HILLSBOROUGH UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST BY-LAWS

 

                                                                                                                              ARTICLE I         Membership

 

Section 1 Classification of Membership

 

 

a.     A member is one whose primary church membership is with this church.

 

b.     An associate member is a person who wishes to participate in the life of this church while maintaining membership in another church. Associate members have all the rights and duties of active members except the right to a letter of transfer to another church.

 

Section 2 Status of Membership

 

a.     An active member is one who, when able, regularly attends the weekly service of worship, regularly contributes to the budget of the church, and participates in the life and work of the congregation.

 

b.     An absentee member is one who no longer resides in the vicinity but who continues to participate in the life and work of the congregation and wishes to retain membership in this church and attends worship service when possible or makes a financial contribution at least once a year.

 

c.     An inactive member is one whose address is not known or who has not responded to communications from the church for one year. Inactive members shall not be entitled to vote and will have no standing as members of Hillsborough United Church of Christ until they reactivate their membership according to the procedure set out in the by-laws.

 

d.     An archived member is one whose name has been removed from the membership roll and placed in the archives. Archived members shall not be entitled to vote and will have no standing as members of Hillsborough United Church of Christ until they reactivate their membership according to the procedure set out in the by-laws.

 

 

Section 3 Reception of New Members

 

a.     The names of persons who desire to join the church shall be announced in the bulletin two weeks prior to the reception of new members. New members shall be received at a worship service, at which time they will be presented to the congregation by the Caregivers and will enter into covenant with other members of the church.

 

Section 4 Termination or Reclassification of Membership

 

a.     A member, regardless of status, may be granted a Letter of Transfer to a church, which he or she wishes to join, upon his or her request or upon the request of that church. The Letter of Transfer must include the name of the receiving church.

 

b.     A member may ask to be released from membership. The membership shall then terminate and the memberπs name shall be removed from the active membership rolls of the church and the member's name shall be placed in the archive rolls.

 

c.     Twice a year, in April and October of each year the Church Council shall review the membership list and update the active membership roll, the inactive membership roll, and the archive membership roll and report such actions to the church at the business meetings in May and December.

 

(1)  A member shall be moved to the inactive membership roll if:

 

(a)  The memberπs current address is not known; or

 

(b)  For a period of one year, in spite of kindly approaches, the member or associate member has not attended worship services at Hillsborough United Church of Christ or contributed to the support of this congregation

 

(c)   The member is involved in another faith community

 

 

(2)  A member shall be removed from the inactive membership roll and placed in the archived membership roll if she/he has remained on the inactive list for one full year and by vote of the Church Council there is a decision to remove her/his name from the membership roll of the congregation.

 

d.     Names removed from the membership roll will be placed in the church archives and will remain there indefinitely. A transfer of letter can be granted from these archives for a regular member. A person whose name has been placed in the archives or inactive roll can ask to become an active member again by meeting with the Church Council. Such meetings can be arranged by contacting the moderator.

 

e.     If sufficient evidence is presented to the council that a person is misrepresenting the church, the council may seek a response from the accused and determine if continued membership status is appropriate.

 

Section 5 Membership Voting

 

a.     Voting by Members

 

(1)  All members who have not been designated as non-voting members prior to the vote, including associate members, shall have the right and responsibility to vote in church matters, subject to the following provisions.

 

(a)  A member or an associate member shall be designated a non-voting member if she/he has been placed on the inactive or archived roll.

 

(b)  Children and youth are an important part of this congregation, and shall be eligible to vote in church matters upon being members of the congregation, attaining the age of 12 and completing confirmation and membership orientation.

 

                                                                                                                                ARTICLE II        Organization and Procedures

 

Section 1 The Service of Worship

 

a.     Worship services shall be conducted at stated hours every Sunday and at such other times as the Minister and the Church Council shall determine.

 

b.     The Sacrament of Communion shall be observed once every month, usually on the first Sunday, and at such other times as the Minister or Church Council deem appropriate.

