Over the past three years, First Portadown (Edenderry) Presbyterian Church has pulled out of the joint Christmas service, which had a tradition going back at least 60 years, because Armagh Road's minister is a woman.
The Rev Stafford Carson (Edenderry) quoted the Epistles of St Paul to back up his anti-women ministers stance, while the Rev Christina Bradley also quoted Scriptures to support the principle of female clerics.
The tradition was that the visiting minister preached the sermon, and this was unacceptable to First Portadown, given Mrs Bradley's gender.
This year, Armagh Road suggested a joint Saturday evening carol service in the run-up to Christmas, but Edenderry stated this was inconvenient and came up with what they believed was "a workable compromise".
The compromise is that the services resume, but that the 'home' minister takes the service and preaches the sermon while the 'away' minister sits among the congregation.
This was communicated to Armagh Road and was proposed and seconded at a session meeting on the grounds that there are many personal friendships between the two churches and that the tradition was mutually beneficial.
But the majority of elders at Armagh Road voted against it, and again each church will hold its own service on Christmas morning.
Neither minister is willing to comment on the latest move.
The Presbyterian Church in Ireland has been ordaining females since the mid-1970s, but there is an opt-out clause for male ministers who do not wish to have women in their pulpits.