LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1998, Page 159

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STRUCTURE
3.101 Powers and Duties

Omit: “The president shall be the chief executive officer
of the Synod.’’
COMMENT: “Chief Executive Officer” not most apt term.
See paragraphs 31–32 in part 1 of the Blue Ribbon Committee report.
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The President shall supervise the doctrine taught
and practiced in the Synod, including all synodwide corporate entities. In the Districts of the Synod, he shall
carry out his ecclesiastical duties through the District’s
President. The President of the Synod has ecclesiastical supervision of all officers of the Synod and its agencies, the individual Districts of the Synod, and all District Presidents. (E)
at regular intervals officially visit or cause to be visited all the educational institutions of the Synod to exercise supervision over the doctrine taught and practiced in those institutions. (E)
oversee the activities of all agencies of the Synod to
see to it that they are in accordance with the Constitution, Bylaws, and resolutions of the Synod. (A)
at regular intervals officially visit or cause to be visited all the educational institutions of the Synod and
thereby exercise oversight over their administration as
it relates to adherence to the Constitution, Bylaws, and
resolutions of the Synod. (A)

COMMENT: The proposed change breaks one sentence into
four, each defining a single duty. As it now stands, it is one
of the more confusing points under powers and duties of the
President. A major source of confusion is the number of duties presently covered in a single sentence. Two of these duties relate primarily to ecclesiastical matters and two primarily to administrative matters.
The first point specifies how far the doctrinal supervision
of the President extends. There has been some confusion and
disagreement on this matter.
The subject matter of the second point could be assumed
to be covered in the first, but it seems important enough to
be worth special mention, as in the present Bylaw.
The third and fourth points are repeats of the first and
second, except they relate to administration rather than doctrine.
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report in person or through a Vice-President or
other officer of Synod to all District conventions and to
that end formulate the report that is to be made. (EA)

COMMENT: Only a slight change in wording.
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meet regularly with the Council of Presidents and,
as deemed necessary, with individual District Presidents or small groups of District Presidents, to see to it
that they are in accordance with Art. II of the Constitution, synodically adopted doctrinal statements, and
doctrinal resolutions of the Synod. He shall receive regular reports on this subject from the District Presidents. In cases of doctrinal dissent, Bylaw 2.39. c shall
be followed. (E)
meet regularly with the Council of Presidents and,
as deemed necessary, with individual District Presidents or small groups of District Presidents, to see to it
that their administration is in accordance with the
Constitution, Bylaws, and resolutions of the Synod. He
shall receive regular reports on this subject from the
District Presidents. (A)

159

COMMENT: Proposal breaks one sentence into two and explicitly accounts for the President’s administrative responsibility. Receiving reports from District Presidents is taken
from current 3.101 b.
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make provisions for new District Presidents and
members of synodical boards and commissions to be acquainted with their duties and responsibilities. (EA)

COMMENT: Only a slight change in wording.
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represent the Synod, in consultation with the appropriate board or commission, in official contacts with
all partner churches by aiding, counseling, and advising them and strengthening the relations with and
among them. (E)

COMMENT: Only a slight change in wording.
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be the chief ecumenical officer of the Synod. He or
his representative shall represent the Synod in official
contacts with other church bodies. (E)

COMMENT: Change in wording which specifies the President’s role.
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serve as leader of the Administrative Team (see
Bylaw 3.179), and as leader of the team, shall report to
the Board of Directors on the activities of the team. (A)

COMMENT: Defines the President’s role on the Administrative Team and provides linkage between the President of
the Synod and Board of Directors in his capacity as head of
the Administrative Team. (See paragraphs 36–53 in part 1
of the Blue Ribbon Committee report.)
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call up for review any action by an individual officer, executive, or agency which, in his view, may be in
violation of the Constitution, Bylaws, and resolutions
of the Synod and, if he deems appropriate, request that
such action be altered or reversed. If the matter cannot
be resolved, the President shall refer it to the synodical
Board of Directors, the Commission on Constitutional
Matters, and/or the Synod in convention as the President deems appropriate to the issues and party/parties
involved. (This provision in no way alters the President’s constitutional duty to report to the Synod those
who do not act in accordance with the Constitution and
do not heed his admonitions, as prescribed in XI B 2.)
(A)

COMMENT: Defines the President’s options if in his view
any of the named individuals or entities is operating in a
manner which violates the Constitution, Bylaws, or resolutions of the Synod.
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personally, or by way of a representative, have the
option to attend all meetings of the Synod’s program
boards, the boards of all synodwide corporate entities,
and Worker Benefit Plans, including executive sessions.
The President’s representative shall normally be a
member of the Administrative Team. The President
shall, in reasonable time, receive notice of such meetings, the proposed agenda, and minutes thereof. (EA)

COMMENT: Specifically provides for the President’s access
to board meetings, which presently is generally conceded.
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