tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post6589916065219798297..comments2024-03-27T15:47:46.091-05:00Comments on Pastoral Meanderings: Bishops and Their Councils and Conferences. . .Pastor Petershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10653554256101480140noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-29267288766841821242017-09-27T15:53:24.011-05:002017-09-27T15:53:24.011-05:00You can read Rev. Noland's 9-page article, &qu...You can read Rev. Noland's 9-page article, "<a href="http://www.lutheranclarion.org/images/LCMS_District_Presidents_and_Their_Powers_-_Noland.pdf" rel="nofollow">The LCMS District Presidents and their Powers</a>," combined from the May and July 2017 issues of <i>The Lutheran Clarion</i>.Carl Vehsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00348831096001668813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-75147727556431215252017-09-27T14:47:35.940-05:002017-09-27T14:47:35.940-05:00Dear Pastor Peters,
You ask an excellent question...Dear Pastor Peters,<br /><br />You ask an excellent question about the authority of "council of bishops" or their equivalents in other church bodies. <br /><br />I asked and attempted to answer this question for the LC-MS in my "District Presidents and their Council" in the 1997 Congress on the Lutheran Confessions, published here:<br />https://logia.org/luther-academy-books/congress-on-the-lutheran-confessions-church-polity-and-politics (now out of print).<br /><br />I think better answers could be given than what I offered, but I could find little else at the time. The essay still has some worth, even if it is not comprehensive.<br /><br />For the LC-MS, bylaw 3.10A covers the duties of the Council of Presidents. As presently stated, it gives the President of the Synod a forum for advising "his representatives in the regions and districts"--i.e., the district presidents; and also offers the President, the synod Vice-Presidents, and district presidents an opportunity to "counsel with one another" about doctrinal and administrative issues (bylaw 3.10.1.2).<br /><br />Also the Council of Presidents serves as the "Board of Assignments," which function it has almost always had.<br /><br />I think it is significant that there is no opportunity for the Council of Presidents to "counsel the synod-at-large" or the public regarding the will of its members. This is important for the unity of the church. If the Council of Presidents opposes the President, or even intimates a point of criticism of him, then who is "in charge"? Synod at the national level elects the president of synod; it does not elect the district presidents. The district presidents are supposed to carry out the will of the national synod; not vice-versa.<br /><br />As to the current conflict between the pope and his Council of Bishops, that is a different polity with a different history, and much ink could be spilled on that one.<br /><br />I hope this helps a bit, since you asked for some help. :)<br /><br />Yours in Christ, Martin R. Noland<br />Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, San Mateo, CAMartin R. Nolandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16511881036585972977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-5649454291057721652017-09-27T14:41:04.896-05:002017-09-27T14:41:04.896-05:00Wow! The anonymous rumors are flying today!Wow! The anonymous rumors are flying today!Carl Vehsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00348831096001668813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-34074444182976053662017-09-27T13:29:45.467-05:002017-09-27T13:29:45.467-05:00I think Pastor Peters just missed Carl's comme...I think Pastor Peters just missed Carl's comments and decided to throw him a softball.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-50914286134138059522017-09-27T12:14:18.469-05:002017-09-27T12:14:18.469-05:00"Rumor has it that this imposter 'Carl Ve...<i>"Rumor has it that this imposter 'Carl Vehse' is really part of the Lutheran underground movement in Germany."</i><br /><br />This rumor, like the nearly-century-old LCMS rumor hawking that Carl Vehse and Altenburg Debate 2nd-place finisher, Adolph Marbach, advocated the same theological position, is also untrue.Carl Vehsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00348831096001668813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-32312703474337093662017-09-27T11:17:07.529-05:002017-09-27T11:17:07.529-05:00The original Carl Vehse died in 1870. Someone who...The original Carl Vehse died in 1870. Someone who posts as him is<br />really an anonymous imposter. Rumor has it that this imposter "Carl<br />Vehse" is really part of the Lutheran underground movement in Germany.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-11257842537595937142017-09-27T09:44:32.260-05:002017-09-27T09:44:32.260-05:00Some anonymous person wrote: "This year there...Some anonymous person wrote: <i>"This year there were 60 calls that were not filled due to lack of candidates."</i><br /><br />While there may not have been enough seminary candidates, there are well over a hundred ordained candidates (formerly CRM), who are qualified for a call and available.<br /><br />Over the past decade and a half the COP has obtained other authority and powers, including in 2016 (Res. 12-14), the authority to develop, with the Synod Secretary, new Bylaws on ecclesiastical supervision (CCM Op. 16-2791, 16-2794).Carl Vehsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00348831096001668813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-65523114049101618732017-09-27T09:07:09.571-05:002017-09-27T09:07:09.571-05:00The LCMS Council of District Presidents has one ma...The LCMS Council of District Presidents has one major task each year.<br />They are responsible for placing the seminary candidates from St. Louis<br />and Fort Wayne. Most candidates will receive a call into the pastoral<br />ministry. This year there were 60 calls that were not filled due to<br />lack of candidates.<br /><br /><br /><br /> Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329600504016968888.post-62378781696030998812017-09-27T08:44:20.746-05:002017-09-27T08:44:20.746-05:00"But what about bishops or presidents council...<i>"But what about bishops or presidents councils or conferences?<br /><br />"My question involves not their advisability but the theology of it all and how we both invest and justify the authority, responsibility, and jurisdiction we place in them. It may well be that these are simply anomalies. <br /><br />"What is the theological status, authority, and jurisdiction we assign to national groups such as episcopal conferences or councils of [district] presidents?"</i><br /><br />Well, indeed! These are <b>interesting questions</b>, and even more so <b>coming from a member of the LCMS Commission on Constitutional Matters</b> following their recent September 15-16 meeting (the minutes of which have yet to be posted).<br /><br />And of course there is the recent Council of Presidents meeting on September 16-19 and another meeting on November 14-16 and yet another on February 5-8 and on April 22-26, all leading up to the District conventions next summer (and minutes of the COP meetings are not posted for pastors and pewsitters to read.)Carl Vehsehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00348831096001668813noreply@blogger.com