The 'league of 10'
Presbyteries
collaborate against ordination standard
By John H.
Adams
The Layman
Online
Tuesday, March 23,
2004
In what might be described as a league of their own, 10
presbyteries have initiated four baseball-like strategies to repeal or
whitewash the constitutional prohibition against ordaining practicing
homosexuals in the Presbyterian Church (USA).
- 1. The home run. Their highest priority would be to clear
the bases by repealing the constitutional "fidelity/chastity"
ordination standard and terminating the General Assembly's
authoritative interpretation that says homosexual behavior is
sinful.
- 2. The triple. Through a combination of alternative
overtures, they will try to rewrite both the fidelity-chastity
standard – exempting homosexuals in "committed
relationships" – and the authoritative interpretation so
that it no longer describes homosexual behavior as sinful.
- 3. The double. Score at least a run by knocking off one
or the other.
- 4. The single. If all else fails, they'll try to get on
base through a "freedom of conscience" overture that would
essentially allow presbyteries and sessions local option in
ordaining deacons, elders and ministers.
So far, the 10 presbyteries – 5.8 percent of the
denomination's 173 regional governing bodies – have submitted four
overtures and a number of concurrences to the 216th General Assembly on
the ordination issue, according to reports from the Office of the
General Assembly.
The league is part of a shrinking minority in the PCUSA. In 1997, 74
presbyteries voted against the proposed constitutional amendment that
became G-6.0106b. That number dwindled to 46 in the 2001 referendum,
slightly over 25 percent.
But the league has had three years of intensive training and successful
evasion of disciplinary complaints targeted at homosexual church
officers who are openly defying the constitution. They also are
supported in one fashion or another by outgoing Moderator Susan B.
Andrews and former Moderator Jack B. Rogers, who used their offices to
promote the homosexual agenda.
Andrews will do that again at the 216th General Assembly. As moderator,
she has the right to choose the preachers for the General Assembly
worship services. Among her choices is Chris Glaser of Atlanta, a
homosexual activist who has been a leading player in the gay movement in
the PCUSA. Once denied ordination in the PCUSA, Glaser has written a
number of books about homosexuality, including Coming Out as
Sacrament. The denomination's press has published four of his books.
Although he still claims to be a Presbyterian, he is the spiritual
leader of a non-Christian church in Atlanta. Both Andrews and Rogers are
former directors of the Covenant Network of Presbyterians, one of four
activist special-interest organizations that have lobbied for years to
repeal the ordination standard. The other organizations are More Light
Presbyterians, That All May Freely Serve and the Witherspoon Society.
The Covenant Network is the one to watch. The Network has power in the
denomination far beyond its constituency of 326 congregations. (In
comparison, the Confessing Church Movement includes 1,299
congregations.)
The Network has announced its plan to lobby only against the General
Assembly's authoritative interpretation – for the time being. The
group plans to tackle G-6.0106b after the Theological Task Force on
Peace, Unity and Purity gives its final report to the General Assembly
in 2006.
In the meantime, however, the Network has supplied its allies with
resources to continue the battle on the local level, including legal
work that challenges the meaning of key words in the constitution. For
instance, according to the Network, "chaste" doesn't mean
abstinence from sex; it means pure motivations in consensual
relationships.
In addition to the overtures and concurrences, the 216th General
Assembly, which will meet in Richmond in June, can probably expect some
commissioners' resolutions dealing with the issue.
Emboldened by people such as Andrews and Rogers, court decisions on
same-sex marriages and an outbreak of illegal homosexual marriages, gay
activists appear to be more determined than ever to convince the PCUSA's
national governing body that it is time – after more than 3,500
years of Biblical law condemning homosexual behavior – to declare
that the Old Testament and the New Testament were wrong.
To succeed, the league of 10 dissenting presbyteries will have to
overcome what has been a growing resistance movement. About 55 percent
of the presbyteries voted in 1997-98 to ratify what became G-6.0106b,
the ordination standard in the Book of Order. The opposition to
watering down the standard grew to two-thirds in a second referendum
(1998). And in 2001, nearly 75 percent of the presbyteries affirmed the
church law.
All of the presbyteries in the league of 10 have been on the losing
side of those denominational votes. Some of them have openly promoted
defiance of church law and have refused to discipline ministers and
elders who have publicly proclaimed that they are practicing
homosexuals.
