Parliamentary Procedure 101 available for review

For our 2024 assembly, we are reposting a great symposium on Parliamentary Procedure and Robert’s Rules of Order by David Swartling. View the PDF handout here, and the presentation is available for viewing here with passcode: TQgC5E!7

Special thanks to our amazing guest, David Swartling, for providing this valuable information. Please feel free to share this information with your congregation leadership, as well as your congregation’s synod assembly delegates.

David Swartling was Secretary of the ELCA. This informative and entertaining presentation will show how good process facilitates wise decision-making. It’s open to all who are interested, but would be especially helpful for rostered ministers, council members, congregation officers, and others who serve as meeting facilitators.

Good Process Facilitates Wise Decision-Making!

This simple statement has proven itself over and over again during David Swartling’s career from his days as a trial lawyer in Seattle, to his experiences on the Congregational Council of Bethany Lutheran Church, to his service on the Northwest Washington Synod Council, and later to his tenure as Secretary of the ELCA in Chicago. Each of these experiences gave him a deeper appreciation for the experience of Henry M. Robert, who when asked to preside at a meeting in 1863, found only chaos instead of the orderly and respectful exchange of ideas that he expected.

More than 150 years later, Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (12th edition) is a recognized resource and the designated parliamentary authority in the ELCA. But to fulfill General Robert’s hope, congregational leaders need to understand Robert’s Rules as an aid to wise decision-making and not obstacles to governance. In retirement, David seeks to aid non-profit organizations — especially ELCA congregations, synods, and related entities — in their mission and ministry by providing assistance in understanding parliamentary procedure in the context of meetings and assemblies. By attending Parliamentary Procedure 101 (and Why It’s Important!) you’ll learn the basics of parliamentary law and see how its processes can facilitate wise decision-making. You’ll also learn a number of important tips, and even experience a smile or two.  And, you’ll receive some helpful handouts that you can use in the future!

Join David and Grand Canyon Synod leaders and congregants in a parliamentary Zoom journey on Tuesday, April 26 at 6:00 PM.  Come and participate in Parliamentary Procedure 101 (and Why It’s Important!). Click here to register.

David Swartling is a retired lawyer and former Secretary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.  He attended Princeton University on a Navy Scholarship and began his vocational odyssey as an officer on a submarine.  He then attended law school at the University of Washington and began his career as a trial lawyer in Seattle.  After practicing with a large firm, he joined a number of friends and formed what became Mills Meyers Swartling.  During his litigation career he was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers.  As a practicing lawyer for more than thirty years, he also was extensively involved in teaching litigation skills and participating in bar association activities, and he served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Washington Civil Procedure Deskbook for 15 years.  For his efforts to improve the legal profession he received an award from the American Bar Association and the President’s Award from the Washington State Bar Association. 

Besides his legal career, David has been extensively involved in the work of the ELCA.  He served as Vice President of the Northwest Washington Synod, and on the boards of Trustees of the ELCA Foundation, Board of Pensions (now Portico Benefits Services), and Lutheran Services in America. He also served as parliamentarian for a number of Synod Assemblies, and in 2005 and 2007 he served as parliamentarian for the ELCA Churchwide Assembly.  In the later Assembly, he was elected to serve as Secretary of the ELCA, the first layperson to serve in this position.  He and his beloved spouse Barbara relocated to Chicago where they both served (Barbara became the Executive Director of the Deaconess Community) until 2013, when they returned to the Seattle area.

Since retirement, David has continued to consult with ELCA organizations and to serve as parliamentarian for several synods. He also served as a consultant for the ELCA Church Council and drafted its Governance Policy Manual.  He and Barbara reside on Bainbridge Island and are members of Bethany Lutheran Church.