The 2006 General Assembly

A Special Report to Witherspoon Society Members and Friends

By Doug King and Gene TeSelle

We'd appreciate your comments, additions and corrections.
Just send a note, to be shared here!

[6-29-06]

The 217th General Assembly was a "down the middle" Assembly. It elected a Moderator who seemed moderate and open-minded. It approved the report of the Theological Task Force (TTF) on the Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church (for short, "PUP Report"), which most regard as offering more leeway for the ordination of gay and lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) church members. But it resolutely refused to consider amending the Book of Order to delete the prohibition in G-6.0106b.

This may be a typical "approach/avoidance" pattern. The closer you come to doing something new, the more you hesitate. Then it seems more comfortable to make one change at a time, putting other issues on hold for the time being.

Election of the Moderator

This year there were four candidates for Moderator.

While it is always dangerous to try locating candidates on the theological spectrum, their views on GLBT ordination probably gave a reliable indication. Deborah Block of Milwaukee, a leader in the Covenant Network, openly favored ordination. Joan Gray of Atlanta said that she was unable to say that homosexuality is "God's will for creation," though she was willing to hear the "still small voice" that might convince her otherwise. Tim Halverson of Cape Coral, FL, looked forward to the day "when candidates are judged on the content of their character" but concluded that "that day is not yet." Kerry Carson of Conrad, IA, said that ordination is clearly prohibited by Scripture.

In talking with commissioners and observers after the election, they seem to have gotten radically different impressions of the personality and performance of the candidates during the question-and-answer session. But the candidates' basic stances on controversial issues in the church were certainly clear, and these were probably a major influence on commissioners' voting.

On the first ballot, the four candidates divided the vote almost equally. On the second ballot, votes shifted to Block and especially to Gray. Then Gray received a clear majority on the third ballot.

While Block's supporters remained loyal through the last ballot, Halverson's and Carson's did not. This may mean that conservative commissioners felt that they could live with her positions, perhaps even that her positions were their own. But it is clear that she won as a moderate, not as a conservative.

In some years, Gray might have seemed indecisive. She said that she does not have the answers, that she is willing to let God lead the way, that she will "lead by being led." She emphasized her activities in conflict resolution and spiritual direction. This year those qualities may have reflected the mood of the commissioners, uncertain about the direction of the church, tired of controversy, and ready for a different mode of approach.

Gray's election made it almost a certainty that the report of the Theological Task Force would be approved, but that this Assembly was not prepared to make any changes in ordination requirements.   More on Moderator John Gray >>

Nomination Battles

Each General Assembly must fill vacancies on a number of committees and constitutionally mandated bodies. The Nominating Committee receives nominations from the synods and carefully considers the qualifications of individuals and the need for representation by age, gender, race or ethnicity, and region. Because of this careful process, the committees nominations are usually approved.

In recent years, however, there has been an increase in challenges, generally from the conservative camp. This year there were several challenges to nominations for the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy, most notable of which was the attempt to replace Gloria Albrecht with Alan Wisdom, Vice President of the Institute on Religion and Democracy and Director of Presbyterian Action for Faith and Freedom, a frequent critic of PC(USA) policies. Catherine Purves was put forward as an alternative to another person also associated with Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. And John Sloop of Shenandoah Presbytery, a conservative leader for many years, was proposed for the Nominating Committee, in place of the person nominated by earlier moderator Rick Ufford-Chase. All of these lost. But substitute nominations were successful in the case of the Advocacy Committee for Women's Concerns, probably because they were racial-ethnic persons (challenging other racial-ethnics) supported with eloquent speeches.

New GAC Executive Director

John Detterick, Executive Director of the General Assembly Council, has reached the end of his two terms in office, and the GAC elected as his successor, subject to confirmation by the GA (which came quickly), Linda Bryant Valentine, a corporate lawyer who is a member of Chicago's Fourth Presbyterian Church.

