 Committee members repeat old arguments on ordination issue By John H. Adams The Layman Online Wednesday, June 30, 2004 Corrected Wednesday, January 17, 2007
On one side are those who argue that grace trumps the law; that Jesus welcomes all; that what counts are giftedness and not sexual behavior; that a "committed relationship" between two homosexuals is the equivalent of a marriage between a man and a woman; that words and Scripture don't have absolutes but are subject to differing interpretations. On the other hand, Scripture is clear that homosexual behavior violates the commandments of God, who doesn't change his mind; that removing the prohibition to ordaining homosexuals will cause schism and expedite the denomination's membership slide; that Christians in other nations will break relationships with the Presbyterian Church (USA); that removal of the 1978 Authoritative Interpretation is the slippery slope to total abandonment of requiring candidates for ordination to exhibit a certain character; and that homosexual partnerships will be elevated to the status of marriage between a man and a woman. These were the kinds of issues raised by members of the General Assembly Committee on Church Orders and Ministry when they considered five overtures – three to call for a fourth referendum on the "fidelity/chastity" ordination requirement and two to nullify the Authoritative Interpretations that theologically gird up that standard. Here is how some of the committee members weighed in: Norman Wittig of the Presbytery of Lake Erie: "People are using love as expressed by Jesus Christ to be an excuse to include anyone. Christ says the wheat would be separated from the tares. If we continue on a path of inclusiveness, instead of trying to rightly discern the will of God, we will continue to dilute the will of God. The appeal is made that these are gifted people. Some of the greatest heresies have been perpetrated by very gifted people. The appeal to love is the one that concerns me the most because, if we press that argument too far, I am afraid we are going to have to eliminate Jesus Christ." The Rev. Eugene Augustine of the Presbytery of Heartland: "We ought to give some kind of thought to the promoting of covenanted relationship. It would be honoring a relationship between a man and a woman and also be honoring a committed relationship between two men or two women." Shannon Meacham, a theological student advisory delegate who attends Louisville Theological Seminary: "I have hope in chaos. On the day this decision [the ordination ban] is ended, there are trees on the hills that will clap their hands. I believe it is not Jesus Christ who is keeping these walls up." The Rev. Magdy Girgis, an Egyptian-American minister in the Presbytery of San Gabriel talked about the decline of the Christian church in the Mideast. The church no longer has a significant presence in Tunizia and Lybia, he said, "because they compromised theology and the lord Jesus Christ. Turkey had the most beautiful churches, but, because they compromised, they are now mosques. These are physical evidences of compromise. If something happened in this General Assembly, my church will be no more in the PCUSA." Robert Spencer of the Presbytery of John Knox: "These statements have caused people to lose faith in God. My uncle came out of the closet. He lost all faith in the Presbyterian Church. Who is in a position to condemn? Only Christ." Jane Young of the Presbytery of Eastern Virginia, who has a disability, said she cannot enter a building unless someone opens a door for her. "I realize my brothers and sisters cannot open a door by themselves." Katheryn McAbee of the Presbytery of the Peaks: "A lot of the decline in this denomination has been blamed on the fact that we don't ordain homosexuals. Actually, in our presbytery, it's been exactly the opposite." She said the presbytery had lost its largest congregation, which left the denomination because of the continuing efforts to ordaining practicing homosexuals. Brandon B. Rothey, a youth advisory delegate fom Pittsburgh Presbytery, said the denomination's ordination law "is firm guidance for a person of my age on what is and what is not acceptable to a holy God. People my age need this guidance." The Rev. Jim Sirbaugh of the Presbytery of National Capital: "This is an opportunity for our church to move ahead. The Authoritative Interpretations have existed for less than 10 percent of the history of the Presbyterian church in America." Elyse Thomas, a youth advisory delegate from the Presbytery of Middle Tennessee: "One of the things we are taught is that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, not an infallible text. Even though the Authoritative Interpretation may be grounded in Scripture, with the Bible being a living text, interpretations can change." Jennifer Burns Lewis of Chicago, arguing for the motion to make the 1978 Authoritative Interpretation non-binding: "I hope you will strongly and prayerfully consider approving this motion as a way we all want the church to be – a church that is loving and faithful." Creighton Bloyd, a youth advisory delegate from the Presbytery of Mid-Kentucky: "I wasn't aware of the gay lifestyle until my father came out about two years ago. He left our family. I was brought here to represent my church, which is rural, which doesn't mean that we are bigoted. But we do hold convictions. If we do adopt [the motion to nullify the Authoritative Interpretation], the church will be split and many churches like mine will not accept what the Presbyterian church will be doing." The Rev. David Ashby of the Presbytery of Geneva: "I would like to get rid of the AI because it beats up on people, and that's not Jesus' way of doing things." Tom Armstrong, an elder from the Presbytery of Tampa Bay: "We're chipping away; we've taken prayer out of school … I see this as chipping away of the basic tenets of Presbyterianism. I've tried to be open minded, but I keep coming back to the Scriptures. I do feel strongly we should support homosexuals in the church. Give them the love they need and nurture. I respect them as a person, but I am concerned about their lifestyles." The Rev. Bruce Buchanan of the Presbytery of Grace: "I think we are being guided to form a new direction for our church. I think we should dispense with the AI and leave it up to our presbyteries to make the decision as regards to ordination." |
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