Petition seeks special assembly to reconsider divestment issue By John H. Adams The Layman Online Tuesday, August 24, 2004 A Web-based petition has been started to encourage commissioners to the 216th General Assembly to request a special session to reconsider the proposal that the PCUSA divest stock in corporations doing business with Israel. Another Internet petition, which had collected more than 11,000 responses as of Tuesday afternoon, denounced the divestment decision but did not call for a special session of the General Assembly. The denomination has been strongly denounced in the secular and religious press because of the divestment proposal, which views Israel as the guilty party in its fractious relationship with the Palestinians. The petition was posted on the Internet Monday afternoon with 14 signatures of Presbyterians, none of whom served as commissioners to the 216th General Assembly. But Larry Rued of Palmetto, Fla., a Presbyterian elder, said he and others hope the signatures will increase dramatically so that commissioners will see how strongly Presbyterians oppose divestment and ask Moderator Rick Ufford-Chase to call them back into session. Current church law requires that 25 percent of the commissioners – with equal numbers of elders and ministers – must concur in such a request. In 2002, when commissioners sought a special assembly to deal with church discipline and constitutional issues, the requirement was 10 percent. A petition distributed by elder Alex Metherell met that requirement, but was invalidated by then-Moderator Fahed Abu-Akel. The Presbyterian Church (USA) and its predecessor mainline denominations have never had a called meeting of the General Assembly. The assemblies have met annually through this year, with biennial meetings scheduled to begin in 2006. The petition includes an opportunity for signers to make a brief comment about the PCUSA's stance that favors the Palestinians over the Israelis. Rued said he and others believe many commissioners "didn't realize what they voted on. Too many people were asleep at the switch." The petition signed by Rued and 13 other non-commissioners as of this morning says: Whereas, on July 1, 2004 Commissioners at the 216th General Assembly voted (431-62) to direct the Mission Responsibility Through Investment Committee (MRTI) initiate a process of phased selective divestment in multinational corporations operating in Israel, in accordance to General Assembly policy on social investing, and to make appropriate recommendations to the General Assembly Council for action; And, whereas many in the worldwide Judeo-Christian community of faith have been deeply offended and have denounced this action. And, whereas the General Assembly will not have a regular meeting until the summer of 2006; And, whereas the Presbyterian Church (USA) Book of Order provides for Special Sessions through concurrence by 25% of the Commissioners. Now therefore, we, the undersigned members, elders, and ministers of Presbyterian Church (USA), respectfully request the 216th General Assembly Commissioners re-examine the Biblical implications of their divestment actions and re-consider them in a fair and balanced forum by immediately calling a Special Session. We make this request knowing the General Assembly Council, which is charged with carrying out the will of the General Assembly, must proceed with selective divestment. Furthermore, we call for the Commissioners to a Special Session of the 216th General Assembly to limit the purpose to the following order of business: 1. The Commissioners to the 216th Special Session shall suspend the rules for secret balloting and require all votes be recorded in an effort to restore confidence in the representative structure of the governance of the Presbyterian Church (USA). 2. The Commissioners to the 216th Special Session shall vote on a motion to rescind in its entirety the resolution to divest in multinational corporations operating in Israel. 3. The Commissioners shall call upon the Judeo-Christian community of faith and the Islamic community of faith to seek a peaceful resolution of issues that have led to violent conflict in the Middle East region and beyond.

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