NR #1995-038: For Immediate Release Presbytery Rejects Overture by Concerned Presbyterians Chairman Urging Inquiry into Possible PCA Schism by Darrell Todd Maurina, Press Officer United Reformed News Service HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. (May 13, 1995) URNS - At its April 27 stated meeting, Palmetto Presbytery voted down a proposed overture from Rev. Charles Wilson, chairman of Concerned Presbyterians, asking the Presbyterian Church in America General Assembly to inquire into the potential schism developing in the denomination over issues such as subscription, worship, and discipline. This proposal was similar to one earlier submitted to Western Carolina Presbytery by the PCA's first stated clerk, Dr. Morton Smith. Western Carolina Presbytery adopted a modified version of Smith's overture at its March 18 meeting. The major difference between the two overtures was that Wilson's overture called for the General Assembly to educate the church on the causes of the difference and provide for "an equitable way of division of the assets and obligations of the church at all levels" so as to "have a peaceful separation, thereby avoiding a long and bitter ongoing conflict in the church." Palmetto Presbytery's Bills and Overtures Committee made significant modifications to Wilson's overture. The revised overture noted that "Christian charity requires us to take seriously the concerns of brethren, including the minority" and that "various concerns about the denomination's doctrinal and spiritual health have been aired through unofficial groups, which has had the unintended result of increasing unrest and harming the peace of the church." Based on these grounds, the revised overture would have asked the General Assembly to "appoint an ad hoc committee, representative of all viewpoints, to identify the origin, nature, and extent of any fundamental unrest within the denomination, and to report back its findings" to the 1996 General Assembly. Both Wilson's overture and the Bills and Overtures substitute failed on the floor of presbytery. In a subsequent interview, Wilson indicated that he would be submitting the overture directly to the General Assembly in accord with denominational rules. "Palmetto Presbytery did me a favor by voting down this overture because it allows me to put the unabridged version before the General Assembly," said Wilson. Smith and Wilson, both now retired, were among the earliest leaders in the formation of the PCA, now the United States' second-largest Presbyterian denomination, which separated from the former southern Presbyterian denomination in 1973. Editor's Note: PCA News, an independent source of news on the Presbyterian Church in America operating under the auspices of Affirmation PCA, Somers, NY, contributed to this report. Cross-References to Related RBPS Articles: #1995-034: Retired PCA Stated Clerk Overtures General Assembly to Appoint Committee to Study Denominational Unrest Contact List: Dr. Paul Gilchrist, Stated Clerk, Presbyterian Church in America 4596 Canda Dr., Lilburn, GA 30247 * O: (404) 320-3366 Elder William C. Plowden, Jr., Stated Clerk, Palmetto Presbytery PO Box 1895, Columbia, SC 29202 * O: (803) 253-7650 * H: (803) 659-2476 Rev. Bob Slimp, PCA News Correspondent 4636 Crystal Drive, Columbia SC 29206 * H/O: (803) 782-0924 Dr. Morton Smith, Former Stated Clerk, Presbyterian Church in America 105 Connestee Trail, Brevard, NC 28712 * O: (803) 233-0726 * H: (704) 884-5212 Rev. Charles Wilson, Chairman, Concerned Presbyterians 3420 Rea Rd., Charlotte, NC 28226 * H/O: (704) 542-9603 * F: (704) 875-2998 ------------------------------------------------ file: /pub/resources/text/reformed: nr95-038.txt .