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STATUTES

Chapter I
GENERAL STANDARDS

Art. 1º
Name and seat
The community “Forest Theravada Buddhism – Religious Community” hereinafter referred to as
abbreviated as “community” is a religious legal person based in Quinta do
Pinhal, on National Road 116, in Cabeça Alta, Place of Achada, Parish and Municipality
of Mafra, which is governed by the Law of Religious Freedom and by the present statutes, and is the
the representative organization of believers, existing in Portuguese territory, of English
Sangha Trust, Ltd based at Amaravati Buddhist Monastery (Amaravati Buddhist
Monastery) Saint Margarets Lane Great Gaddesden Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1
3BZ in the UK.

Art. 2º
Purposes

The purpose of the Community shall be to:
a) To promote the teachings of the Buddha (Buddha Sasana);
b) To promote and sustain the worship and service of temples and monasteries;
c) Practicing benevolence.

Art. 3º
Competences
In order to achieve its objectives, the Community may in particular:
a) To raise funds, excluding the practice of commercial acts in a professional capacity;
b) Acquire and dispose of, free of charge or for consideration, encumber, take and lease property
immovable or movable;
c) Cooperate on projects, establish partnerships and share information with
charitable and charitable institutions, voluntary organisations and
religious legal persons, local authorities and State departments;

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d) To constitute and support legal persons and institutions of public utility and
social solidarity.

Art. 4º
Heritage
1. The following shall constitute the assets of the Community:
regular or extraordinary contributions that any person may make to the
grant;
b) Any grants, donations, inheritances accepted for the benefit of inventory, legacies
or donations that public or private entities, Portuguese or foreign
to do;
c) Income from investments, financial investments, disposal of
rights in literary and artistic works;
2. When legacies are made, inheritances are left or donations are made subject to
conditions, acceptance of such benefits depends on the compatibility of the
condition or burden with the purposes and rules of the Community.

Art. 5º
Asset and Financial Management
1. The Community enjoys full financial autonomy and manages its assets with
full compliance with legal and statutory standards.
2. The financial and asset management of the Community should respect the principle of
legality and transparency, and be guided by the criterion of resource optimisation
available to achieve full independence, financial self-sufficiency and
application of income in pursuit of its purposes.
3. The Community's heritage should be applied exclusively to the promotion of
their respective purposes.
4. The assets of the Community shall not be transferred, directly or indirectly, to
any member of the Community as a bonus, dividend or profit.

Art. 6º
Civil liability
1. The Community shall not be liable for acts or omissions committed by its
members, body-holders or representatives in excess of the powers conferred, or
These are the responsibilities legitimately assumed by the Community.

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2. The Community shall provide insurance against civil liability in respect of
members of the Council of the Community or any other representative of the Community by
carrying out acts in the legitimate exercise of the mandate.
3. The members of the Council of the Community shall be personally responsible for:
fines imposed on the Community for negligent management; or
harmful;
b) Costs of defense in criminal proceedings in which they are accused and come to
to be condemned.

Art. 7º
Ways to Oblige
The Community undertakes to sign jointly two of its
Community, except for acts of mere expediency in which the signature of a
Only one of these advisors.

Art. 8º
Extinction and Dissolution
The dissolution and merger of the Community may be decided upon only by approval in
General Conference of Members expressly convened for this purpose, taken with the
three-quarters of the members present or duly represented voted in favour.

Art. 9º
Liquidation of assets
The General Conference and, subject to a resolution of the General Conference to that effect, the
The Council of the Community may, before the extinction of the Community, decide that any
assets of the Community shall be, before or after the dissolution of the
Community, after all its debts and obligations have been settled or
a provision to that effect, applied or transferred in any of the following ways:
Directly for the purposes of any religious community of the Buddhist Community
Theravada of the Ajahn Chah Line Forest; or
for any Community or institutions having objectives similar to those of this
Community; or
for any Community for use for specific purposes falling within the scope of
within the ends.

Chapter II

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OF THE COMMUNITY BODIES

Section I
Organs in general

Art. 10º
Community bodies

The following bodies of the Community shall be:
a) The General Conference of Members or simply the General Conference;
the Council of the Community;
c) The Spiritual Counselor;
d) Community Consultants.

Art. 11º
Notices and notices
1. Notices or notices may be given in person or in writing or
by electronic means.
2. A member present or legitimately represented at a meeting of an organ of the
The community has been duly convened.

Art. 12º
Conflicts of interest
The holders of organs shall not take part in deliberations in which they or their
relatives have a conflict of interest with the Community.

Art. 13º
Votes of the bodies in general
1. Where possible, deliberations should be taken by consensus.
2. In the absence of consensus, votes are taken by show of hands.
3. Decisions are valid even if it turns out that not all
participants met the requirements to vote, if the vote of such participant is not
decisive in the approval of the decision taken.

Art. 14º
Deliberations
1. Decisions are generally adopted by simple majority.

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2. Decisions on amendments to the Statutes and internal rules shall be taken without
approval of a three-quarters majority of the members of the General Conference.

