REGULATIONS

REGULATIONS

OF THE

ANGLICAN CHURCH IN THE DIOCESE

OF

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

As enacted by Synod in 1964

and amended up to May 2008,

with selected Provincial Canons amended up to 2001.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SUBJECT	PAGE NO.
Church of England Incorporation Ordinance No.14 of 1930	1
Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago (Change of Name) Act No. 9 of 1966	3
Regulations of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago in the Province of the West Indies as enacted by Synod in 1964	4
Regulation 1: Of Interpretation, of Amendment and Citation	6
Regulation 2: Of the Bishop	7
Regulation 2A: Of the Coadjutor Bishop	11
Regulation 3: Of the Vicar-General	14
Regulation 4: Of the Clergy	16
Regulation 5: Of the Duties of the Clergy	17
Regulation 5A: Of the Clergy Council	19
Regulation 6: Of the Diocesan Court for the Trial of Priests and Deacons, and of Judicial Proceedings	19
Regulation 7: Of the Laity	20
Regulation 8: Of the Synod	25
Regulation 8A: Of the Regional Council	31
Regulation 9: Of the Diocesan Council	34
Regulation 10: Of the Diocesan Committees and Officers of the Diocese and Synod	36
Regulation 11: Of the Diocesan Board of Finance	38
Regulation 11A: Of the Diocesan Programme Planning Unit	40

Regulation 12: Of the Boys’ Industrial School Committee	42
Regulation 13: Of the Tacarigua Orphan Home Committee
Regulation 14: Of the Missions Committee	42
Regulation 15: Of the Building and Lands Committee	43
Regulation 16: Of the Regulations Committee
Regulation 17: Of the Education Committee for Anglican Schools	44
Regulation 18: Of Vestries and Officers of the Congregation	45
Regulation 19: Of Lay Readers	48
Regulation 20: Of Maintenance and Finance of the Church	49
Regulation 20A: Of Loans and Advances to Vestries	53
Regulation 21: Of the Trustees and their Seal	54
Regulation 22: Of Buildings and Property	55
Regulation 23: Of Baptism	57
Regulation 24: Of Holy Matrimony	57
Regulation 25: Of the Holy Communion	57
Regulation 26: Of Patronage and Parishes	58
Regulation 27: Of Standing Orders	59

APPENDICIES

A. The Constitution of the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity

B. Declaration of Fundamental Principles

C. Provincial Canon 11 (Regulation 2A)

D. Provincial Canon 12 (Regulation 2A)

E. Provincial Canon 14 (Regulation 4)

F. Provincial Canon 15 (Regulations 4 and 5)

G. Provincial Canon 17 (Regulation 4)

H Provincial Canon 20 (Regulation 19)

I. Provincial Canon 26 (Regulation 7)

J. Provincial Canon 29 (Regulation 24)

K. Remarriage of Divorced Persons Rules

CHURCH OF ENGLAND INCORPORATION

ORDINANCE NO. 14 OF 1930

An Ordinance to provide for the dissolution of the Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad and the Incorporated Trustees of the Anglican Church in Tobago and for the incorporation in place thereof of a body to be known as the Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago.

[12th June, 1930]

WHEREAS by the Church of England Incorporation Ordinance, No. 8 of 1873 (now Cap. 302) the Right Reverend Richard Rawle and his successors in office as Bishop of the Church of England in the Island of Trinidad and certain other persons and their successors in office as Treasurers of the Church of England in the said Island were created a body corporate by the name of The Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad.

And whereas by the Anglican Church Incorporated Trustees Ordinance, No. 7 of 1887 (Tobago) (now Cap. 303) the Bishop presiding over the Anglican Church in Tobago and the several licensed clergy of the Anglican Church in Tobago and their successors in office and certain other persons were created a body corporate by the name of The Incorporated Trustees of the Anglican Church in Tobago;

And whereas since the union of the said Islands of Trinidad and Tobago the Bishop for the time being of the Church of England in Trinidad has been the Bishop presiding over the Church of England in Tobago;

And whereas it is expedient that the Church of England in Trinidad and the Church of England in Tobago should be merged into one corporate body;

Be it enacted by the Governor of Trinidad and Tobago with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof as follows:

1. This Ordinance may be cited as the Church of England Incorporation Ordinance, 1930.

2. The corporate bodies created by the Church of England Incorporation Ordinance, No. 8 of 1873 and the Anglican Church Incorporated Trustees Ordinance, No. 7 of 1887 (Tobago) and known as "The Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad" and "The Incorporated Trustees of the Anglican Church in Tobago" respectively are hereby dissolved.

3. The Right Reverend Arthur Henry Anstey and his successors in office as Bishop of the Church of England in the Islands of Trinidad and Tobago, and Frank Haynes and Leonardo Joseph Sorzano and their successors in office as Treasurers of the Church of England in the said Islands SHALL BE AND ARE HEREBY CREATED A BODY CORPORATE BY THE NAME OF "The Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago" (hereinafter called the Trustees) and by that name shall have perpetual succession and also by that name may sue and be sued and shall have a common seal with power to change such seal.

4. The Church of the Holy Trinity in the City of Port of Spain, and all churches, chapels, mission houses, rectories, vicarages, parsonages, glebes, buildings and lands now vested respectively in the bodies corporate created respectively by the said Ordinances Nos, 8 of 1873 and 7 of 1887 and appropriated to the uses of the Church of England in Trinidad and the Church of England in Tobago are hereby transferred to and vested in the Trustees.

5. Subject to the rules, regulations and control of the Synod of the Church of England in the Colony of Trinidad and Tobago, the Trustees shall have full powers to acquire for the Church of England in the Colony by gift, grant, purchase, devise or otherwise any lands, buildings, messuages and hereditaments of what nature or kind soever in perpetuity or for a life or lives or for a term of years, and also any moneys, goods and chattels, and subject to such rules , regulations and control aforesaid, and to the performance of any trusts upon which the said lands, buildings, messuages, hereditaments, moneys, goods and chattels may have been acquired, to take hold and enjoy the same.

6. Subject to the rules, regulations and control aforesaid and to the performance of any such trusts as aforesaid, and except as hereinafter provided, the Trustees may sell, demise, grant, convey, transfer, alienate or otherwise dispose of any property by this Ordinance vested in them or which may hereafter be acquired by or become vested in them.

Provided that

(1) The Trustees shall not sell or transfer any churches, chapels or graveyards in the Island of Tobago, nor, except with the consent of the Governor, any other lands or buildings in the Island of Tobago which were by law or usage appropriated to the uses of the Church of England in Tobago prior to and at its disestablishment.

(2) Except with the consent of the Governor, the Trustees shall not dispose of any lands, buildings, messuages or hereditaments in the Island of Trinidad acquired with public money prior to the 22nd day of July in the year 1873.

(3) The rights of burial in the several churchyards of or attached to the Church of England in Tobago at its disestablishment and rights and usages connected therewith shall remain as heretofore.

6a. The Trustees may also, subject to the said rules, regulations and control aforesaid, from time to time borrow money and may, for the repayment of same, by deed under their seal give and execute mortgages, charges, hypothecations, pledges or other securities of their real or personal property or make any such arrangements as they may consider expedient, with such covenants, powers and provisions as they may think proper; provided that any such dealing in any such property shall be subject also to any restraint, reservation or condition contained in the document under which they shall have acquired title thereto.

7. All acts and things done between the first day of January, 1889, and the day on which this Ordinance commences (both days inclusive) by the Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad in relation to the Anglican Church in Tobago which would have been validly done by the Incorporated Trustees of the Anglican Church in Tobago shall, be deemed to be and to have been validly and properly done.

8. The Church of England Incorporation Ordinance (Chapter 302) and the Anglican Church (Tobago) Incorporation Ordinance (Chapter 303) are hereby repealed.

9. Nothing in this Ordinance shall affect or be deemed to affect the rights of His Majesty or of any bodies politic or corporate or of any other persons, except such as are mentioned or referred to in this Ordinance and those claiming by, through, from, or under them.

Passed in Council this twenty-third day of May, in the year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred and thirty.

CHURCH OF ENGLAND IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

(Change of Name)

Act No. 9 of 1966

An Act to change the name of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago

[16th June 1966]

WHEREAS, as has been recited in the Act of the then Imperial Parliament of Great Britain and Ireland 6 George IV, C. 88, His Majesty King George IV by His several Royal Letters Patent having been graciously pleased to direct and appoint two several dioceses for British Caribbean Territories with sees of two Bishops of the then United Church of England and Ireland, by the said Act provision was made for the payment of salaries, pensions and annuities in connection with the said establishments out of the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland:

And whereas by virtue of an Act of the said Parliament, 31 and 32 Victoria, C. 120, entitled an Act to relieve the Consolidated Fund from the charge of salaries of future Bishops, Archdeacons, Ministers and other Persons in the West Indies, the dioceses and sees of the said Church of England in the British West Indies and other Caribbean territories were disestablished:

And whereas by the Irish Church Act, 1869, of the said Parliament, to wit 32 and 33 Victoria, C. 42, the Church of Ireland was disestablished:

And whereas by Royal Warrant bearing date the 24th day of April, 1872, Her Majesty Queen Victoria was graciously pleased to separate the Church of England in Trinidad from the diocese and see called "the Bishopric of Barbados and the Leeward Islands" created by the above recited Letters Patent of His Majesty King George IV:

And whereas thereafter by several Ordinances of the Legislature of the then colony of Trinidad the Anglican community in Trinidad had been styled and named the Church of England in Trinidad:

And whereas by Ordinance of the Legislature of the colony of Trinidad and Tobago, to wit No. 14 of 1930, merger was effected of the Church of England in Trinidad and the Church of England in Tobago also called the Anglican Church of Tobago; and the United Churches have since been known as the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago:

And whereas since the grant of Independence to the former colony of Trinidad and Tobago the Anglican community of the new Territory of Trinidad and Tobago in their Councils has canvassed the idea of a change of name of their Church and by a resolution of a duly convened Synod on the 4th day of May, 1965, it was duly resolved that the name of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago be changed to the name the Anglican Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago:

And whereas the Right Reverend Father in God, William James Hughes, Doctor of Divinity and Bishop of the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago; Henry Hudson Phillips, Chancellor of the said Diocese, one of Her Majesty’s Counsel learned in law, and a Bachelor of Laws; the Venerable Archdeacon Frederick Robert Banks, an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, William Henry Dolly, Esquire, a member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; Louis Nathaniel Blache-Fraser, Esquire, a Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, of the Incorporated Trustees, acting for and in behalf of Synod, have presented a Humble Petition to Parliament praying that effect be given to the aforesaid resolution:

And whereas it is deemed just and expedient that the prayer of the said petition be granted:

BE IT ENACTED by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Representatives of Trinidad and Tobago and by the authority the same as follows:

1. This Act may be cited as the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago (Change of Name) Act, 1966.

2. From and after the first day of January, 1966, the corporate body at present known as "The Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago" and "The Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago" shall henceforth respectively be known, styled, named and designated as "The Incorporated Trustees of the Anglican Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago" and as "The Anglican Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago".

3. Save for the changes of names the Trustees and Church are and shall be deemed to be the same respectively as the former officials formerly known, styled, named and designated as "The Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago" and as "The Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago".

4. Nothing herein enacted shall in any way affect the provisions of the Church of England Incorporation Ordinance, 1930, and the Church of England Incorporation (Amendment) Act, 1963, which, save for the changes of names, shall be and continue to be in full force and effect respecting the newly designated Trustees and Church as ever they have been in respect of the Incorporated Trustees of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago and in respect of the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago.

And for the removal of doubts, Be it further enacted:

5. Nothing provided in section 3 of the Church of England Incorporation Ordinance 1930, shall be construed as meaning that the number of Treasurers has been and is limited to two Treasurers only and no more than two.

Passed in the House of Representatives this 15th day of April, 1966;

REGULATIONS OF

THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

IN THE PROVINCE OF THE WEST INDIES

AS ENACTED BY SYNOD IN 1964

WHEREAS in 1947 our Synod did enact and publish certain Canons for the general management, discipline and good government of this Our Church, the same being officially known and recognised as the Church of England in Trinidad and Tobago and is so referred to in Ordinance No. 14 of 1930 of the Laws of Trinidad and Tobago.

And whereas the said Canons intituled "Canons of the Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago 1947 in the Province of the West Indies" have been duly amended from time to time by Synod.

And whereas the Provincial Synod of the Church in the West Indies including our aforesaid Church has duly enacted and published certain Canons for the governance of the Church in the West Indies (including this Diocese) which came into operation on August 29th in the Year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred and sixty-two. And the said Canons (hereinafter referred to as the "Provincial Canons") are intituled the "Constitution and Canons of the Church in the Province of the West Indies".

And whereas it has been deemed in consequence necessary and expedient, with a view to conformity as far as possible, to repeal the above recited existing Canons (hereinafter referred to as the "1947 Canons") of this Diocese and to enact Regulations in their stead.

Now, therefore, We, the Bishop, the Clergy and the Laity of this Our Church in Trinidad and Tobago, lawfully convened and assembled in Synod, do enact the following Regulations, and it is hereby declared, ordained and enacted as follows:

1. The 1947 Canons with all amendments thereto are hereby repealed.

2. (a) These Regulations shall as far as possible be read and construed as one with the Provincial Canons; and, should any inconsistency exist between any provisions herein and any provisions on the same subject in the Provincial Canons, then the Provincial Canons shall to the extent of the inconsistency prevail.

(b) In any case of dispute as to the interpretation of these Regulations, the decision of the Bishop, after consultation with the Chancellor or Registrar, shall be final.

REGULATION 1:

Of Interpretation, of Amendment and Citation

1. In these regulations unless the context otherwise requires:

"The Anglican Church" or "the Church" means the Anglican Church in the Province of the West Indies.

"The Annual Meeting" means the meeting in every year of the electors in each Parish for the elections of Lay Representatives and a Vestry.

"The Archbishop" means the Archbishop of the Church in the Province of the West Indies.

"Assistant Curate" means a clergyman who is not a Rector, Vicar or Priest-in-Charge.

"The Bishop" means the Bishop of the Diocese.

"The Chancellor" means the Chancellor of the Diocese.

"Chaplain" means a clergyman appointed to work other than parochial.

"Clergyman" means a Clerk in Holy Orders duly licensed by the Bishop.

