The 226th General Assembly in July passed several overtures directly affecting smaller PC(USA) churches and the process for ordination.
New Presbyterian curriculum
CF-01, noting “a gap” in creating educational materials for congregations, was approved as part of the consent agenda and recommends the “development of educational resources for faith formation for congregational use and to meet the needs of the small church,” and asks that a “concrete proposal” for resource development, funding, implementation and staffing be presented at the next GA, which will be in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 2026.
The overture, brought to GA by the Presbytery of Riverside and adding 2 cents to per capita, says the plan should take into account “the future development of educational resources for faith formation and nurture especially for congregational use,” and “research should be qualitative, including methods such as focus groups and interviews with practitioners. Relying on this and pertinent prior research, collaborators shall pay particular attention to affordability and the needs of the small church.”
In the rationale, CF-01 notes the responsibility for curricula moved in 2018 from the Presbyterian Mission Agency (PMA) to the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation (PPC) but in 2023, the PPC announced a pause in developing “new English-language all-age curriculum products,” citing the challenge of creation and the growing costs of publishing. Funding from the denomination allowed for newly developed Korean and Spanish resources to remain for three more years, but other new materials were not being produced.
This “gap” or lack of resources, the overture reads, “will become too large if not addressed in a timely manner.”
The Christian Formation Committee amended the original overture, adding that new educational resource design should pay attention to “affordability, small church ministry, and inclusivity that includes but is not limited to LGBTQIA+, racial and disability equity,” making it a companion of sorts to POL-01, which adds gender identity protections to the Book of Order. The 2 cent per capita cost for proposal development totals $17,000 for the 2025 budget. There is no cost added to the 2026 budget.
“The future of this denomination rests on raising children and nurturing adults rooted in the richness of the Reformed understanding of the Christian faith,” the overture reads. “Actions of past General Assemblies confirm the need for continuing the development of educational resources for congregations, based in the Reformed tradition,” including a 2018 mandate to “encourage the newly structured ministry area of Christian Formation to dedicate resources to be focused on supporting local congregations (facilitating the networking, coaching, and training of local leaders).”
According to the most recently available statistical report, 75% of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) churches are considered small, with fewer than 150 members each, and the number of new worshiping communities and small churches has grown. In 2022, the PC(USA) added 20 new worshiping communities, and the number of small churches with fewer than 50 members increased from 3,510 in 2019 to 3,752 in 2022. Many of these congregations have part-time pastors and/or no staff member who can be dedicated solely to resource development.
Churches have expressed concerns about budget and operational costs after recent changes in dues recommended by the Board of Pensions (BoP) would increase the cost of dues that help pay for pastors’ insurance. New resources developed by the church could help smaller churches continue relevant, age-appropriate conversations around faith and ways to live into that faith without adding the strain of developing their own curriculum.
Shared ministry
ORD-01, ORD-02, and ORD-03, all from Lake Erie Presbytery, sought greater clarity around “shared ministry.” Can a pastor be installed at multiple congregations? Does a pastor who works full-time at multiple non-yoked congregations meet minimum terms of call?
These are important questions to ask because, as the rationale for ORD-03 states: “ [C]ongregations [continue] to decline in average membership [and] many smaller congregations find that they are no longer able to call a pastor for full-time ministry. This leaves both the congregation and the potential pastor in a diminished position. The pastor must find alternative work to support themselves. Often this means that the pastor is not installed in the traditional format because temporary contracts and other arrangements create more financial flexibility for the congregation. A solution that has been demonstrated to be effective is shared ministry, when one minister is installed (or called by contract) as pastor in one or more congregations.”
Based on a recommendation from the Advisory Committee on the Constitution (ACC), the Ordination Committee decided to answer ORD-01, “On Amending G-2.0804 to Include Shared Ministry in Terms of Call” with an Authoritative Interpretation (AI), an interpretation of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that carries the authority of the General Assembly and is binding on the councils of the church such as sessions, presbyteries, synods and the General Assembly.
ACC and corresponding member Rebecca Blair explained to the committee that the ACC recommends an AI in this case because “there is no definiton in use for ‘shared ministry’ that could be consistently applied in determining pastoral calls.” The committee decided that using the AI to answer ORD-01 tells presbyteries that what the overture sought to accomplish was permissible in the existing polity.
The Authoritative Interpretation communicates that a pastoral relationship with several congregations is currently permissible and normally done with several part-time positions, as opposed to trying to choreograph several congregations, a candidate, and the presbytery. As the BoP has recently added the ability for several congregations to pay towards one pastor’s benefits, the AI leaves the door open for presbyteries to determine their policy within the bounds of the Book of Order, which would not preclude the idea of a pastor working full time at more than one non-yoked congregations.
Because ORD-02, “On Amending G-2.0504 to Include Shared Ministry in the Definition of Pastoral Relationships” and ORD-03 “On Amending G-2.0805 to Include Installations in Multiple Congregations in Shared Ministry” also dealt with the with the concept of “shared ministry,” the committee determined that both overtures could be answered with the decision of ORD-01, which was answered with an AI.
ORD-02 and ORD-03 moved through plenary on consensus, and ORD-01 passed 392-3.
Ordination
On a 380-18 vote, commissioners passed ORD-06, which creates a committee to look at the overall preparation process for ministry and bring to the 227th General Assembly (2026) recommendations from their review of the process. The scope of the review is all encompassing and offers specific questions to be answered by the committee. This overture was addressed by referring it to the Task Force to Explore the Theology and Practice of Ordination. By referring this overture, more specifically the work entailed, to the task force, the multiple facets of the ordination process will be reviewed, and recommendations made by the same entity. This could eliminate issues with several groups working on the same thing or similar pieces of business and then figuring out how to make the work of the groups more fluid. This overture may have added to the workload of the Task Force to Explore the Theology and Practice of Ordination, although this referral seems to make sense in looking at the larger picture of ordination.
The 220th GA (2012) was “the most recent assembly to create a special committee to review the preparation for ministry process,” according to a story by the Presbyterian News Service.
The committee’s responsibilities include handbook revision, ordination exam development, and the selection and nomination for the team that will oversee those who write exams for ordination. It will also recommend either next steps or an entirely new process for ministry preparation in consideration of the church’s needs in today’s world, and it will consult with the Unification Commission about any concerns about the ministry preparation process.
Included in this review is an examination of the exams required for ordination, a discussion that drew much attention in early 2023 when ministry candidates decried the use of Judges 18 for the in-depth dive necessary for its exegesis exam text. Among the questions the committee will address: Do ordination exams remain necessary in the church today? Are the process and exams as they are now meeting the moment of the church and culture? Do they perpetuate White privilege culture and values? If the exams are still necessary, how might they examine what needs to be understood in the multicultural, racial, and power-imbalanced twenty-first century?
The committee also will address the process of cultural bias, objectivity and impartiality of test responses that might not reflect the exam reader’s cultural understanding. What role does not knowing the test takers play in evaluating exams? How does this improve the preparation for ministry process?
