LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — October 21-22, 2002, Page 13

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Opinion: “Recuse” is an old legal term referring to the act of refusing or rejecting a judge, challenging
that a judge not try a case on account of partiality. Whereas the Commission itself has on occasion used
the term in its rulings in general reference to disqualification from a position or from involvement in a
dispute case, neither the Constitution nor the Bylaws of the Synod use, nor do they give a definition to,
the term or its related forms. The term that is used by the Bylaws of the Synod is the term “disqualified”
(Bylaw 2.27 g) or “disqualification” (Bylaw 8.17). For this reason, reference to “the most common
understanding” of the word is not pertinent or instructive, since the term has been imposed upon the
dispute resolution process of the Synod from outside its Constitution and Bylaws.
85. Application of 2001 Resolution 3-07A (02-2294)
A pastor of the Synod in a July 30, 2002 letter requests an opinion of the Commission regarding the
significance, application, and interpretation of Resolution 3-07A of the 2001 convention in light of
opinions being expressed in the Synod. After consideration of a draft response, the Commission agreed to
defer action on this request until a later time.
86. Concordia Publishing House Bylaw Change (02-2295)
Corporate legal counsel for Concordia Publishing House in an August 8, 2002 letter informed the
Commission of the decision of its Board of Directors to amend Bylaw 1.13 of the corporation regarding
conflict of interest.
Opinion: Having reviewed the proposed change to its Bylaw 1.13 by the Board of Directors of Concordia
Publishing House and in accordance with Bylaw 3.197 b of the Bylaws of the Synod, the Commission
gives its approval to the following new wording:
1.13 Conflict of Interest – The Board of Directors shall maintain and monitor a Conflict
of Interest Policy that conforms to the Bylaws of the Synod and the laws of the
State of Missouri.
87. Nature and Authority of Ecclesiastical Supervision (02-2296)
A vice-president of a District in an August 16, 2002 letter requested an opinion regarding the possibility
of a pastor being subject to discipline who has acted upon the advice of his ecclesiastical supervisor. After
brief discussion and upon recognizing that other similar requests for opinions have been submitted that
should also be taken into consideration, the Commission decided to defer action on this request to a later
time.
88. Questions re Disqualification of President in Dispute Resolution Process (02-2297)
A pastor of the Synod in an August 23, 2002 letter asked a series of questions following CCM opinion
02-2282, contending that “while the CCM dealt with a synodical president’s authority to interject himself
into a Bylaw 2.27 procedure under the authority of Article XI B 1-3 of the Constitution, the Commission
did not explicitly apply this decision to a case in which a synodical president is disqualified from a Bylaw
2.27 proceeding.”
Question 1:

“Is a synodical President who is disqualified from participation in Bylaw 2.27 a and b also
subject to disqualification in regard to Bylaw 2.27, subsections c-f, as well as other duties
of that ecclesiastical supervisor discussed in Chapter VIII as part of the dispute resolution
process? If a synodical President is disqualified from further participation in Bylaw 2.27 c-

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