THE CONSTITUTION
OF THE
REFORMED CHURCH
IN THE UNITED STATES
PART II.
JUDICATORIES
SECTION 1. Judicatories in General
ARTICLE 49. The judicatories are:
- The Consistory.
- The Spiritual Council.
- The Classis.
- The Synod.
They take cognizance only of ecclesiastical matters, and have authority to require obedience to the laws of Christ and His Church and to discipline the disobedient.
ARTICLE 50. Cases over which a lower judicatory has original jurisdiction can be brought before a higher judicatory only by reference, complaint or appeal.
ARTICLE 51. From the regular credentials of the delegates, primariiand secundi, the Stated Clerk of a Classis and the Synod shall prepare the roll in advance of the stated meeting. Irregular or disputed credentials shall be referred, immediately after the organization of the Judicatory, to a special committee, which shall report within twenty-four hours after its appointment. The sessions of every judicatory shall be opened and closed with religious services.
ARTICLE 52. A Classis and the Synod shall elect a President, a Stated Clerk, and such other officers as they may respectively deem necessary, who shall hold their offices for such term as the respective judicatories may determine.
ARTICLE 53. When a judicatory meets as a delegated body, the delegates to it shall be elected by the judicatories which they respectively represent from among their members, and in all such elections at least a double number of persons shall be nominated. Tellers shall be appointed to distribute, collect and count the ballots, and shall report the number of votes cast for any member to the President, who shall then declare the result. Those having the highest number of votes shall be the primarii, and an equal number having the next highest number of votes shall be the secundi, who shall succeed the primarii in the order of the number of votes received in both cases. In case delegates have received an equal number of votes, their names shall be arranged on the list in alphabetical order.
ARTICLE 54. Active elders only shall be ordinarily elected to judicatories. For good reasons, other elders may be seated by a two-thirds vote of the judicatory to which they have been elected. Elders shall have the same rights and privileges in a judicatory as Ministers of the Word.
ARTICLE 55. Delegates to a judicatory shall be punctual in attending its meetings and shall remain during the whole of its sessions. They are amenable for their tardiness or absence to the judicatory which elected them, which also must provide for the expenses incurred in attending to their duties unless paid by the higher judicatory.
ARTICLE 56. At a special meeting of a judicatory action can be taken only on the items of business specified in the call.
ARTICLE 57. If unforeseen circumstances should render it necessary, either the time or the place, or both, of the stated meeting of a Classis and the Synod may be changed by the President and Stated Clerk; provided that for a Classis two weeks and for the Synod four weeks previous notice is given by the President and Stated Clerk through a circular addressed to each member of the judicatory.
ARTICLE 58. At least one member of every committee appointed by Classis or the Synod shall be an elder.
ARTICLE 59. Delegates from bodies in correspondence with the Synod shall be recognized as advisory members, but they shall not have a vote. The same privilege shall be accorded to every minister and elder of the Reformed Church who, though not a delegate, is present at a meeting of the judicatory. Ministers from other denominations who are in attendance shall be recognized and welcomed by the President, but shall not be admitted to seats as advisory members.
ARTICLE 60. A member of a judicatory shall not be allowed to enter a protest against its acts; but any member dissenting shall have the right to call for the yeas and nays, in which case the vote and name of every member voting on the question shall be entered on the minutes, or any member may have his affirmative or negative vote recorded in the minutes.
SECTION 2. The Consistory
ARTICLE 61. The Consistory is composed of the pastor or pastors and the elders and deacons, and has oversight and government of the congregation and of all its organizations.
ARTICLE 62. The pastor shall be President of the Consistory, unless the existing charter provides otherwise. When a charge is without a pastor, or the pastor is unable to attend, one of the elders shall be chosen to preside. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum, unless otherwise provided in the charter or constitution of the congregation.
ARTICLE 63. The Joint Consistory, as provided in Article 13 of this Constitution, is composed of the members of the Consistories included in the charge. It has jurisdiction over the common interests of the congregations represented, such as the calling of a pastor, the provision for his salary, and the erection and maintenance of a parsonage for the charge. The pastor shall be President; in the event of his absence or inability to preside, one of the elders may be chosen to preside.
