# LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters Minutes_St. Louis Missouri_NOVEMBER 10 1955_S4
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Minutes of the Committee on Constitutional Matters 11/10/55 30.
7, The Committee then took up the formulation of guidelines for those who
wish to draw up or revise congregational constitutions, following a draft submitted

by the Rev. Elmer A. Kettner, editor of Advance. The following paragraphs were

agreed upon as such guidelines. fast
a

ra

Preamble a

The Word of God requires that a Christian congregation shall not-only con-
form to! the Word “e&=ed in doctrine and practice (Psalm 119:105; Matthew 28:18-20;
Galatians 1:6-8; II Timothy 421-5) pe alec that all things be done decently and in
order (I Corinthians 14:40). Therefore we, the members of ---------- Church accept
and subscribe to the following Constitution and By-laws, in accordance with which
all spiritual and material affairs of our congregation shall be governed.

ARTICIE I |
Name
The name of this congregation shall be: ~------------ Iutheran Church located

at —--e--e enn °

ARTICI£E If

Purpose
The purpose of this congregation shall be to efiminister to its members and

to spread the kingdom of God, by the preaching of the Word of God, by the adminis~
tratién of the sacraments, and by the religious instruction of youth and adults,
according to the confessional standard of the Lutheran Church (Article III), and
to foster Christian fellowship and charity.

ARTICIE ITI

Confessions

This congregation acknowledges and accepts all the canonical books of the

Old and New Testaments as the revealed Word of God, verbally inspired, and acknowl-
edges and accepts all the confessional writings of the Evangelical Lutheran Church,
- eontained in the Book of Concord of the year 1580, to be a true and genuine exposi-
tion of the doctrines of the Bible. These confessional writings are; The three

Ecumenical Creeds (Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian), the Unaltered Augsburg Con-