LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — February 10–12, 2012, Page 1

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MINUTES
COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
February 10–12, 2012
St. Louis Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel
89. Call to Order, Opening Devotion, and Review of Agenda
Chairman Wilbert Sohns called the meeting to order, called on George Gude for the first of his three daily
opening devotions based on the lessons for the Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany. Chairman Sohns
provided an overview of the agenda for the meeting.
90. Oklahoma District Bylaws Final Review (08-2536B)
The commission reviewed the changes made by the district committee in response to the most recent
commission review of the district’s Bylaws, instructing the secretary of the commission to express its
appreciation for the district’s cooperation throughout the review process. The commission called the
district’s attention to two remaining details to be addressed:
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•

Article IV, paragraph 3: The commission recommends (when the election of the regional
members of the board of directors is being described) that the actions on the regional level to
“elect” the board members would better read “select,” thereby reserving use of the term “elect”
for the end of the process when the district convention ratifies the selections made by the regions,
which ratification constitutes “election.”
Appendix E, “9 Months Prior” paragraph: The change recommended by the commission to
replace “election process” with “nominations process” apparently was overlooked and should be
made.

91. Interpretation of Constitution Art. VI 2 b (11-2598)
In a letter addressed to the Commission on Constitutional Matters dated July 11, 2011, a pastor of the
Synod submitted four questions requiring an interpretation of Synod Constitution Art. VI 2 b and relevant
Synod bylaws (such as Bylaw 2.14.1) with respect to ecclesiastical supervision.
The letter included the background of the February 12, 2010 opinion of the Commission on Theology and
Church Relations (CTCR) entitled “Response to ‘Request for CTCR Opinion Concerning Continued
Eligibility of an Inactive Emeritus Member Under Article VI of the Constitution of The Lutheran
Church—Missouri Synod.’”
A summary paragraph of the CTCR opinion stated:
It is the opinion of the CTCR that the meaning of the phrase “taking part in” within the context of Article VI 2 b
is a matter of interpretation based upon the original intent of our Synod’s fathers when they drafted the
Constitution. Its potential theological meanings are varied, as noted above. Its particular usage in the context of
the Constitution of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod is a question, therefore, that can be rightly decided
only by those who are charged with the responsibility for such interpretation, the Commission on Constitutional
Matters.

The four questions were submitted to the Commission on Constitutional Matters in view of the CTCR
opinion (the full February 12, 2010 opinion is available on the Commission on Constitutional Matters
Web page: http://www.lcms.org/ccm/).