ELCA Council Maintains V.P. as Volunteer, Six-year Term

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) declined to transmit a proposed constitutional amendment to the 2003 ELCA Churchwide Assembly that would have changed the term of the vice president from six years to four years. It also adopted a resolution affirming that the vice president serves as a volunteer.
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of the church between churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 15-17. Assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 11-17, 2003, in Milwaukee.
The ELCA constitution requires that the churchwide assembly elect a lay person to a six-year term as vice president. The vice president serves primarily as chair of meetings of the Church Council and may have other duties. The constitution stipulates that the vice president is to be an ELCA member and receives no salary.
The 2001 Churchwide Assembly in Indianapolis referred a proposal to the Church Council that called for establishment of a stipend for the vice president. That proposal cited the time commitment, potential use of personal resources and loss of time at work as reasons for possible compensation. Following extensive study, the council's executive committee recommended that the vice president's position remain unsalaried.
Without comment, the full council agreed. The council's action reaffirmed "the vision of the Commission for a New Lutheran Church (CNLC) that the position of vice president of the ELCA as well as synodical vice presidents be volunteer positions, that the reimbursement of all approved expenses related to these positions be provided." The CNLC planned the structure and vision of the ELCA, which was formed in 1988.
The council discussed at length the question of the vice president's term. Some suggested that proposing a reduction in term length might be a solution to the time commitment required and voluntary nature of the position. Others expressed concern that proposing a reduction in term length could be viewed as a demotion, since the ELCA's three other officers -- presiding bishop, secretary and treasurer -- are elected to six-year terms.
Dr. Addie J. Butler, Philadelphia, currently serves as ELCA vice president. She has announced she will not seek reelection when her term concludes in 2003. In response to a council member's request for comment, Butler said she is concerned about the time commitment issue.
"The CNLC was perfectly correct in its effort to get lay people involved in administration as much as possible," she said. "But many lay people do not have the (job and time) flexibility I have. By decreasing the length of term, this could increase the pool of available candidates."
Brian Rude, council member, Coon Valley, Wis., presented the proposal as chair of the council's legal and constitutional review committee. He said if the council declined the proposal, it would most likely not take up the question again for at least six years, since a new vice president will be elected in 2003.
The council does not have enough "data points" to make a decision to change, said Ida Marie Hakkarinen, council member, Greenbelt, Md. Noting that all other officers have six-year terms, she said she did not favor reducing the term length.
Ellen T. Maxon, council member, Hartland, Wis., suggested the council could vote to transmit the proposal and leave it to the assembly to decide "if this is a good thing or not," she said.
The vice president's term should be equal to terms of other officers, and, within the 5.1-million member ELCA, there should be adequate numbers of candidates who can be available, said the Rev. Charles W. Mays, council member, Port Angeles, Wash.
The council also acted on a number of other proposals:
+ It approved a revised 2002 current fund operating expenditure for the churchwide organization of $82,659,700 and approved a revised 2002 World Hunger spending authorization of $16 million. The revisions were made in response to spending reductions announced earlier this year. The revised spending authorizations represent a $2.36 million reduction from what the council previously authorized for 2002 current fund spending and a reduction of $500,000 in authorized spending for World Hunger programs. For fiscal year 2003 the council authorized current fund spending of $85,310,000, and authorized $16.5 million in spending for World Hunger programs.
+ The council commended the commitment of the ELCA to address racism in the church and society. The council acted to require that, beginning in 2003, all new churchwide staff and elected and volunteer leaders attend a two-day anti-racism training. It encouraged staff, elected leaders and others to participate in other components of the church's anti-racism program. The council said it anticipated continued work on anti-racism with ecumenical and global partner churches. The action was requested by the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, in support of the church's anti-racism efforts.
+ The council affirmed a proposal from the Division for Higher Education and Schools that the ELCA consider joint ministries with other church bodies in operation of colleges and universities "provided that such ministries are mutually beneficial and create new educational ministry opportunities." The council said such ministries could be considered according to established policy and that such approvals be granted by the DHES board.
+ It authorized a two-year delay in consideration of an African American Strategy. The steering committee of the ELCA Commission for Multicultural Ministries asked to extend the completion date from 2003 to 2005 so that more people could be involved in the process.
+ The council encouraged the ELCA Division for Church in Society to undertake advocacy related to a measure the U.S. Congress is expected to discuss in 2003, the Houses of Worship Political Speech Protection Act. The board of the ELCA Division for Church in Society asked the council to support the legal barrier that prevents nonprofit organizations from participating in or intervening in political campaigns. The council reaffirmed previous church statements which address this issue.
+ It declined to propose amendments to the church's constitution that would change the definitions of membership in the church. The ELCA Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod called for reconsideration of "the qualifications for voting membership in light of the significant expectations and ideals for the practice of Christian faith through a local congregation."

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