Preparing for Constitutional Revision

The Congregation Council may appoint a committee of 2-3 individuals to the task of updating the constitution.

Documents to Review Prior to and During Constitutional Document Revision

A copy of Guide for Use of the Model Constitution for Congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (available on the Synod web site at www.fbsynod.com under: Congregation > General Resources)

A current copy of the latest Model Constitution for Congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America available at the ELCA Web site under Office of the Secretary.

Making Revisions/ Adding Text

1. Work from the latest model constitution approved by the ELCA Churchwide Assembly when making changes to your document.
2. Place an opening title on your constitution, e.g. Constitution of St. Paul Lutheran Church of Tampa Florida and the revision date. Make sure to include the city and state. The chances are that you are not the only St. Paul Lutheran Church in the synod.
3. For clarity, have one person note the changes being made to the constitution in a separate document to be shared with council members or the congregation.
4. Use a footer on your document like 00000-St. Paul-Tampa 8/28/10, where 00000 is to be replaced by your congregation number.
5. Indicate the changes made to the original document using editing marks, by striking out deleted text and underlining areas where new text is being inserted.
6. An asterisk (*) preceding a chapter number in the model constitution indicates that text within that particular chapter or section cannot be modified. For clarity, leave the asterisk preceding the chapter number as an indicator that text within that section is a required constitutional provision.

Bylaws and Continuing Resolutions

These should be incorporated into the body of the constitution as outlined in the Guide for Use of the Model Constitution for Congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Once this has been accomplished, the resulting document is much easier to use as everything related to a single subject is found in one place.

The Approval Process

1. After you complete your revisions, refer the document back to Congregation Council for review.  Send it to council members three to four weeks before the monthly council meeting to give them an opportunity to review the document.
2. Mail or email an informal copy to the synod for review at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
3. You will receive a reviewed copy from the synod. If changes are required (they usually are – you are not alone) make them and resubmit to Council and synod. If changes are recommended (as opposed to required), evaluate them and (if changes are made) resubmit to Council and synod.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 as often as needed.
5. When all is approved, the Council must call a special Congregational Meeting for at least 30 days in the future and issue a recommended action to the congregation (i.e. to recommend approval of the changes). Note that 30 days must elapse between the recommendation and the meeting and that the Council must have 30 days to consider the changes before making the recommendation to the congregation.
6. If the changes are not accepted without change at the special (first) meeting, submit what is accepted to the synod for review. You do not want to have the annual meeting approve changes and then have the synod constitution team reject them. That puts everyone involved in a awkward position.
7. When the congregation accepts the changes they must again be accepted at the next annual meeting by a 2/3 majority of the members present and voting. There can be no changes made at this meeting.
8. As you submit revisions to the synod office, help us by letting us know each time just where you are in the process.
9. When the congregation votes to accept the modified constitution, the secretary of the congregation must forward it to the synod for formal review.
10. The Constitution Review Chair or synod administrator will review the document within 120 days, notify the congregational secretary of approval, and forward the approved constitution to Synod Council at its next scheduled meeting.
    
    

If you need assistance or further explanation, please contact the Synod Office at 813-876-7660

Ken Aicher, Assistant to the Bishop