WORLDWIDE COMMUNION OF CATHOLIC APOSTOLIC CHURCHES
CONSTITUTION OF THE WORLDWIDE
COMMUNION OF CATHOLIC APOSTOLIC CHURCHES
(WCCAC)
CHAPTER ONE:
ON THE NATURE AND CONSTITUTIVE PRINCIPLES OF THE WCCAC
PART ONE:
ON THE NATURE OF THE WCCAC
Article 1: IDENTITY
1. THE WORLDWIDE COMMUNION OF CATHOLIC APOSTOLIC CHURCHES (WCCAC) consists of Catholic Apostolic Churches that, standing in the apostolic succession going back to Carlos Duarte Costa (Saint Charles of Brazil) or in other apostolic successions whose validity is recognized by the majority of apostolic sees, share the ideals and principles of Saint Charles of Brazil concerning the nature, organization and operation of the Church, as he expressed them in the introduction to his "Manifesto to the Nation" of August 18, 1945.
2. The ideals that WCCAC pursues take on definite form in the commitment to rediscover, enter into and implement the genuine Apostolic Tradition with respect to the mission, organization and operation of the churches, as one finds it witnessed to in the Holy Scriptures, in the Creeds of Faith and in the tradition and doctrine of the undivided church.
3. WCCAC acknowledges a precedence of honor to the Catholic Apostolic Church of Brazil (Igreja Catolica Apostolica Brasileira, ICAB), in which both the President and Chancellor of its Episcopal Council are members of its Honorary Advisory Committee. The President at the same time is President of the Honorary Committee of WCCAC and is, as such, recognized as a symbol of unity, the measures promulgated by the General Councils of ICAB, although they may not be binding for WCCAC, will be items taken into serious consideration.
PART TWO:
ON THE CONSTITUTIVE PRINCIPLES OF WCCAC
Article 2: ON THE CATHOLIC FAITH IN GENERAL
1. WCCAC professes steadfastly and wholly the Catholic faith as it is witnessed in the Holy Scriptures, in the Apostles and Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creeds, in the first seven Ecumenical Councils and in the Tradition of the undivided Church.
2. For that reason, with Vincent of Lérins, we affirm and embrace "that which has been believed everywhere, always, and by all people; it is truly and properly Catholic."
3. All other doctrinal postulates, beliefs and practices, so long as they are not contrary to Catholic faith can be accepted by local churches and by the faithful on the understanding that these are not binding for anyone and for that reason should be considered as matters of private belief and devotions.
Article 3: ON THE CHURCH
1. We recognize that the Local Church is the visible and sacramental reality in which is made present the totality of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, established by Jesus Christ.
2. By "Local Church" we understand the people of God organized as a communion of communities that:
a. Professes the faith in accordance with the witness of the Holy Scriptures and the Ecumenical Creeds and Confessions.
b. Observes the liturgy through prayer and the sacramental life, reaching its culmination in the celebration of the Eucharist.
c. Gives evidence of the reality of the Gospel such as fruit of the experience of the gifts of the Spirit that give new life and the capacity to love.
d. Recognizes, as the visible sign of its unity, the bishop who in synodical form presides over it, with the participation of the presbytery and of all the people of God.
e. Through the bishop is in communion with other local churches.
Article 4: ON THE SACRAMENTALITY OF THE CHURCH IN GENERAL AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE SACRAMENTS
1. We accept and administer the sacraments of Baptism, of Confirmation, of the Eucharist, of Reconciliation, of the Extreme Unction, of Holy Orders, and of Marriage.
2. We believe, consonant with the tradition of the undivided Church, that the validity and efficacy of each of the sacraments participates in and expresses the sacramentality of the whole Church.
3. Given that the Local Church is where this sacramentality is expressed, the sacraments find their true significance and efficacy solely when they are administered within and for the edification of the Local Church.
4. Each Ecclesiastical Province is able to determine its own ritual for the celebration of the sacraments in accordance with the situation and cultural context in which it lives, provided that:
a. All the elements believed to be essential for the valid celebration of the same are maintained in their entirety, in accord with the Catholic tradition, Orthodox as well as Latin.
b. The introduction of ambiguous elements is carefully avoided in order not to fall into any form of syncretism and to maintain the Christian tradition in its purity.
5. The following are recognized as ministers who may validly administer the sacraments:
a. For the Sacrament of Baptism: the bishop, the priest and the deacon are the ordinary ministers; the extraordinary minister, in case of grave necessity, is any baptized Christian.
b. For the Sacrament of Confirmation: ordinarily the minister is the bishop. By exception, it can be delegated to a priest so that it may be carried out.
c. For the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Penance: only the bishop and priest are the authorized and competent ministers.
d. For the Sacrament of the Eucharist: only the bishop and priest are the authorized and competent ministers.
e. For the Sacrament of Extreme Unction: only the bishop and priest are the authorized and competent ministers.
f. For the Sacrament of Ordination: only the bishop is the authorized and competent minister.
g. For the Sacrament of Marriage: the ministers are the bride and the bridegroom who publicly express their consent. In order to express the consent validly, there is the need for qualified witnesses. Official witnesses are the bishop, the priest and the deacon. In extraordinary cases, when the presence of an ordained minister is impossible for a prolonged period of time, two faithful members of the Church can be witnesses so that matrimonial consent may be validly expressed.
Article 5: ON THE EUCHARIST
1. We acknowledge the Eucharist to be the center and culmination of the Church's worship.
2. In celebrating it, the local church becomes actual and concrete as the sacramental presence of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
3. We steadfastly believe that by the action of the Holy Spirit within the Eucharistic celebration, presided by the bishop or a priest, the bread and wine are, through the Anamnesis and the Epiclesis, sacramentally transformed, in reality and in efficacy, into the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
4. We confess that although Christ was offered once for all time as the expiatory sacrifice for all humanity on the altar of the cross, nevertheless the Eucharist is a true sacrifice because in it the one sacrifice of Christ not only is commemorated but also is actualized and, by the action of the Holy Spirit, the Kingdom of God is made present, and the new creation of love and communion continues to manifest itself in the history and the life of our communities.
