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This page is archived from the
217th GA, 2006 |
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Overtures coming to the
Assembly -- a summary |
| General Assembly backgrounder: the Mission Work Plan
[5-25-06] The General Assembly Council has recast
the church's goals, objectives to support local mission, by
de-emphasizing programmatic work at the national level of the Presbyterian
Church (U.S.A.) in order to better support mission and ministry by
congregations and presbyteries.
Budgets and staff realignments were determined in April, with $9.15
million and 75 staff positions trimmed from the General Assembly mission
program. The Mission Work Plan and 2007-2008 mission budgets must be
approved by the upcoming 217th General Assembly, where they will be
considered by Assembly Committee 8 – Mission Coordination and Budgets.
More in a report from Presbyterian News
Service >>
The full report -- 19 pages long -- is available in PDF format |
Assembly will act on more than 130 overtures
Task force, ordination standards, divestment action top packed agenda
by Jerry L. Van Marter, Presbyterian News Service
[4-17-06]
LOUISVILLE - April 17, 2006 – A record number of overtures – more than 130,
as of April 17th– have been submitted by the presbyteries to the
217th General Assembly.
The dominant issues facing the 534 commissioners who will gather in
Birmingham, AL, on June 15 include the report of the Theological Task Force
on Peace, Unity and Purity of the Church (TTF); proposed changes to the
ordination standards of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); and whether to
continue the denomination's policy of selective phased divestment from
corporations profiting from Israel's occupation of the West Bank.
Theological Task Force
The task force, created by the 2001 General Assembly, was directed "to lead
the PC(USA) in spiritual discernment of our Christian identity in and for
the 21st century." The 20-member panel, whose final report will be presented
to this Assembly, was specifically charged to address "issues of
Christology, Biblical authority and interpretation, ordination standards and
power."
The group's unanimous recommendations concerning ordination standards have
drawn fire from both sides in the debate over the inclusion of gay and
lesbian Presbyterians in the life of the church, including service as
ordained church officers.
The TTF's recommendation 6 calls for the retention of the current standard –
G-6.0106b of The Book of Order, which restricts ordination to those who
practice "fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman
or chastity in singleness." That standard has provoked opposition from those
who support the ordination of non-celibate gays and lesbians.
The task force's recommendation 5 calls for an "authoritative
interpretation" of G-6.0108 that would give ordaining bodies some leeway in
determining whether any candidate's "departure (from scriptural and
constitutional standards for ordination) constitutes a failure to adhere to
the essentials of Reformed faith and polity..." If the answer is "no," the
ordaining body could proceed with ordination, subject to review by church
courts.
That recommendation has ignited a firestorm of criticism from supporters of
G-6.0106b. A coalition of 11 Presbyterian "renewal" organizations and two
dozen conservative leaders issued a statement last fall that the TTF report
"constitutes a blend of truth and error that, if adopted, will undermine the
church's purity and exacerbate the denomination's disunity. Indeed, it will
promote schism by permitting the disregard of clear standards of scripture
and the Constitution of the PC(USA)."
Task force members argue that there is an important distinction between
"essentials" and "standards," which it says are "aspirational in character."
The TTF says that its proposed authoritative interpretation - which, unlike
constitutional amendments, would not have to be sent to the presbyteries for
ratification - reaffirms the historical balance between national ordination
standards and "the duty of ordaining and installing bodies to apply those
standards in determining fitness for office and compliance with essentials."
The Advisory Committee on the Constitution recently issued its opinion that
the TTF recommendations are constitutional.
A dozen overtures have been submitted, most of them directed at amending or
removing Recommendation 5.
Ordination standards
Including overtures and concurrences, 22 presbyteries have petitioned the
Assembly to send a proposed amendment to the presbyteries for ratification
to delete G-6.0106b from The Book of Order.
When the 1996 General Assembly proposed the inclusion of G-6.0106.b, 57
percent of the presbyteries voted to ratify it. Two previous attempts to
remove it from the constitution – in 1998 and 2002 – failed by votes of 67
percent and 73 percent, respectively.
The issue may be moot this year. The Assembly is scheduled to vote on the
TTF report before taking up the G-6.0106b proposals. If it approves the TTF
report's recommendation that no changes be made to the constitutional
standards for ordination or the authoritative interpretations of the
constitution that now buttress them, it would be hard-pressed to take
further action on G-6.0106b.
Two presbyteries – Upper Ohio Valley and Central Washington – are calling
for a moratorium on G-6.0106b-related action for eight years and 12 years,
respectively.
Selective, phased divestment
Jewish groups and some Presbyterians reacted strongly to the 2004 Assembly's
decision to "initiate the process of selective, phased divestment" from
corporations the PC(USA) believes are impeding peace in the Middle East by
profiting from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory and the
construction of the security barrier in Israel/Palestine.
