CENTRAL CHRISTIAN CHURCH

BY-LAWS

             These bylaws were adopted by the Ministry Council, Deacons and Elders of Central Christian Church on Sunday, Feb 8, 1998.

             Amended by the Council December 12, 2004: Article VI – Meetings.

ARTICLE I:               NAME

             The organization of church leaders shall be known as the Ministry Council of Central Christian Church, Jonesborough, TN.

ARTICLE II:             MEMBERSHIP

             All members of the church are invited and encouraged to participate in Ministry Council Teams and Meetings.  Ministry Council Leaders shall be appointed by Ministry Team Members. Ministry Council Leaders will represent the interests of their Ministry team at Ministry Council meetings and shall have voting privileges. The Elders and Deacons who are elected by the congregation shall also have voting privileges.  The officers elected by the council and the Senior Minister shall also have voting privileges. 

ARTICLE III:            OFFICERS AND STAFF

              The elected officers of this Council shall be Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer.  Each of these positions shall be elected annually by the Council at their first regular meeting in September of each year.  The Chairperson may be re-elected for one term only.

            Central Christian Church will retain and elect a Senior Minister.  Staff positions may also include an Associate and/or Youth Minister, Staff Secretary, and other job functions as deemed necessary by the church body.  In addition, there shall be three trustees that serve with Central Christian Church.

ARTICLE IV:            DUTIES OF OFFICERS

             Section 1: The Chairperson.   The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings of this council.  The Chairperson shall not be entitled to vote except for the election of officers and when members are equally divided on other issues.  The Chairperson may then render the deciding vote.

             Section 2: The Vice-Chairperson.  The Vice-Chairperson shall, in the absence of the Chairperson, preside at the meetings of the Council and perform such duties as pertain to this office.

            Section 3: The Secretary.   The Secretary shall keep an accurate record of the proceedings of this Council and post them in the church building for all members’ review.  The secretary will also be responsible for maintaining a list of all active members.  Inactive members shall be defined as church members that have not attended church services in the past 12 months.  Inactive members may be retained on the church role but will not have voting privileges until they resume regular attendance for a minimum of one month.

             Section 4: The Treasurer. The Treasurer shall receive all offerings and moneys given to the church and pay all incurred debts.  The Treasurer will also keep accurate records of all expenditures.  Financial reports of monthly and year-to-date income and expenses shall be submitted for each Council meeting.  The Treasurer will also be responsible for recording and reporting individual pledges and annual contributions for the support of the congregation.  Each member shall be given a statement of contributions at the close of each calendar year.

             Section 5: The Trustees. The Trustees shall be elected by the Ministry Council and shall serve for a period of 5 years.  In the event of a resignation, the Ministry Council will appoint a member to complete the term of office.  The Trustees shall be the legal custodians of the church property, maintain adequate property insurance, take charge of all property deeds and shall perform the duties as may be requested by the Ministry Council or congregation.  The Trustees will not have voting privileges on the Ministry Council unless another position of service also held at the same time.

             Section 6:  The Senior Minister.  The Senior Minister of the church shall perform the duties defined within a written job description, Attachment A.  The Elders of the church will conduct a written annual performance review and prepare all recommendations regarding the hiring, termination and financial compensation of the Senior Minister.  The Senior Minister shall be called by the congregation if he/she receives 80% of the "yes" votes cast in a congregational meeting.  The Senior Minister's resignation shall be final upon acceptance by the Elders. The Senior Minister will be responsible for the supervision of all staff members, including the Associate or Youth Minister.

 ARTICLE V:              MINISTRY TEAMS

             The Ministry Teams are composed of church members that volunteer their service on one or more ministry teams.  Each Ministry Team will select and recommend one of their members to be their Ministry Team Leader.  The Elders of the church will review these appointments and discuss with the Deacons their duties as outlined in the Constitution of Central Christian Church. These recommendations will be presented to the congregation for affirmation. In the absence of a recommendation from the members of a Ministry Team or upon the creation of a new Ministry Team, the Elders will appoint a Ministry Team Leader.  If the work of a given Ministry Team is too large for one person, multiple Ministry Team Leaders may be appointed and affirmed.  Each Ministry Team Leader will have voting privileges at all Ministries Council meetings and will be expected to be present or send a representative from the Ministry Team to report on the progress of their team.  Ministry Team meetings will be held as needed and scheduled by the Ministry Team Leader.  Ministry Council meetings will be scheduled on the second Sunday of every month unless otherwise noted.

