Memorandum Number 1005

Request from the Alaska Missionary Conference for a Declaratory Decision on the Constitutionality of 2004 General Conference Calendar Item 1017, as Adopted, with Respect to the Lay Membership of Annual Conference.

On May 29, 2004, the Alaska Missionary Conference adopted a motion requesting a declaratory decision as follows:

Is the legislation approved by the General Conference 2004 on 07May04, identified as Petition 40314 on page 328ff of the Daily Christian Advocate and further identified as Calendar Item 1017 on page 1746 of the Daily Christian Advocate, [sic] constitutional?

This legislation adds the conference scouting coordinator to the list of members of the annual conference in ¶ 602.4, but it does not add that person to the list of members in ¶ 30 of the Constitution. In Judicial Council Decision 924, the Judicial Council held that similar additions of members to ¶ 602.4, which were not accompanied by amendments to ¶ 30, were unconstitutional.

The Judicial Council has jurisdiction under ¶ 2610 of the 2000 Book of Discipline.

The request for declaratory decision from the Alaska Missionary Conference reached the Secretary of the Judicial Council after the docket for the Fall 2004 session of the Council had already been established. The question posed here has been addressed fully in Decision 989.

Digest

The request of the Alaska Missionary Conference for a declaratory decision has been answered by Decision 989.


Shamwange P. Kyungu was absent. C. Rex Bevins, the first clergy alternate, participated in this decision.