Our Roots, Pt. 16

Organization —No. 13 (Review and Herald, April 25, 1907)

While arrangements were being made for the general council to be held May 20, 1863, Elder White published a statement of the purpose of the council, in which he said: —

A few weeks only, and our General Conference will be in session. Delegates are being appointed to this assembly from different States, and our people are looking forward to it as the most important meeting ever held by the Seventh-day Adventists.

The great object of this contemplated meeting, as far as it has been expressed by those who plead that the present state of the cause demands it, is to secure the united and systematic action of the friends of the cause in every part of the wide field. ...

We call for system. And while ministers call for systematic benevolence; let the people loudly call for systematic labor. Can the General Conference take this matter in hand? If not, what use have we for the General Conference? Again, should not the General Conference control all missionary labor in new fields? If so, would it not control missionary funds, and require, among other officers, a treasurer and board of directors? Every such organization should be as simple as possible and accomplish its design. Useless machinery of this kind is badly in the way. But that which is worth doing at all, should be done correctly and well. If the General Conference is not higher in authority than State conferences, we see but little use for it. Think of these things, brethren, and be ready to act when assembled in General Conference.— Review and Herald, Vol. XXI, page 172.

Believing that our conference officers, ministers, and many of our people will be interested in the proceedings of the council which report the organization of the General Conference, I shall give them as they were published at the time: —

Report of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

The General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists convened according to appointment at Battle Creek, Mich., May 20. at 6 P. M. The meeting was temporarily organized by choosing J. M. Aldrich chairman, and U. Smith secretary. The conference was then opened by singing the hymn on page 233, and prayer by Brother Snook. A committee to receive and judge of the credentials of delegates being called for, it was —

Voted, That we have a committee of three on credentials.

The following brethren were thereupon chosen as that committee: Elder J. N. Loughborough, of Michigan; C. O. Taylor, of New York; and Isaac Sanborn, of Wisconsin.

The remainder of this session was occupied in the presentation of credentials to the committee, and the meeting adjourned to the following morning, May 21 at nine o'clock.

In the morning session, the committee announced the following brethren as the duly elected delegates from their respective States: From New York, Brethren J. N. Andrews, N. Fuller, C. O. Taylor, and J. M. Aldrich; from Ohio, I. N. VanGorder; from Michigan, the ministers present from that State, namely, Brethren White, Bates, Waggoner, Byington, Loughborough, Hull, Cornell, and Lawrence, with a lay representation of Brethren James Harvey, of North Liberty, Ind., and Wm. S. Higley, Jr., of Lapeer, Mich.; from Wisconsin, Isaac Sanborn; from Iowa, Brethren B. F. Snook and W. H. Brinkerhoof; from Minnesota, Washington Morse.

The report of the committee was accepted.

Voted, That Brother H. F. Baker be received as an additional delegate from Ohio.

The following brethren were then appointed a committee to draft a constitution and by-laws for the government of this conference: Brethren J. N. Andrews, N. Fuller, I. Sanborn, W. Morse, H. F. Baker, B. F. Snook, J. H. Waggoner, and J. N. Loughborough. After due deliberation the committee presented the following constitution for the consideration of the Conference: —

Constitution of the General Conference

For the purpose of securing unity and efficiency in labor, and promoting the general interests of the cause of present truth, and of perfecting the organization of the Seventh-day Adventists, we the delegates from the several State conferences, hereby proceed to organize a General Conference, and adopt the following constitution for the government thereof: —

ARTICLE I.— This Conference shall be called the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

ART. II.— The officers of this Conference shall be a President, Secretary, Treasurer, and an Executive Committee of three, of whom the President shall be one.

ART. III.— The duties of the President and Secretary shall be such respectively as usually pertain to those offices.

ART. IV.— It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to receive and disburse means under the direction of the Executive Committee, and keep an account of the same, and make a full report thereof to the regular meetings of the Conference.

ART. V., SEC. 1. — It shall be the duty of the Executive Committee to take the general supervision of all ministerial labor, and see that the same is properly distributed; and they shall take the special supervision of all missionary labor, and as a missionary board shall have the power to decide where such labor is needed, and who shall go as missionaries to perform the same.

SEC. 2.— Means for missionary operations may be received by donation from State conferences, churches, or individuals; and the Committee are authorized to call for means when needed.

