Salem Presbytery dismissal
policy seeks fairness
By Edward Terry, The Layman, September 3, 2009
Drawing from personal experience, other policies and the need to prevent dismissal cases from ending up in costly court battles, the Rev. Steve Moss believed his committee had come up with a workable solution that is fair to both sides. The members of his presbytery agreed.
North Carolina’s Salem Presbytery, at its July 18 meeting, unanimously approved a policy on congregations seeking dismissal from the Presbyterian Church (USA). The policy seeks a balanced way for the denomination to deal with congregations wanting to leave, as well as giving those determined to leave a reasonable way out.
“Going to court means everybody spends money that won’t go to missions,” said Moss, part of the 5-member committee that authored the policy. “We want to deal with it in-house. The presbyteries do have rights, the congregations have rights. Both need to be respected, and that indeed there are or may be some congregations that simply need to go. We hope not, but the reality is there probably are.”
The goal is loving, honest and compassionate reconciliation, Moss said, adding that the presbytery will treat decisions of congregations considering or seeking dismissal as a matter for pastoral care.
Creating and enacting a policy was a directive from the 218th General Assembly in 2008, after a Commissioner’s Resolution was approved 519-157-8 that urges a better approach to dealing with churches wanting to leave PCUSA. The resolution was authored by the Rev. Robert Austell of Charlotte (N.C.) Presbytery.
Act first as pastors and elders
“When a divorce is in process, a sharp attorney might advise each spouse to get all they can while the getting is good,” Austell said in his presentation to the GA’s church polity committee. “But, as pastors and elders, we have a different perspective, particularly if both parties are Christian. We must be concerned that in these church dismissals, we function first as pastors and elders in Christ rather than as legal counsel for one party.”
According to the resolution, presbyteries and synods are to implement a process using principles of consistency, pastoral responsibility, accountability, gracious witness and transparency. In the pastor’s rationale for the resolution, Austell said presbyteries across the denomination are inconsistent in how they respond to churches seeking dismissal.
“This fosters a pre-emptive all-or-nothing posture from a church seeking dismissal. Our desire is to urge each other into a more grace-filled exchange,” he said.
“Brothers and sisters, we can do better than we are doing,” Austell said in his written rationale. “But it will take a re-prioritizing of how we exercise responsibility and power and a commitment to act. Failure to act will perpetuate communication and practice that we believe is not only harmful to the Presbyterian Church (USA) but to our witness to Jesus Christ in the world.”
It should not be easy to leave
Moss said he wishes it were easier for a congregation to leave, but it shouldn’t be. “People shouldn’t be able to bounce in and out at will,” he said, adding that the policy does provide a doable and clear out for congregations when it might be warranted. But it also should not be “heavy handed,” he said.
The Salem policy tries to outline clear rules for both sides if a separation is imminent. Providing specific hoops a departing congregation must jump through, the policy also “is written in a way that the committee on ministry can’t send a few people down there, fire the pastor and the session, take over everything and change the locks if the congregation also plays by the rules,” Moss said.
That’s presuming that the congregation is willing to go through a process that essentially seeks departure with the denomination’s blessing. Some dissatisfied PCUSA congregations have simply disaffiliated, in which case “dismissal rules” would not apply. Disaffiliation is based on congregations’ fundamental right to decide what larger religious body (if any) it wants to be affiliated with, in essence completely leaving out denominational authority.
Mark Tammen, director of Constitutional Services for PCUSA, said he appreciates the pastoral tone of Salem’s policy, he said after a draft was presented to the presbytery. At that time, Tammen had consulted with several presbyteries on their own plans and offered Salem’s proposed policy as a good example.
Noting that some presbyteries had policies in place before the GA’s 2008 mandate, Tammen said having a clear policy will help reduce frustration on both sides if a split is inevitable.
“For the presbytery, it’s a gut-wrenching experience to have to release one of its members,” he said. “They can make it fair, but presbyteries are always aggrieved by it, because it’s a loss. It really is like a divorce.”
Tammen said he has urged presbyteries seeking help with their policy to find ways to engage the congregation, session and the pastor as early as possible. It also needs to have a theological, rather than polity, approach. “It needs to feel fair and be fair,” he said.
There’s no specific time line for presbyteries to have a completed dismissal policy, Tammen said. But he does anticipate hearing a report on presbyteries’ progress toward enacting policies during the 2010 General Assembly. He had no estimates on how many are working on or have approved such policies, but did acknowledge that some presbyteries had approved policies even before the GA’s 2008 mandate.
Tammen was among the group that produced the “Louisville Papers,” documents that outlined draconian measures that presbyteries should employ to gain the property of departing congregations or negotiate sizable financial settlements.
Dismissal process procedure
Salem’s dismissal process procedure includes:
- The presbytery will appoint a “conciliation team” to help the congregation understand the conflict and move toward reconciliation. If the issues remain unresolved, a “resolution team” will be formed in hopes of reaching a mutually-agreeable resolution.
- When attempts to reconcile are unsuccessful, the congregation must have a meeting to which every member and representatives of the presbytery have been invited.
- The session will submit written proposals to the congregation. At the meeting that follows all will be allowed to speak and then members will vote by written ballot. At least two-thirds must favor disaffiliation for passage.
- If dismissal is approved by the congregation, the Presbytery Council will begin negotiating with the congregation on the terms. The negotiation must conclude within 12 months of the first step of the process.
- If more than 90 percent vote for dismissal, the presbytery will allow the congregation to leave with all of its property. If the majority is between 66.6 percent and 90 percent, the congregation and council will work to determine a fair money and/or property amount for the presbytery in exchange for the departure.
- If the congregation refuses to meet with the conciliation or resolution teams, an administrative commission will be formed to resolve the matter. Any actions against the congregation as a result must be approved in a full presbytery meeting.