Bylaws

These Bylaws are adopted under the Constitution of Spiritual Results (the "Church") and are subordinate to it. Capitalized terms have the meanings given in the Constitution.

Article 1 — Membership

1.1 Reception. A person seeking membership shall (a) attend gatherings of the Church for a period the Council considers sufficient, ordinarily not less than sixty days; (b) affirm the Statement of Faith before the Council or a minister; (c) sign the Membership Covenant; and (d) be received by majority vote of the Council. The Clerk shall record the reception in the membership roll.

1.2 Classes. There are two classes of members:

1. Covenant members — adults who have completed 1.1 and who are entitled to vote at meetings of members.
2. Fellowship members — persons received into the fellowship of the Church who do not vote, including minor children of covenant members and adults who have signed the Covenant but have not yet been received as covenant members.

1.3 Roll. The Clerk shall keep a roll of members showing name, class, date of reception, and date and manner of any withdrawal or removal. The roll is a private record of the Church.

1.4 Duties. Members shall attend the gatherings of the Church regularly, support its work according to their means and conscience, live according to the Statement of Faith, and keep the Covenant.

1.5 Discipline. Where a member's conduct is contrary to the Statement of Faith or the Covenant, or disturbs the peace of the Church, the elders shall first seek reconciliation privately. If reconciliation fails, the Council may, after written notice stating the grounds and an opportunity for the member to be heard, admonish, suspend, or remove the member by a two-thirds vote of the elders present. The decision of the Council is final.

1.6 Withdrawal. A member may withdraw by written notice to the Clerk. Withdrawal is effective on receipt.

1.7 Confidentiality. Communications between a member and a minister of the Church made for the purpose of spiritual counsel are confidential and privileged to the fullest extent the law allows. Ministers shall not disclose them except with the member's consent or where the law compels disclosure to prevent serious harm.

Article 2 — Meetings of Members

2.1 Annual meeting. The covenant members shall meet annually, in the first quarter of each year, to receive the reports of the Council and Treasurer, to elect elders, and to transact any other business.

2.2 Special meetings. Special meetings may be called by the Council or by written request of one-fourth of the covenant members.

2.3 Notice. Written notice of every meeting of members, stating time, place, and purpose, shall be given at least fourteen days before the meeting (thirty days for amendment of the Constitution or Statement of Faith). Notice may be given by any means the member has agreed to in writing, including electronic mail.

2.4 Quorum and vote. One-third of the covenant members constitutes a quorum. Except as the Constitution or these Bylaws otherwise require, a majority of the votes cast decides. Each covenant member has one vote. There is no proxy voting.

2.5 Presiding. The Presiding Minister, or in his or her absence an elder chosen by the Council, presides.

Article 3 — The Council of Elders

3.1 Number. The Council shall consist of not fewer than three nor more than nine elders, the exact number fixed by the Council.

3.2 Qualifications. An elder shall be a covenant member of at least one year's standing (waived for founding elders), of good character, sound in the faith, and able to give the time the office requires. Elders serve without compensation for their service as elders.

3.3 Independence. The Council shall at all times satisfy Article V, Section 2 of the Constitution. If a vacancy or change in circumstances causes the Council to fall out of compliance, the Council shall restore compliance within ninety days and shall take no action on compensation or on any interested transaction until it does.

3.4 Election and term. Elders are elected by the covenant members at the annual meeting for terms of three years, staggered so that approximately one-third of the terms expire each year. An elder may be re-elected. The founding elders draw lots for initial terms of one, two, and three years.

3.5 Vacancies. The Council may fill a vacancy until the next annual meeting.

3.6 Removal. An elder may be removed for cause by a two-thirds vote of the other elders, or with or without cause by a two-thirds vote of the covenant members at a meeting called for that purpose.

3.7 Meetings. The Council shall meet at least quarterly. Meetings may be called by the Presiding Minister or any two elders on three days' notice. Elders may meet by any means by which all participants can hear one another. A majority of the elders constitutes a quorum. Action may be taken without a meeting by unanimous written consent.

