elections & changing laws have consequences nationally & Aptos,CA

Elections have consequences — nationally and locally in Aptos, CA.   Likewise, changing the laws have  consequences.

And some un-intended consequences from changing the laws  should be carefully considered.

Is freedom of assembly useful to redress grievances?  Yes.

At the national level,  President-Elect Trump plans for the Pentagon to have much greater say in how to manage combat against Islamic jehad terrorism. No longer will the battle field be managed, as it was before,  per President Obama’s direct  decisions. (WSJ, Sat. Dec. 10, 2016 Pentagon to Show Trump Tougher Options).

One un-intended consequence of  President Obama’s military  policies was his decision to trade five (5)   jehad Islamic terrorists (Taliban)  for  one (1)  American soldier who was  subsequently court marshalled.

At the local level in Aptos, CA,  an episcopal church — St John the Baptist Episcopal in Aptos, CA —  recently changed its  church Bylaws  as to  A) who is a Member and  B) who can be elected to the board of directors.

And — probably — there will be some  un-intended consequences at the church level  because of  the 2016 Showalter Bylaw revisions:

*  a reduction in the number of  members on the church rolls;
* an increase  in unilateral power exercised by the priest;
* less overall  participation/ connection by those who attend.

The  revised  Bylaws take effect Jan 1 2017.  The Bylaws  affected  who was nominated  in the Dec. 4, 2016 elections.

Per the “old” 2014 Bylaws:  The simple, basic  standard used to be  that any baptized adult is a member of the Parish.   There  are 4 categories. You only have to meet one category to be a Member.    If you are in category A or B or C or D then you are a member of the Parish.  No if’s  or buts about it!

How the changes in Bylaws   came to be: The interim priest thought revisions were in order and he  created a committee  of  three (3)  including  himself (aka Showalter 2016 Bylaw revisions).

An aside:   It appears that the Showalter 2016  Bylaw revisions break a rule of thumb:  don’t set a  difficult to meet, new standard.    The Showalter 2016  revisions are difficult  to meet   because — more than likely — some current Vestry members don’t or cannot meet the   new standard and many long time  pew sitters cannot.   Seriously, when was the last time that the Vestry was polled — and the records provided — to determine whether  each  Vestry member is listed  on the Parish Registrar?   That’s  probably never happened.

Another major dificulty: Imagine the sheer dificulty of rustling through folks’ giving records to figure out who is giving what to where over  what period of time.

Per the 2016  Showalter Bylaw revisions,    to be a member one must be “registered on the Parish Registrar  as a baptized Communicant  of the Parish …”  and …. and.  …. and…. and…

Meet all the “ands”  in the Showalter 2016 revisons  and then you’re a  Member.  That is a substantive change.  Supposedly, no substantive changes  were to be part of the 2106 Revisions.

That’s not cool!  Don’t say no substantive changes in the revisons  and then make them. But, per the Nov. 2016 Vestry meeting, the church agreed to substantive changes.

What to do about all this?  Try the following:   Why not  walk up to someone on the  church Vestry  and inquire:

Do you know  whether you  actually are on the Parish Registrar?

Have you opened the Parish Registrar  and checked?

Do you support a   Parish church law that all voting Members must be on the Parish Registrar?

And what  do you think about the following scenario:  Next year at election time,  we  shall we all stand in line ( just like national elections) and “someone” will determine whether we meet the “standard” so that we can vote? To vote in a national election you go to a place, you say who you are, someone looks up your address and you sign on the line that you are you.

So –  before voting in 2017  the St. John the Baptist Episcopal church  election committee will check to ensure:

A) that the  name is  on Parish Register?

B)  that name  is on Treasurers books as contributed to the un-designated general fund for the last six months?

C)  that  the person is known to have taken Communion 3 times this past year? Only the Priest can verify this, right? More power will  wielded by the priest with this requirement.

D) that this  person is baptized and over  the age 18?  Maybe best for potential voting Members to bring a picture ID?

So.  what can you do?  The usual:    Petition your government!

Freedom of assembly is a right Americans have to petition their government.  To petition a church government there needs to be a determination of how many members there are and therefore what constitutes a quorum.  Thus,  changing the meaning of Member has significant consequences.

So who is a “member”?  There’s about 227 families listed on the church directory.  How many of those 227 families  are listed on the Parish Registrar? That informaton should be publicly available.   How many give to the Building Fund but do not give to the Un-designatged Fund?   Many people put Cash in the Plate as their way of giving.

Just discussing the above issues suggests why it’s best to simply keep the  2014 “old” Bylaws which have four (4) categories whereby persons from all those categories  are all Members.   The “old” 2014 Bylaws per Member  is an   inclusive standard  which has worked. Why ‘fix’ what’s not broke.

Elections have consequences.  And, changing the  church Bylaws  have consequences  — and some not so good,  un-intended consequences.

Basic questions  to  answer:    Who is a member of the Body of Christ?

Must  members of the Body of Christ have to pay to pray?

Written by Cameron Jackson    DrCameronJackson@gmail.com