# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2016_S429
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

ECCLESIASTICAL SUPERVISION AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION

429

Presidents, to be made available upon request to any member of the
Synod; and be it finally
Resolved, That the Commission on Handbook modify relevant
bylaws accordingly.
Pastors Conference
Northern Illinois District

Resolved, That a district president in violation of this requirement be given opportunity to meet this requirement; and be it finally
Resolved, That a district president who continues to violate this
requirement be removed from his office.
Our Savior
Cheyenne, WY

12-35

12-37

To Permit Access by Rostered Workers
to Own Personnel Records

To Require District President
Visitation of Congregations

Whereas, Districts of the Synod maintain personnel records on
rostered workers; and
Whereas, The purpose of record keeping is to benefit the church
as a whole and to ensure that all things are done decently and in
order; and
Whereas, It is appropriate that rostered workers be able to review
their personnel records to ensure that they are accurate and up to date;
therefore be it
Resolved, That all rostered workers of the Synod shall have
the right from time to time and upon reasonable advanced notice
to inspect their personnel records maintained by the district within
which they have or last had a call; and be it further
Resolved, That if any rostered worker disputes information therein
contained and is unable to resolve such dispute by fraternal consultation within 60 days after request to the district maintaining the
records, then as his or her sole remedy he or she may institute a dispute resolution complaint against the district president of such district
with respect thereto; and be it finally
Resolved, That the Commission on Handbook modify relevant
bylaws accordingly.
Pastors Conference
Northern Illinois District

Whereas, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod has since its
founding required regular visitation of congregations; and
Whereas, The president, district presidents, and circuit visitors
are appointed primarily for this purpose; and
Whereas, 2013 Res. 7-01A laid out the history and importance
of visitation in the church, beginning with the apostolic example and
continuing through the Reformation to our present day; and
Whereas, Res. 7-01A references Bylaw 4.4.4 (a), which requires
that district presidents visit or cause to be visited each congregation
in the district every three years, and also laments that visitation “has
been irregular throughout our Synod”; and
Whereas, The district president is an officer of the Synod, bound
to carry out the bylaws of the Synod; and
Whereas, Refusal to fulfill the bylaws of the Synod is cause for
removal from office; and
Whereas, Removal from office is a difficult and lengthy process; and
Whereas, If a Synod officer refuses to fulfill his bylaw duties,
including and especially the duty of visitation, he has shown himself
unqualified to serve as an officer of the Synod; therefore be it
Resolved, That Bylaws 4.4.4, 4.7.1, and 2.11.1 be amended by the
addition of the following bylaws:

12-36

To Prioritize District Presidents’
Work to within Their Districts
Whereas, Synod Constitution Art. XII 7 states, “The district
presidents shall, moreover, especially exercise supervision over the
doctrine, life, and administration of office of the ordained and commissioned ministers of their district and acquaint themselves with the
religious conditions of the congregations of their district. To this end
they shall visit and, according as they deem it necessary, hold investigations in the congregations. Their assistants in this work are the
circuit visitors, who therefore shall regularly make their reports to
the district president”; and
Whereas, In recent years, the Synod has focused upon “visitation”; and
Whereas, The district president is required by the bylaws of
Synod to make visitations a priority (Bylaw 4.4.4); and
Whereas, The district president is also required to focus on his
district (Bylaws 4.4.5, 4.4.6, and 4.4.7); and
Whereas, These duties require the district president to be active
in his district in both visitation and supervision; therefore be it
Resolved, That district presidents be required to spend at least 85
percent of their workdays working on district matters normally from
within their districts; and be it further

PROPOSED WORDING
4.4.4 The district president shall, in accordance with the Constitution of the Synod, in his ministry of ecclesiastical supervision visit the
congregations of the district.
…
(g) The district president will report to the secretary of the district, at
least four months prior to the opening of the district convention,
those congregations which have been visited by him or his representative, and any congregations which have not been visited.
(h) Upon receipt of this list, the district secretary shall include in the
Workbook of the district convention a list of each congregation in
the district, and its status in regard to visitation. Congregations and
officers of the district will be given 30 days to dispute that status,
after which the list will be considered certified.
(i) Congregations visited after this deadline will be added to the list of
visited congregations by the secretary of the district, upon receipt of
written proof of such visitation, signed by the district president or
his representative, and two officers of the congregation in question.
(j) In the event of disputes regarding the status of congregational visitation, the facts shall be submitted in writing to the Secretary of the
Synod by both sides in the dispute. A majority vote of the President
of the Synod, the Secretary of the Synod, and a vice-president of
the Synod, to be chosen by blind draw, will decide each case. Such
decision will be final.
4.7.1 Each district may adopt regulations for the nomination and
election of its president; the nomination, selection, election, ranking,
and succession in case of vacancies of its vice-presidents; and the nomination or selection of any regional officers or regional board of directors

2016 Convention Workbook