Chesapeake Pagan Community
Articles of Incorporation
(as amended on January 27, 2008)
First: The undersigned, whose names and post office addresses follow these articles, elected by the members of Chesapeake Pagan Community to act as trustees in the name and on behalf of said members, do hereby associate ourselves as incorporators with the intention of forming a religious corporation under the general laws of Maryland.
Second: The name of the corporation, hereinafter called the Corporation, is Chesapeake Pagan Community. The Corporation is a non-profit religious membership organization emphasizing a healthy, balanced approach to various Pantheist, Pagan, and Shamanic paths. This document will describe those paths collectively as Pantheist. For our purposes, we define Pantheism as belief in nature deities, deity in nature and nature spirituality. Broader or differing definitions found in dictionaries do not apply to the Corporation.
Our interpretation of pantheism is not as inclusive as other pantheist organizations. We prefer a healthy, balanced approach in the practice of our various faiths. Altered states of awareness achieved from drugs, drunkenness, scourging, or pain are not part of Chesapeake Pagan Community and not welcome at our activities. Our activities are intended for pantheists who prefer a healthy, balanced, non-violent approach.
Third: The Corporation is organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational and scientific purposes, including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as tax exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.
The Corporation’s primary function is to organize, manage and support religious activities for Pantheists in the Baltimore and Washington D.C. metropolitan area. This support will not necessarily be limited to members of the Corporation, and Pantheists from outside our geographical area may also become members. Some of our activities will be held at locations outside this area, although convenience to people of the Baltimore and Washington D.C. metropolitan area will be an important consideration in selecting sites for our activities.
Fourth: Resources of the Corporation may not be committed to any cause or activity inconsistent with the Corporation’s purpose, as defined in the Third Article, or in violation of the laws of the United States or the State of Maryland. Its funds may not be spent on, and its name will not be associated with, any organization, activity or cause that would jeopardize its recognition as a religious corporation, exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
No part of the Corporation’s earnings may be distributed to its members, except for reasonable compensation paid for services and expenses benefiting the Corporation or an activity consistent with the Corporation’s purpose.
Fifth: Upon dissolution of the Corporation, its assets will first be used to pay its just debts, then distributed to one or more charitable or religious organizations serving the Pantheist community or non-religious charitable organizations serving humanitarian or environmental causes; provided, however, that any such organization will at that time be recognized as exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or the corresponding section of any future United States internal revenue law, or to the federal government, or to a state or local government for a public purpose.
Sixth: Any self-professed Pantheist who is at least 18 years old may join the Corporation by paying its annual membership fee, as determined in the Corporation Bylaws, and by registering his/her name and post office address with the Corporation Secretary. Membership is contingent upon acceptance and approval of the prospective member’s application at a Corporation business meeting. All members enjoy the following rights:
Seventh: A Council of Trustees (the Council) will represent the Corporation in all business matters. The Council consists of minimum of five and a maximum of seven members of the Corporation who are elected by a majority vote at a Corporation business meeting. A trustee's term of office lasts for up to five years. At least one trustee's term shall expire each year during a regularly scheduled business meeting. If none of the current trustees have served a full five-year term, the trustee whose term will expire shall be the one who was least recently elected.
The trustees will select among themselves who shall stand for elections should any trustees have the same length in office.
A trustee can be removed from office, prior to the expiration of a term, by a two-thirds majority vote of the other trustees or a two-thirds majority vote at a Corporation business meeting.
From among themselves or from the membership, the trustees will select three or four Corporation officers: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. The term of office for these positions is one year. A trustee may not serve as President for more than two consecutive years.
The President presides at Council business meetings, appoints volunteers to serve on committees, endorses agreements as directed by the Corporation, and must schedule at least two Council meetings and one Corporation business meeting each year.
The Vice President performs the President’s duties when the President is unable to do so.
Secretary and Treasurer may optionally be combined into a one office, known as Secretary-Treasurer or Secretary. These positions are responsible for maintaining the Corporation's membership rolls, financial records, financial reporting, and statistics about objective or goal oriented performance.
In the event of an unexpected resignation or vacancy, the President, or Vice President if the office of President is vacant, shall designate an interim officer who may only act on items that must be taken before a meeting can be called and a permanent officer selected.
Eighth: A Council meeting must be held at least twice a year, and preferably four times. If more than 10 months pass without a Council meeting, any trustee may convene a Council meeting without permission of the President.
Council meetings may be open or closed, at the discretion of the President, to attendance by Corporation members who are not trustees.
During Council meetings, the trustees will make decisions about the operating policies, and financial details of gatherings and other activities sponsored by the Corporation. Decisions about spending must be made within limits of budgets and other financial resolutions approved at Corporation business meetings. The Council may deviate from these limits only in the event of unexpected changes in attendance or other performance results that they could not reasonably anticipate.
Requests for budgets and other financial proposals will originate at Council meetings, but must be presented at a Corporation business meeting for approval.
Council meetings require at least three trustees to be physically present. Any proposal for a decision by the Council requires approval by at least half of the trustees. Approval can be granted at a later date by a trustee who was not present at the Council meeting, but the decision does not become effective until at least half of the trustees have expressed approval.
Countil meetings may use a consensus model if no one objects.
Ninth: A Corporation business meeting must be held at least once a year. If more than 18 months pass without a Corporation business meeting, the Corporation will be considered dissolved and its assets disposed of according to the Fifth Article.
At least 10 members must be physically present to hold a Corporation business meeting, and at least one of the 10 members must be a trustee. Other members may be represented at the meeting by written instructions, but those instructions may not be used to block a consensus among members physically present at a business meeting. In the absence of a consensus, an absent member's written instructions may be used to cast a vote, if the member's opinion on an issue is clearly expressed.
The following issues can be decided by a simple majority vote at a Corporation business meeting:
Corporation business meetings may use a consensus model if no one objects.
Tenth: (This final article lists the names and addresses of the Corporation's resident agent and trustees. The signatures of the trustees, witnessing the Articles, follow the Tenth Article.)
The Articles of Incorporation were approved on April 6, 2003 and were filed at the Maryland Department of Assessments on April 8, 2003.