Article 6: ON THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS
1. The sacrament of Holy Orders has three levels: as deacon, as priest, and as bishop.
2. It is indispensable that one be ordained on the lower level in order to be able validly to receive a higher level of the sacrament of Holy Orders.
3. Consonant with the ancient tradition of the undivided Church, WCCAC acknowledges that only Christians of the male gender can be validly ordained as deacons, priests and bishops.
Article 7: ON THE ESSENTIAL CONCEPT OF APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION
1. Our intent is to acknowledge and commit ourselves fully to the concept of the Apostolic Succession, as it was accepted by the Apostolic Tradition and practiced by the undivided Church during the first millennium.
2. For this reason, we believe that the Local Church, as the People of God, that is structured in synodical and participatory form, with the diversity of gifts and ministries, among which there is the ordained ministry, comprising deacons, priests and the bishop, is decisive for understanding the full implications, the exercise and the transmission of the apostolic succession.
3. The ordained ministry can never be understood as something that is above the community, but rather as a gift that, granted by the Holy Spirit, is discerned by the community and is at its service and for its edification.
4. From this it follows that the ministerial capacity that comes from ordination as deacon, priest or bishop cannot be exercised as a personal power or privilege in an autonomous or, to any extent whatsoever, arbitrary way; but that the sacramental validity of the ministry is subject to its being practiced within an ecclesiastical context that reflects everything to which the New Testament witnesses and was actualized in the early Church.
5. In the event of transmitting the Apostolic Succession in an Episcopal Consecration, it is indispensable:
a. For the candidate to have been elected synodically by the People of God and the Presbytery that comprise a legitimately constituted and recognized Local Church, for the purposes of presiding over it, supporting it in its life of faith, and linking it in communion with other Local Churches.
b. That the Primate Bishop, along with the other bishops that comprise the Ecclesiastical Province in which the Local Church is located, ratify the election that has been carried out lawfully by the Local Church.
c. That the College of Bishops that ratified the election proceeds to the Consecration of the bishop, consecrating him according to the ritual legitimately approved by this Ecclesiastical Province.
d. That in the ritual of consecration all that is associated with the laying on of hands, with the consecrating prayers and with other elements believed to be essential for the Catholic tradition, Orthodox as well as Latin, be maintained in their entirety.
e. WCCAC does not recognize the sacramental validity of an Episcopal Consecration that is performed outside the ecclesiastical context in its entirety as defined in the four preceding items.
Article 8: ON THE SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE
1. WCCAC acknowledges that the sacrament of marriage is the public and solemn covenant that is brought about between a man and a woman.
2. The matrimonial covenant has the purpose of establishing the exclusive and permanent communion of life for the spouses, with the view of forming a family.
3. The sacrament of marriage takes place through the mutual consent of the couple, lawfully manifested and confirmed by the pouring out of the Holy Spirit.
4. For the case of irreconcilable differences that lead to the termination of a marriage, the Ecclesiastical Province gives general guidelines for the ecclesiastical declaration of nullity, and the bishop is responsible for applying these guidelines and making the discernment as to whether there is sufficient evidence for such declaration. If either affected person does not agree, he or she has the right to appeal to the Episcopal College.
Article 9: ON THE COMMUNION OF THE LOCAL CHURCH WITH OTHER CHURCHES
1. We believe that as a result of its Catholic dimension, every Local Church, while maintaining its essential autonomy, necessarily implied in its apostolicity, is called to be in organic and interdependent communion with other Local Churches.
2. Every Local Church is a member of an Ecclesiastical Province, which recognizes one bishop as bishop primate.
3. The bishops that preside over churches within an Ecclesiastical Province form a college of bishops and, through it and through the concern for other Local Churches, express awareness of the catholicity of their Church.
4. The Ecclesiastical Provinces can be organized into Higher Bodies, each of which is a communion of provinces.
5. Each Local Church, Ecclesiastical Province and Higher Body must have as its concern and goal to achieve the ecumenical unity of all Local Churches. To that end, it is indispensable that an ecumenical sensibility be maintained and initiatives started that promote dialogue and lead toward achieving a visible and organic unity, capable of reflecting and witnessing to the fundamental and unbreakable unity that, by the action of the Holy Spirit, exists in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
6. It is required that we all-each of the local churches and collegial bodies to which they are joined-be open to recognize that Christ is the only Lord and true Shepherd of his Church and that, through the Holy Spirit, he continues to be the teacher who instructs and guides actually and effectively the whole church. Accordingly, what befits us ordained ministers, regardless of the rank that our ministry may take on, is to embody radically the attitude of Christ, who, "although the divine nature was his from the first, yet did not think to snatch at equality with God, but made himself nothing, assuming the nature of a slave," and taught us clearly that who receives a ministry in the church, in contrast to what happens in the world, "must serve others; so who among you wants to be great must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be the willing slave of all-like the Son of Man; he did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." As result, we accept the commitment to pray, to work and devote ourselves openhandedly to the service of the Kingdom so that the unity of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, guaranteed by the effective presence of the Holy Spirit and by the unbreakable fidelity to the Apostolic Tradition, may continue to be visibly manifest throughout all the Catholic and Orthodox Christian churches.
Article 10: ON THE REGULATIONS OF WCCAC
1. We acknowledge that in order to be able to hold to, live by and implement the Constitutive Principles of WCCAC, it is necessary for there exist a set of rules and regulatory operating procedures.
2. It is on this basis that the regulations of WCCAC are developed, which must therefore be considered to be the Constitutive Principles in a concrete form, and as such are binding on all the member churches.
CHAPTER TWO:
REGULATIONS OF WCCAC
PART ONE:
BASIC CRITERIA
Article 11: ON THE FUNDAMENTAL EQUALITY OF ALL THE MEMBER CHURCHES
1. WCCAC is a communion of Catholic Apostolic Churches, in which all the member churches are recognized as equals.
2. For historic reasons, nevertheless, a precedence of honor is accorded to the Catholic Apostolic Church of Brazil (ICAB), represented by its Episcopal Council.
Article 12: ON THE CONCEPT OF A MEMBER CHURCH
1. The reference to the Church is to be understood as referring to the Local Church, presided over and represented by a bishop or by one who on a temporary basis exercises his functions, in accord with what is laid out in the present Constitution (cf. Articles 3 and 4).