Art. 15º
Written form of the deliberations of the bodies
Decisions may be taken on a written proposal and sent to all members of the
body if the majority of the members required for the approval to be signed and the document signed
received by them at the Secretariat of the Community within 28 days of the date of
his expedition to the members.

Art. 16º
Votes of members
1. Each member shall have one vote.
2. Any objection to a member's ability to participate in a vote shall be
be made before the decision is taken, and the decision of the presiding
meeting.
3. Members of the bodies may participate by any effective means and
shall be considered as such for the purposes of the quorum, provided that each member which
attend the meeting can communicate with all other members directly and
simultaneously.

Section II
General Conference of Members

Art. 17º
members
1. The General Conference of Members shall be composed of the signatories of the minutes of
Constitution of the Community and by those to be approved by deliberation
unanimous agreement of the members of the General Conference.
2. Membership is personal and non-transferable.
3. The Council of the Community shall keep a register of the names and addresses of
members.

Art. 18º
Termination of membership
Membership is lost

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(a)death;
by resignation submitted by the member in a written document;
c) By resolution approved by the General Conference.

Art. 19º
Competence of the General Conference of Members
The General Conference of Members shall have residual competence and shall be responsible for:
These include:
to elect and remove the members of the Council of the Community;
b) Amend the statutes and approve and amend the regulations by majority of ¾ of
present;
approve the merger or dissolution of the Community;
d) Approve the alienation or encumbrance of immovable property.

Art. 20º
General Conference of Members
1. The General Conference shall meet whenever convened at least once every fifteen years.
in fifteen months.
2. The Council of the Community, two members of the General Conference or the Councillor
Spiritually, they can convene the General Conference at any time.

Art. 21º
Convening of a General Conference of Members
1. The General Conference of Members shall be convened in advance.
at least 15 days before the planned date of implementation.
2. However, in the event of a majority of members having the right to participate and vote in the
General Conference, holding at least 90 per cent of the total voting rights,
agree, the meeting of the General Conference may be convened with a shorter deadline.
3. The invitation must specify the date and time, the place of the meeting and the respective
agenda.
4. Members who are unable to attend may be represented by another
member by means of credentials.
5. The notice of meeting shall be communicated to all members.
6. Accidental omission in the convocation of a member of the General Conference of
Members shall not affect the validity of decisions taken in accordance with the order of
jobs.

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7. A session of the General Conference may be held if all members are
present or represented and agree to deliberate, regardless of the existence of
or regularity of the call.

Art. 22º
Procedures at the General Conference of Members
The deliberative quorum shall be that of a member entitled to vote on the matter under discussion.

Art. 23º
General Conference of Members reconvened
If the deliberative session is not held due to a lack of quorum, a new meeting is scheduled.
for the same day and time of the following week.

Art. 24º
President of the General Conference of Members
1. The General Conference of Members shall be led by the President of the Council of
Community.
2. In the absence of the President, the General Conference shall be headed by the Vice-President of the
Council of the Community.
3. If he also does not appear or is not present within fifteen minutes of the
time set for the meeting, a nominated Community Councillor will chair the meeting
by the Council of the Community.
4. If only one Community Counsellor is present, and is willing to
He could be the chair of the meeting.
5. If no Councillor of the Community is present and willing to preside over the
meeting no later than fifteen minutes after the time appointed for the meeting, members shall
choose from among them an “ad hoc” Chair.

Section III
From the Council of the Community

Art. 25º
Election requirements
No member of the Council of the Community may be appointed unless:
is over 18 years of age;

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b) Aspire to live according to the five precepts of the Theravada Tradition and protect
the fiduciary interests of the Community.
has the capacity to act as a good administrator of the Community's assets.

Art. 26º
Benefits
Holders of the Council of the Community, in the exercise of their mandate, shall benefit from the
third-party liability insurance coverage.

Art. 27º
Composition of the Council
1. The number of Community Councillors shall not be less than three or
more than nine and should always be odd.
2. The office of Community Counsellor shall be personal and non-transferable.

Art. 28º
Competence of the Council of the Community
The Council of the Community shall be the administrative body of the Community and shall be responsible for:
elect the President, a Secretary and a Treasurer;
ensure the attainment of the objectives of the Community;
c) To present to the General Conference, on an annual basis, a financial and
activities;
represent the Community, through its President, actively and
passively vis-à-vis any public or private entity;
e) Accept donations, legacies and inheritances for the benefit of inventory;
establish the annual budget and activity plan.

Art. 29º
Appointment of Community Counsellors
1. The General Conference may appoint Community Counsellors who
available to hold the position.
2. The Spiritual Counselor may appoint a Community Counselor.

Art. 30º
Termination of the duties of the Community Counsellors
A Community Councillor shall cease to hold office:

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(a)death;
(b) when he is dismissed;
c) when he resigns.

Art. 31º
Notice of resignation
1. The request for resignation of the Council of the Community shall be notified to the
President of the Council of the Community one month in advance.
2. Resignation shall become effective only on the date on which the effects of the
resignation if at least three members remain on the Council of the Community.