ARTICLE 64. The Consistory shall hold stated monthly or quarterly meetings, and may hold such special meetings as are called by the President, or, in the event of his absence, or inability or unwillingness to act, by the Secretary when requested to do so by a majority of the members. Previous notice of special meetings of the Consistory or Joint Consistory shall be given to its members.
ARTICLE 65. The Consistory or the Joint Consistory shall annually elect delegates, a primariusand a secundus, to represent the charge in Classis, who shall also be the delegates to Synod whenever Synod meets in general convention. At least ten days before the annual meeting of the judicatory to which these delegates have been elected, their credentials shall be sent to its Stated Clerk by the President or the Secretary of the Consistory. Within ninety days after the annual meeting of the Classis, the Consistory or Joint Consistory shall meet and act upon all matters referred to it by the Classis, and immediately thereafter said action shall be reported to the Stated Clerk of Classis.
ARTICLE 66. In managing the general affairs of the congregation the Consistory shall call congregational meetings, order collections for the apportionments of Classis and for other benevolent purposes, distribute alms through the deacons, provide for the audit of the treasurer's account, and make due provision for the support of the pastor. It shall keep a full an accurate record of its own proceedings, be the custodian of all congregational records, and submit any or all records to the Classis when occasion requires it and the Classis requests it.
ARTICLE 67. In all matters of a general nature, as specified in Article 12 of the Constitution, including the calling of a minister, the Consistory shall determine nothing conclusively without the consent of a majority of those voting members of the congregation present at a meeting duly called for the purpose, of which at least two weeks public notice shall be given.
ARTICLE 68. In the election of a minister, the Consistory or Joint Consistory shall, as soon as possible, present to the congregation or congregations constituting the charge, the name of one candidate for the pastorate, to be voted upon at a meeting called for the purpose, of which public notice shall be given at least two weeks previously. The voting members shall vote by ballot for or against the candidate. He is elected if a majority of the members of the charge present and voting cast their vote in his favor, unless a larger portion is required by the charter. The Consistory or Joint Consistory shall then tender him a call according to the form prescribed by the Synod. If a pastoral charge consists of two or more congregations, the election shall be held, if possible, in each congregation on the same day. The ballots cast by each congregation shall be sealed, and when all the congregations have voted a committee of tellers, appointed by the Joint Consistory, shall count the ballots as the vote of the charge. In no circumstances shall a congregation or charge vote on more than one candidate at one and the same meeting.
ARTICLE 69. When a charge is without a pastor the Consistory or Joint Consistory shall invite the Executive Committee of Classis or the officers of Classis to consult with them, and assist them in filling the vacancy and to make provision for the temporary supply of the pulpit. This consultation shall be held within a month after the pulpit has been declared vacant by Classis. The supply shall be either a minister, a licentiate, or a student for the ministry of the Reformed Church in the United States, in good and regular standing. In exceptional cases, at the discretion of Classis, permission to supply a vacant charge may be granted to a duly qualified minister of another denomination. A temporary supply shall not continue longer than one year unless by action of Classis.
SECTION 3. The Spiritual Council
ARTICLE 70. The Spiritual Council consists of the pastor or pastors and the active elders of a congregation. It has original jurisdiction in matters of discipline except in the case of a Minister of the Word.
ARTICLE 71. The pastor shall be President of the Spiritual Council; if the congregation is without a pastor, one of the elders shall be chosen to preside. A majority of its members shall constitute a quorum.
ARTICLE 72. It is the duty of the Spiritual Council to watch over the members of the congregation, to guard the doctrine of Christ, and to maintain wholesome discipline. It alone has the power to admit members to full communion and to exclude any who may err from the faith or offend in morals.
ARTICLE 73. Stated meetings of the Spiritual Council shall be held for the examination of the catechumens applying for confirmation. Special meetings shall be held at the call of the President or at the request of two elders.
ARTICLE 74. The Spiritual Council shall, at its discretion and upon proper request, furnish members of the congregation, in good and regular standing, with certificates of dismission to another congregation in the Reformed Church or to any orthodox Protestant Church which receives members by certificate from the Reformed Church in the United States. The certificate shall specify the congregation to which the person is dismissed.
ARTICLE 75. The Spiritual Council shall keep a full and accurate record of its proceedings, which shall be submitted to the Classis when occasion requires it and the Classis requests it.