2. Each member Local Church is in communion with other Local Churches, being joined together in an Ecclesiastical Province, and, in certain cases, also in a Higher Body, constituted in a legitimate, public, binding and permanent form.
3. All the bishops that preside over Local Churches have to belong to the College of Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province and also of the Higher Body, if there is one, to which the Local Church would be linked.
Article 13: ON THE MEMBERSHIP IN WCCAC
1. A Local Church's membership in WCCAC comes about through membership in an Ecclesiastical Province or a Higher Body that is associated with WCCAC.
2. The fact that membership in WCCAC is mediated by the association of its Ecclesiastical Province or Higher Council does not at any time prevent the bishop(s) in active ministry in each member Local Church from having the right to participate in all the Meetings, Assemblies and Councils of WCCAC.
Article 14: ON THE FOUNDING HIGHER BODIES AND ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCES OF WCCAC
1. The Catholic Apostolic Church of Brazil (ICAB) is recognized as a Higher Body that comprises various Ecclesiastical Provinces, which in its Statutes are called "Regions."
2. All the other National Churches or Churches of another kind existing in the present that have a primate bishop, that maintain full and perfect communion with the ICAB, and that choose to become a member of WCCAC, when this Constitution comes into force, independently of the number of faithful, of parish communities and priests that they have, are acknowledged as Ecclesiastical Provinces, enjoying all the prerogatives, rights and duties that the present Constitution recognizes for Ecclesiastical Provinces.
3. All the other ecclesiastical organizations that are recognized by the Sixth Worldwide Council of Catholic Apostolic Churches as autonomous entities and accept fully and wholly the present Constitution, likewise, when it comes into force, independently of the number of baptized Christians, parishes, and priests that they have, are acknowledged as Ecclesiastical Provinces, enjoying all the prerogatives, rights and duties that the present Constitution recognizes for Ecclesiastical Provinces.
4. Nevertheless, the Ecclesiastical Provinces and the Local Churches that, although being recognized as such, do not fill the minimum requirements established in the present Constitution with regard to the number of parishes, priests and ecclesiastical organization have the moral obligation of working effectively to comply with the projected plan in every respect.
Article 15: ON CONSTITUTING NEW ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCES OF WCCAC
1. In order to constitute new Ecclesiastical Provinces, a minimum of two Local Churches is required.
2. One of the Local Churches -normally the older one- will be acknowledged as the primate see and its bishop as primate of the Province.
3. It will be necessary that, prior to the establishment of the new Province, all the requirements and procedures established in the present Constitution regarding a new Province be completed, although the administration of the Ecclesiastical Province are to be regulated by the Statutes prepared by those Local Churches that comprise it.
PART TWO:
ON THE OBJECTIVES, GOALS AND STRUCTURE OF THE WCCAC
Article 16: ON THE OBJECTIVES AND GOALS OF WCCAC
1. The fundamental objective of WCCAC is to promote the communion among all the Catholic and Apostolic Churches on a global level.
2. To ensure that all member Churches maintain the Catholic faith in its entirety.
3. To bring about the growth of WCCAC through support to missions and to new Churches and Ecclesiastical Provinces and other organizations that can be incorporated into WCCAC.
4. To take responsibility, in the case of conflict among the Churches in the communion, for serving as mediator in order to find appropriate solutions.
5. To take responsibility for establishing ecumenical dialogues with other Communions of Churches similar to WCCAC, with the intent of promoting unity among all Christians.
6. To initiate regional and worldwide meetings of various kinds and levels, among the various member Churches.
7. To oversee compliance with and fulfillment of the present Constitution and, in case a Local Church, Ecclesiastical Province or other entity in the communion violates it, to look for pastoral solutions and, as a last resort, to administer disciplinary measures.
Article 17: ON THE VARIOUS COMMUNING BODIES OF WCCAC
1. In accord with Article 12.2 above, the existence of Ecclesiastical Provinces and of Higher Bodies, national and international, is recognized. This implies that:
a. Every Local Church ought to belong to an Ecclesiastical Province.
b. Ecclesiastical Provinces can be legitimately, bindingly and permanently organized in a national or international Higher Body, duly recognized by WCCAC.
c. Every Ecclesiastical Province, except in the case in which the Provinces are organized into a Higher Body, will recognize a primate see, and the bishop that presides over this see will be recognized as primate. When the Provinces are organized into a national or international Higher Body, it can be the case that, in accordance with its Statutes, there be only one primate see and one primate in the entire Body.
d. The specific form of organization and government of each Province or Higher Body will be determined by the Statutes approved by each of the appropriate bodies.
2. The Provinces and national or international Higher Bodies can be formed along geo-political lines. Nevertheless, because of spiritual affinities, ritual, historical eventualities or for other reasons, it can happen that Local Churches, existing even in territories in which bodies organized along geo-political territorial lines are in existence, can be associated with each other and be recognized as an Ecclesiastical Province, electing a primate and constituting a College of Bishops.
3. The various Local Churches, Provinces and national or international Higher Bodies are able to form free groupings, other than those herein defined, with the goal of strengthening the links of communion. Nevertheless, these groups will stand outside the WCCAC structure and will not be recognized by WCCAC as representatives of the Local Churches or of the Ecclesiastical Provinces. In these cases, mechanisms of coordination can be established by common agreement.
4. Despite the organizational forms recognized in the four previous items, when diverse Ecclesiastical Provinces exist in a nation and there is not a Higher Body that in a juridical, permanent and binding form unites them, it is urged that, as far as possible, the primates of the Provinces form a National Conference that is governed by Statutes approved by them.
PART THREE:
ON THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF THE MEMBERS OF WCCAC
Article 18: ON THE RIGHTS OF EACH LOCAL CHURCH OR HIGHER BODY IN WCCAC
1. The autonomy of each Local Church, Ecclesiastical Province and Higher Body is recognized in organizational, financial, liturgical, spiritual and testimonial matters provided that they do not contradict the principles of the Catholic faith specified in the Constitutive Principles of WCCAC (Articles 1 through 9) nor any regulation concerning organizational issues in the present Constitution.