While most observers felt optimistic about this choice, various issues have been raised, and they are summarized in an article by John H. Adams in The Layman Online (May 24, 2006): the split vote of 41-13 in the GAC; Bryant's membership in Fourth Presbyterian, whose pastor, John Buchanan, founded the Covenant Network with the purpose of ending the prohibition on GLBT ordination; and her career as a corporate lawyer, without experience in church agencies. Fears have therefore been expressed that there will be a continuation of the "corporate" or "managerial" model in the GAC. Two other persons considered for the position, earlier moderators Susan Andrews and Rick Ufford-Chase, would have had a more explicit concern for, and experience with, the mission and service of the church. The Layman also noted the irony that Valentine spent 18 years as a senior vice-president of Motorola, one of the corporations currently under scrutiny because it supplies Israel equipment that is used in the Occupied Territories.

On the hopeful side, a number of people noted Valentine's work in recent years as fund manager of Opportunity International, which provides funds for micro-finance loans in developing countries. She is likely to bring expertise and support to the PC(USA)'s programs for fair trade, alternative marketing, and grassroots economic development.

Emotional Ups and Downs

If the PUP report, the overtures to delete G-6.0106b, and controversy over divestment from Israel were not enough to create emotional tensions, there were two other developments, one a surprise, the other a matter of long standing.

On Thursday afternoon, soon after the Assembly opened, there was a surprise announcement by banker Stanley W. Anderson, a third-generation member of Denver's Central Presbyterian Church, that he was giving a $150 million gift for church growth. Grants ranging from $250,000 to $1 million each would be given to presbyteries for congregational transformation, racial-ethnic congregations, and new church development. Ten percent of the grant must go to approved presbytery mission causes, including national and international ministries, and this amount must be matched by the presbytery; a portion must also go to the Theological Education Fund.

Then on Wednesday the Denver Post carried a story, reprinted in the Birmingham paper, that cast doubt on the gift. Anderson's modest home was in foreclosure, and he had failed to pay a number of bills to creditors. GAC Executive Director John Detterick assured the Assembly that Anderson had told him, "I would not make a promise to my church that I am not able to fulfill." By November, he said, there will be money in the account. Detterick urged the Assembly to "continue to accept Stan's promise with gratitude and grace."

This Assembly also had to deal with a long-simmering issue: the future of the Presbyterian Historical Society at Montreat, which holds the records of the PCUS. The Committee on the Office of the General Assembly, the General Assembly Council, and Committee 3 on General Assembly Procedures had all wrestled with this, fully aware of Southern sentiment about Montreat but also aware of its financial costs. A last-ditch proposal to restructure and raise new funds was voted down, and the recommended action was approved by a 348/147 vote. The records from Montreat will be moved either to Columbia Theological Seminary or to the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia.

The Task Force Report

The report of the Theological Task Force on the Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church was the subject of a special session for commissioners on Thursday morning, prior to the formal opening of the Assembly. Then it was considered by Committee 6 (Ecclesiology), whose moderator, the Rev. Blair Monie of Grace Presbytery, won high marks from committee members and from commissioners who heard his report to the whole Assembly.

The PUP report reflects what happened in the deliberations of the twenty-member Task Force. They learned to love and respect each other despite their differences; yet no one's mind was changed concerning core convictions. The Task Force sought unanimity, so it adopted the report and its recommendations as a carefully crafted whole, as "one package." Unanimity would have been lost if any feature — especially any of the recommendations — had been removed.

But they did it by saying nothing new about the ordination question. Instead the report focuses on G-6.0108, which has been there since reunion in 1983 and is based on the Adopting Act of 1729. It says that

The key Recommendation was Number 5, in which the Task Force calls on the 2006 General Assembly to adopt an authoritative interpretation ("AI" for short) of G-6.0108b. This AI would acknowledge formally that 8b has already established the legitimacy of "departures" ("scruples" in the language of the Adopting Act) from adherence to the letter of the Constitution, as long as they are not violations of the "essential and necessary" features of Reformed faith, practice, and polity.

Some have called this "local option," but it was pointed out that all the standards remain and are binding on the whole church. It is better called "local discretion." A conservative critic called it "local license" and predicted "balkanization" of the PC(USA).