SECTION 4. The Classis
ARTICLE 76. A Classis consists of the ministers residing within a district designated by the Synod and of the elders delegated by the pastoral charges situated within these limits, and has jurisdiction over said ministers and pastoral charges.
ARTICLE 77. A Classis shall embrace at least three pastoral charges and as many ordained ministers. It shall meet regularly in the spring and may also meet regularly in the fall each year at such time and place as it may designate. Three ministers and two delegated elders regularly convened shall constitute a quorum.
ARTICLE 78. Each pastoral charge shall be represented in Classis by its pastor or pastors and one delegated elder; or, if the charge is without a pastor, by a delegated elder.
ARTICLE 79. The annual meeting of a Classis shall be opened with religious services, including the preaching of a sermon by the President, or by one of its members designated by him or by the Classis, after which the roll shall be called; if a quorum is present, the officers for the ensuing year shall be elected, and the business shall proceed according to the Rules of Order prescribed by the Synod.
ARTICLE 80. The President shall perform all the duties of his office as defined by the Rules of Order. Immediately after the election of officers, he shall define the Bar of the House, and appoint the Standing Committees of Classis, which shall present their reports as soon as possible. The reports of the Committees on Minutes of Classis, Minutes of Synod, and on Overtures shall exhibit those items which claim the attention of the Classis.
ARTICLE 81. At the spring meeting every pastor shall present a written parochial and full statistical report, and every minister, though without a charge, a report of his labors. If unable to be present he shall forward his report to the Stated Clerk three days before the meeting. The parochial report shall contain a full account of the spiritual and temporal condition of the charge and of the labors of the pastor, the President or any member of the Classis shall ask the pastor and the elder such questions as may be requisite to elicit additional information. The President shall then address the following questions to each elder:
1. Are the doctrines of the Gospel preached in your charge in their purity, agreeably to the Word of God?
2. Is careful attention given to the instruction of the youth for confirmation, the reception of members into the Church, and the Christian nurture of the members?
3. In providing spiritual nurture for the congregation:
a. Is visitation faithfully performed?
b. Is Christian discipline faithfully exercised according to the Constitution?
4. Are the sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper properly administered in accordance with the Constitution?
5. In providing for the furtherance of Christian stewardship:
a. Are the apportionments for the Classis paid according to the Guidelines for Giving?
b. Are these monies sent promptly to the Classis treasurer?
c. Are the apportionments for the Synod paid according to the Guidelines for Giving?
d. Are these monies sent promptly to the Synod treasurer?
6. Are the Church records properly kept?
7a. Is the temporal contract between minister and people fulfilled in your charge?
7b. Is the temporal contract between minister and people adequate to meet his temporal needs?
The Statistical Report shall be prepared according to the form approved by the Synod. If a charge is without a pastor, the Consistory or Joint Consistory shall furnish the parochial and statistical reports. The President of the Executive Committee of Classis shall annually submit a report to the Classis on the state of the church, making use of the parochial reports.
At the fall meeting the Classis shall give special attention to the work of the denomination.
ARTICLE 82. In every Classis is vested the power to examine and license applicants for the ministry, to ordain licentiates, to constitute or dissolve pastoral relations, to receive and dismiss ministers and licentiates, to depose or otherwise discipline, according to his desert, a member of its own body, and to reinstate a minister whom it has suspended or deposed, when trustworthy evidence of repentance and reformation appears.
The Classis shall give necessary attention to the education of pious men for the Gospel ministry, and to the cause of missions; it shall diligently prosecute the work of missions through its Permanent Home Missions Committee, whose rules and procedures shall not conflict with those of Synod.
ARTICLE 83. Classis shall have access to all congregational records, according to the provisions of Articles 66 and 75 of this Constitution, and shall hear and decide all cases of reference, complaint and appeal, as well as all questions respecting ministers or their congregation which may arise within its jurisdiction and are regularly brought before it, such as organizing new congregations, determining boundaries of congregations and charges, deciding controversies between congregations or charges, forming, reconstructing, or dissolving charges, as may be requested or as Classis may deem expedient. Classis, however, shall exercise its right of dividing or reconstructing a charge or charges only after having counseled with the Consistories or Joint Consistories of the charges involved, and such action shall require a two-thirds vote of Classis.
