ORGANIZATION AND REGULATION OF LEGAL SOCIETIES.
The mode of organizing a legal society to control church property under the provisions of the law of Michigan, is as follows:— First, Let the male members of your church and congregation, of full age, who desire to form such society, sign the following articles:— In pursuance of an act of the Legislature of the State of Michigan, entitled, “An act concerning churches or religious societies, establishing uniform rules for the acquisition, tenure, control, and disposition of property conveyed, or dedicated for religious purposes, and to repeal chapter fifty-two of the revised statutes, approved February thirteenth, eighteen hundred fifty-five,” We, the undersigned, being desirous of forming ourselves into a religious society, do hereby agree to be bound by the following articles of association:— ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION OF THE SOCIETY OF THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS OF _____, MICHIGAN.
This society shall be called the society of the Seventh-day Adventists. This society shall be located in the of in the State of Michigan. The object of this society shall be to legally hold the house of worship and land belonging thereto, a dwelling house for their minister, and such other buildings as may be necessary for the direct and legitimate use of the society, and to manage the temporal affairs of the Seventh-day Adventists of _____; and it shall not hold any other property; except grants, as hereinafter provided, nor transact other business aside from the temporalities of the society. The officers of this society shall consist of three trustees, a clerk and treasurer to be appointed by them of their number. The trustees shall be elected for three years, except those first elected, who shall be divided into three classes, and shall hold their offices for one, two, and three years, respectively, one being elected each year to fill the vacancy of the one passing from office. At least fifteen days’ notice shall be given to the congregation of the time when, and the place where, any election shall be held, and such notice shall be given in the manner that is, or may be, provided by law. All regular elections shall be held at least six days before the term of office expires, and in case of a vacancy by death or any other cause, a special election may be held, by notice thereof being given as aforesaid. All property that may be given, granted, conveyed, or devised to this society, whether personal or real estate, except the house of worship and land belonging thereto, the dwelling house for their minister, and such other buildings as may be necessary for the direct and legitimate use of the church as before provided, shall be sold by the trustees, and the proceeds thereof applied to the religious and benevolent purposes of the society. This society may erect, alter, or improve, a church building, a house for their minister, and other buildings for the direct and legitimate use of the society, by a vote of two-thirds of the members, and dispose of the buildings and erect others, as the wants of the congregation may require, and shall have power to execute securities for church debts, upon church property, as provided by law. After the first election, such persons shall be entitled to vote as shall have subscribed to these articles at least six months before the annual election, and shall have been stated worshipers with this society at their house of worship for the same period of six months, or shall have contributed to the support of the society according to its usages for one year. When these articles are drawn up, and signed, let the elder, deacon, or, if not present, any male member, read a notice, like the following:— Being desirous of forming ourselves into a religious society to be known as the society of Seventh-day Adventists of , to legally hold and manage our church property, an election will be held at , on the day of , in the year 18—, for the purpose of electing three persons to serve as trustees of said society. Elder, Deacon, or Member, (as the case may be). Such notice must be given at least fifteen days before the day of election, and must be read in two Sabbath meetings, and those two Sabbaths must be the last two on which you have meeting before the day of election. See sec. 4. When you come together to hold your first election, you will organize your meeting by choosing your elder as president. This may be done by some one moving that the elder act as president, and then vote upon it by voice or uplifted hand as you choose. The next step will be to elect a clerk for the time being, who may be nominated and elected in the same manner as the president. Your next step will be to select two inspectors of the election. If there are two deacons of the church present, they are lawful inspectors without any vote for them. If there is one deacon present he is an inspector, and the second is to be chosen by circulating blank ballots and letting all who have signed the articles write upon the ballots the name of the person they wish to act as inspector. The one getting the greatest number of ballots is the other inspector. If there is no deacon present, both inspectors shall be elected as above. The president shall then announce that the inspectors are to pass blank ballots on which he wishes you to write the names of three male subscribers to the articles, to serve as trustees, the three names to be written at one balloting. The inspectors shall take up the ballots and examine and report to the president, who shall declare the vote. The three persons receiving the highest number of votes are the three trustees. The trustees shall then draw cuts from the hand of the president, to decide who shall serve one, who two, and who three years. When they are thus divided, the president, clerk, and inspectors should make a writing like the following:— At a meeting of persons who had signed Articles of Association for the purpose of forming a religious society to be known as the society of Seventh-day Adventists of , Michigan, notified according to the provisions of the statutes of the State of Michigan, held at , on the day of , 18—, was by a plurality of votes, chosen president, and , clerk. Whereupon and , deacons, acted as inspectors of election for the election of trustees for said society, who make the following certificate. In case two laymen are chosen as inspectors, or one layman to act with one deacon, let it read, Whereupon, , layman, was nominated by a plurality of votes by ballot to act with the deacon, , as inspectors of election, &c., or if two laymen, let both their names be mentioned as nominated for inspectors. At the meeting above specified, by a plurality of votes by ballot, , , and , were chosen as trustees of the society of Seventh-day Adventists of , Michigan, and immediately thereafter divided into three classes, as follows, to hold his office for one year, , for two years, and _____ for three years. In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands and seals, this day of , in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and _____. Inspectors { , [L. S.]
, [L. S.] The inspectors shall then go to some justice of the peace, or notary public, and make acknowledgment of the certificate, and have his certificate of acknowledgment on the back, which may read like the following:— State of Michigan, }
County of _____, } ss. On this day of , A. D. 18—, before me, a , in and for the said County, personally appeared and , to me personally known to be the persons described in and who executed the foregoing certificate, and each acknowledged to me that he executed the same freely. , for , County, Michigan. Then the articles of association and the above certificate should be filed for record in the County Clerk’s office, and from the time of such filing, you are a body corporate, empowered to receive and hold the property of the church. On being notified of their election, the trustees shall choose one of their number as clerk, who shall fulfill his office as set forth in sections 11, 14, and 17. They shall also choose one of their number as a treasurer to pay out funds by order of the board of trustees (sec. 11). The notice of any election after the first is provided for in sections 14 and 15. Such elections will be conducted in the same manner as the first, with the exception of choosing a clerk, for the clerk of trustees is a clerk of the meetings for election. See sections 15, 3, 5, 17. No certificate is made of any election after the first, but a record is made of the proceedings and election of trustees, on the society’s books (not the church book). See section 11. FORM OF CLERK’S NOTICE, SEE SECS. 14, 15.
, Michigan, , 18—,
To , Elder in charge of the Society of the Seventh-day Adventists of ___, You are hereby notified that the expiration of the term of office of , one of the trustees of this society, will terminate on the day of _____ next. This notice is thus given in order that you may notify your congregation publicly of the time when and the place where an election will be held to fill the vacancy, said notice to be read for two successive Sabbaths, last before such election, and be given at least fifteen days before such election, and such election must be held six days before the expiration of the said term of office. The person receiving this notice shall read to the congregation a written notice as required by law, (see sections 14, 4,) as follows:— An election will be held at , on the day of , at o’clock, (A. M. or P. M., as the case may be), for the purpose of electing a trustee to fill the vacancy occasioned by the expiration of the term of office of , which term expires on the day _____ next.