If you have trouble getting your head around these legal arguments, you might be helped by the comment of a commissioner from Pittsburgh during floor debate. She confessed that she had failed the driving test three times. The standards are those of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. But they were applied by the burly, unsmiling examiner at the local level. "All have driven and fallen short," she said.

American Presbyterianism has a heritage of flexibility. There have even been a number of splits, followed by agreements of reunion. These could not have happened without the continuing spirit of the Adopting Act.

Conservative organizations were unified in opposing the TTF's Recommendation 5 and urging commissioners to vote it down.

A fallback position was to limit the effect of Recommendation 5, or, more accurately, to divert the focus from faith to polity, making any part of the Book of Order that says "shall" into an essential of Reformed polity which must be agreed to by anyone being ordained. Three ways of doing this were proposed in various overtures: (1) amend the Form of Government by adding a new sentence; (2) amend Recommendation 5 before final action by the Assembly, adding language about "shalls" and "direct provisions"; (3) substitute a different authoritative interpretation, stating that any "shalls" are essentials of Reformed polity. There were also attempts to delay action until the TTF could give satisfactory answers to a series of questions, or to send the AI to the presbyteries for comment and ratification. All of these proposals failed in committee and on the floor.

Others, however, felt that the report does not go far enough. The TTF's Recommendation 6a was that, if the General Assembly approves the previous recommendation, it adopt no additional AIs, not remove any existing ones, and send no constitutional amendments to the presbyteries that would change the church's policy on these matters.

Approval of Recommendation 6 would perpetuate the church's prejudicial teachings about homosexuality and the controversial amendment in G-6.0106b, whose intent and effect has been to exclude GLBT persons from ordination. Therefore More Light Presbyterians advocated voting against both the report and its recommendations as perpetuating a longstanding injustice. Witherspoon advocated approving Recommendation 5 but not 6a, so that the Assembly could act on the Heartland overture.

The committee heard three hours of testimony from 70-some persons. Most, including several earlier moderators, spoke in favor of the report. Opposition came both from conservatives who felt that the report went too far, and from advocates of GLBT ordination who felt that it did not go far enough. Committee members were seated at round tables, giving them plenty of opportunity for discussion without the straitjacket of Robert's Rules.

The committee voted unanimously to approve Recommendations 1-4, and the Assembly approved this overwhelmingly. Recommendations 5-7 had been approved by a 41/22/0 vote in committee; a minority report was brought to the floor, urging that Recommendation 5 be disapproved. Both this and a motion to refer the questions to the presbyteries lost by 55 to 45 percent. Then Recommendations 5-7 were approved by 57 to 43 percent.

Following the vote, Moderator Joan Gray urged commissioners to link hands in prayer, and after several minutes "Kumbaya" started in one corner and spread. Commissioners on the "winning" side sought out those on the "losing" side, and the reaction was usually one of forbearance and reconciliation.

On the last morning, Moderator Joan Gray offered suggestions on how to interpret the Assembly's action back home, and she got applause for her last suggestion: "Don't believe all that you hear in the media." Deborah Block noted that the lectionary for the coming Sunday included Psalm 133 with its statement, "How good it is for kindred to dwell together in unity."     More on the passage of PUP >>

Dodging the Ordination Question

During the four years when the Task Force was doing its work, the presbyteries were discussing the "ordination question." Twenty-two of them sent overtures to the 2006 General Assembly for revocation of all previous AIs and removal of G-6.0106b. All were grouped together as concurrences with the Heartland Overture.

Committee 4 (Church Orders) heard testimony from overture advocates and others. In many years this testimony has been so persuasive that the committee recommended deletion of G-6.0106b. This year the committee was not persuaded; voting by paper ballot, the committee recommended disapproval by the narrow margin of 30 to 28 votes.

When the committee made its report on the floor, the Assembly affirmed its recommendation overwhelmingly with an 80/19/1 percent vote. This appears to have been part of the unspoken social contract to approve the PUP report but avoid further provocations to the right.

