Four besieged elders sacrificed their position on the Midway Session so that all members could vote in the upcoming congregational meeting.
In a last minute deal late this afternoon in the courthouse of Cobb County Georgia, Elders James Scott, Don Barnett, Clay David and Phil Dudt humbly gave up their positions as active elders at Midway Presbyterian Church so that 21 longtime members of the Midway congregation would be reinstated. These 21 members of Midway were targeted by the Session and illegally removed from the membership rolls for signing the petition to dissolve the church’s relationship with Senior Pastor David Hall. All of 21 members were notified of their removal on Wednesday by mail and none of the removals were in accordance with the Book of Church Order. This was truly a selfless act by four long serving elders to protect the rights of 21 congregates under their care.
The Session was quick to email out to the congregation their version of the judge’s order and that the meeting will still take place on Sunday morning; however, The Midway Guardian has learned that the 21 reinstated members were not included on that email, nor did any of those members receive voting instructions for the meeting received by the other congregates in yesterday’s mail. For those reinstated members, you need to show up between 9:00 and 9:30 on Sunday morning to pick up your ballot for the 9:45 congregational meeting. The ballots are to be picked up in the fellowship hall from your shepherding elder. That would be the same shepherding elder that did not notify you before removing you from the membership roll earlier in the week.
Here is the Temporary Restraining Order as issued by Superior Court Judge J. Stephen Schuster at 4:34 this afternoon:
