The Seventh-day Adventist Church Manual (2022, p. 38-40) deals with all the specifics regarding church companies.
Let’s begin by considering an important question. Why are church companies formed? The Church Manual states, “Where a number of isolated believers reside near one another or where they belong to a small group, house church, or church planting core group, they should consider forming a company of believers for fellowship, worship, and mission with the objective of growing into an organised church or multiplying house churches in that geographical area.” Note that one cannot form a company in a geographic area where an organised church already exists. Oftentimes, and unfortunately so, members become unhappy with their local churches and set up companies in the same territory of the local church. Companies are to be set up in isolated areas, which brings considerable difficulty for members to reach the local church such as heavy transport costs to mention just one example.
How are companies operated? Company status is approved by the conference executive committee and the membership of those desiring to form part of the company are kept by the conference church or a local church (usually the closest organised church) which would be designated as a mother church. The Cape Conference does not have a conference church and therefore it is to be understood that all church companies within the Cape Conference are to be supervised by local churches. Everything which concerns membership, such as baptisms, transfers or discipline, are therefore dealt with at the organised local church which oversees the company. The mother church, under the direction of the district pastor, also appoints a leader, a clerk and a treasurer.
Note that companies are led by leaders and not necessarily by elders. The local church which sees to the company may appoint one of its elders to provide leadership to the company in exceptional cases. But usually, a leader is appointed who does not require ordination. Ordination does not take place at companies. As such, companies will not have deacons either. Company assistants may be elected by the company members, along with other offices deemed necessary, but while such company assistants will perform many of the tasks which deacons usually do, they are not to perform any functions which require ordination. Special services which require ordination such as communion and anointing will be carried out at the mother church, or by a designated elder from the local church.
The clerk of the company will keep records of meetings, activities and membership and report regularly, through its leader, to the mother church. The company treasurer will keep a record of all the funds received and disbursed and remit conference funds to the local conference.
Companies should maintain close and cordial relations with their mother church and endeavour to grow towards church status. Companies which do not grow, or which lose all their nucleus members, may be dissolved by the conference executive committee.
