Membership

Church Membership

  1. The Church recognises two kinds of membership – those baptised in infancy and communicant members.
  2. All children of the Church who have received baptism are called “baptised in infancy”. (In the case of infant baptism at least one of the parents must be a communicant member).
  3. The following may receive Communion and be called Communicant Members:
  • Those who are baptised as adults
  • Those who have received infant baptism who are now at least 16 years of age and have decided to become communicant members, and have had their qualifications examined by the Session and have taken part in a Service of Confirmation.

The Obligation

  1. They must pray earnestly and study the Bible diligently, join in all the different meetings and services, especially keep the Lord’s Day, and attend the Lord’s Supper.
  2. They must help in all the work of the Church and gladly perform good works.
  3. They must do all they can to witness for the Lord, and also pay heed to leading their families, and bringing their infants/children for baptism.
  4. In as much as the Church is the Lord’s Body, in all matters in which members are involved they must exercise mutual love, not forming factions nor creating strife and thereby causing damage to the Church.
  5. They are responsible for supporting the Church normal expenses and any special needs.
  6. They must abide by the Constitution of the Church and accept the decisions of the Church.

Transfer, Inactive & Restoration of Membership 

  1. Baptised members from another congregation who wish to transfer their membership to our Church must request a Letter of Transfer from the congregation where they were formerly members.
  2. In the same way, if our members move to another Church, they will be given a Letter of Transfer to be taken to the new Church so they might receive the Lord’s Supper there and the care and guidance of that Church.
  3. Members seeking transfer from another Church do not need to be re-baptised. However, they are required to attend baptism classes and the Session needs to examine and ascertain if they are suitable, and being satisfied of this, they may then be received as members.
  4. Members who have left the Church for a long time and do not express by letter or by contributions their interest in maintaining their relationship with the Church, after three successive years, and after the Minister of that congregation and the Elders and Deacons have made their utmost effort to seek them out without success, their names will be recorded in a register entitled “location unknown”.
  5. Members who disregard their membership vows without adequate reason, and for a whole year do not attend worship or undertake other responsibilities, must be visited and exhorted by the Minister, Elders or Deacons. If they still ignore their vows, the Session may remove their names from the membership roll.
  6. Members who in their behaviour rebel against the holy teaching of the Bible and bring dishonour to the Lord’s name, the Church, according to the seriousness of the offence, must decide whether to deal with them by warning or by suspending them from Communion. If exhortation proves fruitless, and they continue in their heresy and disobedience, and if there is no hope of bringing them back, the Session must request the permission of the Presbytery to excommunicate them for the sake of preserving the purity of the Church.
  7. “Location unknown” members who are found, or members whom we have lost contact and return, or members who have been excommunicated and obviously repentant, all these may be considered by the Session to have their membership rights restored.