Steadfast Media Pick of the Week — LCMS Nomination Process
October 11th, 2012
LCMS Nomination Process
Since the deadline for nominating officers of the LCMS is October 20th I thought this interview with Dr. Martin Noland from November 30, 2009 on the process would be appropriate. While the interview pertains to the 2010 convention I think the process is largely the same, but I it would be great if Issues, Etc. did a followup on any changes.
Here’s a page on the LCMS website regarding convention nominations.
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Categories: Steadfast Media Pick of the Week
Dear Mr. Yamabe,
Thanks for resurrecting an old radio clip.
Dear BJS Readers,
Here are some things that need to be said, in terms of things that have changed in three years.
First, from my previous BJS blog-post “How You Can Help Improve the LCMS”:
If your congregation is LCMS, it can nominate persons for President, 1st VP, Regional VPs, and Regional Board of Directors when you receive the forms from Secretary Raymond Hartwig later this year. These particular nominations are important, because the five names with the most nominations for each position will become the ballot. The Regional VPs and Regional Lay Board of Directors are new ballot positions. The former replaced the old “Vice-Presidents in Line of Succession” on the ballots.
Second, I noticed that the period for doing these nominations has changed. This time it started September 30, 2012 and will end February 20, 2013. That means February 20 is the deadline!
Third, I recently realized that these regional elections are going to be different than anything we have had in the past. When the synod asks for “Regional” VPs or “Regional” Board of Directors, it means it wants people who may not be known at the national level. “Regional” people may be known well at the district level, in their own district or a locale within the district, but have little name recognition outside of their district. Since we don’t meet together as “Regions,” we are going to get lots of nominations for people that most of us don’t know. It will be interesting to see how it actually works out.
Fourth, people should be appraised that the election process has changed for all these offices. The LCMS President will be elected prior to the convention, by mail or electronic ballots, by delegates who attended the district conventions in 2012. The First Vice-President position will be elected from a ballot of five chosen by the President from the top 20 nominees for that office. The Regional VPs will have a ballot of the top five from each region, and the entire convention will chose all of those positions. The Regional Lay Board of Directors (only Central and West-Southwest are open this year) will follow the same process.
Fifth, every church office should by now have received the official ballots, addressed to the church, e.g., “Saint Lorenz Lutheran Church . . . Frankenmuth, MI …” After the appropriate meetings of the congregation, those forms need to be completed, signed by the Congregation Secretary and Congregation President, and then returned to the LCMS Office of the Secretary in the proper (blue or white) envelopes enclosed—by February 20, 2013.
I hope this adds some clarity to the process
Yours in Christ, Martin R. Noland
Dear BJS Bloggers,
I just reviewed the previous for the fourth time, and did find something confusing. The blue envelope goes to the Secretary’s office, but the white one goes to the CPA firm “Brown Smith Wallace.” So make sure you don’t put the wrong form in the wrong envelope. If you have a tendency to be dyslexic or otherwise “caddy-wampus”, have someone else check your work on this before it is mailed.
Yours in Christ, Martin R. Noland