Soon after his installation this year as the new president of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the Rev. Matthew Harrison was studying the responsibilities of his office in the denomination's constitution and bylaws.

One paragraph jumped out at him.

Under Section 3.3 — "Elected Officers of the Synod" — he learned that the synod president 'shall be a full-time executive" and 'shall not be in charge of a congregation or hold a chair at any educational institution."

But, the bylaw continued, he "may be called as an assistant pastor, provided such services do not interfere with his official duties as President."

As a student of synod history, Harrison knew that no president of the church had simultaneously helped pastor a church since John Behnken in the 1950s. He also knew, as the author of a book about the church's first five leaders, that for the first century of the denomination's history, it was common practice for a synod president to have a pastoral role in a local congregation.

Harrison approached the pastor of his new parish, Village Lutheran Church in Ladue, and asked for his thoughts.

"We sat down and talked to make sure we were on the same page, but I wasn't too concerned about that," said the Rev. Kevin Golden, Village Lutheran's pastor since mid-2009. "I was familiar with where he stood theologically and we have mutual friends who reassured both of us that we were on the same page."

Golden sat down with the 200-member church's board of elders, who were unaware that the president of the synod could help pastor a church.

"But as soon as we started talking about it, they saw that it would be a very healthy thing to have the president grounded in a local congregation," Golden said.

In October, Village Lutheran issued "a call," or an invitation, for Harrison to be its assistant pastor. Last week, Golden sent out an e-mail to his flock telling them he had a new assistant — the president of the 2.4 million-member denomination.

In a move not seen in the synod for 60 years, Harrison will not only manage the second-largest Lutheran denomination in the country, but he'll also get his uniform dirty.

"The Missouri Synod has been stagnant for 40 years," Harrison said. "There are many different reasons for that, but this is a public affirmation of the importance of a local parish, and local pastors."

On Oct. 11, after Village Lutheran called Harrison, he let it be known to his nearly 3,000 Facebook friends that he'd been asked.

His status update said he was "deeply humbled by the fidelity, confidence ... and love of these saints & Pr. Kevin Golden. I and my family request your prayers."

And he got them — in 80 comments (along with 194 "likes").

"What a wonderful possibility that a Synod President could have one foot in the parish!" one person wrote.

"Even the prez needs to keep his preaching chops!!" wrote another.

"Am I dreaming?" another asked. "Is this my grandfather's church?"

A few were more realistic. In July, delegates of the Kirkwood-based denomination elected Harrison president in a surprise defeat of a more liberal three-term incumbent, the Rev. Gerald Kieschnick.

Besides electing Harrison in July, delegates also voted to radically restructure the denomination in an effort to combat what officials have called "a financial crisis."

The restructuring effort had been pushed by Kieschnick and opposed by Harrison because, he said at the time, the restructuring would move the church a step closer toward a hierarchical structure that would give the president more power.

In victory, Harrison was saddled with power he did not want, and a mammoth logistical undertaking of reordering the denomination.

"Hate to break out the ice water," one person commented on Harrison's Facebook page. "But that old country saying about riding two horses with one behind comes to mind. You've saddled up the largest parish in the world. All 2.4 million of us. I know how you love a challenge and if there is a mortal man today who could do it all, it's you. Praying for you Matt; real hard."

Golden said Harrison's new position would benefit both parties.

"When a church calls a pastor, it's not just about the pastor caring for him, but them caring for the pastor," Golden said. "We're taking seriously our responsibility to care for Pastor Harrison."

For the synod president, the new position will involve preaching once every month or two, teaching the occasional Bible study and visiting a handful of shut-ins each month. He has stressed that it will not involve meetings or administrative duties, and that he will not receive any compensation, or even reimbursement for mileage, from his church.

"The foundation of pastoral ministry is preaching, teaching and visiting," Golden said. "Everything else flows from those things."

Village Lutheran will install Harrison as its assistant pastor at its 10:45 a.m. service on Jan. 9. His first duty will be to officiate during Communion.

In a Dec. 19 letter to the denomination's 35 district presidents, Harrison said he had accepted Village Lutheran's call that morning, though not "hastily, or without significant consultation."

Harrison pointed first to the denomination's bylaws, then said it had been "many decades" since a synod president "acted on this privilege." It had been "long the practice of the Missouri Synod, and has been the practice of the Lutheran Church in general for most of its history."

"This call is a gift," Harrison continued. "My service shall be a gift."