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VOLUME 1  \nBOOK OF ORDER  \nINCLUDING RULES FOR ASSEMBLY, ACTS OF ASSEMBLY, AND FORMS FOR DISCIPLINE  \n20252026  \nEVANGELICAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH  \nGOVERNING DOCUMENTS VOLUME 1  \nBOOK OF ORDER  \nINCLUDING RULES FOR ASSEMBLY, ACTS OF ASSEMBLY, AND FORMS FOR DISCIPLINE  \n© 2025 Evangelical Presbyterian Church  \nThis work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-No Derivs 3.0 Unported License.  \nTo view a copy of this license,  \nvisit [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/)[ ](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/)or send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, CA 94041  \nOrder additional copies from the Office of the General Assembly  \n407-930-4239  \n[info@epc.org](info@epc.org)  \n[www.epc.org](www.epc.org)  \nTABLE OF CONTENTS  \nPreface .........................................................................................................................................................vii  \nTerminology ...............................................................................................................................................viii  \nStatus of Footnotes .....................................................................................................................................viii  \nTHE BOOK OF ORDER  \nPart 1: Book of Government  \nChapter 1: The Church Defined........................................................................................................... 1  \nChapter 2: The Government of the Church .........................................................................................2  \nChapter 3: The Authority of the Church.............................................................................................. 3  \nChapter 4: The Local Church ..............................................................................................................4  \nChapter 5: The Constitution, Establishment, Dissolution, Dismissal, or Reception of a Local Church............................................................................................................... 5  \nChapter 6: Rights Reserved to a Local Church ................................................................................... 9  \nChapter 7: Meetings of a Congregation ............................................................................................. 10  \nChapter 8: The Authority of the Session of Church Membership ..................................................... 12  \nChapter 9: Officers of the Church ..................................................................................................... 16  \nChapter 10: Calling to Office ..............................................................................................................22  \nChapter 11: Preparation for Office ......................................................................................................26  \nChapter 12: Examination for Ordination and/or Installation ...............................................................28  \nChapter 13: The Ordination and/or Installation of Officers ................................................................ 30  \nChapter 14: The Dissolution of an Officer’s Relationship / Removal to Inactive Status / Removal from Office ....................................................................................................... 34  \nChapter 15: The Retirement of Teaching Elders ................................................................................. 37  \nChapter 16: The Organizational Structure of the Church .................................................................... 39  \nChapter 17: The Board of Deacons .....................................................................................................41  \nChapter 18: The Session ...........................................","cbCaidK9b5ybBNII","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaidK9b5ybBNII","pdf",4973202,280,"English","# Preface\n# Terminology\n# Status of Footnotes\n# THE BOOK OF ORDER\n## Part 1: Book of Government\n## Part 2: Book of Discipline","[{\"question\":\"What does the Book of Order cover in Governing Documents Volume 1?\",\"answer\":\"It covers rules for assembly, acts of assembly, and forms for discipline, along with structured guidance on how the church is governed. It is organized across a Book of Government and a Book of Discipline.\"},{\"question\":\"How is church governance structured in the Part 1 chapters?\",\"answer\":\"Part 1 outlines the defined church, church government, authority, and the local church, then describes officers and multiple governance bodies such as the session, presbytery, and general assembly. It also includes committees and commissions.\"},{\"question\":\"What topics are addressed in the Part 2: Book of Discipline?\",\"answer\":\"Part 2 addresses discipline’s nature, subjects, and purpose, pastoral care, ecclesiastical judicial processes, jurisdiction, offenses, and how disciplinary procedures commence. It is aimed at guiding discipline within ecclesiastical settings.\"}]","EVANGELICAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH - BOOK OF ORDER - Including Rules for Assembly, Acts of Assembly, and Forms for Discipline - Governing Documents Volume 1 | PDF",706]