2. The autonomy of each Local Church is recognized with respect to the election of its ordained ministers provided that they fulfill the requirements established in the present Constitution and established by the Statutes of the Ecclesiastical Province or Higher Body to which the Local Church belongs.
3. It is recognized that Ecclesiastical Provinces and Higher Bodies have the right of to associate and declare intercommunion with other churches, communions and ecumenical bodies or bodies of another kind, provided that the following steps be taken before making a declaration of ecclesiastical intercommunion:
a. First, it will be necessary to make irrefutably certain that the Body with which a declaration of intercommunion is proposed does indeed consist of Churches that are truly Catholic and Apostolic; that they stand in a sacramentally valid Apostolic Succession; and that these Local Churches truly function in accordance with the concept presented in the Part One of the present Regulations.
b. Second, it will be obligatory to provide information to the Executive Secretariat of WCCAC and forward documentation that every detail and step of the requisite procedure was followed in determining that the characteristics covered in the first item are in fact present, so that after the Executive Secretary and the President of the Board have consulted with each other, an opinion may be expressed concerning said procedure. The opinion must be issued within three months following the transmission of the documentation.
c. Third, after taking into account the opinion of the Executive Secretariat, the Ecclesiastical Province will have the final decision whether or not to declare intercommunion and, if so, the nature and extent of intercommunion that it believes to be appropriate.
4. Each Local Church, after consultation with the College of Bishops of its Ecclesiastical Province or of the Higher Body to which it belongs, has the right to set up Religious Congregations and establish Missions where it is requested to do so or where it feels called to initiate Evangelization.
5. In setting up Congregations the following standards must be taken into account:
a. Before the Congregation is set up, the College of Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province must be consulted so that it may give its opinion, although this opinion is not binding.
b. At the time when the Religious Congregation is being set up, it must consist of a minimum of six professing members.
c. Along with the decree of establishing the Congregation, its Constitutions and Statutes must be approved.
d. Congregations cannot be established with ordained ministers that belong to another member Local Church of WCCAC or that have withdrawn from the latter less than one year, unless the bishop that presides over the Local Church from which they are separating authorizes it. Likewise, Congregations cannot be established with members of Religious Congregations that belong to another member Local Church of WCCAC or that have withdrawn from the latter less than one year, unless the bishop that presides over the Local Church from which they are separating authorizes it.
6. For establishing Missions, the following standards must be observed:
a. Before the Mission is created, there must be a consultation with the College of Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province so that it may give its opinion, although this opinion is not binding.
b. In the case in which a Mission is established where there is an effective presence of a Local Church in communion with WCCAC, it will be necessary to notify the local bishop and, if at all possible, coordinate the missionary activity with him.
c. Bishops can be consecrated for the missions, uniquely as auxiliaries of the Local Church sponsoring the Mission. For their election there must be followed all the procedures established for the election of bishops in this Constitution and in the Statutes of the Ecclesiastical Province or of the Higher Body to which the Local Church belongs.
Article 19: ON THE OBLIGATIONS OF EACH LOCAL CHURCH, ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCE OR HIGHER BODY OF WCCAC
1. Each Church is committed to keep jealously all the elements that the Apostolic Tradition recognizes as belonging to a Local Church, including its synodical organization and its commitment to evangelization and missions. To that end it will have regulations approved by the respective councils and ratified by the College of Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province to which it belongs.
2. Each Local Church is committed:
a. To establish educational programs for candidates to the ordained ministry, complying with the outlines approved by the Ecclesiastical Province or by the Higher Body of which it is a member.
b. To abstain from ordaining candidates to the deaconate or to the priesthood until it is clear that they have complied with the established programs and have been approved by the responsible authorities of the Local Church so that they may be ordained in accordance with the Statutes established by each Ecclesiastical Province or Higher Body.
3. Each bishop is committed not to participate as consecrator, co-consecrator or even just laying on of hands in the consecration of another bishop, except:
a. When the candidate, duly elected by the Local Church, has been ratified by the College of Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province to which it belongs.
b. When he has been requested, if he is a bishop belonging to another College of Bishops that is a member of WCCAC, having been legitimately elected and ratified by that College of Bishops.
4. If the case were to arise in which an Episcopal candidate, who is to be ordained by a College of Bishops that is not a member of WCCAC but belongs to a Communion of Catholic Apostolic Churches, and who has been elected according to the same procedural standards prescribed for the bishops that are members of WCCAC, requests a bishop who is a member of WCCAC to perform as consecrator, co-consecrator or to participate in his consecration by laying on hands, it will be necessary for the latter to obtain prior written authorization from the College of Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province or Higher Body to which he belongs.
5. Each bishop promises to abstain from consecrating and from participating by laying on of hands in the consecration of another bishop in cases not expressly provided for in items 3 and 4 of this article unless he has previously obtained explicit and written authorization from the Board of Directors of WCCAC.
6. Each Local Church, directly or through whoever represents the Ecclesiastical Province or the Higher Body to which it belongs, is committed to participate appropriately and regularly in the various initiatives of WCCAC, particularly in its Worldwide Councils and put into action, in keeping with its own identity, criteria and conditions, the communal measures that issue from the Worldwide Councils.
Article 20: ON THE CREATION OF NEW LOCAL CHURCHES AND NEW ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCES
1. Before a Local Church can be created, it is necessary that it meet the following requirements:
a. It must include a minimum of three parishes or communities that are organized and viable.
b. It ought to have a See (a central office) and have a stable place for public worship.
c. It must have a minimum of three priests and a bishop that has been consecrated or has been elected following the procedures established in this Constitution, all of whom have had the required education and pastoral experience.
d. It must have a synodical organization in which the ordained ministers and baptized Christians are participating members.
2. The competent authority for the creation of a new Local Church is the Ecclesiastical Provinces or the Higher Bodies in keeping with all that their own Statutes establish and complying with the minimum requirements established in item 1 of this article. A single Local Church does not have the authority to act alone and found a new Local Church by itself.
3. New Local Churches can be founded only within the nation(s) that include(s) the Ecclesiastical Province or the Higher Body at the time of being accepted as members of WCCAC.
4. An Ecclesiastical Province does not have the competence to found a new Ecclesiastical Province without the explicit approval of the General Council of WCCAC.
