Constitution & Manual of Operating Procedures FAQ

What is the major reason for changing the Constitution?
1. It was too abbreviated. It was only two pages long and contained only five short articles. The new one has nine which include considerable more explanation for clarity.
What is the major change in the new constitution?
The main leadership team is now called the Board of Overseers instead of the Council. The concepts are included in the Constitution. The details are included in the Manual of Operation Procedure.
What are some other general changes in the documents?
  1. The old By-Laws document is now the Manual of Operating Procedures (MOP)
  2. The old Bylaws were also very short, not very detailed and didn’t include a lot of areas the Council felt were necessary to include and spell out in great detail
what are the reasons for updating our By-laws?
  1. It included undue limitations on who could serve in various church ministries by making some elected positions automatic members of the Council (Treasurer, Financial Secretary)
  2. Several offices don’t exist anymore (Sunday School Secretary & Assistant Sunday School Secretary)
  3. Inconsistencies (Elder is both an officer & has no official standing, which is confusing at best)
  4. It doesn’t reflect the current state of the district as it talks about District Conference
  5. In several places, we haven’t operated that way (Recording Secretary is on the Board of Trustees)
  6. It refers to the Council as merely advisory
  7. It mandates that Communion must take place at least four times a year
  8. In many places, it was very cryptic and open to misunderstanding (membership status)
What are the Major Changes from the Old By-Laws to the New Manual of Operating Procedures?
  1. It expands on the office of Overseer which is mentioned in the Constitution
  2. Leadership is organized by six standing teams, non-standing teams and Special Coordinators
    1. Standing Teams are: Deacons, Finances, Missions, Nominating, Trustees & Worship
    2. Non-Standing Teams might include: Construction, Decorating & Search Committee
    3. Special Coordinators might include: Guest Services, Nursery & Teachers
  3. Expands and clarifies issues such as church discipline and active/inactive/non-member status
  4. It adds a section on electronic meetings
  5. It removes several officers from automatically being on the Board of Overseers
  6. It makes more positions appointed as opposed to elected (Head Deacon & Head Trustee)
  7. It tightens up our statements about doctrine found in position papers
  8. It includes all the policies which have already been approved by the Council (and afterward, the Board of Overseers) (Bounce House Usage, Bus/Trailer/Van Usage, Facility Use, Hold Harmless Agreement & Infectious Disease)
  9. It codifies many areas that could/have become targets of legal proceedings to give us greater protection (same sex marriage)
  10. Tightens up requirements for Officers to be members, but people serving on various teams do not have to be members
  11. It opens up many areas of service to qualified women (Treasurer, Financial Secretary & Trustee)