Sichal (Presbytery District)

Definition and Meaning

Sichal (視察) means "to inspect by going around." In Korean Presbyterianism, the term has two senses. The first is the work by which a presbytery visits and guides its member churches. The second is the geographic district into which a presbytery is divided for that purpose. The meeting of the ministers and elders of the churches in one such district is called a sichalhoe (district council). The person who presides over the district council is commonly called the sichaljang (district chair), and those who actually carry out the tasks assigned by the presbytery are called sichal wiwon (district commissioners).

In Presbyterian church polity, the bodies that exercise discipline and church government, known as church courts or judicatories, are the session, the presbytery, and the general assembly. The district council is not a judicatory; it is understood as an auxiliary body that shares in the work of the presbytery.

Biblical and Historical Background

Presbyterians cite several passages of Scripture as the basis for the ministry of visiting churches. One is Acts 15:36, in which Paul proposes, "Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the LORD." Also cited is Acts 20:28, in which church leaders are charged: "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock."

The practice of traveling among churches to oversee them has a long history in the Western church under the name of "visitation." During the Reformation, the visitation of the churches of Saxony by Martin Luther and his colleagues is well known. The sichal system in Korean Presbyterianism is said to have developed alongside the organization of presbyteries from the early missionary period, although denominational histories differ on exactly when and how it was first introduced.

Practice in the Korean Church

Most Presbyterian denominations, including the Presbyterian Church of Korea (Tonghap) and the General Assembly of Presbyterian Church in Korea (Hapdong), maintain several sichal districts within each presbytery. In practice, the district council carries out the following tasks:

• It conducts a preliminary review of documents submitted to the presbytery and forwards them. These include petitions concerning the call of a minister, permission to elect elders, and the organization of a session.
• It visits and guides unorganized churches that have no session, as well as churches in conflict, and reports its findings to the presbytery.
• It is responsible for joint worship services among local churches and for fellowship among pastors.

The extent to which a district council may become involved varies according to each denomination's constitution and each presbytery's bylaws. Some in Korean church circles have argued that when district councils take over too much of the presbytery's work, they undermine the autonomy of local congregations. Others, by contrast, criticize district oversight for having been reduced to a mere formality of forwarding paperwork.

Other denominations have units that play a similar role. In the Korean Methodist Church, this role is filled by the district conference led by a district superintendent. However, because the Methodist district conference differs from the Presbyterian district council in its status and authority within the denominational structure, the two are not regarded as the same body.