The purpose
of such a status is to provide a time period for a local church to experience
and determine it=s desire to
become completely identified with the Assemblies of God Fellowship. Please contact the district
secretary=s office for
the appropriate Application for Recognition as a
Constitution
Article XI, Section 3. Cooperating Assemblies
Provision
may be made by district councils and the General Council Executive Presbytery
for the status of a cooperating assembly, which would allow churches that
subscribe to Article V. Statement of Fundamental Truths of the General Council
to enter into a cooperative status with a district and the General Council on a
temporary basis (4-year term, renewable by the request of the local church
congregation at the discretion of the district council in cooperation with the
General Council Executive Presbytery) before officially affiliating with the
district council and the General Council.
August 2004
1. Any cooperative church
currently on the official list of churches in the office of the general
secretary will be grandfathered so it is not required to meet the 4-year time
limitation period.
2. The general secretary
will develop an application form for churches applying for cooperative status;
said application will include a statement of agreement with our Statement of
Fundamental Truths.
3. If a district desires
to renew more than once the status of a cooperative church, it is free to
recommend that to the Executive Presbytery.
4. A former or present
General Council affiliated or district affiliated church or a church pastored by
a dismissed minister is not eligible to apply for the status of a cooperative
church.
5. Cooperative churches
will be listed in the January issue of the quarterly ministers’ letter each
year. As churches are added during
the year they will be listed in the quarterly ministers’ letter. The district where the church is located
will be responsible to inform the general secretary=s office of
the name of the church, the pastor, phone number, fax number, e-mail, etc. The general secretary=s office
will not be required to keep a database on non-credentialed pastors of
cooperative churches.
6. When cooperative
churches decide to move to the status of district affiliated or General Council
affiliated, the district council office will be required to submit a New
Churches Open form and/or an Application for Affiliation form to the general
secretary=s
office.
7. Since a cooperative
church is not listed as a new church, when it does decide to move to status of
district affiliated or General Council affiliated it will then be included in
the official statistics of the General Council and will receive an Annual Church
Ministries Report form from the general secretary=s
office.
8. The district in which
the cooperative church is located will be responsible to monitor the 4-year
requirement outlined by the General
Council.