If you have been attending services with us for some time – whether that’s in Zurich, St Gallen, Baden (formerly Turgi), or Zug – then we encourage to you deepen your involvement with our community by joining our Electoral Roll! The Electoral Roll is the formal list of lay (i.e., non-clergy) members of the Association of the Anglican Church in Zurich.
Membership is open to anyone who meets all three of the following criteria:
- You must be a baptised Christian, not clergy, and at least 16 years old;
- you must have been worshipping with us for at least 6 months (or you must have regularly worshipped with us in the past and have a legitimate reason for being absent recently); and
- you must be a member of the Church of England, of another Church in the Anglican Communion, or of a Church in communion with the Anglican Communion (or you must be willing to declare yourself to be a member of the Church of England).
While everyone is very welcome to participate in our community, only members of our Electoral Roll are eligible to vote for candidates at our Annual General Meetings and to stand for elected positions of responsibility.
The easiest way to fill out the application form to join the Electoral Roll is to do so online using this form. However, if you prefer to use a PDF form or to fill out your application on paper, then the form is available in church or upon request from the office, or it can be downloaded as a fillable PDF here.
PLEASE SEE BELOW FOR IMPORTANT TIPS ON HOW TO COMPLETE AND SUBMIT THE ELECTORAL ROLL APPLICATION FORM!
In addition, if you usually worship with one of our three daughter communities, then please also fill out the Community Roll application form. Again, the easiest way to fill out a Community Roll application form is to do so online using this form. However, if you would rather use a PDF form or complete your Community Roll application physically, then this form is likewise available in church or by contacting the office, or it can be downloaded as a fillable PDF here.
IMPORTANT GUIDANCE FOR FILLING OUT THE ELECTORAL ROLL APPLICATION FORM
How to Answer Question 2:
- Select 2A if you are already on the Electoral Roll of ANOTHER parish or chaplaincy in the Church of England and if you ALSO want to be on the Electoral Roll of St Andrew’s.
- Select 2B if you are in communion with the Anglican Communion and if you habitually worship at St Andrew’s (or worshipped with us in the past but had a justified reason for not being present recently).
- Select 2C if you are a Christian NOT in communion with the Anglican Communion but are willing to declare yourself to be a member of the Church of England and if you habitually worship at St Andrew’s (or worshipped with us in the past but had a justified reason for not being present recently).
- IF YOU WERE PREVIOUSLY ON THE ELECTORAL ROLL OF ST ANDREW’S AND WANT TO RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP, YOU SHOULD GENERALLY CHOOSE OPTION 2B, but if you are unsure of which box(es) to tick, please feel free to contact the office or the chaplain for guidance.
About the Minimum Age for Being on the Electoral Roll:
The sentence on the form about local laws that potentially stipulate a minimum age for membership in religious organisations is part of the standard form that we received from the Diocese in Europe and, in our case, can be ignored. So, in the Chaplaincy of St Andrew’s Zurich, the minimum age for joining the Electoral Roll is 16 years.
How to Submit the Electoral Roll Application Form:
The Electoral Roll application form needs to be filled out truthfully, signed, and returned. You should do so in the way that you find easiest and most convenient. We strongly recommend doing so using the online form. But if you prefer to use the PDF, then you can download it, fill out the form (whether on your computer or by hand), sign the form (whether on your computer or by hand), and submit the signed form to the office (whether by email or by postal mail or by bringing it to church on a Sunday). (Potential ways to sign the PDF form electronically include using Adobe Acrobat’s ‘Fill & Sign’ or ‘e-Sign’ or ‘Digitally Sign’ functions, or signing the paper form and then scanning or photographing it.) Or if you prefer to use a paper form, then you can download it and print it, or you can pick it up in church; either way, you can then return the filled form to the church office. Again, the important thing, for the form to be valid, is that it be completed to the best of your knowledge, signed by you one way or another, and given back to the office.
About Community Rolls:
All non-clergy members of the Association of the Anglican Church in Zurich are listed on the chaplaincy Electoral Roll of the Association. In addition, each of the four communities within the Chaplaincy – the community of Zurich and the daughter communities of St Gallen, Baden (formerly Turgi), and Zug – has its own Community Roll. If you habitually worship at a daughter community, then we request that you fill out both the chaplaincy Electoral Roll application form and the Community Roll application form. If you only fill out the Electoral Roll application form, then you will be listed on the Community Roll of the Zurich community, rather than on the Community Roll of a daughter community.
Once again, if you have any questions about the form at all, please do contact us; we will be happy to help!