APPENDIX
For those whose universities require official organizations to have a constitution, we have supplied a sample constitution. Many of the rules in it are not required by TMC Youth or the Manual. Instead, they reflect common regulations found on some campuses. Please feel free to use and alter it to meet your university’s requirements.
Constitution of the “Christian Science Organization at the University of ______”
Article I. name
This organization shall be named “Christian Science Organization at the University of ______. Christian Science Organization at the University of _______, a registered student organization of the University of ______ ( ), may be referred to as CSO.
Article II. Statement of Purpose
Section 1. Guiding Principles
The purpose of the Christian Science Organization at the University of _____is to promote a spiritual perspective to life and campus issues at ( ).
Section 2. Objectives
The objectives of the Christian Science Organization at the University of ______ shall be the following:
- To hold nondenominational interactive group meetings where students can discuss spiritual ideas, insights and experiences regarding life and campus issues at ( );
- To bring “Speakers with a Spiritual Perspective” to the ( ) campus to discuss issues important to ( ) students;
- To make the book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, and its ideas available and accessible to all ( ) students.
Article III. Responsibility
The Christian Science Organization at the University of _____ shall comply with all University of _____ policies and procedures as detailed in Student Rights and Responsibilities, The Student Organization Handbook, as well as local and national laws.*
__________________________ * Religious Organizations must also include the Chaplain’s Association Code of Ethics.
Article IV. Membership
Section 1. General Membership
A. Membership of the Christian Science Organization at the University of _____ shall be open to all University of _____ students in Good Academic Standing who have paid their Student Activity Fee. Non-voting memberships may be extended to interested faculty, administrators, staff members, and alumni of the University.
B. Active membership in the Christian Science Organization at the University of _____ is defined as those students who are currently ( ) students and are recorded in the organization’s membership list.
C. Benefits of membership: all active members have the right to vote.
Section 2. Officers
A. The Officers of the Christian Science Organization at the University of _____ shall consist of a President, Treasurer, and Clerk.
- The President shall conduct all meetings and is responsible for all public communications about CSO ( ) events.
- The Treasurer shall manage and report on CSO ( ) finances, and assist the President.
- The Clerk shall keep minutes at CSO ( ) business meetings.
B. Eligibility Requirements: All Officers must be members of CSO ( ). The President must also be a member in good standing of The First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, Massachusetts.
Article V. elections
Section 1. Timeline
An annual meeting to elect Officers will be held in _____. The Officers will determine the date, time and place of this meeting so as to maximize attendance, and will communicate the date, time and place of the meeting to the members.
Section 2. Procedures A. The President shall conduct the election.
B. All members who meet the eligibility requirements for a given office are eligible for nomination and election.
C. Any member may make a nomination of any eligible member.
D. All members present may vote. Absentee voting, if in writing and signed by the voting member, is permissible. The nominee receiving a simple majority of the total votes cast is elected to that office. If no nominee receives a majority vote on the first ballot, then a second ballot will be taken between the two nominees with the greatest number of votes. The nominee with the greater number of votes in this ballot is then elected to the office.
Section 3. Term
The length of the term of office for Officers will extend to the next annual election meeting.
Section 4. Installation
Installation of new Officers will occur immediately upon their election at the annual election meeting.
Section 5. Vacancies/Succession
If a vacancy occurs in the position of Treasurer or Clerk, that position will be filled by the President until a special election meeting can be held according to the rules in Section 2 above. This special election should occur within 1 month of the occurrence of the vacancy. If a vacancy occurs in the position of President, a special election meeting must be held as soon as possible to fill the vacancy, and conducted according to the rules in Section 2 above.
Article VI. Advisor
The Advisor of the Christian Science Organization at the University of _____ shall be a full- time faculty member, administrator, or staff member at the University of _____.
Article VII. Meetings
Section 1. General
General member meetings may be held as needed, but will occur at least twice each school year. The Officers are responsible for setting and communicating the time and place of these meetings.
Section 2. Officers
Officer meetings will be held as needed, but will occur at least twice each school year, in preparation for each of the two general member meetings.
Section 3. Special
Special meetings will be held as needed, and may be called by the President, or by a request of at least five of the members.
Article VIII. Committees
Section 1.
Standing committees may be established by the President, as necessary.
Section 2.
Special committees may be established by the President, as necessary.
Article IX. Discipline
Section 1.
Reasons: including but not limited to argumentativeness, prejudice towards others, religious denominationalism.
Section 2.
Process: Any two members may make a written request to the President for disciplinary action.
Section 3.
Consequences: the Officers review the case, and take the appropriate action: no action; warning; probation; or removal from membership.
Article X. Impeachment
Section 1. Petition
Two-thirds (2/3) of the Officers must agree or two-thirds (2/3) of active members must sign a petition to ask for impeachment.
Section 2. Process
Active members, the Officer(s), or Advisor being impeached must be notified at least two weeks in advance of the impeachment hearing. The impeachment hearing must occur while classes are in session.
Section 3. Hearings
The moderator of the impeachment hearing will be the President. The moderator cannot be the Officer being impeached or the impeacher. If the President is being impeached, the Clerk will serve as the moderator. Three-fourths (3/4) of active members must be present in order for the impeachment hearing to begin. Each side will be given the opportunity to present its case and the active members may ask questions. A two-thirds (2/3) vote of active members present is needed for impeachment.
Article XI. Amendments
Section 1. Submission
Amendments to this constitution shall be submitted to the President in writing for submission to the active members for a vote. The eligibility requirement that the President be a member in good standing of The First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, Massachusetts, may not be changed.
Section 2. Vote
A vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the active members is needed for adoption.
Section 3. Final Approval
Amendments must be presented to the Committee on Student Organizations for approval prior to implementation.
