COM warns minister whose congregation plans to leave PCUSA, orders property legal work begun
By Craig M. Kibler, January 26, 2007
In the aftermath of a congregation’s session stating that it will “go in the direction of leaving” the Presbyterian Church (USA), a committee on ministry in Mississippi is warning the congregation’s pastor that advocating withdrawal from the denomination “is not an approved work.”
The committee on ministry also ordered that legal proceedings be initiated “to seek a declaratory judgment as to whether the courts in the State of Mississippi will recognize and uphold our constitution’s trust clause” regarding church property.
On Nov. 28, 2006, saying that “we cannot stay in the PCUSA as it stands now,” the session of First Presbyterian Church in Corinth recommended to the congregation that “we go in the direction of leaving the PCUSA in 12 to 18 months or less and moving to a new place in another Presbyterian and Reformed denomination. This direction will continue unless and until there is action taken by the PCUSA that the Session of FPC, Corinth, determines is significant enough to change its position.”
In reaching its recommendation, and as called for in the Book of Order, the session said it had “called several congregational forums, met with the presbytery task force appointed to work with us, held its regular stated meetings, and called a special series of discernment meetings.”
The resolution was shared by the session with the Committee on Ministry of St. Andrew Presbytery on Jan. 23.
Letter to session
In a letter to the session dated the next day, the Committee on Ministry said it had “directed the Executive Presbyter/Stated Clerk to begin the necessary legal proceedings to determine the presbytery’s legal rights, and specifically to seek a declaratory judgment as to whether the courts in the State of Mississippi will recognize and uphold our constitution’s trust clause.”
The session also was told that this “information” item was being included in commissioners’ packets for the Feb. 6 presbytery meeting.
Nowhere in the Book of Order does a Committee on Ministry have the authority to order the initiation of legal proceedings, and the letter never mentions under what authority the Committee on Ministry was acting. Under the provisions (G-11.0500) of the Book of Order, a committee only has the authority to make recommendations to the presbytery in its role as “pastor and counselor to the ministers and Certified Christian Educators of the presbytery.” The letter, signed by the committee’s moderator Frank Chiles, also doesn’t say whether the presbytery explicitly had granted such authority to the Committee on Ministry.
In its letter, the Committee on Ministry warned the Rev. Don Elliott, pastor of the congregation, saying it was their “explicit conviction and direction that actively advocating for a congregation’s withdrawal from the PCUSA is not an approved work.”
The phrase “not an approved work,” left out of the “information” item included in commissioners’ packets, is a possible first step in a presbytery deciding that a church officer should be stripped of his or her ordination.
Elliott, the long-time president of Presbyterians Pro-Life, has been the pastor of the Corinth congregation for 21 years.
Elliott told The Layman Online that it was too early to comment on the issue. Multiple attempts to contact the Rev. Dr. Gregory A. Goodwiller, executive presbyter and stated clerk of St. Andrew Presbytery, and Frank Chiles, moderator of the presbytery’s Committee on Ministry, were unsuccessful.
Kirkpatrick letter
There is no constitutional prohibition on an individual or a governing body exercising the right of conscience if they disagree with a decision of another governing body by withdrawing peacefully without schism. The Committee on Ministry, however, may have been relying on a letter sent by Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick to stated clerks and presbytery executives Jan. 3, 2002. In that letter, Kirkpatrick wrote:
“I am concerned about what appears to be a growing number of ministers and elders who are encouraging congregations to withdraw (or ‘graciously separate’) from the Presbyterian Church (USA) and/or who are advocating the withholding of duly authorized per capita assessments from their governing bodies as a form of protest. Such actions are unconstitutional, and I urge that they stop. It is a violation of our ordination vows to promote schism or the defiance of constitutionally sanctioned governing body directives.”
In a letter sent March 14, 2002, to more than 12,000 churches, the Presbyterian Coalition criticized Kirkpatrick’s comments and said local church sessions have the constitutional right to adopt confessional resolutions, seek peaceful separation from the PCUSA and withhold financial support for higher governing bodies.
The Coalition said Kirkpatrick needed to “correct” his declaration that ministers and elders who advocate peaceful separation or withholding financial support are schismatic and violating their oaths of office.
“Provisions for peaceful withdrawal for those who cannot, in good conscience, comply with the will of the church [is] demonstrated in the constitution,” the Coalition said. Withholding per-capita payments to higher governing bodies, the letter said, “is both constitutional and faithfully obedient to ordination vows.”
The Coalition went on to say that, “Because the constitution makes provision for dismissing individual congregations under G-11.0103i and G-8.000, peaceful separation is recognized in the ‘Historic Principles, Conscience and Church Government’ (adopted by the 195th General Assembly in 1983). That document states that a single member or a governing body can exercise the right of conscience if they disagree with a decision of another governing body by withdrawing peacefully without schism.”
“Such withdrawal is constitutional,” the letter stated. “Therefore, honest dialogue by the Coalition and many others about gracious separation is not only not unconstitutional; it is in fact honored by our constitution. Advocating that a dissenting congregation exercise that avenue if it cannot obey covenantal standards is constitutional. Such advocacy is not a violation of ordination vows, and we urge you to promptly correct your statement by issuing a new letter to stated clerks and the public with an accurate statement about how the constitution provides for dissent and withdrawal.”
