LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2010, Page 269

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OPINIONS OF COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
Opinion: With respect to the society demanding legal recognition
of same-sex unions as “marriages” (cf. the Supreme Court of the
State of Massachusetts Feb. 4, 2004 decision and the California Supreme Court 2008 decision), 2004 LCMS convention Res. 3-05A
declares “homophile behavior as intrinsically sinful” and that “homosexual behavior is prohibited in the Old and New Testaments
(Lev. 18:22, 24; 20:13; 1 Cor. 6:9–20; 1 Tim. 1:10) as contrary
to the Creator’s design (Rom. 1:26–27).” The resolution urged the
Synod’s members “to give a public witness from Scripture against
the social acceptance and legal recognition of homosexual ‘marriage’ ” and resolved “[t]hat the LCMS, in convention, affirm, on
the basis of Scripture, marriage as the lifelong union of one man
and one woman (Gen. 2:2–24; Matt. 19:5–6).”
Under the assumption that 2004 Res. 3-05A is in accordance with
the Word of God, the Synod expects every member congregation of
the Synod to respect the resolution and consider it of binding force
(Cf. Bylaw 1.7.2). Bylaw 1.6.2 (a) states, “Such resolutions come into
being in the same manner as any other resolutions of a convention
of the Synod and are to be honored and upheld until such time as the
Synod amends or repeals them” (emphasis added; cf. also Bylaw
1.8.1). And Bylaw 1.7.1 further states, “The Constitution, Bylaws,
and all other rules and regulations of the Synod apply to all congregational and individual members of the Synod.”
1971 convention Res. 2-21 confirmed the binding nature of such
resolutions: “[P]rovided a doctrinal resolution is in fact in harmony
with the Word of God, which is ‘the only rule and norm of doctrine,’
the content of such a resolution is intrinsic to the Synod’s confessional
basis. … It is fully in accord with Article II of the Constitution to
insist that such a resolution has binding force for all members, and in
accord with Article XIII to deal with those who refuse to honor such
a resolution as ‘members who act contrary to the Confessions laid
down in Article II …’ ” (1971 Proceedings, p. 118).
With respect to the congregation’s right of self-government and
the matter of expediency as far as the condition of the congregation
is concerned (Constitution Art. VII), 1971 Res. 2-21 also declared
“[t]hat the Synod does not intend the exceptions to apply to doctrinal
resolutions is evident from the fact that doctrine does not properly
belong to the area of self-government, and from the fact that doctrine
may not be accepted or rejected upon the basis of considerations of
expediency. The provision that allows a member to reject a doctrinal
resolution of the Synod is that such a resolution is ‘not in accordance
with the Word of God’ (Article VII of the Constitution).” See also the
CCM Opinion 05-2444, “Proper Dissent and Dispute by Members
of the Synod.”
Resolution 3-05A, together with all of the resolutions of the
Synod, has implications for ecclesiastical supervision. This responsibility, primarily of the President of the Synod and district presidents,
is to supervise on behalf of the Synod the doctrine, life, and administration of its members, officers, and agencies. Such supervision,
subject to the provisions of the Synod’s Constitution, Bylaws, and
resolutions, includes visitation, evangelical encouragement and support, care, protection, counsel, advice, admonition, and, when necessary, appropriate disciplinary measures to assure that the Constitution,
Bylaws, and resolutions of the Synod are followed and implemented
(Bylaw 1.2.1 [g]).
In ministering to the pastor (and/or congregation) that performs
or sanctions a “marriage” for a same sex couple, the district president
will want to carry out the guidance and spirit of Res. 3-05A, which
encouraged the church’s proper evangelical work to proclaim the
reconciliation of the sinner to God in the death of Jesus Christ (2 Cor.
5:18–19) and to minister to homosexuals and their families in a spirit
of compassion and humility, recognizing that all have sinned and fall

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short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace, through
the redemption that came by Christ Jesus (Rom. 3:23–24), and which
encouraged that the members of the Synod deal with sexual sins with
the same love and concern as all other sins, calling for repentance
and offering forgiveness in the Good News of Jesus Christ when
there is repentance.
If a pastor or congregation should, after appropriate admonition,
fail to honor and uphold a doctrinal resolution of the Synod, the district president shall act under Constitution Art. XIII 1, which states,
“Members who act contrary to the confession laid down in Article II
and to the conditions of membership laid down in Article VI or persist
in an offensive conduct, shall, after previous futile admonition, be
expelled from the Synod.” Article XII empowers district presidents
“to suspend from membership ordained and commissioned ministers
for persistently adhering to false doctrine or for having given offense
by an ungodly life, in accordance with such procedure as shall be set
forth in the Bylaws of the Synod.” Bylaws 2.13.2–2.13.2.4 (restricted
status), 2.13.4–2.13.4.3 (suspended status), and 2.14 (expulsion of
congregations or individuals from membership in the Synod) provide
the “remedies” or provisions with respect to a district president’s
ecclesiastical supervision.
Adopted Aug. 18, 2008
Interpretation of “Position of Service” in Bylaw 2.13.2.2 (a)
(08-2528)
In an August 18, 2008 letter, a district president asked for an interpretation of the words “position of service” in Bylaw 2.13.2.2 (a) as
it pertains to pastors serving congregations with pastoral vacancies.
Question 1: Under Bylaw 2.13.2.2 (a), does “position of service”
regularly reference a called position filled by a member
on the “active” roster of the Synod?
Opinion: Bylaws 2.13.2.2 (b) and 2.13.4.2 (c) associate the term
“position of service” with a call by speaking of eligibility to “accept a call.” In addition, Bylaw 2.11.1, which governs the “active”
roster of church workers of our Synod, uses “serving” and “call”
terminology interchangeably, indicating that “active” members of
the Synod, including ordained ministers “serving a congregation
of the Synod” (paragraph [a]), must also be “regularly performing
duties” of service, thereby assuming the existence of a regular call.
Further, only ordained ministers “who have been duly called to a
position of full-time service shall be installed upon authorization
by the appropriate district president” (Bylaw 4.4.3 [e]) and rostered
accordingly (Bylaw 4.4.7). Therefore, yes, “position of service” in
Bylaw 2.13.2.2 (a) references a regularly called full-time position
filled by a member on the “active” roster of the Synod.
Question 2: Does “position of service” also reference a congregation’s pastoral vacancy being filled by a member on the
“inactive” roster of the Synod—emeritus, candidate, or
non-candidate?
Opinion: No, a pastoral vacancy is not a “position of service” referenced in Bylaw 2.13.2.2 (a). If a pastor filling a pastoral vacancy
does not qualify for “active” membership under Bylaw 2.11.1 due
to the lack of a regular call to regularly perform the duties of one of
the bylaw’s listed categories, he may make application to be placed
on one of the “inactive” rosters of the Synod (Bylaws 2.11.2ff).
While the service that a pastor provides during a pastoral vacancy
is valuable service, it is not a “position of service” that qualifies a
pastor for “active” roster status.
Question 3: Can a pastor on candidate status serving a vacancy, if
he is placed on restricted status by his district president,
not be granted approval for such service and thus not be
eligible to continue as vacancy pastor?
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