Section three of this chapter provides for filing and recording the certificate of incorporation. See Perry v. Board of Missions, etc., of Albany, 142 N. Y. 99.] § 15. Property of extinct churches.-Such incorporated governing body may decide that a church, parish or society in connection with it or over which it has ecclesiastical jurisdiction, has become extinct, if it has failed for two conservative years next prior thereto to maintain religious services according to the discipline, customs and usages of such governing body, or has had less than thirteen resident attending members paying annual pew rent or making annual contribution towards its support, and may take possession of the temporalities and property belonging to such church, parish or religious society, and manage; or may. in pursuance of the provisions of law relating to the disposition of real property by religious corporations, sell or dispose of the same and apply the proceeds thereof to any of the purposes to which the property of such governing religious body is devoted, and it shall not divert such property to any other object. The American Congregational Union shall be deemed the governing religious body of every extinct or disbanded Congre gational church within the meaning of this section. The Baptist Missionary Convention of the State of New York shall be deemed the governing religious body for every extinct or disbanded Baptist church, and Baptist churches becoming extinct or about to disband or disorganize may, by a vote of twothirds of their members present and voting therefor at a meeting regularly cailed for the purpose, vest all their temporalities in, and place them in possession of the Baptist Missionary Con vertion of the State of New York. The New York Eastern Christian Benevolent and Missionary Society, shall be deemed the governing religious body of any extinct or disbanded church of the Christian denomination situated within the bounds of the New York Eastern Christian Conference; and the New York Christian Association, of any other church of the Christian denomination, and any other incorporated conference shall be deemed the governing religious body of any such church situated within its bounds. By Christian denomination is meant only the denomination specially termed "Christian," in which the Bible is declared to be the only rule of faith, Christian their only name, and Christian character their only test of fellowship, and in which no form of baptism is made a test of Christian character. [L. 1871, ch. 381, § 3; R. S., 8th ed., 1906. L. 1876, ch. 110, § 3; R. S., 8th ed., 1908. L. 1885, ch. 431, § 1; R. S., Sth ed., 1917. L. 1887, ch. 100, §§ 1-4; R. S., Sth ed., 1918. Several minor changes for sake of uniformity are made, but nothing substantial.] § 16. Corporations for organizing and maintaining mission churches and Sunday schools. Ten or more members of two or more incorporated churches may become a corporation for the purpose of organizing and maintaining mission churches and Sunday schools in the vicinity of such incorporated churches and of acquiring property therefor, by executing, acknowledging and filing a certificate stating the name of such corporation, the city in which it is to be located; the names of the churches; the members of which are to be admitted to membership therein; the number of trustees to manage its affairs, which shall be three, six or nine, and the names of the trustees for the first year of its existence. Whenever a mission church established by such corporation becomes self-sustaining, such mission church may become incorporated and shall be governed in pursuance of the laws for the incorporation and government of a church of the religious denomination to which such mission church belongs, and thereon such parent corporation may convey to such incorporated church the property connected therewith [See form, No. 9. This section is new. See § 6. Section 3 of this chapter provides for the place of filing certificates. For provisions as to who may take acknowledgments, see § 15 of statutory construction law. As to qualification of incorporators, the naming of the corporation, and generally as to certificates of incorporation, see general corporation law, §§ 3-9.] 17. Corporations for acquiring parsonages for presiding elders and camp meeting grounds.-The presiding elder and a majority of the district stewards residing within a presiding elder's district, erected by an annual conference of the Methodist Episcopal denomination, may become incorporated for the purposes of acquiring, maintaining and improving real property to be used either as a parsonage for the presiding elder of such district or as a camp ground for camp meeting purposes, or for both of such objects by executing, acknowledging and filing a certificate stating the name and object of the corporation to be formed, the name of such annual conference, and of such presiding elder's dis trict, the names, residences and official relations to such district of the signers thereof, the number of trustees of such corporation, which shall be three or some multiple of three not more than twenty-one, the names of such trustees, designating onethird to hold office for three years, one-third to hold office for two years, and one-third