Reports of Presbyterian Church (USA) presbyteries and churches around the country reveal that many congregations have either reached agreements with their presbyteries to be dismissed from the PCUSA, or are in the process of dismissal or disaffiliation from the denomination.

Most of the churches leaving the PCUSA have cited the recent approval of Amendment 10A and the passage of the new Form of Government (nFOG) as the presenting symptoms of a more serious underlying problem in the denomination: the authority of Scripture.

Amendment 10A deleted the explicit “fidelity/chastity” requirement from the ordination standard, and now allows the PCUSA to ordain of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people as deacons, elders and pastors. The new Form of Government has raised concerns of a more “top-down” PCUSA bureaucracy.

Arizona
Grand Canyon Presbytery dismissed the 500-member Desert Hills Presbyterian Church (DHPC) to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC) at its Nov. 12 meeting.

The presbytery approved the recommendations found in the report of the presbytery’s Administrative Commission (AC) to Desert Hills. The recommendations include:

· DHPC will cover the costs incurred by the discernment team and the AC, and the cost of transferring historical records and the cost of copying any presbytery records that are needed to make the church’s records complete.
· DHPC will assume full responsibility for the existing mortgage ($1,129,000), and pay the presbytery $800,000 in exchange for it transferring the property’s title to a Desert Hills non-profit corporation, owned by church members. The total cash benefit to Grand Canyon Presbytery will be just under $2 million. The $800,000 payment will be made as follows: at least $300,000 will be paid initially, with the balance to be paid over a period not to exceed 10 years at a to-be-determined interest rate.
· DHPC will cover the legal, administrative and bank costs of reworking the bank loan as well as any potential bank required changes in loan terms.

Two appraisals were conducted on the 6.9 acre property, with the average of the two totaling $4,335,000. The mortgage balance is $1,129,000.

The report stated that the AC contacted all Desert Hills members, and the preferences were:

· Have signed form to transfer to EPC: 452 members, or 85.8 percent
· Plan to sign form to transfer to the EPC: 14 members, or 2.6 percent
· Medically incapacitated: 6 members or 1.1 percent
· Have signed form to remain with the PCUSA: 12 members or 2.2 percent
· Have not heard from: 43 members or 8.3 percent
· Total membership: 527 members.

Ohio
Kirkmont Presbyterian Church in Beavercreek, Ohio voted Oct. 30 by a 95 percent majority to concur with the session recommendation that “the Kirkmont Presbyterian Church determines to be dismissed from the PCUSA with property to another Reformed Body that is consistent with the stated theological standards of the Kirkmont Presbyterian Church.”

The 314 member congregation is in Miami Valley Presbytery.

The session posted a letter on the church website stating, “Our identity as Presbyterians and our worship site will not change as a result of this vote. We will continue to adhere to the same beliefs and worship that we have always maintained. Your membership remains with the Kirkmont Presbyterian Church. … Please be in prayer as the session begins conversation with you and the Presbytery regarding the transfer of property and dismissal to a new Presbyterian body. Please bear in mind that this process will take several months. You will be asked to agree and decide on the new Presbyterian body and to accept a recommendation for the transfer of property.”

In his address to the presbytery on Nov. 12, Miami Valley’s Executive Presbyter Dennis H. Piermont spoke of Kirkmont’s leaving the PCUSA along with three other churches in the presbytery:
· Lebanon Presbyterian Church
· First Presbyterian in South Charleston
· First Presbyterian in Greenville

Piermont said “We have elected and charged an Administrative Commission to deal with these matters. These nine women and men have set about to approach their work guided by two over-riding principles:”
1. “Do no harm to the Church of Jesus Christ”
2. “Model Christ in the undertaking of the tasks at hand.”

He said the AC has held “very productive and constructive” meetings with Lebanon’s session and also has begun conversations with the other congregations.

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