Lutheran Students Compare Freedom

     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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