AboutDelton Krueger Expertise United Methodist Pastor, District Superintendent, Conference Executive for over sixty years. Book of Discipline and General Conference experience. Also provider of information regarding the sacred days of the great world religions. Experience in working with many world religions and in business at Mall of America.
Experience Author of a widely used interfaith calendar - www.interfaithcalendar.org
Over fifty years of experience in the field of religion with a primary focus on Christianity and including experience with people of world religions.
Organizations Mall Area Religious Council
United Methodist Church as ordained clergyperson
Bloomington Community Foundation
Publications Portable Guide to World Religions 2007
Education/Credentials Hamline University, St. Paul, MN
Drew University School of Theology, Madison NJ
Question The Lay Leader is an ex officio member of all committees. Robert's Rules of Order clarifies that the term denotes only how one becomes a member of a group, not what one's rights are. While many ex officio members abstain from voting, unless by-laws constrain their rights, they are afforded the same rights as other members, including debate, making formal motions, and voting. Does the UMC Book of Discipline deny the Lay Leader, as an ex officio member of several committees, any of the rights afforded the other members of such committees?
Answer George:
Para 251.c of the 2008 Book of Discipline says that the Lay Leader is a member of the Charge Conference , the committee on finance, the comittee on nominations and leadership development, and the Pastor Parish (Staff Parish) Relations Committee. The lay leader is not ex-officio on all committees unless a local church chooses to establish its own rules. I see no rule preventing the lay leader from taking an active role in the bodies noted in the first sentence above. Sorry for the tardy reply.
Delton Krueger
Ordained Elder - Minnesota Annual Conference
