Governance & Church Officers

Polity, processes, and accountability structures for joining God’s work in the world

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Local Church Session

The leadership body of our church is known as the Session. It’s made up of elders elected from the congregation.

Presbytery of Charlotte

The church’s regional body of leadership is called the Presbytery. MPPC Belongs to the Presbytery of Charlotte.

Synod of the Mid-Atlantic

The greater regional body of the church is the Synod which is made up of presbyteries within a particular geographic area. Our presbytery belongs to the Synod of the Mid-Atlantic.

General Assembly

The national body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is the General Assembly. Meetings of the General Assembly occur every other year.

Constitution

All PC(USA) bodies are governed by a constitution, which has two parts:

Book of Confessions – The doctrinal statements that convey what the church believes.

Book of Order – The policies and procedures of the church to enable it to carry out its ministries.

The Session

The Session’s primary responsibilities are to support and supervise the work of the church and assure appropriate stewardship of resources. Ruling Elders (members who are called to serve on the Session) are nominated each year in January and serve three-year terms. Teaching Elders (our ordained Clergy) also sit on the Session. 

Councils & Committees

The Session oversees the work of the various councils and committees of the church. From children’s ministries to finance, the nuts and bolts of ministry happen in in these groups. Download our org chart to visualize how it all comes together!