The activities of the Ministry Teams include but are not limited by the following:

             Shepherding Ministry Team.   This Team will be responsible for visiting shut-ins, hospitalized or long-term chronically ill members of the church and their families as needed.  They will also mentor new members, assisting them to find a Ministry Team in which they would like to serve.

                        Worship Ministry Team.   This Team will work with the Senior Minister, Organist, Pianist and Worship Leader to constantly seek to improve the public worship services of the church.  It shall also promote participation in daily devotions and special prayer groups and services.

             Education Ministry Team.  This Team will recommend and administrate Sunday School, Ministerial and education grants, and Vacation Bible School.  This Ministry Team will recruit all Sunday School Teachers.  They will also develop Adult Bible Study curriculum as needed. Oversee financial grants given to educational institutions. 

             Stewardship Ministry Team.   This Team will be responsible for insuring that offerings are used in an efficient and prudent manner to assure good stewardship.  The Stewardship Ministry Team will also be responsible for the preparation and recommendation of an annual church budget.  Although the annual church budget may exceed the previous years' offering, the Stewardship Ministry Team will not authorize spending, which exceeds its offerings. Central Christian Church will be a debt free church and a generous steward of God’s blessings. The Stewardship Ministry Team will develop and promote the annual stewardship campaign and provide members with a proper accounting of all expenditures.

             Evangelism Ministry Team.  This team will be responsible for the establishment of outreach activities within the community. Ecumenical evangelism will be coordinated with other church bodies in the Jonesborough community to promote Christian unity and love.  This Ministry Team will administer special Christian community events sponsored by Central Christian Church or the churches of Jonesborough.

            Evangelism outreach programming will be developed and implemented by this Ministry Team to reach new families in the community, single parent families, non-Christian families and other families in need. Oversee financial grants given to Evangelical ministries.

 Mission Ministry Team.   This Team will be responsible for the selection, evaluation, recommendation, and communication with all missionary groups supported by the church.  The Mission Ministry Team will also promote, educate and update the church on the activities of missionary work. Oversee financial grants given to mission ministries.

             Property Ministry Team.   This Team will be responsible for all matters pertaining to the repair, improvement and maintenance of the properties of the church.  Whenever practical and possible other member of the church should be encouraged to volunteer their time to perform the maintenance work of the church.

             Youth Ministry Team.   Working with the Youth Ministry, this Team will be responsible for developing all youth programs and special events and will assist in defining the goals and objectives of the Youth Ministry.  This team will participate with the Senior Minister and the Elders in the annual evaluation of the Youth Minister.

              Other Ministry Teams. Other Ministry Teams may be created by Church Members as required to meet the physical and spiritual needs of community and our Church body. The only requirements for organizing a ministry team are that the service to be provided be given in the name of Jesus Christ and that we be good stewards of the work and resources used in the ministry.

 ARTICLE VI:            MEETINGS

 The Ministry Council shall meet on the second Sunday of each month unless otherwise noted in the first Sunday church bulletin. All meetings will be opened with prayer.

             Special meetings may be held at the request of the Senior Minister or the Chairperson of the Ministry Council or by written request of five voting members of the Ministry Council. All voting members shall be given reasonable advance notice of special meetings.

             If a Ministry Team leader is unable to attend a regularly scheduled or special meeting of the Ministry Council, the Team Leader must make every reasonable effort to send a substitute representative on that Team’s behalf. The designated representative then assumes the voting privilege on behalf of that Team for the duration of the meeting. A voting quorum consists of the Elders, Deacons, Ministry Team leaders, officers and voting minister(s) who are present for a particular meeting held in accordance with the requirements for notice given as required above.

 If a Ministry Team Leader, Deacon or Elder is absent, it will be noted in the minutes of the meeting. If a voting Ministry Council Team Leader misses more than three Ministry Council meetings and fails to send a representative with the Ministry Team report, the Chairperson of the Ministry Council may ask the Ministry Team to select and recommend a new Ministry Team leader. Likewise, if an Elder or Deacon misses more than three Ministry Council meetings and fails to perform his/her duties as an Elder or Deacon, the Chairperson of the Ministry Council may ask the Elders to assume those responsibilities until another individual is appointed by the Elders.

 ARTICLE VII:                       AMENDMENTS

             Any voting member of the Ministry Council may offer an amendment to these by-laws if it is presented in writing at least two months before action is taken.  It must pass two readings at regularly scheduled meetings of the Ministry Council and then be passed by a two-thirds majority of all members present.