Complaint
by TE Steve Tipton (Hillcrest Presbyterian Church of Volant, Pennsylvania)
According to BCO 43-1, “a complaint is a written representation made against some act or decision of a court of the Church. It is the right of any communing member of the Church in good standing to make complaint against any action of a court to whose jurisdiction he is subject, except that no complaint is allowable in a judicial case in which an appeal is pending.”
As such, a complaint is an attempt to demonstrate to a court that some action taken by that court was in error. Such an error should be a violation of Scripture or the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church in America and should be demonstrable by evidence.
As a court acts by motion, the primary evidence in a complaint should be the minutes of that court. It is possible to complain against a lack of action (i.e., the decision not to act). Once again, however, the minutes would need to reflect that failure to act in instances where it could be demonstrated to have been necessary (i.e., to call a congregational meeting by a proper petition per BCO 25-2). In either case, additional materials may need to be introduced to frame more clearly the nature of the error.
The complaint itself should clearly and succinctly state the nature of the error the complainant is alleging to have been made. The complaint should make clear reference to the place in the minutes where the court made the alleged erroneous act or decision or to the circumstances in which the court should have acted but didn’t. Likewise, the complaint should clearly indicate how that action (or lack of action) violates Scripture or the Constitution.
Special care should be taken regarding the requirements of a complaint, particularly as set forth in BCO 43-2. A complaint must first come before the court alleged to err – this is to give the court an opportunity to address that error before the complaint proceeds to a higher court. Likewise, a complaint must be timely – filed within sixty (60) days of the alleged error. The complainant(s) must take special note of the prohibition against “circularizing the court.” That is, as a complaint is set before the whole court, the complainant should not seek to persuade individual men apart from the formal deliberation of that court. Likewise, individual members of the court should not seek to persuade other members (including, but not limited to, the complainant himself) apart from the formal deliberation of the court.
When a complaint is both timely and otherwise in order, the court must (shall, in the language of the BCO) consider the complaint at its next stated meeting, or at a called meeting prior to the next stated meeting. It is not necessary for the court to conclude its consideration of the complaint at that next meeting, but neither should the court delay its decision without sufficient cause. In its consideration of the complaint, the court may decide either to sustain the complaint (by which it would agree with the complainant that the act or decision was in error) or to deny the complaint.
When a complaint is denied, the complainant appeal the court’s decision and present his complaint to the next higher court. Note that it is “that complaint” which must be elevated – the very complaint that was laid before the lower court is what must be presented to the higher court. A complainant may not add new information for the higher court. The higher court may consider only that information and alleged error that was placed before the lower court in the original complaint.
Again, complainants must take special care when seeking to elevate a complaint to higher courts. There are requirements of time, notice, briefs, and representation, all of which are delineated in the BCO. The clerk of the court receiving the complaint (even the original complaint) should assist the complainant to fulfill the requirements of a timely complaint.
Finally, both the complainant and the court alleged to have erred should prayerfully and humbly consider themselves, their actions, and their motivations when contemplating or considering a complaint. It is no small thing to allege an erroneous action, but neither should any court of the church think itself beyond error.
Dissent
by TE Zachary Groff (Antioch Presbyterian Church of Woodruff, South Carolina)
According to BCO 45-1, “Any member of a court who had a right to vote on a question, and is not satisfied with the action taken by that court, is entitled to have a dissent or protest recorded.” In the context of a General Assembly, a dissent, protest, or objection may be filed with the Stated Clerk before the adjournment of the Assembly. According to BCO 45-2, “A dissent is a declaration on the part of one or more members of a minority, expressing a different opinion from the majority in its action on any issue before the court, and may be accompanied with the reasons on which it is founded.”
