Permanaent Judicial Commission (PJC)

Book of Order-D-1.0101

Church discipline is the church's exercise of authority given by Christ, both in the direction of guidance, control, and nurture of its members and in the direction of constructive criticism of offenders. The church's disciplinary process exists not as a substitute for the secular judicial system, but to do what the secular judicial system cannot do. The purpose of discipline is to honor God by making clear the significance of membership in the body of Christ; to preserve the purity of the church by nourishing the individual within the life of the believing community; to achieve justice and compassion for all participants involved; to correct or restrain wrongdoing in order to bring members to repentance and restoration; to uphold the dignity of those who have been harmed by disciplinary offenses; to restore the unity of the church by removing the causes of discord and division; and to secure the just, speedy, and economical determination of proceedings. In all respects, all participants are to be accorded procedural safeguards and due process, and it is the intention of these rules so to provide.

Spiritual gifts, skills and/or expertise valuable to this committee or team

It is helpful to have knowledge of the annotated Book of Order, an understanding of psychology of relationships and the temperament to review both within the structure of the Word.

Meeting

The commission meets as required by specific cases according to timelines set forth in the Book of Order. It meets at various places for purposes of hearings, often at Geneva Center. Meetings are often infrequent and dependant on a pending case.