Polarization in the LCMS dated back at least to the Seminex controversy in the early 1970s that centered on the faculty of Concordia Seminary, St.

Daniel Preus and others argued that Benke, by participating alongside non-Lutheran clergy and leaders of non-Christian faiths, had engaged in practices that the synod condemns as "unionism" and "syncretism", respectively.

Without such a restriction, a Lutheran pastor may for valid and good reason participate in civic affairs such as an inauguration, a graduation, or a right-to-life activity.

Pastors may have honest differences of opinion about whether or to what extent it is appropriate or helpful to participate in these or similar civic events.

"[9] Two LCMS ministers sought to bring charges against Kieschnick that, if upheld, would have led to his removal from the clergy roster of the synod.

[12] For several years, the Benke controversy left some LCMS members speaking of a "crisis in the Synod" and warning openly of the possibilities for a schism.

Mark Weinrich, senior director for LCMS World Mission Support, said that the plan, subsequently titled "Ablaze!

"President Kieschnick set the vision in his acceptance speech because he talked about shaking the earth with the Gospel," Weinrich said.

[16] The fund-raising effort, subsequently titled "Fan Into Flame," was reported to have raised $58,900,172 as of July 1, 2010 [17] with additional $40 million in major gift requests pending at the time of the 2010 synod convention.

[20] A final report on the outcomes and costs of the "Fan Into Flame" fundraising campaign was published in the 2013 Convention Workbook[21] distributed to the Synod's member congregations and delegates prior to that convention, with a shorter summary final campaign report made available to LCMS member congregations in April of 2012.

[21] Among the campaign's successes was the rejuvenation of financial support for LCMS missionaries by testing and adopting a network-based direct funding model widely used among non-Lutheran evangelical Christian bodies and groups.

Your recommended improvements should suggest a form of structure and governance for the decades ahead that is appropriately representative, incorporating sufficient checks and balances of authority without being cumbersome, clumsy, or excessively complex.

It should facilitate maximum operating efficiency in behalf of and in support of members of our Synod in accomplishing the mission of our Lord and HIs church.

At the end of 2007, Kieschnick discussed the task force's work in "President's Leadership News," distributed as a supplement to the synod's Reporter newspaper.

He added that its work is about "doing everything humanly possible to ensure for the Synod a viable future so that it can continue to carry out this mission for years to come.

When the report was written, the structure included seven program boards and six commissions, most with staff, that carried out functions outlined in the synod's bylaws.

The task force said that while the boards and commissions are accountable to the synod convention, they operate independently of each other "to some extent as a series of silos".

The task force wrote that this structure lacks accountability to the needs of congregations, is inefficient and expensive, and creates complications in business oversight and legal compliance.

'”[27] In a pre-convention issue of the Reporter, nominees for president responded to a question about their support for the task force's recommendations.

Kieschnick wrote, "For more than four years task force members have addressed challenges in our Synod—unnecessary bureaucracy, lack of coordination, ambiguous supervisory relationships, inequitable representation, inefficient organization, insufficient accountability, etc.