CHAPTER XXVIII.

APPEAL OF A TRAVELING PREACHER TO THE GENERAL CONFERENCE

1. In all cases, it shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Annual Conference to preserve the documents relating to the trial of members, which documents only, in an appeal from the decision of an Annual Conference, shall be presented to the Ministerial Court of Appeals in evidence on the case.

2. When an appeal is made from the Ministerial Court of Appeals, and allowed by the General Conference, there shall be a committee appointed consisting of one delegate from each Annual Conference, who, in the presence of a Bishop and one or more of the Secretaries of the General Conference, shall have full power to try the case; and their decision shall be final. And the said committee shall make a faithful report to the General Conference, in writing, and deliver up to the Secretary the whole record of the case with the decision rendered.

3. No member shall be appointed to serve on any appeal when he has been a member of the committee that first tried the case.

4. The appellant shall state, either personally or by his representative, (who shall be a member of the Conference,) the grounds of his appeal, showing cause why he appeals, and he shall be permitted to make his defense without interruption. After which the representatives of the Ministerial Court of Appeals from whose decision the appeal is made shall be permitted to respond in presence of the appellant, who shall be at privilege of replying, which shall close the pleadings on both sides. This done, the appellant shall withdraw and the committee shall decide.

5. No minister, after such form of trial and expulsion, shall be restored to the communion of the Church without giving satisfactory evidence of repentance, unless the Annual Conference shall become convinced that he was innocent of the crime for which he was expelled; in which case the Conference may restore him to his previous standing.