"Coadjutor" means Coadjutor Bishop.

"Communicant in Good Standing" means any person who has received the Holy Communion from a Clergyman of the Diocese or of a Church in Communion with the Anglican Church at least twelve (12) times during the last completed calendar year, of which Eastertide should be one (1), having had opportunity to do so, and is not a member or in the habit of attending any place of worship of any religious body not in communion with the Anglican Church, and has paid Diocesan Dues for the year or has been excused from such payment by the Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge of his Parish.

"The Council" means the Diocesan Council constituted under Regulation 9.

"The Diocese" means the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago.

"Diocesan Dues" means the dues imposed by Regulation 7, Paragraph 4.

"District" means an area not having the right to Lay Representation at Synod except by leave of the Bishop in Council.

"Elector" means a person who:

(i) is a communicant in good standing;

(ii) has attained the age of eighteen (18) years;

(iii) has during the year ending 31st December preceding the Annual Meeting paid Diocesan Dues for that year.

"The Financial Secretary" means the Financial Secretary of the Diocese.

"Incumbent" means a Rector or Vicar or Priest-in-Charge of Parish.

"Laity", "layman" or "layperson" means member or members of the Church not in Holy Orders.

"* Lay Ministers’ Warden" means a clergyperson appointed by the Bishop for the purpose of supervising and coordinating the activities of the lay ministers provided for by Canon 20 of the Canons of the Church in the Province of the West Indies.

"Lay Representative" means a person elected at the Annual Meeting in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations.

"Month" means Calendar Month.

"Parish" means an area constituted as such and having the right to Lay Representation at Synod.

"Preferment" includes any Deanery, Archdeaconry, Canonry, Benefice, Assistant Curacy, Chaplaincy or other office which requires the discharge of any spiritual duty.

"The President" means the person designated by Regulation 8, Paragraph 14 to preside at meetings of the Synod.

"Priest-in-Charge" means a clergyman in charge of a district or temporarily in charge of a Parish.

"The Province" means the Province of the West Indies and "Provincial" can be construed accordingly.

"Rector" or "Vicar" means a clergyman licensed or instituted to a Parish.

"Regional Council" means a Council constituted under Regulation 8A.

"The Registrar" means the Diocesan Registrar.

"The Secretary" means the Diocesan Secretary.

"The Synod" means the Synod of the Diocese.

"The Treasurer" means the Diocesan Treasurer.

"The Trustees" mean the Incorporated Trustees of the Anglican Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago.

"Vestry" means a vestry constituted under Regulation 18.

"The Vicar-General" means the person appointed as such under Regulation 3.

"Writing", "written" or any term of like import includes all modes of representing or reproducing words in a visible form; words in the singular include the plural and vice versa.

2. Unless otherwise provided every notice requiring to be served hereunder shall be deemed to be duly served if delivered personally or forwarded by post by prepaid letter addressed to the person entitled to receive the same at his last known place of abode or business in this territory. A notice sent by post shall be deemed to have been given at the expiration of seventy-two (72) hours after the letter containing the same has been posted.

3. Unless otherwise provided no proceeding shall be invalidated by the accidental omission to give any notice required to be given by these Regulations.

4. Where in these Regulations reference is made to the holder of an office as such, then such reference shall be deemed made to the person for the time being holding such office unless the contrary intention is expressed.

5. Where by these Regulations any act or thing is required or authorised to be done by more than two (2) persons then unless otherwise provided a majority of them may do it.

6. The Synod may alter or amend these Regulations; but no alteration or amendment shall be made except in accordance with Regulation 8, Paragraph 15 and by the vote of a majority of each Order of Clergy and Laity.

7. Where by these or any future Regulations any former Regulation is in whole or in part repealed, then, if such repealing Regulation is itself repealed by any subsequent Regulation, such as last mentioned repeal shall not revive such former Regulation unless words be added reviving the same.

8. Where by these or any future Regulations any Regulation is in whole or in part repealed, such repeal shall not

(a) revive anything not in force or existing at the time at which the repeal takes effect, or

(b) affect the previous operation of any Regulation so repealed, or anything duly done or suffered thereunder, or

(c) affect any right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired, accrued or incurred under any Regulation so repealed, or

(d) affect any penalty, forfeiture, punishment, direction, or sentence incurred or made in respect of any matter or thing under the Regulation so repealed, or

(e) affect any investigation, proceeding or remedy in respect of any such right, privilege, obligation, liability, penalty, forfeiture, punishment, direction order or sentence as aforesaid; and any such investigation, proceeding or remedy may be instituted, continued, enforced and any such penalty, forfeiture, punishment, direction, order or sentence may be imposed and carried into effect as if such repealing Regulation had not been passed.

9. Where these or any future Regulations repeal any former Regulation, such repealed Regulation shall remain in force until the repealing Regulation shall come into operation.

10. If any question shall arise as to the interpretation of these Regulations such question shall be determined by the Bishop after consultation with the Chancellor or Registrar; and the decision of the Bishop shall be final and binding.

11. The Canons of the Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago 1947 are hereby repealed without prejudice to the validity of anything done thereunder.

12. These Regulations may be cited as "The Regulations of the Anglican Church in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago".

REGULATION 2:

Of the Bishop

1. The Bishop shall have and use the title and dignity of BISHOP OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO, and is the Senior Trustee of the Diocese.

^{*
lA. (a) No priest having attained the age of sixty-five (65) shall be eligible for election to the office of Bishop.

The Bishop shall vacate office on attaining the age of seventy-two (72) years
For all purposes the Bishop is deemed to have retired with consent:

on vacating office at any time after attaining age sixty-five (65)
on resigning the See on or at any time after attaining the age of sixty-five (65) years; or
if the See is declared vacant by the Archbishop for inability of the Bishop, arising from physical or mental infirmity, to discharge the duties of his office.

lB. Notwithstanding paragraph lA(b)*
*
, the Bishop may continue in office for such further periods, not exceeding one year at a time or three years in the aggregate, as the Synod or Council may request. Any such request shall be subject to prior confirmation by a majority of the Bishops of the Province.

2. If the Bishop proposes to resign the See, he shall notify the Archbishop in writing of his intention to do so and of the date upon which he desires his resignation to take effect; and if there is no Vicar-General, the Archbishop may thereupon appoint a Vicar-General or take such other Order as he may think fit for the administration of the Diocese during the vacancy.

3. If the Bishop dies or is certified by two fully qualified medical practitioners to be unable by reason of physical or mental infirmity to discharge the duties of his office, the Vicar-General or, failing him, the Archdeacon shall forthwith notify the Archbishop; and, until the Archbishop shall have taken order in like manner as is provided in the case of a resignation of the See, the Vicar-General or, failing him, the Archdeacon shall administer the Diocese.

4. If the Bishop during his absence from the Diocese resigns the See or dies, the Vicar-General himself shall, notwithstanding the lapse of his office, perform such acts of administration of the Diocese (except that of making permanent appointments) as may be necessary, until the Archbishop has taken order for the administration during the vacancy of the See.

5. (a) Whenever a vacancy in the See has been formally notified by the Archbishop to the Vicar-General or other person for the time being administering the Diocese, that person shall within fourteen (14) days summon the Council; and the Council shall forthwith call a meeting of Synod for the purpose of providing a Bishop for the See.

(b) The Council shall give not less than ten (10) days’ notice of the time, place and purpose of the Synod.

6. (a) The session of the Synod summoned for the purpose of electing a Bishop is the Elective Assembly, and on the day appointed, the Litany shall be said or sung and the Holy Eucharist celebrated.

(b) At its first meeting the Elective Assembly shall by majority vote decide whether it will elect the Bishop or delegate the choice to a Selection Committee appointed by the Assembly.

7. (a) If the Elective Assembly decides to elect a Bishop, the president shall adjourn the meeting for twenty-eight (28) days.

(b) The Secretary of the Synod shall notify members of the Elective Assembly of that decision and invite nominations.

(c) No person shall be eligible for nomination unless he is a Bishop or Priest of not less than thirty (30) years of age of the Province of the West Indies or of a Church in Communion with the Province.

(d) No nomination shall be received by the Secretary unless it is signed by two (2) members of the Elective Assembly, one (1) of whom is a Clerk in Holy Orders.

(e) The consent of each nominee shall first be obtained in writing.

(f) Nominations shall be delivered to the Secretary at the Diocesan Office within twenty-one (21) days after the adjournment of the Assembly.

8. At the expiration of twenty-eight (28) days from the adjournment, the Elective Assembly shall meet and proceed as follows:

(a) A candidate for election is disqualified from presiding at the Elective Assembly
(b) A quorum for the election of a Bishop shall be three quarters each of the clerical and lay members of Synod.
(c) The President shall nominate two (2) Clergymen and two (2) Laypersons as tellers.
(d) The Clerical and Lay members of the Elective Assembly present shall vote in separate Orders by voting papers, each voting for one (1) person only of those who have been duly nominated.
(e) Each voting paper shall be collected and examined by the tellers and the result openly declared by the President.
(f) If any one (1) person has received no less than two-thirds (2/3) of the votes of the members of each Order present that person shall thereupon be declared elected.
(g) If no one (1) person has received the two-thirds (2/3) majorities of the votes the name of the person who has received the least number of votes shall be withdrawn and the voting shall be repeated in like manner for not more than three (3) further ballots.
(h) There shall be a recess after the results of each ballot has been announced.
(i) If no person is duly elected, the President shall adjourn the Elective Assembly for a period of twenty-eight (28) days and the Secretary shall invite nominations anew; and the provisions of paragraphs 7(b) to (f) and 8(a) to (h) shall apply.
(j) If no person is thereafter duly elected, or if there has been no nomination under paragraph 7 or 8 (i) the Elective Assembly shall delegate the choice of the Bishop to a Selection Committee.

9. When a Bishop has been elected, the election shall be reported to the Archbishop by the President of the Elective Assembly for confirmation by a majority of the Bishops of the Province.

10. If a majority of the Bishops refuse to confirm the election of a Bishop, the Elective Assembly may proceed to a third election or delegate the selection of a Bishop to a Selection Committee.

11. (a) When the Elective Assembly decides to delegate the choice of a Bishop to a Selection Committee it may do so either:

(i) to a Committee of persons within the Diocese, or
(ii) to a Committee of persons some or all of whom are from outside the Diocese; and the Archbishop or, when there is no Archbishop, the Senior Bishop of the Province shall be added to the Committee, and he shall have an equal vote with the other members of the Committee.

(b) When a Bishop has been selected the President shall report the selection to the Archbishop for confirmation by a majority of the Bishops of the Province.

12. Should the choice of the Selection Committee not receive confirmation, the same Committee or another Committee may be requested by the Elective Assemb1y to make a new selection.

REGULATION 2A:}
Of the Coadjutor Bishop

(See Provincial Canons 11 and 12)

1. When the Bishop desires to have Episcopal assistance by means of the appointment of a Coadjutor, he shall notify that fact in writing to the Synod at its annual meeting or at a meeting specially called for that purpose.

2. The Synod shall consider the Bishop’s notification and, if it decides that the appointment of a Coadjutor is desirable, it shall direct the Diocesan Board of Finance to formulate the necessary financial arrangements and submit them for approval by the Diocesan Council.

3. When the financial arrangements have been approved by the Diocesan Council the Bishop shall transmit to the Archbishop the official documents prescribed in Article 1 of Provincial Canon 11 .

4. (a) When the Archbishop has notified to the Bishop the consent of the Bishops of the Province to the appointment of the Coadjutor, the Bishop shall within fourteen (14) days summon a meeting of the Council for the purpose of arranging for the election of a Coadjutor Bishop.

(b) The Council shall give not less than ten (10) days notice of the time, place and purpose of the Synod.

5. Regulation 2, paragraphs 6 to 12 shall apply for the election of a Coadjutor, so however that-

(a). in paragraph 6, THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH IS INSERTED AFTER sub-paragraph (b):

(i) the Bishop, who shall not have any vote;

(ii) failing him, the Vicar-General; or

(iii) failing the Vicar-General such other person as the Elective Assembly shall appoint; and

(b) in paragraphs 7 to 11, other than paragraph 7(c), the word "Coadjutor" is substituted for the word "Bishop".

6. The Coadjutor shall rank in seniority immediately after the Bishop.

7. It shall be lawful for the Coadjutor to be incumbent of a Parish, and he shall perform such diocesan duties and exercise such Episcopal functions and authority in the Diocese as the Bishop of the Diocese shall from time to time assign him.

8. The Coadjutor shall attend sessions of the Synod as a member of the Order of the Clergy.

9. The resignation of the Coadjutor shall be tendered to the Bishop who shall inform the Archbishop that the resignation has been tendered.

10. For the purpose of computing his pension the Coadjutor is deemed to have retired with consent:

(i) on vacating office at age sixty-five (65);

(ii) on resigning from office on or at any time after attaining the age of sixty (60) years; or

(iii) if he is certified by two duly qualified medical practitioners as no longer able by reason of physical or mental infirmity to discharge the duties of his office.

REGULATION 3:

Of the Vicar-General

1. (a) The Coadjutor shall ex-officio be the Vicar-General.

(b) When there is no Coadjutor or when he is absent from the Diocese or is unable to discharge the duties of his office the Bishop shall appoint a Vicar-General.

2. During the absence of the Bishop from the Diocese or in the event of the Bishop being unable to discharge his office, or when the See is vacant the Vicar-General shall have the administrative authority and jurisdiction as the Bishop, save only the making of permanent appointments.

3. The Bishop may at any time revoke the appointment of the Vicar-General.

4. (a) In the case of the death or resignation of the Bishop, and if there is no Coadjutor, the person holding the office of Vicar-General shall retain office and authority until the Archbishop or the Senior Bishop shall have taken order for the administration of the Diocese.

(b) If there be no Vicar-General, the Archdeacon or failing him, the Dean shall act as Vicar-General pending receipt of directions from the Archbishop or the Senior Bishop.

5. In the case of the death or resignation of the Vicar-General during the absence of the Bishop, the Archdeacon or, failing him the Dean shall act as Vicar-General and report such death or resignation to the Bishop as soon as possible and call a meeting of the Diocesan Council.

6. In the case of the death or resignation of the Vicar-General when the See is vacant, the same procedure shall be followed as provided for in Paragraph 5, substituting Archbishop for the Bishop.

