Help for moving ahead

Help for moving ahead

Food for reflection and discernment on moving to a more welcoming church
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We promised to provide the contents of the Summer 2008 issue of Network News in html format, along with the regular PDF version which is already posted here.

Click here for a list of all the contents of this issue, with links to each of the articles.

And if you have comments or suggestions for more material that we might provide here, please send a note!

How can we help presbyteries discern the best steps to take?
[Posted here 10-3-08]

The Rev. Tricia Dykers Koenig, who has been involved in working for more inclusive ordination policies for years, has sent two very helpful pieces of advice to members of The Covenant Network of Presbyterians. We are happy to share her advice, in slightly edited form, here – with her kind permission.

How can we deal with "the issue" yet again?

A seemingly perennial lament, heard perhaps more frequently now that the presbyteries are anticipating another vote (the first in 7 years!) on amending G-6.0106b, is that people are "tired of talking about the issue."

As pervasive as the controversy seems to be in the church, I suspect that there’s relatively little actual talking about matters of substance – and less listening! – across dividing lines. (Reading about issues – whether blogs, rants in letters to the editor, or even scholarly books and articles – does not constitute discussion.)

My guess is that when people say they are tired of talking about it, they often really mean:

• Nothing much new is said in the pro-and-con debate time we set up before we vote. I know exactly what will be said and who will say it.

and/or

• I’m weary of the conflict that always seems to loom in the background, and scared when it comes to the forefront.

and/or

• Talking about sexuality makes me really uncomfortable.

The challenge this time around is to break out of this unproductive pattern and provide opportunities for people truly to hear one another. Because of the upcoming votes on Amendment 08-B, it will be important to encourage your presbytery to set up the "process of listening and discernment" encouraged by the General Assembly in proposing the amendment.

And there is also a need for individuals, congregations, and sessions to reach out to foster understanding, whether or not a positive vote is likely in your presbytery. For starters, here’s a link to a collection assembled by the Covenant Network, of ideas that have worked in some settings and might be adapted for other settings as well.

Additionally, here are some promising initiatives happening now, gleaned from reports from around the church:

• "Yesterday I held a luncheon to which I invited a dozen ministers in our presbytery... We discussed how we might develop a strategy for engaging the presbytery in a discernment process. One idea that has strong support is encouraging congregations to name their commissioners now to our spring meeting so that between now and then we can have gatherings of commissioners and have an ongoing process that isn’t operating under the pressure of an imminent vote."

• "This is a matter close to my heart and I am passionate about it. I have been praying about how to handle it in Presbytery since I am retired. I have decided to ask out to lunch those members of Presbytery with whom I have disagreed in an attempt to understand them and to have dialogue. I have also decided to try to bring some pressure on our Presbytery to open some dialogue opportunities in our Presbytery so that when we get to debate on the floor we will be informed and hopefully open to the Spirit."

• "Presbytery Council recommends that this controversial issue be discussed not only at the presbytery level but also studied and discussed in our churches. Dialogue between area churches is also encouraged. At Council’s request, a list of resources for study, covering a wide spectrum of views, has been prepared. If your church needs guidance during this process of prayer and discernment, please contact the presbytery office."

• "I think some serious consideration should be given to the non-sexual issues involved in or implied by G-6.0106b... Desexualizing the issue to some degree will win us some support that might not be there otherwise."

• "A fellow GA commissioner and I met last month and have been in communication with the other four commissioners. We will be making a report to presbytery in September and are meeting prior to that. We talked about taking seriously the ‘process of listening and discernment’ comment passed by GA, and how we go about that. We have already communicated this hope to the other commissioners (we are guessing without knowing for sure that all four, or at least three, voted the opposite of us on G-6.0106b and other related matters). There is a history in our presbytery of some attempts at listening as one pastor engaged another pastor several years ago in a respectful dialogue at a presbytery meeting.

The thought we discussed is that since we as commissioners have differing opinions mirroring those of the presbytery at large, our group could model discernment and listening for the presbytery... We will try to docket at least one or maybe two discussions at presbytery meetings prior to any vote. These might be at the November and January meetings prior to a March vote. Depending on how our discussion goes, we might have one of those be discussion around dinner tables by mutual invitation.

I found the Outlook article by Wilkinson and Achtemeier very useful in showing how those of differing points of view can agree at certain points by way of discernment. I’m going to suggest our group read and possibly discuss it... At any rate, know that, although the odds are against us in terms of the vote, we plan to work as faithfully as possible to have a real dialogue and perhaps reach out to some of those folks in the middle who might yet be undecided..."

