# LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters Minutes_St. Louis Missouri_April 3 4 2009_S1
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

MINUTES
COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel, St. Louis
April 3–4, 2009
85. Call to Order, Opening Prayer
Chairman Albert Marcis called the meeting to order and called on Raymond Hartwig for the opening
devotion (Hebrews 13:14–15).
86. Revision of Standard Operating Procedures Manual for Bylaw Section 2.17
The first half-day of the meeting was spent reviewing a draft of the Standard Operating Procedures
Manual for Bylaw section 2.17. The secretary noted that he would be meeting with a committee of the
Council of Presidents to review the revised manual, thereby fulfilling the Bylaw 2.17.9.3 requirement that
the council concur with any changes to the manual. [Note: the Council of Presidents granted its
concurrence during its April 18–21, 2009 meeting in Fort Wayne, Indiana.]
87. District Proposed Bylaw Changes Review
The commission instructed its secretary, when reporting the results of the commission’s review of
proposed bylaw changes, to remind district presidents of the bylaw requirement that all district bylaw
changes must be reviewed by the commission (Bylaws 4.1.1.2 [b] and 3.9.2.2.4) and to emphasize that
late proposals for bylaw changes must be adopted pending review and approval by the commission. A
letter to district presidents in this regard, with a copy to the President of the Synod, will emphasize that
the commission continues to take seriously this bylaw review requirement for the sake of good order in
the Synod.
Proposed amendments to the following districts’ bylaws were reviewed by the commission and changes
were recommended as follows:
(A) Oklahoma District Bylaws (08-2536)
The secretary reported that the commission’s recommended changes were reported to the Oklahoma
District following its February 2009 meeting, with the understanding that the district’s handbook is a
work in progress and will be submitted for further review upon its completion. The commission
reiterated its interest in further review of the district’s Bylaws when the additional changes are in
place and will keep this bylaw review on its agenda until such time.
(B) North Wisconsin District Bylaws (09-2548)
The president of the North Wisconsin District presented his district’s Bylaws and contemplated
changes for review by the commission. In addition to encouraging the district to give attention to the
commission’s “Frequently Noted Aberrations” document in the interest of uniformity of vocabulary
and grammar usage throughout the Synod, the commission offered the following recommendations
for change to the Bylaws of the North Wisconsin District:


Bylaw 1.03, p. 9: This paragraph requires change to reflect that membership is held in the Synod
and not districts. This should be reflected in paragraphs a, b, c, and d.