ARTICLE 84. An ordained minister or a licentiate shall not be received by Classis until he has presented a regular certificate of dismission from the Classis to which he belongs. The reception of a minister from another denomination shall not be final until it is confirmed by Synod.
ARTICLE 85. An ordained minister or a licentiate shall be amenable to the Classis that dismissed him and his name shall be retained on its roll until he shall have been received by the Classis to which he has been dismissed. The dismission of an ordained minister at once annuls any previous appointment or election of him, by Classis, as a member of a committee, or as a delegate to Synod.
ARTICLE 86. A Classis dismissing an ordained minister or a licentiate shall specify in its minutes the particular Classis or other denomination to which he is dismissed; and in receiving a minister or a licentiate, it shall in like manner specify the particular Classis or other denomination from which he has been received. A certificate of dismission shall be valid for only one year from its date.
ARTICLE 87. A Classis shall not refuse to receive an ordained minister or a licentiate dismissed to it by another Classis unless there are manifest grounds of objection against his doctrine or morals, in which case the certificate of dismission shall be returned to the Classis, with a specific statement of the grounds of objection; whereupon, the Classis shall take these objections into consideration, and if it finds no sufficient reason to change its action the whole question shall be referred to Synod for decision. When an ordained minister or a licentiate is received by any Classis, it shall at once give official notice of his reception to the Classis that dismissed him.
ARTICLE 88. Whenever a minister or a licentiate willfully neglects to attend the annual meetings of his Classis and fails to report to it, he renders himself liable to suspension from office; and Classis shall at once cite him to trial and proceed in his case according to the Constitution of the Church. This article does not apply to honorably retired ministers.
ARTICLE 89. A Classis at its first meeting after the Minutes of the Synod have been distributed, shall take action on all matters referred; and also on all ordinances and constitutional amendments approved by the Synod and sent down to the Classis for adoption or rejection; and shall report its action to the next stated meeting of the Synod.
ARTICLE 90. A special meeting of Classis may be called at any time by the President; and at the written request of three ministers and three delegate elders, specifying the particular business to be transacted, he shall call such a meeting. The party or parties for whose benefit it is called, as determined by the Executive Committee prior to the call, shall pay the expenses incurred. At least two weeks before the time of such meeting the Stated Clerk shall notify the members by circular of the time and place of meeting, and the items of business properly before the body. In case of the death or removal of the President, or if the business to be transacted implicates him, the power of calling the meeting is vested in the Stated Clerk. If either of these contingencies should exist with respect to the Stated Clerk also, two ministers and two elders, members of the Classis, may call the meeting.
ARTICLE 91. A Classis at its spring meeting shall appoint its President, Stated Clerk and one other of its members an Executive Committee, of which the President shall be chairman. This Committee shall represent Classis during the interval between meetings; and in all cases when between the parties concerned there is no question at issue, and in which at least two weeks notice of the proposed action has been given in writing by the President to every member of Classis and written objection to said action has not been made to any member of the committee nor a special meeting of Classis demanded; the Committee shall have power to dissolve a pastoral relation, to dismiss or receive a minister or a licentiate, to confirm a call, to appoint a committee to ordain a licentiate and install a pastor; to permit a minister or a licentiate to minister as a regular supply of vacant congregations, and to authorize the organization of new congregations. It shall also be the duty of this Committee to counsel with and advise the Consistory and Spiritual Council of a vacant charge, to aid the Consistory in securing a pastor, and to assist a minister in obtaining a suitable field of labor. This Committee shall also serve as advisors in the amicable adjustment of disputes in the administration of the affairs of the congregations or charges. The Committee shall, at the close of the year, present a full report of its acts and proceedings to Classis for information and incorporation in its minutes. Classis shall pay the necessary expenses of this Committee.
ARTICLE 92. The Stated Clerk shall have charge of the books and papers of Classis, and shall issue all its official documents, signed by himself and the President, with the seal of Classis affixed. At least thirty days before the annual meeting of Classis he shall furnish every pastor with a copy of the blank form of the statistical report. He shall transmit to Synod at its annual meeting a certain copy of the minutes of all the meetings of Classis held during the year, in the form and order required by the rules of Synod. He shall furnish pastoral charges and individuals with a certified copy of any proceedings in which they are specially concerned. If Synod meets as a delegated body, he shall before its annual meeting furnish the Stated Clerk with credentials of the delegates, primarii and secundi, elected to represent Classis.
