# LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters Minutes_St. Louis Missouri_June 5 6 1969_S3
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

assembly and then imposes responsibility on each delegate to make a decision. The delegate may not even
be bound by instructions given to him by his constituency.
Not only does the Constitution make no provision for a referendum, but, on the contrary, many
provisions of the Constitution and Bylaws give clear indication that the polity is one of representative
government. A majority vote at the convention itself controls (Article VIII, C). Articles VIII and IX give
additional evidence that the government of the Synod is a representative government and not a
government by referendum. Article XII, sections 10, 14, and 15 require that even at the District level the
decisions must be made by representatives. See also the following bylaws which express and implement
this polity: 1.21; 1.27; 1.51; 1.53; 1.55; 1.59; 3.17.
To argue that a referendum on the fellowship question should be permitted because a certain type
of referendum is indeed provided for when the Constitution is to be amended, is beside the point. There is
an essential difference between changing the basic law (the Constitution) under which the congregations
have agreed to govern themselves as a Synod and deciding a course of action on a given issue. The two
situations are not even parallel, much less identical. Furthermore, a specific provision does not establish a
general rule; in fact, a specific provision is often necessary to provide for an exception to a general rule.
The Commission holds that this is the case in the procedures sot forth in Article XIV for amending the
Constitution.
Nor are the provisions for an emergency decision between conventions (Article XI, B, 9) germane
to the question under consideration, since no emergency is involved.
The conclusion of the Commission on Constitutional Matters is that a referendum is permissible
only after the Constitution has been amended to allow it. It should be clearly understood that such an
amendment would involve a substantial change in the polity of the Synod but that the Synod has the right
to mak9^ghchange, if it so desires.
THE COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
Herbert Kuenne, Chairman
Gerhardt S. Jersild
Elmer Luessenhop
George H. Sommermeyer
Herbert Mueller, Secretary
Unanimously adopted
June 6, 1969

MINUTES OF MEETING OF COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
Chicago, Illinois, August 18-19, 19 69
1. Streufert opened the meeting with prayer. All members were present. The minutes of the previous
meeting were approved as submitted. It was decided to concentrate on the following four items: youth
representation at future conventions, the organization of dissenting groups, the constitutionality of Denver
Resolution 3-15, and the Handbook revisions.
2. Youth Representation: The Denver convention had adopted a resolution stating that hereafter youth
representatives were to be granted full advisory delegate status. President J. A. 0. Preus requested a ruling
on the constitutionality of this resolution. The Commission took the four following actions: