The election of members of the
Permanent Bureau shall take place in account of wisdom, integrity
fear of God, competence and as far as possible, the representativity of various
sub regions.
The same shall be applied to the appointment of members of various commissions
Article
77: The regional committee shall meet once a term in order
to examine questions related to the Church life at
parishes level.
It Could meet in extraordinary session.
It implements and passes on parishes all decisions and instructions of the
world headquarter and Diocese
Article
78: A parish shall host the regional committee headquarter.
There shall be a synoptic table which will have information of all parishes.
Article
79: A Permanent Bureau of the Regional Committee shall be
set up. Such Bureau shall be structured as follows:
*The President of the Regional Committee
*Two Vice Presidents
*The Secretary General
*The Two Deputy Secretaries General
*The General Treasurer
*The Two Deputy General Treasurers
*The Organizer
*The Two Deputy Organizers
Article
80: The permanent Bureau shall meet in ordinary session once
a month and in extraordinary
one if need be.
It shall be answerable before the National Steering Committee of any of its
activities
Chapter VIII
Sub regional Committees and Parish Committees
Article
81: Each regional Committee shall be divided in sub regional
Committee with parishes leaders, Pressident
secretary and treasurers who in their turn elect a permanent bureau of
7 members. The President
of that permanent bureu shall be appointed by a pastoral decision. It shall
be structured as follows:
*A president
*A Vice President
*A Secretary General
*A Deputy Secretary General
*A general Treasurer
*A Deputy General Treasurer
*An Organizer
Article
82: The land on which a parish of the Celestial Church of
Christ is built shall be the collective
property of members and purchased on behalf of the Church.
The opening of a parish shall be subject to deep investigations conducted
by the commission of infrastructure
and land affairs which shall meet upon the question. Such commission shall
send a report bearing its motivated opinion to
the National Steering Committee which shall approve or reject the application
of Parish opening. It could in the completion of such mission
be assisted by the commission of discipline, justiceand disputes.
Any parish of the Celestial Church of Christ opened not in complianc withn
such procedure shall be immediately closed down and the promoters sentenced
Any Parish closing down shall be the sphere of President of the High Committee
the opinion of the head of Diocese. The latter could therefore proceed
to a suspension by awaiting the High Committtee President instructions
Article
83: The parish shall be managed
by a spiritual leader appointed by the world headquarter upon proposal of
the National Steering Committee
after advisory opinion of the Commission spiritual training and promotions
of the High Committee
The spiritual leader of a parish shall be dignitary of the Celestial Church
of Christ. No abnormal behaviour could be toplerated
at the level of such leader who shall constantly be vigilant both in his private
and public life.
He shall be chosen in a list of ability get by the commission of religious
training and promotions
Such list shall be updated each year.
Article
84: the profile of spiritual
leaders shall be as follows:
*be of good moral standards
*enjoy a good health
*be people unifier
*strictly abide by prescrptions, ordonnances and restrictions of the Church
know how to celebrate various services and to preach
*abide by and make implement decisions and instructions of the woprld headquarter
and the Diocese
*have a worthy attitude of a leader
*be available for spiritual activities
Article
85: Any destitution thought of spiritual leaders appointed
by the world headquarter shall severely sentenced.
Authors of such attitude could be moved down or sacked from the Church.
Any misbehaviour of parish leader shall be subject to a sentence.
Article
86: Each parish shall be led by the spiritual leader or a
parish committee as follows
structured:
*a president
*two vice presidents
*secretary general
*two deputy secretaries general
*a treasurer
*two deputy general treasurers
*six(06)men counsellors,
six(06) women counsellors
*six men auditors for organisation
*six women auditors for organisation.
Article
87: In case the number strength of a parish is not so important,
it is advisable to make do as
with a limited committee.
Article
88: Spiritual leaders sall be rightfully members of parish
committees
Some small parishes which are in fact praying units could be under their liaility
They shall work in collaboation with parish coommittees and in particular
deal
with spiritual leaders.
They shall in the discharge of their duties, be strictly in compliance with
all decisions and instructions from the World Headquarter and Diocese. Any
attitude that
will tend to trample them shall severely be sentenced for the respect and
consideration showed by members will depend upon it and will strenghten
the world Headquarter and Diocese authority/power
Article
89: Spiritual leaders shall be appointed as Head of the praying
session
units.They will work in collaboration with the limited parish committee under
a spiritual leader.
Article
90: The parish committee takes an administrative and financial
positions in collaboration with spiritual leader
Thy authorise or prohibit association activities.
Article
91: Members'resignation from th committee shall be written
and sent to the parish
committee President with detailed reasons of such decision. The decision can
be rejected by th committee
If the decision is accepted it shall take effect from the eighth day following
the committee opinion. From then on any possible handover in due form shall
be necessary
Article
92: A system of parish cooperation shall be established in
order to enable
members of the said parishes to better know one another and parishes to
exchange their respective experiences
Article 93: A restructring or appointment of parish leaders could be proceeded at any moment.
TITLE V
FINANCE
Chapter
I
Resources
Article
94: The Celestial Church of Christ resources are borne by:
*Haverst celebrations,
*Tithes
*Contribution to parish costs.(category)
*Collections
*Thanksgivings
*Revenues from real and personal assets owned by the Church
*Contributions and subscriptions of members.
Article 95: The church could have donations, supports and legs
Article
96: The commission of Finance shall organise itself to transparently
run resources and inheritance of the Church.
Article
97: Taking from baptisms shall be the spiritual leader by
right
Article 98:
Takings from holy products sale(holy oil,incense, perfurme and candles)
shall be the spiritual leader
by right
Article 99: For a great efficiency,
contribution to parish costs shall be termly paid
Article 100: Each parish shall
annually organise its harvest celebration. It is an ordonnance
of the CHURCH. It shall be prohibited to plan to this end collections in markets
Article 101: the High Committee,
the National Steering Committee, tyhe Regional Committee, the
Sub regional Committee and Parish Committee have each at its level a banking
or a Giro account.
Article 102: At each level a
predictive budget shall be established each year and divided in takings and
expenditures
Article 103: Various budget estimates
shall be subject to the approval/appreciation of High Bodies.
Article
107: Regarding parishes, leaders, President and Treasurer
shall be signatories of the banking and a Giro account.
Article 108:The High Committee
shall grant a budget to such Commission under its
control and pay some leaders on account of available resources.
It shall be the same at the level of the National Steering Committees and
Regional Committees
Chapter
III
Allowances of Various leaders
Article 109: For much effectiveness
in the discharge of various tasks and for more discipline
within the Church, it is important to pay some leaders. A pastoral decision
shall specify the concerned
leaders and modalities of such payment.
TITLE
VI
VARIOUS PROVISIONS
Chapter
I
Attitude of Members during Services
Article 110: Praying sessions
shall be periods of great concentration which requires a favorable calm for
the coming down
of Angels and the Holy Spirit Manifestation. Any efficient and attendant members
shall refrain from any conversation
during services. Conversations in the temple are prohibited. In case of great
necessity, people obliged to talk shall do it in
secret outside of the temple.
Article 111: Mothers shall take
care of their babies in order to avoid repeated cries and shouts. It is better
in case
of failure to go out of the temple to calm down the child
Article 112: In order to give
place to scrambles or racings in the temple to quickly reach the altar
the last supper shall be a privilege period of meditation whereby the number
shall wonder if he/she could have the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ
Article 113: The temple shall
be a holy place, it is strictly prohibited to eat in it any kind of food that
could tarnish or sully it
Article 114: Noone has right
to talk to officiants once they either mounted the altar or at the lecturer.
Any possible communication shall be done before the service. A book shall
at this end be opened in the Secretariat of the parish
during the week.
Article 115: Officiants shall
be prohibited to modify the order of the service. Possible cases of modification
shall happen
upon instructions of spiritual leader or the President of Parish Committee
if the spiritual leader or spiritual head is absent .
Chapter
II
Announcements
Article 116: Announcements shall be made by the Secretary of the Parish and shall not in any case be a preach
Article
117: The Secretary in charge of making public announcements
shall notify members important events happened within the Church, the planing
of tasks and officiants from authorities and hierachical local bodies
.
Article 118:
Murmurs or whispering shall be prohibited during announcements . Possible
observations shall be subject to the Secretary
or to the Parish Committee.
Article 119: The Secretary has
no right to make public wrong information from doubting services. He shall
try to grant not more than 15 to 30 minutes
to announcements.
Chapter
III
Preaching
Article 120: The preacher shall
focus his intervention on the day's or circumstance of bible texts and urge
members to be in compliant with holy Writ.
