§ 24. Government of churches incorporated prior to January first,
eighteen hundred and twenty-eight. Any provision of this chapter shall
not be deemed to apply to any church incorporated under any general or
special law, prior to January first, eighteen hundred and twenty-eight,
if such provision is inconsistent with or in derogation of any of the
rights and privileges of such corporation as they existed under the law
by or pursuant to which such corporation was formed, unless such
corporation subsequent to such date, shall have lawfully reincorporated
under a law enacted since the first day of January, eighteen hundred and
twenty-eight, or unless the trustees of such corporation shall, by
resolution, determine that the provisions of this chapter applying to
churches of the same denomination and to the trustees thereof shall
apply to such church, and unless such resolution shall be submitted to
the next ensuing annual meeting of such church, and ratified by a
majority of the votes of the qualified voters present and voting
thereon. Notice of the adoption of such resolution and of the proposed
submission thereof for ratification, shall be given with the notice of
such annual meeting, and in addition thereto, mailed to each member of
such church corporation at his last known post-office address, at least
two weeks prior to such annual meeting, and published once a week for
two successive weeks immediately preceding such meeting in a newspaper,
if any, published in the city, village or town in which the principal
place of worship of such corporation is located, and otherwise in a
newspaper published in an adjoining town. If such resolution is so
ratified, the trustees of such church shall cause a certificate setting
forth a copy of such resolution, its adoption by the board of trustees
and its due ratification by the members of such corporation, to be filed
in the office of the clerk of the county in which the principal place of
worship of such corporation is located. Such county clerk shall cause
such certificate to be recorded in the book in which certificates of
incorporation of religious corporations are recorded in pursuance of
law.