Proposed Amendments
Primary Synods
Permanent Judicial Commissions
and the General Assembly
Arbitration Board
D-1.0101 (Unchanged)
Church
Discipline
D-1.0102 (Unchanged)
Power
Vested
in Christ's
Church
D-1.0103 (Unchanged)
Conciliate and
Mediate
D-2.0101 Judicial process
is the means
Church by which church discipline
is
Discipline implemented within the
context of pastoral care and
oversight. It is the exercise
of authority by the two Primary
Synod's of the PCUSA (Auburn
and Westminster) over their
respective governing bodies,
and
to a limited extent, the
General Assembly Arbitration
Board, for:
a.
the prevention and correction
of
irregularities and delinquencies
by
the governing bodies of each
of the two Primary Synods
(Westminster and Auburn).
b. The prevention and correction
of offenses by persons, by
the Permanent Judicial
Commission of the Primary
Synod (Auburn or
Westminster)
having
jurisdiction over the
individual.
The
governing bodies of the
church for judicial process
are the session of each
church, their Presbytery's
Permanent Judicial Commission,
which is aligned with the
same Primary Synod
(Westminster
or Auburn),
as the congregation, their
Sub-Synod's Permanent
Judicial Commission, and
their respective
Primary Synod's
Permanent Judicial
Commission, with
which they are aligned
(Auburn
or Westminster).
The
Session, their respective
Presbytery, their respective
Sub-Synod and their Primary
Synod, with which they are aligned,
(Westminster or Auburn),
can conduct trials and
hearings
through their
Permanent Judicial
Commissions.
D-2.0203 The investigating committee
Alternative may
initiate, if it deems
Forms of appropriate, and with the
Resolution written consent of all parties
involved, alternative forms
of resolution conducted by
professionally trained and
certified mediators and
arbitrators. The purpose
of this process is to achieve
justice
and compassion for
all
parties involved through
mediation
and settlement.
No statements, written or oral,
made at or in connection with
this process, shall be
admissible
in evidence at a
subsequent investigation or
trial
D-2.0104 The General Assembly Arbitration
General Board
will settle
Assembly disputes within the General
Arbitration Assembly,
against the
Board General Assembly and its
members, as well as
appeals
from the two
Primary
Synods'
(Auburn and Westminster)
respective Permanent
Judicial Commissions,
but only to the extent
that the disputes do
not involve the following
issues: ordination
standards, definitions
of marriage and
marriage ceremonies,
Statements of Faith,
Edcucational
Material
used, Church planting
and
growth, and
evangelism, and
evangelism methods.
These issues can
only be litigated before
the
Permanent
Judicial Commissions
of the Primary Synod
in which the case arose.
The decisions of the
highest Permanent
Judicial Commission
of each of the Primary
Synods
(Auburn or
Westminster) shall be
final and binding with respect
to the governing bodies of that
Primary
Synod (Auburn
or Westminster), with
regard to the above
enumerated
issues,
and may not be
appealed.
D-2.0201 Judicial process consists
Remedial or
of two types of cases:
Disciplinary remedial and disciplinary.
D-2.0202 A remedial case is one
Remedial
in which an irregularity
or a delinquency of
a lower governing
body, may be corrected
including:
Irregularity a. An irregularity that is
an
erroneous decision
or action
Delinquency b. A delinquency that is an
ommission or failure
to act.
D-2.0203 A disciplinary case is one
Disciplinary
in which a church member
or officer may be censured
for
an offense.
Church a. Church officers are
Officers ministers of the Word and
Sacrament, elders, and
deacons
Offense b. An offense is any act
or ommission by a member
or officer of the church that
is contrary to the Scriptures
or the Constitution of
the
PCUSA, as interpreted
by the respective
Permanent Judicial
Commission of the
Primary
Synod, (Auburn or
Westminster),
in which the
offense
or act arose.
It
is understood that many
of the decisions of the
respective
Permanent
Judicial Commissions,
aligned
with the two different
Primary Synods (Auburn
or Westminster) will
differ from each other.
This
will be an expression
of
the diversity within the
PCUSA.
D-3.0101 In the judicial process, each
Jurisdiction of
the governing bodies has
jurisdiction
as follows:
Session a. The session of a church
has original jurisdiction
in disciplinary cases involving
members of that church.
Presbytery b. (1) The Presbytery has
original
jurisdiction in
disciplinary cases involving
members and commissioned
lay
pastors serving in congregations
in that Presbytery, that are aligned
with the same Primary Synod
(Westminster or Auburn) that
the Presbytery is aligned with.
(2) A minister engaged in work
within the bounds of a
Presbytery other than the
Presbytery of membership,
but aligned with the same
Primary Synod (Auburn or
Westminster), whether that
work is under the jurisdiction
of the Presbytery or not, does
by engaging in that work,
submit to the jurisdiction of
of that Presbytery for the
purposes of discipline. Should
disciplinary process be
initiated against a minister
under this provision, the
Presbytery of membership
shall be notified. This
paragraph shall apply if the
minister is working in a
validated ministry.
Presbytery, c. The Presbyery, Sub-Synod,
Sub-Synod,
and Primary Synod
and Primary (Westminster or Auburn)
Synod
that the Presbytery and
Session are aligned with
shall have jurisdiction
in remedial cases and
in appeals.