He shall not go beyond 45 minutes
on sunday morning and 15 minutes
on evenings.
Article 121: He shall not be
inspired of books or documents opposite to the words of the Holy Bible.
Article
122: Whatever the rank of the preacher, shall not cease the
opportunity that is offered to him to attack whoever in view of
a revenge or settling of scores
Chapter
IV
Vision
Article 123: Vision is a light
from the Holy Spirit that enables the Celestial Church of Christ as well as
all members to surely move ahead in faith
Article 124: Before airing any
vision, the visionary shall take oath before God and Men . If he
wrongly takes oath any consequences shall rebound on him.
Article 125: In the Celestial Church
of Christ anyone can't be a visionary. It shall be a free
talent which shall be disinterested used. In clear terms, it is strictly prohibited
to visionaries
to get paid, in any manner, spiritual works they complete. A possible donation
granted later after
such works could be accepted.
Article 126: The visionary shall
steadily take care and have an examplary behaviour because of the quality
of message delivered shall
depend on th state of spirit and body clearness.
Article 127: Vision sessions
shall be supervised by the Wolidjah,
the Wolider or an Elder in charge of each duty
The vision's form shall be signed by the spiritual leader or by an authorised
elder before the corrying out of prescribed
works.
Article
128: Vision and spiritual works conducted in visionaries'
residences shall be strictly prohibited
Article 129: Women visionary
shall neither sanctify water, candles, soaps nor perfumes etc...
and shall not make any exhibitions
Article 130: Pratling and gossipping
shall rigourously be prohibited in the course of vision sessions wherebythe
Almighty talks to people through visonaries.It is prohibited to eat in the
vision hall.
Article 131: Any request of paryer
or vision in members houses or other member of the Church shall only be
allowed in case of unavailability of the latters and upon express authorisation
of the spiritual leader to receive some bribes.
Article 132: second vision could
be sources of conflits and disconcert the person who requests it. It is for
such reason that Wlidjahs and Wolidiers shall avert them.
They shall be entitled to train the visionaries and help them blossom. They
should be assisted by the spirit in order to follow up visions in progress
and pick out possible interpretation errors
Article 133: Visionaries that
shall reveal messabes which call on make use of red, yellow, black candles..
knives known as Holy Michaël's
or canaries to be broken at crossroads are choosing a way that skims the charlantanism.
They shall be called to order and surely punished if they persist in such
direction
ChapterV
Choral
Article 134: The choral shall
not be another institution. It shall be under the power of the spiritual leader.
It shall be managed by a mastersinger
and supervisor appointed by the parish committee upon the proposal of spiritual
leader or spiritual responsible.
Article 135: Members of the Choral
shall wera, in addition to their soutane or praying gown short cape blue emboidered
of yellow. The
mastersinger shall wear a white surplice with a blue edge. The supervisor
shall wear a blue surplice with a yellow edge.
Article
136: Many songs of the Celestial Church of Christ shall be
inspired to visionaries and sung by them in the course of their vision. Services
shall be celebrated
with songs sung by visionaries and written in our hymns. Therefore, songs
composed by members could serve as entertainments during
recreation sessions or thanks.
Chapter VI
Sacerdotal Clothes
Article 137: The wearing of a
praying gown (and a hat for women) shall compulsory for any baptised member
who is attending to service. Those who are not yet baptised shall not mind
such regulation
Article 138: Members promoted
in accordance with the hierarchy of the churh shall get in touch with the
parish leader to receive specified
instructions(dictated, transmitted by the Prophet Pastor Founder) on account
of the new soutane or praying gown to be worn
Chapter
VII
Synod
Article 139: The most important
body of decision within the Celestial Church of Christ shall be the Synod
It shall be orgainsed 3 days after the piligrim at Sème Plage under
the Presidency of the Prophet Pastor or Pastor President ofthe High Committee
of the Celestial Church of Christ
Members of the High Committee, members of the Permanent Commissions, members
of the S C of the Headquarter and a delegation of 3 persons with a woman
per Diocese shall attend to such Synod. The President of the High Committee
shall appoint other persons to attend to it.
