LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — September 26 – 27, 2014, Page 14

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With a July 26, 2014 memorandum, the executive director of the Commission on Theology and Church
Relations submitted a revised version of the commission’s policy guidelines in response to
recommendations provided by the Commission on Constitutional Matters following an earlier review.
The commission noted the changes that were made, but again offers the following recommendations for
the section of the policy manual governing the section of the manual pertaining to requests for opinions
from the Commission on Theology and Church Relations coming out of the Synod’s dispute resolution
processes (e.g., Bylaw sections 1.10, 2.14, et al.), noting that the process provided fails to satisfy the
Synod’s bylaw requirements.
•

The bylaw reference provided with the title and in the first paragraph of Part VIII is incorrect and
should read “1.10.18.1 (h) (2).”
• The final sentence of paragraph 1 of Part VIII (“When and where necessary, the CTCR Executive
Director shall advise the Panel regarding procedural issues and/or suggested changes in the
specific wording of the request for an opinion which may serve to expedite the process.”) exceeds
the provisions of the Bylaws of the Synod and should be deleted.
• Paragraph 2 of Part VIII fails to make mention of the President of the Synod as one who also may
request an opinion from the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (see Bylaw 1.10.8 et
al.).
After further discussion, the commission asked its chairman to write a letter to the President of the Synod
calling his attention to the difficulty the Commission on Theology and Church Relations is experiencing
in satisfying the 30-day bylaw expectation for a response to inquiries coming out of the dispute resolution
processes of the Synod.
67. Southern Illinois District Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws Review (14-2732)
With an August 10, 2014 email, the secretary of the Southern Illinois District submitted his district’s
Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws for review by the commission. Upon review, the commission
offered the following recommendations to the district regarding its Bylaws.
•
•

1.05 Duties of Advisory Members: The first sentence of this paragraph should also include
mention of the election of advisory delegates to Synod conventions, adding the words: “and
participate in the election of advisory delegates to Synod conventions.”
2.21 Duties: Paragraph [c] would better read: “The vice-presidents shall act on behalf of the
President as he directs.”

The commission requested that the district board of directors give attention to these matters in a new
version of its bylaws, identifying these latest changes made, and submitting the document to the
commission along with a clean copy for the commission’s records.
68. Realignment of Visitation Circuits (14-2734)
With an August 20, 2014 memorandum, officers of the Mid-South District submitted three questions
regarding the realignment of visitation circuits. The commission responded as follows.
Question 1:

Did amendment of Synod Bylaw 3.1.2 (a) by the 2013 Synod convention authorize district
boards of directors to create or realign adjacent visitation circuits by determining their
makeup to allow for the requirements matching that of an electoral circuit as well as
geographical criteria (Bylaw 5.1.2)?

Opinion: No. Synod Bylaw 3.1.2 (a) as it stood in the 2010 Handbook of the Synod read as follows:

CCM Minutes – September 26–27, 2014 – Page 44