wfn.org | Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod President A. L. Barry Dies

[franki@elca.org]

LWF General Secretary Noko Sends Condolences

ST. LOUIS, USA/GENEVA, 26 March 2001 (LCMSNews/LWI) - The Rev. Dr. Alvin L.
Barry, who had served since 1992 as president of the Lutheran
Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), died on March 23 following illness.

Barry, 69, was the church body's 11th president. 

Rev. Dr. Ishmael Noko, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation
(LWF), extended sincere sympathy to President Barry's family, the
congregations and members of the LCMS.

Dr. Noko recalled that over the years he and Dr. Barry had occasions to
confer together on issues facing Lutheran churches in the world. "Our
conversations were always forthright even when the issues were difficult. We
tried to keep channels of communication open," the LWF general secretary
noted.

The LCMS' first vice-president, the Rev. Dr. Robert T. Kuhn, 63, will serve
as president until a new leader is installed next September. The new
president will be elected at the synod's 61st Regular Convention, July 14-20
in St. Louis.

Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America said Barry's goal "was to be a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ.
Despite his many administrative responsibilities, he never lost his pastoral
heart," Anderson said. "I extend my sympathy to his family and to his
colleagues."

Barry, who succeeded Dr. Ralph A. Bohlmann as synod president in 1992, was
re-elected twice-in 1995 and 1998.

Born on 4 August 1931, in Woodbine, Iowa, Barry attended Bethany Lutheran
College in Mankato, Minnesota, and Concordia Theological Seminary. He was
ordained in 1956 after finishing his pastoral training through the Wisconsin
Evangelical Lutheran Seminary in Thiensville, Wisconsin. Barry held a Master
of Theology degree from Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota. In 1986 he was
awarded an honorary doctorate by Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne,
Indiana.

Barry is survived by three adult children and two grandchildren. His wife
Jean died in 1996. The funeral service for the LCMS president is set for
March 30.

The LCMS is the second largest Lutheran church body in North America, with
2.6 million baptized members. It is a member of the International Lutheran
Council, but does not belong to the LWF, the National Council of Churches in
the United States or the World Council of Churches.

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now has 131 member
churches in 72 countries representing over 60.2 million of the nearly 64
million Lutherans worldwide. The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches
in areas of common interest such as ecumenical relations, theology,
humanitarian assistance, human rights, communication, and the various
aspects of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the information service of the Lutheran
World Federation (LWF). Unless specifically noted, material presented does
not represent positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various units.
Where the dateline of an article contains the notation (LWI), the material
may be freely reproduced with acknowledgement.]

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