The Session has called an in-person meeting of the Congregation for Sunday, September 26, 2021, immediately following the 10:30 a.m. worship service. There are three purposes of the meeting (described below). The meeting must be held in-person because of the nature of the business to be transacted. The quorum for a Congregational Meeting is 55-60 persons so the Session encourages all Active Members who are able to be present to please do so. Masks are required for the meeting in the sanctuary and we will spread out and socially distance as much as possible.
The purposes of the meeting are these:
- To hear a report from the Congregation’s Nominating Committee and to elect a Deacon to fill a vacancy.
- To consider and vote upon a proposed Amendment to the Church Bylaws, proposed by the Session. The proposed Amendment will allow for online meetings. Even though we have been meeting online by necessity during the pandemic, the Bylaws do not formally recognize online meetings as official meetings. The description in The Annual Report for 2020 explains the situation fully.
- To vote to ratify all of the actions taken by the Congregation during the online Congregational meetings before September 26.
Here is the Amendment to the Bylaws (Item #2) which the Session is recommending. (Underlined text would be added, Strikethrough text would be removed, Plain-text is the current wording.)
The congregation will meet annually in the period between the fourth Sunday and the eighth Sunday of each calendar year, inclusive, to review the adequacy of the compensation of the pastor(s) upon report of the prior review by the session, and to conduct such other business as may properly come before the congregation.
Other Congregational meetings may be called by the Session as necessary; business to be transacted shall be limited to items specifically listed in the call of the meeting.
Congregational meetings may be called in one of three formats – as an in-person meeting, as a virtual meeting, or as a hybrid (virtual and in-person) meeting. Session shall determine the format of Congregational meetings and publicize the selected format along with the other meeting details. The virtual meeting platform chosen for a congregational meeting shall be widely available to as many church members as possible. Virtual meeting participants should be able to discuss, deliberate, discern the will of God, and vote on business items.
Public notice of all congregational meetings shall be given on two successive Sundays prior to the meeting. All members on the Active Members’ Roll are eligible to vote. A quorum shall consist of the moderator(s), secretary, and not less than one tenth of the eligible voters. The session shall read, correct, and approve the minutes of each congregational meeting at its next scheduled meeting and shall enter them into the permanent record. At the next meeting of the congregation, the clerk shall have the minutes available and shall report the session’s action. The congregation may ask to have them read and may make additions or corrections by vote.
Here is an summary list of the actions taken at online meetings which are to be ratified (Item #3)
Actions from the May 17, 2020 Virtual Congregational Meeting: Elected Elders to the Class of 2023, Elected Deacons to the Class of 2023, Elected Members of the Pastor Parish Personnel Committee, Elected At-Large Members to the Congregational Nominating Committee, Elected Financial Secretaries to the Class of 2022 and the Class of 2023.
Actions from the January 31, 2021 Virtual Congregational Meeting: Approved the Terms of Call for each Co-Pastor for 2021.
Actions from the April 18, 2021 Virtual Congregational Meeting: Elected Elders to the Class of 2024, Elected Deacons to the Class of 2024, Elected Members of the Pastor Parish Personnel Committee, Elected At-Large Members to the Congregational Nominating Committee, Elected a Financial Secretary to the Class of 2024.