5. A Higher Body will be able to create new Ecclesiastical Provinces within its territory, but it will not be able to constitute other Higher Bodies without the explicit approval of the General Council of WCAAC.
PART FOUR:
ON THE ORGANIZATION OF WCCAC
SECTION ONE: BODIES OF COORDINATION
Article 21: ON THE ORGANIZATION OF WCCAC
1. WCCAC is comprised of four bodies: The General Council, The Honorary Advisory Committee, The Board of Directors and the Executive Secretariat.
2. The General Council acts as the Supreme Body; all the bishops of the member Churches are members of the General Council.
3. The Honorary Advisory Committee ratifies and promulgates the decisions of the General Council and advises the Board of Directors.
4. The Board of Directors performs the role of a steering or managerial committee.
5. The Executive Secretariat is the body charged to execute the measures of the Council and the Board of Directors, and serves as the organ of communication.
SECTION TWO: ON THE GENERAL COUNCIL
Article 22: ON THE GENERAL COUNCIL
1. The General Council consists of all the bishops of the Local Churches that are members of WCCAC. In addition those who are mentioned in Article 22.4.f may be present. At times the Board of Directors can invite observers and consultants to attend a Council meeting.
2. It meets every two years in a place determined by the Board of Directors.
3. The functions of the General Council are the following:
a. As the Supreme Body it is authorized to make all the decisions that relate to interpreting questions of faith that arise in the various Churches.
b. To elect, every four years, the Board of Directors and a member of the Honorary Advisory Committee and to decide other aspects of importance regarding the operation of both the Board of Directors and the Executive Secretariat.
c. To approve the Constitution of WCCAC and when necessary to bring about appropriate amendments.
d. To approve WCCAC's plan for activities.
e. To approve the admission of new members to WCCAC.
f. To approve, the creation of new Ecclesiastical Provinces and new Higher Bodies.
g. To serve as the final court to resolve difficulties that can arise among the various Churches, Provinces and Higher Bodies and that have not been resolved by the lower entities.
h. To decide on the expulsion from WCCAC of any Church, Province or Higher Body which has seriously violated the present Constitution and with which the pastoral means and disciplinary measures applied by lower entities have not successfully dealt.
i. To approve the establishment of ecumenical dialogues of WCCAC with other and analogous bodies.
j. To approve the membership of WCCAC in international ecumenical bodies and to declare the resulting intercommunion and other types of relation between WCCAC and other communities that may correspond to it.
4. On the types of Councils, the process for convening them, and the procedures to be followed in holding them.
a. The Councils can be ordinary or extraordinary. The ordinary Council occurs every two years. The extraordinary Council is one that, upon the petition of a minimum of half of the Ecclesiastical Provinces and/or Higher Bodies that are members of WCCAC, is convened to deal with matters of great urgency between the times set for the ordinary Council.
b. The Council is convened and presided over by the President of the Board of Directors or by whoever, in accord with the Regulations, is responsible for substituting for him.
c. The convocation should be made six months in advance for the ordinary Council and three months before for the extraordinary Council. The convocation must indicate the precise place and dates on which the Council will meet as well as the agenda it will address.
d. The Council is declared open with a Eucharistic celebration, presided over by the President of the Board of Directors or by whoever is substituting for him, with those bishops who are present. The bishops not present at the time of the opening can be incorporated into the Council as soon as they arrive.
e. In the first session, after the opening Eucharist, the agenda that will be followed is to be approved. It will have as its basis the agenda proposed in the convocation, but it can be modified if the participants, by a majority of half plus one of those voting, decide to do so.
f. All the residential, coadjutor and auxiliary bishops of the member Local Churches of WCCAC, and likewise those who at the time are presiding over a member Local Church that is lacking a bishop, have the right to the floor and to vote in the Council. If the President of the Council considers it appropriate and fitting, he will be able to grant the floor to those who preside over Missions but are not bishops, to the advisors, to the secretaries and other special guests, but these can never vote nor be candidates in an election.
g. Only the bishops present can exercise the right to vote. If a bishop represents one or more absent bishops, he will be able to express the sentiments of the represented bishop(s), but he will have only his own vote.
h. Ordinary matters will be approved by an absolute majority, that is, by the favorable vote of half plus one of the bishops present at the time of taking the vote.
i. In the case of making amendments to the Constitution of WCCAC, it will be necessary that at the time of the convocation of the Council, all the member Churches are informed of the proposed amendment, and for its approval it will be necessary to receive the favorable vote of two thirds plus one of the bishops that are participating in the Council.
5. On promulgating and putting into force the Council's decisions.
a. All the Council's decisions should be ratified by the Honorary Advisory Committee and are promulgated by its president.
b. In the case that a Council's decision is not ratified by the Honorary Advisory Committee, it will be the responsibility of the Council Assembly to reconsider its decisions on the basis of the comments that it receives from the Honorary Advisory Committee.
c. Nevertheless, if two thirds plus one of those present in the Council decide to sustain the approval, the decision will be upheld, and if the president of the Honorary Advisory Committee does not promulgate it, the responsibility for doing so falls to whomever is serving as president of the Council.
d. All the decisions take effect at the time when they are promulgated.
SECTION THREE: ON THE HONORARY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Article 23: ON THE HONORARY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
1. The Honorary Advisory Committee constitutes the institutional form through which the ICAB exercises its precedence of honor in WCCAC.
2. It consists of the President of the Episcopal Board of ICAB, who serves as President of the Honorary Advisory Committee, of the Chancellor of the Episcopal Board of ICAB, and of a bishop elected for this office by the General Council of WCCAC.
3. The members of the Honorary Advisory Committee are ex officio members, with right to the floor and the vote, in both the General Council and the Board of Directors.
4. If any member of the Honorary Advisory Committee is not able to attend a meeting, it is his responsibility to name another bishop to represent him. If he has not named a representative, the most senior (in terms of date of Episcopal Consecration) bishop of ICAB who is present will substitute for the President or for the Chancellor of ICAB on the occasion by and, if there be no representative of the ICAB, the most senior (by date of Episcopal Ordination) bishop who is present will substituted for him. The latter procedure will be followed to name a substitute for whoever represents WCCAC on the Honorary Advisory Committee, if he is absent.
