# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2010_S262
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

262

OPINIONS OF COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS

pastor. Therefore, wouldn’t amending Article V B to
add a new category of pastor be necessary? And thus,
wouldn’t avoiding amending Article V B by trying to fit
the Specific Ministry Pastor Program into Bylaw 2.13
in fact be unconstitutional?
Opinion: All specific ministry pastors would be ordained and their
relative placement under Constitution Art. V A or B would depend
upon their ministry role. If in charge of a congregation, they will
fall within Article V A; if not, they will fall under Article V B in
one of the categories listed.
Adopted July 13–19, 2007

Opinion: Once a delegate is certified pursuant to Bylaw 3.1.3.2,
there is no express provision in the Synod’s Constitution and Bylaws to challenge said certification at a convention. In the absence
of such a provision, accepted parliamentary procedure applies.
Bylaw 3.1.9 (i) (3) requires the President to “conduct the sessions
according to accepted parliamentary rules.”
Question 3: May a convention of the Synod violate the Constitution
or Bylaws of The Lutheran Church— Missouri Synod?
Opinion: No, a convention may not violate the Constitution or Bylaws of the Synod.
Adopted July 13–19, 2007

Amendments for Specific Provisions of Special Sessions
of the Synod (07-2501)
In a letter received July 9, 2007, a member of the Blue Ribbon
Task Force on Structure and Governance submitted the following
question regarding possible bylaw changes governing special sessions of the Synod.
Question: Is it in harmony with the Constitution and Bylaws of the
Synod to add or amend bylaws which establish specific
provisions (such as the provisions set forth in Bylaws
3.1.6–3.1.10.1) for the implementation of a special session (convention) of the Synod?
Opinion: Yes, it is in harmony with the Constitution and Bylaws of
the Synod to add or amend the Bylaws to establish specific provisions for implementation of a special session of the Synod. Article
VIII of the Constitution does not specify the manner in which special sessions are to be held or conducted. The specifics of Synod
conventions are left to the provisions of the Bylaws.
Any amendment to the Bylaws must be presented to and examined
by the Commission on Constitutional Matters prior to presentation
to the convention to determine that it is not in conflict with the Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod, as required by Bylaw 7.1.1 (c).
Adopted July 13–19, 2007

Elections Restrictions (07-2503)

Certification of Voting Delegates (07-2502)
In a letter dated July 10, 2007, the President of the Synod submitted a series of questions regarding the certification process for voting
delegates to Synod conventions.
Question: Does Bylaw 3.1.3.2 constitute the entirety of the process
of certification of all voting and nonvoting delegates to a
convention of the Synod who are duly elected in accordance with Bylaws 3.1.2, 3.1.2.1, 3.1.3.1, and 3.1.4ff.?
Opinion: Yes. Bylaw 3.1.3.2 states,
All district voting and nonvoting advisory delegates and representatives and their alternates shall be certified before attending a convention
of the Synod.
(a) The names and addresses of all voting and nonvoting advisory
delegates and representatives and their alternates shall be forwarded by the district secretary before the announced registration
deadline to the Secretary of the Synod on registration forms provided by the latter.
(b) This procedure shall constitute certification.

This is the sole provision for and completes the certification of
convention delegates.
Question 2: Would it be a violation of the Constitution or Bylaws
of the Synod for a convention of the Synod to declare
ineligible or in any other way to challenge or remove
the certification of any delegate elected in accordance
with the bylaws referenced in question #1 above and
certified by the process defined in Bylaw 3.1.3.2 or in
any other bylaw of the Synod?

During the course of the 2007 convention, a member of the Commission on Constitutional Matters reported that the chairman of
Committee 9: Registration, Credentials, and Elections had requested
opinions regarding the following election issues:
Question 1: Based on the election of a candidate to become a member of the Synod’s Board of Directors, may another
candidate from the same district remain on the ballot or
be elected?
Opinion: No. Bylaw 3.3.5.1 (1) precludes the election of more than
one elected member of the Board of Directors from any one district. The election of one member from a district renders ineligible
any other candidate from the same district. Other candidates from
that district must be removed from the ballot as ineligible.
Question 2: If the number of candidates remaining eligible for election to a category (i.e., ordained, commissioned, or lay)
on the Synod’s Board of Directors is less than two times
the number of positions to be elected because of the
prior election of another candidate from the same district, must additional nominations be added before the
election?
Opinion: No. Bylaw 3.12.3.6 (a) requires the Committee for Convention Nominations to make initial nominations of at least two
candidates for each such position. Once those candidates have been
nominated at the convention, that bylaw has been fulfilled. Should
a candidate become ineligible, withdraw, or in some other manner
the number of candidates is narrowed before balloting, there is no
provision in the Constitution or Bylaws which requires or allows
the nominations committee to add additional names.
Question 3: In what order should the election of members to the
Synod’s Board of Directors take place?
Opinion: Bylaw 3.12.4 (c) provides: “The committee shall be
empowered to adopt procedures and methods that will insure efficiency and accuracy, including the use of mechanical, electronic,
or other methods of casting, recording, or tabulating votes.” The
Committee on Elections must therefore determine the order in
which it chooses to present the slate for election.
Adopted July 13–19, 2007
Convention Presidential Elections Procedure (07-2504)
During the course of the 2007 Synod convention, the chairman
of the convention requested clarification of an earlier opinion of the
Commission.
Question: What is the reason why the Commission on
Constitutional Matters previously opined that a motion
from the floor to require 10 minute presentations by
presidential candidates would be inconsistent with the
bylaws, but that requiring disclosure of whether a floor
nominee was plaintiff in litigation against the Synod is

2010 Convention Workbook

2010 Convention.indb 262

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