Congregations across the nation are in process of leaving PCUSA
The Layman, November 16, 2011
Reports of Presbyterian Church (USA) presbyteries and churches around the country reveal that many congregations have either reached agreements with their presbyteries to be dismissed from the PCUSA, or are in the process of dismissal or disaffiliation from the denomination.
Most of the churches leaving the PCUSA have cited the recent approval of Amendment 10A and the passage of the new Form of Government (nFOG) as the presenting symptoms of a more serious underlying problem in the denomination: the authority of Scripture.
Amendment 10A deleted the explicit “fidelity/chastity” requirement from the ordination standard, and now allows the PCUSA to ordain of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people as deacons, elders and pastors. The new Form of Government has raised concerns of a more “top-down” PCUSA bureaucracy.
Arizona
Grand Canyon Presbytery dismissed the 500-member Desert Hills Presbyterian Church (DHPC) to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC) at its Nov. 12 meeting.
The presbytery approved the recommendations found in the report of the presbytery’s Administrative Commission (AC) to Desert Hills. The recommendations include:
- DHPC will cover the costs incurred by the discernment team and the AC, and the cost of transferring historical records and the cost of copying any presbytery records that are needed to make the church’s records complete.
- DHPC will assume full responsibility for the existing mortgage ($1,129,000), and pay the presbytery $800,000 in exchange for it transferring the property’s title to a Desert Hills non-profit corporation, owned by church members. The total cash benefit to Grand Canyon Presbytery will be just under $2 million. The $800,000 payment will be made as follows: at least $300,000 will be paid initially, with the balance to be paid over a period not to exceed 10 years at a to-be-determined interest rate.
- DHPC will cover the legal, administrative and bank costs of reworking the bank loan as well as any potential bank required changes in loan terms.
Two appraisals were conducted on the 6.9 acre property, with the average of the two totaling $4,335,000. The mortgage balance is $1,129,000.
The report stated that the AC contacted all Desert Hills members, and the preferences were:
- Have signed form to transfer to EPC: 452 members, or 85.8 percent
- Plan to sign form to transfer to the EPC: 14 members, or 2.6 percent
- Medically incapacitated: 6 members or 1.1 percent
- Have signed form to remain with the PCUSA: 12 members or 2.2 percent
- Have not heard from: 43 members or 8.3 percent
- Total membership: 527 members.
Ohio
Kirkmont Presbyterian Church in Beavercreek, Ohio voted Oct. 30 by a 95 percent majority to concur with the session recommendation that “the Kirkmont Presbyterian Church determines to be dismissed from the PCUSA with property to another Reformed Body that is consistent with the stated theological standards of the Kirkmont Presbyterian Church.”
The 314 member congregation is in Miami Valley Presbytery.
The session posted a letter on the church website stating, “Our identity as Presbyterians and our worship site will not change as a result of this vote. We will continue to adhere to the same beliefs and worship that we have always maintained. Your membership remains with the Kirkmont Presbyterian Church. … Please be in prayer as the session begins conversation with you and the Presbytery regarding the transfer of property and dismissal to a new Presbyterian body. Please bear in mind that this process will take several months. You will be asked to agree and decide on the new Presbyterian body and to accept a recommendation for the transfer of property.”
In his address to the presbytery on Nov. 12, Miami Valley’s Executive Presbyter Dennis H. Piermont spoke of Kirkmont’s leaving the PCUSA along with three other churches in the presbytery:
Piermont said “We have elected and charged an Administrative Commission to deal with these matters. These nine women and men have set about to approach their work guided by two over-riding principles:”
1. “Do no harm to the Church of Jesus Christ”
2. “Model Christ in the undertaking of the tasks at hand.”
He said the AC has held “very productive and constructive” meetings with Lebanon’s session and also has begun conversations with the other congregations.
Washington
On Nov. 13, 90 percent of the members present at Sumner Presbyterian Church in Sumner, Wash., voted to leave the PCUSA and join the Evangelical Covenant Church.
The 365-member congregation is located in Olympia Presbytery.
Under the heading of “Denomination Issues,” the church website says “Being the strong Bible-based congregation we are, we are struggling with decisions made at the last PCUSA General Assembly. We are in the midst of discerning God’s leading as to whether we should stay in our current denomination, or whether we are led to leave and affiliate with a different one … Please be in prayer for our leadership as we continue in our process.”
Also in Washington, First Presbyterian of Tacoma recently took a step toward leaving the PCUSA.
The church blog dated Oct. 16 reads, “At our meeting on Oct. 11th, the session of First Presbyterian unanimously voted to request the Presbytery of Olympia to form an Administrative Commission that will help determine the future of our church. The purpose of this commission would be to negotiate the specific terms that would ensue if we were to disaffiliate from the Presbyterian Church USA. Once those terms are agreed upon, the congregation will be asked to vote on whether to accept those terms and be officially dismissed to another Reformed body.”
The blog continued, “There is nothing easy about making a change of this magnitude and we move forward with heavy hearts. However, at the same time we are excited to see the leadership of the church and the congregation come together to make a clear decision about our future. As I have mentioned many times in the past, one of the greatest challenges facing First Pres is not how to go back to some golden era in our past, but how to move forward responsibly and faithfully to be the church God is calling us to be for the 21st century. This decision is not only about making a choice among two options, it also represents our willingness to take some ownership over the future that God has in store for us.”
An advisory vote was conducted at a Sept. 28 congregational meeting. According to an earlier blog, “More than 89 percent of those voting (151 votes) favored requesting an Administrative Commission to negotiate dismissal from the PCUSA to another Reformed d
enomination. Around 5 percent (8 votes) favored remaining within the PCUSA, while 6 percent (10 votes) were undecided.”
According to Olympia’s website, other churches who are “engaged in discernment about their futures,” include:
- Evergreen Presbyterian, in Graham, Wash. (89 members according to PCUSA statistics.)
- Harrison Square Presbyterian, in Centralia, Wash. (218 members according to PCUSA statistics.)
- Montesano Presbyterian, in Montesano, Wash. (117 members according to PCUSA statistics.)
- Packwood Presbyterian, in Packwood, Wash. (58 members according to PCUSA statistics.)
- Tacoma Central Presbyterian Church, in Lakewood, Wash. (438 members according to PCUSA statistics.)
Editor’s note: The Presbyterian Lay Committee has gathered and posted resources for churches discerning their denominational affiliation options. Many presbytery dismissal policies, as well as information for those facing property/legal issues with the denomination have been posted. Those resources can be found here. Resources include a chart of congregations that have made their intentions to leave the PCUSA public; separation dismissal policies of various presbyteries and examples of congregation’s discernment processes. Anyone with information about transitions in other congregations can email pkincaid@layman.org.