Articles I–II. Areas of Synods; Conventions

Article I. Areas Of Synods

Sec. 1. The East Godavari Synod of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church ordinarily shall operate in the Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and East Godavari Districts.

Sec. 2. The West Godavari Synod of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church ordinarily shall operate in the West Godavari District.

Sec. 3. The East Guntur Synod of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church ordinarily shatl operate in Guntur District.

Sec. 4. The Central Guntur Synod. of Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church ordinanly shall operate in Guntur, Krishna and Hydergbad Districts.

Sec. 5. The West Guntur Synod of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church ordinarily shall operate in Guntur. Kurnool and Nellore Districts.

Sec. 6. The above mentioned Synods may also operate In such other places as this Church shall determine in consultation with the regional Christian Council.

Article II. Conventions

Sec. 1. The regular.annual conventions of the Synods of the Andhra.Evangelical" Lutheran Church shall be held ordinarily between January and April 30 or at' such times and places as shall be determined by the Executive Council of the Andhra gvengeélical Latheran Church. By specific action the Executive Council may direct the Executive committee of the Synod to fix either he tis or the place of the regular conventions.

Sec. 2. The executive committees of the synod shall make recommendation to the Executive Council concerning the time and place of special conventions of the synod and notice of such special conventions shall be given only after approval of the time and place of the convention by the Executive Council.

Sec. 3. Representation shall be by clerical and lay delegates as follows:

a. Ordained ministers of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church who are on the clergy rol! of the synod as laid down in Art. V. Sec. 1.of these by-laws, except that a minister of the Andhra Evangelical Luthersn Church who is retired shall be a, member without vote.

b. 1. Lay delegates as follows:

In order to be entitled to send lay delegates to the synod Convention, each parish shall contribute tothe A. E. LL. Church work as a whole through the Suvartha Dhana Nidhi fund as follows.

Each 'A' class parish shall contribute 209%, of all its offerings, excluding special offerings (such as Bible Society. NMS, Youth, Theological Education Endowment), of the previous financial year ending Dec. 31 to the Survartha Chana Nidhi fund of the A.E, L. Church. It shalt be entitled to have three lay delegates to the synod convention.

Each 'B° Class parish shall contribute 10% of actuel offerings excluding special offerings (such as Bible Society, NMS, Youth, Theological Education Endowment), of the previous financial year ending Dec. 31 to the Suvartha Dhana Nidhi fund of the A. E L, Church. It shall be entitled. to have two lay delegates to the synod conventions. - Each 'C' Class parish shall contribute 3% of-gctual offerings. excluding special offerings (such as Bible Society, NMS, Youth, Theelogical Education Endowment) of the previdus finapctal yoar

ending December 31 to the SDN fund of the A. E.L. Church. It shall be entitled to have one lay delegate to the synod convention.

2. (a) Lay delegates and alternate delegates to synod conventions shall be confirmed members 1n good standing of the parish which they represent. They shall be members who contribute at least Rs. 5/- per month or atleast Rs. 60/- per year to the Suvartha Dhana Nidhi fund of the church in addition to a minimum of Rs. 5/~ per year offering of record to their parish The membership of any such delegate already elected shall automatically cease if his annual contribution is not given regularly within the calendar year or such other time as specitied by the Executive Council, They shall have been resident in the parish which they represent for at least one year prior to the date of election as delegate. in so far as they are able to judge, parish church councils snall seek to elect as delegates men and women of good report as described in Acts 6: 3, Tim. 3: 8—10, and Titus 1: 6.

b) Lay delegates to synod conventions shall be at least twenty-five years of age. )

c) A delegate whose residence is changed to a place outside the parish during his term as delegate shall cease to be & delegate and his. alternate shall become the regular delegate for the term.

3. Lay delegates and alternates shall be elected by the parish church councils to a term of four Jyears in accordance with a schedule to te laid down by the executive committee of the synod, which schedule shall provide that one-fourth of the terms in regular Ti glicgessin will 'expire each year. This schedule ghallibe prepared once in tén years and any amendments' oft shall'become effective only after ) approval by the Executive Council of the Andhra Evangélical Lutheran Church. "Lay delegates

shall serve from the beginning of tha Syned Convention meeting succeeding their election till the beginning of the next regular synod convention at which their suceessors are seated. *

4. A delegate shall be eligible for re-elaction.

5. Procedure for the election of lay 'delegates and alternate shall be as follows;

a) Approximately three months before the "regular convention unless otherwise permitted by the executive committee of the synod, the president of the synod shall send to pastors of the concerned parishes instructions concerning the elections of. lay delegates to the synod convention, in accordance with the synod by-laws Art. Il. Sec. 3. b.

b) The pastor shall give to the parish church council at least one week's notice of the time and plage for election of a lay delegate to the synod convention.

c) At the announced time of the election, the pastor shall convene a meeting of the parish church council at which more than half-of the members shall constitute a quorum. He shall then read the qualifications of delegates as set forth in Synod By-laws Art. ll. Sec. 3, b, 2, as well as the Scripture passages referred to therein

d) The pansh church council shall then spend some time in prayer for the guidance of -God in the matter before them, *

e) Voting shall be by written ballot by members of the parish church council without oral nomination, and shall require three-fourths of the ballots cast for election on the first ballot. If no one is elected, the ballot shall be treated as'a nominating

ballot and the three names receiving the highest number of votes shall receive further consideration,

f) On the second written ballot the members shall vote for one of the three names retained from the y first ballot. If one of the nominees receives more than half of the votes cast, he shall be declared elected. Otherwise the name receiving the lowest number of votes shall be eliminated and the votes shall be cast between the remaining two names, The one receiving more votes shall be declared elected ss delegate. In case of a tie. it shall be resolved By drawing (ots.