But the committee and the Assembly were consistent. They also disapproved two overtures that would place further restrictions on same-sex relationships. One was for an amendment to the Book of Order, prohibiting ministers' participation in same-sex unions even when the ceremony does not have the name or appearance of a wedding. The other called for a declaration, without amending the constitution, of the church's opposition to all same-sex unions.

The committee also recommended disapproval of a Mississippi overture that would have amounted to an authoritative interpretation of G-6.0106b, prohibiting all sexual relationships outside the marriage of a man and a woman. A minority report was advocated on the floor by Robert Gagnon. Debate on it came after the vote on the Task Force's recommendations, which Gagnon condemned as a breaking of trust. If the overture were to be approved, it would close the door on any scruples on this question, even when faithful same-sex relationships were involved. The Advisory Committee on the Constitution noted that the overture did not address the issue of self-acknowledgment and thus would change the constitution without a vote of the presbyteries. Earlier moderator Jack Rogers pointed out that the church is entering a period of discernment, during which precisely this question will be a central topic for dialogue. The minority report lost by a vote of 66/33/1 percent; then the committee's recommendation was approved by a vote of 69/30/1 percent.

What was to be done about the Heartland overture and its 21 concurrences? One line of thinking was that it would be in the spirit of the TTF's Recommendation 6a to refer these overtures to the 2008 General Assembly, neither approving nor disapproving them but keeping them alive for future discussion. But the Assembly was not consistent here. Instead of taking no action, it disapproved the overtures.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Those who favored the PUP report, and especially its Recommendation 5, must regard the Assembly's action as a "soft" victory at best. The AI enables the procedures of the church to become more open-textured. But we must still explore what the action means and how we can "live into" a new epoch in the life of our church.

Both advocates and opponents of GLBT ordination, furthermore, are intensely aware that the 217th General Assembly did not send any new legislation to the presbyteries. It did give an authoritative interpretation of the existing law of the church, not adding something new but reaffirming something that has been there for almost three centuries. And it may help to change the ethos of the church, if we are willing to follow its guidance in the governing bodies where the interpretation will be applied — and in the litigation that is sure to arise as these bodies seek to do their work in a new situation.

Thus it is not a time for gloating, especially since the Assembly refused to act favorably on the overtures from 22 presbyteries to delete G-6.0106b, refused even to let them stay alive for the two years until the 218th General Assembly.

Thus unity and justice were set at odds. The need for peace in the church was often cited as a major argument against taking any action that might cause some congregations to split from the church.

Polity Fallout

Leaving the PC(USA) is one option for congregations that dislike approval of the PUP report. An overture from Stockton Presbytery tried to make this easier by amending the constitution to declare that a congregation's property "is the sole property of the church" except for the amount of financial assistance provided by the wider church. This was disapproved in Committee 5 on Church Polity, which substituted a theological statement about the significance of church property. On the floor the theological statement was deleted by a narrow margin; then the overture was disapproved by an overwhelming 76%.

Some conservatives, however, knew in advance that, even if Recommendation 5 were to be approved, it might offer a new opportunity. The New Wineskins movement in particular has been making much about affinity groups and proposed making them full-fledged presbyteries, with powers of ordination and discipline.

Beaver-Butler Presbytery in western Pennsylvania sent an overture to allow congregations, by a two-thirds vote, to change their presbytery and synod affiliations. The effect would be to create non-geographical presbyteries — something that is at present an exception to the rule, permitted only for ethnic reasons in the Dakota Presbytery and three Korean presbyteries. This overture was disapproved by a 78% vote, and a kindred overture to organize a Korean synod was referred to the Office of the General Assembly for further study.

Advocates of these "virtual presbyteries," as Trina Zelle called them, argued that contiguous presbyteries made sense in horse-and-buggy days but are not needed in our time of electronic communication. They called for spontaneity in finding "new ways of doing church." In the forefront of that movement is the New Wineskins movement, which promises to give the church a new vitality and flexibility, based, ironically, on total uniformity and strict adherence to inflexible doctrinal standards.

How we are to manifest the unity of the church in an increasingly diverse society — "red and blue, black and white and brown," as one speaker put it — remains a difficult question.

