LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2023, Page 404

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404

ECCLESIASTICAL SUPERVISION AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION

Judicial cases were decided by independent judicial boards
of adjudication and appeal, the membership of which
included laity, from 1941 to 1992.
• Judicial cases were decided by dispute resolution panels
appointed by district board of directors from 1992 to 2004.
• Judicial cases have been decided by district presidents and
reconcilers since 2004.
These changes and official opinions of the Commission on
Constitutional Matters (CCM) have given district presidents ever
growing authority in the adjudication process. Examples include:
• Prior to 1992 the process of restricting, suspending, and
expelling required thorough investigation by a district
president before proceeding in adjudication. Since 1992 the
process of restricted status is treated as the investigation
stage (see CCM Opinion 18-2871A, “Further Questions
Regarding Restricted Status”).
• Prior to 1992 the process of adjudication required a district
president to present the case before a board of adjudication
and/or board of appeal. Since 1992 a case of restricted status
or suspended status is not heard unless the accused makes an
appeal for it to be heard.
• Since 2004, removal from restricted status has been solely
the decision of district presidents.
In 2001 Resolution 7-17A, the Synod affirmed and reaffirmed the
decision of the 1851 convention recognizing the theses on church
and ministry by Dr. C.F.W. Walther published in the book The
Voice of Our Church on the Question of Church and Ministry as the
official position of the LCMS.
• Thesis X reads: “To the preaching office, according to divine
right, belongs also the office to judge doctrine, but laymen
also possess this right. Therefore, in the ecclesiastical courts
and councils they are accorded both a seat and a vote
together with the preachers.”
• It has been argued by many within the LCMS that the current
adjudication process in the LCMS is no longer in accord with
this official position of the LCMS.
Therefore be it
Resolved, That the convention declare the process of restricted
status as punitive and no longer part of the investigative process;
and be it further
Resolved, That as such the convention declare that our present
system of adjudication is in conflict with Thesis X of Walther’s
Theses on the Church, thus invalidating CCM Opinion 18-2871A;
and be it further
Resolved, That the President of the Synod appoint a task force to
revise the LCMS adjudication process so that our practice is aligned
with our public teaching; and be it further
Resolved, That any recommendations for change focus on the
following: including laypersons, ministers of religion—ordained,
and ministers of religion—commissioned in deciding adjudicatory
cases from start to finish; requiring thorough investigation before
placing members of the Synod on restricted status; more clearly
defining “offensive conduct” from a biblical perspective; and
including laypersons in decisions to reinstate individual members
into membership rather than such decisions being the sole
prerogative of district presidents; and be it finally
•

2023 Convention Workbook

Resolved, That the recommendations of the task force be
completed in time for presentation and study at the immediately
next cycle of district conventions.
Benediction
Milwaukee, WI
Ov. 10-05

To Affirm and Commend CCM Opinion 22-2980
WHEREAS, “In its relation to its members the Synod is not an
ecclesiastical government exercising legislative or coercive powers,
and with respect to the individual congregation’s right of selfgovernment it is but an advisory body” (Constitution Article VII l);
and
WHEREAS, “Congregations that are members of the Synod, as
well as association schools, agencies, auxiliaries, and recognized
service organizations shall call and be served only by (1) ordained
ministers who have been admitted to their respective ministries in
accordance with the rules and regulations set forth in these Bylaws
and have thereby become members of the Synod …” (Bylaw 2.5.2
[1]); and
WHEREAS, On May 2, 2022 the Commission on Constitutional
Matters (CCM) issued Opinion 22-2980 (as published in the CCM
report), which not only clearly articulated the relationship between
a district president and a calling congregation, but also reaffirmed
the previous CCM Opinion 2069 (March 2, 1997) by stating, “The
opinion (2069) specifically states that a district president does not
have the authority ‘to edit a vacant congregation’s call list by
refusing to provide personal information on some individuals, even
when that information is specifically requested by the
congregation’”; therefore be it
Resolved, That the 2023 Synod convention affirm this opinion as
being an accurate interpretation of the Constitution and Bylaws of
the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod; and be it further
Resolved, That the 2023 Synod convention commend this
opinion to all member congregations, association schools, agencies,
auxiliaries, and recognized services organizations for study and
consideration during any current or future call process; and be it
finally
Resolved, That when “a (calling) congregation or association
school shall seek the counsel of its own district president” pursuant
to Bylaw 2.5.l (a), the district president shall provide a copy of this
opinion as part of his counsel according to his advisory role.
First
Hanna, IN
Ov. 10-06

To Amend Bylaw 2.11.2.2 re Candidate Status
WHEREAS, Candidates are valuable members of the Synod, and
having such members automatically removed from the roster would
be a detriment both to the members and to the Synod, especially
when there are more congregations requesting a candidate from the
seminary than there are seminary candidates available; and
WHEREAS, The Synod has a duty out of Christian love and
charity to care for and support these valued members; and
WHEREAS, Candidates are currently required to file an annual
report with their district president by Jan. 31, which leads to
inactive—candidate status letters being exchanged around