Chapter 12: The Church Session

12-1. The church Session consists of the pastor, associate pastor(s), if there
be any, and the ruling elders of a church. If there are four or more ruling elders,
the pastor and two ruling elders shall constitute a quorum. If there are fewer
than four ruling elders, the pastor and one ruling elder shall constitute a
quorum. Assistant pastors, although not members of the Session, may be
invited to attend and participate in discussion without vote.
When a church has no pastor and there are five or more ruling elders,
three shall constitute a quorum; if there are less than five ruling elders, two
shall constitute a quorum; if there is only one ruling elder, he does not
constitute a Session, but he should take spiritual oversight of the church,
should represent it at Presbytery, should grant letters of dismission, and should
report to the Presbytery any matter needing the action of a Church court.
Any Session, by a majority vote of its members, may fix its own
quorum, provided that it is not smaller than the quorum stated in these
paragraphs.

12-2. The pastor is, by virtue of his office, the moderator of the Session. In
the pastor’s absence, if any emergency should arise requiring immediate
action, the Session may elect one of its members to preside, the quorum for
such emergency meeting being as in the case of a church with no pastor in 12-
1. Should prudential reasons at any time make it advisable for a minister other
than the pastor to preside, the pastor may, with the concurrence of the Session,
invite a minister of the same Presbytery to perform this service.

12-3. When a church is without a pastor, the moderator of the Session may
be either a minister appointed for that purpose by the Presbytery, with consent
of the Session, or one invited by the Session to preside on a particular occasion,
or one of its own members elected to preside. In judicial cases, the moderator
shall be a minister of the Presbytery to which the church belongs.

12-4. Associate or assistant pastors may substitute for the pastor as
moderator of the Session at the discretion of the pastor and Session.

12-5. The church Session is charged with maintaining the spiritual
government of the church, for which purpose it has power:
a. To inquire into the knowledge, principles and Christian conduct of the
church members under its care; to censure those found delinquent; to
see that parents do not neglect to present their children for Baptism; to
receive members into the communion of the Church; to remove them
for just cause; to grant letters of dismissal to other churches, which
when given to parents, shall always include the names of their non-
communing, baptized children;
b. To examine, ordain, and install ruling elders and deacons on their
election by the church, and to require these officers to devote
themselves to their work; to examine the records of the proceedings of
the deacons; to approve and adopt the budget;
c. To approve actions of special importance affecting church property;
d. To call congregational meetings when necessary; to establish and
control Sunday schools and Bible classes with special reference to the
children of the church; to establish and control all special groups in
the church such as Men in the Church, Women in the Church and
special Bible study groups; to promote world missions; to promote
obedience to the Great Commission in its totality at home and abroad;
to order collections for pious uses;
e. To exercise, in accordance with the Directory for Worship, authority
over the time and place of the preaching of the Word and the
administration of the Sacraments, over all other religious services,
over the music in the services, and over the uses to which the church
building and associated properties may be put; to take the oversight of
the singing in the public worship of God; to ensure that the Word of
God is preached only by such men as are sufficiently qualified (BCO
4-4, 53-2, 1 Timothy 2:11-12); to assemble the people for worship
when there is no minister; to determine the best measures for
promoting the spiritual interests of the church and congregation;
f. To observe and carry out the lawful injunctions of the higher courts;
and to appoint representatives to the higher courts, who shall, on their
return, make report of their diligence.

12-6. The Session shall hold stated meetings at least quarterly. Moreover,
the pastor has power to convene the Session when he may judge it requisite;
and he shall always convene it when requested to do so by any two of the ruling
elders. When there is no pastor, it may be convened by two ruling elders. The
Session shall also convene when directed so to do by the Presbytery. The
Session, in its discretion, may for itself and its subordinate committees,

commissions, adopt rules determining when videoconference or tele-
communication arrangements may be used for meetings and regulating how
meetings using telecommunications arrangements shall be conducted.

12-7. Every Session shall keep an accurate record of its proceedings, which
record shall be submitted at least once in every year to the inspection of the
Presbytery.

12-8. Every Session shall keep an accurate record of baptisms, of
communing members, of non-communing members, and of the deaths and
dismissions of church members.