The 218 th General Assembly of the PC(USA) convenes on June 21 in San Jose, California, with the theme “Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). Over five hundred commissioners and over 200 advisory delegates from our 173 presbyteries ill attend as well as thousands more non-voting presbytery and denominational officials, support staff, press, clergy and laypeople. For many who are not in San Jose the work of GA may seem remote or unimportant. But believe me, it is not. The issues upon which GA will act will have far-reaching implications for our denomination.
Perhaps the most significant issue before the assembly will be whether or not to send the proposed new Form of Government (FoG) to the presbyteries for their ratification. At our last GA in 2006 as task force was formed that was charged with presenting to the upcoming assembly a replacement for the current “G,” or Government section of our Book of Order. It’s been long-noted that years of amendments and changes, as well less-than-perfect compromises made at reunion in 1983 have left us with a FoG that is often confusing and at times contradictory. The task force has done a remarkable job of not only streamlining our FoG but redefining its underlying principles. This is from the Introduction to the Revised Form of Government: “Our reflections on the church’s calling have been shaped and guided by the ideas of missional ecclesiology. Missional ecclesiology begins in the confession that God has sent the church into the world to bear witness to the activity of God in reconciling and transforming the world, and ultimately in fulfilling in the world the divine creative intent.”
As you might well imagine the new Form of Government has been a matter of great debate within presbyteries and churches with both advocates and detractors making valid (and not-so-valid) arguments for and against. The new FoG and other supporting documents are readily available online and I’ll provide links to them and other sites at the end of my message.
The first order of business for every GA is the election of the Moderator. Our current moderator, Rev. Joan Gray, has served us well for the last two years. She will be succeeded by one of four men: Rev. Carl Mazza from New Castle Presbytery ( Delaware and Maryland ), Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow from San Francisco Presbytery, Elder Roger Shoemaker from Homestead Presbytery ( Nebraska ), and Rev. William “Bill” Teng from National Capital Presbytery. As is typical, the four candidates represent a wide spectrum of positions on every issue and it anybody’s guess who will win.
In addition to the election of the moderator, we will elect a new stated clerk this year. Clifton Kirkpatrick, who has been our stated clerk for the last twelve years is not standing for another term. While the GA Committee on Nominations has endorsed Rev. Grayde Parsons, three other candidates will also stand for stated clerk.
Here is Cliff Kirkpatrick’s non-prioritized list of what he considers to be the top 10 most pressing issues coming before the assembly:
Revised Form of Government (see above)
- Partnership in world mission
- PC(USA) ecumenical stance and covenants , including agreements with four different churches: the Korean Presbyterian Church in America, the Episcopal Church, the Catholic Church and the Moravian Church.
- Peace, unity and purity of the PC(USA) – continued debate and discussion on the Peace, Unity and Purity report that came out of the 217 th GA.
- The Belhar Confession – first steps to possibly adding the Belhar Confession to The Book of Confessions. will be taken. This confession grows out of the experience of Christians in South Africa and is an affirmation of the biblical call to Christian unity and racial reconciliation.
- Middle East concerns – variety of overtures and advocacy committee proposals to strengthen the PC(USA)’s witness to peace with justice in relation to both Israel/Palestine and Iraq.
- Elections – our choice for Moderator and Stated Clerk.
- Growing God’s Church Deep and Wide – The General Assembly Council is challenging the whole church to adopt a two-year commitment to grow the church in membership, in discipleship and in diversity.
- Domestic social justice concerns – This assembly will address a large number of social justice concerns, including the adoption of a new Social Creed, as well as the adoption of major policy papers on serious mental illness, energy and global warming, pay equity for women, homelessness and electoral reform.
- A church for future generations – O ne assembly committee will focus on the church’s ministry to and with youth to ensure a church for future generations.
The assembly will deal with literally hundreds of overtures from presbyteries and committees that must be discussed and voted on. In fact, some committees tasked with review and recommendations of these overtures begin meeting days before the formal assembly convenes. And while most overtures are not particularly glamorous, some have the potential for changing the way PC(USA) churches – including our own – go about our work of ministry, mission and evangelism. So it is important that we all, at the very least, be in prayer for all participants at GA. And if you want to better understand GA and follow the issues and people more closely, the information is abundant and readily available on the internet. Here are the major links:
- www.pcusa.org– the main denominational site; worth exploring for every Presbyterian.
- www.pcusa.org/ga218 – the gateway page to this year’s assembly including schedules, candidate bios, more information on the “top 10” issues and much more.
- www.pcusa.org/ga218/business.htm – GA is entirely paperless; all commissioners use laptops. You can register for a free account that will give you access to the exact same materials as a commissioner.
- www.pcusa.org/formofgovernment – the gateway page to the proposed new Form of Government including full text and all background information.
Now I know that my message this month is not especially inspirational. But is nonetheless relevant to who and what we are. Presbyterians are connectional, more so than any other major Christian denomination. All of us are directly connected to and affected by the decisions of those hundreds of commissioners and advisory delegates who will shape our polity, theology and mission. The moderator the assembly elects represents not just some vague denomination; he represents you and me. He will be the face of the PC(USA) to the nation and to the world. His priorities and agenda will shape the direction our denomination will take. Thus, its incumbent upon all of us to at least be aware that big, possibly momentous, decisions are being made in San Jose.
The assembly will be in session from Saturday, June 21 through Saturday, June 28. Our presbytery will be represented by:
Elder Kears Pollack – Moderator of Pittsburgh Presbytery
Rev. Dr. Don Ewing – Sr. Vice Moderator of Pittsburgh Presbytery
Rev. Dr. Jermaine McKinley – Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
Elder Carol Hunley – Southminster Presbyterian Church
Rev. Lance Chapman – Hamilton Presbyterian Church
Elder Robert Wright, Jr. – Aspinwall Presbyterian Church
Rev. John Sweitzer – Neville Island Presbyterian Church
Elder Richard Mills – Lebanon Presbyterian Church
Rev. Don Dilley – Verona United Presbyterian Church
Elder Teryl McCaffery – Mt. Vernon Community Presbyterian Church
Rev. Lawrence Ruby – Hiland Presbyterian Church
Elder Laureen Bodnar – Northminster Presbyterian Church
Youth Advisory Delegate Megan Reith – Southminster Presbyterian Church
Jay W. Lewis – Stated Clerk, Pittsburgh Presbytery
Please be in prayer for our commissioners and delegates and, indeed, our whole denomination, as our GA seeks to empower us ever more fully to fulfill our mission and purpose in the world.
Yours in Christ,
ecclesiology is the study of the theological understanding of the church; it is the study of the church as a thing in itself. What we believe are the purpose, mission, origin, and character of the church, along with how the church should relate to secular institutions and the world, form our “ecclesiology.”
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