2007 Southeastern Minnesota Synod Assembly
Called Into God's Marvelous Light...To tell the story!
2007 Synod Assembly > Resolutions > 2001-01

Resolution 2007-01:

Youth and Family Ministry Taskforce

Passed

1 WHEREAS, children, youth and
2 family are not just the future of the
3 church but are the church of today
4 and they need support; and

5 WHEREAS, children, youth and
6 family are a vital, integral part of
7 the ministry of the Southeastern
8 Minnesota Synod; and

9 WHEREAS, not all congregations of
10 the Southeastern Minnesota Synod
11 can afford to hire staff to support
12 children, youth and family
13 ministries; and

14 WHEREAS, current staff who work
15 with children, youth and family
16 often find themselves challenged
17 to keep current within their
18 ministry call; and

19 WHEREAS, the Southeastern
20 Minnesota Synod has the highest
21 per capita ratio of youth/family
22 ministers of all the ELCA Synods;
23 and

24 WHEREAS, the Southeastern
25 Minnesota Synod is among the
26 minority of Synods without a staff
27 member specializing in children,
28 youth and family ministries; and

29 WHEREAS, the scriptures support the
30 ministry of children, youth and
31 family in Isaiah 11:6c “and a little
32 child shall lead them”; and

33 WHEREAS, the prophet Jeremiah
34 began his ministry as a young boy
35 in Jeremiah 1:6-8; “Ah, Lord God!
36 Truly I do not know how to speak,
37 for I am only a boy.” But the Lord
38 said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only
39 a boy; for you shall go to all to
40 whom I send you, and you shall
41 speak whatever I command you.
42 Do not be afraid of them, for I am
43 with you to deliver you, says the
44 Lord.”; and

45 WHEREAS, Jesus supports this
46 ministry when he says in Mark
47 10:14 “Let the little children come
48 to me; do not stop them; for it is to
49 such as these that the kingdom of
50 God belongs.”

51 THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED,
52 that the Southeastern Minnesota
53 Synod Executive Committee and
54 Bishop’s office form a Children,
55 Youth and Family taskforce to
56 develop a vision for Children,
57 Youth and Family ministry for
58 Southeastern Minnesota Synod;
59 and

60 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that
61 the taskforce develop a strategy for
62 CYF within the Southeastern
63 Minnesota Synod; and

64 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that
65 this taskforce bring to the 2008
66 Southeastern Minnesota Assembly
67 the results of this exploration and
68 its recommendation.

Submitted by the Root River Conference of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod, author Rev. Lane Zaffke

Continue to Resolution 2007-02

Return to 2007 Resolution List