To Grant Ministers of Religion—Commissioned Power to Vote at District and Synodical Conventions

WHEREAS, Scripture allows the church militant to organize in a variety of ways; and

WHEREAS, There is therefore no theological prohibition to prohibit commissioned and non-ordained church workers from the right to vote; and

WHEREAS, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod takes great pains in the theological education of all ministers of religion, both ordained and commissioned; and

WHEREAS, It is not good, right, or salutary that these workers be disenfranchised thusly; therefore be it

Resolved, That ministers of religion—commissioned as defined by Article V of the Synod Constitution be given the same ability as pastors to represent congregations and vote on their behalf; and be it further

Resolved, That Constitution Article V B be amended as follows:

PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING

B. Individual Members Individual members of the Synod, who are non-voting except for those pastors or ministers of religion—commissioned exercising the vote of a member congregation or congregations, are the following: …

and be it further

Resolved, That Constitution Article IX 1 be amended as follows:

PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING Article IX Representation The synodical meetings are composed of regularly elected and delegated representatives and of certain individual persons, as specified in the Bylaws, to wit:

1. Representatives of congregations, entitled to vote. A number of congregations shall form a group which shall be represented by two voting delegates, one a pastor or minister of religion—commissioned and one a lay delegate. 2. …

and be it further

Resolved, That Const. Art. XII 10 be amended as follows:

PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING Article XII Districts of the Synod and Their Regulation … 10.The meetings of the districts of the Synod are composed of the following: a. Voting Delegates Every member congregation or multi-congregation parish is entitled to two votes, one of which is to be cast by its pastor or a minister of religion—commissioned and the other by the lay delegate elected and deputed by the congregation or parish. b. …

and be it further

Resolved, That Bylaw 3.1.2 be amended as follows:

PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING Voting Delegates

3.1.2 Electoral circuits shall meet as required by the Bylaws of the Synod to elect circuit voting delegates to the Synod’s national conventions. …

(c) Voting delegates shall consist of one pastor or minister of religion—commissioned and one layperson from each electoral circuit. These pastoral ministerial and lay delegates and their alternates shall be elected according to the regulations of the Synod (Bylaw 3.1.2.1). …

and be it further

Resolved, That Bylaw 3.1.2.1 be amended as follows:

PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING

3.1.2.1 Elections of voting delegates shall take place in accordance with established policy and procedure. …

(c) The privilege of voting shall be exercised by one pastor minister of religion (either ordained or commissioned) and one layperson from each member congregation or multi- congregation parish of the circuit, both of whom shall have been elected in the manner prescribed by the congregation or parish. Congregations of a multi-congregation parish not contributing a lay voter may send an advisory lay representative, with voice but no vote. A pastor serving a congregation in an assisting capacity (Bylaw 2.5.6) is not eligible to cast that congregation’s pastoral vote.

(d) Each pastor minister of religion (ordained or commissioned) who is called and installed to a congregation of the circuit in a non-assisting capacity and not a specific ministry pastor shall be eligible for election. (1) Each voter may write in the names of two such pastors ministers of religion (ordained or commissioned) on the initial ballot. The three pastors ministers of religion (or more, in case of a tie vote) who receive the highest number of votes in this preliminary ballot shall be placed on the next ballot. (2) Each voter shall now vote for only one candidate. Balloting shall continue with the lowest candidate being removed from each succeeding ballot until one pastor minister of religion shall have received a simple majority of all votes cast, whereupon he shall be declared the pastoral delegate. (3) The congregation or congregations served (in other than an assisting capacity) by the elected pastoral ministerial (ordained or commissioned) delegate shall be removed from consideration for supplying any other voting delegate or alternate for that particular convention. …

(f) All other pastors ministers of religion (ordained or commissioned) who received votes in the initial write-in ballot, except those who were eliminated through the election of the lay delegate, shall be eligible for election as the alternate. (1) Each voter shall now vote for only one candidate. (2) Balloting shall continue with the lowest candidate being removed from each succeeding ballot until one pastor minister of religion shall have received a simple majority of all votes cast, whereupon he shall be declared the alternate pastoral ministerial delegate. (3) The congregation or congregations served by him or her shall be removed from consideration for supplying the remaining lay alternate. …

and be it finally

Resolved, That Bylaw 3.1.3 be amended as follows:

PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING Nonvoting Advisory Delegates

3.1.3 The advisory delegates of a district convention shall consist, unless they presenta valid excuse, of all individual members of the Synod within the district, except those pastors ministers of religion (ordained or commissioned) representing member congregations as voting delegates. In a convention of the Synod, all commissioned ministers and those ordained ministers not eligible for election as a voting delegate under Bylaw 3.1.2.1 (d) shall be represented as follows: …