Constitution of the Congregation of the Silver Hand

Following the suspension of the first Congregation of the Silver Hand under Columban V, efforts were immediately undertaken to revise the constution of the congregation and repromulgate, with the intent of preventing historical abuses that had occurred within and around the congregation.

After his election in January 624K.C., Archbishop Caspius dedicated himself to the task of soliciting the opinions of the most renowned Paladins in the realm. Appointing Tanya Seltara Grand Master pro tempore to call paladins to the forthcoming promulgation, he used the work of Melysa Marwyn-Sutton as a basis from which to rewrite the constitution, establishing clear and firm boundaries and duties for the reinstated congregation.

The Constitution was promulgated on 1 March, 624K.C. at Tyr's Hand, Lordaeron, and the Congregation has been officially reinstated by the Council of Bishops as the Reformed Congregation of the Silver Hand.

Preamble
First Edition of Archbishop Caspius (1 March, 624K.C.)

It is established...

- That, in union with the Council of Bishops, and by their commission that all Alliance paladins once bound by oath to the Order of the Silver Hand, or presently bound by oath in service to the Church of the Holy Light, or aspiring to paladinhood, should hereafter come together as one to form the polity of the reformed Congregation of the Silver Hand;

- That this Congregation of necessity recognizeth the rightwise orthodoxy of the Church of the Holy Light and freely acquiesceth to the traditional bonds of faith and governance that rest between the Church and the holy Order of Paladins, as set forth in the code of the original Order of the Silver Hand. In accordance with the beliefs of this most sacred relationship let it be known that the Church of the Holy Light and its rightful executor, the Archbishop of the Council of Bishops, is vested rightly with full power and authority to make, alter and repeal all of the laws, rules and regulations for the administration, discipline and formation of the Congregation of the Silver Hand with or without the notice of the members of the congregation, that congregation being pledged to the defense of the Holy Church, and the Grand Alliance;

- And that this Congregation is wholly a congregation of the Council of Bishops, subject to the same laws, governance, expectations, and duties required of all other congregations, serving under its prefect, the Bishop of the Silver Hand, and under the Archbishop.

Mission Statement
- To uphold the Code of the original Order of the Silver Hand as established by Alonsus Faol, and Uther the Lightbringer.

- To walk in the grace of the Holy Light and spread its wisdom throughout Alliance lands.

- To vanquish evil wherever it may be found, and protect the faithful citizens of the Grand Alliance.

- To provide aspirants with the education, physical, and spiritual training necessary to make them worthy of the honor of being anointed paladin defenders of the Grand Alliance.

- To provide a forum for general petitions to the Archbishop and Council of Bishops from all anointed paladins of the Grand Alliance.

- To provide a forum for the discussion of united military action as it is relevant to the integrity of the Church of the Holy Light, and the stability of the Grand Alliance, insofar as such a discussion is approved by the Bishop of the Silver Hand.

Authority
The Congregation is a representative body and not a governing body. It does not possess the right to manage the internal affairs of those orders and chapters represented in its ranks beyond the remit required by the membership guidelines.

The Congregation has the right to vote resolutions which are then passed to the appropriate authority, be they the Bishop of the Silver Hand, the Lord Chancellor of the Church, or the Archbishop. The Congregation may not take upon itself powers that are possessed solely by the Church, Archbishop, Council, or Prefect, such as the ability to resolve doctrinal disputes, make wars, call crusades, and cast out Paladins from the Order of the Silver Hand. However, the Congregation does have the right to resolve that it would like any of these things to be done, thus directly representing its position to those in authority. --Whereupon, the authority so referred should either accede to the request of the Congregation or decline, providing some explanation of either course.

The Congregation has the right to establish codes of conduct, to set training guidelines, to call tournaments, and--most importantly--to create the military regimen necessary to maintain its constitutent bodies in a state of readiness. For this purpose, it should encourage, arrange, organise, and prepare war games, military manoeuvres, and other such sundry events as will continually improve the universal Paladinhood.

