The United Church of Canada Act, 2019 — Private Bill PR10 (42nd Parliament, 1st Session)

Bill PR10, 42-1

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Bill PR10, The United Church of Canada Act, 2019

Wynne, Kathleen O.

Royal Assent received. Statutes of Ontario 2019,

chapter Pr5

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Bill PR10 Royal Assent (PDF)

Bill PR10 2019

Act respecting The United Church of Canada

Preamble

The

United Church of Canada has applied for special legislation to amend The United Church of Canada Act , being

chapter 125 of the

Statutes of Ontario, 1925. That Act provided for the formation of The United

Church of Canada by way of union of The Presbyterian Church in

Canada, The Methodist Church and The Congregational Churches of Canada .

The

applicant represents that the corporation was incorporated by

An Act incorporating The United Church of Canada , being

chapter 100 of the Statutes of Canada, 1924. The applicant represents that The

United Church of Canada’s 42nd General

Council adopted a restructuring motion on August 14,

2015 and subsequently undertook a remit process, the result of which was

confirmed by The United Church of Canada’s 43rd General Council on July 22,

2018. Bill S-1003,

An Act to amend The United Church of

Canada Act , which received Royal Assent on April 11, 2019, amends the

federal Act to reflect changes to the church’s governance structure made in

accordance with the restructuring motion and remit process. The applicant would

like to amend the Ontario Act to make similar changes.

is appropriate to grant the application.

Therefore,

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of

the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Section 2 of The United Church of Canada Act , being

chapter 125 of the Statutes of Ontario, 1925 is repealed and the following

substituted:

Definitions

this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,

“Act

of Incorporation” means

An Act incorporating The United

Church of Canada , being

chapter 100 of the Statutes of Canada, 1924;

“Basis

of Union” means the Basis of Union set forth in

Schedule A to

An Act incorporating The United Church of Canada , being

chapter 100 of the Statutes of Canada, 1924, as amended from time to time under

paragraph 28 (

b) of that Act by The United Church of Canada;

“college”

means any college, school or other educational institution, incorporated or

unincorporated, under the government or control of, or in connection with, any

of the negotiating churches, or established or maintained in whole or in part

by any of them, and shall include the colleges and institutions set out in

Schedule B to this Act;

“conference”

includes, where the context requires, the Regional Council of The United Church

of Canada or any successor to that entity

that is established in accordance with the process set out in the Basis of

Union;

“congregation”

means any local church, charge, circuit, congregation, preaching station,

community of faith or other local unit for purposes of worship in connection or

in communion with any of the negotiating churches or with The United Church of

Canada, or any successor to those entities that is established in accordance

with the process set out in the Basis of Union;

“General

Council” means the General Council of The United Church

of Canada and includes, where the context requires, the Denominational Council of The United Church of Canada or any

successor to that Council that is

established in accordance with the process set out in the Basis of Union;

“negotiating

churches” means the churches mentioned in the

preamble to The

United Church of Canada Act , being

chapter 125 of the Statutes of

Ontario, 1925, and shall include also every congregation that, prior to June 10,

1925, was in connection or in communion with any of the negotiating churches and

which, prior to June 10, 1925, joined with any one or more congregation or

congregations of any of the other negotiating churches for purposes of worship,

and every congregation affiliated with any of the negotiating churches, and

every congregation ordinarily known as a local union church, whether it holds

its property separately from or as a part of any of the negotiating churches,

and every congregation having any representation in or connection with the

General Council of local union churches;

“presbytery”

includes, where the context requires, the Regional Council of The United Church

of Canada or any successor to that entity

that is established in accordance with the process set out in the Basis of

Union;

“property”

includes any debt and any thing in action and any right or interest;

“The

Congregational Churches” shall include The Congregational Union of Canada; The

Canada Congregational Missionary Society; The Canada Congregational Foreign

Missionary Society; The Congregational Provident Fund Society; and all

congregations of the Congregational denomination which are represented by The

Congregational Union of Canada for the purposes of this legislation, whether

the same are separately incorporated under any statute or have been organized

under the provisions of any statute or deed of trust, or as union or joint

stock churches or otherwise howsoever;

“The

Methodist Church” shall include the body corporate known as The Methodist Church

and all bodies corporate established or created by The Methodist Church or any

conference thereof under the provisions of any statute, and The Methodist Union

of Toronto, and all Methodist congregations separately incorporated under any

statute;

“The

Presbyterian Church in Canada” shall include the Board of Trustees of The

Presbyterian Church in Canada; The Church and Manse Board of The Presbyterian

Church in Canada; The Board for the management of the Temporalities Fund of

The Presbyterian Church of Canada; and all Presbyterian congregations

separately incorporated under any statute and all congregations that were, on

or before June 10, 1925, connected or in communion with The Presbyterian Church

in Canada whether the same shall have been organized under the provisions of

any statute or deed of trust or act of incorporation or as union or as joint

stock churches or otherwise howsoever;

“The

United Church” means The United Church of Canada.

Section 6 of

Schedule A to the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Power

to sell, mortgage etc. trust property

The

Trustees or a majority of them may, but only with the consent in writing of the

Regional Council within the bounds of which the lands are situate (such consent

to be under the hand of the presiding officer or secretary or clerk thereof),

sell the said lands or any part thereof either by public sale or private

contract, either for cash or upon credit, upon such terms as to price and for

such price and upon such terms as to payment or otherwise as they may deem

expedient; mortgage, hypothecate or exchange the said lands or any part

thereof; let any church, chapel or meeting-house upon the same for such rent

and upon such terms as they may deem expedient; and make all such conveyances,

mortgages, leases and assurances as may be required to complete any such sale, mortgage,

hypothecation, exchange or lease. The said Trustees after first paying or

otherwise providing for all indebtedness of the Trustees shall apply the moneys

arising from such sale, mortgage, hypothecation, lease or exchange for the

purposes of such congregation as the Official Board thereof shall direct, but

should such congregation cease to exist as an organized body, such proceeds, less

any expense incurred in the execution of these trusts, shall be paid to The United

Church of Canada to be applied for such purposes for the benefit of The United Church

of Canada as the Regional Council within the bounds of which the said lands are

situate may determine under the by-laws, rules and regulations of the

Denominational Council. Every application by Trustees for the consent of a

Regional Council as aforesaid shall be in writing and shall state the purpose

for which the moneys arising from such intended sale, mortgage, hypothecation, lease

or exchange will be applied. Any decision of a Regional Council with regard to

the sale, mortgage, hypothecation, lease or exchange of the said lands or any part

thereof shall be subject to appeal to the Denominational Council at the

instance of not fewer than any five members of the congregation affected

thereby. In every case where the consent of such Regional Council or the

Denominational Council has been obtained as aforesaid it shall not be incumbent

upon the purchaser, mortgagee or lessee of the said lands or of any part

thereof to enquire into the necessity, expediency or propriety of any such

sale, mortgage, hypothecation, lease or exchange, or to see to the application

of the moneys paid to the Trustees. A certificate of the secretary or clerk of

any Regional Council or the Denominational Council that any such consent has

been given shall be sufficient and conclusive evidence of such consent.

Commencement

This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short

title

The

short title of this Act is The United Church of Canada

Act, 2019 .

Bill PR10 Original (PDF)

EXPLANATORY

NOTE

The

purpose of the Bill is set out in the

Preamble.