LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 43

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OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
Lord prosper the work of our hands, so that the investment of the
“diversity of gifts” in us may truly be “for the common profit.”
John W. Sias, Secretary

Appendix: Official Notice of Convention Deferral
February 16, 2021
In a letter from December 7, 2020, under the provision of Article XI B 8 of the Synod Constitution, LCMS President Rev. Dr.
Matthew C. Harrison submitted the following question to a vote of
the Synod’s member congregations:
Shall the Synod add a year to the current 2019–2022 triennium, allowing districts to hold their conventions in either
2021 or 2022, and moving the upcoming national Synod convention from 2022 to 2023? [Thereafter, the triennium cycle
will continue forward from 2023 in three-year increments, as
before (i.e., with district conventions held in 2025, 2028, etc.,
and Synod conventions held in 2026, 2029, etc.).] Vote: Yes
or No.
The Office of the Secretary, assisted by the LCMS Department
of Rosters, Statistics and Research Services and the LCMS Technology Application Group, facilitated an electronic vote on this
question, opening January 1, 2021, and closing at the end of the
day on February 15 (11:59 p.m. Central Time).
More than the required one-fourth (63.32%) of the Synod’s
member congregations registered a vote, and the majority (90.67%)
of votes cast favored adoption. The stated extension of the 2019–
2022 triennium by a year, allowing district conventions to take
place in either 2021 or 2022 and deferring the national Synod convention from 2022 to 2023, is therefore adopted.

tion is published in The Lutheran Annual or to the Synod webpage;
some is utilized by districts and others in the Synod for ministry,
administrative, and research purposes. The preceding four years
have continued to produce significant and much-needed changes
for the department, including several personnel transitions, technology and process enhancements, and scope of work. Noteworthy
accomplishments include
•

the implementation of online portals for congregations and
schools to update their records with the Synod, thereby
eliminating the mailing and processing of over 26,000 paper
forms each year;

•

development and implementation of online voting for member congregations for official Synod referendums, and first
used during the convention referendum to delay the 68th
Regular Convention to 2023;

•

development and implementation of an online presidential
voter registration system for member congregations, eliminating delays that impacted bylaw-established deadlines and
reducing associated labor by 75 percent;

•

the addition of a data analytics specialist to provide expert
data modeling and analysis in support of key ministry and
business decisions. This position will increase the research
capacity of the department and enable research that combines Synod-specific data with a wealth of information from
other sources;

•

ongoing development of several new applications to support district offices with the call process and general roster
management of ordained ministers—the first stage of implementing a unified roster management system jointly used by
the Synod’s districts and national office. This project aims to
improve the efficiency of roster transactions and services of
districts in support of workers, congregations, and schools
(especially call processes), while retaining assurances of actions properly taken under the Synod Bylaws; and

•

support to the Office of the Secretary in developing new
processes and tools for convention nominations, including
the online nominations (handled by the independent election
firm historically used for the pre-convention election of the
President) for Synod President and Vice-Presidents.

The President’s letter (lcms.org/delay-vote-letter) and FAQ
(lcms.org/delay-vote-faqs) explain the consequences of this deferral. The national Synod office is working urgently to make arrangements for the next regular convention of the Synod to convene in
the summer of 2023 and will keep the Synod apprised as plans are
finalized.
Congregations are advised to watch closely for communications
from their districts regarding their plans to meet, either in 2021 or
2022, and to pay attention to pre-convention schedules that may
be in flux.
The member congregations of the Synod and all who facilitated
their voting are to be thanked for their urgent and diligent attention
to this question, on account of which it was able to be decided not
only by a majority of the votes cast but by a majority of the member
congregations. We pray that the additional year it allows will bear
rich fruit in the churchly deliberative assemblies of the districts and
the Synod.
John W. Sias
LCMS Secretary
R4.1

Rosters, Statistics, and Research Services
The Department of Rosters, Statistics, and Research Services,
assigned to the Office of the Secretary in the 2013–2016 triennium, provides the core “organ of recollection and administration”
for roster, leadership, contact, and statistical information related
to congregations, individual members, schools, districts, and other
agencies and affiliated entities of the Synod. Some of this informa-

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Research Services provides a full range of research and analysis services for the Synod and its agencies. Key reports delivered
in the past four years include intensive studies of the impact of
the COVID-19 pandemic on congregations, schools, and workers;
analysis of two decades of church planting by the Synod; support
for the Set Apart to Serve: LCMS Church Worker Recruitment initiative; and numerous other studies guiding the implementation of
the Synod’s ministry efforts. Close integration of Research Services
with Rosters and Statistics and the Office of the Secretary, as well
as close interaction with ministry units at the International Center,
with the Council of Presidents, and with the Synod’s partner agencies (Concordia Plan Services, Lutheran Church Extension Fund,
etc.) has proven fruitful in exploration of new approaches and fields
of study with real potential to impact the present and future ministry of the Synod and its constituents. The same connections will
continue to grow in importance as core technologies and access to
analyzable data continue to be enhanced.
Scott Kostencki, Director
2023 Convention Workbook