General Conference Session

The meeting (held quinquennially) of delegates representing the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church. The first session, at which the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists was organized, was held in Battle Creek, Michigan, May 20–23, 1863. Twenty delegates were in attendance—four from the state of New York, two from Ohio, 10 from Michigan (eight ministers and two laypersons), one from Wisconsin, two from Iowa, and one from Minnesota. Of the conferences then in existence, only the Vermont Conference was not represented. Committees on constitution, credentials, and nominations were duly appointed, and the constitution of the General Conference was adopted. It consisted of nine articles setting forth the usual features of organization and provided for representation from the constituent conferences to the yearly sessions. The conference’s officers (president, secretary, and treasurer) were elected for the ensuing term of one year. In 1889 the constitution was amended to convene sessions biennially. From 1905 to 1970 the constitution provided for regular quadrennial sessions. Since 1970 sessions have been held every five years. The importance of the quinquennial session in Seventh-day Adventist Church government is evident. This is the time when the highest organization in the administration of a worldwide work convenes to express the collective thinking and planning of the church. The final authority of this body is accepted by all subordinate organizations and interests in the various sections of the world. In a word, the General Conference quinquennial session synthesizes and implements church organization on a world scale. This form of church government recognizes that authority rests in the church membership, which delegates executive responsibility to representative bodies and officers for the governing of the church and the promotion of church interests. These basic principles of authority and representation characterize the four steps in SDA organization leading from the individual believer to the world church. Within the framework of local responsibility and organization, members meet personally or through personal representation to ensure a united body and a united action. On the conference or local field level, the united body of churches in a state, province, or local territory organizes and directs the work. Local fields affiliate within a larger territory to form unions. The union organization likewise prosecutes the work within its territory. Then, finally, these union groupings unite in the General Conference as a body embracing the church in all parts of the world. The quinquennial session operates, as did the first session in Battle Creek, on the basis of duly accredited delegates. These delegates and voters are designated: (a) delegates at large; and (b) regular delegates. The delegates at large include all members of the General Conference Executive Committee (commonly called the General Conference Committee) and such other delegates as are recommended by it for seating at the session to represent general institutions and church interests ( see General Conference Constitution, Art. IV, Section 7 ); the number of these others is not to exceed 20 percent of the total number of delegates in attendance otherwise provided for. The regular delegates are appointed as outlined in Article IV, Section 6, of the General Conference Constitution. The General Conference Committee issues credentials to the delegates appointed as provided for in Article IV, Section 8. Calculations for the delegate allotments are based upon the membership as of Dec. 31 of the second year preceding the General Conference session. The delegates to the quinquennial session are able to bring to the officers in charge whatever matter they feel is worthy of attention. The assembly sets up a number of standing committees (Constitution and Bylaws, Credentials and Licenses, Finance, Nominations, and Plans) to prepare the regular business of the session and to process items or suggestions that are to come before the assembly. Special groups can be appointed to deal with specific