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Parliamentary Law For Auxiliaries
By Mrs. Narcissa Tayloe Shawhan.
AUXILIARY MEETINGS.
A Regular Meeting.
At a regular meeting any action
may be taken that is consistent with
the purposes, and within the rules of
the auxiliary except upon measures,
that are by rule set aside for certain
meetings, business, inspirational or so
cial. A session means one meeting or
a series of meetings, as the continuity
of a meeting constitutes one session.
A Special or Called Meeting.
At a special or called meeting no
business can be legally transacted, ex
cept that specified in the call, unless
these or similar words appear in the
call: "and for any other business that
might be presented to the meeting."
As soon as tl\e meeting is called to
order, the Chair should direct the
Secretary to read the call issued for
the meeting and then proceed with the
order of business in accordance with
the call.
The Annual Meeting.
Annual meetings differ from regu
lar meetings and should be placed in
the constitution with no provision for
suspension. If it occurs on a legal
holiday it may then' be legally sus
pended.
Annual reports of officers, the Exe
cutive Board, Circles and Standing:
Committees, auditing of accounts, re
vision or amended constitution and
the election of officers are matters
usually limited to the annual meet
ing.
This is the most important bus
inesa meeting of the year, the ses
sion should be devoted entirely to the
hearing of reports of the year's work,
and the selecting of officers for the
coming year.
An Adjourned Meeting.
An adjourned meeting is a legal
continuation of a former meeting, and
any business that was in order at that
meeting is in- order at the adjourned
meeting.
The effect of Unfinished Business
at an adjourned meeting is as follows:
When assembly adjourns to a speci
fied time, the unfinished business be
comes a special order and should be
taken up at the adjourned meeting im
mediately after the reading of the
minutes.
An adjourned meeting must be held
before the next regular meeting of
the auxiliary or the business trans
acted will not be legal.
If a meeting at which officers are
elected is adjourned until another day
to complete the business of the an
nual meeting, the out going officers
continue in office, and preside at such
an adjourned meeting. The election
of officers cannot be completed at any
other than an adjourned meeting of
the annual meeting, ana must be held
before the next regular meeting to
make the election legal.
During the year, vacancies occurring
in office are usually filled by appoint
ment of the president or the executive
board. The by-laws of some organi
zations give this appointing power to
the president and others to the exe
cutive board.
without a witness. Job, a Temanlte,
not an Israelite, knows nothing or
the prophetic revelations to the He
brews. His is a religion learned from
tire voices of earth, sky and sea; and
from human experience, through the
devout, obedient heart.
Job was a man whose uprightness,
goodness and fidelity to man were
unquestioned, as was his reverence,
obedience and gratitude to God. H?i
was not free from errors of temper
and infirmities of will, nor from
some impatience, when his bitter cup
had to be drunk, but his virtues were
of an unusually high order, and his
patience was far beyond the ordinary.
In his great prosperity he was lead
ing a kind of dream life, not deep
and strong. The life of Job has not
yet had the difficult and strenuous
probation that brings assured faith,
a faith rooted immovably in God.
There is no dreaming when the sou!
meets with sore rebuffs, when the
limbs fail on the steep hills of diffi
cult duty. In long continued pros
perity, immunity from pain, sorrow,
loss, earnestness of heart is not called
for, and the will, however good, is
not braced to endurance.
It is in the scheme of things or
dained by God that His creatures shall
enjoy. It is also In His scheme that
trouble, sorrow, loss, mental and phy
sical pain shall come when needed
not as punishment, but for discipline.
By these things the believer is made
to think more deeply, to trust more
fully. They bring a deeper humility,
a finer tenderness of nature.
This world and our discipline here,
the trials of men. the doctrine of
the cross, the fellowship in the suf
ferings of Christ, are not fitted to
introduce us into a state in which
the gratification of our desires' shaL'
be the main experience. They are
fitted to educate the spiritual nature
for the fulness of life.
Immortality becomes credible when
It Is seas as progress in that faith,
that fl4?my, <that upqi}9f}9hable de
votlon to the glory of God that
marked the life even through suffer
ing of the Divine Son of God in this
-world.
The purpose of God is entirely
good, but it will remain for the suf
ferer himself to enter by the fiery
way into full spiritual vigor. He will
have the sustaining power, the pro
tection, the grace of the Almighty in
time of anguish and sore bewilder
ment. Yet his faith must be vindi
cated While the shadow of God's hand
rests upon his life. He who is the
author and finisher of faith alone
could give to His storm-tossed child
?the grace to say, "The Lord gave,
and the Lord hath taken away:
blessed be the name of the Lord."
"Though He slay me, yet will I trust
Him."
To God's child who has been thus
tested, tried and upheld, there comes
a sense of perfect security through
the keeping power of his God, that '
enables him to know that under all
circumstances, even in the valley of
the shadow of death, that keeping
power will still be his, so that he
may truly fear no evil. Job thought
thrat his obedience constituted his In
defeasible claim upon God; but faith
Is the only claim that stands with
God, and that in adverse circum
stances. Job is taught the power of
the Creator to inspire, the right of
the Creator to expect faith, whatever
trials He may send or permit.
"The glory of God is to have sons
who can endure. Trial, sorrow,
change, death, loss ? is anything dis
astrous that God allows? Impossible.
His care of His creation is beyond <
our imagining. There are no disas
ters in His universe save where the
will of man divorced from faith would
tear a way through His eternal law."
Have we had questionings arise
when we have seen loved ones whom
we know to be God's children suffer
day by day? "Shall not the Judge
of all the earth do right?" "What I
(Continued on page 13.)
