Introduction to the Statement
The 1970 edition of Doctrinal Statements of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod did not contain a statement on the Lord's Supper since there had been no controversy among us on this doctrine.

In September of 1977, however, a communication from President Wilhelm Petersen of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod expressed a desire of the ELS Doctrine Committee to meet with the WELS Commission on Inter-Church Relations in order to discuss a doctrinal question regarding Holy Communion which had arisen in the Lutheran Confessional Church in Sweden. This meeting was held on June 9–10, 1978, in West Allis, Wisconsin.

In the West Allis discussion on Holy Communion attention was given to questions dealing with the moment of the real presence, the function of the pastor's words of consecration, and the relationship between the pastor's recitation of the words of institution and Christ's original institution of the sacrament. Following this discussion the CICR felt that further elaboration and clarification was needed on some of the points under discussion. The CICR then drew up a lengthier statement on the subject titled "Lord's Supper: Consecration and Moment." Copies of this statement were forwarded to the ELS Doctrine Committee in January 1979, and a second joint meeting was held in Minneapolis on November 8–9, 1979.

In a third meeting between the two groups in Milwaukee on April 24, 1980, it was resolved to appoint a subcommittee from the ELS Doctrine Committee and the WELS CICR to draw up a statement of agreement on the subject under discussion.

Although each group formulated a separate statement, agreement was reached by the subcommittee on the basis of Thesis Nine of the ELS Doctrine Committee statement: "We hold that we cannot fix from Scripture the point within the sacramental usus when the real presence of Christ's body and blood begins, yet we know from Scripture and acknowledge in the Confessions that what is distributed and received is the body and blood of Christ." In this statement the sacramental union of Christ's body and blood and the bread and wine during the usus (consecration, distribution, reception), a matter which was not under discussion, is presupposed.