An Alabama congregation experienced a gracious separation from its presbytery to align with a new denominational home.
Overlook Presbyterian Church, located in Mobile, Ala., was dismissed from the Presbyterian Church (USA) during an Aug. 24 meeting of the Presbytery of South Alabama. The church has aligned itself with ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians.
The Rev. Sean Hall, pastor of Overlook for more than three years now, explained in an emailed response to The Layman that the dismissal process his 115-member congregation engaged in was highly respectful on both fronts.
“If Overlook’s dismissal were to make headlines, it should make headlines for being an example of how a gracious dismissal is supposed to be and how peaceful it can be. I would describe the dismissal process as very civil,” Hall wrote. “Our former Executive Presbyter, Samford Turner, tells a story that the presbyteries most opposed to reunification in 1983 directly correlate to Sherman’s march through the south in 1864. The lessons he takes from this are twofold: first, churches have incredibly long memories; and second, our ability to come back together one day is directly proportional to how kind we were to one another during our separation. I believe that it was his intention to lead the presbytery in showing kindness and grace in the hopes that we would be able to come back together, even if all of those involved in the initial divide are long passed. This is a hope that we share.
“Furthermore, the Presbytery of South Alabama is made up of friends with whom Overlook has ministered for decades, so to show them anything but kindness during our departure would have been a dishonor to our friendship.”
Leaving the denomination
Overlook began its trek down the road to dismissal in March 2012 when it started having town hall meetings to discuss issues facing the PCUSA. Turner also spoke to the Overlook session about denominational issues.
Following a meeting with a member of the presbytery’s Committee on Ministry (COM) in August, Overlook’s session took an informal survey of the congregation, finding only a couple of people would consider leaving the church if it departed the PCUSA, but almost half of those responding said they would contemplate leaving the church if it remained in the denomination.
Informed in such a manner, the session voted in September 2012 to begin the dismissal process and informed the presbytery of its intent. On Jan. 16, 2013, the session recommended that ECO be the new denominational home for Overlook, and less than a week later a Presbytery Resolution Team (PRT) met with the session for the first time. Those meetings continued through March, and the session made a formal request for a congregational meeting to vote on dismissal.
On May 5, the congregation voted 77-1 to request dismissal from the PCUSA and affiliation with ECO. A month later, ECO granted membership pending dismissal from the PCUSA, which occurred in August.
Hall noted that the congregation left with its property and had to pay nothing for it. Overlook agreed to uphold its financial pledge for 2013 in the amount of $2,500 (mission giving and per capita), noting that if the church closes or changes denominations within the next five years, the property reverts to the presbytery.
Reasons for the decision
Hall wrote that Overlook’s session cited three primary reasons for seeking dismissal:
1. The PCUSA has changed how it determines truth. The Book of Order changed from saying that Christ’s will “is set forth in” Scripture to saying that Scripture teaches “of Christ’s will,” tantamount to saying Scripture is no longer the Word of God but one of many witnesses to the Word of God.
2. The PCUSA changed its governing structure. The Book of Order changed from saying that the session is responsible for local mission to saying that the session is responsible for carrying out the mission of higher governing bodies. “Consequently, we were uncomfortable having our mission determined by a denomination that no longer derives its truth from Scripture alone,” Hall wrote.
3. The PCUSA changed its requirements for membership and leadership. The Book of Order no longer requires members to acknowledge Christ as Lord and Savior; instead it says that churches “shall welcome all persons who trust in God’s grace in Jesus Christ.”
“Likewise, the PCUSA also removed the requirement that ordained leaders be people who repent of their sins, thus breaking with teachings held by the Church universal since Paul first wrote to Corinth. In our minds, we didn’t leave the PCUSA, the PCUSA left us,” Hall wrote.
He continued, “But more than all of these specific theological grievances, we were tired of wasting energy arguing about things that aren’t even up for discussion in 99 percent of the Church universal. We were tired of coming back from presbytery meetings drained instead of feeling equipped, so we felt that our energy could be better spent pursuing the work of mission that the body of Christ has been sent to do. We realized that if we took the time that we spent debating and focused it on our local community, then we would be much better able to serve and witness in Christ’s name. In the end, the church decided to leave the PCUSA for the sake of our mission.”
A new home
Overlook takes up that mission now in ECO, a denomination less than two full years into its existence but one that continues to gain new member churches.
“We recognized that the PCUSA is in decline for two reasons: theological drift and failure to adapt to a changing world. ECO seemed to be a group that is seeking to address both of these concerns at the same time,” Hall indicated in his email. “There was a general consensus that we would have been very comfortable in the EPC (Evangelical Presbyterian Church), but we felt the Holy Spirit convict us that we were not called to be comfortable. We wanted a denomination that would challenge us not only theologically but missionally. We realize that if we are going to be effective in the modern world, we need to completely rethink the ways we are doing ministry. ECO is working to help local churches be more effective in reaching those who most need to be reached. Our hope is that ECO’s combination of a core theology, mutual accountability and innovative resourcing will help us to make disciples of Jesus Christ.”
Overlook’s work in that area seems to be just beginning as it continues it missional focus on a community garden for African refugees, a lunch ministry and a partnership with a needy middle school, as well its ongoing work with homeless families and feeding the hungry through its food bank.
“While there is a sense of relief that the process is over, most people of the congregation have the understanding that our real work is just beginning,” Hall wrote. “For a church of around 100 members, our future consists of us rolling up our sleeves and bearing witness to Jesus Christ. “