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A Letter to the Presbyterian Church
(U.S.A.)
from 29 former General Assembly Moderators |
Responding to attacks on the legitimacy of the 213th
General Assembly and its elected moderator, 29 of the 33 living former
moderators of the General Assembly have published this call to the
church.
Objecting to the use of the term
"apostate," and personal attacks on the integrity of
Moderator Jack Rogers, the moderators "call all Presbyterians to
a new level of civility."
You may not be a former moderator, but you can
indicate your support for civility in our church by signing on to the
similar letter from the Witherspoon Society and the Presbyterian Peace
Fellowship. Please take a look at
it, and send your endorsement!
Sept. 25, 2001
Dear Fellow Presbyterians:
Serving as General Assembly Moderator has been one of the high points of
our lives. It confirmed our confidence in the thousands of faithful
congregations and strengthened our appreciation for the integrity and
vitality of our theological heritage, represented most profoundly in the
11 confessional statements in our Book of Confessions.
As former Moderators, we do not agree with each other on every issue
facing our beloved Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); nor do we agree with
every action taken by any particular General Assembly. We do agree,
however, that the form of representative democracy embraced by our
Constitution is a time-tested and faithful way for commissioners to
discern the will of God and then to vote according to their consciences.
We consequently take strong exception to the characterization of this
year's 213th General assembly as "apostate" which some have
made. These 558 ministers and elders, elected by their presbyteries,
joined in study, debate, affirmations of faith, prayer and worship; they
sought the Spirit's guidance in their deliberations. They provided an
example of the Presbyterian process of mutual respect, listening and
discernment that we hope presbyteries will emulate in the months ahead.
In our travels as Moderator, we often met with those who disagreed
vigorously with stands taken by General Assemblies or who disagreed with
us personally. We always welcomed such conversations as representing the
heart of what it means to be Presbyterian. And we remember with thanks
that, whenever we were introduced, gathered Presbyterians -- regardless
of their views -- would stand as a sign of respect for the office of
Moderator and of the General Assembly that elected us.
We are therefore saddened that some in our church have assailed Jack
Rogers, the Moderator of the 213th General Assembly, with comments that
have questioned his theological commitments and his very faithfulness as
a minister of the church. Presbyterians must be able to disagree,
without doubting each other's faith or motives. We urge the church to
extend to him the same respect the church extended to us during our year
as Moderator.
We call all Presbyterians to a new level of civility in the months ahead
as we face what will surely be a difficult vote on our ordination
standards. We hope that such civility will greet not only our Moderator
but all Presbyterians as we engage in discourse and debate. May we
together assume in all debates before the church that we -- all of us --
are committed to Christ and are seeking to be faithful to the church we
love. And may we hold that church, its leaders and all our colleagues in
our prayers.
Supported as we were during our term in office, we trust now that the
triune God who created, redeemed and sustained us will do the same for
the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), that it may be the body of Christ and
light to the world.
We join you in continuing prayers for those who have suffered the loss
of loved ones in the horrible terrorism of Sept. 11, for the President
of the United States and his advisors as they make difficult decisions,
for women and men in our military, and for our entire nation and world
during this painful time. We call our church to recommit ourselves to be
instruments of God's peace and "the provisional demonstration of
what God intends for all humanity" (Book of Order,
G-3.0200).
Faithfully,
Thelma Adair
John F. Anderson
Dorothy Bernard
Robert W. Bohl
Pat Brown
John M. Buchanan
Marj Carpenter
James H. Costen Sr.
John M. Fife
Freda Gardner
Kenneth C. Hall
Silas G. Kessler
Robert Lamar
William Lytle
Clinton Marsh
Sara B. Moseley
Harriet Nelson
Douglas Oldenburg
Syngman Rhee
Howard Rice
Isabel Rogers
Jule C. Spach
David L. Stitt
Randolph J. Taylor
William P. Thompson
Herbert D. Valentine
Benjamin Weir
William H. Wilson
Albert C. Winn
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Visit
our lively
new website! |
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GA actions
ratified (or not) by the presbyteries
A number of the most important actions of the 219th
General Assembly have now been acted upon by the presbyteries,
confirming most of them as amendments to the PC(USA) Book of Order.
We provided resources to help inform the
reflection and debate, along with updates on the voting.
Our three areas of primary interest have been:
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Amendment 10-A,
which removes the current ban on
lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender persons being considered as
possible candidates for ordination as elder or ministers.
Approved! |
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Amendment 10-2,
which would add the Belhar Confession to our Book of
Confessions. Disapproved, because as an amendment
to the Book of Confessions it needed a 2/3 vote, and did not
receive that. |
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Amendment
10-1, which adopts the new Form of Government
that was approved by the Assembly. Approved. |
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If you like what
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we hope you'll help us keep Voices for Justice going ... and
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Some blogs worth visiting |
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PVJ's
Facebook page
Mitch Trigger, PVJ'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. |
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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. |
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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 former member of the
Witherspoon board, and is designated pastor of North Presbyterian
Church in Flushing, NY. |
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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. |
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Got more blogs to recommend?
Please
send a note, and we'll see what we can do! |
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