For questions that he Judges very important the Church life, the President
of the High Committee could convene the synod for extraordinary sessions
Article 140: The synod shall
amend and adopt the basic texts of the Celestial Church of Christ. It shall
approve or reject the assignment of activities of Permanent Commissions for
the new year
It shall examine the financial management balance which is ending and vote
the budget of the new year
It shall give require instructions to ensure the smooth running of the Church
and its radiance in the whole world
At Diocese level a diocesion concil shall meet during the first fifteen day
of november
The diocesan council shall prepare the attendance of the Diocese to the Synod
and to annual piligrim of 24 and 25 december at
Sèmè Plage
It shall study relating questions to the Church at each diocese level.
Chapter
VIII
Discipline and Sentences
Article 141: Discipline within
the Celestial Church of Christ shall require among others, the observation
of the Internal Regulation and the strict respect of ordonace of the Founder
Prophet Pasto
r
Article 142: The respect and
the courtesy shall be required at any moment. Members shall respect their
elder. In the same manner, lower bodies shall be subject to higher bodies
Article 143: Any celestial Christiann
shall make every effort to worthly and examplary behave anytime and everywhere
in accordance with the christian moral standards
He shall have self dicipline and avoid to act reprehensively
article 144: No member whatever
his rank in the hierarchy shall not :
*push members to deviate from the right goal by abiding by a doctrine other
than the one of the Celestial Christianism
*dishonour the high hierarchy(insults, slandersetc..)
*incit to revolt
*modify the doctrine of the Church
*provoke disputes and scuffles within the parish or during gatherings of members
Article 145: Any offence to provisions
provided in this internal regulations shall innclude sentences hereafter:
*Warning
*Blame
Suspension
*Temporary Suspension
*Final Suspension
Article 146: Duration of a member
suspension shall depends upon the seriousness of the fault committed. The
penalty could only be once served with no possibility of splitting up
Article 147: A member suspension
could not exceed six(06) months
For such opportunity he could go to parish, attend to services but he would
be prohibited the wearing of the soutane or praying gown and the discharge
of any spiritual duty
Article 148: Temporary suspension
could be up to (06) six months
to one year inn case of downright or subsequent insubordination
The offender shall not be authorised to be on any parish of the Celestial
Church of Christ
Article 149: The parish Committee
has the right to judge and punish any opposite acts to principles of the Church
and be anwserable
by hierarchical way to National Steering Committee. The suspension of a member
could not intervene therefore on decision of the High Committee
Such radiation shall be proposed by by the National Steering Committee after
the notice of the Commission of discipline, justice
and dispute of Diocese which shall necessarily listen to the guilty person
before the Parish Committee
Article
150: The guilty person who possibly refuses deliberately to
appear before a body shall be
imposed the decision then rendered indefault and which shall be effective
Article 151 Sentences shall be
applied to any guilty member whatever his/her rank or his /her position in
the Church
Article 152 A register or folder
of discipline shall be at level of Secretary of the parish which shall contain
the following inquiries:
Name and Givenames of the member his rank in the hierarchy of the Church committed
faults with specification of the dates places
possibly articles of the internal regulations then violated sentences named
etc...
It shall be same at the level of Regional Committee National Steering Committee
High Committee and the Commission
of Discipline Justice and Disputes
Article 153:
Temporary or final suspension cases shall be known to parishes by the President
of the Na&tional Steering Committee
Article 154: The commission in
charge of Discipline justice and Disputes set a scale of sentences
Article 155: Any parishes of
the Celestial Church Of Christ shall be required to be in conformity with
the provisions of this Internal Regulations$Any failure in the matter shall
be seveerly sentenced
Article 156: To effectively operate
various administrative structures of the Church shall be priodically renewed
or strengthened
The renewal or strengthening of institutions shall be entirely the secret
of the President of the High Committee
Chapter XI
Final Provisions
Article 157: This Internal Regulations
shall be read and explained in all parishes and at all levels in view of being
known of members
Each parish shall choose its way of circulation to enable members to be well
informed of it
Article 158: In accordance with
provisioins of article 47 of Articles of Association any modification of this
Internal Regulations shall be subject to a
vote bof participants to synod, the three fourth of present members and having
voting right shall accept the proposed modification. Modification shall be
made to any bodies or required institutions
Article 159: This Internal regulations
shall annul any form contrary to provisions shall be made in public
everywhere need will be .
Porto-Novo:
November 1st 2000
President of the High Committee Of Celestial Church of Christ