ARTICLE 93. On the dissolution of a Classis, the Synod shall have jurisdiction over its members and congregations, and shall transfer them to another Classis or other Classes. It shall have charge and control of the property of said dissolved Classis, if such charge and control does not conflict with the civil law, and shall determine any case of discipline begun by the Classis and not concluded.
ARTICLE 94. The Classes, through their respective Stated Clerks, shall make report at least annually to the Stated Clerk of the Synod of all licensures, ordinations, suspensions, depositions, dismissions, or erasures of names of ministers, together with the time and place; and in the case of the decease of a licentiate or a minister, his name and the time and place of decease.
SECTION 5. The Synod
ARTICLE 95. The Synod is composed of at least four Classes and represents the whole Church. It is the highest judicatory and the last resort in all cases respecting the government of the Church. It shall meet annually, either in general convention or as a delegated body. In general convention it consists of all the ministers and one elder from each pastoral charge of the Classes constituting the Synod; as a delegated body it consists of the ministers and elders chosen by its Classes according to a basis of representation adopted by itself with the concurrence of at least two-thirds of its Classes. A suspended minister shall not be counted in the basis of representation to Synod. Its title shall be: THE SYNOD OF THE REFORMED CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.
ARTICLE 96. Any number of members convened at the time and place appointed for a meeting, in which a majority of the Classes is represented, shall constitute a quorum, which quorum shall contain not fewer than one minister and one elder from each of the Classes necessary to a majority of the Classes. At least one-third of the delegates shall be elders.
ARTICLE 97. The annual sessions shall be opened with religious services, including the preaching of a sermon by the President, or by some other member designated by him or by the Synod, after which the organization shall be effected and the business shall proceed according to the Rules of Order prescribed by the Synod.
ARTICLE 98. The Synod shall annually review the proceedings of its Classes. The report of the standing Committee on the Minutes of Classes shall embrace the following topics:
- Procedures with respect to the Constitution and Church order.
- Requests and references from Classes to the Synod.
- Complaints and appeals to the Synod.
- Decisions of the Classes on subjects referred to them by the Synod.
- Licensures; ordinations; ordained ministers received, dismissed, deceased, suspended or deposed; licentiates received or dismissed, and licenses revoked.
- Time and place of next annual meeting of each Classis, with the names and post office addresses of its President, Stated Clerk and Treasurer.
ARTICLE 99. The actions of the Classes upon an ordinance or an amendment of the Constitution of the Church shall be incorporated in regular order in the minutes of the Synod.
ARTICLE 100. The Synod has power to hear and determine complaints and appeals, and for this purpose may appoint a Judicial Committee which shall consist of three ministers and two elder delegates to the Synod.
All complaints and appeals not involving charges of errors in fundamental Christian doctrines, when brought before the Synod, may be referred to this Committee.
The Committee shall meet during the session of the Synod to hear appeals or complaints referred, and shall determine, under the provision of the Constitution, the regularity and irregularity of all papers, and consider the questions or qualities at issue, and then by a majority shall come to a decision in the case. It shall bring a report of its findings, giving a succinct statement of the main issue. If the Synod by a majority vote approves the report, it shall stand as the final decision of the Synod.
The Synod has power to give advice in a case referred to it by a Classis, to establish new Classes within its own limits, and to determine all controversies between Classes and between ministers or congregations of different Classes. A Classis, however, cannot be dissolved, nor can any part of it be united with another Classis without its own consent.
ARTICLE 101. The Synod shall give necessary attention to the education of pious men for the Gospel ministry, and to the cause of missions both in the home and in the foreign field. Its missionary operations shall be under the authority and control of the Synod.
The Synod shall diligently prosecute the work of Home Missions, of Foreign Missions, of Christian Education, and of Ministerial Relief by committees, which are to be elected and governed in their proceedings by rules established by the Synod. At the annual meeting of the Synod each committee shall submit a report of its operations and a statement of its present condition.