If the Congregation wishes to take an act and is unsure if the act is lawful, a simple request for a yea/nay response can be made by the Speaker to the Bishop of the Silver Hand, (or to his superior the Lord Chancellor, or directly to his superior, the Archbishop).

All members of the congregation agree, by their membership, to recognise in full the Paladins of the other members of the congregation. If a member body believes that another member body is in violation of the requirements of membership, the matter should be referred to the Prefect Bishop of the Silver Hand at once.

Membership
The Congregation of the Silver Hand shall accept, as speaking representatives, the Paladin who is the head of each chapter or order of Paladins that have been approved by the Bishop of the Silver Hand (or, his officially designated Paladin representative, from within the same order). These members are equal in stature at the Congregation, and are each possessed with a single, non-transferable vote, in all matters before the Congregation. Only members of the Congregation, the Bishop of the Silver Hand, the Grand Master of the Silver Hand, the Lord Chancellor of the Church, or the Archbishop may address the congregation as 'members' or 'peers'. All others who wish to speak must be invited so to do in a motion, seconded, and voted upon by the congregation.

The titular style for voting, representative members is "The Honourable" as in, "The Honourable X," "The Honourable Representative for the X," and "His/Her/Your Honour."

For a chapter or order to gain recognition by the Bishop of the Silver Hand, the said chapter or order must demonstrate:

- That its paladins are trained and squired in accordance with the mission statement of the Congregation;

- That its paladins are wholly orthodox and knowledgeable believers of the teachings of the Holy Church;

- That its paladins are virtuous; and that the order will not suffer fallen, corrupt, or otherwise gravely sullied paladins to remain within its ranks;

- That its paladins are loyal to the Light, the Holy Church, the Archbishop, the Council of Bishops, and the Grand Alliance, being not neutral in any regard;

- And that its paladins are duly consecrated only by Bishops of the Council of Bishops.

Should the Prefect Bishop of the Silver Hand determine that a body has lapsed in these observances, the Prefect will revoke membership until the body is once again in accordance with the principles above.

Should a body fail to attend two successive meetings, it will lose its voting rights (effective at that second meeting) until it is again in attendance, and its vote shall not be considered in matters before council, nor shall the said vote constitute part of those counted as amongst the membership.

Should a body fail to attend three sucessive meetings, it will lose its membership entirely, and will need to reapply for membership through the Bishop of the Silver Hand, serving as prefect.

An individual who refuses to attend without just cause approved by the Speaker, Prefect Bishop of the Silver Hand, or Archbishop, having been ordered so to do by the Speaker, and attempted to be brought before the council by the Sergeant-at-Arms, shall invalidate the membership of their order in the Congregation and will need to reapply for membership through the Bishop of the Silver Hand, serving as prefect.

Current Eligible Representatives
Ardent Inquisition ((guild))

Blades of Greymane ((guild)), Representative Cedrec

Blazing Dawn ((guild)), Representative Binor

Dominion of Alterac ((guild)), Representative Hendrek

Clergy of the Holy Light ((guild))

First Regiment ((guild)), Representative Elevaan

Grey Hand ((guild))

The Highguard (High Elf) ((guild)), Representative Galvajin

House of Elric ((guild)), Representative Ritchard

Ivory Vanguard ((guild)), Representative Seltara

League of Lordaeron ((guild)), Representative Cartres

Noble Guard ((non-guild organisation)), Representative Regg

Order of the Crimson Fist ((non-guild organisation))

Duchy of Newcastle ((non-guild organisation)), Representative Ashvale

Scarlet Hammer ((guild)), Representative Lightburnt

Silver Hand Chapter ((guild)), Representative Stromheart

Council Meetings
Council Meetings shall take place in the Holy See at Tyr's Hand, in Lordaeron, on the first Saturday of each month at seven bells in the evening, and shall be planned so as to last approximately one hour. To this end, discussion on matters may be closed after a reasonable time, even if not every speaker has been addressed, for to facilitate the completion of Congregational business. If members feel a reasonable time has not been allowed by the Speaker, they may appeal to the Prefect. This appeal is final.

