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What is the Synodical Council?
What is the Synodical Council?
This month I will have the privilege of chairing my first meeting of the Synodical Council. You may have heard of this group if you follow synodical news. More than likely you saw references to the Synodical Council in the discussions leading up to and following last summer’s synod convention.
Exactly who belongs to this group? What does the Synodical Council do?
The Synodical Council (often referred to as the “SC”) is comprised of the synod president as chairman, one lay representative from each of the 12 districts, three district presidents, the four chairmen of each area of ministry (World Missions, Home Missions, Ministerial Education, and Parish Services), one pastor (elected at the synod convention), and one teacher (elected at the synod convention). Advisory members include the two vice presidents, the chief financial officer, the director of the Ministry of Christian Giving, the director of communications, and the director of technology.
The duties of the Synodical Council are very much like those of a church council in a congregation. It is responsible for overseeing the work of the synod between conventions, just as a church council oversees the work done in a congregation between voters’ meetings. It’s the responsibility of the Synodical Council to see to it that the decisions and directives of the synod convention are carried out faithfully.
Another major responsibility of the Synodical Council is to oversee the synod’s finances and budget. The council proposes a budget to the synod convention. Once the budget has been adopted by the synod convention including any changes made by the convention, the Synodical Council must do all it can to see to it that the budget remains balanced. If the offerings received by the synod are not sufficient to carry out the work adopted by the convention, the Synodical Council is responsible for adjusting the budget or taking appropriate action to ensure the fiscal health of the synod. You can imagine how difficult this task must be in times when expected offerings fall short of what is needed.
The recent convention adopted a two-year budget. But even though we are only five months into that budget, the Synodical Council will already begin working with the various areas of ministry to plan for the next two-year budget to be considered by the 2009 convention. The SC tries to determine the amount of funding that will be available and then strives to propose a budget that will best carry out the work that we will do together as a synod.
Please keep these faithful men in your prayers. Thank God for their willingness to serve; they give many hours of their time and make many sacrifices to “be about their Father’s business.” And ask God to give them a rich measure of his wisdom as they serve you and their Lord in this important role.
Exactly who belongs to this group? What does the Synodical Council do?
The Synodical Council (often referred to as the “SC”) is comprised of the synod president as chairman, one lay representative from each of the 12 districts, three district presidents, the four chairmen of each area of ministry (World Missions, Home Missions, Ministerial Education, and Parish Services), one pastor (elected at the synod convention), and one teacher (elected at the synod convention). Advisory members include the two vice presidents, the chief financial officer, the director of the Ministry of Christian Giving, the director of communications, and the director of technology.
The duties of the Synodical Council are very much like those of a church council in a congregation. It is responsible for overseeing the work of the synod between conventions, just as a church council oversees the work done in a congregation between voters’ meetings. It’s the responsibility of the Synodical Council to see to it that the decisions and directives of the synod convention are carried out faithfully.
Another major responsibility of the Synodical Council is to oversee the synod’s finances and budget. The council proposes a budget to the synod convention. Once the budget has been adopted by the synod convention including any changes made by the convention, the Synodical Council must do all it can to see to it that the budget remains balanced. If the offerings received by the synod are not sufficient to carry out the work adopted by the convention, the Synodical Council is responsible for adjusting the budget or taking appropriate action to ensure the fiscal health of the synod. You can imagine how difficult this task must be in times when expected offerings fall short of what is needed.
The recent convention adopted a two-year budget. But even though we are only five months into that budget, the Synodical Council will already begin working with the various areas of ministry to plan for the next two-year budget to be considered by the 2009 convention. The SC tries to determine the amount of funding that will be available and then strives to propose a budget that will best carry out the work that we will do together as a synod.
Please keep these faithful men in your prayers. Thank God for their willingness to serve; they give many hours of their time and make many sacrifices to “be about their Father’s business.” And ask God to give them a rich measure of his wisdom as they serve you and their Lord in this important role.
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