What Will Happen Now?

A group of "renewal" leaders issued a statement following the vote, denouncing the Assembly's action as "a profound deviation from biblical requirements" which they could not "accept, support, or tolerate" (The Layman Online, June 21, 2006). Parker Williamson, editor emeritus of the Layman, declared, "Schism has already occurred. There clearly are two worldviews, two faiths, in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)." Michael Walker, executive director of Presbyterians For Renewal, said that his organization had been exploring legal issues concerning church property. Not only that. He added, "This Assembly action will not shield individuals from the judicial process."

The group said that there would be further discussions to "discern the future" at the New Wineskins convocation in Tulsa in July, and at the conference of the Presbyterian Global Fellowship in Atlanta in August.

Some conservative leaders, however, stayed away from the press conference out of a deeper loyalty to the church or a desire to reflect on their course of action in a more deliberative way.

It has been evident for many months that there are both "inclusive" and "exclusive" conservatives. Many have been pained at the way Jack Rogers, Mark Achtemeier, and Gary Demarest have been attacked, as though in taking an inclusive approach they had gone over to the other side.

Even before the Assembly, there was talk about withdrawing from the PC(USA) if Recommendation 5 should be adopted. One idea was to get congregations — 1500 of them, according to one statement — to sign a formal threat to withdraw from the church, then drive a hard bargain with the General Assembly to let them leave with their property and pensions.

And of course there is always the possibility of financial boycott, withholding per capita assessments and contributions to the mission program of the church. One overture had asked that per capita assessments be considered a requirement, but in committee and on the floor this was disapproved, perhaps in order to avoid offense to the opponents of the PUP report. A Baltimore overture asked the Assembly to eliminate the administrative fee (1 to 5 percent) that is charged for managing program contributions, but the fee was retained, since the resulting increase in management costs would cause as many as 16 layoffs in the financial staff. On the last morning the Assembly discovered that the financial consequences of its actions involved a significant increase in per capita assessments, although the major cause of this increase is the larger number of commissioners coming to the 2008 Assembly as a result of a change in the Book of Order approved by the presbyteries.

Many had been saying that the PUP report created a "constitutional crisis." If the report were adopted, San Diego Presbytery said, it would consider whether the GA is in a state of "biblical and confessional defection," perhaps eliminating the presbytery's responsibilities to the GA, perhaps even justifying a unilateral withdrawal.

Such a course would not be totally new. This Assembly, held jointly with two Cumberland Presbyterian churches, was an ironic reminder that the Cumberland Presbytery seceded in 1810 because of disagreements about faith ("fatality" or predestination) and practice (educational requirements for ministers). And the Cumberlands who dissented from the reunion with the PCUSA (1903-6) won some state court decisions concerning constitutional standards and property. It could happen again.

We know that there will be conflicting emotions in the many congregations that are affected by the GA vote, and in the hearts of individual members, whose sense of betrayal will be balanced by their loyalty to the church and the many people they have met through it. Those who remain committed to the PC(USA) will have to exercise patience, in the spirit of the TTF report as a whole.

"Theology Matters"

The paper entitled "The Trinity: God's Love Overflowing" was years in preparation by a diverse task force that has received many comments during General Assemblies and at other times. The paper would not have the same force as the confessions, of course; its authority would be only that of this GA.

Some felt that the paper went too far in its openness to new ideas, and especially to female metaphors; others that it did not go far enough. There were objections to the very notion of using metaphors in talking about God, since God has named himself "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." They were accused, in turn, of claiming to know not only God's name but God's gender.

The paper was recommended by Committee 13 (Theological Issues and Institutions), but on the floor there was a motion that it not be "approved" but only "received and commended for study," and the Assembly vote was 56% in favor of this change. There was also an addition requiring the use of the words "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" in baptism; perhaps the Assembly was in need of reassurance, since this is already required in W-3.3606.

The same committee recommended, and the Assembly approved, an eight-year process toward production of a new Presbyterian hymnal (two persons under 25 were added to the committee), and also a new electronic e-source that would enable hymns to be downloaded for projection on screens or reproduction in church bulletins.