If the first Saturday of the month falls upon a day of observance, the Congregation may elect to defer the meeting until the second Saturday of the month.

Grand Master of the Silver Hand
Whilst not technically a position within the Congregation, the Grand Master of the Order of the Silver Hand is appointed to serve as an exemplary model for all paladins in the Congregation. The Grand Master is appointed without set term by the Archbishop, and is endowed with the supreme, knightly authority to teach, instruct, and educate all paladins in the Order of the Silver Hand in all knightly matters.

The titular style for the Grand Master is "The Most Honourable X, His/Her/Your Honour".

The current Grand Master is Melysa Marwyn-Sutton

Congregational Prefect
The Congregational Prefect is, as in all congregations of the Council of Bishops, the supreme head of the Congregation. The Congregational Prefect of the Congregation of the Silver Hand shall be the Bishop of the Silver Hand. The Prefect is responsible for ensuring meetings are held, ensuring order is maintained during meetings, and for evaluating and ensuring membership requirements are met, and remain adhered to, for all member bodies.

The titular style for the Prefect is the same as the style for that individual's rank within the Church (i.e., for a bishop, it is "The Most Reverend, His/Her/Your (Most Reverend) Grace).

The current Congregational Prefect is Bishop Lilith Olethos.

Speaker
The Speaker is the presiding representative of the congregation, and is elected by the members of the Congregation for a term of three months. The Speaker is responsible for:

- Maintaining order during meetings.

- Calling meetings to order and adjourning meetings.

- Giving orders to the Sergeant-at-Arms to provide for security and order, including the option to remove, perforce, any observer or member deemed disruptive to the meeting of the Congregation.

- Recognition of those who wish to speak.

- Serving as the representative for the paladins serving on the body when necessary.

- Representing the opinions of the members of the body dispassionately and without personal bias, insofar as it is possible.

- In special cases, proposing worthy aspirants to the Bishop of the Silver Hand for consecration as Paladins.

The titular style for the Speaker is "The Right Honourable Speaker" as in, "The Right Honourable X," "The Honourable Speaker," and "His/Her/Your Honour." Informally, "Mr./Mme. Speaker" may be used.

The current Speaker is Sir Binor Dungalion.

Secretary
The Speaker will be assisted by a secretary, chosen by the Prefect of the Congregation to serve the Speaker after his or her election, who is responsible for sundry matters of business, including:

- The responsibility of maintaining the Council Docket.

- The responisibilty of recording the minutes of each Council meeting.

- The authority to call Order meetings to Order when the Speaker is unable so to do, thus acting as temporary chairperson.

The titular style for the Speaker is "The Honourable Secretary" as in, "The Right Honourable X," "The Honourable Secretary," and "His/Her/Your Honour." Informally, "Mr./Mme. Secretary" may be used.

The current Secretary is Dame Melysa Marwyn-Sutton.

Dean
The Dean of the Congregation is one of the two assistance chosen by the Speaker after his or her election from amongst the membership of the Congregation. The Dean is responsible for:

- Establishing and maintaining a seminary of paladins under the direction of the Grand Master of the Silver Hand and the Bishop of the Silver Hand that shall facilitate the continued spiritual and physical training of aspirants.

- Upholding and epitomising the Code of the original Order of the Silver Hand above all others.

- Actively cultivating the orthodox purity of church doctrine within the Order.

- Receiving audience for any inquiries or investigations he may conduct within the Order. After which, if the Dean believes sufficient evidence of misconduct is present, the Dean is then responsible for completely documenting the matter and referring it to the Bishop of the Silver Hand.

The titular style for the Dean is "The Honourable Dean" as in, "The Right Honourable X," "The Honourable Dean," and "His/Her/Your Honour." Informally, "Mr./Mme. Dean" may be used.

The current Dean is Vacant.

Business
Business should be submitted to the Secretary of the Congregation, in writing, at least forty-eight hours in advance of the meeting. The docket cannot be changed in the twenty-four hours before the meeting. Matters on the docket are raised in the order submitted.

