LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1986, Page 67

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REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT 67

traditional authority of the convention to elect board mem-
bers, and yet we have recognized that such boards must
‘be representative as well as qualified. Because of the size
and geographical distribution of the Synod, it has been
virtually impossible for delegates at conventions to have
sufficient information to vote responsibly for the large
numbers of positions that must be filled. This in turn has
encouraged delegates to seek the counsel of others in the
voting process.

In 1981, the synodical convention established a new
nominating process which entails the selection of one mem-
ber of the nominations committee by each district. Al-
though this process has many strong features, and
although the members of this committee have worked very
professionally and faithfully, it does not appear to me that
the current process is fully satisfactory. In my judgment,
the convention should devote considerable attention to pro-
posals to improve this process.

Recommendations

1. Convocation of Pastors. The Praesidium recommends
that a convocation of all synodical pastors be held in the
post-Easter season of 1987 in order to discuss ways in
which the Synod can strengthen its confessional witness,
promote the unity of the faith, strengthen congregations,
and support the pastoral office.

2. Board Memberships. The Praesidium recommends
that membership on the five program boards include three
persons appointed by the Board of Directors upon the rec-
ommendation of the President in consultation with the
Vice Presidents.

3. Minority Representation on Boards. The Praesidium
recommends that the Synod be encouraged to elect women
and representatives of minority groups to all program
boards, and, if this does not occur, that the Board of Di-
rectors be authorized to include such persons among its
appointments to those boards.

4, Executive Termination Procedures. The Praesidium
recommends that the Synod review and clarify existing
termination procedures for executives.

5. Appointment of Standing Committees. The Praesid-
ium recommends that standing committees be appointed
by boards prior to January 1 of the year following synodical
conventions; that such appointments be from a list of can-
didates recommended to the board by the synodical Presi-
dent, after consultation with the Vice Presidents; that the
list of approved candidates be developed by the President
from suggestions received from the board, its unit execu-
tive, and others, and provided to the board by Oct. 1 fol-
lowing the synodical convention.

6. Nominations Process. The Praesidium recommends
that the Synod provide for a smaller representative nom-
inations committee and identify a nominations process
that will continue to receive the names of competent can-

didates for all synodical boards from all sectors of the
Synod.

7. Commission on Church and Society. The Praesidium
recommends that the Synod provide for the formation of
a Commission on Church and Society, to be appointed by
the President in consultation with the Vice Presidents, in
order to provide the Synod with guidance on contemporary
issues such as church-state relationships, pro-life issues,
women’s concerns, and the peace issue; such commission
to have adequate liaison with the Commission on Theology
and Church Relations, and perhaps receive staff services
from the CTCR staff until such time as it becomes possible
or desirable to have its own staff.

8. Membership in Inter-Lutheran Agencies. The Prae-
sidium recommends that the interim authority granted to
the Board of Directors in 1983 Resolution 3-07A (to ap-
prove membership in or withdrawal from inter-Lutheran
agencies) be extended to the 1989 convention.

9. Receiving Lutheran Pastors. The Praesidium rec-
ommends that the Synod adopt more flexible procedures
for receiving into membership confessional Lutheran pas-
tors and congregations; such procedures to include the re-
view and/or recommendations of the Colloquy Committee
for the Pastoral Office, as well as the Council of Presidents.

10. Allocation of Financial Resources. The Praesidium
recommends that the Synod adopt an approach to the al-
location of financial resources whereby each congregation
would covenant with both district and national structures
for the amount of its resources it intends to provide an-
nually for the mission and ministry of the church through
local, district, and national programs.

11. Auxiliaries. The Praesidium recommends that the
Synod revise its Bylaws to permit its auxiliaries to also
serve as the auxiliaries of the Lutheran Church—Canada,
in the event the LCC becomes an autonomous partner
church and requests such a relationship to our auxiliaries.

12. Support for Ministries. The Praesidium recom-
mends that the Synod provide for the formation of a special
office or commission for the support and professional
growth of our pastors and other church workers.

Conclusion

This part of the report has focused on organizational
dimensions of our life and work together. As critical as
these dimensions are to the work we do together, it should
be underscored that nothing is more important for the well-
being of the Synod and its congregations than our contin-
uing to live in and by the Word of God. This is a time of
great opportunity for the Synod, not only to be and remain
a strong confessional church body, but one that is alive and
active in carrying out our Lord’s Great Commission. It is
my prayer that the actions of our 56th Regular Convention
will be used by the Lord of the church to strengthen our
efforts to serve Him and the world for which He died.