CONSTITUTION
of the
NORTH
AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN AND REFORMED COUNCIL
(As amended by the
Third and Twenty-Second Meetings of the Council, October 28-29,
1977)
(Corrected as of
11-16-96)
The name of the Council shall be The North American Presbyterian
and Reformed Council.
Confessing Jesus
Christ as only Savior and Sovereign Lord over all of life, we affirm the basis
of the fellowship of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches to be full commitment to
the Bible in its entirety as the Word of God written, without error in all its
parts and to its teaching as set forth in the Heidelberg Catechism, the Belgic
Confession, the Canons of Dordt, the Westminster Confession of Faith, and the
Westminster Larger and Shorter Catechisms.
That the adopted basis of fellowship be regarded as warrant for the
establishment of a formal relationship of the nature of a council, that is, a
fellowship that enables the constituent churches to advise, counsel, and
cooperate in various matters with one another and hold out before each other the
desirability and need for organic union of churches that are of like faith and
practice.
1.
Facilitate discussion and consultation between member bodies on those
issues and problems which divide them as well as on those which they face in
common and by the sharing of insights "communicate advantages to one another"
(Institutes IV, 2, 1).
2.
Promote the appointment of joint committees to study matters of common
interest and concern.
3.
Exercise mutual concern in the perpetuation, retention, and propagation
of the Reformed faith.
4.
Promote cooperation wherever possible and feasible on the local and
denominational level in such areas as missions, relief efforts, Christian
schools, and church education.
It is understood that all actions and decisions taken are advisory
in character and in no way curtail or restrict the autonomy of the member
bodies.
1. For the
purposes of the initiation of the Council those of the following churches which
are officially represented in these organization meetings whose assemblies give
their approval be the founding churches of the Council: namely, Christian Reformed Church;
Orthodox Presbyterian Church; Presbyterian Church in America; Reformed
Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod; Reformed Presbyterian Church of North
America.
2.
Those churches shall be eligible for membership which profess and
maintain the basis for fellowship expressed in II and that maintain the marks of
the true church (pure preaching of the gospel, the Scriptural administration of
the sacraments, the faithful exercise of discipline).
3.
Admission to, suspension from, restoration to (after suspension), and
termination of membership shall be proposed by the Council to the member
churches by two thirds of the ballots cast; this proposal must then be approved
within three years by two thirds of the major assemblies of the member
churches. A proposal to suspend or
terminate the membership of a member church may be initiated only by a major
assembly of a member church. A
suspended church may send delegates to meetings of the Council but they shall
not vote nor may that church be represented on the Interim
Committee.
This constitution may
be amended by recommendation of the Council by two-thirds of the ballots cast
and this recommendation must then be adopted by two-thirds of the major
assemblies of the member churches.
The amendment as recommended to the member churches is
unamendable.
BYLAWS
(As amended by the
Fifteenth and Twenty-Second Meetings of the Council)
1. The Council
normally shall meet once each year.
2.
Before adjournment the Council shall set the date and place for the next
meeting. Ordinarily NAPARC shall meet on the third Tuesday and Wednesday of
November starting at 2:00 p.m. and concluding at noon on the second day. On the evening of the first day there
will be a banquet and program arranged by the host church. The Interim Committee shall make
arrangements for the next meeting and shall supervise the election of a
chairman, secretary, and treasurer.
3 All
meetings shall be open to authorized observers and guests except when the
Council decides to meet in Executive Session. Observers shall be limited to those
invited by the Interim Committee.
1.
Each member church shall appoint no more than four delegates to each
meeting of the Council.
2.
Each delegate of the member church shall be entitled to vote on items
before the Council. Voting on major
decisions (as determined by the body) shall be by unit vote of the church
delegates.
1.
Each meeting of the Council shall elect its own officers, as
follows: chairman, vice-chairman,
secretary, treasurer. The
vice-chairman shall normally succeed to the office of chairman, and shall be
declared elected by white ballot, unless the Council determines to conduct an
election.
2. The
responsibilities of the officers will be as follows:
a. Chairman - to
preside at meetings of the Council, to make required appointments, to see that
business is conducted in an orderly manner. He shall be a member of the annual audit
committee.
b. Vice-chairman
- to assist the chairman upon his request, and to succeed to the chairmanship at
the next annual meeting after the opening of the session. He shall be a member of the annual audit
committee.
c. Secretary -
to keep a roll of delegates, to record and distribute the minutes of the
Council, to carry on the correspondence in reference to Standing Committees,
Study Committees and the next meeting of the Council, and to prepare the Agenda
for the next meeting of the Council. Agenda materials shall be in the hands of
the Secretary at least six weeks prior to the meeting date of the Council and
shall be sent to delegates four weeks prior to the meeting of the Council. Agenda materials received after the
deadline shall be reviewed by the Interim Committee before they are given to the
Council for docket consideration (see Bylaws IV:5).
d. Treasurer -
to receive bills for the expenses of the meeting of the Council, to receive
funds to pay bills incurred by the Council, and to submit reports regularly to
the Council. Yearly written reports
shall be required which describe the nature of the accounts, the deposits made,
the investments made, and the interest/dividends earned. An internal audit shall be conducted
each year by the Chairman and Vice-Chairman prior to the yearly meeting of
NAPARC with a report given to the council.