Article XII. Dissolution
Section 1. Process
The Christian Science Organization at the University of _______ may be dissolved after dissolution is approved by the Officers and by a vote of a majority of the active members, provided that a notice of the vote on dissolution is furnished to the active members at least sixty (60) days prior to the vote.
Section 2. Obligations
Upon dissolution, the Officers will utilize assets of the organization to pay all obligations and expenses of the organization. Remaining funds will be paid to The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Massachusetts under whose Manual provision (Article XXIII, Section 8) this CSO exists and operates.
Section 3. Approval
Notice of dissolution must be presented in writing to the Committee on Student Organizations.
eVenT APPLICATIOn FORM
(to be filled out at least two weeks before the event)
Please fill in the information below and send it to tmcy...@christianscience.com. It will help us to keep track of all the CSO activities taking place around the world. This information will be posted on time4thinkers.com, unless otherwise requested.
To change your event information OR if you have any questions, please contact TMC Youth at 800-288-7090 X3700 or by email at tmcy...@christianscience.com.
Name of sponsoring Christian Science Organization: Type of event: Name of lecturer (if applicable): Title of lecture (if applicable):
Date/time of event: Location: Language:
May we advertise this lecture on the “University Life” section of www.time4thinkers.com?
Yes No
Name of CSO contact:
Phone Number:
E-mail Address:
Do you need any materials or books for this event?
If you are organizing a lecture, do you need financial assistance? If so, how much and for what?
eVenT FeeDBACK FORM
(to be completed within one week after the event)
Your ideas will be helpful for the planning of future CSO events. Please fill out all the information and then send it to: tmcy...@christianscience.com.
This information will be posted on time4thinkers.com, unless otherwise requested. To change your event information OR if you have any questions, please contact TMC Youth at 800-288-7090 X3700 or by email at tmcy...@christianscience.com.
Name of sponsoring Christian Science Organization: Type of event: Name of lecturer (if applicable): Title of lecture (if applicable):
What led you to organize this event?
What were your expectations from this event? How did you prepare for it?
What was your overall response to this event? Did it meet your expectations? Were you surprised? Was it successful? How did your intended audience respond?
Is there anything you would do differently?
Sponsoring a Lecture for a Class on Religion
Most colleges and universities offer courses or majors in religion. It is startling to discover what is actually being taught on the subject of Christian Science on most campuses:
- Christian Science is usually absent in the curriculum; or textbooks that do include it often present it as “an alternative religion” or as a religion originated from Phineas P. Quimby
- The relationship between Christian Science and Christianity is virtually lost
- In some cases, Christian Science is taught as an anti-Christian cult
You can change this picture . . . by sponsoring a classroom lecture at your college or university. Here are some suggestions for organize this type of lecture:
1.Be well informed. Find out what is being taught about Christian Science at your college or university.
a. Check the list of course offerings and look at the course syllabuses (usually available in campus libraries).
b. Go to the school bookstore and find the books most closely related to teaching American religion. You may find it easy to ask the bookstore manager to help you find what’s being taught on Christian Science as they are usually very knowledgeable and want to help.
- Look in the index of the textbooks you find, and see if Christian Science or Mary Baker Eddy is mentioned. Take notes on what the book says about them.
- If there is no textbook on American religion, then look into other related books on Christianity, Religion, Women in religion, Alternative religions, Metaphysics, or Alternative health care. Check in the index of the textbook to see if there is any mention of Christian Science or Mary Baker Eddy. Also check for Phineas P. Quimby and harmonialism. (“Har- monialism” is a special term referring to American faith groups that mix metaphysics with mind-cures.)
c. Learn what you can about the religion professor(s) on campus. Usually their biographies are available online. Note their special interests and academic backgrounds.
2. Contact a lecturer Regardless of what you find—whether good, negative, or nonexistent—contact a lecturer to
discuss the significance of your discovery.
- Together you can discuss the specific issues that need to be corrected in the textbook or syllabus you have obtained.
- The Christian Science Board of Lectureship and the Mary Baker Eddy Library for the Betterment of Humanity have several helpful resources for becoming well informed about the academic issues relating to Christian Science.
3. Contact the professor
a. In general, you’ll contact the professor to ask for an appointment after you speak with a lecturer. The contact with the professor should be a brief email or voice-mail message, explaining why you’d like to meet with him or her. Your contact message could include the following:
- From your understanding of what’s being taught in the textbook (or syllabus), you see that the source material on Mary Baker Eddy and the meaning of Christian Science is not accurate and is misleading.
- You have some materials that could help clarify some misunderstand- ings. You also have access to a speaker who could speak with the class—in a nonproselytizing way—about some interesting aspects of early Christianity and healing, as well as its contemporary relevance.
b. When you do have a chance to speak with the professor:
- Explain what you found in your research and the fact that you are in a position to provide a speaker for the class to address these issues.
- Ask if the professor would like to set some time for the speaker.
- If the professor asks what you think is incorrect in their textbooks, you will be able to state it simply and offer some documents that address those issues.
- If the professor’s questions extend beyond the information in those docu- ments, you are in a position to explain this is the reason you recommend a professional speaker to clarify these points.
- You can even encourage the professor to get in touch with your lecturer to discuss the issues. Lecturers are prepared to dialogue with a professor by email or phone.
- Even if the conversation with the professor does not result in a scheduled lecture, your willingness to raise the issues and question the source material of the university is undeniably valuable.
There may be occasions when a campus professor contacts you to present information on Christian Science. Hooray! In that case, contact a lecturer to discuss the specifics of the request. And be sure to become acquainted with the professor’s views on Christian Science, especially from the textbooks.
Have fun! The academic community welcomes well-informed ideas. That’s what you have to give.
