[As amended at the thirty-third session of the General Conference held at South Lancaster, Mass., Feb. 15 to March 7, 1899.]GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.1

ARTICLE I.—NAME

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THIS organization shall be known as the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.2

ARTICLE II.—OBJECT

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The object of this Conference shall be to unify and extend the work of the Seventh-day Adventist denomination throughout the world.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.3

ARTICLE III.—MEMBERSHIP

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SECTION 1. This Conference shall be composed of such local Conferences of Seventh-day Adventists as are or may be properly organized, in any part of the world, under the direction of the Executive Committee; provided such Conferences shall have been accepted by vote at a session of the General Conference.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.4

SEC. 2. The legal voters of said Conference shall be such duly accredited delegates from the local Conferences, such members of the General Conference Executive Committee, and such other persons in the employ of the General Conference as shall receive delegates’ credentials from the Executive Committee, as are present at any duly convened regular or special Conference session.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.5

SEC. 3. Each local Conference shall be entitled to one delegate in the sessions of this Conference, without regard to numbers, and one additional delegate for every five hundred church-members in the Conference. Such delegates shall be elected by the local Conference, or appointed by its Executive Committee.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.6

ARTICLE IV.—OFFICERS

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SECTION 1. The officers of this Conference shall be a President, a Treasurer, a Secretary, and such other assistant secretaries as may be necessary to carry on the work of the General Conference, and an Executive Committee composed of the President of the General Conference, the Presidents of the Union Conferences, the President of the Mission Board, and such other persons as may be elected to make the whole number thirteen.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.7

SEC. 2. The officers shall be elected at the regular sessions of the Conference, and shall hold their offices for the term of two years, or until their successors are elected, and appear to enter upon their duties.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.8

ARTICLE V.—SESSIONS

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SECTION 1. This Conference shall hold a regular session every alternate year, reckoning from 1889, at such date and place as the Executive Committee shall designate by a notice published in the Advent Review and Sabbath Herald at least four weeks before the date of the session.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.9

SEC. 2. The Executive Committee may call extra sessions, if occasion requires, by a like notice; and the transactions of such sessions shall be equally valid with those of the regular sessions.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.10

ARTICLE VI.—TRUSTEES, COMMITTEE, AND AGENTS

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The legal voters of this Conference, shall, at each regular session, elect the Trustees of such corporate bodies as are or may be connected with this organization, according to the State laws governing such corporations; and this Conference shall employ such committees and agents as it may deem necessary, according to the By-laws in such cases made and provided.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.11

ARTICLE VII.—BY-LAWS

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The legal voters of this Conference may make By-laws, and amend and repeal them at any session thereof. The scope of such By-laws may embrace all subjects not inconsistent with this Constitution.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.12

ARTICLE VIII.—AMENDMENTS

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The Constitution may be amended by a three-fourths’ vote of the legal voters present at any session; provided that if it is proposed to amend the Constitution at a special session, notice of the proposed amendments shall be given in the call for such special session.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.13

By-laws.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.14

ARTICLE I.—OFFICERS, COMMITTEES, AND AGENTS,—THEIR CREATION AND DUTIES

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President.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.15

SECTION 1. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Conference and of the Executive Committee, and appoint all committees not otherwise created.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.16

Secretary.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.17

SEC. 2. The duty of the Secretary shall be to keep a record of the proceedings of all sessions of the Conference, and of the statistics of the denomination, and shall have in charge the general correspondence of the Conference, and shall also be the Secretary of the Executive Committee.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.18

Treasurer.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.19

SEC. 3. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to receive all money belonging to the Conference, to keep an account of the same, to disburse it by order of the Executive Committee, and to make a full report thereof at all sessions of the Conference.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.20

Powers of Executive Committee.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.21

SEC. 4. The Executive Committee shall have full administrative power during the intervals between the sessions of the Conference; it shall take the general supervision of all denominational work, and attend to the proper distribution of the laborers. It shall also give credentials to, or license, such ministers as may be employed in General Conference work; and shall fill for the current term any vacancies that may occur in the offices, boards, committees, or agents, by death, resignation, or otherwise.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.22

Auditing Committee.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.23

SEC. 5. At each regular session of the Conference the presiding officer shall appoint, unless otherwise voted, a standing committee of eight delegates, who shall, with the chairman of the Executive Committee, and the superintendents of the six districts in America, constitute a committee for auditing and settling all accounts against the Conference.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.24

SEC. 6. That the General Conference territory be divided into three grand divisions; viz., first, the United States and British North America; second, Europe; third, Australia; the remaining territory to be known as mission field.GCB January 1, 1899, page 30.25

Mission Board.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.1

SEC. 7. The Conference shall elect a Mission Board of nine members, who shall have charge of the work in the mission field mentioned in Section 6, and of all mission funds.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.2

Officers of the Mission Board.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.3

SEC. 8. The elected officers of the Mission Board shall be a President, a Recording Secretary, a Treasurer, and a Corresponding Secretary. The Board may appoint such other secretaries as they shall deem advisable, and fill vacancies occurring on the Board.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.4

ARTICLE II.—REPORTS

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SECTION 1. It shall be the duty of the Secretary of this Conference to furnish such reports as the Executive Committee may require.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.5

SEC. 2. It shall be the duty of all persons employed by this Conference to furnish to the Secretary quarterly and annual reports of all their work and expenditures during such time as they may have been employed.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.6

SEC. 3. It shall be the duty of each local Conference to furnish quarterly to the Secretary of this Conference such statistical reports as the Executive Committee may require.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.7

ARTICLE III.—FUNDS

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The General Conference shall receive donations, and a tenth of the tithes of local Conferences.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.8

The Executive Committee is also authorized to call for donations from local Conferences, churches, or individuals, as the wants of the cause may in their judgment demand.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.9

ARTICLE IV.—ELECTION OF TRUSTEES FOR CORPORATE BODIES

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The Conference shall elect at its regular sessions twenty-one Trustees for the General Conference Association of Seventh-day Adventists, a corporation of the City of Battle Creek, Mich., existing under the laws of the State of Michigan.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.10

ARTICLE V.—GOVERNMENT

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All sessions of the Conference shall be governed by the standard parliamentary rules, except in the By-laws otherwise provided.GCB January 1, 1899, page 31.11

SUMMARY OF CONFERENCE OFFICERS

“THE ABIDING SPIRIT.”