3.
Terms of office:
a. The chairman
shall serve for a one year term, such term beginning with the annual meeting at
which he presides, and concluding after the opening items of the next
meeting.
b. The
vice-chairman shall serve a one year term and shall normally succeed the
chairman after the opening of the next annual meeting and the election of
officers.
c. The secretary
and treasurer shall serve for one year terms, and shall be eligible for
reelection.
4.
Travel, housing and meal expenses shall be borne by the sending
churches.
The Council shall deal only with:
1.
Communications received from member churches.
2.
Inquiries from churches for membership.
3.
Reports produced by its Committees.
4.
Official documents from organizations in which member churches are
cooperating.
5.
And such matters as may by majority vote be declared properly before the
Council.
6. The regular docket
of the meeting of the council shall be as follows:
I.
Call to Order
II.
Roll Call
a.
Member Churches
b.
Invited Observers
III.
Election of Officers:
Chairman, Vice-chairman, Secretary, Treasurer
IV.
*Reports from Various Member Churches
V.
Reports from Observer Churches
VI.
Adoption of Docket
VII.
Election of Additional Members to Interim Committee
VIII.
Approval of Minutes
IX.
Communications:
X.
Treasurer's Report
XI.
Interim Committee Report
XII.
Old Business
XIII.
Reports on Conference/Consultation Held
XIV.
New Business
XV.
Arrangements for Next Meeting (place, time, invitees)
XVI.
Adjournment
*This
is a time when NAPARC delegates assemble to share reports from their churches,
to talk about important issues raised, and to pray with and for each other.
1.
Committees of the Council
The Council may establish and appoint as many such committees as
needed. These committees shall
continue until the matters assigned to them have been completed. However, if such committees are to
represent all member churches, the delegates of each church to the current
meeting of the Council shall designate its representative(s).
2.
NAPARC Study Committees
The Council may establish NAPARC Study Committees to study matters
of mutual concern to the NAPARC churches.
In erecting such a Study Committee the Council shall indicate the number
of representatives each church may appoint to the Committee; equal representation from each church
shall be authorized. It shall also
designate one of the churches, which is to convene the Committee. The option of participating and the
manner of selecting representatives shall be left to each church.
3.
Conferences
a.
The Council may call Conferences on subject of mutual concern to which
all member churches are urged to send representatives.
b.
Annual consultations between the agencies of the various NAPARC churches
may be held as desirable with each member church being urged to
participate.
4.
Materials and Conclusions
Materials and Conclusions of NAPARC Study Committees and
Conferences shall be sent to the Interchurch Committees of all the member
churches, and to the NAPARC Interim Committee.
a.
The chief use of materials and conclusions of the NAPARC Study Committees
or Conferences is
(1) for the information and instruction of member churches,
and
(2) the conveying of possible responses - approval, disagreement,
or further study - by each member church to the other.
b.
The materials and conclusions are to be considered the property of the
several member churches, and may be used and publicized by them only in their
own name unless approved by other member churches also; joint publicity of the results of the
Study Committee or Conferences shall be by the churches themselves as
distinguished from publicity by NAPARC which is consultative rather than policy
making. Neither NAPARC nor NAPARC
Study Committees or Conferences may speak for the member
churches.
c.
The ultimate purpose of the NAPARC Study Committees and Conferences is to
search the Scriptures for the enrichment of our understanding of God's truth, to
discuss the application of God's Word in the life of the churches and to seek
unity through the development of a common commitment and
cooperation.
5.
Expense
The expenses of NAPARC Study Committees and Conferences are to be
borne by the member churches (including such items as: meals, travel, lodging,
etc.). The cost for such items as
duplication and secretarial aids is to borne by the NAPARC
treasury.
The Interim Committee
shall consist of the Chairman, Vice-chairman, Secretary and Treasurer of the
Council, together with such others appointed by the member Churches as will
provide one representative from each member Church. When the Secretary and or Treasurer
serves for more than one consecutive term, his delegation may elect an
additional member to the Interim Committee, if desired. Each denomination of NAPARC shall have
one vote on the Interim Committee, and each denomination's delegation determines
who represents that denomination. The Interim Committee will meet on the first
day of the NAPARC sessions, ordinarily from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to conduct
its essential business. If the
officers deem a longer time is necessary they may convene the Interim Committee
at an earlier time. Ordinarily only
members (or designated alternates) of the Interim Committee shall attend Interim
Committee meetings.
Its functions shall be
limited to those specified below:
1.
Make the arrangements and prepare the agenda for the meeting of the
Council.
2.
Call meetings of the Council or Study Committees when unusual
circumstances warrant.
3.
Give counsel to the Secretary regarding correspondence and
procedure.
4.
Deal responsibly with all matters inadvertently overlooked which call for
action before the next meeting of the Council.
5.
Advise the Council on matters coming before it.
6.
The participating churches shall bear the expenses of their members to
Interim Committee meetings.
These Bylaws may be
amended or suspended by the Council on motion passed by two-thirds of the voting
delegates.