Despite a negotiated agreement with a Presbytery commission prior to the meeting, the church was dismissed by only a 58-48 vote.

The 152-year-old First Presbyterian Church of Aurora, Ill. was dismissed from the Presbyterian Church (USA) Tuesday by Blackhawk Presbytery in a 58-48 vote. A negotiated settlement will allow the 700-member congregation to leave with its property.

The congregation, which now is affiliated with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC), will pay the presbytery $140,000, according to a settlement approved on May 12 in Rockford, Ill.

Part of the dismissal agreement calls for Wayward Cross Ministries Building Fund in Aurora, Ill., to receive $85,000 of the settlement. The remaining $55,000 will be used by the presbytery for reimbursement of the dismissal expenses and for the Mission Strategies and Resources Board.

Pastors Jeffrey Moore and Stephen Rhodes also were dismissed as part of the agreement, which was brokered by a presbytery administrative commission and a negotiating team from the Aurora congregation.

“We are thrilled to have this process behind us so that we can concentrate all our resources on engaging our city with the gospel of Jesus Christ,” said Moore, senior pastor of the congregation. “We are pleased that we were able to forge an amicable agreement with the presbytery and that our relationship with them came to a cordial conclusion. We’re truly looking forward to our new relationship with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and our future as we continue to serve the Aurora area community.”

Aurora is the second largest city in Illinois, located in Kane County, about 40 miles due west of downtown Chicago (along Interstate 88).