REGULATION 4:

Of the Clergy

[See Provincial Canons 14, 15 and 17)

1. A clergyman shall vacate office on attaining the age of sixty-five (65).

2. A clergyman desiring to resign his cure before attaining the age of sixty-five (65) years shall give to the Bishop six (6) months’ notice of his intention to do so, or such shorter period of notice as the Bishop may in his discretion accept.

3. The Bishop may, with the concurrence of the Council, require the retirement of any clergyman duly licensed to the charge or assistant cure of any parish or ecclesiastical district, upon giving him six (6) months’ notice of the date upon which such retirement is to take effect.

4. A notice shall not be required on either side in the event of a clergyman

(a) being licensed to another cure in the Diocese or

(b) being certified in writing to the Bishop by two (2) duly qualified medical practitioners as no longer able from physical or mental infirmity to discharge the duties of his cure.

5. The Bishop may with the consent of the Synod reduce the stipend or other emolument and withdraw the license of any clergyman on the ground that, in the opinion of the Bishop and the Synod, the funds at their disposal are insufficient to provide the payment thereof, but such reduction of stipend or other emolument or withdrawal of license shall not be made until after six (6) months’ notice of the intention to do so has been given to the clergyman affected.

6. Subject to Paragraph 4 of Regulation 20, stipends and allowances payable to clergy shall be as fixed from time to time by the Diocesan Board of Finance.

7. (a) For the purpose of computing his pension, a clergyman is deemed to have retired with consent:

(i) on vacating office at age sixty-five;

(ii) on resigning from office on or at any time after the age of sixty (60) years;

(iii) on being certified by two duly qualified medical practitioners as no longer able from physical or mental infirmity to discharge the duties of his Cure.

(b) A clergyman who vacates office at any time after attaining the age of sixty (60) years may at the discretion of the Bishop, be assigned on contract to a cure for any specified period.

8. (a) When the Diocesan Council has not provided reasonable housing accommodation for retired Clergymen, the Council may consider the making of grants and/or loans for this purpose as it may decide.

(b) Applications for such grants and/or loans should be submitted to the Diocesan Board of Finance.

(c) The provisions set out in sub-paragraphs (a) and (b) above may be extended to the retiree’s widow or wife of an incapacitated retiree.

REGULATION 5:

Of the Duties of the Clergy

1. See Provincial Canon 15.

2. It shall be the duty of the Incumbent to cause to be kept a Register of all Services, together with the amounts received by way of collection, alms or offerings at every such service.

3. It shall be the duty of each incumbent as Chairman of the Vestry to furnish the Bishop in Council with:-

(a) a copy of his written report of the annual meeting of the parishioners by 30th April of each year. The report to the parishioners shall contain a full account of the Spiritual and temporal state of the Parish.

(b) a signed up-to-date statement of accounts of the parish on retirement, resignation, transfer or long leave.

4. Every clergyman shall be deemed to have notice of the Constitution and Canons of the Church and of these Regulations, and to have solemnly promised to be bound by and support the same.

REGULATION 5A:

Of the Clergy Council

1. There shall be a Clergy Council which shall meet from time to time for consideration and coordination of the priestly and pastoral work of the clergy.

2. The Clergy Council shall consist of the Bishop and all the Clergy duly licensed by him.

3. The Bishop shall be Chairman of the Clergy Council and in his absence the Vicar-General shall preside.

(a) A quorum -- one-third (1/3) of the clergy shall form a quorum.

(b) The Bishop shall appoint a Secretary and such other officers as may be necessary.

The Clergy Council shall present to the Annual Synod a general report covering its work.

REGULATION 6:

Of the Diocesan Court for the Trial of Priests and Deacons,

and of Judicial Proceedings

1. In this Regulation, the expression:

"The accused" means the priest or deacon against whom a charge has been preferred;

"The Bishop" includes the Vicar-General;

"The Diocesan Court" means an Ecclesiastical Court summoned by the Bishop under this Regulation;

"The President" means the person who shall preside in the Diocesan Court;

"The Prosecutor" means the person appointed by the Bishop to present and prosecute any charge before the Diocesan Court.

2. A clergyman shall be liable to prosecution and trial in the Diocesan Court for the following:

(a) indictable offences and also adultery, fornication and sodomy;

(b) holding and teaching publicly and advisedly any heresy or false doctrine;

(c) violating the Constitution and Canons or Regulations of his Ordination, Licensing, Institution, Collation, Enthronement or other similar occasion;

(d) violating the Constitution and Canons of the Province;

(e) violating the Constitution and Canons or Regulations of the Diocese in which he holds office;

(f) habitual neglect of the duties of his office;

(g) conduct unbecoming a clergyman, provided that in case of a charge of this nature the majority of a tribunal composed of five (5) Priests of not less than ten (10) years’ standing in Priests’ Orders shall decide that there is good cause for the conduct complained of to be classed as "conduct unbecoming a clergyman";

(h) breach of Ecclesiastical Order.

3. No original proceedings shall be deemed validly instituted before the Diocesan Court if the offence be not charged to have been committed within two (2) years of the commencement of the proceedings (except leave be given for a further extension of time by the Archbishop under his hand and seal), unless the proceedings be grounded upon a sentence of a civil or criminal court in which case such limitation shall not apply; provided that such proceedings be commenced within six (6) calendar months of such sentence having been pronounced.

4. All charges against a clergyman shall be made in writing in the form of an affidavit sworn before a Notary Public, a Justice of the Peace or Commissioner of Oaths and signed by the presenter or presenters and shall specify all the particulars of the offence or offences alleged by them as to time, place and other circumstances.

5. Any accusation of heresy or false doctrine, in order to be relevant, must aver that the accused has taught, published or otherwise promulgated some doctrine or opinion repugnant to, or at variance with the doctrine of the Church as contained and commanded in Holy Scripture and as set forth by the standards of faith and doctrine of the Anglican Church and contained in the Creeds and Books of Common Prayer. It must specify the particular matter in those standards which the accusation involves as well as the particular statements of the accused so repugnant thereto or at variance therewith, which may be the subject of the charge.

6. Whenever --

(a) a charge is preferred against a clergyman in respect of any of the foregoing offences under Paragraph 2, it shall be presented to the Bishop signed by a Church Warden in the parish where the clergyman officiates or by at least three (3) communicants of not less than thirty years of age; or

(b) the Bishop is of the opinion that scandal exists in connection with any clergyman; or that a charge should be presented against any clergyman in respect of the foregoing offences under Paragraph 2; or

7. The Bishop may, if he thinks fit, appoint a commission (hereinafter in this Regulation called "the Commission") to enquire into and report on the matter, or he may direct the clergyman to go before the Diocesan Court for trial.

8. (a) The Bishop shall furnish the clergyman with a copy of the charge or, if there be no charge, with a written statement of the reason for appointing the commission or the holding of the Court.

(b) In the case of the appointment of a Commission, the clergyman shall be entitled to receive a list of the names of the members thereof and he shall receive at least thirty (30) days’ notice of the time when and place where the Commission or Diocesan Court will sit.

9. (a) Whenever a Diocesan Court shall sit for the trial of any clergyman, the Bishop shall be the President of the Court; and the Chancellor or any other barrister of not less than six (6) years standing and being a communicant shall assist as legal assessor.

(b) The Bishop may appoint other assessors, lay or clerical.

10. (a) In any trial of a clergyman the President shall be assisted in the hearing and determination of the case, if the charge be one of heresy or false doctrine, by three (3) clergymen being priests of the Diocese of not less than seven (7) years in Priest’s Orders.

(b) In the case of any charge other than that of heresy or false doctrine, the President shall be assisted by not less than two (2) clergymen of the aforesaid standing.

11. (a) The Bishop may appoint any fit and proper person to present and prosecute the charge or, if the accused does not so appear, the Commission, and the clergyman may appear by himself and/or by Counsel or Solicitor.

(b) If the accused does not so appear, the Diocesan Court or the Commission may hear and determine the matter or hold the enquiry as the case may be notwithstanding his absence.

12. The proceedings of the Diocesan Court shall be in private.

13. The Chancellor may prescribe rules for the presentment of any charge or charges arising out of any of the matters referred to in Paragraph 2 and for regulating the conduct at hearings before a Commission or a Court of any matter for which no rules are prescribed by these Regulations: Provided that such rules shall not come into operation until approved in writing by the Bishop.

14. (a) The finding of the Diocesan Court or of a majority of members thereof shall be in writing and be signed by the President; and, if it be not of acquittal, the Bishop after consultation with the members of the Diocesan Court shall determine what effect shall be given to it.

(b) Any member of the Diocesan Court may put in writing his reasons for not agreeing with the finding of the majority, and those reasons shall be laid before the Bishop.

15. (a) When the finding of the Diocesan Court is not of acquittal, the sentence of the Bishop may be formal admonition or suspension for a period or deprivation of preferment.

(b) Suspension shall be accompanied by the total or partial loss of salary as the Diocesan Court may determine.

(c) The finding of the Diocesan Court and the sentence of the Bishop, when there is not an acquittal, shall be read at a sitting of the Court; and a copy of the sentence shall, in all cases where practicable, be as soon as possible communicated in writing by the Bishop to the clergyman concerned.

(d) The report of the Commission, (a copy of which shall be furnished to the clergyman), the proceedings before the Diocesan Court and the sentence of the Bishop shall be lodged in the Registry of the Diocese.

16. (a) An appeal, if notified to the Bishop within seven (7) days after the sentence is pronounced, shall lie to the Provincial Court of Appeal whose decision shall be final.

(b) Upon receipt by the Bishop of notice of an appeal, the execution of the sentence shall be stayed pending the hearing of the appeal.

17. (a) Any clergyman against whom judgment has been given who shall refuse to obey the sentence of the Diocesan Court, shall, if not sentenced to suspension or deprivation, be suspended: and if sentenced to suspension or deprivation, be liable to ex-communication.

(b) It shall be the duty of the Bishop, after notice given, to pronounce such sentence.

18. The Council may authorise the payment of the whole or any part of the expenses of any proceedings instituted under this Regulation from funds at the disposal of the Synod.

19. The Bishop may at any time suspend a clergyman from his functions pending any proceedings instituted under this Regulation and may during the term of such suspension withhold the whole or part of the clergyman’s emoluments.

20. (a) If at any stage in the course of any judicial proceedings the accused shall in writing make an admission of guilt and offer to submit to any sentence which may be pronounced against him, the Bishop shall have the power to dispose of the case in such a manner as may seem good to him on the basis of the admission.

(b) The sentence pronounced under such circumstances shall not exceed such sentence as may have been imposed by the Bishop after trial had the accusation been proved in a Court to the extent of the admission.

21. In all cases where grave charges have been brought against a clergyman, if he shall tender his resignation to the Bishop before any enquiry shall have been made into such charges, and if the Bishop presiding in a Court shall see fit to accept the resignation in the exercise of his discretion, the clergyman shall not thereby be exempt from judicial inquiry into the truth of the charges, provided proceedings are instituted within a period not exceeding six (6) months from the date of resignation.

22. Whenever a sentence has been passed by the Diocesan Court, it shall be competent for the Bishop within thirty (30) days after the sentence is passed to direct that the sentence be reviewed or the case be reheard if it shall appear to him that there are urgent reasons for believing that the sentence was founded on some error either as to facts of the case or as to the law of the Church, so that justice has not been done to the accused.

23. (a) Every Diocesan Court shall keep a full record of its proceedings including the articles of presentment with the names of the presenters and the accused, the evidence, the opinion of the clerical or lay assessors if any, and the judgment of the judge or judges.

(b) The record shall be preserved in the Registry of the Diocese.

24. It is the duty of any member of the Church when duly cited to attend and give evidence before the Diocesan Court.

25. (a) If it be necessary to take the testimony of an absent witness, such testimony shall be taken in the form and manner provided in the Provincial Constitution and Canons, by a Commissioner or Commissioners to be appointed for that purpose by the President and the evidence shall be reduced to writing and thereafter signed by the person or persons making the statement and countersigned by the Commissioner or Commissioners appointed for the purpose, whereupon such statement or statements shall be forwarded to the Diocesan Court and shall be read and used at the trial.

(b) No application for the appointment of such Commissioner or Commissioners shall be made by either party to the President except after notice in writing given by the one to the other of his or their intention as to apply.

26. No person shall sit as a member of the Diocesan Court or as an assessor who is a presenter of a charge or who is related to any accused person by affinity or consanguinity in a direct ascending or descending line, or a brother, uncle, nephew or first cousin or God-parent.

27. (a) Both the accused and the presenter or presenters jointly shall have respectively the right to object to not more than two (2) members of the Diocesan Court.

(b) If such objections be held by the remaining members of the Diocesan Court to be warranted, the Bishop shall appoint other clergymen to take the place of the member or members to whom such objection was taken.

REGULATION 7:

Of the Laity

(See Provincial Canon 26)

1. All baptised persons not being members of or in the habit of attending any place of worship of any religious body not in communion with the Anglican Church who claim to be members of the Anglican communion, shall be accepted as such.

2. No lay member of the Church shall have status as a "Communicant member" of the Church with such rights and privileges as belonging to a communicant unless, having had the opportunity to do so, he or she shall have received Holy Communion at least twelve (12) times in the year, of which Eastertide shall be one (1).

3. It is the bounden duty of every member of the Church to contribute generously and regularly of his time, talent and money to the mission, ministry, maintenance and extension of the work of the Church in proportion to his God given talents and financial means.

4. (a) Every member of the Church who is eighteen (18) years or over, or being less than eighteen (18) years is in receipt of an income, shall contribute to the work of the Church at home and overseas such sum as the member may determine bearing in mind the desirability of conforming to the biblical concept of tithing.

(b) Such contribution shall be called the Financial Stewardship Pledge and shall be in addition to any other offering or contribution which the member gives to the Church.

5. To qualify as an elector, a member of the Church must be a communicant who has attained the age of eighteen (18) years and has made and honoured the Financial Stewardship Pledge or has been excused from such payment by the Incumbent or Priest-in-charge of the Parish.

REGULATION 8:

Of the Synod

1. The Synod shall consist of three (3) Orders: The Bishop, the Clergy and the Laity.

2. (a) The members of the Synod shall be the Bishop, the Coadjutor, the Chancellor, the Registrar, the Diocesan Secretary, the Trustees, the Chairman of the Diocesan Board of Finance, the Diocesan Property Adviser, all licensed or instituted clergymen and Lay Evangelists, the lay representatives, the youth representatives at the invitation of the Bishop subject to sub-paragraph (b) and the lay members of Council.

