We go in God's name

This incredible assembly has come to a close. But as our moderator Cynthia Bolbach noted, it is not the end, but the beginning of our work.

We have charted a new course for this denomination and God's work in the world. Commissioners now face the task of sharing the good news of this work and how it can make our congregations more vibrant, active and vital members of the body of Christ.

As I've often noted in my correspondence to you throughout this week, this has been an assembly filled with strong emotions, passion for our convictions and a will to work in unity. The best way I can share with you the powerful experience that this has been for me is through the words of our closing hymn, "The Summons," in our closing worship:

     Lord, your summons echoes true when you but call my name.
     Let me turn and follow you and never be the same.
     In your company I'll go where your love and footsteps show.
     Thus I'll move and live and grow in you and you in me.

May the peace of God be in you and with you and me.

Shalom!

The wave of change is upon us

I realize that I owe you a fuller report about what occurred at the assembly over the last two days, but I have to confess that I hit a wall of mental fatigue after Thursday's significant action.

What I didn't express with my post Thursday was the tremendous wave of change that this General Assembly has unleashed on the body of Christ. Not only did we recommend to presbyteries a revision of the ordination standard to remove exclusive language over sexuality and to send to presbyteries both reports on civil union and marriage, we approved a new form of government proposal and took substantial steps to allow middle governing bodies to make changes in their form and function as they find necessary to improve their effectiveness at doing and facilitating ministry.

Whew!

Ready or not? Divided or united?

On maybe the most controversial issue facing the denomination, the General Assembly was both divided and united.

The body voted by a two-thirds majority late Thursday night to make the minority report part of the majority report of the Special Committee to Study Issues of Civil Union and Christian Marriage, then decided by a narrow majority of only 24 votes to answer all other questions put before it, including a recommendation to approve a new definition of marriage, with that action (an action which means no specific action one way or another). The reports now go to sessions and presbyteries for their study.

These decisions demonstrate two things: The church is united in its desire to continue to study, discuss and wrestle with the issue of civil union and Christian marriage, but divided in its readiness to make a substantive change in that understanding.

New tools for the body of Christ

The assembly took dramatic action Wednesday on two significant issues. First we approved the addition of the Confession of Belhar to the Book of Confessions. Then that night we voted to accept by a two-thirds margin the report from the task force on a new Form of Government. Both proposals now go to the presbyteries for their approval or disapproval.

The Confession of Belhar is one that grew out of the reconciliation process in South Africa following the end of apartheid. It addresses specifically the issue of racial discrimination, but more broadly speaks to discrimination of any sort. Its core message is one of unity. A deeper reading of it within the context of our divisions over social, political and theological perspectives demonstrates to me that the confession will have resonance beyond the issue of discrimination.

Diversity in unity: We are one body

I have just come from a stirring ecumenical service at Westminster Presbyteryian Church in the heart of Minneapolis. It was a service that not only celebrated our diversity as believers and human beings, but reminded us that even with our diversity we live in the unity of the community of God.

We were first welcomed by former Vice President Walter Mondale, a Westminster member. We heard music sung in Spanish, Korean and African. We heard various parts of worship led by ministers from a wide variety of denominations and nationalities, black and white, Protestant and Catholic, Pakistani and Iraqi, Rwandan and Korean.

The Rev. Peg Chamberlin, a minister in the Moravian Church, executive director of the Minnesota Council of Churches and the current president of the National Council of Churches, focused on this message of unity in diversity during her sermon. She reminded us that, as Ephesians says, "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all."

The hard work of committees ends

Our work as committees came to an end today, some earlier than others. In my committee on Middle Governing Body Issues, today was supposed to be a simpler one, but there's always an overture that throws the agenda out of whack. That overture was one dealing with multiple recommendations regarding a special study committee on the church in Puerto Rico, specifically the Synod of Boriquén and its three presbyteries.

The study committee's report attempted to outline all the problems within the synod, which involves a power struggle within the synod leadership and with the leadership of the Presbytery of San Juan. Our committee recommended that the study committee be extended another two years and reconstituted as a subcommittee of the administrative commission on middle governing bodies that was recommended for approval Monday. This would give greater oversight and continued study of the delicate nature of relations within the Puerto Rican synod. But it also would empower the commission to dissolve the synod and its presbyteries should the parties not be able to adequately resolve their differences.

It was a difficult and delicate negotiation, complicated by the constitutional deficiencies in some of the original recommendations which had to be amended to be perfected, and because of our efforts to be fair to the Puerto Rican churches and to fellow Puerto Rican members of our committee.

The big issues, though, involved overtures with the potential to threaten the unity of the denomination over theological differences.

We have a decision

After a couple additional amendments, and voting against a couple of others, the committee on Middle Governing Body Issues finally voted Monday night to approve to recommend an amended item 04-06 to GA on a vote of 38 for, 4 against and 3 abstentions. That's the item that would create a commission of GA that would work at the initiative of synods and presbyteries to help them create more nimble and effective bodies for ministry.

This is a significant step. The amended item now will go before the full assembly. I am already making preparations to speak in favor of passage during plenary, which begins Wednesday afternoon. I believe this could become one of the most significant actions of this General Assembly.