Ike Reeder explains Ruling Elder Seminary Training at BTS
George and Ike discuss the Presbyterian Leadership Certificate offered at Birmingham Theological Seminary for Ruling Elders which includes these four classes: -Westminster Standards -PCA Polity (BCO and Roberts Rules) -Covenant Theology -Conflict Resolution Ike Reeder is the President at BTS. Visit the BTS booth at this year's GA to learn all about this Certificate program for Ruling Elders.
I have found the preface to the BCO and the introduction to RRO, when read together, to be very helpful in understanding PCA polity in that (BCO) Christ is the Head of the Church and He rules through a plurality of elders duly convened in the courts of the church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit; and that rule (RRO) is by the will of a deliberative majority of the court after unhindered deliberation intended to ensure the minority every opportunity to persuade the majority to adopt the minority position and having failed, to submit to the majority until such time as the minority is able to persuade the majority to adopt its position. By employing this method, Robert was able to conclude the most difficult matters while preserving the peace and unity of the assembly.
Good Stuff Ken!
Moving the previous question to end debate after a single speech is not out of order, but it is inconsistent with the goal of preserving the peace and unity of the assembly, and may invite a similar but unwelcome response in future deliberations. The RRO Introduction last section Influence of Robert describes him as loathe to limit debate then explains his reasoning. Once everything that needs to be said has been said once, moving the previous question is to the advantage of the assembly to avoid prolonging the debate. Was it Mel on this show who described RRO as courtesy codified?