# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1853 06 21_S148
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

148

be brought so far that they can establish the doctrines of the Christian faith with the clearest proof-texts from Scripture and refute therefrom the false doctrines of the sects.

For the instruction of confirmands, where possible, about a hundred hours are to be used. The pastor is to see to it that his confirmands have impressed upon their memory a good number of such good, churchly hymns of the core repertory, which can serve them as a provision for their whole life.

§. 17. The District Synod makes it a matter of conscience for its pastors not to lose sight of the catechumens after their confirmation, to take them under their care in a particularly fatherly manner, and therefore, among other things, wherever possible, to hold with them public Sunday examinations on the Catechism.

§. 18. The District Synod requires of each of its pastors that he send in to its annual meeting statistical parochial reports from the past civil year according to a form given under A.

§. 19. The pastors of each District Synod are divided by it into various district pastoral conferences, which are to hold a meeting annually, if possible twice, the minutes of which are to be sent to the District Synod for review.

§. 20. For the valid holding of the District Synod meeting, a lawful convocation of the same and the presence of at least one third of the voting members is required. If officers are absent at meetings, temporary substitutes for those officers are elected by the members of the Synod present.

§. 21. The new officers are elected at the close of each session of the general Synod.

B. Execution of the Business of the General Synod.

§. 1. For the execution of its business the general Synod has, besides the ordinary officers named in Chap. III. §. 5, the following:

a. two examining commissions; b. two boards of supervision; c. an electoral college; d. a heathen mission commission; e. a correspondent with the Lutheran Church of foreign lands; f. a chronicler; g. an editor each for its periodicals; h. a committee for the publication of the same.

§. 2. One of the two examining commissions is to consist of the director of the one institution and the District President of the district concerned, and the other of the director of the other institution and the District President of the likewise concerned district. These District Presidents have the chairmanship in the examining commission and, with their fellow examiners, are empowered, in urgent cases of necessity, to transfer the examination to another member of the Synod fit for it. However, the examination must always take place publicly before competent witnesses; therefore, in the cases concerned, the examination of scientifically educated candidates is to be held in the German language.

The examination shall be both written and oral. To be handed in in writing are a sermon on an assigned text, an elaboration on a dogmatic and church-historical subject, and finally a short sketch of the course of life, as well as a credible testimonial of character. The oral examination takes place in the following subjects: knowledge of the Bible and interpretation of Scripture, Christian doctrine of the faith, knowledge of the symbolical books and of the doctrines of false-believing communions, church history, especially Reformation history, practical pastoral care; likewise the person to be examined must hold the sermon he has handed in and a catechization. All this takes place, as already remarked, publicly. The examiners are above all to ascertain whether the person examined has a thorough knowledge of the right dividing of the Law and the Gospel (2 Tim. 2, 15), also whether he is apt to teach, and clear and decided in the pure confession.

With regard to the requirements which are made of the examinees, there are 2 classes of them; to the first belong those who lay claim to a full theological training, who are therefore as a rule to be examined in Latin, and only in certain subjects (the so-called practical disciplines) in the German language, especially also on their knowledge of the original languages of the Holy Scripture. To the second class belong those who have received a predominantly practical training for the conduct of the holy ministry; these are to be examined in the German language.

After a passed examination a full testimonial of their fitness is to be issued to the candidates.

Those who wish to be examined are to report about 6 weeks beforehand, in writing, to the District President concerned, and are to enclose with this their life history and testimonial of character. Thereupon the said President sends them, at least 4 weeks before their examination, the text for the examination sermon and the theme of their treatise. The person to be examined must send in these two pieces of work 8 days before the examination. Those candidates are excused from the examination who can show by sufficient testimonials that they have already been examined and found fit by other recognized orthodox church bodies.

§. 3. For the two institutions of learning of the Synod there are two boards of supervision, which are formed of the District President concerned in each case, a learned pastor to be elected, and a suitable person to be elected from the hearers of the congregation to which the institution belongs. The members of the board of supervision and their legal successors are at the same time trustees of the respective institutions.

§. 4. The election of the teachers at the institutions of the general Synod takes place through an electoral college, which consists of the board of supervision and five persons of the synodical union to be elected by the general Synod. This college nominates 3 candidates for the vacant teaching position, from whom the teacher is chosen by the members of the electoral college, the majority of votes deciding. However, the teaching staff and every congregation have the right to move that a certain person be nominated as a candidate for the vacant teaching position. They also have the right to protest against the installation of the one elected by the electoral college. If the electoral college does not grant the protest, it may be called to account before the Synod by those protesting.

The election is valid when it has been confirmed by at least two thirds of the voting congregations (parishes). Immediately after the election the electoral college is to make the result of it publicly known through the "Lutheraner," with the request that the vote of every congregation entitled thereto be sent within 8 weeks after the date of the insertion of the request to the secretary of the electoral college, who is thereupon to make known through the same paper the resulting outcome and, respectively, the confirmation that has taken place.

§. 5. The heathen mission commission consists of a president, a secretary and a treasurer, who are to be elected by the members of the general Synod for three years and are to conduct their office according to the instruction given them.

§. 6. The elected correspondent is appointed to maintain, in the name of the general Synod, a correspondence by letter with the Lutheran Church of foreign lands, in particular with the witnesses of the truth in Germany. The purpose of this correspondence is to bring about a living fellowship of the church here with that of foreign lands, and thereby to testify and demonstrate that the church is only One in spirit, faith, doctrine and confession, at all times and in all places.

§. 7. The chronicler has the task, in the name of the Synod and with its authorization, of recording briefly in chronological order, in accordance with the truth, the most noteworthy events and movements within the American-Lutheran Church of the present, its conflicts, and the influences which it experiences from without, and so of furnishing continued contributions to a chronicle of the American-Lutheran Church.

§. 8. The general Synod assembles once in every third year at the time and place concerning which in the last-held