PRESBYTERY REVIEW COMMITTEE

SUMMARY OF WORK

1. Working from a common set of specific requirements for EPC Presbytery Minutes reflecting the EPC Constitution, the Rules for Assembly, and certain of the Acts of the Assembly, two members of the Committee read each set of the Minutes from at least 4 of our 16 presbyteries and presented those for concurrence by the entire Committee.

2. The Committee also reviewed the responses from the various presbyteries to those Exceptions cited for their 2023 Minutes to approve the acceptability of those responses

3. The Committee also reviewed the lists of attendees for all Presbytery Stated Meetings for 2024 to ascertain the level of commitment by all EPC church sessions to our Presbyterian form of government as reflected in their attendance at the meetings of their presbytery.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

45-35: That the 45th General Assembly direct the Office of the General Assembly to upload digital copies of the General Assembly Minutes from meetings 1-26.

45-41: That the 45th General Assembly adopt a change to the current policy regarding the approval and recording of ministers’ Terms of Call. (Act of Assembly 12-11)

45-42: That the 45th General Assembly approve the Exceptions requiring a Response as found in the 2024 minutes of 12 of our 16 Presbyteries.

45-43: That the 45th General Assembly approve the responses of the Presbyteries to those Exceptions sent to them by the 44th General Assembly.

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WORK OF THE COMMITTEE

The foundational basis for this annual review is the connectional character of our Presbyterian denomination. As the Book of Government 16-3 states: “ Because all courts of the Church have a mutual connection with one another, the act of each court should be considered representative of the whole Church. Therefore, no one court is separate and distinct from all the other courts. This mutuality and connectivity find expression in the right of review and control in the ascending order of the courts.” Maintaining an accurate consistency between presbyteries ensures that both the legal and historical record of each presbytery is preserved for the reference and understanding of future generations.

Of necessity, this Committee’s task is compressed into the eight weeks between the receipt of certified Minutes for at least three Stated Meetings held by each of our 16 presbyteries during the calendar year 2024 and the publication deadline for the docket of this General Assembly. This review requires that at least two members of the Committee read each set of Minutes submitted by each of the EPC’s 16 presbyteries and then meet online with the Chairman to reach concurrence on any required changes and final approval. This can only be accomplished by having a team of committed Ruling Elders and Teaching Elders with a good understanding of the requirements of the Book of Order, the Rules for Assembly, and the pertinent Acts of the Assembly. It also requires a competent and dedicated support staff from the Office of the General Assembly. Vanessa Mullendore from the Office of the General Assembly supported us again this year.
This year we found that 4 of our 16 presbyteries had no Exceptions. Although a few were new to the demands of the tasks of Presbytery Stated Clerk, all have taken their assignment very seriously and are improving each year.

This year the Committee also recognized that the requirement expressed in the Acts of the Assembly 12-11 regarding the requirement to publish the compensation details of all Teaching Elders called in pastoral ministry to churches was not being followed by a majority of our presbyteries but was rather being referred to the Presbytery Ministerial Committees for that review. After conferring with the Parliamentarian of the General Assembly we decided to propose a change to this Act of the Assembly.

The Committee also continued a recent practice of reporting to the General Assembly the number of churches who apparently did not have any representation at any of the meetings of their presbytery during the year 2024. Although this fraction has been dropping since it was reported as 10% in 2021, we found that it has apparently risen 11% for the year 2024.

Click here for the Minutes of the Presbytery Review Committee

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RECOMMENDATIONS (DETAILED)

RECOMMENDATION 45-35

Recommends that the 45th General Assembly directs the Office of the General Assembly to upload digital copies of General Assembly Minutes from meetings 1 through 26.

Rationale:
The Presbytery Review Committee observes that the Acts of Assembly for Assemblies 1 – 26 are not available in either printed or downloadable digital form and haven’t been for several years. The continued availability of the history of our denomination is of value both historically and legally, the committee encourages the Office of the General Assembly to treat the completed digital preservation of those documents as a high priority in 2025/2026.

