Governance

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
– Romans 13:1

Our Structure, Leadership, and Constitution

The Metropolitan Chicago Synod was formed in 1988, when the ELCA was formed by the union of three separate North American church bodies:

The American Lutheran Church
The Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches
The Lutheran Church in America

Since then, we have used the following systems of governance:

Synod Constitution

Constitution, Bylaws, and Continuing Resolutions of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod. The foundation for our governance, our constitution is available for all congregations to use as a valuable resource. You can view our constitution here→

Synod Assembly

The synod assembly is the highest legislative authority in the synod and meets yearly. Learn about the Synod Assembly here→.

Synod Council

Functioning as the board of directors of the synod, the synod council serves as its interim legislative authority between meetings of the synod assembly. View the members of our Synod Council here→.

Conference Deans

Each of our eight conferences elects a dean. View our conference map and see the current deans here→