'Transforming Families' paper quickly approved by assembly By Paula R. Kincaid The Layman Online Friday, July 2, 2004 2004 General Assembly Richmond, Virginia June 26-July 3, 2004 General Assembly news index RICHMOND, Va. – Unlike last year's commissioners, the 216th General Assembly approved the "Transforming Families" paper – and did it in less than 10 minutes. James H.Y. Kim, the chairman of the National Issues Committee, said the four amendments that were approved during the committee's debate were minor and, he thought, strengthened the report. "The committee overwhelmingly recommends this to the assembly," he said. One amendment was passed by the assembly that changed the word "natural" to "biological" in one place. The assembly's vote was 95 percent to five percent. The family paper first was proposed to the 215th General Assembly in June 2003 by the Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy. The assembly rejected the paper, telling the advisory committee to rewrite it in consultation with the Office of Theology and Worship for theological grounding. It had been criticized by many Presbyterians and sociologists, who said it failed to accurately reflect both current social phenomena and a theological grounding. The re-writing team included representatives from ACSWP, Alan Wisdom of Presbyterian Faith and Action and William "Beau" Weston, sociology professor at Centre College in Danville, Ky. The latter two members sought to uphold a traditional Christian understanding of the family. Charles Wiley of the Office of Theology and Worship prepared a theological section for the paper that was grounded in Scripture and the church's confessions.

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