RECOMMENDATION 45-41

Recommends that the 45th General Assembly adopt a change to the policy regarding the approval and recording of minister’s Terms of Call, superseding the actions of the 18th, 31st, and 32nd General Assemblies (Acts 98-04, p.185, 11-08, p.200, and 12-11, p.191)

Rationale:
a. The Review Committee observes that many presbyteries find that the significant variations in church size and “local” costs are so variable within a given presbytery that it is not realistic to expect the entire presbytery to properly judge the relative adequacy of any individual proposed Terms of Call. The Ministerial Committee is usually much better able to make that assessment based on its required review of the annual reports from each TE in the presbytery.
b. Changes to item “c” still provide the members of Presbytery with an ability to review any specific Terms of Call if needed.
c. The Review Committee finds that only six of the 16 presbyteries currently comply with the AoA 12-11 as it is currently written.

RECOMMENDATION 45-42

Recommends that the 45th General Assembly approve the following Exceptions Requiring a Response as found in the 2024 Minutes of 12 of our 16 Presbyteries.

Alleghenies
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Alleghenies be approved with the following exceptions.
a. Assistant Pastor Wes Piel – term not specified. 50, pg. 1085, 13C, G. 10-5, 10-6, Acts of Assembly 02-04.
b. Assistant Pastor Aaron Badenhop – term not specified. Assistant Pastor Rob Peterson – term not specified 51, pg. 1151, 19B, C5, pg. 1223, 09A. G. 10-5, 10-6, Acts of Assembly 02-04.
c. Aaron Badenhop – no ordination date recorded, Elija Bombeck – no ordination date recorded, Rob Peterson, Mark Simonds and David O’Leary – no ordination date recorded. 51, pg. 1151, pg. 1153, 19B and 19G, C5, pg. 1224, 09D, G. 13-1A. G. 21-1C.2.b
d. No term specified for OOB call, TE Brian Carpenter. 49, pg. 1041, 10A-2nd bullet point, 50, pg. 1083, 13A, G. 10-8B.2a

Central Carolinas
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Central Carolinas be approved with the following exceptions.
a. Candidate Drew McCarty’s position on Westminster not recorded. 5, no pg.#, 19, G. 12-4.
b. Candidate Katie Piquette – no period of time recorded. Candidates Eric Bartel and Joe Carvajal – no period of time recorded. 6, no pg.#, 26, 7, no pg.#, 16:3e & f. G. 10-8B.2a.
c. No details for retiring pastors TE Rob Chambers and TE Steve Wilkinson. 6, no pg.#, 27, G. 14-1, G. 15.
d. No inactive roll listed. 5/6/7, G. 19-2. Acts of Assembly 05-08.

Central South
The Committee recommends that the minutes of the Presbytery of the Central South be approved with the following exceptions.
a. No defined time period for TE Wayne Denny, TE John Richards, and TE Dennis Hermerding serving out of bounds. Mtg. 121, p.1073, 121.09 5.c, Mtg. 122, p.1094, 122.08 3.d, Mtg. 122, p. 1113, 122.23. G. 10-8.B.2.a.
b. No specific duties listed for TE Sir Gregory Thornton and TE Eli Morris as Associate Pastor. Mtg. 121, p.1074, 121.09 5.h, Mtg. 123, p.1121, 123.07 4.b. G. 10-5
c. No defined time period for TE Hannah Attaway as Assistant Pastor. Mtg. 121, p.1080, 121.10. G. 10-6.A
d. No specific duties listed for TE David Bowen as Assistant Pastor even though it is a renewal. Mtg. 122, p.1094, 122.08 3.b. G. 10-6.A
e. No specific duties listed for the following Assistant Pastors even though they are renewals: Brett Wynne, Barton Kimbrough, Will Weir and Greg Aydt. Mtg. 123, p.1121, 123.07 4.d-g. G. 10-6.A.
f. No defined time period for TE Damon Conley as Assistant Pastor. Mtg. 123, p.1146, 123.20. G. 10-6.A.
g. No listing of additional RE representatives allocated to churches to maintain a 1:2 ratio of TEs to REs. Mtg. 121, Mtg. 122, and Mtg. 123. G. 19-2A.4.b, Acts of Assembly 05-08

