Constitution Guidelines
Constitution Guidelines
The Committee requests that you email an attachment of a new or revised Constitution & Bylaws to the email listed below. In the email subject line include Congregation Name, City, & State. The committee requests that document be sent as a Microsoft Word document.
Rev. Paul Wenz:
Email - constitutioncommittee@psd-lcms.org
Phone - 805-687-3734
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Guidelines for the Constitution and Bylaws of a Lutheran Congregation
The Synod Handbook bylaws (including 2. Membership, 2.2 Eligibility of Congregations and 2.4 Continued Eligibility of Congregations) stipulate that congregations become members or retain membership of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod only after their constitutions and bylaws have been reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors of one of the Synod’s 35 districts. A selection of the relevant bylaws state:
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2.2 Eligibility of Congregations
2.2.1 To apply for membership in the Synod a congregation shall have an approved constitution and bylaws.
(a) The congregation shall submit its constitution and bylaws to the appropriate district president, who shall refer such to the standing constitution committee of the district.
(b) The Constitution Committee shall examine the constitution and bylaws to ascertain that they are in harmony with Holy Scripture, the Confessions, and the teachings and practices of the Synod, in order that any necessary changes may be made by the congregation before the application is acted upon.
(c) The application for membership shall not be acted upon by the district board of directors until the congregation has made such changes as may be deemed necessary.
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2.4 Continued Eligibility of Congregations
2.4.1 A congregation desiring to retain membership in The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod shall continue to have a constitution and bylaws approved by the Synod.
(a) A member congregation which desires to revise its constitution and/or bylaws shall, as a condition of continued eligibility as a member of the Synod, submit a proposed revised constitution and/or revised bylaws to the district president.
(b) The district president shall refer such to the district constitution committee for review to ascertain that the provisions are in harmony with the Holy Scriptures, the Confessions, and the teachngs and practices of the Synod.
(c) Upon advice of the constitution committee and recommendation by the district president, the district board of directors shall determine if the changes are acceptable to the Synod.
(d) Upon favorable action by the district board of directors, the congregation shall be notified that the changes are acceptable to the Synod, and the congregation may proceed with formal adoption of the revised constitution and/or bylaws and remain a member in good standing of the Synod.
(e) Upon formal adoption of the proposed revised constitution and/or bylaws, the congregation shall provide to the district a dated copy of the action taken, accompanied by a copy of the dated revised constitution and bylaws.
(f) Until a congregation formally adopts a revised constitution and/or bylaws using this process, the Synod shall consider the existing constitution and bylaws to be in effect for all purposes.
2.4.2 A copy of the signed constitution shall be forwarded to the secretary of the district. Acceptance by the district board of directors shall be reported to the next regularly scheduled convention of the district.
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As the bylaws state, any changes to constitutions and bylaws of existing member congregations are to be reviewed by the Constitution Committee and approved by the PSD Board of Directors. Synod only considers revised constitution or bylaws to be in effect if they have been through this process. Until this point, the approved constitution and bylaws currently on file with the district is considered to be in effect.
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Because a high degree of uniformity is desirable, the Commission on Constitutional Matters, as a service to the Synod, has issued guidelines for the proper composition of congregations’ constitutions and bylaws.
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