 

c.     The Sacrament of Baptism shall be administered at such times as the Minister or the Church Council shall decide.

 

Section 2 The church council is comprised of church officers and ministry leaders of standing ministries. The Minister will serve as an ex-officio member. Ideally, persons wishing to serve in a Council position will first serve at least a one-year apprenticeship in the area of desired service and will already be a faithful supporter of the church missions, ministries, worship services, and the financial budget of the church.

 

Section 3 A Standing Ministry shall have council representation, which shall be one represented vote on the council even if the leadership of the standing ministry is shared between two or more members. A Standing Ministry shall be comprised of a Ministry Leader(s) and Ministry Specialists. Standing Ministries shall be responsible for overseeing service groups, project mangers and nurture groups that fall under their areas of specialization. The following shall be considered standing ministries:

 

a.     Trustees

b.     Caregivers

c.     Christian Education

d.     Special Occasions

e.     Stewardship and Missions

f.      Music and Worship

g.     Youth Group

 

Section 4 A Service Group shall be compromised of one or more persons whose focus is on a year round basis on a specific area of ministry within the life of the church. Each service group shall be overseen by one of the standing ministries. When a Service Group is formed, the council shall appoint a Standing ministry to oversee the Service Group. If there is more then one person on a Service Group, one person shall be designated as the leader and other persons in the service group shall be designated as Service Group specialists. If there is only one person in a Service Group, that person shall be designated as the Service Group leader. Leaders and specialists of service groups shall be approved by the congregation at the May business meeting. Service groups shall not have council representation. A service group can be formed or disbanded upon council recommendation and congregational approval at the May business meeting.

 

Section 5 A Nurture Group shall be comprised of persons whose focus is on the spiritual development and growth of themselves and others. Each Nurture Group shall be overseen by one of the standing ministries. When a Nurture Group is formed, the council shall appoint a Standing Ministry to supervise the Nurture Group. A Nurture Group shall have one or more persons designated as the leader to interact with the Standing Ministry and the Church Council. A Nurture Group can be created or disbanded at any time with council approval. Persons designated as leaders of Nurture Groups shall be on the nomination slate each year and shall be elected by the congregation.

 

 

Section 6 A project manager is a person in charge of a specific mission, event or project that is set to occur on one day or within a defined time period during the course the church programming year. The Council will have the authority to name project managers for tasks that do not require an on-going presence in the decision-making responsibilities of the Council. Such appointments will not require church approval. A Project Manager may recruit others to help carry out the ministry with council approval. Opportunities for ministry forms will be made available to project manager to aid in finding workers. All plans of the Project Manager must first be approved by the Church Council and all finances related to such projects must receive prior approval. Project Managers will be responsible for making financial reports on a timely basis to the Ministry Leader of the Standing Ministry that is designated to supervise the Project Manger. The church council will keep a list of the designated Project managers and the projects on which they are working.

 

Section 7 The council shall have the ability to appoint Ad Hoc Ministries as the need arises. The council shall not need congregational approval for the establishment of an Ad Hoc Ministry, nor does the council need the congregational approval to disband an Ad Hoc Ministry. An Ad Hoc Ministry shall have a specific goal and a defined ministry, the Ad Hoc Ministry shall ideally be able to complete its goal within a defined period of time. An Ad Hoc Ministry shall not have council representation. If council believes that an Ad Hoc Ministry should become a Service Group, then the council can recommend moving the Ad Hoc Ministry to a Service Group at the May business meeting with approval of the congregation. An Ad Hoc Ministry shall be comprised of the Ad Hoc Ministry leader and Ad Hoc Ministry specialists.

 

 

Section 8 Procedures for electing the Church Council, Officers, Standing Ministry Leaders and Standing Ministry Specialists, Service Group Leaders and Specialists and Nurture Group Leaders.

