The Presbyterian Church in Ireland have decided to boycott the Kirk’s annual general meeting next year due to its controversial new stance on gay clergy.
Members of the Belfast headquartered denomination’s General Assembly passed a motion in an “act of solidarity” for people who think Scotland’s national church is moving away from Biblical teachings by 99 votes to 84.
The decision is a blow for the Kirk because the two organisations have longstanding and historic associations and have been represented at each other’s gatherings for generations.
The Right Rev Angus Morrison, moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, attended PCI’s meeting in Belfast last week.
The boycott, which only applies to 2016, comes after PCI members expressed deep dismay at a Kirk General Assembly decision last month to give congregations the freedom to appoint people in civil partnerships as their minister if they wished.
Commissioners also voted to consult presbyteries on whether the same privilege should be extended to people in same-sex marriages.
The debate was triggered by the appointment of the Rev Scott Rennie to Queen’s Cross Church in Aberdeen in 2009 and has led to 21 ministers and hundreds of people leaving the denomination.
A spokesman for PCI, which believes that marriage should be between a man and a woman, said the debate over the boycott was emotional because people felt “deep sadness” about the direction the Kirk was taking.
“While we have not taken a formal stance on the Scottish vote many would have felt a ‘sense of sorrow and deep regret’ at the decision,” he added.
“In a heart-felt and finely balanced debate at our own General Assembly last week, members judged that they would express this deep regret by taking a symbolic step not to appoint representatives on this occasion to go to Edinburgh in 2016.”
The spokesman said Kirk representatives were still welcome to attend PCI’s general assembly next year.
A Church of Scotland spokesman said: “We are sorry to learn that the PCI has decided not to send representatives to our General Assembly next year.
“We have always valued our close contacts with the PCI and it is our hope that we can continue to speak to each other on a range of issues.”