9) The procedure faid down in (e) and (f) above shall be followed in the election of an alternate.

h) The pastor shéll immediately notify the president of the synod of the name of the person elected: with his postal address, in the following form of certificate: —lI'do hereby certify that at a duly notified and convened meeting of the parish church council held at (place) on (date), (name of elected person! was elected as lay delegate from —— ~——— parish to the synod convention further certify that (name of the elected person) is a confirmed member — —— years of age. in good standing in ———— congregation of ~——— parish. Within the last one year he has recdived Holy Communion. and has made a conttibution of record to the congregation. also certify that the following parish church counctl-members wers present and participated in thre election.

3. etc."

A similar cartificate concerning the alternate shall be sent.

i) Six weeks before the regular convention of the synod, unless some other tine is permitted by the executive committee of the synod, all of the certified credéntlals of the elected delegates and aiternates shail be in the hands of the president of the synod, along with any appeals against the validity of any election or against the eligibility of any lected delegate or alternate. Appeals or challenges, if any, shall be made with reasons to the president of the synod with a copy to the chairman of the synod"s Committee on Nominations and Credentials, and shall be made only on the basis of alleged violation of constitutional provisions. Appeals or challenges on bases other than alleged violation of constitutional provisons shall not be considered. The president shall then draw up a list of all the delegates and alternates against Whose elsction there tias been no appeal or challenge and who appear to be eligible to serve. He shall also draw up a second list containing" the names of persons whose election or eligibility has been' contested or wha appear 'ineligible to serve,

i) Approximately five weeks before the synod conven- » tion, unless otherwise permitted by the executive committee of the synod, the synod's Committee on Nominations and Credentials shall receive from the president of the synod the list of uncontested and contested delegates and alernates (see i above). together with the certificates from parish pastors and shall consider their conformity to the constitution and enactments of this church. 'Thé synod's Committee on Nominations and Credentials shal) prepare a list of uncontested delegetes. and on each contested, ineligible or doubtful case shall make its recommendation with constitutional

reasons regarding the' validity of the election or the eligibility of the individual'

k) The executive committee of the synod and the synod's Committee on;Nominations and Credentials sittifio in joint session, shall be the body for making final"decision concerning the roll of delegetes to the synod convention. The synod president who shall be chairman of this joint body, shall give to each member at least one week's notice of its meeting which he shall convene approximately four weeks before the synod convention.

This body shall consider the delegates one at a time, taking into consideration the repogt of the Committee on Nominations and Credentials concerning uncontested delegates, as well as that committee's recommendations on each contested, ineligible or doubtful case, and vote shall be taken on the" seating of each delegate. Only violation of constitutional provisions shall constitute grounds for a decision against seating a delegate, Such a decision not to seat a delegate shall_require a two - thirds majority vote of the members present. An appeal hay be made to this body to reconsider * its decision in any case, but such reconsideration" shall be final and Binding. ) If a decision is made against seating a delegate, his alternate, if eligible, shall become the delegate, thie pastor of the concerned parish shall be notitied forthwith; and the parish church council shall be instructed to elect an eligible alter- nate. If both delegate and the alternate are inefigible, the parish church council shail elect both a delegats' dnd alternate. The names of such delegates and altefnates shall be scrutinized by

the synods Committee on Nominations and Credentials and by the 'above mentioned joint body, which shall meet approximately one week before the convention. In case of any election not having been completed by the time of this meeting of the joint bady, that place shall remain vacant until after the convention, when it may be filled in accordance with the provisions of these by-laws. The above provisions concerning the scrutiny of delegates shall apply equally to alternates.

1) At the time of the synod convention the president of the synod, shall lay upon the table the certificates which he has received from the parish pastors in accordance with (h) above containing the names and certitications of those who have been approved as delegates and alternates 'by the Joint-body, consisting of the Exacutive Committee and Comniittee on Nominations and Credentials of the synod. Hae shall then instruct the synod's Committee on Nominations and Credentials to take a roll call by signatures, ¢ Institution representation: Institutions having at least 10 AELC staff members who give 89, 'of their-total salaries as a whole to the Suvartha Dhana Nidhi Fund.of the Church shall be entitled to- send-one delegate to the synod Convention at the expense of the institution This delegate shall be elected by. and from among the members who contribute at least 5% of their. salary to the Suvartha Dhana Nidhi Fund,

d. The President of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church or his nominee shall be given seat voics in the convention,

Sec. 4. Alternates, For each lay delegate an alternate delegate shall he chosen in accordance with Art. Il Sec. 3, b. of these by-laws. The

certificates of delegates offcially forwarded to the president of the synod shall contain the name and address of the alternate; in the roll call of synod listed in the official minutes, the name and address of the alternate shall be sat down opposite the name and address of the delegate. If a delegate is unable to attend any convention for any temporary cause, the alternate shall attend that convention only, If the delegate for any reason loses his delegateship or is declared inetigible to serve, the alternate shall become the regular delegate for the rest of that term and another alternate shall be elected by thesconcerned parish church council.

Sec. 5. Declaration before conducting elections:

Before the apening of the election of panels for president and other persons elected by the convention, the president shall read the following dectamation and the convention shall denote assent to the same by a rising vote, Form of Declaration i Bearing In mind how Important it Is that the sacred offices of the chuaroh should not be unworthily conferred. do solemnly declare that will not vote at these elections for any persons through fear or favour, but in singleness of that for the glory of God and the good of His people, and ! will vote for such learning persons only as In my canscience helleve tp -be of such learning and soundness In the talth, and of such virtue and.abillty as to quality for the holy offices of the church.