3.8 Minutes. The Clerk shall keep minutes of every meeting of the Council, recording those present, every action taken, every vote on compensation or on an interested transaction (with the names of those voting and the data relied on), and the abstention of any interested elder. Minutes shall be approved at the next meeting and kept permanently.

3.9 Committees. The Council may appoint committees and delegate to them any authority the Council may lawfully delegate, except the power to fix compensation, receive or remove members, ordain or remove ministers, amend the governing documents, or dispose of real property.

Article 4 — Officers

4.1 Presiding Minister. The Presiding Minister is an ordained minister of the Church called by a two-thirds vote of the Council and confirmed by a majority of the covenant members. He or she leads worship, administers the rites, provides pastoral care, oversees the teaching of the Church, and serves as an elder ex officio. The Presiding Minister may be removed by a two-thirds vote of the Council with the concurrence of a majority of the covenant members.

4.2 Clerk. The Clerk keeps the membership roll, the minutes, the governing documents, and the records of ordination, marriage, and other rites; gives notices; and certifies the acts of the Church. The Clerk is elected by the Council for a term of one year.

4.3 Treasurer. The Treasurer keeps the accounts, receives and disburses funds as the Council directs, issues contribution acknowledgments, prepares payroll and required filings, and reports to the Council quarterly and to the members annually. The Treasurer is elected by the Council for a term of one year. The Treasurer shall not be the Presiding Minister or a person related to the Presiding Minister.

4.4 Signatures. Every account of the Church shall have at least two authorized signers, of whom at least one shall be a disinterested elder. Any single disbursement above an amount fixed annually by the Council requires two signatures.

Article 5 — Ministers

5.1 Course of study. The Council shall prescribe, and publish in the literature of the Church, a course of study and formation for each order of ministry. It shall include, at minimum, the Statement of Faith, the governing documents, the rites of the Church, the history and teaching of the Church, the study of the wisdom traditions the Church draws upon, pastoral care and its ethics, and the law that governs the conduct of a minister and of a church.

5.2 Licensing and commissioning. The Council may license a member to teach and lead worship under supervision, or commission a member to a specific ministry, by majority vote, upon completion of the portion of the course of study the Council prescribes.

5.3 Ordination. The Council may ordain a licensed minister who has completed the full course of study, served under supervision for not less than one year (waived for the founding Presiding Minister on the strength of prior ordination and ministry), and been examined by the Council as to faith and character, by a two-thirds vote. Ordination shall be conferred in a gathering of the Church and recorded by the Clerk, who shall issue a certificate.

5.4 Recognition of prior ordination. The Council may recognize an ordination conferred by another body and receive the minister into the orders of the Church upon examination.

5.5 Standards and removal. Ministers are subject to the discipline of the Church. The Council may suspend or remove a minister by a two-thirds vote after notice and an opportunity to be heard.

5.6 Ministerial functions. Ministers of the Church conduct worship, administer the rites, teach, provide pastoral care, and administer the affairs of the Church. Only ordained ministers may solemnize marriage in the name of the Church, and they shall do so in compliance with the marriage laws of the place of solemnization.

Article 6 — Compensation

6.1 Policy. The Church may compensate ministers and employees for services actually rendered. All compensation shall be reasonable and shall be approved in advance under this Article.

6.2 Procedure. Compensation of any minister, officer, or employee shall be fixed by the disinterested elders, none of whom is the person compensated or related to that person. Before approving compensation the disinterested elders shall obtain and rely on appropriate data as to comparability, such as compensation paid by similarly situated churches for similar services, and shall record in the minutes: the terms approved and the date; the elders present and the vote; the comparability data relied on and how it was obtained; and any action by an interested person and the basis for it.

6.3 Housing allowance. The Council may designate, in advance and in writing, a portion of an ordained, licensed, or commissioned minister's compensation as a housing allowance under Section 107 of the Internal Revenue Code. The designation shall be made under Article 6.2 before the beginning of the period to which it applies, shall state the amount or a formula, and shall continue until amended.

6.4 Reporting. Compensation of ministers shall be reported on Form W-2 (with no withholding of income tax unless the minister elects it, and no withholding of Social Security or Medicare tax, ministers being self-employed for those purposes). The Church shall file all information returns the law requires.

