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“Robert’s Rules of Order, latest edition, shall
govern parliamentary procedure of all meetings.” These words, or others
much like them, are found within the defining documents of our church,
synods and congregations. Their purpose is to identify our rules of
procedure, how we conduct ourselves as we carry out our business in
assembly.
Coming from a law and
gospel tradition, we recognize the importance of rules. We live with
the ever-present influence of the “Old Adam,” and passions can run high
when people of the ecclesia militans (church militant) express
differing views on important issues that touch the core of their faith.
But “the church militant” should be a term we use to portray our stance
as a people called out as a countercultural influence, not to describe
how we carry out our internal discussions.
Robert’s Rules imposes what is essentially a confrontational style of decision-making on our organizations.
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© 2013 Augsburg Fortress, Publishers
