252. 1. Out of the general ministry of each local church (105) there shall be elected by the charge conference a lay leader who shall function as the primary lay representative of the laity in that local Church and shall have the following responsibilities:
a) Fostering awareness of the role of laity both within the congregation and through their ministries in the home, work place, community, and world and finding ways within the community of faith to recognize all these ministries;
b) meeting regularly with the pastor to discuss the state of the Church and the needs for ministry;
c) membership in the charge conference and the administrative council (or the administrative board and the council on ministries), the committee on finance, and the committee on nominations and personnel, where, along with the pastor, the lay leader shall serve as an interpreter of the actions and programs of the annual conference and the general Church (to be better equipped to comply with this responsibility it is recommended that a lay leader also serve as a lay member of annual conference);
d) continuing involvement in study and training opportunities to develop a growing understanding of the Church's reason for existence and the types of ministry that will most effectively fulfill the Church's mission;
e) assisting in advising the Administrative Council (or the administrative board and the council on ministries) of opportunities available and the needs expressed for a more effective ministry of the Church through its laity in the community;
f) informing the laity of training opportunities provided by the annual conference. Where possible, the lay leader shall attend training opportunities in order to strengthen his/her work. The lay leader is urged to become a certified lay speaker.
In instances where more than one Church is on a charge, the charge conference shall elect additional lay leaders so that there will be one lay leader in each Church. Associate lay leaders may be elected, to work with the lay leader, in any local Church.
2. The lay member(s) of the annual conference and one or more alternates shall be elected annually or quadrennially as the annual conference directs. If the charge's lay representative to the annual conference shall cease to be a member of the charge or shall for any reason fail to serve, an alternate member in the order of election shall serve in place.
Both the lay members and the alternates shall have been members in good standing of The United Methodist Church and of the local church from which they are elected for at least two years (see 35), except in a newly organized Church, which shall have the privilege of representation at the annual conference session.6 No local pastor shall be eligible as a lay member or alternate.7 United Methodist churches which become part of an ecumenical ministry of which The United Methodist Church is a sponsor shall not be deprived of their right of representation by a lay member in the annual conference. The lay member(s) of the annual conference, along with the pastor, shall serve as an interpreter of the actions of the annual conference session. These persons shall report to the local church administrative council or administrative board on actions of the annual conference as soon as possible, but not later than three months after the close of the conference.
3. The administrative board/council chairperson shall be elected by the charge conference annually and shall have the following responsibilities:
a) leading the administrative board/council in fulfilling its responsibilities (see 257);
b) preparing and communicating the agenda of the board/council meetings in consultation with the pastor(s), lay leader, and other appropriate persons;
c) reviewing and assigning responsibility for the implementation of actions taken by the board/council;
d) communicating with members of the board/council and others as appropriate to permit informed action at board/council meetings;
e) coordinating the various activities of the board/council;
f) providing the initiative and leadership for the board/council as it does the planning, establishing of objectives and goals, and evaluating;
g) participating in leadership training programs as offered by the annual conference and/or district.
The administrative board/council chairperson shall be entitled to attend meetings of all boards and committees of the Church unless specifically limited by the Book of Discipline. The chairperson is encouraged to attend annual conference.
6See Judicial Council Decision 495.
7See Judicial Council Decisions 170, 305, 328, 342, 469.
General Conference Webmaster: Susan Brumbaugh
PETS Creator: John Brawn
1992 Book of Discipline: ¶ 252
1996 United Methodist General Conference