6.5 Payroll tax election. The Council may, on religious grounds, elect under Section 3121(w) of the Internal Revenue Code (Form 8274) to exclude the Church's employees from Social Security and Medicare taxes, in which case the employees are responsible for self-employment tax.

Article 7 — Finances and Records

7.1 Accountable plan. All reimbursements of expenses shall be made only under the Accountable Reimbursement Plan adopted by the Council: for a Church purpose, substantiated by receipt within sixty days, with any excess advance returned within one hundred twenty days.

7.2 No personal expenses. No personal expense of any minister, elder, member, or their families shall be paid from Church funds. A minister's compensation is paid to the minister, who pays his or her own expenses.

7.3 Contributions. The Treasurer shall furnish a contemporaneous written acknowledgment for every contribution of $250 or more, stating the amount (or a description of any property), whether any goods or services were provided in exchange, and if so a good-faith estimate of their value; and shall furnish a written disclosure for any payment over $75 made partly as a contribution and partly for goods or services. Annual statements shall be sent by January 31.

7.4 Restricted gifts. Gifts designated for a specific purpose within the purposes of the Church shall be used for that purpose. The Church shall not accept a gift that is earmarked for the benefit of a named individual as a pass-through.

7.5 Unrelated activity. The Church shall not conduct any trade or business unrelated to its religious purposes as a substantial activity. Any unrelated business income shall be reported and taxed as the law requires.

7.6 Records. The Church shall keep permanently: the governing documents and all amendments; minutes; the membership roll; records of ordinations, marriages, and other rites; annual financial statements. It shall keep for at least seven years: books of account, bank records, contribution records, payroll records, and contracts. Records are the private property of the Church and are open to members as the Council directs.

7.7 Attendance and services. The Clerk shall keep a record of the regular gatherings of the Church, showing the date, place, form of service, the minister presiding, and the number present. Sermons, teachings, and orders of service shall be preserved as the literature of the Church.

Article 8 — Conflicts of Interest

The Conflict of Interest Policy adopted by the Council is incorporated in these Bylaws. Every elder, officer, and minister shall sign the annual statement it requires.

Article 9 — Gatherings and Rites

9.1 Regular gatherings. The Church shall gather for worship regularly, ordinarily weekly, at the time and place published by the Council. Gatherings are for members and invited guests.

9.2 Rites. The rites of the Church include worship and contemplative practice; the reading and teaching of sacred and wisdom texts; the dedication and blessing of persons, homes, and undertakings; the solemnization of marriage; memorials; the reception of members; and the licensing, commissioning, and ordination of ministers. The Council shall keep a written order for each rite.

9.3 Remote participation. Members unable to be present may participate by electronic means. Remote participation supplements and does not replace the assembly of the Church.

Article 10 — Resolution of Disputes

10.1 Within the Church. Any dispute among members, or between a member and the Church, concerning the faith, doctrine, discipline, membership, or internal affairs of the Church shall be brought first to a minister for private counsel; then, if unresolved, to two elders for mediation; then, if unresolved, to the full Council, whose decision on ecclesiastical matters is final.

10.2 Civil matters. Any dispute of a civil nature between a member and the Church that is not resolved under 10.1 shall be submitted to binding arbitration before a single arbitrator agreed by the parties, or failing agreement, appointed under the rules of a recognized arbitration body, and judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. Nothing in this Article limits any right that the law does not permit to be waived.

Article 11 — Indemnification

The Church shall indemnify any elder, trustee, officer, or minister against expenses and liabilities reasonably incurred in connection with any proceeding to which he or she is a party by reason of service to the Church, if he or she acted in good faith and in a manner reasonably believed to be in the best interests of the Church, and, in a criminal matter, had no reasonable cause to believe the conduct unlawful. No indemnification shall be made in respect of any matter as to which the person is adjudged liable for willful misconduct or for an excess benefit transaction.

Article 12 — Amendment

These Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Council, provided that any amendment affecting the rights of members shall be reported to the members at the next meeting and may be reversed by a majority of the covenant members present.

Article 13 — Adoption

Adopted by the Council of Elders on [DATE].