Church is d. When a church is
Dissolved
dissolved, the Presbytery
of the Primary Synod
(Auburn
or Westminster)
that the church is aligned
with, shall determine
any case of discipline
begun by the session
which
has not yet
concluded.
General Remedial Cases
Assembly
may only be appealed
Arbitration to the General Assembly
Board
Arbitration Board if
the issues do not
involve ordination
standards, definitions
of marriage, statements
of faith, educational
materials used, church
planting, and evangelism
initiatives.
D-3.0102 When a case, either remedial
No Further
or disciplinary, has been
Judicial transferred to the
Permanent
Action Judicial Commission of the
Primary Synod, in which the
case arose, (Westminster
or Auburn), the elected
members of the
governing body, before
whom the action has
been brought, shall take
no further judicial action
on the case.
D-3.0103 When a lower governing
Lower body
fails to act in a
Governing particular remedial or
Body Fails
disciplinary case for a
to Act period of ninety
days after
the
filing of a complaint
in a remedial case or
charges in a disciplinary
case, the Primary Synod
(Auburn or Westminster)
with which the session and
Prebytery are aligned,
on the request of any
party, may assume
jurisdiction in the case.
The
Primary Synod may
either issue specific
instructions to the lower
governing body as to its
disposition,
or conclude
the
matter itself.
D-3.0104 A minister transferred
Jurisdiction from
one Presbytery to
over another, in the
same
Transferred Primary Synod (Auburn
Matters
or Westminster), shall
be subject to the jurisdiction
of the first Presbytery until
received by the second Presbytery.
A
minister transferred by a
Presbytery to another denomination
shall be subject to the
jurisdiction of the
Presbytery until received
by that denomination.
D-3.0105 Each governing body, which is
aligned
with their respective
Primary
Synod,
(Westminster or Auburn)
shall enforce
the
judgments,
decisions, and orders
of
every other
governing body aligned with
their respective Primary Synod,
(Auburn
or Westminster) The
governing bodies of
each
respective Primary
Synod (Westminster
or Auburn) are not
bound by the judgments,
orders,
or decisions,
of the other Primary
Synod (Auburn or
Westminster).
General The judgments,
Assembly decisions,
and orders
Arbitration of the General
Board
Assembly Arbitration
Board, in matters
where they have
jurisdiction, shall
be enforced by the
governing bodies
of both Primary
Synods
(Auburn
and
Westminster)
under the provisions
of the Rules of
Discipline. The
General
Assembly
Arbitration Board has
no
jurisdiction over
cases involving ordination
standards, definitions
of marriage, statements
of faith, educational
material used, evangelism
initiatives, and church
planting.
D-3.0106 Jurisdiction in judicial
When
process ends when a
Jurisdiction church officer or a
Ends member
renounces
the
jurisdiction of the
church. Should the
accused in a disciplinary
case renounce the
jurisdiction of the
church, the clerk or
stated clerk shall report
such renunciation
to the governing body
of their respective
Primary Synod
(Westminster or
Auburn). Both the
renunciation and the
status of the matter
at that time, including
the name of the accused,
the
date and fact of
renunciation during
an investigation
or trial, and the charges
filed, shall be recorded
by the Governing Body
and the case shall be
closed.
D-4.0101 A reference is a written
Definition
request made by a session
or a Permanent Judicial
Commission of a Presbytery
or Sub-Synod to the
Permanent Judicial
Commission of their
Primary Synod
(Auburn or Westminster)
with
which they are
aligned, for purposes of a
trial
and decision or a hearing
on appeal in a remedial
or disciplinary case not
yet
decided.
D-4.0102 A proper subject of
Proper reference involves
Subject
matters or questions
for which it is desirable
or necessary that a
higher governing
body decide the
case.
D-4.0103 With its written request
Duty of
for reference to a higher
Lower governing body within
Governing their Primary Synod
Body (Westminster
or Auburn)
with which they are aligned,
the lower governing
body shall specify its
reasons for the request
and transmit the whole
record of proceedings
in the case and shall
take no further action
thereon.
If the reference
is
accepted, all proceedings,
including the trial or hearing
on appeal, shall thereafter
be held in the higher
governing body of the
same Primary Synod
(Auburn or Westminster)
with which the Governing
Body is aligned.
D-4.0201 Upon receipt of a request
Duty of for reference, the stated
Higher
clerk of the higher governing
Governing body shall transmit the
Body
request to the Permanent
Judicial Commission of
their Primary Synod
(Westminster or
Auburn), with which they
are aligned, for a decision,
whether or not to accept
the case.
D-4.0202 If the Permanent Judicial
Acceptance
Commission of their
Primary
Synod
(Auburn or Westminster)
decides to accept the
reference, it shall proceed
to trial and to a decision or
to
a hearing on
appeal.
D-4.0203 The Permanent Judicial
Refusal
Commission of a
Primary
Synod
(Westminster
or
Auburn)
may refuse
to accept a case for
reference and return it
to the lower governing
body, stating its reasons
for refusal. The lower
governing body shall
then conduct the trial
or hearing on appeal and
proceed
to a decision.