items. During the quinquennium, technical committees prepare materials on certain aspects of the General Conference operation. The work of these committees comes likewise to the session through regular channels. Specific provision is made in the bylaws (Art. II, Sec. 2) for the number and choice of members that constitute the nominating committee. Sessions of the General Conference are held quinquennially at the time and place determined by the General Conference Executive Committee, although they can be postponed for as long as two years during unusual world conditions. This committee may call special sessions at such a time and place as it deems proper by a notice like that for regular sessions, and the transactions of such special sessions have the same force as those of the regular sessions. The election of officers and the voting on all matters of business that come before the session are by viva-voce vote or as designated by the chair, unless otherwise requested by a majority of the delegates present. Currently the number of delegates at large and regular delegates in attendance at a quinquennial session approximates 1,900. The foregoing outlines the essential role of the General Conference sessions in SDA Church administration. This role is further enhanced by the fact that the General Conference session symbolizes in SDA ranks the importance of organization in God’s work. The church believes that organization is of God and is based on divine principles. The General Conference organization and session are intended to exemplify these principles and the order that should prevail in God’s church. SESSIONS OF THE GENERAL CONFERENCE OF SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS Session Delegates Opening Date Place 1 20 May 20, 1863 Battle Creek, Mich. 2 20 May 18, 1864 Battle Creek, Mich. 3 21 May 17, 1865 Battle Creek, Mich. 4 19 May 16, 1866 Battle Creek, Mich. 5 18 May 14, 1867 Battle Creek, Mich. 6 15 May 12, 1868 Battle Creek, Mich. 7 16 May 18, 1869 Battle Creek, Mich. 8 22 March 15, 1870 Battle Creek, Mich. 9 17 Feb. 7, 1871 Battle Creek, Mich. 10 14 Dec. 29, 1871 Battle Creek, Mich. 11 18 March 11, 1873 Battle Creek, Mich. 12 21 Nov. 14, 1873 Battle Creek, Mich. 13 19 Aug. 10, 1874 Battle Creek, Mich. 14 18 Aug. 15, 1875 Battle Creek, Mich. * 15 Mar. 31, 1876 Battle Creek, Mich. 15 16 Sept. 19, 1876 Lansing, Mich. * 16 Nov. 12, 1876 Battle Creek, Mich. 16 20 Sept. 20, 1877 Lansing, Mich. * 22 Mar. 1, 1878 Battle Creek, Mich. 17 39 Oct. 4, 1878 Battle Creek, Mich. * 29 Apr. 17, 1879 Battle Creek, Mich. 18 39 Nov. 7, 1879 Battle Creek, Mich. * 28 Mar. 11, 1880 Battle Creek, Mich. 19 38 Oct. 6, 1880 Battle Creek, Mich. 20 41 Dec. 1, 1881 Battle Creek, Mich. 21 47 Dec. 7, 1882 Rome, N.Y. 22 65 Nov. 8, 1883 Battle Creek, Mich. 23 67 Oct. 30, 1884 Battle Creek, Mich. 24 70 Nov. 18, 1885 Battle Creek, Mich. 25 71 Nov. 18, 1886 Battle Creek, Mich. 26 70 Nov. 13, 1887 Oakland, Calif. 27 91 Oct. 17, 1888 Minneapolis, Minn. 28 109 Oct. 18, 1889 Battle Creek, Mich. 29 125 Mar. 5, 1891 Battle Creek, Mich. 30 130 Feb. 17, 1893 Battle Creek, Mich. 31 150 Feb. 15, 1895 Battle Creek, Mich. 32 140 Feb. 19, 1897 College View, Nebr. 33 149 Feb. 15, 1899 South Lancaster, Mass. 34 268 Apr. 2, 1901 Battle Creek, Mich. 35 139 Mar. 27, 1903 Oakland, Calif. 36 197 May 11, 1905 Washington, D.C. 37 328 May 13, 1909 Washington, D.C. 38 372 May 15, 1913 Washington, D.C. 39 443 Mar. 29, 1918 San Francisco, Calif. 40 581 May 11, 1922 San Francisco, Calif. 41 577 May 27, 1926 Milwaukee, Wis. 42 577 May 28, 1930 San Francisco, Calif. 43 671 May 26, 1936 San Francisco, Calif. 44 619 May 26, 1941 San Francisco, Calif. 45 828 June 5, 1946 Washington, D.C. 46 943 July 10, 1950 San Francisco, Calif. 47 1,109 May 24, 1954 San Francisco, Calif. 48 1,160 June 19, 1958 Cleveland, Ohio 49 1,314 July 26, 1962 San Francisco, Calif. 50 1,495 June 16, 1966 Detroit, Mich. 51 1,782 June 11, 1970 Atlantic City, N.J. 52 1,756 July 10, 1975 Vienna, Austria 53 1,696 April 17, 1980 Dallas, Tex. 54 1,853 June 27, 1985 New Orleans, La. 55 1,943 July 5, 1990 Indianapolis, Ind. 56 2,352 June 29, 1995 Utrecht, Netherlands ____________ *Special sessions