On April 23, 2013 the Faith Church Session voted to request gracious separation from the PC(USA)
At its meeting on April 23, 2013, the Faith Church Session voted 13 in favor, 1 against, and 1 abstained to begin the gracious separation process from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that will enable us to align ourselves with ECO, a Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians. You can click below to read the letter and a copy of our Presbytery’s Gracious Separation Policy that were mailed to persons on Faith’s Active Member Roll on April 24.
Letter from Session April 24, 2013
Presbytery Gracious Separation Policy

“Straw Poll” Results
A “straw poll” of persons on the Active Member Roll of Faith Church was conducted April 14, 2013. Of the 168 persons who signed-in to participate, 74.4% responded “yes” and 25.0% responded “no” to the question “Do you support the Session’s recommendation to leave the PC(USA) and join ECO?” Read more

April 2013 video

April 2, 2013 letter to congregation
Click below to read the April 2, 2013 letter from the session to the Faith Church congregation.
Session Letter from April 2 2013

Why does Faith Church’s session recommend that Faith Church leave the PCUSA Presbyterian denomination and join the ECO Presbyterian denomination?
Click below to read the following information that was mailed to the Faith Church congregation along with the session’s January 30, 2013 letter:
Why the Faith Church Session Recommends ECO
The Vision & Values of Faith Church
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Session Recommends ECO, Vision & Values of Faith Church, Frequently Asked Questions

Faith Church session recommends ECO
Click below to read the January 30, 2013 letter from the session to the Faith Church congregation.
Session Letter from January 30, 2013

Resources for General Background
Click HERE to go to the denominational issues page of the website of Christ Presbyterian Church in Edina. That congregation is also discerning its denominational future and has made a number of resources available.

This article from First Presbyterian Colorado Springs shows some of the significant areas of disagreement in our denomination.
“Ten Theological Challenges Facing the PCUSA”
Ten Theological Challenges Facing the PCUSA

Below is a 3-part article from the blog of PCUSA pastor Mark D. Roberts. Dr. Roberts is Senior Advisor and “Theologian in Residence” of Foundations for Laity Renewal. He is also the author of several books and dozens of articles. He serves as a retreat leader, speaker, and has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. He describes how different underlying beliefs about biblical authority result in very different conclusions, using ordination as an example.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Click HERE to see videos from the January 2012 conference of The Fellowship of Presbyterians/ECO in Orlando.

Click HERE to see videos from the August 2012 Fellowship of Presbyterians/ECO Conference in Colorado Springs.

ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians is a new Presbyterian denomination that “exists to serve congregations and nurture leaders, growing and planting flourishing churches that make disciples of Jesus Christ.” These are some current ECO documents:
Understanding ECO (basic summary)
ECO Vision
ECO Theology
ECO Polity

The Fellowship of Presbyterians is a ministry organization designed to “build flourishing churches that make disciples of Jesus Christ.” The Fellowship is an “umbrella organization” that includes members of the PCUSA, members of ECO, and brothers and sisters in Christ beyond these two denominations. Faith Church is a part of the Fellowship of Presbyterians.

Resources from Faith Church:
This listing is sorted with the most recent item at the top.

April 24, 2013 information mailed to congregation from session
These were mailed to persons on Faith’s Active Member Roll on April 24.
Letter from Session April 24, 2013
Presbytery Gracious Separation Policy

April 23, 2013 Session voted to initiate “gracious separation” process
At its meeting on April 23, 2013, the Faith Church Session voted 13 in favor, 1 against, and 1 abstained to begin the gracious separation process from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that will enable us to align ourselves with ECO, a Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians.

April 14, 2013 at 8:30 am – noon “Straw poll” of members
A “straw poll” of persons on Faith’s “Active Member” roll was conducted on the question “Do you support the Session’s recommendation to leave the PC(USA) and join ECO?” Read more

April 7, 2013 at 4:00 pm All-church prayer meeting
We gathered to praise God in word and song and to lift up Faith Church, calling upon God to direct us as we seek discernment and direction for our future.

February 24, 2013 Program on why the session of Christ Presbyterian Church (CPC) recommends ECO
John Mitchell, Executive Pastor at CPC, and an elder from the CPC session were our guests and talked about the decision of CPC’s session for that congregation to pursue gracious separation from the PC(USA) with the intent to join ECO. Resources prepared by CPC can be accessed on the CPC website.

February 17, 2013 Program on the Presbyterian Church (USA)
Stephanie Friant delivered an information session on the PC(USA). Included were a brief history of the denomination, a discussion about their approach to biblical interpretation and use of the confessions, as well as details about recent changes. A Q&A session followed. These are the handouts from Stephanie’s presentation:
Presbyterian Church (USA) 101
Progressive/liberal biblical interpretation
Miscellaneous resources
Questions submitted to presbytery

January 27, 2013 Understanding Survey Results
Gary Hemphill presented and reviewed the results of the survey that was conducted.