After all old business is completed, if time remains, new business may be addressed. New business is a discussion brought before the Council either by the motion of a peer, or by the presentation of a communication to the assembly. It is not usual to make motions to receive reports of committees or communications to the assembly. There are many other cases in the ordinary routine of business where the formality of a motion is dispensed with, but should any peer object, a regular motion becomes necessary.

No motion contemplating action may be brought as New Business without the special, explicit approval of the Prefect of the Congregation, given on a case-by-case basis. New business is limited exclusively to discussion of issues.

What Precedes Debate
Before any subject is open to debate it is necessary, first, that a motion be made by a peer who has obtained the floor; second, that it be seconded (with certain exceptions); and third, that it be stated by the Speaker. The fact that a motion has been made and seconded does not put it before the assembly, as the Speaker alone can do that. He or she must either rule it out of Order, or state the question on it so that the assembly may know what is before it for consideration and action, that is, what is the immediately pending question. If several questions are pending, as a resolution and an amendment and a motion to postpone, the last one stated by the Speaker is the immediately pending question.

Motions may contain one or many propositions; however, only a single vote is taken on any individual motion. If the motion fails, all parts of the motion fail. If the motion passes, all parts of the motion pass. Abstentions count as votes to enforce the state of the council prior to the motion--typically, this is 'Nay'.

Obtaining the Floor
Before a peer makes a motion or addresses the assembly in debate, it is necessary that he or she should obtain the floor -- that is, he or she must raise his hand to signal this intent after the floor has been yielded, and address the presiding officer by his or her official title. If the assembly is large so that the peer's name may be unknown to the Speaker, the peer should give his or her name as soon as he or she catches the eye of the Speaker after addressing him or her. It is the responsibility of the Secretary to assist the Speaker in keeping track of who is next to speak, in order.

If the peer is entitled to the floor, as shown hereafter, the Speaker "recognises" him or her, or assigns him or her the floor, by announcing his or her name. If a peer speaks before the floor has been yielded, he or she cannot obtain the floor. It is out of Order to speak when another has the floor, and remarks, motions, or actions by any peer speaking out of order shall not be recognized by the assembly. Out of order conduct is grounds for removal from meetins of the council.

Motions and Resolutions
A motion is a proposal that the assembly take certain action, or that it express itself as holding certain views. It is made by a peer's obtaining the floor as already described and saying, "I move that" (which is equivalent to saying, "I propose that"), and then stating the action he or she proposes to have taken. Thus a peer "moves" (proposes) that a resolution be adopted, or amended, or referred to a committee, or that a vote of thanks be extended, etc.; or "That it is the sense of this meeting (or assembly) that ______ action be taken," etc. If the motion is for an action which the Congregation cannot lawfully undertake, the Speaker should observe this and, with the confirmation of the Bishop of the Silver Hand (or, in the absence of such, the confirmation of the Lord Chancellor, or Archbishop) announce that the motion is unlawful and is thus disregarded.

Seconding Motions
For a motion to be considered by the Congregation, it must be seconded. This is to prevent time being consumed in considering a question that only one person favors. Typically, a second is offered on most significant issues. Should a motion proceed without a second, any one may make a point of order that the motion has not been seconded, and then the Speaker is obliged to proceed formally and call for a second.

A motion is seconded by a peer's saying "I second the motion," "Seocnded," or "I second it," which he or she does without obtaining the floor. In large assemblies, and especially where non-members are scattered throughout the assembly, members raise their hands, and without waiting for recognition, say, "I second the motion."

Debate
After a question has been stated by the Speaker, it is before the assembly for consideration and action. All resolutions, reports of committees, communications to the assembly, and all amendments proposed to them, and all other motions except the Undebatable Motions may be debated before final action is taken on them, unless by a majority vote the assembly decides to dispose of them without debate. In the debate each peer has the right to speak twice on the same question on the same day (except on an appeal), but cannot make a second speech on the same question as long as any peer who has not spoken on that question desires the floor. No peer may speak longer than ten minutes at a time without permission of the assembly.