 

a.     In February of each year the sitting Church Council will distribute opportunities for ministry forms to the congregation. The completed forms will be available to the council for the March council meeting. Using these completed forms, the Council will prepare the nomination slate, for the May business meeting. Nominations to various positions will be based on the experience, reliability, and availability of the candidate being nominated and on the number of slots needing to be filled. Other persons who have indicated an interest in serving will be called upon on an as-needed basis.

 

Section 9 Nominations for all council positions are for one-year terms, but nominations for re-election may occur annually. The Council prepares a slate of nominations to present to the church membership at the annual May meeting. Other nominations may come from the floor at that meeting.

 

Section 10         The Moderator shall be nominated by the sitting Council in February for a one-year term. The moderator can serve up to three consecutive terms. The Moderator will, if possible, be relieved of serving as chair of a standing ministry team while serving as Moderator.

 

Section 11         The Assistant Moderator shall be nominated by the sitting Council in February and will also be serving as a Standing Ministry Leader.

 

Section 12         Standing Ministries will be nominated by the Council based on who has shown interest, talent, availability, and reliability in the area. Ideally, each Standing Ministry Leader will select one ministry specialist as an apprentice to learn more about the work of the ministry. Apprentices will be encouraged to attend Council meetings and to stand in for the Standing Ministry Leader at council meetings if asked. The apprentice will have a vote only when serving as a substitute for the Standing Ministry Leader. Ideally each Standing Ministry will be composed of at least three to five members except for Caregivers which will ideally have six to twelve members.

 

 

Section 13         If a vacancy occurs in any church position, excluding the position of minister, or if Council believes there is a need to increase the number of Ministry Specialists, Council shall be able to appoint a member to fill the vacancy. The person appointed shall serve out the unexpired term; if this is more than half the term, it shall, for purposes of eligibility for re-election, be considered a full term.

 

                                                                                                                                   ARTICLE III       The Officers

 

Section 1 Minister

 

a.     The duties of the Minister of this church shall be to preach, to teach, to lead in the services of worship including the sacraments of baptism and communion, to oversee the churchπs work, to direct the activities of the staff, to give pastoral care to all members of the church, and to equip the leadership in providing ministry to the church and community.

 

b.     The Minister shall be an ex-officio non-voting member of the Church Council and an advisory, non-voting member of the Ministries.

 

c.     The procedure for calling a new Minister shall be as follows: The Church Council shall appoint a Pastoral Search Team. The Pastoral Search Team shall consist of the Moderator, one representative from each of the Ministries and at least two members-at-large. The Pastoral Search Team shall ideally follow the recommended procedure of the United Church of Christ, shall have the preferred candidate preach a trial sermon at Hillsborough United Church of Christ, shall negotiate a proposed covenant with the preferred candidate, and shall announce to the congregation the name and qualifications of the preferred candidate at least two weeks prior to a meeting called by the Moderator for the purpose of calling a Minister. The quorum for this meeting shall be one-third of the active membership. A two-thirds vote of the members present at this meeting shall be required to call a candidate. The call shall be for an indefinite period.

 

d.     A newly elected Minister shall be installed in accordance with the recommended procedure of the United church of Christ. The newly elected Minister shall then be received into membership of this church.

 

e.     A special congregational meeting may be called for the purpose of requesting the resignation of the Minister. The quorum for this meeting shall be one-third of the active membership. If a two-thirds majority of this meeting requests the Ministerπs resignation, and it is not presented, the Church Council shall terminate the Ministerπs tenure.

 

f.      Should the Minister decide to resign, the Minister shall present the resignation to the Church Council preferably 30 days prior to the date it is to become effective. The Church Council shall, in consultation with the Minister, determine when the resignation shall become effective and shall promptly notify the congregation that the Minister has resigned.

 

Section 2 The Moderator

 

a.     The duties of the Moderator shall be to chair all business meetings of the congregation and to chair the Church Council. When necessary, the Moderator shall assist in the implementation of general decisions made by the Council. The Moderator, with approval of council, may appoint Ad Hoc Ministry teams and shall be responsible for dismissing such teams at the termination of their assignments.