(b) There shall be eight youth representatives, who must be electors and who shall be elected at a meeting, to be held on or before 31^st March annually, of Anglican Youth groups recognised by the Bishop in Council. There shall be at least one representative from each region as defined in paragraph 1 of Regulation 8A. Every such youth representative on his election shall sign the following declaration:

I ……………………..declare that I am a Communicant in Good Standing, being a member of the Parish of……………………………; and that I consent to serve as a Youth Representative of ………………………for the year …….

* (c) There shall be two (2) representatives from the Mothers’ Union who shall be electors and who shall be elected by the Mothers’ Union at a meeting, to be held on or before 31^st March annually of the Mothers’ Union of the Diocese.

^{*(d) There shall be two (2) representatives from the Anglican Church Men’s Society who shall be electors and who shall be elected by the Anglican Church Men’s Society at a meeting, to be held on or before 31^st March annually of the Anglican Church Men’s Society of the Diocese.}

3. No act or proceeding of the Synod or of any Council, Board or Committee thereof or appointed thereby shall be invalidated by means of any vacancy or vacancies in any of the above offices or among the lay representatives or by reason of the absence of the holders of any of above offices or any lay representatives or by reason of any accidental defect in the appointment or election of any such Council, Board, Committee or persons.

4. Every Parish which shall have paid in full the amount of its assessment for the last completed financial year before the Annual Session of Synod shall be entitled to one (1) lay representative; provided that, if the Parish has five hundred (500) or more registered communicants, it shall be entitled to two (2) lay representatives, and if it has one thousand (1,000) or more registered communicants, to three (3) lay representatives.

5. Every District may be granted one (1) lay representative as the Bishop in Council shall decide.

6. If the assessment of any Parish or District shall not have been paid in full for the last completed financial year before the Annual Session of Synod, or if the returns required by the Bishop have not been satisfactorily completed and sent in two (2) months before the Annual Session of Synod, the Clergy and Lay representatives of that Parish or District shall be disqualified from speaking or voting on behalf of their Parish or District at that session unless the Bishop shall decide otherwise.

7. No person shall be entitled to act as lay Representative for or serve on the Vestry of any Parish or District save that in which he is a registered Communicant in good standing.

8. (a) The election of lay Representatives shall take place not later than March 31, annually.

(b) Notice of time and place shall be given by the Incumbent of the Parish or District on two (2) Sundays during Divine Service by writing affixed to the Church door.

(c) In any case of where an election has not been held, the Bishop or Vicar-General may authorise the holding of an election before such person and at such time and place as he may direct.

(d) Notice of the election shall be given as the Bishop or Vicar-general may direct.

9. (a) On election, every lay Representative shall sign the following declaration:

I …………………declare that I am a Communicant in good standing, and that I consent to serve as a Lay Representative for the Parish of ……….... for the year …….

(b) Immediately after the election of a lay Representative the Incumbent of the Parish shall send to the Diocesan Secretary the aforementioned declaration together with a certificate in this form:

I certify that …………………. was on the ………… day of ………. duly elected a Lay Representative for the Parish of …………… in the Synod of the Church in Trinidad and Tobago.

(signature) ……………………… Incumbent.

10. In the event of a lay Representative dying, resigning or being absent from the Diocese, the Vestry may fill the vacancy for the unexpired term of office.

11. (a) The Annual Session of Synod shall be held in the second quarter of each year.

(b) The Bishop may call a meeting of the Synod at any time and shall do so at the written request of any ten (10) clergymen and ten (10) lay Representatives.

(d) A notice of the meeting and the agenda shall be sent to every member by the Secretary not less than FOURTEEN (14) DAYS before the meeting.

(e) There shall be a celebration of the Holy Communion on the morning of each day on which the Synod meets.

12. (a) The Bishop or the Vicar-general or, in their absence, the Archdeacon and one-fourth (1/4) of the clergy and one-fourth (1/4) of laity shall constitute a quorum.

(b) If one-half (1/2) hour after the time appointed there is no quorum, the meeting shall be abandoned.

13. (a) Save as hereinafter provided, the assent of the Bishop and of the majority of the members present shall be necessary to an act of the Synod.

(b) The Bishop, the Clergy and Laity may vote either as one (1) body or as three (3) separate Orders.

(c) A vote by Orders shall be taken if demanded by the Bishop or any five (5) members of the Synod, but only if the matter has not been voted upon already at the same meeting of the Synod.

(d) When a vote by Orders is taken a majority of the clergy present and voting and a majority of the laity present and voting and the assent of the Bishop shall be necessary to an act of the Synod.

(e) If a majority of the clergy and a majority of the laity shall vote in favour of the proposal and the Bishop shall not assent, the Bishop, if so required by a majority of two-thirds (2/3) of the members present and voting together, shall refer the matter to an adjourned meeting of the Synod to be held not more than four (4) weeks later.

(f) At such adjourned meeting, after any further discussion the matter shall be decided by a majority of the three (3) orders voting separately.

(g) A clear majority of the whole of each order present at the time of voting shall constitute a vote of that order.

14. (a) The Bishop shall preside at all meetings of the Synod if he be present.

(b) In his absence the Vicar-General or such member as the Bishop may appoint, shall preside.

(d) If the Bishop be absent no final decision shall be taken except in such matters as the Bishop may have directed in writing.

(e) If the See is vacant the Synod shall transact the business necessary to maintain the work of the Diocese.

15. (a) No proposal to alter or add to or repeal these Regulations shall be brought before the Synod unless it has been considered by the Council which shall instruct the Secretary to print any such proposal and send it to the members of Synod with the notice of the meeting.

(b) Any such proposal shall be introduced to the Synod by the Secretary on behalf of the Council.

16. (a) The Synod may from time to time make, amend or repeal rules (called "Standing Orders") for regulating the order and conduct of its business.

(b) The Standing Orders set forth in Regulation 27 shall be the Standing Orders until they or any of them are amended or repealed by Synod.

(c) Any motion for addition to, amendment, repeal or suspension of Standing Orders to take effect at a current meeting shall be voted for by at least three-fourths (3/4) of the members present.

REGULATION 8A:

Of the Regional Councils

1. There shall be four (4) Regional Councils constituted of the following regions:

Tobago: Comprising the Parishes of St. Andrew, St. David, St. Mary and St. Patrick.

South: Comprising the Parishes of St. Andrew, Holy Cross, St. Paul, St. Barnabas, St. Clement, St. Christopher, St. Augustine, St. Mark, St. Stephen, Grace Church and St. Faith and the District of St Peter.

North-East: Comprising the Parishes of Holy Saviour, Good Shepherd, St. Mary, St. Jude, St. James the Just, St. Thomas and St. David.

North-West: Comprising the Parishes of St. Michael, St. Agnes, All Saints, St. Crispin, St. Margaret, Christ Church, St. Matthias and the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity.

2. (a) Each Regional Council (in this Regulation called a "Council") shall consist of the following members:

(i) all clergy and stipendiary lay evangelists stationed in the Region;

(ii) three (3) members (in this paragraph "appointed members") selected by the Vestry of each Parish in the Region.

(b) One of the appointed members shall be a Lay Representative to the Synod. Each of the other two (2) members shall be a layperson (in this called a "Lay Member") and need not be a member of the Vestry.

(c) The appointed members shall be appointed not later than April 15th by the Vestry at the first meeting of the Vestry after the Annual Meeting.

(d) Subject to sub-paragraph (b), a vacancy occurring among any of the appointed members shall be filled by the Vestry concerned.

(e) The Chairman of each Council shall be elected by the Council from among its members annually at its first meeting after the appointment of the members from the Vestries or on a vacancy occurring in the Office.

(f) Subject to the preceding provisions of this paragraph, every member shall be eligible for reappointment.

3. The functions and duties of each Council shall be:

(a) to discover and act upon the Mission of the Church in the region;

(b) to plan, adapt and implement Programmes for the Mission of the Church in the region, including those in respect of:

(i) Christian Education

(ii) Adult Training

(iii) Stewardship

(iv) Youth

(v) Social Outreach

(vi) Church Extension, Evangelism, Ecumenism;

(d) to hold pre-Synod and post-Synod meetings;

(e) to strengthen and develop the sense of unity and purpose;

(f) to elect lay and clerical representatives to the Diocesan Council, the Diocesan Board of Finance and to the Diocesan Programme Planning Unit;

(g) to serve as a link in communication between the Diocese, the Region and the Parishes in the Region;

(h) to elect representatives to Diocesan Boards and Committees, as provided for in the Regulations; and

(i) to receive, examine and make recommendations on quarterly reports from Parishes.

(j) All applications for loans or permission to spend in excess of the maximum sum fixed by the Diocesan Council, and faculty request from Parishes for the consideration of either the Diocesan Council and/or the Diocesan Board of Finance, shall first be submitted to the respective Regional Council and copied to the Diocesan Secretary. The Regional Council shall deal expeditiously with such proposals and forward them along with their recommendations to the Diocesan Secretary.

4. At least one (1) meeting of each Council shall be summoned for every quarter of the calendar year.

5. An extraordinary meeting of a Council may be summoned by the Chairman or by the Bishop, or on the written request of seven (7) members of the Council.

6. The Chairman, and in his absence, a member selected by the meeting, shall preside at a meeting of the Council.

7. One-third (1/3) of the members shall form a quorum.

8. The Secretary of the Council (who need not be a member thereof) shall be appointed by the Council.

9. The office of the Council shall be located at such place in the Region as may from time to time be designated by the Council.

REGULATION 9:

Of the Diocesan Council

1. There shall be a Diocesan Council (hereinafter called "the Council") which shall be responsible for the general administration of the Diocese under the direction of the Bishop.

2. The Council shall consist of the following persons constituted as follows:

(a) as "Ex-officio" members - The Bishop, the Vicar-General, the Archdeacon, the Dean, the Chancellor, the Registrar, the Trustees, the Chairman of the Diocesan Board of Finance, the Diocesan Secretary, and the Diocesan Property Adviser;

(b) one (1) clergyman and one (1) layperson elected annually by each of the four (4) Regional Councils from among its members at its first meeting after the appointment of its members from the Vestries;

(c) five (5) clergymen of which four (4) shall be priests and five (5) lay members of Synod, elected by the Synod at its annual session;

(d) two (2) persons, who need not be members of Synod, but must be communicant members of the Church, nominated by the Bishop annually immediately after the annual session of the Synod.

^{*
(e) One (1) Lay Ministers’ Warden who shall be appointed by the Bishop from among members of the Clergy.} ^{*2A. The Council by majority decision shall declare a seat vacant and substitute alternates where:

a member elected under Regulation 9 (2) (b) or 9 (2) (c ) fails on three consecutive occasions to attend a statutory meeting without valid excuse; or
a member elected under Regulation 9(2) (b) or 9 (2) (c ) is unable to perform duties as a result of illness or death.} ^{*2B. Alternates are to be provided as follows:}

One alternate clergyperson and one alternate lay person elected by each of the four (4) Regional Councils from among its members at its first meeting after appointment of its members from the vestries;

Two (2) alternate priests and two (2) alternate laypersons elected by Synod at its annual session.

3. The Bishop shall be the Chairman of the Council, and in his absence the Vicar-General shall preside. Should the seat be vacant or the Bishop be absent from the Diocese, the Vicar-General shall be the Chairman of the Council.

4. (a) At least one (1) meeting of the Council shall be summoned for every month; provided that it shall not be necessary to summon a meeting for the Month of August;

(b) The Chairman and nine (9) other members shall form a quorum.

5. Vacancies in the Council occurring between the Annual Sessions of the Synod shall, if they occur among the Bishop’s nominees, be filled by the Bishop and, if among those elected by the Synod, by the Council and if among those elected by a Regional Council, by the Regional Council concerned.

6. The duties of the Council shall be:

(a) to advise the Bishop in all matters connected with administration of the Diocese;

(b) to receive reports of all committees and of the Regional Councils and to prepare the agenda for Synod;

(c) to prepare and circulate at least four (4) weeks before the Annual Session of Synod an estimate of ways and means for the ensuing year; and

(d) to appoint committees.

7. When Synod is not in session the Council shall exercise on behalf thereof the rights and powers vested in the Synod, subject to any limiting clause in these Regulations; provided that every Resolution passed by the Council in exercise of the power of control hereby conferred upon it shall be recorded in the Minutes of the Council and embodied in a special report to be laid before the Synod at the Annual Session next following the passage of such Resolution.

8. The Council shall present to the Annual Session of the Synod a general report covering its work and that of all its committees.

REGULATION 10:

Of the Diocesan Committees and Officers of the Diocese and Synod

1. (a) The following Standing Committees of the Council:

(i) Governing Body of the St. Michael School for Boys

(ii) Governing Body of the St. Mary’s Children’s Home

(iii) Missions

(iv) Buildings and Lands

(v) Education

(vi) Regulations

Board of Management/Development Projects

(viii) Board of Social Responsibility

(ix) Diocesan Communications Committee

shall be appointed by the Bishop in Council annually after the Annual Session of Synod.

(b) The Bishop in Council may appoint such other Committees as he may deem necessary or desirable.

(d) The Bishop, the Vicar-General, the Archdeacon, the Chancellor, the Registrar and the Diocesan Secretary shall be ex-officio members of each Committee.

(e) The Bishop shall nominate the Chairman and Secretary of each Committee and may preside at any meeting of any Committee.

(f) Persons who are not members of Synod may be appointed members of the Committees.

(g) The duties imposed on the respective Committees shall be those set out in these Regulations.

2. (a) There shall be a Chancellor and a Registrar appointed by the Bishop to hold office during his pleasure.

(b) If the See becomes vacant they shall continue in office until the next Bishop assumes the administration of the Diocese.

3. There shall be a Diocesan Secretary who shall perform such administrative duties as may be directed by the Bishop in Council; he shall also be Secretary of the Diocesan Council and of the Synod.

4. Synod in session shall approve the appointment of such persons as may be considered necessary to assist the Diocesan Secretary in the performance of his duties at Synod.

5. There shall be two (2) or more Diocesan Treasurers, who shall also be Trustees and responsible to the Bishop in Council for the management of the finances of the Diocese.

