BY-LAWS OF CATHEDRAL FORUM
CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL, MONTREAL
Adopted at the Annual General Vestry Meeting, February 6, 1994.
TERMS OF REFERENCE
1. The Cathedral Forum of Christ Church Cathedral exists for the purpose of giving advice and expressing opinions to the Rector, Wardens and/or other interested parties on matters related to the Cathedral life and community.
2. The Cathedral Forum has the right to pass a motion objecting to any change or proposed change in the ordinary public services of worship in the Cathedral. If the Cathedral Forum does pass such a motion, the change shall not be implemented without the consent of the Bishop, given in a letter written after he has considered such a vote and expressly sanctions a change.
3. The Wardens (or the Treasurer, as their delegate) shall present a financial report to the Cathedral Forum every quarter.
COMPOSITION
4. The Cathedral Forum shall be an open forum accessible to all members of the Cathedral congregation, or GeneraI Vestry. Any person qualified to vote at a meeting of the General Vestry may attend and vote at a meeting of the Cathedral Forum. 15 persons present, excluding members of Corporation, shall satisfy the quorum for a meeting of the Cathedral Forum.
5. To ensure continuity, Cathedral Forum shall have at its centre 30 elected members. At least one third must be men and one third women.
6. The elected members shall be chosen at the annual meeting of General Vestry (one-third each year plus a number sufficient to fill any vacancies). The term of an elected member shall be 3 years and a retiring member shall only be eligible for re-election after one year.
7. The CathedraI Forum’s elected members shall accept the responsibility of attending CathedraI Forum meetings for the duration of their term. It shall also be their responsibility to help any member of the Cathedral community with a concern to bring that concern to a meeting of the Cathedral Forum for discussion and thoughtful consideration.
8. An elected member who without reasonable explanation fails to attend three successive meetings, shall, upon motion duly passed, be deemed to have resigned and thereupon cease to be a member. Such vacancies may be filled through co-option of new members, who shall serve until the next Annual GeneraI Vestry meeting.
9. The following shall be considered ex-officio members of the Cathedral Forum: all Cathedral clergy, the Director of Music, the Wardens and Deputy Wardens, the Treasurer, the Lay and Alternate Lay Delegates to Diocesan Synod, the Lay Readers, and the Cathedral Archivist.
10. The Cathedral Forum shall elect its own Chairperson and Secretary. They shall be chosen from those members who have served as elected members for one year at any time. Neither office shall be held by the same person for more than two consecutive years.
11. In the event of a tie in voting, the Chairperson shall have a second or casting vote.
12. The Cathedral Forum may appoint such committees and working groups as it sees fit.
NOTICE OF MEETINGS, AGENDAS AND MINUTES
13. There shall be a minimum of six meetings of the Cathedral Forum each year. A meeting shall be held:
(a) at a time and place determined by the Cathedral Forum itself, or
(b) when called by the Chairperson, or
(c) upon a written request to the Chairperson, signed by ten elected members. If the Chairman then fails to post a notice of meeting within seven days, those requesting the meeting may do so themselves.
14. Notice of meetings of the Cathedral Forum shall be placed in the Sunday bulletin on the two Sundays prior to the meeting. Cathedral Script shall publish the dates of scheduled Cathedral Forum meetings.
15. Any member of the Cathedral community may request the addition of an item for discussion to the Cathedral Forum’s agenda before it is posted. The addition shall be made at the discretion of the Chairperson. All issues requiring discussion shall appear on the agenda in the form of the question to be discussed and decided upon. Motions voted upon and passed by the Cathedral Forum shall be presented in writing to the Corporation for their deliberation and action.
16. The full agenda of the upcoming meeting of the Cathedral Forum shall be made available to the CathedraI community at least one Sunday before the meeting. It shall be posted at the West Door of the Cathedral and also on the board outside FuIford Hall. The agenda shall be proposed at the meeting by the Chairperson, and adopted or amended by the meeting. If a meeting has been requested as provided for in 13(c), the agenda of any such meeting must be limited to those matters specified in the notice of such meeting.
17. The minutes of the CathedraI Forum shall be produced in a timely fashion by the Cathedral Forum Secretary and made available to the whole community by being posted on the board outside Fulford Hall. Previous minutes and agendas shall be made available upon request to any member of General Vestry.
AMENDMENT OF BY-LAWS
18. These by-Iaws may only be amended by simple majority of a General Vestry meeting.
19. The Cathedral Forum may determine its own procedures and policies but only so far as they do not conflict with these by-Laws, which shall always have precedence.