Coastal Mid-Atlantic
The Committee recommends that the minutes of the Presbytery of the Coastal Mid-Atlantic be approved with the following exceptions.
a. This section was a narrative of the finances of the Presbytery. No tabular finance report was included. Also, no budget was included. Also, no audit or review of the financials was included. Mtg. 5, p.7, 1.12, Mtg. 6, p.6, 1.19. Rules for Assembly IX 9-12, G. 15.
b. Candidate for transfer TE Michael Johnson (from RCA). His exception to Westminster Confession was detailed in the minutes. Mtg. 5, p.8, 1.14.02. Unless this has been specifically delegated the Ministerial Committee, the Presbytery would need to know what the TE’s exception is, in order to allow or disallow it, but the exception should not be recorded. G. 12-4
c. There was no listing of attendees – TEs or RE’s. Excused TE’s were listed but their church was not recorded. Mtg. 5, Mtg. 6, Mtg. 5, p.8, 1.15.03, Mtg. 6, p.4, 1.17.01. Acts of Assembly 00-11.
d. No record of Session Minutes reviewed. Mtg. 5, Mtg. 6, Mtg. 7. G. 19-4A7, Acts of Assembly 07-08.
e. Membership of the Presbytery’s Ministerial Committee at its first meeting each year was not recorded. Mtg. 5, Mtg. 6, Mtg. 7. G. 21-2.
f. Minutes did not include a date for installation of TE Michael Johnson, or where he is to be installed as Assistant Pastor. Mtg 5, p.8, 1.14.04. G. 13.
g. Parity: approved that Churches may field three (3) RE per TE. Did not list churches to send 3 RE’s, apparently intended to mean every church in the Presbytery. Mtg 6, p.2, 1.07. Acts of Assembly 05-08.3, G. 19-2A.4b.
h. Ascending Overture: There was a vote to concur with another church’s Ascending Overture – but no summary of the overture was recorded. Mtg. 6, p.3, 1.11. G. 19-4C2, Acts of Assembly 07-08.
i. RE Michelle Munger, candidate under care, no advisor recorded. Mtg. 6, p.4, 1.17.04. G. 11-2E, Acts of Assembly 06-08.
j. No term of service or area of responsibility specified for TE Michael Johnson. Also confusing that the floor examination (5/7/1:14) was separate from the other details in the MC report. Mtg. 5, p.8, 1.15.06.01. G. 10-5, 10-6, Acts of Assembly 02-04.
k. No details on retirement of TE Mark Jumper. Mtg. 6, p.4, 1.17.02. G. 15
l. No election of moderator and stated clerk. Mtg. 5, Mtg. 6. G. 19-3.
m. The scattered reporting of candidates examined, although the candidates were CPs, makes it difficult to assess. All the aspects of the exams should be reported under the Ministerial Committee and each candidates’ exam should be reported separately. Very confusing and hard to follow. Mtg. 7, p. 8, 1.26-1.27. G. 12-2 through 5, G. 13-1 through 7, G. 19-4B1-7, G. 21-1A.2, G. 21-1C.2.b.
n. Presbyteries shall submit signed copies of their approved minutes for all meetings of the completed calendar year to the General Assembly no later than March 1 of the following year. Minutes for meeting #7 submitted on April 2, 2025. G. 19-5D, Rules for Assembly 9-12G.1.