Some Covenant Network chapters and others are thinking of scheduling speakers or conferences to which they could invite folks from neighboring presbyteries.

And the next time you hear someone say s/he is "tired of talking about the issue," you might point out that the quickest way to get through this controversy and spend more time and energy focusing on something else would be to vote to amend G-6.0106b this time around, so that there’s no need for a next time.

As for the content of all these discussions and conversations, Tricia Dykers Koenig offers a number of resources.

• PCUSA position statements "Presbyterian Understanding and Use of Holy Scripture" and "Biblical Authority and Interpretation." There is also a guided study of the statements, "Using the Bible," Item # 27792101 in the Presbyterian Marketplace.

• Stacy Johnson’s "A Time to Embrace: Same-Gender Relationships in Religion, Law, and Politics," and the study guide .

• Jack Rogers’ Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality: Explode the Myths, Heal the Church; there are links to a study guide from Jack’s blog, which also has a great reflection on "Why LGBT Equality Leads to a More Missional Church."

• "Living Lovingly: Talking About Marriage Equality from a Faith Perspective," from the California Council of Churches.

• "God Is Still Speaking About Marriage," from the United Church of Christ.

• The Covenant Network’s award-winning video, "Turning Points: Stories of Life and Change in the Church."

• "For the Bible Tells Me So," with a choice of study guides.

You might also want to be aware of the recent "Study Guide for Policy Statement and Recommendations from the 1978 Report ‘The Church and Homosexuality’." This guide was mandated by the 217^th GA (2006) at the behest of those who wanted to maintain the 30-year-old policy, and produced by the Office of Theology and Worship. At GA this year, those who opposed the Boston overture attempted to delay the move toward changing ordination standards by encouraging continued study, using this guide. Despite the fact that the material they had to work with – the old "definitive guidance" statement – was flawed even in 1978, the study itself is fairly even-handed. The 218^th GA (2008), in the same action that proposed Amendment 08-B, issued an authoritative interpretation that the "interpretive statements concerning ordained service of homosexual church members" in the 1978 document have "no further force or effect," so the context has certainly changed; this no longer reflects the policy of the PCUSA, hallelujah! But perhaps some of those inclined to oppose the amendment, and reluctant to talk about it, would respond more positively to invitations to study if this resource were used.

Certainly the "B" debate is about sexuality, but it is also about polity and theology and how we are the church together, and we will need to find ways to frame those issues in the most helpful way.

Tricia closes with a warm invitation to all who share these concerns and commitments to join in the coming Covenant Network conference, November 6-8 in Minneapolis.

Setting the Record Straight.....
and Stewardship of the Spirit’s Sacred Gift

by Michael J. Adee, More Light Presbyterians

Dr. Michael Adee

After 30 years of unprecedented discrimination against God’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Presbyterians and their families, the 218th General Assembly took a large step to set the record straight, so to speak.

The Assembly theme, based on Micah 6:8, "Do Justice, Love Kindness, Walk Humbly with your God," became more than a theme or banner. It became the reality and a promise to future generations of Presbyterians of a Church that will not discriminate, a Church for All God’s People.

This Assembly is to be commended for listening to the stories of LGBT Presbyterians, their parents, pastors and friends. This Assembly is to be commended for looking more deeply into Scripture, medical science and the witness of hundreds, even thousands, of Presbyterians in San Jose. This Assembly is to be commended for listening to the Spirit of God calling our Church to end discrimination and to stop placing barriers to God’s call to LGBT Presbyterians to minister and serve in and through the Church.

How did this General Assembly work to set the record straight concerning LGBT Presbyterians and persons in same gender loving relationships? First and foremost, by approving the Boston ordination overture. This "Revise Amendment B" overture, which had been overwhelmingly passed by the Church Orders Committee, struck from our church law thirty years of homophobic policy statements, hurtful teachings and the bearing of false witness against LGBT people. This was accomplished by the Assembly’s issuing of an Authoritative Interpretation declaring that "interpretive statements concerning ordained service of homosexual church members" from 1978 and 1979 and "all subsequent affirmations thereof, have no further force or effect."

The second part of the Boston overture is the proposed revision of the old "Amendment B," which is now in our Book of Order as G-6.0106b, by placing relationships of faith and discipleship in the right order of priority – Jesus, the Bible and the Confessions – and by making commitment to our Constitutional questions for ordination, rather than one’s sexual orientation or marital status, the primary qualification for service in our Church. The revision restores a Reformed theological understanding of ordination and service in our Church, in light of our standards for ordination in the Book of Order.