Debate must be limited to the merits of the immediately pending question -- that is, the last question stated by the Speaker that is still pending; except that in a few cases the main question is also open to debate. Speakers must address their remarks to the Speaker, and be courteous in their language and deportment. Speakers should not address their fellows by name in the debates, but rather refer to them as "The Honourable Representative for X" where X is the name of the Order, Chapter, or Body.

Secondary Motions
To assist in the proper disposal of the question, various subsidiary motions are used, such as to amend, to commit, etc., and for the time being the subsidiary motion replaces the resolution, or motion, and becomes the immediately pending question. While these are pending, a question incidental to the business may arise, as a question of Order, and this incidental question interrupts the business and, until disposed of, becomes the immediately pending question. And all of these may be superseded by certain motions, called privileged motions, as to adjourn, of such supreme importance as to justify their interrupting all other questions. All of these motions that may be made while the original motion is pending are sometimes referred to as secondary motions.

Putting the Question and Announcing the Vote
First, a quorum must be present before any vote can be called. Quorum for the congregation is half of the body (rounded up, in case of fractions) plus one. So, if the body consists of 15 members, quorum is 9 (half of 15 is 7.5--rounded up to 8, plus 1).

The Speaker may order the Sergeant-at-Arms to compel voting members to be present. Voting members are required to be present as part of their duties and, if absent without cause approved by the Speaker or Prefect Bishop of the Silver Hand (or the Archbishop), may be brought into the Congregation by force. Presence, even under duress, shall constitute portion of quorum.

When the debate is closed, the Grand asks again, "Are there remaining matters on this question prior to a vote?" If no one rises, he proceeds to take the vote on the question, first calling for the affirmative (Aye) and then for the negative vote (Nay). In putting the question the Speaker should make perfectly clear what the question is that the assembly is to decide. If the question is on the adoption of a resolution, unless it has been read very recently, it should be read again, the question being put in a way similar to this: "The question is on the adoption of the resolution [which the Speaker reads]; those in favor of the resolution say aye; those opposed say no. The ayes have it, and the resolution is adopted;" or, "The noes have it, and the resolution is lost."

The vote should always be announced, as it is a necessary part of putting the question. The assembly is assumed not to know the result of the vote until announced by the Speaker, and the vote does not go into effect until announced and confirmed by the Speaker. As soon as the result of the vote is announced the Speaker should state the next business in Order.

All matters of council business require a majority vote of the entire body (not just those present) in order to pass. Any absent representatives are understood to have abstained (their vote maintains the congregation in its state prior to the vote--typically 'nay').

Adjournment
When the Congregation has reached the designated time for adjournment, the Speaker should announce that time for the meeting has elapsed. A motion may then be made to add thirty minutes of extra time. Such a motion must be seconded and voted upon; should it fail, the meeting is adjourned. Motions for extra time may be made thrice, after which no more motions for extra time may be tabled, and the meeting is adjourned.

If a meeting is adjourned before all of the business on the docket has been addressed, the remaining business is shifted onto the docket for the following meeting. After the meeting is adjourned, the meeting may not be reconvened until the following designated meeting day (in the next month). No business may be enacted after adjournment, nor may the congregation hear discussion or maintain members present.

Suspension of the Rules of Order
In accordance with the principles of the Congregation established in the preamble, only the Archbishop himself may suspend the rules of order, or the workings of the Congregation presented above.

Disclaimer
It is again reaffirmed that the Bishop of the Silver Hand, as prefect of the Council, has the absolute and total right to hold the council to the letter of the rules established above. Is is similarly reaffirmed that the Archbishop supersedes these rules and may invalidate, change, reestablish, overrule, replace, or otherwise amend, suspend, or promulgate such.

This document is a work in progress and will, it is affirmed, be changed according to the needs of the Church and the Council of Bishops, with the continued intent of improving the means by which Paladins may represent themselves to one another and to the Holy Church.