gospel to direct the life of this Synod. His opening "vision" was powerful and prophetic, and his closing sermon was indeed Christ-centered. He also, on several occasions throughout the Assembly, offered strong words of leadership on some very key issues. The flip-side to this was again found in much of the discussion that took place on the Assembly floor. In several cases, the guiding foundation for discussion was not the Scripture nor the Confessions, but rather our experience and the voices of our society.
This was one aspect of the Assembly that did not change from previous years. The Scriptures, although Constitutionally very much in line with our Lutheran tradition, do not seem to be as normative for our practice as many would wish. This may be the greatest weakness within the Sierra Pacific Synod.
Many left the Assembly with mixed feelings and responses often coming from extreme ends of the emotional spectrum. There were undoubtedly many things which would cause one to rejoice within this Assembly, but there were also, in just as obvious a manner, many reasons for concern. The Assembly was a mixed message to the delegates representing many congregations. Perhaps the question needs to be asked as to whether a mixed message is, in essence, one that is very clear?