Presbyters’ right to file a dissent, protest, or objection with the courts of the church should never be denied, for it is the conviction of confessional Presbyterians everywhere that “all synods or councils, since the Apostles’ times, whether general or particular, may err; and many have erred” (WCF 31.3). Where error is possible, resistance to error and pursuit of lawful redress by solemn and sincere declaration must likewise be possible. The majority of the court must acknowledge the possibility of error, and the chief way of doing so is to protect the right of the minority of the court to file a dissent or protest in appeal to God. Nevertheless, according to BCO 45-5, a dissent, protest, or objection must “be couched in temperate language, and be respectful to the court.”
According to BCO 45-5, “the court may, if deemed necessary, put an answer to the dissent, protest, or objection on the records along with it.” A dissent, protest, or objection may be withdrawn by the filing parties, either “absolutely, or for the sake of amendment.” There is no other action that presbyters may pursue in the courts of the church either in response to or against a dissent, protest, or objection.
Click here for a case study of a dissent recorded at the 44th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).
Ecclesiastical Trial
coming soon
Objection
by TE Zachary Groff (Antioch Presbyterian Church of Woodruff, South Carolina)
According to BCO 45-1, “Any member of a court who had a right to vote on a question, and is not satisfied with the action taken by that court, is entitled to have a dissent or protest recorded.” In the context of a General Assembly, a dissent, protest, or objection may be filed with the Stated Clerk before the adjournment of the Assembly. According to BCO 45-4, “An objection is a declaration by one or more members of a court who did not have the right to vote on an appeal or complaint, expressing a different opinion from the decision of the court and may be accompanied with the reasons on which it is founded.”
An objection is different from a dissent or a protest in that an objection may be filed by “one or more members of a court who did not have the right to vote on an appeal or complaint” (i.e., parties to a case). Unlike a dissent or a protest, an objection may be filed in response to only an appeal or complaint, and not to any other issue before the court, as it is only in the case of an appeal or complaint that select members of the court are denied the right to vote due to being named parties to the case.
Presbyters’ right to file a dissent, protest, or objection with the courts of the church should never be denied, for it is the conviction of confessional Presbyterians everywhere that “all synods or councils, since the Apostles’ times, whether general or particular, may err; and many have erred” (WCF 31.3). Where error is possible, resistance to error and pursuit of lawful redress by solemn and sincere declaration must likewise be possible. The majority of the court must acknowledge the possibility of error, and the chief way of doing so is to protect the right of the minority of the court to file a dissent or protest in appeal to God. Nevertheless, according to BCO 45-5, a dissent, protest, or objection must “be couched in temperate language, and be respectful to the court.”
According to BCO 45-5, “the court may, if deemed necessary, put an answer to the dissent, protest, or objection on the records along with it.” A dissent, protest, or objection may be withdrawn by the filing parties, either “absolutely, or for the sake of amendment.” There is no other action that presbyters may pursue in the courts of the church either in response to or against a dissent, protest, or objection.
Protest
by TE Zachary Groff (Antioch Presbyterian Church of Woodruff, South Carolina)
According to BCO 45-1, “Any member of a court who had a right to vote on a question, and is not satisfied with the action taken by that court, is entitled to have a dissent or protest recorded.” In the context of a General Assembly, a dissent, protest, or objection may be filed with the Stated Clerk before the adjournment of the Assembly. According to BCO 45-3, “A protest is a more solemn and formal declaration by members of a minority, bearing their testimony against what they deem an improper or erroneous action on any issue before the court, and is generally accompanied with the reasons on which it is founded.”
A protest is different from a dissent in that the former is “a more solemn and formal declaration,” it must be prosecuted by more than one elder, and it “is generally accompanied” with an explanation for its filing with the clerk of the court in which it is made.
Presbyters’ right to file a dissent, protest, or objection with the courts of the church should never be denied, for it is the conviction of confessional Presbyterians everywhere that “all synods or councils, since the Apostles’ times, whether general or particular, may err; and many have erred” (WCF 31.3). Where error is possible, resistance to error and pursuit of lawful redress by solemn and sincere declaration must likewise be possible. The majority of the court must acknowledge the possibility of error, and the chief way of doing so is to protect the right of the minority of the court to file a dissent or protest in appeal to God. Nevertheless, according to BCO 45-5, a dissent, protest, or objection must “be couched in temperate language, and be respectful to the court.”