 

b.     To be eligible to be nominated and to serve as Moderator, a person must have been a member of the Church for at least the two years immediately proceeding the starting date of the term for which the election is to be held. The Moderatorπs term of office shall be one year, and a Moderator may be elected for three successive terms.

 

 

Section 3 The Treasurer

 

a.     The duties of the Treasurer shall be:

 

(1)  Pay or oversee the payment of bills of the church on standing or special instructions from the Stewardship Ministry.

 

(2)  Report the financial operations and conditions of the church at least once per quarter and whenever requested by the Stewardship Ministry.

 

(3)  Serve as custodian of all securities and other valuable papers and records relating to properties of the church.

 

b.     The Treasurer shall be elected for a term of one year and may hold any number of successive terms. The Treasurer shall be a voting member of the Church Council and an ex-officio member of the Stewardship Ministry. The Treasurer shall be bonded.

 

Section 4 The Clerk

 

a.     The duties of the Clerk shall keep an accurate record of all the proceedings of the business meeting of the church, and keep the minutes of the meetings of the Church Council. The clerk shall, with the assistance of the Minister and the Church Council, maintain a register of all members of the church and issue, on request, letters of transfer of membership. The Clerk shall function as the Church Record Keeper. In performing this function, the Clerk shall collect information relating to the activities of the Church during each program year (July 1 - June 30) and shall include:

 

(1)  The annual reports from all Ministries, the Church Council, the Ministers, the Treasurer, and any other ministry, fellowship groups, or individuals representing the church.

 

(2)  A copy of the current Church Directory, including a list of all officers, Delegates, Board and Ministry members and all other elected positions.

 

(3)  All reports issued by the Treasurer.

 

(4)  Update members file folders

 

(5)  Lists of new members, members lost deaths, marriages, births, baptisms, etc.

 

(6)  Copies of minutes from all meetings of the congregation, and all meetings of the Church Council and all Ministries. The Clerk shall notify the Chairs of the Ministries, the Moderator, and others of the requirement to furnish copies of the minutes of their meeting for the Records.

 

(7)  Any photographs, sketches, drawings, artifacts, or material used by any office, ministry, or agency of the church.

 

(8)  The clerk, at the end of each year, shall prepare the yearπs records in a package or special file folder, clearly marked, and shall place these records in a file in the Church office designated for the sole purpose of containing the records of the Hillsborough United Church of Christ.

 

b.     The Clerk shall be elected for a term of one year, and may hold any number of successive terms.

 

Section 5 The Chairperson of Trustees shall be an officer of the Hillsborough United Church of Christ.

 

                                                                                                                                   ARTICLE IV       Assistants to the Officers

 

Section 1 The Assistant Moderator shall perform the duties of the Moderator when the Moderator is absent or otherwise unable to discharge those duties. The Assistant Moderator shall have the same term of office as the Moderator. Unless the Assistant Moderator is acting in place of the Moderator, the Assistant Moderator shall not be considered an officer of the Hillsborough United Church of Christ.

 

Section 2 One or more Assistant Treasurer(s) may be appointed by the Church Council to assist the Treasurer and act in the Treasurerπs stead when the Treasures is absent or otherwise unable to perform the duties of the Treasurer. The Assistant Treasurer is not a voting member of the Church Council. Unless the Assistant Treasurer is acting in place of the Treasurer, the Assistant Treasurer shall not be considered an officer of the Hillsborough United Church of Christ. The Assistant Treasurer(s) shall be bonded. The Assistant Treasurer(s) shall also:

 

a.     Receive and keep an accurate record of all church funds and deposit them in such manner, as the Stewardship Ministry shall direct.

 

b.     Notify contributors as to the status of their pledge payments at semi-annual intervals or oversee a designee of the Stewardship Ministry in accomplishing the task.

