LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — January 25–26, 2013, Page 30

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Ecclesiastical Supervision,” has culminated in the submission of this overture to the 2013 LCMS
convention.
The primary goals of these discussions were two-fold: (1) the provision of proper ecclesiastical
supervision of church workers (missionaries, commissioned ministers, etc.) living outside the United
States; and (2) the provision of a means whereby interested international congregations could be received
into membership in the Synod.
It was agreed that the solution to (1) above would depend upon the involved district presidents (with the
assistance of the Office of International Mission) providing more intentional ecclesiastical supervision
through regular contact with the foreign workers. It was agreed that the best approach to (2) above, at
least for the present, would be to request the Missouri District to create an additional international circuit
to admit these congregations into membership in the Synod and to provide ecclesiastical supervision
(with the assistance of the Office of International Mission).
To accomplish these objectives, the Commission on Handbook offers the following proposed bylaw
amendments and provisions to the 2013 convention for adoption.
Resolved, That in order to accomplish the objectives described above regarding district membership
and ecclesiastical supervision of individual members of the Synod, the 2013 LCMS convention adopt the
following bylaw changes:
PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING
2.12 District Membership and Ecclesiastical Supervision and District Membership
2.12.1 Except as otherwise provided in this section, a member shall be under the ecclesiastical
supervision of the president of the district through which membership in the Synod is held Each
individual member of the Synod shall hold membership through a district. 2.12.1.1 The district
through which an individual holds membership and the district through which a member is
ecclesiastically supervised will not be determined in any case on the basis of district membership
of the congregation to which the individual belongs.
2.12.2 2.12.1.2 An individual member of the Synod who is serving a congregation shall hold
membership in the Synod through the district ofin which his/her calling body is located or
headquartered, except the following:the congregation is a member.
(a) 2.12.1.3 An individual member of the Synod who is serving a district shall hold
membership in the Synod through that district.2.12.1.4A missionary or chaplain serving
under a call by a mission board of the Synod shall hold membership in the Synod through the
district designated by the missionary or chaplain if approved by the president of that district
after consultation with the Office of International Mission and the president of the district
through which membership is currently held.
(b) 2.12.1.5 An individual member of the Synod other than a missionary or chaplain serving
under call by a mission board of the Synod and who is serving an agency other than a
congregation or district and other than a missionary or chaplain serving under call by the
Synod shall hold membership through the district designated by that person if approved by
both the president of that district and the president of the district in which the agency is
located, but shall be subject to the ecclesiastical supervision of the president of the
geographical district in which the agency is located. When all voting members of the agency
are members of a non-geographical district, membership shall be held through that district.
Page 57 – 01.25 to 01.26.13 – COH Minutes