What Status for Educators?

For many years the church has debated, without resolution, how to give Christian educators ordained status. This year there were two overtures, one calling for "educating elders," the other for the new office of "minister of Christian education." Advocates point out that John Calvin spoke of a fourth office of "doctor" or "teacher." What he had in mind was more like a scholar of Bible and theology, but education of the young was certainly of concern to him as well.

Both overtures were referred to the Office of Theology and Worship for inclusion in its ongoing study of the relationship betweenordained office and the ministry of all members through baptism. Asked whether educators would be consulted, TAW director Joseph Small assured the Assembly that this would certainly be done.

The "Divestment" Dispute

The 2004 General Assembly initiated a process of "corporate engagement" that could eventually lead to phased, selective divestment from multinational corporations that contribute to the construction of the "separation barrier" between Israel and the West Bank, or profit from the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, or contribute to Palestinian violence. MRTI (the Committee on Mission Responsibility Through Investment) was directed to start this process and report back to the 2006 Assembly.

A divestment decision by the General Assembly would affect the investment portfolios of both the Board of Pensions and the Presbyterian Foundation, although the amount of investments involved with this issue is relatively very small.

When Jewish organizations found out about the 2004 action, there was much furor, some of it badly informed. Rabbis began calling their Presbyterian colleagues in many cities around the country. During the last two years Presbyterians have reacted in all the possible ways.

Some presbyteries urged the GA to repeal, suspend, or modify the 2004 resolution. Others wanted it to reaffirm the earlier action, invest PCUSA funds only in "peaceful pursuits," and actively foster projects that will encourage peace and mutual development between Israelis and Palestinians. The General Assembly Council urged study until the 2008 GA.

The deliberations of Committee 11 (Peacemaking and International Issues) were under intense scrutiny. Many organizations criticized the 2004 action and demanded a reversal. They included the American Jewish Committee, the Jewish Committee on Public Affairs, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Forward, B'nai B'rith, the Committee on Presbyterian-Jewish Relations, and End Divestment Now. Others defended the action, including the American Friends Service Committee, Jewish Voice for Peace, Tikkun, and the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship.

The committee heard testimony and considered all the possibilities.

In the end they appointed a drafting subcommittee to draw up a new statement. This reaffirmed the language of "corporate engagement," since divestment is only the last, and least desired, stage in a long process that begins with correspondence, direct talks, proxy voting, and shareholder resolutions. It urged that Presbyterian investments be made only in "peaceful pursuits."

The statement affirmed the Presbyterian commitment to both the state of Israel and a Palestinian state. While both sides felt they could live with the draft, it was more a response to Jewish criticisms, acknowledging the "hurt and misunderstanding among many members of the Jewish community and within our Presbyterian communion" as a result of the 2004 action. The Rev. J. Oscar McCloud of New York offered an amendment on the floor, substituting the words "We regret any reportage that has caused misunderstanding of the PC(USA)'s commitment to peace and justice in Israel and Palestine"; but this was voted down.

Another portion of the statement that caused consternation was its affirmation of the right of a "sovereign nation" (clearly Israel) over its boundaries and its own defense. Critics noted that the Occupied Territories are not part of Israel under international law. They also recalled the many ways boundaries have come about: ethnic homogeneity, dynastic marriage, conquest, international conferences (including Versailles and the even more disastrous partitioning of the Ottoman Empire after World War I). On the last morning of the Assembly, earlier moderator Rick Ufford-Chase urged reconsideration and proposed softening the language to say that Presbyterians should exercise "great care" in speaking to a sovereign nation. This was voted down by a narrow 53%, perhaps out of fear that there might be other motions to reconsider other actions.

New Statement Concerning Late-Term Pregnancy

Committee 10 (Health Issues) recommended approval an overture calling on Presbyterians to encourage expectant mothers to keep their babies alive when late-term pregnancies (beyond 20 weeks) must be terminated. It called for "pastoral and tangible support" to women in problem pregnancies, and adoption when they could not care for them.