5. The members of the Honorary Advisory Committee will be eligible for election to one of the offices (i.e. President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer) of the Board of Directors. In the situation when a member of the Honorary Advisory Committee is elected to such an office on the Board of Directors, he will have only one vote in the meetings of this Board. (See Article 24.1, 2)
6. The Honorary Advisory Committee will always meet and deliberate separately from the Board of Directors.
7. Functions:
a. To ratify the decisions taken by the General Council of WCCAC.
b. To promulgate the decisions taken by the General Council of WCCAC, through its President.
c. To advise the Board of Directors as appropriate.
d. To make up, along with two members elected by the Board of Directors, an ad hoc task force, to study difficulties emerging from violations of the present Constitution and to recommend to the competent authorities the pastoral and disciplinary measures that are appropriate.
SECTION FOUR: ON THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Article 24: ON THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
1. Formation: It is formed of the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and one member. Further, the members of the Honorary Advisory Committee and the Executive Secretary are ex officio members of the Board of Directors.
2. Election: The members of the Board of Directors are elected by the General Council and can be reelected indefinitely. In order to be elected or reelected, it is necessary to obtain half plus one of the total votes cast.
3. Term: The election of the members of the Board of Directors is for a term of four years.
4. Meetings: It meets ordinarily once a year at a place stipulated at the preceding meeting. It meets extraordinarily when it is considered appropriate, prior consultation having been made by the President with its members. The expenses that are incurred for the meetings and for travel to them will be covered by the home churches of the members of the Board of Directors, unless the Treasurer or the Executive Secretariat succeeds in finding funds specifically earmarked to cover these costs.
5. The functions of the Board of Directors:
a. To fulfill and ensure the fulfillment of the stipulations of the Constitution, as well as the measures and resolutions adopted by the General Council.
b. To seek and promote dialogue with new Churches, Ecclesiastical Provinces and other Bodies that can choose to be members of WCCAC, in strict adherence to the present Constitution.
c. To approve any matter that may be submitted for its consideration in relation to administrative or pastoral questions or questions of faith, that are not the exclusive domain of the General Council.
d. To revise, contribute to, modify and approve the General Plan of work both of the Board of Directors and of the Executive Secretariat.
e. To convene the ordinary General Council once each two years and the extraordinary Council at times when it is required.
f. To propose to the General Council, after carrying out the requisite consultations and procedures: the admission of new members to WCCAC, the modification of the present Constitution, the preparation of documents and declarations in which the position of WCCAC regarding questions of faith, liturgy, witness, ecumenical dialogue or other appropriate questions is expressed.
g. To initiate activities to expand the programs of WCCAC.
h. To revise and approve the annual budget of the Executive Secretariat.
i. Other matters that the General Council and the Constitution may assign to it.
j. To carry out those other activities that are related to its responsibility.
Article 25: ON THE DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
1. The specific duties and powers of the President of the Board of Directors are:
a. To represent WCCAC in matters in which it has an interest.
b. To preside over the sessions of the Council and the Board of Directors.
c. To prepare the agenda of the meetings in coordination with the Secretary.
d. To watch over the smooth functioning of WCCAC, of the Board of Directors and other bodies on which it relies.
e. To cast a deciding vote in cases of a tie during sessions of the Board of Directors and the Council.
f. To do whatever else the Council, the Board of Directors and the Constitution may determine.
2. The duties and powers of the Vice President of the Board of Directors are:
a. To assist the President in carrying out the duties of his office, making to him suggestions that he deems appropriate for WCCAC to run smoothly.
b. To substitute for the President when the latter is indisposed or temporarily absent.
c. To substitute for the President in the case of a definitive absence until de end of his term.
d. To do those other things that the Council, the Board of Directors and the Constitution may assign to him.
3. The duties and powers of the Secretary of the Board of Directors are:
a. To make and maintain a record of the acts of the General Councils and of the Board of Directors.
b. To write up and, with the President, authorize the acts of the General Council and of the Board of Directors.
c. To publish the agreements of the General Council and the Board of Directors.
d. To prepare and submit for the approval of the Board of Directors the draft of the biannual report of activities, to be presented to the General Council.
e. To prepare the background documentation for matters that the meetings of the General Council and of the Board of Directors are to deal with.
f. To prepare and send the announcement for the various meetings sufficiently in advance.
4. The duties and powers of the Treasurer of the Board of Directors are:
a. To collect and maintain the security of WCCAC funds in the form stipulated by the General Council and the Board of Directors.
b. To authorize with the President the expenditures, approved by the General Council and the Board of Directors, incurred in the performance of their duties, as well as to authorize payments that are to be made.
c. To prepare the draft of the annual budget and to present it to the Board of Directors at their Ordinary meeting for its final approval.
d. To keep the General Council and Board of Directors informed on all matters that fall within the area of his authority.
5. The duties and powers of the other member of the Board of Directors are:
a. To collaborate with the other members of the Board of Directors in carrying out WCCAC affairs.
b. To substitute for officers on the Board of Directors in case of their indisposition, temporary or definitive absence except for the President.
c. Other duties that the present Constitution, the General Council and the Board of Directors may assign to him.
Article 26: ON THE REMOVAL OF MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
1. Bodies with the authority to remove members of the Board of Directors:
a. In the first instance, the Honorary Advisory Committee can remove any member of the Board of Directors provided that at the end of proceedings just causes have been proved.
b. The General Council can remove any member of the Board of Directors provided that at the end of proceedings just causes have been proved.
2. Causes for removal. The member of the Board of Directors will be removed from his office in the following cases:
a. The term for which he was elected has expired.
b. For lapsing from the principles of faith and discipline contained in the present Constitution.
c. For not fulfilling his duties.
SECTION FIVE: ON THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAT
Article 27: ON THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAT
1. The Executive Secretariat is the standing body charged with carrying out the measures of the Council and Board of Directors and is the permanent organ of communication between all the Local Churches and other WCCAC bodies.
