CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS
of
CHRISTCHURCH BAPTIST FELLOWSHIP
HOUSTON, TEXAS
ARTICLE I.
MEMBERSHIP
A. The Membership. The membership of Christchurch Baptist Fellowship of Houston, Texas referred to herein as the “Church,” shall consist of all persons whose names appear on the Church Membership Roll. All authority not herein vested in The Deacons or in any officer pursuant to these By-Laws is reserved in and to the Church and the Church reserves the right at any time to amend, supplement or revoke, in whole or in part, these By-Laws.
B. Admission to Membership. Applications for membership shall be voted on at any regular preaching service of the Church on any Sunday, any regular mid-week prayer service of the Church, or any publicly and previously announced preaching service of the Church or at any like meeting held by any mission of the Church. Membership shall become effective:
1. After a public profession of faith in Christ as personal Savior, and upon baptism by immersion in water as authorized by the Church; or
2. Upon receipt of a Church letter of dismissal and recommendation from some other Baptistic Church of like faith and order; or
3. By statement, acceptable to the Church, of previous membership after baptism in a Baptistic Church of like faith and order.
C. Termination of Membership. Membership may be terminated only in the following manners:
1. Upon the death of the member; or
2. Upon issuance of a Church letter of dismissal and recommendation for membership in some other Baptistic Church; or
3. Upon a member’s joining a Church of another faith; or
4. Upon withdrawal of fellowship by the Church from a member as provided by the Holy Scriptures and more particularly in Matthew 18:15-17 and in I Corinthians 5.
D. Voting of Members. On any matter coming before the Church for its determination, each member present shall be entitled to one vote, which shall be exercised in person and not by proxy; and all such matters shall be determined at a regular or special conference meeting of the Church held in accordance with these By-Laws by the vote of a majority of the active members present and voting.
E. Membership Rules.
1. Active Members: All those who show their interest in the welfare of the Church and the Kingdom of our Lord by regular attendance and financial support and those who because of sickness or infirmities are unable to attend services or contribute financial support to the work shall be classed as active members.
2. Non-Resident Members: All those who live too far removed from the city of Houston to maintain active membership, but who prefer to remain as members and do keep in touch with the Church by keeping the Clerk informed as to their address and making an offering at least once a year for the support of the Church, unless they are dependent, shall be classed as non-resident members.
3. Inactive Members: All those who do not classify as non-resident members, who without reasonable excuse do not attend the regular services of the Church for a period of six months and all members who fail to communicate with the Church for a period of one year may be placed on an inactive list. Inactive members hold no voting privileges. Names of the inactive list shall not be counted in any statistical reports. Any members on the inactive list shall automatically become active members upon their resumption of regular attendance and financial support.
F. Meetings of Members.
1. Worship services: Public services for worship shall be held on Sunday morning, Sunday evening, and Wednesday evening of each week. Other public services for worship may be held at such other occasions as are deemed best for the advancement of the cause of Christ by direction of the Pastor.
2. Regular Conference Meetings: Regular Conference meetings of the members for the transaction of the business and affairs of the Church shall be held at the first Wednesday mid-week prayer service in each month and notice thereof to members shall not be required. The Pastor holds the right to postpone or cancel this meeting.
3. Special Conference Meetings. The Church may be called into conference for the handling of its business and affairs by oral announcement and without prior notice at any regular scheduled Sunday service or mid-week prayer service by the Pastor.
4. Quorum of Members. The members present at any regularly scheduled worship service on Sunday or mid-week prayer and worship service on Wednesday of each week shall constitute a quorum.
ARTICLE II.
DEACONS
A. The Deacons. The business and secular affairs of the Church shall be administered by the Deacons (herein collectively referred to as “The Deacons”) in accordance with these By-Laws. Although referred to herein as “The Deacons,” The Deacons shall constitute the Board of Directors of the Church as required by the Texas Non‑Profit Corporation Act; and a Deacon shall be considered as a Director as required in such Act.
B. Qualifications of a Deacon. A Deacon shall be a man who is a member of the Church in good standing and who has the qualifications for a Deacon as set forth in Acts 6:3 and I Timothy 3:8-13, and such other qualifications as the Church may from time to time prescribe. They must have a servant's heart as that is the literal rendering of the word “Deacon.” The Deacons must support the Covenant, Declaration of Faith, and personal convictions of the Pastor.
C. Term of Office of a Deacon.
1. Term. The term of office of a Deacon shall terminate upon the earliest of:
a) the last Sunday in February;
b) his death;
c) his resignation;
d) termination of his membership in the Church;
e) his removal from such office by the Church; or
f) the action of The Deacons as hereinafter provided.
2. Resignations and unexcused absences. On behalf of the Church and without additional Church action, The Deacons may accept the resignation of any Deacon and may drop from its membership any Deacon who is absent during the previous calendar year for more than five regular meetings of The Deacons, without excuses deemed valid by The Deacons after investigation by the Pastor and The Deacons.