East
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the East be approved with the following exceptions.
a. No definite period listed for TE Nathan Cotton, TE Isaiah Nengean, and TE Jay Lee, Assistant Pastors. Mtg. 130, p.11-13, p.15, 130-14E and 14I. G. 10-6 A.
b. No definite period listed for TE Anthony Bianchini and TE Art Lindsley Out of Bounds. Mtg. 130, p.14, 130-14I. G. 10-8 B.2.a.
c. The minutes were not signed by the Moderator. Mtg. 130 and Mtg. 131, last pages. G. 19-5 D.
d. 6 TE and 4 RE on Ministerial Committee not within 1 of each other. Mtg. 131, p.7, 131-12B, Mtg. 132, p.7, 132-13A. G. 21-2 A.
e. No mention of election of Moderator. Mtg. 129, Mtg. 130, Mtg. 131, and Mtg. 132. G. 19-3 A.
f. No Parity list provided to make sure there are 2 RE for each TE. Mtg. 130, Mtg. 131, and Mtg. 132. G. 19-2 A.4b, Acts of Assembly 05-08 3.
g. There is no record in the Minutes that Candidates coming under Care 6 months minimum membership in an EPC church. Mtg. 130, p.10, 130-14C, Mtg. 131, p.8, 131-12D. G. 11-2A.
h. There is no record in the Minutes that the Presbytery has received Endorsement forms from church sessions for Candidates coming under Care. Mtg. 130, p.10, 14-C, Mtg. 131, p.8, 131-12D. G. 11- 2A and Attachment 7, Procedure Manual.
i. There is no record in the Minutes that Candidates coming under Care were assigned an advisor. Mtg. 130, p.11, 14-C. G. 11-2E.
j. There is no record in the Minutes that the process of the dissolution of a local church or mission church was followed. Mtg. 132, p.29, 132-18B. G. 5-9.
k. There is no record in the Minutes that the 132nd Meeting was closed in prayer. Mtg. 132, p.32, 132-29. G. 16-1A.
l. There is no record in the Minutes listing the members of the Ministerial Committee. “Minutes must report the membership of the Ministerial Committee….to define for that year that its ratio of Teacher Elders to Ruling Elders meets the requirements of G. 21-2 for that Committee.” Mtg. 130, Mtg. 131, and Mtg. 132. G. 21-2.

Florida and the Caribbean
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of Florida and the Caribbean be approved with the following exceptions.
a. No primary responsibilities or definite period listed for TE Charles Ruelke, TE Jude Vilma, and TE Brian Eida as Assistant Pastors. Mtg. 101, p.10-11, 101.13, Mtg. 101, p.12, 101.16, Mtg. 102, p.18-21, 102.19. G. 10-6 A.
b. REs for Admin Commission for TE Zachary McIntosh need to come from at least 2 churches. The TEs came from different churches. Mtg. 101, p.13, 101.16. G. 9-6a
c. No definite period listed for TE Mike Jones, TE Eric McEwan, and TE John Quigley for out of bounds position. Mtg. 102, p.11, 102.12 omnibus motion 02, Mtg. 102, p.14-17, 102.12, Mtg. 103, p.11, 103.12 omnibus motion 4. G. 10-8 B.2.a.
d. No primary responsibilities listed for TE Lou Kaloger Associate Pastor and TE Charlie Halleran Associate Pastor. Mtg. 102, p.12, 102.12. G. 10-5. e. Purpose of Called meeting not stated. 10th Called Meeting, p.1, 10.01. G. 19-5 B

Great Plains
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Great Plains be approved with the following exceptions.
a. No differentiation between active, inactive, and retired in the rolls. Mtg. 31, p.648 and p.650-654. Mtg. 32, p.1-5. Mtg. 33, p.662 and p.665. G. 19-2. Acts of Assembly 05-08
b. Membership of Ministerial Committee not reported. Mtg. 31, Mtg.32, Mtg. 33. G. 21-2.

Gulf South
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Gulf South be approved with the following exceptions.
a. Minutes must report actions of Commissions but not include the entire report. Mtg. 29, p.183-184, 29.09, Mtg. 30, p.198-199, 30.07-08. G. 21-1 A.2.
b. No mention that candidates Mansfield and Oh were examined by the Presbytery. Mtg. 29, p.185, 29.12. G. 11-2 C.
c. No closing prayer. Mtg. 30, p.206, 30.17. G. 16-1 A.
d. No definite period listed for TE Miguel Broche as Assistant Pastor. Mtg. 31, p.222, 31.21 6. G. 10-6 A.