2. The Executive Secretariat is directed by the Executive Secretary.
3. The functions of the Executive Secretariat are the following:
a. To carry out the measures decided and ordered by the Council and by the Board of Directors.
b. To be the permanent office of communication among all the member Churches of WCCAC through means that may be considered appropriate.
c. To make contacts, provide information and monitoring and offer presentations designed to incorporate new members into WCCAC; the incorporation to be carried out according to the procedures stipulated in the present Constitution.
d. To carry on, in the name of WCCAC, relationships and conduct dialogues with Churches, Bodies and Institutions with which WCCAC has a connection or linkage of any sort.
e. To face and resolve the difficulties and questions which emerge in the life of WCCAC or of its members when these are within its powers or, when they are not, to refer them to the competent authority, ensuring that responses and solutions are found quickly and effectively.
f. To organize, subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, meetings, courses, seminars, discussions and other activities that may sharpen the identity and strengthen the mission of WCCAC.
g. When possible and necessary, to make publications of a theological, historical, pastoral or other nature in which the identity and mission of WCCAC are expressed.
4. Location and funding.
a. Location. The Executive Secretariat will have its seat in places provided by some of the member Churches, subject to approval of the Board of Directors.
b. Funding. The Treasurer of the Board of Directors, together with the Executive Secretary, will seek contributions from member Churches, donations or other sources to provide the financial means by which the Executive Secretariat and the programs that it is authorized to develop may be financed.
Article 28: ON THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY
1. Appointment: The Executive Secretary is appointed by the Board of Directors. There is no impediment against the office of the Executive Secretary falling to one of the members of the Board of Directors.
2. Term: The Executive Secretary is appointed for four years.
3. Functions:
a. The Executive Secretary has the duty of coordinating the functions assigned to the Executive Secretariat and taking care that all of them are fulfilled.
b. In order to carry out WCCAC programs, he can organize task forces and other teams that he considers opportune.
c. He will have such other functions and responsibilities that the General Council, the Board of Directors or exigencies of the moment, not foreseen in the present Constitution, may assign to him.
PART FIVE:
ON THE MEMBERS OF WCCAC
Article 29: ON THE FOUNDING MEMBERS OF WCCAC
1. All the Churches that have initially approved the present Constitution and have committed themselves to implement it fully are to be considered founding members of WCCAC.
2. Given that, in accordance with Article 13.1, membership in WCCAC occurs through a member's belonging to an Ecclesiastical Province or a Higher Body, all the following are implied:
a. The ICAB having been recognized as a Higher Body and a member of WCCAC, all the Ecclesiastical Provinces (Regions) and all the Local Churches (dioceses) that comprise it are included in this membership.
b. All the Churches that have been up to this time in full communion with the ICAB, that are presided over by a primate, that are disposed to join an Episcopal College, and that accept the present Constitution are recognized as Ecclesiastical Provinces, members of WCCAC, and the Local Churches that comprise them are included in this membership.
c. All the Local Churches that participate in the Sixth Worldwide Council and that, gathered under the figure of a primate and disposed to join an Episcopal College, accept the present Constitution are recognized as Ecclesiastical Provinces, members of WCCAC and all the Local Churches that comprise them are included in this membership.
Article 30: ON THE ADMISSION OF NEW LOCAL CHURCHES INTO WCCAC
1. For the admission of new Local Churches where there already exists an Ecclesiastical Province member of WCCAC, the following procedure is to be followed:
a. The Local Church deals directly in the formalities of this process with the bodies of the Ecclesiastical Province to which it will be incorporated.
b. The Local Church will have to fulfill the minimum requirements that the present Constitution establishes in Article 20.1.
c. A document in which the Local Church confirms that it totally and unconditionally accepts everything included in the present Constitution with respect to faith, sacramental practice, ecclesiastical organization and discipline must be signed.
d. It must meet all the requirements that the Ecclesiastical Province, into which it will be incorporated, has established for such cases.
e. The incorporation is consummated by the formal act in which the Episcopal College of the Ecclesiastical Province in which it is incorporated recognizes this Church as a member Local Church and its bishop is incorporated into the College of Bishops of the Province.
f. At the time when the Local Church is regarded as a member of the Ecclesiastical Province and the same is officially reported to the Executive Secretariat of WCCAC, the recognition that the Local Church in question is a member of WCCAC commences.
2. For the admission of new Local Churches where an Ecclesiastical Province member of WCCAC does not exist and the creation of a new Ecclesiastical Province is intended, the following procedure must be followed:
a. The first step is to make contact with a Local Church or Ecclesiastical Province member of WCCAC or directly with the Executive Secretariat of WCCAC so that it may make contact with an Ecclesiastical Province that will accompany and support the process of growth.
b. Next, the Local Church or an Ecclesiastical Province that will accompany the process of growth sets it up as a Mission.
c. With the support of the Local Church or Ecclesiastical Province the process continues until the minimum requirement that two Local Churches be formed, each of which must comply with everything prescribed in Article 20.1 of the present Constitution, is met.
d. If during the time of the Mission a standing Episcopal presence be necessary in order to fulfill what such a ministry involves, auxiliary bishops can be elected, following the procedure established by the Statutes of the Ecclesiastical Province of which the Mission is a part and to whose College the auxiliary bishops will eventually be incorporated.
e. Once the growth prescribed in item "c" of the present numeral (Article 30.2.c) has been achieved, the Executive Secretariat will be informed so that the Board of Directors may name a commission, coordinated by the Executive Secretary and consisting of members of the Ecclesiastical Province that has followed the process of growth and that knows the specifics of the situation. Finally, a report will be made for the Board of Directors with recommendations.
f. When the Board of Directors approves and the Honorary Advisory Committee ratifies the recommendation of the creation of a new Ecclesiastical Province and of the Local Churches that will comprise it, this fact is presented to the General Council.
g. The General Council gives final approval to the creation of the new Ecclesiastical Province and the Local Churches that will form it and accepts them as members of WCCAC.
h. Before the acceptance and the creation of the new Ecclesiastical Province and the new Churches take effect, the representatives of the newly constituted Local Churches and the new Ecclesiastical Province must sign a document in which everything included in the present Constitution with respect to faith, sacramental practice, ecclesiastical organization and discipline is totally and unconditionally accepted.
