 Moderator Ufford-Chase, minority group disrupts worship service By John H. Adams The Layman Online Wednesday, July 6, 2005
Three security guards hired by the majority stood near the pulpit to maintain peace, but they did not handle anyone roughly, according to a video of the service provided to The Layman. At least twice, Ufford-Chase, wearing the moderator's stole, joined a minority faction of the Torrance congregation in the chancel area and appeared ready to speak at the service, which was being conducted in Korean, but he remained quiet as he stood among the throng and was given no opportunity to speak. Meanwhile, senior elders representing the majority of the congregation, the largest Korean church in the PCUSA with 2,700 members, buffered their pulpit leaders from attempts by Ufford-Chase and others to take over the service. The Rev. Peter Min, a member of the church staff, said none of the younger members of the church were assigned the duty of standing with the worship leaders for fear that they might lose their temper when the minority group began intruding into the chancel area. "Everybody was waiting for something stupid to happen," Min said, who has been ordered by a synod-presbytery administrative commission to "cease immediately your relationship and work with the schismatic (majority) group now occupying" the church's campus. The commission threatened to revoke his ordination if he fails to leave by August 4. There was some shoving, loud talking and milling around during prayers and hymns. Several members of the congregation also went to the chancel area to take photographs of the confrontation – some possibly to use as evidence in an upcoming trial over who owns the Torrance property; others simply to record the confrontation. In all, seven of the sixteen members of the minority faction, who walked onto the pulpit area, surrounded the Rev. Song Kyu Pak, the senior pastor, and repeatedly asked the question, "Are you denying us access to worship? If you say the word, we will immediately leave." Observers said the question was an attempt to "entrap" them into violating a court order to allow the minority faction to attend the service. The TFPC leadership repeatedly assured the intruders from the presbytery, synod and denomination that they were welcome to worship, but not to take over. At times, some of the intruders stood in front of the worship leaders and shouted their own messages to the congregation. Some observers believe the intruders may have violated Section 302-310.5 of the California Penal Code. That law says, in part: "Every person who intentionally disturbs or disquiets any assemblage of people met for religious worship at a tax-exempt place of worship, by profane discourse, rude or indecent behavior, or by any unnecessary noise, either within the place where the meeting is held, or so near it as to disturb the order and solemnity of the meeting, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail for a period not exceeding one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment." Accompanying Ufford-Chase were Margaret Wentz, stated clerk of the Synod of Southern California and a member of the General Assembly Advisory Committee on the Constitution; the Rev. Sung Hwan Kim, a former member of the Torrance pastoral staff; the Rev. Christopher Pae, the stated clerk of the Presbytery of Hanmi; and Paul Kim, the moderator of the joint synod-presbytery Administrative Commission that has been appointed to assume original jurisdiction. The issue in this battle is not primarily theology, but whether First Presbyterian in Torrance, a Confessing Church, will continue its institutional commitment to the Presbyterian Church (USA). Together, the presbytery, synod and PCUSA are arguing in civil court that that the majority of the congregation, by voting 781-144, had forfeited its right to the church's property. On June 6, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Yaffe made a preliminary ruling in the case, enjoining the majority from preventing the plaintiffs and dissident members of the congregation from attending worship services there. He also ruled that the majority could not sell or transfer the church property while the case is pending. But Yaffe ruled in favor of the majority on a number of issues, including recognizing the legitimacy of the session as the governing body and denying the "national" church its request that it be allowed to install its own pastor immediately. All of the rulings are provisional, pending the outcome of a trial. While he has made no final decision, Yaffe did say in the June 6 ruling, "The court agrees with the national church that the local congregation holds its church property, real and personal, in trust for the national church, and that it cannot revoke such a trust without the consent of the national church, pursuant to section 9142 (c) and (d) of the [California] corporations code." However, Yaffe did raise the question of constitutionality of 9142 during the hearing. That ruling seems to conflict with a California appellate court's finding in a United Methodist case that the local church had the right by majority vote to revoke a denominationally imposed property trust clause. The appellate court also cited California corporate law in ruling that a local congregation could revoke a denominationally imposed property trust requirement. The Supreme Court of California let the appellate court decision stand. The minority faction did not repeat its attempt to take over the worship service the following Sunday, July 3. |
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