January 16, 2024, at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary, Fairview Baptist Church will hold a by-law discussion. The discussion will only cover the proposed amendments to the church constitution and bylaws presented at the last members’ meeting. All members are encouraged to attend and participate in the discussion.
Summary of Proposed By-Law Changes
In the spring of 2022, the Elders recognized the need for amendments to the current bylaws for Fairview Baptist Church. The main issue is that the current bylaws need updating to reflect the elder-led model of ministry that was adopted more than ten years ago. The elders have sought to be diligent in the process of solving these issues to reflect the present needs of the church in a manner that is biblical and respectful to the church’s history.
Process
The task of researching and proposing amendments was handed to the Pastoral Assistant with oversight from the Elders. The intent is to have a draft of the bylaws ready for congregational viewing at the August 2023 Quarterly Meeting with a plan for approval in 2024. When considering potential changes to the bylaws, insight was taken from other like-minded churches (Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, CA., Capitol Hill Baptist in Wash., D.C., and Grace Fellowship Toronto) to help update the bylaws along with looking at church history and most importantly Scripture.
Results
Apart from changes for grammar and document flow, key areas that will be addressed in the updated bylaws fall into the following areas:
- Changing terminology and procedures to be more family-oriented rather than business-oriented. E.g., change from “business meetings” to “members meetings.”
- Updating elder and diaconal role descriptions to better reflect our church and Scripture.
- Influence from IX Marks resources and Grace Community Church
- Clarifying staff positions and procedures for filling those.
- Adding clarity on what it means to be a member of a congregational elder-led church.
- Adding a more rigorous and clear approach to church discipline.
- Removing the category of inactive members.
- Simplifying meeting rules and removing Roberts’ Rules of Order in favor of elder-moderated meetings.
- Simplifying Special Church Business Meetings
- Removing unused committees and positions. All volunteer positions/committees do not need to be in the bylaws.
- Adding historic ecumenical creeds to clarify our position on issues not addressed in our statement of faith.
These changes will not impact FBC greatly, as currently the church culture already follows a similar format. Still, these updates will provide documentation for reference, clarity, and ease so that the church may continue to be united under the Gospel and regulate itself in a God-honoring manner for generations to come. See separate documentation for previous and drafted by-laws.
For more information, email info@fairviewbaptistchurch.ca
To read the proposed by-law updates and current bylaws click the link below:
https://www.fairviewbaptistchurch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Merged-ByLaw-Document-2.pdf