By-Laws

Article I

Officers

I.1 The Society of Anglican Theologians (SAT) seeks to serve the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and the broader church catholic by identifying and bringing into fellowship Anglican scholars in the theological disciplines to build up the church in the apostolic faith.1

I.2 The SAT is governed by the Executive Committee, composed of seven members drawn from the broader membership of the Society. Each member of the Executive Committee serves for a term of three years and will be elected by majority vote of the current Executive Committee. After finishing a term on the Executive Committee, the member must step down for at least one term before serving another term. Terms of service will be staggered such that no more than three members of the Executive Committee will end their term of service in the same year.

1.3 The SAT serves the College of Bishops of the ACNA, represented ex officio in the Society by a Bishop nominated by the Executive Committee and approved by the Archbishop. The Society’s ex officio bishop will hold a PhD or its equivalent, but exceptions may be made if the College of Bishops lacks a bishop with a PhD or its equivalent, or the Executive Committee determines that another bishop should fulfill the role. The ex officio Bishop will be a non-voting member and will serve for a three-year, nonrenewable term.

I.4 The Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary of the Executive Committee will be elected annually from the Executive Committee by consensus. A Treasurer of the Society will be appointed annually by the Executive Committee.

Article II

Admission to the Society

II.1 Membership in the Society is by invitation of the Executive Committee only. Invitation to join the Society requires the majority vote of the Executive Committee.

II.2 Candidates for membership must have a terminal degree (Ph.D. or equivalent research degree) in a theological discipline. Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the Executive Committee based on exceptional research or teaching experience.

II.3 Candidates for membership must be a lay or ordained member of the ACNA and submit to and maintain its doctrine and discipline as set forth in the Constitution and Canons of the ACNA.

II.4 Any member of the Executive Committee may recommend extending an invitation to a candidate for membership to SAT. Committee members are asked only to recommend candidates whose understanding of their scholarly vocation coheres with the aims stated in the Charter of SAT and who meet the requirements stated in II.2 and II.3.

II.5 Candidates will be admitted twice annually, once during an appointed meeting of the Executive Committee, and once at the annual meeting of the Society.

II.6 The process for admission shall be as follows: Any full member of the Society in good standing may recommend a potential new member to the Executive Committee. Contingent upon receipt of a curriculum vitae and completed application, a member of the Executive Committee will nominate the potential member for admission into the Society. A member of the Executive Committee will second the nomination. After the nomination is seconded, any objections to admission may be raised by any member of the Executive Committee. Candidates will be admitted by majority vote. Candidates will only be admitted at the times stated in II.5.

Article III

Requirements of Members

III.1 Members must remain in good standing in their diocese and continue to affirm their ordination vows (in the case of scholar-clergy) or the doctrine and discipline of the ACNA (in the case of lay theologians).

III.2 Members shall live by an Anglican Rule of Life, as minimally set forth in To Be a Christian (Approved Edition), qq. 252-5.

III.3 Members shall attend gatherings of the Society absent extenuating circumstances.

III.4 Members shall pay annual dues to the Society, due January 1.

Article IV

Discipline of Members

IV.1 Should a member fail to remain in good standing in his or her diocese or should no longer submit to and maintain the doctrine and the discipline of the ACNA, the member shall report this to the Executive Committee. If the member does not report these disciplinary measures to the Committee, but it is discovered by another, the Executive Committee shall be informed. The member will be suspended from active membership from the Society, effective immediately.

IV.2 Should the member humbly submit to the disciplinary process established by the bishop according to the canons of the ACNA, the Executive Committee will consider, in consultation with the bishop, whether and when to allow the member to resume membership on a case-by-case basis. Depending on the gravity of the case, the member may be expelled from the Society.

IV.3 Should a member fail to pay dues or regularly attend the annual meeting without a reasonable excuse, the Executive Committee will issue an official notice to the member. Should the member continue to neglect these responsibilities by failing to pay dues within one month of notice, or by failing to attend the annual meeting with regularity, the member will be removed from the Society.

Article V

Affiliate Member Status

V.1 Current doctoral students or theologians with a terminal degree not in a theological or related discipline may be admitted as affiliate members of the Society.

V.2 Affiliate members shall pay annual dues at the affiliate rate, due January 1.

V.3 Affiliate members may participate in the annual meeting and the initiatives of the Society but may not vote or serve on the Executive Committee.

1 Refer to the working document titled “Initiatives”