In Central/Southern Illinois Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America v. Trinity Lutheran Church of Kankakee, (IL App., March 2, 2021), an Illinois state appellate court held that the parent Synod was entitled to take over the property of a local church whose membership had diminished to the point that it was no longer holding worship services or exercising governance functions. Both the constitution of the Synod and of the congregation provided that the Synod should take over the congregation’s property in such cases. However one of the remaining church members changed the locks and prevented the Synod from entering. The court said in part:
Pursuant to both constitutions, the Synod Council determined that Trinity Lutheran was no longer viable and, thus, ceased to exist. Such a decision was within the province of the Synod Council and is an ecclesiastical matter involving church doctrine, polity, and practice. Therefore, we will defer to such a finding.