ARTICLE 102. The Synod may establish and maintain a Committee of Publication, whose particular purpose shall be the publication and sale of such church papers and books as are adapted to promote sound knowledge and true religion. At every annual meeting of the Synod, the Committee shall submit for examination and review a full statement of its operations during the year and of its present condition.
ARTICLE 103. The Synod shall prepare the following forms: constitution for a congregation; constitution for a joint consistory; certificate of licensure; testimonial of ordinations; certificate of dismission of a minister; call to a minister; call to a teacher of theology; certificate of dismission of a church member; statistical report of a pastoral charge; statistical report of a Classis; statistical report of the Synod; church register; accusations; citation of an accused person; citation of a witness; form for qualifying a witness; order of business and rules of order for the Classes and the Synod. These forms may be changed or amended at any stated meeting of the Synod by a two-thirds vote.
ARTICLE 104. All proposed ordinances of the Church, such as a constitution, a catechism, a hymn book and a liturgy, as well as all amendments of ordinances, must first be approved by a two-thirds vote of the Synod at a stated meeting, and then be submitted to all the Classes for ratification or rejection. If at the next stated meeting of the Synod it shall appear that more than one-third of the Classes have rejected the ordinance or amendment, the same is rejected and shall be so declared by the Synod; otherwise it shall be declared adopted and be binding on the whole Church.
ARTICLE 105. The original records of all proceedings of the Synod and all documents, letters and papers having reference to its proceedings, shall be carefully preserved by the Stated Clerk and deposited in such place as the Synod shall direct; and a document or paper shall not be removed by any person whatever without permission obtained from the Synod, or, during its recess, from the Stated Clerk.
ARTICLE 106. At least forty days before the regular meeting of the Synod, its Stated Clerk shall furnish the Stated Clerks of the several Classes with the blank forms of the credentials for delegates to Synod.
ARTICLE 107. A special meeting of Synod shall be called by the President, or, in case of his death or removal, by the Stated Clerk, whenever six ministers and four elders, members of the Synod, request it in a written communication specifying the particular business to be transacted. At least three weeks before the Synod convenes the Stated Clerk shall notify the members by circular of the time and place of meeting, and the items of business properly before the body.
ARTICLE 108. All credentials, calls to Teachers of Theology and agreements to which Synod is a party, shall be signed by the President and the Stated Clerk, and shall have the seal of Synod attached. The Stated Clerk shall attest all extracts from the records of Synod, and shall have charge of all the records and papers, and of the seal of Synod.
ARTICLE 109. The Stated Clerk of the Synod shall provide and accurately keep a Register of Licensures and Ordinations of ministers throughout the Church, said Register showing the full name of the licentiate or ordained minister, with the date of licensure or ordination, or both, the name of the Classis by which the minister was licensed or ordained, and the time and place of licensure or ordination, the time and place of the minister's decease, with sufficient space for memoranda of the facts in case of the dismission of the minister to another Church, or of erasure of his name in the case of a transfer of his church relationship without dismission, or in case of his suspension or deposition from the ministry. The Register shall have an alphabetical index.
ARTICLE 110. The Synod shall have power to maintain correspondence with Churches with which it has fraternal relations.
ARTICLE 111. The Synod at its regular meeting shall elect a President, a Vice President, a Stated Clerk, and a Treasurer.
The Executive Committee of Synod shall consist of the President, the Vice President, the Stated Clerk, and two other delegates. At least two members of the Committee shall be elders. The Committee shall meet at least once between the annual meetings of Synod and also at the call of the Chairman or three members of the Committee.
The Executive Committee shall aid in stimulating the spiritual life of the Church by coordinating the work of the Committees of the Synod; preparing the order of business for the meetings of Synod, and, with the pastor loci, preparing the program of the Synod meetings. In the interim between meetings of Synod, proposed actions regarding the administration of the business of Synod shall be given in writing by the President to all the members of the Synod and shall be implemented unless written objection is received within thirty days from at least two members of Synod who are from different Classes. The duties of the Executive Committee shall be subject to revision at each session of the Synod. A record of the Executive Committee proceedings shall be kept and submitted to the Synod. The President of the Executive Committee of Synod shall annually submit a report to the Synod on the state of the church, making use of the reports of the Presidents of the Executive Committees of the Classes.