A trained counselor, Joan Stratton McConnell knows abuse lurks in the church. She has worked with Westminster’s pastoral and ministry staff in abuse situations and helped the session understand and embrace a recognize-respond-rescue approach to abuse.  

“Some of us began to wonder if we could go beyond just talking about love of neighbor and actually create opportunities to be loving neighbors to people here in Atlanta during GA.” Two service projects and a giving opportunity are the result. 

The overture proposes that presbyteries require all congregations within their bounds without an active ordained diaconate to report their reasons for this and whether or not they have created an un-ordained body of servants

“This revised definition reminds us elders to be outward-facing, to be concerned for those beyond the walls, to be approachable, and to be always mindful that there are people on the fringes of our churches who need to be invited in.”

While it is assumed that the leadership and members of this congregation will play a role in observing the elder and providing feedback to the presbytery (“court”) that will make the decision to remove the censure or not, drafters of the overture believe congregation’s role is not clearly laid out in the current language.

Members of the committee will present their findings, conclusions, and recommendations at General Assembly. Their presentation will be Thursday morning, June 14, at 8 a.m. 

If implemented, the recommendation maintains that a super-majority — in most cases, either two-thirds or three-fourths — of the board members of these agencies be ordained officers in the PCA.

In response to last year’s study committee on Women Serving in the Ministry, Grace Presbytery has submitted an overture to the General Assembly requesting that clarity be given to the language in the Book of Church Order that addresses the diaconate.

“It’s a softer approach to dealing with this issue,” explains Ruling Elder John Pickering. “Churches ought to be free to leave. But they ought to do so having made a carefully thought-out decision, not a hasty decision.”

Calvary and Grace presbyteries have submitted overtures requesting that constitutional status be granted to Book of Church Order (BCO) Chapter 59, titled “The Solemnization of Marriage.”