Laymen and Their Work
RED RIVER LAYMEN.
The fifth annual convention of the
Laymen of Red River Presbytery will
be held in the Presbyterian Church
of Monroe, La., Tuesday, January 23,
1923. Preparations are being made
lor the best convention yet' held.
LAYMEN'S CONVENTION.
'The eighth Biennial General Con
vention of the Laymen's Missionary
Movement of the Presbyterian Church
in the United States will meet in six
Regional centers as follows: Houston,
Texas, February 13-14; Little Rock,
Ark., February 15-16; Jacksonville,
Fla., February 20-21; Charlotte, N.
C.t February 22-23; Richmond, Va.,
February 27-28; Huntington, W. Va.,
March 1-2, 1923.
Five thousand six hundred and
twenty-one registered delegates atr
tended the Regional Conventions in
1921. This so far exceeded the at
tendance of any single convention that
we feel the Regional plan is more
than justified.
Why A Convention?
Because every Church needs a world
field. We want to study larger maps.
Because every man needs a vision.
"He who has a task without a vision
is a drudge." At all previous Con
ventions scores have caught a real
vision ? a vision abiding through the
years, transforming men's thinking,
giving, living. We believe that with
God's help the approaching Conven
tions shall be no exception.
Resume.
Our last Convention in the interest
of Foreign Missions was eight years
ago. Since then in 1917 we held our
Convention solely and alone in the
interest of Assembly's nlome Missions.
In 1919 we considered "The Whole
Task of the Church," and in 1921
"Evangelism and the Progressive Pro
gram."
Purpose.
It is fitting therefore, that after a
lapse of eight years we meet to con
sider anew "World Evangelization."
"If there was ever a time when the
Church should emphasize evangelism
it is the very moment when that prac-:
tice of a social gospel, which is a poor
substitute for the shed blood, is in the
ascendent." To an alarming degree,
this is now true, both here and abroad.
How Meet the Present Need?
This is a situation that requires
courage and action. The one way out
is to give the world what it needs.
However unconscious of the truth the
world may be the Lord Jesus Christ
is the only hope of the world. Po
litical parties and Peace Conferences
have failed to bring peace to the
world. Science and civilization have
brought comforts and conveniences.
Education and culture have brought
intellectual occupations and delights,
but deeper and yet deeper the world
needs Christ now and what Christ
alone can do for it.
The Laymen'N Part.
"A need and the ability to meet
that need constitute a claim." We
Christian men recognize that the
Church was established to spread
Christianity; that it can accomplish
this in the only way in which living
? things can ever succeed ? by living ac
tion. Therefore let us give ourselves
whole heartedly to the task. By ac
tion df the Permanent Committee on
Men's Work, appointed by the last As
sembly, the Laymen's Missionary
Movement is now an integral part of
the Men's Work of the Church, being
the "Department of Inspiration." For
this reason more than ever let us ad
vance shoulder to shoulder, every lay
man backing hiB pastor, his Church,
to the limit.
This Situation Calls Kor a Construc
tive Convention.
We can promise a constructive Con.
vention. Vital questions affecting the
life and progress of our Church will
be faced and seriously considered. We
will hear from the Permanent Com
mittee on Men's Work appointed by
our Assembly. This Committee is now
diligently considering all phases of
men's activities and will unquestion
ably present a constructive and an ag
gressive program that will call for
our best effort.
What Hath Already Been Wrought.
We will hear from our foreign
fields, from men who know what they
know and know how to make it
known. We will hear from our field
in the Southland, and from men who
have a thrilling story to tell of how
God is winning men by the old, old
method of using men and their testi
mony. The South is leading our
country today in aggressive evangel
ism by laymen.
The Program.
The program will be strong. Al
ready a sufficient number of speakers
of spiritual vision and power have
accepted our invitation to assure our
program being not one whit behind
our former Conventions. While we
shall want carefully to review and
consider the part we Presbyterians
have assumed in giving the Gospel to
the world, and the progress we have
made in overtaking our world task,
this will not be to the exclusion of
the work in the homeland. Evange
lism rightly occupies a central place
in our "Progressive Program," and
this will by no means be overlooked.
Women's Parallel Conventions.
We are glad to announce that the
Women's Auxiliary will hold Parallel
Conventions in every city at the same
time for the women of our Church.
The same plan will be pursued as at
our former Conventions'. The women
meet separately in the day sessions,
and both Conventions unite for the ev
ening sessions. Mrs. W. C. Winns
borough, the Superintendent of the
Women's Auxiliary, will be in charge
and is enthusiastically enlisting the
cooperation and support of the
women. Mrs. Winnsborough will
spend several weeks this winter in
Southern Texas and Mexico and will
return in time to bring a full report
of her personal observation of our
greatly enlarged and rapidly develop
ing work in Mexico and also among
the Mexicans in Texas.
Railroad Rates Registration.
We are promised 25 per cent reduc
tion in round trip railroad rates. This
makes it possible for a large attend
ance.
The Convention will be self-enter
taining, as heretofore. The registra
tion fee is $2.00. Circulars will be
issued later in regard to railroad
rates, hotel accommodations, etc.
These will be gladly mailed upon ap
plication.
Call to Prayer.
Pray ye the Lord of the Harvest,
that from the Convention may result
widespread conviction that now is the
time for us as a Church to rulflll our
Lord's last command. Pray that there
may be a determined effort on the
part of pastors and congregaAtonn, V?.
match with gifts the wondcyf-ful offer
ing of life on the part otf our young
men and women in seminaries, col
leges and schools. '"Jnie one way of
getting a thing don^ Is to get Him to
do It." Therefore let us set our hearts
to prayer. /