 

 

                                                                                                                                ARTICLE V        Church Council

 

Section 1 The Church Council shall, in consultation with the appropriate Ministries, be responsible for the entire program and functioning of the church and shall coordinate its activities and calendar. All matters of major policy shall be subject to its approval; but the major actions, such as property sale or acquisition and debt acquisition, of the Church Council shall be subject to the approval of the church membership, which has the final authority.

 

Section 2 The Council shall be composed of all the officers of the church and standing ministry leaders.

 

Section 3 The Moderator shall serve as Chair of the Council.

 

Section 4 If a member of the Church Council is unable to attend its meetings regularly, that member should resign so that a replacement may be appointed. If a ministry leader or specialists is negligent in his/her duties and does not resign, the council has the discretion to reappoint and fill the term to ensure representation of the ministry and congregation.

 

Section 5 The council shall meet as needed. Special meetings may be called by the Minister or the Moderator or by any five members of the Church Council.

 

Section 6 The Church Council shall serve as, or form the nominating ministry and begin its deliberations no later than the second week in March. The report of the Church Council shall be published two weeks before the Annual May Meeting, and opportunity shall be given for further nominations from the floor. The Church Council will canvass the names on the nominating report to ensure that those nominated are willing and able to serve.

 

Section 7 The Church Council shall try to come to all decisions by general consensus. If after reasonable efforts have been made by all involved in the decision making process, a general consensus can not be reached, a vote shall take place using Roberts Rules of Order as a format for conducting the vote. If for the purposes of record keeping, a formal motion needs to be made and a vote taken, Roberts Rules of Order will be used as the format for the making of the motion and conducting the vote

 

Section 8        The Church Council shall, as the need arises, appoint delegates or representative to those boards and organizations to which the church has a responsibility, including but not limited to:

 

a.     Official delegates, and alternates when necessary, to the Annual Meeting of the Southern Conference of the United Church of Christ and to the Eastern North Carolina Association of the Southern Conference.

 

b.     Representatives to Orange Congregations In Mission.

 

c.     The Church Council, upon request, may approve organizations desiring to become an integral part of the church.

 

Section 9 The Church Council shall consider the recommendations of various ministries but will be ultimately responsible for:

 

a.     Calling the Budget Meeting of the congregation and the Annual Meeting of the congregation.

 

b.     Appointing a Pastoral Search Team when a vacancy occurs in the office of Minister.

 

c.     Securing pulpit supply when the Minister is absent or has resigned.

 

d.     Approving all special offerings

 

e.     Publicizing the churchπs activities.

 

f.      Establishing policies governing use of memorial gifts.

 

g.     Appointing managers to administer (a) designated gift(s).

 

h.    Performing any other functions deemed advisable by the council and not otherwise delegated by these by-laws.

 

Section 10         The council shall receive from the Stewardship Ministry the entire proposed budget not later than mid-October of each year for final deliberation and approval and subsequent presentation by the Council at the Budget Meeting of the Congregation in November or December of each year.

 

                                                                                                                                   ARTICLE VI       Ministries

 

Section 1 A Ministry Leader is one who is elected to chair a Standing Ministry and works with the Ministry Specialists to fulfill the functions of the Standing Ministry. A Ministry Leader is also expected to be on council as a representative of the Standing Ministry. If a Ministry Leader is unable to make the majority of council meetings, the Ministry leader should resign. If a Ministry leader is unable to make a specific council meeting the Ministry Leader should have a Ministry Specialist fill in for them at the council meeting. The Ministry Leader shall be elected by the Church in May. To be eligible for such election the candidate for Ministry Leader shall ordinarily have had at least one yearπs experience on the Ministry. The Ministry Leader may be re-elected, providing the Ministry Leader is a continuing member of the Ministry.

 

Section 2 A Ministry Specialist is one who is elected to a Standing Ministry and works with the Ministry Leader and other Specialists to fulfill the functions of the Standing Ministry. A Ministry Specialist shall be elected to terms of one year and shall be eligible to succeed themselves. A member elected to a Standing Ministry is expected to attend the meetings. Ministry Specialists who are unable to fulfill their responsibilities should resign so that a replacement may be appointed.

