Church Constitution

Name and Legal Status

This church is Sacred Warrior Fellowship, Inc., a Florida nonprofit corporation organized and operated exclusively for religious purposes as a church within the meaning of Section 508(c)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Its principal office is in Palm Beach County, Florida. It may be known as Sacred Warrior Fellowship, or as the Fellowship.

Purpose

Sacred Warrior Fellowship exists to call veterans, first responders, their families, and all who are called, back into direct communion with God — through sacramental worship, disciplined spiritual formation, and a fellowship that continues long after ceremony ends.

This church is a religious body. It is not a clinic, a treatment provider, a counseling practice, a retreat company, or a wellness organization, and it makes no medical, psychological, or therapeutic claim.

Doctrinal Authority

The doctrine of this church is set out in the Statement of Faith. The conduct asked of its members is set out in the Guiding Precepts. Both are incorporated into this Constitution and carry its authority.

Where the governing documents of this church differ, they are read in this order: this Constitution, then the Statement of Faith and the Guiding Precepts, then the Bylaws, then any agreement executed with a member. No agreement with any member alters the doctrine or the governance of this church.

Ecclesiastical Authority

Questions of doctrine, worship, sacrament, ordination, membership, and discipline are decided within this church, by this church, according to these governing documents.

That authority is held jointly by the Board of Directors and the ordained clergy of this church as set out below. Such questions are resolved internally, under this Constitution, and are not submitted to any outside body for determination.

Governance and Office

Corporate governance is vested in a Board of Directors of no fewer than three Directors, constituted and serving as provided in the Bylaws. The corporate officers of this church are the President, the Secretary, and the Treasurer.

This church also holds ecclesiastical titles. These describe spiritual office and are distinct from corporate role.

• Sacred Warrior Chief — founding and presiding clergy of this church, holding spiritual leadership and bearing final responsibility for its sacramental life.
• Sacred Matriarch — co-founding clergy, holding the care of members and the covenant of membership.
• Priestess of Ceremony — ordained clergy who administers the sacrament and leads the spiritual elements of ceremony.
• Steward — ordained clergy of this church who hold sacred space, serve ceremony, and walk with members.

A person may hold both an ecclesiastical title and a corporate office. The two are separate, and neither confers the other.

Clergy and Ordination

Stewards are ordained by this church and by no other body. The Priestess of Ceremony examines each candidate and certifies to the readiness and fitness of those found prepared to serve. Ordination is then conferred upon the final approval of the Sacred Warrior Chief.

A candidate for ordination shall be a member in good standing, shall affirm the Statement of Faith and the Guiding Precepts, shall have received the sacrament within this church, and shall have completed the formation and training this church requires of its clergy.

Ordination in this church is a spiritual office. It carries no medical, clinical, or professional credential, and it confers no authority to diagnose, to treat, or to counsel beyond the pastoral calling of clergy.

Ordination may be suspended or withdrawn by the same authority that confers it.

Membership

Membership is open to any adult, eighteen years of age or older, who affirms the Statement of Faith and the Guiding Precepts, executes the Member Agreement, and commits to walk in integrity, humility, and reverence.

Membership is a covenant, not a purchase. Contributions support the religious and charitable operations of this church and secure no entitlement to sacrament or to ceremony.

Participation in sacramental ceremony is limited to members in good standing, and membership alone admits no member to it.

Sacramental Practice

This church holds as a sincere religious belief that entheogens, received reverently and sacramentally, are instruments of divine communion given by God through creation. Their reverent use within this church is an act of worship.

The sacrament is administered only by ordained clergy of this church, only within ceremony sanctioned by this church, and only to members admitted through pastoral discernment. It is never sold, never transferred, and never distributed outside the Fellowship.

This church makes no medical, psychological, or therapeutic claim regarding the sacrament, and no member is asked to begin, stop, change, or delay any medical or psychiatric care.

Pastoral Discernment and Safeguarding

No member approaches the sacrament without first being known. Members disclose their health, history, and circumstances to ordained Stewards, who discern readiness prayerfully. Stewards may ask any member to wait, or to refrain entirely, and that discernment is final.

This church maintains written screening, safety, and emergency protocols, and its clergy are trained and held to them.

For every ceremony, one Steward is designated to the Watch and does not receive the sacrament. The Watch is held by one Steward for the entire duration of the ceremony, keeping the ceremony space and the grounds under continuous watch. Any Steward, any member of clergy, and any member present may summon emergency assistance at any time, without permission from any authority of this church.

Discipline and Removal

Membership may be suspended or revoked by the Board of Directors for conduct that violates the Guiding Precepts, endangers the safety of others, disrespects ceremony, or is inconsistent with continued affirmation of this church’s beliefs.

A Steward may be removed from service, and ordination suspended or withdrawn, for the same causes, and for any breach of the duties of clergy set out in this Constitution or in the protocols of this church.

Discipline is a spiritual matter. It is undertaken prayerfully, with the person heard before a decision is made, and it is decided within this church.

Confidentiality and Records

Communications made in confidence to the clergy of this church for the purpose of spiritual counsel may be privileged under Florida law. It is the practice of this church to assert that privilege on behalf of its members. Such communications are held apart from every other record this church keeps.

Privilege has limits. It belongs to the member, and the mandatory reporting obligations of law always apply.

This church keeps what a church keeps — governance minutes, membership rolls, ordinations, ceremony records, and safety protocols. What is said in spiritual counsel is not among them.

Property, Finances, and Non-Inurement

All property and funds of this church are held for its religious and charitable purposes. The fiscal year is the calendar year, and the Treasurer maintains the records and reports of this church as provided in the Bylaws.

No part of the net earnings of this church shall inure to the benefit of any individual. Reasonable compensation may be paid for services actually rendered, approved by the Board and documented. Conflicts of interest are disclosed and managed as provided in the Bylaws.

Relationship to the Bylaws

The Bylaws of Sacred Warrior Fellowship, Inc. govern the corporate operation of this church — the constitution of the Board, the election and duties of officers, meetings, quorum, compensation, indemnification, and financial management.

The Bylaws are read together with this Constitution. Where they conflict, this Constitution governs in all matters of doctrine, worship, sacrament, ordination, membership, and discipline.

Amendment

This Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Board of Directors at a duly called meeting, with notice of the proposed amendment given in advance.

No amendment shall place this Constitution in conflict with the Statement of Faith unless that document is amended by the same authority and in the same act. Every amendment is recorded, dated, and published, and prior versions are retained in the records of this church.

Dissolution

Upon dissolution, after satisfaction of all obligations, the remaining assets of this church shall be distributed to another religious organization recognized under Section 508(c)(1)(A) or Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and holding a similar purpose.