LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — April 13–14, 2012, Page 5

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

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[Resolved,] That in order to provide direction for transfer of congregations, the following bylaw provision
be added:
4.03 d

Transfer of congregations between districts is completed upon approval of the respective district
boards of directors at the request of the congregation [current Bylaw 4.1.1.4]. Transfer of
congregations between partner churches requires the additional approval of the governing boards
of the church bodies [current Bylaw 4.1.1.5].
And be it further
Resolved, That such actions be reported by the district president of the transferring district in the official
periodicals of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod [1995 Convention Proceedings, p. 153].

Synod Bylaw 4.1.1.3 1 is the provision “for the formation, division, realignment, merger, or dissolution of
a district or districts … initiated by a national convention of the Synod or the Board of Directors of the
Synod” [emphasis added]. The 1995 convention resolution made it clear that new Bylaw 4.03 d [2010
Bylaw 4.1.1.4] was an additional provision allowing a congregation to initiate a request for a transfer to
another district and therefore was not in conflict with Bylaw 4.03 a,b,c [2010 Bylaw 4.1.1.3]. The Bylaw
4.1.1.4 provision for transfer of congregations between districts applies even though it has the effect of
changing the boundaries of the districts.
118. Confessional Standard—Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope (12-2638)
In an April 10, 2012 emailed letter, a district secretary asked for an opinion from the commission
regarding the requirement by his district’s Constitutional Review Committee that the Treatise on the
Power and Primacy of the Pope be specifically listed with the other symbolical books in the confessional
paragraphs of congregations’ constitutions.
Opinion: The commission is aware of differing opinions regarding the specific listing of the Treatise on
the Power and Primacy of the Pope as one of the symbolical books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
The list provided in Article II of the Synod’s Constitution, for example, has never included mention of the
Treatise (reflecting the document’s association historically with the Smalcald Articles). At the same time,
instances of specific listings of the Treatise as one of the confessional documents in the Book of Concord
can be found in various materials published by the Synod. 2
1

4.1.1.3 The Synod decides when and whether a district shall be formed, divided, realigned, or merged with another or other
districts, or dissolved; determines the boundaries of a district; and approves the name of a district.
(a) A proposal calling for the formation, division, realignment, merger, or dissolution of a district or districts may
be initiated by a national convention of the Synod or the Board of Directors of the Synod.
(b) Such proposals shall
(1) be submitted to the President at least six months prior to a convention of the Synod;
(2) be produced in consultation with the Department of Planning and Research;
(3) include a substantiated description of the nonviable aspects of the current district(s) on the basis of general
principles of viability adopted from time to time by conventions of the Synod, and shall specify the problems or
factors which make the adoption of the proposal advisable or necessary;
(4) provide evidence that the proposed change is the best of the options available;
(5) provide a specific and realistic development plan for the proposed district(s), including detailed proposals for
staff personnel and financial operations; and
(6) be the object of an evaluation prepared by the Board of Directors of the Synod and submitted to the
convention.

2
A footnote to the document produced by the Commission on Constitutional Matters, “Guidelines for Constitutions and Bylaws
of Lutheran Congregations,” states, “Historically, The Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope, not listed in Article II, has
often been considered to be included in the Smalcald Articles.”

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