 

Section 3 Specific descriptions of the duties of each Standing Ministry are found in the Ministry Description Handbook and will be updated by council as needed.

 

Section 4 The Standing Ministries shall report to council their activities and decisions. Items to be reported to council shall include but not be limited to:

 

a.     Making recommendations annually on the Ministerπs salary, and periodically reviewing the covenant with the Minister.

 

b.     Establishing a policy concerning the use of all church facilities and equipment.

 

c.     Hiring church staff and developing job descriptions for these positions.

 

d.     Approval of special requests for support

 

e.     The planning and implementing of the assigned work of the ministry.

 

Section 5 The Ministries shall recommend budgetary provisions for all the areas of its responsibility, and shall forward its recommendations to the Stewardship Ministry not later than the third week of September of each year.

 

Section 6 The Caregiver Ministry shall, in cooperation with the Minister, be responsible for all matters pertaining to the spiritual welfare of the congregation.

 

Section 7 The Tustees Ministry shall act as custodian for all church properties, and shall act as the personnel and legal ministers.

 

Section 8 The Stewardship Ministry shall have general supervision of all financial business and provide leadership for all mission activity and education of the church.

 

Section 9 The Christian Education Ministry shall, in conjunction with the minister, be responsible for the educational ministry of the church. The Christian Education Ministry will work with the Minister on education programs to nurture and develop the Christian Faith of children, youth, and adults, and it shall see that such programs are implemented.

 

Section 10         The Special Occasions Ministry shall be responsible for the social events of the church.

 

Section 11         The Music and Worship Ministry shall in conjunction with the minister, be responsible for the planning and implementation of Worship services and the inclusion of artistic events in Worship.

 

Section 12         The Youth Ministry shall be responsible for the planning and events of the youth group.

 

                                                                                                                                     ARTICLE VII      General Provisions

 

Section 1 The fiscal year shall run from January 1 to December 31. The annual financial report of the preceding fiscal year shall be available to members of the congregation on request.

 

Section 2 The program year for all boards, ministries and organizations shall run from July 1 to June 30.

 

Section 3 The Program Meeting of the membership of the church shall be held in May of each year at a time to be designated by the Church Council. The purpose of this meeting shall be (1) to receive reports of the previous yearπs operations from officers, board and organizations of the church; (2) to act upon the report of the Nominating Ministry, and elect officers and Council and Board members; and (3) to consider such other matters as may properly come before the meeting.

 

Section 4 The budget meeting of the congregation shall be held in November or December but no later than the second Sunday in December at a time designated by the Church Council.

 

Section 5 Special congregational meetings may be called by the Minister, the Moderator, Church Council, or by the Clerk upon the written request of any fifteen members of the church specifying the reasons for which the meeting is to be called. Such meetings must be preceded by a notice published in the bulletin or announced from the pulpit on each of the two Sundays prior to the meeting.

 

Section 6 An audit shall be made of the accounts of the Treasurer and Assistant Treasurer and of the churchπs investments at the end of the fiscal year and at the end of the term of office. The audit shall be done by a team of three qualified individuals appointed by the Stewardship Ministry.

 

Section 7 The meeting place for all church business meetings shall be the church. For all motions to sell or encumber property or to call or dismiss a minister the number for a quorum shall be one third of the active membership and a majority shall be two thirds of the members present and voting. For all other motions the number of members required for a quorum shall consist of fifteen members eligible to vote. The designated quorum as set forth above shall be required for all congregational business meetings to transact business. Except as set forth above, all motions shall be carried by a simple majority of a quorum except motions to amend the Constitution or by-laws which will require a two‑ thirds majority of the members present and voting.

 

                                                                                                                                        ARTICLE VIII    Amendments

 

Section 1 The by-laws and Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members present at any business meeting, with a quorum, called for that purpose, provided that the exact text of the proposed amendment and notice of the meeting shall have been provided to all members of the church at least two weeks prior to the meeting.