Sign up to be a Presbytery Companion: https://presbyterianpew.org/companion/

Donate to send Lynna to General Assembly next year and get a "I Support BCO Education for Everyone" sticker: https://presbyterianpew.org/send-me-to-ga/

A collection of X updates about the Overtures Committee business: https://presbyterianpew.org/2025-overtures-committee-actions/

Timestamped links to all major debates and decisions during the main meetings of General Assembly: https://presbyterianpew.org/highlights-2025-general-assembly/

Speech in support of Item 3 (expanded representation for accused): https://www.youtube.com/live/W8LQRTMDFzk?t=12317s

Minority Report on Overture 12 (limiting distribution of communion to officers only): https://www.youtube.com/live/oOBNhKlbWXs?si=KntYYNtOcs_c8h3U&t=5483

The Importance of Administrative Suspension During a Trial: The Problems with Overture 31 - https://presbyterianpew.org/administrative-suspension-overture-31/

Statement by Moderator Steve Dowling and MNA Coordinator Dr. Irwyn Ince regarding affinity troups (link in post to MNA statement): https://byfaithonline.com/gospel-priorities-statement/

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Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

Learn more about Adair's work, sign up for her newsletter, and support her financially on her MTW profile here.

You can also email her at [email protected]

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

Here is the text of Book of Church Order chapter 40, paragraph 5 (BCO 40-5)

When any court having appellate jurisdiction shall receive a credible report with respect to the court next below of any important delinquency or grossly unconstitutional proceedings of such court, the first step shall be to cite the court alleged to have offended to appear before the court having appellate jurisdiction, or its commission, by representative or in writing, at a specified time and place, and to show what the lower court has done or failed to do in the case in question. The court thus issuing the citation may reverse or redress the proceedings of the court below in other than judicial cases; or it may censure the delinquent court; or it may remit the whole matter to the delinquent court with an injunction to take it up and dispose of it in a constitutional manner; or it may stay all further proceedings in the case; as circumstances may require.

If you believe you may need to submit a 40-5 to a Presbytery or to the General Assembly, please contact us for information and support.

Would you consider being a Presbytery Companion? You can find more information here.

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

Today is our final episode about Overtures to the 2025 PCAGeneral Assembly.

Here is a link to the article written by the family of Sarah Young, author of Jesus Calling.

Here is the post with a summary of all 2025 Overtures to General Assembly.

Join our free Facebook Group to discuss and ask questions about General Assembly.

Download the 2025 Overtures Tracking Sheet here.

Listen to the Polity Matters guys talk about Overtures for elevating a censure and the court case behind it here (minute marker 16:54)

Article on Overture 31 - The Importance of Administrative Suspension During a Trial: Problems with Overture 31

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

In our third episode about Overtures to the 2025 General Assembly we discuss Overtures related to various committees and agencies of the General Assembly.

Here are some diagrams that show the difference between how slots on most of the committees and agencies of the General Assembly are filled vs how slots on the Administrative Committee are filled.

Here is a link to an article about a PCA pastor whose Temporary Protected Status was removed.

The Refugee and Immigrant Ministry is under the umbrella of MNA (Mission to North America).

Here is a link to the apology by TE Irwyn Ince after the webpage with links to third-party organizations giving legal advice to undocumented people was taken down.

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

This is Part 2 of our special series on 2025 PCA General Assembly Overtures.

Here is a link to the MASSIVE post we published summarizing all the Overtures.

And for discussion and questions, join our Facebook Group here.

You can find the article about the MTW and CDM reports on Jesus Calling here.

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

Today, we're doing something a bit different. Instead of hearing from one of our storytellers, we'll take a few episodes to talk about the upcoming PCA General Assembly.

You can find an article describing all of this year's Overtures here.

And if you'd like a space to ask questions and learn more about how General Assembly operates, you can join our free Facebook Group.

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

Lane joins us for Part 2 of her story and shares what she discovered when she and her husband requested the session minutes.

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

In this story, Lane talks about filing a complaint with the session of their church. Chapter 43 of the Book of Church Order covers complaints, but the only explicit information about what a complaint includes are these two sentences from 43-1 and 43-2:

"A complaint is a written representation made against some act or decision of a court of the Church. It is the right of any communing member of the Church in good standing to make complaint against any action of a court to whose jurisdiction he is subject, except that no complaint is allowable in a judicial case in which an appeal is pending...Written notice of complaint, with supporting reasons, shall be filed with the clerk of the court within sixty (60) days following the meeting of the court."

For more information on PCA church discipline and accountability, you can access our free course Presbyterian Church Discipline 101.

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/

One aspect of this part of Ashley’s story is the difficulty she had being released from her membership in a PCA church after she had been harmed there and was struggling to find a safe place to worship. Ashley is very much not alone in this struggle. If you are facing that difficulty, please reach out to us through the form on our website. We can help you to navigate all of the factors involved in your decision and to understand your options.

https://presbyterianpew.org/contact/

Stories from the Presbyterian Pew depends on financial support from listeners. To contribute to the costs of producing and hosting the podcast, please visit https://presbyterianpew.org/donate/