Following the 2008 General Assembly - at which one of our pastors served as a commissioner - the denominational affairs committee presented a summary to the session. The summary, with session responses, appears below.
General Assembly Report: At the recent PC (USA) 218th General Assembly the following actions were taken:
1) Elected Bruce Reyes-Chow as moderator of the GA. Reyes-Chow is a 38-year-old Pastor of Mission Bay Community Church in San Francisco, Calif. Gradye Parsons was elected GA stated clerk.
2) Membership in the PC (USA) was reported down by 2.5 percent or 57,572 members in 2006, continuing a twenty year trend. The 2007 numbers have not been released as of yet. There are 2.2 million active members of the PC (USA).
3) The GA sent to presbyteries (again) to vote on changing the wording in the Book of Order that removes the “fidelity and chastity” clause G-6.0106b. If a majority of presbyteries vote yes, we would have “local option” on whether to ordain to church office those who do not live according to the Biblical and Confession standards of human sexuality (presbyteries ordain ministers, congregations ordain deacons and elders). At the same time, the Assembly removed all Authoritative Interpretations (AI) on the subject, including the Definitive Guidance of 1978. This takes effect immediately. The AIs were replaced with an AI which allows candidates for office in the PC USA (Deacon Elder and Pastor) declare exceptions “scruples” for both theology and practice, and the ordaining body must decide whether the scruple is “essential” or not. This is essentially the same AI passed by the PUP taskforce in 2006. The Presbyterian Judicial Commission ruled that this does not allow the ordination of practicing homosexual persons while G-6.0106b is still in place, but would allow it immediately if a majority of presbyteries vote to change G-6.
Session Comments on #3 –The decision to remove the “fidelity and chastity” clause from the Book of Order is very troubling. BOO paragraph G-6.0106b was entered into the Book of Order to provide clarity in barring persons from ordination to Elder, Deacon, and Minister of the Word and Sacrament who engage in any sexual activity outside the bonds of a marriage between a man and a woman. For historical context, we refer to the addendum that discusses the history of this issue in the PC (USA). The Bible (and The Book of Confessions) is clear on sexual ethics and, historically, the PC (USA) has reflected this clarity. The committee is feels strongly that this action of the GA was in error and that we should continue to pursue avenues that will reinforce the current ordination standard.
Also, two critical and necessary Authoritative Interpretations (AIs) on the same subject were removed. The Advisory Committee on the Constitution has repeatedly stated that clearing the way for sexually active gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people to become ordained as Elders, Deacons and Ministers of the Word and Sacrament, requires that G-6.0106b and the 1978 and 1979 AIs be removed.
Removal of G-6.0106b requires approval of a majority of the 173 Presbyteries. The DAC asks the Session to urge the all Presbyteries in the PC (USA) to reject this proposal. The committee also urges the Session to encourage members to consider waiting on the results of this vote before further action is taken. The Session has voted that all monies, except for those given directly to Session-approved missions, be withheld from the Presbyteries, Synods and GA PC (USA) and placed in escrow, until the issue is settled.
The Session can also submit an overture to the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta. Overtures are the means by which the lower governing bodies call for action by the General Assembly.
4) An overture to change the definition of marriage from between a man and a woman to between two persons failed by a large margin. Before the vote, Marj Carpenter pleaded with the commissioners; “Don’t do this to the church!”
5) The GA voted to begin the process of changing the German Heidelberg Confession from its 1961 translation. The changes include removing “homosexual perversions” from the text, which does not appear in the original confession (it was intended for children, after all), but does appear in the verse the confession quotes. Prohibitions of homosexuality do appear elsewhere in the Book of Confessions. The man who oversaw the translation says he made an “error” in the translation and wants to correct it. In addition, the GA voted to study the Belhar Confession that came from the Dutch Reformed Mission Church in South Africa and addresses the country’s system of apartheid at that time. To make these changes to the Book of Confessions requires approval by the 2010 GA followed by a 2/3 vote of the presbyteries and ratification, if approved by those 2/3 votes, by the 2012 GA as well.
The Session Comments on #5- The Session will take appropriate steps to vote against any changes to current translations of the Book of Confessions. GA’s proposed changes to the Heidelberg Catechism, particularly to paragraph 4.087, which would delete a reference to homosexual practice, would create confusion rather than clarity and would deepen dissension at a very delicate moment in the life of our denomination. This proposed change would lead us to ignore a portion of Scripture (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) in order to replace the Heidelberg paragraph with a translation of a German paraphrase from 450 years ago. The Session will submit an overture to the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta, reflecting our position.
6) The GA voted to state: “though we hold differing understandings of how God has been revealed to humankind, the PC (USA) affirms that, as children of this loving God, we share the commandments of love for God and neighbor, and the requirement to care for the poor.” This wording replaced wording of the original overture which attempted to assert that “Jews, Christians and Muslims worship a common God, though each understands that God differently.” It also asks Presbyterian to set aside days to celebrate religious holidays with Muslims, “setting aside days of worship during which there can be congregational suppers, and dialogue groups.”
The Session Comments on #6- The Session affirms that interfaith relations should not include having common worship with Muslims or any other false religion. Reformed understanding supports the Triune God and not an allegiance to Allah. The Session does agree that Muslins, Jews and Christians can work together in providing comfort to the poor and disadvantaged in love. GA was quite presumptuous in attempting to speak for Muslims in particular without consulting with them first about what commonalities exist between Islam and Christianity and points out the Word in the First Commandment.
Therefore, the Session urges the Presbyteries to reject this change and will propose an Overture to this effect.
7) This is from the 2008 GA minutes: “Episcopal Presbyterian Agreement” approved with comment: In Recognition the spirit of cooperation already present in the agreement, the 218th General Assembly (2008) suggests that further dialogue between the PC (USA) and the Episcopal Church give special attention to mutuality in language regarding both church governance and worship practice.
The Session Comments on #7- This is an item that the Session needs to keep an eye on, as there are very distinct differences in worship and governing between the two denominations. We believe that good people of Christ can work together to spread the Gospel, but we urge caution.
8) In a “Response to Churches Seeking Dismissal from the PC (USA),” The GA encouraged presbyteries to be charitable in their treatment of congregations seeking dismissal. In a separate and distinct but related action the commissioners approved a fund which could acquire as much a $2,000,000 to provide funds to Presbyteries to pay legal fees associated with retaining the property of congregations who decided their best Biblically faithful action would be to leave the PC (USA). The fund would receive only designated contributions and would not be funded by the per capita or mission budgets of the GA.
The Session Comments on #8- This item asks for Presbyteries to “be charitable” in its treatment of congregations that wish to leave the denomination. The GA also approved a $2 million fund to be used in legal matters from designated contributions and would not be funded by per capita or mission budgets of the GA. The Session affirms that this approach sends mixed signals to churches that might wish to leave the denomination with properties intact.
9) The GA also voted to allow non-geographical presbyteries. This may be one way for theologically similar congregations to band together across geography. It also holds the threat of unraveling our connectional system.
The Session comments on #9- The Session has already rejected this proposal before the 2008 GA meeting because the Session believes that this proposal would sharpen divisions within the church.