The PC(USA) has been accused of being anti-Israel, anti-Semitic,
pro-terrorism and worse. Interfaith relations nationally and locally have
been strained. Supporters of the decision praised the denomination for
putting its money where its mouth is, after 50 years of issuing seemingly
powerless statements in support of peaceful coexistence between Israel and
Palestine.
No fewer than 22 overtures have been submitted on the subject. Some,
including those from Mississippi, the James and Eastern Virginia
presbyteries, call for rescinding the divestment decision. Others, including
those from Sheppards and Lapsley, National Capital, Transylvania, and
Chicago, call for a strategy of positive investment in the region to
"promote peace between the Israeli and Palestinian people," as National
Capital puts it.
Related overtures call for a task force to draft a new statement of the
PC(USA)'s Middle East policy (Eastern Virginia) and for an affirmation of "a
common Abrahamic heritage" shared by Christians, Jews and Muslims as a step
towards peace (Newton).
Other issues
Numerous other issues will also command the Assembly's attention, among
them:
Historical Foundation at Montreat: The Committee on the Office of the
General Assembly is recommending a budget-driven consolidation of
Presbyterian Historical Society operations that would include closing the
PHS facility at the Montreat Conference Center in North Carolina. Columbia
Theological Seminary has agreed to create a Presbyterian historical research
and study center on its campus in Decatur, GA, to house some, but not all,
of the artifacts and records now at Montreat. Reflecting its particular
importance to southern Presbyterians, 15 presbyteries have petitioned the
Assembly to preserve the Montreat facility, two-thirds of them calling for
it to be governed by Friends of the Historical Foundation at Montreat, a
group that has been raising support and funds for the preservation effort.
Christian educators: The question of whether Christian educators
should be ordained church officers returns to the Assembly. Mission
Presbytery is pushing for the new office of Minister of Christian Education;
Shenandoah Presbytery urges the creation of a fourth ordained office - in
addition to ministers, elders and deacons - called "Educating Elder," which
would be open to Certified Christian educators.
Abortion: The Assembly will be asked to take up this perennial issue
by considering an overture from Redstone Presbytery saying that, "when
late-term pregnancies must be terminated, we urge decisions intended to keep
the baby alive." Beaver-Butler Presbytery is proposing a ban on all PC(USA)
funding of organizations that are for or against abortion. Mississippi
Presbytery is asking the Assembly to oppose all abortions except those
needed to save the life of the mother or in cases of incest or rape. Current
PC(USA) policy regards abortion as the choice of last resort, but cedes
choice to the mother and her medical provider.
Economic justice: Proposals will come from the Advisory Committee on
Social Witness Policy and the World Alliance of Reformed Churches on such
topics as economic globalization, usury, social insurance for older adults
and the rights of people with disabilities.
Theological statement on the Trinity: A product of the Office of
Theology and Worship, The Trinity: God's Love Overflowing is a strong
affirmation of the church's traditional teaching on the doctrine of the
Trinity. Little dissent has surfaced, but Shenandoah Presbytery has
submitted an overture asking that consideration of the paper be held over
until 2008, for fear that the TTF's report will overshadow it.
Celebrations: The PC(USA) Assembly will be held concurrently with the
national gatherings of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the Cumberland
Presbyterian Church in America, celebrating the 300th anniversary of
American Presbyterianism. The Assembly will also celebrate the 75th
anniversary of the ordination of women as elders and the 50th anniversary of
the ordination of women as ministers. And it will celebrate the mid-point of
the PC(USA)'s drive to diversify to 20 per cent racial-ethnic membership by
2010.
New executive director: The eight-year tenure of John Detterick as
executive director of the General Assembly Council (GAC) will be celebrated
as he retires. The Assembly will be asked to confirm the GAC's election of
his successor, which is scheduled for May 23.
We welcome
your comments on this overview of the overtures!
Have things been omitted that you view as important?
Do you have opinions on some of those mentioned?
Just send a note
and we'll share your comments here! |
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This website has been created by a number of progressive
organizations related to the Presbyterian Church (USA), with two
main purposes: 1. We
want to share our concerns and views with commissioners and others
attending the Assembly, and with anyone else who is watching from
afar. While some of our groups focus on one area of concern
and others are more general in their focus, we are all committed to
the wholeness of our world, which we understand to involve justice
and peace and the well-being of all people; and we are committed to
the wholeness and health of our Church and its witness and service
in the world.
2. We want to get to know
you better and serve your concerns and needs in any way we can.
So we will invite you to share your views with us and with one
another with any email responses or questions. We'll invite
your responses with links here and there, and we'll try to post
those that seem to contribute to our conversations.
Just send a note now, and tell us how we can be helpful!
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