to hold office for one year. On filing such certificate the presiding elder and all the stewards of such district by virtue of their respective offices, shall be a corporation by the name and for the purposes therein stated, and the persons therein named shall be the first trustees thereof. The presiding elder and stewards of any other adjoining presiding elder's district, in this or any other state, may become members of any such corporation, at the time of its formation or any time thereafter, with the consent of such corporation, which has for its sole object, or for one of its objects, the acquiring, maintaining and improving of real property as a camp ground for camp meeting purposes, if such presiding elder and a majority of such stewards sign, acknowledge and cause to be filed in the office of the secretary of state, a certificate stating such object, the name of such district, and the names, residences and official relations to such district of the signers thereof, with the consent of the original corporation indorsed thereon. If such a corporation, which has for its sole object or one of its objects, the acquisition and maintenance of camp grounds for camp meeting purposes, is composed of the presiding elders and the district stewards of more than one presiding elder's district, the number of such trustees shall be apportioned equally, as near as may be, between the different districts, and the presiding elder and district stewards of such district shall elect the number of trustees so apportioned to such district, and the remainder, if any, over an equal division of the trustees, shall be elected by all the members of the corporation. A person holding property in trust for the purposes of a parsonage for the presiding elder of a district, and his successors in office, or for camp meeting purposes, for the Methodist Episcopal denomination, may convey the same to a corporation formed for the purpose of acquiring such property within the district in which the property is situated. Meetings held under the direction of such a corporation upon camp grounds owned by it shall be deemed religious meetings, within the provisions of law relating to disturbances of religious meetings, and the trustees of such a corporation shall have the powers of peace officers with relation thereto. Whenever such a corporation or any camp-ground association owns land bordering upon any navigable waters, to be used for camp meeting par poses only, such corporation or association may regulate or prohibit the landing of persons or vessels at the wharves, piers or shores upon such grounds during the holding of religious services thercon. If the trustees of any such corporation heretofore incorporated have not been classified, so that the terms of office of one-third of their number expire each year, the trustees of such corporation shall be elected annually by the members thereof; but if the trustees of any such corporation have been so classified, one-third of the total number of trustees shall be elected annually to hold office for three years. Such a corporation heretofore incorporated may, by a majority vote, at an annual meeting, or at a special meeting duly called therefor, determine to change the number of its trustees to three, or some multiple thereof, not more than twenty-one. On such determination a majority of the trustees shall sign, acknowledge and file in the offices where the original certificate of such corporation is filed, a supplemental certificate, specifying such reduction or increase; and thereon the number of trustees, shall be the number stated in such certificate. If the number of trustees is increased, the corporation shall elect, at its next annual meeting, a sufficient number of trustees to hold office for one, two and three years, respectively, so that the terms of office of one-third of the whole number of trustees of such corporation shall expire at each annual meeting thereafter. If the number is reduced, the corporation shall thereafter elect at its annual meetings one-third of the number of trustees specified in such supplemental certifi cate, but the trustees in office when such certificate is filed shall continue in office until the expiration of their terms, respectively. [See form, No. 10. L. 1867, ch. 265; R. S., 8th ed., 1999. L. 1894, ch. 72. Simplified without material change of substance.] § 18. Application of this chapter to churches created by special laws. If a church be incorporated by special law, it and its trustees shall have, in addition to the powers conferred on it by such law, all the powers and privileges conferred on incorporated churches and the trustees thereof respectively by the provisions of this article, and also all the powers and privileges conferred by this chapter on churches of the same denomination or of the like character, and on the trustees thereof respectively. [L. 1871, ch. 776, § 1; R. S., 8th ed., 1900, ARTICLE IL Special Provisions for the Incorporation and Government of Protestant Episcopal Parishes or Churches. Section 30. The meeting for incorporation. 31. The certificates of incorporation. 32. Corporate trustees; vestry; powers and duties thereof. 33. Annual elections. 34. Changing the number of vestrymen of parishes here after incorporated. |