January 10, 2013 Special session meeting about denominational issues
This was a time of deciding where the session believes God is leading Faith Church and making decisions about next steps.

Nov 18 through Dec 2, 2012 Survey of the Family of Faith
“Survey Monkey” was used to conduct a survey of the Family of Faith related to denominational issues with responses provided online or through paper copies. The survey was open for two full weeks.

Nov 18, 2012 Program on the Authority of Scripture
On Sunday, November 18 there was a presentation and discussion of different ways to understand the Authority of Scripture presented by Rev. Neil Craigan, a pastor from our presbytery. We closed the evening with the sharing of a meal of pizza afterwards.
Authority of Scripture

November 11, 2012 at 4:00 pm All-church prayer meeting
We gathered to praise God in word and song and to lift up Faith Church, calling upon God to direct us as we seek discernment and direction for our future.

Nov 4 through 18, 2012 Listening Groups about Denominational Issues
Opportunities were offered to gather in small groups to receive some information from session and especially to share questions, concerns and hopes as they relate to our congregation’s future. Session members were present to moderate the discussion in each group and to listen. These handouts were distributed in the Listening Groups:
What the Fellowship & ECO have in common and how they differ
Comparison of some Presbyterian denominations
Vision, Mission & Values of Faith Church
Faith Church’s denominational history

October 17 & 18, 2012 Session review gatherings
Two choices of gatherings were offered for session members to review denominational alternatives and the theological issues that are behind our exploration of denominational alternatives.

October 7, 2012 at 4:00 pm All-church prayer meeting
We gathered to praise God in word and song and to lift up Faith Church, calling upon God to direct us as we seek discernment and direction for our future.

October 6, 2012 Session day-retreat
The session set aside a Saturday together for prayer and discussion of what we are looking for in a denomination.

September 30 & October 14, 2012 Denominational Issues Information:
This was a presentation by Carol Shanholtzer on How Recent Changes in the Book of Order Affect Faith Church. Changes addressed include our denomination’s structure of government, mission and theology.
How Recent Changes in the Book of Order Affect Faith Church

Aug 7, 2012 Letter mailed to persons on “active members” roll of our congregation:
Workgroup letter sent 08-07-12

Sun, Feb 5, 2012 Report from Orlando meeting
Click HERE to listen to or download a recording of the class.
Fellowship Values (on handout)
ECO Vision 01-19-12 (on handout)
Narrative on the State of Religion 01-20-12 (briefly discussed during presentation)
Fellowship Covenant 01-20-12 (briefly discussed during presentation)

Sun, Jan 15, 2012 9:00 am Adult Class
Due to technical problems, no audio recording of this class is available. Click below to see notes from Pastor Buck’s presentation. Topics include how we understand Scripture, who is Jesus Christ and what did he really do, and how does progressive thinking show itself in the PCUSA today.
Jan 15 class notes

Sun, Jan 8, 2012 9:00 am Adult Class
Click below to see a handout from the class. This shows four different “tiers” presented at the Fellowship of Presbyterians meeting last August as possible ways to relate to the Fellowship based on the individual church’s setting. [Note: because of developments since that time, some of the tiers presented are no longer options.]
Fellowship Overview Summary

April 2011 session issued reports from its “Renewing Faith” initiative
Building on the “Vision and Values” of Faith Church, the “Action Goals” proposed by the Short and Long Range Study Committee Report became the basis for the session’s work with a consultant to design and implement a long-range plan called “Renewing Faith.” The session issued its Renewing Faith report to the congregation in April of 2011 and began implementation of this ongoing plan.

October 18, 2010 Short and Long Range Study Committee Report
This committee, chaired by Don Draayer, prayerfully worked to confront present day issues and realities in 12 meetings over a seven-month period. Data was gathered from multiple sources, which included a church survey that had excellent member participation. Following study and extended discussion of options, the 27-member committee voted unanimously for the STRATEGIC PLAN and ACTION GOALS included in the Short and Long Range Study Committee Report, which was presented to the session, then to the congregation.
Short and Long Range Study Committee Final Report

February 2009 “Vision and Values” adopted
Following an extensive visioning process by a task force which incorporated participation by the congregation, our three “rocks” of Worship, Discipleship and Service were established and a “Vision and Values” statement was adopted by the session.

These are the two parts of the constitution of our denomination, the PCUSA:
Part 1: Book of Confessions
Part 2: Book of Order 2011-2013
Note: If you have a copy of a Book of Order older than the “2011-2013″ edition, it is no longer current. In July 2011 the “G” (“Form of Government”) section was replaced by entirely rewritten contents.

Some additional resources from various perspectives:
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Covenant Network of Presbyterians
The Presbyterian Layman
Mark D. Roberts blog