6. The Diocesan Secretary, the Diocesan Treasurers and Diocesan Property Adviser shall be appointed by the Bishop after consultation with the Council.

7. An Auditor or Auditors shall be elected yearly by the Synod at the Annual Session.

8. (a) There shall be three (3) Diocesan Business Referees who shall be elected by the Bishop in Council annually at its first meeting after the annual session of Synod.

(b) The Referees shall individually or jointly advise the Diocesan Council and any Committee or Board or any officer of the Diocese, at his or their request, on any matter or problem arising in the course of the business of the Diocese, including the sale or purchase of investments or real estate, property developments or any business proposition.

REGULATION 11:

Of the Diocesan Board of Finance

1. There shall be a Diocesan Board of Finance (hereinafter called "the Board") which shall consist of:

(a) two (2) representatives elected by each of the four (4) Regional Councils;

(b) five (5) members elected by the Synod at its annual session from a slate of candidates nominated by the Diocesan Council;

(d) two (2) members elected annually by the Diocesan Council at its first meeting after the annual session of Synod.

2. (a) The Bishop shall appoint a member of the Board as the Chairman thereof, such appointee being a communicant member of the Church.

(b) At the first meeting of the Board after the annual session of the Synod the Board shall elect a member thereof as the Vice-Chairman.

3. (a) Subject to any general policy directions of the Synod or of the Diocesan Council, the Board shall arrange and cause to be audited the investments and finances of the Diocese, and in particular the Board shall consider, decide, and implement its decisions in respect of:

(i) all questions relating to the finances and property of the Church in the Diocese;

(ii) the investment of moneys on mortgage or in the purchase of real estate in the Diocese or in such other securities as may be authorised by law in relation to the investment of Trust funds;

(iii) subject to Regulation 20A, the terms and conditions on which money shall be loaned to the Parishes;

(iv) the control of financial and accounting matters;

(v) the preparation of full financial statements and an Annual Report of the Diocese for each calendar year and the presentation of the statements when audited and of the Report to the Council at the annual session of the Synod;

(vi) the fixing annually of the amount of each Parochial Assessment.

(b) The Diocesan Budget and the Annual Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure:

(i) shall be submitted by the Board to the Council for approval with or without amendment not later than the second Tuesday in December;

(ii) on approval by the Council shall come into operation on the 1st day of January in the year; and

(iii) shall be laid before the Annual Session of the Synod in the ensuing year.

4. (a) At least one (1) meeting of the Board shall be summoned for every month; provided that it shall not be necessary to summon a meeting for the months of August and December.

(b) One-third (1/3) of the members of the Board shall form a quorum.

5. Every Regional Council and every Vestry and the Diocesan Programme Planning Unit shall submit to the Board annually -

(a) before the 28th day of February an audited Revenue and Expenditure Account and Balance Sheet for the previous calendar year;

(b) before the 15th day of November its estimates of revenue and expenditure for the ensuing calendar year.

6. (a) There shall be an Investment Sub-Committee of the Board (hereinafter in this Regulation called "the Committee"), which shall comprise:

(i) the Diocesan Treasurers and the Diocesan Secretary ex -officio;

(ii) such others of its members as the Board may designate.

(b) Subject to ratification thereof by the Board at its first meeting thereafter, the Committee shall consider and decide upon the investments of the Diocese, which shall be vested in the Trustees, and upon any changes in such investments.

REGULATION 1lA:

Of the Diocesan Programme Planning Unit

1. There shall be a Diocesan Programme Planning Unit (hereinafter in this Regulation called "the Unit") constituted as follows:

(a) one (1) clergyman and one (1) lay person elected by each of the four (4) Regional Councils from among its members annually at its first meeting after the appointment of its members from the Vestries;

(b) two (2) clergymen of whom at least one (1) shall be a priest and two (2) lay persons elected by the Synod at its annual session;

(d) two (2) persons (who need not be members of Synod or the Diocesan Council) at its first meeting after the Annual Session of the Synod.

2. The Unit shall be empowered to co-opt as members not more than two (2) persons.

3. The Chairman of the Unit shall be appointed by the Bishop in Council.

4. Vacancies in the Unit among the appointed or elected members shall be filled by the person or body authorised to make the appointment or elect the member concerned.

5. The Chairman and in his absence a member selected by the meeting shall preside at a meeting of the Unit.

6. (a) At least one (1) meeting of the Unit shall be summoned for every month; provided that it shall not be necessary to summon a meeting for the months of August and December.

(b) One-third (1/3) of the members shall form a quorum.

7. The functions and duties of the Unit shall be:

(a) in consultation and partnership with the Regional Councils to act as an innovator within the Diocese, and particularly to initiate programmes in matters in which the Regional Councils are authorised to act;

e.g.; Christian Education, Adult Training, Stewardship, Youth, Social Outreach, and Church Extension and such other matters as it may from time to time deem fit;

(b) to be a liaison between the Regional Councils and the Bishop in Council;

(d) to provide support and guidelines to the Director of Diocesan Training.

8. The Chairman of the Unit shall submit a monthly report of the work of the Unit to each regular meeting of the Diocesan Council.

REGULATION 12:

Of the Boys’ Industrial School Committee

1. The Committee shall be responsible for the general management of the School in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Inspector of Orphanages.

2. The Committee shall be responsible for the presentation annually to the Synod of a report on the work of the School.

REGULATION 13:

Of the Tacarigua Orphan Home Committee

1. The Committee shall be responsible for the general management of the Orphanage in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Inspector of Orphanages.

2. The Committee shall be responsible for the presentation annually to the Synod of a report on the work of the Orphanage.

REGULATION 14:

Of the Missions Committee

1. (a) The Missions Committee shall be responsible to the Synod through the Council for the promotion of the Church’s Mission to the World and in particular to the non-Christians in the Diocese.

(b) It shall encourage and assist the clergy in training their people to share in the Church’s Mission in frequent intercession and in regular giving.

2. The Committee shall be charged with the allocation to particular Societies, Missions or Missionary work of money received from the Diocese or the Parishes.

3. The Committee shall be responsible for the care and maintenance of such visual aids as are possessed by the Diocese.

4. Every Parish and District shall make a gift each year for allocation by the Committee.

REGULATION 15:

Of the Buildings and Lands Committee

It shall be the duty of the Buildings and Lands Committee to consider and advise the Bishop in Council in regard to all matters pertaining to Church property as set out in Regulation 22 (Of Buildings and Property).

REGULATION 16:

Of the Regulations Committee

It shall be the duty of this Committee to consider expeditiously any points brought to their attention by the Council in regard to the existing Regulations, with a view to amendment.

REGULATION 17:

Of the Education Committee for Anglican Schools

1. The Committee shall report to the Annual Session of the Synod on its work during the preceding year.

2. No Church School shall be opened or built or closed or its status altered unless the approval of the Council has been sought and obtained through the Committee.

3. It shall be the duty of the Committee to see that the Religious Instruction given in all Church Schools is of a proper standard.

4. (a) It shall be the duty of the Committee to encourage or require teachers in Church Schools to qualify to give Religious Instruction.

(b) The Diocesan Council on the advice of the Committee shall appoint qualified persons to perform duties of Inspectors of Schools in Religious Knowledge.

5. All possible assistance shall be given in suggesting and providing forms of Prayers for use in schools and a Syllabus of Religious Instruction.

6. Normally only members of the Church shall be appointed to the Staff of Church Schools.

7. It shall be the duty of the Committee to assist and advise the Incumbent in improving Sunday Schools and other means of training their people, young and adult, in the faith and worship of the Church.

8. Matters within the jurisdiction of the Education Act are dealt with by the Anglican Board of Management which is a Statutory Board.

REGULATION 18:

Of Vestries and Officers of the Congregation

1. In this Regulation "Church Moneys" shall mean donations (other than Easter Offerings and Whitsun Offerings contained in special offering envelopes and the open collection on Easter Day and Whit-Sunday) Financial Stewardship Pledges, Church collections and Fees, Proceeds of Entertainments, Rents of Lands and buildings and Income from Invested Funds vested in the Incorporated Trustees in trust for the Parish.

2. (a) Subject to paragraph (h), at the annual meeting for the election of members of the Vestry the registered communicants of each Parish shall elect not less than five (5) and not more than fourteen (14) persons, who together with the incumbent and Church Wardens of each such respective Parish, shall form the Vestry thereof.

(b) The Lay Representatives to the Synod shall be selected from those members chosen to serve on that Vestry.

(d) Vacancies in the course of the year may be filled by the Incumbent.

(e) Persons elected to be members of the Vestry must be communicants in good standing who have reached the age of eighteen (18) years.

(f) The Annual Meeting of which fourteen (14) days’ notice shall be given, shall be held not later than March 31st annually for the election of the Vestry and Lay Representatives.

(g) If for any cause the holding of the annual meeting be delayed, the Bishop may sanction the holding thereof at a later date.

(h) Where a Parish consists of more than one congregation an annual congregational meeting may be held for each congregation for the purpose of electing members from that congregation to the Vestry. The number of members to be elected from each congregation shall be determined by the Vestry at a meeting to be held at least one month prior to the holding of the Annual Meeting.

3. The Church Wardens, who must be communicants in good standing, shall be appointed annually; one (1) by the Incumbent and the other by the Annual Meeting. Church Wardens shall be ex-officio members of the Vestry.

3A. (a) Where a Parish consists of one or more congregations the Vestry may annually appoint one of its members from each congregation to serve as an Assistant Church Warden for the respective congregation. The Vestry may revoke any such appointment for just cause.

(b) It shall be the duty of an Assistant Church Warden to assist the Rector and Vestry of the Parish in the work of the Church in his congregation.

4. (a) The Vestry should meet at least once every four (4) months and as required by the Incumbent or by any two (2) members. Such members shall give written notice in that behalf to the Incumbent who shall summon a meeting of the Vestry within seven (7) days.

(b) One-third (1/3) of the members shall form a quorum but in no case shall the quorum be less than three (3).

(c) The Chairman shall be the Incumbent or, if he is absent, the Assistant Priest/Curate if there be one, or the Incumbent’s Warden.

(d) At the first meeting of the Vestry after the Annual Meeting, the Vestry shall elect a Secretary, a Treasurer and an Auditor.

(e) The Auditor shall not be, but the Secretary and Treasurer may or may not be, a member of the Vestry. The Vestry may revoke any such appointment for just cause.

(f) The duties of the Auditor shall include the auditing of all Special Funds of the Parish.

5. (a) The Vestry shall be the guardians of all Church buildings, lands and other properties belonging to the Parish or District; shall effect the necessary repairs and insurance of all such buildings and make all necessary payments: Provided that no major repairs, alterations or erection of new buildings may be undertaken without prior approval in writing from the Diocesan Council.

(b) The Vestry shall administer the finances of the Parish in accordance with these regulations.

(c) The Vestry shall submit to the Diocesan Board of Finance and copy to the Regional Council a quarterly statement of the finances of the Parish in the form approved by the Diocesan Council not later than one (1) month following the end of each calendar quarter.

(d) The Vestry shall prepare and submit to the respective Regional Council for its consideration Programmes for the Mission of the Church in the Parish including: -

(i) Christian Education;

(ii) Adult Training;

(iii) Stewardship;

(iv) Youth;

(v) Social Outreach;

(vi) Church Extension, Evangelism, Ecumenism.

6. The duties of the Treasurer of the Vestry are:

(a) to receive all Church moneys and to make all payments sanctioned by the Vestry and to keep accounts in such form as may be required by the Council;

(b) to make up to the end of December each year and present to the Vestry an account of receipts and expenditure;

(c) to deliver to the Auditor a Revenue and Expenditure Account and a Balance Sheet for the previous calendar year and to place copies thereof before the annual meeting;

(d) to present the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure of the Parish for the ensuing calendar year to the Vestry for its approval before the 7th day of October in each year and to forward a copy of the same not later than the second Tuesday in November to the Diocesan Board of Finance.

7. The duties of the Secretary shall include the keeping of the Minute Book in which he shall enter the Minutes of every meeting of the Vestry, the names of the members present and a record of the business transacted at each meeting.

REGULATION 19:

Of Lay Readers

1. See Provincial Canon 20.

2. On the application of an Incumbent, the Bishop may license to the Parish as a Lay Reader or a Catechist any communicant.

3. The license may be revoked at any time by the Bishop, and there shall be no appeal against such revocation.

4. The license unless revoked shall remain in force until the end of December next following the date of issue, but may be renewed from year to year if the Bishop so decides.

5. The Bishop may prescribe rules to be observed by Readers and Catechists; and acceptance of a License shall be deemed to imply a promise that the recipient will observe such rules to the best of his ability.

REGULATION 20:

Of Maintenance and Finance of the Church

1. There shall be a central fund of the Diocese which shall be applied in payment in whole or in part of:

(a) the Bishop’s stipend and allowance, the maintenance and repair of the Bishop’s residence;

(b) the stipends and allowances of the Clergy and licensed Catechists;

(d) the insurance, repairs and maintenance of non-parochial property;

(e) grants or loans to Parishes for the erection of new buildings, repairs to existing buildings and their insurance;

(f) pensions;

(g) Church extensions, evangelistic and social work;

(h) Provincial expenses.

2. (a) Every Parish and District shall contribute to the Central Funds such sums as shall be fixed by the Diocesan Board of Finance under Regulation 11 and approved by the Diocesan Council. The payment of the sum so determined (called in these Regulations the "Assessment") shall be a first charge on all funds at the disposal of the Vestry.

(b) Where in any two consecutive months the Parish fails to pay its Assessment, the Parish Vestry shall submit a written statement to the Diocesan Secretary and the respective Regional Council setting out the reasons therefore. The Regional Council shall examine the statement and submit their views and recommendations to the Diocesan Secretary expeditiously.

(c) Where by the 15th day of January in any year the Assessment levied on a Parish has not been paid in full for the preceding year, a written statement signed by the Incumbent and Church wardens outlining the reasons therefore accompanied by a detailed statement of Income and Expenditure for that year shall be submitted not later than 31st day of January to the Diocesan Secretary and be presented by him to the Diocesan Board of Finance at its next meeting. On examination thereof the Board shall make recommendations to the Bishop in Council concerning the steps to be taken thereon.

