LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2016, Page 416

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416

ECCLESIASTICAL SUPERVISION AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION

the following words from subparagraph (k) “An executive or professional staff member” with “a deployed missionary or teacher”;
and be it further
Resolved, That the final report of the BRCSA, with recommendations for returning to a pastoral-based model of governance, be
delivered to the Synod no later than the beginning of the first district
convention in 2018 for consideration at the 2019 KCNS convention;
and be it finally
Resolved, That nothing in this resolution be so construed as to
apply to emeritus members of the Synod.
Grace
Paris, TX
12-03

To Allow Placement of Pastoral Candidates
Who Have Previously Served
Whereas, Christ commanded His Church to pray that the Lord
of the harvest would send workers into His harvest (Matt. 9:38; Luke
10:2); and
Whereas, The Lord has provided pastors who have been called
by the Church to service in parishes, in military chaplaincy, and in
national and international mission; and
Whereas, There are a variety of reasons for which an ordained
minister is released from a call and is not serving, including dissolution of the calling parish, medical concerns, loss of financial support,
and others; and
Whereas, These ordained ministers, who are not under any discipline according to the Constitution and Bylaws of the LCMS and
who are candidates for ministry, desire to continue to serve the Lord
and His Church to which they have been called and ordained; and
Whereas, Some calling congregations enter in to the candidate
placement process to secure the service of an ordained minister; and
Whereas, A placement process already exists, placing seminary
candidates into congregations and mission positions (Bylaw 2.9);
therefore be it
Resolved, That the Council of Presidents create an application
process so that ordained ministers on candidate status and ministers
completing service in the mission field or military chaplaincy service
can enter the candidate placement process along with seminary graduates; and be it further
Resolved, That district presidents communicate to calling congregations the possibility of receiving a candidate that has had previous
pastoral experience; and be it further
Resolved, That the first placement through the existing candidate
placement process of inactive candidate-status ordained ministers
with previous parish, missionary, or military experience would be
possible by April 2017; and be it finally
Resolved, That LCMS congregations and members keep all pastors and congregations in their public and private prayers.
Trinity
Millstadt, IL
12-04

To Facilitate Call Process for Ordained Candidates
Whereas, God instituted the Office of the Holy Ministry for us
to obtain saving faith in Jesus Christ (Matt. 16:13−19; 18:18−20;
John 20:19−23; AC V) and filled the office at one time by calling and
2016 Convention Workbook

sending apostles immediately (that is, without means: Matt. 10:1−4;
Mark 3:13−19; Luke 6:12−16) but fills the office now by calling and
sending pastors mediately (that is, through means such as congregations, pastors, and people together: Acts 14:23); and
Whereas, Insofar as both the people calling and those being
called are at the same time saints and sinners, there never was nor
will there ever be either a perfect call process or perfect pastors called,
as even the example of Judas shows (Acts 1:12−26); and
Whereas, Some pastors’ called service ends appropriately due to
false doctrine, offensive conduct, and willful neglect of duties (LCMS
Constitution Art. XIII and Bylaw 2.13.2.1), and some pastors should
not, either right away or ever, be called again, including some of those
pastors designated “non-candidates” (according to Bylaw 2.11.2.3
but sometimes referred to as “inactive candidate status”) and those
whose status is either restricted (Bylaw 2.13.2) or suspended (Bylaw
2.13.4); and
Whereas, Other pastors’ called service either ends inappropriately (by forced resignation or improper rescinding of the call) or ends
appropriately for other reasons (e.g., completing a temporary term
as a missionary or military chaplain, pursuing an advanced degree,
or taking leave for medical treatment or to care for a family member)
and such pastors should not be excluded from future calls, including
some of those pastors designated “candidates” (according to Bylaw
2.11.2.2, but sometimes referred to as “active candidate status”); and
Whereas, Such candidates and their families can be in desperate
situations (financially, emotionally, and spiritually), feeling ignored
and having the impression that nothing is being done to help them
return to a called position in a timely manner; and
Whereas, District presidents have to deal with a wide variety of
sad and difficult cases that grieve our Lord and His Church and do, to
the best of their abilities, try to facilitate the calling of such candidates
but ultimately can only counsel congregations (Bylaw 2.5.1); and
Whereas, Lay people in congregations, including those without
a regularly‑called pastor, are often not aware of how the call process
works, of the number of such candidates available for and desirous
of calls, or of such candidates’ availability for service to congregations without a regularly called pastor; and
Whereas, 2013 Res. 3-10A resulted in a task force to address
these matters, but its report, recommendations, and any necessary
bylaw changes were not available to the Synod in time for due consideration before the deadlines for submission of congregational
overtures; and
Whereas, Taking action without such due consideration could
lead to unintended and undesirable consequences; but
Whereas, Taking no action whatsoever for another triennium
would only perpetuate the poor stewardship of not fully utilizing the
gifts of God that such candidates are and would further contribute to
their and their family’s distress; and
Whereas, Some substantive action could be taken without necessitating bylaw or other such changes; therefore be it
Resolved, That the Synod use the media at its disposal (The
Lutheran Witness, Reporter, and electronic communications such as
Synod blogs) to raise awareness of the situation of such candidates
and, with God’s blessing, generate more congregational interest in
calling such candidates; and be it further
Resolved, That the Synod set up and maintain a secure, continuously updated, database‑driven website, accessible by district
presidents, that provides links to “Pastoral Information Forms” (PIFs)
for all such candidates in the Synod who are available for and desirous of calls, which information district presidents, at their discretion,