Posted by Rob on December 13, 2101 at 02:28:53:
In Reply to: 1948 Declaration of Trust and by Laws posted by Paul Florance on December 12, 2101 at 01:10:52:
The Declaration of Trust and By-Laws by the National Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States [and Canada] has had many amendments through the years. Here are the ones I found, beginning with the first amendments in 1938, up until about 1963. Mt sources are from the Baha'i world Volumes. After Volume XIII, the Declaration of Trust and By-Laws was no longer published in the Baha'i World except in a "model" version based on the United States Baha'i edition.
A separately published pamphlet version of the Declaration of Trust and By-Laws by the NSA of the United Stats was, however, published by the Baha'i Publishing Trust in the 1970's and in later years, which had further amendments which are not documented here.
I may have missed some amendments, and any spelling or grammatical erros below are solely mine.
Regards,
Rob
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Amendments
Baha'i World Vol. VII, 1936-1938 pp. 311-323:
By-Law Amendements:
Article IV, amended to read "... by a majority vote of the Assembly taken by secret ballot." [This previously read: "The officers shall be elected by a majority vote of the entire membership of the Assembly taken by secret vote." This allowed for officers to be elected in the event not all the members were able to vote.]
Article VIII, amended to read ".... number of delegates composing the National Convention shall be one hundred seventy-one." [Previously read: ".... number of delegates composing the National Convention shall be ninety-five."]
Article VIII, Section 1, amended to read "... by plurality vote. Members who for illness or other unavoidable reasons are unable to be present at the election at the election in person shall have the right to transmit their ballots by mail or telegram under conditions acceptable to the local Spiritual Assembly." [Previously read: "All delegates to the Convention shall be elected by plurality vote of those present at their election."]
Article VIII, Section 6, amended to end with words "... by correspondence or telegram." [These words added to the end of this sentence: "Any action taken under such cicumstances shall be by a majority vote of all the delegates."]
Article VIII, Section 7, amended to read "... electing by ballot a presiding officer," etc. [previosly this read "...electing a presiding officer, " etc.]
Article VIII, Section 12, deleted. [This section had stated that the National Convention delegates could, after the Annual Meeting, "continue as a consultative body capable of rendering a distinctive service to the work of the Cause...." etc. This section was changed based on guidance from Shoghi Effendi contained in a letter dated 18 November 1933: "Concerning the status, rights and perogatives of the Annual Baha'i Convention, the Guardian wishes to make it quite clear to all the believers that this annual meeting of the delegates is by no means a continuous consultative body through the year..."]
Article VIII, Section 13, amended to be Section 12.
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Baha'i World Vol. VIII, 1938-1940 pp. 364-376.
By-Law Amendement:
Article V, amended to read "...located in the Village of Wilmette, Illinois, the site of the Baha'i House of worship." [Previously read: "The central office of this Trust shall be located in the City of New York, State of New York, United States of America."]
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Baha'i World Vol.X, 1944-1946, pp. 313-322
By-Law Amendment:
Article VIII preamble, amended to read:
"The members of the National Spiritual Assembly shall be elected at an annual meeting to be known as the National Convention of the Baha'is of the United States and Canada. This Convention shall be held at a time and place to be fixed by the National Assembly. The National Convention shall be composed jointly off representatives chosen by the baha'is of each state, Province, Territory or Federal District under the principle of proportionate represention, and the the members of the National Spiritual Assembly.
Notice of the annual meeting shall be given by the National Assembly sixty days in advance in the Convention Call which sets forth the number of delegates assigned to the various electoral units in proportion to the number of Baha'is resident in each such unit, to a total number of one hundred seventy-one delegates for the Baha'is of the United States and Canada."
[Previously read: "The Annual Meeting of the National Spiritual Assembly at which its members shall be elected shall be known as the National Convention of Baha'is of the United States and Canada and shall be held at a time and place to be fixed by the National Assembly, which shall give sixty days' notice of the meeting to each local Baha'i community through its Spiritual Assembly. The National Assembly shall at the same time inform each Spiritual Assembly of the number of delegates to the Convention it has assigned to the local Baha'i community in accordance with the principle of proportionate representation in such manner that the entire number of delegates composing the National Convention shall be one hundred seventy-one. Upon recipt of this notice each local Spiritual Assembly shall, within a convenient period after giving due and sufficient notice thereof, call ameeting of the voting members on its rolls for the purpose of electing their delegte or delegates to the National Convention, the Secretary of each local Spiritual Assembly shall certify to the Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly the names and addresses of the dlegates so elected."
Article VIII, Section 6, amended to read: "If in any year the National Spiritual Assembly shall consider that it is impracticle or unwise to assemble together the delegates to the National Convention, the said Assembly shall provide ways and means by which the annual election and other essential business of the Convention may be conducted by mail."
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Baha'i World Vol. XI, 1946-1948 pp. 211-221
A Resolution was passed and added to the Declaration of Trust:
RESOLUTION BY THE NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY
WHEREAS the first Annual Convention of the Baha'is of Canada, on April 24, 1948 duly elected the National Spiritual Assembly of the Canada; and
WHEREAS the fortieth Annual Convention of the Baha'is of the United States on April 30, 1948 duly elected the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States; and
WHEREAS said Conventions were duly autorized by the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith and empowered by the Baha'i administrative principles to elect their respective National Spiritual Assemblies; and
WHEREAS in consequence of the foregoing it is now necessary to amend the Declaration of Trust and By-Laws hereinafeter described:
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States that from the date of its election, April 30, 1948, said Assembly shall henceforth exercise within the United States, its territories and dependencies, all the functions and powers formerly vested in the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States and Cananda, as successor body thereto, and hold title to and possession of all funds, properties and trusts of national character existing within the United States, its territories and dependencies on an after April 30, 1948; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Declaration of Trust by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States and Canada as adopted in New York, N.Y., on April 4, 1927, other than the preamble thereto, and its By-Laws as from titme tot time amended be and the same hereby are amended by substituting the name "National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States" for the name "National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States and Canada" wherever the same appears appears therein, and by deleting the words "and Canada" wherever such words now appear in said Declaration of Trust and By-Laws; that said By-Laws be further amended by deleting the word "Provinces" and the word "Province" wherever the same appear and by substituting for the word "Province" in section 2 of Article VIII the words "Territory or Federal District"; so that said Declaration of Trust and By-Laws shall henceforth be the Declaration of Trust and By-Laws of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States.
[signed]
Dorothy K. Baker, Chairman
Paul E. Haney, Vice-Chairman
Horace Holley, secretary
Edna M. True, Recording Secretary
Philip G. Sprague, Treasurer
Elsie Austin
Wm. Kenneth Christian
Amelia E. Collins
Leroy Ioas
By-Law Amendment:
Article VII, Section 7, amended to read: "On or before the 1st day of November of each year the secretary of each local Assembly shall send to the secretary of the National Assembly a duly certified list of the voting members of the local Baha'i community for the information and approval of the National Assembly." [Previously, the beginning read: "On or before the 1st day of February..."]
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