(d) Where a Parish persistently falls short in Assessment payments the Bishop after due investigation and consultation with the Diocesan Council may take such steps as the circumstances appear to warrant including a declaration that the Parish has forfeited its status as such and is deemed an aided Parish, and may withdraw the services of a Resident Priest.

(e) The Parish Vestry of an aided Parish shall submit to the Diocesan Board of Finance by the end of October in each calendar year on the form provided an estimate of income and expenditure for the current year and a budget for the following year. The Diocesan Board of Finance shall report to the Diocesan Council its decision on the amount of aid to be granted from the Diocesan Central Fund. The Diocesan Board of Finance shall encourage an aided Parish to become a self-supporting Parish.

(f) The Diocesan Board of Finance shall have power to alter any or all of the budgeted expenditure of an aided Parish.

3. (a) The stipend of the Bishop shall not be less than $5,000.00 (five thousand dollars) per annum.

(b) He shall be provided with an episcopal residence which shall be kept in repair and proper maintenance free from payment by the Bishop of any rates, taxes or other charges.

(c) The payment of the Bishop’s stipend shall commence from the date of consecration or, in the case of translation, from the date of the confirmation of election.

4. (a) Stipends, allowances and pensions of Clergy, Teaching Staff and other employees of the Diocese, shall be paid on a scale to be fixed or approved by the Diocesan Board of Finance and the Council.

(b) Easter offerings and Whitsun offerings contained in special offering envelopes and the open collection on Easter Day and Whit Sunday, but excluding the Stewardship envelopes shall be paid into the Diocesan Central Fund for the defraying of the stipends and allowances of clergymen.

5. (a) Reductions in and additions to stipends and the grant of allowances can be made only by Synod or, if considered urgent and necessary, by the Bishop in Council.

(b) Such action by the Bishop in Council must be approved or disapproved at the next Annual Session of the Synod.

6. The Bishop in Council may make regulations for the grant of leave of absence to the clergy, and may by such regulations authorise the payment of passages and of such expenses incurred in relation to the performance of the duty of the clergy when on leave as the Bishop may approve.

7. All Stipendiary clergymen are considered to be in whole time employment, and shall not engage in other gainful occupation without permission of the Bishop in Council

8. Stipends and allowances shall be paid monthly by the Treasurers.

9. (a) The passage of any clergyman, his wife and family, coming to take up work in the Diocese under the License or otherwise from the Bishop, shall be paid from the Central Fund unless otherwise provided for.

(b) The return passage of such clergyman, his wife and family, shall be paid from the Central Fund if he leaves the Diocese after not less than four (4) years’ service.

(c) The Bishop in Council is authorised to deal with special circumstances necessitating a priest’s departure from the Diocese.

10. Income arising from special endowment funds shall be applied to the purpose for which such funds were created and to no other purpose.

11. The Council, on the recommendation of the Board of Finance, shall advise the Trustees upon all questions relating to the Finance and property of the Church and give advice on any financial matter which may be referred to it by the Bishop.

12. The Trustees shall, with the consent of the Council on the Recommendation of the Board of Finance, from time to time invest any moneys in their hands at interest on mortgage or in the purchase of real estate in the Diocese, or in such other security as may be authorised by law relating to the investment of Trust Funds.

13. The Trustees may, at the request of the Council through the Board of Finance, advance or lend money to the Parishes on such conditions as that Board may determine.

14. The Bishop shall have power with the advice of the Council to make regulations for the administration of the finances of the Diocese in furtherance of the provisions of the Regulations; and such regulations shall have the same force and effect as if incorporated therein.

15. (a) The Archdeacon may visit any Parish and enquire into the financial conditions existing therein, inspect the books and have the accounts audited.

(b) He shall also examine all buildings.

(c) These duties of the Archdeacon shall not extend to the Cathedral Parish, of which the Dean of the Cathedral is the Rector and is his own Archdeacon.

16. The Bishop with the advice of the Council may appoint or approve a scale of Diocesan and Parochial Fees.

REGULATION 20A:

Of Loans and Advances to Vestries

1. Subject to the provisions of this Regulation, a loan or advance may be made to a Vestry of a Parish by the Diocesan Board of Finance, at such rate of interest as the said Board may determine, for the erection, major repairs, alteration, improvement of premises or for the purchase of new premises or for any other purpose of a capital nature.

2. The application for the loan or advance shall be supported by a written resolution of the Incumbent and Vestry who desire the loan or advance and they shall satisfy the Board:

(a) that careful plans and estimates for the work have been made;

(b) that good security for the proposed loan can be offered; and

(c) that reliable arrangements have been made for meeting the total cost of the work, or the proposed acquisition and for repaying the loan.

3. A sum equal to at least one-third (1/3) of the total cost of the project shall be provided, by or on behalf of the applicant, in cash or in free labour and material: Provided that, where the Board is satisfied that the actual conditions of the Parish and other circumstances warrant it, a greater portion than two-thirds (2/3) or the whole amount may be loaned or advanced.

4. No part of the desired loan or advance shall be paid to the applicant until the cash promised has been received or the free labour and material has been supplied or pledged.

5. Any building which is the subject of a loan or advance shall be fully insured; and, in default of satisfactory arrangements being made to reimburse the insurance premium, any payment of such premiums by the Board shall be treated as part of the loan or advance; and the provisions of paragraphs 6 and 7 shall apply to the repayment of such sum.

6. The repayment of the principal of the loan or advance and the payment of interest thereon shall be made a charge on any general funds at credit of the Parish ranking next after assessment and any other expenditure in the approved budget of the Parish that may be specified by the Diocesan Board of Finance.

7. Repayment shall be made in equal periodic instalments which shall include principal and interest at the rate of interest agreed upon.

REGULATION 21:

Of the Trustees and Their Seal

1. The Trustees shall be the Trustees as appointed by or under Ordinance No. 14 of 1930, as amended.

2. The Trustees shall have a Corporate Seal of a form and style approved by the Synod which may be changed from time to time by a Resolution of Synod.

3. The said Corporate Seal shall be affixed to all Deeds and Documents which require execution by the Diocesan Secretary on behalf of the Trustees and shall be counter-signed by any two Trustees and the Diocesan Secretary.

4. The said Seal shall be so affixed only on the authority of a Resolution passed the Synod or Council; and the fact of affixing such Seal shall thereupon be in the Seal Register.

5. The said Seal and the Seal Register shall be kept by the Diocesan Secretary.

6. (a) All Church property shall be vested in the Trustees.

(b) It shall be the duty of the Trustees to see that the conditions of all Trusts are properly observed.

REGULATION 22:

Of Buildings and Property

1. The Archdeacon shall be responsible to the Bishop in Council for inspecting and reporting on the condition of all Church buildings with a view to ensuring that they are kept in a proper state of repairs, insured and properly used.

2. All building works shall be carried out in accordance with the building instructions and specifications as approved from time to time by the Bishop in Council.

3. In every Parish and Ecclesiastical District there shall be taken annually before Whit Sunday, by the Incumbent with the assistance of such persons as he may appoint to that end, and in such form as the Bishop may prescribe, an inventory of all lands, churches, chapels, schools, houses or other buildings, and of all implements, stock books, documents, ornaments and utensils vested in the Trustees or in any Parsonage, Parish Church or Chapel; and such inventory shall be deposited with the Diocesan Secretary and a copy kept by the Incumbent.

4. (a) Whenever deemed necessary by the Trustees, an inspection of any Church Property shall be made by the Diocesan Property Adviser and a report of such survey shall be forwarded to the Trustees and, if parochial property, a copy to the Vestry of the Parish.

(b) The cost of any dealing with lands or property shall be paid by the Parish in which such lands or property are situated, or by the Trustees as the Council shall direct.

5. No Parsonage House shall be let or hired until the written consent of the Bishop in Council has been obtained on application to him in writing by the Incumbent and Church Wardens.

6. No Parochial School or other building shall be let or hired without the consent of the Incumbent.

7. No land or building belonging to the Church may be offered for sale, mortgage, lease, rent or otherwise alienated without the permission of the Bishop in Council.

8. Whenever Church lands are sold or other wise disposed of, there may be reserved at the discretion of the Synod or the Council, all such portions of any lands as may have been used for purposes of burial in accordance with the rights of the Church.

9. In every case of the sale of any Church lands by the authority of the Synod or Council, with the permission of an Incumbent or Vestry to apply the proceeds of such sale to any particular purpose, the Incumbent or Vestry shall send to the Financial Secretary a statement of the application of such proceeds.

10. No 1oan shall be raised or liabilities incurred in respect of the erection, purchase, alteration, maintenance, repair or furnishing of any Church, Chapel, School or Parsonage or other Church building without the consent of the Incumbent and Vestry and of the Bishop in Council; and, if any such loan is raised or liability incurred in contravention of this provision, the person or persons responsible shall be personally liable therefore and no Church Funds shall be chargeable therewith.

REGULATION 23:

Of Baptism

1. No person shall be accepted as a Sponsor at Holy Baptism unless he or she be a communicant member of the Church.

2. Where it is found impossible for three (3) Sponsors to be provided for a candidate for Holy Baptism, one (1) Sponsor shall suffice.

3. No person shall be admitted as a Sponsor at Holy Baptism or Confirmation who is known to be leading an immoral life.

4. It shall be the duty of the Clergy to forbid wanton names to be given in Baptism.

REGULATION 24:

Of Holy Matrimony

1. See Provincial Canon 29.

2 (a) A marriage may be solemnised or celebrated by a clergyman between persons either of whom has been divorced by a decree in the Civil Court and whose husband or wife by the former marriage is still living; provided that such solemnisation or celebration shall not be done without the written permission of the Bishop.

(b) A member of the Church who has been divorced by a decree in the Civil Court and whose husband or wife by the former marriage is still living and who desires to contract another marriage must have the written permission of the Bishop.

REGULATION 25:

Of the Holy Communion

Whenever a Clergyman, pursuant to the second and third rubrics of the Order of the Administration of the Lord’s Supper in the Book of Common Prayer and to the relevant rubrics in the Liturgy of the Church in the Province of the West Indies, refuses any person admission to the Holy Communion, he shall be obliged forthwith to give an account of the same to the Bishop and therein obey his order and direction.

REGULATION 26:

Of Patronage and Parishes

1. All Church patronage shall be vested in the Bishop.

2. The creation, the division or the alteration of archdeaconries, rural deaneries, parishes and districts shall be made by the Bishop in Council.

3. Whenever it is intended to alter any parish or district, two (2) months’ notice shall be given by the Secretary of the Council to the Incumbent and Church Wardens concerned; and, if within that time the Incumbent, Church Wardens or Vestry give written notice of objection, the Bishop shall not take any final action until the objection has been considered by the Bishop in Council.

REGULATION 27:

Of Standing Orders

Regulating the Meetings of the Synod

and the

Order and Conduct of Business Therein

1. The Synod shall be opened and closed each day with Prayer, and the Holy Bible and the Book of Common Prayer shall be on the table.

2. The following shall be the order of business:

(a) calling the roll of the Clergy and Lay Representatives and recording the names of those present;

(b) reading and confirming Minutes of the last Synod;

(d) presenting Reports, Memorials, Petitions and Correspondence;

(e) reading Notices of motion of which notice has been given;

(f) giving notice of motions;

(g) appointing Officers and the Council for the ensuing year;

(h) debate on motions of which notice has been given;

(i) appointment of Auditors; and,

(j) any other business.

3. (a) No motion shall be made except upon notice thereof save where otherwise provided by these rules.

(b) Except where the time for giving notice of motion is expressly limited, notice of motion may be given at any time and shall:

(i) be in writing sent by the mover;

(ii) state the actual terms of the motion to be submitted to the Synod; and,

(iii) be sent or handed to the Secretary by whom it shall be read.

(d) Any member may second a motion without prejudice to his right to speak later in the debate.

(e) No motion when seconded may be withdrawn without the leave of the Synod.

4. (a) No motion involving the question of finance or expenditure in excess of any sum appearing in the estimates shall be made except upon notice given not less than four (4) weeks before the Synod meets.

(b) No motion for addition to or alteration of these Regulations or any of them shall be made except upon notice given not less than four (4) weeks before the Synod meets.

(c) All notices of motion given under this Regulation shall be printed and a copy thereof sent to each member of Synod not less than one (1) week before the Synod meets.

5. A motion to postpone or adjourn any debate or that the Meeting be adjourned during any debate, may be made without any notice; and the question shall be put forthwith and decided without amendment or debate.

6. When the President has taken the chair, no member shall stand without permission except when addressing the chair.

7. When two (2) or more members rise together, the President shall decide which of them shall speak first.

8. (a) No member may speak more than once on the same question in the same debate unless in explanation or to a point of order or in reply to a motion which he has himself moved.

(b) Every member when speaking shall address the chair and shall speak standing.

(d) No speaker shall impute improper motives to any other speaker and all personalities shall be avoided.

9. Whenever the President rises, any member then speaking or about to speak shall resume his seat.

10. The President may call upon a speaker to close his speech within five minutes provided that the speaker has already been speaking for not less than ten minutes.

11. (a) On a motion to that effect (of which no notice need be given) the
President may at any time resolve the Synod into a Committee of the
whole Synod for the consideration of a specific question.

(b) When the Synod goes into Committee the President shall continue to take the Chair.

(c) When in Committee the Synod shall be regulated by the same rules of order save that members speak more than once on the same question.

(d) The proceedings of the Synod in Committee shall form part of the Minutes of the Synod and shall be printed in the Journal of Proceedings.

(e) The resolutions of the Committee shall be reported to the Synod forthwith; and on motion, of which no notice need be given, the Synod shall adopt or reject the same without amendment or debate.

12. (a) The President shall decide the order in which amendments shall be put.

(b) When all amendments have been voted upon, the original motion as amended shall be put.

13. The subject matter of a question which has been voted upon already shall not be introduced again during the same session.

14. (a) Any member may move without notice that the Standing Orders or any of them be suspended.

(b) When the mover has explained the object of the proposed suspension and the motion has been seconded, the question shall be put forthwith and decided without amendment or debate.

15. (a) The President, unless a ballot is to be taken, shall put every question by asking members in favour of the motion to say "aye" and those against to say "no", and shall then announce the decision.

(b) If the decision be challenged, a vote shall be taken by a show of hands or, if it is demanded by three members, the vote shall be by ballot.