Art. 32º
Grounds for dismissal
The Unjustified Absence of a Community Counsellor to Conference Meetings
General and Council of the Community is sufficient ground for his dismissal.

Art. 33º
Remuneration of Counsellors.
The function of the Community Counsellors shall not be remunerated, unless the
General Conference of Members, but in the exercise of their functions the Councillors of the
The Community is entitled to reimbursement of reasonable expenses legitimately incurred by it.
carried out.

Art. 34º
Counsellors Procedures
1. The Secretary of the Council of the Community shall convene a meeting of the Council.
of the Community whenever one of the Community Counsellors so requests.
2. The Community Counsellors shall, before taking any decision,
Counsel with the Spiritual Counselor.

Art. 35º
Quorum
The deliberative quorum in the Council of the Community shall be three members who are not
They are prevented from participating in the deliberations that will be taken.

Art. 36º

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Delegation of powers
1. Community Counsellors may delegate their powers to a committee
composed of a Community Counsellor and a member of the General Conference,
They shall set out the conditions for such delegation in the minutes.
2. The Councillors of the Community may impose conditions when delegating the
their powers.
3. The President of the Council of the Community may revoke the delegation of power to
anytime.

Art. 37º
Conflicts of interest
A Community Counsellor shall declare the nature and extent of any conflict
interests, direct or indirect, with those of the Community.

Art. 38º
Minutes
The Council of the Community shall keep the record of all deliberations up to date.

Art. 39º
Accountability
In each financial year, the Council of the Community shall prepare and submit to the
General Conference a reliable annual report of accounts.

Art. 40º
Meetings of the Council of the Community
1. Where consensus cannot be reached, the President of the Council of the Community shall
shall decide whether, due to the seriousness of the matter, urgency or legal requirement, the matter
should be put to a vote. If the seriousness of the matter, urgency or legal imposition does not
If justified, the matter will be moved to the next meeting.
2. At the meetings of the Council of the Community, only the Councillors of the Community have
right to vote.

Art. 41º
Subcommittees

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1. The Council of the Community may set up subcommittees with appropriate functions.
determined with regard to their respective responsibilities, term of office, members and
skills.
2. Each subcommittee shall report its action to the Council of the Community and to the
General Conference. 3. Each subcommittee shall include a Community Counsellor.
a member of the General Conference.

Art. 42º
Dismissal of Counsellors
1. The Spiritual Counselor may ask the Community Counsellors to
convene a General Conference of Members to propose the resignation of a
Adviser. In the event of refusal, any member of the General Conference of Members may
Call it 30 days in advance.
2. Any member who is dismissed from his post on the initiative of the member
Spirituality shall have the right to participate and intervene in the next meeting of the Councillors of the
Community.

Section IV
The Spiritual Counselor

Art. 43º
Recognition and mandate of the Adviser
1. The Community will have as Spiritual Counselor a monk of the Buddhist Community
Theravada da Floresta, recognized by deliberation of Community Consultants.
2. The Spiritual Counselor will hold his position until his death, reformation,
Disorder or removal from office at a meeting of Community Consultants.
3. The Spiritual Counselor may appoint a delegate to represent him.
4. The appointment of such a delegate shall be approved by the Community Consultants.
5. The Spiritual Counsellor, as a member of the Community, may call upon the
at any time, an extraordinary meeting of the General Conference of Members.

Section V
Community Consultants

Art. 44º
Consultant Requirements

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The Community should have as Monks Consultants of the Theravada Buddhist Community
Forests that comply with the rules and a standard of practice in accordance with the Tradition Line
the Forest of Thailand, as taught by Ajahn Chah.

Art. 45º
Competence of Consultants
Community Consultants are responsible for:
To mediate in cases of conflict between Community Counsellors and the Conference
General Members;
b) Recognize new religious communities of the Theravada Buddhist Community
Forest, from the line of Ajahn Chah and withdraw their recognition;
c) Appointing and dismissing Community Consultants;
d) Advise the Community Counsellors on the termination, dissolution and
transfer of Community assets;
e) Take on the role of Spiritual Counselor if the place becomes vacant;
f) Appoint and dismiss the Spiritual Counselor.

Art. 46º
Dissolution or splitting
1. In the event of the dissolution of the community, its assets must be transferred to the
English Sangha Trust, Ltd based in Amaravati Buddhist Monastery (Amaravati Buddhist
Monastery) Saint Margarets Lane Great Gaddesden Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1
3BZ UK.
2. In case of division of the community, its heritage and spiritual leadership
remain with the part of the community that the English Sangha Trust, Ltd based in the
Amaravati Buddhist Monastery Saint Margarets Lane Great
Gaddesden Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1 3BZ UK recognize as their part
integral.

Forest Theravada Buddhism – Religious Community
headquarters: BUDIST MOSTEIRO SUMEDHARAMA, COURSE OF THE GREAT VALE 59, GOOD SOURCE OF NABOS; 2655–465 ERICEIRA,
PORTUGAL
+351 261863787; sangha@sumedharama.pt – www.sumedharama.pt