wfn.org | Lutheran Students Compare Freedom

[Brenda Williams <BRENDAW@elca.org>]

Reply-To: ElcaNews <ELCANEWS@ELCASCO.ELCA.ORG>

ELCA NEWS SERVICE

January 8, 1998

LUTHERAN STUDENTS COMPARE FREEDOM IN FAITH AND
DEMOCRACY
98-01-02-MR

     WASHINGTON, D.C. (ELCA) -- Under the theme
"Free for All: A Capitol
Celebration of Democracy and Grace," Lutheran
students from across the country
met Dec. 31- Jan. 5 in Washington, D.C. for the
75th anniversary gathering of
the Lutheran Student Movement-USA.
     Joel Christenson, 20, Virginia Miliary
Institute, Lexington, was elected
president of LSM-USA for 1998.  Christenson is
pursuing a bachelor's degree in
international studies.  He is a member of St.
Stephen's Lutheran Church,
Stephenson, Mich.
     Through speakers, worship, small group
discussions and faith-oriented
study, about 600 students and Lutheran campus
ministry staff compared the
freedom given by a democracy to the "gift of
freedom won ... by Jesus Christ."
     "The country we live in is a democracy.  It
is our free government which
gives us the right to simply gather together as a
group of Lutheran college
students," said Emily Moyer, 20, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville.  "As
Christians we are also aware of a different sort
of freedom, our freedom given
through Jesus Christ.  Gathered in our nation's
capital, the symbol of our
free country, we celebrate and contemplate God's
grace, which is free for
everybody who wants it," Moyer said.
     "Martin Luther's definition of Christian
freedom has two parts.  The
first part is that the Christian is free lord of
all, subject to none.  A
person is not to be put down by authorities who
say, 'Just do what you are
told and don't ask any questions.'  The second is
that the Christian is the
servant of all, subject to all," said the Rev.
Timothy F. Lull, president of
Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, Berkeley,
Calif.
     "The freedom that we have comes to us as a
gift not just for us, but to
be used for the benefit of others.  If we really
understand the gift we do not
claim it, we do not clasp it or hold onto it, but
we give it away," he said.
Lull was a keynote speaker.
     "The struggle for freedom is not simply about
the political, economical
and social freedoms.  The most intense, the most
basic and the most personal
part of the struggle for freedom is the struggle
of every young person growing
up in this society and every other society, trying
to figure out what is her
or what is his God-given destiny.  What is the
plan, the hope and what is the
gift that God has given to your life?" said Lull.
     "It is a very challenging thing to be a
Christian working in a
democracy," said Dr. John J. Hamre, U.S. Deputy
Secretary of Defense.  "The
role of a Christian working for government ... is
to do justice, to finds ways
for our society to share its abundance and to walk
humbly with our God.  We
have to act in an efficient way to end violence
and hunger, and we have to be
very careful not to use our enormous resources for
cheap reasons," Hamre told
the students.
     "God did not put us on earth simply not to
act.  God put us on this
earth to fix the world.  This is what it means to
be a Christian working in
government and to be a Christian citizen.  There
is only one real sin that a
citizen can commit, and that is not to exercise
the right to vote," Hamre
said.
     "God's grace is free.  You do not have to
work for God's grace.  God's
blessings come through human agents," said the
Rev. Barbara Berry-Bailey,
Trinity Lutheran Church, Philadelphia.  "Democracy
should be free but it is
not.  Each of you has to work so all receive that
type of freedom.  Each of
you are important to the mission of God," she
said.  Berry-Bailey was a
keynote presenter.
     "I came to this conference with serious
questions as to whether
democracy and God's grace are consistent.  I think
some liberal and
conservative church groups cozy up to our
government way too much," said
participant Jeff McCurry, 21, Johns Hopkins
University, Baltimore.
     "The church risks being infected by
capitalism; the biblical witness is
one of giving and community, the capitalistic
witness is one of getting and
individualism.  Christians have a role to play in
democracy in putting forth
to the nation a people constituted by virtues such
as giving, community and
hope," said McCurry.
     LSM-USA celebrated its 75th anniversary at a
banquet held during the
gathering where the establishment of an endowment
for the movement was
announced.  "An investment in the Lutheran Student
Movement is an investment
in the future of the church," said Matthew Mather,
president of LSM.  Mather
is student at Iowa State University, Ames.  The
endowment will provide a
continued base of support for the expansion of a
full-time staff position,
leadership development, scholarships to national
gatherings and increased
autonomy as a movement.
     LSM began in May 1922 when Lutheran
Brotherhood America invited students
from colleges and universities across the county
to attend an organizational
meeting in Toledo, Ohio.  One year later, 74
delegates representing 41
campuses initiated the tradition of an annual
conference.  "The intent was to
get students involved in their faith by starting
student centers at
universities and colleges around the county," said
Mather.
     Students collected $1,813 for V.O.I.C.E.
International (Voluntary
Organizations Initiative in Central and Eastern
Europe/Eurasia), an
information clearinghouse and technical assistance
network to support the
formation and independence of civic organizations
in Central and Eastern
Europe, the Baltics and the former republics of
the Soviet Union.  "V.O.I.C.E.
is LSM's national service project for 1998," said
Heidi Marquez, LSM secretary
for international and multicultural concerns.  "We
will be helping this
organization in its efforts to provide a
Lithuanian community library much
needed information and resources concerning people
with disabilities," said
Marquez.
     LSM-USA is an independent organization of
Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran
Synod students at public, Lutheran and other
private colleges and universities
across the United States.

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Ann Hafften, Director (773) 380-2958 or
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