3. Term limits. A Deacon may not serve more than three consecutive terms.
D. Number and Election of Deacons.
1. Number. The number of Deacons shall never be fewer than three. Subject to that limitation, the number of Deacons as required by these By-Laws shall, at any specific time, be the number thereof who at that time are Deacons in accordance with these By-Laws as shown by the records of the Church. The number of Deacons may be increased or decreased at any time by the Pastor, consistent with these By-Laws.
2. Elections. The Church shall elect Deacons each year in January or February, at a regular conference meeting of the Church or a special conference meeting, called and presided over by the Pastor, held and conducted as provided in paragraph D of Article I and sub-paragraphs F2 or F3 of Article I.
3. Vacancy elections. Deacons may be elected at any time by the Church to fill a vacancy within The Deacons, upon the Pastor’s call of a meeting of the Church for such a purpose. Such Deacons shall be elected by the Church at either a regular conference meeting of the Church or a special conference meeting, called and presided over by the Pastor, held and conducted as provided in paragraph D of Article I and sub-paragraphs F2 or F3 of Article I.
E. Meetings and Quorum. The Deacons shall meet regularly at such time and place as they may determine. Special meetings may be called by the Pastor. A majority of The Deacons shall constitute a quorum and a majority vote of The Deacons present at any meeting held in accordance herewith (and at which a quorum is present) shall be sufficient to decide on any matter regularly before The Deacons for consideration.
F. Compensation. Deacons shall receive no salary or compensation for their services as Deacons.
G. Deacons’ Officers. As provided in sub-paragraph C1 of Article II, The Deacons annually shall elect a Chairman of The Deacons, a Vice-Chairman of The Deacons, a Secretary of The Deacons and a Treasurer, each of which shall be a Deacon, to serve for the term provided for in such sub-paragraph C1 of Article II. As Chairman of The Deacons, such Chairman shall perform such duties as The Pastor may authorize consistent with these By-Laws. As Vice-Chairman of The Deacons, such Vice-Chairman shall perform the duties of the Chairman of The Deacons upon the death, absence, or resignation of the Chairman or upon his inability to perform the duties of his office.
ARTICLE III.
THE CHURCH OFFICERS
A. Pastor. The Pastor shall be the spiritual leader of the Church. The Church and The Deacons shall support the Pastor with their prayers and finances in such manner as to allow him the greatest time for evangelism and the preaching of the Gospel. The Pastor must support the Covenant, Declaration of Faith, and his personal convictions must conform to the Word of God. It shall be the duty of the Pastor to preach to the Church, to administer or cause to be administered the ordinances of the Gospel, to act as moderator at the conferences and to perform the various other duties incumbent on his office. The Pastor shall be elected by the Church and shall continue as Pastor until his service is terminated by his death, resignation, or by vote of the Church, If the Pastor is proven to be physically or spiritually incompetent of functioning as under-shepherd of The Church, a quorum of the Deacons may lead the church into voting for his termination. The Pastor, with the counsel and advice of The Deacons, shall have full power and authority to employ such employees as are necessary to carry on the work of the Church. Any Associate Pastor or any Assistant Pastor shall, under the supervision of the Pastor, assist the Pastor and perform such other duties as the Pastor may assign to him
B. Deacons. The Deacons are the officers of the Church as provided in Article II of these By-Laws.
C. Clerk. The Clerk shall keep an accurate record of the proceedings of each business meeting of the Church.
ARTICLE IV.
INDEMNIFICATION
The Church shall indemnify its officers and deacons, may indemnify its employees and agents and may procure insurance on behalf of its officers, deacons, employees and agents to the full extent permitted by applicable Texas law.
ARTICLE V.
DIRECTOR LIABILITY
A deacon shall not be liable to the Church for monetary damages for any act or omission in the deacon's capacity as a director, except that this Article does not eliminate or limit the liability of a deacon to the extent the deacon is found liable for:
If the Texas Miscellaneous Corporation Laws Act or the Texas Non-Profit Corporation Act is amended after the date of the adoption of this Article to authorize action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of deacons (directors), then liability of a deacon of the Church shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by such statutes, as so amended. Any repeal or modification of the foregoing paragraph shall not adversely affect any right of protection of a deacon of the Church existing at the time of such repeal or modification.
ARTICLE VI.
CONVEYANCES AND OTHER INSTRUMENTS
The Church may sell, convey, mortgage, encumber, or otherwise deal with or dispose of real or personal property owned by the Church and may evidence any such transaction by deed, bill of sale, mortgage, deed of trust, contract, or other appropriate instrument, with or without the seal of the Church, signed by the Pastor or Chairman of the Deacons or the Clerk when such transaction is authorized by appropriate resolutions of The Deacons adopted in accordance with these By-Laws; provided that any such transaction involving real property shall be authorized by the Church.
ARTICLE VII.
EFFECTIVE DATE
These By-Laws shall become effective as of August 9, 1981, immediately following their adoption by the Church.
ARTICLE VIII.
AMENDMENTS
These By-Laws may be amended, supplemented, or superseded at any time by action of the Church taken in the manner provided therefore in these By-Laws.
As amended on ______________________, 2003.
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