It seems to me that there is a triangulatory injury that occurs whenever a split happens: A couple get divorced because they can't stand each other, but it's the children who are penalized the most; a corporation splits over leadership issues at the top, but it's the average consumers and shareholders who pay the price; a congregation divides over--what else?!--whether to play praise choruses or traditional anthems ( :) ), and the neighborhood losing a vital witness loses out. Those in our midst who chatter about leaving are perhaps missing this pivotal point. If substantial churches pull out of the PCUSA--hey, with such close polarization, even if the numbers aren't substantial--they will not affect the 'progressive' leadership; indeed, they will embolden and benefit those who are liberal-leaning. No, such a departure will only hurt those Biblically faithful women and men who are called by God to stay and labor where He has put them. Evangelical churches leaving the denomination will only further dilute the voice and vote that the evangelical caucuses possess, thereby tipping the scales in liberal favor. The evangelicals have had the votes heretofore; if churches leave, that will no longer be the case. So, if there is a departure, the separatists will not injure the PCUSA structure, they will injure most those brothers and sisters with whom they agree the most. Indeed, leaving isn't the answer. Reforming the denomination--beginning at the top--is.