On the floor, a pastoral statement was added from the 2003 statement on abortion. But an amendment intended to clarify that this statement would not supersede the previous policy statements of 1992 and 2003 was defeated by 40/58/2 percent; then the amended statement was approved by 76/23/1 percent.

Assembly-watchers recalled that Presbyterians Pro-Life some years ago persuaded the Assembly to declare that only the latest policy declaration was authoritative. There was some apprehension, therefore, that the Assembly, under the appearance of making a statement about late-term pregnancy, might in fact be replacing the more comprehensive 1992 policy. But several points count against this. Different issues are involved, and the advocates of this new statement stated that it would not affect the earlier policy.

The committee and the Assembly disapproved, in part because of its vagueness, an overture that would have banned financial support for any groups that either oppose or advocate abortion. They also disapproved a Mississippi overture that would put the church on record as opposing abortion and extending the love of Christ to those who have "suffered its practice."   More on this action >>

Social Issues: Around the World and Back Again

The last report, on Wednesday night, came from Committee 9 (Social Justice Issues). All actions had to be completed before Thursday morning so that the Mission Coordination and Budgets Committee could tally up the consequences of this Assembly's actions for per capita and mission budgets. Discussion went past midnight. It was some consolation, perhaps, that this was the longest day of the year.

Ann Philbrick, committee moderator, pointed out that the report would begin at home, travel around the world, and then come back again. There were many items of business, including progress reports on study task forces ranging from homelessness to a centennial celebration of the Social Creed of 1908. Papers were approved concerning immigration, economic security for older adults, and a Reformed understanding of usury (predatory lending, payday loans, credit card solicitation). Resolutions were approved concerning medical use of marijuana (an overture from Nebraska!), the "Return to Earth" program for Native American remains, and raising the minimum wage. ACSWP was directed to put a study of carbon-neutral energy practices on the web. Most of these were adopted by consent or with yeas in the 90 percent range.

There was more debate when it came to two items concerning torture, since they mentioned torture by the U.S. and its allies and called for an independent commission to investigate. Some commissioners objected that such language defamed the U.S. military; but they did not prevail.

Then the Assembly dealt with a commissioners' resolution declaring that suicide bombing is a crime against humanity. The Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy had assured the committee that this was already included in earlier Presbyterian statements. But the Assembly wanted to deal with suicide bombing as a current issue, so it approved the resolution, adding the words "and terrorism."

There was also debate about a big, serious paper entitled "Just Globalization." The chair of the resolution team was Rebecca Todd Peters, whose 2004 book, In Search of the Good Life: The Ethics of Globalization (Continuum, $16.95 paperback), offers a much-praised summary of the issues. The study team had included a Hewlett-Packard executive, a Fortune editor, and a World Bank official. But in committee there was a string of criticisms from a group of commissioners sitting together, mostly from Southern California: "I didn't read it," "I can't understand it," "There is no documentation," "What will the church think?", "What will the media think?", "What will the public think?"

Some Presbyterians, it seems, react to any critique of capitalism or empire, express or implied, as being un-Christian. Moderator candidate Tim Halverson expressed concern that the document dealt with controversial issues such as the Kyoto Protocols and genetically-modified crops. There was an attempt on the floor to "receive and study" but not "approve" the report. But earlier moderator Rick Ufford-Chase pointed out that this study had been requested by the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, asking the PC(USA) to address a major social and theological issue. The Overseas and Ecumenical Advisory Delegates voted unanimously in favor of approval, and the amendment was defeated by a vote of 61 to 39 percent; then the paper was approved by 78/21/1 percent. It is to be accompanied by a study guide that includes "diverse points of view." We may feel fortunate that Rick Ufford-Chase, now aged 42, will have forty more years of access to the microphone at General Assembly.

The globalization report included a call for a fresh evaluation of U.S. tax policy, last studied at the General Assembly level in the 1970s. This was deleted on the floor by a vote of 82/17/1 percent, probably because $60,000 could be saved.

