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LCMS 2026 Convention Workbook: Reports and Overtures, PDF page 525

messaging channels) where members can raise questions, provide 
feedback, and review responses from others; and be it further 
Resolved, That the Synod recommend best practices for 
asynchronous communication, such as establishing a minimum 
discussion period, setting clear guidelines for questions and 
responses, and designating a board member or facilitator to monitor 
and summarize key points, ensuring a balanced and comprehensive 
discussion; and be it finally 
Resolved, That the Synod provide training and resources on best 
practices for conducting electronic votes and asynchronous 
discussions, helping boards and agencies to make decisions 
thoughtfully, transparently, and in alignment with governance 
principles. 
Nebraska District 
Ov. 9-46 
To Amend Bylaw 3.6.1.8 (c) to Clarify  
That Two-Thirds Synod Member Approval 
Requirement for Synodwide Corporate Entity 
Governing Document Amendments Is Based on 
Members Actually Present at Meeting 
WHEREAS, The board of trustees of the LCMS Foundation has 
reviewed the convention overture submitted by LCEF “To Amend 
Bylaws 3.6.1.8 (c) and 3.6.4 (a) to Clarify that Two- Thirds 
Approval Requirements for Synodwide Corporate Entity and 
Lutheran Church Extension Fund Governing Document 
Amendments are Based on Members Actually Present at Meeting”; 
and 
WHEREAS, The LCMS Foundation has determined that as a 
synodwide corporate entity, the Foundation is also challenged by 
the issues raised in the aforementioned o verture as contained in 
Synod Bylaw 3.6.1.8 (c)  and wishes to express its support for the 
proposed change, so far as it applies to the LCMS Foundation ; 
therefore be it 
Resolved, That Bylaw 3.6.1.8 (c) be amended as follows: 
PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING 
3.6 Synodwide Corporate Entities 
General Principles 
… 
3.6.1.8 Each synodwide corporate entity shall provide in its 
governing instruments 
… 
(c) a provision that any amendments to a provision of its 
governing instruments which relate to its objects and purposes, 
the designating of its members, or the procedure for amending its 
governing instruments shall require a two-thirds affirmative vote 
of its members present at such meeting, if any, who are appointed 
by the Board of Directors of the Synod; and 
…  
Board of Trustees 
LCMS Foundation 
Ov. 9-47 
To Amend Bylaw 3.6.4.3 to Clarify That All 
Lutheran Church Extension Fund Voting 
Directors are Elected and To Add That  
No More Than Two Such Directors Can Be  
from the Same District 
Rationale 
Bylaw 3.6.4.3 [2] refers to some of Lutheran Church Extension 
Fund’s (LCEF) directors as being chosen by its members. However, 
the first sentence of the immediately following Bylaw 3.6.4.3.1 
refers to the same directors as being elected. The proposed wording 
below would resolve this inconsistency by changing chosen  to 
elected in Bylaw 3.6.4.3 [2].   
The LCEF Bylaws in Section 1, Article II, contain a sentence that 
reads, “No more than two elected Directors can be from the same 
District of The Lutheran Church— Missouri Synod.” The 
Commission on Constitutional Matters  (CCM), in Opinion 26 -
3076, dated March 5, 2026, has stated that the aforesaid limitation 
does not apply to the LCEF d irectors elected by the Synod in 
convention since the limitation does not appear in the Synod’s 
Bylaws. The CCM also s uggested that, “The convention can be 
asked to add the language to the Synod Bylaws, perhaps to Bylaw 
3.6.4.3, and if it does so, the provision would be operative from the 
time of adoption.”  
In order, therefore, to clarify that the requirement that no more than 
two elected LCEF directors can be from the same district also 
pertains to the LCEF voting directors elected by the Synod in 
convention, a sentence similar to that in the LCEF Bylaws is 
proposed to be added to Synod Bylaw 3.6.4.3. This would avoid the 
possibility that the LCEF directors elected by the Synod convention, 
when added to the directors elected by the LCEF membership, 
could exceed the limitation. Since LCEF amended its Bylaws in  
2025 to remove geographical restrictions regarding the election of 
its directors, the proposed change would prevent overrepresentation 
on the LCEF Board of Directors by any one district.   
Therefore be it 
Resolved, That Bylaw 3.6.4.3 be amended as follows: 
PRESENT/PROPOSED WORDING 
3.6.4.3 The board of directors for the Lutheran Church Extension 
Fund—Missouri Synod shall consist of such number of directors as 
are specified in the bylaws of The Lutheran Church Extension 
Fund— Missouri Synod. All voting members of the board of 
directors of the Lutheran Church Extension Fund—Missouri Synod 
shall serve a maximum of four three-year terms. 
1. Three directors shall be elected by the Synod in 
convention and shall include one ordained or 
commissioned minister and two laypersons. 
2. The remaining voting directors shall be chosenelected 
by the members. 
3. The representative designated by the Board of Directors 
of the Synod shall also be a nonvoting member of the 
board. 
 No more than two elected directors shall be from the same district, 
provided that the current term of a director shall not be affected if 
the director moves from one district to another during the term. 
Board of Directors 
Lutheran Church Extension Fund 
2026 Convention Workbook
490 STRUCTURE AND ADMINISTRATION