Five elders published the Assembly’s formal answer after four teaching elders filed a dissent about the 53rd General Assembly’s rejection of Overture 37, which sought to let local Sessions decide whether women may serve as deacons.
A commission of five teaching elders authored the Assembly’s official answer, defending that the PCA Constitution already defines the deacon’s office as male-only and that current polity permits certain diaconal roles for women.
Under PCA procedure, once the court files an official answer to a dissent, the matter concludes and the answer will be included in the Assembly minutes.
# What happened The 53rd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) voted to disapprove Overture 37. The overture, submitted by Pacific Presbytery, asked to amend the Book of Church Order (BCO) to allow local Sessions to decide whether qualified women should be allowed to serve as deacons.
A commission of five teaching elders—Ligon Duncan, David Garner, Thomas Gibbs, Jonathan Master, and Guy Waters—was appointed by the moderator to formulate an official answer to that dissent. Their response has been published and will be included in the Assembly's minutes.
# What the dissent says
# How the General Assembly answered The Assembly's response answers on three fronts: exegetical, historical, and constitutional.
# What changes, if any, this produces No change to the BCO is recorded in the Assembly's answer. The Assembly reaffirmed its vote to deny Overture 37 and provided a formal, documented rebuttal to the dissenting elders' arguments. The Assembly's published answer becomes the official response and part of the Assembly's record.
# Why this matters to PCA members
# Next steps The Assembly's answer is now part of the official minutes. Because BCO 45-5 states that the matter concludes when the court answers a dissent, this action closes the procedural path on this specific dissent at the General Assembly level.
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