The following is the reply from Pastoral Leadership
Institute (PLI) to the LC-MS Board for Higher Education after being refused
RSO status as found at www.PLI-Leader.org.
Response to BHE's Declination of PLI's RSO Application
The PLI Board of Directors received notice in late January of the decision
by the LCMS Board for Higher Education to decline PLI's application for
Recognized Service Organization (RSO) status. In response, the board has sent
the following message:
Dear Members of the Board for Higher Education:
Blessings to each of you in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We, the directors of the Pastoral Leadership Institute (PLI), wish to
express our sincere gratitude for your careful consideration and prolonged
efforts in considering our application for Recognized Service Organization
(RSO) status. Thank you for the time and effort expended on our request.
Due to your decision to decline PLI such status, however, we respectfully
request articulation regarding what criteria of the guidelines for obtaining
such status we failed to meet. With this request we also respectfully ask
whether or not, upon fully meeting the standards delineated in the
guideline, we might apply for reconsideration. We continue to desire to
faithfully serve our Synod.
May the Lord bless each of you as you carry out your responsibilities in
behalf of higher education in our beloved Synod.
Cordially yours,
The PLI Board of Directors,
Reverend Greg K. Smith, Chairman
PLI understands the difficulty the BHE faced and thanks them for not only
the time and effort expended but also appreciates their recognition that 'PLI
has identified and responded to a desire among parish pastors for field-based
continuing education experiences.' PLI is committed to meeting these needs.
To the many people who support the PLI ministry we ask for your continued
support and prayers. If you need more information please send your request to:
Pastoral Leadership Institute Office"
Does PLI have a problem with its tax-exempt status?
Pastoral Leadership Institute (PLI) applied for its 501(c3) tax status from
the IRS in 1998 and was incorporated in the State of Missouri by Pastors Greg
Smith, Steven Hower, and Venon Gundermann.
They said the purpose of PLI was to develop and implement an in-service
training program for pastors desiring to develop leadership skills helpful in
pastoring large, growing churches in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.
They also told the IRS that PLI was seeking Recognized Service Organization
status from the LC-MS and that RSO status means that the LC-MS endorses the
aims & goals of the organization.
The question for PLI is, if its tax exempt status is contingent on
receiving RSO status from the BHE and the BHE has denied RSO status, how can
PLI be a 501(c3) tax-exempt organization?
PLI has collected millions of dollars for its 1.2 million dollar annual
budget. The Lutheran Church Extension Fund, LC-MS Foundation, and Council of
District Presidents have contributed more than a third of a million dollars
with no approval from the Convention or with RSO status from the BHE.
Will the donors to PLI be able to continue to take their donations as a tax
deduction?
Sometimes it is better to seek approval before implementation. (Please see
Doctor Norbert Oesch's presentation to the PSWD Convention in Los Angels.)
PLI is now requesting from the BHE the reason why they were refused RSO
status. Without having consulted the BHE, we at Reclaim News suspect
that the BHE is not interested in approving auxiliary seminary education in
the LCMS without Convention approval.
We just received a new signed letter from Doctor Norbert Oesch stating that
he is opposed to Seminex's "Faithful to Our Calling: Faithful to Our
Lord." In is first letter he had confused it with "A Statement of
Scriptural and Confession Principles" CTCR Document 1973. He continues to
oppose Voter Supremacy.