Session letter to congregation
The full text of the letter by the session to the membership of First Presbyterian Church in Corinth, dated Nov. 28, 2006, is as follows:
“On July 9 the session told the congregation ‘we cannot stay in the PCUSA as it stands now.’ Then on July 31, the session called for a season of prayer and discernment for six months, after which it would make a recommendation to the congregation about the future plans of the church. The session has called several congregational forums, met with the presbytery task force appointed to work with us, held its regular stated meetings, and called a special series of discernment meetings. Everything was put on the table for consideration. What follows is the recommendation of the session to FPC, Corinth, about its future.
“The session of FPC, Corinth, still believes that ‘we cannot stay in the PCUSA as it stands now;’ therefore it recommends to the congregation that we go in the direction of leaving the PCUSA in 12 to 18 months or less and moving to a new place in another Presbyterian and Reformed denomination. This direction will continue unless and until there is action taken by the PCUSA that the session of FPC, Corinth, determines is significant enough to change its position. This direction will be done in the following manner:
“1. We will associate with New Wineskins. New Wineskins is a movement within the renewal wing of the PCUSA that is making plans for moving beyond the bounds of the PCUSA, and they are currently involved in talks with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.
“2. We will seek with all forbearance and grace to keep the unity of membership of FPC, Corinth. We recognize that everyone may not be together with this recommendation, but it is desired that everyone be together in our commitment to one another.
“3. We will recommit with new vision and faith the ministry of FPC, Corinth. In the midst of our recent struggles, the ministries of the church have weakened. The foundational principles of the ministry at FPC in recent years need to be reaffirmed and recaptured by us all. Those foundational principles have been the preaching and teaching of the Word of God, the commitment to mission, service and evangelism, the maintaining of vibrant worship, and the sustaining of vital ministries to our children, students, young couples and older members.
“4. We will seek to be faithful stewards of our financial resources. The session has approved the proposed budget for 2007. It demonstrates drastic cuts while still maintaining current staff and our commitment to student, children and mission ministries. The per capita to the denomination will not be given and no financial commitment has been made to St. Andrew Presbytery. Because of the season of discernment, there was no Every Member Canvass in the way FPC has normally operated. No financial or service pledges were sought from the congregation honoring the struggle that everyone was going through about the future. But with this direction for the future, it is hoped that every member would give of their money, time and talents at the same level or beyond what they have demonstrated in the past.
“5. We will take all the necessary steps to maintain the property of FPC. This calls for due diligence in working with St. Andrew Presbytery and doing the necessary legal work.
“6. We will continue to pray for God’s renewing grace in the PCUSA. Even though we are deeply distraught at the loss of Biblical integrity, the constitutional instability, the membership loss, and the lack of effective church discipline, we still long for God to be merciful to the PCUSA . We will work with our brothers and sisters in St. Andrew Presbytery during this time and seek changes for the good of the presbytery and the denomination.
“What is now necessary for FPC, Corinth, is to recapture a vision for the future – a vision that is Biblically based, Christ-centered and mission-oriented. Damage has been done to our fellowship and our witness in the community, but nothing is beyond the healing grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is time to move on toward a new thing the Lord is doing here at FPC, Corinth.”
Committee on Ministry letter
The full text of the letter by the Committee on Ministry to Elliott, dated Jan. 24, 2007, is as follows:
“This letter is written at the direction of the Committee on Ministry of the Presbytery of St. Andrew, in order to convey its actions taken at its January 4, 2007 and January 23, 2007 meetings. Below is the “information” item that will be included in the presbytery packets in preparation for the February 6, 2007 stated meeting of the Presbytery of St. Andrew:
- “The Committee has met with the session of First Presbyterian Church, Corinth, at which time it received a document passed by that body stating, in part, “The session … recommends to the congregation that we go in the direction of leaving the PCUSA in 12 to 18 months or less.” The document further declares, “We will take all necessary steps to maintain the property of FPC. This calls for due diligence in working with St. Andrew Presbytery and doing the necessary legal work.”
- “In light of these statements, the Committee on Ministry has directed the Executive Presbyter/Stated Clerk to begin the necessary legal proceedings to determine the presbytery’s legal rights, and specifically to seek a declaratory judgment as to whether the courts in the State of Mississippi will recognize and uphold our constitution’s trust clause.
“Additionally, the Committee directed that a letter be written to you expressing the Committee on Ministry’s concern that there is a difference between your actions such as expressing your conscience to the congregation you serve on important matters or earnestly discerning your calling and even new directions in that calling, on the one hand, and actively advocating for the withdrawal of a congregation from the PCUSA on the other.
“It is the Committee on Ministry’s explicit conviction and direction that actively advocating for a congregation’s withdrawal from the PCUSA is not an approved work.
“Don, please know that our prayers are with you and the entire First Presbyterian Church family in this difficult time. We do not want you or the members of your congregation to leave the PCUSA, and while we respect your convictions in this regard, we are committed to upholding the entire Book of Order as we move forward in this matter.”
Craig M. Kibler is the Director of Publications for the Presbyterian Lay Committee and Executive Editor of The Layman and The Layman Online. He can be reached at cmkibler@layman.org.