LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — May 2, 2022, Page 1

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MINUTES
COMMISSION ON CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS
Internet Conference Meeting (Zoom.us)
May 2, 2022
143. Call to Order and Opening Prayer
Dr. Gude called an internet conference of the commission together, with all members present, to conclude
opinions begun at the commission’s last meeting and to address two new items of district bylaw review
business. He opened with prayer.
144. District President’s Provision of Information to Calling Congregations (22-2980)
By emails of January 25 and February 3, two individual members of the Synod, ordained ministers,
requested an opinion of the commission on the following questions, with regard to which, pursuant to Bylaw
3.9.2.2 (b), input was solicited from the district presidents and praesidium of the Synod. The questions are
as follow:
Question 1:

When a vacant congregation of the Synod is in the process of calling a pastor and requests
information on an ordained member of the Synod in good standing, whether a member of
its own district or of another district:
(a) Does the president of the congregation’s district have the authority under the
Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod to refuse to supply the congregation with the
requested information regarding that individual ordained member of the Synod who is
a member of the district of which he is president?
(b) If the individual ordained member of the Synod for whom information is requested is
from a different district than the congregation’s, does the district president of that other
district of which that ordained minister is a member have the authority under the
Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod to refuse to supply the requested information to
the district president of the district of which the congregation is a member, who will in
turn provide the information to the congregation requesting it?

Question 2:

If the answer is yes, the district president may refuse to provide information, what basis do
the Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod specify that would authorize this refusal?

Question 3:

What limitations, if any, do the Constitution and Bylaws of the Synod place on a member
congregation of the Synod wishing to call an ordained minister currently on the roster of
the Synod?

Opinion Background: The questions presented to the commission are part of the larger question of the
relationship between the Synod and its member congregations. In answering the questions, the commission
will first review the relation of a congregation with the Synod, particularly as it relates to the calling of a
pastor by a congregation.
Article II of the Constitution specifies that every member of the Synod must accept, without reservation,
the Scriptures as the only rule and norm of doctrine and the Lutheran Confessions as found in the Book of
Concord as a true exposition of the above.
Article III of the Constitution lists the objectives of the Synod, four of which directly pertain:
Article III Objectives
The Synod, under Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions, shall—

CCM Minutes – May 2, 2022 – Page 105