Midwest
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Midwest be approved with the following exceptions.
a. Approve move of TE Ian Leslie to the Retired Roll (active or inactive?). The minutes must report all the steps for retiring TE’s. Mtg. 181, p.12, G. 15-1.
b. A motion was made and approved in an Executive Session. “An Executive Session may be used for the discussion of sensitive and/or confidential topics, but any motions resulting from such discussion by the presbytery must be done in an open session so that the action may be recorded in the Minutes of the meeting. Mtg. 182, p.14, 01. G. 2-4A.
c. There is no record of the period of time for the call of Assistant Pastor TE Ferguson. Mtg. 182, p.9, 182-01. G. 10-6A.
d. There is no record of a congregational meeting to concur on the dissolution of the calls of TE Jerry Van Auken, TE Briyan Gregory, TE Kevin Chen, TE Jeremy McNeill, TE Brandon LaFontaine and TE Josh Boehr Mtg. 181, p.11, 181-15, Mtg. 182, p.11, 182-07, Mtg. 183, p.620, 20. G. 14-1A.
e. There is no record of the process for dismissing a local church. Mtg. 182, p.11.08, G. 5-9.
f. There is no record in the Minutes that the Presbytery reviewed any of the member churches Session Minutes. Mtg. 181, Mtg. 182, and Mtg. 183. Acts of Assembly 07-08.

Pacific Northwest
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Pacific Northwest be approved with the following exceptions.
a. No record in the Minutes that the Dissolution of Calls for the purposes of retirement were approved at a congregational meeting for purpose of retirement for TE George Dakin, TE Mark Toone, TE Dennis Yeung, and TE Ehud Garcia. All required Steps must be listed. Mtg 20, pg. 396, 20-34, Mtg 21, pg. 419, 21-35. G. 14.1B.
b. No list of Churches is shown with the additional RE’s needed from each to achieve a parity of two RE’s for each TE at all Presbytery meetings. Mtg 19, Mtg 20, Mtg 21. G. 14-1B

Southeast
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the Southeast be approved with the following exceptions.
a. No Notation of Opening with Prayer. No Notation of Closing with Prayer Mtg. 121, p.293, 121-01. Mtg. 123, p.370, 123-26. G. 16-1A, Rules for Assembly 9-12G2.
b. TE Fischler was received as a member of the presbytery however, his status is not noted – Pastor, Teacher, Evangelist, etc. Mtg. 122, p.328-329, 122-11.4. G. 9-5A-E

West
The Committee recommends that the Minutes of the Presbytery of the West be approved with the following exceptions.
a. The names of churches whose session’s minutes have been reviewed are not recorded. Mtg. 132, p.4, 132-5D. G. 19-4A7, Acts of Assembly 07-08.
b. Members of the Ministerial Commission are not listed. Mtg. 131, p.6, 131.6. G. 21-2.

RECOMMENDATION 45-43

Recommends that the 45th General Assembly recognize the approval of the responses from the Presbyteries to those Exceptions sent to them by the 44th General Assembly.

Rationale: Those responses were received in a timely fashion from all of those Presbyteries cited at the 44th General Assembly and reviewed by members of the Committee. The presbyteries reviewed include: Alleghenies, Central Carolinas, Central South, Coastal Mid Atlantic, East, Florida and the Caribbean, Great Plains, Gulf South, Midwest, Pacific Northwest, Southeast, and the West.

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COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Jane Bodden
RE, Presbytery of Florida and the Caribbean

Keith Hopkins
RE, Presbytery of the Pacific Northwest

George King
RE, Presbytery of the Gulf South

Jason Steele
TE, Presbytery of the Midwest

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MEETING DATES

March 7, 2025: Video Conference
March 18, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
March 20, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
March 25, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
March 27, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
April 1, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
April 3, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
April 8, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference
April 10, 2025 (subcommittee): Video Conference 
April 25, 2025: Video Conference

Respectfully submitted,

Ron Bengelink, Chairman
June 2025

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