Controversy was not limited to global issues. The Smithfield Ham factory in Tar Heel, NC, largest in the world, has been convicted of union-busting and a string of OSHA violations. While the Assembly was in session the New York Times carried a column by Bob Herbert detailing factory conditions. An overture had come from New Hope Presbytery calling for Assembly action. This was approved narrowly in committee but was referred to ACSWP on the floor, on two grounds: Smithfield executives had come to the Assembly and promised that all problems wwere being resolved, and the presbytery within whose bounds the factory lies (Coastal Carolina) had not joined the overture. Observers noted that Presbyterians in that area are more likely to be linked with management than with the largely African-American and Hispanic workforce.

The high point of the evening came last, after midnight. The Assembly approved a proposal for ongoing partnership with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Campaign for Fair Food. And it gave the General Assembly Council power to make decisions until the 2008 Assembly about participation in consumer actions, which could include a boycott of McDonald's. Lucas Benitez, director of the Coalition, thanked the PC(USA) for its support of the workers in their negotiations with Taco Bell.

Noelle Damico of the Campaign for Fair Food told commissioners that they would have liked to offer Taco Bell refreshments, but this could not be done because of Convention Center rules. She did suggest that they go to Taco Bell on their own. It was a far cry from the mood a few years ago, when scoffing champions of the free market were urging Presbyterians to buy at Taco Bell to demonstrate their contempt and scorn for such a foolish thing as a boycott.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What will we be dealing with over the next two years? There will be threats and perhaps acts of separation; challenges to those presbyteries (and sessions) that take seriously the new AI and its recovery of the idea of scruples; a continuing need to affirm our commitment to justice (perhaps even a just peace) in Israel and Palestine; increased attention to globalization; and critiques of the imperial reach of U.S. power. Our work is cut out for us. May we carry it out with wisdom and understanding, with counsel and strength, with knowledge and respect for God, which, the passage concludes, is an appropriate source of delight (Isa. 11:2-3).

Voices of Sophia blog

Heather Reichgott, who has created this new blog for Voices of Sophia, introduces it:

After fifteen years of scholarship and activism, Voices of Sophia presents a blog. Here, we present the voices of feminist theologians of all stripes: scholars, clergy, students, exiles, missionaries, workers, thinkers, artists, lovers and devotees, from many parts of the world, all children of the God in whose image women are made. .... This blog seeks to glorify God through prayer, work, art, and intellectual reflection. Through articles and ensuing discussion we hope to become an active and thoughtful community.

Witherspoon’s Facebook page

Mitch Trigger, Witherspoon’s Secretary/Communicator, has created a Facebook page where Witherspoon members and others can gather to exchange news and views. Mitch and a few others have posted bits of news, both personal and organizational. But there’s room for more!

You can post your own news and views, or initiate a conversation about a topic of interest to you.

John Harris’ Summit to Shore blogspot

Theological and philosophical reflections on everything between summit to shore, including kayaking, climbing, religion, spirituality, philosophy, theology, politics, culture, travel, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), New York City and the Queens neighborhood of Ridgewood by a progressive New York City Presbyterian Pastor. John is a member of the Witherspoon board, and is designated pastor of North Presbyterian Church in Flushing, NY.

John Shuck’s Shuck and Jive

A Presbyterian minister, currently serving as pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton, Tenn., blogs about spirituality, culture, religion (both organized and disorganized), life, evolution, literature, Jesus, and lightening up.

Got more blogs to recommend?

Plan now for ...

GHOST RANCH PEACE & JUSTICE WEEK
July 27 - August 2, 2009

Now's the time to make reservations to be a part of the 2009 Peace & Justice Week at Ghost Ranch, July 27-August 2. There are eight seminars to choose among, including the Witherspoon-sponsored class “New Eyes for Peace & Justice from the World Church” led by Clifton Kirkpatrick.

If you like what you find here,
we hope you'll help us keep this website going ... and growing!

Please consider making a special contribution -- large or small -- to help us continue and improve this service.

Click here to send a gift online, using your credit card, through PayPal.

Or send your check, made out to "Witherspoon Society" and marked "web site," to our Witherspoon  Bookkeeper: