Board of Church Officers (Jejikhoe)

Definition and Meaning

A board of church officers is a body in which a congregation's officers meet to discuss and manage the church's affairs and its service ministries. In Korean Protestant churches it is known as the jejikhoe, meaning "assembly of the various officers." In Presbyterian church polity, the session is responsible for spiritual oversight, that is, caring for and governing the members. The board of church officers, by contrast, is understood as the body responsible for practical matters such as administering finances and carrying out relief and service. It is also distinct from the congregational meeting, in which the entire membership assembles.

Biblical and Historical Background

Acts 6:1–6 is commonly cited as the basis for the board of church officers. The passage records how the early church in Jerusalem appointed seven men to oversee the work of relief. First Timothy 3, which addresses the qualifications of church officers, is also frequently cited.

Historically, the body is associated with the Reformed tradition, in which John Calvin distinguished the offices of pastor, teacher, elder, and deacon in the church at Geneva. The duties of relief and finance that belonged to the deacons are understood to have taken shape in Korean Presbyterianism as a deliberative body, the jejikhoe.

Practice in Korean Churches

• Presbyterian churches: In Korean Presbyterian churches, the board is provided for in each denomination's church constitution. It generally consists of the members of the session (pastors and elders) together with deacons and kwonsas. Depending on the denomination and the congregation, acting deacons may also be members. The senior pastor usually serves as moderator, and a clerk and a treasurer are appointed. In churches without an organized session, the rules may provide for the pastor, evangelists, acting deacons, and others to fulfill the board's role.
• Methodist, Holiness, and other churches: The composition and names of local church meetings differ from those of Presbyterian churches, according to each denomination's constitution. In practice, however, a meeting of officers is sometimes informally called a jejikhoe.
• Baptist and other churches following congregational polity: Decisions made at the business meeting, in which the entire membership participates, are central. Meetings of officers serve in a supporting role.

Many churches hold a regular meeting of the board monthly or quarterly. At these meetings, reports are given on the ministries of each department and on the expenditure of church finances. At the year-end meeting, the proposed budget for the following year is commonly reviewed and then submitted to the congregational meeting for final approval. After appointing new officers at the start of the year, many churches also hold an officers' seminar or officers' retreat as an occasion for training and renewed commitment.