LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — August 9–10, 2024, Page 3

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district and to the Synod, as described in Const. Art. XI B 1–3, including the authority to “advise, admonish,
and reprove” in the interest of “maintain[ing] unity of doctrine and practice,” and in Const. Art. XII 7: “The
district presidents shall, moreover, especially exercise supervision over the doctrine, life, and administration
of office of the ordained and commissioned ministers of their district and acquaint themselves with the
religious conditions of the congregations of their district.” (See also Bylaw section 4.4.) The board taking
on its native responsibility for other matters is crucial for the district president to be free to perform this
vital ecclesiastical supervisory work. Such changes are difficult but necessary for the long-term health of
the Church and the churches of the district. The commission deeply appreciates the district and its secretary
taking its reviews to heart and wrestling urgently with these important matters.
In its present review, the commission noted in addition:
•

CNH Article III A 2: “operates. All corporate…” should likely read “operates, all corporate…”

•

Article III F c: Executive session minutes are usually recorded but not distributed. The bylaw also
raises the question of whether audio or video recording is taking place or perhaps obligatory in
addition to the taking of written minutes. Is this intentional?

•

Article V D 1: It seems there are references to Convention Manual that should have been changed,
along with others, to Convention Workbook.

•

Article VI I 1: It may be well to distinguish more clearly between temporary incapacity and
resignation or removal from office (the last three sentences, for example, presumably apply only to
the latter). There probably also should be a stated procedure for determining temporary incapacity
(see Synod Bylaw 3.3.1.4).

•

Article VI F 3–4: Compare Synod Bylaw 4.7.3. For elections of other than president or the vicepresidents, the rule described in Bylaw 4.7.3 (c) must be used. With regard to ties for lowest votes
received and removal of all so tied, the commission is concerned that this procedure could result in
only a single name remaining on the ballot (suppose candidate A receives 34% and B and C each
33%, in which case a 34% plurality would result in victory due to the happenstance of a tie). The
tie rule must, therefore, not be added to the content of Bylaw 4.7.3 (b).

•

Articles VIII A e and VIII B 2: the last sentence of Article VIII B 2, “Further changes…” should
be moved to the end of CNH Article VIII A e (cf. Synod Bylaw 3.9.2.2.3 [b]).

•

Article VIII B: The district could, if it wished, also provide for this mechanism to be available when
Synod convention action affecting the district Bylaws has been taken. It should be noted here, with
regard to district-convention-initiated changes, that this mechanism needs, as in Synod Bylaw 7.1.2,
to be limited to “exceptional circumstances” where it is engaged “upon express direction of a
convention of [the district or] the Synod.”

The Synod Secretary noted that revisions to the district’s articles, to bring them into compliance with Bylaw
1.5.3.6, were approved by the commission in Op. 22-2989 (D) and understands these are to be brought to
the 2025 district convention. The Secretary had noted in correspondence, with regard to these, that the
articles in general may need further updating, for example, at least to revise a remaining instance of the
“German Evangelical Lutheran Church in California and Nevada.” The commission felt that as this is a
fundamental statement of the purpose of the corporation, this should likely be updated to include more than
Germans and also Hawaii, and perhaps for clarity’s sake to mimic more closely that of Synod’s Article of
Incorporation Art. II (a): “to unite in a corporate body Evangelical Lutheran congregations, in California,
Nevada, and Hawaii, that acknowledge and remain true to the Book of Concord of the year of our Lord
1580 as a true exhibition of sound Christian doctrine…”. There is also an instance of the “German
Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri, etc.” later in the document. The district may want to consider
broader changes in consultation with local counsel.

CCM Minutes – August 9–10, 2024 – Page 26