LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — January 20-21, 2003, Page 11

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been “expressly delegated by the Constitution, Bylaws, and resolutions of the Synod.” Bylaw 3.51 a
defines “agency of the Synod” as “an instrumentality other than a congregation, whether or not separately
incorporated, which the Synod in convention or its Board of Directors has caused or authorized to be
formed to further the Synod’s objectives,” including “each board, commission, council, seminary,
university, college, District, Worker Benefit Plans, and each synodwide corporate entity.”
Bylaw 3.187 requires that the Board of Directors also adopt an annual budget of the Synod (paragraph b).
Bylaw 3.183 d gives to the Board the responsibility to allocate available funds to program boards,
commissions, councils, and departments of corporate Synod and to hold them accountable. These entities
are required to provide reports regarding operations and policies as requested by the Board (paragraph 1).
The Board also has a right to call up for review, criticism, modification, or revocation any action or policy
of one of these entities (paragraph 2).
The Commission concludes that the Board of Directors has been given “general oversight responsibility”
over the colleges, universities, and seminaries of the Synod as its agencies (see CCM Opinion 02-2259).
As part of this general oversight, the Board has a legitimate interest in any contemplated action of an
agency which results in the spending of funds beyond those currently budgeted or which will obligate
future spending. By a request for such information, the Board exercises its right to call up an action for
review, but this request is to be made, in this case, to the BHE/CUS Board. The role of the BHE/CUS
Board and its staff will be to provide the requested information to the Board of Directors through its
chairman and chief executive officer.
120. Right of a Board to Adopt a Doctrinal Statement (02-2316)
In a letter dated November 1, 2002, a pastor of the Synod calls attention to the 2001 Report of the Church
Growth Study Committee, “For the Sake of Christ’s Commission” (2001 Workbook, pp. 442-450), noting
that a proposed resolution to the 2001 convention of the Synod commending this study to Synod’s entities
(Res. 3-14) was not acted upon by the convention. For the record, the Commission notes that the
convention placed this matter in omnibus Resolution B. The pastor asked following questions in its
regard.
Question 1:

Does an individual board or commission have the right to adopt a doctrinal statement as its
editorial position that has not been approved by the CTCR or a convention of the Synod?

Opinion: Only the Synod in convention has the right to adopt doctrinal statements according to the
process provided by Bylaw 1.09 c. Boards and commissions regularly identify materials that they find
useful for their own purposes, but they must abide by the Constitution, Bylaws, and resolutions of the
Synod.
Question 2:

Can a board or commission refuse the transfer of a position cost and personnel to another
board or commission on the basis of a failure to adopt an unofficial doctrinal position as its
doctrinal editorial statement?

Opinion: Boards of the Synod function according to the general regulations provided by Bylaw 3.69 and
other pertinent bylaws, and according to the specific bylaws that govern their activity.
121. Right of a Board to Adopt as Policy a Statement Not Approved by a Convention (02-2318)
A pastor of the Synod, in a letter received December 2, 2002, questions the right of the Board of Directors
of Concordia Publishing House and the Board for District and Congregational Services to use the
document, “For the Sake of Christ’s Commission,” as an editorial policy or guiding principle in their
work.
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