LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 200

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200

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
of the specified ordained and commissioned ministers to select their advisory representatives, from
facilitating their nomination or election procedures
as they require, or from certifying and reporting the
result to the Secretary of the Synod as indicated in
Bylaw 3.1.3.2?

Opinion: No. Such a district secretary may not nominate or vote
(i.e., participate) in the election process, but he may facilitate the
process as specifically charged (to call the meetings of such commissioned and ordained minister groupings [Bylaw 3.1.3.1 (a)], to
receive and certify the results [Bylaw 3.1.3.2 (a)]), and as needed
to effect good order, to facilitate such meetings (particularly in the
case of an electronic meeting conducted under Board of Directors
policy [Bylaw 3.1.3.1 (a)]).
The CCM notes that potential unclarity in Bylaws 3.1.3–3.1.3.1 has
been referred also to the COH and refers this opinion to its sister
commission.

Educational Institution Advisory Representatives,
Bylaw 3.1.4.2 (a) (22-3000)
Minutes of November 4–5, 2022
The CCM has received a request for an opinion regarding Bylaw
3.1.4.2 (a). The Bylaw reads:
Each educational institution of the Synod shall be
represented at conventions of the Synod.
(a) Educational institutions of the
Synod shall be represented by one
board member in addition to the
district president, by their presidents,
and by one faculty member for every
30 full-time faculty members who are
members of the Synod.
Since the bylaw does not specify how the represenQuestion:
tative of the faculty is to be selected, a variety of
possibilities have been used or proposed for making
this selection, such as these:
1. Only LCMS rostered faculty members vote.
2. All full-time faculty members, a group which includes
nonrostered LCMS faculty, some of whom are members of
LCMS congregations, but also many non-Lutheran faculty,
vote.
3. LCMS rostered faculty members and faculty members
who are members of an LCMS congregation vote.
4. The president of the university, or other administrator, appoints.
5. The selection is made by the university board of regents.
6. The selection is made by seniority or rotation or other “automatic” means.
The commission has been asked if there is one specific method of
selection that is required.
Background: The overall topic of Bylaw section 3.1 is “National
Conventions” of the Synod. Bylaw 3.1.2 addresses the topic of voting delegates and their selection. Bylaw section 3.1.3 addresses the
topic of advisory delegates to the convention from commissioned
and ordained members of the Synod and the process of selection.
Bylaw section 3.1.4 addresses the topic of other advisory representatives besides voting and advisory delegates who are authorized to
2023 Convention Workbook

attend conventions of the Synod, representing a variety of entities
and subgroups of the Synod. In addition to all officers of the Synod
and all district presidents, who attend ex officio, this representation
is divided into five categories, which are authorized and expected
to send representatives to each convention of the Synod. In addition, there is a sixth category, which is permissive, allowing each
district to send two youth representatives if they should so choose.
Bylaw 3.1.4.1 specifies that each board or commission shall be represented at the convention. The general rule (3.1.4.1 [a]) is that
“each board or commission shall be represented by its chairman or
another board or commission member and by its principal staff person.” The bylaw does not discuss how these individuals are selected, but presumably it would be by the respective board or commission. In addition, the Boards for National and International Mission
are to be represented by their respective executive directors. There
are four exceptions to this general rule (3.1.4.1 [b]), namely, that
the Synod’s Board of Directors, the Commission on Handbook, the
Commission on Constitutional Matters, and the Commission on
Theology and Church Relations may be represented by as many of
their members as they deem necessary. With the Board of Directors
and these commissions, there is no process specified regarding how
a decision would be reached, but presumably it would be by that
board or commission.
Bylaw 3.1.4.2 (a) specifies that each educational institution of the
Synod shall be represented by one member of its board of regents
(besides the president of the district, who sits ex officio on the board
and who is an advisory representative to the convention in his own
right), by its president, and by one faculty member for each 30
members of the faculty who are members of the Synod. Bylaw
3.1.4.2 (b) specifies that fractional groups are to be disregarded except that each institution is entitled to at least one faculty representative. The bylaw does not specify by what procedure this faculty
representative is to be selected or by whom.
Bylaw 3.1.4.3 (a) specifies that each foreign mission area of the
Synod (but no more than 10) is to be represented by a missionary
from that area who is home on leave, or if there are none home on
leave, by a terminating missionary from that area. In this case, the
bylaw specifies how these individuals are to be selected, which is
by the Board for International Mission in consultation with the field
authority for each of the fields.
Bylaw 3.1.4.4 specifies that military chaplains from each branch of
the military are to be represented. 3.1.4.4 (a) indicates that these are
to be selected from active-duty chaplains stationed in the United
States. 3.1.4.4 (b) indicates that they are to be approved by the
Board for International Mission nine months prior to the convention; however, how they are selected before they are approved by
the Board for International Mission is not designated in the Bylaws.
Bylaw 3.1.4.5 specifies that each district board of directors is to
be represented by one member of the board and one of the district
executive staff. If a district has no executive staff, then it may select two members of the board of directors. While not specifically
detailed, the implication is that the board selects which member is
to represent it.
Bylaw section 3.1.3 previously addressed the selection of nonvoting advisory commissioned and ordained delegates of a district to
a convention of the Synod. All commissioned ministers and all ordained ministers who are not eligible to be elected as voting delegates or eligible to attend under any category of Bylaw section
3.1.4 are eligible to be selected as nonvoting advisory delegates