Article 31: ON THE ADMISSION OF ALREADY EXISTING ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCES AND HIGHER BODIES INTO WCCAC
1. Situation: The case can arise in which various Local Churches already organized with a primate and a College of Bishops or even the case in which existing communions that include several primates and Colleges of Bishops apply to be members of WCCAC.
2. The Churches with a primate and a College of Bishops will be able to choose to become members recognized as an Ecclesiastical Province. The Communions that have several Ecclesiastical Provinces and, eventually also several primates and Colleges of Bishops will be able to choose to become members recognized as Higher Bodies of Communion.
3. Proceedings for admission:
a. The interested parties will be presented to the Executive Secretariat by a member Local Church.
b. The Executive Secretariat will inform the Board of Directors so that it may name a commission, coordinated by the Executive Secretary, which must make a detailed investigation into the current ecclesiastical situation, the statistics, statutes and ecclesiastical status of those who have presented the request.
c. If the commission discovers that certain requirements must be fulfilled before the admission process can proceed, it will inform the interested parties and, if these are willing to fulfill the same, a reasonable time will be given before a second investigation is begun.
d. At the end of the investigation-of the second investigation, if there is one-a detailed report will be made for the Board of Directors with recommendations with respect to the appropriateness of accepting or not accepting the request presented.
e. When the Board of Directors approves the recommendation of admission and the Honorary Advisory Committee ratifies it, the request is presented to the General Council with the necessary information and recommendations so that it may consider approving the admission. If the Board of Directors approves recommending the admission and the Honorary Advisory Committee does not ratify the recommendation, the request is still presented to the Council, indicating all that has taken place. If the Board of Directors does not approve recommending the request for admission, the same is declined although it will be possible for the interested parties to present it on a future occasion; provided that there is some basis for the possibility that whatever prompted its first refusal has been overcame.
f. The General Council gives the final approval of the admission of the new Ecclesiastical Province or of the Higher Body as members of WCCAC.
g. Before the acceptance takes effect the representatives of the recently admitted Ecclesiastical Province or Higher Body, as the case may be, must sign a document in which all that the present Constitution includes regarding matters of faith, sacramental practice, ecclesiastical organization and discipline is accepted totally and unconditionally.
Article 32: ON THE SEPARATION FROM WCCAC
1. The reasons for separation from WCCAC on the part of a Local Church, an Ecclesiastical Province or Higher Body are the following:
a. Voluntary resignation.
b. Voluntary abandonment of the Catholic faith, the Catholic liturgy and sacramental life or of anything that is laid out in the present Constitution, and this abandonment leads to announcing the wish to resign from WCCAC.
c. When all solutions for resolving differences between a Local Church and the Ecclesiastical Province have been exhausted and the church leaves the Province, it automatically separates itself from WCCAC. If the separated church considers that the decision of the Ecclesiastical Province is not to her satisfaction, she may appeal the decision to the competent bodies of WCCAC.
d. For serious institutional, liturgical, spiritual, moral and other reasons, a local church can change from one Ecclesiastical Province to another, by observing the following procedures: The local church requests that a dialogue begin between the College of Bishops to which the Local Church currently belongs and the College of Bishops of the Province that it wishes to join; if after the dialogue the college of the latter province decides to accept the petition, the admission is made on a temporary basis, until compatibility between the Ecclesiastical Province and the Local Church is evident. During the transitional period the local church's participation in WCCAC is suspended.
e. An ecclesiastical province must administer sanctions in the event of defamation of a local church when this problem is caused by another member of the same province. When the problem involves members of two different Ecclesiastical Provinces, the matter is brought before the appropriate authorities in WCCAC.
f. Expulsion agreed upon by the Worldwide Council, the procedure laid out in the present Constitution having been followed and the Body to be expelled having had the right of legitimate defense concerning the de facto abandonment of Catholic faith or of Catholic liturgy and sacramental life or of anything laid out in the present Constitution.
g. The absence from two consecutive Worldwide General Councils.
2. In order that the separation takes effect it will be necessary:
a. For the cases identified in items 1.a and 1.b in the present Article, the resignation in writing.
b. For the cases in items c, d and e, for the established procedure to be followed.
c. For the case identified in item 1.f, a decree of expulsion issued by the General Council.
d. In the case of 1.g, the separation is de facto.
3. In all the cases in which a member is considered to have separated from WCCAC, the Executive Secretariat will have to notify the separated member and inform all members of the separation.
4. If a member that has been separated from WCCAC wishes to request readmission, it will have to follow the procedure established in Articles 30 or 31, whichever applies.
Article 33: On Amendments to the Constitution
1. The present Constitution can be amended partially or totally only by a meeting of the General Council of the WCCAC.
2. When the announcement of the General Council meeting is sent out, it must include the propsed amendments.
3. In order to approve an amendment to the present Constiution, two thirds of the active members of WCCAC must be present and vote in favor of the proposed amendment, to be approved.
PART SIX:
CONCLUDING CONSIDERATIONS
Article 34: ON THE CONSEQUENCES RESULTING FROM THE APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF THE PRESENT CONSTITUTION
1. The Higher Bodies of Communion, the Ecclesiastical Provinces and the Local Churches that comprise parts of them which approve, accept and commit themselves to implement the present Constitution and in that faith sign the Attachment as well, are the only Local Churches, Ecclesiastical Provinces and Higher Bodies that, at the time when this Constitution is promulgated, are considered to be members of WCCAC.
2. All the Churches, Ecclesiastical Provinces and Higher Bodies of Communion that at this moment are recognized as members of WCCAC:
a. Are declared to be in full communion with each other.
b. This implies the recognition of the whole and entire validity of their holy orders and of their sacramental practice provided that, when ordinations are conferred and sacraments administered, the statutory prescriptions herein contained regarding them are adhered to strictly.
3. The Churches that have Apostolic Succession through Duarte Costa and that have not been present nor represented in the Council, like others who want to join in the future, must follow the process that is established in the present Constitution in order to be able to become members of WCCAC (Articles 30 and 31).
4. This Constitution is promulgated and comes into force on the present date, all dispositions and regulations to the contrary being revoked from this time forward.
Approved, ratified and promulgated in San Lucas Sacatepéquez, Guatemala, on the fifteenth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand eight, on the Solemnity of the Glorification in the heavens of Saint Mary, the Mother of God.
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