LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters — Minutes St. Louis, Missouri — January 22-23, 1970, Page 1

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

and hymnody made available through the Synod's various boards, commissions, auxiliaries, and recognized
service organizations and through Concordia Publishing House." It was noted that some feel that the word
"clear" means that the Commission on Worship should receive worship materials and offer its opinions to
the originating entities which may then either accept these opinions and make the changes indicated or not
accept the opinions and proceed as they have planned. Others feel that the word "clear" means "approve for
use" and thereby the comments made by the Commission on Worship in regard to worship literature are to
be heeded and any changes required thereby are to be made before the materials are routed out to the
Synod. At that meeting the Commission had asked that the President be notified that the matter was under
consideration and that a response was being prepared.
After reviewing its previous discussion and a possible response, the Commission determined that it would
provide the following opinion:
You have asked the Commission on Constitutional Matters to interpret the meaning of the phrase "clear
all literature related to corporate Christian worship in liturgy. . ." in Bylaw 3.928, b, of the Handbook of
the Synod. You have also indicated that it appears that the words "review," "approve," "authorize," and
$$clear" seem to be used synonymously in that document.
In considering this matter, the Commission became aware of the fact that on January 29, 1970, a
response had been provided to the Commission on Worship to a closely related, if not identical,
question in respect to what was then Bylaw 11.113, b, 2. That response stated
In its meeting of January 22-23, 1970, the Commission on Constitutional Matters ruled that
Bylaw 11.113, b, 2, states that all literature related to corporate Christian worship should be
cleared with the Commission and that the words must be taken precisely as they read at present.
It did not, however, specifically define what is meant by the word "clear." A copy of the request for the
opinion is attached to this response.
Turning to this issue, the Commission observes that in considering the meaning of the word "clear" as it
appears in Bylaw 3.928, it seems quite obvious that more is meant than that the Commission on
Worship "should receive worship materials and offer its opinions to the originating entities, which may
then either accept these opinions and make the changes indicated, or not accept the opinion and proceed
as they have planned." There appears to be little difference between the meaning of the word "clear"
and the word "approve." Whether, however, its use in Bylaw 3.928 means that the Commission on
Worship may arbitrarily and/or unilaterally approve "all literature related to corporate Christian worship
in liturgy and hymnody made available through the Synod's various boards, commissions, auxiliaries,
and recognized service organizations and through Concordia Publishing House" is another matter.
We have used the term "arbitrarily and/or unilaterally" above because it is our opinion that unless
objective standards have been established and stated by the Synod on the basis of which worship
materials are to be measured, any "clearance'' or "approval" would be based on the subjective views of
the reviewer or of that Commission on Worship which exists at a given time. If these objective
standards were established and stated, use of the words "clear" or "clearance" would be comparable to
their use in relation to the activities and judgments of doctrinal reviewers or opinions of the
Commission on Constitutional Matters.

Objective standards against which doctrinal materials are measured are the Scriptures and the Lutheran
Confessions. The objective standard against which the Commission on Constitutional Matters measures
proposed bylaws and provides "clearance" or denies it is the Constitution and other Bylaws of the