SEC. 3.— When any State conference desires ministerial labor from a minister not a resident within the bounds of such conference, their request shall be made to the General Conference Executive Committee, and ministers sent by said Committee shall be considered under the jurisdiction of the conference committee of such State: Provided, 1. That if such minister consider the State committee inefficient, or their action so far wrong as to render his labor ineffectual, he may appeal to the General Conference Executive Committee: Provided, 2. That if such State committee consider such minister inefficient, they may appeal to the General Conference Committee, who shall decide on the matter of complaint, and take such action as they may think proper.

ART. VI.— Each State conference shall be entitled to one delegate in the General Conference, and one additional delegate for every twenty delegates in the State conference, such delegates to the General Conference to be chosen by the State conferences or their committees : Provided, that the delegates to such State conferences be elected according to the following ratio, to wit.: Each church to the number of twenty members or under, shall be entitled to one delegate, and one delegate for every additional fifteen members.

ART. VII.—The officers shall hold their offices for the term of one year, and shall be elected at the regular meetings of the Conference.

ART. VIII., SEC. 1.—The regular meetings of the Conference shall be held annually, and the time and place of holding the same shall be determined by the Executive Committee, by whom due notice thereof shall be given through the REVIEW.

SEC. 2.— Special meetings may be called at the option of the Committee.

ART. IX.— This constitution may be altered or amended by a two-third's vote of the delegates present at any regular meeting: Provided, That any proposed amendment shall be communicated to the Executive Committee, and notice thereof given by them in their call for the meeting of the Conference.

The report was accepted and the committee discharged.

The Conference then took up the reported constitution item by item, for consideration and discussion, which resulted in its entire adoption.

The Conference being now ready for a permanent organization, it was —

Voted, That a committee of three be appointed to nominate officers to act under the constitution already adopted.

Brethren Wm. S. Higley, Jas. Harvey, and B. F. Snook were appointed as that committee.

Adjourned to one o'clock.

AFTERNOON SESSION.— Prayer by Brother Cornell. The committee on nominations reported as follows: For President, James White; Secretary, Uriah Smith; Treasurer, E. S. Walker.
Executive Committee: James White, John Byington, J. N. Loughborough.

Report accepted and committee discharged.

On motion the Conference proceeded to vote on the nominations presented. Brother White was unanimously chosen president, but declined to serve. After a considerable time spent in discussion, the brethren urging reasons why he should accept the position, and he why he should not, his resignation was finally accepted, and Elder John Byington was elected as president in his stead. The nominations for secretary and treasurer were then ratified. J. N. Andrews and G. W. Amadon were chosen as the remaining members of the executive committee. On motion of Brother Loughborough it was —

Voted, That, as one object of the General Conference is to secure uniformity of action throughout all the States, a committee of five be appointed to draw up a constitution for State conferences, to be recommended to the brethren in the different States, that there may be uniformity in the matter of State conferences. The following brethren were then chosen as that committee: Brethren Sanborn, of Wisconsin; Brinkerhoof, of Iowa; Aldrich, of New York; Loughborough, of Michigan; and Morse, of Minnesota.— Id., Vol. XXI, pages 204, 205.

The committee on a constitution for local conferences presented one that was unanimously adopted by the council, and was subsequently used by the States.

This ended the long, perplexing, harassing controversy among Seventh-day Adventists regarding organization. Writing of this meeting, Elder Uriah Smith said: —

Taking a general view of this meeting as a religious gathering, we hardly know what feature of the joyful occasion to notice first. We can say to the readers of the REVIEW, Think of everything good that has been written of every previous meeting, and apply it to this. All this would be true, and more than this. Perhaps no previous meeting that we have ever enjoyed, was characterized by such unity of feeling and harmony of sentiment. In all the important steps taken at this Conference, in the organization of a General Conference, and the further perfecting of State conferences, defining the authority of each, and the important duties belonging to their various officers, there was not a dissenting voice, and we may reasonably doubt if there was even a dissenting thought. Such union, on such points, affords the strongest grounds of hope for the immediate advancement of the cause, and its future glorious prosperity and triumph.— Id., Vol. XXI, page 204.

It will be interesting to study the general principles upon which this plan of organization is based, and the influence this system of organization has had upon our cause.

Next: The Path So Far