Inspired by God’s Spirit, the 218th General Assembly strongly encouraged presbyteries to "consider this overture using a process of listening and discernment." This ratification process for Amendment 08-B has begun. You can be part of making history, changing our Church by working for ratification in your presbytery.

I am not alone in believing that Amendment 08-B is a sacred gift from the Spirit to our Church. Thirty years of evidence is clear and irrefutable: these anti-gay discriminatory policies and practices did nothing but hurt people, harm families and divide the Body of Christ in unnecessary and avoidable ways. Our communities, country and world desperately need the caring and compassionate ministry of as many Presbyterians as God is calling to serve. Our Church will heal and become whole again once the categorical prejudice and discrimination against LGBT Presbyterians is removed through the ratification of Amendment 08-B.

Will we be faithful stewards of the Spirit’s sacred gift of Amendment 08-B? I believe so. People in every church, all across our country, are ready for our Church to end discrimination against its very own LGBT daughters and sons. This is a kairos moment in the life of the Presbyterian Church (USA). The next generations are looking to us to keep setting the record straight. May it be so.

The author:

Michael J. Adee, M.Div., Ph.D., is Executive Director and Field Organizer of More Light Presbyterians. He is an openly gay elder in the PC(USA), and lives in Santa Fe, NM

That All May Freely Serve encourages
"1,000 Conversations" across the church, in every presbytery

from Lisa Larges, for That All May Freely Serve
[posted here 10-3-08]

Lisa Larges

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Over the next 9 months our Presbyteries will be voting on amendment 08-B on Ordination standards for officers in the Presbyterian Church. If we do nothing, it’s likely the debates in our Presbyteries before voting will follow the same old patterns: two opposing sides lining up at the microphone, ready to make arguments nearly identical to those that we’ve all already heard. If we do nothing, those Presbytery meetings will be fraught with tension, and one side will go home feeling good, the other bad. If we do nothing, those Presbyterians who have no strong opinion on Ordination standards will have all the more reason to feel frustrated, weary and disheartened about our church and its mission.

But what if we did something?

What if we took this as an opportunity to build up, rather than tear down, to heal rather than harm, to glorify God and experience an outpouring of God’s grace? What if we sought a more perfect way?

What if we talked to one another?

What if one of us had one conversation with another Presbyterian who did not share our same theological perspective? What if two of us had two such conversations? What if there were 1,000 conversations all across the Church, from Abington Presbytery to Yukon, from Hudson River to Beaver Butler? What if we broke bread together, and shared our faith stories, and opened up the Scriptures, and together turned to God in prayer? Would it make a difference?

Why not Try?

We’re launching a grassroots effort to hold 1,000 Conversations across the church and in every Presbytery in order to promote a thoughtful discernment process that will deepen our relationships, not divide our fellowship. Before your Presbytery votes on 08-B, will you pledge to hold a conversation in your Presbytery? Make your pledge at 1000Conversations.org, and join our 1000 Conversations Facebook group for discussion, ideas, and support.

"What about the other 999?"

We won’t get to 1,000 conversations across the whole church unless you help us spread the word. Make sure you sign up to hold a conversation, and then come back and confirm that you’ve held your conversation. Share your reflections on how it went, and your advice for others just starting out. Most of all – please spread the word across the church. Our goal is not to talk to people who totally agree with us, but to talk with our brothers and sisters who hold different ideas and opinions.

1,000 Conversations has been launched by Presbyterian Welcome and That All May Freely Serve , two organizations which work for fairness, welcome and inclusion for all members of the Presbyterian Church, including gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender members. To the charge of partisanship we plead guilty. We do have a particular point of view, and we hope that our Presbyteries will ratify amendment 08-B and open the doors to Ordination to all who are called and qualified. But more than that, we’re tired of fighting. We’re tired of the rancor, the bad feeling, and the mistrust and we’re hungry for something new. We’ve had the great honor of talking to other Presbyterians who do not share our views on Ordination standards, and those conversations have been humbling, gratifying, and transforming.

Maybe you’re hungry for something new too – a church that will be a demonstration to the world of overcoming partisanship by the power of grace. Our hope is that our Presbytery vote on 08-B will give us a new chance to get to know one another, and seek God’s will together. Please join us and be one in 1,000.

The author:

Lisa Larges is the national Minister Coordinator for That All May Freely Serve.