Chapter 13: The Presbytery

13-1. The Presbytery consists of all the teaching elders and churches within
its bounds that have been accepted by the Presbytery. When the Presbytery
meets as a court it shall comprise all teaching elders and ruling elders as elected
by their Session. Each congregation is entitled to two (2) ruling elder
representatives for the first 350 communing members or fraction thereof, and
one additional ruling elder for each additional 500 communing members or
fraction thereof.

13-2. A minister shall be required to hold his membership in the Presbytery
within whose geographical bounds he resides, unless there are reasons which
are satisfactory to his Presbytery why he should not do so. When a minister
labors outside the geographical bounds of, or in a work not under the
jurisdiction of his Presbytery, at home or abroad, it shall be only with the full
concurrence of and under circumstances agreeable to his Presbytery, and to the
Presbytery within whose geographical bounds he labors, if one exists. When
a minister shall continue on the rolls of his Presbytery without a call to a
particular work for a prolonged period, not exceeding three years, the
procedure as set forth in BCO 34-10 shall be followed. A minister without call
shall make or file a report to his Presbytery at least once each year.
[EDITORIAL COMMENT: The provision for a minister to hold his
membership in the presbytery within whose geographical bounds he resides
does not apply to the non-geographical Korean Language Presbyteries as long
as the General Assembly mandates their existence.]

13-3. Every ruling elder not known to the Presbytery shall produce a
certificate of his regular appointment from the Session of the church which he
represents.

13-4. Any three ministers belonging to the Presbytery, together with at least
three ruling elders, being met at the time and place appointed (which may
include a teleconference or videoconference place), shall be a quorum
competent to proceed to business. However, any Presbytery, by a majority
vote of those present at a stated meeting, may fix its own quorum provided it
is not smaller than the quorum stated in this paragraph.
The Presbytery, in its discretion, may for itself and its subordinate
committees, commissions, adopt rules determining when videoconference or
telecommunication arrangements may be used for meetings and regulating
how meetings using telecommunications arrangements shall be conducted.

13-5. Ordinarily, only a minister who receives a call to a definite ecclesiastical
work within the bounds of a particular Presbytery may be received as a
member of that Presbytery except in cases where the minister is already
honorably retired, or in those cases deemed necessary by the Presbytery,
subject to the review of the General Assembly. In such cases deemed
necessary, which may include the case of a minister without call whose
circumstances appear to require relocation within the bounds of that
Presbytery, the time allotment of BCO 13-2 shall be counted from the day the
minister was first continued on the roll without call in any Presbytery.

13-6. Ministers seeking admission to a Presbytery from other Presbyteries
in the Presbyterian Church in America shall be examined on Christian
experience, and also touching their views in theology, the Sacraments, and
church government. If applicants come from other denominations, the
Presbytery shall examine them thoroughly in knowledge and views as required
by BCO 21-4 and require them to answer in the affirmative the questions put
to candidates at their ordination. Ordained ministers from other denominations
being considered by Presbyteries for reception may come under the
extraordinary provisions set forth in BCO 21-4. Presbyteries shall also require
ordained ministers coming from other denominations to state the specific
instances in which they may differ with the Confession of Faith and
Catechisms in any of their statements and/or propositions, which differences
the court shall judge in accordance with BCO 21-4 (see BCO 21-4.f-g). 

13-7. The Presbytery shall cause to be transcribed, in some convenient part
of the book of records, the obligations required of ministers at their ordination,
which shall be subscribed by all admitted to membership, in the following
form:
I, _______________, do sincerely receive and subscribe to the above
obligation as a just and true exhibition of my faith and principles,
and do resolve and promise to exercise my ministry in conformity
thereunto.

13-8. The Presbytery, before receiving into its membership any church, shall
designate a commission to meet with the church's ruling elders to make certain
that the elders understand and can sincerely adopt the doctrines and polity of
the Presbyterian Church in America as contained in its Constitution. In the
presence of the commission, the ruling elders shall be required to answer
affirmatively the questions required of officers at their ordination.

13-9. The Presbytery has power to receive and issue* appeals, complaints,
and references brought before it in an orderly manner. In cases in which the
* Editor's note: "Issue" means "settling the issue of the case."

Session cannot exercise its authority, it shall have power to assume original
jurisdiction. It has power:
a. To receive under its care candidates for the ministry; to examine and
license candidates for the holy ministry; to receive, dismiss, ordain,
install, remove and judge ministers;
b. To review the records of church Sessions, redress whatever they may
have done contrary to order and take effectual care that they observe
the Constitution of the Church;
c. To establish the pastoral relation and to dissolve it at the request of
one or both of the parties, or where the interest of religion imperatively
demands it;
d. To set apart evangelists to their proper work; to require ministers to
devote themselves diligently to their sacred calling and to censure the
delinquent;
e. To see that the lawful injunctions of the higher courts are obeyed;
f. To condemn erroneous opinions which injure the purity or peace of
the Church; to visit churches for the purpose of inquiring into and
redressing the evils that may have arisen in them; to unite or divide
churches, at the request of the members thereof; to form and receive
new churches; to take special oversight of churches without pastors;
to dissolve churches; to dismiss churches with their consent;
g. To devise measures for the enlargement of the Church within its
bounds; in general, to order whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare
of the churches under its care;
h. And, finally, to propose to the Assembly such measures as may be of
common advantage to the Church at large.

13-10. When a Presbytery determines to dissolve a church, it shall give no
less than sixty (60) days notice of such dissolution to the local church. With
such notice, Presbytery shall communicate to the members their responsibility
to transfer their membership to other particular or mission churches. In
addition, Presbytery shall:
1. transfer membership to existing churches, with the consent of the
individuals and the Sessions of the receiving churches; or
2. grant a letter of dismissal to an individual so requesting, testifying that
the individual was a member in good standing of the local church at
the date of dissolution (see BCO 46-7). Until such time as the person
is received by a church the Presbytery shall continue to provide
pastoral oversight; or

3. place individuals under the oversight of a commission of Presbytery
acting as a session (BCO 15-2), for up to one year, renewable, until
such time as either a new congregation can be formed or such persons
are dismissed to membership in another church.

13-11. The Presbytery shall keep a full and accurate record of its proceedings,
and shall send it up to the General Assembly annually for review. It shall
report to the General Assembly every year, all the important changes which
may have taken place, such as licensures, ordinations, the receiving or
dismissing of members, the removal of members by death, the union and the
division of churches, and the formation of new ones.

13-12. The Presbytery shall meet at least twice a year on its own adjournment.
The Moderator shall call a special meeting at the request or with the
concurrence of three teaching elders and three ruling elders from at least three
different churches. Should the Moderator be for any reason unable to act, the
Stated Clerk shall, under the same requirements, issue the call. If both
Moderator and Stated Clerk are unable to act, any three teaching elders and
three ruling elders of at least three different churches shall have power to call
a meeting. However, any Presbytery may prescribe in its rules its own
requirements for calling a special meeting, provided that those requirements
are not less than those stated in this section. Notice of the special meeting shall
be sent not less than ten days in advance to each teaching elder and to the Clerk
of Session of every church. In the notice, the purpose of the meeting shall be
stated, and no business other than that named in the notice is to be transacted.
The Presbytery also shall convene when directed to do so by the General
Assembly, for the transaction of designated business only.