16. Any question of order not provided for in these rules shall be decided by the President without debate.

APPENDIX A

THE CONSTITUTION

OF THE

CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY*

1. The Parish Church of the Holy Trinity in Port-of-Spain is the Cathedral Church of the Diocese (of Trinidad and Tobago).

2. The Cathedral Chapter shall consist of the Dean, the Archdeacon of Trinidad (who shall have all the rights and privileges of a Canon) and not more than six (6) Canons.

3. The Canons shall be appointed by the Bishop from among the Clergy of the Diocese holding the Bishop’s License. Any Canon permanently leaving the Diocese or ceasing to hold the Bishop’s License shall ‘ipso facto’ vacate the Canonry held by him. In case of a Canon becoming an Archdeacon, his Canonry shall thereby become vacant.

4. The Chapter shall annually appoint a Secretary and, if necessary, a Treasurer from among the members.

5. The Dean shall invite each Canon to preach in the Cathedral Church at least once every year.

6. The Bishop has the right to the use of the Cathedral Church for all such special services and functions as he may deem necessary for the due execution of his Episcopal Office.

7. The Dean shall summon the Chapter at least once a year and/or at the written request of three (3) members of the Chapter.

8. The Dean and Chapter shall take order for the conduct of its business and the exercise of its functions and shall hear the Bishop upon any matter on which he may consult them.

APPENDIX B

DECLARATION OF FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES

We, the Archbishop, Bishops and Clerical and Lay Representatives of the Church in the Province of The West Indies, comprising the Dioceses of Barbados, Jamaica, The North Eastern Caribbean and Aruba (formerly Antigua), Guyana, Nassau and The Bahamas, Trinidad & Tobago, The Windward Islands and Belize, being assembled in the Island of Antigua for a Special session of the Synod of the said Province in the year of Our Lord One Thousand nine hundred and ninety-one consent and declare as follows -

(a) We receive and maintain the faith of Our Lord Jesus Christ as taught in the Holy Scriptures, held in the Primitive Church, summed up in the Creeds, and affirmed by the undisputed General Councils.

(b) We receive and maintain the Faith, Doctrine, Sacraments and Discipline of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, according as the Church of England has received the same.

(c) We receive the Book of Common Prayer and the Ordering of Bishops, Priests and Deacons, as agreeable to the Word of God.

(d) We disclaim for ourselves the right of altering any of the aforesaid Standards of Faith and Doctrine.

(e) We claim for ourselves the right of accepting any alterations in the Formularies of the Church which may be allowed by any General Synod, Council, Congress or other Assembly of the Churches of the Anglican Communion, and of making at any time adaptations and abridgements of, and additions to, the Services of the Church.

(f) We accept the authority of any General Synod of the Anglican Communion to which this Province shall be invited to be represented to review and revise any changes in or additions to the Services of the Church made by the Church in this Province.

[from: The Constitution and Canons

of the Church in the

Province of the West Indies, 1991]

APPENDIX C

PROVINCIAL CANON 11

OF COADJUTOR, SUFFRAGAN AND ASSISTANT BISHOPS

1. When it appears desirable to the Bishop and Synod of a Diocese that the Bishop should have Episcopal assistance by means of the appointment of a Coadjutor or a Suffragan Bishop, the Bishop or other authority of the Diocese acting for him shall send to the other Bishops of the Province through the Archbishop official documents setting forth -

(a) the desire of the Bishop and of the Synod for the appointment of a Coadjutor or one or more Suffragan Bishops;

(b) the fact that due provision has been made under Canonical or other binding authority to pay his stipend for such time as he shall continue in the said office of Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop;

2. When a majority of the Bishops has declared their consent to the appointment of a Coadjutor or a Suffragan Bishop for the Diocese concerned, the Archbishop shall notify the same to the Bishop or other authority aforesaid, and the Bishop and Diocesan Synod may proceed to the election of the Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop, as the case may be.

3. The election of a Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop shall take place in an Elective Assembly constituted as provided in section 3 of Canon 7. The voting shall be by Houses, clerical and lay, and a two-thirds majority in both Houses shall be necessary for election.

4. The election of a Coadjutor Bishop shall be by direct election or otherwise in accordance with the Canons or Regulations of the Diocese relating to the election of a Diocesan Bishop; and the election of a Suffragan Bishop shall be on the nomination of the Diocesan Bishop.

5. The election of a Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop shall be subject to confirmation by the Bishops of the Province as provided in Canon 8 with the necessary modifications.

6. When a majority of the Bishops has confirmed the election, the Archbishop shall, if the person so elected be not already in Episcopal Orders, proceed to take order for his Consecration.

7. A Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop shall at his Consecration, or if already in Episcopal Orders, at his Installation, take and subscribe the Declarations and Oath prescribed in section 10 of Canon 8.

8. A Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop shall perform such Diocesan duties and exercise such Episcopal authority in the Diocese as the Bishop of the Diocese shall from time to time assign to him:

PROVIDED that, notwithstanding any Diocesan Canon or Regulation to the contrary, the Coadjutor or if there is no Coadjutor, the Suffragan Bishop, or where there are two or more Suffragan Bishops the senior of them, shall administer the Diocese in the absence of the Bishop.

9. A Bishop Coadjutor shall on the resignation, retirement or death of the Bishop of the Diocese without further election or confirmation succeed as Bishop of the Diocese as from the date of such resignation, retirement or death. He shall notify the Archbishop of his succession and the Archbishop shall cause the other Bishops to be informed. At his Enthronement, the Coadjutor shall take and subscribe the Declarations and Oath prescribed in Canon 8, Section 13.

10. The tenure of office of a Suffragan Bishop shall not be terminated on the incapacity, resignation or death of the Bishop of the Diocese.

11. A Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop shall attend sessions of Diocesan Synod as a member of the House of Clergy, save that in the absence of the Bishop of the Diocese he shall preside notwithstanding any Diocesan Canon or Regulation to the contrary.

12. Coadjutor and Suffragan Bishops shall have membership of the Provincial Synod as members of the House of Bishops in accordance with paragraph 1 of Article 2 of the Constitution.

13. If a Coadjutor or a Suffragan Bishop wishes to resign, he shall tender his resignation to the Bishop of the Diocese who shall inform the Archbishop that such resignation has been tendered.

14. If a Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop resigns, retires or dies or is certified by two duly qualified Medical Practitioners as no longer able by reason of mental or physical infirmity to discharge the duties of his office, the Bishop of the Diocese shall inform the Archbishop of the fact, and the Archbishop shall formally declare the office vacant and signify the date from which it is to be reckoned, whereupon the Bishop of the Diocese shall proceed to the election of a successor.

15. The Bishop of a Diocese may, with the approval of his Diocesan Council in regard to the appointee’s terms and conditions, appoint someone in Episcopal Orders an Assistant Bishop in his Diocese, whose tenure of office as such shall be at the pleasure of the Diocesan and whose tenure shall in any event expire on the death, resignation or retirement of the said Diocesan.

APPENDIX D

PROVINCIAL CANON 12

OF THE FORMATION OF DIOCESES

1. The Provincial Synod may, at the request of the Synod of a Diocese, or on its own initiative and with the concurrence of the Bishop or Bishops and the Synod or Synods of the Diocese or Dioceses concerned, form a new Diocese within the Province, or re-arrange the boundaries of a Diocese or merge two or more Dioceses.

2. The Provincial Synod may incorporate an adjacent Diocese into the Province at the request of the Synod of that Diocese:

PROVIDED that if the said Diocese is already part of another Province, the consent of that other Province must first have been obtained.

3. Any decision by the Provincial Synod to cede a Diocese or a part thereof to another Province or Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction within the Anglican Communion shall be made at the request and with the consent of the Diocese and Province or Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction concerned.

4. (a) The Provincial Synod may create a Missionary Jurisdiction within the Province with the concurrence of the Bishop within whose Diocese the area designated the Missionary Jurisdiction falls, and commit it to the charge and care of a Bishop who shall be elected by the House of Bishops with the approval of the Bishop of the Diocese concerned.

(b) The Provincial Synod may add to or subtract from the area as from time to time it may, with the concurrence of the Bishop of the Diocese, think fit.

(c) The Bishop of the Missionary Jurisdiction shall be responsible to the House of Bishops, and the Church in the area of the Jurisdiction shall be entitled to have representation on the Provincial Synod, the appropriate number and apportionment of such representation being determined by the Provincial Synod.

5. Any acts done under the authority of the preceding sections shall be recorded in an Instrument drawn up under the hand and seal of the Archbishop, and the Archbishop shall formally promulgate the same to the Synods of the several Dioceses of the Province together with the date at which it shall take effect.

APPENDIX E

PROVINCIAL CANON 14

OF THE LICENSING OF CLERGY

AND OF LETTERS COMMENDATORY

1. All members of the Clergy to be licensed to officiate or to be instituted in a parish or cure by a Bishop shall first produce Letters of Orders showing that they have been duly ordained, and if they were resident in other Dioceses, Letters Commendatory from the Bishop of the Diocese in which they last held office.

2. Letters Commendatory shall be in the following or some similar form:-

"Whereas the Reverend A.B., being about to leave this Diocese has requested of US Letters Testimonial of his/her life and conversation, WE, C.D., by Divine Permission Bishop of ……………. , do hereby certify that the said A.B., during the time that he/she served as ……………. in this Diocese, which was from ………………. until the present date did behave himself/herself piously, soberly and honestly, nor do We know that he/she believed or maintained any opinion contrary to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Anglican Communion in the Province of the West Indies.

In Witness Whereof We have hereunto subscribed Our Hand and affixed Our Seal.

Dated at ……………………. this …………. day of ………….. in the year of Our Lord Two Thousand and …………… and of Our Consecration the …………….."

3. Every member of the Clergy to be ordained, licensed, instituted or collated shall first take the Oath of Canonical Obedience to the Bishop of the Diocese and make the Declarations of Assent and Consent as set out hereunder:-

(a) I, A.B., do swear that 1 will pay true and Canonical Obedience to the Lord Bishop of ……… and his Successors in all things lawful and honest. So help Me God.

(b) I, A.B., do solemnly declare and affirm that I assent to the Book of Common Prayer and of the Ordering of Bishops, Priests and Deacons. I believe the Doctrine as therein set forth to be agreeable to the Word of God, and in Public Prayer and the Administration of the Sacraments I will use the form in the said Book Prescribed or such other forms as are authorised by the Bishop of the Diocese, in conformity with the provisions of Provincial Canons and the Regulations.

(c) I, A.B., do solemnly declare and affirm that I consent to be bound by Laws, Canons, Rules and Regulations which have been made or which from time to time may be made by the Provincial Synod of the Province of the West Indies, and by the Diocesan Synod of the Diocese of ………………..

4. A member of the Clergy to be ordained, licensed, instituted or collated may also be required to make a Declaration against Simony.

5. When a member of the Clergy leaves a Diocese in the Province having been refused Letters Commendatory, or having failed to apply for the same, the Bishop of that Diocese shall immediately communicate the facts to the Archbishop who shall inform all the other Bishops.

APPENDIX F

PROVINCIAL CANON 15:

OF THE CLERGY OF A PARISH AND THEIR DUTIES

1. The ordering of the worship and the spiritual jurisdiction of a Parish is vested in the Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge subject to Canons or Regulations of the Diocese and the authority of the Bishop. All other Clergy of or in a Parish, by whatever name they may be designated, are to be regarded as under the authority of the Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge unless the Bishop otherwise directs.

2. It is the duty of all members of the Clergy having a cure of souls -

(a) to preach the Gospel;

to administer the Sacraments and to perform such other Offices and Rites as are contained in the Book of Common Prayer or are authorised by the Bishop;

(c) to visit the members of their congregations, particularly those who are sick, and provide opportunities for them to obtain spiritual counsel and advice;

to instruct the children in the Christian faith, and to use such opportunities of teaching or visiting in the schools within their cures as are open to them;

(e) to prepare children and others for Confirmation and when satisfied of their fitness, to present them to the Bishop for Confirmation;

(f) to instruct the faithful from the Holy Scriptures and in the Doctrine, History and Liturgy of the Church;

(g) to instruct their congregation concerning the missionary work of the Church, at home and abroad, and in conformity with any Regulations in force in the Diocese, to give suitable opportunity to the people to make offerings towards such missionary work.

3. No member of the Clergy may officiate in any Church within any Diocese of the Province unless licensed or authorised to do so by the Bishop of that Diocese.

4. No member of the Clergy having the charge of any parish or congregation shall permit any person to officiate in any way therein without sufficient evidence of -

(a) having been duly licensed or ordained in the Anglican Communion; and

(b) not having been inhibited or suspended from office by lawful ecclesiastical authority of the Church in this Province or any other Province of the Anglican Communion; and

5. All Incumbents shall cause to be recorded in the Parish Registers all Services, Baptisms. Confirmations, Marriages and Burials, and the names of all Communicants within their cures. Each entry in a Register shall be signed by the Officiating Minister.

6. All Incumbents shall exhibit or cause to be exhibited to the Bishop at his Visitation, or to the Archdeacon, all Parochial Registers and Account Books, and shall give such information as regards the spiritual and temporal state of the Parish as he may require.

7. Members of the Clergy holding ecclesiastical office shall not engage in trade or any other occupation in such manner as to affect the performance of the duties of their office, except they have permission so to do from the Bishop of the Diocese.

APPENDIX G

PROVINCIAL CANON 17

Of Ordination to the Sacred Ministry

1. Persons desirous of entering the ordained Ministry of the Church in the Province of the West Indies shall undergo a process of selection and training as set out in Canon 16, unless excused from any part thereof by the Bishop of the Diocese in which they will exercise their Ministry.

2. Persons under the age of twenty-three years shall not be ordained Deacons unless they have faculties from the Archbishop.

3. Except as provided in Section 11 below, persons shall not be admitted to the Order of Deacons unless they shall have been trained at an accredited or recognised Theological College, or have been living with or under the instruction and supervision of a Priest selected for that purpose by the Bishop who has accepted the said persons as candidates for Holy Orders.

4. Candidates for Ordination to the Diaconate shall satisfy the Bishop of their knowledge of the Scriptures, Christian Doctrine, Church History, Liturgy and Worship. The Bishop for this purpose may accept qualifications obtained from a recognised Theological College, or in place thereof the recommendations of his Examining Chaplains.

