Missouri Synod leaders say worship wars ‘sinful’

ST. LOUIS — The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) has warned congregations that disagreements over worship styles that developed into full-fledged worship wars are “sinful.”

The eight-page “Theses on Worship” was adopted unanimously in September by the denomination’s Council of Presidents, which includes its top officials and leaders of its 35 regional districts.

The document, the result of two years of work, describes worship as a command of God but says the Scriptures and doctrinal statements permit “considerable freedom” in choosing the rites and ceremonies used for worship.

“The polarization that is affecting the church concerning the issue of forms, rites and ceremonies is sinful and hinders the proclamation of the gospel,” it says.

The document will be distributed to pastors and churches with a memo from LCMS President Gerald B. Kieschnick that acknowledges the range of worship practices among the denomination’s congregations that has sometimes led to “disharmony and even polarization.”