# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1983_S213 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) STRUCTURE AND CONSTITUTION 213 6.51 Appeals The normal appeals procedure set forth in chapter VIII of the Bylaws shall apply, with the provision that if the case has been handled by the Board of Regents (Bylaw 6.47), and not by the ecclesiastical authorities (Bylaw 6.49), the Commission on Adjudi- cation shall be bypassed, notwithstanding the provi- sions of chapter VIII of the Bylaws, and the case shall go directly to the Commission on Appeals. Either the accused or the complainant may resort to such an appeal, but the appeal must be made within 90 days after the action has been communicated. If the complainant makes no appeal, the accused shall have the right to request a public announcement that the charge has been dismissed. 6.51 Appeals The normal appeals procedure set forth in chapter VIII of the Bylaws shall apply with respect to cases under Bylaws 6.43, 6.45, 6.47, and 6.49, with the provision that if the case has been handled by the Board of Regents (Bylaw 6.47) and not by the ecclesi- astical authorities (Bylaw 6.49), the Commission on Adjudication shall be bypassed, notwithstanding the provisions of chapter VIII of the Bylaws, and the case shall go directly to the Commission on Appeals. Either the accused or the complainant may resort to such an appeal within the designated period (cf. Bylaw 8.51 g). If the complainant makes no appeal, the accused shall have the right to request a public announcement that the charge has been dismissed. 5-05 Report of Ad Hoc Committee to Study 1981 Convention Resolutions 2-14 and 2-15 (Franchise) Action on Resolution 2-14 of the 1981 convention (“To Broaden the Franchise,” Proceedings, p. 141) and on Resolu- tion 2-15 of the same convention (“To Amend Article V and Article XII of the Constitution,” Proceedings, pp. 141 f.) was deferred until the 1983 convention, and the President of the Synod was instructed to appoint a committee consisting of one pastor, two teachers, and three laypersons to report to the 1983 convention. The text of the two resolutions and the action taken by the convention follows: To Broaden the Franchise RESOLUTION 2-14 Report 2-01, IV, I, 1-6 (CW, p. 49); Overtures 2-08A—2-13 (CW, pp. 132—133) Resolved, That the following Task Force I] recommendations, Section 1, be adopted, as amended: 1. That, as a general rule every congregation shall be entitled to two votes at a District convention; 2, That, since it is the congregation which basically decides who is to cast its two votes, a congregation should be free to choose anyone it wishes from its communicant membership to cast its nonpastoral vote, so that the congregation may choose a layperson, a parochial school teacher, or any communicant member of that congregation who is on the clergy or teacher roster of the Synod in some other capacity; 3. That when the pastoral office is vacant in the congregation at the moment, the congregation shall still be entitled to two votes, to be cast by members chosen by the congregation: 4. That in a dual parish or multiple parish the pastor shall be entitled to one vote; the parish shall be entitled to at least one additional vote, and shall have a third vote if at least two congrega- tions in that parish have at least one hundred communicant PRESENT WORDING Article V Membership Membership in the Synod is held and may be acquired by congregations, ministers of the Gospel, and teachers of the Evangelical Lutheran Church who confess and accept the confessional basis of Article I. A. Voting Members All organized congregations that have joined the Synod hold voting membership. At the meetings of the Districts of the Synod every congregation or parish is entitled to two votes; one of which is to be cast by the pastor and the other by the lav delegate. At the meetings of the Synod a number of congrega- tions shall form a group, which shall be represented by two voting delegates, one a pastor and one a lay delegate. members each (in this way, if two rather large congregations forma dual parish, both would be entitled to a vote in addition to the pastoral vote; however, if the parish consists of several small congregations, the parish would have only one vote in addition to the pastoral vote). Any necessary determination of procedure or alternation shall be made by the District Board of Directors; 5. That thesame principles be applied basically also to synodical conventions; that every congregation be free to nominate any person from the total communicant membership of the congregations within that Circuit as a candidate for the second delegate position and its alternate. This person shall preferably be a layperson, but all individuals holding communicant membership are eligible, includ- ing clergymen who are not called as parish pastors, and teachers. Action: Referred to special committee (14). To Amend Article V and Article XII of the Constitution RESOLUTION 2-15 Report 2-01 (CW, pp. 51—52) WHEREAS, Considerable dissatisfaction has been voiced by dual and vacant parishes since, in their estimation, they are being deprived of part of their voting rights; and WHEREAS, Congregations with lay ministers have voiced con- cerns that their lay ministers cannot serve as a pastoral delegate. with the result that the congregation has only one vote; and WHEREAS, Teachers have long been ineligible to serve in any capacity as a voting delegate; and WHEREAS, Many clergymen who are not called pastors cannot be available to their congregations, which might wish to use them as their second delegate; and WHEREAS, The concept was firmly established that every member congregation should be entitled to two votes; and WHEREAS, Equity seems to require that the congregation should be free to choose its second delegate from the entire communicant membership (the pastor being chosen by the congregation as its pastoral delegate at the time of issuing his call); therefore be it Resolved, That in addition to required Bylaw changes, the following constitutional amendments be adopted: PROPOSED WORDING Article V Membership (No change) A. Voting Members All organized congregations that have joined the Synod hold voting membership. At the conventions of the Districts of the Synod every congregation is entitled to two votes, one of which, when possible, is to be cast by the called pastor. For the conventions of the Synod a number of congregations shall form a circuit, which shall be represented by two voting delegates, one of whom shall be the called pastor of a congregation in the circuit.