Ordination & Installation Service Policy & Guidelines

Ordination & Installation Service Guidelines for Teaching Elders

Policy & Descriptions
Administrative Commission
Planning the Service


Policy & Descriptions

A service of Ordination or Installation is a service of the Presbytery. Therefore, “the service of ordination or installation of a teaching elder shall be conducted at a convenient time to enable the
substantial participation of the presbytery.” (W-4.4002) The service shall not be scheduled on a Sunday morning.

Ordination is a service of the Presbytery to ordain a candidate as a teaching elder for service in a particular church or other approved validated ministry. An outline of this service is available on the COM Forms page.

Installation is a service of the Presbytery to install a teaching elder for service in a particular church. The service should be held as soon as is feasible following the effective date of the call. An  outline of this service is available on the COM Forms page.

Ordination & Installation is a service of the Presbytery to ordain and install a teaching elder for service in particular church when the candidate has not been previously ordained. An outline of this service is available COM Forms page.


The Administrative Commission

The Administrative Commission MUST be approved by the Presbytery through the Commission on Preparation for Ministry (in the case of ordination) or the Commission on Ministry (in the case of installation). The Administrative Commission for a service of Ordination & Installation is approved by the Presbytery through the Commission on Preparation for Ministry. Administrative Commissions ordinarily consist of those invited by the person being ordained, installed, or ordained and installed.

The Administrative Commission Form for Ordination and Ordination & Installation services must be submitted to be approved and may be found here.

For Installation services, the commission members, date, time and place of installation are to be sent in an email to COM (cnelson@pghpresbytery.org) for approval.

Convener: The Administrative Commission is convened by the Presbytery Moderator or by her or his designee. It is essential that prior to planning the service, the date and time of the
service is confirmed with the Presbytery Moderator.

Members of the Commission: The administrative commission shall be composed of no fewer than five (5) and no more than seven (7) persons from Pittsburgh Presbytery. The administrative
commission shall be composed of ruling elders and teaching elders in numbers as nearly equal as possible. No more than one (1) ruling elder from any one church of the presbytery may serve on
the commission. “A commission should reflect Pittsburgh Presbytery’s commitment to principles of inclusiveness, representation, and participation for race and gender.” Others may
be invited to participate, but such invitations should be limited to one or two beyond the commission. All members of the commission must be members of Pittsburgh Presbytery.


Planning the Service

The service shall be conducted at a convenient time to enable the substantial participation of the Presbytery. The service shall not be scheduled on a Sunday morning. The service should be planned to last approximately one (1) hour.

Orders of worship and additional liturgical resources may be found here.

Planning Suggestions

  1. One week before the service, confirm the date and time with participants. Assure that each
    participant understands her or his role and inform them what time and where to meet prior to
    the service. Provide guidance to Teaching Elders regarding the wearing of vestments.
  2. Provide a room where the Moderator can convene, constitute the Administrative Commission,
    and review service details.
  3. Encourage participants to maintain time limits on their part of the service.
  4. Provide child care to encourage parents of young children to attend.
  5. The congregation should arrange a celebratory reception at the conclusion of the service.

The Offering
An offering for the Oldman Fund (a scholarship fund for inquirers/candidates under the care of
Pittsburgh Presbytery) shall be received during the service. The church is responsible to count the
offering and send a check for the amount received to Pittsburgh Presbytery.