According to BCO 45-5, “the court may, if deemed necessary, put an answer to the dissent, protest, or objection on the records along with it.” A dissent, protest, or objection may be withdrawn by the filing parties, either “absolutely, or for the sake of amendment.” There is no other action that presbyters may pursue in the courts of the church either in response to or against a dissent, protest, or objection.
Click here for two case studies highlighting recent protests filed at the 44th and 47th General Assemblies of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).
Recorded Negative Vote
by TE Zachary Groff (Antioch Presbyterian Church of Woodruff, South Carolina)
A recorded negative vote is essentially a mere dissent. In other words, a recorded negative vote is a dissent without any accompanying rationale. See above for a description of a dissent.
Click here for a case study of a negative vote recorded at the 47th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).
Amending the Book of Church Order (BCO)
by RE Chris Shoemaker (Christ Our Hope Presbyterian Church of Charlestown, Rhode Island)
Insofar as the Book of Church Order (BCO) is a fallible document (and it is), it must be amendable. Some parts require revision for the sake of clarity or scriptural correction. Sometimes, situations arise that the BCO does not specifically or adequately address. Thankfully, we have a process for amending the BCO. That process has three steps, outlined in BCO 26-2:
26-2. Amendments to the Book of Church Order may be made only in the following manner:
- Approval of the proposed amendment by majority of those present and voting in the General Assembly, and its recommendation to the Presbyteries.
- The advice and consent of two-thirds (2/3) of the Presbyteries.
- The approval and enactment by a subsequent General Assembly
by a majority of those present and voting.
This process is initiated when a particular part of the Church proposes an amendment at the General Assembly level. The proposal for a specific change to the BCO can come from a committee or agency of the General Assembly, a Presbytery, or even a Session. The overwhelming majority of proposed BCO amendments comes from Presbyteries in the form of formal overtures to the General Assembly. Simply put, an overture is a formal request for the General Assembly to take a proposed action on the basis of particular grounds. The grounds are expressed in “whereas” statements, and the proposed action is indicated in “therefore, be it resolved” statements.
When an overture proposing an amendment to the BCO comes to the General Assembly, the Overtures Committee (OC) considers it, improves it (if necessary), and makes a recommendation to the General Assembly as to how best to “answer” the overture (RAO 11-5.) The General Assembly considers only the exact language of the recommendations that come from the OC. Said language may – and frequently does – differ from what the originating Presbytery initially sent to the Assembly in an Overture. If the majority at that General Assembly vote to approve an OC recommendation that proposes a change to the BCO, then the change does not immediately go into effect, but is instead sent to the Presbyteries for “advice and consent.”
As Presbyteries receive notice of the BCO amendments approved by General Assembly, they vote on whether or not they approve with said changes. Presbyteries may not change the proposed amendment at this point. They may not pick and choose which parts they accept and which they reject (BCO 26-4). Each Presbytery has to decide – by simple majority vote – whether or not they approve of the precise amendments approved by the General Assembly, and to report their decision to the Office of the Stated Clerk.
At the subsequent General Assembly, the Stated Clerk will report on how many Presbyteries were in favor or against the amendment(s) approved by the previous General Assembly. If and only if at least two-thirds of the Presbyteries have approved of the amendment(s), then the General Assembly will vote one final time to accept or otherwise reject the amendment(s). If a simple majority at this second General Assembly votes to approve of the change, then the amendments are incorporated into the BCO, effective immediately. If proposed changes fail to meet the required threshold at any step (a majority at the initial General Assembly, two-thirds of the Presbyteries, a majority at the subsequent General Assembly), then the proposal fails, and no such amendment(s) are made to the BCO.
Writing the Book of Church Order
coming soon