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Connection
COMMITTEES
Discerning Together: Who Sits on the Denomination’s Committees?
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WINTER 2022
PRESBYTERIAN
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General Assembly Standing Committees
Assembly Council
Ensures the work of the church is carried out and communicated between General Assemblies. The council makes recommendations concerning national policies, budgets and denominational vision.
Church Doctrine Committee
Reviews doctrinal issues and makes recommendations to the General Assembly for determining and declaring the church’s doctrinal positions.
Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations Committee
Facilitates and maintains relationships with ecumenical and interfaith councils, committees and consultations, while developing strategies concerning peaceful and respectful ecumenical and interfaith education and work.
Committee on Church History
Encourages an appreciation of The Presbyterian Church in Canada’s Reformed heritage.
International Affairs Committee
Makes recommendations to the General Assembly on matters of international concern,
communicates with the Government of Canada on matters of international concern and helps Presbyterians be aware of important international issues for study, prayer and action.
Life and Mission Agency Committee
Provides resources to the church that envision innovative models for ministries, provides grants, nurtures international church partnerships, responds to disasters, assists refugees, supports development projects, aids communication, works with Indigenous ministries, plans youth events, explores issues of faith and justice and offers guidance for discerning vocations for ordained ministry.
Maclean Estate Committee
Oversees the property, staff and endowment fund of Crieff Hills Retreat Centre, while supporting and promoting its programs.
National Indigenous Ministries Council
Grounded in self-determination and the United Nations Declaration on the Right
of Indigenous Peoples, the National Indigenous Ministries Council focuses on Indigenous Peoples, strengthening relationships with the church, promoting Indigenous
ministries and Indigenous justice. The council is accountable to Indigenous Peoples within the church and is guided by the wisdom of their Elders; and as a standing committee,
it is accountable to the General Assembly.
Pension and Benefits Board
Oversees Pension and Benefits administration, monitors the solvency of the Pension Fund, recommends changes to its constitution to the General Assembly and files required documents with the Pension regulatory authorities.
Trustee Board
Under authority of the Parliament of Canada and the Legislatures of all 10 provinces, holds properties, enters into contracts, invests funds, issues annuities, establishes pension plans and executes documents on behalf of the church.
Theological Colleges
Knox College Governing Board, The Presbyterian College Board of Governors and St. Andrew’s Hall Board provide consultation, support and guidance regarding the colleges’ faculty and programs.
By the Rev. Ian Ross-McDonald, General Secretary, and Terrie-Lee Hamilton, General Assembly Office
One of the jokes we tell about our Presbyterian form of church pol- ity and government is that we do everything by committee.
Q: How many Presbyterians does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Eight. One is commissioned to change the bulb and seven duly nominated and elected members are named to a subcommittee, with ap- proved terms of reference, that will study and repor t back at some future meeting of the appropriate committee.
We laugh about it, but peo- ple can feel real frustration and pain with the church’s structure and the way we do things. And sometimes, many people working together in committees, commis- sions and cour ts leads to conflict. But for all the weakness of our sys- tem of committees and cour ts, the alternatives are arguably worse. Without committees, decisions might be left to one or two people working with limited experience and without much input or trans- parency. As Joan Gray and Joyce Tucker write in their book, Presby- terian Polity for Church Leaders, “The decisions which we make together will most often be better than the decisions which any of us could make individually.”
Christian life and life in the church is lived out in commu- nity, and the church discerns the mind of Christ and the guidance of God’s Spirit not as individuals, but as a community. Working by committee is how we discern the way forward together. The Rev. Dr. Tony Plomp, a former Clerk of the Assembly, wrote that, “We are responsible for and account- able to each other. We are called to be together, to make decisions together, to work together, believ- ing that through such communal activity, subject to the Word of God, God’s Spirit speaks to us and guides and directs us.”
The PCC has 14 national com- mittees or boards that are called “standing committees of the General Assembly.” The church is blessed with many talented people who have energy and many gifts they are willing to
share with the church through standing committees. Roughly 150 individuals appointed by the General Assembly populate standing committees and a few more hundred are members of subcommittees.
Who is eligible to serve on
a standing committee?
Any professing member of the PCC (a member, ruling elder, diaconal minister, minister of Word and Sacraments) may be nominated by or seek nomination through and with the endorse- ment of a Session, presbytery, synod or standing committee.
How long can someone
be a member of a
standing committee?
There are some exceptions, but normally, members remain on a standing committee for a three- year term with the option of serv- ing a second three-year term.
How many standing committees can one sit on at a time?
A person can be a member of only one standing committee at a time.
Who decides who gets
named to a committee? Ultimately, the commissioners at General Assembly each year decide the memberships of the standing committees. The com- missioners consider a slate of names presented by the Commit- tee to Nominate Standing Com- mittees. After the commissioners have discerned together, they vote to adopt the report and any chang- es that have been proposed and accepted by the commissioners.
Who names the members of The Committee to Nominate Stand- ing Committees?
The members are appointed by the General Assembly on nomina- tion by synods.
How does the Committee to Nominate Standing Committees gather names to present to
the General Assembly?
Each year, the committee corre- sponds with the standing com- mittees and boards to learn the skills particularly needed on the committees.
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