A053: Missionary Society — Revision of Canon VII (carried)
Download resolution A053-R1
Subject: Missionary Society — Revision of Canon VII
Moved by: Chancellor Ronald Stevenson, Diocese of Fredericton
Seconded by: Archdeacon Harry Huskins, Diocese of Algoma
Be it resolved that this General Synod:
repeal Canon VII (Missionary Society) as now in force and enact the following new Canon:
CANON VII
Missionary Society
1. The Society
There shall be a society for the general missionary work of the Church to be known as The Missionary Society of The Anglican Church of Canada and consisting of all members of the General Synod of The Anglican Church of Canada.
2. Board of Directors
Subject to the authority of the General Synod the work of the Society shall be under the direction of a Board of Directors composed of
i) all members of the Council of the General Synod elected or appointed under the Constitution of the General Synod, and
ii) the officers of the Society.
3. Reports
a) The officers of the Society shall ensure the circulation, not later than five months after the close of the fiscal year, of an annual report to the members of the Society in any year that the General Synod meets, and to the members of the Board of Directors in years in which the General Synod does not meet.
b) The report shall include financial statements with respect to all funds held or monies received and disbursed in connection with the work of the Society.
c) The report shall be presented for approval to a meeting of the members of the Society in a year that the General Synod meets and to a meeting of the Board of Directors in years that the General Synod does not meet.
4. Meetings of the Society
There shall be a meeting of the members of the Society at the time and place fixed for any regular meeting of the General Synod.
5. Meetings of the Board of Directors
There shall be a meeting of the Board of Directors at least once in each year at the time and place fixed for a meeting of the Council of the General Synod.
6. Officers of the Society
a) The Primate is the President of the Society and the Chair of the Board of Directors.
b) The General Secretary of the General Synod is the Secretary of the Society and of the Board of Directors.
c) The Treasurer of the General Synod is the Treasurer of the Society.
d) The Board of Directors may appoint additional officers of the Society.
7. Receipts and Execution of Documents
a) All subscriptions, donations, bequests, collections or other funds received by the Society not designated by the donor for any specified object or purpose shall be designated by the Board of Directors.
b) The Treasurer shall have custody of the corporate seal of the Society.
c) All deeds, documents and releases requiring execution by the Society shall be sealed with its corporate seal and signed by two officers of the Society.
8. Investments
a) The personal property, securities and moneys which have been, now are, or hereafter become vested in or held by the Society shall be invested in The Anglican Church of Canada Consolidated Trust Fund under the management, administration and control of the Financial Management Committee of the General Synod.
b) Cash on hand and bank deposits shall be held for the Society by the General Synod.
Source Council of the General Synod
Submitted by the General Secretary
Does this motion contain within it any financial implications? Yes No ü
If yes, has the General Synod Expenditures Committee considered the implications? Yes No
EXPLANATORY NOTE/BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The entity now called The Missionary Society of The Anglican Church of Canada was created by a Canon enacted by the General Synod in 1902 and was incorporated by a special Act of Parliament in 1903. Until the late 1960s the Society was actively engaged in the missionary work of the Church in Canada and overseas. When the national church and its committees were restructured in the late 1960s the functions of the Society and the management of its funds were taken over by departments of the General Synod. The Society still exists as a legal entity and its funds are separately accounted for.
From the Society’s inception the Canon respecting the Society has defined the membership of the Society as consisting of all members of the Church.
In 2009 Parliament passed new legislation respecting not-for-profit corporations. Although the law is not yet in force it will probably be proclaimed within the next year. At some time it will be desirable, or required, that the Society apply to be continued as a corporation under the new legislation. Such an application will have to be authorized by the membership of the applying corporation. It is not possible to identify, or give notice of a meeting to, all members of the Church. The proposed canon will facilitate the holding of meetings of the members by making the membership of the Society coincident with the membership of the General Synod.
The possibility of amalgamating the Missionary Society with the General Synod is being explored. Such an amalgamation will be easier to accomplish when both corporations have been continued under the new legislation.
PROCEDURE REQUIRED FOR ADOPTION:
This resolution must be passed by a two-thirds majority in the Order of Bishops and a two-thirds majority in the Orders of Clergy and Laity voting together.