The 10 presbyteries are: Baltimore, Des Moines, Detroit, Genessee
Valley, Hudson River, National Capital, Southern New England, Twin
Cities, Western New York and Western Reserve.
Here's a capsule of what the overtures propose:
- Overture 04-04, Presbytery of Baltimore, asks the General
Assembly to schedule another national referendum on repealing
G-6.0106b. It complains that, "Numerous judicial cases have
been brought to governing bodies over issues of ordination from
individuals who are unaware of the calls and gifts of ministry of
those against whom they file complaints. These judicial actions have
cost individuals, congregations, and governing bodies untold time
and money to defend those who have been accused."
- One of those cases involved the Presbytery of Baltimore, which
was asked to take action against Don Stroud, a practicing homosexual
and a member of the presbytery who works for That All May Freely
Serve. The presbytery refused to bring Stroud to trial.
- The Baltimore overture acknowledges that there is a theological
issue at stake. "Through this constitutional ban, G-6.0106b
disregards the fact that a pluralism of methods of biblical and
theological interpretation currently exists within the PC(USA)
concerning homosexuality. Among these methods is the strongly held
belief among many conscientious Presbyterians that homosexual
practice is not a sin per se and that both heterosexual and
homosexual relationships are capable of being either faithful and
life-affirming or sinful and destructive."
- Overture 04-01, Presbytery of Western New York, would revise
G-6.0106b to say: "Those who are called to office in the church
are to lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in conformity to
the historic confessional standards of the church. Among these
standards is the requirement to live either in fidelity within
the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman
(W-4.9001) a covenanted relationship between two
persons where a lifetime commitment is intended, or chastity in
singleness. Persons refusing to repent of any self-acknowledged
practice which the confessions call sin does
not conform with this discipline shall not be ordained and/or
installed as deacons, elders, or ministers of the Word and
Sacrament." (Strikethrough indicates language removed; language
added.)
- Overture 04-27, Presbytery of Detroit, seeks to declare that
previous definitive guidance, a.k.a., authoritative interpretations,
by the General Assembly on homosexual behavior "shall be given
no further force or effect."
- The overture says, "Over the years as various proposed
amendments were sent to the presbyteries, the votes cast by
individual presbyters have indicated that a substantial minority, 40
to 45 percent, affirm an interpretation of Scripture that differs
from the guidance of the 1978 and 1979 General Assemblies. Current
constitutional requirements for ordination have been built upon the
Scriptural interpretations of the 1978 UPC and 1979 PCUS General
Assemblies, and subsequent judicial rulings have stated that
presbyteries and congregations are obligated to follow those
constitutional requirements for ordination. Yet, the Scriptural
interpretation that is used to bind the conscience of presbyteries
and congregations was never sent to the presbyteries for approval.
The preliminary principles of 'mutual forbearance' and 'God alone is
Lord of the conscience' must be given full effect through
acknowledging the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) contains theological
diversity on the issue of homosexuality. Scriptural interpretation
on non-essentials of the Reformed faith is to be entrusted to
individuals as they teach and preach, and to ordaining bodies as
they seek to discern the call of Christ in those being examined for
ordained office."
- Overture 04-52, the Presbytery of Hudson River, would allow
candidates for office and elders and ministers serving on ordaining
bodies to follow their own consciences rather than Scripture or
church law.
- The overture "affirms the freedom of Christian conscience of
candidates under God in interpreting articles of faith contained in
those Confessions, both because the Confessions point to the need to
interpret scripture in accordance with 'saving faith,' and because
the Church as a whole has resisted legalism and encourages
ever-reforming creativity 'when it bears a present witness to God's
grace in Jesus Christ" (C-9.01).'"
- The overture depicts "freedom of conscience" as an
absolute even though both the Book of Order and The Book
of Confessions say that one's conscience must be held captive to
the Word of God. The Book of Order (G-6.0108a) says there are "certain
bounds" for church officers and candidates – foremost,
that one's conscience "is captive to the Word of God as
interpreted in the standards of the church so long as he or she
continues to seek or hold office in that body."
- The Westminster Confession of Faith (6.109) declares that "God
alone is Lord of the conscience," and that there is freedom –
not to disobey Scripture, but from subscribing to "doctrines
and commandments of men which are in anything contrary to his Word."
Westminster continues by drawing a sharp line: "They who, upon
pretense of Christian liberty, do practice any sin, or cherish any
lust, do thereby destroy the end of Christian liberty …"
(6.110)
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