5. All Ordinands to the Diaconate shall satisfy the Bishop of their physical, emotional and spiritual fitness, and give proof of their ages, baptism, and confirmation, and shall produce in good time before the day of Ordination Letters Testimonial of their good lives and conversation, signed by three Incumbents who have known them well during the preceding three years. If the signatories live in a Diocese other than the one to which the candidates belong, these letters shall be countersigned by the Bishop of the Diocese in which the signatories reside. Where any signatory has known the candidate for less than three years that signatory shall state the fact, but in every case the joint testimony of the signatories must cover the period of the three preceding years.

6. Every Ordinand to the Diaconate or the Priesthood shall present to the Bishop the form commonly called ‘Si Quis’ with a certificate signed by the Officiating member of the Clergy and a member of the congregation of its having been read in the Church in which the candidate ordinarily worships or ministers on a Sunday before the day appointed for the Ordination. The Incumbent of the Church in which the Si Quis was read shall at least one week before the Ordination inform the Ordaining Bishop whether any impediment has been alleged.

7. All Ordinands to the Priesthood shall satisfy the Bishop of their physical, emotional and spiritual fitness and shall present to the Bishop Letters Testimonial of their good lives and conversation signed by two or more Incumbents who have known them during the time of their Diaconate.

8. Persons shall not be ordained Priests until they have attained the age of twenty-four years, unless being over twenty-three years of age they have faculties from the Archbishop.

9. Subject to the provisions of Section 10 below, persons shall not be ordained as Deacons or Priests by any Bishop unless they are licensed to a distinct sphere of work in the Bishop’s Diocese.

10. A Bishop may ordain persons Deacons or Priests who shall be licensed for work in another Diocese upon receipt of Letters Dimmissory from the Bishop of the Diocese where they will be licensed to exercise their ministry.

11. The Bishop of a Diocese shall have the right to ordain to the Diaconate suitable lay persons who have not had the training or supervision, prescribed in Section 3 above, and who shall not normally proceed to the Priesthood. Such Deacons -

(a) may or may not receive a salary or pension from the Parish or Diocese;

(b) may continue in their secular avocation or be fully employed in the Ministry of the Church;

(c) shall exercise their Ministry under licence from the Bishop and subject to such conditions as the Bishop shall from time to time direct.

12. Deacons ministering in a Parish under the charge of a Priest shall act under the direction of such Priest in all their ministrations.

13. Deacons ministering in a Parish not under the charge of a Priest shall, if not under the immediate direction of the Bishop, be under the authority of some neighbouring Priest by whose directions, in subordination to the Bishop, they shall in all things be governed.

14. The right to direct the amount of work any Deacon may be required to do shall be reserved to the Bishop.

APPENDIX H

PROVINCIAL CANON 20

OF LAY MINISTERS

1. At the request or on the recommendation of an Incumbent the Bishop of a Diocese may license a communicant member of the Church as a Lay Minister in the capacity of a Catechist or Reader or Chalice bearer or Eucharistic Assistant.

2. The duties of Lay Ministers shall be prescribed by the Bishop or the person administering the Diocese in the License, and Lay Ministers shall submit themselves to all the Regulations of the Diocese in the exercise of their offices.

3. In all matters relating to the conduct of the Services and to the Sermons or Homilies to be delivered, the Lay Minister shall conform to the directions of the Incumbent and in all cases to the direction of the Bishop.

4. Lay Ministers shall before being licensed make and subscribe the Declarations and Oath prescribed in Canon 14.

APPENDIX I

PROVINCIAL CANON 26

OF THE LAITY

1. Any person in a Diocese who has been baptised with water in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, whether in this Church or in another Christian Church, and who has been received into this Church, shall be deemed a Lay Member of the Church.

2. No Lay Member of the Church shall have status as a "Communicant Member" of the Church, with such rights and privileges as by Provincial or Diocesan Canons or Regulations or by custom shall belong to a "Communicant" unless he or she shall have received Holy Communion at least twelve times in the year, of which Eastertide shall be one, having had opportunity so to do.

3. Unless they be exempted, Lay Members of the Church from at least the age of eighteen (18) years are bound to pay such Church dues as may be required by the Canons or Regulations of the Diocese within which they reside for the support, maintenance and extension of the work of the Church.

4. The Church affirms Christ’s call to perfection and the duty of members to commit themselves to this goal. Recognizing, however, the inherent imperfections of human nature and the mores in which many are caught leading to serious sinful attitudes and practices, and believing humankind is at all times and in all circumstances in need of God’s grace and forgiveness through repentance, the Church exhorts and requires its members to adhere to its moral teachings and discipline.

5. Persons who have been open and notorious evil-livers may be required to make an open declaration of repentance and purpose of amendment, or a private confession to a Priest in the Sacrament of Penance before being admitted to Holy Communion.

6. Communicant Members of the Church who adhere persistently to any of the schismatic sects shall not be admitted to Holy Communion until they repent of their error and have been duly restored to the fellowship of the Church.

7. Any person to whom the Sacraments of the Church have been refused or who has been repelled under section 6 above may lodge a complaint with the Bishop who, unless he sees fit to require the person to be re-admitted or restored because of the insufficiency of the cause assigned by the Parish Priest, may institute an enquiry according to such principles of law and equity as will serve to secure an impartial decision:

PROVIDED that no Priest shall be required to admit to the Sacraments a person so refused or repelled without the written direction of the Bishop.

8. The Sacraments shall not be refused in any case to a penitent person at the point of death.

9. Lay Communicant Members removing from one Parish to another in the Province shall obtain and be entitled to procure from the Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge of the Parish from which they intend to remove a Certificate testifying to their status as Communicants, addressed to the Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge of the Parish to which removal is to be made, and he shall be entitled to enrolment as Communicants in the latter Parish.

APPENDIX J

PROVINCIAL CANON 29

OF HOLY MATRIMONY

1. (a) The Church in the Province of the West Indies affirms the ideal of Christian Marriage as a life-long union between a man and a woman wedded in faithful love under a vow or covenant betwixt them made before God and His Church to cleave to each other to the exclusion of all others. But the Church, recognising that there are inherent imperfections in all institutions which import a human element and believing that mankind the object of God’s love is of more importance than the Institution of Marriage, permits in appropriate circumstances after due study and review of the circumstances surrounding the breakdown of the marriage the re-marriage of divorced persons.

(b) For the proper carrying out of the purposes of this section -

(i) there shall be established in each Diocese of the Province a Diocesan Advisory Board, appointed by the Bishop, of which the Chancellor shall be the Chairman, to consider and advise on all applications for re-marriage referred to in section 5;

(ii) the House of Bishops shall make Regulations prescribing the forms of procedure to be used and adopted in submitting an application for re-marriage and setting out guidelines for the information and direction of the Advisory Board;

(c) The advice and recommendations of the Advisory Board shall be taken into account by the Bishop but are not binding on him.

2. Holy Matrimony shall not be solemnized or celebrated between two unbaptised persons. In cases where one party is unbaptised the matter shall be referred to the Bishop for his direction and the Bishop’s decision shall be final.

3. Members of the Clergy in any Diocese of the Province shall not solemnize any marriage until they shall have satisfied themselves that both parties freely and knowingly consent to such marriage without fraud or coercion and have been instructed as to the nature, meaning and purpose of Holy Matrimony.

4. No member of the Clergy in any Diocese of the Province shall solemnize the marriage between persons either or both of whom have been divorced by a decree in the Civil Court and whose husband or wife by the former marriage is still living except the written permission of the Bishop of the Diocese has been received.

5. Any member of the Church in the Province who desires to contract a marriage with a person who has been divorced by a decree of a Civil Court and whose husband or wife by the former marriage is still living; or who has been divorced by a decree of the Civil Court and whose husband or wife by the former marriage is still living must make application in writing to the Bishop of the Diocese for permission so to do.

6. It shall be within the discretion of any member of the Clergy to decline to solemnize any marriage on grounds of conscience only.

7. Intermarriage between those hereinafter mentioned is hereby prohibited, namely -

(a) in the case of those related by blood, between -

(i) ascendants and descendants, namely parents and children, upward and downward ad infinitum;

(ii) brothers and sisters, or half-brothers and half-sisters;

(iii) uncles and their nieces, that is, their brother’s or sister’s daughters, or grand-daughters and descendants, or aunts and their nephews, that is, their brother’s or sister’s sons or grandsons or their descendants, in both classes of cases ad infinitum;

(b) in the case of those related by affinity, between -

(i) a husband and any kinswoman or kindred of his deceased wife, or the wife and any kinsman or kindred of her deceased husband, related to the husband or wife in the hereinbefore stated degrees, namely: between any person and his daughter-in-law, that is, his son's widow or his son’s or daughter’s son’s widow; and so downward, any widow of any of his descendants, or any wife and her son-in-law, that is, the husband of her deceased daughter, or the husband of her son’s or daughter’s daughter, and so downward, the husband of any of her descendants;

(ii) a man and his step-daughter, that is, the daughter of a former marriage of his wife, or any of his said wife’s descendants, or a woman and her step-son, that is the son of a former marriage of her deceased husband, or any of her said husband’s descendants;

PROVIDED that -

(i) any man may hereafter marry the sister of his deceased wife; and

(ii) any woman may hereafter marry her deceased husband’s brother.

8. Every member of the Clergy shall observe the requirements of the Civil Law with regard to marriages:

PROVIDED that no member of the Clergy shall contravene section 7 of this Canon by reason of any clause in the Civil Law permitting marriages which by the aforesaid section 7 are contrary to the Laws of the Church.

9. When in the case of a divorced person the Bishop considers that a decree of nullity could have been granted, having taken the advice of Canonists and the Advisory Board the Bishop may exercise his discretion and admit the said person to the Sacraments of the Church.

APPENDIX K

REMARRIAGE OF DIVORCED PERSONS RULES

(See Provincial Canon 29)

1. These rules, made by the House of Bishops of the Church in the Province of the West Indies, shall be known as the Remarriage of Divorced Persons Rules. Unless the context otherwise requires, the words and expressions used shall be interpreted in accordance with the Constitution and Canons of the Church in the Province of the West Indies.

2. Any member of the Church in the Province of the West Indies being a divorced person who desires to remarry, or being a person who is desirous of marrying a divorced person in any church within the Province shall submit a written application to the Bishop of the Diocese in which the proposed marriage is to take place in accordance with the provisions of these Rules: Provided that, subject to these Rules where both parties to the proposed marriage attend the same church, a joint application may be considered simultaneously.

3. (a) Every application shall be submitted in the first place to the Rector, Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge of the Church where the applicant attends: Provided that, where for any reason the appropriate Rector, Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge is unable or unwilling to receive such application, the applicant may submit the same directly to the Bishop, stating the reason for such direct submission.

(b) Each application shall be accompanied by copies of:

(i) the pleadings in the divorce proceedings of the party who has been divorced;

(ii) the Court’s order of the decree absolute.

(i) the age of the applicant;

(ii) the date on which the dissolved marriage was performed;

(iii) the date on which the decree absolute was granted;

(iv) the full names of the former partner in marriage and a statement as to whether or not that party has remarried;

(v) the names and ages of children of the dissolved marriage and any former marriage;

(vi) the name of the intended spouse, whether divorced and, if so, the date of the decree absolute;

(vii) the names and ages of any children of a former marriage and, where applicable, the name of the person having custody, both factual and legal, of the children;

(viii) the Church which the applicant attends and of which he or she is a member;

(ix) the Church the intended spouse attends and of which he or she is a member;

(x) whether the applicant has ever made a previous application and the details thereof.

4. The Bishop, the Rector, Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge to whom the application is submitted and the Advisory Board shall be entitled to require any applicant to supply such further information as may be deemed advisable.

5. The Bishop of the Diocese shall appoint a Diocesan Advisory Board from time to time, in these Rules referred to as the Advisory Board, to examine and make recommendations on each application for marriage under these Rules.

6. (a) The Advisory Board shall be comprised of not less than five (5) and not more than seven (7) members, each of whom shall be a communicant in good standing.

(b) The membership of the Advisory Board shall be constituted as far as possible as follows:

(i) The Diocesan Chancellor shall be an ex officio member and the Chairman of the Advisory Board. In the absence of the Diocesan Chancellor, the Deputy Chancellor, if there be one, shall perform his duties both as a member and as Chairman of the Advisory Board. In the absence of both the Diocesan Chancellor and his Deputy or where both of them are unable to act on the Advisory Board, in a particular case, the Bishop shall appoint a duly qualified legal practitioner to be a temporary member of the Advisory Board:

Provided that such appointee shall not necessarily be the Chairman of the Advisory Board but, in each such case, the Chairman shall be elected by the members present at the meeting;

(ii) a Clergyman;

(iii) a member of the medical or the nursing profession;

(iv) an additional number of persons, not exceeding four (4) in number, two (2) of whom shall be women, at the discretion of the Bishop.

(d) Each member of the Advisory Board shall be morally bound to keep secret and confidential all information received by virtue of any application or deliberations arising in consequence thereof.

7. (a) The Rector, Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge to whom an application is submitted shall immediately upon receipt thereof examine it and, if necessary, investigate its particulars. As soon as possible thereafter, he shall forward to the Bishop the application, along with all relevant documents.

(b) The Rector or Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge shall be entitled to submit to the Bishop such comments or recommendations on the applications as he may think fit.

8. The Bishop shall, with the minimum of delay, submit each application to the Advisory Board for its consideration.

9. (a) The Advisory Board shall give full consideration to the facts and circumstances contained in each application and within three (3) months of its receipt, submit a report with recommendations thereon to the Bishop.

(b) The Advisory Board shall be entitled to request the production of and to examine all documents relevant to the application and to request the attendance in person of the applicant and/or such other persons that it considers necessary for the purposes of its deliberations

10. (a) The Bishop shall, upon receipt of the report of the Advisory Board, consider the same, but shall not be obliged to accept its recommendations. He shall thereupon communicate in writing his decision on the application to the Rector, Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge, and shall send a copy thereof to the applicant.

(b) The Bishop shall be entitled to direct that the performance of the proposed marriage be deferred for a prescribed period of time, if he so thinks fit.

11. The Rector, Incumbent or Priest-in-Charge receiving the Bishop’s permission to perform the marriage ceremony, shall counsel the parties concerned before such marriage is performed.

N.B. These Rules came into effect in the Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago as from the first day of July 1975.